A/N: First things first, my author notes are SPOILER FREE. I won't mention any specifics about Season 3! But you guys are more than welcome to send me messages and let me know what you thought in your reviews! I NEED to talk to someone about the last episode... O.O

Sorry for the slight delay, but midterms came up and I had to put writing on the back burner for a little while. But I got it done! And wow, this story is now a year old! It's crazy! I can't believe how far it's come in that time, although we still have a long ways to go and I'm looking forward to every moment of it.

Thanks to RosaSilvermist, Donny Donowitz, narelclollie, Bee-back and Erin for your reviews! And thank you to everyone who followed and favourited after the last chapter! The following for this story grows everyday! :)

Bee-back and Erin - your responses are at the bottom as always!

Enjoy!

Chapter 16

Another couple of hours went by before anyone of them dared to peek outside the cave and by that point Alex couldn't stop fidgeting; the feeling of being cooped up in such a small space becoming more unbearable to longer they sat there.

She couldn't wait to get out of this little hell-hole.

But the deathly, still silence outside the cave reminded her that it still wasn't safe to go outside.

So they stayed.

And they waited.

It was clear that she wasn't the only one impatient to get out of there: Charlotte continuously shifted in her spot at the back of the cave. Bellamy appeared to be the only one even remotely relaxed with their situation, arms folded across his chest, hands tucked under his arms, head resting on the cool rock behind him.

However, one thing they all held in common was how intently they were all listening, ears straining, trying to hear any sign that the danger had finally passed.

With a sigh, Alex once again ran her fingers over the same rough uneven patch of ground, for what must have been the thousandth time, feeling for any pebbles she could add to the growing pile at her side. The repetitive motion was soothing, keeping her mind focused on the moment, distracting her from this never ending situation that she found herself in.

You should have stayed at the drop ship... If you had, you wouldn't be stuck in a cave next to the one of the most confusing guys you've ever met.

The warm shoulder at her side reminded her that said confusing guy was still sitting patiently at her side, not seemingly bothered by the mind numbing boredom. Or her fidgeting. Or anything at all really.

Bellamy confused her. It was as simple as that. Pretty much from the moment they had landed he'd been abrasive and antagonistic, going out of his way to put himself in charge of the rowdy group of delinquents he'd landed with and making sure that everyone knew that fact. And anyone who argued with that fact would answer to him.

But he'd now saved her ass on more than one occasion. He'd stopped her falling to her death; stopped Murphy from beating the shit out of her to get her wristband. And now...he'd done everything he could to help her with her panic attack.

He even held your hands, for fuck's sake.

Frowning, she placed a new round pebble at the top of her pile, only to watch with disinterest at it rolled off, clattering onto the cave floor.

And he called you Alex…

Everything he'd done around her was a clear contradiction to the facade he presented to everyone else.

She didn't know what to make of his seemingly split personality. And thinking about it was going to give her a headache.

After comforting Charlotte from her nightmare, Bellamy had returned to her side, placing himself once again between her and the exit, his arm pressed against her own, and he'd been snoozing ever since.

At some point there waiting would have to end.

When the first sound a bird twittering echoed from outside the cave, all three of their heads snapped up to look towards the entrance, Bellamy and Alex exchanging a brief questioning look before turning to study the dimly lit gap in the rocks warily.

"You think…?" Alex asked, feeling marginally hopeful, trailing off at the obvious question.

Bellamy have shrugged in response, giving her an 'how should I know' look before pushing himself up into a crouch. "Only one way to find out." Before she could even breathe a word of protest, he'd ducked out of the entrance and into the bright light beyond.

"The idiot did even check…" She grumbled to herself, but leaned forward, listening intently for any sign of distress, any sign that he'd been wrong. But the outside was silent and she couldn't hear anything past the suddenly nervous flutter of her own heartbeat.

Come on, come on. Where are you?

After a pause, Bellamy's head suddenly popped in the cave, looking fine. "It's good," he said, eyeing her expression before smirking, looking mildly amused. "No need to look so worried, Evans," he said, and ducked out the cave again before she could reply.

The abrupt switch back to her last name gave her pause, and she felt surprised by the way her heart dropped at the change. Why would he call you Alex, it's not like you're even friends, she told herself, shaking her head to rid herself of the unexpected feeling.

"Arrogant, smug asshole…" She grumbled to herself, rolling her eyes, although the words lacked any heat. Pushing herself up, she glanced back to make sure Charlotte was following, then promptly ducked out into the daylight.

Blinking repeatedly to let her eyes adjust to the abrupt change in light, she breathed in deeply, relieved at the feeling of cool, fresh air brushing across her face. Taking a step out of the way to give Charlotte enough space to crawl out, she glanced back at the black gap in the rocks, unable to hold back the shudder that crawled through her.

"Let's never do that again," she stated to no one in particular, but Charlotte gave an enthusiastic nod in response, looking just as relieved to be outside the cave as she felt.

Stepping forwards, she came to stop besides Bellamy, glancing around the forest in front of them, looking for any sign that something was out of place. Although she didn't know what she was looking for - there was no sign the fog had ever been there in the first place. Everything looked...normal. The way it had been before they knew that the poisonous fog even existed.

Why would things be different? It's just fog.

While there was no sign of fog, there was also no sign of the rest of the hunting party either. No sign of Atom.

She swallowed hard when she noted that even the screams they'd heard while running had gone quiet. Everything was silent in the forest around them, save for the occasional bird which twittered overhead.

He was right behind you.

"Let's head back to the dropship," Bellamy stated, eyes hard - worried - as he looked out into the forest.

She shook her head, looking up at him. "We should look around and meet up with the others first find Atom. He- he can't be far," she said, dragging her teeth over her bottom lip as worry flowed through her. "He was right behind me."

Bellamy hesitated for a second before nodding. "Right. We can retrace our steps, keep an eye out for him and any of the others."

As he took the first step, Alex turned to look at Charlotte, who was standing closeby, gazing out into the forest with apprehension. Offering her a hand, the young girl was quick to grasp it, holding on tightly, looking nervously out into the forest.

"Ready to go?" Alex asked.

Charlotte nodded slowly in response. "Yeah…." She hesitated, "do you think the fog is gone forever?"

"I hope so." Alex gave her hand a small squeeze, and a half uncertain - half reassuring smile, before looking around. "I sure as hell hope so," she muttered to herself.

As they walked, there was a distinct nervousness about them, jumping at different sounds, startling when someone broke a branch underfoot. Alex didn't know if it came from wariness that the yellow fog would reappear at any moment and they weren't anywhere close to safety, or if it was because as they retraced their footsteps, there was no sign of any of the others.

They must have made it to safety. They have to.

Her eyes darted from the ground to the trees and back again, looking for any clue as to where they'd gone.

When her gaze landed on a patch of leaves that had been strewn about, revealing the moist soil underneath, she paused. Wait. There.

Charlotte followed her lead, stopping next to her and giving her a puzzled look, but Alex was too busy gazing around, looking for any sign of the other boy.

"Wait," she called to Bellamy, who was still moving ahead. When he turned and saw that they'd stopped, he made his way back to them, giving her a questioning look.

She motioned to the ground with one hand. "This… I think this is where I ran into Atom." Letting go of Charlotte's hand, she took a few steps back in the direction of the cave, looking for any evidence of when they'd split up. "He was still with us here," she mumbled as she drifted around, her eyes never stopped moving, jumping from patch to patch of ground. Charlotte was quick to follow suit, trailing in a slightly different direction to look around.

She missed the considering and slightly impressed look Bellamy gave her, before he sighed and took a lungful of air and cupped his hands around his mouth.

"ATOM!" He suddenly called out, and Alex whirled back toward him in fright, clenching at her chest, heart jumping into her throat at the unexpected sound.

She shot him a dirty look. "A little warning would've been nice," she groused at him. Although she'd have to admit that it was a good idea. Not that she'd ever tell him that.

When he caught her eye, he shrugged in response and called out again. "ATOM!"

This time there was an immediate reply. "BELLAMY!" Someone called out and they all turned towards the voice. Although Alex knew it wasn't Atom, relief washed through her that some of the others were okay.

Jones and a couple other guys crashed through the bushes, coming down the hill towards them. Despite looking dirty and exhausted, the three of them appeared unharmed.

"Jones," Bellamy said, sounding relieved as he stepped towards them. "Lost you guys in the stew. Where'd you end up?"

Jones motioned back the way they'd come. "We managed to find a cave up that way - holed up in there until that stuff cleared off. Heard you guys call out and came looking."

"What the hell was that stuff?"

Jones shook his head. "No idea, but it's nothing good."

They're wasting time.

"Look," Alex interrupted them, "can talk about what it was when we get back to the drop ship? Atom's still missing. So, could we please stop chatting and start looking?" She asked them pointedly.

"No one was talking to you, Evans." Jones instantly shot back at her and she had to roll her eyes.

"And I never said I was talking to you," she pointed calmly before turning to Bellamy. "Are you helping, or not?"

Bellamy nodded and turned towards Jones and the others, "Alright, spread out and look for Atom. We saw him som-"

A shrill scream cut him off. As one, they all turned towards it, and almost at the same time, Alex realized Charlotte was once again not anywhere in the group.

"Dammit." Without waiting for the others, she took off at a full sprint in the direction the scream had come from.

Damn that girl. She doesn't know when to stay close by. I swear she has a death wish.

The moment she stepped into the clearing, slowing to a stop near Charlotte, her gut twisted as if she'd been sucker punched by the sight before her.

Whatever she'd been expecting to find it hadn't been this.

The young girl stood only meter away from a downed Atom, staring at him in shock, eyes wide as she cried.

Alex couldn't blame her, she wanted to do the same.

Her brain automatically brought up a memory from long ago, one she'd all but forgotten. She could still smell skin burning, and she shuddered as her mind brought up the images of an old man. She'd been following him at work for the day, her curious eyes following skilled hands as he pieced things together. Things had happened so fast - his hand had accidentally caught against a welding rod. She remembered his gasp of pain, the skin red and raw, blistering and peeling away as he cradled it. The scars has been tremendous, even after Clarke's Mom had treated it.

But this was so much worse than that.

Every inch of his skin that she could see was covered in red, blistering welts. In many places the skin was split and weeping, clear yellow fluid slipping through the deep cracks. His eyes were open, although unblinking, his previously brown eyes covered in a milky white film. He wasn't moving. She couldn't even tell if he was breathing.

He looked dead.

It was only when Charlotte gave another whimper that he twitched, his head turning slowly towards the sound. Alex inhaled sharply.

Oh my God, he's still alive!

Alex didn't know if she should be relieved or horrified at the revelation. This wasn't like Jasper, whose injuries, while life threatening had been straightforward. Here there was nothing they could do - no bandage or ointments they could apply, no medication they could give him to sooth his pain.

She felt sick.

But we need to do something, we can't just leave him like this.

As Bellamy and the other's arrived beside her, she swallowed the bile that had risen up in her throat, and took a reluctant step forward, reaching out and gently pulling Charlotte away from him, grabbing her shoulders and turning her away from horrendous sight.

"Don't look." Her voice cracked as she nudged the young girl to move away.

"But…" she whimpered, staring up at her, her eyes wide.

"Charlotte," Alex cut her off, her voice weary. "Please."

When she finally got a nod in response, Alex stepped towards the fallen boy, slowly lowering herself to kneel down beside him. Her hands shook as they fluttered over him, not touching him, not knowing how to begin helping him.

She didn't know what to do. She was useless.

No, there is one thing you can do.

"Oh, Atom…" she breathed and being mindful of his injuries, reached down and grasped his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. She knew she'd made the right choice when his fingers slowly closed tightly around her own.

You can make sure that he knows that he's not alone. That's going to have to be enough.

"Son of a bitch. Atom," Bellamy said as knelt down on his other side, looking down at Atom as hopelessly as she felt. At the sound of his voice Atom let out a pained moan, turning his head towards Bellamy, but it was clear from the way his eyes flickered around that he couldn't see him.

"Be...Be…" Atom panted out, his chest seeming to rise and fall rapidly, each gasp for breath ragged and shallow, sounding like he was gurgling through water. Reaching out he blindly grasped at Bellamy's sleeve, clenching the material tightly in his fist when he made contact.

Bellamy swallowed hard. "Hey man. I'm here." He hesitantly reached out and lightly placed his hand over Atom's, looking uncertain, wary that he might be causing more pain. Atom didn't react at all, saved grasping Bellamy's jacket and pulling him closer. Bellamy was quick to oblige, leaning forward and bringing his ear close to Atom's mouth.

Atom took a few shuddering breaths before choking out. "Kill me. Kill...me."

All the air seemed to escape her lungs in a rush as Alex leaned back heavily on her heels, staring down at the boy in shock, trying to ignore the chill which rushed through her bones, the hairs on her arms standing on end.

He was asking - no, pleading - for Bellamy to end his life.

Eyes flicking up from Atom, they landed on the man who Atom had just asked to kill him. Bellamy was staring unblinkingly at down at Atom, jaw dropped, and for the first time since Alex had known him, he looked uncertain at the choice he had to make.

She couldn't blame him. Being asked by someone to end their suffering - to become a murderer - even to help them, even to end their pain was

Would he - could he - do it?

Atom choked, his chest moving rapidly with every breath, each one a ragged tortured noise that left no doubt in her mind that he was in pain. In a lot of it. And then his body seized, his eyes rolling back in his head, his entire body trembling.

Alex felt her eyes tear up, grasping his hand with both her own as she stared down at him, her shoulders tense, wondering which gasp for breath would be the last. If he would die in front of them before Bellamy had even had time to think things through. When the spasms subsided, she let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

"Please," Atom choked out, grasping at Bellamy's sleeve, "I….can't….breath…"

Those words were all it took to for Bellamy's uncertainty to waver and fade. He blinked, his expression hardening. Looking over his shoulder to where Jones, Charlotte and the rest of the group stood, their faces a mixture of worry and uncertainty as they looked on, he nodded. "Go back to camp," he ordered, voice firm.

Jones hesitated, glancing down to Atom before nodding reluctantly and turning to the rest of the group. "Let's go." He said, ushering them away. When they reluctantly began to move away, he shot them one final look over his shoulder, looking almost sad. Then they were gone.

All except for Charlotte.

The young girl was rooted on the spot, eyes wide as she stared down at Atom, her expression one that Alex couldn't quite place, but a swirl of unease rolled through her.

"Charlotte," Alex said softly, and Charlotte's gaze snapped to her, "go back with the rest of them."

Charlotte hesitated only a second, before nodding, but instead of turning and leaving like Alex expected her to, she took a few shuffling steps forward, gaze flickering from her, to Atom, to Bellamy. Coming to stop next to Bellamy, she blinked down at his kneeling form before reaching into her jacket pocket and drawing out a small blade.

Alex frowned, surprised when she held out the blade to Bellamy, noting his lack of surprise at the sight of Charlotte holding a weapon. Annoyance flared through her, when she recognized it as the one she'd seen Bellamy with earlier. When had he given her the knife?

Now's not the time. You can deal with that later.

Bellamy tentatively reached out and took the blade from Charlotte's outstretched hand, meeting her gaze with an uncertain look.

"Don't be afraid," Charlotte said, her words sounding much older than they should be for a twelve year old girl. Alex frowned as she watched her, wondering who exactly she was talking to.

Then she turn away and was gone.

Bellamy turned to her, carefully void of expression, but a flicker of something crossed his face, showing her that he was fighting back what he was truly feeling. "You should go with them."

She shook her head, looking down at Atom. "I'm staying," she told him softly.

He tried again. "Alex - " he began, but her eyes flickered up to meet his eyes, her expression serious and certain in her choice.

"I'm. Staying," she repeated firmly, hoping that her voice conveyed her determination to remain behind.

I'm staying for him. I'm staying for you. No one should have to go through this alone. Neither of you.

His eyes darted across her face searching for something before he finally gave a hesitant nod, his expression momentarily giving away to something thankful, some type of relief at the fact that he wouldn't have to do this on his own.

I wouldn't let you or anyone else do this by themselves. It's never easy to take a life. She thought, thinking back to the time when blood had covered her own hands. She'd made her own choice then.

Bellamy's gaze dropped back down to Atom, and he held the knife tightly in his grasp, slowly raising the blade towards his throat. When it was only inches from his skin, Alex held her breath, gripping Atom's hand tightly in her own.

But then Bellamy's hand shook, hesitation settling over his face, and he slowly dropped his hand onto his lap, leaning back and closing his eyes, taking a shaky breath. When he opened his eye and briefly met her own, she shot him a sympathetic and understanding look, but he was quickly to drop his gaze away.

It was as clear as day, Bellamy Blake wasn't a murderer.

It shouldn't be easy to take a life.

When Atom let out a strangled cry, they both flinched. Alex felt her heart sank as she stared down at him.

What are you going to do now? Will you be brave enough to take up the blade and do what needs to be done? Get your hands dirty one more time?

Before she could really begin contemplating her options - if she even had any - the crack of a branch caught both her and Bellamy's attention. Their heads snapped up to face the sound, only to find Clarke bushing past some branches as she stepped into the clearing, eyeing them both warily, before her gaze landed on Atom.

"Clarke," Alex breathed in relief. You coward.

"I heard screaming," Clarke said, explanation of how she found them.

"Can you help him?" Alex hurried to explain, "You….your Mom…" She trailed off as Clarke came closer, and she shuffled over, giving Clarke enough space to kneel down next to them. She kept a tight grip on Atom's hand, unwilling to give up the only piece of comfort she could offer him.

Any other words died in her throat when Atom seemed to notice the movement of Clarke sitting down and rolled his head to face her.

"Kill...me. Plea...se" He moaned, staring up at her, a tear trailing down from the corner of his eye.

Clarke was quiet a moment, but Alex instantly knew that there was nothing the other girl could do. Deep down she'd always known, but she had to hope that something could be done to help him. Her feeling was only confirmed when Clarke glanced up at her and Bellamy and shook her head minutely. Then she returned her attention to the injured boy, a soft, comforting look on her face.

"Hey," Clarke said softly, gently pushing back the hair from his forehead, just how she supposed a mother would do for their sick child. "I'm going to help you, okay? Just relax….Shh, there you go. Relax..."

Then she began to hum.

The pleasant sound filled the area around them, Alex finding the tune oddly comforting - a sound from a distant memory. Something faint, in the back of her mind.

When Clarke's other hand slowly reached out for the blade Bellamy held limply in his hand, her heart lurched in her chest. Bellamy could only seem to watch her numbly, handing the blade over easily.

She's going to do it….

Alex continued to rub soothing circles in the palm of Atom's hand, though her eyes couldn't seem to pull away from Clarke and the blade.

It was only when the blade first pierced the soft skin of his neck that she felt her breath catch in her chest. The blade easily sank fully into the tender skin of his neck. As his hand clenched tightly around her own, she gripped it back with everything she could, offering the only comfort she could. You'll be okay, you'll be okay.

Clarke continued humming as she pulled the blade out, hot blood gushing out over the blade.

Atom coughed and choked, eyes wide, his lips staining red as his life drained out from him and onto the forest floor below.

It's okay, you're okay. Don't be scared, you're not alone.

Clarke hummed, her hands trailing soothingly through his hair.

Then Atom gave one final gasp for air.

Everything went still.

The pained expression on his face slowly eased, the tension around his eyes slowly faded away, though his blind eyes continued to stare up through the trees, to the blue sky above. His hand relaxed in her own.

Alex let her eyes slide closed, tilting her head back, feeling the burn of tears and trying to will them away, but she couldn't stop the few that escaped, sliding down the side of her face. Opening her eyes to stare up at the brilliant blue above them, she hoped that wherever he was now, Atom was finally at peace.

May we meet again.

A/N: And so the death's begin - RIP Atom.

How was that? I hope I did this part justice. Let me know your thoughts, comments, questions! Thumbs up/Thumbs down? Please review!

Anon Responses:

Bee-back: Hello my friend! Thanks you as always for your review! I'm happy you liked the change to the cave scene, I wanted to give Bellamy and Alex some more (kinda) one-on-one time. Although it probably isn't the best scenario to get to know one another, the connection has now been made! :)
And I totally agree Jemima West is totally my ideal face claim for Alex, although it's super hard to find pictures of her blonde...grr. Oh well. What did you think of this chapter? What do you think of season 3? The shows really throwing some curveballs my way for what I have already plotted out...sigh. :)

Erin: Yay! A new reviewer! Welcome! Thank you so much for your review! :)
Thank you for saying to take my time to develop Bellamy and Alex's relationship. I'm trying to do my best at keeping it realistic, while also realizing that season 1 takes place over one month's time. It's interesting to balance too fast and too slow, but I love writing all of it! :)
Don't worry, while it might not happen immediately, their roles WILL be reversed, and Alex will do some Bellamy saving! You just might have to wait for the next piece of chaos to go by first! Muahaha. Thanks again!