“It’s just over here.” I told Bellamy, wearing only my undergarments and carrying my clothes.
Bellamy himself had put his pants and boots back on, weary of wandering through the forest without some safety measures. However, I loved the feel of the Earth between my toes; and I felt safer at night that I had during the day. Grounders had to sleep too, didn’t they?
The pool of water was only about a half kilometer from the glowing forest, and if you looked hard enough and the moon was covered, you could even still see the glow. The algae in the pool that I had found in one of my searches for water had a glowing feature as well, revealing the depth and width. The hue was more purple than blue, and it looked like it was moving when you touched the water and caused ripples. I removed my small amount of clothing and slipped into the liquid that, with the algae, looked like some strange drink people drank before the Cataclysm.
“Are you sure there is nothing in there?” He asked wearily, “Octavia was attacked by something in the river.”
“This is a tiny pool, seven feet deep and six feet wide, nothing can hide in here.” I confirmed.
“It’s a bit cold for swimming,” He cautioned.
“It’s heated, probably a hot spring, which are common up on mountains.”
“It’s late…” He added.
“Get in the damn pool.” I growled, reaching my hands up to pul him in, but he stepped back with a smile on his face.
Pulling his boots and pants off, he slipped in stark naked next to me.
The water in the pool rose as Bellamy got in, the both of us making the water level rise as we took up so much space. There was hardly any room to move, so we were pressed close together, just as I had wanted. My legs wrapped around him again, but this time it was more… lovingly than intimately. We had only had sex ten minutes earlier, and I wasn’t going to have sex in water; it was a risky action, and both Bellamy and I needed some time to recover from our recent endeavours.
Looking into his brown eyes, I studied them; along with the darkness of the night, there was a blackness in his eyes that I couldn’t overlook. What was the cause of the ferocity that he always seemed to harbour? There were many possibilities; the death of his mother, the temporary losses of his sister, losing the Grounder, shooting the Chancellor. The possibilities were endless.
“Tell me something.” I said after a few minutes of utter silence.
“What?” He asked, wading in the water slightly, basking in the warmth
“Anything.”
“Nothing in particular?”
“Just something… Need to get something off your chest, or just… something.” I suggested, “I want to know you better.”
“I’m nothing special.”
“You went to great lengths to ensure your sister was safe, more than once.”
Bellamy half smiled. “My mother tried to kill her once.”
“That doesn’t surprise me.” I said, “Anyone crazy enough to have two kids on the Arc is bound to act out sometime.”
A frown formed on his lips this time, “I walked in and saw her leaned over Octavia with a pillow, she was only a toddler… If I had been seconds later, she could have died.”
“You’re the best big brother she could ask for.”
“She might say differently.”
“She loves you Bell…” I told him, “She’s a pain, but I’ve heard that siblings are.”
“Tell me something.”
I shrugged my bare shoulders, “My parents were typical… boring jobs; my mother a food server and my father a trader. Both began to steal and when they were caught, they were floated. I was only twelve at the time, but I had developed a love for drawing and my neighbour was a tattoo artist, and he took me in, trained me.”
Bellamy jumped right into telling me something else, “I was going to leave today.”
“You did leave…” I said inquisitively.
“I thought, since the Exodus ships are coming soon, that leaving would be my only chance at living. I didn’t think I would be pardoned for my heinous crime, and decided leaving would be the best chance I had. I had this plan earlier, formulated in my mind that you and Octavia would come with me, but it didn’t play out that way after… after the Grounder.” He explained.
I wanted to shout, or to cry, but instead I took a few deep breaths and calmed myself; I had almost lost him once today, I wasn’t going to do that again. “You don’t have to go anywhere, Bell, Earth is ours. We were promised to be excused of our crimes, and now we are. A little patience is all that you need.”
Silence.
“What changed your mind?” I asked him nervously.
“After the hallucination, which is a fuzzy memory now but I do recall it being terrifying, Clarke saved my live and told me that she… everyone needed me.”
I eyed Bellamy with slight distrust in my heart, “Clarke needs you?”
“Not like that, Ava.” He replied quickly.
“She’s lost Finn… She’s lost Wells…” I began, “You’re the only other person I’ve seen her trust.”
“You’ve never struck me as the jealous type.”
“I’m not.” My tone was sharp, “You’ve slept around, I’m not an idiot. But Clarke she’s… She’s beautiful.”
“You’re beautiful, Ava.” He reached his wet hand up, water droplets falling from his dark skin, “I don’t look at Clarke like I look at you.”
A smile formulated on my lips; his words felt authentic and I wanted to believe them. I had to trust Bellamy; he was the only person on this planet who had made me dizzy and feel like a youth again. So much had been taken from me in the years, family, dignity, a home, freedom, and being on Earth gave me all those things again and then some.
“Bell, I…” The words danced on my tongue, aching to reveal my feelings to him, but they faded into oblivion when footsteps rushed around us; numerous footsteps.
Dramatic title, I know...
Okay, so I have a challenge for you guys; I don't want to dedicate a chapter to every person who likes the odd chapter, or has had very little interection with this story. So, I am going to post some questions below, and I want you to answer them in either the comments or a personal message. Everyone who responds (within a reasonable time frame, if in a few months someone comments, the story will probably be finished by then and I can't dedicate) will get a personal message from me, and will be added back onto the dedication list!
1. Favourite Chapter and why
2. Least Favourite Chapter and why
3. What you want to see more of
4. What I could improve
5. Your honest opinion on this story as a whole
6. Opinion on Ava
7. Opinion on Ava and Bellamy's relationship