A month had passed since Clarke had confessed to Bellamy. She'd never felt so free as she did after telling him about her past. A weight had been lifted from her shoulders allowing her to finally give in fully to her feelings for Bellamy and to the rest of the group. They all noticed the shift in her, but didn't ask about it. She didn't think she'd ever tell the others what had happened in her past, but it didn't seem to matter as much. It was part of her, but didn't control her anymore.
She and Bellamy had put the final touches on the house including fixing up the guest bedroom with a new coat of paint and fixing the hardwood floors. Bellamy had finally convinced her they needed to hire someone when it came to the restoring the deck out back to which she grudgingly agreed to.
"Thanks for convincing me," Clarke was leaning against the back railing of the deck admiring the finished product. Bellamy was leaning against the sliding door jamb smiling at her. "They did a great job."
"They did. You should have a house warming party," Bellamy pushed off the door jamb and headed in her direction, taking her in his arms. "Show the place off. Maybe invite your mom for a long weekend?"
Clarke looked up at Bellamy with surprise. Ever since she'd left New York, she had been getting better. This move had been exactly what she needed, but while she was getting better and more happy than she'd ever been she missed her mom more than she'd thought she would.
"I love that idea," Clarke leaned up to kiss him and hugged him tightly. "And I love you for suggesting it."
"Making you happy makes me happy," He pressed a kiss to her temple.
Two weeks later, Clarke walked into her kitchen with her arms full of groceries. Bellamy was following closely behind her with two cases of beer. He placed them carefully on the floor of the pantry then turned to help her unload the groceries.
"Does your mom have a ride from the airport?" He placed the hamburger meat in the fridge then grabbed the lettuce and put it in next.
"She and Marcus are renting a car," Clarke handed him the tomatoes next and smiled. "They said they might take a day to drive to Portland."
Bellamy and Clarke finished putting the groceries away together. Clarke then started frantically running around the house making sure everything was perfect. Bellamy just stayed back and smiled. She'd already done this twice today, but having her mom and stepdad coming to her new home after everything that had happened was a big deal. Especially when he'd been practically living here the last month. He'd never felt like this before and going home didn't seem that exciting anymore.
"Princess stop. Everything looks great," He pulled her away from fluffing a pillow for the third time and cupped her jaw. "She's going to be proud of you."
"I just hope she forgives me for leaving," Clarke played with the buttons on his shirt nervously.
"She will. Especially after she's sees you," Bellamy smiled down at her. "Your mom loves you and no matter what happened in the past you're still her daughter. That trumps everything."
"Damn," Clarke leaned back and wiped her cheeks. "You sure know what to say to a girl."
Bellamy shrugged in embarrassment. He had grown up with a sister. Knowing what to say to a girl was the norm for him. About 20 minutes later a car pulled up into the driveway and two car doors slammed. Clarke muttered "here we go" to herself and opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch. Bellamy stood behind in the doorway, waiting to be there however she needed him to be.
A man with dark hair spattered with gray and a thick beard across his jaw was pulling a medium sized suitcase from the trunk of a sensible sedan. He was wearing jeans and a sweater. A woman pulled a purse from the passenger side. She had long light brown waves that fell down her back and was also wearing jeans with a t-shirt and jacket. She glanced hesitantly up at the house then saw Clarke and her smile immediately brightened.
"Clarke!" She rushed up the front steps and hugged her daughter tightly. "I've missed you baby. How're you doing?"
"I'm actually doing better mom," Clarke smiled. "A lot better than I was back in New York. A lot of that is because of Bellamy."
Clarke's mom studied Bellamy as he stood in the doorway. Clarke reached for his hand and he stepped forward, wrapping an arm around her back.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," He held out his hand which she grasped firmly. "I'm Bellamy Blake."
"It's nice to meet you Bellamy. I'm Abby and this is my husband Marcus," She introduced the man waiting over her shoulder. He nodded at them and smiled warmly at Clarke. "Thank you for taking care of my little girl."
"Mom," Clarke replied with a roll of her eyes.
"It's been my pleasure. She's fit right in around here," Bellamy said.
"Do you want to see the house mom?" Clarke asked to which her mom nodded.
Clarke gave her mom a small photo album to take with them on the tour. Each page was a picture of what each room looked like before they renovated it. She took them both on a tour of the house with Bellamy following. When they'd finished, she and her mom sat on the sofa in the living room.
"Sir would you like to help me get the grill started? Our friends will be here soon and they'll be hungry," Bellamy asked Marcus. He knew Clarke wanted some time alone with her mom before everyone arrived.
"I'd be happy to Bellamy," Marcus nodded in appreciation at Bellamy and followed him out to the deck.
"Bellamy seems like a lovely man Clarke," Abby gripped Clarke's hands and smiled. "And the house is great. You two did a good job."
"Thanks mom," Clarke smiled. "I know that coming here and not telling you about it seems crazy. But I was suffocating in New York which seems impossible considering the size. No matter where I went all I could see or think about was Wells and what happened. I'll always feel responsible for what happened, but with the renovations to the house and Bellamy and the friends I've made here I'm finally starting to accept what happened. And I'm ready to move on with my life."
"You needed a fresh start," Abby pushed Clarke's hair behind her ears. "I'm sorry I didn't see that. I'm glad you found what you needed here to help you."
"The guest room will always be ready for you and Marcus. I want you guys to come visit as often as you'd like," Clarke reached for her mom and pulled her into a hug. "I missed you mom."
"I missed you too," Abby hugged her daughter back tightly. She could see the change in her and now knew that she'd never have moved on if she'd stayed. She needed to leave in order to heal.