Request: Hey! So I saw you were taking in requests and I wanted send one in! Can you do a Bellamy imagine where the reader and him are up in the ark (season 1) and it's the reader's birthday and the reader doesn't usually do much but Bellamy wants to make it the best birthday and admit his feelings.

Word Count: 3019

Warnings: Swearing, intensely fluffy and romantic

A/N: This was my first ever imagine, I hope you like it! This was totally different to my usual vibe and so interesting to do something light and romantic. I actually ended up enjoying this far more than I expected. Also this GIF made me smile like a mad woman.

Requests are open! I'd love to write more of your ideas 3

My writing is entirely fuelled by coffee! If you enjoy my work, feel free to donate toward my caffeine dependency: /puddygeeks

❖ ── ✦ ──『✙』── ✦ ── ❖

"Well, that's just perfect." I grumbled as I tossed aside the calendar.

I rarely kept track of the date. There wasn't much need for event planning in space. There were no seasons, no visible difference in day or night, no cues to remind you of the time passing. As a result, I'd become so wrapped up in work and simply surviving that I'd missed the approach of my birthday. I realised now that it was a week away with an avoidant dread and stomped around my quarters stroppily as I prepared for my shift.

I dressed in my ugly overalls and tied back my hair as was required. Quickly checking my dishevelled appearance in the mirror, I sighed at my reflection. It was challenging not to look scruffy when working as a kitchen assistant, but I still battled against it in anticipation of meeting my neighbour on the way out. With a deep breath, I steeled myself and stepped excitedly into the hall.

Immediately, I was struck with disappointment as I scanned the area and realised that I was alone. I took the risk of knocking on Bellamy's door and waited with baited breath, only to be met with no response. A heavy sigh escaped my lips and felt sympathetic for his situation. I knew that he'd likely been given the shifts that no one else wanted again as an ongoing part of his punishment. Bitter annoyance for the Ark leadership was not unusual for me and as I stormed away, I felt it growing again. I would never admit it, but my hallway chats with Bellamy were always the highlight of my otherwise eventless life and each morning that I didn't see him resulted in a day that felt grey and empty.

❖ ── ✦ ──『✙』── ✦ ── ❖

Several days had passed in a mindless blur and I hadn't seen any indication of Bellamy returning to his quarters at any time. I began to worry that something may have happened to him and tried to make some enquiries about his whereabouts, but there was little concern for residents of the lowest sector of Factory station.

By the time that I finished my shift for the day, I had a pounding stress headache and shuffled home in a world of my own. I was startled by the sound of footsteps as I neared my door and rushed around the corner to clock the familiar large stature and curly black hair that made my heart leap into my throat.

Bellamy was concentrating on struggling with the door to his quarters and I allowed myself a moment to drop my shoulders in relief at the sight of him. He glanced up from his task to notice me with a dazzling smile and right on queue, butterflies began to fill my chest.

"I thought it was about time for you to clock out." He commented as he finished locking the door and I scanned his clothing with confusion. I realised that he was wearing his work uniform, despite the late hour and my stomach dropped. For a moment, I'd hoped that we might be able to hang out, as we often did on our free evenings, but it seemed that I'd caught him on his way out rather than returning home as he usually would be at this time.

"You're like clockwork." He teased with a glint of mischief in his eyes and I couldn't contain a disappointed sigh.

"It's a shame that I can't say the same for you. I was worried." I admitted, before feeling a rosy blush spreading across my cheeks at my honesty. "Have they moved your shifts again?" I enquired, hoping that he might enlighten me with better news than I expected, but he nodded solemnly to confirm my suspicions. "Ugh, those guard assholes." I growled, earning an appreciative smile from him.

"I'm sorry, I have to run. You know, I haven't had a fun fact in a few days…" He trailed off as he finished gathering his things and ran a hand through his carefully styled hair casually. He was the only person I'd ever met who could make janitor overalls look good, with his toned physique and neatly smoothed back hair. No matter what he was wearing, every time he smiled at me it caused an excited fizz in my stomach. "I've missed them. So no pressure to live up to the hype at all but…what have you got for me?" He requested with a lilt of entertainment in his voice and I hummed thoughtfully. If I was truthful, I'd been reading significantly less in the last few days, as I'd been too distracted by his absence but I had no intention of telling him that.

"Well, it's not my best, but…" I started tapping my finger on my chin in concentration, searching for some Earth fact that I hadn't shared with him yet. "Did you know that a flock of crows is called a murder?" I answered with a shrug and was surprised when he dutifully laughed in response.

"I didn't know that." He remarked, his eyes assessing me with a fond familiarity. "You're messing with me today, right?" He drawled, raising a brow at me suspiciously. I shook my head at him fervently and he shrugged in defeat. "I'll have to take your word for it. Charming as always." He expressed in a warm tone and I couldn't deny the satisfaction that it bought me to be the one to cause his perfect grin. He started to move past me and I remembered that before he had distracted me with his heart stopping smile, I was annoyed with him for causing me to worry over him. Without thinking, I reached out and jabbed him on the arm playfully, as I had so many times before.

"What was that for?" He gasped as he flinched in an obviously exaggerated manner and smirked at me confidently.

"Next time you disappear for days at a time, let me know that you're okay, you goof." I demanded and he held his hands up in surrender.

"Yes, ma'am. Sorry, ma'am." He teased and I held my first up at him, earning a snort of laughter as he hurried away.

❖ ── ✦ ──『✙』── ✦ ── ❖

Although I was glad to know that Bellamy was simply working and not in trouble, I couldn't deny that I missed his company. The rest of the week passed without any sign of him and I spent my free time absorbed in the few books that I owned but had already long finished. I found myself wishing that I didn't read so quickly, as I couldn't afford any new books for a while and I practically knew the ones that I had by heart now.

Waking to the empty space of my quarters on my birthday, I sat up to nothing other than the subtle machine hum that was always in the background. Since I lost my family, birthdays were just another day and I hadn't figured out how to celebrate them. Instead, I mostly just ignored them and knew that Bellamy did the same for his last year, the first since Octavia and his mother were taken. It took some substantial effort to drag myself from bed and I prepared for work as normal. For once, I was relieved not to bump into Bellamy and hoped that his work would keep him too distracted to even acknowledge the date.

The day drifted by slowly and I spent my time in the kitchens, daydreaming about what it would be like to see Earth. I had an almost worn out fantasy of life before the war, spending my days in a little apartment in some big city with Bellamy playing the role of my enchanting neighbour. I'd read enough love stories to have plenty of scenarios to use as a foundation. In my mind, we shared all sorts of whirlwind adventures together and it was the only thing that got me through the groundhog day of my life.

Whenever Bellamy and I had the chance to spend time together, we discussed what we thought the world was really like before the radiation, or read books side by side, or just generally found things outside of our own misery to focus on. My mother had been friends with him since we were kids and we had no idea that his family were hiding such a huge secret.

When we both ended up alone in our quarters, we leaned on each other to survive and I couldn't imagine my life without him now. I was relieved when my shift finished, as it meant that my birthday was almost over and allowed myself to become lost in my thoughts on route home. As I stepped inside, I felt something beneath my feet and bent down to discover a torn piece of paper that had been slipped under my door.

? ﾝﾑﾒ? ﾝﾑﾡ ? ﾝﾑﾒ ? ﾝﾑﾡ ?￢ﾄﾎ? ? ﾝﾑﾋ ? ﾝﾑﾜ? ﾝﾑﾟ? ﾝﾑﾑ? ﾝﾑﾟ, ?.

My stomach lurched in anticipation as I processed the words and knew that it had been wishful thinking to believe that he would simply forget. I quickly changed out of my uniform into some casual clothes and tried to spruce myself up to be as presentable as possible, which generally turned out to be futile. As I crept nearer to the meeting spot, I felt dread gathering in my chest and I turned the corner to find the Fx sign. Waiting beneath it in an anxious state, I almost screamed when a hand grabbed mine. I whipped around to find Bellamy watching me with an amused expression and a finger held to his lips. The way that I glared at him was filled with a deep suspicion and he ushered for me to follow him.

I scanned his appearance and noticed with a smile that he had taken the time to change out of his work clothes too. He wore his usual black combat trousers and a long sleeved grey top with a v neck that showed a slight hint of his toned chest. His hair had started to fall loose from his usual slick styling and the few strands that fell forward framed his face in a way that made me swoon. I decided that I preferred this look, compared to the pristine appearance that he usually displayed.

He led me through the unfamiliar halls to another station and I could tell that we were using maintenance entrances as he pulled a set of keys from his pocket with a scheming smile.

"At least one benefit to janitor work…" He uttered as he winked coyly over his shoulder at me. "Keys to the kingdom." He explained as he unlocked a door and rushed me through with a hand on my back.

"Where are we going, Bellamy?" I whispered as he took my hand to guide me, unsure if it was wise to be taking an unauthorised person through the back sectors of the Ark when he'd already been in trouble so recently.

"You'll see." He muttered cryptically and I sighed at him. I wasn't keen on surprises, especially ones that involved sneaking around and I couldn't help fretting about his safety if we were to be caught. He unlocked one final door and stood aside so that I could enter first.

I slowly stepped into the room and was taken aback by the sight that greeted me. The room was softly lit, with music quietly playing in the background and a projector that filled the far wall. Moving further inside in a daze, I was guided by an incredible smell. It led me to a table that was filled with the kinds of food that I'd only ever seen when I was assisting with a meal for the council or some other diplomat, and I could barely believe my eyes. I turned back to find Bellamy observing me closely with an adoration that I'd never seen in him before.

"Happy birthday, Princess." He breathed as his eyes glistened fondly and I could barely find any words to express my shock at this gesture. I glanced over my shoulder at the meal and stuttered in an effort to speak as a realisation hit me.

"This is why you've been working so much?" I questioned hesitantly and he nodded with a deep pride filling his expression . "Bellamy, this is insane! This must have cost you a small fortune." I gasped, as I analysed the food with guilt building in my chest. I couldn't even total how many extra hours he'd had to work to afford this and I hated the thought of him slaving away for me.

"It's worth it." He stated with certainty and I studied him with confusion. "We've said it so many times before, no one notices us Factory kids. We've got to look out for each other." He explained, his voice filled with enthusiasm and I shrugged in understanding. I felt a slight pang of disappointment at the confirmation that he simply considered all of this as another part of his usual watching out for me and stared down at the floor in an attempt to hide it. Sensing my discomfort, he cleared his throat and shuffled on the spot awkwardly. "And... I wanted you to know that… I notice you." He admitted, causing my eyes to widen in surprise as I returned my gaze to him.

He put a hand on the back of his neck and fidgeted in a nervous manner that was alien on him. A stressed sigh escaped his composure and he stepped away to cross the room. He grabbed something that has been well hidden, wrapped in brown paper and waved it at me to encourage me to follow. I wandered over to join him apprehensively and he passed the small package into my hands. Unwrapping the carefully folded paper, it revealed an almost pristine book of Romeo and Juliet. I gasped as I tore my eyes from the beautiful cover back to his charming smile.

"I know that you've been looking for it. Now you have a new adventure to enjoy." He divulged in a shocking example of his knowledge of me and I stared at him with open mouthed amazement. I had no idea that he paid this much attention and I couldn't find the words to adequately express my appreciation.

"Oh and speaking of adventures!" He blurted in an excited manner as he searched for something in his pockets, until he pulled out a small remote. I thinned my eyes at him and he pointed to a projector that I hadn't noticed before now, prompting it to begin playing a video that filled the wall. It displayed a beach that was lit in a magnitude of dreamy colours as it moved through the motions of the sunset and I covered my mouth with my hands at the overwhelming beauty of the scene. It slowly changed to a clip that gently floated over the rich green of a dense forest, then several other stunning sights that I struggled not to lose myself in. I'd never seen anything like it, even in the classrooms that Bellamy and I once shared where we relied on second hand textbooks.

"I can't take you to Earth, but I can bring Earth to you." Bellamy whispered from behind, his hot breath tickling my ear and sending shivers over my whole body.

I struggled to turn my back from the wonders of the projector to face him. The sunset from behind lit him with the illusion of natural light that I'd never seen him in before and I was floored by his splendour. His gorgeous warm skin glowed and I could count every freckle that decorated his face. I was mesmerised by the emotion in his deep, earthy brown eyes and I felt as if I'd fallen into one of my day dreams.

"Bellamy, this is incredible. I can't believe that you did this!" I declared as I appraised him in a state of wonder and he broke into a satisfied grin.

"You always see the beauty in everything. I thought it was about time that you experienced it from more than just books." He reported, showing a wisdom far beyond his years and I sighed in contentment.

"You don't have to do all of this for me, Bel. I know that you want to look out for me, but I'd have been happy to just spend time together." I remarked in a grateful tone and he scoffed at me.

"It's not about looking out for you." He groaned as he met my eyes with an intensity that I didn't expect and I gulped nervously. "You made life after my family easier. You helped me to manage the pain. You are the only thing that makes this pointless existence worth living. At first, I thought that I had nothing left, but then you stepped in and changed everything." He admitted in a low tone and I felt all of the oxygen leaving my lungs. I was tempted to pinch myself as he stepped closer into my space and cupped my face in his hand, hardly able to believe that this could actually be happening. He stared into my eyes with such amazement that it made my heart hammer in my chest.

"I'm in love with you. I always want to see the world through your eyes." He confessed in a voice so quiet that I could barely hear him, but his words burned themselves into my memory so that I would never forget them. I studied him with wide eyes and my breath hitched in my throat.

"I...I'm in love with you too." I whispered as tears filled my eyes and he broke into a relieved smile.

He leaned forward to press his lips to mine in a moment that blew everything else from my mind.

His kiss was better than anything I'd ever been able to imagine and as I felt myself becoming lost in him, I knew that I was finally home.