How Allegiant Should Have Ended

Chapter 16

Tris:

Soon after the words leave my mouth, his lips find mine. I'm still mesmerized by our entire conversation. I'm engaged! He puts one hand behind my back, and pulls me toward him, deepening the kiss. I wrap my arms around his neck. I never want this moments to end. For once in my life, no one is standing next to me, pointing a gun at me, or trying to chase me because of whatever I did that time.

He pulls me up onto his lap, and I let him. I run my fingers through his hair, and leave them lingering behind his neck.

He is the first to pull away. "We really should get dressed," he whispers in my ear. I look down and notice that I'm still wearing my pajamas. I start to stand up, but he pulls me back down. "But first...." He pulls out the box with the ring - my ring - inside of it. He picks it up out of the box and slides it onto my finger.

For the first time, I actually get a good look at it. It's a thin gold band with a small, square-shaped, diamond on it. On the inside, an engraving reads '6+4'. It's beautiful," I say. An it truly is, but it looks familiar for some reason.

He noticed something about my expression. "It was your mother's," he says. "I added the engraving, but I thought it would be more sentimental if you carried a part if her wherever you go."

"Thank you," I say. "I love it." I give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "But I love you more."

He presses his lips to my forehead and wraps an arm around my shoulder. I play with my ring for a little bit, extending my hand out in front of me and a admiring how it shines in the light. "So, how exactly did you get her ring?" I ask.

He looks at me. "Do you really want to know?"

"Can you blame me? I did get an aptitude for erudite too!"

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you!" he says, laughing. "So, it was a little while before the attack on Abnegation. I got a note from her saying that she wants to meet me in one of the train cars at noon. At first, I was confused because I didn't think that an Abnegation would know how to get on and off a moving train.

"But I agreed to meet with her. I snuck out of the Dauntless compound and made my way to the train. Sure enough, she was waiting for me. We mostly talked about you the whole time." I look down and blush. I wonder if she knew about our relationship?

"She wanted to make sure you were doing okay and that no one was suspicious about your divergence. I told her that you were perfectly fine and that I was the only one who knew about you."

I slowly nod. "So how does this have anything to do with you having her ring?"

"I was getting there," he says. "Before she jumped off, she gave me the ring. She said, 'Tobias, I trust you to be with my daughter. I know you will need this eventually. Please keep her safe.' I think she gave me the ring because she thought I was 'worthy' enough for you. Then she jumped. I kept the ring a secret from you, for obvious reasons, and did my best to protect you."

"That you did," I say. He nods. For a few minutes we enjoy the silence, but then I have to interrupt. "Thank you, for accepting the ring and protecting me. It means a lot to me, and I know it would mean the same to her."

"Your welcome," he says. "Well, with that out if the way, we should probably get ready now."

"For what?"

"I assume you want to tell our friends about the engagement at some point. Why not have a party this afternoon and tell them then. I can whip up a nice lunch and you can contact everyone."

"Okay," I say. "Sounds fun!"

We both make our way into our separate bedrooms and get dressed. I choose a pair of black skinny jeans and a blue silk top. I pair my outfit with dark combat boots and put my hair up in a ponytail.

I walk out of my bedroom and into the living room. Tobias is on the couch again, barely paying attention to what's on tv. He's wearing dark blue jeans and a black t-shirt that hugs his chest. He turns around and smiles when he sees me. "Looking good, Tris."

"You're not too bad yourself," I say to him. I sit down next to him on the couch and begin texting everyone about the party.

"Me: Hi everyone! Party this afternoon. Come around noon. Hope you can make it!"

Christina is the first to respond.

"Christina: Okay! See you then!"

"Zeke: Shauna and I will be there."

"Uriah: Cool! Count me in!"

"Amar: Great. Can't wait!"

"Lynn: Sweet! You guys throw the best parties!"

"Lauren: So excited! Thanks for the invite!"

"Cara: I would be delighted to attend!"

"Caleb: Um, not quite sure yet. I have some things I have to do, but I might swing by for a couple minutes."

I was a little bummed about Caleb's response, but I'm still excited we'll get to see everyone else! Boy, are they in for a treat!