Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The presents are endless.

Unlike Four, I don't need the entire faction lavishly bestowing their affection on me in an attempt to win me over. I'm fairly confident that most know I simply tolerate their existence, appreciate the effort they put in to keep the factions safe, and will kill them if they touch my wife. For years they've respectfully kept their distance, and I've kept mine.

All that changes with having a baby.

It's not anything I'm thrilled with, but I can't do much about it.

The idea of me having a child was enough gossip material to last for months but seeing physical proof of my child was something else. I'd been on the end of some wide-eyed stares, regardless of whether I had Evangelina with me or not. I didn't make it a habit to take her to work, but I had brought her to see Linda, if only to repay her for taking all of Jack Kang's calls for me.

Linda had been utterly delighted, and before I left, she'd handed me a bag of things she'd made. For one terrifying moment, I had visions of Dauntless inspired clothes having been remade with fabric scrounged from Linda's scrap pile. But to my surprise, she was talented, and the tiny sweaters she'd knitted were surprisingly good. They were all different sizes, all black, and all warm enough that Eva wouldn't freeze.

Linda had gone as far as hugging me, then she went off to bring Rylan some cookies she had baked him.

I made it home without encountering anyone else, but that wasn't the end of the gifts, not by a long shot. I'd sat for hours with Everly, patiently watching her open present after present, surprised at what people had picked out. Some had sent us all sorts of clothes and tiny baby shoes in varying sizes, toys that looked far too boring and babyish for a newborn, blankets, pacifiers, lotions and some weird pillows that definitely didn't look safe. The smarter members had sent books. Some more for Everly's entertainment purposes and some for Eva, and a few had sent blocks and stuffed animals.

Then there was Rylan's.

He'd kept his promise to us, along with a vow to staunchly protect Eva with his own life, and he'd had shirts ordered for her.

Tons of them, all black, with phrases like 'Future Initiate' and 'I may be cute, but I'll kick your ass". I had to admit I liked the one that said 'I'm just here for the cake', and I rolled my eyes when Everly held up one that said 'If you think I'm cute, you should see my Godfather."

Rylan had also included a photo of himself, a very formal and official looking one that he no doubt had Linda take. I was mostly surprised by this, since he hated combing his hair and only ever dressed up if he was forced to. Everly liked his gift, and I was grateful she understood him. Not many people would want a photo of Rylan in their apartment, let alone in their child's bedroom. But she put it on Eva's dresser, next to the stuffed dog she claimed to be throwing away. I knew when Rylan found out he would be over the moon with smug triumph, and I would bet it got back to Karl.

The rest of the gifts are more sentimental, though I pretend they aren't.

There are more clothes from the leaders of the other factions, more baby shoes from Max and Arlene –along with an entire packet of medical information for Eva that I still hadn't filled out, and even Quinten had sent his congratulations, along with several frozen meals for us to enjoy.

But the one I hold onto the longest is from Daniel.

It's just from him.

Camille's name isn't anywhere on it, and for once, I find myself thinking he was smart enough to figure out how to make things right.

He'd sent Evangelina tons of things. Mostly all kinds of medical books geared toward children –an obvious attempt to get her to choose Erudite, prettier shoes than Karl had picked out, and plenty of tiny dresses that looked like Everly had chosen them herself.

He'd also sent a photo of himself holding her. It's the one I took of them back in Amity, and his face is lit up in pure joy. I stare at it for a long time, and it seems like ages ago that we'd been there. But my father looks completely different, relaxed and happy, and I find myself unwilling to put it down.

Eventually, I wind up putting it in front of Rylan's picture, so it's the first thing Evangelina sees when she wakes up.

Rather than Rylan's official portrait.

"Aren't you already married?"

Rylan side eyes me while he slides his arm into the dark jacket, then wiggles it into place with a dramatic hop. He stops when Four holds him in place, helping him fix the jacket without destroying it, though Four looks like he's already reached his limit of patience.

I smirk, adjusting my own jacket, because it's only eight thirty in the morning. "I am. Very happily married, I might add. Probably happier than any of you."

"Only you and Four are married." Jason points out, and he buttons his jacket, turning to look at himself while Christian runs back and forth with the manic aura of an initiate who just discovered we sold energy drinks here. "We know you're happy. Four seems reasonably happy. Sometimes a bit exasperated, but I'm assuming that's married life."

"I'm right here." Four answers dryly, and I dare say he's caught on to everyone's personality now. "If you must know, which you don't, I'm very happy. The only exasperation I have comes from why I have to be down here with you guys, trying on suits. I'm not…" He stops, adjusting his own tie while he tries not to look at me.

Because he's about to announce he's not our friend.

If he's expecting us to be heartbroken over this announcement, he's in for a world of hurt.

"I'm mean…. we're not…really…. close…"

"Shut up and fix your own jacket." I demand, and I step up onto the platform next to him. Christian appears briefly, his hair slickly parted and carefully straightened, and he drops off a pair of shoes for Karl to try on. "We get it. But you're still standing up there because it's my wedding, and I said so."

He stares at me in the mirror.

It's a little surreal, a little too simulation-like for my comfort, but here we are. Dressed in formal wear, not punching each other.

Arlene would be very proud.

So would Everly.

Asking Four to stand up at my wedding wasn't on my to do list, so I'd written it in as an order for him, Jason, Rylan, and Karl and signed it with Max's name. I figured he couldn't say no if it came from Max, and he wouldn't think I wanted him there. But in a way, I couldn't imagine that he wouldn't be there.

This thinking was tricky.

It was unfortunate as well. Giving up my beef with him was ridiculously mature on my part, but it felt like the last tiny death of Eric Coulter. Being civil to him meant my old life was officially dead, and while I relished the new one I had, this was the last bit of myself I was saying goodbye to.

I wasn't entirely sure I could. Would I ever look at him and not think something less than smugly hilarious? Would I ever sit beside him, asking for his advice on something and take it? Would I separate him from Rylan when Rylan didn't like the idea of having new security cameras installed in areas that didn't have any and he blamed Four for the idea even though the request came from Arlene?

It was one very heavy task to force myself to realize yes. I didn't have to appreciate him, I didn't have to even like him most of the time, but he was one of us, and there was no thinking otherwise. I looked out for Rylan and Jason fiercely, and I would do the same for him. So would they. If he needed anything, someone to cover for him, someone to keep Max off his ass, or even someone to sit with and bitch for twenty minutes, he would have us. We might not have been his preferred coworkers or neighbors, but we were who he got.

On some subconscious level, I think he understood.

Which was why he hadn't refused, even though any logical person would have probably asked Max if the memo was for real. But he'd shown up when he was supposed to, trudged down here with us, and shrugged off Rylan's helpful commentary that he was looking a little less tan than last week.

"Don't let the lady cut your hair too short this time," I remind him, chewing on the coffee stirrer Everly had put in my drink. I wasn't stirring anything into it, but I think she liked that it made the drink look fancy. Jason was quick to point out they couldn't be recycled, and I was quicker to point out that he could be the one to tell my slightly, honestly very emotional wife right now. "Go see the other girl. The one I use."

"Or go to mine. Last time I was there, I asked for a mullet and she said no." Rylan suggests, and he turns to face the mirror as well. Karl and Jason join us, and we all stand there, while Christian freezes behind us. "I'm pretty sure she has to cut it however I say, but I let her decide. I wasn't in the mood to argue. Plus, I had to decorate Eric's apartment and didn't have a lot of time. I felt like a mullet might take time to get right."

"Thank you for not having shitty hair for my wedding," I snicker at him, and everyone waits as Christian circles us like a shark. He slinks around quickly, not looking at anyone's actual face but examining the fit of the clothes.

"Everyone looks…. good. If I do say so myself. I don't really see any alterations I need to do so all I ask is that you don't destroy these clothes or catch them on fire."

His approval, and unreasonable request, is all we really need.

Ten minutes later, we leave his lair, and all of us head to get breakfast instead of into work. We garner quite a few stares as we sit down, and Four hesitates for only a single second before sliding into the seat next to Rylan. They both have the same breakfast, and Rylan stares at him suspiciously. His expression lasts only a second, and it's gone as he convinces Four to trade him spoons.

I catch the eye of the person at the table across from me, and I smirk at their expression.

It's horrified.

Plainly horrified at the union of men in front of them. There is no missing my friends and me. There is no missing Karl. There certainly is no missing Four, chewing his bacon while Rylan suggests we all get haircuts at the same time.

I suppose it had to happen eventually, but hell really had frozen over.

It freezes over even further, when I head down to the infirmary.

I ignore Molly greeting me, and I walk right to Arlene's office. She's not there, but I do find her walking down a hallway, and I don't give her a chance to say so much as hello.

I shove the paper at her, and I smile. Smugly.

It takes her a second to read it, but Arlene looks at me like I'm both insane and giving her the greatest gift of all.

It's not the latter, for I haven't brought Evangelina down here, but Arlene is too busy staring at the paper in her hand to remember that I even have a child.

"You're getting married? In an official ceremony?" She quirks her eyebrow at me in a mirror image of how I'm looking at her, and I shrug. She could read, and all the information was on the card she was holding.

"So you'll come?" I stare at her, crossing my arms over my chest, fully expecting her to say yes.

I would be lying if I claimed I would not be oddly hurt if she said no. I knew she didn't exactly have a pressing social schedule, and while there was the off chance she'd be working, I had a feeling she'd force Molly to work in her place so she could come to this event.

After all, I was officially marrying Everly Coulter.

The idea was amazing. Brilliant. Entertaining, considering she was already my wife and had been for two years. I had been married to her since the day the idea had hit me, since I sent Rylan in to have Max sign the paperwork, since I decided I didn't want her to ever leave. I had married her for all kinds of reasons: cowardice, lust, out of fear Jeanine would kill her, for my own selfish need to keep the one kind and sweet person in Dauntless for me, out of desperation because I was disgustingly in love with her and had no clue what else to do.

I'd married her because I liked her. Because I wanted to keep her safe. I had married Everly because going about having a relationship the normal way was too boring, and there was nothing more romantic than making it illegal for Everly to decide she wanted to live anywhere else other than with me.

"And Everly knows this? You aren't just having her show up to dinner to discover you've invited the entire faction?" Arlene stares at me from behind her glasses, and she's rightfully curious.

I smile back, though it's incredibly petulant.

"Of course I told her."

Arlene doesn't look like she believes me, and she has every reason not to.

But I had told Everly.

While cooking dinner, I had announced that in two weeks, we'd be getting married in front of the faction. It had never been anything I needed to do, and I'd announced that Everly was my wife in every other way possible. I wasn't planning on having a party, but the idea had come to me one night while Everly was sleeping against me. I had quickly dismissed it, but when the thought wouldn't go away, I had decided why the fuck not.

If anything, Everly deserved it. She'd been through the world and back, had stuck by my side when there was a potential I'd never tell her anything personal, ever, and she'd given me the daughter I never knew I needed. So, while I seasoned our dinner and Everly was standing beside me, I told her we should have a wedding.

She'd nearly dropped the drink she was holding.

The notion of this wedding was too grossly romantic, and she knew it. Her smile was very knowing when I explained that rather than standing there, swapping sappy vows and listening to people sniffle at how much we loved each other, it would be a party.

A party where everyone knew how much I loved Everly and Evangelina, how I would murder anyone who dared hurt either of them, and how I, Eric Coulter, had won Everly over with my charming disposition.

Rather than doing any actual work, I had sat with Jason and Rylan to plan this event. They both were ecstatic to learn what I wanted to do, and eagerly jumped into their roles as wedding planners. They quickly put together a menu that would test Quinten's culinary skills to the max. I was forced to pay more than I wanted, but it would be worth it.

When Quinten showed up to confirm the menu, he quickly put in his two cents, and we agreed that this formal dinner would be followed by dessert. He had grand ideas of a towering cake made of chocolate and rich, dark frosting, and I reluctantly told him we'd also have to order some cupcakes from Everly's friends. He'd looked annoyed, but I told him they'd probably be inedible, and everyone would choose the cake anyway. Jason and I picked out an expensive wine and a champagne that Rylan seemed to drink like water, and we'd all agreed this would be one hell of a party.

We'd skip any dancing or cheesy music, and instead, end the night on the roof. To make sure this party still felt like it was being held in Dauntless and not Daniel's apartment, I paid for an open bar and for the weird kid by the gates to make me some fireworks.

Everly had blinked at this news, and her lips had turned up. I could tell she liked it, lured by the thought of a night of fun with our friends in our honor, because no matter how I explained it, it still held the tiniest bit of romanticism to it. Everly agreed, then glanced up at me, curiously, and asked who was invited.

I smirked at her.

I had to admit, the guest list was a little out of control.

This wasn't entirely my doing. Formal etiquette for Leaders, while rarely enforced in the Dauntless faction, required that I invite certain political figures needed to maintain peace. Apparently, none of them appreciated that I'd gotten married without involving any of them, so I was forced to invite them this time around. It didn't hurt that this gesture reeked of goodwill and would help unite everyone. After the Evelyn fiasco, this was worth celebrating. Bringing everyone together to celebrate these moments of quietness looked good for me.

I also told Everly I had invited our friends.

Our family.

I had invited Harrison, who took my invitation like it was on fire and practically knocked me out of the way to sprint past me.

I was hand delivering the rest, and I assumed Arlene would feel downright honored.

Which is why her sigh is a little insulting, and I suddenly wonder what happened to my biggest supporter in Dauntless. There is a long moment of uncomfortable silence, in which I wish I'd never come down here, and it lasts painfully long.

"Fine. I'll give your seat to Quinten's wife." I snap, and Arlene finally looks at me.

"Eric…I'm proud of you. Three years ago you would have told me to fuck off if I said you'd one day have a wedding." She smiles, and I dare say she looks a little too emotional for my liking. It's unlike her, and I figure she must be drunk.

I roll my eyes, focusing on the chair beside her. The infirmary is quiet, and I'd caught her in a rare moment of inactivity. This was my first mistake. There was no one to save me from her, and I should have known better.

"Eric…"

"Are you going to try and hug me again?" I step away from her warily, but I'm not quick enough.

Arlene does hug me, fiercely. She mumbles that of course she'll be there, and of course, she's thrilled for me. She also hisses that she needs to see the baby, as well as Everly.

She pulls away as she says the last part, cheekily informing me that unless I wanted another baby real soon, Everly better come see her for some birth control.

I make the decision to tell Everly what Arlene brought up.

It goes about as well as to be expected.

Her aversion to Arlene is pretty natural; she knows Arlene is nosy, and there's no doubt she just wants to see Everly and the baby. But when I say the words birth control, Everly's eyes widen in a way that tells me birth control is the last thing she's thinking about. But Arlene had a point.

I'm reminded that eventually, I will get to have sex with her again, but I wasn't exactly hoping for another child in the next ten months.

Evangelina was more than enough for me.

At some point, I'm sure the subject would come up. Whether by accident or by Everly deciding that Eva wouldn't fare well as an only child, we would have to figure out if we wanted another baby. It wasn't that I was completely opposed to the idea. I'd grown up as an only child and there were a few moments when having a brother might have softened the blow of having two parents who weren't very invested in our lives. But I also relished my silence. I enjoyed my own company, I enjoyed the quiet that Everly and I shared, and even Eva seemed to appreciate it.

This fantastic dynamic would be ruined by the addition of another child who would be less amazing than Eva. I couldn't imagine anyone else living up to her legacy, even if she was only a few weeks old.

Which was why I smiled cheekily at Everly, and told her Arlene was waiting for her.

He finally shows up.

I open the door slowly, not expecting anyone to be there, but there Harrison is. He's not exactly smiling, nor does he look like he's about to tell Everly anything. He greets me slowly, like it's taken everything in him to come here.

"I just came by to say hello."

He's polite, and completely unlike Harrison.

I wait for some smart remark or a quip in my direction about the baby or Everly, but there is none. He shoves his hands in his pockets and patiently waits while I go get them.

"I'll be right back. They're…almost done."

I find Everly and Eva in the bedroom, both scowling, and my stomach tightens unpleasantly when I realize this might not be the ideal time for them to be meeting.

"She's…really fussy for some reason." Everly informs me, struggling to hold Eva and fix the strap of her dress. She must have just been feeding her, and Eva doesn't look very happy when I take her from Everly. "Is someone here?"

"Harrison came by. He wants to see her."

These words stick in my throat, but Everly doesn't notice. She fixes the top of her sundress and slides off the bed.

"Oh. I think she's tired but it's too early for her to take a nap. I'm not really sure what's wrong, but she didn't want to eat, either." Everly reaches for my hand, sliding her fingers through mine, and she follows along to the living room. She smiles when she sees Harrison, and he barely smiles back.

It looks insulting. I can see the confusion on Everly's face as to why he's not exactly thrilled looking, but I know why. In fact, now would be the perfect time for him to sit down on the couch and very gently tell Everly he's meeting his granddaughter for the first time. I could make them both some coffee, I could let them talk for a while, and I could explain that this would all be fine.

Eden would be happy, Everly would get a chance to have her father in her life, and Eva would have two Grandpas to look out for her. I wasn't sure when this became my immediate thinking, but it's gross enough that I grimace.

I grimace again when Harrison takes Evangelina in his arms and she screams bloody murder.

Everly's eyes widen, right along with Harrison's. He looks horrified, and he stands there, frozen in place.

"Ohhh, I think she's tired. It's not you!" Everly promises, trying to fix the situation with this quick excuse. Though it might be true. She looks concerned, and her eyes are glued to Evangelina. I can feel the awkwardness of it all, including when Harrison takes a step back, and I know he's not about to tell her anything.

"Here," Harrison hands her back, but not before taking a long look at Eva. Her face is bright red, scrunched up as she screams, and when Everly takes her from him, she keeps crying. I know right then and there she is tired, but it doesn't make this any better. "I should go, anyway. I just wanted to come by and see her. I don't want to keep either of you."

"Are you sure?" I ask, and I could scream right along with Eva.

Harrison's shoulders slump downward, and I want to tell him he's caught her in a rare, overtired moment. That she normally doesn't scream like this, and it's not him.

But he smiles at me, with one piercing look that tells me not today, and I nod.

Harrison leaves a second later, and Everly stares up at me in confusion.

"Am I…am I missing something here?"

I blink at her, fully prepared to tell her yes, she most definitely is and here's the truth, but she shakes her head.

"Maybe I missed a growth spurt or something. Or maybe she's not feeling well." Everly frowns, then sighs. "I'll go lie down with her. Tell Harrison I'm sorry."

She turns to take Eva back to the bedroom, and she misses my nod.

She also misses the pained expression on my face that this was most certainly not how I wanted this meeting to go.

Karl isn't quite so cheerful in our next meeting.

His smile is there, but it's torn between being thrilled he's been asked to formally take over for Harrison and pissed off that he's being asked to put his wedding on hold.

"Thank you for the offer, Sir." Karl smiles again, sitting next to Four, and he looks at me.

Next to me are Jason and Rylan, and beside them is Max. Harrison is standing beside the table, staring at his phone. If I didn't know him better, I'd say he was entirely uninterested in this meeting. I'd go as far as to say he was fucking around, probably ordering a new outfit to camouflage himself in the woods, or perhaps purchasing his own fleet of Dauntless trucks to drive around Amity.

Having gotten to know him, I realize he's avoiding this altogether.

There's no insult in Karl being asked to take his place. Karl had proven to be a model soldier, and he'd trained with Harrison. A lot. More than any of us had. They worked incredibly well together, and there was a chance Harrison had pushed for Karl to be his replacement.

It was the reality that it was all happening now, today, that left him looking a little disenchanted with all of this. I know he's only biding his time here until he can leave and be with Eden, and this is trivial, busy work that keeps him here. I can see it on his face, that he wasn't as entirely invested in who took his place as Max was, and if they'd announced it was Henry, he'd have shrugged and gone on his way.

"Of course, I accept. I just uh…when are you thinking? I'll have to tell Charlotte." Karl grins when he says her name, and Rylan and Jason look at each other.

In addition to being a model soldier, an ideal Leader in Training, an oddly charismatic trainer, and our next, promising Leader, he was a fantastic boyfriend. We all knew he and Charlotte were fairly obsessed with each other, and they had stellar communication. They rarely fought. He thought of her first and often, like she was so much a part of his life that it would be stupid for him to do anything but.

"Soon. Just…after your promotion. Harrison will turn everything over to you." Max folds his fingers over each other, resting his elbows on the table. "Eric is having his…official wedding to Everly and we don't want either of you to feel cheated. Maybe a month out from that? It's imperative that this time around all Leaders follow the proper protocol when getting married. The other Leaders would like to attend, as well as your family. I know this doesn't seem…necessary, but it is. Especially now."

"Sure," Karl accepts his bargain easily. He grins at me, knowing I'd married Everly without following any sort of antiquated faction-wide protocol, then he looks at Max. "You want me to work with Harrison for a few weeks? I can do that when I'm not downstairs with Four."

Everyone turns to look at him, and Rylan smiles at me, and I know he's about to say something insulting or stupid that he thinks will be hilarious.

It wasn't that he was jealous, but he was aware that Four and Karl got along very well. It might have been because Four had trained Karl, or maybe because Karl was the kind of person who everyone liked, but since Everly had yet to return, it was those two. Once Four had finished his leave, he had returned to train the initiates one final time. I happily let him take back over, since I'd mostly been having Karl run it anyway.

"That's fine," I bark, wanting to end this meeting sooner rather than later. "I think we're all in agreement that Karl is the best person for the job. You can have your wedding in six weeks. Is everyone in agreement?"

Everyone in the room nods, except for Harrison. He's still looking at his phone, and he only looks up to smile tightly at Karl.

"I was going to say I also agree," Rylan interrupts, and he leans back in his seat, propping his boots up on the table. "And if anyone needs my help, I will not be getting married so I have plenty of free time."

"Don't lie," Four answers, shoving his boots off the table so they aren't on his agenda. "I asked for your help the other day and you said you were busy writing some speech."

Rylan snickers, not even offended that Four just called him out. "Fine, that's true. I can help once I'm done with my speech. Karl, congratulations. I've always liked you."

"Thanks," Karl looks a little more cheerful now, and I notice Harrison looking at me. A second later my phone vibrates, and I see he's sent me a message. I swipe to read it, and I nod as Karl picks a new date for his wedding.

His message tells me he's planning on talking with Everly soon, and Eden has agreed it's time.

I expect to feel relieved at this news, but I find myself wondering if Everly will be furious that I never told her.

I have the sudden sinking feeling she will.

The feeling continues when I'm late to meet Everly.

Our meeting runs over thanks to an argument between Max and Four over who should stand on the roof next time the initiates showed up. I'd long given up the job of greeting them there. I found no real reason for me to be the first person they saw when they showed up, and I had no desire to waste my time waiting for them to jump.

I'd delegated the position to Four and he wisely was delegating it to someone else. It could technically go to Karl, but Max assigns Rylan to do it, and I smirk at the thought of him being the first person anyone met when they came to Dauntless.

I don't think about this long; I head out quickly, telling Rylan I'll meet him for lunch and Karl good luck with the rest of his class. I take the stairs, avoiding the main walkways and elevators, and I revel in the silence of being alone with only my thoughts. For once, they aren't so pensive or tortured. While I'm sure there were some people in Dauntless who were still upset over not being introduced to Eva, the most important people had met her.

Jason was still afraid of her. He didn't like that she was tiny and couldn't hold her head up, and he offered to come back when she was older. He later told me he was very happy for me, and very happy that birth control was invented because he and Meghan were never having a child.

Rylan and Karl were fine. Karl had spent plenty of time in the daycare with small children, though none this small. But he wasn't afraid to hold Evangelina, nor was Charlotte. In fact, they both looked a little too enthused while holding her, even reluctant to give her back.

Rylan, still the number one godfather, was more than fine. He checked on his picture in her bedroom, moving the photo of Daniel behind it, and he made sure her bed was safe enough for her to sleep in. I had laughed at that, not bothering to inform him she rarely slept in it.

There were others who had met her briefly, and it hadn't gone quite as well. She was terrified of Quinten, but probably because he was terrified of her. He might have gotten along great with his instant family that Harrison had given him, but a newborn baby wasn't something he had any experience with. He left after a quick congratulations and an offer for more meals if we needed them.

There were a few others who would eventually want to see Eva, but for now, I was content with how things were going. Everly had brought her along to meet Arlene, and I can only imagine the thoughts Arlene had. A baby was something she had been gunning for since Everly arrived, but a tiny baby who looked just like Everly was enough to push her over the edge.

I turn the corner sharply, wondering if Arlene would really give Everly her shot, and I catch sight of Everly walking out of the room with Eva in her arms. She isn't paying attention at all, and before I can say her name, she turns and crashes right into me.

"Sorry, I thought you saw me." I mutter, grasping her arms and rubbing where she'd crashed into me. I steady the two of them, and Eva blinks up at me, smiling in what I hope is recognition. "I thought I'd surprise you and take you both to lunch since you're done at the doctor. Did everything go okay?"

"It went fine. Everything with Dr. Denten was really good, Arlene was surprisingly normal, and she seems happy to give Evangelina her shots." Everly looks up at me, and I take in her long, tangled hair and the pieces that are falling into her eyes. She looks happy, and I know that Arlene must have been unusually civil. "She said she liked her name."

I glance over her head, rolling my eyes at the thought that she even had an opinion on the name. "Oh good, I'm glad we have her approval. Are you hungry?"

"Starving. Are we going to Clyde's again?" Everly asks. She reaches for my hand once I take Evangelina from her, and I slide my fingers through hers.

"Rylan and Christina are heading that way and they invited us if you'd like to go. I told them I'd find you, and we'd be a few minutes late. They didn't care. Rylan wants to see her." I tighten my grip on her hand, liking the way hers feels in mine.

"That's fine with me," Everly grins, and together, we leave out of the infirmary. She hesitates only once, glancing back quickly.

I don't have to turn around to know what she'll see.

I'd already caught sight of Arlene standing there, watching us with one giant, satisfied smile on her face.

On Monday, we attend a cake tasting.

The best part of it is that we get free cake while no one else does. Even though it's early in the day, it's late enough that no one notices as all of us leave our offices. Me, Jason, Rylan, Karl, and Four. Four comes along with us like he's being marched to his death, but I know he appreciates being involved.

We still weren't friends.

He had made that very clear.

Rylan had made a graph showing how good of a friend each of us was with each other, and Four ranked dead last. He didn't appreciate this chart, nor Rylan's speech on how Four had plenty of time to catch up, and all this was because I had told Rylan I was meeting Quinten to try the cake and he asked to come along. He insisted, claiming that as Head Godfather, this was part of his job.

It wasn't.

But I didn't have the heart to tell him that, so I told him to calm down. Quinten had wanted to try something out with his baking, and I had agreed I would come down and see what he'd been working on. I wasn't big on dessert, but I knew this would be an important part of the wedding, and Everly certainly liked cake.

But when I called her to see if she wanted to go, she told me Eva had just fallen asleep, and the tiredness in her voice told me she was about to fall asleep as well.

So I asked Rylan to come with me.

He asked Jason.

Jason asked Karl.

And Karl, being the nice person he was, invited Four.

I didn't care, really. None of us had any real work that had to be done today. The initiates had a day off. Max and Arlene were overseeing a shipment from Erudite that contained the serums for the simulations. All security alerts were quiet, all trackers were quiet, and short of Johanna emailing to tell us that no more chickens had died, the only thing we really had to do was make sure everything in Dauntless was running smoothly.

It was.

That was how all of us wound up here, in the kitchens, patiently waiting while Quinten cut up a section of the cake he'd made. He glared at our group, having only expected me and one other person, but we ignored him.

"Here. I wasn't expecting so many of you to show up." Quinten grouchily passes out the cake, handing everyone a huge slice. "At the most, I was expecting Eric and Everly."

"She's sleeping so we came to help Eric," Jason answers, taking a bite of the cake. He chews it quickly, then washes it down with his cup of sugar with a splash of coffee mixed in. "I have to say, that cake was …. very sweet."

"Yeah, so is your Frappuccino. Maybe try some water with it." Quinten dryly remarks, wiping the knife off on the cake platter, then pointing it at all of us. "This is a new recipe. I like it better than the other kind. I don't care for any of your commentary other than Eric's, unless you're paying."

"It's good," Four answers, and I smirk at the thought that he'd probably have a sugar crash this afternoon and fall asleep at his desk. "Really good."

"I agree," Karl announces, taking a seat on the counter. He finishes his piece in a few bites, then reaches for the drink Quinten hands him. "The best you've ever made. I'll order one for my wedding when it gets closer."

"Thanks." Quinten looks as thrilled as he could be, despite not wanting anyone's opinion but mine.

I swallow down the bite of cake I'd eaten, and I find myself nodding.

It was sweet, but Everly would like it, and that was all that mattered.

On Tuesday, I head home from work early.

I'd grown bored with checking my emails, bored with listening to Rylan and Jason argue over who could run down the hallway faster, and bored with Four seeing if I was as bored as he was.

Really, no one was complaining. The silence over the factions was great. It was a huge relief after everything that had gone on, and I willingly accepted it. I relished in it. I took a nap in my office with my feet on my desk. I had a blissfully empty inbox except for Jack Kang demanding a picture of my child. Even Max was respectably silent, helping Harrison finish up whatever he needed to do before he left.

But halfway through the day, I'd had enough. I said goodbye to everyone, telling them I'd see them tomorrow, and I walked home quickly. I took the stairs two at a time, and I waltzed through the door to the wide eyes of Everly and Eva.

It's obvious neither are expecting me, and Everly's expression tells me she's thinking the worst. The lack of attacks was nice, but we all knew that the silence sometimes hid what was coming. The way Everly looks up at me tells me she fully expects me to announce the real war has started, and it's being led by Marcus and his factionless rebellion.

But I wasn't.

I just wanted to come home and be with them.

I change out of the heavy uniform, happily stripping down to my shirt and boxers, and I pick up Eva on my way out of the bedroom. Everly smiles when I sit down on the couch with her, and I realize she's been folding her clothes. Eva's wardrobe has slowly grown from only pink things, to quite a few darker pieces. I watch as Everly holds up a soft, frilly looking sundress, followed by a pair of pink leggings. They are still smaller than I'd like, but I've come to accept that I don't think she's going to wind up being very tall. I turn my attention back to Eva as I sink against the cushions, and she grins up at me. Her eyes focus on me, hers just as light as mine, and she looks delighted that I'm home.

That's another odd feeling; being wanted or missed, especially by someone so small.

She grows bored with me holding her upright, but she laughs when I mockingly hold out her arms, like she's performing a jumping jack. I bounce her up and down, and her eyes light up and she lets out one happy giggle.

I do it again and again, far more carefully than I would ever think I was capable of. She seems to find it absolutely hilarious because she shrieks in utter delight.

"Come on initiate. Ten more," I teasingly command her, making her jump higher. I half expect Everly to tell me to stop, but Eva keeps giggling, and it's suddenly hard to breathe. My chest feels oddly tight, in a much different way than I've ever experienced. The feeling stays that way for a moment, weaving itself through my lungs and taking hold, until I smile at Eva like she's smiling at me.

Our initiation practice continues long past Everly's laundry folding, until Eva has had enough. She scrunches her face up in a pouty expression, and I know she's done. A second after I pull her against my chest, her eyes shut. It's clear she's worn out from her workout, and she passes out for her nap without any protest.

I sit there with one hand on her back, and I smirk.

She most definitely was a miniature version of Everly.

A day later, the entire world comes to a grinding halt when Harrison tells Everly the truth.

It wasn't just him telling Everly what had been going on, but Eden as well. I open up my apartment door with my arms full; Rylan and I had gone down to the market for a few final things for the wedding, and we'd left Everly and Eva sleeping. I wasn't expecting to come home to any visitors and it felt like the perfect time to find one final present for Everly.

So when I kick the door open with Rylan right on my heels, I get the surprise of my life to see Everly sitting on the couch next to them, clutching Eva like she's afraid to move.

Her eyes find mine immediately; wide and green, and they flash with something I've rarely seen from her.

Anger.

Pure and heavy anger.

"How long have you known?"

Everly stands before me, dripping wet from her shower. The water runs down her hair, down her neck, and drips from her collarbone onto the dark bath towel. She'd stood before me like this once before, years ago, in her own bathroom. I had been unable to look away from her, even back then, because I'd never seen anyone like her.

It's the same way now.

I know she's furious, and rightfully so. But Everly's anger is different than mine in every way, and rather than scream at me or throw the lamp at my head, she'd simply handed me Eva and went to take a shower. She left everyone in the living room looking at me, and I could only stand there with an expression of utter disbelief.

I had wanted him to tell her, but I was hoping it wouldn't change things.

From the way she slipped past me, staring straight ahead, I had a feeling it might.

After a moment of silence, I sat there with Harrison and Eden, holding my daughter against my chest, and I sunk down on the couch next to them. For a solid moment, no one spoke. The only sound in the apartment was Rylan awkwardly muttering 'oh shit' before he bolted for the front door, and Everly turning the shower on.

"I take it this did not go so well."

I sat there with Eva, fighting down the urge to storm into the bedroom and find Everly. I had a million defenses ready to try and explain what had happened, but suddenly, none of them felt like they held any weight. She had to be pissed at me as well. I had kept this secret from Everly just like they had. While my intent had been good, it wouldn't have felt good to her.

None of that mattered now.

"She said she needs some time to think about it." Eden answered, and she reached for Harrison's hand. She leans into him, her dark hair braided to the side and her dress bright against his black uniform. She didn't look upset or worried, mostly patient, like she knew this would turn out just fine.

I didn't share her confidence.

Especially now.

"Where's Evangelina? Did you leave her out there? With them?" Everly asks slowly, and her eyes pierce mine. When I don't answer, she looks past me, unmoving, and I find myself wishing she'd yell at me. Scream at me. Push me back a step. Anything other than this.

"Your mom and…" I pause, and Everly's eyes darken when my lips turn up in an attempt to soften her stare. "Harrison have her. They took her to Clyde's to eat dinner. I told them we'd maybe join them if you felt up to it. He really wanted to show your mom all the things he's dragged back here and mounted to the walls."

Everly does not smile.

Her gaze falters from my own, falling to the side of me, where I'd once stood behind her at the sink and let my fingers dig into her hips.

"Were you ever going to tell me?"

She still doesn't look at me, and I know she's giving me an out. She thinks if she stares at me, she might not get the truth, so she's looked away. She has me all figured out. It's always been easier to drag these answers out of me when we weren't face to face and she was the first one to realize this.

That isn't what I want.

We've come too far for her to look away in hopes that I'll be honest.

"Everly…I wanted to tell you. I've known for a while. Longer than I'd like," I step closer to her, and her head tilts back to me. "I figured it out after…after he helped me look for you. He kept dropping these hints, like these little clues for me to put together. It took me longer than it should have. I was too busy being pissed off that I couldn't figure out how he knew so much. How he…he was always faster than I was. He never gave up looking for you. But I eventually put the pieces together. I saw…proof."

"He told me," Everly answers, but her voice isn't quite as even as it was before. "He told me he helped you find me when no one else believed you."

"He was willing without question. I wasn't so…generous when it came to believing him. I thought he was joking about being with someone in Amity," I step even closer, until she's right in front of my chest. Her hair is wet and blacker than ever, and she smells like our shampoo. "I thought he was fucking with me. I finally figured it out one day and when I asked him, it took him a minute to confirm it. The only reason I didn't tell you was because he asked me not to."

She blinks.

There's a slight tremble to her, like she doesn't know whether she should laugh or cry. My own fingers twitch; I want to reach for her, but I feel like I can't. She's just standing there, her green eyes glued to mine, and her eyes look wet.

"It wasn't…it wasn't something…I wasn't the one you should hear it from, but I wanted you to know." I shake my head, looking at our reflection in the mirror. She's gazing up at me, but her shoulders have risen up and her posture is defensive. "I asked him to tell you sooner but they wanted to tell you together."

"Harrison said he asked you to keep quiet. He told me he's moving there. To be with her." Everly finally answers, clutching the towel tighter. "They told me everything; how he bought Clyde's, how he's been visiting her whenever he can. He even told me Forrest knew this whole time. He has photos of them, of him and Woody. Of him and my mom. There's only one of him and me."

The hurt in her voice is like a sharp slice across exposed skin. I nod slowly, feeling the painful sting for her.

"Everly, he did what he thought was right-"

My defense is cut short by her shaking her head.

"They didn't think I should know." Everly shakes her head. "Even now, I don't think they wanted to tell me but they felt like they had to. Would you have never told me? If you just sort of found out and he moved there and I went to visit…would you have still not told me?"

"Everly no." I blurt out, and the eloquence of my thoughts is nonexistent. "I wanted to tell you. I didn't know what to say or how to get them to tell you. I tried, multiple times. It just never…it never worked out. Not for anyone. I think they didn't want you to be hurt. Maybe because they'd kept it hidden for so long. I don't…I don't know if there ever would have been a good time."

My defense for Harrison comes out in a rush, though my loyalty to him is completely my own. She wouldn't understand the magnitude of what he'd done, or the complex emotions that lie beneath his decision. Much like what I felt for her, his judgment was laced with his heart pleading for something else.

Unfortunately, there were no words to describe the depths of support he provided or what he felt for Eden. Though he might have snarked along every step of the way, he pushed me forward. He kept Everly alive when everyone was sure she was dead, and my grief paled in comparison to his.

I had been mourning the loss of my wife, but he had been mourning the loss of a daughter who didn't know he existed and the chance that he might ever know her. He had already mourned the loss of the only woman he'd ever loved, and Everly's death had to feel like a second slap of insurmountable defeat.

Still, none of this will make her feel better. None of what I tell her will soothe the betrayal of discovering this family secret, especially now.

"I wish…I just felt stupid not knowing. A lot of things make sense now. A lot of things I chalked up to just being little or not paying attention." Everly tilts her head, and she shuts her eyes. "I don't remember Harrison, but I remember my mom and…and my father talking late at night. Arguing over something even though no one was supposed to argue and it went on for hours. Sometimes he would get upset and leave for a while, and sometimes he looked at me like I was someone else. But that doesn't change anything. I can't call Harrison my father. He's not."

Her voice is defiant, the only power she has in this situation, and I completely understand. Her entire childhood and homelife was a lie, and it was now being revealed when she wasn't expecting it. Her refusal to think of Harrison in any other way than as Harrison was all she had.

"I don't think he'd want you to." I answer thickly, and I know this for a fact. I'd asked him about the wedding, if he'd come or if he wanted to be there in some manner. He'd shaken his head, telling me while he was Everly's father, he hadn't been her father growing up.

Hank had.

"Harrison really loves her. He told me he's loved her for years, and he regretted leaving her back in Amity. That if he could go back and do it all over again, he would have stayed there. I would have had an entirely different life had he not left."

And that's it.

That's all Everly gets out before she screws her eyes shut tightly, desperate not to cry. She fails, miserably, and I reach for her without waiting to see if she wants me to. I know this will shake things up for some time. I kept this from her just as much as they did, and while not entirely my place, I was a part of it just like they were.

I reach for her, grasping a fistful of damp hair as her head hits my chest, and I can feel her shoulders shake as my arm slides around her waist.

She cries for a long time, long enough that I worry she might never stop, but sooner or later, she does.

Eventually, we make it down to Clyde's.

We walk in to find the place crowded. It takes a second until I find them, but there they are, Harrison and Eden, sitting in one of the booths at the very back of the restaurant. The sight is surreal. They are surrounded by warm, golden lighting from the lanterns, and they are both smiling at Evangelina. Eden has her sitting on the table, holding her in place with one hand behind her head, and they are making her laugh. Eden has put a bow back in her hair, and Harrison shakes his head as Eden fixes it back to the center.

It's hard to miss them.

In the dark bar on this low level, they sit amidst the members of Dauntless. A few people are looking at them, perhaps figuring out they had Eva and definitely wondering where Everly and I were. I notice a few stares in their direction, not just from Paul and Lucy, but from others enjoying their happy hour. One girl gapes openly, but it's probably more at the sight of Harrison, dressed in his uniform, and Eden, dressed like she's come straight from Amity.

Because she has.

The differences are striking, yet, like I'd learned, they meant nothing. Eden was smarter than most in Dauntless, and while one would immediately assume she was harmless, she certainly wasn't high on peace serum or dancing around a bonfire. She was sharp when she needed to be, and willing to do what it took to protect her family. Harrison had long been one of the best soldiers here, but it was clear he'd trade the honor the black uniform brought for even a moment with Eden. He wasn't entirely Dauntless, nor was he entirely Amity. I could see this was where the lines blurred, what Evelyn had fought to break apart, and I suddenly see why.

Not her want for power, but for the ability to live where one pleased, rather than where they believed they should.

I struggle with this for a moment, and I know Everly is right. Her life would have been completely different had Harrison stayed in Amity. I might never even have met her.

I wince at this idea while Everly's grip on my hand grows so tight it hurts. I glance down at her, her eyes sort of red and puffy and her hair mostly dry, and I pull her closer. I pull Everly right against me, in the entryway of Clyde's, not giving a shit who was watching us.

"Are you sure you want to go?"

I whisper the words so only she can hear them, and on her answer, we will either sit and eat, or I will take her back home. I know no one is expecting this to be easy. While she got dressed, Everly had filled me in on a few details Harrison and Eden had left out when I talked to them. Harrison had been very straightforward with Everly, and so had Eden. The revelation had left her reeling, more angry than anything, thinking no one thought she should know.

I understood, though.

I understood why they'd kept this a secret, and someday, Everly would, too.

While she fixed her dress, Everly told me they were aware this would take some time to get used to, and they promised her things wouldn't be uncomfortable. Harrison wasn't taking over as Hank's replacement, nor was he taking over Eden's house like he owned the place.

He probably did.

I was learning that Harrison had all kinds of secrets, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that he'd bought the place in a moment of sheer insanity just to make sure Eden never had to move.

"Eric," Everly says my name, and she rises up to press her lips to my cheek. "I think I'm okay. I can't…I can't be mad that he loves her. It's between them. I wish this would have…happened differently, but I thought about it the whole time I took a shower and they both deserve…"

She pauses, and we both watch Harrison turn to look at Eden.

They're busied by Evangelina kicking her feet, and her shoe goes flying.

Harrison and Eden laugh, and we watch him look at her the same way I'm sure I looked at Everly -with a hopeless adoration that was impossible to hide. His head tilts toward her, and Eden beams at him, fixing the useless ballet slipper she'd attempted to get Eva to wear.

"They both deserve to be happy."

Everly says the last part firmly, and I nod.

While it would take some time, I think things will turn out just fine.

It does take some time.

Even by that night, Everly seems somewhat better with the idea. She has plenty of her own guilt building up, but it's all completely unnecessary. She whispers that she feels bad she wrote Harrison off, thinking he was just some eccentric man who would train her how to kill people.

"I should have gotten to know him. He probably thought I was terrible." Everly says the words into my neck, and for once, it's just her and I in bed. She'd put a very tired Evangelina in the bassinet, and to our surprise, she stayed there. She was asleep almost immediately, and I wondered if the exhaustion was from entertaining Eden and Harrison. She'd spent the entire dinner with them, giggling and grinning, and watching as they ate their salad and steak while holding her. Harrison held her for a long time, not even giving her up when she grew fussy and tired.

"I don't think he ever thought that. His training is…a whole different world. He's used to training men who were born to kill. Even if you were just another initiate, it would be still different because you're my wife."

I point this out while my fingers slide down her back, far beneath the silky nightgown she has on. She pushes herself closer to me, fingers pressing over my collarbone until I slide my leg between hers, and I'm reminded of the first time I ever slept beside her. I never once thought I'd want to sleep beside someone. But where it would normally have felt claustrophobic, it now felt necessary for my existence.

"Do you think he'll marry her?" Everly asks, right when my fingers find her lower back. "Can he marry her? Doesn't it say he lives here?"

"It does." I answer immediately, and my eyes close. Harrison most definitely had chosen to live in Dauntless, and therefore, in the database containing the information on every person who'd ever made such a decision, his name was printed. All his information was. Our census was huge but necessary. "I'm not sure how that would work. I guess he could marry her unofficially. Or he could…probably destroy the whole system if he tried. It wouldn't be the first thing he's erased."

Everly lets out a huff of laughter, not entirely amused, but well aware of the power he had. It wasn't always the people we expected to have it, but the ones we'd written off.

"Even if he doesn't, I think they'll be fine. He'll take care of your mom." I promise, and I know it's true. Harrison had kept his word with the exception of telling Everly when I wanted him to, but I had no reason to believe he wouldn't stay with Eden forever. "Just think, we can visit and see them both."

Everly is silent. Her fingers curl into my skin, and she nods slowly.

"I feel bad because I miss Hank a lot. I never once thought he wasn't…my father. It doesn't feel right to miss him now."

Her confession is tired and the first of many. I shift her even closer, and I know she's about to fall asleep. My fingers slide back up her spine, and into her hair. They tangle there, stilling when her breathing slows down.

"Let yourself miss him. Nothing will change who he was."

I say the words quietly, trying not to wake up Evangelina. Everly doesn't respond, and I assume she's fallen asleep.

But minutes later, just as the drag of sleep wins out over staying awake and overthinking my own thoughts, Everly tells me she loves me.

It's soft and sleepy, and the relief of her words is devastatingly immense.

In the morning, Rylan ruins my blissful silence by showing up.

"Are you excited?" Rylan asks, sliding into the seat next to me and shoving a pamphlet in my direction. "Or are you worried it'll be a disaster?"

I look up from his pamphlet advertising Linda's knitting club, and I shove it back at him.

"It'll be fine. Everything is planned. So long as you don't destroy your suit before the wedding, nothing will go wrong." I shrug at him, and his lips curl up in a way I don't like.

"I didn't mean that. I meant are you excited to have sex with Everly again."

I find myself completely caught off guard. I'd been busy thinking about our dinner with Eden and Harrison, and it had left me feeling much better. Still, every once in a while, I caught Everly looking at her phone with a frown, and I knew she wasn't entirely over it yet. I didn't expect her to be, but the dinner had helped. Eden and Harrison were grossly normal, grossly happy with each other, and incredibly sorry that they'd hidden this from Everly. I hadn't gotten a chance to tell Rylan or Jason any of this.

Jason had been busy actually working, and Rylan had been AWOL since he left my apartment.

"Eric, did you hear me?"

I throw Rylan one very unamused look. He throws the pamphlet back at me, and I realize he's circled the date on it.

"This is the date of Linda's first meeting. It's also six weeks after your baby was born. I thought you might want a reminder. I know Everly went to see Arlene, and we all know you don't like being all alone at night. I heard your apartment is cold."

He says the last part with a snicker and a death wish.

"I mean, the worst thing that could happen is that Everly has no interest in having sex with you. Your dad gave me this book and it said that sometimes, after birth, women have no interest in…."

"Rylan, take this pamphlet before I shove it down your throat." I turn my head slowly, and he looks genuinely insulted.

"Okay, but aren't you the least bit frustrated? You once fucked your wife against the railings to spite half the faction and because you knew Four was working in the control room. What happened to that Eric? Where is he?"

"He's trying to get six uninterrupted hours of sleep so he can come here and eat lunch with you." I point out, and my mood darkens completely. "Why am I even talking to you about this? We didn't talk about this before and I'm not discussing it with you now. Even if you did circle this date."

"We did talk about it before. You told me it was nice. Which was gross, coming from you. But there came a point when we didn't talk about anything of the sort anymore, and I'd like to bring this back. You, me, Jason. We can even invite Four. I'll go ask him now."

"Rylan, fuck no. He's not going to tell you anything. Would you even want to hear him tell you those details? Just…sit down." I hiss at him, and he crosses his arms over his chest. "I haven't…even…I mean…"

I fumble over these words, because really, what was there to tell him? That I was mostly getting enough sleep, but Eva still didn't love sleeping alone? That while Everly might have started up her birth control again, I wasn't sure how she felt about having sex. The idea probably seemed fun, but at the end of the day, she'd been the one to give birth, not me.

"Oh shit. You're scared, aren't you?" Rylan's eyes widen, and I sigh heavily.

"I'm more scared that you have this flier." I roll my eyes at him, and I reach for my coffee. "Look, imagine it was you and Christina. Would you be in here telling everyone you'd had sex with her on the exact date of six weeks after she'd given birth?"

"Yes," he smiles brightly. "I would. I think that would be an impressive accomplishment."

"Rylan" I say his name wearily, and he smiles even wider. "Fine, I'll send you a text or something if it happens. You'll be the first to know. Is that better?"

"There's an emoji for it. I'll send it to you!" Rylan sits up straighter, fumbling for his phone.

"Hold on."

"I'm not announcing it to anyone. Eventually, Everly will be coming back to work here. I don't need everyone knowing if we've resumed having sex or not." I point out, and he freezes.

His head tilts at an odd angle, and his fingers hover over the keyboard. His hair also falls in his eyes, and he flips his head to shake it out of the way.

"She's coming back to work?"

His expression is horrified.

"Yes, when she's ready." I stare at him, but he doesn't move.

"Rylan…"

"I have to go. I'll be back. Don't forget about the message." He announces quickly, and he's gone before I can stop him.

He leaves me with his pamphlet, with the date circled in red marker, and I pick it up. I feel like it's mocking me, especially now. With Everly learning Harrison was her real father, that he was moving to Amity to live with her mother, and that no one had told her because they thought it was better that way, there was no chance in hell she'd be in the mood to do anything other than hand me Eva and fall asleep on the couch next to me.

"Thanks for the reminder, ass." I mutter, and I toss the pamphlet right in the trash can.

On Thursday, Everly looks at me entirely differently.

I suddenly wonder if Rylan had given her the pamphlet, too. I'm painfully aware that we both know what day it is. The date from Rylan's pamphlet was still visible in my mind, and I'd thought about it off and on. I'd thought about it every day since Rylan had reminded me, and he was right.

I was just the tiniest bit frustrated.

And utterly impatient.

For once, I forget about the fact that I liked sleeping with Everly because I was reminded of how much I loved her. How good it felt to be so close to her. How when words failed me, I could still show her I loved her in some way.

I forget all that, and instead, all I can focus on is how pretty she looks and how good it will feel to celebrate this reunion of sorts.

It's more than that, but it's hard to miss. Tonight, her hair has been brushed and detangled, her eyes are bright and knowing, and her dress falls off her shoulder. Her feet are bare, and to my dismay, she changes out of the soft dress while I brush my teeth.

A few minutes ago I had heard her softly telling Eva something, but when I return, she's sitting on our bed.

Alone.

She's dressed like we're going to bed, but I like it. Her nightgown is one of the more ruffly and revealing ones, and the fabric is light and pretty. I had often wondered who Christian thought was purchasing them, but I guess his answer was Everly.

But rather than reclining back to stare at me, she looks nervous. Her gaze flits around the room, only turning to me when I say her name.

"Everly?"

I watch her swallow nervously, but my gaze is stuck on her bare legs. Her exposed shoulders. I slowly realize that her intent was, in fact, something other than going to sleep, and there's a warm rush of triumph that runs through me.

She definitely knew what day it was.

"Yeah?" she croaks, and I smirk at her.

She looks downright nervous. She hadn't even looked nervous the first time we slept together. I had lunged for her then, yanking off her pants and announcing fuck it, before I could change my mind. In turn, it had changed my entire world, and I have the feeling this will be the same.

Everly stares at me, and her eyes are wider than ever as I pull the t-shirt off over my head. Her eyes are glued to my chest, and she doesn't even blink. She simply watches me get undressed, sliding the pajama pants I'd had on off and kicking them aside. She only looks up when I stand before her in only my underwear, and her cheeks are pink.

"Where's Evangelina?"

I ask her casually, though I know where she is. Ever since Harrison and Eden had shown up, Evangelina had been sleeping in her own crib. I don't know what it was about them, or why she suddenly conked out in her own room, but I can't say I'm too upset.

I wait for Everly to answer, but she doesn't. She holds my stare as I slowly walk toward her, and her eyes are glued to me.

"Everly?"

"Um, she's…um I put her in her room." Everly blurts out the words in a strange voice, and she looks guilty at the thought. "She was really tired."

Her voice is far higher than I remember. I watch her inhale sharply when I stop right beside her, a second later kneeling onto the bed, climbing over her, and she immediately falls back into the dark comforter. I place my palms on either side of her head, fully prepared to stop if she told me, but frantically and violently praying she wouldn't.

"Good. Let's hope she stays asleep." I announce, and I bend down to kiss her.

I have a lot of thoughts about kissing Everly, mostly like how the idea had been foreign to me as to why anyone would waste their time kissing someone. But now I understood, especially when she kisses me back. I kiss her just like the first time; so frantically furious that someone else had been close to her, and mad at the idea that another man was ever this intimate with her.

We kiss for a long time. Until she's gasping for air, until my mouth finds her neck, and I settle myself between her legs. Her nightgown is tangled and bunched up, and I am so painfully aroused that it hurts. I wait for her to tell me to slow down, that this is more than she's ready for, but she's the one who pulls me closer, yanking me back down to her.

It feels good, being wanted like this.

My whole body feels alive, like this was the first time I'd decided that it was just fine to sleep with her.

I have to admit that while these six weeks have flown by, I'm very glad they're over. There's something about the feeling of her beneath me, small and warm and desperate for me to keep going, that makes me want her all the more.

"I've missed you so much." I mumble the words against her neck, and she digs her fingers into my hair, urging me on. In that moment, I know she's missed me, too.

That feels better than anything else.

"You sure everything is good?" I ask, and for a moment, there's a rush of panic that Arlene did not give her any sort of birth control. I could see her coming up with her own version of the fertility tea, now in shot form, now being given out instead of the one Everly asked for.

"Yes." Everly answers quickly, but she still looks momentarily concerned. I rise up to look at her, her dark hair drawn out around her, and I manage to kick off my underwear without pulling away. I reach down her side, my fingers trailing over the silky fabric, and I pull it up.

Her knees follow.

I nudge her legs apart, and I force myself to wait for a single moment. It's prolonged torture, and it's altogether the best and worst feeling I've ever felt. Everly's eyes find me, and she smiles, really smiles, and I don't wait any longer. I push into her, pleased as ever that she hadn't even bothered with any of her favorite pink panties, and the warmth makes me shut my eyes.

My thoughts leave my brain completely; gone is the Eric who could only tell her I found her pretty because that was safe and true, and in his place is an Eric who can only blurt out that I love her.

Because I do.

"Everly, fuck, I love you." I groan when her fingers dig into my shoulders, and she works to hold me in place. I hadn't really moved beyond a few controlled thrusts, because I wanted to make sure this didn't hurt. I didn't want her scarred for life, never wanting to come near me if this wasn't good for her. But it only takes her a second before she nods and urges me on.

It's then that I completely forget about if Arlene had actually given her the correct shot. My hips move on their own, and the feeling of her is too good.

Really good.

Worth risking Eva having an unplanned sibling.

"I love you, too." She wraps her legs around me, and she smiles brightly when I smirk at her.

She's a lovely sight beneath me, but it's not that. It's how good this all feels, how neatly everything has wrapped itself up. My entire world has come full circle, while it could just be the high of the neurons in my brain firing, or the acceptance that loving someone was better than anything else, I feel it.

I had felt it the first time I realized Everly loved me. The first time I knew she wouldn't leave me, not even after all the things I'd done. The time our friends gathered to celebrate our anniversary, genuinely thrilled that we were still married. I felt it the first time I ever held Eva, cradling her against my chest while Everly leaned into me.

It's happiness.

Plain and simple happiness.

It's something I never thought I'd ever have, or that I deserved.

But I do.

I feel it again when Everly pulls my head down to hers, kissing me over and over, until neither of us can breathe. She kisses me until I lose track of anything but her.

It's not long before the high of feeling her come around me is warm and heavy, and she lies with her head on my chest. Her hair falls everywhere, and I blearily hold onto her, my fingers tangled in it as I feel myself fall asleep. In fact, I fall asleep before her, completely content with our lives together.

It doesn't take long for Eden's magic to wear off, and when it does, Evangelina catches on quick.

After two blissful nights of going to bed with just Everly, I fully expect the third night to be the same. Evangelina really seemed to like her routine, and this new one felt pretty great for everyone involved. I wouldn't necessarily refuse to let her sleep with us, but I had to admit it was far more appealing to just have Everly in bed with me, especially these past few nights.

Tonight there is a small protest, and Everly returns from putting her to bed looking worried.

"She woke up this time," she announces, turning off the light on her nightstand and climbing into bed. Her hair is loosely twisted up into something complicated, and her nightgown is dark. "She gave me this really dirty look, like she knows I get to sleep with you and she doesn't."

"She's a baby," I answer easily, having already undressed down to my boxers. "She can't possibly have figured that out."

I try to be logical here, but Evangelina is pretty smart.

"I don't know," Everly answers, and she smiles as she lies down against me. She throws her arm over my chest, and I reach up to take out the single bobby pin holding her hair in place. "She looked a lot like you when she glared at me."

I roll my eyes, but Everly can't see me.

But it's pretty good natured.

There was no doubt Eva had thrown her one dirty look, because we both knew she liked sleeping anywhere but her crib. Unfortunately for Eva, I had other plans for tonight, even if they were just falling asleep with Everly.

"If she wakes up, we'll go get her." I mumble, and my fingers lazily stroke through her hair. I can feel Everly smiling, perhaps still worried that I'd refuse to let Eva in this bedroom now that she was older than two weeks. But I wouldn't. I wouldn't ever let her feel like she was on her own, because she wasn't. "But for now, it's just us."

She nods against me, and I feel her lips press to the side of my neck. She doesn't stop; she keeps moving up, until they find my own lips, and our night of sleep is long forgotten.

My good mood lasts for a while.

Things are pretty fantastic, and it feels absolutely wonderful to have my life back to normal. Everly was happy, content with spending time with both Eva and I, the recent bout of low activity was promising, and even Four seemed more tolerable than normal. This left me feeling very relaxed.

The only lingering worry would normally have been Everly deciding she was done staying home. While the prospect of her returning to work had always been there, for once, I was feeling just fine. I didn't think she was in any real hurry, and I couldn't imagine she would be happy having Eva go to daycare. So I figured I was safe. It would be a while before she trusted anyone to watch her for longer than an hour, and Everly's job would require being gone from Dauntless for definitely more than an hour.

I sat in my office with Eva on my lap, smugly typing an email to Jack with Evangelina's picture on it. Everly had woken up early, and unable to fall back asleep, she'd gone to grab some breakfast. Eva and I woke up shortly after she left, and I decided to get a jump on my day.

I found Eva a bottle that Everly had gotten ready just in case she woke up while she was gone. Eva made it clear I was a poor substitute for Everly, but she eventually drank it, scowling at me around the bottle. I got her dressed –picking a dark dress that was warm enough for the day– then got myself dressed and headed into work. It was a quiet walk with just the two of us. I point out all the fun places that Eva would soon learn existed, even if they weren't of much interest to her now.

We took the long way to work, taking a different set of stairs, a less rocky path, but still arriving earlier than most. There was really no one here yet, and we get a lot done before my phone starts vibrating. I keep typing, not really in the mood to read that Harrison is officially leaving, or that Jason has found a way to save the planet that involves all of us running a community compost.

I keep typing, until my phone vibrates so many times that I have a feeling it's Rylan and he won't stop until I answer him.

I'm right.

His text messages, all fifty-seven of them, are frantic.

Panicked.

Purely enraged, at the thought of his precious goddaughter being dragged from faction to faction, especially arriving there by train.

IT'S NOT SAFE. I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING LETTING EVERLY DO WHAT SHE WANTS. MY GODCHILD WILL NEVER GO TO ABNEGATION AND CERTAINLY NOT BY LEAPING FROM A MOVING TRAIN.

His last one is my favorite, because not only does he zero in on the correct assumption that I don't want Everly and Evangelina jumping from anything, my child will most certainly not be heading to Abnegation any time soon. I realize he must have run into Everly at some point this morning, and whatever had happened has left him scrambling to make sure Eva stays safe.

It's fine. I don't think she plans on going anywhere, anytime soon. If we go to Amity, I'll drive us.

I reply quickly, thinking I've squashed the issue, but he keeps going. I wait for the little text bubble indicator to stop, but it doesn't. He must be furiously typing out a novel, so I call him before he develops carpal tunnel, balancing Eva on my lap while I click send on Jack's email.

"Relax, she's not back to work yet. She's still…spending a lot of time with Eva. I don't think she can even be gone for more than a few hours."

"She's most definitely planning on taking my goddaughter out of the faction! Do you realize this?" He shrieks his reply, and I can hear Christina tell him to shut up. She tells him to shut up again, when he completely dismisses the thought of Evangelina going to the daycare center, as if we had a habit of losing children from there on a daily basis.

"She's not. Rylan, calm down. I don't even know when she's going back to work. Besides, eventually, we'll take Evangelina to the other factions. Daniel will want to see her again." I remind him, and this only makes him angrier.

"You're missing the point. Everly wants to take her when she's working, not visiting your father and his new wife." Rylan counters, and he sounds oddly triumphant.

I close my eyes, pressing my fingers to my temples and I shake my head. While his concern was heartwarming, it was unlikely he'd be able to tell Everly what to do with her own child. "I'll talk to her, okay. Tonight. I'll make sure she has…appropriate transportation when she does resume her job here."

"Eric, this is important. Eva is very little," Rylan continues on, as if I hadn't noticed my own daughter was still nowhere near as big as Adam had been when he was six weeks old. "She could get hurt. I'm just looking out for all of you."

"Thank you. I…appreciate it." I hope it sounds like I'm being truthful, because I am. Evangelina was very lucky she had him looking out for her, and at some point, he'd relax. I just couldn't imagine Everly would want to be back at work just yet, nor would she want to bring Eva with her. "I'll call you later. I'm signing Harrison's evaluation papers. I guess we're supposed to rank how he was as a Leader here."

"Why? Who's reading them? Us? Who could be better than Harrison?" Rylan's indigence mirrors my own. I had found the paper a little unnecessary, mostly because there was nothing I could write down. I was honestly rather down about the fact that he was leaving. Like most, I assumed everything about him was simply who he was. A weirdo at heart who derived great pleasure from mocking those around him. I now knew it had been a carefully crafted façade, and now that it no longer served him any purpose, he was done with it.

Along with the Dauntless faction.

"I don't know. Maybe Max is looking for qualities in the others he wants to develop. Either way, I filled it out. I'm going to say goodbye to Harrison later."

"Let me know when you go. I want to talk to him, too." Rylan answers, and the subject of Everly and Evangelina leaving Dauntless falls to the wayside. He talks the entire time I walk home, filling me in on how he and Christina have been taking these walks through the woods, hoping to find something as cool as Harrison.

I listen to him, carefully holding onto Eva as I pass a few members. They raise their eyebrows at me in surprise, mostly because I'm holding Eva and the phone, and a few look nervous when I saunter past them.

Little did they know Eva and I spent plenty of time walking around at night, and I could probably shut my eyes and still get us home safely.

Turns out, Rylan was not exaggerating.

I stare at Everly like she's lost her mind, because she has.

"Absolutely not. She doesn't need to see any other factions. She can enjoy the one she lives in, while she's here. In it. Besides, she'll get to see Amity when we visit your mother. God forbid you drag her through Abnegation like you took a wrong turn. No one deserves that, especially not Evangelina."

We had been home for all of five minutes before Everly arrived to tell me that she'd figured out a way to just bring Eva to work with her. I waited patiently while Everly explained she would take her wherever she went, and Rylan's concern is suddenly very valid.

I have the sudden urge to deactivate Everly's keycards all over again.

Instead, I busy myself by kissing her, hoping it'll distract her from her terrible thoughts on taking Evangelina to see Natalie Prior, or worse, Camille.

It works.

I pull her to the couch, smiling against her lips, and she doesn't mention taking Evangelina anywhere else.

On a cold day, exactly two days before I am supposed to officially marry Everly, I run into Blythe.

I stared at her for a solid few seconds before I realized it was her, and her face told me she was thinking the same thing. This meeting wasn't at all serendipitous; I was in Erudite to meet up with Daniel and make sure he had the proper jacket for the wedding, not to have any sort of reunion with my mother. I had agreed to eat lunch with Daniel and Camille since I had time. I wasn't sure if he was bringing her along or not, but I was assuming he was, and I'd invited Rylan as a buffer.

But this wasn't on my to do list.

While I knew Blythe was still in Erudite, I hadn't expected to see her.

Ever.

I had dealt with Ashley in a way that was a silent but very clear warning to Blythe. If anyone chose to mess with my family, they would pay dearly, and with their own life. I was no longer tolerant of those who sought out to hurt Everly or thought they had some input on my life. I had concerned myself with Blythe's thoughts on my marriage years ago, sitting through her brutal and violent critique of my wife while Everly sat beside me, and the only reason I would concern myself with them now, was to make sure nothing happened.

I had taken all of Ashley's information on Everly, and Rylan and Jason and I had burned it. It was therapeutic to watch the disturbing evidence burn away to nothingness. I felt oddly calm while Ashley's list with Everly's name at the top turned to ash, and it felt peaceful to watch the careful and unnerving notes she'd taken curl up until they were nothing.

I had toyed with the idea of following up with how Blythe was doing. Harrison had told me she'd had sort of a breakdown, and I assumed it stemmed from whatever she and Ashley had been plotting. She knew that I had been in Ashley's apartment and I had taken the evidence of their little project. With a few words, I could easily ruin her life the way Jeanine had threatened to ruin mine. I could expose all of her secrets the way they had wanted to expose mine, only I would be successful.

But I held off.

For good reasons.

The threat of the unknown as far scarier to Blythe.

Knowing I could ruin her at any moment was worse than if I actually did it. It was much worse for her to wait around, spending her days wondering if this was it. If today was the day I'd bring this news to Cara, or perhaps have Blythe summoned to Candor. I had to admit, after everything Blythe had done, I relished in this dose of power.

Still, I hadn't counted on seeing her. We had arrived in Erudite earlier than planned, and while Rylan spelled his name to the hostess 'it's RyLAN not RyAN' I found myself looking directly at my mother.

She looked the same.

For someone who had lost it when she discovered her entire life could be ruined, her mental breakdown hadn't done too much damage. She was still well put together, perfectly dressed, and unbothered by my appearance. Her eyes flick up and down, her gaze only stopping to see if I was still wearing a wedding ring, and her lips turn up.

Not in acceptance or happiness, but in smug satisfaction that I was still ruining my life when held to her standards.

I step away from Rylan 'IT HAS AN L IN IT. I THOUGHT YOU PEOPLE WERE SMART' and I walk right over to her. Her dress is expensive and finely tailored, and her hair is as sharp as her stare. She watches me, her gaze chilly and calculating, but when I stop right in front of her, she's unsurprised as ever.

"Hello, Eric."

Her voice is clear and emotionless, reminding me of the times she'd greeted me after I'd come home from school. She was never looking up to see me, she just knew I was there and someone else had walked me home. She was usually hunched over her laptop, or busy scrawling on the papers in front of her. As a very young child, she occasionally seemed impressive. Like someone who should be feared. She was brilliant, so busy she barely had time to break away from her work, almost invincible as she worked to help her faction. As a teenager, she was repulsive. So consumed with her own work that she often had time for nothing else, especially me.

I feel the same way now.

She looks impressive, but she isn't.

At least not to me.

"How are you?" I ask evenly, and she tilts her head at my tone. "I heard you were…not feeling well."

Her eyes widen slightly. It's so minute that anyone else would have missed it, but I don't. I know her expressions well, and she knows exactly what I'm talking about.

"I'm doing just fine. I can only assume you're talking about the death of Ashley. I have to say, it was of no surprise that you chose not to investigate it." Blythe answers; just as even, but far colder.

"What would I have found if I chose to investigate it? That you were sticking your nose in other people's business?" I stare at her, her eyes icy and bright, and she smiles. It's tight and defensive, but she doesn't break my stare.

"I think we both know what you would have found." She answers, and I know she knows. "The way you went about it was callous, but impressive. Don't for one minute think I don't believe you had something to do with it."

"Are you accusing me of murdering your assistant?" I widen my eyes mockingly, and Blythe rolls hers.

"Please. You'd do anything for your…for Everly." Blythe says her name with a hint of disgust. "I'm not stupid, Eric. I get it. She's what you always wanted. Someone to love. Someone to wait for you to come home at night. I'm very happy for you and your life. I'm sure it's just wonderful."

Her words are meant to mock my entire relationship with Everly. At one point, they would have left me ready to snap her neck to the side, but I find myself smiling at her.

It's not a nice smile, but she's not wrong with her words.

"I'm glad you're happy for me."

Blythe's expression turns to pure annoyance. "Funny. Where is your wife? I assume she's had the baby by now. Did you ever find out if it was yours?"

"You know," I pause, stepping closer to her. I don't remember her looking the least bit frail, but I notice she doesn't look quite as powerful as she used to. Even as she dismisses her own grandchild. "I'm going to just say this and I think we can come to an agreement here. This is where you and I part ways. You live out your days in Erudite and I'll live out mine in Dauntless. We won't go out of our way to cross paths, but if we do, we'll pretend we don't know each other. How's that sound?"

"Is that really what you want?" Blythe snaps, and for a moment, I think I see a flash of something akin to regret. It's probably not. It's probably annoyance that she knows I have the upper hand, or a flash of misery that her sly little informant has been taken out. "I have no issues pretending you don't exist. In fact, it would be a relief to cut any sort of ties to you and Everly."

I take a step back, just slightly, because those words sting.

Not in the way I expect them to. She's never been any sort of mother to me, but there's a hint of finality to them. A clear dismissal that reeks with the truth that I had been right all along, and that she'd harm Everly or Eva if she had the means to.

"Then we're all set here. Have a nice life, Blythe." I step back further, right into someone, and their hand grips my arm before I can turn around and snap for them to let go. The feeling is unfamiliar, but the hand curls around my forearm, pulling me back. I quickly turn to glance back, fully expecting it to be Daniel, but it's not.

It's Camille.

Her eyes are dark and angry, and her lips are pressed together. She stares at Blythe with a such a dark hatred that it feels impossible coming from her. She'd thrown me some very angry looks, mostly because she disapproved of how I handled things, but this is a scathing look, one of sheer disgust at Blythe's words.

I imagine she's stunned by Blythe's ability to distance herself from all of us, or maybe not. Maybe this was what she expected from her.

"Come on, Eric. Your father and Rylan are at the table."

Camille steps forward until she's even with me, and her defense is enough to make Blythe tilt her head. The way Blythe eyes Camille tells me this isn't the first time she's been on her radar, and she doesn't like it. She doesn't like her holding onto me, with no fear about getting in between us.

Camille is by no means any sort of motherly figure in my life, but I let her pull me back. For once, I let someone else diffuse the situation, even if it's just enough so stop me from slamming Blythe's head into the table.

"This way," Camille says slowly, not bothering to acknowledge Blythe's existence past her first sneer. She keeps her hand on my arm, and I let her head me back through the maze of tables, until we're halfway across the room. "We aren't going to tell your father about this. He's…he's so happy you two are here, and he wants to see photos of the baby. We leave Blythe out of this. He didn't see her when we came in."

"Why did you come over there?" I blurt out, sounding as thrown off as I am. Camille had no loyalty to me other than knowing I occasionally would visit Daniel, and she should be thriving off the fact that Blythe hated me. Blythe only drove her and Daniel together, so the more Blythe made it clear that she despised us all, the better for Camille. "Why did you…"

"Because," Camille interrupts firmly. "You were either going to punch her and cause a scene, or you'd kill her and Daniel and I wouldn't get to eat lunch. I've worked all morning knowing we were coming here and you aren't going to ruin that."

She throws me one sharp look, which is odd, because she isn't very sharp looking.

She also directs me to the table, where Rylan is gleefully showing Daniel pictures of what I can only assume is Evangelina. "And because…she's a terrible person. I think she would do anything to see you be miserable and I don't think that's fair. It's not my…business, but sometimes, I think it is. I think maybe you need people in your business even if you don't like it. Now go sit by your dad. We've already seen several indecent photos of your friend that I'll never unsee."

With that, she points to the chair beside Daniel and all but pushes me toward it. She's clearly not afraid of me, and I find myself obediently sitting down.

"And this one, this is me and Eva, when she was two weeks old. She has less hair here, but a bigger bow. Although Eric never puts the bows on her head. He said they look stupid." Rylan swipes to show Daniel another photo, and Daniel glances up at me.

He smiles, patiently, especially when Rylan shows him the next photo.

"Now this one is better. This is me, in my apartment with Christina. I just wanted to show you my girlfriend. She's taller than Everly, but not that tall."

He keeps talking to Daniel, showing him picture after picture, leaving me to either sit there in silence or talk to Camille.

I eventually give in, leaning toward her and asking her what she and Daniel were doing after this. Not just because I catch a glimpse of Blythe walking out of the restaurant with someone I don't know. And certainly not because her gaze is right on all of us, having a much better time than she is, but because I find myself trying.

I didn't need Camille in my business, but she was clearly looking out for me, even if I didn't deserve it.

So I listen to her answer me, until I realize that we've had an entirely normal conversation, and not once does she say anything even remotely mean to me.

And just like that, the day of my wedding arrives.

I'd woken up by my own alarm blaring in my ear, and I groaned as I pulled myself away from Everly. I was still reveling in the luxury of sharing my bed with only her, and it was downright unfair for me to leave her.

But it's actually far later in the day than I would normally get up, and according to Rylan's millions of texts, we're already behind schedule.

Coming from the king of arriving late, this is ironic.

I wearily climbed out of bed, kissed the side of Everly's head, and threw on the first thing I could find. We were getting ready at Rylan's apartment, and I wondered if this was a decision they'd voted on. Everyone knew you risked your own life by going in there, so I was incredibly surprised to hear that was where I was going. I was even more surprised to find that it was reasonably clean and quiet.

"You're late. Christian has been here for an hour. If I hear the word ensemble one more time I will shoot someone and it will be him."

Rylan greets me with one dark expression, and I know that no amount of smirking or thanking him will make it better. His hair has been combed, his pants fit properly, and in the background of his apartment, Four is staring at the mural on his wall with a look of concern.

"Is this…you? You had a mural of yourself on the moon painted? Why?" Four turns to look at him, confused as to everything there was about Rylan, especially when Rylan ignores him.

"Four has been here for an hour. Do you know how fun that was? I learned all about how people in Abnegation get married. Turns out they mostly just agree to live together until one dies of boredom."

"Hi Rylan. It's so good to see you," I grin, heading further into his apartment, and into his bedroom. "Thanks for having everyone. I'm gonna take a shower so you have fun with Four."

"I will NOT," he yells back, but a second later, I hear him and Jason asking Four what he wants for lunch. They argue for a moment, until it's settled that Jason and Four will go downstairs to pick up the food, and Rylan will stay and make sure Karl shows up. So far he hasn't, and everyone is panicked that he's lost.

Luckily, he isn't that lost. He's just late, having overslept because he slept through his alarm. I hear Rylan yell that's he's on his way, and to his dismay, only Christian is there to celebrate with him.

The rest of my afternoon is organized chaos, but it goes by quickly. Daniel shows up just as we're getting dressed, and Christian nearly falls over Rylan to introduce himself. Rylan scowls while Christian shakes Daniel's hand, then proceeds to list every single article of clothing he's ever made for the Dauntless faction.

"Is he going to tell your dad he's the one who makes your wife's pink underwear?" Rylan snickers, and Four looks appropriately disturbed.

"Do you two…know everything about each other's lives?"

"No." We answer at the same time, and Jason joins us, handing me my tie. "Jason knows a lot too, but not everything."

"I also know a lot about your life. Tris will talk to anyone who will pay attention to her," Rylan laughs, and only stops when Four glares at him. "Hey, she said good things about you. I predict your marriage will last."

"Wonderful." Four looks pained, but he stops sulking when Daniel says hello to him. He says hello to everyone, including Karl, who he immediately hugs as though they are long lost friends.

"It's because Karl looks like Eric. He's probably confused," Jason points out, and I find myself grinning as I fix my tie.

It wasn't that.

It was probably that Daniel was the only father figure in this room, and everyone was feeling a bit odd in the fancy dark suits. It felt overly formal, like we weren't quite in Dauntless, and when Karl grins at me, he knows it'll be his turn soon.

"Are we ready?" I slick my hair back, and Rylan nods in approval.

"Good, it looks better like that. Less like you're trying so hard."

I swat him away from me, and I take one final glimpse in the mirror before we head out.

I look fine.

Just like Eric, except in formal wear and with my hair combed back instead of to the side. My suit is darker than dark, and there's an oddly powerful feeling to everyone being dressed up alike.

"You look very nice. I heard the flowers look great, too." Daniel comments, fixing the cuffs on his shirt before turning to fix Four's. Four looks at him in surprise, and Daniel is very nice in explaining they're off by a button. "I got to stop by for a moment with Arlene. It looks…very much like a wedding."

"That was all Jason," I wink, and Jason pretends to bow. To be fair, he had taken on the challenge of finding better flowers than Four had at his wedding with great enthusiasm. I hadn't seen them myself, but I'm sure it looked good.

"I think we should head down there now. Charlotte says they're almost ready to leave." Karl appears beside Jason, and everyone is oddly quiet. "Should we say something? Or have a moment of silence?"

"For what? He's already married." Four points out the obvious, and everyone looks at him like he's speaking a foreign language. "What are we having a moment of silence for?"

"For you, ever getting a good night's sleep ever again. I hear you live next door to Eric now, and we all know he enjoys the faction knowing what he does at night." Rylan laughs, knocking his shoulder into mine. I find myself laughing along with him, because it was with great relief that I discovered Four and I only shared our living room walls.

Though that could potentially become an issue.

"I think we should go now. You don't want to show up after Everly does," Daniel suggests, and this time, everyone listens to him.

We leave Rylan's now disastrous apartment, though it looks like it's in its normal state. Daniel leads us outside, then patiently waits while we all try to remember if we have everything. Only one person forgets their phone, but it takes us another ten minutes to leave, mostly because Christian forgets to turn off his flat iron.

"Do not burn my apartment down because you were straightening your hair again!" Rylan hotly informs him, but Christian is undeterred.

We head downstairs together; my friends, the man who makes Everly's nightgowns, my former enemy sort of almost I guess I could no longer deny his existence friend, and my father.

I suppose it feels right, even more so when we finally arrive at the large doors.

"So let me get this straight, your father is walking Everly down the aisle like this is some arranged marriage? Because her father has passed away, but he wasn't really her father. Her real father is here, but won't be walking her down the aisle because the crushing weight of guilt is eating away at him?"

Jason stares at me, half whispering these words while he and Four elbow each other in an attempt to line up in an orderly manner.

I finally shrug, not sure what Jason expected me to say.

"Sort of."

I stare out at the people slowly taking their seats, and Jason steps closer. "Is he here?"

"He will be."

I say that part hopefully, because really, I couldn't predict what Harrison would do. Daniel had no clue about the whole father drama, and I'd asked him to walk Everly down the aisle since he was the closest thing she had to a father now. Harrison being her father complicated this, and while she knew, they weren't exactly in the position to explain to the faction how the man who hunted mythical creatures had been related to her this entire time.

It made things understandably tense.

I had asked Harrison if he was coming, wondering if he wanted to see his daughter get married. His snippy answer of 'I already saw her get married' led me to believe he'd been keeping an eye on her this entire time. This also led me to believe he'd probably watched some rather interesting moments between Everly and I, and this wedding would probably be the most boring event he'd ever seen.

Still, I had found it hard to know he might not be there. Since telling Everly the truth, he'd finished packing up his things. I'd caught a glimpse of the boxes being carried out, but not him. He made himself scarce, and he'd only called once. He told me Eden would be at the wedding and that she was over the moon to see an official wedding for her daughter.

I see her now, sitting and holding Eva.

Alone.

She seems fine. She's surrounded by a few familiar faces, and they are busy admiring how pretty Evangelina looks. Christian had made her a dress as well, and while she had no clue what was going on, she looked very pleased to be the center of attention.

"Are you nervous?" Jason steps even closer, and he glances up when Rylan returns from lighting something on fire. "Is Everly excited?"

"I don't know," I answer truthfully. "I'm hoping she's excited. I'm not really nervous considering I'm already married."

"That's been my point all morning," Four reminds us, but he makes no move to leave. He and Karl had been standing there talking, both critiquing how the room was decorated. I dared one of them to find something that they could have done better, especially since we'd left the actual decorating up to Quinten's wife.

I was having the wedding held in the same hall where our anniversary dinner had been, and once I'd paid him to cater the dinner, he shoved his wife at me and told me she would handle the decorations. She definitely looked afraid of me at first, but she very quietly told me she'd make it look better than anyone else's wedding. I didn't originally have much faith in her, considering she'd been living with the factionless rather than running a wedding planning business, but I shrugged and told her sure.

Plus, I didn't exactly have time to come down here myself.

I have to admit, she'd done a nice job. There were plenty of black and white flowers, a far taller arch than Four had, lots of candles and lanterns, a bunch of very small, highly flammable lights woven through the arch, and plenty of other things that were on fire that probably shouldn't have been. I'm sure Four, the official safety monitor of the faction, was struggling with this, but he couldn't very well tell her to put it all out now.

"Did you really invite this many people?" Four asks, and I turn to look at him in surprise. I wasn't exactly paying attention, but the room had filled up while we were waiting. There weren't any seats left, and the standing room was quickly dwindling. I catch sight of Max, shoving someone out of his way as he heads to his seat, and Henry, being dragged along by his mother to their row.

"No," I smirk. "I guess the thought of missing out on my wedding was too much for some people."

He rolls his eyes.

"Sure."

Four steps back, hitting me on the arm in what could be considered a friendly manner, or the start of a fist fight, but I chalk it up to the first one.

"Guys, everyone get in place. It's starting," Jason insists, and shockingly, everyone shuts up.

We line up neatly, now joined by a rushed looking Christina, a nervous looking Tris, a neurotic looking Meghan, and one very thrilled Charlotte. I squint at the back of the room, and I can barely make out Daniel walking along. He pauses at the end of the aisle, then patiently waits for the people in front of him to move.

"This is it. You can back out now if you want," Rylan half whispers, and he's loud enough that the front row hears him. Eden sort of laughs, holding Eva up to wave at me, and behind her, Kacie and her date smile. Christina throws him one hell of a dirty look and he grins back at her.

"Nah, I'm good. She already signed the paperwork." I answer Rylan, and the room is nearly silent as Daniel starts to walk Everly down the aisle. There is some music, something nondescript and fancy, but it's just enough that it's not awkwardly quiet.

It feels like it takes ages for them to make it down the aisle. Daniel keeps their pace slow, looking honored and respectable as he carefully walks Everly to me. I see her face first, the way it lights up as she recognizes each and every guest. She looks more nervous than I've seen her, but less nervous than the time I told her to scale the side of the train tracks.

Daniel bends down to whisper something to her, something that breaks up the serious look on her face, and he even winks at Cara as they walk past her. He smiles widely at Eva and Eden, and then, just when I feel the nerve of impatience starting, I really see Everly.

I hadn't seen her dress before, and my guess was that it would be pink. I imagined it would be like something her mother made, flimsy and sweet, the same color she'd worn when she got here. I would expect Christian had made dozens of versions of it, each one more Amity inspired than the last, and let her choose several to take home.

I'm wrong.

Entirely wrong.

Her eyes meet mine, and I realize I'm staring at her, unmoving, unable to do anything but wonder how I got so lucky.

The dress is nothing I'd expect her to wear. It's fitted, the front is lower cut than anything she owned, and it's far more formal than the dress from our anniversary dinner. The fabric is black, as black as my suit, maybe even darker, and there's nothing sweet or girlish about it. It's not something some naïve little girl from Amity would pick out, but very much what people would assume my wife would wear.

I watch her until I'm unable to stay standing there a second longer, and I step down from my friends, when she looks right at me.

I smile at her, really and truly smile at her, because she's only seconds away from me.

Everyone in the room is quiet. They stare at us, probably because no one's ever seen me smile at any of them, and Daniel comes to a stop right at the first row.

"Everly." He says her name proudly, leaning in to hug her, and I know this means a lot to him. He's liked her since the first day he met her, and without him, who knows where we'd be today. He whispers something in her ear, then lets go of her to join Eden in the front row.

Everly is left standing there, patiently waiting for me. I smirk at the sight before me, not sure if I'll ever forget about absolutely beautiful she looks. I don't think I will, and I don't think anyone else in the faction will.

Maybe marrying her like this was a good idea.

"You look…. stunning." I tell her, knowing everyone can hear me. My friends laugh, definitely not expecting any sort of commentary, especially one so personal coming from me.

But she does look stunning, and she looks even more beautiful when she steps forward to take my hand. She takes a second to admire my own wedding attire, and when she finds it satisfactory, she smirks right back at me.

"Thanks for telling me about this wedding," she teases as I pull her forward, and her gaze is still on me. Her cheeks look a little pink, and I decide maybe we'll keep these clothes on much later than I'd planned.

I look at her, still feeling a little too smug for my own good, and I turn to look out at everyone watching. The room is quiet, and everyone is gaping at us. While not a completely rare sight in Dauntless, no one ever saw us like this. We never really let anyone other than our close friends into our lives, but for this once, the entire faction will know just how much I love her.

"Everly," I pause, and my gaze skips across the crowd of people.

Everly's friends from Amity are here, seated next to Eden and Evangelina. Everyone one of them is dressed in some shade of pink, especially Evangelina. Max and Tori are here, along with a scowling and seething Lauren, a so-excited-he-could-seriously-die Christian, members of patrol squads Everly had walked with ages ago, Kacie and her date, and Quinten- in an oddly formal shirt and tie that don't quite fit his hulking frame- holding onto his wife, both watching with oddly approving looks on their faces. Arlene and her medical staff- dressed to the nines, and in the second row, my arch nemesis- Henry, the very kid who'd demanded my job, watching me like a hawk. His mom smiles nervously, and she yanks him back to sit down before he can storm over and demand to take over this wedding.

Behind them are rows and rows of members, the Leaders from other factions all sitting together, even Will, awkwardly staring at Christina and cringing when Rylan narrows his eyes at him. Next to Will is Zeke, someone named Marlene, and some other guy that I heard wanted to fight Four. Forrest is there, all dressed up and practically beaming with excitement over being back in Dauntless, Zander, staring critically at everything, including Willow. She looks a little sickly, but she holds onto Woody, and she manages to smile in my direction.

Behind them stands Harrison.

He's far enough back that no one else has noticed he's there, but he is.

He stares at everything for just a moment, just long enough to take in the sight before him. He manages to catch my stare and I quickly realize his hair is combed to the side and he's wearing a dark dress shirt. Right when I expect him to look miserable or slip away, he smirks at me.

He smirks at all of this, as I remarry his daughter, in front of the Dauntless faction.

He winks when I tighten my grip on Everly's hand, and I grin at Everly because I know everything is fine. More than fine.

It was right.

Everything was absolutely one hundred percent right.

I take a step closer to Everly, and she tilts her head up to look at me. Her hair is curled into pretty, neat waves, and one side is pinned back with something sparkly. She smiles up at me, so knowing and lovely and all too pretty, and I can't help but grin even wider, thinking of how she'd smiled at me before she knew who I was, and her smile had never once changed.

"Everly Coulter, will you marry me?"

Luckily, she says yes.

The party is quite the event.

I hold onto Everly with my arm around her waist, keeping her pressed right up against me. I can feel her stare glued to me, taking in every second of this night but unwilling to look away.

I understand the feeling completely.

We'd arrived up here not long ago, and I had to say, it was worth every point I had signed over to Quinten's wedding planning committee. The entire place is lit up the same way it was for the New Year's party, except there are dark decorations everywhere. They look like black snowflakes, sharp and jagged, and each one has a candle inside of it. All our friends have joined us, along with the entire faction. Daniel and Camille are still here, and I catch her talking to Eden for a few moments. Before I can even wonder about that, I find Daniel holding Eva, smiling as everyone bargains to hold her. He's very cautious, unwilling to just let her go to anyone, and I half expect him to ask if they're vaccinated.

Everly's mother busies herself talking to one of Everly's younger sisters, pointing out something and nodding when they excitedly all guess if this was the roof Everly had jumped off. Zander takes his exploration to a whole new level, and luckily for him, Forrest catches hold of him before he leaps right off the roof to find out what was below. The rest of Everly's family mills around, but they aren't the least bit out of place. Even Willow looks better, having sipped on something sweet and eaten a snack, and she patiently shows Woody all the fires that have been lit.

It all feels surreal.

I feel like if I blinked, this would all vanish, even though I know it wouldn't. It's a good feeling, like one's life had become so good that you couldn't believe it, and that was definitely not something I was used to. But I liked it. I liked the way people were genuinely happy for us, having beaten the odds that started by Everly choosing to come here. I liked that after I proposed to her, all of our guests watched in rapt fascination as I vowed never to let anyone hurt her or Evangelina. There were a few gasps of horror when Everly agreed to stay married to me forever, and more than a few whistles when I kissed her.

Things moved quickly after that.

I remember Four nudging me forward, and at some point shoving a drink in my hand and dryly telling me congratulations. He and Tris were sitting with Karl and Charlotte, and Charlotte had Adam in her lap. They seemed oddly at ease with Charlotte holding him, but they looked happy. Really happy. Even Four.

The night moves on quickly, and I find myself wishing it would slow down just so I can keep feeling like this. The food is served, the cake is cut, and we spend most of the night thanking people for coming and trying to find a few minutes to ourselves. It's proving to be impossible since everyone wants to congratulate us. I bask in the sheer absurdity of it all, because half of these people had hated me before Everly got here. Even now I think they only like me since I'm less likely to kill them just because, but I'll take it.

I'll also take Everly, my always official but now really official wife leaning into me, smiling at everyone. She greets person after person, thanking them so sweetly and generously, that I can't help but feel a little drunk off how the night is going. All tell us congratulations and most ask where the baby is. Everly points to Daniel, still holding Eva, and tells them good luck prying her from his arms.

The night moves along until I swear we've talked to every person whose shown up, even Will. I look past him to see Karl waving to get my attention, and I'd almost forgotten what he was doing. It hits me at once, and I clear my throat, pointing to the sky with the drink in my hand.

"Look over there."

Everly turns to look at where I'm pointing, and she freezes in place.

On my words, the fireworks go off, one right after the other. They are all white and pink, some a darker pink, and some a lighter pink, but all bright. We stand there together, Everly pressed right up against me with her hands on my chest, and her fingers digging into the fabric of my jacket. The fireworks go off in rapid succession, blooming brighter and brighter.

"Did Rylan get these again?" Everly asks, unable to look away. I catch a glimpse of Daniel holding up Eva, somehow covering her ears but still making sure she can see what's going on. She looks confused, then irritated, then finally happy when he moves her back against him.

"He did get them. In fact, he's lighting them off right now. Which means, there's still a chance he or Jason will light themselves on fire tonight." I snort at the idea, but it was very likely.

The kid at the gate made them, but he wasn't risking blowing himself up to set them off.

"They're still beautiful, you know." Everly answers softly, looking up at me.

"They still are." I answer, and the words mean more than just that.

I had hesitated on the fireworks for a minute, for the last time I'd lit them off, I'd been mourning her death. I'd lit them off in the darkest part of the woods, in the blackest part of night, barely able to say I was sorry. I had lit them off in her honor, wishing desperately that I could have her back even just for a few moments. The pink sparks had lingered in the air, and it had been painful to watch them fizzle out. I had felt nothing but the bitter taste of failure, and I'd gone home to wallow in my own desolate misery.

But tonight, they are more than just a reminder that I had lost her. They are a reminder of how much I love her, that in my lowest of times, in the worst and most painful moments I'd experienced, I finally knew what it meant to love someone.

It meant putting aside my life's work and realizing I was wrong. It meant trying to mend a relationship I never found to be worth fixing because I was unwilling to admit it hurt. It meant letting go of a feud that no longer served me. It meant allowing people closer than I ever wanted, but knowing that it wasn't the end of the world for someone to know that I cared about them.

Everly leans her head against my chest, resting it there while we watch the explosion of pinks and reds. One of my hands slides down and around her waist, and I hold her impossibly closer. Her dress is too rich and soft, the fabric almost slinkier than her nightgowns, and I find myself missing the soft dresses she wore to come and visit me in my office. But we stay like this through the show, the fireworks exploding faster and faster, until they burst all at once, and the entire sky is lit up.

"I love you, Eric."

She says the words quietly, so low that only I can hear them, and I nod.

"I know."

She snorts against my chest, but I tighten my grip on her, as everyone gasps when another round goes off, this time, the real finale. Their heads are turned skyward, watching the dazzling display of fireworks, now bursting and blooming all shades of pink.

"I love you, Everly Coulter."

It's the last thing I say before the crowd bursts into cheers, clapping as the show ends. I feel Everly smile against me, but she keeps her head on my chest and she closes her eyes.

I let her.

I hold her there, unwilling to ruin this moment.

Year ago, she left behind a life that didn't suit her. She left behind a man who wanted her to be quiet so he could be happy, and a family with enough of its own secrets to turn a faction upside down. She'd come here on her own and stood on the edge of a rooftop for only a second before she leapt into darkness. I don't know if she ever realized what she was getting into, or if she knew what would happen once her feet hit the ground, but she jumped without any hesitation.

I don't know if it mattered. Her life here hadn't gone the way she thought it would, nor did it follow half the rules it should have. But she walked right into my life when I needed her to, with tangled hair and a tangled dress, and that was it. All it took was a few weeks with her. A few weeks of figuring me out, a few blurry nights of being curled against me, and she had everything.

So did I.

I had someone who loved me, really and truly loved me, and not just because of what I could give them. I had someone who cared if I didn't return, who never once judged my decisions, and questioned my actions only to better understand them.

In return, I gave Everly everything I possibly could. It had never been easy, but it had been worth it. She had done everything she could to succeed here, and now, we would continue to live out our days here in Dauntless together.

When this night is over, we will go home. We will pry Evangelina out of Daniel's arms, we will say goodnight to our family and friends, and we will return to the home we've made together. We will climb into our bed, Everly's head will rest against my chest, and we will fall asleep just like the very first time she slept beside me.

Warm.

Happy.

Safe.

Loved.

Everly opens her eyes when my fingers find her hair, digging through the long wavy strands and tugging her head up to look at me. I smile at her, the one where I'm grinning in a way I never thought I was capable of, and she smiles back up at me. I take in her profile, the pink flush to her cheeks, her long dark hair, and her pretty smile

I take in her green eyes, light and bright, and I know from personal experience that tonight, they will darken. She will look up at me, or down at me, and I will show her just how much I love her, just how much I've always loved her, over and over.

It's then that I thank my lucky stars Everly had been the only girl initiate.