Sorry it took me so long guys, school will be the death of me! What about the latest episode?! I couldn't believe that! So, help me if Bellarke isn't their endgame I'm just going to stop watching! Anyway, enjoy this latest update! Plenty of Bellarke, I assure you :)

Chapter 23

Bellamy sat with his sister into the wee hours of the morning. Lincoln came in at about three, taking the seat on O's other side. Bellamy watched them, the way his sister's boyfriend held her hand or rubbed soothing circles on her back as she cried.

The gestures made him miss Clarke all the more. He finally decided that he could stand the togetherness no longer, and went in search of a cup of coffee. On his way back, he heard Octavia talking to Lincoln.

"Why did he do it? Why did he lie", she asked brokenly.

"He had his reasons", Lincoln answered in a softer tone.

"Whatever they were, that doesn't excuse what he did."

Bellamy cringed when he heard the anger in O's voice. He'd expected them to be shocked, but he'd hoped they would understand why he'd done what he had. Undoubtedly it was time to do some explaining.

He'd just made it back to his seat, coffee in hand, when the OR doors opened and a man in scrubs came walking out.

"Family of Clarke Griffin", the doctor called.

Bellamy stood quickly, his coffee forgotten on the tiny side table.

"That's us", he said as Lincoln and O joined him.

"I'm going to be honest with you, it was pretty touch and go there for a while. We removed both bullets and repaired the internal damage. She's stabilized and resting comfortably in ICU. You can see her, but only one at a time. After she wakes up, and we assess her condition, we'll decide if we can move her to a room", the doctor finished.

"Thank you", Bellamy said, shaking the man's hand, "O, you go first."

Bellamy watched as his sister followed the surgeon back before turning to Lincoln.

"Thank you for taking care of her", he said as he regained his seat.

"Your welcome. I know she doesn't understand now, but she'll come around."

"I know, and I deserve her anger, but I would do it all over again in a heartbeat."

"So, Miller knew this whole time", Lincoln asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah, the night I got brained with that board he and I decided that something had to be done. If Cage was going to leave Clarke alone, he had to think I was dead. So, I called up the DA and made a deal. What I didn't know, was that Clarke would march to the beat of my old drum", Bellamy said, his head in his hands.

"You would have been proud of her. She ran that place better than you did at times", Lincoln said with a smirk.

"I can imagine. The Princess has always had a knack for cleaning up my messes."

"She didn't see it that way", Lincoln said quietly, "She did this for revenge. She moved out of her apartment and into yours, and rarely ever came by to visit Octavia. I tried to steer her course, tried to contain the fallout, but I couldn't. I went by to talk to her one day about it, and she had Murphy kick me out."

Bellamy snorted, "Only Clarke could take a man like Murphy and turn him into devoted watchdog."

"He wasn't at first. Took her nearly stabbing him her first day to get him to listen, but he finally came around."

"She what", Bellamy asked in astonishment.

"Her first day at the shop, she called a meeting. Rallied the troops to her cause. Murphy came in late as usual, called her princess, and before any of us could move she threw your switchblade at him. Stuck right by his head, and I'm pretty sure it nicked his ear."

Bellamy shook his head; "That's my girl."

"Turns out we all underestimated her. She nearly broke my nose, knocked my face against the door jam of Octavia's apartment."

Bellamy's eyes widened, "What did you do to warrant that?"

"I told her that her taking over the shop and upsetting your sister wouldn't have been what you would have wanted", Lincoln said almost sheepishly.

"She's never liked being told what to do", Bellamy answered knowingly.

He watched as Lincoln sobered, his expression turning grim.

"She refused to say your name. She spoke of you often, but there was always this look in her eyes. She withdrew from all of us- became cold and distant. Some of the guys even took to calling her the Ice Queen. It was like she just completely shut down."

Bellamy took a long sip of the bitter coffee, his heart constricting at Lincoln's words. He'd seen Clarke after her dad died. He'd just assumed that his death wouldn't affect her, but it sounded as if he'd been wrong.

"Was there anyone…", he asked quietly.

"She wouldn't let anyone close enough. O told me that Clarke said you were the last man she would ever love. It nearly broke Octavia's heart. She begged her to move on, but Clarke refused."

"Sounds like I need to stick around for a little bit longer", Bellamy said with a sigh, " I never dreamed she would react like this."

Before Lincoln could respond, Bellamy watched as the OR doors opened and Octavia made her way into the waiting room. He rose from his chair, squeezing her hand as he passed her.

"It's going to be ok, O", he whispered.

Bellamy made his way back, following a young nurse in bright pink scrubs. The sanitized air burned his nose, and the chill seeped through his clothes causing him to shiver.

He was led to a room at the end of the long hall, and given entrance. The first thing he noticed was the darkness. The only source of light was the glow from various monitors, beeping and pumping.

He took the seat beside the bed, his throat closing at the sight of Clarke so pale and helpless. He took her hand in his own, placing a gentle kiss over the pulse point in her wrist.

Bellamy sat there in the quiet, watching the rise and fall of her chest. He suddenly realized what she must have felt, and a wave of guilt washed over him. Then it was replaced by a new feeling, rage.

He might have abandoned her, but Finn Collins pulled the trigger. He would pay for what he'd done by rotting in prison for the rest of his life if Bellamy had any say in the matter.

His gaze once again returned to her face, caressing every feature from her blonde curls to the curve of her jaw. She was so beautiful. The thought produced a memory from long ago, the first time he realized that Clarke Griffin was gorgeous.

Bellamy sat in his truck waiting for Clarke to get out of class. It was a Monday and he was in a bad mood. Football practice had not gone well, and now he was stuck waiting on a freshman girl.

There were so many other things he could have been doing, but instead he sat in his truck wasting his gas on the Princess. He'd be lying if he said he felt nothing for the little blonde firecracker, but as far as he was concerned she was just another little sister to care for.

He finally looked up to see her coming out of the building, and something struck him as different. Her hair was piled atop her head, unruly flyaway strands wisping across her cheeks. She wore a pair of light denim shorts and a blue and white striped tank top that accentuated her slim figure. Then her gaze captured his, and it dawned on him. Clarke Griffin was beautiful.

Before he knew what he was doing, Bellamy hopped out of his truck and began to make his way to where she stood talking to one of the senior linebackers. He felt a stab of jealousy as Tate Travers said something to make her smile.

Then she looked up, and her smile widened at his approach.

"Bell, what are you doing here", she asked.

"O, said you needed a ride home", he said with a grin, "Said your Mom was in surgery or something."

"Nope, we're just ignoring each other and Dad's at work."

"Well, Princess, your chariot awaits", Bellamy said with a grand bow.

"My knight in shining armor", Clarke said with a dramatic roll of her eyes.

"If you don't want to ride with him, I could drive you home", Tate said, a hopeful gleam entering his blue eyes.

"Thanks, Tate, but I better let my gallant knight here drive me. I'm going to his place anyway", Clarke said with a smile.

Bellamy watched in satisfaction as all of the air went out of Travers' sails. He wrapped an arm around Clarke's shoulders, throwing a crooked grin over his shoulder at the dumbfounded linebacker.

"So, you going out with Travers, Princess?"

"No, not that it's any of your business", Clarke answered with a smirk, "He's just the only one brave enough to speak to me."

"What do you mean? Are you terrorizing the male population of Broken Shield High", Bellamy asked with a chuckle.

"Nope, you are. O and I can't get a decent date thanks to you", the little blonde said with an adorable frown.

"I haven't done anything", Bellamy said defensively.

"Oh, yeah? So what was that back there, hmmm?"

"That was… Oh, hush, Griffin", Bellamy said as he situated her in the passenger seat.

"I'm just saying, you might go a little lighter on the big brother routine."

Bellamy thought about her words, realizing that with Clarke it was anything but the "big brother" routine. It was more like wanting all of those idiots to know that she was his, but he couldn't tell her that.

"Sure, Princess, I'll lighten up a smidge", he said with a low chuckle.

Bellamy was pulled from his thoughts by a gentle pressure on his hand. His gaze flew to Clarke, finding her eyes upon his face.

"How's a girl supposed to rest with you thinking so loud, Blake", she asked, her words slightly slurred.

"Sorry, Princess, I'll try to be quieter next time."

He watched as a smile curved her lips, and the felt her thumb graze his wrist.

"See that you do", she slurred, her eyes closing once more.

Thanks for reading! Please review and tell me what you thought! :)

To all of my guest reviewers: Thank you so much for your support and reviews! I'm glad you're all enjoying the story! :)

Wright: Thanks for the review! :) No need to worry about Clarke she is going to be just fine! I may have gotten a little bit dramatic about the ambulance ride lol