Daylight |Bellamy Blake

Twelve

As I sat in my tent, engrossed in my book and scribbling notes in its margins, I decided it was time to at least attempt some sleep. The pages of the book had blurred into an indecipherable mess, a testament to my exhaustion and the constant turmoil of thoughts swirling in my head. I reached for the one spare shirt I had, a vibrant red one, and decided to change. I had worn my current shirt for a couple of days in a row, and it was overdue for a wash. Carefully, I pulled the old shirt over my head and folded it neatly, preparing to replace it with a fresh one.

However, just as I was about to put on the new shirt, the tent flap suddenly opened, and a voice called my name. Startled, I looked up to find Bellamy standing before me, his words trailing off as his eyes met mine. His mouth hung slightly agape, and it took me a moment to comprehend that he was here in my tent, and I had nothing on but my bra.

With a yelp of embarrassment, I snatched the shirt and hastily covered my front with it, though I knew he had already seen more than I intended. The faint blush on his cheeks confirmed it.

"Bellamy! What are you doing in here?" I demanded, still startled by his unexpected appearance.

"I, uh..." He cleared his throat, attempting to compose himself. "Have you seen Octavia?" His words shifted my focus from my own embarrassment to the growing concern in his eyes.

My worry immediately matched his as I realized that I hadn't seen Octavia all day. Panic began to creep in. "I haven't seen her all day," I replied honestly, my heart racing in tandem with Bellamy's anxiety.

"I can't find her anywhere."

"Okay," I said, taking a deep breath, trying to remain calm for both our sakes. "Let me get dressed, and I'll help you search the camp." Bellamy nodded and stepped out of the tent, giving me some privacy.

I quickly pulled on the red shirt and tied my hair back, my mind racing with concern for Octavia. As I emerged from the tent, I found Bellamy waiting with a torch in hand.

"Have you looked around camp?" I asked as we set off.

"Not everywhere yet."

"Okay, well, we have to make sure to search everywhere," I replied, matching his determination to find his sister.

As we began checking the other tents, Bellamy's worry was palpable. After a moment, he whispered, "Thank you."

"Hey, I care about O too," I reassured him, giving his arm a small squeeze as we continued our search for his sister, our bond growing stronger as we faced this new challenge together.

However, our search is fruitless and after looking all over camp we are yet to find Octavia. Both of our anxieties have increased and worry is settling in as we lift the flaps to the last few tents. We reach Clarke's and see her still awake and she gets up once she sees us.

"You're up?" Bellamy questions.

"Yeah. Knowing that hundreds of people might be dying on the Ark makes it pretty hard to sleep."

"Raven's flares will work." Bellamy's answers, but I think he is trying to calm his worries as much as Clarke's.

"Her radio would've worked better" Clarke replies tartly

"Hey, this isn't the time for this" I cut in and they both nod. "Have you seen Octavia?" I ask Clarke and I can see the confusion on her face straight away.

"No. It's Octavia. She's probably chasing butterflies" But she can see the panic on our faces and her answer comes almost unsure.

"Clarke, we've checked the camp. She's not here" Bellamy says his worry evident.