The One Who's Fallen

Chapter 128

Lexa and I freeze as the door to the storage closet opens. My hands are on her hips and my mouth is an inch away from her abs. I'm still on my knees. Who just came in?

There's a low sound of a man humming. I squeeze my eyes shut and pray to whatever gods are out there that he leaves. His slow footsteps stop and I rest my forehead against Lexa's stomach. He must have seen us.

"Oh." He stutters out, his voice telling me that he's an older man on the verge of becoming elderly. "Oh, sorry. I didn't know there was anyone in here."

Why is he being so polite? Does he not see us? I risk a glance toward the door through the curtain of my loose hair and realize that yeah, he can't see us. There are boxes in the way. In almost strategically placed spots.

"I'll just go. You girls have fun, but be careful. The alarm's ringing again, the dang thing." The old man chuckles.

The door opens and creaks as it closes behind the man's retreating footsteps.

"... What?" I ask, confused, looking up at Lexa. "We don't get that lucky. Why did he just leave?"

Lexa frowns at my questions and looks around. Her eyes fall on the boxes, then at me, then her torso and to my surprise, her cheeks go red.

"What?" I prompt when she doesn't say anything.

"Clarke. The boxes blocked his view."

"I gathered that much." I raise an eyebrow, silently urging her to continue.

Lexa clears her throat, her blush darkening as she continues. "Clarke, the boxes block your upper body and my face."

"Yeah, luckily. He could have noticed that I'm wearing armor and that you have warpaint on." I say.

Lexa clears her throat again, swallowing. "From his point of view, he saw a woman on her knees in front of a woman with no shirt on."

"So he thought... Oh. Oh!" And now I'm blushing too. I groan, letting my head fall against Lexa's stomach. "At least this will make a good story."

"Raven, Luna, and Anya will find it hilarious." Lexa says with a chuckle.

I can feel how her laughter makes her chest move against my forehead and stand up. Lexa and I are still flushed from the realization that an old man thought we were... doing stuff in here. I lean in and kiss her gently, easing the tension a little.

"Alright. Now let's go kick some Maunon butt." I murmur against her lips.

Lexa nods and I help her get redressed, peppering her face with kisses whenever she winces from an odd movement. She catches on and suddenly clutches her side when she's fully dressed, groaning dramatically. I give her an unimpressed but amused look and give her a longer kiss that leaves us both breathless.

"Nerd," I whisper.

"You love it." Lexa whispers back playfully.

"I do," I admit.

Lexa looks at me with wide eyes, seeming completely dumbfounded. I stare back, resisting the urge to run. Because right, we haven't exactly said the words yet. We've shown it in little moments, in how we interact, in how our walls melt to nothing around each other. We've called each other ai hodnes (my love) and hodnes (love). But we haven't said those simple words. Yet.

I forget sometimes that we haven't, and I guess now is one of those times. But this isn't a mental slip up, or when I whisper sweet nothings to her, or the time I told her I loved her once she was asleep.

I can see the hesitance in her eyes, the insecurities rooted deep in Lexa's mind. So I lean in and give her a gentle kiss. I pull back just enough to speak.

"Ai hod yu in (I love you)." I say reverently.

Lexa's bottom lip trembles for a moment before she smiles. "I love you too, Clarke." She kisses me and it only stops when a chuckle escapes my lips. Lexa looks at me curiously and I grin dopily at her. "What is it?"

"I was just thinking 'of course our first time saying I love you is right in the middle of a dangerous mission.' "

Lexa laughs and our peaceful moment is interrupted by someone yelling. And of course it's Cage.

"I don't care, just find them you numbskulls! How hard is it to find two girls?"

Lexa and I exchange a look and pull out our swords. Lexa smirks and flexes her fingers to get a better grip. I politely open the door for my girlfriend, beaming proudly as she rushes out. Shouting starts as she sweeps through the hallway like a hurricane. She leaves no one untouched. I step out, closing the door behind me.

I have to admit, it's kind of hot seeing her fight. The grace and beauty. The deadly skill. She's in her element.

I don't let myself get too distracted, instead looking around for any stragglers. I have the absolute pleasure to see Cage running away like the coward he is. I'm tempted to run after him, but I'm not going to leave Lexa alone. Plus, I have no doubt that I'll be seeing his ugly face again soon.

Lexa and I come together like magnets, fighting with our backs pressed against each other. The Maunon guards are no match for us. Hell, I doubt most if not all Grounders are a match for us. The Maunon excel in things like acid fog and using sniper rifles and guns. But get up close and personal, and suddenly they don't know what to do with themselves. They can't shoot their long range weapons, they can't use swords (they don't have any). I almost pity them. But then I remember the Grounders being kept in cages like beasts.

Lexa and I finish off the couple of guards in the hallway without much trouble. We each sheathe one sword so we can high-five (one of Lexa's favorite things about Skaikru culture; in private of course).

"Shall we go find the others?" I ask, holding out my right hand.

Lexa takes it with her left. "We shall."

Weren't expecting that, huh? Thought it would be angsty, but no. Plot twist. It's an old man who thinks Lexa's gettin' some. I thought of it when I was writing the previous chapter and it made me crack up, so hopefully you lovely people enjoyed it! Also, I can't remember if Lexa and Clarke have said I love you, I looked for a bit and was like 'eh screw it.' So now they have! Next chapter, they go on their way to get to Octavia, Lincoln, and Raven! Thank you for reading and for your amazing comments! Stay awesome!