Chapter Thirty-One
Alex
They marched through the forest in the dead of night, Devan setting an almost unforgiving pace considering that she could barely see his outline in the dark, between the shadowy silhouettes of the trees around her. Stumbling along behind him, she glared at the back of his head, cursing and grumbling about Grounders and their ability to see in the dark as she tripped over another root hidden. Unlike her, Devan seemed to have little trouble moving among the trees and bushes in the darkness. Despite his bulk, his feet made no sound as they stepped over the forest floor, each movement was sure, precise, predatory.
She grimaced as another branch cracked under her foot, making a face at him when his head snapped back her way. His entire demeanor since they had started moving was one of being completely unimpressed at her inability to move quietly.
"Jerk," she mumbled to herself, glaring at him.
The whole trek had put her in a sour mood. Everything about the past few days seemed to add physical weight to her body, to the point that her bones ached and each step took an enormous amount of effort. Her aching feet did nothing to improve her movements in the dark and only seemed to make her clumsier, each movement, each stumble jolting her sore body and tearing at the searing wound at her side. It didn't help that it had probably been hours since they left the camp and the small bowl of soup that she'd had, because her stomach made a point of grumbling all too loudly, the lack of food leaving her feeling hollow.
But she couldn't stop moving. She needed to get back.
Her eyes narrowed at the man before her, trying to make sense of the situation she was in. According to Devan, Freya had organized her release instead of handing her over to the other, less friendly Grounders. The old woman had given her a chance to go home, and all she seemed to want was that Alex 'return the gesture in kind'. The request was vague at best, cryptic even. Maybe Freya had lost a few marbles in her old age. Or, maybe she was more cunning than people might give her credit for.
Either way, Alex had to take it on blind faith that Devan was leading her back towards the dropship and not to some sort of trap. It was entirely possible that he could be taking her somewhere far away to finish the job the other Grounders had started, or leading her right towards them. She tried to ignore the icy feeling of dread pooling inside her stomach that he, and likely every Grounders out there, seemed to know where their camp was.
The sound of the water running nearby told her that they were following the river back upstream. Which made sense considering she had gone quite the ways downriver when she had jumped in. Too far, she thought, panting as she scrambled up another embankment.
The sky was beginning to brighten when Devan finally stopped before her. She only noticed when she nearly stumbled into his back. Huffing, she glared up at him when he turned back to look at her, expecting him to comment on her lack of stealthiness once again but was pleasantly surprised when he didn't.
"We are nearly there," he said in a hushed voice.
Her heart leapt with excitement and she almost sagged in relief, but when she looked around, somehow expecting to see the dropship in the distance, all she could see were more trees and darkness. No fires, no people, nothing. "Uh, where?"
Devan rolled his eyes. "I cannot just take you right to your people."
Even though she knew that made sense, that there was no way they could both just march up to the dropship together, the comment irked her, flaming her already shortened temper. "Why the hell not?"
He didn't even dignify her with a response and instead pointed to the base of a nearby tree. "Sit," he ordered.
"Why?" She narrowed her eyes at him, glancing at the area he was pointing to.
He took a deep breath and she got the feeling he was trying to reign in his own temper. Don't push it, he can still change his mind about offing you. "So, you don't pass out on your feet," he said dryly, then glanced around them, eyes alert. She couldn't help look around, wondering who he was watching for. For her people? For his own? Probably both. "I will leave you here," he continued. "The sun will be up soon and then you can make the rest of the way to your people."
"You're leaving?" she blurted out, suddenly not liking the idea of being left out here by herself. What if his people found her?
"Yes," he said. He pointed up the hill from them. "Once it is light, go up the hill and you will be close to your camp. It'll be easy to find them from up there."
She bit her lip as she stared at him, feeling gratitude but not knowing how to express it. Their situation was complicated, too complicated, but ultimately, he had saved her life, even when the rest of his people had been keen to end it. She had already thanked him once, back in the hut, but she couldn't stop the urge from doing so again.
"Thank you," she told him sincerely. "You've done a lot for me, even though you didn't have to."
"It wasn't me; it was my grandmother's decision to save your life," he tried to deflect.
"It wasn't your grandmother that found me at the river bank," she pointed out softly.
Devan looked away momentarily, before turning to meet her gaze steadily. "Just make it worth it. Help my grandmother bring peace to my people. We don't need more war," he ended softly.
Alex nodded even though she didn't know how she was going to even begin to help do anything. What could she do? She was one person. She wasn't a leader, no one would follow her. Hell, most of the people on the Ark thought she was a crazed murderer. Those at the dropship didn't listen to her at all.
Even so. "I'll do what I can," she promised.
He studied her for a moment, his dark eyes roaming her face, before nodding and turning to leave,
"Will I see you again?" she blurted out, before he disappeared out of sight.
His gaze was amused as he glanced back at her. "I sure hope not."
They shared an amused look, before he gave her a final nod and ducked into the foliage, immediately blending into the darkness around him. Even though he couldn't be that far from her, she couldn't tell he was there at all. Creepy…
Alex leaned against the tree, her side throbbing with a dull pain that pulsed throughout her body. Everything hurt, the little cramps and pulls of exhaustion mingling with her parched throat and empty stomach. Her eyelids drooped, but she fought it off. The dropship was so close, if she could only rest for a few moments, then she'd have more light and...
She must have passed out at some point because when she opened her eyes again, the sun was high above her, bathing her in warmth. Resting her head back against the bark, she considered going back to sleep, but knew that she wouldn't be able to while being so close to the drop ship.
I need to know if the others made it back okay, if Bellamy...
The thought was enough motivation to slowly push herself to her feet. She winced as her sore muscles stretched, twisting her neck one way then the other to try to release some tension. Ouch. That's what you get for tromping through the forest in the middle of the night, she told herself.
Turning in the direction Devan had pointed her, she stared at the hill she somehow had to make her way up, mentally cursing. Why couldn't he have at least left her at the top of the hill? It had seemed a lot less steep in the dark. Still, the dropship was on the other side, her people were on the other side.
With a big groan, she set off at what she would have liked to call a march, but in reality, was more like a slow shuffle. It didn't take long before she was panting and bracing herself against each tree she encountered along the way.
It took longer than she would have liked for the ground to start leveling out beneath her feet. Relief flooded through her when she realized she was nearly there. After days of suffering, of wondering if she would make it out alive. She smiled, ignoring the throbbing in her side. She was nearly there.
"Alex?"
Even through her exhaustion, her head snapped up at the sound. Standing atop a small crest just ahead of her stood Nate, handmade spear in hand. He looked dirty and tired, like he hadn't had much sleep in several nights, reminding her of the times they had gotten drunk with Liam, hidden away in some derelict corner of the Ark. His face was pale as he stared down at her with wide eyes. He looked like he had seen a ghost.
She gave a half-laugh, half sigh at the sight of him, allowing her eyes to slide closed in relief.
She had made it back! She had found them!
Looking back at him, she hesitated, unsure what to say. He still thought that she had been the one to hurt Liam. The last time they had talked he had been less than friendly and had made it clear that he didn't trust her, didn't even want to talk to her. And even though he had stepped between her and Murphy, she didn't quite know where they stood. "Hey Nate," she said tentatively, her voice raspier than she would have liked.
"You're alive," he said in disbelief, an unfamiliar softness in his voice. His expression didn't quite look happy, but his relief was obvious.
"Surprise?" she said with a tentative smile.
"Hey Miller, you see something?" A bigger blonde boy stepped up beside Nate. His eyes went wide as he saw her. "Holy shit, it's Evans!" he said.
Nate seemed to snap out of whatever disbelief he'd fallen into when he saw her and his eyes quickly scanned the area around them, making her wonder if they'd been having more issues with Grounders. He glanced at the other boy, "Dax, keep an eye out," he ordered. "I'm going to help Alex up, then we can head back to camp."
Dax didn't question the order at all and nodded before beginning to scan the area around them, spear held tightly in hand.
Ever the leader.
Nate made his way down the embankment towards her, his eyes scanning her as he approached. He frowned as they landed on her side where she had her hand pressed. The material of her tank top was still torn from where the sword had sliced through it like butter, showing some of the wound beneath. "You hurt?" he asked her.
"Just a scratch," she replied lightly, slowly pushing herself off of the tree and trying to stand straight, but the motion only pulled at her wound, causing her to wince and hiss through her teeth.
"Right," he snorted, rolling his eyes. "A scratch." Setting his spear against the tree, he reached out and gently gripped her other wrist and tugged it up towards him.
She couldn't help the way she tensed up at the touch. She met his gaze and for a moment they just studied each other. He looked tired, dark circles prominent under his eyes. Were you worried when I disappeared? She wanted to ask him. There were so many things that were left unsaid between them. But looking into the eyes of the person who used to be one of her best friends, she couldn't bring herself to say anything at all. He hadn't been interested in hearing her last time. He would only look at her words as excuses.
A deep sorrow filled her at what they had lost, constricting her chest. How did we end up here?
He sighed, seeming to feel the hesitancy in her arm. "C'mon. Let's get you back," he said gently. "We aren't far. I know there are a few people that will be happy to see you alive."
Are you happy to see me alive?
She allowed him to pull her arm over his shoulders, his other arm coming around to grip the shirt at her waist, being mindful of her wound. She gingerly shifted her weight until she was leaning against him.
Together, they slowly hobbled their way back up the hill he had come from, mounting the crest and heading down the other side. Dax glanced between them but didn't say anything, taking off ahead of them. As soon as they crested the hill, she could hear the distinct sounds of voices in the distance. The sounds of teenagers laughing and shouting brought her a feeling of relief she hadn't expected.
Well, I wasn't too far off.
Neither she nor Nate said anything as they walked, the air between them growing uncomfortable. But there was one thing that she needed to know. "Did anyone else make it back?" she asked quietly.
He didn't need to ask to know what she was talking about. He took a deep breath before answering. "Mbege, Rome and Diggs didn't make it," he informed her quietly. "Although it sounds like you already know that."
She nodded, trying to force away the sudden constriction of her throat. "Yeah, we saw it…" But his answer didn't tell her what she wanted to know most. "What about Bellamy? Did he make it back?" She hated the desperate tone her voice took.
He glanced at her, giving her a look that he used to give her when he knew exactly what she was thinking. "He made it back with Finn and the others. Sounds like the yellow fog chased off the Grounders that were chasing them."
She couldn't help the shaky sigh of relief that escaped her. Bellamy had made it back! Then the comment the Grounders had made about capturing one of them struck her. Who the hell had they been talking about? "Is anyone else missing?" she asked, perplexed.
"No," Nate shook his head. "Just you… we all thought the Grounders had got you. Bellamy seemed to think you were dead. How did you manage to get out?"
"Long story," she dodged. She couldn't bring herself to explain everything that had happened. Not yet. "I'm glad the others made it back." Then she remembered that their whole reason for being out there was to find Octavia. Her gaze darted over to Nate questioningly. "Did they find her? Did Bellamy manage to get Octavia?"
A small smile settled on his face. It didn't reach his eyes. It was a smile she recognized, when Nate got away with something he shouldn't have. "We found her and much more."
She frowned at him. "What does that mean?"
"We caught a Grounder."
Alex was impressed by how much the delinquents had managed to build in the few days that she had been gone. A new fence surrounded the entire camp, made up entirely of logs, and the damage that must have been done by the storm was nowhere to be seen. All that remained was the mud.
As they approached the new gate, she was surprised at how happy some of the delinquents seemed to be at the sight of her. She had never really been popular with most of the group, so the smiles and shouts of "Evans' is back!" really caught her off guard.
Nate seemed to sense her confusion. "The last week has been rough. We haven't had much good news in awhile. They're happy to see you."
"Oh," she said, unable to keep the smile off of her face.
Making their way through the camp, she kept an eye out for Bellamy or Clarke but didn't see either of them. When she asked about it, Nate told her they were likely in the dropship since they had finally managed to establish a secure connection with the Ark.
She was surprised at the information. She knew Raven had been working on re-establishing the connection before she had left, but thought that Bellamy had ruined their chances when he threw the needed pieces into the river.
"Oh," she said, not sure what she felt about it. "That's good? Have you had a chance to talk to your dad?" At Nate's surprised look she scoffed. "What? I like your dad."
Nate's expression changed to something that looked like her old friend, his eyes softening as he met hers. "I only had a brief second to talk to him, yeah. But he's okay."
She shot him a tentative smile. "I'm glad."
There was only a moment of hesitation before he returned the smile. "Me too."
It warmed her. Better than nothing.
Nate left her in one of the bigger tents that they had apparently been used for meetings. There was a table in the middle and some benches along the outside. "I'll be back. I'm going to go find Bellamy and Clarke and let them know your back." He eyed her. "Don't… just don't go anywhere."
She gave him an innocent look in return, to which he shook his head at and ducked out the tent.
Leaning back against the table, Alex let her eyes close, trying to process everything Nate had told her. Two things kept bothering her. If everyone had made it back, who had the Grounder woman been talking about? Had she been lying, trying to get a reaction out of her? There was no way to know, not unless someone else was missing.
The other issue was the Grounder Nate had said they had caught. How the hell had they managed that, she didn't know. All she knew was that they were probably keeping them in the dropship. She didn't know what to think of it. Was this one of the Grounders that had been intent on killing them all? Or was this Grounder like the one's from Freya's group? Chewing on her lip, she contemplated her options - she would have to go find out at some point.
Her thoughts on the Grounder were interrupted as the tent flap opened and Bellamy stepped inside.
Relief flooded her at the sight of him. Even though Nate had told her Bellamy had made it back safely, it wasn't until she saw him in person that the ball of tension in her chest, the one that she didn't even know she had, eased away.
A shaky breath left her. "You're okay," she said softly. He looked unharmed except for some minor bruising on one cheekbone. He stepped towards her and she looked up at him and the indecipherable look on his face. "I'm glad. I wasn't sure you -"
His mouth descended on hers, lips capturing hers in a hard kiss, and the space between them suddenly closed to nothing.
She inhaled sharply as every thought in her head came to a halt. Her surprise quickly gave way to the warmth that surged through her and she returned the kiss with equal vigor, her lips dancing against his.
Bellamy's fingertips were cool against her skin as they grazed past her cheeks and into her hair, gripping the strands with a desperation that sent shivers down her spine. One of her own hands trailed up his chest and around the back of his neck, pulling him closer. She needed to feel him, had to confirm that he was there, living, free and unharmed. All the pent-up desire, every blush and stray look was coalescing into this one moment, focusing on the feel of his lips.
Bellamy's other hand trailed down around her waist, resting low on her back and nudged her against him. There was an intensity and desperation in their motions, their movements conveying something that neither of them had the words to express. Somewhere amongst the whirlwind of her emotions was a deep sense of relief.
You're alive.
She inhaled sharply as his tongue traced her lower lip, mouth opening readily as her own tongue glided against his. Her fingers ran down his shirt and slipped under the hem to press into the warm, hard skin of his belly, her pride sated as his muscles rippled in return. A deliciously primal groan reverberated in his chest before Bellamy's hips pressed hard against her own, pulling a strangled moan from her lips. She was burning, her breath coming out in pants, her treacherous body arching toward him, pulling him in even as a dark corner of her mind screamed that this was dangerous.
This was Bellamy Blake, the guy she had been butting heads with since the moment they'd met. Kissing him created a whole set of complications that she wasn't sure she could handle on top of everything else. This was a line that she wasn't sure she wanted to cross. The thoughts melted away as Bellamy's mouth descended toward her neck, his hands trailing down her sides, grazing the outline of her breasts and going lower… only to press directly over the wound on her hip.
Pain exploded behind her eyelids as she flinched back with a pained gasp, hunching over to clutch at her side, her other hand braced against his chest. Eyes squeezed shut, she waited for the pain to abate. "Fuuuck," she hissed out between her teeth.
Bellamy froze, his hands hovering over her like he didn't know where to put them. "What's wrong?" he asked, his voice husky as he stared down at her in concern.
Taking a shaky breath, she straightened slightly, thankful when the wound didn't tug. She gently prodded at her side. It didn't feel wet.
"Oh, it's nothing," she shrugged, trying to play it off.
He gave her an unimpressed look before leaning to the side, swatting her hand away and tugging the hem of her shirt up over her hip exposing the skin underneath.
She heard him inhale sharply as he examined the wound at her side, before he stepped back and ran a hand through his hair, staring at her.
"What were you thinking?"
She blinked at him, the anger in his voice catching her off guard. Hadn't they just been kissing? Taking a moment to study him, it was only then that she noticed how tense he was. His brow was set into a dark frown, glaring at her from where he stood. "I - What? What the hell was I thinking?"
He marched towards her until his chest was nearly touching hers, forcing her to lean back to look up at him. "Going after the Grounders on your own was a stupid decision."
Her hackles were instantly up at the accusation, her eyes narrowing into a glare. She felt caught off guard by the change in topic. She shrugged, feeling cagey. "You told me to leave you, and I did."
"I meant for you to get back to the others, not lure the Grounders away!" he shot back.
"I did it to save your life! I did what I had to. What - did you expect me to just leave you to die?" she demanded.
"I didn't ask you to do that," he snapped back.
"You didn't have to," she said. "I wasn't going to let you die! I'm not going to apologize or feel bad about doing the right thing. Besides, I got out fine on my own."
He stared at her incredulously, motioning to her wound. "Fine? You call this fine?" He shook his head. "You have a gash on your side that looks like someone tried to gut you and you look like someone had beat you within an inch of your life. Please, Evans, tell me how this is fine?"
She gritted her teeth, glaring back at him, but couldn't find the words to form a reply.
Bellamy wasn't finished yet. "That's so you, Evans, always throwing yourself head first into danger at someone else's expense." He took a deep breath. "Do you honestly believe that no one would care if you died?" His voice softened. "What about Miller? What about Liam? Do you think he wouldn't care if you died?"
She looked away. Low blow. "That's not fair," she bit out. "It doesn't matter what he would think. He's not awake to have an opinion."
"Maybe not, but I'm sure as hell he would side with me on this," Bellamy said.
She knew he was right. She knew it and she hated it.
She lifted her head to meet his gaze, lifting her chin challengingly. "I'm not going to feel bad about saving your life Bellamy," she told him softly.
Although he looked just as angry and frustrated as before, something in him softened and he stepped towards her once more, until their noses were almost touching. He reached up and brushed a strand of hair out of her face, his fingers lightly brushing the skin of her cheek. His thumb trailed underneath the edge of her lower lip. His eyes studied her own and she wondered what he was looking for. He huffed, his frustration clean, then leaned down to brush his lips against hers once more. "This is going to be a thing with you, isn't it?" he mumbled against her lips.
She allowed some of the tension that had risen within her during their argument to seep away with the kiss. She shrugged, meeting his gaze unapologetically. "Probably, yeah."
He gave a dry laugh as he pulled away and shook his head. "Has anyone told you how troublesome you are, Alex?"
She couldn't help the snort of amusement that escaped her. "One or two times, maybe."
"Um, are we interrupting something?" Clarke's voice came from the entrance to the tent.
Alex pulled away from Bellamy with a jolt, feeling her cheeks redden uncontrollably at the sight of Clarke and Octavia standing at the door watching them. Heart pounding in her chest, she wondered how much they had heard, how much they had seen.
Clarke was staring at them in surprise, clearly taken aback by what she had seen. Octavia, on the other hand, stared at them with a small grin on her face, making Alex want to duck her head and hide.
Bellamy hadn't moved from where he stood before her, but glanced at the two before returning his gaze to her. For a moment, neither she nor Bellamy said anything, simply staring at each other. He was the first to move, turning away from her and heading towards Clarke. As he approached her, he said, "No, nothing important."
Ouch. She flinched at the comment, feeling hurt and confused about the fact that everything that had happened wasn't important. What the hell had just happened? How had they gone from making out, his hips pressed against her, to him saying it was nothing. Why did she pull away from him? Why did she feel like she had been caught doing something she shouldn't?
"I see," Clarke said, glancing between the two of them. The smirk that Octavia had been wearing had faded as she stared at her brother, looking concerned.
"I was just checking on Evans' wound. She has a pretty nasty gash on her side that you should probably look at," he continued directing the comment towards Clarke. Then with one last glance back at her with a look she couldn't decipher, he ducked out of the tent and into the daylight beyond, his footsteps quickly receding towards the dropship.
The two girls exchanged a glance before making their way over to her. A smile grew on Octavia's face and when she was close enough, she caught Alex off guard by throwing her arms around her. Alex winced as the motion tugged at her wounds, but couldn't help bring her own arm up to hug her back, feeling surprisingly relieved to see the other girl.
"I'm glad you're back," Octavia said into her shoulder, then pulled away slightly to look at her. "When I got back and found out you were gone…Well, I missed you more than I thought, Evans."
She took a moment to study the dark-haired girl. Despite her capture by the Grounders, she wasn't in too bad a shape, except for a gash on her forehead.
"Sounds like everyone missed me," she replied with a grin. "I'm glad you made it back in one piece. I wasn't sure they others would be able to find you after you were taken. How did you escape?"
"Oh, yeah. Well it's an interesting story…I'll have to tell you another time," Octavia said, completely dodging the question.
"You okay?" Clarke asked her, eyes taking in her rough appearance. "You've looked better."
Turning towards her, she met the other girl's concerned gaze. Shaking off her interaction with Bellamy and Octavia's weird answer, she gave Clarke a small smile. "Honestly, I've felt better."
Clarke smiled back, shaking her head. Reaching out, she gently rested a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "I'm glad you're okay, Alex. Sorely missed having another level head around here."
"Level heads seem to be getting depressingly low around here, so I thought I would come back."
"Hey! What about me?" Octavia asked jokingly.
Clarke shot her a look that said that she was in fact not one of the levelheaded ones, before nodding towards Alex's shirt. "Things have been crazy since you left…" Her words faded as Alex tugged her shirt up and over her head, leaving her in just her bra.
The tent was suddenly too quiet.
Glancing up to see what was going on, she found both Clarke and Octavia staring at her in shock. Seeing where their gazes were, she glanced down at herself.
Ah, yeah, a bit worse than I thought…Her chest and abdomen were covered in an array of scratches and bruises, not to mention her side, where the large gash just above her hip was barely covered by the poultice the old woman had put on it.
"What the hell happened to you?" Clarke demanded, meeting her gaze, looking furious.
She ducked her head a bit, feeling like she had been caught doing something she shouldn't have been doing. "You know…fought some Grounders, ran from some Grounders, took a tumble down a river." She shrugged. "Everyday things."
"Alex…" Clarke shot her an unimpressed look.
"What?" she replied defensively. "Everyone keeps looking at me like I did this to myself. Believe me, if I could have remained uninjured, then I would have."
Clarke huffed, but didn't reply, instead crouching down at her side to gently poke and prod at the wound above her hip.
Octavia stood in front of her, arms crossed. When she met her gaze, she lifted an eyebrow giving her a smirk. "Sooo, things seemed pretty heated between you and my brother when we arrived," she commented.
She couldn't help but clam up. "Like he said…it was nothing," she replied shortly.
"Uh-huh. Didn't look like nothing," Octavia replied and gave her a sly grin. "I never would have guessed you and him-"
"There's nothing going on between us!" Alex snapped, the words coming out more forcefully than she had intended.
Clarke frowned at her side, touching the poultice Freya had put on her wound. "This looks cauterized," she interjected, glancing up at Alex questioningly. "And the poultice looks like the same stuff the Grounders put on Jasper's wound." She sat back on her heels. "How'd you make this? There's no way you could have done this yourself…"
Alex hesitated, chewing on the inside of her cheek. Should she tell them about the Grounders that had saved her? Nate had mentioned that they had caught the one that had captured Octavia, so maybe she could use this as a way to find one more about what was going on.
"That's because I didn't…" she began slowly. Both Clarke and Octavia's gazes snapped up to meet her own.
"What do you mean?" Clarke frowned.
She took a deep breath before she began. "You know how the Grounders who attacked Jasper saved his life?"
"Yeah…"
"Well, I ended up running into some Grounders who helped me. They…well, they were the one that did this." She motioned to the cauterized wound on her side.
For a long moment, Clarke stared at her. "That's crazy," she finally replied. "They speared Jasper to a tree. They captured Octavia for who knows what reason. They killed Roma, Mbege and Diggs!"
Octavia made a sound of annoyance. "I already told you and my brother…that Grounder saved their lives."
Clarke shook her head in disbelief. "Octavia, he captured you, locked you in a cave and stabbed Finn. I don't think he's one of the good guys."
"My brother and the others would have been dead without him!" Octavia snapped back.
"Look, I know how crazy it sounds Clarke," Alex interrupted. "But I honestly don't think I would be alive if they hadn't saved me. They could have left me to die - hell - they could have just killed me or handed me over to the Grounders that were hunting us, but they didn't."
"I think the two of you are trying to see good guys when there aren't any," Clarke said. "Maybe they saved you and the others, but they also killed and injured a bunch of our people. They aren't good people."
"I think they have a right to be scared of us, Clarke," Alex shot back. "We landed in their territory uninvited, we shot the flares that killed their people."
Clarke paused. "Maybe so, but that doesn't give them a right to hurt us. We did want to hurt them."
"Maybe not, but it sure explains a hell of a lot of their actions since we've arrived." When Clarke opened her mouth to argue, Alex hurried on. "Look, all I'm saying is that maybe we should try to do things differently. If we find a way to talk to them, we might be able to find a way to live together. Without violence, without killings. Don't you think we should at least try?"
Clarke's expression was closed off. Alex could see that there was no way she was going to convince Clarke about the issue right now. But when she shared a look with Octavia, some sort of understanding passed between them.
Nothing more was said about the Grounders while Clarke and Octavia were with her. Once Clarke had finished examining her injuries, the two of them guided her to her tent, which was surprisingly still standing, and even more surprisingly no one had claimed her stuff.
"Miller wouldn't let anyone touch your things," Octavia explained as they departed, leaving her to rest.
Sinking down onto the relatively soft mound that counted as her bed, Alex allowed herself to melt into her exhaustion. Even though she wanted to rest, her mind kept jumping around from one insomnia-inducing topic to another.
She didn't know what to do about the Grounders. She didn't know what to do about communication with the Ark being restored. And most of all, she didn't know what to do about Bellamy.
Bringing up her fingers, she touched her lips remembering the searing feeling of his lips on hers.
The only thing she knew for sure was that she was falling for Bellamy Blake.
AN: I'm on a writing spree so I thought I would get this one out to you guys quickly. I have another couple of chapters nearly done, so there might be more chapters in the next month or so.
What did you guys think? Bellamy and Alex kissed! Finally! I've been dying for this to happen for a long time. And now, even though they have kissed, things are still a bit rocky between them, but we're at the point where they have some sort of understanding about each other.
Thanks for reading! And thank you to everyone who reviews, favourited and followed the story. xoxo