Never Let You Go// The 100

The Boy Next Door

 *Chapter 4*

"We are all of us born with a letter inside us, and that if only we are true to ourselves,  may we be allowed to read it before we die"

 -Douglas Coupland

 8 year old Clarke Griffin was in love. She was sure of it. Despite only being in the 3rd grade, the way she felt about her next door neighbor Bellamy was something more than a crush. Besides, she knew what love was. Her mom and dad were in love. Snow White and Prince Charming were in love. So, why couldn't she be in love?

qBut the best part about being in love, in Clarke's opinion, was that Bellamy loved her too. No matter how much he denied it, obviously his feelings for Clarke were the same. I mean, he always played with her after school and sent paper airplanes through her window, which was directly across from his. He got her presents on her birthday and would share his Goldfish with her at lunch. All of these things, according to Clarke, were signs of deep, unrequited love. Although, lately Bellamy hadn't been so close. 

 "Where's Bellamy?" Clarke asked one afternoon, as she followed her best friend Octavia into her bedroom. Octavia was Bellamy's sister and was completely dedicated to getting her best friend and brother together. 

 "Out with his friends, I think." Octavia answered, plopping onto her hot pink bedspread that was completely unwrinkled and perfect, as always. 

 Clarke frowned, staring out the window towards the end of their street where cars usually came and went. It was deserted. She hadn't noticed him leave and he hadn't said anything about it that morning when he sent an airplane like he usually did. The only thing inside was a drawing of Clarke on a rocketship, surrounded by all the planets. Underneath, it read: Princess in Space. Clarke smiled at that.

 "He's been doing that a lot lately." Octavia continued, laying back against the pile of pillows she had on her bed. "It's like being in 4th grade changed him." 

 Clarke had been thinking the same thing. The whole school year Bellamy had been getting farther and farther away. He stopped playing with her at recess, instead hanging out with his stupid friends who were mean to her. He made plenty of excuses, but Clarke wasn't buying any of it. She was starting to feel like a baby compared to him. 

 "What do you think is gonna happen next year?" Clarke asked, turning her back on the window. "What if it gets worse?" 

 The thought had always run through Clarke's mind. Everyone knew that when you became a 5th grader things changed, big time. You got taller and meaner and finally turned double digits. It was your last year of elementary school and pretty soon you would be a big middle schooler. The idea of Bellamy becoming of teenager scared Clarke. 

 "Maybe this is just a phase." Octavia shrugged, trying to think of something to say to make Clarke feel better. "Maybe over the summer he'll be himself again."

 "I hope so." Clarke said quietly, crawling onto Octavia's bed. Clarke used to be sure that her and Bellamy's love could never end. They were like Belle and the Beast or Aurora and Prince Philip. They were supposed to last forever. But suddenly, Clarke was beginning to doubt herself. 

 ↢********************↣

 On the last day of school, Clarke's parents had a party. Nearly the whole town was invited, including the mayor, who happened to be a family friend. The mayor's son, Wells, was pretty close with Clarke and she had several memories with the Jaha family. 

 But she liked to keep that hidden, especially from her classmates, who made fun of her for it and called her "princess." The only person who could do that was Bellamy.