RYDER ▸ BELLAMY BLAKE

18 | reunited

He rolled his eyes, nodding his head and leading me out of the medical tent. Jackson knew that I was not going to give in and the understanding that passed between us made me smile. I just wanted to be surrounded by my friends.

Raven stood outside the tent, talking to Clarke. She held onto a makeshift crutch, her leg bandaged up. "Ryder," she gasped, pulling me in for a hug. I admit, we didn't get along for the longest time but everything was changing now. Everything included my relationship with Raven. It was only when we were stuck in Mount Weather did I realize that if we couldn't live together, we were going to die alone.

I couldn't let that happen. I knew who my friends and enemies were and Raven was a friend.

"Hey," I softly smiled, hugging her tightly. "I missed you." I didn't think those three words would ever come out of my mouth and be directed towards Raven Reyes. Stranger things had happened, though.

After pulling away, my eyes diverted to her leg, cast in a brace to help her walk. I didn't question it; I couldn't.

The clamoring coming from the front gate became louder, catching our attention. "Go, I'll catch up," Raven ushered us, allowing us to walk in front of the group, a few yards away.

My eyes caught sight of a familiar curly mop of dark hair and tears welled in my eyes. "Is that–" my voice cracked as I glanced at Clarke, who was also teary-eyed and emotional. She nodded her head, squeezing my hand before pushing me forwards slightly, making my boots scrape along the gravel.

This caught Bellamy's attention, seeing as he looked up, catching my eye. His breathing hitched and for a moment, we just stood yards away, looking at one another. Though I'd prayed I would see him again, I had grown to accept the improbability of that.

Nothing felt real, not even when Jackson told me Bellamy was alive and well. Nothing felt real until he was standing right in front of me, in a blue t-shirt with cuts and dried blood decorated his face, bits of twigs and leaves stuck in his hair.

My feet started leading me to him before I could control it, breaking out into a sprint until my body crashed into his and my arms wrapped around his neck. The tears in my eyes leaked once again, this time more intense. They streamed down my face as I buried my head in the crook of his neck and his strong, long arms wrapped around my body.

He took a deep breath, squeezing me tightly as though he never though it would be possible again. He leaned back just a bit, peppering my face with kisses mixed with his own tears. I reluctantly backed away, looking up at his face.

I took in every little detail, memorizing the subtle changes. I rubbed the tears away until his hands grabbed mine, kissing the back of it.

He dropped my hand then, cupping my face and craning his neck down to press his lips to mine. At that moment, it didn't matter that we were both covered in dirt and dried blood or that we both had cuts on our faces and tears in our clothes. What mattered was that we were together.

The kiss, though it may only have lasted a few seconds, felt like it lasted an eternity. It was all I had been waiting for. The familiar feeling of butterflies in my stomach was one I didn't think I'd ever get again.

"Hi," I mumbled when we leaned back, pushing myself back into his body. My arms wrapped around his torso as my head leaned against his chest.