Chapter 10:

Her pale eyelids were clamped tightly as shivers pulsated through her aching form. The tremors erupted through her body as the sun reached its apex, her eyes swimming around the metal walls of the drop ship. Teeth pressed against her lip, she let out a feral whimper—her body racked with torturous nausea and exhaustion. Even as she trembled, she knew she was profusely sweating once more and her gray shirt was the untimely victim of the side effects of her pregnancy. Medically, she knew this wasn't normal—knew this meant something was different compared to other pregnancies but she irrationally wanted to ignore the fact that something could go wrong, or that it was more complicated than other pregnancies. Unfortunately, even if something was wrong she wasn't well-versed on pregnancies. And sure, Bellamy delivered Octavia and he could retain information like a goddamn computer but he wasn't any more informed as she was.

Clarke knew she would have to speak to her mother, she also knew what her mother would say. "This pregnancy is not good for you. You need to be concerned about survival right now. How can you possibly hope to survive when you're ill?" There would be a fight, there would be facts and there would most likely be tears because Clarke was feeling quite emotional.

But, parenthood is about sacrifice, right? She made the decision to contact her mother as soon as dinner was served so she would have the necessary privacy to speak to the woman. Wishfully, she wanted Bellamy to do it with her but that would mean admitting there was a problem, listening to him rant about it, watching him freak out a little bit, and then dealing with the aftermath of his overprotective, dominant personality. Truth be told, she was just too tired to deal with the dramatics of Bellamy Blake.

Clarke rested her head in her palms, mentally willing any future patients from harming themselves so she could calm herself. If she took deep breaths rather than the shallow ones escaping her lips, she could successfully prevent herself from losing her entire lunch on the needed medical supplies. Her forehead pressed against the metal table and shut her eyes—much like before, she started to slip into a form of sleep.

"—Clarke! Clarke!" It was Jasper and he sounded…concerned? Her eye shot open and she rose, swaying back and forth as she steadied herself. Jasper gripped her elbows tightly, his brown eyes widening as he took her in. His voice echoed off the walls of the drop ship as if she was trapped in a cave. It's getting worse, Clarke thought to herself but it was all too hazy. "I'm going to get Bellamy, okay?" Jasper told her in a brokenly, tame voice. He cracked but she could recognize that he was trying to keep it together for her sake.

"No, Jas—" She argued, attempting to let go of him but only falling more into his lanky figure.

He raised his eyebrows disapprovingly and shook his head, "It's not up for discussion, Clarke." Jasper, the guy that blows things up by accident and trips over his own feet religiously was talking to her like a child. He was surprisingly firm in his approach, "I'm getting him."

"I'm fine!" Clarke couldn't help but fall into the teenager part of her. She'd been using the word fine too often and people were accepting it left and right—but not anymore, Jasper Jordan was not going to accept it.

He cleared his throat, "Would Bellamy accept that answer?"

"He—"

"Didn't think so…" Jasper declared before helping her up on the table and leaving her alone. She thought about fleeing but she wasn't strong enough to run without being noticed. She wondered how Bellamy would react to Jasper's plea to join him in the drop ship. She imagined his eyes would widen, he would push Jasper out of the way because he was the type to do so and he would storm her little haven.

She kicked her feet back and forth, slamming her heels into the metal table legs. Clarke heard him before she saw him, somehow managing a quick turn of her lips she met his worried eyes. "Clarke?" He huskily, croaked when he saw her lack of color and overall discomfort. This was why she didn't want him to know about the extent of her condition. He would worry too much and god-knows what he stopped working on to come to her "rescue."

"I'm fine." Clarke nodded along with her words but she could tell he didn't believe her. He took a step closer, and then another because it was evident that she wanted him to. He positioned himself until he was pressed against the table between her legs. He touched her forehead with his own.

"No, you're not…" He whispered softly to her, aware that Jasper was taking in the entire moment like heroin. There was a wide smile on his lips despite the situation. Bellamy continued, "You're sick, god—" He caressed her cheek and she turned her head into it, "—you're so sick." There was something helpless in his tone that caused her heart to break. "Tell me what I can do, Clarke…I want to help you."

"I'm not sick, Bellamy…I'm just pregnant." It sounded like a moan but she did not care, "Being here…being this guy, is all the help I need from you." She lowered her voice because she felt like she was going to throw up, "I see the real you, Bellamy Blake…and you are everything I—"

"Baby, you're sweating through your clothes and you look like you're about to drop. That's not normal…" He cleared his throat, clearly putting his walls back together. Her face grew heated because she realized how deep she'd gone. Immediately, she regretted it. There was clearly a line and she was playing tight-rope on it. His hand lingered on her face, though and that put her at ease. "I'm putting you on bedrest." Hence the walls…Clarke thought foolishly, he's trying to order me around.

"What? No!" Clarke vehemently shook her head, "You're not putting me on anything! I'm fine…Bellamy, I'm fine." She looked at Jasper pleadingly but he steeled his face against her desperate glare. "It's just—god, I can handle it!"

"I'm putting you on bedrest until I'm confident you're okay." He put his other hand on the side of her face so she would have to meet his eyes. "I've told you before that I can't lose you or this baby so I'm going to take care of you…and right now, this is the only thing I know I can do. We'll research and I'll…I'll talk to Jaha and then you're mother and we'll see what we can do from our end. Then, you and me are going to have a discussion about your hours in this med-bay."

"You're going to talk to my mom?"

"I can't lose you."

Clarke sighed, "What are we going to tell people, Bellamy?"

"The truth."

"The truth?"

"Yes!" Jasper clapped his hands, "Yes, yes and I can rub it in everyone's face that I knew before them…except Mont…"

-x-

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