*Shout out to my Canadian readers! I met so many Canadians in every country I visited last year and they all had one thing in common – they were absolutely lovely. Thanks for living up to the amazing hype about you and thanks for reading! Please favourite/follow/review!*

The three of them, Bellamy, Clarke and Octavia, trekked through the forest the next day, searching for any sign of Finn and Murphy. Octavia was concerned for her friends of course, but she was more worried about Lincoln. He had been captured by reapers just as they had been reunited. The knowledge that he was in danger somewhere made her feel sick but she had never been more determined of anything than she was that she would get him back. She had to.

Bellamy and Clarke didn't talk much as they walked, spending much of the day in comfortable silence, communicating more in looks, the way they had found they were able to. Together they decided that their best bet would be to rescue Lincoln first, his knowledge of the area, the grounders and the mountain men would be invaluable to them, and they were going to need all the help they could get to rescue their friends.

Just before the sun started to sink into the sky the trio reached the huge, crumbling marble statue engraved 'Abraham Lincoln' which marked the boundary of Lincoln's village. Bellamy felt Clarke's presence next to him and glanced down, mouth quirking in a half smile as he took in her wild hair and flushed cheeks. She looked up and caught his eye, feeling her stomach twist. His mouth was lifted at one side and his eyes twinkled at her above his freckles. For the first time in too long, Clarke was reminded of the guard on the Ark with the glass in his shoulder, how he had teased her then, and looked at her with the same twinkle in his eye, and how she had looked at him feeling the same pull in her stomach. Funny how much had changed since then, and yet here they were.

Suddenly a muffled sound broke their gazes, Octavia held back a sob and Bellamy turned to look at her, concern already etched on his face.

'O?' His voice uneasy.

'The reapers came from there.' Her voice was thick as her eyes filled with tears. Bellamy's heart ached at her pain. 'I couldn't save him Bell.' Tears fell down her face as Bellamy pulled her into his arms.

Clarke felt her own eyes prick with tears at the display. She couldn't help but think this was probably her favourite side of Bellamy, this caring, gentle man who had continued to surprise her and had ultimately won her over.

Bellamy stroked Octavia's hair as she cried. 'It's ok, its ok.' He murmured softly, patient until Octavia's tears had dried, unaware that right behind him, the girl he was falling in love with was falling for him too, hard.

They searched until it was almost dark, but there was no trace of Lincoln, or any of the rest of his village, anywhere. They reluctantly returned to camp, where Octavia disappeared to her quarters silently, disappointment weighing her shoulders down.

'I'm sorry,' said Clarke carefully, 'I know how much it hurts you to see her upset.'

Bellamy was surprised and emboldened by her concern, and the realisation that she was right, she did know him well. He reached for her hand and entwined their fingers, brushing his thumb gently along her knuckles as they stood for a moment inside the gate to the camp.

When Abby saw the two of them sat together at a table later that evening, empty dinner dishes pushed aside, she couldn't bring herself to interrupt them. Their legs were threaded together, heads close as they poured over the map Clarke had drawn up, based on the one she was given in Mount Weather, and her own knowledge. Occasionally they would glance up and share a look that Abby recognised from when she and Jake had started dating, it was a look of excitement and wonder and want. Her daughter; brave, independent Clarke, was in love with the fierce, protective guard from the Ark, who was willing to die for those he loved, just as she was. As she walked away slowly she couldn't help but succumb to the grief that still accompanied the thought of her late husband, but enjoyed the flicker of happiness that came with knowing her daughter had found someone who would make her happy, as she knew Bellamy would, even if the two didn't quite know it yet.

'Ok, tell me again.' Bellamy was looking over the map intently, his voice was deep and serious, and as his dark eyes met hers she felt a shiver of attraction crawl up her spine. Their legs were intertwined, his, then hers, then his, then hers. Every now and then they would shift, knocking their legs together, reassuring the other that they were still there.

'It's a labyrinth, we got to the damn through this tunnel.' Clarke gestured to various points of the map. 'That's all connected to the mine system, that's our way in.' Bellamy was struck once again by the impossible strength of the girl in front of him, not only did she escape all by herself, but she was already working on a plan to get back in and rescue everyone else.

'Sure, we just have to get past the reapers and the mountain men.' His tone was serious but he squeezed her leg between his under the table teasingly. 'I swear to god, if your mom doesn't sanction a mission soon I'm going by myself.'

'You won't be by yourself.' Bellamy didn't doubt it for a minute, he squeezed her leg again and she smiled, they shared a long look, before Clarke's eyes slid past his and he watched her eyes follow someone over his shoulder. He turned and saw Finn leaving the chancellors chambers.

'How's Finn doing anyway?' He tried to come off nonchalant but was pretty sure he failed. Even though he and Clarke had kissed, and had grown closer than ever, he still didn't know where he stood with the girl. A small part of him secretly doubted he could compete with the history she had with Finn, but he hoped against hope that he was wrong.

'I haven't talked to him since we got back.' He eyed her curiously, her expression was almost ashamed. 'I don't know what to say.' The meaningful look in her eyes told him she was talking about more than just what Finn had done. She also meant what had happened between them. Did she feel guilty? Like she had betrayed Finn by kissing him?

The crunching of gravel under boot told Bellamy that Finn was walking over to them, even without seeing the look on Clarke's face.

'Hey.' He said, eyeing the small distance between Clarke and Bellamy with a flash of jealousy.

'Hey.' Bellamy mirrored his short tone and noticed Clarke leaning back, putting more distance between them, and he understood Finn's jealousy. She had yet to say anything to him though. Bellamy watched her for a moment, gaging the situation before rising 'next round's on me'. He picked up their metal cups and made his way back to the mess hall, giving them some space. He knew full well how Finn felt about Clarke, and how far he was willing to go for her, but he didn't know if Clarke felt the same way anymore, surely everything that had happened had to mean she had feelings for him too. He knew he wanted to be the one to look after Clarke, to protect her, but he was surprised to find that from the bottom of his heart he just wanted her to be happy, even if it was with Finn and not him.

Finn took Bellamy's seat and Clarke didn't know how to feel about the large part of her that wished it was still Bellamy sat opposite her, warm thighs against hers, dark eyes meeting hers across the table, talking to her without saying a word. As Finn started to talk to her she realised that she barely even recognised him anymore, the person she thought that she knew but had done nothing but prove her wrong. He had lied to her, gone back to Raven, and now had transformed from the peaceful, diplomatic rebel she had started to fall for, into a dangerously unstable wreck. She didn't resent him anymore for hurting her the way he had when Raven landed on the ground, but she suddenly knew that the feelings she had for him were gone, a fact she realised she had needed to accept for a long time now.

'We did what we had to do.' Bellamy heard Finn's pleading voice as he walked back to the table, drinks in hand. On the other hand, Bellamy thought, Finn had changed, and this new Finn couldn't make Clarke happy, he knew it with every fibre of his body.

'Here you go, Princess.' He said lowly, placing her cup in front of her, now filled with the deceptively innocent looking moonshine brewed by Monty and Jasper that they had salvaged from the drop ship, and dropping his hand onto her shoulder. He kept his eyes on Finn the whole time, noticing his eyes narrow at the nickname and the fairly intimate gesture.

Clarke understood that Bellamy was letting Finn know that he had competition, and she knew that she should have been irritated at the testosterone fuelled rivalry, but honestly she was glad for both the distraction, and for the rare display of emotion from the usually stoic Bellamy. It reassured her that her feelings weren't as one sided as she was starting to believe.

Yes, they had kissed, but Bellamy spent the first weeks at camp circulating girls in and out of his tent. A kiss was just a kiss, and she had initiated it. Although he had followed her and continued it, before telling her that it wasn't just about that moment for him. It was just so confusing, and Clarke could admit that she was scared of getting hurt again.

Finn jumped up from the table so suddenly that Clarke flinched, snapping out of her thoughts. His face was equally pained and angry. 'Well don't let me interrupt.' He threw one last hurt look over his shoulder as he marched back to the centre of camp, his shoulders tense.

'You ok?' Bellamy reclaimed his seat opposite her, placing a hand on her knee under the table and squeezing it gently. She picked up her drink and downed it one, screwing up her face as the liquor burned its way down her throat. Bellamy knew he shouldn't really be surprised, but he was, Finn had unsettled her more than he had realised.

'Yeah. Just surprised.' He cocked an eyebrow questioningly. 'I don't know who that is, but it's not who I thought Finn was. He has the strangest look in his eyes, like a part of him is missing. I hate the idea that this is my fault.'

'It's not your fault Clarke. Something's changed in him yes, but it's not your fault that he can't handle his emotions at the moment.'

Clarke realised that the two boys were complete opposites in many ways. Whilst Finn was hot headed and often let his emotions get the better of him, Bellamy was calm and collected, thinking of others before himself.

She felt the warmth of the moonshine spreading through her body.

'I thought I loved him.'

Bellamy blinked in surprise at the admission, his thoughts lingering on the past tense. 'Just goes to show how wrong you can be about people I guess.'

'Clarke…' Bellamy cleared his throat nervously, not quite believing what he was about to say 'I understand you need time, I just want you to know I'll be here, if that's what you want.'

Maybe it was the alcohol taking effect, or maybe it was because she'd wanted to do it since they sat down, maybe it was because seeing Finn had made her realise what she had been too blind to admit before, but whatever the reason, Clarke leant across the table and pressed her lips against Bellamy's in one swift movement. She pulled back 'I don't want time, I want you Bellamy.'

To say his heart soared would be an understatement. He had grown to learn not to trust people, just to look after O, and himself. He built walls around himself, learnt to hide his emotions, to push them down until they stopped hurting him. He didn't think his heart could work for anyone else anymore, but he had never felt the way he felt about Clarke before. Something about her made him want to stop fighting everything and just feel, like he used to.

He reached across the table and threaded their fingers together, fitting perfectly as usual.

'I want you too Clarke. I want us, together.'