Chapter 2 – Sparks

Night had fallen. Clarke had spent the remainder of the day keeping herself as busy as she possibly could. She reorganized the storage of their limited food, helped Raven for a few hours to scavenge parts she deemed useful for restoring communication with the Arc, studiously avoided both Finn and Bellamy when she saw either of them approaching, and scheduled the watches and guard for the next week before even having a moment to herself. And, unfortunately, as soon as she had enough time for her brain to think original thoughts, she immediately regretted it.

She put herself on the first watch of the evening. Clarke was still unable to get used to the beauty that was around her while she sat in one of the makeshift lookouts circling the home of the 100. Their time on the Ground so far had been far from easy. But, despite all of those obstacles, they were on the Ground. It was something she had always dreamt of, and, it in was times like these when she was low on hope, that she needed to remember how much they had accomplished and how far they have come.

Clarke sat with her back against the rough wooden wall of the lookout, these thoughts floating absently through her mind. Every time the memory of the hundreds of bodies hurtling through space drifted towards the forefront, she pushed it forcefully away. Instead, she thought about the number of situations she still had to deal with.

I need to talk to Finn. She groaned at the thought. It was a certain comfort that Clarke desperately had needed, and she was able to find it in his arms. But then Raven arrived. Before her drop ship landed, Finn hadn't even mentioned her existence, let alone their complex relationship. And that betrayal had burned Clarke to the core. She not only felt like she was misled, but she had considered Finn her closest friend on the Ground. He had supported her this far. Their one night together had been necessary for both of them. They were feeling alone and were together, in a bunker, at the right time. Clarke had felt the potential of deeper feelings for him stir inside, but they were fully gone now. All that was left was the dull ache of a friend that you're in the process of losing. Loyalty and honesty were everything to her. Forgiveness didn't come naturally to her. She was working on it.

Clarke pushed those saddening thoughts away as well, focusing instead on what had happened in Bellamy's tent earlier that day. She knew that she'd had a breakdown. She didn't regret what she had said, exactly. Her emotions had gotten the better of her without a doubt, but something had to have been said. Bellamy never got reprimanded for his selfish actions. However, she knew that, like Bellamy said, her past had dark areas too; some that she hoped would never be exposed to the sunlight again. And you shouldn't be judged for solely your past. Clarke remembered Bellamy shout, "whatever the hell we want," during their first days on the Ground, instigating turmoil in their camp. But over the time that followed, she'd watched him change. She still thought he was an arrogant asshole sometimes, but she also had caught glimpses of his softer side. Maybe I'll apologize, she thought, leaning her head back against the wall. For some reason, she felt excitement at the thought of talking to him again. This feeling surprised her, as did the warmth that spread through her body when she realized their interaction could lead to him touching her again….

She shook her head to stop those thoughts from going any further. Angry with herself, she crossed her arms and scanned the forest surrounding their camp, forcing her mind to be blank.

Bellamy walked through the center of camp. "Where's Clarke?" he asked Jasper as he walked by.

"Watch, I think," Jasper answered, shuffling from foot to foot. Bellamy knew he made him nervous. "Tower B? By the way, do you know… have you seen recently… umm… where's Octavia?" Jasper eventually stammered the words out. Bellamy was already walking away. Jasper's crush on his sister was pathetic, but also endearing, in a completely pathetic way. And Bellamy could never forget that Jasper did save his Octavia's life once.

"She's in her tent," he called over his shoulder, nearly able to hear the spring in Jasper's footsteps as he practically skipped towards her tent. Bellamy let out a half smile as he headed towards the watchtower. He didn't really know why he was heading to see Clarke. His feet had taken him out of the comfort of his bed when he'd been unable to sleep, and they apparently had a specific destination in mind. Now that they both had calmed down, he did want to make sure she knew how sorry he was about his decision. He didn't think he'd actually ever be able to say those words because admitting Clarke was right was beyond comprehension for him, but he could try and communicate it in his own way. What that way was, however, was still unknown to him as he started to climb the short ladder into the lookout.

Clarke swiveled around to look at him as he crawled into the small space. He sat beside her, so they were shoulder to shoulder. "Evening, Princess," he said, smiling when he saw her frown at the nickname. He knew she hated it.

"Good evening," she responded, coolly. "What brings you to my humble abode?"

"Just thought it looked like a beautiful night for a stroll," Bellamy said, looking at the stars out the window. The moonlight was shining down on her face, illuminating her skin and making her blonde hair shine. She looks beautiful, Bellamy shocked himself with his own thought. "Are you feeling better now?" he asked, trying to focus on directing the conversation towards what he wanted – or rather, needed – to say.

"Yes," Clarke said. She looked like she wanted to say more, but remained silent. They sat quietly for a minute before they both started to speak at the same time. "I'm sor—," Clarke began.

"Listen-," Bellamy said. They both fell quiet, then laughed. Bellamy wanted to get what he said out, so he continued. "I just wanted you to know that I do regret what I did with the radio. It was selfish. But I didn't know about Jaha… I only came down here for Octavia and that would be for nothing if I died when everybody followed us down. I did something stupid, and I know, and I'm going to regret it from this day forward. So… yeah. I just wanted you to know that," he trailed off, not meeting her eyes.

Clarke was looking sideways at him. She had never, ever, heard Bellamy admit that he was at fault for anything before this. It genuinely surprised her. She felt the frost she usually felt towards him melt slightly, helped along by the fire her right side was experiencing from being in contact with him. "I was out of line," she said quietly. "You're not a monster. You're also not a child. You didn't need a reprimanding. I let my emotions get the better of me. I'm sorry."

Bellamy looked at her in surprise. He didn't think he'd ever heard those two words leave her lips before this instance, even if she did part with them slightly grudgingly. "Never thought I'd hear you say that, Princess," he said, smirking.

Clarke groaned. "And there's the Bellamy I know. I didn't even recognize you when you were apologizing. Or trying to anyway." Bellamy chuckled.

They sat in companionable silence, listening to the sounds of the world around them. It was a moment of peace when so much of their world recently had been in chaos. Eventually, Bellamy stirred. "Best be going to bed," he said. His tone was gruff though. He looked at Clarke while he said it, his dark eyes meeting her blue. Clarke felt her heart beat faster. "Good night."

"Good night," Clarke replied, trying to keep her voice steady. She didn't understand the sudden rush of blood pumping through her veins or why her skin felt like she was being lightly electrocuted. She watched Bellamy turn to climb down the ladder out of the lookout, but he paused at the opening. Clarke's brow furrowed in confusion, but suddenly Bellamy turned around and closed the short distance between them.

His hand reach up to cup her cheek as his lips pressed against hers. Clarke's eyes widened in shock. She rapidly pulled back, her eyes searching his for any hint of an explanation. Bellamy didn't offer one. Instead, he simply met her gaze. His eyes were bright in the moonlight. He slowly was leaning back in, keeping his eyes on her the whole time, making sure she didn't back away again. She could see his eyes taunting her, daring her to refuse him. Clarke stayed still, her own fluttering between his and his lips. She realized, as heat coursed through her entire body, that the last thing she wanted was to refuse him.

Clarke closed the distance between their lips this time. Their mouths collided. There was no hesitation now. Clarke's arms encircled his neck as Bellamy's hands grabbed her waist and slid her across the floor closer to him. His tongue parted her teeth and explored the inside of her mouth. One of his hands wrapped tightly in her hair, pushing their faces even closer, and Clarke groaned against his grasp. The kiss was all fire, pure heat between the two of them. Their tongues danced together. It was hard and intense; his sudden passion heating Clarke up in places that she didn't know could be warmed.

All of the sudden, Bellamy pulled sharply back. His breathing was ragged. "The watch switches soon," he said firmly. "I'm going to my tent now." And just like that, he climbed down the ladder and was gone. Clarke sat still for a moment before leaning back against the wooden wall, her heart racing. She had the last half hour of her shift to think about what exactly had just happened. It's Bellamy Blake, the same cocky, arrogant, self-centered one you usually can't stand to look at. What the hell are you doing? she thought, putting her head in her hands. She also had that time to think about why she had enjoyed it so goddamn much. Why is the only thing you want is to do it again? Clarke absentmindedly ran her fingers down her side and across her stomach, closing her eyes, imagining that the touch came from someone else's hand.She definitely needed to think about what she was going to do once her watch ended. Oh god…