Infallible

Epilogue

Rae stood at the old washing machine, cursing. Eric had promised her that the laundry room was next on his to do list, and she couldn't wait for him to finish the roof so that he could start on it. Sighing resolutely, she bent over and collected the basket full of clothes and brought them in to the bathroom.
She bent over the edge of the tub as it filled with water, groaning tiredly. Turning off the faucet, she heard the sound of tires on the gravel driveway just outside. Smiling to herself excitedly, she pulled herself to a stand and made her way slowly out of the bathroom and on to the front porch of the little rambler.
"There's the beautiful woman I've been thinking about all week." Eric said as he exited the black sedan.
"Beautiful? You mean, more like giant, colossal and fat whale." She rolled her eyes as he climbed the porch steps and reached one of his large hands out to her swollen belly, rubbing it lovingly.
"Don't even start with that. You are the most breathtaking sight I've seen since... well, since I saw you last week." He smirked at her as she slapped his arm playfully.
"I feel like I've gotten a lot bigger since then." She murmured, leaning in to touch her forehead to his, breathing in the familiar scent of the man she loved. "Don't ever go away for that long again." She pleaded softly, her eyes fluttering closed.
"I promise." He said, lifting her chin to look her in the eye. "And no more jobs period until long after the babies are here. I made sure of it."
"Good." She said firmly, opening her eyes to meet his gaze. "It's much too quiet and lonely without you here."
"I bet you'll be searching for a quiet corner anywhere, this time next year." He reminded her, smiling again. "There will be two babies running around here, causing all sorts of chaos for us."
Rae's heart surged at the thought her and Eric's children running across the hardwood floors that her husband had installed himself, in the home allotted to them by the Bureau of Genetic Welfare the year before. They had spent the first two years outside the fence being studied and educated about the much larger world around their small city of origin. Chicago is what they had called it, a genetic experiment conducted post-war. Eric had been inside those city limits this past week, and she was eager to hear about his return to the place where they had met and nearly died together.
The home that they had been given was small, only 2 bedrooms and one bathroom. Yet, the land that surrounded it was vast and empty. Eric and Rae had continued to work for the Bureau, Rae only resigning after she reached the halfway point in her pregnancy. It was decided that she would spend a few years at home, while Eric completed larger jobs to earn their residency.
"It shouldn't be long now." Eric murmured, flipping one page on the calendar to find the large red circle over the following month's '13th'.
"Nope. Only a few weeks left, if all goes according to plan." Rae agreed, bringing plates full of the dinner she had prepared to their small dining room table.
Her nerves spiked as she spoke, the familiar feeling of panic settling over her. Back in the first stage of Dauntless initiation, she remembered clearly visiting the same terrifying simulation repeatedly. A white room with bright lights, needles jabbing her skin as large scalpels threatened her from above. The very memory sent her heart racing.
Rae sat at the table, cradling her head as she breathed deeply. She was trying to dispel the panic that was rushing through her veins and raising her body temperature to the point where sweat began to gather at her temples. Her heart began to thud against her chest painfully.
"Hey. Rae. Baby girl, listen to me." Rae heard Eric's voice speak to her soothingly through her foggy mind. "It's going to be okay. No matter what happens, you have the best doctors at your disposal. You, and our babies, will be safe and loved."
Rae whimpered at the word 'doctors'. Eric noticed and wrapped his bulky arms around her small shoulders. He was familiar with her fears, and the trauma that she had already suffered at the hands of medical instruments.
"I won't let anything happen to you." His breath was warm on her ear and she focused on that, trying to bring herself back to focus.
"We will be safe." She repeated, fighting the tears that threatened to spill on to her cheeks. Eric had been home for a total of 5 minutes, she had to pull herself together.
After a few moments of Eric guiding her through a few more deep breaths, she was finally calm and ready to eat.
"If anyone can do this, Rae, it's you. You are the strongest person I know. That's one of the many reasons I married you." He reminded her.