-Events based off of my ongoing series including The Truth After Allegiant and its sequel, Learning to Trust-

~Written for divergentawards' monthly one shot competitions~

Posted on December 6, 2016 at 7:47 pm EST

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I walk into Tobias and my apartment with the sound of scratching toenails charging at me.

Tobias' dog, Indiana nearly tackles me to the ground with excitement. I bend down and he attacks my face with slobber as he licks my face. I laugh, stroking some of his fur away from his eyes to see their deep chocolate color.

Tobias keeps telling me Indy is also my dog, considering we've moved together now that I'm back in Dauntless and all, but I won't accept that he is. His mother got him for his birthday five years ago now.

It's been five years since I've returned to Chicago.

Four years since I've returned to Dauntless.

I've been either on crutches or in a boot for a knife wound that tore up a tendon in my left leg for the past three years, but just two months ago I been walking on my own; but I still have been babying my leg, not wanting to injure it more.

I look over to the tree that stands in the living room. Tobias desired to buy this fake tree and put it up in the living room and hang colorful plastic balls on it. I had never heard of such thing, but he told me how he would watch the people at the Erudite hospital decorate one every night when visiting hours ended and he didn't want to return home without seeing me after I came out of surgery.

We both agreed we didn't want much of  any colorful things on it, so we stuck to a mainly silver balls that vary in size with a couple of black ones and a few light blue ones.

I walk over to the tree and plug it into the wall, and I can't help but smile. The lights reflect off of the the balls and shimmer.

I look down, noticing that Indy has grown quiet. He is eyeing one of the balls on the tree.

This is why I told Tobias specifically to get plastic ones. I knew Indy would like them and want to take them off the tree.

"No, Indy." I tell him firmly. He looks at me and backs away from the tree a little bit. I bend down, petting his head.

I jump up when I hear the doorknob twist.

Indy dashes to the door and greets Tobias when he enters; attacking him in the same manner that he did to me.

"You're home early today." I say, smiling lightly.

We both work in he Main Building, but he usually comes home three hours after I do. He is one of eight leaders in Dauntless, and I am an Ambassador. He usually works two or three hours a day longer than I do, so I planned to make dinner for the two of us and it would be ready by the time he was home.

"Well, I had an idea of something we could do before it gets dark. It's been snowing all day, you know." He walks over to me standing by the tree and lays a hand on my waist; a gesture that has taken me forever to get use to.

"Happy five years, Beatrice." He rubs his warm hand over my cheek and pulls me to him, pressing his lips to mine.

It's been five years today since I've come home to Chicago.

We pull apart and I wrap my arms around his abdomen, pulling his much larger frame into into my smaller embrace. He holds me tightly as I rest my head on his chest. His head rests on top of mine, and I couldn't feel happier.

We stand there for a few minutes in each other's arms, the lights of the Christmas tree reflecting all around behind us in their own beauty.

"I have a plan for us tonight before it gets dark. Bundle up because we will be outside. I'll take care of Indy and myself."

We pull apart and I smile somewhat nervously at him, wondering what idea he could possibly have for all three of us.

I go into the bedroom and pull on a second pair of pants over the ones I already had on. I also put on another jacket, and then my gloves and winter coat over that. I slip on my black combat boots and walk back into the living room. Tobias just stands up from clipping on Indy's leash to his collar and he smiles at me.

What the heck is he up to?

I follow him out the door, locking it behind us. He takes my hand in his as we walk through the compound and the Main Building to the train stop.

Minutes later, I hear the whistle of the train. Tobias picks Indy up and somehow holds him in one arm and Indy wags his tail, always loving to go on the train.

I run alongside the train, grabbing the ledge and opening the door, then slipping into the train. Tobias is right behind means he moves Indy closer to the door. I grab his collar and help him in the train as Tobias slips in right after, closing the door behind him.

"It's cold out." He comments, laughing lightly at the obvious. I sit down on the floor train, and Tobias sits down next to me. I rest my head on his shoulder, and his head lays on top of mine. Indy lays down and rests his head on my thigh.

"So, are you going to tell me where we are going? Or at least how far away we are going?"

"Nope. I'll tell you when we are getting off." He says, and I can hear the smile in his tone.

He takes my hand in his, and through both my and his gloves I can feel the warmth of his hands.

I saw when we were leaving that it was nearing two in the afternoon. The sun would begin going down after three, and it would be dark out around four thirty or five, so we couldn't be going to far.

According to my watch, we've been on the train for fifteen minutes. I assume that we are going to Amity, considering we have already passed the stops for the other factions.

"Here. We are getting off in a minute." He says, standing and holding out a hand to help me up.

Pushing off my right hand, I manage to balance myself faster than I usually can; a clear sign of my leg getting at least a little bit better.

Tobias holds Indy with both of his arms this time and I open the door, jumping out onto the shoveled platform at the Amity compound. Everything surrounding the platform is completely covered under snow up to my knees.

"What are we doing?" I ask.

"Ready for this?" He says bending down and forming a small ball with the snow.

"What?" I raise my one eyebrow.

What is he doing?

He unclips Indy's leash and stands up. The dog wags his tail excitedly, jumping up at Tobias' hand with the ball of snow in it.

"Ready bud?!" He says and throws the ball of snow.

Indy takes off across the white blanket of snow. Interrupting the soft blanket with a crooked line of small dog feet and scattered snow.

Tobias laughs and I smile as the ball hits the ground and the dog frantically looks for it, digging in the snow and barking at the ground.

"It's a snowball. Here, try it." He smiles at me and hand me one of the snowballs he has made.

I take the cold ball and whistle to Indy. His head perks up out of the snow with his snout white from the snow.

I throw the ball to him and he runs, catching it as it explodes into large clumps of snow in his mouth. He shakes the snow from his face and wags his tail, almost like he's laughing.

Tobias runs into the field after his dog, laughing as Indy runs up to him and tackles him down in the snow.

I hesitate, the cold always bothering the nerve damage done to my left leg. I made sure to wrap it well this morning, but that means almost nothing against the cold.

I decide to go in the snow anyways, taking a step with my right foot into the snow to see my foot disappear in the white fluff.

My foot doesn't sink far, seeming like only a little bit of the snow that must have came today isn't frozen into a solid layer.

I jog across the field to Tobias and Indy and laugh when Tobias picks up Indy and throws him a tiny ways across the snow where he rolls over and is completely white. He shakes his fur, snow flying everywhere and then turns and targets me for his revenge.

I fall back into the snow as Indy barks and jumps on me, licking my face.

I sit up, taking a handful of snow in my hands and forming a small ball like Tobias did. I throw it and Indy dashes off after it.

I flop backwards, laughing as I sink into the snow.

Indy comes barreling back and now tackles Tobias down by me. He then runs off and digs in the snow some more, looking for who knows what.

I stand up, and so does Tobias. His eyes meet mine, and he smirks lightly.

"What?" I laugh.

He flashes me a cheesy smile as he grabs me by my legs and throws me over his shoulder.

"Tobias!" I yell, hitting his back as he runs across the field. My hair that was pulled back in a ponytail now flops in front of my face and I mentally groan when my hair gets in my eyes and mouth.

Eventually he slows down and pulls me off his shoulder into somewhat of a bridal style and swings me back and forth right next to a medium sized hill at the edge of the field.

"Don't you dare throw me down that hill, Tobias Eaton!" I yell.

Indy runs over barking just as Tobias rolls me down the hill, freezing snow touching my face and seeping through my gloves, freezing my wrists. I feel the snow stick all in my now loose hair as I tumble sideways down the small slope.

Once I stop rolling, Indy barrels after me, jumping on me and licking my face.

I stand up and see Tobias heading down the hill in my direction.

When he stands by me, I smirk and push him down, but he grabs my hand and pulls me down with him, back into the freezing snow.

He stands and picks me up, putting me back on my feet.

I nearly fall from my leg clenching up from the cold, but he catches me, grabbing me by the waist.

"I've got you." He says, his voice low.

"I know." I say, pressing my freezing lips to his.

He holds me by the waist, moving his lips against mine, warming them up.

I forget about the pain in my leg, or the snow blowing around us as the wind nips my ears.

All that matters is him and I.

The world could be crashing down around us at this very second, but I couldn't care.

I love him.

"Hey, Tris?" He asks when we pull apart.

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"Hey Tobias?"

"Yeah?"

"Where's Indy?"

Just as he turns around, the brown dog pops his head out of the snow and barks. He presumes to shake, covering Tobias in snow.

I laugh as Indy runs happily around in circles.

"And... I love you too."