Hey babes! Back with another chapter for ya! Things are really starting to get rolling now, so I hope everyone's prepared.

Enjoy!

*October 17, 2020*

Skipping down the front steps of her house, Clarke can't keep the smile off her face as she approaches Finn's truck sitting against the curb, the engine still running. She immediately opens the door and climbs inside, leaning over to kiss Finn's cheek. "Hi."

Finn smiles back at her, sliding his phone into his pocket. "Hey. Happy early birthday."

"Thanks." She pulls the door closed and settles back in the seat. "It still sucks that you can't come to my party tomorrow. I was really looking forward to you being there."

He sighs. "I know. But my cousin really needs me. We're pretty close, so I'm the one she usually turns to when she's having any kind of trouble."

"No, I get it. When am I going to meet this mysterious cousin of yours, though?" she asks him, clicking her seatbelt into place and relaxing back in the seat. "You always talk about her but I have yet to get to talk to her."

"Soon," Finn says a little too quickly for her liking, though she brushes the feeling aside. "You'll get to meet her soon, promise."

She nods once. "Good."

Finn settles back in his seat and pulls the truck away from the curb, flipping on the radio as he makes his way onto the main road.

"So," Clarke speaks up after a quiet moment, "where are we going?"

"Thought we could go grab a bite to eat first and then figure out what to do after that."

Her lips slowly start to pull down. "You didn't...you didn't plan anything out?"

He shrugs. "I figured you could decide what we do since it's your birthday"

"Oh. Okay."

He glances over at her. "Whoa. You're not mad at me, are you?"

She shakes her head. "No, I'm not mad. I just...I thought you'd have planned something out because you won't be at my party tomorrow. But it's okay. I'll think of something." She shifts a little in her seat, her brows furrowing together. "Hey, do you have any Tylenol or ibuprofen?"

"No. Why would I have that?"

"Just wondering. I haven't been feeling too well the last couple of days. Mostly just cramps."

Finn shifts a little in his seat, his face pinching together. "Right. Well, uh, sorry. Do you want to go back home if you're not feeling well?"

"No, I want to spend the day with my boyfriend." She reaches out and grabs his hand in hers, holding it tightly and giving it a small squeeze while smiling softly. "Whatever we do, it'll be perfect because we're doing it together."

.

.

.

Glancing behind her, Clarke lets out a heavy sigh for what feels like the hundredth time that day. Finn is lingering a few feet away, his head bent and his phone pressed firmly to his ear. It's been this way since they stepped inside the local art museum, though this is his first time taking a phone call.

At first, when she saw him lingering behind at whatever piece of artwork they'd been looking at, she thought hopefully that he was just taking it in for a little longer and truly admiring it. But she quickly realized he wasn't doing that. That he was most likely spacing out.

Turning back to the painting she'd been admiring, she waits somewhat patiently and hopes that Finn will join her soon enough. Yes, this day is for her because it's her birthday weekend, but she was hoping that her boyfriend would at least participate in the activity she picked for them to do together. She doesn't think that's too much to ask.

"Sorry about that."

She barely glances over at Finn as he joins her in front of the painting, his hands tucked into the back pockets of his jeans. "Was it important?"

"Huh?"

"Your phone call," she clarifies. "Was it important?"

He shifts on his feet, clearing his throat. "Uh, yeah. It was just my cousin, confirming that I'm coming to see her tomorrow. Are you having fun?"

She nods, her lips pulling in tight. "Yeah. Tons."

"You don't sound like you're having fun," he mutters.

"I don't?" She turns toward him, arms folding across her chest. "Well, maybe that's because my boyfriend hasn't actually been spending any real time with me today while we've been here."

He shrugs. "An art museum wouldn't have been my first pick."

"You told me to pick where we go," she says through gritted teeth, keeping her voice low so she doesn't disturb any of the other people around them. "When you picked me up I asked what the plan was and you told me that I got to pick where we would go. I at least thought that you'd try and have a good time."

"Well, I'm sorry that I don't find all of this as interesting as you do. It's just a bunch of people putting paint on something and they get famous for it. It's not that impressive."

Her eyes go wide. "Not that—Are you serious? You do realize that I'm planning on becoming an Art major, right? That I'm going to be doing stuff involving art for the rest of my life? That you're basically telling me that what I plan on doing for the rest of my life is worthless?"

He rolls his eyes, turning toward her. "I never said it was worthless, Clarke. Just that I don't see the appeal to it like you do. I mean, yeah, some of it's kind of nice, I guess. But it's not really my speed."

She sighs heavily. "I don't care if it's not your speed, Finn. I'm not asking you to be as into it as I am. But I was hoping you'd at least take some interest in it while we're here, that you'd maybe ask me questions about the pieces or what I like about them. Things like that. We're on a date, we should be spending time together."

"Okay. I'm sorry." He shifts a little more on his feet. "Uh...what...what do you like about that piece right there?" he asks, gesturing to the painting.

Her eyes narrow at him. "It's too late for that."

He lets out a heavy breath. "I'm sorry, Clarke."

"Yeah. Well, I'm actually getting kind of tired now, so can you just take me home?"

"You don't want to stay a little while longer?"

She shakes her head. "No. I want to leave."

He nods, pulling his car keys out of his pocket. "Okay."

Turning on her heel, Clarke marches out of the exhibit and toward the front lobby of the museum to go out to the parking lot, not even bothering to check if Finn is following her. She does her best to move quickly and quietly so she doesn't draw any unwanted attention. And she's praying that no one saw her and Finn's argument just a moment ago. That's the last thing she needs right now.

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.

.

Stepping into her bedroom, Clarke pushes the door closed behind her and drops her bag onto the floor. Pulling out her cell phone as she falls onto her bed, she debates for a moment who to call so she can vent. There are only a couple of people she knows will just let her vent without making a big deal or getting distracted by something else.

Finally deciding on who to call, she scrolls through her contacts and then hits 'call' when she reaches the right number. She holds the device to her ear as she waits, thankfully managing to keep her tears at bay, not wanting to overwhelm her friend over the phone.

"Clarke?"

"Hey, Harper. You busy?"

"Not really. What's up?"

Clarke shifts on her bed, scooting up until she's lying against her pillow. "I just wanted to talk."

"And you didn't call Bellamy? I'm shocked."

Clarke laughs quietly at the teasing lilt to Harper's voice. "No, I didn't call Bellamy. I uh, I don't think he'd be particularly interested in the subject of conversation."

Harper lets out a quiet gasp. "Wait. Weren't you supposed to have your birthday date with Finn today?"

Clarke sighs heavily, her eyes drifting up to stare at the stucco ceiling above her. "We went out. And it was...not as great as I had hoped it would be."

"What happened?"

Clarke frowns. "He didn't have anything planned, Harper. He told me to decide where to go. I shouldn't have had to decide that. The only thing he had planned was getting food. But even then we only went to Subway."

"Wow. Even Monty took Jasper to a nice restaurant for a birthday dinner."

Clarke nods. "I know. What makes it worse is that when we went to the museum, he wasn't even with me the whole time. He kept lingering behind, not even paying attention to any of the art that was there. I was so excited about being there because there were some new exhibits I hadn't seen yet, but he was just so…disconnected from it all." She lets out a frustrated huff of air, her head tilting to the side to look at the photos she has pinned to her wall of her and her friends from over the years. Most of them are of her and Bellamy, though there are a few with Octavia, a handful with Nate and then Harper, even Jasper and Monty. And only a small amount with Murphy because he refuses to be photographed. (It's a miracle when his photo makes it into the yearbook). And of course, there are all the group shots taken over the years at various birthday parties, holiday parties, and other events.

She looks back at the ceiling and sighs heavily. "I think Bellamy has spoiled me."

"I'm not arguing with that. But I want to know how you finally came to that conclusion."

"Because he's always so tuned in to what I'm thinking or what I need. Like the other day on our way to school, I was having pretty bad cramps, but I forgot to grab some medication from the house. Bellamy had a bottle of ibuprofen in his car. How many times have you seen Bellamy use ibuprofen?"

"I could probably count it on one hand."

Clarke pulls herself up on her bed so she's sitting with her back against her headboard. "And, to make matters worse, whenever Bellamy lets me pick where we go to hang out, it never feels like he's doing it because he didn't plan something and he always asks questions and engages with what's going even if it's not really in his wheelhouse. Finn seemed so checked out most of the day, and he didn't even care to ask any questions about the art."

"I'm sorry you're dealing with this. I wish I could do more to help you."

Clarke sighs heavily, running a hand through her hair. "It's okay, it's not your fault. I just...I shouldn't prefer spending time with Bellamy over spending time with Finn. Finn's my boyfriend and I love him."

"But Bellamy's your best friend," Harper points out. "Aside from me, of course. You've known him since you were, what, six?"

"I was almost six. He was almost seven."

"Right. So, you've known Bellamy for a decade, have spent pretty much every waking moment with him doing stuff you love. You've known Finn for about a year and have been dating him for almost that long. You haven't had as much time together with him as you have with Bellamy. I think it's only natural. Bellamy just knows you better."

Clarke nods along. "Yeah, you're probably right. I just need to give Finn more time to get to know me and all the things I enjoy. Even though we've been together for almost a year, so he should know most of this stuff by now. But then again, we go to different schools, so it's a little tougher to spend as much time together as I'd like us to."

"See? There you go. You just have to give him some more time. Maybe talk to him about it the next time you see him. You two are good together, Clarke."

Clarke smiles. "Thanks, Harper. It's always nice to get a second opinion. And you're a great voice of reason, too."

"Glad to help wherever I can. Also, while I've got you, what time is your party starting tomorrow?"

Clarke's brows furrow just the slightest as she thinks. "Um, around two or so? You can just come over wherever, honestly. We're not doing anything too crazy this year."

"Sounds good. Monty, Jasper, and I will probably get a ride to your place together."

Clarke smiles. "As per usual." She takes a deep breath. "I should actually get going now because I have a few things I need to check over for the party before I go to bed, but I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

Pulling the device away from her ear, Clarke ends the call and plugs her phone into its charger, setting it down on the nightstand next to her bed. She lets out a heavy sigh as she rolls onto her back and stares up at the ceiling once again.

As far as birthday weekends go, this one's not starting out so great. She's much more confident that tomorrow is going to be a lot better. For one, Bellamy's going to be there and she always has a good time when he's around. And all the rest of her friends are going to be there too, meaning it's going to be even more fun. She could really use that right about now.

So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Until next time,
Jellybean96 out!