Placing the monitor on its charging station, Nora followed through on a normal pre-dinner routine of busying herself in the kitchen before the kids arrived back from their classes. Gwen had gone to usher them back to the centre, as some of them were prone to being distracted and wandering off.

The plates were ready, the meals warmed and the cups on the table. Just in time, she thought as the door opened and the swarm of kids entered; hungry but hyped up.

"Nora!" she heard Kyra's sweet voice come through the kitchen door, the 6 year old ran at her. She bent over to sweep her up in her arms, the little girl was never too old for a hug.

"How was class?"

"Really cool. Jimmy nearly set something on fire!"

"What?" She said, an unimpressed look on her face as her eyes went to hunt for the boy.

"It was so funny!"

"Mmmhmm, I'll bet it was. What happened to your hair?" The redhead said, her voice softening as she reach out to smooth out the messy dark locks of Kyra.

"We had physical education today! We did an obstacle course!" As she nattered on about the class and all the different obstacles they had, Nora smiled and dropped her back down to the floor and took their meals out the oven. Together, they took the meals out and called for everyone to gather for dinner. Kyra took great glee out of the last part, using her surprisingly loud voice for good.

Returning to the kitchen, she prepped hers and Gwen's meals. Nora always gave more to the older woman; she had done so much for her over the years, she had to look after her too. She turned around, with both plates in hand to find the woman in question. "Can you grab the drinks please?" She smiled.

After the ruckus of dinner and eventually when quiet time had kicked in, the kids got ready for bed and that's when Gwen cornered Nora. "So how did recon go on Go-Sci?"

Nora narrowed her eyes, she had never told the woman that's where she was today. "How did you know I was doing recon on Go-Sci?"

Gwen crossed her arms over her chest. "Bellamy told me."

The redhead simply raised one eyebrow. "Did he now?" He wasn't here tonight, but knew she'd see him tomorrow at some point. Then it would be her turn to question him.

"I thought we agreed you'd tell me?"

"Yeah, if I actually do the run... this is just research and why is Bellamy tattling on me like that?"

Gwen's face softened, "because he worries about you too. He said he persuaded you to let him help?"

"Yeah—wait, when did he tell you this?"

"We bumped into him on our way back. Don't be mad at him for telling me; he cares about you."

Nora rolled her eyes, "not this again."

"What?"

"He hasn't kissed me again, he doesn't care about me like that. I'm sure."

It was Gwen's turn to raise her eyebrow at the younger woman. "I wouldn't be so sure of that. There is something there between you two. I know it, you know it... I'm sure you can feel it too."

"But he doesn't." Her voice dropped down to such a childlike mumble.

"Honey, I see the way he looks at you, I saw the way he held you in that den when you came back from lock up, the way you two always fall asleep together like that, arms around each other, your head on his chest..." Reaching out, Gwen pulled her into her arms and squeezed her in a hug.

"I thought for sure he was going to kiss me on my birthday but ever since that night, he's given no idea he wanted to try again or if that was even what he was going for! I could have been imagining it all!"

"I doubt it, sweetie. He likes you, I can see it, Rose can see it and even the kids are starting to notice it."

She groans, "well maybe they can start dropping some hints with him, because I've got nothin'."

"Maybe you don't need hints."

Nora pulled back and looked over at her. "What do you mean?"

"Take a chance on love, sweetie. I did once upon a time and it paid off." Nora's heart sunk when she remembered Gwen's story of her only love on the Ark, David. But unfortunately he had died a few years ago from an illness. "Take a chance and kiss him... if the moment feels right. Then you'll see how he feels."

Her stomach twisted into knots at the thought of being the first one to make a move. She never had before with a guy, they've always come to her. "What if it all goes wrong? What if he doesn't like me like that and I just make a fool out of myself?"

Gwen paused, before smiling, "then laugh it off, sweetie, you're friends at the heart of it."


"Nora? You ready?" Bellamy called out from his spot by the doors of the centre.

Her head shot up, taking in the sight of him for a brief moment, his hair not swept back, but instead it was looking soft and fluffy, some bits falling in his eyes. He wore a red long sleeve t-shirt, with the sleeves pushed up and black cargo pants. The buttons on the front of his t-shirt caught her eyes, the top few undone and showing a hint of his chest.

God, his arms look good.

Shaking the thoughts from her head, she called out, "yeah, one sec!"

Bellamy just smiled and leant back against the doors.

"We won't be long, it's just a quick walk through for the run." She told Gwen, making sure the kids were all in their PJs for bedtime.

"No problem, take your time together honey." Gwen winked and ushered the younger kids into bed, lifting a younger boy into her arms. Rolling her eyes, Nora popped her head into her side of the room, making sure the older kids were all tucked in, before finding Jimmy and Kyra still chatting away.

"Bedtime, kiddos." They gave a feeble groan together before laying back on the bed, each on their respective sides. "I'm just popping out with Bellamy quickly and then I'll be back."

"Where are you going?"

Kyra's question was so simple but it made her panic inside, she could never tell them what they were planning for them, never tell them all the things they had sacrificed for them, and all the things they would continue to do just to make sure they got the best life...

"We're just going for a walk."

"Is Bellamy your boyfriend?"

Jimmy's question was less innocent, but still endearing nonetheless. She reached over and ruffled his hair, "no silly. He's just my friend."

He laughed and then spoke up again, "I asked him before and I told him that he made you very happy." She wanted to stay with all her might and question the 9 year old more about what Bellamy had said after that, but she knew she couldn't. When had he asked him this? Before or after my birthday? Did Bellamy know he made me happy? What did he tell Jimmy about us being together? All the questions ran through her mind and she knew she'd never have the answers.

"Don't worry your head about it, Jim-bob. Get some sleep and I'll see you in the morning." She kissed them both on their heads before slipping out the room, suppressing all of the nerves in the world that chose now to invade her body.

"Ready?" Bellamy asked, making her head shoot up to find him, hands shoved in his pockets, making his arms appear impossibly bigger.

"Uh huh." Was all she made out before they slipped out and locked the door behind them. It had been a few days since Gwen had planted the idea in her head of taking a chance with Bellamy and it had also taken them a few days to finalise their plan for the ration run; tonight was the walk through. Bellamy would be on shift in Go-Sci tomorrow, so it would work perfectly. They had a time and place to meet, it just had to happen now.

They made their way through the halls and neighbouring stations, making small talk about the kids along the way. "I need some new stories for them."

"Yes, you definitely do." Nora replied, deadpan. "Because they are constantly repeating the same ones to me over and over again."

He gave a small chuckle, but one big enough to still make his eyes crease. "Okay, okay, I'll get to thinking of more stories."

"Right," Nora pulled to a stop near a window, putting her business face on for a moment.

"Yes, boss." Bellamy tried to say to her seriously, but the smirk gave him away.

"Ass." She sucker punched him on the arm.

"You've gotten better at that right hook." He rubbed the spot.

"Thanks. Anyway – so between 10.35 and 10.45, there's no guards in this area."

They took a step round the corner, ration supply room in sight, "I'll be on shift, positioned here." Bellamy said as he flicked his eyes to the various control rooms on the hallway. Nora just nodded, "the kids will all be in class by this point, there aren't usually many wanderers at that time in the morning, but if I see anything, I'll give you a nudge on the display."

"It'll be in my bag, so I'll hear the ding."

"No ding, means no one is coming and all is clear."

Continuing the walk, they passed the supply room. "When no one is looking or in the area, I'll make my move. Once I'm in, I'll wait for your signal to come out."

"Two dings."

"I'll listen out for them."

"Then we'll meet back at the janitor supply room on Factory for a break." They began the walk back in that direction to the neighbouring station. It didn't take too long until they were there, walking past the janitors closet. "I'll leave it open, just get in and lock. I'll have the code to unlock it myself."

"And if someone else tries to come in?"

"Hide." His eyes turned serious. "Don't trust anyone else. There should be extra trolleys, you're small enough to fit in one."

"Should I jump in one just in case?"

He considered it, "yeah, just in case."

"What if I get wheeled away?" She joked.

"I'll find you, Nor." He said with a smile, looking down at her. She felt her cheeks burn just as red as her hair, before pushing her hair back behind her ear, nodding.

"Nora!" Without realising it, they had walked around to goodwill. Rose's bright face had greeted them, just as she was clearing the counter to close up the window. "Bellamy! What a lovely surprise to see you two together."

"Hi Rose." Nora and Bellamy said in unison, both giving the older woman a smile.

Her eyes twinkled with mischief as always, her eyes briefly scanning the younger woman quickly before looking over to Bellamy. She didn't say anything yet, but Nora looked up to the man to see his eyes widen and then shake his head at Rose.

Nora frowned, before Rose spoke up, distracting her from her thoughts. "I'm just closing up, would you two like to join me and Fredrick for a pot of tea?"

The pair shared a brief look before Bellamy shrugged and smiled, "sure."

"I hope I wasn't interrupting anything between you two kids?" Again, there were those twinkling, suggestive eyes. Rose opened up the door beside goodwill to welcome them into her home.

"No." Nora answered quickly, waving her off. "We're just on a walk."

"How delightful. Fredrick and I used to take walks around the stations all the time when we were younger," at the mention of his name, the older man stepped out of the bedroom and into the kitchen to greet the guests. But he met his wife in a kiss first and Nora couldn't help but smile at them, still in love all these years later.

"We'd go and watch the moon rises, look for planets and gaze at the stars." Fredrick continued, already boiling some water for them all.

She felt a hand on her back, looking up, she saw Bellamy nodding her forward with a smile. She took a seat at the metal table. Each seat had soft covers on them, probably hand stitched by Rose and the table had a equally soft runner down the middle. Bellamy took a seat beside her and listened intently to Fredrick's story he had begun of them meeting.

"I stole her from another fella." He quipped, making Nora's eyes widen. "Knew I was the better man for her." He winked, getting a nudge from Rose.

"Really?" Nora asked.

"He was, to be fair to him. No man could top him."

Rose poured them the tea, the older pair taking a seat opposite them. It had been a while since Nora had been in Rose's home and it had always felt so cosy, warm and inviting. For those minutes spent in their home, she forgot all about the ration run that was occurring tomorrow. She let the plans melt away and the smile take over her face as they heard all about their love story. They'd married, but never had children. They'd both had long careers, Fredrick as a mechanic and Rose as a teacher, before both stopping work because of age and health concerns for Fredrick.

Rose had asked after the children in the centre, naming a few of them; she had always helped them in every single way she possibly could. Fredrick has asked Bellamy about his sister and it was the first time in a while that Nora had heard him talk about Octavia, like really talk about her. Fredrick held no judgement, only amazement that he had raised his sister and looked after her for so long.

"I hope one day she gets released." He nodded, Bellamy reciprocating it with a nod of his own. "She deserves a full life."

"Thank you, sir."

"We'll let you two kids off; it's getting late for us."

"Thank you for having us." Nora said, as Bellamy shared a firm handshake with Fredrick. The redhead helped Rose gather the cups from the table to take them to the small kitchen.

When the older woman pulled her in for a hug, Nora was surprised but it soon faded to a warm comfort. "Hang on to that one." Rose said in her ear.

All Nora could do was laugh it off and give Fredrick a brief hug goodbye. When she turned, she found Rose winking at Bellamy. "Well that was unexpected." She said, leaving their home.

"They're good people."

"Yeah, they are." Nora agreed, smiling to herself. Rose and Fredrick had been nothing but kind to her over the years of knowing them. She had dropped extra rations into them when they were low, Rose had offered any blankets and warm layers to them when they needed them most.

It seemed she was now the latest cheerleader with her and Bellamy. Nora had to roll her eyes, she had no sign whatsoever that he was interested in her since her birthday.

"Uh, can we swing by mine quick?" Bellamy asked, causing her to look up at him and frown.

"Y-yeah, sure." Nora just nodded, following beside him. It wasn't that long of a walk to his home, she wouldn't mind the detour. "Our plan is pretty much done anyway."

"Come in." Bellamy nodded her into his home; not much had changed since she had been in here last. Her eyes wandered to his bed, remembering the time after Octavia had been taken that she'd fallen asleep beside him. She remembered waking up next to him, his warm body against hers, but she remembered how quickly it was gone when he woke.

Shaking her head, she watched as he stepped into the bedroom. "Take a seat." He gestured to the bed and she felt her cheeks flush. What was he getting? She watched as he reached into a drawer and pulled out something. "I uh, I got you something a while back but forgot to give it to you." He said, turning back to her on the bed. He sat beside her, his body fidgeting and not keeping still.

"What is it?"

She noticed how awkward he looked, or maybe it was nerves? He scratched the back of his head, holding up a folded dark green item."I've had it since the lock down thing." She took it from him, her hazel eyes looking up at him again. "It's not much, but I just thought you needed a new one." Gently, she unfolded the item and her mouth dropped open.

He had got her a new jacket. Her hands glided over the smooth green fabric, before finding the warm cream fleece lining. The colour reminded her what forests and trees were meant to be like, a deep and rich green. She couldn't remember the last time someone had got her something like this. It had been a while. Presents were a luxury on the Ark, you only really saved for yourself or your family... It must've cost him a fair amount of credits. "You can't afford this. You should've spent—"

"I got a good deal." He gave her a small smirk and a wink. She wondered what that meant and she half wondered if Rose was involved...

A smile took over her face and she looked over to him, "thank you."

"Go on, put it on, let's see if it fits." He nodded her on and she quickly flipped the jacket around and put her arms into the holes, pulling it up and across her body. It was perfect, albeit a little bigger, but she always preferred clothes a bit looser; allowed for more layers underneath. Her fleece fit perfectly underneath it right now and she was sure it would keep her warmer than she had been recently.

"It's perfect." She said, smiling at him, her body warming up already. "I won't ever want to take it off." She laughed, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Good." Bellamy just smiled, his whole body visibly relaxing.

Leaning over, she wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed him in a tight hug. "Thank you Bell, seriously." She said to him in a half-mumble, but she knew he had heard her. Nora felt his arms wrap around her too, his hands spreading out across her back. That familiar warmth grow tenfold and a fluttery feeling in her stomach began just as Bellamy pressed his face in her neck. His musky scent hit her and she closed her eyes.

Was this her sign? He had got her the most thoughtful present. His body felt some comfortable around her.

"I'm, uh, glad you like it, because honestly I was a bit nervous." He said and she pulled back from him slightly, his dark eyes meeting hers. Her hands stayed on his shoulders as she gave him a small smile.

"You had nothing to be worried about."

Take a chance.

Gwen's words were ringing out in her mind as she sat just a mere arms length away from him. "I love it. Thank you." She said, her eyes fixed on his. He just smiled back at her, his cheeks slightly pinker. Her eyes kept flitting down to his lips before going back to his eyes.

Her fingers played with the fabric of his red t-shirt, while she had a quick internal debate with herself. Then she saw Bellamy's eyes flit down to her mouth for a fraction of a second.

Take a chance.

Before she could double think it or question the idea any further, she leant forward and pressed her lips to his, her hands still resting on his shoulders.

When her lips met his, she felt him immediately tense and it sent her body and brain into panic mode. His hands dropped away from her and she pulled away instantly.

Oh my god, oh my god, he froze.

Her mouth dropped open and her eyes flew wide open. Sucking her lips into her mouth, her cheeks grew impossibly warm.

It felt like her whole body was on fire, what have I done?

"I'm sorry." She said quickly, standing up off the bed and away from him completely, moving her hand up to her mouth.

Bellamy just stared at her, with a slight frown on his face.

Oh god what have I done? He froze. What was he thinking?

"It's fine." Bellamy just waved it off, but the shock was still on his face. He couldn't hide that.

"No, I shouldn't have done that." Nora shook her head, not really listening to what he was saying. "I didn't mean it— or mean to." Her mind was replaying that moment over and over again, feeling him freeze completely and his hands move off her. It was only a second, but she felt everything change between them in an instant.

Fuck.

Bellamy just shook his head and stood up, hands up. "Don't worry about it. All, uh... forgotten." He gave her a small smile and all she could was just nod back at him, still blushing red. She wanted to disappear. She had taken a chance and he had frozen in damn fear probably at this girl who he saw like a sister suddenly kissing him and throwing herself at him.

"I should, uh, go. I'll see you tomorrow for the run."

Bellamy stumbles over his words. "Uh, yeah sure." He said, but she was already halfway out the door. She couldn't stand there any longer with him looking at her like that.

Nora half-sprinted home, cursing herself the whole way and wishing to just hide in the centre for the rest of her days. She tried not to think about just how soft his lips were in that brief moment and how she wished his arms would've stayed around her. But they didn't. He literally recoiled his entire body from her the second her lips touched his.

"Good job, Nora. Just damn brilliant." She said to herself as she pushed open the door to the centre and re-locked it behind her. Gwen met her with a beaming smile and a hot cup of tea.

"How'd it go?"

"Just float me now." She muttered to herself, walking headfirst for the cosy den. Nora just dropped her body into the cushions and pulled a face at Gwen, like a pouting teenager.

"Not good then?"

"No. I kissed him and he froze."

"Oh."

"He got me this jacket and I thanked him, then I kissed him and effectively ruined our friendship. He just froze up, arms dropped away from me and everything, he just did nothing... so I pulled away and panicked and that just means he probably sees me like a little sister. Did I read the signs all wrong? I must've! Because you'd kiss someone back if you liked them? Right?!"

Gwen just nodded, grimacing ever so slightly too. "I'm sorry honey."

"How am I gonna face him tomorrow?"

"Just have to forget it ever happened."

"I can't do that!" She stressed, "it's all I'm gonna think about now." Pouting, she huffed back further into the cushions. "I'm hungry too. Hungry, stressed, tired and now rejected..."

Gwen put her tea down, before climbing into the den and pulling Nora into her arms, holding her close as her hands trailed through her hair. "I'm sorry, honey. It was my advice." She held her closely, feeling Nora's puffs of frustration slow down. Her hands rubbed up and down her arm. "It's a very nice jacket, though. Least you're warm?"

A/N: Ta-da! It can't always be sunshine and roses, I'm afraid...