Chapter 7:
Now: Jun. 21, 2015
6:12 pm
"Raven?!" Clarke jumped off her seat in surprise and ran to hug her. She couldn't believe the brunette was standing in the doorway at that moment. It was like seeing her two separate lives collide. At the same time seeing Raven felt like a flood of relief had washed over her whole body. It had only been a day but she hadn't realized how much she would need a friend here. She had Octavia but she couldn't really expose herself and her feelings about the whole situation to the sister of the groom. And while her dad seemed to pick up on her feelings for Bellamy she didn't want to have to relive the retelling of the story of her rejection.
Raven gave her a soft smile as she pulled away and Clarke's heart sank. Something was wrong. She didn't have that large grin or dramatic reaction to how humongous the house was. She expected Raven to go on and on about how they should just move here instead of their crappy apartment if she ever came here.
But Raven looked…upset.
"What's wrong?" Clarke asked not bothering to wonder what everyone else in the room was thinking.
"Nothing" She put on a fake smile. "I just thought I'd take you up on that offer to spend a week away from the work life."
Clarke nodded slowly. "Right. Um everyone this is Raven she's my roommate in Boston. I invited her here hope nobody minds…but if you don't mind I'll introduce you all after. I'm going to get her settled."
She didn't bother looking back knowing very well he mother would have a comment to make about her not giving Raven a proper introduction and then taking off and being rude. She didn't care though. Raven didn't get upset often. She wasn't the type to cry at sad movies or have her feelings hurt when customers were rude. There was only one time Clarke had ever seen Raven Reyes truly upset: Finn.
She had tried to put Finn out of her mind for almost a year now. It was weird to think that her and Raven's friendship had come together after they had found out their mutual boyfriend was cheating on the both of them with the other but Raven was just that easy to love. And while Clarke had been pretty upset at the time, she even believed she had been falling in love with Finn, her pain was nothing compared to Raven's. Who had dated him for almost six years and believed they would be together forever.
She led Raven to one of the many guest rooms and shut the door behind her. Raven sat on the bed quietly while Clarke carried her suitcase in and sat it on the chair.
She took a deep breath and plopped on the bed next to Raven.
"What's wrong?"
"I'm scared."
Her words took Clarke by surprise. If sad was never the word to describe Raven, afraid would have been even further from it.
"Of what?" Clarke asked putting one arm around the girl.
"Finn" Raven said wide eyed looking at Clarke seriously. Clarke felt a slight tug in her stomach at the mention of his name. It was like a nausea wave that hit her with the reminder of what he did to them.
"What? What are you talking about Raven? Finn's gone. He's out of our lives. We never have to see him again." Clarke squeezed Raven's shoulder trying to reassure her. She knew Finn had messed up Raven way more than he had messed up her but she couldn't see why Raven would ever be afraid of him.
"Clarke how many times has he come over trying to get you back since you guys broke up?" Raven pulled away and looked at her seriously. She had tears in her eyes and she was biting her lip nervously waiting for her friend's response.
"Raven…" She started with a sigh but knew she had to be truthful. She hadn't told Raven about all the times Finn had stopped by over the past year begging her to give him a second chance. She hadn't wanted to hurt her, especially when Raven was the one who had not only started dating him first but had loved him with her whole heart. Clarke had been falling in love with Finn herself, but not to the extent that Raven loved him, and never to the extent that she loved Bellamy.
Truthfully she hadn't realized that she was in love with Bellamy until a few months after the break up with Finn. And then by the time she came around to telling him it was too late.
"He's come around a few times…well maybe more than a few. I'm sorry Rey I just didn't want to hurt you." Clarke said honestly feeling like she was going to cry herself after seeing a tear fall down Ravens cheek.
Raven wiped it off and nodded slowly. "He came by this morning like early. I'm talking like four in the morning Clarke." She looked at her seriously. "He was hammered. I didn't want to let him in but he kinda just pushed his way through screaming your name. He kept yelling that you needed to come out so you guys could work things out. I've never seen him like that Clarke…"
Clarke took the information in. All the times Finn had come around he had never been drunk, annoying yes but drunk no.
"I started yelling at him to leave" Raven continued. I must have woken Monty and Jasper up because they came over to find out what was going on. When they saw Finn they tried to get him out of the apartment as well. They offered to call him a cab and everything but…he was out of control. He just wouldn't listen Clarke. He got angry."
"Did he hurt you?" Clarke asked worried. She really couldn't see Finn hurting anyone but the boy Raven was describing wasn't the Finn she thought she had known. Then again she hadn't thought him to be a cheater either.
"No" Raven shook her head firmly. "But he did hurt Jasper. They were trying to force him out of the apartment and well Finn is stronger and shook them off then grabbed that pretty flowered vase off the end table and threw it at the wall. Jasper dodged it for the most part but he has a cut on his forehead from the glass."
"Did you call the cops?" Clarke asked and when Raven shook her head no Clarke jumped off the bed and towards the phone in the room. She had left her cell downstairs without realizing it in the excitement of Raven's arrival.
"Clarke don't" Raven said getting up and pulling the phone out her hand. "Afterwards he apologized and like freaked out. He kept saying sorry and that he didn't mean it and I believe him. That wasn't Finn he was just drunk and being stupid."
"He threw a vase at Jasper!"
"Well it was at the wall, Jasper was just a little too close, look Clarke he promised he'd talk to someone and get help. He just got too drunk and upset because apparently he heard you were getting married."
"What?" Clarke asked even more confused but still looking intently at the phone in Raven's hand. Raven may believe in Finn but this was the same person who had promised to be faithful to her and hadn't. And for Clarke that trust didn't come back so easy.
"It was a stupid mistake. Through his drunken rant from what I understand he went looking for you at work and found out you took a week off for a wedding. Well whoever he talked to wasn't very knowledgeable about the situation and thought you were the one getting married. So Finn came by thinking you'd still be at your apartment not realizing the wedding was well here." Raven explained still holding tightly onto the phone.
"That's even more creepy. I'm calling the cops." Clarke said reaching for the phone but Raven pulled it away. "Raven give me the phone he scared you to the point where you came here!"
"Okay one that wasn't the only reason I came here. I was also worried about you. Two, yes I was freaked out and Monty and Jasper invited me to stay with them until you came back but I just thought it would be better if I came here instead and let you know what was going on. Plus you were balling your eyes out last night and I was going to have to come down here anyway if that continued." Raven said softly trying to calm Clarke down. "But you know Finn he's not crazy. We told him that you were in fact not getting married and once he sobered up he realized how wrong he was."
Clarke stared at the phone rocking back in forth. Her teeth were beginning to hurt from grinding them so hard out of anger. "He tries to contact either of us once I will call the cops."
Raven nodded reluctantly "Agreed."
"Also the only one in this house besides us who knows about the Finn situation is Octavia let's keep this between us." Clarke said not meeting Raven in the eyes as she told her the last part.
"What?" Raven asked. "You never told them what happened?"
"Look my mother already thinks badly of my life in Boston if she knows that I'm also dating two timers than she's make an episode of it." Clarke said shortly.
"Yeah yeah geez Clarke any more secrets?"
Clarke shrugged "Well Bellamy's fiancé asked me to paint her today?"
Raven laughed and then saw Clarke's face. "Oh my god you're serious. Sit down apparently we have more to discuss before we go back down."
…
It had been an hour and a half since Raven had arrived and Clarke knew her mother was not going to be happy that she had decided to bolt upstairs instead of giving Raven a proper introduction to everyone and well explanation for her arrival. And then if that was rude enough in Abby Griffin's mind the fact that Clarke had disappeared for an hour and a half with no explanation would be compared to ditching the president.
Her and Raven headed down the stairs to see where everybody had gathered. While Raven had been too upset upon arrival to give her awe induced commentary on the house she was certainly feeling better now and pointing out every object or painting she was "for sure" was worth more than their crappy apartment.
The living room was empty so they headed towards the kitchen and dining room area where a flood of voices were beginning to come into earshot.
"Echo, Octavia says your wedding dress is absolutely stunning." Abby's voice came through the doorway.
Echo giggled "Oh I'll have to show you later but we shouldn't talk too much about it in front of Bellamy, could be bad luck."
Clarke stopped in the hall and Raven gave her a look. Then she turned and began walking the other way.
Raven grabbed her. "Clarke Griffin you are going in there."
"Do we have to? There are a lot of good food places we can go instead? Do you like clams? There's a great clam shop nearby that me and Bellamy… How about pizza? Let's get pizza."
Raven didn't let go of her arm and was giving her one of her looks. Suddenly it was like Clarke couldn't imagine that worried and scared look on Raven's face again. She was back to her tough demeanor and sassy attitude.
Clarke kicked at the long ornament rug on the hallway floor. She didn't care if she was acting childish she didn't want to go in there and hear about Echo and Bellamy's wedding.
"Clarke Griffin, you are one of the strongest people I know."
Clarke looked up surprised. She had always saw Raven as the strong one and certainly never felt like she was strong.
Raven shook her head "Seriously Clarke you are. You are the one who stood up to your surgeon mom and said you were going to art school, you're the one who took a risk and quit your job when your boss was refusing to pay you the same as the guys at that art studio, and you're the one who kept both of us strong after Finn. You are strong Clarke, and I know you love him and I don't know why in the world he doesn't love you back but that doesn't mean you're weak. It just makes you stronger for being able to say it."
Clarke smiled and threw her arms around Raven. Raven was right. She was strong. They both were.
"Now enough with the sappiness and let's go I'm starving." Raven laughed.
They headed into the large kitchen and dining area and once noticed by the others the chatter ended. Everyone looked expectantly and Clarke smiled. "Guys I'd like you to meet Raven. Raven this is everyone."