Divergent UNIVERSITY ✅

chapter 12

Saturday comes and Tris is pretty excited about going to the football game with Marlene, Shauna, Kenzie, and Christina. They all run around the house getting themselves ready to go. Four made sure that the ticket he got for Tris was with the other girls. These are the tickets that are reserved for the players' families but most of the seats are taken up by what Tris would consider to be football players' girlfriends. The five girls sit down and wait for the game to start.A girl sitting in front of them turns to look at them. She says "hi" to Marlene, Chris, and Shauna. Then she looks at Tris, "Who are you? Which player got you a ticket to sit here?"Tris just automatically figures that it is always the same girls sitting here, so a different face causes some interest."Four," Marlene tells the girl. "Four got her the ticket."The girl looks shocked, "Four? Are you dating Four?"She says this loud enough for everyone in the general area to turn and look at Tris. Tris doesn't know how to respond to this question. She would like there to be that kind of relationship going on, but there really isn't."We're friends," Tris responds."Four doesn't have friends that are girls. Four doesn't even have girlfriends.""Well, we are friends. Do you have a problem with that?"Tris doesn't usually get an attitude like that, but this girl asking questions and talking badly about him makes her angry."Mar, you better tell your friend to relax," the girl says."No, you need to relax. This is Tris Prior. She's on the softball team and from what I see around us there are at least three of us from the team here that would kick your ass if Tris couldn't already handle herself.""Make that four, I'm not on the softball team, but I am her sister," Christina says.The girl scowls and says, "I'm just shocked that Four asked a girl to come to his game. There has to be more than friendship going on if Four has a girl coming to his games.""Even if there was something going on, it really wouldn't be your business," Tris says."Just a little warning, there are going to be a lot of jealous girls around here when they find out that you are here in Four's seat. Every girl that is single in this place is trying to get into his bed.""Well good for them, I'm not trying to get into his bed," Tris says.The girl looks at Tris skeptically and turns back to face the field. The band starts playing the school fight songs and the football team is lead onto the field by Four. Tris can't help but notice how much bigger he looks in full uniform with all of his pads and equipment. She watches him scan the crowd like he is looking for something or someone. There is no way he could find them in this crowd though. She wonders if he is looking for her. She hopes he is anyway.He turns back to the field and puts his helmet on as he prepares to go out onto the field."Who was that girl anyway?" Tris asks Shauna."Her name is Marissa. She is dating one of the defensemen. She had her eye on Four for about two years before she finally realized that he was never going to pay any attention to her. Then she started to chase around the guy she's dating now. Don't worry about her, she's just jealous. Four wouldn't give her the time of day.""Why does she say that there are going to be a lot of jealous girls when they realize I'm here because of him?""Because Tris, Four is quite the catch or haven't you noticed?" Shauna says."Look at him Tris, he's handsome, he's the captain of the football team, the captain of the baseball team, he is the president of Phi Delta, and he's possibly going to be playing some kind of professional sport. Just about every girl here is here for one of two reasons. Either to watch their boyfriend or to watch Four, so when the ladder realize that you're here for him. They are going to be pissed," Marlene explains."I know he's handsome, but are these girls really that shallow?""Not everyone can be as self-assured as you are Tris. Some girls are pretty shallow," Christina says.The Tigers caused a fumble and they recovered the ball. Four goes out onto the field for the first time this quarter.They line up on the thirty yard line and the clock starts winding down. From the stands Tris can see that Four is calling the play. He drops back, ball in hand and looks around as the play unfolds in front of him. He finds his mark and lets the ball fly. In seconds the receiver has the ball in his hand and his flattened by a defenseman. Tris finds out that the receiver was Will when Christina screams and squeals his name.The tigers get a first down and advance down the field. Four drops back for another pass, finding his mark in the end zone. He makes the throw, but the receiver misses. It's second down and ten on the other team's forty-six yard line.Four calls the next play and passes the ball to the running back, Uriah. He makes it seven yards before he is tackled.Now it's third and three on the thirty-nine yard line.Four drops back to pass again and finds Zeke in the open. Zeke runs fifteen yards for the touchdown.The kicker comes out and kicks the extra point and the Tigers are winning seven to nothing.Everyone in the stands is screaming and yelling. Tris gets so caught up in the excitement that she doesn't realize that Four is down on the field. He is lying on the ground hurt.She stops screaming immediately and covers her mouth with her hands. She and her friends stand in silence as the team doctor and the coach run out onto the field to see if he's okay.After a few tense moments, Four is standing on his own and walking off of the field unassisted.Tris lets out a breath that she didn't even realize she was holding. She looks down at the sideline trying to figure out if he's okay or not. He looks dazed but he seems fine.The team doctor sits in front of him talking to him. Probably trying to gauge if he has a concussion or if there is something else wrong.Tris doesn't pay any attention to what is happening on the field, she watches as the doctor evaluates Four. She's not happy that she can't run down there and see if he's okay.She finds out quickly if he's okay or not when the other team punts the ball and Four is running back out onto the field with the rest of the offence.The rest of the game is exciting and fast paced. At the end of the game the Tigers have won twenty-one to ten."What do we do now?" Tris asks."We wait. The guys will come out and meet us out here after they are done in the locker room."The girls sit and wait for a while just talking. Tris, Shauna, Kenzie, and Marlene talk about their softball game tomorrow and what they are going to do tonight. As they sit and talk, a couple girls come up to them."Which of you is here with Four?" one of the girls asks."What is it to you?" Shauna asks."We know it isn't you, you're Zeke's girlfriend.""We just want to know who the girl is that finally got Four to pay some attention to them," one of the other girls says."The only one it can be is this one," one of the girls says to her friends gesturing toward Tris. "The other ones are Uriah, Zeke, and Will's girlfriends.""What is so special about you that he pays attention to you but he won't give the rest of us the time of day? You're tiny and pathetic."This comment infuriates Tris. She doesn't care that these girls have a thing for Four, what she cares about is that they think she is worthless and they think that she isn't good enough for him. Without even thinking about what she is saying she starts telling them off."Maybe it's that I don't walk around looking like a tramp. I don't feel the need to throw myself at guys to get their attention, unlike you who obviously is so insecure that you feel the need to flaunt yourselves to get a guy to look at you. What guy wouldn't want a girl like that? What guy wouldn't want a girl who has probably slept with half the football team? That is the perfect way to get a guy to pay attention to you."Tris' friends look at her shocked. Tris has dealt with girls like this for years and she's sick of them thinking they are so wonderful."How dare you, you little bitch. He probably just felt bad for you because you are so pathetic.""No, I've got more going for me than you ever will. While you're trying to become someone's wife I'll be playing on the Olympic softball team going for a gold metal next summer. So maybe it's that Four likes a girl who can take care of herself as opposed to one who is only about him taking care of her."Tris is so involved with the argument with this girl that she doesn't notice the big strong guy come up behind her. He wraps his arms around her waist and kisses her cheek."Everything okay here?" Four asks.She smiles at the feel of his arms around her. "Yeah, everything is fine here."The girls that Tris was telling off look shocked at his show of affection and go storming off.He leans in and whispers in her ear, "Guess I do like girls that can take care of themselves."She turns and smiles at him. "Great game!""Well, that was fun," Marlene says sarcastically. "So what do you guys want to do?""I have an appointment," Four says. Then Tris remembers that they have to go to the tattoo parlor to get the color and shading done on his tattoo."What do you have an appointment to do?" Zeke asks."I have to finish something. It's probably going to take all evening." He takes Tris' hand and leads her away from their friends."Why are you being so secretive?" she asks."It's not the tattoo that I'm hiding. I don't want to show them yet because you can still see the scars under the tattoo. When it's done I'll show it off for sure."She looks like she understands and doesn't question his decision."I think I'll drive this time. I don't think me sitting on the front of your motorcycle is very legal.""Yeah, but I enjoyed it," he says.She smiles and leads him to her car and they get in and start toward her mother's tattoo parlor."So tell me, what made you defend me like that?" he asks."I don't know if I was really defending you as much as defending myself. They were putting me down and it just ticked me off. They were acting like I'm not worthy of being with you or like I'm not good enough for you.""Well really you were defending both of us. And it is I that isn't worthy of being with you."She looks over at him and looks back at the road. She's surprised at his words. He just smiles at her. "Why were you looking at me like that?" he asks."I just can't figure you out, that's all.""What do you want to know?" he asks."What is happening here? I just don't understand why you would want to be with me when you have girls like those ones throwing themselves at you.""You're smart, beautiful, and talented. What's not to like? And you were right about everything you said to those girls. I don't want a girl that needs me to take care of them or that needs me around all of the time and can't understand that I have other things going on. I want a girl who can take care of herself, who doesn't need me but wants me, who understand me. And that's you."He takes her hand in his. "Tris, I've been trying really hard to keep this just a friendship. Especially since I've found out about what my father is doing. But I can't contain my feelings anymore. I don't want to just be your friend anymore. I want more."She smiles but doesn't take her eyes off of the road. "You want more, with me?""Don't sound so surprised, Tris." Then he thinks for a moment and takes his hand from hers, "I get it."He can't believe he didn't see it before. But now he finally understands what is going on. She isn't interested in him in that way. He suddenly feels like he's going to be sick. The first girl he has ever really felt a connection to doesn't feel the same way."What do you get?" she asks confused."You don't want to be with me. That's okay, I understand."She feels panic starting to build in her chest. She doesn't know what to say so she doesn't say anything. She sees a gas station up ahead and quickly pulls in and puts the car in park.She looks at him not knowing how to fix this. She doesn't want him to think that she doesn't want him because he is all she has thought about since she bumped into him at the party. But when he meets her eyes she knows exactly what to do. She throws herself over into the passenger seat and presses her lips to his.He wraps his arms around her and deepens the kiss.His mind is going a million miles a minute, his heart is racing and every fiber of his being is singing with the feel of her lips on his and her body pressed against him.She pulls away and looks at him. She smiles shyly and looks down."So I guess I was wrong?" he asks."Yeah, I guess you were wrong," she says.She starts to pull herself away from him and back into the driver seat but he doesn't let her go."I suddenly miss my motorcycle," he says smiling mischievously."Oh really, why is that?" she asks smiling back at him."Because on my bike you have no choice but to keep your arms wrapped around me.""Well, we're going to be late then you'll have to wait to get your tattoo finished.""Fine," he says pouting.She smiles and kisses him again before pulling herself back into the driver's seat and putting the car in gear.