A/N: We have officially reached the penultimate chapter of this roller coaster of a story. I've decided that Chapter 10 will be the final chapter and I'm excited to share the ending with you lovely readers. More exciting still though I will be posting 3 alternate endings after I wrap up. They were the 3 original endings I was choosing between before I came up with the 4th ending and the one I ultimately decided to go with for this story. I hope each one will offer a little something for everyone who has been reading this story. If you have a moment I would really appreciate it if you could leave a comment or review or send me a message on Tumblr with your thoughts. Thank you for sticking by this story and I hope you enjoy these final 2 chapters.
Clarke swirls the peas around with her fork. She's always hated the stupid little green balls of nastiness. She stabs a couple of them with the tines of her fork; she should at least pretend to eat them. Kane made dinner for them and he doesn't always remember that Clarke hates peas. He always gets it mixed up. He announced triumphantly at the start of the meal that he was going to make carrots until he remembered that Clarke hates them. She just sighed as she saw that he made peas instead. Clarke actually really likes carrots.
She watches as Lexa happily scoops peas up on her spoon and pops them into her mouth. Clarke knows she's not just sucking up to her parents. She and Lexa have had many an argument over the last year about peas and all the other vegetables Clarke hates. Lexa likes them all, every single vegetable. Clarke can't fathom why anyone willingly puts zucchini in their mouth. She listens as Lexa makes conversation with Kane. Clarke isn't totally apathetic when it comes to politics, but she certainly doesn't think it makes for good dinner conversation. Kane and Lexa apparently aren't voting the same way in the next election.
Lexa winks over at her as Kane starts to get heated over something Lexa said about fiscal conservatives. He's talking with his hands again and Clarke can't help but laugh. She smiles back at the other woman and stuffs another bite of chicken in her mouth, chicken Clarke actually likes. Dinner with her parents on Sunday night has become sort of a routine, they're over here almost every Sunday and Kane usually doesn't make peas. Clarke was hesitant at first when her mother suggested she should start coming around for weekly dinners again. She couldn't help but think about all the times she had sat around the very same table flanked by Bellamy and Raven.
Abby sort of found out about Raven by accident. When she dropped by with a new blender for Clarke and Bellamy after she heard theirs broke she may have seen Clarke making out with Raven. Clarke couldn't exactly let her leave thinking that she was cheating on Bellamy in their own home, or at all. Abby was slightly shocked at first, but overall way more cool with it than Clarke could have ever imagined. Then came the dinner invitation, a mere four weeks after Bellamy, Clarke and Raven became an actual, real life, official thing. Clarke couldn't say no, she and Bellamy had been going to dinner there almost every Sunday for over a year at that point.
Clarke laughs as Raven cringes at the sight of peas. They never make peas, Clarke hates them, Raven hates them and Bellamy is indifferent, though Clarke will never understand how anyone can be indifferent to peas. She knows Raven wants to make a good first impression on Abby and Kane but she really doesn't want to eat the peas. Clarke puts a hand on her thigh and rubs it gently. Clarke doesn't even have to say don't worry.
"I own my own garage," Raven says proudly when Kane asks about her job.
"She's very good with her hands," Bellamy manages to get out with a straight face.
Clarke chokes on her water. He's not wrong.
Clarke hears Bellamy groan as Raven kicks him under the table. He is so not helping.
She's been waiting for it all night but it's taken so long she's a little surprised when she finally hears her mother say it.
"So how did you two meet Raven?"
She knows what Abby actually means. Why did you and Bellamy decide to invite a third person into your relationship? She's trying not to be judgmental; she does seem to genuinely like Raven.
Bellamy is about to speak when Clarke cuts him off.
"Bell knew Raven in high school actually, we ran into her when she moved back to town while we were out running errands."
It's not untrue; she just conveniently leaves out the part where Bellamy loved her in high school. She doesn't want her mom or Kane to get the wrong impression. She cares about Raven, she wants her too just as much as Bellamy. She hopes they get that.
She leans in close to Raven and presses a kiss to her cheek. This is her choice and she's happy with it. She falling in love with her and she wouldn't have it any other way.
"That's nice," Kane says, it feels mostly genuine.
"You know I really care about these two dorks," Raven announces.
Bellamy snorts. Of course she would say it like that.
Abby smiles across the table at the three of them; she may not really understand it, but she'll support them. She only wants Clarke to be happy and if the way Clarke is beaming at Raven is any indication, she is.
They leave the house that night with containers filled with leftovers and the distinct impression that no matter what happens they at least have 2 people in their corner. Kane already seems ready to punch anyone in the face that has a negative thought to spare about his stepdaughter and her choice of life partners.
Clarke takes Raven's hand in hers as they walk towards their car.
"Thanks for coming," she says turning to Raven.
"Anything for you Clarke."
Bellamy wraps his arms around both of them from behind and places a kiss on top of both of their heads. Dinner with Kane and Abby is a lot more fun with Raven there; everything is a lot more fun with Raven there.
"Are you okay?" Lexa asks as they walk down the front steps after dinner.
"I'm fine, why?" Clarke doesn't even look at her as she says it.
"You were so quiet at dinner. You're normally more talkative."
She doesn't say that she was thinking about how Bellamy would have just changed the subject when Kane started talking politics. She also doesn't say she was thinking about what Raven would have said about the peas. She probably would have fed them to Kane's dog Dumbledore. She doesn't say any of this though; she doesn't want to hurt Lexa's feelings. She cares about her too much.
"You know I don't like talking politics," she only half lies, she doesn't but that wasn't why she was so quiet.
Clarke entwines her fingers with Lexa's and presses a kiss to her cheek. She's relieved when she sees a smile spread across Lexa's lips.
Clarke pulls her shirt over her head. It's Wednesday and she has a rare day off. She brushes her long blonde hair out of her face and picks up a pair of jeans. She examines them closely; Lexa threw them on the floor rather hastily last night and they're kind of wrinkly. She doesn't see any stains though so pulls them on anyway. The wrinkles show but she doesn't have plans to see anyone today. Her coffee and her book certainly won't care that she looks kind of sloppy.
"Morning Clarke," Lexa calls from the couch as Clarke walks into their living room.
"What are you doing here?" Clarke asks, taking a seat next to Lexa on the couch and throwing her legs over the other woman's.
Lexa never has a day off in the middle of the week. They are forever hoping for weeks when their schedules align and Clarke gets a rare day off on the weekend. To say she's shocked to see her girlfriend sitting on the couch at 10AM on Wednesday is an understatement.
Lexa smiles wide at her, "I took the day off so I could hang out with you."
"Why didn't you wake me up?" Clarke pouts.
"You love sleeping in on your days off and I love you so I let you sleep."
Clarke moves her legs and inches toward her girlfriend. She stops just short of her face. She moves back when Lexa moves in to meet her lips. Lexa hates it when she teases her. Clarke moves her head forward again and catches Lexa's waiting lips in a kiss. She brings her hands up to meet Lexa's face. Lexa's lips smell of mint and raspberries, Clarke's favourite lip balm. They're soft and warm and Clarke loves the way they feel pressed against her own. She whines slightly when she's forced to pull away and take in air.
They sit quietly for a few more minutes, Clarke's head resting against Lexa's shoulder. When Lexa moves to stand up she offers Clarke her hand. She kisses the hand Clarke places in her own and smiles, helping her up.
Clarke flicks the switch on their coffee machine when they finally make it into the kitchen. They would have made it there faster if Clarke hadn't taken it upon herself to push Lexa up against the wall in the hallway. They could be drinking their morning coffee already if their pit stop didn't involve Clarke peppering Lexa's neck with kisses. Maybe they would even be eating breakfast right now if Clarke hadn't gotten her tongue tangled up with Lexa's for over fifteen minutes. What fun would that be though.
She laughs as Lexa straightens her now very messy hair. Clarke takes a seat at the table and watches as Lexa raids the fridge for ingredients. They haven't been grocery shopping in a few days but Lexa is pretty resourceful. Lexa grabs two mugs when the coffee machine starts beeping. She dumps far too much sugar in Clarke's cup, and a few drops of hazelnut creamer. Just the way Clarke likes her coffee.
Lexa drops the mug in front of her and presses a kiss to her lips before getting back to cooking.
"I thought we could go for a hike today and have a picnic."
Lexa loves the outdoors; Clarke is not as big a fan. She doesn't really want to go on a hike; she's never in her life wanted to go on a hike. Lexa wants to go on a hike though and Lexa took the day off to be with her. She's going on a hike.
"Let's do it," Clarke offers with as much enthusiasm as she can muster for a hike.
When they get to the front door Clarke notices that the picnic basket is already packed. More planning has gone into today than she originally thought. It's sweet really.
"You know you're amazing right?" Clarke says as they walk out the door and head to Lexa's jeep.
Lexa blushes, "I love you Clarke Griffin."
Clarke can't believe Lexa does this kind of thing every day. The sun is beating down on them as they hike up the side of a mountain, very slowly in Clarke's case. She'd probably have turned around by now and headed back home if Lexa didn't look so damn good in the shorts she's wearing. At least Clarke has that view because she's honestly not sure if she's ever going to make it to the top of the mountain to see the one they came for.
"Can we stop for a bit?" Clarke whines as they reach a flat spot. It looks like the perfect place for a rest.
"Sure," Lexa agrees.
There's not a hint of anything resembling tiredness in Lexa's voice. She sounds content, happy even. Of course she does, this is her world, Clarke is just a visitor. The view from where they are now is kind of nice; they could just have their picnic here and go home. Clarke would be okay with that but Lexa definitely wants to reach the top.
Clarke sits down on the grass and stretches out her legs. She can tell they won't be here for long when Lexa doesn't join her. She watches as she just starts stretching her legs. It's actually unfair how good she looks after hiking for over an hour. Clarke's hair is a mess and she's covered in sweat. Lexa doesn't have a hair out of place. She looks good. Clarke isn't surprised; Lexa always looks good.
Lexa waits patiently for a few minutes as Clarke takes a break. She takes a water bottle out of the picnic basket she's carrying, opens it and hands it to Clarke. Clarke smiles a thank you and takes a sip. It's hot out; she can't fathom how Lexa isn't dying of thirst at this point too. After she drains the water bottle Lexa offers Clarke her hand and helps her back on her feet.
"You ready to keep going babe?" Lexa asks though she's already started walking.
She doesn't comment when Clarke groans slightly. She follows Lexa as she heads further up the mountain. At least going down should be easier she thinks to herself as she watches Lexa climb with ease.
They walk mostly in silence. Lexa is always telling Clarke how her favourite thing about being outdoors is the peace and quiet.
"Hey Lexa," Clarke calls out to her girlfriend.
"Yeah?"
"Would you mind slowing down a bit so we can walk together?"
This would be slightly more enjoyable if she was actually hiking with Lexa instead of 10 feet behind her.
Clarke sees Lexa stop immediately to wait for her to catch up. Lexa takes her hand when Clarke reaches her. She doesn't even complain that Clarke's palm is sweaty and warm. She entwines their fingers and smiles at Clarke before continuing on.
Clarke thinks it takes them another hour to reach the top of the mountain, though according to her phone it's really only been 35 minutes. The view up here is sort of breath taking. Even if it's not her thing she gets why Lexa likes this. The sun is shining and there's a lake surrounded by trees below them. The way the sun hits the lake at certain angles makes the blue really pop. Clarke whips out her phone to take a picture and notices the smile on Lexa's face.
"Gorgeous," Lexa remarks, "I love it up here."
"It's nice," Clarke comments. It's genuine; it is really nice up here even if it took them way longer than she would ever prefer to hike to reach the top.
Clarke watches as Lexa takes a blanket from her backpack and spreads it on the ground. She sets the picnic basket down on the corner of the blanket and starts to unpack it. Each item Lexa takes out of the basket is one of Clarke's favorites. The sandwiches are chicken salad with the little pieces of celery and grapes that Clarke loves. The crusts are cut off, which Lexa always makes fun of her for but still does for her anyway.
The last thing Lexa pulls from the basket is a bottle of wine. It's red and Clarke's favourite kind if she's reading the label right. It's the same wine they drank on their first date at a fancy restaurant. Clarke's heart sinks as Lexa takes out the plastic cups she brought and starts to pour the wine.
"I'm so sorry," she blurts out.
"For what?" Lexa asks, raising an eyebrow.
"It's our anniversary isn't it?" Clarke says sheepishly.
She totally forgot. Lexa has had it circled on their calendar for a while. Clarke remembers seeing the hearts drawn in the square with purple glitter pen. It was so uncharacteristic of Lexa she couldn't help but smile the first time she saw it. 1 year with Clarke it reads.
Lexa just smiles over at her, "1 year ago today I sat across from the most beautiful girl in the world in a coffee shop. It was the first time I felt genuinely excited about the possibility of a new relationship in a very long time."
Tears start falling from Clarke's eyes and she wishes she had sleeves to wipe them away. She doesn't want to be upset right now, she's supposed to be happy. Lexa doesn't even care that she forgot about their anniversary, she's just happy to be here with her.
Any morning Raven wakes up to Clarke's lips pressed against her own it's a good morning. She tilts her head up, leaning into the kiss. It's far too warm for Clarke to have her body wrapped around Raven's but neither of them cares right now. It only gets warmer when Bellamy rolls over and wraps his arms around Clarke, his fingertips grazing Raven's shoulder.
"Happy one year anniversary to my two favourite people in the world," Clarke almost shouts.
"Here's to many, many more," Bellamy adds.
Clarke can hear Raven's voice crack, tears are on their way she knows it. "I love you both so much," she says sniffing.
Raven adjusts herself slightly on the bed. She leans over Clarke's stomach to give Bellamy a kiss on the lips. He wipes the tears from her face with his sleeves, smiling back at her as she pulls away.
"Did either of you make a plan for tonight?" Clarke asks.
Bellamy shakes his head, "I thought we could just stay in."
"I like that idea," Raven agrees, giving him another peck on the lips.
Clarke pouts, "so you don't want to use the dinner reservations I got us to the French restaurant we ate at on our first date?"
She perks up when Raven smiles wide at her as she moves back over to her side of the bed. Clarke laughs as Bellamy and Raven each press a kiss to one of her cheeks.
"This is why you're my favourite girlfriend Clarke Griffin," Raven says proudly.
"You're definitely in my top 2 for favourite girlfriends," Bellamy teases.
"I have to say," Clarke starts, "I am pretty excited for those many, many more years you mentioned Bell. I'm going to love you both forever, happily."
She sighs contently when Raven brushes the hair out of her faces and kisses her forehead. All they need is a few less items of clothing and this anniversary will be perfect.
"I love you so much Clarke Griffin," Lexa starts speaking again, "I don't care if you forget our anniversary every year, I'll remember it for you."
Clarke leans in to kiss her, breathing in the scent of Lexa's perfume as their lips touch. Lexa takes a deep breath as Clarke pulls away and smiles at her. The moment has taken her breath away and she needs a minute to regain her composure. This moment, this view, nothing could make it more perfect.
"Clarke Griffin, will you marry me?"