"I forgot Raven said you were bringing the Sprog."
Those were the first words John Murphy said to Clarke in three years.
He was sat on one side of a booth in the food court with Lula, who's red curls were tied up in two space buns. Lula smiled and raised a hand in greeting as Raven, Clarke and Madi approached.
Madi frowned, not quite understanding what the word "sprog" meant, but assuming it related to her. Then her usual room brightening grin returned and she all but ran over to the table and slid into the opposite side of the booth to Lula and Murphy.
"Hello Murphy! I'm Madi!" she said brightly and then to Lula "Ste disha your houmon?"
Murphy looked positively baffled and Clarke had to stifle a chuckle.
"Madi, Lula is Murphy's girlfriend. Not his wife."
"Not yet." Murphy grinned smugly as Lula choked on her drink, her face flushing. Raven and Murphy both laughed at Lula's embarrassment, Murphy wrapping an arm around his girlfriend's shoulders and pressing an over exaggerated kiss to her cheek.
Clarke raised an eyebrow slightly at Murphy's comment.
Hearing John Murphy talk about marriage level commitment was like seeing a horse with three heads.
"You gonna sit down Clarke?"
Raven's voice brought back her attention and Clarke quickly sat down.
"Okay" Murphy clapped his hands and rubbed them together.
"Can we eat now? I'm starving."
Clarke was happy and she hadn't been expecting that.
Leaning back in her seat, her stomach full of Roma's Italian Pizza, she watched as Madi laughed at Raven and Murphy bickering while Lula smiled fondly at the scene as she leaned into her boyfriend's side.
Seeing Madi so happy had put a sense of ease into Clarke's mind. The little girl liked Lula, Raven had already promised to join Clarke in picking her from her first day at school and Murphy was making her laugh... well just by being Murphy.
It had taken Madi days to talk after they left TonDC and weeks for her to smile again.
So this was everything to Clarke.
She was brought out of her happy daze by Murphy saying
"The Mad-monster says you went redhead for a while Clarke. Gotta, say I'm sad I missed that. Got a bit of a thing for redheads." Murphy said, winking at Lula and Clarke laughed though a small tinge of sadness tugged at her heart as memories poured into her mind.
"Yeah. Didn't really take to it." Clarke said and then glanced at her watch "Madi we should really be going. We need to go to the store, especially if you want spaghetti tonight. I've got nothing at home so-"
"Have dinner at ours!" Raven blurted out. "Everyone comes round to our place on Sundays, even these two reprobates" she said gesturing to Lula and to Murphy who flipped her off, earning himself a dig in the ribs from Lula.
"John, children present!" she whispered, to which Madi just giggled.
"Anyway, everyone comes round, we fight over food for an hour then we order takeout and watch crap TV. There's always room for two more."
Before Clarke could get a word out, Madi was bouncing up and down in her seat squealing
"Beja Clarke?! Beja beja beja! ai really want kom don dina gon their house! pretty beja? (Please Clarke?! Please please please! I really want to have food at their house! Pretty please?)"
Clarke bit her lip and turned to Raven.
"When you say everyone..."
"I'll make sure he's on his best behaviour. O too." Raven promised.
Clarke looked from Madi's shining face to Raven's encouraging smile.
"What time should we get there and where am I going?"
"This so cool! Will Monty be at here? And Octavia?" Madi hadn't stopped jumping since Clarke had agreed to dinner at Raven's house.
She was still hopping up and down, the braids gathered on one side of her head bouncing in time, as they got out of the car at the address Raven had given Clarke.
"I don't know Madi. Raven said everyone so I guess so." Clarke said patiently, but Madi wasn't really listening as she ran through the broken gate, up the path and held the doorbell down continuously before Clarke could stop her.
"Madi!" Clarke said as she desperately tried to find where her phone had fallen out of her bag in the car.
Someone must have answered the door because the sound of the doorbell stopped, meaning Madi had taken her finger off the button.
"You lost kid?"
"Got it!" Clarke said to herself triumphantly, grabbing her phone and locking the car.
"Clarke? Clarke Griffin?"
"Oh my god, Miller?"
Nathan Miller was stood in the doorway, a beaming smile on his face. Clarke hurried up the path and the two old friends embraced.
"You look good!" Miller grinned pulling away and giving her the once over with his eyes. "Gotta ask though, who's the kid?"
"This is Madi."
"Hi Miller! Are you still dating Jackson?" Madi asked with, as usual, zero filter.
"Madi!" Clarke hissed but Miller laughed, before saying
"No I'm not kid."
"What?" Clarke asked surprised and upset that the couple she thought could withstand anything were no longer dating.
She needn't have worried though, because Miller grinned again and held up his hand, letting the porch light glint off the ring on his finger.
"Wedding's next summer." he said, a dopey, loved up look on his face.
"Oh my god! Miller congratulations!"
They hugged again and then Miller stepped aside letting Madi and Clarke enter the house.
"Everyone's through here." he said leading them down the hall.
He wasn't kidding either.
Everyone was there in the back, a long room that was living room at one end and had a long dining table with an odd assortment of chairs surrounding it.
At the living room end, Raven, Harper, Monty and Emori were all sat on the biggest couch.
Octavia and Lincoln were on the love seat.
Murphy and Lula were huddled on one beanbag whilst Miller took his spot next Jackson on the other beanbag.
Bellamy however, was nowhere to be seen.
"He's picking up the takeout." Raven answered the unasked question, noticing Clarke's eyes darting round the room. "It's cheaper to pick it up than get it delivered. Sorry we ordered without you but Murphy was threatening to eat Nora." Raven pointed at a beautiful tabby cat, curled up on the window sill.
"Yeah, I'm sorry we're late. Someone couldn't decide what to wear." Clarke said, playfully tugging on one of Madi's braids.
"Ai wanted kom seeya nice! (I wanted to look nice!)" Madi grumbled to Clarke in Trigedasleng, which Clarke translated for the group.
Harper, Raven, Emori and Lula all let out a collective
"Awwww!"
And Jackson called
"Fashion show! Give us a twirl Madi!"
Madi giggled and span on the spot, making her puffy, sparkly black 'tutu-esque' skirt float around her.
Madi had picked the outfit out herself and was proud of her creation.
The black tutu skirt, a white t-shirt with "girls bite back" written across it and her own mini version of Clarke's patchwork leather jacket. On her legs she wore black and silver stripy tights and black boots.
After everyone in the room (including Murphy, with some encouragement from Lula) had assured Madi she looked great, they heard the sound of the front door opening.
"Who's hungry?"
Bellamy's voice came booming from the hallway, ten seconds before the man himself entered the room, carrying a large cardboard box.
"Finally!" Murphy said, clambering to his feet and heading towards the table, where Bellamy had deposited the box and was already unpacking food. The rest of the group made their way over and started taking the dishes they recognised as theirs.
Clarke and Madi hung back, though Madi was chomping at the bit, muttering in Trig how she wanted to get a seat next to Raven or Monty, so Clarke let her go.
Clarke was looking with a small smile around the cluttered house, when she felt someone coming up to her.
Of course it was Bellamy, holding one of the containers.
"Ordered your usual. Didn't know if you still liked it but..." he tailed off with a shrug, holding out the container to her.
"Egg fried rice and Malaysian satay chicken" he said and Clarke smiled.
"Still the best takeout meal ever." she said and Bellamy chuckled before awkwardness descended over them once again.
"Hi Bellamy!" On cue Madi came bounding up.
"Hi. You must be Madi right? Raven told us about you." Bellamy smiled at the little girl, who beamed that Bellamy Blake knew who she was.
"Uh, Raven ordered Chicken chow mein for you. She said you told her you like noodles. Is that okay?"
"Chit ste chow mein?" Madi asked Clarke with a frown and Clarke leaned down and said with a stage whisper
"Well why don't you try it and find out!"
"Okay!"
And with that Madi skipped off again, back to the table.
"She's really something huh?" Bellamy said with a wry smile.
"That she is" Clarke agreed.
"Kind of reminds me of O, when she was a kid. All that energy."
"Oh Madi has three settings. Asleep, race car and rocket ship." Clarke explained, earning a genuine laugh from Bellamy.
"Don't let her play any video games with Murphy then. It's the most animated I ever see him get."
"Actually Murphy's her favourite. Well him and Octavia."
"Favourite?"
"From the stories."
"You told her about us?" Bellamy said surprised and Clarke gave him a surprised look of her own.
"Of course I did. Why wouldn't I?"
A new expression came across Bellamy's face. It was part anger, part betrayal, part sadness.
"Well you up and left in the middle of the night Clarke. Not a word to anyone. Kinda figured you wanted to forget us."
Clarke opened and closed her mouth. But she couldn't speak.
So she walked away and joined Madi at the table.
And she did her bet to avoid eye contact with Bellamy for the rest of the night.
Everyone was fed and full.
The empty containers had been thrown out and the table tidied and now almost everyone was lounging in the living room again.
Clarke had managed to grab one of the beanbags and she was sat on it, with Madi's head in her lap, gently stroking the little girl's hair, listening to Jackson and Miller talk about wedding plans.
Just as Murphy made some joke about a stag party, Clarke glanced at the time then down at Madi who was fighting desperately to stay awake, though her young eyes kept fluttering closed.
"Time kom bants en go houm kom sleep strik won. (Time to leave and go home to sleep little one.)" she murmured and Madi mumbled something unintelligible.
Carefully, Clarke manoeuvred herself out from under Madi then, with a little difficulty, hoisted the petite ten year old up onto her hip, her braided head resting on Clarke's shoulder.
"We uh, we're going to make a move. Need to get this one into bed." Clarke said to the group and Raven got to her feet.
"I'll walk you out." she said and the two young women and the little girl who was almost asleep, headed out into the hall.
They paused as Raven unlocked the deadbolt and as they were stationary for a moment Madi sleepily pointed at a picture hanging on the wall.
"Who's that?" she mumbled.
It was a picture taken in front of a house, different to this one. In the picture was Lincoln, Octavia, Monty, Harper, Bellamy and...
"That's Gina."
Clarke whipped her head around to see Octavia stood at the bottom of the stairs, a steely expression on her face.
"You remember Gina, right Clarke?"
"Octavia!" Raven growled "Not the time."
"Oh I don't know. Now's a good as time as any." Octavia said casually.
"O!" Bellamy had appeared at the other end of the hall.
"Hey big brother. Clarke's kid was just asking about Gin-"
"Not now O. Not in front of the kid."
Octavia levelled her gaze at Clarke for a moment before disappearing past her brother.
"Bellamy..." Clarke began but Bellamy stopped her.
"It's fine Clarke. Get Madi home."
And then he disappeared after his sister.
Clarke let out a breath then carried Madi out to the car.
After buckling Madi into the passenger seat Clarke got behind the wheel and paused for a minute, resting her head against the leather of the wheel.
She could feel tears welling, and bit her lip trying to hold them back.
"Dammit!" she whispered angrily thumping the steering wheel with her right hand.
"Clarke?" Madi mumbled, stirring slightly "Laik yu alright? (Are you alright?)"
"Sha madi. Osir're going houm. (Yes Madi. We're going home.)"
And with that, Clarke wiped at her eyes, started the engine and rove off into the night.
Ta da!
Sorry for the wait!
Let me know what you think! Love hearing from people!
More soon.
Geronimo xx