AN: More roadtrip coming up! Also a bit of a blast from Bellamy's past… hope you enjoy :)

I don't own anything relating to The 100

Chapter title from "Never Coming Down" by Faber Drive

56

A Hand Cuts Through the Breeze

They don't linger in Roswell the next morning, just grab some breakfast and pack up the car, so they're on the road by nine.

"Just one stop today, right?" Clarke asks from behind the wheel when they've left the city behind.

"Yup," Bellamy confirms, not even consulting the list on his phone. "Ingram, Texas. But it's, like, an hour from San Antonio, so I'm thinking we'll need to stop for lunch before that."

"Yeah, that makes sense. So what's in Ingram, Texas?"

She glances at him at the exact right moment to catch a slightly sheepish look on his face.

"It's… kind of silly, maybe," he starts, words dragging a little, as if he's reluctant to tell her. Which makes absolutely no sense, considering he has stuff like the world's largest cowboy boots – San Antonio – and the world's largest roller skate – Bealeton – on his list. "This guy's built a sort of replica of Stonehenge, what it might have looked like in its complete state, I thought it would be fun to check out since we've been to the real thing."

"What do you mean by 'silly', that's awesome!" she assures him. "If I'd known it existed, I probably would have suggested it."

"Yeah?"

"Yup."

It's another long day in the car, no stops for hours except lunch at a dingy, roadside diner in some tiny town they pass around one in the afternoon, and to fill up the tank half an hour or so later.

But it's a wonderful day, the sky wide and blue above them, the AC keeping them cool despite the temperature rising to the low nineties outside, and once they leave Arizona behind for Texas, their surroundings turn from mostly desert to fields and towns, offering a bit of variation.

Still, they're both happy to get to leave the car for a while when they finally reach the park where the Stonehenge replica is displayed.

"What's that?" Clarke asks as they pass some sort of stone statue.

Bellamy glances out the side window. "I read that there are some replicas of those stone heads on Easter Island here, that must be one of them."

She laughs. "So Stonehenge wasn't enough?"

"Guess not," he replies with a shrug.

They park on a small, gravel parking lot by another huge stone head and get out, both stretching their limbs out a little.

It's a little weird, not an exact replica, since it's complete in a way the real Stonehenge isn't, but it's still cool. They stroll around for a few minutes, get some funny photos with the stone circle and the stone heads, and then get back in the car for the last hour.

"OK, it probably wouldn't have been worth a long detour," Bellamy admits when he pulls out onto the road again, "but it was kind of fun."

"Absolutely."

It's still light when they get to San Antonio, even if the sun is beginning to set, so they just drop their stuff off at the hotel and head out. Since the main thing they want to see in the city – apart from the large cowboy boots Bellamy found, which they made a pit stop at on the way into the city – is the Alamo, Clarke booked a hotel right by the old mission. She wasn't sure when they would get here, though, so she's booked an audio tour for them in the morning, before they leave for Houston. Which means they have tonight to check out the rest of the city.

It's still way too hot out, though, so they make their way to the San Antonio River, where the large cypress trees lining the river walk offer some shade.

"This is nice," Bellamy notes.

"Yeah, it's a cool place," she agrees. "It's been updated and expanded a lot since I was last here, way back in… sixty-two, I guess it must have been."

He chuckles. "You know, it's been a while since I was reminded I married a centenarian, thanks for that."

She elbows him in the ribs. "Centenarian and a half, thank you very much."

"How could I forget?"

They stroll along the river at a leisurely pace, stopping at the occasional shop and pausing to read menus at the restaurants they pass, before picking a Mexican place. The food is fine, if nothing special, but the margaritas more than make up for it. Full and slightly tipsy, they continue on their way some time later, crossing the river at the picturesque Selena Bridge, and then again at the pedestrian bridge between Commerce and Market, to reach the Main Plaza. Their timing is apparently perfect – they reach the square a few minutes before nine, to find a large group of people waiting for a light show at the impressive San Fernando Cathedral, so they stay to watch it as well.

When the show ends, they follow the river back towards their hotel, making a detour to La Villita – all the little shops and galleries are closed for the day, but it's still a nice area with beautiful architecture.

It's around ten thirty when they make it back to the hotel, and they curl up in bed, turning the TV on to an old episode of The Office before calling it a night.

They're up bright and early again, waiting at The Alamo when it opens at nine.

"We didn't have to get audio guides, you know," Bellamy half-grumbles when they've been admitted and picked up their guides.

"I know you know all there is to know about this place, but I want you to enjoy yourself," Clarke tells him. "Not have to give me a tour."

He puts the headphones on before claiming her free hand. "But that's the best part."

She rolls her eyes before starting her own audio guide, and they follow it around the complex in mostly silence, Bellamy just pausing the tour a few times to point out things they miss or that he considers interesting.

They checked out of the hotel and packed up the car before they headed to The Alamo, so they take their time, exploring a little more when the audio tour ends, and then hit the road.

They don't have any stops along the way today, so they continue until their stomachs start calling for lunch, and even then, they just grab some sandwiches from a Subway and fill up on gas before continuing.

"So, who are we visiting in Houston?" Clarke finally asks when they're back on the road. They only have about an hour left to Houston, so she figures it's the time to ask if they're going straight to the hotel or making a pit stop on the way.

Bellamy's driving, and he keeps his eyes on the road. "Her name's Gina, she's an old…"

"Girlfriend?" she finishes for him when he hesitates, and he nods. She knows it's not one of the names he mentioned during their trip to Paterson, and sure, he's probably had other girlfriends since then, but none that feel important enough to want to pay a final visit to. So she draws the only conclusion she can. "College girlfriend?"

He sighs. "Considering I wasn't in college, it was probably more the other way around, but yeah. That's her."

She stays quiet for a moment, not sure how exactly she's going to react to him wanting to see the girlfriend he accidentally got pregnant twelve years ago one last time.

"You OK?" he asks when she doesn't say anything. "You know this isn't some… you don't have anything to worry about or be jealous about, nothing like that, OK? I just…"

Bellamy's words put any potential insecurities out of her mind and she reaches over the console to take his hand. "I know, don't worry."

"It's not like we had a bad breakup or anything," he continues, voice contemplative. "We stayed together for a couple of years after… it happened, but then she got into grad school in Austin, and sure, we talked a little about trying long distance, but I had Octavia and couldn't just take off on a regular basis, and we both knew that she'd be busy with school, so we just… agreed it was better to call it before it turned sour, you know? At the time, it felt like the adult thing to do, but honestly, looking back, I realize that we'd been drifting apart for a while and it was an easy out for both of us."

"That doesn't mean it was the wrong decision," Clarke notes.

"I know." He glances at her. "So don't go thinking I never got over her or anything, OK?"

She lets out a laugh. "I won't, promise. Do you want to head straight there, or stop at the hotel first? Do you even know where she lives?"

"We stayed in touch for a while after she moved, so I knew she stayed in Austin after school and then moved to Houston… four years ago, maybe. These days it's basically just texts to wish each other a merry Christmas or happy birthday, though. But I did a tiny bit of Facebook stalking on Miller's account before we left New York," he admits. "I figured we'd stop by her place, we can catch up a little, see if she and her husband want to join us for dinner tonight maybe, and then we can head to the hotel?"

She's not sure if he throws the 'husband' comment in there as further reassurance, but it is good to know.

"OK, sounds good. Give me the address and I'll plug it into the sat nav."

He does, and thirty-five minutes later, they turn onto Forest Home Drive, a typical suburban street. The yards aren't huge, but the houses are nice, well maintained.

"I think it's the next one on the left…" Clarke says, squinting at the number on a mailbox.

Bellamy pulls into the driveway of the next house, a contemporary building of brick and wood. There's a two-car garage to their right, the door open to reveal a fairly new station wagon, a large tree with a swing hanging from one branch at the front of the house, and some toys strewn around the lawn.

"Having second thoughts?" she asks when he makes no move to turn off the engine.

He takes a deep breath. "I just… I don't want to mess with her life, you know? Not that… I wasn't thinking about Gina when I was writing the list of places I wanted to see, but then I was looking at the map and realized that we'd be passing Houston anyway, so I thought, why not? I know the broad strokes of her life, you know, but there's only so much you can really learn from second hand accounts and Facebook, so I kind of… I want to know how she's doing, make sure life has been good to her. But I don't want her to think it's some… grand gesture or something."

Clarke considers that for a moment, not wanting to just disregard his worry. "You said she's married, right?" He nods. "And judging by the yard, I'd say she has at least one kid. Plus, I'm with you, so I doubt she'll think you've come to… what, confess your undying love and ask her to leave her whole life for you?"

He side-eyes her. "Thanks, really."

"Anytime," she replies with a smirk before sobering again. "But seriously, just tell her what you just said – we're doing a cross-country road trip, we were passing by on our way anyway, and wanted to just… stop by and say hi. I really don't think she'll read anything into it."

"You're right," he says with a half-smile. "I'm getting in my own head. Come on."

The doorbell echoes through the house when he pushes it, and a moment later, footsteps announce the arrival of whoever's inside the door. It opens to reveal a dark haired woman, hugely pregnant, with a bright red, plastic fire truck in one hand. When she sees them, her free hand flies to her mouth.

"Hey, Gina," Bellamy greets her, one corner of his mouth turning up in a smile.

She lets out a laugh. "As I live and breathe, Bellamy Blake… what the hell are you doing here?"

He glances at Clarke, who gives him an encouraging smile. "We were sort of in the neighborhood, wanted to stop by."

Gina's attention turns to Clarke and she offers her a warm, welcoming smile. "Well, come on in!" She steps aside to let them into the house and then leads them down a hallway. "You want coffee or something?"

"Sure, coffee would be nice."

The hallway opens up to a large kitchen and living area, where a little boy – Clarke's not great at kids' ages, but she'd probably put him at around three or four – is playing with some Duplos. When he hears them, he looks up, and then comes to hide behind Gina's legs where she's preparing a coffee maker.

"He's in a shy phase," she says fondly when she's finished, ruffling the boy's light brown hair. "Can you say hi to mommy's friends, Mason?"

He peeks out from behind her legs briefly. "Hi."

"I suppose that will do," she says with a sigh, before turning her attention back to her guests, extending a hand to Clarke. "Hi, I'm Gina, since this one's not looking like he's going to do introductions any time soon."

That gets Bellamy's attention and he rolls her eyes. "So sorry I forgot my manners for a moment there. Gina, this is Clarke, my… wife."

Gina lets out a snort of a laugh at that, her smile widening. "He sounds really sure about that one."

Clarke feels her own smile widen as well. "Well, in his defense, it is still pretty new."

"Exactly, I'm still getting used to it."

Gina laughs again. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Clarke. And good to see you again, I can't believe it's been so long."

Bellamy half-shrugs. "That's what happens when you move half-way across the country."

Gina rolls her eyes at that and starts getting mugs from a cupboard. "And when you refuse to even consider social media."

Mason seems to finally accept that the strangers aren't dangerous and goes back to playing, and they settle around the kitchen table, where Gina can keep an eye on him, with their mugs and a plate of chocolate digestives that she finds in the pantry.

"So, seriously, what are you doing here?" she starts. "Unless you actually moved, which I'm pretty sure I would have heard about from Miller, you can't have really been in the neighborhood."

Bellamy rubs the back of his neck, obviously trying to find the right words, so Clarke takes over. "We've been traveling for the past six months, doing a sort of round-the-world trip, and now we're wrapping it up with a cross-country road trip. We were already stopping in San Antonio and then in New Orleans, and Houston seemed like a good pit stop between those, so we figured we'd at least stop by and say hi."

Gina's eyes widened a little at 'round-the-world trip'. "Wow, that sounds amazing. Where have you been?"

That gets Bellamy going, and he starts telling her about all the places they've visited so far, Clarke chipping in now and then, but mostly just watching the two of them.

She can definitely see how they would have been good together, they soon slip into what feels like natural ribbing, but it's also clear that whatever feelings were once there have settled into what could have been a deep friendship if not for the circumstances.

She understands why Bellamy wanted to see her one last time.

Before the thought has a chance to bring her down, she makes a mental effort to shake it off, focusing back on the conversation, which has advanced to Las Vegas.

Gina chokes on the last of her coffee when he gets to the proposal and turns to Clarke. "He seriously proposed in the middle of The Strip?"

"Yeah, it caught me off guard too," she replies with a smile. "I don't know what I would have expected if I knew he was thinking about it, but that definitely wasn't it."

Bellamy finds her hand under the table and squeezes it. "Then I succeeded in my attempt to surprise you, so that's good." He turns back to Gina. "Can I use your bathroom?"

"Of course," she says with a nod. "It's right by the front door."

He gets up, squeezing Gina's shoulder as he passes her. "Thanks."

She waits until they hear the bathroom door close before turning to Clarke. "So how's he doing?"

Clarke thinks the question through perhaps a little longer than necessary. "He's good, I think."

A soft smile appears on Gina's face. "I always worried, after I left… it was the right thing for both of us, I know that, but he had such a hard time with his sister and work and everything… it was hard to not feel like I was adding to it."

"You left in… 2010?"

She nods. "Yeah, Octavia was just starting her senior year. She'd gotten over the worst of her rebellious phase by then, but they were still butting heads about a lot of things. And even if he never said anything, I always knew that he… we met my freshman year, I had a class with Miller and he introduced us at a frat party he dragged Bellamy along to one night when Octavia was at a sleepover, so I didn't know him before everything with his mom and getting custody of Octavia, but Miller told me how excited he'd been when he got his acceptance letter. So even if he never said anything himself, I always figured it was hard on him, watching his friends, watching me, get to do what he wanted while he was stuck at a job he didn't particularly like…"

Clarke nods thoughtfully. "Yeah, I know it was a difficult time for him… but he did get to go to school eventually, and I think he's more or less happy with the way his life turned out in the end."

"Seems like it. And teaching, that's going to be such a good fit for him," Gina says with another smile. "He seems happy. Definitely happier than I ever saw him. Don't argue, it's OK," she continues when Clarke opens her mouth to do just that. "I know he loved me, and we were happy, but back then, there was this… cloud over him, I guess. A weight on his shoulders, what with losing his mom and taking care of Octavia and work… but that's gone, and I'm so glad he finally gets to be just… happy."

Clarke's throat feels a little tight and she swallows before she can speak. "I am too."

Gina's still watching her closely. "You're obviously a big reason for that, but also… Bellamy kind of glossed over it a little, but you have seen Octavia, right?"

"Yeah." Clarke nods, not sure how much she should say, since it's not really her story. "You knew about their… falling out?"

"I did, yeah, Miller told me when it happened and I… I thought about reaching out, but we weren't really talking at that point. I emailed, and he asked Miller to tell me he appreciated it, but we never actually talked about it. But they've made up?"

Since she was involved in this part of the story, Clarke feels OK sharing it. "They hadn't when we met, but when we were planning this trip, I decided to look Octavia up, and then we surprised Bellamy in Dublin, where she lives now."

"So it took them that long."

"And some outside interference. I think they're both too stubborn for their own good," Clarke suggests with a shrug and Gina laughs.

"Tell me about it. I'm still amazed you actually got him to agree to this whole trip, he was always… proud, I guess? It's not like I was rolling in money back when we were dating either, but whenever I brought take-out over or picked up groceries on the way, he always insisted on paying me back. In fact, one of our worst fights was when my parents offered to pay for his flight so we could visit them over spring break the last year we were together. He didn't talk to me for two days, and then he apologized but said he couldn't accept 'charity'." She sighs, eyes on her son and one hand rubbing her belly absentmindedly. "I tried to tell him it wasn't charity, but he just… wouldn't listen."

"Yeah, I was honestly shocked too when he agreed," Clarke says, making up a story as she speaks, hoping Bellamy won't contradict it. "I don't know if he's just… grown up or if maybe it was the circumstances. My parents died when I was nineteen, they left me my – our – apartment in New York and more money than I'll ever need, so that might have been part of it. He knew I could afford it, and I was already planning the trip when we met, so it was more… he came along on my dream holiday, I guess."

"That's nice."

"What's nice?" Bellamy's voice comes from the hallway and they both turn as he enters the room again, Clarke wondering how much of the conversation he heard. He was gone for quite a while.

"That you two got to travel the world together," Gina tells him with a smile. "Greg and I went to St. John for our honeymoon, but that's the only time we've left the continent."

Mason pulls her attention away at that moment, coming up next to her and tugging on her arm. "Mama, play outside."

Gina shakes her head. "It's too hot outside, baby." She glances at her watch. "And it's time for your nap too, come on. I'll be right back."

The little boy grumbles a little as Gina leads him out of the room, but goes along, and soon, Clarke and Bellamy are alone.

"So how much of that did you hear?" Clarke asks once she's sure Gina is out of earshot.

"I heard the stubborn part," he replies with a smirk. "Thanks for that."

She rolls her eyes. "Please, you don't need me to tell you that you're stubborn. But that was OK? I kind of had to think on my feet."

He reaches for her hand and she squeezes his back. "Of course. Not like we can tell her the truth, and I don't want her thinking it was anything personal."

"I don't think she does," she assures him, pausing for a moment before continuing. "You want me to give you two a little time alone?"

Bellamy's eyes soften at her question. "You don't have to do that."

But she's already pulling out her phone. "It's not a problem, I'll just text Raven and ask her to call me in, like, ten minutes. You two should talk without an audience."

"Have I told you how much I love you today?"

Clarke waits for Raven's confirmation before closing down the message app and putting her phone screen down on the table. "I think it might have slipped out once or twice this morning," she replies, biting her lip at the memory of waking him up. Judging by the way his eyes darken slightly, he's having similar thoughts.

He opens his mouth, perhaps to remind her of something he particularly enjoyed, but Gina returns at that moment.

"There we go, he should be out for a couple of hours," she says, slumping back down in the chair she left a few minutes ago and rubbing her back a little. There's still a smile on her face, but it's a little weak, and Clarke imagines she must be tired – it can't be easy to keep up with a toddler this late in her pregnancy.

"How old is he?" she asks.

"He turned three in February," Gina replies, patting her belly. "So unless this one decides to completely ignore her due date, they'll be roughly three and a half years apart, it felt like a good age difference."

Clarke hums non-committedly, having no idea about that particular subject. "So not that long left?"

"A week or so, thank God." Gina huffs. "I mean, I've lived in Texas for… nine years by now, I know the summers are always hot, but I didn't have to worry about things like heat waves with Mason, so I didn't even think about it when we started trying for number two, but let me tell you, I learned my lesson. I think we'll be done after this one, but if we do decide to go for a third, we're definitely planning it for winter."

The thermometer in the car had showed a hundred degrees exactly when they arrived, and Clarke can only imagine how uncomfortable that must be in Gina's condition.

"Thank God for air conditioning, right?" Bellamy pipes in and Gina laughs.

"Oh yeah, I definitely wouldn't have made it through the last few months without it!"

Clarke's phone starts vibrating at that moment, and she turns it over, pretending to be surprised at Raven's name on the screen. "Sorry, I should take this – it's my best friend, she's house-slash-cat sitting for us while we're gone."

Gina nods at her. "Of course."

Clarke offers both her and Bellamy a smile before leaving the room and slipping out through the front door.

The heat is like a wall and she quickly finds the shadow of the tree in the front yard before picking up. "Hey, Rae."

"Hey, babe," Raven's voice comes over the line. "So what am I saving you from?"

Clarke sits down on the swing and pushes back a little. "Not saving me, just giving me an out so Bellamy could get some alone time with his ex."

The line is quiet for a long moment. "OK, not that I don't trust that you know what you're doing there, but what are you doing?"

Clarke sighs. "It's not as weird as it sounds," she says. "The break-up was mutual and about as un-dramatic as they come, as far as I can tell. She's not the one that got away or anything like that, he's not looking for closure, he just… I don't want to say that he feels responsible for her happiness or anything, but he just wanted to know that she was doing OK."

"And he couldn't have done that on Facebook or by the phone?"

"It's not like it was a detour or anything, we already had San Antonio and New Orleans on the list, this was a logical stop on the way." She knows it sounds like an excuse, but it's really not.

"As long as you're OK with it…" Raven says, still sounding slightly doubtful.

"I am," Clarke says determinedly. "She and I had a good talk while Bellamy was in the bathroom, she told me it was nice to see him finally be really happy, so that's…"

"He is," Raven says gently when she trails off. "You know he is."

"I do. OK, I want to give them some time, so just… keep me company for a while?"

"That I can do. Hey, you said you're going to New Orleans next, right? Is that a good idea with the hurricane?"

"What hurricane?"

That conversation gets them through fifteen minutes, Raven checking different forecasts until they agree that it should be fine to still go to New Orleans, but they might want to leave on Sunday morning instead of Monday, as planned, to avoid the worst of the storm. After they hang up, Clarke does a quick search for hotels in Montgomery, noting a couple of possible options to show Bellamy later.

When she's been outside for half an hour, she decides that it should be fine to go back in, and enters the house again.

Gina and Bellamy are in the same spots they were when she left, both laughing at something. Bellamy looks up when she enters the room, offering her a big smile. "Hey, everything OK with Bas?"

"Fine," she replies, reclaiming her seat. "But apparently we've been so off the map that we've missed a potential hurricane approaching New Orleans."

He frowns at that and Gina pipes in. "I was going to mention that, actually, when you said you were heading there next."

"Is it going to be bad?" Bellamy asks.

"Raven checked a bunch of forecasts and it looks like it won't be as bad as they thought originally, but it'll still be at least a tropical storm, so I thought we might cut our visit short, leave on Sunday instead. We can re-evaluate when we get there if we need to."

"Sounds like a plan."

They sit around chitchatting for a while longer, until the sound of an engine outside and then the door opening and closing announces the arrival of Gina's husband.

"Hey, babe, we have visitors?" he calls from the hallway.

"We're in the kitchen," she calls back. "And Mason's asleep, keep your voice down a little."

The man appears in the doorway with a sheepish smile on his face. "Sorry." He crosses the room to extend his hand to Bellamy. "Bellamy, right? I've seen some pictures."

Bellamy rises to shake the man's hand. "That's me. And you must be Greg?"

"Yup. Nice to meet you."

"You too. This is my wife, Clarke."

Greg turns to Clarke, again extending his hand, and she shakes it. "Nice to meet you."

"And you," he replies before leaning down to kiss Gina, one hand resting on her stomach. "How are my two favorite girls today?"

"Just fine. She's been enjoying herself practicing kickboxing most of the day, but you know, nothing out of the ordinary."

Bellamy glances at his watch as Greg joins them at the table, raising his eyebrows at Clarke. "We should probably head out," he says and she nods.

"Yeah, we haven't checked into our hotel yet."

"Of course, you should do that," Gina says. "I would offer you our guest room, but it's currently being turned into a nursery and then the office is going to be pulling double duty as an office and guest room, so…"

"Don't even worry about it," Clarke assures her with a smile. "We just showed up without warning, and we have a hotel booked, we really weren't expecting you to put us up."

Gina looks at Greg, the two having a silent conversation for a moment. "You have to at least let us take you out to dinner," he then says. "Show you what Houston has to offer."

"That would be nice," Bellamy replies, frowning a little at Gina. "As long as you're up for it."

She laughs. "Oh, I'm fine. I'll take a nap with Mason and hopefully I'll be able to stay awake later than nine, which is my usual bedtime these days."

"If you're sure," Clarke tells her, and Gina nods.

So they make plans to meet at their hotel at eight, and take their leave.

"So that was good, right?" Clarke asks when they're on the road again, her behind the wheel.

Bellamy gives her a smile. "It was great. Greg seems like a good guy and they're obviously happy."

She reaches over to squeeze his thigh. "I'm glad you got whatever it was you needed."