"We look comfortable," Clarke commented as she gawked at the picture on Octavia's phone. "Really comfortable."

"You were snoring," Raven let her know. "So, yeah, you were pretty comfortable."

"Send it to me?" Clarke asked nicely.

"Yeah," Octavia said as she typed away on her phone. Just after a little swooshing sound, she proclaimed it done. "You both took off Saturday morning, so I missed the scoop."

"There's no scoop," Clarke said. "We went to work."

"What happened Friday night?" Raven asked.

"Nothing, we talked and watched Teenage Apocalypse. That was it."

"Nothing else?" Octavia looked suspicious.

"Nope."

"And nothing's happened since then?"

"When?" Clarke was getting snappy. "When was something supposed to 'happen?'" She made air quotes around 'happen' just in case they didn't catch her sarcasm. "I've been studying my ass off for the last two days except for the short amount of time on the phone with Roan yesterday."

"Did you tell her about the job?" Raven needled Clarke a bit.

"There's no reason to tell her," Clarke said flatly as she crunched into a granola bar. "I mean, I'll tell her because I need the day off from the farm. But, it's not a big deal or anything."

"It's in Vermont," Raven reminded her.

"And it's six months," Octavia said. "That's a long time to be gone when you're in a new relationship."

"Whoa!" Clarke nearly choked on her oats and honey. "Nobody's in a relationship. We haven't even been on a date."

Raven tapped Clarke's message icon and blew up the picture of her and Lexa. "Date."

"No," Clarke argued. "We didn't leave the apartment. It wasn't even Netflix and Chill, it was cable and mediocre pizza."

"Date!" Raven said again, louder, for the people in the back.

But, it wasn't. Was it?

Clarke thought about it the whole drive from her apartment to the tree farm. What was usually a peaceful 40 minute zip down the highway, was anything but. Why would Raven and Octavia think that her and Lexa were dating? They barely knew each other. Sure, Clarke thought she was attractive. Yes, she did call Lexa 'Hot Boss' more than once. It was a joke. All in jest, of course. Okay, it was really cute when she did that annoyed little smirk thing. And the way her work jeans hugged her ass was A++. But, c'mon, Lexa wouldn't even speak to her for the longest time. Although, even though Lexa wasn't speaking to her didn't mean Clarke wasn't talking about Lexa. All the times she had dropped a mention came flooding back to her. Clarke liked her. Fu-uuck.


Lexa's eyes strayed for the hundredth time to the big clock hanging on the wall of the employees' lounge. Her feet kicked aimlessly as she sat on one of the break tables. Indra and Anya had cornered her for an impromptu state-of-affairs meeting and she'd been stuck since. She really wasn't paying a bit of attention considering her mind wouldn't stop reminding her that Clarke probably should have been here by now. Lexa had been in and out of the lounge for the last half hour just to see if she could catch a glimpse of her, before they'd found her. She thought she would maybe "accidentally" run into the blonde and share some words this morning. A daily dose of Clarke, if one was so inclined. It's perfectly acceptable behavior. But not so acceptable if she was flanked by these two.

"...I think by April 15th, we'll be completely replanted. Lexa..."

With the mention of her name, Lexa faced Indra. "Yeah?"

"That's right on the timeline, right?"

"That's about the time we lose the college kids anyway," Anya said. "Damn, I can't wait for most of those little shits to be gone."

"They weren't so bad this year," Lexa said quickly. "There's a few that I'd like to get back in November, so don't piss them off."

"I'm all for 'em when I need 'em," Anya replied. "But I'll be glad when it's back to just Lincoln, Nyko, and I doing light maintenance."

"And you don't have to drive out here everyday," Indra said to Lexa. "You can stay in town and take care of the candle shop, the dry cleaners, and A Thousand Cuts."

"Nah," Lexa dismissed the idea. "The smell of the deli makes me nauseous. It has since I was a kid."

"That many kinds of meat on display would make anyone nauseous," Anya said.

"Yeah," Lexa agreed. "Besides Gustus loves it there. The guy lives and dies by A Thousand Cuts."

"True," Indra said. "He's really the heart of that place."

"And Nia's got everything squared away at the dry cleaners," Lexa went on. "She has no confidence in anybody coming in behind her."

"Even you?" Anya asked.

"Especially me," Lexa said. "And the woman really is a marketing genius. Who would have thought changing the slogan to 'we can get blood out of anything' would cause such an uptick in sales."

"What about the candle shop?" Indra asked. "I thought you were quite fond of it."

Lexa smiled gleefully, "It's magical."

She probably could have waxed poetic for hours about the correlation between candle scents and their direct effect on moods and happiness, but she saw Clarke rush into the lounge and was momentarily distracted.

"Oh, look, Clarke of the Hoya clan is honoring us with her presence," Lexa said as Clarke approached.

"Hoya saxa," Clarke said proudly.

"I never did understand that," Lexa told her.

"Maybe if you're lucky, I'll explain it to you," Clarke said, probably flirtier than was appropriate.

Lexa couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips. "I look forward to the explanation."

"Good morning, Miss Griffin," Indra said loudly, albeit rudely as well.

"Indra," Clarke greeted her with a smile that anything but genuine. "Good morning."

"Cutting it a bit close today," Anya remarked as she tapped her watch.

Clarke completely ignored her and spoke to Lexa. "Can we talk in private?"

Lexa slid off the table she was perched on slowly. "Uh, yeah."

They silently walked toward Lexa's office and when Clarke passed through into the room behind her, Lexa shut the door.

"How can I help you, Clarke?" Lexa asked, doing her best to sound calm.

Clarke walked all the way to Lexa's desk, leaning her butt against it. "I just wanted you to know that I had fun the other night."

"Me, too," Lexa said, still obviously uneasy.

"We didn't really talk about it," Clarke said. "I didn't know if that meant you didn't want to or..."

"We can talk about it."

"I think I slept on you."

"I know you did," Lexa said. "Is that a problem?"

"Maybe we could do it again?" Clarke rushed out. "Not me sleeping on you...Unless that's how it turns out. I'm not planning to, though."

"It would be fine if you did," Lexa said, taking a step closer to Clarke.

"Maybe we could do it again this weekend?"

"I'm free," Lexa said way too eagerly.

"K," Clarke smiled.

"Sounds great." Lexa took another small, tentative step forward. She was just nearly in Clarke's space.

"And..." Clarke stood straight. "On a completely unrelated note, not to be linked in any way, I kinda need a favor."

Lexa stepped backwards, her mind already racing with possibilities. "What's the favor?"

"I have to fly to Vermont for an interview next week," Clarke said. "I'll be out of town next Tuesday, and I know I'm supposed to be here. I know that's the agreement, but-"

"Alright," Lexa said, trying not to get too invasive. "Take all the time you need. Take the weekend off. So you can get everything in order."

"Really? That would be great," Clarke said. "I'll be back on Thursday."

"Okay."

"For work," Clarke clarified. "So professionally, I'm back Thursday. On a personal note, I'll be back in town Tuesday night."

"Okay," Lexa said again.

"Just so you know."

Lexa walked around to her chair and sat down, "Thanks for telling me. Professionally and personally."


The thing about Lexa is she let things drive her crazy. She was a thinker. She thought all day long about things that were mostly out of her control. Lexa was also a googler. She googled everything. Today, when she probably should have been working, she googled "Why Vermont?" and she was thirty seven minutes into the 'See and Do' section of and had already ordered a twelve dollar relocation packet when she heard someone clearing their throat quite obnoxiously at her door.

The woman standing there was a stranger. She was older, but very familiar somehow.

"Can I help you?" Lexa asked.

"I was told that this was the office of Lexa Beckett?" the woman said. "The owner?"

"I'm Lexa Beckett." Lexa stood and motioned her inside.

"Really?" The woman took a few steps. "I didn't know you were so young."

"I'm old enough," Lexa said, already slightly offended. "Anything in particular you need?"

"Yes," the woman walked toward Lexa's desk, hand extended. "I'm Abby Griffin, I think you know my daughter."

Lexa shook her hand before slowly nodding. "Yes."

"She's been working here for the last month."

"Actually, she's volunteering," Lexa said, just in case this conversation was about to get dicey.

"Yes," Abby rolled her eyes. "Volunteering, of course."

"I'm sorry." Lexa sat back down in her throne chair, motioning for Abby to also take a seat. "I'm not sure what that has to do with you."

"Nothing," Abby admitted. "But, you seem like a smart girl, Ms. Beckett. You and I both know it's ridiculous for Clarke to be out here wasting her time on a Christmas tree farm when she should be back at Georgetown working on her studies."

"Did she ask you to come here?" Lexa asked, knowing the answer, but fearing the worst.

"No," Abby said. "She thinks she's being noble by serving out this sentence."

"It's hardly a sentence."

"But, you are punishing her for a crime, correct?"

"She's helping me out for losses incurred by a careless mistake she made," Lexa said. "And I'm helping her by accepting her volunteer work as repayment. I was informed by her friend, and my employee, Lincoln, of her future aspirations. I didn't want to involve any agency that might shed a negative light on her later."

"That's very decent of you."

"I'm pretty damn decent," Lexa said.

"Then help me out as well and give me a dollar amount."

"A dollar amount for what, Abby?"

Abby pulled her checkbook out of her purse and clicked her pen. "A dollar amount for the damage Clarke caused. I'll pay it. And I'll pay you to replace her, as I'm sure her tasks will fall to someone who is less likely to do volunteer work."

"No."

Abby re-clicked her pen. "No?"

"No," Lexa said. "I'm not giving you a dollar amount. I'm not taking your money. And, frankly, if Clarke wants out of the arrangement, that's fine. She can go."

"And?"

"And, nothing." Lexa leaned back with her arms crossed. "Free and clear."

Abby closed her checkbook and narrowed her eyes on Lexa. "What's going on with the two of you?"

"Nothing."

"I find that hard to believe," Abby said. "Because, Lexa, I know Clarke. I know how she operates. And I wouldn't be surprised in the least if she's set her sights on you."

"What's that even mean?" Lexa wondered aloud.

"Clarke is the most important thing in the world to me," Abby said. "But, like you said, she's careless-"

"I did not say that."

"Yes, you did," Abby pointed out. "She made a careless mistake. That's what Clarke does. She's reckless. She doesn't mean to be, but she is. She's reckless with everything. And she can never make up her mind about anything. Her career, her life." Abby met Lexa's eyes with a cold, hard stare. "Her sexuality."

"That's none of my business," Lexa said.

Abby let a sarcastic laugh, "I wasn't born yesterday, dear."

"That's obvious, ma'am," Lexa retorted. "And despite the fact that you think I was, you'd be mistaken. Clarke's personal life is her own business. If she chooses to make that my business, then okay. But, if I am or am not involved with her personally is certainly none of yours."

"Fair enough."

"And," Lexa wasn't done. "Clarke is not in any way, shape, or form careless. She made a mistake. It was unfortunate for both of us. But, Clarke has taken responsibility for that mistake. She's been dedicated to righting her wrong from the beginning of this whole ordeal. She's been here everyday she's been scheduled and worked right alongside everyone else. At the same time, she's kept up her studies, of which you're so worried about, and she's continuing with her efforts to find employment after graduation. So..." Lexa stood up, "you can pretty much suck it."

Abby stood and made her leave without so much as another word.

"Yeah," Lexa said when she was gone. After a self-congratulatory moment, she dropped back down into her seat with a thud. "Fuck me, I just told Clarke's mom to suck it."


This time Clarke has ordered Chinese food. The food was different, but the show was the same. It was another Friday night, and while Clarke hadn't intentionally set out to do a redux of their first "hang out," when Lexa had excitedly mentioned that she'd binge-watched the entire first season of Teenage Apocalypse and was stoked for the episode, Clarke had agreed without complaint.

The seating arrangements were a bit different. They hadn't sat on opposite sides of the couch this time. Lexa was angled toward Clarke, her elbow resting on the center cushion. That just so happened to be where Clarke had decided to rest her head, so that her legs hung off the arms of the sofa.

Lexa had been innocently twirling Clarke's hair around her finger when she suddenly looked her way.

"You don't think they'd kill off Roxy do you?"

Lexa frowned, "There hasn't been an episode yet that Roxy hasn't telegraphed her impending violent death, Clarke."

"I know, and I'm worried."

"You like Gay better anyway," Lexa said. "You said so just five minutes ago. Without Graham Cracker, Gay is free to be as gay as Gay can be."

"I know, but I don't want Roxy to die," Clarke said. "I don't want to win by default. That sucks, who wants that?"

Lexa sighed, "Plenty of people."

"I don't like it."

"Well, victory stands on the back of sacrifice, Clarke."

"That makes no sense in this context, Lexa," Clarke said. "You're speaking in cliches."

"Fine," Lexa tapped Clarke's forehead with her finger. "I don't want Roxy to die either because she's awesome and she should get the girl. I mean, look at her, she's been pining away for Graham forever."

"I'll admit Graham has been a little dense."

"And sure, May is cool," Lexa was attempting to be fair. "I like her. She is a badass mofo, but she's so...I don't know...she just doesn't love Graham like Graham deserves."

"Aww," Clarke beamed. "You're a softy, Lexa Beckett!"

"No."

Clarke tugged at her hair gently, "I think you are."

"I'm not."

The show was barely over, when Lexa started to get noticeably antsy. She sat up and positioned herself away from Clarke and definitely looked like she was trying to work up to something.

"Why did you move?" Clarke asked curiously. "There's much more potential for fun with you over here."

"I know," Lexa said. "Which is why I moved."

"Oh," Clarke was disappointed.

"Because I have to tell you something that I should have told you days ago, but I was afraid you'd be mad at me," Lexa said.

"What?" Dread was filling her at a rate that couldn't be divided evenly.

"I met your mother."

"So soon?" Clarke tried to make a nervous joke, it didn't land well.

"She came to see me at the office," Lexa explained. "She wanted to write me a check so that you didn't have to work at the farm."

Clarke listened and took that in solemnly. "What did you tell her?"

"That I wasn't taking her money and that you could leave if you want," Lexa said. "And you can. I'm not holding you to it-"

"But, you should," Clarke argued. "You would make anyone else adhere to what we decided."

"So..."

"So?"

"I would," Lexa agreed. "But, nobody else is you, so...you can do what you want."

"I want to do the right thing by you," Clarke said. "You did me a favor, don't think that I don't know that."

"And I'm acknowledging that and also saying that if you so choose, your service can be over."

"I'm calling her!" Clarke popped up and had picked up her phone before Lexa knew what was happening.

"No, don't do that," Lexa said. "It's not about that. I just felt like I should tell you."

"You're right," Clarke said, dialing furiously. "You were right to tell me."

"Clarke, sometimes you have to concede a battle to win a war."

"Stop," Clarke said. "I'm not letting this go."

"Clarke..."

"Hello mother," Clarke said into her cell.

Lexa wasn't sure that she should be listening in on the conversation, so she wandered away to the kitchen. Which wasn't far enough. So, she walked up the stairs, towards the bathroom. She could hear Clarke yelling over the sound of the water running while she was washing her hands. That's probably not a good sign. She sat on the edge of the bathtub to wait it out and suddenly had the urge to check out Clarke's shampoo. She had forgotten that three ladies lived here. Probably wouldn't be so easy to figure it out without sniffing them all. And, honestly, the last thing she wanted was to be caught in the bathroom with her nose all up in Raven's shampoo if Clarke decided to come find her. That would be awkward. She imagined the scenario. She imagined what she could possibly say to make that okay. She imagined what Clarke looked like in the shower. Whoa! Stop. Back it up. She should get out of here.

She found Clarke sitting on the bottom step, staring at the phone in her hand.

"You okay?" Lexa called as she made her way down.

"Yeah," Clarke answered, not looking up.

Lexa quickly dropped to the last step and settled in beside her. "Did that make you feel better?"

When Clarke looked at her, Lexa's heart dropped. Clarke's eyes were red and puffy and she wiped a stray tear off her face. "No."

Lexa pulled Clarke into her without thinking. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I shouldn't have said anything."

"You were right."

"Not if it made you cry."

"You didn't," Clarke said. "She did."

"What did she say?"

"That I'm a fuck up," Clarke answered. "Well, not like that, but basically."

"You're not."

"She thinks I make horrible decisions," Clarke recalled the conversation. "Which is nothing new. But, she's worried that I'm not taking my last month of school seriously enough. And...she thinks we're sleeping together and that's factoring into my decision to work at the farm."

Lexa pushed Clarke's hair out of her face, "We both know the truth."

Clarke met Lexa's eyes. "We may not be, but that doesn't mean that I don't want to."

"Okay..." Lexa said, leaning into her.

"Which makes me question myself." Clarke stated. She pulled away slowly.

The action made Lexa snap back like a rubberband. She hefted herself off the step and away from Clarke. "I should probably go."

"Don't go," Clarke followed her. "I didn't mean it like it sounded."

"I have to," Lexa said, gathering her things. "Gus has Aden and I should get some sleep. It's been a long day."

"Lex..."

It was no use, Lexa was already turning the doorknob. She only looked back briefly, "Good luck with your interview, Clarke."