𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐌𝐘 𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐄 | 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐄

18. bellamy's pov

"Are you okay?" I ask Clarke as she came back, sitting next to me. "What happened?"

All she did was smile, and it completely confused me. Clarke ran her hand through her short blonde hair, and her smile only widened as she bit her lip.

"Clarke?"

"Yeah?"

I shake my head. Had she not heard me the first time? "What just happened? You took my ex-girlfriend and you're smiling. Is that supposed to happen with women or did you beat the shit out of her?"

"Bellamy, calm down," she said, a laugh escaping her pretty pink lips. God, I wanted to kiss her so badly right now. Six years this feeling has had time to build up, and I'm planning on gaining all the time I'd missed with her quickly back. "I just wanted to make sure we were good. And she's actually really happy with us being together. She sees you happy and that's all she needs."

"So you're both alright?" I ask again, still unsure if I can take her word for it.

She puts her arms around my neck and swings her head back before looking me straight in the eye, a chuckle escaping her. "Bellamy, I've never been better."

And so her lips press against mine in a sweet, longing kiss which I return, our bodies pushing together and our breaths mixing, turning us into one. My hands were on her waist, bringing her closer to me, which to my surprise, was actually possible.

I never wanted to let go. I wanted to stay in the moment forever, holding the love of my life against me, her hands in my hair and on the back of my neck and my hands on her sides, pulling her nearer to my body, desperate for her warmth.

But the sound of a throat clearing jeers me back to reality. I turn around, the face of a five-year-old glaring at us, her hands on her hips, and that of a fourteen-year-old, a sincerely apologetic look on her face. Madi smiled shyly. "Sorry. I tried to keep her away as long as possible."

"She means that she kept telling me that pee was dribbling down my leg," Aurora says, a spiteful tone lining her hateful words. "So, when are we gonna continue heading back?"

Clarke sighs and looks up at the sky. She must've memorized something I was unsure of, because there were no stars in the sky at the moment, and she seemed to be analyzing it effectively. "In about ten minutes or so."

"So can I go play with Micheal?" Aurora asks.

"Who's Micheal?" I say.

"He's the only other kid who stayed. And has a soccer ball," Aurora replies, as if that cleared everything up, blushing at my mention of his name even though she'd said it herself nearly three seconds before.

"Aurora has a crush on him," Madi clarifies.

Aurora's mouth gapes open as a boy, who I can only assume is Micheal based on her blush, runs by, smiling and motioning for her to join him. He must've been at least seven. But Aurora doesn't clench her fists when she says; "I do not!", meaning she most definitely did. "He's just a friend. Besides, I only met him yesterday. No one can possibly get a crush in one day." And she ran off.

The sun kissed the ends of my daughter's hair as she ran out, farther away from us, but still in sight. The ball was passed to her in the low sand dunes, and she kicked it off, farther away into the horizon.

"Do you think she'll wander off too far? Get lost?" I ask, a little worried as Aurora's small body seemed to get farther and farther away with every breath I took. She was taken away from me so easily six years ago. I hoped I'd never lose her again.

"No," Clarke replies, no hesitation present in her stern voice. The declaration is so fiercely enveloped in certainty that I didn't dare speak a word against it. So, Clarke knows what Aurora's capable of, then. And she obviously trusts our daughter and the responsibility that lies on her shoulders with every step she takes, getting closer to the edge of the world, away from me and her mother and her sister.

"So, what?" I ask. "Is she a tracker like Finn, or does she just never get lost?" I watch as she stops advancing, and stays in place, moving the round black and white ball that was practically in ruins around her, doing tricks and movement I'd never dare try. She kicked it up, towards the boy and he caught it with his foot, starting to show off some moves himself.

I'd heard legends as a kid, on the Ark, of entire teams playing together on a big field of grass, trying to a single ball through a net guarded by a single player. We'd tried playing once, a few of my old friends and I, only to realize it sounds much easier than it looks.

"Both," Madi replies, taking her seat next to her mother, whereas before she'd been looking out at where her sister was playing with Micheal, much like I was. I wonder if she ever played the game as a kid, before Praimfaya and before Clarke came into her life.

I can recall certain times when Raven and Murphy would play before Murphy became an all-out dick once again. Watching my daughter and the boy reminded me of our earlier days on the Ark. The simpler days.

Now, though, even if things are tougher, they're better. With Clarke and Aurora in my life, things can only ascend.

"You ready to go?" Clarke asks when I stare at her for too long.

I don't even bother to look away. "Yeah. Let's go."

this one's a little shorter. lol sorry not sorry