Chasm

Chapter 17

TOBIAS POV

I sit down at our claimed table across from Zeke, raising an eyebrow at him when I see how he is practically inhaling his burger. When he notices me staring at him with amusement, he glares, confused.

"What?" he asks, but it barely sounds like the word because his mouth is filled. Shauna gives me an apologetic look from her spot next to him.

I shake my head and start cutting into the chicken on my tray. "Nothing."

He swallows and clears his throat when the initiates start filing in and taking a seat at their usual spots. Tris slides in the seat next to mine, and Uriah across from her. Their other friends join them a moment later, and I pretend not to notice, although I am hyper-aware of the way Tris accidentally brushes her thigh against mine when she sits. I nearly choke on my dinner when she does, but contain my reaction.

"So, how are you kids doing?" Zeke questions.

Uriah groans dramatically and presses his face into his palm, his eyes dropping closed. I hear Tris kick his leg underneath the table to get him to wake up and participate in the conversation. "We're fine, Zeke. Just tired," she replies politely.

Shauna passes a soft grin over to her and asks, "Didn't the rankings just get posted?" Ever since Tris stood up against the boys who were bullying her that day in the cafeteria, she has developed a new respect for her, I have noticed. The stigma of Divergent must have brushed off her shoulder when she once again saw Tris for who she really was.

"Don't remind me," Christina snarks. "I dropped like ten places."

"Don't be dramatic," Tris scolds. At Shauna's inquisitive stare, she answers, "Uriah is in first, bumping me down to second. Christina went down two spots."

I haven't had the chance to congratulate Tris on her hard work in competing for her high rank yet today. Making a mental note to do that when we will undoubtedly meet up later tonight, I graze my fingers teasingly against hers under the table. Out of the corner of her eye, I see her bite her lip at this dangerously public action.

"So what's your problem if you're in first place?" Zeke bumps his brother with his shoulder purposefully.

"I'm exhausted!" Uriah fires back. "We haven't had a break in forever. This is worse than the first time."

Tris and I blankly watch the conversation take place. She dares to loosely intertwine our fingers, and I suck in a breath. If anyone happened to glance under the table, they would see us holding hands.

"That's Dauntless initiation, little bro. We've all had to do it."

"Yeah, but you didn't have to patrol in between fear simulations. That's a tiring new addition."

I zone out of their banter when Tris's palm presses insistently against mine. I forgot how much I enjoyed such simple contact; in fact, she is driving me wild.

"You two think you're so sly."

At the sound of Shauna's knowing comment, our hands spring apart, and our eyes snap up to her.

"What?" I ask innocently, concentrating back on my food.

"Did you think nobody would notice that you're holding hands under there?"

I feel the tips of my ears become warm, and Tris's face is tinted pink when I glance over at her. Thanks to Shauna, now every one of our friends knows about our relationship that is suddenly not so secret anymore. Although, I can't blame her. We weren't being too careful about showing affection at the dinner table.