Lexa stopped the car. Clarke and Aden were both asleep. Lexa smiled and snapped a picture of them both, Clarke sleeping on the seat beside her, Aden sleeping in his baby seat at the back. She put her phone back in her pocket and approached Clarke's face with her own.
''Clarke,'' she whispered, laying her lips on her wife's cheek.
Clarke frowned and groaned, getting a laugh from Lexa. She opened her eyes, blinking because of the sunray that was coming inside the car through the glass. She turned her head to see Lexa's big bright amused green eyes looking at her.
''Are you okay ?'' Lexa asked, still concerned despite her laugh.
Clarke nodded and turned around to check on her son. He was sleeping, a tiny pout on his face. Clarke smiled. ''I'm gonna get him.''
Lexa let her get Aden out of the car. She waited for her a few steps away from the vehicle, keys in hand. Clarke, carrying Aden in her arms, smiled brightly when she saw the wooden house, surrounded by trees.
''It's... cute,'' she said.
Lexa walked to the door and unlocked it. ''you coming ?''
''Our bags are still in the car. We're gonna need Aden's stuff, I think a change of diaper would be nice.''
''I'll go get them in five, come.''
Clarke hesitated, then followed Lexa into the house.
Wooden walls, wooden furnitures, a chimney to burn some old wood, this house was pretty well placed in the middle of a natural park.
''Do you like it ?'' Lexa asked, her eyes showing nervousness under her usual mask of confidence.
''Why wouldn't I like it ? It's great !'' she answered cheerfully, waking a sleepy Aden up in her arms.
''I wasn't sure it was your kind of thing...'' Lexa added, uncertain.
'' 'you kidding ? When I was living in the streets I was thinking a lot about getting a wooden cabin in the woods to get away from town and its danger.''
Lexa looked suspiciously at her, as if it was hard to believe that she had guessed the perfect place to take Clarke to.
Clarke took Aden's hand out of her lips to answer, but the little boy had decided otherwise. She moved her head aside to answer ''I'm not kidding, I thought about it for a very long time, but I never had the money.''
She pretended to eat her son's hand to make him stop playing with her face. He chuckled and Clarke smiled before she looked back at Lexa. She noticed the uncomfortable smile on the brunette's face. Clarke knew Lexa didn't know what to say when money was involved because they used to fight a lot about it.
''It's okay, Lexa, you don't need to feel sorry for me. If I'd had the money to leave town I would've never ended up with you.''
Lexa smiled and nodded. But she had something else to say and hoped Clarke wouldn't be mad about it. ''Talking about money... I got your credit card back but decided to shut down your account and open another one... something much... bigger. Now half of my own money is on yours. So,'' she started talking faster for Clarke to listen to her justification before reacting, ''when I'm away or too busy with work, you can do whatever you want, you can even come here, I don't mind, but at least you'll never run out of money. I mean, we're married, it's normal that we share.''
Clarke stared at her wife, feelings fighting inside her heart, making it beat faster. For a second, when Lexa told her about the new account, she felt angry. But then she realized that she had no reason to be. They were married, living together, raising a child. Lexa had enough money for a family of ten thousands people, so there was nothing wrong with Lexa sharing. Clarke never felt well when she was given money, because she didn't want to depend on someone, but when everyone will know about her being married to Lexa, everyone will think she got married for money, so why refuse it anyway ? She didn't need that much, but at least she'll know she had enough money for Aden to be fine. No matter what he needed : treatments, food, clothes, school, he'll have. She didn't need to worry about it anymore.
''Thank you,'' she said, surprising Lexa.
The brunette smiled, first shyly, then wildly, and love filled her eyes. Seeing it, Clarke approached with a giggling Aden in her arms and pulled Lexa into a kiss. Aden, never missing an occasion to tourment his new official mother, slapped Lexa's cheek with his small but daily-growing hand.
Breaking the kiss, Lexa threw her favorite death glare to Aden who laughed at her. Clarke couldn't help but laugh too.
Lexa leaned to look closely into her son's eyes and declared ''You keep me from kissing your mom, but I'm gonna do her while you sleep.''
''Lexa !'' Clarke called out.
''He's ten months old, he doesn't even understand what I say,'' she defended herself.
Aden babbled, spluttering at Lexa's face. Clarke laughed out loud and kissed her son on the top of his head. ''Well done, kid, don't let her mock you.''
''He's the one mocking me,'' Lexa complained.
''You know what ? You two have the perfect father/son relationship, always challenging each other and fighting for the mother's attention.''
Lexa pouted and turned around, her chin up. ''I'm gonna get our stuff from the car. You two have a nice chat about how good I look.''
Clarke laughed and Lexa left the house. She lied down on the sofa and laid Aden on her chest. They both felt very comfortable in this house.
Lexa came back and gave Clarke Aden's bag for her to change his diaper and clothes. She installed Aden's bed upstairs and went into the kitchen. She started preparing lunch while Clarke took care of Aden.
Clarke feeded Aden and let him play while Lexa was busy in the kitchen. She put him to bed for his afternoon nap once Lexa was done cooking. The latter joined her in the living room with two plates of pastas and a huge amount of bolognese on it.
''Good old pastas huh ?'' Clarke pointed out.
''At least I don't risk ruining them,'' she answered jokingly, laying the plates on the wooden table.
Clarke briefly touched the wood with a couple fingers. ''Reassure me, the toilets here aren't made of woods, right ?''
Lexa laughed. ''No, no they aren't, don't worry.''
Clarke took a huge fork of pastas and threw it into her mouth. She swallowed it in less than ten seconds and Lexa looked at her with wide surprised eyes.
''You're gonna throw up if you eat that fast,'' she stated.
But Clarke didn't seem to mind. ''I'm hungry and it's so damn good !'' She kept going and Lexa took the plate away to keep her from choking. Clarke groaned and Lexa cleared the table.
''You should take your meds and a nap now,'' the brunette said when she got back.
Clarke pouted. ''I wasn't done eating.''
Lexa sat down beside her to wipe her mouth from the red sauce.
''Don't babysit me,'' Clarke complained, pushing her arm away.
''Clarke,'' Lexa gently said, laying a hand on the blonde's knee, ''you know you have to take it easy.''
''I'm not dead sick, Lexa !'' Clarke yelled, then remembered Aden was sleeping upstairs and calmed down. She put her head in her hands, feeling the heavy feeling of exhaustion.
Lexa brushed Clarke's hair away from her face. ''You're not gonna be sick for much longer if you follow the doctor's orders.''
Clarke stood up and took the stairs. ''Meds and nap, huh.'' She looked for her room and found another square of wooden walls. She looked through the window and saw the unexpected : a beach was separating the house from a huge lake.
A shadow appeared behind Clarke. ''I had it built a while after Costia's death, when my sisters threw me back on track. I wanted a peaceful place to come to when I'd get tired of town, and, well, society I guess. But truth is, I never came here, because even though I wanted to rest somewhere calm and nice, I didn't want to be hurt by the fact that I was alone. I'd rather bury myself into work.''
Clarke turned around to face her. ''You're not alone anymore.'' She sat down on the bed and Lexa joined her with the bag of meds. She handed her some of them with a bottle of water and Clarke swallowed them all. Lexa took the last one out of the bag, the picture of a needle on the long but small box.
''Before I give you this one, I need to tell you... after you left to go upstairs, one of my lawyers called me. Your mother is out of the hospital and was taken by the police to the station.''
Clarke didn't know what she should think about it. Her mother could be free or in jail that it wouldn't change how she felt about her. She didn't want to see her ever again.
''I can't believe she drugged and followed me all this time.''
Lexa prepared the injection like the nurse had showed her. ''No matter what happens with her, she's never going back to her hospital, it's mine now.''
Clarke's heart missed a beat as she realized... ''You bought Arkadia Hospital ?''
''We were already partners, they needed money, so I guess it's better now that it's part of my business.''
She raised the needle, showing Clarke she was ready. Clarke frowned and stood up to take her pants off. She got back on the bed, lying on her back, under Lexa's focussed eyes.
''Ready ?'' the brunette asked.
''Yeah, hormones, great. Go ahead.''
Lexa injected the liquid into Clarke's thigh after wiping her skin with some disinfectant. She put the needle back into its box for it to not harm anyone.
''You won't have needles for long,'' Lexa commented, seeing Clarke watching the ceiling.
''I know,'' the blonde whispered. She was starting to fall asleep from her previous meds and was waiting for her stressful thoughts to go away for a while. ''Stay with me ?''
Lexa smiled and laid on her side beside her. She took her wife's cold hand in her own, moving her thumb slowly over the soft skin.
''I stay until you fall asleep, then I'm gonna have to get back downstairs and check a file. I can't fully run away from work, unfortunately.''
Clarke closed her eyes, slightly turning her head on her side for it to be closer to Lexa's.
''It's okay,'' she said, her voice's tone lowering as she spoke, ''you're here for me.''
Lexa smiled, watching Clarke's breathing slowing down as she fell asleep. ''Always,'' she whispered, keeping herself from kissing her.
She had to let her sleep. She stayed a few more minutes and left the room. The house was calm. She could only hear the wooden stairs crack under her feet, until she heard Aden's cries.
She climbed the few stairs that separated her from Aden and burst into the room. She took him in her arms. He didn't seem to have trouble breathing. He wasn't awake because of an asthma attack. But he was crying strongly, and Lexa assumed he was having a nightmare. She brought him close, his head on her shoulder, and reassured him with kind words and comforting patterns drawn on his back with her hand.
He calmed down, slowly, and Lexa could feel his breath steadying on her neck as he was comforted by her arms. She checked on Clarke before going back downstairs. The latter was still sleeping, the meds were really effective.
Lexa sat down on the couch, finding her laptop where she had left it right beside her. She tried to lay back and keep Aden in her arms while she worked on her laptop. The little boy fell asleep and Lexa's heart melted at feeling this baby sleeping against her.
Clarke woke up blinded by the darkness of the room. Only the dim light of the moon coming from the other side of the window could help her find her way back to the door. She went downstairs, the living room being as dark as the bedroom, and found her son peacefully lying on Lexa's chest. They were both asleep. Clarke smiled and sat on the border of the sofa, getting it to move slightly and a light illuminated the two others. It was Lexa's computer, laying beside the brunette.
Clarke took it to put it on the table. She couldn't help but look at the screen when she thought she'd just seen something familiar. Indeed, a few words were written in french, but they didn't quite form a proper sentence. Clarke clicked on google's sign and google translate's page was open. Clarke looked back at Lexa. Was the CEO trying to learn french behind Clarke's back ?
Clarke joined her family on the couch and gently shook Lexa's shoulder to wake her up. The brunette jumped, apparently no way to wake her up would have been gentle enough.
''It's okay, it's me,'' Clarke whispered.
''Oh, Clarke, you're awake,'' Lexa said, getting back to reality. She looked around, surprised by the darkness of the room.
''Is it late ?''
''Almost nine. I think we were all very tired.''
Lexa nodded and looked down at Aden. ''I think it might be time for dinner, I'm surprised he didn't wake up for it sooner.''
Clarke checked her son's vitals as the anxious mother she was and stood up to go prepare his meal. ''I'm gonna get his food, wake him up.''
Lexa sat up and Aden stirred. She thought of turning the light on but remembered there was no light in this room : the chimney was here for a reason. She stood up and looked for Aden's baby carpet to lay him on while she took care of the chimney. They had had to bring a lot of baby stuff, the biggest being the baby bed.
When Clarke came back with Aden's small plate full of smashed vegetables, the baby boy was sucking and chewing some plastic toy. His cheeks were red from all the chewing and the pain his teeth trying to push out of the gum were creating.
She sat at the table, her son on her lap and Lexa watched her feed Aden once she was done with the chimney.
Clarke thought Aden would want to play a bit before going to sleep but he almost fell asleep on his carpet, so Clarke put him to bed.
She went back to the living room and sat on the sofa beside Lexa.
''I'm not really hungry,'' she told the brunette.
''Me neither.''
Clarke slid closer to her and wrapped Lexa's waist with an arm. She laid her head on the brunette's shoulder to watch the fire. They stayed quiet for a couple of minutes before Clarke said ''I've seen you were trying to learn french.''
Lexa was glad Clarke couldn't see her face right now because her eyes looked totally panicked for a few seconds. ''I just – I don't want you to come back at work just for me – and there are so many languages I need to understand – I could never get french – but I'm trying to because –''
''Lexa, breathe,'' Clarke laughed, lifting her head up to look at Lexa's slightly reddened face. ''If you want to learn french, just ask. I've heard I was a good teacher.''
Lexa smiled, looking down at the thought of having Clarke as her teacher. A very personal french teacher. She didn't say anything about it, feeling awkward. Clarke was the only person who could make her feel so vulnerable.
''Maybe you could teach me australian too,'' she joked, knowing the fact that mocking Clarke was the best way to regain her composure.
Clarke stared at her with a grin, and she chose to let her accent out to answer ''You're the one who needs to be taught english, American girl.''
They chuckled and their laughter faded into silence. They stayed an hour, in each other's arms, watching the fire. It just felt right. They didn't need to think. They already had the warmth of both each other and the flames. They felt at peace, here, far away from town. Far from concerns and troubles.
Clarke could stay like this forever, but Lexa's head moved slightly and her chin brushed Clarke's forehead. The latter felt the urge to feel the soft skin she knew Lexa had. She rose her head up and her lips encountered the corner of Lexa's lips. Neither Clarke nor Lexa could tell who pulled the other, they only focussed on the kiss they were sharing, lips catching each others, and Clarke soon found herself sitting on Lexa's lap.
Clarke wrapped Lexa's neck with her hands, bringing her closer. Lexa wasn't wearing any lipstick, there was only the natural softness of her lips and a fresh taste Clarke could never define. Even though Lexa hadn't brushed her teeth in the last hours, her mouth was still fresh and it always surprised Clarke. The latter moved her head to change the angle but Lexa pushed her head back to interrupt the kiss.
''Clarke... there's a lot we need to talk about... what's gonna happen with your mother, the girl who saved you, the house, what you wanna do... maybe it –''
''Maybe we should talk about it when we get back and enjoy our break,'' Clarke finished the sentence.
Lexa looked into Clarke's eyes and saw confidence and desire. The shades of lust drowning the blue of Clarke's eyes was enough to convince her. She suddenly grabbed Clarke's waist and threw her on the sofa, placing herself above her. She stole a kiss from her before pulling her head away to look at Clarke's face. Once more.
''Are you sure you're alright ?'' she asked, worried.
Clarke smiled and her hand grabbed Lexa's shirt to pull her back down. ''I feel good. But I could feel even better,'' she smirked, and caught her wife's lips. This time, Lexa didn't interrupt. She let Lexa's hands help the flames into warming her up, and she found out that she had never been this warm before. Any fire wouldn't be as hot as Lexa's body against hers.