How Allegiant Should Have Ended

Chapter 9

Tobias:

It isn't a very hard decision. Tris would obviously sleep in the master bedroom. It's only right. She deserves it a lot more than I do. She argued with me at first, but she eventually gave in when I told her it was me who bought this apartment for her.

I take the guest room. Since they are right across the hall from each other, I give her a goodnight kiss, and then we walk in opposite directions.

I climb into the bed and pile on the excessive amount of blankets. Winter in this area is not the most pleasant thing in the world. I lay flat on my back and stare up at the ceiling. There are some things I need to think about.

First things first, the real reason I wanted to share an apartment with Tris isn't because it's less expensive and I need to protect her. I was actually almost hoping that we would be closer by living together. And not closer, like being together and having a smaller distance between us. I wanted to take another step in out relationship.

I can't keep being her boyfriend. I won't be. I need to be something more. I need the whole world to know that she is mine. The only problem is that the next step would be marriage.

I think I'm completely fine with the idea, but I'm not sure if Tris is. She's been through so much lately, and I think that if I even brought it up, she would be too stressed out to even think straight. But I can't go with just being boyfriend and girlfriend either, so there must be another way.

I twirl a piece of thread, hanging loose from my t-shirt, until I come up with the most reasonable solution. I'll wait a couple days, maybe a week or two, but never more than a month, until we're settees down and everything is going smoothly. That's when I will propose to her, and ask her to be Mrs. Eaton.

The second thing on my mind is the question of whether or not they have dauntless cake here. I haven't seen one piece since we left Chicago.

I fall asleep, at last, imagining the perfect slice of cake making its way into my stomach.