The Divide

Chapter V

Disclaimer: This chapter has mentions and details of abuse. If you are sensitive to this topic. I suggest skipping the chapter. Your emotional well being is much more important than my writing ❤️.

                         It was one of those bad nights. The nights Clarke didn't like to go over in her mind like the warmth of Bellamy's kiss, or his smile. Nights like this had grown more frequent than ever before. He's just getting some bad grades. Clarke made the excuse as she sat on her bed.
"You don't spend enough time with me." Bellamy began. Clarke recognized this as the beginning to what would be a long night. "What's wrong with me?"
                          Clarke stayed silent, knowing that whatever she said wouldn't make a difference. She had learned how to stay silent like this. Even though she knew within her, that none of this was right, that she didn't deserve to be treated like this.
                           She had stopped spending every waking moment with him because she was finally concerned about her grades. She spent long nights inside her dorm, studying Biology,English, History, etc. and it had made a visible difference. Her teachers smiled, not frowned, when they handed back her tests. She thought she had been doing a pretty good job at balancing Bellamy and school, but he wanted him all to herself. Love shouldn't have to hurt like this, she decided.
                            "I text you all the time and you always say you're 'studying'. I know you aren't, Clarke." He said as his fists clenched and face scrunched together. "Just tell me the truth." He came closer to her now.
                            "I have been studying. My grades can prove it." Clarke muttered
Bellamy paced around the room, his hands behind his head.
                            "You make me so mad sometimes, alright? You need to talk to me more about this shit."He said. Clarke had enough.
                               "I don't need to tell you all the details of my life. You don't need to know." She said. There was a moment of calm, peace, like Bellamy understood what she was saying and said to himself She's right. But there was no such moment, the quiet Bellamy showed was signifying the rising anger inside him. He grabbed Clarke by the front of her shirt collar, twisting it. Her neck constricted and little wheezes came from her mouth. She tried to kick him but his grasp grew tighter.
                               "This is what happens when you lie." He yelled. Clarke could tell that all the girls in the dorm could hear him. Anyone could. None of them helped, they all just stayed in their rooms, afraid to intrude into someone else's business.
                                  The car crash came back to Clarke with the moments like hours where she feared for her life . The opposing car was in Bellamy, and Clarke prepared for impact. There was a loud bang on the door. At first, Clarke mistook it for the banging of metal.
                                   "What the hell is going on in there!" A voice, faintly familiar screamed from the other side of the door. Bellamy dropped her and looked around for a place to hide or escape, but Clarke's room was on the second floor and the window was not an option. Clarke coughed and gasped for breath as someone pounded on the door.
                                      "If you don't answer I'm calling the police." The voice was still strong, but wavered now. Lexa. Clarke felt so happy she could cry. Lexa was on the other side of the door. "I mean it."Lexa added. Clarke, with the breath she had managed, made it to the door just in time to unlock it, before Bellamy dragged her away by the pack of her shirt.
                                      Lexa burst in and Bellamy, panicked, proceeded to run out like a coward. Lexa ran after him.
                                     "Lexa! Please, wait!" Clarke yelled. Lexa came back and hung around the doorframe.
                                      "He's already gone." She said. She shook her head and looked at the floor. Clarke felt tears welling in her eyes.
                                       Bellamy had gotten mad before, but he had never hit her. What happened? Did she do anything wrong?
                                       Lexa sat on the floor next to her and gestured to put her arm around Clarke, to ask permission. Clarke nodded and felt her strong arms. Bellamy, her safety net, was no more than thing twine. She felt like the ground wasn't solid anymore. It could fall through at any moment.
                                    "Nothing that you did caused this." Lexa said. Clarke didn't even had to explain what happened, Lexa just knew. "I'm glad I was here." Lexa began to cry, her eyeliner dripping down her face. "None of the other girls did anything. They're shit. He's shit."

                                        Clarke's head fell into Lexa's lap from pure exhaustion. She felt her tears dripping onto her face. Someone so strong, showing such emotion and empathy for someone she barely knew. Clarke wondered what was behind those steely eyes. She tried to not to think about what to do next, because for once she had no answers or solutions,

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DISCLAIMER: Before people who love Bellamy come and attack me, remember that this is just the way I chose to represent him in my story. This does not reflect my actual feelings on him or what I think he is like in the show. Thank you!

IF YOU SEE PATTERNS IN YOUR LIFE SIMILAR TO WHAT IS PORTRAYED HERE know that there is always help. There will always be people who believe you and places where you can go to find help. Shelters for victims of Domestic Violence are very common and if there is not one in your town or county, usually neighboring shelters will STILL welcome you. Not  only can these places provide emotional support, but they can also provide legal support to help you get away from your abuser.

EARLY RED FLAGS OF ABUSE

-You feel afraid to break up with your partner

-Your partner threatens to harm themselves or you if you break up with them.

-Your partner calls you derogatory names and tries to pass them off as jokes

-They threaten family members

-They tell you that they're the only one's who will love you

-They make excuses for their abusive behavior

-Pinching or scratching can escalate to hitting or punching

-You often find yourself crying over your relationship with them

-Your partner isolates you from your friends or family

-Your partner keeps you from your aspirations

-Your partner insists on spending every waking moment with you.

This is not normal. This is not love.