I don´t own any of the characters in this story. This is my first fanfic. Hope you like it! :)
Three mounts had gone by on earth, and the 100 had realized a long time ago that they were on their own. The grounder meeting had ensured peace, at least as long as the 100 kept to their side of the river, and Anya´s tribe kept to theirs. Winter was coming, and Bellamy and Clarke sat around a small fire, discussing what to do next. Anya had told them that winter was harsh in this part of the land, and that they should start to prepare as soon as possible. Anya had come with advice, so obviously they had come a long way with the grounders. Clarke had made different blueprint for houses, and the two leaders were looking them over.
"We don't have time to build houses for everyone" Bellamy said frustrated, watching a drawing Clarke had made of camp. It actually looked a lot like a small town. The self-made wall surrounded their tents, with the drop ship in the center, and it had worked well for them. But now the temperature was quickly dropping, and they both knew they needed more shelter than thin tents.
"You´re right, but we have to build some! And we need somewhere to keep the food.." Clarke replied, with her head resting frustrated in her hands.
"What if we build one large one, then the body heat will also help to keep warm" Bellamy said, a smirk set on his face. Clarke sighted.
"I actually agree with you about body heat being important…" she started, earning a raised eyebrow from Bellamy.
"Good, it´s practically survival 101" he smirked. But Clarke ignored him.
"But what about sickness? If we cramp everyone together in one room, what happens if one gets sick?" she stated matter of factly. Bellamy lost his smile, and again looked serious.
"We can build up walls inside, make rooms. It will be quicker than building several houses…" Bellamy answered. He looked up as Clarke started to draw. He could see her drawing a long house, with several rooms, and didn't say a word, before she was finished. She had a thinking frown on her forehead, witch Bellamy had seen thousands of times before.
"It might actually work, but still, we need more blankets, more clothes" she stated, looking back up at him. Bellamy nodded.
"What do you suggest princess?" his voice tired. It was already dark, and he was exhausted. Clarke sighted.
"We need to go back to the bunker, where we found those other blankets and the weapons. There might be more supplies. And maybe we can go look for other bomb shelters, there might be stuff there too" Clarke actually looked exited, and Bellamy couldn't help but smile at her.
"I agree, we´ll set up a group, and make the trip tomorrow at first light!" he answered, getting up. Clarke gathered the drawings, and stood up next to him. They said goodnight, before walking in different directions. Clarke made it to the drop ship, where she laid all the drawings on a table. She was exhausted, but the thought of going out of camp, made her exited. She started going over her medical supplies, and taking note of what they needed. Maybe they would have time to gather some plants on the trip. Suddenly someone came in, and she turned around. Octavia walked over to her, and jumped up to sit on a table. She was smiling.
"So, I understand we´re going on an adventure tomorrow!" she said excitedly, and Clarke nodded with a smile. "I can´t wait to get out of here!" she continued, and Clarke couldn't help but laugh.
"Like you´re not going out of camp whenever you get the chance. How´s Lincoln?" Clarke asked, smiling when Octavia´s face turned red.
"He´s good… Actually he is great!" Octavia answered, lighting up. Clarke put down her list, and sat herself down opposite of Octavia.
"Does your brother know?" she asked, curious. She knew Octavia was sneaking out to see Lincoln, but even though they were in peace now, she knew Bellamy would not like it. Octavia frowned.
"He doesn't need to know, you know how he is!" Octavia answered, sticking her tongue out of her mouth. Clarke smiled.
"He would come around you know, you´re his sister!" Clarke answered, earning a nod from Octavia.
"That's exactly the point, I´m his sister! Have you seen how protective he is? If it were up to him I would die a virgin" Octavia laughed. Clarke was just about to answer, when they heard a cough from the door. Both their heads turned, and met Bellamys brown eyes. He had his death glare on, and Clarke noticed Octavia crumple a bit.
"I´ll deal with you later" he said coldly, looking at Octavia. His eyes met Clarkes, "I need to talk to you!" Octavia jumped up from her table, before she hurried out of the drop ship as fast as she could. Clarke understood the feeling; sometimes it was just scary being in the same room as the older Blake. Bellamy went over to Clarke, and seemed to calm down a little.
"I set up the groups. Miller, Jasper, Monroe and I will go to the bunker, while Finn, Mounty and Harper will search for more bomb shelters" he said, not taking his eyes of her. Clarke shot her eyes up.
"I´m going, you know that right!" she said angrily, but he shook his head straight away.
"You´re our only doctor, so you´re not going anywhere! Besides I don´t have time to protect you, even though the grounders are no longer a treat, I don't want us to waste time!" just as he was about to turn around and walk away, Clarke jumped up, and walked the distance between them.
"What makes you think I need protection, I can take care of myself!" she said loudly, standing right in front of him. His eyes darted back to hers, and he looked confused, a look Clarke rarely saw in his eyes. She walked a little closer, not taking her eyes off his, and she could see him swallow, before his eyes shifted back to the stern leader look.
"You´re not coming!"
"I didn't think you cared for my protection!"
"Don't flatter yourself princess, I don't"
"Great, I´ll see you tomorrow at first light!" she finished, before walking straight past him, and out of the drop ship. Bellamy kept standing still for a while, replaying what had just happened. He shook his head, before he went back to his tent for the night.
Clarke woke up the second light streamed through an opening in her tent. She jumped out of bed, and put on her jacket in second, before going out with her pack on her back. She could already see some from the groups by the front gate, and walked straight up to them. Miller looked seriously at her.
"You´re staying here! Bellamys orders!" he said to her. Clarke brushed it off.
"Have you been there before, because I have!" she said back, ignoring him, before walking over to Harper and Monroe. Seconds later Bellamy came up to them, followed by Jasper. He sighed when he saw Clarke, before turning to the others.
"Ok Spacewalker, you found those other bomb shelters, so take Mounty and Harper, and bring back everything that you think we can use, medicine, blankets, clothes, weapons…" Bellamy said, not missing Finns dark eyes as he mentioned weapons. Bellamy smiled, before turning to the others. "It's a few hours until we reach the bunker, so we need to go. Everyone has to be back here by dark!" he finished, before turning to walk thru the gate. Clarke was right behind him, when someone took her arm. She looked up, and met Finns eyes. He looked concerned.
"What are you doing, it´s dangerous!" he said, watching her seriously. Clarke brushed him off.
"I can take care of myself!" she stated, before turning to walk after the others. She could feel Finns gaze behind her, but didn't care. They had shared a kiss at the beginning on the ground, but nothing more. She was glad about that now, seeing as Raven, his girlfriend, came down to earth only days later. She couldn't deny her attraction to him in the beginning, but now, she didn't even dwell on it. Raven and her had become friends, and whatever happened in the relationship between them, was between them. She didn't want to come in the middle.
"Trouble in paradise?" she snapped out of her thought, and turned to see Bellamy beside her. She rolled her eyes, before walking faster, to catch up with Monroe.
The trek to the bunker took a few hours, but they were all eager to get there, so none of them wanted to take a break. When Clarke first got sight of the clearing, she stopped. Bellamy was soon beside her.
"What´s wrong princess?" he said mockingly, but when he saw Clarkes serious eyes, his smile fell down.
"It´s just that the last time we were here, the whole thing with Dax happened…" she answered. He froze, and looked ahead. He couldn't get himself to forget that night, mostly because he still had nightmares about it. But even in his nightmares, Clarke was there, telling him to snap out of it because she needed him. They all needed him. His eyes met Clarke, before he shook it off. He didn't have time to think about that now.
"Come on, we need to go!" he said, before walking off next to Jasper. Clarke started walking after him, with Monroe and Miller on either side off her, with their weapons up. When they reached the hatch, Jasper and Bellamy lifted it open, before they all climbed down. They turned on flashlights Bellamy and Clarke had found their first time there, and looked around. Bellamy followed Clarkes gaze towards the blanket hung up with an X on it, and walked over to pull it down. That was where he had thought her to shoot. When he turned back to her, she was already looking through some boxes. But when Jasper exclaimed excitedly, he walked straight over to him.
"Its gunpowder Bellamy! The whole bucket is full!" Jasper said, smiling from ear to ear. They were down in the bunker for around an hour. They gathered blankets, candles, bandages (witch Clarke was extremely exited about), and even some handguns. Miller and Jasper carried out the bucket with gunpowder, when Bellamy turned to Clarke. She was fiddling with something in her hands, and when he walked over, he could see that there were some wires. She could feel him standing behind her.
"I think its from a radio, maybe Raven could use it to make more Walkie-talkies?" she said, not turning around. Bellamy nodded.
"Good, now lets get out of here princess"
On the trek back, Bellamy and Miller carried the bucket between them, while all five of them had their packs full of supplies. It was starting to get dark, so they walked as fast as they could. The girls were in front, whispering to each other, while the three others tried to keep up. Bellamy couldn't help but wondering what the girls were talking about, especially when he saw Clarke smile. It was a rare sight, and he realized he actually liked it. Jasper looked from Bellamy´s eyes, to Clarke, and smiled to himself.
"So, it´s a good think Clarke came don't you think? We couldn't have carried all of this by ourselves…" Jasper said calmly, earning a glare from Bellamy. Miller sent Jasper a cautionary look. The whole camp had heard off their conversation in the drop ship the night before, most of them from Octavia.
When they reached camp, Bellamy yelled for them to open the gates, before they went inside. People seemed happy to see them, especially when they heard about all the supplies. After a few minutes, Finn and his group also came back. Clarke smiled a little when she saw Octavia being one of them. Bellamy was quickly in front of Finn, glaring at him. If looks could kill, Clarke thought.
"Was Octavia with you?" he almost screamed. Finn took a step back, but Octavia was soon there, dragging her brother away.
"Relax big brother, I´m fine aren't I?" she said, winking over to Clarke, as they walked away. Clarke smiled, before she started ordering everyone around to carry the things they had gathered to the drop ship. Then she walked over to Raven, who was standing by the door, looking at all the supplies being carried inside. Clarke fished the wires out of her pocket and handed them to her.
"I found this in the bunker. I don't know if it´s of any use, but we could need more walkie-talkies…" she said, smiling at their best mechanic. Raven lighted up when she took the wires.
"I´ll se what I can do!" she said excitedly, before walking to her tent. Clarke smiled after her. Harper stopped next to her, and smiled.
"We found these, we didn't know what they were, but Mounty seems to think that it might be medicine…" she said, handing over a box with a few containers inside. They sat down on the hatch, and Clarke started taking them out. She had to scrape away some dust, to be able to read the labels. Harper just smiled at Clarke´s concentration, so she sat up, and walked over to the fire to get something to eat. Clarke figured it had to be some sort of medicine, but she couldn't understand the names. She got up, and walked into the drop ship. She smiled at the sight in there. Miller and the others had organized everything in piles. One with blankets, one with clothes, one with weapons and gunpowder and one with medical supplies. There weren't many medical supplies, but some were better than none. She would have to go over them all, to see what could be used, but she was too tired. She ordered the others to get some food, before she walked out, and into her own tent. There were some blankets in her bed, and she collapsed right on them. It had been a long day, and she was exhausted.
Bellamy sat by the fire talking to Mounty, when he saw Clarke come out of the drop ship, before going straight to her tent. Miller came and sat down next to him, and he couldn't help himself from asking if he knew if Clarke had eaten at all. Miller shook his head, before turning to talk to someone beside him. Bellamy excused himself, before taking some more food on his plate, and striding over towards her tent. But when he went inside he could see Clarke was already asleep. She looked so peaceful, not like when she usually looked at him. Even though they had hated each other in the beginning, they now had mutual respect, and he knew that them being co-leaders was the best thing for their camp. He put down the plate next to her bed, before he turned and went out. He stood watching over the camp, and smiled to himself. They had surely all come a long way since whatever the hell we want. He knew they had to start the building in the morning, so he went to his tent, not even noticing the girls watching his way, waiting for a confirmation to come with him.
"Clarke, wake up!" Raven said. Clarke stirred a little, before she opened her eyes, seeing Raven smile down at her.
"You have no idea what I have just managed to do!" she continued, and Clarke couldn't help but smile back, and ask what. She sat up.
"The wires you gave me weren't the right ones to make more walkies, but, I managed to upgrade the ones we already have! Now we have two frequencies on them!" Raven exclaimed.
"That's great Raven!" Clarke said, as Raven handed her one. Raven nodded.
"I know, what would you do without me?" she laughed, "so we still only have eight walkies, so that's one for you, and I figured one for Bellamy and Miller. Who do you want to have the rest?" Raven asked, looking to Clarke as their leader.
"We should give them to the ones on watch" Clarke said, before she got up. The two girls went out of the tent, talking about the possibilities they now had with two frequencies. They went over to the fire, and sat down next to Bellamy and Octavia, to tell them what Raven had managed to do. Bellamy seemed to agree with Clarkes decision on the walkies, and Clarke was glad. She didn't have time for an argument right now. She and Bellamy walked over to the drop ship, to talk to everyone and organize the start of the building. Bellamy looked at her, on the way over.
"Did you eat the dinner I left you?" he said calmly, earning a confused look from Clarke.
"What dinner?"
"In your tent…" he answered.
"You were in my tent?" she said, as they stopped on the hatch in front of the drop ship.
"We can´t have our only medic die from starvation now can we…" he said so only she could hear, before he turned to the crowd in front of them.
"So, today we have to start build the house that will keep us warm thru winter. Everyone has to contribute! The drawings are on the table in the drop ship, so if you haven't studied them yet, do it now!" Bellamy said with his leader voice, earning several nods from the 100. They divided everyone to do different jobs, and in a short time, everyone was at it. Clarke went into the drop ship to take a look at all the supplies from the trip the day before, and Octavia was soon there to help her. They started with the clothes Finn´s group found in the shelters, and sorted them in piles of sizes. Then Clarke and Mounty started going over the medical supplies, while Octavia started counting the blankets. They were thicker than the ones they already had, but when Octavia was done, she looked worried.
"Clarke, there aren't enough blankets for everyone…" she said. Clarke went into deep though.
"Maybe we could make more, from animal fur or something. It has worked as clothing, so why not blankets…" Clarke answered. But before anyone of them could say anything else, Clarke´s walkie sounded in her pocket.
"Clarke, we have a problem…" it was Monroe´s voice, and she sounded panicked. Clarke took it up, and pushed the button to speak.
"What?"
"Jake fell down a three, he has a branch in his foot!" she exclaimed
"Well get him here!"
"On our way!" Millers voice rang out. And seconds after, Miller came in, with his arm helping Jake over to the table. Clarke was quickly by their sides, looking at the branch in his leg.
"Octavia, get me some moonshine, and Mounty, can you take some bandages out of my sack?" she said loudly, making both Octavia and Mounty do as she said. Miller stood in the background, watching as Clarke started to sterilize the wounded area. Bellamy was soon behind them, standing beside Miller.
"Jake, I´m sorry, but this is going to hurt…" she said calmly. She looked over to Bellamy and Miller, signaling for them to hold Jake down. When they had firm grips on his shoulders and legs, Clarke placed her hand around the branch, sighted, before pulling it out quickly. Blood was flowing from the wound, but Clarke quickly pushed the bandages against it, trying to stop the bleeding. Jake screamed, but weren't able to move because of Bellamy and Millers hands. Clarke turned to Octavia.
"Can you brew some seaweed tea?" she said calmly. Octavia nodded, before she sprinted out of the drop ship. After a while the bleeding stopped, and Clarke took a look at the wound.
"He will need stiches. Someone get me a wire, and something sharp…" she said, not taking her eyes of the wound. Mounty handed it over to her in seconds, and she looked shocked when he gave her a needle. Mounty smiled.
"I found it in the pile of medical supplies from yesterday!" he said happily. Clarke smiled slightly, before turning to the boy again. He was around fifteen years old, and had been a huge help in the building of the wall. Clarke hadn't really spoken to him before though.
"Ok Jake, We just need to stich you up…" she said, as calmly as she could. She knew this was going to hurt. Before she started, the walkies lighted up again.
"Clarke, we have another problem…" Jasper voice sounded. Clarke and Bellamy exchanged looks.
At the end of the first day of building Clarke almost collapsed around the fire. Five teenagers had hurt themselves, and after she had almost screamed to the camp about watching what they were doing, she just wanted some food, and then some sleep. Raven sat down next to her, and smiled slightly.
"At least we have walkies…" she said, earning a laugh from Clarke.
"I just hope people get their act together. All five of the injured today have to stay still tomorrow, and if we keep this up, we won´t have any workers left in a week…" Clarke exclaimed, tiredly. Raven nodded. When they were done eating, Clarke wanted to thank Octavia for the help, but she couldn't find her anywhere. She knew Octavia would be safe with Lincoln, but she also knew she wouldn't be safe from her brother if he ever found out. And just as she thought about Bellamy, he was suddenly beside her. She just hoped he wouldn't ask her about Octavia.
"Nice speech earlier, they deserved being called idiots!" he said, smiling slightly. Clarke rolled her eyes.
"I didn't call them idiots, not exactly," she answered. They were by the wall, watching out at camp.
"Well they are! But still, we got a lot of wood down today, and we have cleared enough ground to start on the foundation tomorrow" he said excitedly. Clarke couldn't help but smile.
"I always wondered how it would be like living in a house" Clarke said, smiling to herself. Bellamy looked down at her.
"Well princess, I can´t guarantee a room of your own, not even a tower" he said jokingly. Clarke rolled her eyes at him, and he laughed.
"Octavia told me about the winter blankets, and your idea about the animal fur is good, but we won´t be able to catch that many animals…" he continued. Clarke was about to answer when they heard a noise coming from behind them a few meters down the wall. Both turned to look, as they saw Octavia climb back into camp, thru a hidden hole in the wall. Clarke froze, not wanting to look at Bellamy. Octavia didn't spot them, as she ran into camp. Neither of them said anything, before Bellamy turned to her. He seemed content at her shocked reaction.
"Don't you think I know my sisters has been sneaking off? I´m her brother…" he said, before walking back to the fires. Clarke stood still, watching as Bellamy went over to Octavia. He grabbed her arm gently, and then they went off towards his tent. Clarke could only imagine what he was saying to her, but still, he hadn't seemed so angry at the whole thing. Clarke just brushed it off, before she went to her own tent for the night.
The next few days were the same. The building was starting to come together, but so was Clarkes patient list in the drop ship. When the ceiling was being built, a boy named Thomas fell off and broke his leg. Bellamy was so angry than he almost broke his other leg, before Clarke came rushing in. She hadn't slept much in the last few days, being way to busy treating everyone who got themselves injured. Octavia and Mounty were helping her, and the only times she spoke to anyone else then them and her patients, was when Bellamy came in with food for them, or when Raven came in to keep them company. When the roof was finally built, the house was a sight to see. There were no windows, but walls built of huge trees, and straw as isolation between them. The house was big enough to fit everyone inside, and there were even room to put in walls. Some of the boys had already gathered threes, and started working as soon as they could. Raven helped them as a mechanic, making sure the walls and ceiling would hold. And after about three weeks of hard work, all of them were content with themselves, and had started taking their things into the house. Bellamy walked into the drop ship, where he found Clarke sleeping against the wall. She looked exhausted, with dark rings under he eyes, and her hair up in a messy bun. He strode over, and laid a hand on her shoulder. She woke up, and looked straight at him.
"What? Is someone injured?" she said quickly, looking around the drop ship. He helped her up, and smiled.
"No, but you need a break, and a good nights sleep, come!" he said calmly, making her walk out of the drop ship. Clarke stopped in the door, looking up at him.
"I can´t, I have patients Bellamy!" she said looking worried. Bellamy sighed.
"Octavia and Mounty can handle it, you need to take care of yourself!" he said, pushing her out in front of him. She had barely been out of the drop ship in days, and hadn't really gotten a chance to really examine the house that was built. She started walking to her tent, when Bellamy stopped her.
"The rooms are ready, your things are already there!" he explained, making their way over to the door. When she got in she automatically smiled from ear to ear. There was a long hall straight thru the house, with curtains made of leaves in front of rooms on both sides. Bellamy made her walk to the end of the corridor, and gestured for her to go in to a room. Inside there were blankets on the wooden floor, and her things in the corner. She could see that one of the blankets was made from animal fur. She looked over at Bellamy, who just nodded.
"We caught it yesterday, it will keep you warm!" he said, smiling contently with himself.
"I thought you said I wouldn't be getting a room to myself?" she asked, frowning. Bellamy walked over to her.
"Oh, you want a bedbuddy?" he asked, whispering to her with a smile on her face. Clark rolled her eyes at him, and pushed him back. He walked to the door, before he turned around to look at her again.
"We don't know how cold it will get, but for now I don't think people will have to share body heat. And you got your own room because you need rest, and you deserve it!" he said quietly, before walking out, leaving her to herself.
The next day Clarke for once actually felt well rested. She smiled to everyone she passed on her way to the drop ship. When she came inside, she saw Bellamy, Mounty, Jasper, Miller, Octavia, Raven and Finn sitting around a table. They all looked up at her, and Octavia jumped over, to give her a seat between her and Bellamy.
"Nice of you to join us princess!" Bellamy smirked, before Octavia spoke.
"Miller just had the best idea! He said you found a room in the bunker that was meant for sleeping right? That had beds?" Octavia said, smiling at Clarke, who just nodded. "And there are beds in all the bomb shelters around this area! So we were thinking that we could go back out, and carry the mattresses back here!" Octavia finished, smiling more than ever before. Clarke smiled, that was something she hadn't even thought about.
"We would have to send out a lot of people to carry all those mattresses Octavia!" Bellamy said, frowning. Clarke knew he was right, and that it might be a bad idea.
"But does that really matter though? Its not like we are at war with the grounders anymore…" Raven said, looking almost as exited as Octavia.
"But there won´t be enough mattresses for everyone…" Finn said, not making eye contact with Clarke. She hadn't really spoken to him since the day they went out for supplies. She knew the relationship between him and Raven wasn't going so well, but she didn't want to ask.
"Well then people would have to share" Miller said, smiling over at Clarke. Clarke suddenly froze a little, and took her eyes away. Bellamy quickly wrapped up the meeting, but held Clarke back as everyone went out of the drop ship.
"What was that about?" he asked, looking seriously at her. Clarke frowned.
"What was what?"
"That thing, with Miller?" he continued, and she couldn't help but notice he seemed a little nervous.
"Nothing, why?" she dared ask, not taking her eyes off him.
"No reason. So, ehm… we need at least one per mattress, maybe two…" he continued, brushing one of his hands thru his hair. Clarke nodded.
"But is this really that important tough? We could survive without it you know!" she said, crossing her arms. Bellamy nodded.
"I know, but I think it will be a morality boost in camp, and we might need that to survive winter" he continued.
"Is it safe out there?" she said, a little nervous.
"Like Raven said, we are at peace with the grounders. And either way, you´re coming with me!" he said with a strict voice. Clarke raised her eyebrows at him.
"You aren't going to try and stop me?" she said curiously. He shook his head.
"Are you going to listen to me if I do?"
"Well, no…"
"There you go… We leave right away!" He said, smirking slightly at her, before walking out of the drop ship. Clarke rolled her eyes, before walking after him.
Bellamy, Clarke, Jasper, Mounty, Miller, Monroe, Harper, Raven, Finn, Octavia and a few others walked together thru the forest. It had gotten colder, and they all had to watch out so they didn't slip on the ice covering parts of the ground. It had been a long time since any of them had been this far from camp, and they all loved it. The last few weeks the only ones who had been outside were the once gathering the wood, and the hunters. Octavia grabbed a flower that was covered with ice, and Clarke could see the smile on Bellamy´s face, when he saw how happy his sister was. She hadn't asked either of them about the night they saw Octavia climbing back into camp after seeing Lincoln, but she could see that Bellamy and Octavia were actually on good terms. She hadn't seen them fight in a while, witch was unusual for them.
"So, Finn and I broke up…" suddenly Raven said. Clarke turned her head to her, and frowned. She knew the relationship had been rocky for a while, but not that it was that bad. Raven nodded.
"He just doesn't love me the way I deserve…" she continued, and smiled slightly. Clarke took her hand.
"I´m sorry!" Clarke said, squeezing her hand. Raven nodded. "But you´re bad ass Raven, you don't need a man!" Clarke laughed. Raven smiled even more.
"Right back at yah!" Raven exclaimed. They were walking ahead now, and people were watching them from behind. Bellamy couldn't help but wonder what they were laughing about. But when he saw the look on Finns face, he just smiled. Everyone had known Finn had a thing for Clarke, but right now, it didn't seem to be going his way. Bellamy didn't know why that made him glad somehow. All of a sudden Octavia was beside him.
"See something you like?" Octavia whispered, following his gaze to Clarke. Bellamy looked shocked at her, but didn't say anything. His sister just smiled, before she ran ahead, towards Clarke and Raven.
When they got to the clearing, two boys opened the hatch, before several of them went down. They carried up the mattresses, stocking them in piles. But all of a sudden Clarke could see someone watching them from the trees. She walked quietly over to Bellamy, and took a hold on his arms. No one really saw, but Bellamy looked shockingly down at her. She looked serious.
"There are someone watching us…" she whispered so only he could hear her. He followed her gaze, and saw the three figures standing by the three lines. Suddenly they walked towards them with slow steps. When they got into the clearing, both Bellamy and Clarke could see that it was Anya, accompanied by Lincoln, and another woman they haven't seen before. Bellamy felt Clarkes hold on his arm loosen a bit, but not let go. Everyone was quiet now, as they had all seen the grounders.
"I think they want to talk" Bellamy said, looking down at Clarke, who just nodded quietly. Octavia was soon beside them, as they walked towards the grounders. She hadn't seen Lincoln in a while, and even though she knew she couldn't show any affection if font of his leaders, or her brother for that matter, she just wanted to be close to him. The other teenagers stayed back, watching as their leaders went over to meet the grounders. It didn't escape them that Bellamy and Clarke was now holding hands. When they reached them, Anya nodded slightly, while Lincoln winked over at Octavia.
"Clarke, Bellamy, this is Lexie, our commander!" Anya said, gesturing over to the woman beside her. Anya and Lexie were around the same age, and looked just as fierce as the other. Bellamy and Clarke nodded, they had learned that taking their hand out, would only keep them hanging.
"You are surely taking a risk walking out of your camp with so many of your guards" Lexie said, looking over to all the teenagers behind them. All of them seemed scared, mostly because few of them had ever met grounders, without someone being killed.
"We trust our peace agreement" Bellamy answered.
"Are you ready for winter?" Anya asked, looking over at Clarke. Bellamy didn't know why, but she seemed to think of Clarke as more of their leader as he was. But at that moment he didn't care.
"Yes, I think so" Clarke answered. Bellamy noticed her hand in his, and pressed it slightly as he looked down at it. Clarke met his look, and they let go. Anya saw their hands, before she looked up.
"Someone has been attacking us, kidnapping our villages at night" Lexie said, now with fiery eyes. Bellamy and Clarke exchanged worried looks.
"We had nothing to do with that!" Clarke exclaimed. Anya and Lexie nodded slightly.
"We know, you have been building up your camp…" Anya answered, looking from Bellamy to Clarke.
"Have you been watching us?" Bellamy questioned, "Wasn't the agreement that we both kept on our side of the river?"
"It doesn't matter, someone is kidnapping my people" Lexie said strictly, "The winter is coming full speed in a days time, you should get your people back" she continued.
"We actually take our peace agreements quite seriously. When winter comes, it will be almost impossible to travel around, so hopefully the attackers will stop, and give us enough time to collect our people," Anya continued, "stay in your camp, survive the winter, and when its over we will contact you!" she finished. The three grounders were about to turn around, and walk away, when Clarke spoke.
"Do you know who they are?" she asked, making them stop. Lexie turned, and looked straight at Clarke. Her eyes scared Bellamy, and he laid a hand on Clarkes back.
"Mountain men" Lexie answered. They stood still, as Anya spoke the last words.
"Just stay in your camp, and don't go out looking for trouble. We will contact you after winter"
Clarke sat in her room in the house, thinking. It had taken them all day to drag the mattresses back to camp, and just as the grounders had said, winter was coming. It had started to snow right after they got back, and the temperature had dropped drastically in the last few hours. Clarke was sitting under her blankets, with her jacket pressed around her. She had never heard of the mountain men before, but Clarke felt a shiver down her spine, remembering the look Lexie had, when she spoke of them. The look suddenly reminded her of Charlottes scared eyes, right before she jumped off the cliff. It had been a long time since they had seen Murphy, the boy the banished after he wanted to kill Charlotte. She hadn't thought about it in a long time, mostly because thinking about Charlotte made her sad, and she felt like she couldn't breathe. She let tears fall down her cheeks, not bothering to brush them away. They had lost some people by the grounders hands, but the most devastating deaths for her were the ones made by them. Charlotte had killed Wells, her best friend. Then Charlotte had committed suicide. She had just been a little girl, and Clarke had failed protecting her. All of a sudden someone came into her room, and Clarke quickly brushed her tears away. Octavia stood in the doorway, looking serious. She went over to Clarke, and sat down beside her.
"Are you okay?" she asked calmly, before Clarke slightly nodded her head. Octavia seemed uncertain, and didn't take her eyes of Clarke.
"I went to see Lincoln" she continued, "he told me more about the mountain men…"
"Have you told Bellamy?" Clarke asked, before Octavia shook her head.
"I´ll go get him" Octavia said, standing up, and going out of the room. Clarke tried to get herself together, but in a second Octavia was back, with Bellamy right behind her. He had taken the room on the other side of the hall, so that's why it hadn't taken long. He looked caring down at her, and she knew she couldn't hide her sadness from him. He just knew her too well. Both Octavia and Bellamy sat down on her bed, before Octavia started talking quietly, so that no one else could overhear them. They had told everyone at camp that the grounders just wanted them to meet their commander, not wanting to start a panic.
"Lincoln told me that the mountain men live in Mount Weather, and that they have lived there since the war" Octavia started, both Clarke and Bellamy looking straight at her. "The grounders haven't really seen much of the people, but over the last few years more and more grounders has started to disappear. They have thought it was the mountain men for quite some time now."
Bellamy and Clarke exchanged worried looks. When Octavia continued, Clarke took a blanket off herself, and handed it over at Bellamy. He nodded thanks.
"A few days ago Anya sent a group to mount weather, to try and get some answers, but none returned" Octavia said, getting a shrill thinking about what had happened the time that they tried to get to Mount Weather. Jasper had been speared, and then hung up as bait. Well, that wasn't the mountain men though, but the grounders before their peace agreement. "Two days ago Anyas own village was under attack, and Anya saw them. There were reapers" Octavia continued.
"So the reapers work for the mountain men?" Bellamy asked, frowning in thought. Octavia just nodded slightly, and both of them knew that there was more.
"Anya recognized some of the reapers, and that is what they need winter to figure out. Apparently they looked like grounder…" Octavia finished. Clarke sat up, not quite understanding what the young Blake was saying.
"Grounders? So the mountain men… No, they can´t be turning grounders into cannibals?" Clarke exclaimed silently. Bellamy, who hadn't understood until then, froze. He stretched over to take his sisters hand, seeing how scared she was. Then he turned to face Clarke.
"We need to set up more security, double the guards at the gates!" he said matter of factly. Clarke nodded straight away. If the grounders couldn't withstand an attack at night, then she knew they would have no chance if the reapers or mountain men came. Bellamy stood up, and laid the blanket over his sister.
"But what do we tell them?" Clarke asked, looking up at Bellamy. He thought for a moment, before he answered.
"We tell them that the commander has given us a message, that there are more reapers around than ever before, and that they are unpredictable." He said, as the leader he was. Clarke nodded again. He smiled slightly to both of them, before heading out. Clarke made room for Octavia next to her. They didn't say much after Bellamy left, and after a while Octavia was asleep. Clarke laid down, but couldn't get herself to close her eyes. She couldn't stop thinking about the reapers, the mountain men, the grounders, Wells, Charlotte and Murphy. But before she even realized it herself, she fell asleep too.
The room was completely dark when Clarke woke up. It was so different from sleeping in a tent, where the light woke everyone every morning. She stirred in bed, before sitting up. Octavia was still asleep beside her, but what really shocked her was Bellamy, sitting curled up against the wall next to her. He was sleeping, and only had a jacket on for warmth. It was so cold that Clarke could see her breath in the air, and she felt sorry for him. She wondered what he was doing there, but then realized that Octavia had slept there. Of course he was there because of his sister. She went out of bed, and put on her shoes. Then she took up the animal fur, and went over to Bellamy, as she laid it down over him. He stirred a little, and suddenly grabbed her hand, while opening his eyes. She tried to stand up, but his grip was too tight.
"Bellamy your freezing" she said quietly, sitting right in front of him. He let her go when he realized that he was holding onto her, and she stood up. She didn't want to say anything else, so she went outside, leaving him and Octavia in her room. There were few teenagers awake when she got outside, but when she saw Jasper, Mounty and Miller by the fireplace, she went over to them and sat down.
"Morning doc, breakfast?" Miller asked, handing her a plate. She had to say she liked the new nickname people around camp had started to call her. Not that the nickname princess didn't sound ok sometimes, but she didn't want to bee seen upon as better than anyone else. Back on the ark she had belonged to the upper class, but now they were all the same, and she wouldn't have it any other way. She started eating her breakfast.
"So as I was saying, Mounty and I just finished a new batch of moonshine, and we think its time to celebrate!" Jasper exclaimed, looking at Clarke. Their moonshine had gotten better over time, and it always raised the moral in camp. Clarke nodded.
"I agree, the building is done, we even have mattresses and animal blankets! What do you say Clarke?" Miller said, looking at her. She smiled and nodded her head. She knew that the teenagers really needed to have some fun. Especially after Bellamy had told all the guard about the reapers the night before. She could see it in the guys' eyes, but was thankful they didn't mention it.
"Great! Then tonight we´ll have a party!" Jasper said happily, dragging his hand over Clarke´s shoulders. She smiled, and couldn't help but laugh.
The day went on, and most of the teenagers kept inside the house for warmth. It was getting colder by the minute, and when the snow reached like a carpet over the camp, the rest of them went inside too. Raven had worked on a fireplace in the middle of the house, and they finally got it to work. The smoke went up into a hole in the ceiling, and the warmth spread thru the house. They had worked hard to make sure that it wouldn't make the house burn down, and everyone was happy when it worked. Octavia and Harper went around handing food to everyone, while they were sitting in different rooms, or in the hallway. But everyone gathered together when Jasper came with the moonshine, and him and Mounty handed cups over to everyone. The hallway was a little wider at the middle of the house, around the fire, but still everyone had to sit close in small groups. Clarke let the moonshine warm down her throat, while sitting against a wall next to Raven and Bellamy.
"Finally decided to have some fun princess?" Bellamy whispered to her. She smiled slightly, taking her cup up for cheers to him. He smirked, before downing his own cup.
"Hey Mounty, how much moonshine do you have?" he yelled over at the two boys, still standing with their moonshine. They both smiled.
"Enough to make everyone real drunk, I promise!" Mounty laughed, before sending more cups around.
"Well next rounds on me then" Bellamy said to Clarke, and winked at her, before walking up to get some more. Clarke frowned, and looked after him. But at that second Octavia was beside her.
"So, he stayed in your room last night…" she whispered, smiling over at Clarke.
"You were there, so of course he did" Clarke answered. Octavia rolled her eyes.
"Well whatever you tell yourself.." Octavia finished, before looking up to see her brother coming back with two cups of moonshine. She smiled knowingly at Clarke, before she went over to get some for herself. Bellamy sat back down, and handed her a cup.
"What was that about?" he asked, taking another sip. Clarke looked away.
"Nothing, just your sister being your sister…" she answered, and smiled to herself.
The moonshine had definitely gotten better since their first try, and soon enough most of the teenagers were drunk. Clarke stood by the wall, smiling at Raven practically sitting on Mounty´s lap. It was late, and many teenagers had gone to bed, many of them not alone. Clarke thought about telling them to be careful, but shook it away. On the ark every girl had gotten injections to ensure they wouldn't get pregnant, but down here they didn't have anything to prevent it. The thought of the girls at camp starting to have children frightened her, because of the fact that they didn't have anything to help the pain under childbirth. But she decided not to think about it. Her eyes scanned the room, and they fell on Bellamy. He stood talking to some people, who seemed absolutely mesmerized by him. She smiled to herself, and suddenly his eyes shot her way, and he smiled lightly at her. But then Finn was in front of her, and she lost sight of Bellamy. She looked up at him.
"I need to talk to you" he said seriously. Usually she would have come up with an excuse and walked away, but she was drunk, and the wall was the only thing holding her up. She could see he had been drinking too.
"I love you Clarke" he whispered in her ear, making her freeze. He seemed so happy, so loving, as he stood there smiling at her with watery eyes. She hadn't thought about him that way for a really long time, but her mind wasn't working right at that moment.
"Aren´t you going to say it back? I know you care for me!" he continued. His voice only reached her, and she felt desperate to get out of the situation, but couldn't move.
"I care for you as a friend Finn…" she said, without looking him in the eyes. He put his hand against the wall on either side of her, and she felt even more trapped.
"Just kiss me, and you will realize it too" he continued, getting closer to her. She felt herself pressing her body against the wall, not knowing what to do as he leant against her. But suddenly the pressure of his body was gone, and she opened her eyes. Bellamys hand was holding Finn back, and both of them looked at her. She looked around, and noticed that no one was looking in their direction; they were all too drunk to realize what was going on. Bellamy turned his deathly gaze to Finn.
"Run along spacewalker, I need to talk to Clarke" he said, letting go of him. Bellamy´s gaze didn't stop, until Finn turned around. When he looked back at Clarke, his expression completely changed, and he walked over to her.
"Are you ok?" he asked quietly, before she nodded. He took up two glasses of moonshine, before he gestured for her to come with him. Clarke could feel Finns gaze behind her, but followed Bellamy anyway. They went into her room, and he sat down on the bed. She looked unsure what to do, but sat down beside him. He handed her the cup of moonshine, and smiled lightly.
"Thank you" she said quietly, before taking another sip. She could feel the alcohol in her body, but it felt good.
"For what?" he asked, smirking at her. But she didn't roll her eyes. She was tired, and her head fell down on his shoulder. He froze, before he relaxed again.
"For taking me away" she almost whispered. He smiled to himself.
"So, not you and spacewalker huh?" he asked, she could sense his smile from his tone. She shook her head lightly on his shoulders.
"Nah, I don't need anyone, I´m badass" she said, giggling. Bellamy let out a laugh.
"Well that's true…" he said. Clarke sat up straight, and looked right at him, raising her eyebrows.
"You agree I´m badass?" she said shocked. He took a hand up to her shoulder and smirked.
"Don't get any ideas, your still the ark princess…" he laughed, and winked at her. He knew she hated being called the ark princess, even though lately it had seemed that him calling her princess was ok for her.
"You don't think I can be fun?" she asked, not taking her eyes off him.
"I don't know yet" he said wondering, taking another sip off his moonshine. Then he watched as Clarke swallowed the rest of her cup in one go. He was about to say something, when she turned to face him, her eyes glowing in the dark. His eyes wandered down to her mouth, and he could see hers doing the same. Before either of them knew what was going on, Clarke took her hand up around his neck, and pressed her lips to his. He froze, before he wrapped an arm around her, pressing her up on his lap. Both of them deepened the kiss, pushing their bodies as close as they could. He fell down on the bed, with her on top, sliding their tongues together in their mouths. He let one of his hands wander down her back, while the other gripped tightly around her head. Both of her hands were firmly in his hair, intertwined with his black curls, pushing him down.
"Clarke, you have no…" Raven had come in, and stopped dead in the doorway. She looked from the pair on the bed, to her feet. "I´m sorry, carry on" she said, smirking slightly, before turning and heading out. Clarke looked shocked at the curtain, not quite grasping what had just happened. But when Bellamys hand reached her cheeks, she looked back down at him. He smirked at her, and she bit her lip. When he saw that, he suddenly turned her around, lying on top of her, and kissed her again. She had a second of doubt after Raven had come in, but the instant his lips was back on hers, she couldn't think, she could just kiss him back. When they both needed to take a breath, his head fell down to the crook of her neck. They both closed their eyes, not taking their hands off each other. Bellamy pulled the blankets over them, and Clarke sighed at the warmth of it. She let her hands brush thru his hair, and opened her eyes.
"Bellamy…" she whispered, and he instantly raised his head, and rested his forehead to hers. "I don't want to be one of those girls…" she continued.
"You´re not" he said firmly, kissing her lightly. She closed her eyes, feeling his gaze on her. "Clarke, look at me" he said again. She opened her eyelids, and looked straight into his eyes again. They were filled with such warmth, and passion, and Clarke couldn't remember ever seeing him this way.
Clarke woke up with the worst headache. She stirred in bed, but froze when she felt arms pressed around her. She opened her eyes, and looked straight at Bellamys sleeping face. He looked calm, with his eyes closed, and his hands around her waist, pressing her to his chest. She tried to remember what had happened last night, and couldn't help but smile a little remembering their kiss. She noticed they were both dressed, and it made her glad. She didn't want to sleep with him. Or did she? She didn't know. At least she didn't want their first time to be when they were both drunk. Their first time? She rolled her eyes at herself. They had both been drunk, so it probably didn't mean anything from his side. He had done this before, and she knew that. But still she couldn't get his voice out of her head. She took her hands up, and sneaked out of his grip. He moved a little, but didn't wake up. She stood up, and watched him for a second, before she went out of the room. Outside she was glad she wasn't the only one feeling like shit. She nodded to several teenagers on her way to the fire. It was freezing, so she packed her jacket tightly around her. When she got sight of Raven and Octavia, she tried to turn around, but it was too late.
"Clarke, don't even try, you wont get out of this!" Raven yelled, making her going over to them. They handed her a cup of something warm, and she smiled a thanks.
"Soo, you and my brother?" Octavia said, smiling from ear to ear. Clarke rolled her eyes.
"Nothing happened…" Clarke tried. Raven laughed.
"It didn't look like nothing…" she burst out, raising her eyebrows. Clarke turned to Octavia, and looked guilty.
"Don´t worry, I saw you two going off to your room before Raven told me…" Octavia answered, seemingly amused. Clarke sighed.
"We were drunk…" she said, trying to seem nonchalant. This time Octavia giggled.
"Yeah, that's your excuse about yesterday, but what about all the other times…" Octavia answered, making Clarke frown at her. "Don't play dumb with me Griffin, we all saw how you grabbed his arm at the clearing, and how he held your back when we talked to the grounders. Not to mention the glances you two send to each other non-stop. It seems like none of you can make a decision without the other one agreeing with a nod. You speak without saying a word Clarke, that's how intertwined you two are!" she continued, smiling even bigger than before.
"He has had plenty of girls in his tent before…" Clarke said, but Octavia and Raven just glanced at each other, before smiling back at Clarke.
"Not in ages Clarke, not since you two started becoming friends" Octavia said, earning a little smile from Clarke.
"Talking about the devil" Raven said quietly. The two others followed he gaze towards the entrance of the house. Bellamy walked out, and looked kind of confused. Clarke turned away, just before he looked in their direction. Octavia nodded for him to come over, but he stood still. Then before they could do anything else, Miller was beside him and they hurried up towards the gate talking. Octavia rolled her eyes in frustration.
Bellamy let Miller brief him by the front gate, but there had not been any unusual sightings outside their wall, except from a boar a little while back. Bellamy couldn't help his thoughts wandering off to that certain blonde by the fire, but when Miller told him about the boar, he knew he had other things to take care of. He quickly gathered up a hunting party to go out and kill it. The snow made it hard to open their gate, but after some digging, they got it open. He turned around to look back at camp, but Clarke was nowhere to be seen. He sighed, and wondered where she was. Usually she would come storming to him, screaming by now. But before he could go out, Octavia was blocking his path.
"So, you and Clarke?" she said, smiling triumphantly. He sighted.
"Not now Octavia, we have a boar to catch!" he said frustrated. She nodded slightly.
"Just don't wait too long Bell, she´s one of the good ones" she looked at him with burning eyes, before she walked off. Bellamy looked up, and met Millers gaze.
"Ok, let´s go!" he said loudly, making the hunting party go out the gate.
Clarke kept busy in the drop ship all day. Raven had told her about the hunting party, and even though she thought it was a bad idea to go out into the winter, she didn't want to face Bellamy. Usually she would have stormed out and confronted him, and they would have an argument about it. But now all she really needed was time. She organized all her medical equipment, made lists of what she might need, tried to figure out what was in the box Harper had given her a few weeks ago, and cleaned the medical beds in the drop ship. It had never looked so good in there before, but still she couldn't stop. She was sitting by the wall, drawing, when the hunting party came back. She could hear them from the walls, even without her walkie. She stood up quickly, just as some of the boys burst into the drop ship. Bellamy and Jasper was carrying Miller between them, and Clarke immediately saw what was wrong. Miller was absolutely soaking wet, his hair had even gotten ice in it from freezing in the cold weather. His skin was pale, and his lips blue from the cold, and he was shivering.
"Get him to the table!" she said loudly, turning into doctor mode. Octavia and Mounty was soon there, and she started ordering them around.
"He needs new clothes! Get blankets, hot tee, animal fur, anything to keep him warm!" she yelled, and everyone did as she said. They packed it around him on the table, before Clarke forced the warm tee down his throat.
"We need to get him to the house, and lay him next to the fire!" she said, looking at the other boys. Bellamy met her eyes, and nodded automatically. He and another boy named Lukas from the hunting party went over and lifted him up, while Octavia made sure the blankets was on him as they carried him away. Clarke brought the warm water with her, and went after them to the house. They made room for him around the fire, and saw as the flames slowly started to warm his body. When Clarke finally saw some color returning to his skin, she stood up, and looked directly at Bellamy. Her eyes scared him a little, and everyone went quiet.
"What were you thinking going out in this weather?" she yelled, not moving her eyes. He looked down for a second, before answering.
"We got the boar…"
"I don't care about the boar! We have enough food don't we? You could have gotten yourselves killed" she kept yelling, the other teenagers seemed awkward. Clarke noticed, and calmed down a little. "What happened?" she said more slowly, again looking at Bellamy.
"We were circling around it, and Miller accidentally ran over a small watering hole. The ice broke, and he fell thru…" Bellamy explained, "we got him up, and went straight here!" he continued, seeming a little more confident. He knew Clarke wouldn't agree on the hunting party, but he just needed to get away, and it had been a good excuse. He never thought about something like this happening. But he knew Clarke had thought about it, because somehow she was always good at calculating risks, whilst he was good at taking them without thinking about it. He calmed down a little, when he saw her sighed. All of a sudden it seemed like she realized that se was looking at him, and she quickly looked away. She knelt beside Miller, and looked at his face again. His lips weren't as blue anymore, and the shivering seemed to have stopped. She looked up at Monroe, who sat on the other side of him.
"Make sure he´s warm at all times. Feed the fire, and don't take the blankets off him. If he starts shivering again, come get me…" she said quietly, before standing again. She brushed past Jasper and Harper, and went to her room. Octavia walked over to Bellamy, and looked at him with her deadly look. He sighed.
"What do you want med to say O?" he said in a whisper. The room was again loud with noise, and people seemed to let them be alone. Octavia looked serious.
"If you really like her Bellamy, then you need to go in there. But if you don't, and this is just a game for you, then you have to stay away, and I will go in…" she said, as calmly as she could. His mind was working on overdrive, but as soon as the picture of Clarke got on his mind, he knew what to do. He didn't say another word, but turned to walk to Clarkes room. But before he could reach it, Finn was suddenly in his way.
"Move spacewalker!" he said sharply, trying to get past him.
"I don't think she wants to see you right now… " Finn said, with a little smile on his mouth.
"And what makes you think she wants to see you. You harassed her last night…" Bellamy said, looking angry. Finn suddenly felt a little smaller.
"You don't get to play with her feelings Bellamy!" Finn said, with a stern look. Bellamy pushed him back slightly.
"You did that, I wont!" Bellamy said, just as he got past him, and walked on down the hall. Finn looked after him, but turned away, as Bellamy went into her room. He met Ravens eyes, whom immediately looked away.
Clarke was lying on her bed, when Bellamy came in; she looked up at him, before turning away. He went over to her bed, and sat down.
"Go away Bellamy!" she said exhaustedly, without turning around. He laid a hand on her back.
"I´m not going anywhere princess" he said calmly. He could feel her freeze under his touch, but she turned around to face him. He could see that there were no tears in her eyes. She just looked exhausted. "I meant what I said last night… You´re not just one of those girls to me" he heard the words come out, without even thinking about it. Clarke eyes opened wider, and he suddenly felt naked, like she could see right thru him.
"You don't owe me anything Bellamy, we were drunk" Clarke said calmly, looking down. He took his hands up to cup her face. Their eyes met, and she looked confused.
"No I don't," he said in a whisper, "but I need you Clarke!" he finished, not once taking his eyes of hers. He could see the shock in her eyes, not only from what he had said, but also because he had used her name, not princess. She didn't say anything for a while, and suddenly he felt even more naked, even more like an open book. He loosened his grip, and looked away.
"I should go…" he said, whilst getting on his feet. But he stopped as Clarkes hand shot up, and held him around his wrist. He looked down at her.
"Please stay…" she whispered, neither of them believing what she had just said. She made room for him beside her, and he lay down. They took the blankets around the, without saying a word. Clarke dragged his hand around her waist, and placed it on her back.
"I need you too Bellamy" she whispered against his ear, as he pulled her close. He smiled against the top of her head.
"You already told me that, on our first day trip…"
"Like I made the first move..." she said sarcastically, but smiled. He took his other hand around her, letting her head rest on his biceps.
"You surely crept up on me" he whispered, stroking her back, her hands tightened around him, and he could feel her smile.
