Jasper still wasn't speaking and/or looking at him the next morning. Bellamy tried not to let it bother him-it wasn't like he wasn't used to eating alone and working quietly-but he'd kind of gotten used to Jasper always being around. The feeling that he'd done something wrong and upset his friend sat like a dark pit in his stomach and though he didn't want to, he forced himself to eat when lunch rolled around and he was sitting by himself in the back. The plastic clock face on the wall filled the silence with its ticking and he stared resolutely at the table, chewing his sandwich mechanically.

This was getting ridiculous. He hadn't done anything wrong and here he was feeling like complete shit, thinking about crawling back to Jasper and begging to be forgiven. Instead, he texted Clarke. They'd been texting off and on whenever they got a chance and he found that he really enjoyed it-even though before this he'd kind of hated texting.

Jasper hadn't even looked at him when he'd walked in that morning and Bellamy tried hard not to analyze why this hurt so much. Instead he decided to focus on the anger he felt whenever he saw his friend talking and laughing with the other employees. He had been just fine before the kid had decided to insert himself into his life. All he'd ever needed was his little sister and now here he was feeling awful because someone was mad at him and he didn't understand why.

By the time the end of his shift came around, he'd worked himself up into a tizzy and was determined to pull Jasper to the side whenever the opportunity presented itself and give him a piece of his mind. He was still grumbling to himself sullenly when Jasper beat him to it. With a grim look of determination, Jasper cornered him in the break room, running spidery fingers through his manic spikes of hair and breathing harshly through his nose.

"Bellamy." He began and stopped, mouth flapping open as his words escaped to the air in a cloudless vapor, the only thing left being random sounds and hand gestures.

"Jasper." He said back, eyebrows raised, mostly in concern that the kid was going to hurt himself. "Are you okay?" 'Are you going to yell at me?' Was what he wanted to ask. He would take it with a straight face if it meant he would talk to him again.

"Yes. No. I mean-I'm sorry." His cheeks were a little red and he waved his hand in front of his face as if to will away his embarrassment. "Bellamy, I'm sorry I lost my temper with you. I was just frustrated and I snapped and then I was too embarrassed to talk to you after."

That was not what he'd been expecting. Bellamy stared blankly for a minute, letting his brain reboot. "Oh. I was, uh, going to apologize to you actually." Well, he was going to get mad, demand Jasper paid him the proper attention, and then maybe shout an apology at him before grabbing Octavia and hitching a ride to Canada.

Jasper's face scrunched up and he shook his head, goggles around his neck swaying and in danger of smacking the kid in the face. "Of course you would. I figured you would be mad at me for being an ass-like a normal person."

"Well, I mean, I guess I understand why you're angry?"

"That sounds like a question."

"I mean. It is, kinda. I understand why you're angry, I just don't get why you were angry with me."

Jasper nodded slowly, lips pursing as he thought. "Yeah. It's okay, I wasn't angry with you. Not really. Just, the whole situation? It's fucked up, man."

"Tell me about it." Bellamy laughed lightly and rolled his eyes. "You just explained my life. Everything's been so…fucked up." While they'd been talking, they'd gathered their things from their lockers, Bellamy dodging Jasper's hands when his friend tried to carry his bag for him. "I'm just glad you're talking to me again." He said truthfully, purposefully avoiding his friend's gaze as they walked outside, the chilly air cooling his heated cheeks. He really wasn't good at this feeling crap, but by the sound Jasper made at his admission, he was doing okay. There was also the phone buzzing in his pocket as he received what was probably another text from Clarke. He was starting to get the hang of this people business.

He was pulling out his phone when Jasper started talking again. It was refreshing after the silence he'd had all day. "Want to come to my place? Everyone's been asking about when you're coming over."

"Does everyone live at your place or what?"

"No, don't be silly. They go home to sleep, mostly."

Smiling in amusement, he opened the text from Clarke. The smile turned softer as he read her response to his earlier message. Hey, yourself. Are you going to be at Jasper's tonight? Bellamy typed out the only reply he could.
~

Regardless of all protests he supplied, Jasper bought him a coffee on the way to his place. Bellamy gripped it tightly, sipping from it rapturously and loving the warmth it provided him despite his argument. "You really don't have to keep buying me these."

"They make you happy."

And well, what could he possibly say to that?

"Thank you." He settled on after thinking about it, hiding his face a little with his coffee.

Jasper's warm smile was too much to look at. "You're welcome."

They made it to the apartment after everyone but Clarke. Bellamy glanced around for her with a small frown as he tried his best to look indifferent. "She'll be a little late." Wells said solemnly as he exited the kitchen with a soda. He gestured if Bellamy wanted one and he shook his head no.

"Don't mind if I do." Jasper said as he walked by, slyly plucking the canned drink from Wells fingers just as he opened it.

Wells froze, eyebrows scrunching together as if he were in deep pain before he let out a great sigh, turning and heading back into the kitchen to replace his stolen beverage. Bellamy watched on, struggling not to laugh out loud.

Well, that was that, then. If Bellamy was going to be at Jasper's that night, so would she. But first, she would shower and actually put on something other than a raggedy t-shirt. Her mother had finally stopped banging on the door and moved on, so Clarke felt like it was safe to get out from under the nest of blankets.

In the bathroom, she peeled off her clothes and stepped into a cold shower, washing off sweat and scrubbing the grease from her hair with her herbal shampoo. She didn't leave the shower until she'd begun shivering, which took a while since she ran hotter than your average person.

She put on a comfortable pair of jeans and a soft hoodie, throwing her wet curls up into a bun before heading out. The air was cool, the sun sinking behind buildings as she walked, breathing deep. Clarke had been cooped up inside for far too long if the city breeze smelled this good to her.

When she arrived at Jasper's apartment, she almost didn't want to leave the outside air, her wolf reveling at the sight of the open sky hanging vast and calm above. But the temptation of seeing her friends, of seeing Bellamy, was enough, so she took a final, deep breath before going in. Bellamy was sitting on the couch when she let herself in and his soft smile in her direction made her wolf coo in satisfaction. She started towards him immediately, like there was an invisible string tied between them tugging on her gut insistently. She was almost there, opening her mouth to greet him when Finn stepped in front of her.

"Clarke!" He said, smiling easily as he reached out to hug her. She didn't fail to notice that Raven was absent tonight. "We're glad you're back! Are you okay? What happened?"

"I just wasn't feeling well. I'm fine, now." She answered and watched Bellamy's face from over Finn's shoulder. She patted him on the shoulder before pulling out of their overly-extensive hug and continuing over to the couch, shooting Wells and Monty a soft, fond smile when they waved at her. "Hello puppy." She said, touching her finger softly to the tip of Jasper's nose before taking the open seat next to Bellamy.

"Hi." Bellamy said, smiling almost shyly at her. His endearing curls and freckles made her heart ache and throb against her breast bone.

Clarke reached out, unable to help herself, and brushed a clump of soft curls from his forehead, relishing the way his fair skin turned pink as he blushed. "Hi yourself." She could almost taste his rapid heartbeat on her tongue, the smell of him-leather and honey smoke-felt like home.

They did the usual, played a board game, ordered Chinese, and laughed together. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, except for Finn. All he did was stare forlornly at Clarke the whole night, cutting odd glances Bellamy's way. When she'd first gotten there and Finn had hugged her, Bellamy's stomach had grown tight with what he hated to call jealousy. It was obvious how Finn felt towards her, despite his current relationship status. But when she'd met Bellamy's eyes over his shoulder, he'd immediately known Finn's attractions were one-sided. Not that he had any sort of claim on her-he had no idea what they were or how she felt. They were friends, he knew that, but somehow it felt like more. It'd still made him embarrassingly happy when she'd come over to greet him.

Something about her gentle touch to his hair, her strong, calloused fingers lingering over the skin of his forehead like he was something precious, had fell a thousand times more intimate than a hug. Finn seemed to realize it, too, by the way he was pouting. Bellamy wasn't sure what the guy's deal was-he had Raven and you could tell she adored him.

Bellamy couldn't fully blame him though, it was hard not to be drawn into Clarke. She sat with her generous curves pressed to his side and occasionally, she'd lightly brush his hand with hers, smiling prettily at him if he blushed. It was electric. They'd only known each other for a short period of time and yet…

"Hey, Clarke, can I talk to you for a minute?" Finn asked, breaking through the easy conversation in the room as he stood. He looked at her, eyebrows raised as if he was waiting for something. "Outside, alone on the patio?" He clarified when she didn't immediately rise from her spot on the couch.

Everyone was watching, though Monty and Wells were politely talking to each other and acting like they weren't. Clarke was tense beside him as she slowly rose to her feet. Finn turned and headed for the patio, but she didn't follow. Instead, she looked at Bellamy. He felt frozen as her blue eyes caught his, conveying so much emotion he could never hope to decipher.

Slowly, so slowly it almost felt like they were underwater, Clarke bent over close, her face directly in front of his. "I'll be right back." She said, and he knew it was a promise-an earthquake could rip the apartment in two and she would fight with everything she had to return to him, to their spot on the couch. She leaned closer and Bellamy's heart nearly stopped-the wild, earthy smell of her skin sucking the air out of his lungs. He felt her lips against his forehead, her nose pressed into his hair as she breathed him in. If anyone else on the planet did it-any other girl no matter how pretty she was-he would be weirded out. But with Clarke, he didn't want her to stop.

Then she was standing, trailing fingers along his cheek as she finally followed an angry-looking Finn outside. He pushed the door shut harshly behind them and everyone just stared. No one shot up from their seats or acted particularly worried-Clarke could handle herself. She was a girl, yes, but there was no doubt in Bellamy's mind that she could handle it. That didn't mean everyone wasn't tensed and ready to jump up if necessary. Even as the conversations started back up, it was hushed as they kept an ear open for any trouble.

"Clarke, what the hell was that?" Finn snapped the second the door hit its frame. His face was splotchy and red, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides as his gaze wandered between her face and the closed door.

She studied him, taking in his demeanor and his looks. He'd always been attractive to her. He had a clean look to him and dressed nicely, spoke intelligently. And he made her feel beautiful. It was nice to be wanted. Clarke had liked Finn. She couldn't lie, as much as she would've liked to have said that she'd never so much as thought about another girl's boyfriend that way. He was charming. But, the more she stared and thought about it, the more she realized that maybe she hadn't been as attracted to him as she'd thought. The wolf never reacted to Finn like it did Bellamy, never so much as a stirring in her chest. His scent didn't make her breath catch, his blushes didn't make her heart stutter, and she didn't want to spend every waking moment of her time touching him.

Not like she did Bellamy. When Bellamy was in the room with her it was, she was attuned to every sound, every look, wanting to catalog everything. Sitting next to him was torture; a strain on her very being as she struggled not to lean into him, let him take her weight as she mapped out his skin with her hands. Bellamy put a fire in her blood and made her beast sing.

"What was what?" She replied back, staring back at Finn steadily.

"Why-why are you all over him like that? You hardly know him!"

"Why do you care?" This had to end-she had to cut off whatever this was, because she'd let it go too far if he thought he had the right to act like this. She felt the anger rising, trying to stuff it back down as she thought of Raven. Hardworking, beautiful, loving Raven, who would do anything Finn asked without question. Who did he think he was to string her along while he was "pining" after Clarke?

His face twisted up, angry and upset. "I thought-well, I thought you just weren't ready to date anyone."

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise, though she did have a slight idea as to where this was going. "What gave you that idea? I never told you that."

"I've been waiting pretty patiently, thinking you just needed time, and in he comes"- Finn's lip curled as he referred to Bellamy.

"And why should you be waiting for me to be ready to date, Finn? In case you've forgotten, you have a girlfriend." Typical. She'd turned him down and somehow that had been twisted into her not wanting to date at all. How absolutely typical. "I can date whoever I want, whenever I want and you have no right to tell me otherwise. You don't have a reservation on me Finn. At this moment, I'm not even sure if I want to be your friend."

Mouth dropping open, Finn stared at her in disbelief, throwing his hands in front of himself as if to calm her like an erratic horse. "Whoa, wait, Clarke, let's not overreact here"-

"Get your shit right. Either find it somewhere in yourself to love Raven the way she deserves and forget about me, or break up with her. She doesn't deserve to be strung along because you're afraid to be alone while you wait for something that will never happen. I'm not interested in you."

She left him there with his mouth hanging open, face feeling heated with anger as she stormed back inside. The gang winced as the door slammed shut behind her, Jasper whistling. "Wow. By the look on your face, you finally told him to back off." He said, eyes shining with pride. "You know you're my biggest, most badass role model, right?"

Almost against her will, her lips twitched up into a smirk. "I damn well better be." She caught Bellamy's wide eyes, and the smile grew more genuine at the look of admiration there. She knew exactly what she wanted and it was not Finn Collins.