"I think Shaw must still be there," Clarke said brightly from where she was leaning with her ear pressed into the door of her dorm room.

Bellamy cocked his head to the side, clearly having forgotten who that was already. His black hair was wet from their walk home in the snow and stuck to his forehead in stringy curls.

"You know, the guy who came to tutor Raven?" Clarke prompted, pulling back from the door.

"Oooh, yeah. Sorry, I was a bit distracted when you were telling me about that." He smiled unapologetically.

Clarke scoffed and rolled her eyes in mock indignation. Her heart rate was ticking up again and she remembered what Bellamy had said on the bridge.

He loved her.

The thought made Clarke feel like she could fly, but she would be lying if it didn't also scare the living daylights out of her. What were her and Bellamy now? They had certainly passed out of the realm of friendship, but had yet to formally cross the threshold of anything else.

Clarke coughed in an attempt to clear her scattered thoughts. "Well, I don't want to interrupt them, it's good for Raven to meet someone new and it really seems like they get along, seeing that Shaw has been here for almost four hours now."

Bellamy nodded. "Wanna come hangout in my room for a bit? We can watch a cheesy romance movie."

Clarke giggled as Bellamy waggled his eyebrows. "You're such a dork. C'mon."

Bellamy chuckled and together they walked back down the hall, which was mysteriously empty and quiet for a Friday night.

Clarke ran her fingers through her own wet hair as they walked, feeling her damp jacket stick to her skin. She couldn't wait to take it off. As soon as they had entered the warm brightness of Frontier Hall, all the snow that had fallen on them had melted in the blink of an eye, soaking them to the skin. She didn't entirely mind though, because Bellamy looked awfully cute with wet hair.

"Welcome to my humble abode, my Princess." Bellamy swept the door open in a grand gesture.

Clarke giggled. "Wow! Such an extravagant accommodation. These cinder block walls are simply exquisite, were they imported from overseas?"

"Absolutely. Only the finest for Princess Griffin." Bellamy helped Clarke out of her jacket and lay it over the back of his desk chair to dry before shrugging off his own.

"You spoil me, really, how can I ever repay you for such kindness?" Clarke batted her eyelashes, relishing in their silly conversation.

"All I ask, my lady, is a kiss."

"I suppose that could be arranged," Clarke giggled as she leaned into Bellamy's lips. How had she gone her whole life without this? Hell, how had she even gone through all of this week without his mouth on hers?

Bellamy's hair was cold where it brushed her temple, and his cheeks were flushed from their walk in the night air, but were warming quickly under Clarke's touch. He smiled against her mouth when Clarke splayed her hand over his heart.

"What?" she asked coyly, not opening her eyes or pulling away.

"Nothin'. You just make me so happy."

It was something straight out of one of those 'cheesy' romance movies Belamy chided her and Raven for watching, but it wasn't so cheesy when someone said it, and meant it, in real life. It was actually incredibly touching and lovely to hear.

"Glad to be of service," Clarke said lightly, pulling her face back marginally just to get another look at Bellamy.

To look at the man who loved her.

Bellamy only sighed, a sound of contentment and ran a hand down her face. "Want to change into something dry? Your skin is still cold."

"Yeah, I do," Clarke ran a hand up and down her arms, which had an unpleasant clammy stickiness to them. "I guess I can run upstairs real quick, they'll hardly notice I'm there if I just grab some clothes and duck out."

Bellamy frowned and shook his head, pulling out a drawer under his bed and producing a t-shirt. He raised a brow and held it out to Clarke.

Clarke tried not to blush as she took his offering. Oh, to wear borrowed clothes, especially ones that smelled of Bellamy. She quietly went into his bathroom, which for some reason, she had completely forgotten was shared with Monty and Jasper.

Jasper's chemistry goggles on the sink and the carboy in the shower jogged her memory though, and she made sure to lock the door to the adjacent room prior to stripping off her damp clothes. Before she slipped the t-shirt over her head though, she clutched it to her face and inhaled the scent. Maybe it was stupid, but it was incredibly comforting. And Bellamy smelled amazing. The fabric was soft and well worn, meaning it was probably one of his go-tos. That alone was enough to make Clarke weak in the knees; to be bestowed with his favorite shirt.

The shirt hung to her midthigh, but Clarke debated whether or not to take off her leggings too. She kept them on in the end, because they were only really damp around the ankles. She quickly brushed her hands through her messy hair and looked at herself in the smudged mirror for a moment. Her cheeks were flushed and hair was an absolute sight, but she looked happy. Clarke couldn't remember the last time she looked at herself and thought that she looked happy. Life had been a whirlwind the last several months, but Bellamy was her calm in the storm.

And he loved her.

Letting herself out of the bathroom, she found Bellamy frowning at his remote, smacking it on his palm. He had taken the opportunity to change as well, into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off. His hair was even more tousled than before and Clarke longed to comb her fingers through it, knowing just how much Bellamy would enjoy that.

"I think my remote is out of batteries," he mumbled, turning towards her. Clarke couldn't help but blush at the way he stared at her.

His eyes made her feel like the most beautiful girl in the world, even though her face was void of any makeup and her hair was begging to have a comb run through it.

"Thanks for the shirt," she said lamely, plucking at the hem for something to do with her restless hands.

Bellamy gave a relaxed smile. "Absolutely. And trust me Princess, it looks way better on you."

Clarke rolled her eyes, turning away. "The Gophers are playing tonight, right? We could probably still catch the last quarter."

"Yes, football!" Bellamy said, manually turning on the television and switching to the right station to watch the game. Their team was getting blown out by Ohio State, 7 - 30, so the game served as little more than background noise.

Clarke sat on the edge of Bellamy's bed and he soon joined her as the TV cast shifting blue light over the room.

In an attempt to ignore the mounting feelings in the room, Clarke watched the game. But she really only watched it with her eyes; her mind was in a completely different place. She couldn't help but picture herself climbing onto Bellamy's lap and kissing him senseless right now, but the second the image filled her mind and made her stomach leap, she forced it out.

Here she was, sitting next to the man she loved, the man who loved her back, despite her flaws, and she couldn't think of a thing to say to him. Part of her wanted to get the tricky stuff out of the way right now, they needed to talk about what this meant for them. Like, were they dating now? Bellamy hadn't specifically asked her to be his girlfriend, but she couldn't imagine that she wasn't.

Not to mention that she desperately wanted to call Bellamy Blake her boyfriend. With that thought, she turned her head to see him and found him looking at her with a languid smile hanging on his lips.

"What?" Clarke questioned.

Bellamy hummed. "Nothin' Princess. What are you thinking about?"

"You, of course," Clarke scoffed and picked up Bellamy's hand. She fiddled with his fingers, flipping his hand over to trace along the lines of his palm, bumping over his callouses, tracing a jagged scar on his thumb, rubbing his smooth fingernails. Her dad used to say that you could tell a lot about a man from his hands.

"What about me?" he asked coyly.

Clarke maintained her focus on his hand which remained slack, permissible to her exploration. His callouses remained as evidence of his summers working construction, but his nails were neat and trimmed, perfect little half moons atop his strong fingers. Each mark had a story behind it, and Clarke felt a certain longing to know those tales, to learn the tiny, intimate details of this man.

Clarke took a quick deep breath to build the courage to put her thoughts in words. "I don't know, just -what are we now, Bell?"

Bellamy paused a moment, his hand stiffening before he reached up and tipped Clarke's chin towards him so she would look him in the eyes.

"That's up to you. What do you want to be?" His deep brown eyes were imploring, patient, and so tender.

Why was he so perfect?

Clarke smiled softly. She wanted to be in a relationship with Bellamy. More than anything, that's what she wanted. She wanted to fall asleep in his arms and wake up to him kissing her. She wanted to hold his hand when they walked down the street, and she wanted Raven to relentlessly tease them anytime they were together, because Clarke knew that Bellamy would only smile sweetly and kiss Clarke to egg Raven on.

She wanted someone to come home with her at Christmas time so she didn't have to spend the holiday break, sitting alone in her house, while her mother was at work for fourteen hours a day. She wanted someone who could make her laugh until her sides hurt, but who would also listen to her deepest, darkest fears.

She wanted someone who she could always trust, who would always have her back and would never let her down. She wanted to be all that, and more, for someone too.

That was what she wanted.

Bellamy was what she wanted.

"I want you, Bellamy. Everything about you, I want it."

"That's all I've ever wanted to hear you say, Clarke."

Clarke fell into his arms, feeling on the verge of tears and his arms wrapped her up, tugging her close, so close. She could feel his heart thrumming in his chest and his breaths gentle on her hair.

"And I want every part of you, all of it."

Clarke burrowed deeper into his hold, acknowledging all of the times that Bellamy had held her, comforted her, soothed her. The first time it happened was in this very room, when Clarke had turned to him in her most vulnerable of moments because he had stuck out his hand, and his heart, to help her. Without Bellamy's wholehearted commitment to Clarke's wellbeing, despite not owing her a single thing, she didn't know if she'd still be here today.

This moment was a culmination of everything they had gone through up until now. All of the conversations and laughter and tears, everything had led to now. The course of Clarke's life had switched drastically over the past few months, but somehow, all of the heartache and pain might be justified if it allowed her to be here now.

"Before anything though, I need to tell you something," Bellamy said, his voice a bit strained.

Clarke pulled back, twinged with concern as she questioned him with her gaze.

He swallowed and looked away, bringing his hands to settle on Clarke's knees, thumbs rubbing calming circles on her leggings.

"What is it?" Clarke prompted when Bellamy didn't say anything for several seconds. Her stomach was flooding with anxiety, dreading the words to come. She couldn't even imagine what he was going to say, but anything to make him look so conflicted couldn't be good.

Bellamy cleared his throat and focused his eyes on Clarkes', his face apprehensive and almost apologetic. Clarke frowned, placing her hands atop his to still them.

"I don't want to tell you this, because it doesn't mean anything to me, at all," he said firmly. Clarke's unease grew. "I don't want to make you think less of me, or to lose trust in me. But, I think I need to in order for us to start off on the right foot, because I don't want to have any secrets from you, okay?"

"Okay," Clarke said, her voice barely a whisper. Her mind was blank except for a formidable amount of dread.

"I- you know the night right before I left for Arkadia State Park, the day before Raven got released from the hospital, remember?"

"Yes."

"Well, I went to get help on one of my assignments from a classmate, Echo. I don't know if you know her, she's the sister of one of the dodgeball guys."

"Yeah, I met her that first time, when she invited us to the bar but we went to play bingo instead." Clarke nodded, not connecting the dots of this conversation.

"Oh yeah, right. I forgot about that."

Clarke nodded more fervently, narrowing her eyes as her suspicion rose. "I remember because she was hitting on you. It was weird because she wasn't even trying to be subtle about it, she was all up in your face."

Bellamy cringed and looked to the floor. "Yeah. That's Echo…" he trailed off.

It all clicked then, and in her head, Clarke knew what he was going to admit to next, but she also didn't let herself think it. Until she heard the words out of Bellamy's mouth, she would refuse to believe it.

A pregnant pause came and went, in which Clarke stiffened under Bellamy's touch and he looked back up to meet her eyes, his expression pained.

"I went to see her because she was the only person I knew in that whole English class. And I should have known better, but I still went. And well, she was really helpful and I got the assignment nearly all done, but we both knew why she agreed to help me. Why she suggested we meet in her dorm."

Clarke's chest twisted painfully. Bellamy's eyes were somber as he confirmed what Clarke had suspected.

"We ended up having sex, but it didn't mean anything to me, Clarke, I swear to God. It was stupid and I regretted it immediately."

Sharp stabs of betrayal rooted themselves in Clarke's gut. It wasn't her right to feel that way, because it wasn't as if Bellamy belonged to her then. Or now. But she still felt like he had slapped her across the face.

"Clarke?" His voice was pleading. "Oh Clarke, please look at me, Princess. I didn't want to tell you but I would never feel right if I didn't. This doesn't change a single thing I said to you, because I meant every word of it."

Clarke slid her legs off Bellamy's and stood, facing away from him. She was struggling to reign in the emotions which were running rampant through her mind. Confusion, hurt, anger, jealously. She had no right to feel any of them, which made it even hard to get her breathing under control.

"I'm glad you told me," Clarke finally managed to say, her voice steadier than she thought it would be.

"Me too. I feel better about it already. I want to put it behind me, behind us, and I couldn't do that unless I got it out in the open, and I'd rather you know about it now, from me, than from someone else in the future."

Clarke nodded, still facing away from him. She was honestly glad he had said it, because if he hadn't done it now, she might have actually had the right to feel betrayed by him later down the line.

"I-I don't want to ruin the night we had, Clarke. I just wouldn't feel right about moving forward with anything between us if I didn't tell you."

She appreciated that, she really did. But that didn't make it any easier to hear. Clarke took several moments to compose herself, in which time Bellamy sat silently behind her, before turning to face him.

Alarmed to find him with a tear streaked down his cheek, Clarke rushed to brush it away. She hadn't wanted to make him so upset. Holding his face in her hands, she looked down at him, and there could be no doubt that what he had said was the truth.

"Don't cry," Clarke pleaded softly.

Bellamy blinked and swallowed. "I thought I'd just ruined what we'd barely started. And that would break my heart."

Clarke smiled softly at his authenticity. "You could never. I don't know if you could ever do anything big enough to scare me away."

He placed his hand over Clarke's and interlaced their fingers. Clarke marveled at their joined hands, which fit together so perfectly it seemed they were made for one another.

"It truly meant nothing?"

"Nothing at all. In fact, it made me realize how I actually felt about you, Clarke. I realized that I felt more connected to you just by holding your hand or giving you a hug. I realized that I couldn't live without you. That I needed you."

Clarke furrowed her brow. "Why'd you go away then? To the park? Why didn't you come back to the hospital and tell me?"

Bellamy looked away as if ashamed. "I was scared, Clarke. And I was so overwhelmed. Up until that point, I had been suppressing everything I felt for you because I didn't know if you would want it. You were still healing, which you had every right to do, but every time I saw you, it was all I could do to stop myself from kissing you. I was so terrified of scaring you away, that I had convinced myself that just being your friend would be enough. And when I finally admitted to myself that it wouldn't be, I didn't know what to do. I couldn't face you. I- I needed time to think, to figure out what I should do. I couldn't live without you, but I couldn't live with you if you would never love me back the way I loved you."

Another tear leaked out of Bellamy's eye and Clarke leaned down and kissed it away.

"I can't believe you ever doubted that I love you," she said.

Bellamy's eyes widened. "You mean, you felt the same way? The whole time?"

Clarke rolled her eyes and giggled. "Of course. Have you met yourself? You're perfect in literally every way. How could I not fall in love with you?"

Bellamy chuckled deep in his throat, leaning into Clarke's hand. "When did you know?"

"Huh?"

"When did you know that you were madly, deeply, irreversibly in love with me?" Bellamy asked.

"Okay Mr. Sappy!" Clarke giggled, sitting back beside Bellamy. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled them both back so they were leaning against his pillows.

"I'm serious! When did you know?"

"Uhhm…" Clarke thought back. When was the first time she realized she felt something deeper than friendship for him? "I don't know, a long time ago, I guess. Maybe that night you came to get me at Target, because I couldn't walk home in the dark. But I didn't really let myself feel it."

"Why not?"

"Because. Because of what Finn did to me and because Octavia was my roommate and your sister and because I didn't know if I could ever…" Clarke's throat closed up.

"Ever what?"

"Ever… ever let another man touch me."

Bellamy was silent for a moment, then hugged her tighter. "Clarke, I will never never do anything with you that you don't want. I promise that on my life."

Clarke snuggled into him. "I know. I know you wouldn't. It's just… how could I ever be in a relationship if I wasn't ready to give all of myself like that?"

"Are you serious?" Bellamy's tone made Clarke stiffen. "You thought that I would want to be in a relationship with you because you weren't ready to have sex?"

"Yeah." Clarke's voice was small.

"Oh Princess. I couldn't care if you wouldn't even let me kiss you on the cheek. I'd still want you to be my girlfriend."

Clarke smiled, her heart swelling at Bellamy's words. Somehow he always knew just what to say to reassure her fears, to make her feel safe and cherished and loved.

"Is that what you want me to be? Your girlfriend?" Clarke hardly dared ask.

Bellamy shuffled them into a seated position so he could look her in the eyes.

"Clarke Griffin, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Of course, Bellamy Alexander Blake." Clarke grinned, her heart so full it threatened to burst. How long had she been wanting this moment? It felt a long time coming, and yet sudden at the same time. She sure hadn't imagined that this was how her night was going to end when she agreed to go out with Wells tonight.

"May I kiss you?" Bellamy asked. He looked so happy and Clarke was honored to be the reason why.

"Absolutely," Clarke said.

Their kiss wasn't as tender as the first, or as passionate as the one that they shared on the bridge, but it was amazing all the same because neither of them could seem to wipe the smiles off their faces long enough to actually kiss the other.

Clarke swung her leg over Bellamy and straddled his legs, cupping his face with one hand and running her hand down his chest with the other. Bellamy's hands settled on her waist as he kissed her until she was breathless.

Pulling back, Clarke grinned from ear to ear again. "I sure am glad you don't have a roommate."

"Why?" Bellamy flashed a devilish grin, and in one swift maneuver, flipped Clarke over so she was flat on her back in the bed. She shrieked with laughter as Bellamy snuggled into her, his breath tickling her neck.

"You're crazy," Clarke managed between bouts of laughter.

"Crazy in love with you," he shot back slyly, looking rather proud of his comeback.

"You're lucky that I love you back, or I would make fun of you so much for that line."

"Good thing then."

"Yeah, it sure is."


Bellamy only snored a little bit. Well, it was more like heavy breathing than snoring.

Clarke sighed softly, staring at the fraying edge of the blanket. Bellamy was still soundly asleep, pressed up against Clarke's back. Soft dawn light filtered through the window, painting the room dove grey and peaceful. It was probably nearing eight AM, and they were supposed to meet Wells across town at ten. Clarke knew she should probably wake Bellamy and go get ready, but she couldn't do it. Not just yet.

She had fallen asleep in Bellamy's bed at some point last night, and he had been kind enough not to disrupt her. They had cuddled up together to watch the rest of the miserable football game, then laid awake in the dark, just talking. They had talked about everything and nothing, discussing various topics from ice cream flavors to childhood birthday parties to their own insecurities. Clarke felt like she had never known anyone better in her whole life, and she had only known Bellamy for a few months. Something told her that she would know him for the rest of her life though.

And, when she had woken up this morning, they were still in the same position. Despite Bellamy's twin size bed and his single, lumpy pillow, Clarke had never been more comfortable in all her life.

Through the wall, Clarke could faintly hear Jasper and Monty talking. Bellamy had texted the guys last night and got them to agree to help move Wells in. If they were up, that meant it was past time for her and Bellamy to get moving.

But, Bellamy's hand resting on the dip of her waist and his easy, sleepy breaths made her hesitate. She wanted to lay here for a million years, because here, she was safe and warm and protected. Here, she was loved.

"Get your ass up!" A voice accompanied by insanely loud banging on the door made Clarke start so hard she might've grazed the ceiling.

Bellamy, jolted from sleep, with a similar reaction and ended up on the floor beside the bed, taking all of the blankets with him and smacking his head on the nightstand.

"Son uhv a-" he muttered groggily.

"Bellamy Blake! Open this door!"

Clarke was frozen for a moment, feeling like she had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. One glance at Bellamy, with his sleep-ruffled hair and confused, irritated expression, and she was giggling.

"What?" His face quickly shifted to a grin as he balled up the blankets and threw them at her before he heaved himself up off the floor.

"I will break this door down, so help me God if it is not opened in the next-"

Bellamy yanked open the door, nearly toppling Raven where she stood, her fist raised for another round of obnoxious knocking.

Raven completely bypassed Bellamy, limping around him until she could see Clarke, sitting with her legs crossed on his bed. Then, the most satisfied, smug grin to ever exist spread across her face.

"Figured I'd find you here, Clarke."

A blush spread furiously across Clarke's face, even faster than Ravens grin had appeared.

"And how long did your guest stay last night?" Clarke said the first thing that came to mind, scrambling off the bed. Bellamy stood in the doorway, staying out of the whole conversation, but Clarke knew he wasn't too upset about the intrusion based on his coy smile.

"Oh, Shaw and I took full advantage of the fact that you were out last night." Raven waggled her eyebrows.

"Raven!" Clarke shrieked, pretending to act horrified but unable to stop laughing.

"What? Like you weren't doing the same thing!"

"I most certainly was not! Bellamy!" Clarke cried, looking for backup.

Bellamy only smirked and shrugged his shoulders, his own nefarious grin on his lips. Raven crumpled onto the bed in laughter, then sprung back up.

"Better not sit here! I don't know what's on these sheets!"

Clarke huffed and stopped trying to hide her extreme embarrassment. Seeing Raven laugh this hard was so refreshing, and something that Clarke hadn't seen for weeks. Clarke shook her head, joined in, burying her face in her hands. She and Bellamy hadn't done a thing besides kiss last night, but that didn't stop her mortification at the very implication of it. Clarke didn't feel ready to delve straight into a physical relationship, but when she was ready, Bellamy was the only one she would want to do that with. And he knew it. And he, being the sweetest man alive, was perfectly willing to be patient and understanding with her.

"It's okay, Princess." Bellamy snuggled up to her, just as amused as Raven.

Clarke rolled her eyes playfully. "You two are too much this early in the morning."

"What did I do?" Bellamy whined, burying his face into her neck.

Clarke groaned, pushing him back, which only resulted in her getting the most convincing set of puppy-dog eyes ever.

Raven's laughter had wound down, replaced by an admiring grin. "In all seriousness though, this is good." She gestured to the pair of them.

"I agree," Bellamy said instantly.

"And, it's been a long time coming. I have a sense for this sort of thing, you know."

"Yeah, yeah. You were right, Raven. Smartest person alive blah blah blah."

"Thank you for realizing my greatness. But really, I'm so happy for you two, like, I have never seen two people more made for each other than Bellamy Blake and Clarke Griffin. Consider the cutest couple award yours."

Clarke smiled, happy to hear validation of her own feelings. She and Bellamy did seem truly made for one another.

"Really? Sounds like you and this Shaw guy are going to give us some competition," Bellamy teased.

Now it was Raven's turn to blush, but damn her, it was hardly visible under her tan skin. "We'll have to see. I've roped him into this whole moving thing too, because I don't think I'll be too much help." She patted her leg, bringing the mood back to a more serious tone.

"Yeah right. We both know you just wanted to keep him around a little bit longer."

Raven smirked. "Come on Clarke! Give Bellamy back his shirt and come get dressed. We should get going within the hour. Plus, I'm excited to meet this Wells guy, what's he like?"

"Nothin' special, I guess," Clarke shrugged.

"You can say that again."

"See? Same wavelength!" Raven still looked awfully pleased with herself as she turned and left the dorm room. It was almost as if she credited herself for orchestrating Bellamy and Clarke's newfound relationship. And perhaps in a way she had. Raven had been the one who had forced Clarke to figure out her real feelings for Bellamy. Without her insistence, Clarke would have continued to stubbornly refuse to acknowledge them. And she would have missed out on all this. It had been Raven who convinced her to go after Bellamy when he disappeared off to Arkadia State Park, and it had been Raven who had called Clarke out on her not so stubble flirting with Bellamy weeks ago.

"I should go get ready," Clarke admitted. "You should too."

Bellamy gave an exaggerated frown. "What? You don't like me in this?"

Clarke chuckled. "No, you look great. But it's like, twenty degrees out. You might want to put on a sweatshirt or something."

"Hmm, fair enough," Bellamy agreed, sweeping an arm around Clarke's waist and kissing her before ushering her out the door. "See you in a bit, Princess."

Clarke smiled all the way back to her room.

She had to dodge more teasing from Raven and slap a hand over her friend's mouth when Harper came in, because Clarke wasn't sure she was ready for everyone to know her news yet.

She shot Raven a look as Octavia followed, and thankful, she had enough respect for Clarke that she didn't say anything more.

Shaw met them in the hall, and Raven introduced him to the other girls. A few minutes later, the entire group, including Miller, Murphy, Jasper, and Monty, converged in the lobby. They were only waiting on Bellamy, who Monty said had decided last minute to take a shower. That got Raven to smirk in Clarke's direction. Yet again.

Jasper got Shaw talking about some computer geek stuff while they were waiting just as Clarke received a call from her mother. She inwardly groaned as she walked a few steps away from the noisy group and accepted the call.

"Hello?"

"Clarke? Hi. How are you doing?"

A pleasant greeting. How odd. "Pretty good. You?"

"I'm great! I just wanted to call you, check in."

"Oh yeah? No reason?" Clarke asked, rolling her eyes, knowing better.

"Well, now that you ask…"

Clarke laughed lightly. She was in too good of a mood for her mother's aloofness to drive her crazy today. "What is it?"

"A couple things, actually. I finally got a chance to look at Raven's scans and the recording of Raven's surgery."

"A recording?" Clarke hadn't known that was a thing, and had to admit she was slightly interested in seeing that herself sometime.

"Yeah, it was pretty interesting, and I have a few ideas."

"Ideas? Like something that could help her regain the feeling in her nerves?" Clarke asked excitedly, pacing in the corner of the lobby, glancing back at her friend.

"Maybe! Don't go saying anything yet though, I don't want anyone to get their hopes up because there is no guarantee. Nerves are finicky things, as you know you."

"Mhmm. That's great Mom. Thanks for doing that. You'll have to talk to Raven about it. Maybe later today you can call again? We're all going over to Wells' place to help him move some of his things in right now."

"Oh okay! Good. I bet Wells is glad to see you," her mother's voice was suggestive.

"Yes, Mother, of course." Clarke wasn't exactly sure why her mother held on to her and Wells' old relationship so tightly.

"Anyway, I can talk to Raven in person, if you'd like. Thelonious invited me out in a few weeks, once he gets settled in, to be his first guest speaker in his class, and I agreed. I thought it would be a great opportunity to see you as well."

"That would be great, Mom. I would love to see you!" Clarke said quickly. Even if their relationship wasn't perfect, she still loved her mother and was missing her. So much had changed in her life these past few months and Abigail knew nothing of it.

"Perfect. I don't know an exact date yet, but within the month I think. In the meantime, I'm going to take a closer look at Raven's documents and try to formulate a plan. Hopefully by the time I come out there I will have something good to tell her."

"Yes, that would be amazing, Mom. She'll be so excited."

"Good, good! I've got to run, and you do too! I'll text you later, okay?"

"Okay. Bye Mom."

"Bye Clarke!"

The phone clicked off and Clarke smiled. It would be good to see her mother. And it would be good for her mom to meet everyone. To meet Bellamy… maybe then she'd stop encouraging Wells and Clarke back together. But more than that, Clarke just wanted her mother to meet her boyfriend. Boyfriend. She really hadn't thought about that yet. Bellamy was her boyfriend.

Now grinning, Clarke turned back to the group, where Miller was encouraging Shaw to join the Delinquents for their next dodgeball tournament. Shaw looked skeptical but listened, glancing back and forth from Raven to Miller.

"What are you smirkin' about?" Octavia asked Clarke.

"Oh!" Clarke said, thinking quickly. "My mom just called and said she's going to come for a visit in a couple weeks, so I'm excited to see her."

"Oh, that's nice," Octavia agreed. Clarke thought it best to let Bellamy tell his sister about their new relationship, considering how close the siblings were and how much Octavia seemed to despise Bellamy's involvement in her life.

Clarke sent Wells a quick text that they would be momentarily on their way over and Bellamy came jogging out of the stairwell, his dark hair in damp curly rings. As soon as Clarke caught his eye, he grinned.

"Alright troops! Move out!" Jasper yelled. As they walked outside, he continued talking. "So, as one might notice, I don't have the specific muscular physique typically considered usefully in activities such as moving house, but, what I lack in muscle, I make up for in brains."

Murphy scoffed,"Sure thing, Jas'."

Jasper, undeterred by the interruption, said, "So, with that in mind, I have appointed myself head of this endeavor, and you may refer to me as Supervisor Jordan for all intents and purposes."

"Supervisor? Hell, if you're the supervisor, then I'm the foreman," Murphy declared.

The world outside was covered in several inches of snow from last night, sparkling in the sunlight, making everything look fresh and new. It lay on the branches of trees and bushes, outlining them in crisp white. The cold air hung thick with the sweet scent and everyone's feet crunched over the shoveled sidewalk, which had been liberally sprinkled with salt to prevent ice from forming.

"It's so pretty," Clarke said as Bellamy found his way to her side.

"Yeah, it is. We'll have to go back out to Arkadia State Park sometime and really see the snow. In the city, it gets all gross and slushy like, two hours after it falls. The snow banks are always brown and full of gravel."

"I'd like that," Clarke agreed, imagining the forest standing silent and still under its wintry blanket.

"So, ten people in my van?" Miller said skeptically. "Not so sure about that."

"I've got my Jeep!" Raven said quickly, producing the keys and tossing them to Bellamy, who barely snagged them before they landed in the snow.

"Oh perfect. Say Raven, you don't happen to have a snow brush, do you?" Miller asked.

Raven made a face. "I was hoping you had one."

They ended up pulling their hands up into their jacket sleeves and wiping the snow off the vehicles with their arms. Clarke climbed into the backseat of the Jeep with Octavia and Raven while Bellamy turned the engine over. Twice.

"Easy! She's fragile!" Raven cried, craning her neck to investigate what Bellamy was doing wrong.

"I'm sorry!" Bellamy said unapologetically. "Looks like she's just not a fan of the cold."

"Me either," Octavia mumbled, clamping her arms down over her hands and tucking her chin to her collar.

Shaw got into the passenger seat, banging his boots on the frame to knock off the sticky snow.

"Here Shaw!" Raven snatched the keys from Bellamy and pressed them into Shaw's hand. The poor guy just stared at her.

Clarke tried and failed to suppress another smile as Bellamy glowered at Raven as she gave her instructions.

"You start the engine, Shaw, because apparently Bellamy doesn't know how."

"Okay," Shaw said cautiously, looking more than a little bewildered. Clarke couldn't blame him, He'd been roped into this group of often overzealous college kids by Raven, who he had only known since last night.

He reached over and started the car, and, of course, the engine roared to life with such vigor that the whole car shuddered.

"Ahah!" Raven shouted triumphantly as Bellamy grumbled something under his breath.

The drive was fairly short and rather subdued. Clarke was really the only one who spoke as she directed Bellamy to Wells' father's apartment building, and the Jeep had more than its fair share of squeaking and grated noises as Bellamy coaxed it along the road.

Miller followed behind, and when they pulled up at a red light, they could hear the music pulsing out of the vehicle. Murphy was in the front seat just laughing away as Jasper leaned up into the front to fiddle with the radio. Clarke momentarily felt bad for Harper who she knew was somewhere in the van, but Harper was probably laughing along too. She was always smiling, especially when Monty was close by.

Wells was standing out front when they pulled up.

"Is that him?" Raven asked.

"Yep."

She sputtered out a laugh. "What is he wearing?"

Clarke slapped Raven's shoulder and tried to scold her, but was giggling too. "I don't know! He's always had a sophisticated fashion sense."

"Is that a fedora?" Bellamy asked, raising a brow.

"And a corduroy coat?" Shaw chimed in, catching the vibe of the group.

"I knew I didn't like the guy," Bellamy said teasingly, throwing a playful smile to Clarke. She just shook her head at him.

"Clarke!" Wells said brightly, opening her door for her and offering her his hand.

"Hi Wells," Clarke greeted, stepping out onto the sidewalk. The van pulled up, base pounding so hard the windshield was literally vibrating. Miller looked like he was trying to appear irritated, but one could tell that he was actually enjoying himself.

"Wow, you brought a whole moving crew, huh?" Wells said, looking a bit intimidated as everyone clambered out.

"Yeah, sorry. They all wanted to come, and I wanted you to meet them. Plus, half of them won't do much of anything," Clarke explain

Murphy sauntered over. "Hi, that's me, the one who won't do anything. I'm Murphy, and I am so pleased to meet the acquaintance of such a dapper, distinguished young gentleman."

Murphy flipped up the collar of Wells' coat, a devilish grin on his face.

"Uh, thanks. Nice to meet you, too," Wells said, looking more than a little uncomfortable.

"Alright, speed run, ready?" Murphy said. Clarke knew he was about to do something goofy but she didn't interrupt him.

"Uh, what?"

"Let's do it!. We've got Clarke, of course, sweet darling Clarke. And then Raven, the one with the bum leg, and her new little boy toy Slaw, as in coleslaw. And then Bellamy, who I believe you already meet? No?" Murphy didn't give Wells time to reply before he rushed on. "And then Bellamy's sister, Octavia. Basically Bellamy but like, a girl. And over here, we've got Miller, Mr. Miller. Just think of Miller Lite. He looks the type to drink Miller Lite, doesn't he?"

"Sure?"

"And then there is Harper. She's like, well, actually, to be completely honest with you, I don't know very much about Harper. She's blond, I guess, so that's something. And then that's Monty, he's a nerd. He likes plants and shit. And then Jasper. Good ole Jas'. He makes a mad brew, you'll have to try that some time. You drink, Wells?"

Wells, who was more than a little flustered with the sudden influx of information, sputtered out, "Uh, I'll have the occasional chardonnay with dinner."

Murphy, pleased with himself, grinned. "Hmm, hear that folks? Chardonnay. That's all you need to know about Wells here. Yep indeed. He enjoys a nice white wine with his dinner."

With that, he waltzed off to where Jasper was busting a gut, leaning against the van.

Clarke sighed and faced Wells who was staring after Murphy, stunned.

"Don't mind him. He's the resident hardass."

"And I wear that title with pride!" Murphy hollered back.

Wells shook his head slightly and turned back to Clarke. "Uhm, thanks for all the help." He lowered his voice, looking slightly concerned. "Do you think it would be too much to ask for them to stay down here? I only have a half dozen boxes, and I'm not too keen on letting Miller give my dad that rundown."

"Murphy."

"Huh?"

"Murphy." Clarke pointed to him. "Murphy the Hardass. Miller is the Miller Lite guy, remember?" She smirked at Wells, feeling a little bad about teasing him, but her new group of friends was playful and made it oh so easy to have a good time.

"Right. Murphy."

Clarke laughed and called out, "Supervisor Jordan?"

Jasper snapped to attention with a mock salute and came over to Clarke. "Yes?"

"Keep them occupied, alright? We'll go up and get the boxes."

"Absolutely, Major Griffin."

Clarke laughed, glad for a change that the boys were so goofy. It took the awkwardness out of the air, which for some reason seemed to accompany Wells' presence.

"Okay, Bellamy? C'mon. We're going to run in and bring the stuff out so we don't have fifteen people in one apartment."

Bellamy nodded in agreement from where he had been talking to Shaw. The two of them seemed to get along.

"Let's go Princess," Bellamy said, holding open the door for her and Wells after Wells unlocked it.

The interior of the apartment smelled like new carpet and everything looked pristine.

"This a new building?" Bellamy asked, running a finger along the grey painted wall.

"I think so? Less than a year old, if I remember correctly. My dad's apartment is right here on the first floor." Wells led them down a wide hallway. Bellamy and Clarke exchanged a look, before he leaned down and whispered in her ear.

"As soon as we don't have to live on campus, we're going to move into an apartment in a place like this."

Clarke raised her brows. "Are you asking me to move in with you?" She whispered back, aware that her pulse rate just jumped up at the prospect of that.

"Only if you want to."

Clarke smiled and squeezed his hand. "Of course."

Wells loudly cleared his throat and announced, "Here we are."

Clarke hoped he hadn't overheard them and instantly felt guilty. She was not trying to rub Bellamy in Wells' face.

"Dad?"

"Wells! Come in, son."

The sound of Dr. Jaha's voice brought back many memories for Clarke. She hadn't seen her mother's colleague in at least a year, and greeted him warmly while Bellamy hung back by the door.

"Dr. Jaha! It is so good to see you!" Clarke gave him a hug, which he returned. He had been like a second father to Clarke when she was younger. In fact, her dad used to joke with her mom that Dr. Jaha was her 'work husband'. Clarke used to never like that, because she couldn't ever see her parents with anyone besides each other, but they had both laughed about it often.

"Clarke, my dear. Lovely to see you again, too. I hope you have been well?" His voice was very calming Clarke had always thought that he could have a second career as an audiobook reader or a meditation coach or something.

"Very!" Clarke smiled for him. "College has been so crazy this first semester, but I love it here. I hope that you like your new position at the school. I'm sure the students will love you."

Dr. Jaha gave a deep laugh. "Me too. It'll be an adjustment, for sure, switching from practicing medicine to teaching it, but one I am excited to make. I will miss working with your mother, though."

"Yeah, she'll definitely miss you, too. But she said she's already coming to visit?"

"Yes! I think the week after next. I'll let her have the honor of being my very first guest speaker."

"She's thrilled, trust me."

"And who's this young man?" Jaha asked, gesturing past Clarke to Bellamy, who was shifting on his feet in the entryway.

"I'm Bellamy Blake, sir." Bellamy introduced himself and offered his hand to shake. Clarke loved the way he sounded so confident.

"Bellamy Blake, pleased to meet you. Thank you for volunteering your Saturday to help my son move. I haven't quite gotten around to getting a car here in Minneapolis yet."

"Of course."

"We should get going Dad," Wells interjected, hoisting a box up.

"Yes, yes. Let me help you carry these out to the car."

"No!" Wells said a bit too quickly. "We'll be fine."

"Don't worry about it son. That way we can get them all in one trip. No need to go in and out of the doors and let all the cold air in."

With that, the four of them picked up Wells' things and made their way outside. Bellamy met Clarke's eyes over the box in her arms and smirked. Clarke knew he was rather excited to see the treatment that Dr. Jaha was about to receive from their friends waiting outside. Dr. Jaha was a dignified man, much like Wells. The group, as a whole, was not.

Someone whistled the second they walked through the outer door. "You like older men, don't you Octavia? How about a doctor?" Murphy said.

Clarke tried not to laugh as Octavia smacked Murphy and tried to apologize to a man she had never met before.

"I am so sorry, Dr. Wells. Murphy has a screw loose."

To everyone's surprise, Dr. Jaha laughed as well. "It's Dr. Jaha. Wells is just my son's name."

Embarrassment forgotten, Octavia turned a questioning look to Wells. "Wells is your first name? Huh. I thought you were one of those weirdos who went by their last names."

"Hey!" Miller protested.

"Not cool, Blake." Murphy stuck his tongue out at Octavia.

"Yeaaah. This is why I suggested you stay inside, Dad." Wells muttered, setting his package down in the back of the Jeep.

"What? You're embarrassed of some college kids? Wells, son, you're a college kid. Live a little. Lighten up. Make a joke every now and again."

Wells frowned at his father and Clark gave him a sympathetic smile, which seemed to sooth him.

"And Octavia, was it?"

She nodded sheepishly with another glower at Murphy.

"I hate to break it to you, but I'm afraid I'm out of your league."

The group exploded in hoots and hollers. Clarke laughed until her chest ached as the boys accosted Octavia, who tried her best to act angry towards them, but she was laughing just as hard.

Wells was looking in disbelief from the spot where his father had gone back inside, to Octavia, then to Clarke. Finally, he cracked a grin.

"Sorry they're so crazy," Clarke said, catching her breath.

Wells just shook his head. "No, he's right. I do need to loosen up a bit. I've just never heard my father tell a joke like that before."

Clarke shrugged. "He was in college once, too. Maybe he's just reminiscing."

"Yeah, maybe," Wells agreed.

"Alright! Enough is enough! We have to move out!" Jasper called over the chatter.

"Aye Aye captain!" Bellamy saluted Jasper and opened the back door to the Jeep, ushering Wells and Clarke inside. Raven climbed in after them, leaving Octavia without a spot. She huffed and hurried to beat Murphy into the passenger seat of the van, slamming the door shut and locking it a second before he tried to yank it open. She triumphantly flipped him off as he vowed to get her back for this.

"Ready?" Bellamy asked, turning around to look at the three of them. He squeezed Clarke's knee, which made Raven coo in her ear and copy him, gripping her leg much tighter though.

"Ow!" Clarke laughed.

"You start it, man, I don't want to get barked at." Bellamy handed the keys to Shaw, who chuckled and did as he was told.

The Jeep roared to life, making Wells jump in his seat hard enough that he smacked his elbow on the door handle. Clarke giggled and he actually smiled back. This was going to be good for him.

"Atta boy Shaw! See Bellamy? This is what a superior man looks like."

"Yeah yeah. We know," he said good-naturedly. "Shaw is everything, Bellamy is nothing."

"Aww, no. Poor Bellamy. You're good enough. And I'd let you start my piece of crap car if I had one," Clarke defended him while getting a jab in at Raven, leaning up to pat his shoulder.

"Thank you, Princess. At least someone loves me."

Clarke grinned at Raven, who rolled her eyes as they eased out into the road and headed back towards campus.

Clarke leaned back into the seat where she was pressed between Raven and Wells, her best friends from two different parts of her life. Wells was her past, but now he had come back into her life through a series of unforeseen events. Raven was her present, emblematic of everything college had been so far; pain, humor, suffering, love. And now, they were both her future.

Raven started talking to Shaw about some mechanics project she was supposed to start this week, pestering him for hints so she could get started before the project was even assigned. Bellamy drove, his now mostly dry hair poking through the gap at the base of the headrest. Clarke wanted to touch it, but she figured she'd better not, because he had a tendency to get majorly distracted when she did, and his attention was better focused on the road right now.

Clarke looked to Wells then, with his hands resting on each of his knees, his eyes looking out the window at the passing city. Smoke rose from the roofs of buildings, curling into a wintry blue sky.

Wells looked to Clarke, sensing her eyes on him. He gave her a small smile, his eyes sad.

"C'mon Shaw! I'ma cripple, so you have to do nice things for me!" Raven never brought up her injury, so it was more funny than anything. Shaw countered her and Bellamy chimed in.

They were all preoccupied, and Clarke wanted to talk to Wells, despite their close proximity to listening ears.

"It's not going to be weird, is it?" she asked quietly.

Wells opened his mouth, ready to give the answer Clarke wanted to hear, but paused and reconsider. "Not forever," he finally said.

Clarke nodded. She sort of thought they had settled this at the restaurant, but seeing the look on Wells' face made her want to revisit the topic, just to be sure. It was never her intention to make Wells feel bad.

"I- Clarke. I loved you, I still love you, you're the best friend I've ever had. And I'm not going to lie, I had hoped we could get back together once I moved here, but you found someone else. I can't say I'm the biggest Bellamy fan in the world, but he seems to make you happy. And that's what I want for you; to be happy, because I care about you, Clarke. You're an amazing person who deserves someone just as special. If that person isn't me, that's okay, so long as you are with someone who deserves you. You're too special to date just anyone."

Clarke felt tears prick in her eyes. For a moment, she had forgotten why she and Wells were so close, but this brought it all back. Wells was quite simply a good person. He was smart and kind and honest, and he had been Clarke's balance when she was younger.

"Thank you, Wells. That means a lot." Clarke shifted sideways and hugged her friend despite the awkward angle. Only then did she realize how quiet the car had gotten.

Clarke felt her face redden as she pulled away, knowing they had been at least partially overheard.

But it turned out to be not such a bad thing.

"Hey man," Bellamy said. They were stopped at a red light. "You are so right when you say that Clarke is an amazing girl, and I think a lot has changed since you two were close. But I promise that I will always treat her right, give her the respect she deserves, and be good to her. I'm counting on you to keep me accountable, too. Call me out if I'm not being the best person for her, alright? And it's okay that you're not my biggest fan right now, I certainly wouldn't be if I were you. Clarke is worth fighting for and I'll admit that you're a bigger man than me. I wouldn't have done what you just did, because I'm too stubborn. You're a good one, Wells."

Then Clarke really did shed a tear.

"Thanks, Bellamy. Take care of her."

"I always will."

Bellamy gave Clarke an adorable smile over his shoulder as they were honked at from behind.

The light had turned green and they were still stopped. Octavia was hanging her head out of the passenger window of the van, hollering at them. Miller grinned and honked again.

"Whoops," Bellamy said and stepped on the gas, The Jeep lurched forward, sputtering its protest.

"My God Clarke. How did you manage to find two of the nicest guys on the planet?" Raven teased.

Clarke laughed, wiping her cheek. "I dunno. I'm pretty lucky, I guess."

"Yeah, you're making me look bad, guys," Shaw said.

A moment later, they pulled up in front of the dorm. Bellamy raced around the side of the Jeep and swept Clarke up as soon as she stepped out.

She squealed in surprise, burying her face into his neck as he spun her around.

"I love you so much, Clarke." His voice was thick as if he were emotional and the strength of his words knocked the breath from Clarke's lungs. All she could do was pull back and kiss him to tell him she felt the same way.

Their little moment was short lived. Clarke had momentarily forgotten their rather large, rather loud audience.

"I told you! I told you! I told you!" Octavia screamed. One of the guys whistled and Raven had the audacity to slow clap, looking satisfied at the fruition of their little love story.

Bellamy released Clarke and she sheepishly faced her friends. Bellamy held her around the waist and just laughed warmly.

Octavia, who Clarke had been most worried about telling, seemed the happiest.

"I told you Murphy! You own me!"

Murphy groaned, looking at Bellamy. "I didn't think you'd pull it off, man. Now I owe your dumb sister fifty bucks!"

"You were betting on us?" Clarke cried, momentarily horrified with the realization that this moment had been long expected.

Octavia nodded. "Duh. I know my big brother well enough to know that he was in love with you from the very beginning, Clarke. This was a chance to make a quick buck, but I really am happy for you two."

She came over and hugged the both of them, which made Clarke feel so welcomed. Octavia was a girl of strong opinions, and her seal of approval was the final missing piece to her and Bellamy's new relationship.

"How long did you know and not tell us?" Harper asked Raven, trying her best to look put out but failing mightily.

Raven shrugged slyly. "I knew before even Clarke knew. I had to tell her first."

Clarke laughed and tried to defend herself. "Not true!"

Raven raised a brow.

"Okay, maybe a little bit true," she conceded, leaning into Bellamy.

"Pay up, Murphy!" Octavia said, holding out her hand.

"I don't even have fifty bucks! I'm a broke college kid. I can't even afford this week's Top Ramen!"

"Hmm." Octavia leaned down and scooped up a handful of snow and lobbed it at Murphy, hitting him squared in the chest.

"Oof," he exhaled. He narrowed his eyes and paid for a split second. "Oh, it's on now!"

He chased Octavia, who screamed and leapt over the snowbank and sprinted across the unblemished lawn in front of the dorm. Murphy pelted her back a couple of times before slipping and falling into the snow. Octavia laughed and kicked snow at him as he struggled to regain his feet, all the while shouting profanity.

Then, Wells, seeming to want to live up to his dad's advice, formed a snowball and tossed it at Bellamy.

"Oh, you're in for it now, man!" Bellamy said.

"Snowball fight!" Jasper yelled and everyone exploded into action, throwing snow and dodging and laughing uncontrollably.

"Good practice for dodgeball, I guess," Miller said. He was normally so calm and composed, but he doubled over at the waist, laughing, when he hit Jasper square in the forehead with a well aimed throw. Jasper charged at Miller, tackling him into the snowbank where Miller shoved snow down the back of Jasper's jacket, making him howl and dance around like a fool.

Bellamy grabbed Clarke's hand and pulled her behind the Jeep, breathless and untroubled. His brown eyes were bright and his tan cheeks were rosy from the cold air. Warmth surged in Clarke's chest and she looked at him. She was so hopelessly in love with this man and she could be happier about it.

He had the ability to make the rest of the world melt away when she looked into his eyes. The shrieks and hollers of their friends faded into the background and the cold air became like a warm caress. Nothing in the world seemed to matter more than him in that moment, and he made Clarke feel like she was the center of his universe.

Bellamy didn't have a chance to explain why he'd brought her back here before they were discovered.

"They're hiding back here!" Octavia found them, a snowball poised to throw. "You little lovebirds, get out here!"

Octavia hit her brother with the snowballs and ran off. Clarke giggled as the two of them went back around the van, and continued the fight.

Clarke had never laughed harder or had so much fun in all her life. This group of people made her feel so at home, so comfortable. They had a few new members now, but Shaw seemed to fit in seamlessly and Wells would get there. He might have to spend a while as the butt of the guy's jokes, but it would be good for him.

When they all collapsed onto the snowbank, exhausted, there was nowhere else Clarke would rather be. The snow made a little seat, cradling her. Bellamy plunked down next to her.

She ruffled the snow out of his hair and he pulled her onto his lap.

"Smile!" Harper called, holding her phone out to capture them all in a photo.

"You'll have to draw this one like you drew the dodgeball one, Princess," Bellamy said.

"Absolutely."

"Then I can frame it and hang it on the wall in our apartment, so you can look at it everyday and remember that we are all here for you. One big, happy, dysfunctional family."

Clarke leaned back into him, content. "That's a lovely idea. Our crazy little family."

Bellamy's arms encircled her waist as he held her close. Clarke closed her eyes and could feel the beating of his heart through his jacket, steady and even.

"I love you Clarke, and I'll always be here for you."

"I love you, too. And thank you, Bellamy. Really, truly, thank you. You've saved my life."

"And you've given me my life."

Their world might be a little messy and a touch unpredictable, but Clarke was confident they could navigate every twist and turn so long as they were by each other's side.

AN_

Long, gushy author's note to follow. :)

We're here guys. Welcome to the end of Here For You, I am so unbelievable happy to see you here. This story has been a wonderful experience for me to write, and I hope it has been for you, as a reader, as well. I know the subject matter started off a little sensitive, but nonetheless important, but I think we ended on a sweet note. And got to see some Bellarke, which is always fantastic. I feel as though my writing has improved significantly over the course of this story, and cringe rereading the first dozen or so chapters. Some day I want to get around to updating them to better reflect my writing, but that's a project for another day.

Okay, here's the part where I act like I won an Academy Award.

First of all, thank you kyliEisMC2 for agreeing to beta my story. You were such a lovely person to work with, so helpful and encouraging, and helped me be the best writer I could be. Pat yourself on the back for a job well done, you're amazing :)

And then, of course, I have to thank all of you wonderful people who left reviews. Receiving reviews on your work is one of the best feelings in the world, so thank you. To the handful of people who were consistent reviewers, GinnyWeasley09, inspiredsightxo, The100fan09, Vic, samanthaburton0114 , and steamiebaby, an especially big thank you. To know that you guys were following along and reading every update made me feel so great.

Thank you to everyone who has favorited and followed as well! And if you've been one of my silent readers, this is your last chance to say hi and let me know what you thought.:)

I started writing this story in January 2020, before COVID-19 was an issue in the United States, and after I started self quarantine, this story was the place I came to live my life. I was able to write scenes that I wish I could be doing with my friends, (like attending a football game or getting wasted when we really shouldn't be) but couldn't do right now. It was the creative space I needed to keep from losing my marbles while stuck at home. I'm sure many of you can relate to that, lol. Writing is such an amazing outlet, and even though my writing isn't perfect or maybe sometimes isn't even good, it helps me. So to share it and get positive feedback is incredibly validating and heartwarming.

Now, this is something that I always want to see when I reach the end of stories, a brief little timeline. I posted my first chapter on February 1st, 2020, and will post this final chapter on December 5th, 2020. I posted pretty much weekly throughout that time. So, if you're here months or maybe even years after the fact, I would love for you to leave a little review to remind me about this story and let me know people are still enjoying it. :)

That's about all I have for you, folks.

I hope you enjoyed this extra long chapter as a thank you gift!

So, as always,

Thanks for reading!

-Birch66724