Disclaimer: I don't own Divergent.

We walk through the abandoned security checkpoint without stopping. On the other side, I see Cara. Her face is badly bruised, and there's a bandage covering her head, but that's not what concerns me. What concerns me is the troubled look on her face.

"What is it?" I ask.

Cara just shakes her head.

"Where's Tris?" I demand.

"I'm sorry, Tobias."

"Sorry about what?" Christina snaps. "Tell us what happened!"

"Tris went into the Weapons Lab instead of Caleb," Cara explains. "She somehow survived the death serum, and set off the memory serum, but she… she got shot. And she didn't make it. I'm so sorry."

Most of the time, I can tell when people are lying. This has to be a lie, because in my mind, Tris is still alive. Her eyes are bright, her cheeks flushed, her body full of power, despite her small size. Then it suddenly occurs to me. Of course Tris would go into the Weapons Lab in Caleb's place.

Of course she would.

Christina yells something, but to me, her voice sounds muffled, like my head's been submerged underwater. The details of Cara's face have also become difficult to see, the world smearing together into dull colors.

All I can do is stand still. I feel like if I just stand here, I can stop the bad news from being true. I can pretend that everything's all right. Then Christina hunches over, unable to support her own grief, and Cara embraces her, and -

- all I'm doing is standing still.


When her body first hit the net, all I could register was a gray blur. I pulled her onto the platform and her hand was small, but warm. Then she stood before me, petite and skinny and plain and in all ways unremarkable. Except that she'd jumped first. The Stiff had jumped first.

Even I hadn't jumped first.

Her eyes were so stern, so insistent. Beautiful.


But that wasn't the first time I ever saw her. I saw her in the hallways at school, at my mother's false funeral, and walking the sidewalks in the Abnegation sector. I saw her, but I didn't really see her. No one saw her the way she truly was, until she jumped.

I suppose a flame that burns that bright is not meant to last.


It's late evening when I'm finally able to muster the strength to visit the site. The sun is steadily creeping closer to the horizon. The light is dim, but I can still make out the entrance to the Weapons Lab.

This is where the bastard shot her. Right in there. Fury rises inside my chest, so intense that, for a minute, I can't move.

I force both my feet forward. I owe it to Tris to say goodbye, one last time. And then I hear it.

"Tobias?"

It feels like my heart just stopped. The voice is too familiar for me not to place it. And yet I can't, I mean, won't let myself hope just yet.

I spin around slowly. My voice is barely above a whisper.

"T - Tris?"

Gradually, the blurry figure swims into focus. Now I can see her clearly. It is Tris. The only girl I've ever loved. She's alive, and apparently unharmed.

A thousand questions spring up in my mind at once, but I figure they can wait. I can't hold myself back anymore. I dive forward, into Tris' embrace. Her arms are like a protective circle around me. It's the best feeling in the world, simply because I thought I'd never feel it again.

"Tris," I choke out. There's nothing else I can say. My emotions are overwhelming me.

"Tobias," she says back. She squeezes me tighter. It hurts, but I relish the pain.

Finally, with extreme reluctance, I pull back. I make sure to look into Tris' eyes, in case she's snatched from me again. Her eyes are still bright, still blue, with that sparkle I love so much.

But there's one thing I need to get out of the way. I've got to make sure this isn't just an illusion, that the Tris in front of me is real.

"How did you survive?" I ask, my voice about to crack. "They said… they said you died. But you're right here. Did you even get shot?"

Tris throws her head back and laughs. She sounds strangely giddy.

"No," she admits. "David missed. Can you believe it? He was in such a hurry to stop me, he didn't bother to brush up on his aim."

"Lucky us," I say, unable to hold in my laughter.

I crush Tris in another hug. And then, on an impulse, I press my mouth against hers. She responds with an equally passionate kiss, tears of relief on her lips.

It doesn't even matter how she survived. We're together again, and that's all that counts.

AN: So yeah, most of the beginning is Veronica Roth's writing, however the last part is my creation. Things will start to get creepy in the next chapter. Stay tuned folks, and don't forget to leave a review!