The One Who's Fallen

Chapter 64

I begin exploring the bunker by opening a door. It's a pretty big closet with a bunch of old clothes. That could come in handy for the hundred.

That thought stops me dead in my tracks. Shit, the hundred. Float me, they're down here. I can't ignore the panic rising up in me and walk back to Lexa, who's resting on the couch. She opens her eyes and sits up when she sees my face.

"What is wrong, Clarke? Is it something in this bunker?"

"No." I say, anxiety swirling in my stomach as my brain goes over everything that could be going wrong over there. "It's the hundred. Lexa, they're here."

"We know that. What has made you so worried?"

"Our people may have contacted them. I need to talk to them first. I was one of them, I can-"

Lexa takes my hand and I let out a shuddering breath. "Our people will follow my orders. The hundred will be observed, but not talked to. They wouldn't dare defy an order from me."

I nod and some of the worry and anxiety bubbling up in my chest fades. "Yeah. I know. I just worry. I know what they're going through. They were sent down here by people they thought they could trust to a place where no one knew if it was habitable or if it would kill them. When I first was contacted by our people, I was terrified. I thought you were out to kill me, like the Ark people were. They won't see us as other people that live on earth. They'll see us as inferior. They're used to technology like what the Maunon have. To them, we may seem like savages."

"Then we will change their minds." Lexa murmurs gently, squeezing my hand. We're silent for a moment and then she speaks again. "When you go to them, I would prefer for you not to be alone. I can settle for some hidden warriors in the trees, or Anya and Luna by your side..."

"I want you to come with me." I say, answering the question she was too hesitant to ask. "Not only are you the head honcho of our people, but you're also my girlfriend. As long as you want to, I'd like you to come with me."

"Of course." A smile breaks out on her face. "What made you think of the hundred?"

"There's a closet full of old clothes like the kind we had on the Ark. We should mark where this place is so we can find it again. It probably has other useful supplies."

Lexa nods. "Did you finish looking around?"

"Uh, no. I just went in the closet and then came out in a panic." Man, there are so many good jokes I could make here.

Lexa gets up slowly from the couch, pulling on my hand for support. I wrap an arm around her shoulder and let her lean against me to stay upright.

"I would like to explore this place with you. What did you call it?"

"A bunker."

I show her the closet and she wrinkles her nose in distaste at the clothes. I guess they're not really her style, especially after being kidnapped by the Maunon. We move to the next door and open it. There's a dining room with a kitchen.

"I'll check out the kitchen, maybe there's actual food. That hopefully didn't expire a century ago." I suggest. "You can sit down, you look really pale."

Lexa doesn't protest so I lead her to a chair at the large table. I press down on the seat with my boot. It doesn't crumble into dust or break. I help Lexa sit down and she props her head up with her hand. She looks absolutely exhausted. Alright, then. We'll eat, find the bathroom, then go to bed.

I ignore the fridge. Everything in it is probably rotting. I can only imagine the amount of dead flies that are in there. I go to the pantry instead and grimace. It looks like rats got into the crackers and stuff. But the cans look untouched. I brush the dust off of one, holding my breath but I still end up sneezing.

It's somehow still good and I resist the urge to victoriously throw my fist in the air. I set it down on a nearby counter and look through a few more cans. Most of then expired before my grandparents were born but a few are still good. I look through the cabinets next, shuddering when I see some tiny rat bones and cobwebs so old they're gathering dust. This is so nasty, I almost wish I had gloves that aren't fingerless so I wouldn't have to touch anything. I pull out two plates and rub the dust off with my sleeve.

I turn on the sink and let the water run. It's a disgusting rusty color right now, but hopefully that's just the old piping and it'll get clear soon. I pull out two cups and set them aside to rinse out once the water's better. I bring the plates to the table, setting one in front of Lexa and one at the spot next to her.

I goring over the cans that aren't expired next and pull out my knife. I open them, wrinkling my nose at the smell of the food. It's definitely not as good as what I've gotten used to. I dump slightly more than half on Lexa's plate and the rest on mine. I do that with three cans. I set them aside and we eat in silence. It's not completely terrible, it just tastes like it was in a can for a century.

We finish quickly because we were both so hungry. I put the plates by the sink and am pleased to see that the water is mainly clear. I rinse off the plates and cups. I fill the cups after they look less grimy and chug one as I bring the other to Lexa. She drinks it quickly as well and we both let out a satisfied breath.

I help her up again, though she does seem a bit stronger now after eating and drinking. Next order of business, finding a bed. At this point, I'd be fine sleeping on the dusty floor.

Next chapter will be the clexa cuteness probably! And they'll finally sleep. Thank you all for reading and for your incredible comments! Stay awesome!