The next day:
Bellamy woke up to sun shining in his face. He wasn't quite sure where it was coming from, but when he rubbed his eyes, the blurry figure of a younger boy standing at the entrance of his tent came into vision.
"Hey Bellamy are you coming? Everyone is waiting."
"Yeah, just give me a damn second." He snapped.
The boy was drawn back by what he saw. He had dark bags under his eyes like he hadn't slept at all, which thanks to the continuous pounding beneath his skull , he hadn't.
"Are you good man?" He asked.
As things became clearer, he could see the boy peering at him with both worry and horror.
"I'm fine," he said. "Just give me a minute. I'll meet you guys at the gate."
As much as he had hoped that sleeping would make his head headache go away, it hadn't in the slightest. Instead, it had brought along some unwelcomed partners in crime; a blocked nose, an aching chest, and chills that he just couldn't shake. He didn't have time to get sick. Not with the attack basically at their feet.
He let out a few coughs before slowly standing up, stumbling slightly in the process. Everything was fuzzy and he had to blink repeatedly to get his eyes to even somewhat focus. He searched around his tent for his jacket longer than he should have until he realized that it was on him. Even with his jacket, he was freezing. He wished he could bring his sleeping bag with him for extra warmth, but that would only draw unwanted attention to him that he didn't need at the moment. He grabbed the handle of his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. It felt like it was filled with rocks instead of hunting equipment. He stumbled out of his tent and made his way to the gate. Some of the other campers gave him weird looks but he ignored them.
"Sorry I'm late."
"Jesus Bellamy you look terrible." Were the first words out of Clarke's mouth.
"Good morning to you too."
His voice was raspy and congestion was seeping into his words. Clarke raised her eyebrow.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine."
His nose said otherwise. A sudden tickle crept up on him, causing him to bury his face in the crook of his arm and let out three sneezes. He punctuated his triple with a wet sniffle and wiped his nose on his sleeve.
"Yeah clearly." She scoffed.
"Allergies." He said blankly.
His throat was on fire and the last thing he wanted to do was talk. Without another word, he walked past her and out beyond the gate. Clarke gritted her teeth as she lead the others beyond the walls of their camp. He was so stubborn and defiant. She didn't know how he wasn't arrested sooner on the Ark. She reluctantly caught up to him while the others trailed behind her. She could that tell that he was in a bad mood so she kept her distance from him while they hiked through the woods.
"I see something over there." Clarke said.
They all looked over to see something furry running swiftly through the woods. Bellamy aimed his gun and shot at the animal. His foggy mind and watery eyes caused him to miss every time. Clarke pulled out her gun out without hesitation and got it on the first try. The others went to check on the animal and prepare it to be brought to camp while Bellamy stood back. His eyes glossed over and his breath started to hitch as the need to sneeze took over his body again.
"Nice shot." Clarke joked.
Bellamy braced himself against a tree as his body doubled over from a fit of powerful sneezes. A sharp pain shot through his head and for a moment, the world around him began to spin. He closed his eyes and continued to hold onto the tree in fear that he might fall over. After a few second, he finally got his bearings and looked back up, only to find Clarke's eyes burning into him.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Clarke asked.
"I'm fine," He said coldly. "Don't you have other things to worry about?"
She bit her tongue to keep from starting a full blown argument with him. It was obvious that he was sick. There was no doubt about it in her mind. As much as didn't really care about him being sick, he need to rest. He also needed to keep himself away from the other kids. The thought of another epidemic was terrifying and not something that they could afford.
"I do actually," she finally spoke up. "If you're sick, you need to keep it to yourself and not infect the others."
"Well good thing I'm not."
His words were harsh. They had a certain punctuation to them. He was bitter as it was, but for some reason it seemed to be intensified today. She could also here congestion in his voice.
"Go back to camp. We'll take it from here."
"No. I told you I'm fine. Stop pushing it."
"I told you to go back to camp. End of story."
She was not backing down. There was no way she was going to risk the lives of the others simply because Bellamy was too prideful to admit that he was sick. She was not having it. He went to say something, but one of the older boys from the group stepped forward and gave him a stern look, as if to say that if he did anything other than do as Clarke said, they would have problems. Bellamy rolled his eyes and left without another word.
"Don't touch anyone or anything on your way back," He stopped walking and for a second she thought he was going to put up a fight, but instead he turned his head to the side and let out another wet sneeze.
"And for god sakes Bellamy cover your mouth."
He flipped her the bird before trudging back to camp alone. Luckily he didn't have far to go. To be honest, he was thankful that Clarke sent him back. As soon as he got away from them, he realized how much his entire body ached. His head, his chest, his limbs. Every single inch was in some sort of pain. All he wanted to do was curl up in a ball and sleep until whatever was attacking his body ran its course and left, but he knew that that was only a dream.
He made it to the gates of the camp and was let in without having to say anything. His head hung down as he made his way to his tent, the sound of quiet murmurs swirling in the background. He knew the kids were watching him. He never came back early from hunting, specifically alone and without anything in his bag. Anger was evident on his face and they knew better than to say anything to him.
After what felt like forever, he made it to his tent and crumpled to the ground, barely making into fully inside. He was suddenly so weak and could barely find the energy to take his boots off and get into his sleeping bag. He somehow managed to do so and snuggled into the synthetic material before immediately falling asleep.
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He spent the next three hours in his tent, trying desperately to get some sleep to try and make his headache would go away, but the noise outside plus the constant sinus pressure from the congestion made it nearly impossible. He had no idea what time it was when Clarke came barging into his tent or why she was even there. He pretended to be asleep in hopes that she wouldn't bother him.
"Hey how are you feeling?"
He didn't respond. His back was facing hers so luckily he couldn't see her facial expression.
"You're sleeping In the middle of the day?"
She joked. "That's very out of character."
He still didn't say anything. After their argument in the woods, he had nothing nice to say to her and found it best to just not say anything at all. Without hesitation, she kneeled down and placed her hand on his forehead. She felt the immense heat radiating under her palm and sighed.
"Jesus Bell you're burning up."
He quickly swatted her hand away.
"I'm fine."
"You are clearly not fine. Stop saying that."
"Leave me alone."
"Shut up and stay here."
And with that she was gone. He knew she was coming back, he just wasn't sure when. Hopefully never. He was not in the mood to deal with her anymore. He tried to settle back down into his sleeping bag, but Clarke came back quicker than he expected or wanted.
"Open."
"No."
"Stop being stubborn and just open your damn mouth."
He rolled over onto his back and finally looked at her, reluctantly opening his mouth. Clarke placed the plastic thermometer that she had gotten from the first aid kit into his mouth. While she waited for it to give her an answer, she looked him over, studying his features. His normally tanned face was pale and she could see small beads of sweat at the base of his forehead. His cheeks glowed with a rosy red hue and even his chapped nose was started to turn the same shade. There was no doubt in her mind that he was sick, and when the thermometer finally beeped, her suspicions were confirmed.
"100.7" she said aloud, more to herself than to him.
"Just leave me alone." He growled.
He rolled back over to where his back was once again facing her.
She bit the inside of her cheek as she pondered on what to do. Sick Bellamy was even worse than normal Bellamy. She knew that if she kept persisting, he would just blow up on her like he always did. She also knew that regardless of what he wanted, he needed help.
She decided to back off and leave him be, although she would still keep a close eye on him. She watched him shuffle in his sleeping big for a moment before she stood up and left his tent without another word.
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Octavia walked through camp with a bag of dried meat and berries, keeping her eyes focused on Bellamy's tent as she made her way towards it. She had no interest in interacting with anyone other than him.
Hey," She said as she pulled back the tent flap. "Clarke told me to bring you some food."
"I'm not hungry." He muttered.
His back was still against the opening and he made no attempt to turn around. Even from the opening, she could see that he was shivering.
"You need to eat." She said firmly.
"I said I'm not hungry."
She rolled her eyes and placed the food next to him before taking a seat.
"I know you're sick. There's no denying it, and you're only going to be able to avoid Clarke for so long."
"I don't need either of you looking after me," He growled. "Or bothering me."
"I'm your sister. Both of those are my job."
She said with a slight chuckle.
In reality, it was Bellamy's job to look after Octavia. She couldn't look after anyone or anything to save her life. Her intentions were always good, but were often misguided.
"Yeah well not today," He pushed the food away from him. "You have to eat something."
"I already said I'm not hungry. Just leave me alone Jesus Christ."
He winced, the words stabbing his throat as they left. They hurt him just as much as they hurt her. She was used to his attitude, but his harsh words still stung. All she wanted was to be useful. She wanted to be needed by someone. She was trying so hard to be a productive member of the camp. She was learning to how to hunt and fight and heal. She was doing her best, and yet it felt like it wasn't good enough. Hell, it wasn't even good enough for her own brother.
"Fine. You can suffer alone. It's what you're used to anyway." She said as she stormed out of his tent, throwing back the tent flap as if she were slamming a door.
He was never happy to see her upset, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't happy that she left. All he wanted was to stay isolated in his tent until the illness went away. He was tired of people annoying him.
He sneezed and groaned as he burrowed deeper into his sleeping bag, desperately trying to find warmth even though there wasn't any left. He rolled on his back and let out a few wet coughs. It was moments like these, which were few and far between, that he missed being on the Ark. At least they had medicine and a warm bed, the two things that he was longing for in that moment.
He closed his eyes and imagined himself back in his bunk. Back before Octavia was arrested and back before his mom was floated. He remembered his mom caring for him whenever he would get sick, which unfortunately was quite often. His immune system had been subpar since day one, but his mom was always there. Every stomach bug, sinus infection, even the flu; no matter what it was, she was by his side the entire time. Even Octavia, being a child back then, would try her best to help. Now he had no one. His mom was dead, his sister was a bitch, and Clarke was no where to be found. Sometimes he wished that he didn't have such a bad habit of pushing everyone away.
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It was the middle of the night when the sneezes attacked him. One after the other after the other. No matter what he did, the itching wouldn't stop. He tried desperately to stifle them, but he could only do so much. He didn't want to draw any attention to himself and with no real walls between him and the others, he had to be as quiet as possible to avoid this. He was able to stifle two sneezes and make them mostly silent. It hurt so bad to do so and it only made the tickle worse. He just wanted to sleep, but his nose had other plans.
He muffled another sneeze into his sleeping bag, although it was still pretty loud. He had loud sneezes to begin with so that coupled with being sick just made them even louder and harder to control. He needed to blow his nose but with nothing to use as a tissue, he settled for wiping it on his jacket sleeve once again. This act was only making his nose more raw and irritated, and not to mention that both of his sleeves were now soaked. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on not sneezing. For a few minutes he was actually successful and for a moment he thought he would actually be able to fall back asleep, but a burst of strong sneezes crept up on him without warning. The forceful sneezes threw his body forward into an almost sitting position and each one sent a wave of pain throughout his entire body. A painful moan accidentally escaped as he laid his head back against his pillow.
"Bless you," Bellamy looked up behind his cupped hands to see Clarke standing in front of him. Usually he would've shooed her off, but he didn't even have the energy. "How are you feeling?"
His head was still spinning from being vigorously thrown around and he couldn't get his eyes to focus. He started up at the girl standing above him. The voice sounded like Clarke. Hearing it was oddly refreshing for once.
"Like shit." He admitted, congestion completely smothering his voice.
She really did feel bad for him. She had laid awake for the last hour battling insomnia and listening to each painful sneeze rack his beaten down body. It wasn't until the last fit that she finally decided to get up. She wanted to give him his space. She tried so hard. She knew he didn't want her to mother him, but she just couldn't take it anymore. He needed her help, even if he would never admit it.
"Let me check your fever again."
She repeated the same process that she did earlier and this time she got an even higher reading.
"102.1. It's getting worse," He responded by suppressing a few coughs and sniffling. "I'll be right back."
And just like earlier, she was gone again. It took a little bit longer for her to return, but this time when she did, her hands were full. She placed everything on the ground in front of him, but he couldn't quite make out what she had through watery eyes. She began pouring strange looking liquid from different vials into a cup and mixed it up with her finger.
"Take this."
"What is that?" He raised his eyebrow.
"It's a remedy that my mom taught me."
He was going to question her, but he wanted to feel better so badly so he took the cup from her and drank it in one swift gulp. It tasted awful and sent him into a violent coughing fit that didn't subside until Clarke handed him a cup of water. He took small sips in between bouts of coughing and was eventually able to get them to slowly fizzle out.
"That was absolutely disgusting," he coughed a few more times. "It better work."
"It will, trust me. My mom wouldn't lie to me."
He was caught off guard by Clarke placing a cool cloth on his forehead. It felt amazing against his burning skin.
"That feels nice. Thank you."
The fever must've been making him delusional because that was the first time Clarke had ever heard him say thank you to anyone, specifically her. She had to admit that it was a welcome change. Maybe sick Bellamy wasn't as bad as she thought.
She accidentally made eye contact with him and even though she would never disclose it, she blushed. There was just something about him being in such a vulnerable state that made her heart skip a beat. Maybe it was the fact that he always acted so tough, so to see him like this, was almost like seeing a new person. A kinder and softer one. One who, deep down, just wanted to be loved and cared for, the things that Clarke enjoyed doing the most.
"You're welcome. I hope you feel better."
Her words weren't harsh like they usually were towards him, and he could tell that they were genuine. She had planned on just going back to her tent and keeping an eye on him from there since she would still be close enough to hear him, but as she tried to leave, Bellamy reached his hand out and pulled her back by her arm.
"Will you stay with me?"
At first Clarke thought he was joking. She looked down at him and he gave her a pathetic puppy dog look. Something about it lit a small fire inside of her frozen heart. She knew that she wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon so she might as well stay to look after him. She sat back down next to him and he smiled.
"Thank you."
This was the second time that he had said thank you in a span of maybe five minutes. The world must've been falling off of its axis. She sat there for a minute before laying down next to him, trying to get comfortable. She stared up at the tent as her mind wandered back to how different life was before they came down here. Things were so routine and boring. She did the same things day in and day out. Down here on the ground, every day proposed a new adventure. Some were exciting, some were terrifying, but she relished every adrenaline filled moment of it. Every struggle and every issue that they had was still a million times better than what they had to deal with in space.
In a fevered daze, Bellamy snuggled up next to her and put his head on her chest, snapping her out of her day dream. At first Clarke froze. She wasn't quite sure what to do. She had never been in a situation like this, let alone in any situation that included Bellamy willingly touching her. She felt very uncomfortable, both emotionally and physically. Not only was it weird, but his boiling, sweaty head against her shirt was not ideal. For Bellamy, on the other hand, it felt wonderful. She offered a new source of heat and comfort, both of which he wanted more than anything in that moment.
At first Clarke laid there stiff as a board. Her brain had gone into chaos mode and couldn't process any real thoughts. There was no way this was actually happened. She must've been dreaming. Hell would have had to have frozen over before Bellamy would in fact lay on her of all people. She closed her eyes and told herself over and over again to wake up. Maybe she was the one who was fever dreaming.
She opened her eyes to find herself in the same spot with the same exhausted Bellamy settled on top of her. She allowed herself to unwind a bit and slowly, the more she began to relax, the nicer it felt. Even though he was sticky and snotty, it was still nice to have intimate human interaction with someone.
It was basic things like this that she had been deprived up both in the Ark and on the ground. She was kind of angry at the fact that she had never experienced this kind of touch before. Something about it was unlocking her nurturing side and she found herself gently running her fingers through his messy hair in an attempt to sooth him. His black mop was soaked from sweat and it was hard to get her fingers through in places, but Clarke calmly untangled his dark curls with her hands until it became somewhat smooth again. Bellamy let out a small moan and this time it was out of content instead of pain. This whole situation was strange and she felt like she was in some sort of alternate universe.
The longer Bellamy laid on her, the more indolent she began to feel. The sound of her heart beat had begun to lull him back to sleep and she could feel his muscles relax as it did so. His breathing slowed and she listening as the congestion rattled in his chest with each exhale. He may not have been very comfortable, but at least he was finally sleeping. She knew she should probably do the same. She closed her eyes again, but this time instead of trying to shake herself out of a dream, she let herself slip into one. Maybe the cure for insomnia wasn't solitude, it was comfort, she thought, as her eyes closed and her arm wrapped around the sleeping boy on top of her.