Spencer Hastings was in a reflective mood.

She'd packed a lunch today so that she could stay in and work on a chemistry experiment for extra credit. At the moment, she was timing a reaction and looking down at the quad, where a few hardy souls braved the October winds, soaking up their last few days outside before winter hit full force.

Spencer reflected on the school year thus far. The blend of the three schools seemed to be going smoothly, overall. The attacks had stopped since John Murphy got expelled, and looking down at the huddled figures below, she saw more and more blending within friend groups. And there had been no appreciable effect on Spencer's class standing. The largest annoyance for her was that a junior from Arkadia, Octavia Blake, had been named captain of the field hockey team. But her other extra-curriculars should more than compensate for that, as she'd reassured her mother last week.

Spencer paused for a moment, checked the time, and then continued her introspection. Her thoughts wandered to her family. Melissa was in England, Peter had moved to the city, and Vanessa had been unapologetically absent from the house. Spencer had learned over the years to value solitude, but she thrived with a group to lead. She was more grateful than ever for her friends this year.

And there they were, among the handful of students on the quad. Hanna's blonde hair shone in the cold sun, and she could see Aria's brown locks peeking out from under a slouchy hat. From where Spencer stood, it looked like the two of them were huddled together for warmth. Lincoln sat next to Hanna, his arm draped casually around her back, and Paige and Lexa completed their little circle.

As she watched, Hanna told an extremely animated story, complete with big hand gestures. Hanna and Aria threw their heads back in laughter, and Paige laughed too, and Spencer thought Lexa and Lincoln's shoulders might be shaking a little too.

She checked the time and turned off the Bunsen burner, moving the reagents to a rack nearby. This time, when Spencer looked out the window, she had an angle into a small corner of the courtyard she hadn't noticed before, where two people were taking advantage of the relative privacy to, um, keep each other warm. Spencer actually chuckled out loud and shook her head as she saw long blonde hair and long black hair being whipped around by the wind. Emily and Clarke were currently running unopposed for "most adorable couple," at least in Spencer's unofficial poll.

Spencer returned to her original location by the main window. She saw a couple of people walking around the grounds, likely patrolling for the Safety Committee. Spencer wondered what was truly behind the decline in violence. Was it the efforts of the Safety Committee? Murphy's expulsion? Surely he couldn't have been solely responsible, though. Something bothered her about it, but she couldn't put her finger on it yet, and she mentally assigned it to the background of her mind.

She was hopeful about the Safety Committee, whether or not the patrols and mission statement were actually having an effect. And she was proud of a certain student representative…Spencer scanned the ground below, looking for Bellamy, but she didn't see him anywhere.

Then she heard the door open and a voice said, "Hey, Princess." Spencer smiled but didn't turn from her spot by the window. She felt strong arms encircle her from behind, lips pressing a kiss to her neck. "I thought I might find you here," Bellamy said.

She spun in his arms and kissed him. "Hi."

"If I didn't know you better, I'd think you were up here being a creeper and watching Emily and Clarke make out," he said. Spencer actually blushed a little at that and smacked him on the arm. "Hey!" he said, rubbing his arm. "I said if I didn't know you better. But you're probably doing some science thing, right?" She nodded. Bellamy grinned at her and kissed her again, then nuzzled her nose. "My little school nerd."

"One man's school nerd is another's Ivy League grad," Spencer said. "I feel like that's the same thing," said Bellamy, and she giggled into his chest.

Then she pulled back. "Hey, I was just thinking about you," she said.

"Oh yeah?" grinned Bellamy. "Thinking about some quality barn time?"

"No," said Spencer, smiling as he sighed in disappointment. "I was thinking about the Safety Committee and how proud I am of you."

Bellamy stepped back then, ruffling a hand through his hair and looking uncomfortable. "Yeah…about that. I told you it's not really my scene, and lately I just haven't been feeling it."

"Are you thinking about quitting?" Spencer asked, trying to sound neutral. Hastings were never allowed to quit anything, but she'd been trying to soften her approach with other people lately.

"Yeah, I guess," Bellamy said. "But…I like how proud it makes you, so…" He trailed off, looking down.

Spencer grabbed his chin and forced him to meet her eyes. "Hey." He looked at her, twisting his mouth a little. "I think you're awesome. You don't have to be on some committee to impress me, okay?" Bellamy nodded. Spencer continued, "Listen, I learned this the hard way. I dated this guy Alex, and we danced together once and it was pretty hot and then we broke up because I signed him up for tennis camp."

He looked amused now. "It sounds weird when you say it all at once like that," Spencer said hastily. "But anyway, the point is – don't change who you are to impress me. I like this Bellamy."

And then his lips were on hers again, and they kissed as he pressed her up against the windowsill, until they were both gasping for breath.

"Do you want to go to The Brew later?" Spencer whispered. "A few of us are going to hang out there after practice."

Bellamy groaned. "I should probably go to one last Safety Committee meeting. Tell them I'm quitting so they can find a replacement. Otherwise there won't be anyone from Arkadia there."

"See?" said Spencer. "How could I not be proud of you?" They stood there for a minute, just holding each other, until the bell rang and they both had to go to class.

Later, at The Brew, a little group formed. Emily was working, so she couldn't really hang out. Aria had gone to pick Ezra up at Hollis, and Hanna and Lincoln were sparring at the gym as they often did after school. Spencer was sitting by Clarke, thinking how good it was to hang out with her outside of school and field hockey practice. Raven was also there, Clarke's older friend who hung out with them occasionally, and Octavia and Caleb rounded out the group.

Spencer felt uneasy around Octavia for several reasons: she was even more intense than Spencer in her own way, she was dating Hanna's ex, and there was the whole field hockey captain thing. But Octavia was one of Clarke's best friends, and Clarke's friendship had become important to Spencer over the last couple of months, so she was determined to make an effort.

"So what's up with you and my brother?" Octavia asked, her arms folded across her chest.

Spencer grit her teeth. Maintain calm, she told herself, but Octavia's attitude just rubbed her the wrong way.

"I like him," she said simply.

"Well, he likes you too," said Octavia, "so don't screw it up."

"Okay," said Spencer.

Caleb laughed. "Good talk, you guys!" Octavia punched him lightly in the shoulder, and he grabbed her fist and pulled her into a quick kiss. "No hitting," he said, smiling against her mouth. She growled a little, but Spencer saw a smile in her eyes.

"Gross," said Raven. Octavia turned on her. "Oh, so if you don't have anyone to make out with, none of us can?" Raven arched an eyebrow at Octavia and opened her mouth to retort, but Clarke jumped in first: "Raven has a secret boyfriend!"

Now it was Raven's turn to whirl and face Clarke. "Dude!"

Spencer enjoyed watching the dynamic among the three of them. They were like a feistier version of her group of friends.

Octavia slammed both her hands on the table, making all of their coffee drinks jump. "What? Who is it? Tell us right now, Reyes – you know I have ways of making you talk."

Raven just groaned and rolled her eyes. "God, Clarke, way to go! Now you sicced the honey badger on me."

Just then, Emily came over. "No line at the register!" she said. "I'm taking a break." She sat on the arm of Clarke's chair, handing her a to-go cup and planting a kiss on her lips.

"Geez," said Raven. "Must be something in the coffee." She turned to Spencer. "You wanna make out, or what? These little punks are making me feel left out."

"Sure," Spencer laughed.

"Don't even think about it," Octavia said threateningly, pointing a finger at Spencer, who held up her hands in an 'I come in peace' gesture. Octavia smiled, and then said, "Hey, Bellamy said he's thinking about quitting the safety committee."

"Yeah, he told me that today," Spencer said. "He went to the meeting so they can start looking for another rep from Arkadia."

"Clarke!" Octavia said. Clarke looked up from where she'd been whispering with Emily, startled at hearing her name. "What'd I do?" she said.

"Safety Committee needs an Arkadia rep," said Octavia. "You should do it."

Clarke thought about it for a minute. "I don't know…" she said. "I'd be happy to, but is it weird if the principal's kid is on her committee?"

She looked around the table. Everyone shrugged. Emily squeezed her hand and said, "I think you'd be great at that!" Then she hopped up and went to the register, greeting a customer as he came in.

Clarke said, "I guess I'll talk to my mom about it." She turned to Raven. "Do you mind if we head home? She's probably home by now."

"No problem," Raven said. "I'm not working tonight, so I'm all yours."

"Great!" said Clarke. "You can come over for dinner." Spencer noticed that Raven paled a little at that, but she nodded as they stood up. "Come on, O," Raven said. Caleb pouted a little, and Octavia patted him on the cheek. "See you later," she said, standing and walking out just behind Raven.

Clarke leaned over the counter and whispered something to Emily, who blushed and tucked her hair behind her ear. Clarke kissed her one last time and followed her friends out.

"I haven't seen her do that hair-tuck thing in a long time," Caleb said to Spencer.

She looked at him, surprised. He noticed and laughed, a little sadly. "I used to be friends with you guys, remember?" he said. "And now that Hanna and I are both moving on…maybe we can be again."

Spencer smiled and said, "I'd like that."

Her phone buzzed – Bellamy. She said goodbye to Caleb and Emily, then walked outside to read it.

Told Principal G I'm quitting the committee.

ugh

She texted him back:

Still my #1 guy ;)

After a few seconds, she saw:

Good, I was hoping for top 10 at least

Can I come over?

Spencer blushed a little and wrote:

Race you there.

Next chapter: Clarke!