Promise me - Jasper Jordan

35

I wake up slowly, raising my hands to rub in my eyes softly. I yawn, enjoying the feeling of not needing to wake up but simply being able to stay in bed a couple minutes more. I hear some shuffling inside the tent, I try to ignore it. After a moment I can't help it and open my eyes.

"Happy Late Birthday!" I frown at the two boys with my sleepy morning eyes. They walk over to me and sit down on the selfmade bed which I was sleeping on just moment ago. "Yesterday, when Raven and I blew up the bridge, it was the seventh of October, we kept track." Jasper explains.

"But you're present wasn't ready yet so-" I stop them.

"I never said I wanted a present. You didn't have to, how did you even get one?" They laugh at my confusion. Monty reaches inside his pocket and holds up a necklace which has a heart-shaped pink-colored stone inside with wire wrapped around it a little. "What, how?" I ask.

"I found the stone when I went to the river with some people to get water." Jasper explains. "It wasn't a perfect heart but with a little shaping I made it almost perfect."

"Then I wrapped the wire around it and connected it to some string we had laying around and Boom, necklace." Monty adds, I look at the two of them a smile plastered on my face.

"You guys are crazy, you didn't have to. What if the Grounders came and we all died, then this would've been for nothing." I tell them.

"Firstly, we really had a lot of fun making this, even Raven helped after she figured it was for you and got some oil to make it shine more." Jasper explains, taking the necklace from Monty and putting it around my neck, closing it behind me.

"And second," Monty continues. "You have given us presents all the time as well." I smile, remembering that. "You put new glasses in Jasper's goggles when they broke and you gave me that super cool digital play thing, which Jasper and I have used so many times."

"I think that was once called a gameboy or nintendo or something." I reply, not fully remembering the name.

"Whatever it was, it was gold." I smile. "You are genuinly the bestest friend we could've asked for, whenever we need you, you're there. So, we wanted to show you that by handing you our heart."

"Good thing you didn't actually cut open your chest and handed me your hearts." I tell them, cringing at the thought of how Jasper explained it.

"That would've been bloody, you've seen enough blood already over the past weeks." Monty adds, I laugh. "But we'll definitely keep it in mind for next year."

"How does it feel being seventeen?" Jasper asks, I give him a goofy look.

"You guys are older than me, you turned seventeen on the Ark. Shouldn't you know how it feels?"

"She's right, I'm almost eighteen." Monty says, Jasper stops him.

"Oh Hell no, you're birthday is not until June, and mine is literally a month later, shut up." Jasper tells him, I laugh.

"Thank you for being the friends I needed and now can't live without." They smile and hug me again, we get up, walking outside the tent. It's a beautiful day today, and nothing can ruin it.

"Happy Birthday, Malin." Raven says, running up to me and hugging me. "You like the necklace? You should keep the stone in sunlight and see what it does." I frown, walking up to the sunlight that shines in camp, I stand underneath it.

The light pink color changes into a bright red one, reflecting the light coming from above. I had never seen something so cool, and I probably wouldn't understand how it is possible but I didn't ask, if glow forests were possible than this was real too.

"This is absolutely amazing." I whisper, looking down at the jewelry Jasper, Monty and Raven created. "Ya'll, this is probably the best birthday ever."

"You deserve it, and it's our job to make it better every single year." Jasper replies.

"We're just ignoring the fact that her birthday was yesterday?" Raven asks, making me laugh when I turn towards them.

"Hush." Monty replies. "See that smile, it tells you that it doesn't really matter when it was, okay?" Raven shakes her head laughing.

"What can I say, Raven? I have two very impressively idiotic friends."

"Don't get me there." She replies. "I'm gonna get jealous." I chuckle, running up to them and hugging them again now. Loving the feeling of them so close to me.

***

I'm sitting right outside of camp, enjoying a moment by myself. I wanted to think about things, remember some of the people I used to know, be thankful for still being alive.

"Dad?" I ask softly, holding the heart stone in my hand as if I'm praying. "I honestly don't know if you are alive or not, but-" I take a deep breath. "If you're not, maybe you're with mom. Maybe you keep an eye out on Wells with Jake, Clarke's dad. Maybe you're happy." I look down.

"I know I am." I add. "For the first time in a while, I'm genuinly happy. And I hope, that somehow maybe someday, we can see each other again and talk. Doesn't matter if that'll be on Earth or maybe up there." I swallow, rubbing my sweaty hands on my pants.

"You know." I jump slightly, turning around and looking straight at Jasper. "You really shouldn't be out here without a gun." I nod, turning back to the forest. Jasper sits down next to me. A moment in silence passes, I look at him, his face lit by the sunlight that shines through the leaves. He's Godly almost. "Take a picture, it'll last longer." He turns to me, I blush lightly. "Cute."

"What is cute?" I ask curiously. He strokes a bit of hair behind my ear to reveal the blush better.

"That is cute." He says, pointing at my cheeks. "The rosy color you always get whenever I catch you staring at me."

"You noticed that?" I ask, a little panicked. Jasper chuckles and nods, not trying to hide how amusing he finds this situation. I wanna dig a hole and sink under the ground.

"I used to catch you staring all the time in the Ark." I look away, processing this newfound information. Instead I search for something to change the topic to.

"Why did you hide me in your closet when you and Monty got arrested?" He hums, I look at him, his thinking face nothing but gorgeous.

"Because I didn't want you to be arrested. You didn't smoke anything, you just kept watch in the hallways. If anything you didn't deserve to be caught."

"And now the real reason." I tell him, he laughs, turning to me.

"You know me very well." I smile softly. "If you got arrested, then we wouldn't be able to see each other anymore, now you could come and visit. I would miss you too much if I didn't see you." That's really sweet actually.

"How come? Am I not just some random best friend you happened to stumble across one day?" I ask jokingly but Jasper shakes his head, a serious expression on his face.

"The day we met was the best day of my life." I stare at him, his eyes sparking in the sun. "I really like you, Malin. Like a lot." The smile on my face growing. "Like more than friends if that makes sense, jeez, is it warm here? I think it's warm, well of course you're hot but I meant as in act-"

I cut him off by placing my hand on his cheek and planting my lips on his. An electric feeling burst through me, as if a thousand butterflies who had been locked up for two years are finally free. My heart pounds in my chest, skipping beats every now and then. It's electric, it's magical.

We pull away and stare at each other for a moment, a heavy blush on both our cheeks and I guarantee I can see Jasper's heart beat against his chest and I bet he can see mine do the same.

"Well, I change my earlier opinion. This is the best day of my life." I smirk at his remark, resting my face on his shoulder while laughing. He's right, this is the best day of my life too.