Before You Go

would we be better off now...

A/N - hahaha I'm sorry. This is a short one, kind of a filler. Also, idk how I feel about this chapter... most of it was written at 3 am and I was strangely uninspired. Sorryyyyy and hopefully the next one will be better! I think it will, I just needed a filler chapter to get there.

"Hey babe-" Finn's eyes widen slightly when Clarke walks over to him and snatches the cup of beer out of his hand, promptly downing it. He's never seen her drink much before, and certainly never like that. Clarke handed him back the now-empty cup with a satisfied huff.

"Get me another?" she asked, and Finn blinked before nodding, a smirk growing on his face.

"Maybe something a little harder?" he suggested, taking Clarke's hand. She shrugged and ran her free hand through her hair.

"Whatever, I just need a drink." Finn grins broadly and tugs her over to where all the drinks seem to be being made. Releasing her hand, he moves behind the counter and squats down, reappearing seconds later with an unopened bottle of tequila. Clarke raises her eyebrows, starting to question how smart this was, but the slight buzz coursing through her veins from Finn's drink squashed the doubts. Finn comes back around the counter, taking her hand and tugging her through the crowd. Clarke feels Bellamy's eyes on her and pointedly avoids looking at him.

"Finn, where are we going?" she giggles, allowing him to pull her out onto the fire escape, glaring at the few students hanging out there until they take the hint and move inside. Finn sits down on the stairs, tugging Clarke into his lap and breaking open the bottle of tequila before offering it to her.

"Thought you might like it better out here," he tells her as she takes a long swig from the bottle, wincing at the burn of the alcohol. Finn quirks an eyebrow, but doesn't question it.

"Yeah," she sighs, leaning against him. "Less... prying eyes."

"Well, at least one pair less," Finn mutters, unable to help himself. Clarke narrows her eyes at him and squirms uncomfortably in his lap.

"Finn, he's just protective," she defends, growing sick of the rivalry between the two. Finn lets out a low growl, taking the bottle from Clarke and taking a quick sip before setting it down.

"Protective cause of me?" His fingers tighten on Clarke's hip. "What the fuck does he think I'm gonna do, hurt you?"

"Well you are right now!" she exclaims, extracting herself from his tightening grip. Upon standing up, her head spins. Drinking straight tequila was not a good idea. "Finn- Finn I don't feel good." She grabs the railing as he stands up behind her, one hand on her waist. She turns to face him, feeling sick. "Finn this was a mistake- I want to go home."

"Fucks' sake, Clarke," Finn mutters, running a hand through his hair. "Are you kidding me? This was your idea! You're the one who asked for a drink and then chugged straight tequila!"

"Finn, please, I just want to go home," Clarke whimpers softly, holding her head. It's all- it's all too much. But Finn just glares at her, shaking his head.

"Then find your own fucking way back," he grumbles, grabbing the bottle of tequila and stomping back inside. Clarke feels like crying. She steps forward and stumbles, falling to her knees. She's always been a lightweight and the tequila is making fast work of her. She pulls her knees to her chest and tucks her head down, hot tears slipping down her cheeks. She needs to get out of there- it's all too much.

"Princess?" a low voice calls. Clarke doesn't look up, just letting out a quiet whimper. "Oh god, Clarke!" And then Bellamy is kneeling next to her, pulling her to him, and Clarke tries to hold on, she tries so hard, but alcohol is racing through her and she's slipping, slipping, slipping away. And then she's weightless

-

Rage burns in Bellamy's chest when he sees Finn pulling Clarke along, bottle of tequila in hand. He must know she's a lightweight, he has to. Bellamy almost goes after them before remembering the anger in Clarke's eyes when she yelled at him. She doesn't want his help. She's a big girl now, she can take care of herself.

"She'll be ok, Bellamy," Octavia says softly, setting a hand on his arm. He looks at her in surprise, he hadn't even realized she was still there.

"She shouldn't be drinking," he sighs. She nods, lips pursed. "She shouldn't be here at all."

"I'm not disagreeing with you, Bellamy. But Clarke's going to do exactly what she wants and you sure as hell can't stop her."

"Yeah, I'm aware," Bellamy mutters, running a hand through his curls. Then he notices how nervous his little sister looks, eyes not meeting his. "What's up, O?"

"There's, uh, there's someone I want you to meet, Bell," she says softly.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. My, um, my boyfriend," she says nervously.

"Oh?"

"Bellamy before you freak, please just meet him. His name is Lincoln, he's an art major, Clarke and Raven love him, he's- he really really loves me, Bell, I promise," she rambles. Bellamy can't help but grin, setting a hand on his sister's shoulder, effectively shutting her up.

"O. You're not a little girl anymore. I don't know when or how it happened, but you're a young woman. A brilliant, strong young woman. And yeah, if this guy's a dick I'm going to kick his ass. But what you said about Clarke applies to you too- you're going to do exactly what you want and I sure as hell can't stop you. I'd be happy to meet him." Octavia's face lights up and he allows her to pull him over to a tall, dark skinned man who breaks out in a smile when he sees her.

Lincoln is respectful and seems to truly love Octavia, though it bothers Bellamy how seemingly unintimidated he is by her older brother. The imposing stance and brooding stare usually works for him, but Bellamy can tell this one won't scare easy. They've fallen into an easy conversation when Bellamy suddenly sees a red faced Finn storming through the crowd, headed straight for the bar. But that's not what Bellamy notices. He notices how Clarke isn't behind him, isn't anywhere to be seen. So, without a word to Octavia or Lincoln, he's off, darting through the crowd in the direction he saw them last disappear.

"Clarke?" he calls, searching through the crowds of people. "Clarke?!"

"Think she's on the fire escape, man," someone slurs to him. He runs to the fire escape, freezing when he catches sight of Clarke. She's pulled herself into a tight ball on the floor, forehead on her knees. Mercifully, no one's bothering her, and Bellamy softly calls to her. She lets out a small whimper and that's all it takes for him to run to her, pulling her to him with a hushed,

"Oh god, Clarke." She shows no sign that she heard him and he can literally feel her slipping away as she starts shaking harder. She's crashing. Hard. He needs to get her out of here right now. So he scoops her up in his arms and heads back inside. No one questions or stops him as he bellows for them to clear the way, pushing through the crowd.

"Bellamy?" Octavia asks, running up to him, eyes wide at Clarke's state. "W-what happened?"

"Finn," is all Bellamy can manage. "I need to get her out of here, O, take care of your idiotic friends, I'll deal with her." Octavia is nodding, and that's all the confirmation Bellamy needs that they'll be fine without him. Clarke is his only priority right now.

-

When Octavia arrives home hours later, she finds Clarke passed out in her room and a note from Bellamy saying something came up and he needed to get back to Trikru. She should have known something was wrong, but she was too buzzed and exhausted to give it anymore thought. Maybe if she had she could have saved them all from the coming heartbreak. Probably not, but she would still blame herself for years.

Please, please let me know what you think!!