By the time everyone else was up, Isaac hadn't gotten any sleep. He had finished his box a along time ago, but he hadn't been able to sleep, instead lying down, tossing and turning restlessly while staring at the ceiling of his tent for hours. That is, until, early, early that morning, probably around two or three, the ground shook like a bomb had gone off and everyone was outside. Isaac pushed himself and padded out of his tent, glancing around to see most everyone outside.
"Bellamy, get out here!" Octavia yelled for her brother. Soon, the man in question was ducking out from under his tent flap, completely shirtless. Isaac's eyes widened and he flushed, looking away towards where everyone else was staring as Bellamy made his way over to where he was standing.
"They're coming to help us!" someone cheered. "Now we can kick some grounder ass!"
Isaac eyed the boy who had shouted as another girl, completely naked except for the blanket around her, stared up at the sky. "Please tell me they brought down some shampoo." Isaac grimaced as he realized what exactly had kept Bellamy from coming out right away.
Bellamy stayed silent, and Isaac glanced at him briefly to notice that nervous look on his face. He wondered; why would Bellamy seem bothered by the fact that they Ark was sending people down? If it was simply because he didn't want his reign to end, Isaac doubted that would be the issue considering that the delinquents seemed to like following his lead and would most likely just continue doing so, even with Ark officials on the ground.
Bellamy looked towards him, catching Isaac staring. He raised his eyebrows at the boy but said nothing else, instead pointing to a tent near the drop ship which was the designated 'meeting tent'. Isaac grimaced, jogging towards the tent. "Isaac!" someone called, and the boy turned to see Octavia coming towards him. He stopped to wait for her, a small smile on his face at the sight of his friend.
"Hello," he greeted her, a bit formally, and Octavia raised her eyebrows at him.
"Hey," she said. "Have you seen Clarke or Finn?" she asked, seeming worried.
Isaac opened his mouth, frowning at the ground as soon as the question was asked. "Are -are they not in camp?" he asked nervously.
Octavia shook her head. "No one can find them," she told him.
Isaac only needed to think for a moment before his brain came to an answer. "I think I might know where they are," he grumbled, Octavia noticing how bothered he had become.
Hesitantly, she asked him, "Do you think you could go and find them?" she asked. "I want them to come along to the pod with us."
The curly haired boy nodded, shoving his hands into his pockets as he turned away. "Yeah, no I can do that," he sighed, making to start walking when Octavia stopped him.
She looked at him for a moment before a tiny smile began to play at her lips. "You like her, don't you?" she asked.
Isaac cleared his throat, shaking his head. "I don't know who you're talking about," he muttered, trying to walk past her. Octavia stopped him again.
"You know damn well who I'm talking about," she told him. "Clarke, Isaac." Isaac began to blush, looking away in a sad attempt to hide it from the girl in front of him. He ignored the pain in his neck as he did so, biting the inside of his lower lip out of nerves. Octavia smirked triumphantly. "I knew it," she giggled.
Isaac furrowed his eyebrows, hunching his shoulders a bit as he glanced at her. "Yeah, well, there's nothing that's going to come out of it."
"What do you mean?"
Isaac scoffed. "If you noticed me, then you certainly have noticed that Clarke and Finn have undeniable chemistry. Or they seem to think so, at least."
Octavia sighed, giving Isaac a sympathetic look. "And if Clarke is anywhere near as smart as everyone thinks she is, she'll realize that right now she's aiming for the wrong guy," Octavia said. "Isaac, you're probably the smartest guy down here besides Monty. You're sensitive and adorable, which girls love, by the way, and you're not too bad on the eyes either. Trust me, Clarke will fall at your feet someday."
The taller boy stared at Octavia for a moment, before breaking out of his trance and shaking his head. "I doubt it," he sighed, before turning back towards the exit of the camp. "I should really go find them," he mumbled, gently pushing past Octavia as he made his way out of camp.
Isaac walked through the forest a bit angrily as he searched for Clarke and Finn. His footfalls were heavy on the ground and he knew that if there was anyone out here, they would definitely hear him, but he didn't care. He scoffed at himself; what was he, twelve? But the more he thought about it, the more his emotions seemed reasonable. He couldn't choose who he liked, who he felt for, it just sort of happened. He hadn't just woken up one morning and decided he was going to get a crush on Clarke, that just wasn't how it worked. But when people talked about it to him when it was unwelcome, pressed on the subject, tried to convince him that Clarke saw him the same way when the way she chased after Fin told everyone otherwise, that was when he began to get angry.
He looked up when he heard a twig crack, his eyes suddenly wild with rational fear. If it was a grounder, he had no means of protecting himself. He clutched the box tighter in his hand as if he were to use it as a blunt weapon, but he had no need. Clarke emerged from the trees, a look of surprise on her face as she looked at Isaac, who had his arm half-raised as if he were about to hit her. Her hair was messy and she was wearing a different shirt than she had been a while ago, one that looked a bit too big on her. "Isaac," she breathed, sounding relieved. "I thought you were a grounder."
Isaac managed to crack a grin for her, the bottom of his teeth showing off. "Hi Clarke," he smiled a bit awkwardly, and suddenly his hands were sweating as his thin fingers ran over the cover of the small box. "Um, how -how are you?" he asked politely.
Clarke grinned widely, a dreamy look on her face that left a hollow in Isaac's stomach. "I'm great, actually," she sighed. "How about you?"
Isaac searched his mind for an answer. "I'm okay," he said finally. Drawing in a breath, he took his hands from behind his back and revealed the box. "I actually, um, I brought you something." He held out his hands as Clarke tentatively reached out, taking the small project from him. It was about the size of two fists, consisting of roughly cut sticks tied together tightly (yet it was evident that it had been done a bit clumsily) with bits of grass and vine, and Isaac had even managed to somehow rig the cover to flip up and down with out coming off completely, almost like a tiny treasure chest. With a knife, he had carved C.G. in his blocky lettering on the wood cover.
He teetered back and forth nervously, switching between his right and left foot as he anxiously waited for a reaction. It took a moment, but after examining it Clarke's face lit up like a light in the dark forest, and she looked up at Isaac. "This is beautiful!" she said, glancing down at the box.
Isaac flushed, a sheepish smile making it's way onto his face. "I, um, I thought you could use it. To keep stuff that's special to you -you know?" He stuttered over his words a bit, but managed to catch himself before it got too bad. "Like, that watch you always wear, or something from Earth or I don't know, like maybe even just a piece of cloth or something I mean or if you don't want to use it... that's fine t-"
"Isaac," Clarke cut him off softly with a careful smile. Isaac pursed his lips, scolding himself for beginning to ramble. "Thank you."
A grin broke out on the curly boy's face and he began to beam at Clarke. "I'm glad you like it," he admitted happily. Clarke smiled back, her gaze going back to the box in her hands.
Suddenly Finn burst through the trees, a dopey smile on his face. "Hey, Isaac," he blurted, seeming surprised to see him. Isaac nodded in his direction, quickly noticing the ruffled hair and his shirt, which seemed to be on backwards. The taller boy was suddenly glad it was nighttime, because neither of the two in front of him noticed how drastically he paled. His eyes shifted to Clarke, whose hair was equally as messy, and then his eyes traveled to the unfamiliar shirt. He swallowed the lump in his throat as he turned back to Finn, yet again thankful for the dark forest.
"Your shirt is on backwards," he squeaked. It felt like all the air had been forcefully pushed from his lungs. While he'd been back at camp, sitting alone in his tent Clarke and Finn had been out, together, having the time of their lives. The curly haired boy swallowed with difficulty, as for some reason his mouth was suddenly very dry.
"Oh, thanks," Finn chuckled, pulling his arms inside the cloth and fixing it. Clarke blushed and smiled at him before turning to Isaac. He seemed to know what she was about to say, shaking his head.
"I -I won't tell anyone," he mumbled, his voice thick. Clarke furrowed her eyes in concern, taking a step closer.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
Isaac nodded quickly, and though his fidgeting hands told her otherwise, Clarke chose to let it go. "I'm just tired," Isaac blurted out an excuse, feigning a yawn. His eyes stung and he blinked fiercely, shaking his head at himself. He should have seen this coming. Of course Clarke would go for Finn; the hunkier, braver, more confident and funnier of the two. They were hardly friends, but that's how Isaac was thinking of it. It was just a fact that people would always choose Finn over himself. The long haired boy had all of the aforementioned qualities, while Isaac was awkwardly tall and quiet and more lanky, and definitely not as confident.
He'd been foolish to think otherwise.
"Look at what Isaac gave me!" Clarke exclaimed, and Isaac frowned to himself as Finn took the box in his hands, looking it over. He seemed impressed, and suddenly he was looking back up at the curly haired boy.
"Hey do you think you could make one of these for me?" he asked. "I've got some stuff but I don't have anywhere to put it."
Isaac's jaw dropped open for a split second before he forced it closed again and screwed his eyes shut. "I -I don't know..." he trailed off. "It took me pretty long to-" he took a breath, "-to make this one, I don't really, um, I don't know if I have that amount of time anymore."
Finn nodded, handing the box back to Clarke. "Yeah, no it's fine," he said, and Isaac sighed in relief. "Just a question."
Isaac pursed his lips as his lower lip twitched in a threatening way, and the burning sensation behind his eyes came back. Inhaling sharply, he turned away from the two teens who were now staring, love struck, at each other. "I'm going to go back to camp," he muttered, his hands digging themselves deep in his pockets. He began to walk ahead of the two, and it wasn't long before he heard them behind him.
* * * * *
"Looks like everyone's up," Finn said as they entered camp, and Isaac couldn't help the way his shoulders tensed at the words.
Isaac watched as a girl with long brown hair walked over to them. Her name was Molly, if he remembered correctly. "Did you guys see that?" she asked, a grin spread wide across her face. "You know it's from the Ark, right? It had to be."
"Well, grab your stuff," Clarke said. "Let's go find out."
Molly leaned back on her heels, puckering her lips as she looked thoughtful for a moment. "Bellamy said we're waiting until sunrise," she pouted.
Isaac craned his neck, his eyes scanning the camp. "Where is Bellamy?" he frowned when he didn't see the self-proclaimed leader. Biting his lip, he made his way towards his tent. He opened the flap, stepping inside and expecting to see Bellamy -but instead was met with a topless (but thankfully, wearing a bra) girl. Isaac's mouth dropped open as he slapped a hand over his eyes, blushing furiously. His ears were warm as he heard the girl scoff at him.
"Ever heard of knocking?" she asked, though she didn't seem that bothered by his presence. He heard the tent flap open behind him, and suddenly the girl groaned. "Great, now it's a free for all."
Isaac kept his hand over his eyes as he tried to look in the direction of the girl. "Do you know where Bellamy is?" he asked nervously.
"He took off a while ago," the girl replied.
Finn sighed from behind Isaac. "His gear's gone."
"He told everyone to stay," Clarke realized, and Isaac imagined the wide eyed look on her face. "Whatever is in that thing, he wants it. We have to get there before he does."
Her and Finn left the tent right away, but Isaac lingered behind. "Thank you," he blurted, ducking out of the tent and taking his hands off of his eyes. He turned, quickly spotting Clarke and Finn and rushing after them, not wanting to be left behind a second time that day.
"-isn't your fault, Clarke," Finn was saying. Isaac nodded, in agreement, even though the blonde couldn't see him.
"I should have known he would go for the radio," Clarke scolded herself.
Isaac almost reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, but anxiety rushed through him for a moment and he pulled back quickly. Instead, he opted for words. "How could you have possibly known he would do something like that?" he asked.
He had been trying to reassure her, but he had seemingly done the opposite, giving the girl another reason to blame herself. "Because he's spent every single minute since we've landed making sure no one on the Ark finds out we're alive."
"That doesn't mean you have to predict what people are going to do," Isaac told her.
"That's exactly what I have to do," she snapped, the tall boy recoiling at her harsh tone. He had just been trying to help. "I screwed up. Let myself get distracted."
Isaac winced as he thought of when he stopped her in the woods. He knew that wasn't what she was referring to, but he couldn't help but feel guilty. If he had waited and simply walked back with them, would they have caught Bellamy before he left?
* * * * *
By the time they were nearing the river, the sun had begun to rise and they were out of breath, but they were forcing themselves to push on. "Should we split up?" Isaac suggested tiredly.
"Yeah," Finn agreed. "You two go that way, I'll take this path." The three nodded at each other before Isaac and Clarke split off from Finn, heading right.
The pair hurried down to the riverbank, and it wasn't long before Isaac caught a glint of metal in the corner of his eye. "Clarke!" he blurted, turning in the other direction. No words needed to be spoken as the two raced towards the pod, which was smoking ever so slightly. Clarke rushed towards the door, yanking it open. She looked down before suddenly something caught her eye, and she looked up, shock written all over her face. "Clarke?" Isaac called, confused. He walked over to her, sticking his head under the door as well.
He blinked at what he saw; a pretty girl who looked to be maybe around his age, possibly a year older, with partially dried blood dripping down the right side of her face from a wound behind her hairline. She was in a space suit, and was staring at Clarke -but her gaze shifted to Isaac once he emerged. "I made it?" she said, though it was phrased as more of a question than a statement. Isaac nodded, a smile on his face.
Together, he and Clarke helped the girl out of her shuttle and out of the space suit, which she was thankfully wearing clothes under. The girl stepped onto the uneven ground, her feet slightly wobbly as she stared up at the sky, spreading her arms as she spun around (it was a major cliche, but Isaac found himself thinking it was a perfect reaction for the moment) while grinning. "Ahh... I dreamed it would smell like this," she smiled, laughing at the sky. She suddenly looked down at the water gathering on her arm, and glanced to Clarke, her fingers aimed at the sky. "Is this rain?"
Clarke smiled, nodding at her. "Welcome home," she said, and Isaac glanced down at her. It seemed like it had been a while since Clarke had last had that look of hope in her eyes. There was something about her demeanor during this particular scene that made it seem like she, too, was on Earth for the first time, experiencing rain and the crunch of leaves beneath her boot and the pine-smelling air that she didn't have to worry about wasting. The glow was something that added to her confidence, and Isaac couldn't help but think she looked beautiful.
Suddenly Finn emerged from behind the overgrown bushes, and his eyes widened as his gaze became fixated on the new arrival instead of Clarke. Isaac watched his actions; the relieved sag of the shoulders, the jaw dropping, the eyes that seemed too happy for someone he was just friends with. "Raven!" he called, slowing to a stop a few yards away from her.
The girl, Raven, halted her giggling as she looked down back at the Earth at the long haired boy. "Finn!" she squealed, laughing in pure joy as she launched herself at the boy. Her hands curled around the sides of his face and his hands went to her waist as they stood there, taking each other in. Isaac drew in a sharp breath, biting his look to glance at Clarke again. There was a shaken expression on her face, replacing the one of innocence he had just seen moments ago. "I knew you couldn't be dead," Raven sighed, staring at Finn lovingly.
Finn's wet hair slapped the side of his face as he turned to look at Clarke for a split second before turning back to Raven, a concerned look on his face. "You're bleeding," he observed, and Isaac narrowed his eyes at the boy.
"I don't care," Raven told him, and before Isaac could look at Clarke again she was pulling him close, and the two teens watched helplessly as their lips collided.
A/N: THE ADORABLE PART WAS IN THIS CHAPTER WITH THE BOX OMG I CRY ALSO I READ THE BOOK SERIES FOR THE 100 AND I HAVE SO MUCH TO SAY BUT I WONT BECAUSE HONESTLY I COULD WRITE AN ENTIRE BOOK ON MY OPINIONS MUCH LESS AN AUTHORS NOTE BUT OMG IT WAS SO GOOD AND YOU NEED TO READ IT EVEN THOUGH IT IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE SHOW ITS AMAZING AND YOU WONT CARE BECAUSE ITS GREAT