New Friends

Part 5

Tobias had a crush on her. The thought hit him hard and fast, startling him with its intensity, especially since they were in a room full of other people and she wasn't even talking to him.

But she was beside him, her hand gently on top of his under the table. She was trying to comfort him, and whether she knew it or not, it was working.

Her laugh pulled him halfway from his reverie. His eyes drifted to her face, watching the way it lit up with her eyes at whatever she was talking about. She was striking, and in moments like this, when she came alive, it felt like every fiber in his body was lighting up with her.

Christina laughed, too. "Lay off, Shauna. Frigidity is in her nature," she teased. Tobias's eyebrows furrowed a bit. He'd missed whatever it was they were talking about, but judging by the way Tris's face flushed beside him, and she wouldn't meet his eyes, it was something she was glad he missed.

He wasn't sure whether or not he should laugh at the bright red on her face. In the end, though, when her eyes widened and eyebrows raised, as she insisted, "I am not frigid!" he couldn't help but chuckle.

Tris turned at the sound of Tobias's laugh. A part of her was glad he was enjoying himself, especially since she'd been feeling a wave of guilt for asking him to sit here with her, but the larger, stubborn part of her caused her to glare. It made him laugh more, and her scowl faltered a bit.

She'd been thinking about him a lot recently. The way he went to so much trouble to make sure she was happy, and the way his eyes held oceans and secrets and pain but also warmth. He had been polluting her thoughts since day one, but this moment was the first time she allowed herself to admit he'd been clouding her emotions, too.

Her hand was still resting on his. She thought about what Shauna had just said. It was obvious Tobias hadn't heard her words, her suggestion. He wouldn't be laughing if he had. In fact, as she looked into his crinkled sapphire eyes, she wondered how he would react to the idea of them being together.

But she chased the thought away. She couldn't afford to think things like that. Their friendship mattered too much to her.

The next day, he had every intention of sitting with Christina and her friends again. If it would give him the chance to see Tris look so happy, or laugh so intensely, he absolutely wanted it. But when the bell rang for lunch, and he followed Tris to her locker, she informed him they'd be sitting alone again.

"I just...kind of want some quiet, you know?" she explained nonchalantly, turning around to face him and leaning her back on her locker. The metal chilled her entire body.

Tobias knew that was only part of the reason, but he didn't press the issue. Instead, he smirked. "Too much Christina?" he teased, landing in step beside her as she moved towards the cafeteria. She smiled, too.

"Something like that," she muttered. In reality, she didn't want to push his comfort level by making him sit there again. And, she admitted, she didn't want to risk him hearing another comment like Shauna's.

She glanced over at him as they walked. He had a small smile on his face, his movements easy and comfortable. She wondered if he ever thought about her the way she did him, but it was a stupid thing to think. This whole situation made her head spin. He was the sweetest, most intriguing person she'd ever met, but she didn't know if the feelings she associated with him were because she actually possessed any attraction or if they were simply there because she'd spent her entire life going to an all-girls' school.

The lack of control she had on herself when it came to him fascinated her. She wanted to see how far she could go, but she didn't want to make him uncomfortable.

So they sat at their usual table, its emptiness not at all helping the curious anxiety building inside of her. It felt like Tobias was a million miles away, now that she wasn't able to feel the warmth radiating from his body, to hold his hand.

Her eyes drifted to his mouth, and she briefly wondered what a kiss would feel like...

"So, I saw Zeke today," Tobias started, breaking Tris from her thoughts. She was grateful for the distraction, and offered her full attention to his words.

"Really?" she asked, "What did you guys talk about?" A part of her wondered if that was too nosey to ask, but her curiosity won out. It wasn't often Tobias started conversation, and certainly rare that he talked to anyone but her by himself.

Tobias shrugged. "He wanted to know if we'd go with the group to see Civil War this weekend. I guess this is the first Saturday where they're all free." He decided to leave out the part where Zeke questioned his and Tris's relationship. As if there was a relationship there.

Not that he was opposed to the idea, he just had no idea how to go about initiating it. And he told Zeke this, accidentally. He'd been realizing he had little self control when it came to Tris, and the words came tumbling out just at the mention of her.

Zeke had grinned. Given him an idea.

"Oh, awesome. I'm excited to see Iron Man destroy Captain America, and for Uriah to bow down and surrender," she grinned, her eyes burning blue flame. It drew out an answering smile from Tobias, despite his slight nervousness. He laughed at her excitement, and the way her hands were now balled into fists on the table, a wild energy emanating from her in an irresistibly attractive way. He was startled by the abrupt urge to press his lips to that grin of hers, but it was not an unwelcome idea.

"Yeah, I can't see how Cap has any chance against Iron Man, Black Widow, Rhodes, The Vision, and freaking Spider-Man." He thought for a moment, then frowned a bit. "Even though it's a different Spider-Man. Again."

Tris laughed at the way his nose was scrunched. Spider-Man would definitely have been Tobias's favorite if Marvel could make up their mind about who they wanted him to be. It was very frustrating to Tobias, and she found his frustration endearing.

"I know. But at least Captain America has Ant-Man," Tris deadpanned. That was another Marvel movie she'd refused to see, but upon watching it at Chris's house, she didn't understand the hype. But that could just be her.

Tobias laughed now, too. Her sense of humor was always unexpected to other people, since she appeared so tiny and innocent. But he didn't see her as that, and he'd come to know she was brilliant, frighteningly so, and that lent itself to the dry, sarcastic humor he'd come to love. She constantly had him laughing with her surprising comments.

"Alright. We can carpool to Christina's. I'll drive," Tobias offered. Tris had driven them the last couple of times, but he had something up his sleeve...

Tris smiled, slightly surprised, but she agreed.

As the bell rang, and she waved her goodbyes to him, Tobias couldn't help but hope she'd handle it well. Just three more days before he'd tell her everything...

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