Page 107 of The Sixth Fraction

“I should walk you out,” he says. “It’s almost time for dinner, and . . .”

“Yeah. Okay.”

We’re both quiet on the way out of Dauntless headquarters. We cross the glass lobby of the tall building that sits on top of the Pit, and even though I expect him to leave me there, he keeps going toward the train platform.

It’s dark now, dark enough that the Foxes are probably convinced I’ve been arrested and flunked out of their guild. But the air is still warm, and there are fireflies here and there, dotting the street with light.

“Maybe we can come to an agreement,” I say.

“What kind of agreement?”

“I’ll promise not to try to get you to become factionless,” I say. “If you promise to believe me when I tell you I have my own reasons for doing things.”

It’s something like a peace offering. He stops and offers me his hand.

I shake it, marveling at how small he makes my hand look.

“I know the way to the train, you know,” I say to him.

“I’m sure you do.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “But I live here.” He points to the building next to us.

“Oh.” We’re right by the building’s entrance. “Well. Thank you.”

He nods. He frowns at me, like he’s trying to decide something about me.

“I almost do,” he says.

“You almost do what?”

“Trust you. I almost trust you.”

And then he leans in and presses a kiss to my cheekbone.

I don’t move. I don’t breathe.

“Come back sometime,” he says, before he pulls away. I can feel his lips moving right against the edge of my jaw.

Then he’s gone, disappearing into the building next to us without another word.

Chapter 38

Four

I’m dazed, walking back to my apartment. Once I’m in the kitchen I realize I didn’t actually need to come here, I just told her I did to stretch out the time we had left. So I turn around and walk back to the Pit.

The memory of being that close to her is playing over and over again, not in my mind, but in my body. I’m still breathing in the scent of her—herbal soap and wild air. I’m still feeling the spot of warm skin that pressed to my cheek when I turned to speak into her ear, and the lock of her hair that brushed my nose as I pulled away. My fingers are still prickling with the urge to touch her.

The truth is, though, I’m a little afraid of her. Sometimes when I talk to her everything’s normal. Easy. The way I’d expect it to be, when you talk to someone you like—not that I’d know, since I keep myself apart from everyone but Shauna and Zeke. But sometimes she says things that cut right into me, not because they’re cruel but because they’re true. The simulations get to the heart of people. And that’s what you want to see. Not something I ever would have said out loud, but so true it aches.

“Four!”

Zeke is running up to me. I’m standing at the bottom of the Pit path, and half our initiation cohort is gathered at the edge of the chasm. Shauna is there, passing a flask to Mia, an Amity transfer I’ve traded maybe ten words with in the last two years.

“I figured you wouldn’t come.” Then he rolls his eyes. “Dammit. You aren’t here on purpose, are you?”

I laugh a little. “No.”

“Well, come have a drink anyway,” Zeke says. “We’re toasting Amar’s memory.”