Clarke sighed heavily as she pulled on her heels, the realisation that he would be there fully dawning on her. Glancing at her reflection in the mirror, she wondered if she was slightly over dressed for a school reunion: A smart black dress clung to Clarke's curves and her blonde wavy hair tumbled around her face naturally, framing her cheekbones and alighting her icy blue eyes. Her slim legs were highlighted by the black high heels that she pulled on and she wondered why she was putting so much effort into her appearance. She denied the real reason echoing at the back of her mind, assuring herself it was just to make a good impression but not for him.
This is crazy!
Initially, she had tried to reason with herself - she would be seeing all of her old friends; Wells, Jasper, Monty, Octavia... But, ultimately, the fact that Bellamy Blake would be there overrode all rational thoughts causing a turbulence of emotions to cascade around her mind. She shivered as she thought of how long it had been since she had seen him, everyone for that matter... 8 years.
"No, you're not doing this today, Clarke. Get moving, you're going to be late." She told herself firmly as she quickly applied a fresh coat of mascara, the only make up to vacate her face. Plastering on a fake smile to prepare herself, she grabbed her bag and headed for the door.
"Clarke, it's good to see you," Wells smiled warmly as he pulled her in for a hug, "It's been a long time."
Clarke smiled, although it didn't quite reach her eyes; she didn't comment, they both knew why she had distanced herself from her long-term friends, why she had decided to throw everything that she had into her job and nothing else.
"You've changed, Wells." She replied, taking in his appearance then: his hair, once closely cropped, now lay in a loose pony tail resting on his shoulder and his face bore sharper features - she really had missed him.
"And you've not changed one bit," he grinned and Clarke couldn't help but grin back, her first genuine smile in a long time. She was beginning to feel relaxed, thinking that maybe the reunion wouldn't turn out so bad after all. "So you must be a lawyer now, right? Forgive me if I'm unsure, it's not like we haven't spoken for 8 years or anything." His eyes twinkled with humour yet his tone held another meaning; Clarke detected slight sadness in the tone of his voice and felt a twinge of guilt. She stubbornly pushed it to one side.
"Uh, yeah. I've been an official lawyer a year next Saturday, actually. It's been... Great." The truth was, Clarke enjoyed her work, but she had never felt more lonely. Pride was the only thing preventing her from contacting her friends... Him. She tried hard to focus on the conversation at hand, yet her heart was beating infuriatingly fast; a part of her really did want to see him. Badly.
"Well, you deserve that job. I hear you've worked your backside off to get to where you are, I'm proud of you - Oh, your mum keeps me up to date. Seeing as you don't..." He trails off, hurt in his eyes. Clarke feels annoyance beginning to bubble inside her and she frowns.
"Look, Wells. I didn't come here for a hard time. I came because I wanted to see you all... It's just-"
"Clarke?" A familiar voice cuts her short. Clarke turns around in her seat to see the face of Octavia beaming down at her.
"Octavia, wow! It's so nice to see you!" Clarke hurriedly gets up and pulls Octavia into a hug, realising only then how she has missed her best friend. She blinks back the tears as she pulls away, her brain flooded with emotions. Octavia grinns devilishly with that same old glint in her eye.
Uh oh...
"Clarke, I can't believe you actually showed up! Firstly, I owe you this- " She punches Clarke on the shoulder, hard, ignoring her protests. "Secondly, we need to catch up. Come sit with us, you too Wells." She glances at him briefly before grabbing Clarke by the wrist and pulling her over to a small table in the corner of the bar.
"For the record, I thought you'd do something, Octavia." Clarke chuckles approvingly as they walk towards the table, loving how Octavia's sense of humour has not been left in the past. She rubs her shoulder dramatically and Octavia laughs, hurrying her along.
Monty, Jasper and Finn greet her with warm smiles, settling Clarke's nerves in her stomach.
Everything's going to be ok, she told herself as she sat down and smiled back. As long as you don't see Bellamy, or Raven for that matter, you could actually enjoy yourself.
The night had passed with a blur.
Her ears still ring with drunken laughter and cheesy pop music and her head pounds as she brushes her teeth back at home, an hour away from the club, the next morning. She had managed to go the whole night without seeing Bellamy or Raven, it was a miracle - Octavia had said that her brother and Raven were there, so it was odd that Clarke hadn't seen them. She chose not to dwell on it, however, but concentrated on this new found feeling of happiness; Clarke had felt sublime as she had finally allowed herself to uncoil and have a good time with her old friends, dancing without a care in the world.
And then she remembered.
Fuelled with alcohol, she had danced with Finn and Octavia, initially oblivious to her admirer across the dance floor. Finn danced a little too close for comfort but Clarke was reluctant to move back, secretly enjoying the attention. Octavia whirled around her and grabbed her hand, taking Clarke with her. The music suddenly changed and Octavia changed her movements accordingly, lost in the music, and Clarke couldn't help but grin. At once, the feelings had hit Clarke like a sky diver feels the rush from a plane; she had felt goosebumps rise on her skin, coating her bare arms and legs. Biting her lip, she continued to dance. Her heart fluttered as that familiar form had made it's way into her peripheral vision; wearing his trademark black leather jacket, Bellamy was leaning against the opposite wall, a can of Cider in hand. Raven was stood huddled up next to him, a smile on her face as she observed the dancing people, unaware of Bellamy's stare.
He had looked right at her. Had watched her dance, his eyes following her every movement like a gentle caress. And damn, was she aware of how close he was.
She had refused to look at him. Refused to acknowledge the old feelings he was stirring, feelings she had wished away over several sleepless nights from the days following on from the incident.
But... She had given in. She had looked back.
When their eyes had met, a small smirk playfully danced across Bellamy's lips as Clarke became transfixed; his brown eyes burned intensely into hers, coaxing her into a puddle of nerves; they were full of an emotion Clarke could not decipher sufficiently in her drunken state and he cocked his head to one side curiously as she stopped dancing slowly, unable to look away. Raven, who was engaged in conversation with a woman Clarke didn't recognise, didn't notice Bellamy move. He began to walk towards her, his eyes locked on hers with a fierce determination, and that's when she had snapped out of her reverie. Muttering apologies to Octavia and Finn, she had swiftly walked back towards the table to grab her bag and was out of the door shortly after. As she had left, she had turned her head once more to see Bellamy stood in the spot that she had just left. A look of disappointment had flitted through his eyes, but it had gone as quickly as it came. Her heart had sunk as she left.
Now, gazing unseeingly into her bowl of cereals, she wondered if she should in fact meet Octavia for lunch at Octavia's house. Why had she agreed, knowing Bellamy could visit at any time?
You can't back out now. Coward.
Sighing with defeat, she changed into her running gear and, locking the door behind her, Bellamy Blake was pushed to the back of her mind. For now.
So this is my first 100 fic, I absolutely adore Bellark so I tried this. I'm not 100% though, what do you all think? Do you think I should carry on or leave it as a one shot. Feedback would be much appreciated, but go easy on me as I've had writers block ;) Haha, thank you to everyone in advance.
