Something was wrong. She knew it even before she had opened her eyes: the mattress beneath her was too soft, the sheets didn't itch and the soft warmth she could feel on her face wasn't supposed to exist in space.
I could still be dreaming, she told herself as she let out a little content sigh, snuggling deeper into this pleasant place between sleep and awake. If she could, she would live here forever. She'd live in a place where time had frozen and her life wasn't a cluster of pain and tears. Realistically, she knows that she'll have to wake up soon and face reality, but there's still some time.
In all her life, never had any of her dreams felt so real, so genuine. The scent which was teasing her nostrils, something sweet and smooth, smelled like a Sunday morning of yesterday. Her ears picked up the soft chirping of birds, making her dream of a beautiful day on Earth. Everything was so perfect that she didn't want to open her eyes, because she didn't want it all to vanish.
Five more minutes, she told herself. Just five more minutes, she begged her subconscious. But she didn't get them.
A deafening bang made her jump and her eyes flew open.
Where the hell am I? Was the first thing she thought as she realized that she didn't recognize the room around her. It didn't look like the Ark, not at all. She hastily sat up in bed, her heart beating frantically in her chest. She felt as if she had been transported into an old movie, a pre-nuclear war movie. She was in a big bed, surrounded by furniture which wasn't made from plastic or metal and even stranger, as she looked out of the window, there were no stars in the sky but instead there was a shade of colour she had never seen in all her life. The sheet was as white as if it was new and it didn't smell the antibacterial like they used to on the Ark. She lowered her gaze and blinked at the sight of her outfit. She was wearing a pale pink pajama with black lace sewn at the neckline and along the hem of the top. Could she be on earth? No, she couldn't, it wasn't possible.
Abby put her head in her hands and tried to collect her mind. Her last memory was being on the Ark, packing medical supplies for the upcoming departure of the Exodus Ship and then...
"Oh God," she breathed out as she remembered Diana Sydney's mutiny.
She had tried to escape, she remembered that. She had tried, she had pushed the opening button, but then..., then everything went black.
Did they make it? Did they land on the ground? And the Ark? Jackson, Thelonius, Kane, everybody else? Did they survive the launch? Thousand of questions were running through her mind as panic was taking over. Without giving it a second thought, she jumped off the bed and ran towards the door.
Body shaking, she exited the room and ran down the corridor, coming to an abrupt halt as she heard voices coming from downstairs. Holding her breath, she listened carefully. She couldn't hear who was speaking nor could she understand what they were saying so ever so quietly, she began to descend the stairs.
"No way," a female voice exclaimed, and Abby froze.
"Come on O, you don't trust me?" a male voice answered, followed by the sound of a cup being placed on a surface.
Abby swallowed and tried to calm herself. She didn't know these voices. They might be grounders', but that seemed unlikely. The grounders Clarke had talked about weren't supposed to live in houses like this. From what she had understood, grounders lived in primitive homes. But, then again, houses like this should have been destroyed during the nuclear war. Perhaps the grounders that the kids had described weren't the only survivors, perhaps there were other civilizations who had survived and had decided to rebuild as it had been pre-nuclear war.
"Well, not when it comes to boys. Do you remember Atom? Hmm?" the female voice asked ironically.
"Atom", the name lingered in Abby's mind. She knew that name, she had heard it before.
Could it be the name of one of the hundred?
She kept going down the stairs on her tiptoes until she finally arrived in a hall. She was facing the entrance of what looked like a big living room. Hesitantly, she walked in and noticed another room on the other side of a wooden dining table. She let her eyes travel across the room for a moment, but she didn't pay any attention to the picture frames above the fireplace. A huge window was overlooking a street and the sight of a car passing in front of it made her hide behind a white armchair, scared of being spotted. Feeling her heartbeat increase, she felt a panic attack coming up.
Another sound coming from the opposite room drew her attention. Rising from her crouched position, she started to walk towards the sliding door which were half-open and as she glimpsed between them, she caught sight of a man's back.
The voices were still talking, but she didn't listen to them anymore. This figure, the way he stood, his dark hair... She took a few steps forward, passing a beige couch, still staring at the man who couldn't rationally be-
"Hey, keep it down, please," the man snapped as he turned around.
Abby held back a yelp by covering her mouth with both of her hands. This was totally insane.
He couldn't be there, he couldn't be on earth. He was in space, on the Ark, probably dead because of Diana's treason and- and- He didn't have a beard!
Abby stumbled a little in shock. It didn't make any sense. She must be dreaming or hallucinating, it couldn't be otherwise.
"Hi mom," a too familiar voice resonated behind her and her heart missed a beat.
A blonde teenage girl walked past her and walked into the kitchen. Abby remained still, like if she had just seen a ghost. Clarke! She was there. She was safe. Abby immediately felt the need to run to her, to take her in her arms and to hold her for a long time, but her body seemed no longer to listen to her. She was too stunned to move or to say anything.
"Hey, look who's finally woken up," Kane exclaimed with an unusual wide smile as he got rid of the dish towel he had on his shoulder and walked toward her.
Abby's eyes traveled from him to Clarke until he arrived in front of her and did something which unsettled her completely: He cupped her face with his both hands and leaned to kiss her forehead.
"Do you feel better?" he asked her, his thumb brushing lightly against her cheekbone.
Abby stared at him, eyes wide, wondering what the hell was going on.
"Sorry about the noise, the dish slipped out of my hand," he apologized, tucking lovingly a strand of her hair behind her ear.
"Slipped, yeah, sure... This has nothing to do with the burnt pancakes," a brunette girl mocked him from the doorway before munching an apple.
"Stopped making fun of him O., he does his best," a boy reprimanded her, messing her hair up as he passed her.
"Damn Bellamy," the girl shouted, trying to kick him.
"Guys...," Kane warned them off, holding back a sigh, his hands still on each side of her face.
"I have to go, Echo's waiting for me," the boy named Bellamy said as he grabbed a car key on the coffee table.
"Hey, you said you'd drop me off at the Mall," the brunette protested, following him in the corridor.
"Don't worry, I'm on it," Kane told Abby before following the two teenagers.
The next five minutes were filled with cries and insults. Kane was trying to calm things down while Abby was still standing in the middle of the living room, disbelief. She didn't understand any of it.
How could they be on earth, living in a house which seemed to have never been impacted by the nuclear bombing? Why were they all acting this strangely?
Her daughter had said good morning to her like if they had seen each other the previous day whereas they had been separated for almost two weeks. And Kane, what was wrong with him? First, he had a beard and then he kissed her forehead like if they were...
"It's okay Octavia, I'll drop you off, I got to stop at Niylah's store anyway. I'll wait for you in the car," Clarke's voice resonated in the hall follow by the sound of the door.
Abby felt her blood run cold in her veins. Clarke was leaving. She couldn't let her, not without having made sure that she was okay, that she wasn't harmed in any way.
"Clarke wait," she exclaimed loudly, running toward her daughter.
Without thinking, she took her in her arms and hold her tight, breathing her in, under the amazed eyes of the three other people in the room.
"Mum? Are you okay?" Clarke asked her, trying to push her softly away.
"Yes, sweetheart. Yes, I am," Abby breathed out, her eyes shining with tears as she stroked her daughter's face.
It felt so good to have her back again. To feel her in her arms, to know that she was safe and that she would be able to protect her again.
"And you? How do you feel?" she asked in turn, scanning her face, looking for injuries.
"Well, I- I'm fine," Clarke answered tentatively, throwing Kane a questioning look.
"Mum, I- We really need to go," the girl added, trying to escape from her mother's grip.
"No. No, wait. I...I don't understand. What happened? How- We were on space and-" Abby started to object frantically.
"Wow. Okay, how many sleeping pills did you take last night, Doc?" Octavia exclaimed, bursting into laughter.
The three other started to laugh too, and Abby felt her worry turn into anger. She abruptly took a step backwards, her gaze fixed on the floor and her fingers rubbing her temples, trying desperately to collect her memories. Probably alerted by her unusual reaction, Kane stopped laughing.
"Abby, are you okay?" he fretted, reaching for her shoulder.
Abby jerked reflexively away from his touch.
"Don't touch me," she spat, pushing violently his hand away.
This time, everybody stopped laughing and a deafening silence fell upon them. The kids were exchanging astonished looks while Marcus was staring at her with an expression she had never seen on his face. He looked hurt. Hurt and concerned.
Abby put her face in her hand and tried to calm down her breathing, leaning against the closest wall.
"Okay..." Marcus stated after several seconds before clearing his throat. "I got this," he assured the three others in a lower voice.
Abby didn't look up, but she heard the sound of footsteps moving away, followed by the sound of a door opening and closing. She would have wanted to stop Clarke, to ask her to stay, but she was too busy trying to make sense out of what she was living.
"Honey, what's going on?" Kane asked her quietly as he walked towards her, but this time stopped at a proper distance.
Abby closed her eyes and bit her lower lip. Since when Kane thought he was allowed to call her by a pet name? It was insane and it didn't sound like him.
"Was I in a coma?" she inquired, staring suspiciously at him.
This was the best explanation. It had to be that. The landing didn't go well and she passed out for days, maybe weeks, even months. Yes, that was it!
"What? No, of course not. You...You didn't feel well when you came home last night. You said you had a headache so you went to bed early," Kane explained, trying to catch her gaze.
Abby shook her head and let out a deep and exasperate sigh.
"Stop lying to me. It doesn't make sense. None of this makes any sense," she insisted, hitting her head a little against the wall behind her. "We were on the Ark, the Exodus ship was almost ready to launch and...and Diana seized it and then...and then...," she told herself more than she told him, clinging to her last memories.
"Do you have a fever? Do you want me to call a doctor?" Kane asked her as he took another step toward her, scanning her face with a frown.
"No! I'm a doctor and I'm fine, it's just...it's just- I can't remember," she finally confessed, holding back the tears which were filling her eyes.
She felt like if she was becoming crazy and it scared her.
"Okay, don't worry, everything's going to be fine. I'll call a doctor," Kane claimed as he started to walk toward the living room.
Abby's eyes flew open.
"No!" She protested strongly, but he didn't listen to her. "No! No !" She kept opposing, following him. "Kane stop," she shouted as she saw him pick up the phone.
This time he stopped moving, the phone still in his hand. She couldn't see his face, but the way his shoulder blades drew together made her realized that she might have said something wrong.
"Kane? Kane?!," he echoed in a tone which navigated between shocked and hurt as he turned around to face her.
Abby swallowed hard as she saw the same expression he had on his face barely two minutes earlier when she had pushed his hand away.
Since when Marcus Kane had become such an open book to her?
The Marcus Kane she knew never showed his emotions. The Marcus Kane she knew was always cold and unfathomable. He never batted an eye, he never made a face.
"What?" she asked, feeling unusually bothered by his reaction.
Since Jake's death, she had tried a thousand of time to hurt him, to break that damn mask of callousness and of insensitivity, to force him to show that he was still human, but she never succeeded, not with mean words at least. In fact, he had let her enter in his secret bubble only once: namely the day Vera died. The look on his face during that horrible day was still engraved in her mind. Anyway, this time she hadn't asked for this expression on his face and even more she didn't even know what she had said to prompt it.
"You haven't called me that since...," he started to say, but he faltered and let the sentence trail off while lowering his gaze.
"Since what?" Abby insisted, while this time it was her who took a step closer.
She saw him hesitate for a second, but he then shook his head and put the phone back down.
"Never mind. I'll take you to the hospital. Go get dressed, it might be a stroke, we have to hurry," he told her, feeling his pocket, probably looking for his car key.
"It's not a stroke, I'm fine, I just need you to answer my question," Abby objected, shifting herself to block him as he tried to walk pass her.
Kane let out a deep sigh and grabbed her shoulders. This time, Abby flinched a little under his touch, but she didn't push him away.
"Abby you had a headache, you're confused, you're short of breath, you didn't remember—" he argued, but she lifted her chin boldly like she always did when she wasn't willing to let him win and it made him let out a loud sigh. "I'm not kidding Abby, just put your coat on, I'll come back later for your clothes," he told her before forcing her to move away from his way.
"I'm not going anywhere before you told me what the hell happened," she barked, making him stop to look at her once again.
"But I have told you," he stated, and it was obvious to her that he was starting to get annoyed.
"No, you didn't. When did we land? How did we- Is everybody alive? Where are they?" she asked, her tone becoming shriller and shriller as emotions were overwhelming her.
"Who are you talking about?" he inquired, sighing one more time.
"Thelonius, Jackson, Callie..." Abby started to enumerate with apprehension.
"We're Sunday, so they're probably at home sleeping in, eating pancakes or doing what they usually do a Sunday morning," he answered, shrugging ostensibly, his palms lifted toward the ceiling.
Abby stood still, staring at him with wide eyes. She couldn't have said if she was more relieved by the fact that they were all alive or more astounded by the insanity of the answer. She didn't know how to react, neither than her body because it failed her a second later. Her legs felt suddenly like jelly and she collapsed on the couch behind her. She started to hyperventilate and quickly her breaths turned into sobs.
"Hey, hey, hey...it's okay Abby," Kane exclaimed as he rushed to kneel in front of her.
Abby buried her face in her hand and started to shake and rock uncontrollably. She was losing her mind, there was no other explanation. It wasn't a dream, a dream couldn't be so real. She might be dead and maybe they were all dead, but if that was the case then where was Jake? Her parents? All the people she had known?
"Abby, look at me," Kane's voice reached her ears as she felt two strong and warm hands land on her legs.
"You're gonna be okay. We're gonna go to the hospital, just to make sure this isn't serious and then we'll come back and you'll take some rest. I'm sure that you're simply overworked," he told her in a reassuring tone, while stroking her pajama clad knee in a comforting manner.
Slowly, Abby looked up at him and nodded. Who are you?, she thought silently, not recognizing the gentle and caring man in front of her. However, she kept the question for herself not wanting to sound crazier that she already was.
"Let's go," he whispered with a tender smile, wiping away a tear on her cheekbone.