As the Chapter title indicates- this takes place four years ago. Bellamy is a police officer at this time, not a detective yet. Hope you all enjoy!
"Bellamy!" Clarke runs to him and embraces him as tight as she can with his police uniform on. He had just gotten off his shift and hadn't had time to change yet.
"Hi." He smiles at her and gives her a peck on the forehead.
"Hey big bro!" Octavia hollers from the kitchen, "We should have guests arriving in about thirty minutes!"
"Okay!" He shouts back to her.
"Happy birthday Bellamy!" Maya pokes her head out of the kitchen.
"Thanks." He smiles and she disappears back into the kitchen, "I should probably go change." He says to Clarke and heads into his room. He and Octavia live in a 2 bedroom apartment about twenty minutes away from Clarke and Maya. He closes his bedroom door and opens his closet, but glimpses a red gift bag in his peripheral sitting on his bed. A smile immediately spreads across his face and he grabs the bag. He reads the tag:
"To: The best non-boyfriend boyfriend ever"
Bellamy remembers the first time Clarke announced that he was her non-boyfriend boyfriend. He was sixteen, she was fourteen. They were sneaking out, once again, late at night. Her mom didn't approve of Clarke hanging out with Bellamy so much, but that never stopped them. She climbed out of her bedroom window almost every night to run off with him, tonight was no exception.
"Hi there, Princess." He had said. She always reminded Bellamy of Rapunzel with her long blonde hair and her always climbing out of the window instead of using the door. She gave him a playful shove and they raced off into the woods behind her house, not stopping for air until they reached their special spot. It was just a small pond in the middle of the woods, thinking back there was nothing spectacular about the actual spot. It was spectacular because it was his and Clarke's spot. They took Octavia almost everywhere with them, but not here, this was just 'Bellamy and Clarke', and he loved it.
That night Bellamy told Clarke that he had been out on the lake all day with some friends from school. He told her that he had had his first kiss.. Everything changed that night. -
"Why did you kiss her?" Clarke asked, genuinely interested.
"I don't know." Bellamy had answered, "We were all hanging out at the lake and it seemed like she wanted to."
"Well, did you want to?"
He thought about that, "I guess."
Clarke sat quietly for a moment, he could tell that she was thinking hard because a wrinkle appeared between her eyebrows and her nose scrunched up just the slightest, "I want to kiss you." She said abruptly. Bellamy thought he was going to pass out, his head felt light and his eyes had widened so much it hurt.
"What?" He had asked, even though he heard her.
Clarke leaned forward, slowly, watching his reaction but he didn't move away. She pressed her soft lips to his and pulled away, too quickly for his liking, smiling from ear to ear.
"What are you smiling about?" He asked her.
"Now you'll always be my first kiss.. Bellamy Blake.." His heart stuttered and then pounded so hard and fast he was sure she could hear it. "Do you like Sylvie?" She asked suddenly.
"I think she's nice." He answered.
"She is. But do you like her as more than a friend?"
"I don't know."
"Do you like me as more than a friend?"
"Clarke, you're my best friend." He tried to emphasize in those two words just how much she meant to him.
"Why would you want a girlfriend?" She was always surprising him with the questions she asked, but tonight even more so.
"I don't know… Kissing and stuff, I guess."
"I could kiss you when you want." Clarke stared at him seriously, and then her expression changed into a look of triumph, "You should be my 'non-boyfriend boyfriend'."
Bellamy laughed, "What exactly is a 'non-boyfriend boyfriend'?"
"It means that we stay exactly as we are- best friends, but it also means that you're mine." She said with a grin, "That I'm the only one who gets to kiss you." She raised her chin, smugly, like she knew she would get her way. Gosh, I love her. Bellamy had thought, not for the first time.
"Well, what about you?"
"I'll be your 'non-girlfriend girlfriend'." Her smile wider now.
"So, I can kiss you whenever I feel like it?" He liked the sound of this.
"Mhmm."
"And nobody else can?"
"Right. And no one else can kiss you either." Strike that, he loved the sound of this.
"But then why don't we just date?" He asked, just to tease.
"Because it'll ruin everything. I don't want you to think of me as your 'girlfriend', I want you to think of me as your best friend.. But I want you all to myself, so- 'non-boyfriend boyfriend'." She smiles proudly.
"Okay, 'non-girlfriend girlfriend'." Bellamy smiled and leaned in for another kiss.
Clarke really was something else. They had been inseparable for so long, he couldn't think of himself without thinking of Clarke too and vice a versa. He took out the tissue paper and plunged a hand into the bag. It felt like a book, he pulled it out and read the front "The many adventures of Bellamy & Clarke". It was a scrapbook. He opened the first page and saw a picture that Octavia had taken of him and Clarke last year when they had all gone on a camping trip. Bellamy was seated on a log, Clarke sat on the ground in-between his legs, his arms were wrapped around her neck and she was looking up into his eyes. It was his favorite picture of the two of them. The next page was filled with pictures from when they first met, he had only been about 12, and they went in order from there, working their way up to a picture taken this year with many more blank pages after that. "To be continued" Clarke had written on a post it note.
The guests all arrived, including Clarke's mom and dad, which was very surprising. They had divorced seven years ago and tried to avoid each other at all costs. Bellamy really thought it was Abigail that did the avoiding, Jake didn't seem to mind if Abigail was around.
"Happy birthday, Bellamy!" Jake says, pulling Bellamy into a bone-crunching hug.
"Thanks Jake! I'm glad you could make it." Bellamy laughed.
"Of course! I wouldn't want to be anywhere else." He slapped Bellamy on the shoulder and made his way around the room, saying hello to everyone.
The night was going great. He was surrounded by his favorite people. Clarke, Octavia, and Maya had gone through so much trouble to make sure his birthday was perfect. When the time came for cake, everyone bragged about how great it was- the girls had made it, and there wasn't a slice leftover. Bellamy opened his gifts, and made sure everyone knew how grateful he was. Then they cracked open the beer and visited some more, Bellamy sat on the couch engrossed in a conversation with two of his friends from high school, when Clarke's mom walked over to him, halting it in its tracks.
"Bellamy, could I have a word with you?" She asks.
"Sure." He follows her out onto their small balcony, closing the door behind them, "Is everything okay, Abigail?" She insists on being called Abigail.
"I really hate to have this conversation with you on your birthday Bellamy, but I feel like I'm running out of time."
"What are you talking about?"
"You and Clarke." She says, pointedly.
"What about us?"
"Bellamy, this has gone on long enough. You two need to see what else is out there."
"I don't want to see what else is out there." He says through clenched teeth.
"Clarke is twenty-one years old and the only man she's ever been with is you."
"You'd rather she slept around?" He was furious.
"No. No, of course not."
"Well then what is it Abigail? I'm not good enough for her? Is that what you're getting at?"
Abigail's expression went stony, "I don't think you're good enough for Clarke, but that's not my point Bellamy. How are you ever going to know if she's truly yours when she's never known what it's like to be with someone else?"
"She doesn't need to be with someone else to know that we're right for each other!" Bellamy's voice raised.
"Bellamy, I'm not trying to hurt you."
"Bullshit. That's exactly what you're trying to do." He moves to walk past her, but she grabs his arm.
"I'm speaking from experience, Bellamy!" She says desperately, "Jake was the only man I had ever been with, and I thought I was in love. So, we got married and we had Clarke, and things were good for a while… And then they weren't. Do you really want Clarke to wake up one day and realize that she wants out? That she wants to experience what it would have been like to be single and casually date? To be able to experience what it's like to be with more than just one man for the rest of her life?"
"She's not you, Abigail. Clarke can think for herself."
"Clarke is my daughter, Bellamy. I'll always be a part of her- I made her." She pauses, "Stop this now, Bellamy, before it's too late. Let her go out and experience more than just you. If you two are meant to be, then she'll come back. But she can never truly be yours if she never knows what it's like to be without you."
Bellamy shakes off Abigail's arm and returns to the party. He meets Clarke's eyes as Abigail follows him in. He shakes his head, indicating he doesn't want to talk about it, but Clarke ignores it and advances on him.
"Are you okay?" She asks, cupping his cheek with her hand. He shakes it off.
"I'm fine. I don't want to talk about it." He walks into the kitchen, leaving her stunned.
After he's had some time to cool down and collect his thoughts, he rejoins his guests.
Bellamy is visiting with Robert, Caroline and Craig, currently discussing tomorrow's football game, when Robert's eyes narrow and he clears his throat, "Uh, I hate to point this out man, but Carter's getting a little cozy over there with your girl." He nods towards Clarke and Carter in the corner of the room. Clarke stands with her back to the wall, while Carter stands directly in front of her, leaning in to whisper something in her ear. This night has seriously take a turn for the worse. Clarke laughs and places a hand on his chest, but doesn't push him away. Bellamy is instantly furious. He wants to walk over there and break Carter's face, but what really pushes him over the edge is the fact that Clarke isn't telling him to take a hike- even more, she seems to be enjoying herself. Carter moves in a little closer to Clarke, talking animatedly about something. Bellamy can't stand it anymore. He gets up, with the excuse that he's going to get another beer, but instead sneaks out the front door. He's pacing the short hallway when the door opens again- Clarke.
"Hey Bell.." She says, hesitantly, "I know you don't want to talk about it, but something's really bothering you."
"Do you like Carter?" He spits out.
"What?" She asks, bewildered, "Bellamy.."
"I saw you two."
"Bellamy," She says, soothingly, "You didn't see anything, because there was nothing to see."
"I saw him all over you."
"He was not-"
He cuts her off, "If you and I weren't… Whatever the hell we are! Would you be interested in him?"
"Bellamy, I want to be with-"
"WE are not together! I don't know what we are! I want to know how you feel about him. And I want an honest answer Clarke. Not as my non-girlfriend girlfriend." He spits, "Would you be interested in him if we were nothing more than friends?"
Instead of answering, Clarke throws herself onto Bellamy, crushing her lips against his so fiercely he thinks they might bruise. He pushes her back against the wall, never breaking contact, and slips his tongue into her mouth. A small moan escapes her mouth, pushing Bellamy even more, he slides his hand up the back of her shirt as she entwines her fingers in his hair. He's lost in her, not thinking about Abigail or Carter, just Clarke. He doesn't know how much time has passed, when a small cough brings them back to the reality.
Octavia pokes her head out the door and smiles, "Some of the guests would like to say goodbye to the birthday boy."
"Right." Bellamy straightens and grabs Clarke's hand, leading her back into the apartment.
After all the guests have left and Octavia has gone to bed, Bellamy leads Clarke into his bedroom, locking it behind them.
"Bell, what did you and my mom talk about?" Clarke asks, sitting on the edge of his bed.
The last thing Bellamy wants to be doing right now is talking about Abigail, but he knows he won't be able to get it off his mind until he does.
"She doesn't think I'm good enough for you. She thinks that we should see what else is out there and that if we're meant to be, that we'll come back to each other." The words leave his mouth full of malice, "She said that you can't really be mine until you've experienced life without me or with someone else."
"Bellamy," Clarke breathes, standing and taking his face in her hands, "I love you. I don't need to be with someone else to know that."
Bellamy's heart is so light he feels like laughing, but instead he kisses her again, gently this time, as he lowers her onto his bed.
Thank you for reading! The next Chapter will take place during the present time, but I hope you enjoyed getting to know a little more about the history between Clarke and Bellamy!
