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February, 2018. Pyeong-Chang.
The Pyeong-Chang teddy bears are stranger than their Vancouver bouquet, but they feel twice as important. This time, when he and Clarke finally have a moment to catch their breath, they're not a mess of hormones and repressed desire. They're older, more mature, though equally, he thinks, in love.
"I love you," he says, wanting her to know without any shadow of a doubt. He's never been more certain of anything in his life. She just smiles, the same radiant smile she's given him every other time he's told her.
"I love you too," she replies softly, hand coming up to gently poke him in the chest.
"No, Princess, I don't think you understand," he insists. And she needs to understand this time, because the timing is finally right and they've ended their professional careers with a fairytale, and all he wants is to look into the future and see her in his. "I love you. I want it all with you."
This time, the magnitude of his words seem to hit her. She sucks in a breath and stares at him with wonder. Then, she says:
"Another Olympics? Worlds? Stars On Ice?"
Bellamy blinks.
"Clarke."
Her eyes twinkle, and he's caught between wanting to yell at her and kiss her.
"It all is just so vague, Bell, you're gonna have to be-"
Let the records state that Bellamy Blake had a plan to propose to Clarke Griffin. It was going to be so romantic, and she was going to cry, and he would go down in history as the most romantic man of all time.
Let the records also state that when Clarke starts to tease him in that charming way she does, when her eyes sparkle with a mischief so few people get to see, he cannot be held responsible for anything that he says or any proposals that just spill out of his mouth.
"Marry me," he blurts, and Clarke instantly freezes. Bellamy lets go of her and backs up, overtaken with stark panic. Holy shit, he just proposed to Clarke Griffin. They just won gold and he just proposed. "Fuck, Clarke, look what you made me do, I had an actual proposal planned and you just-"
She doesn't let him finish, surging forward and capturing his lips.
She tastes even better than Vancouver, like adrenaline and her favorite spearmint gum. She takes control like he always dreamed she would, and Bellamy knows that he's ruined for any other men or women in the world. He can now only kiss Clarke Griffin for the rest of his life. No one else will do.
"Clarke, I love you so much," he says when they separate, unable to hold any of it in. "It's always been you, ever since we were kids, and it will always be you and I want to spend the rest of my life making you happy. God, Princess, you're just so perfect and we just won gold and it doesn't even compare to seeing you every day-"
"Breathe, Bellamy, breathe!" Clarke laughs, eyes shining and warm. "For the record, no matter how you were going to propose, my answer would always be yes." His heart is about to beat out of his goddamn chest.
"Glad we cleared that up," Bellamy snarks before leaning down to kiss her again. "We're gonna be so happy, Clarke."
She smiles into the kiss, and he can picture doing this every morning.
"I know."
July, 2004. Canton.
He can feel her slipping, and because he'd rather not dump his partner on her head mere weeks before the season starts, he skids to a less than graceful stop and lowers her onto the ice.
"I don't think you need me to tell you that wasn't great," Abby says, skating over to them. "Bellamy, you need to keep a good grip on her so that you can transition gracefully."
"I know," Bellamy snaps, instantly regretting it. He's off today, and they all know it. To her credit, Abby doesn't bat an eyelash or snap back.
"Take a break," she suggests. "Be back on the ice in 15 so we can fix this lift, got it?" Bellamy and Clarke both nod, and he doesn't bother to take Clarke's hand as they skate off to the boards.
She, of course, doesn't let him off the hook. The second they're both sitting in the hall, water bottles in hand, she asks, "So, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," he responds blandly.
"Bellamy," Clarke deadpans, eyebrow arching up. Well, it was worth a shot. He sighs.
"It's nothing, Clarke, please don't push this," he asks, but she doesn't budge.
"Bellamy, you're skating distracted. If every
"I think I'm going to have to get another job," he says finally. "With O's hockey and the bills from training, things are getting tight." Clarke's eyes widen in horror.
"Bellamy, you already work before school," she says. "You can't-"
"That's easy for you to say," Bellamy points out, but he's not mad. Clarke is very privileged, and she knows it. She just needs to be reminded sometimes.
"I'll talk to my mom," she offers, and he shakes his head.
"Hell no, Clarke, I don't want charity-"
"Bellamy," she interrupts, voice hard. "You're the best male skater here. Full stop, no questions asked. You're the pride and joy of this place. I'm good too, but without you, I'm just another singles girl vying for a podium at Nationals. With you? I'm a future Olympic medalist. Any investment my family makes in you is an investment for both of us, got it?"
Bellamy just stares, floored. He wonders, not for the first time, how he ended up with someone like Clarke Griffin as his partner.
And boy, he hated her at first. He thought she was an entitled brat whose money granted her everything she wanted. The first two years they skated together, they argued constantly. He wanted nothing to do with her and she had no patience for his attitude.
Once they began to compete, and win, however, their partnership became less strained. And once he began to really know Clarke Griffin, he realized that she was as close to perfect to him as any girl could be.
"I love you, Princess," he whispers, pulling her in for a half hug. "You know that, right?"
She blushes, and his mind flashes back to their first big win, when she looked at him with hearts in her eyes and he felt like he was king of the world under her gaze.
"I know," she says softly, and he wonders how a 14-year-old can be so damn mature.
February, 2018. Pyeong-Chang.
Bellamy and Clarke have always taken great pride in their exhibition routines. They get to have the most fun with them, and can typically be the most honest with them. Their gala performances through the years have told stories in and of themselves, chronicling their relationship's ebbs and flows.
In 2010, they danced to Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel." It was a joyful, flirty routine where Clarke wore a little black dress and Bellamy wore a denim jacket. In 2014, they danced to "Iron Doors" by The Lighthouse and the Whaler, a wistful, longingly romantic routine that Bellamy will admit was perhaps a tad too honest a routine.
A part of him still misses their comeback gala routine: a flirty, sexy routine to Maroon 5's "Misery." This one was Clarke's idea: she wore a fitted black tank top and ripped jeans while he wore jeans and a white t-shirt. Abby never would have choreographed a routine as hot as this one.
Clarke had found "Tell Me You Love Me" on her own, but as soon as she played it for him Bellamy had been completely on board with her idea. The ballad was passionate, romantic, and had a slow and theatrical beat. He could see the spark of inspiration in Clarke as they worked out the choreography of the routine. And he loves to see her in the low-cut, jewel-bedazzled rose gold strapless dress she wears.
At gala practice, Clarke wears her ring, which he gave to her that morning. It's a simple silver band with two small diamonds framing a larger one in the center. They don't say anything to the others, but Lexa notices right away. They're on good terms now, but while she had been dating Clarke, things had been very tense. In hindsight, he knows why.
Bellamy meets her gaze, and although there seems to be a distant sadness in her eyes, she offers him a small smile, and he nods in return.
After practicing his exhibition number, Monty skates over to Clarke and starts talking to her. While the pair talk, Wells skates to Bellamy's side.
"What's on Clarke's hand?" he asks, far too casual to actually be casual. Bellamy suppresses a grin.
"A ring," he replies.
"With…a diamond," Wells presses.
Bellamy yawns. "Looks that way," he says. Wells stares at him in disbelief before his eyes widen.
"Holy shit, Bellamy, you just went from zero to a hundred!" he hisses, mouth breaking into a massive grin. "Are you shitting me?"
Bellamy hushes him, but he can't help but smile.
"Would you believe me if I said it was a total accident?" he asks, and Wells laughs. "I mean, the ring wasn't, but I meant to wait until, well… I was going to wait a bit, seriously." Wells doesn't look like he believes him, but Bellamy can't bring himself to care.
Clarke glides over, then, and Wells gives her the most shit-eating grin Bellamy has ever seen in his life.
"So," Wells says, "I assume I'm invited."
February, 2010. Vancouver.
The first time Bellamy is alone with Clarke after their almost-hookup is practice for the exhibition gala. On the ice, he holds her hand and she smiles at him, but there's still an incredibly awkward aura around them that he hates. Every time he touches her or meets her gaze, he remembers the sounds she made when he touched her or the way her lips tasted.
"You're making it weird," she mutters to him as they circle around the rink, waiting for their music to be cued up. Raven and Finn's music sounds over the speakers, some funky pop song that spotlights Raven, which is honestly how every program she and Finn do should be. But that's beside the point; Clarke is calling him out and he can't even argue with her because she's right.
"Cut me some slack," he replies, a little grumpy as he pulls her into a casual dance hold so they can run one of their step sequences. "You're making it weird too."
"Me?" she asks, sounding offended. "I'm being perfectly normal." Bellamy laughs.
"Look me in the eye for more than two seconds," he challenges. She glances up, defiant, but it only takes a moment of heated eye contact to force her to look down at the ice. "That's what I thought."
"Oh shut up," she mutters, and he pushes her, just enough to startle her but not really throw off her balance. She looks at him indignantly, but he's smiling, because she's so cute when she's rattled. "Way to be mature, Bellamy."
"I feel like we're teenagers again," he mutters with a chuckle, and that gets a small smile out of her.
And a shove.
He almost falls. Almost.
A part of him wishes Clarke hadn't stopped what they were building to last night. He wishes they had just let go and let their feelings lead them wherever they might. But another part, a more mature part, a grown-up Bellamy who won't fully emerge for years, knows that if he and Clarke get together, that's it. He's never going to be with anyone else. He'll marry her.
He's not ready for that. Not yet. He wants to date men and women he has to go on dates with to get to know, wants to find out who is as Bellamy Blake, not just Clarke's partner. He wants to win gold at Sochi. He wants to win a fucking Grand Prix Finals. And if he's going to be with Clarke, he wants to be absolutely ready, because what they have is too precious to risk.
The beat of "The Way You Make Me Feel" begins to echo through the arena, so Bellamy shakes his head before sliding into the choreography. This, at least, makes sense. It always will.
February, 2018. Pyeong-Chang.
@bellclarke10: DID ANYONE ELSE SEE THE RING WHAT THE FJUCK
@Olympics: Why ClarkeGriffin and BellBlake, what a nice piece of jewelry!
Clarke wears the ring during the gala. Bellamy warns her that there's no going back from it. She just gives him a sly smile and a wink.
After their skate, Bellamy and Clarke sit across from each other, knees touching, and hold their phones face-down in their laps. It's a tradition they have after they debut new programs, waiting to see how the world responds together. He remembers the delight in her eyes when they first debuted their James Bond program in 2013, and the happy tears she shed when the internet went into a lovelorn frenzy over their free dance to Christina Perri's "the words" in their return to competition.
"The nice thing to do would be to confirm it," she tells him with a twinkle in her eyes. Bellamy tilts his head, curious, and her smile grows. "Let's let the world wonder for a little while longer."
They flip their phones.
One hundred and six texts, 23 missed calls, 34 e-mails.
Infinite notifications on Twitter.
Bellamy calls Octavia to tell her, and she promises not to confirm anything to the media. Raven and Marcus seem wholly unsurprised when Clarke calls them to share the news. Their other friends have completely shattered a group message they are all in, so Clarke just sends them a selfie with her kissing Bellamy on the cheek and leaves it at that.
Bellamy doesn't dare to open Twitter on his own phone, but Clarke confirms that they are trending worldwide, with everyone speculating if the ring a close-up shot of their stationary lift caught is a costume piece or not.
It's always been slightly overwhelming to have the entire world speculating whether or not he's in love with Clarke, especially since he's spent most of his life coming to terms with the fact that yes, he most certainly is in love with his partner. The mania unfolding on Twitter, however, is at an entirely new level.
Clarke just shrugs it off, determined to let the internet speculate and keep their engagement private. Bellamy, however, doesn't have quote the same level of self control as she does, so he ventures into #GriffinBlake and tracks down a close-up shot of their performance with the ring in full view, saves it, and then tweets it with no caption.
Oops?
February-June, 2014. Sochi.
@dancingthroughlife: I think @ClarkeGriffin and @BellBlake were ROBBED. #Sochi
@bellsbiggestfan: So much class by #GriffinBlake during medal ceremony. Those 2 are the real deal.
They've been asked The Question at least once every season ever since Vancouver. It's understandable, Bellamy knows, but it doesn't make it any less annoying. It's particularly grating in Sochi, when they're emotionally exhausted and physically drained.
The day after Silver, Bellamy and Clarke do their rounds with the press, all while Bellamy nurses a monster hangover. Clarke's in higher spirits than him, but there are bags under her eyes and she looks exhausted.
She won't meet his eyes.
"You two have exceptional chemistry," a reporter says to them at their first interview of the day, and it takes all of Bellamy's strength to not laugh at it like it's a sick joke. "How does that translate off the ice?"
"Platonically," Clarke snaps, briefly breaking the veneer of warm professionalism she can usually maintain with journalists. The reporter blinks in surprise, and Bellamy steps in.
"We're best friends," he says, smiling his most disarming smile. "I can't imagine my life without Clarke."
When they're finally alone, Bellamy wheels on Clarke. "What the hell, Princess, what's wrong with you today?"
"There's a simple answer, you know," she says snidely, and Bellamy sighs.
"Yes, but it's not the right answer." She looks away then, scowling. "Please don't shut me out."
She finally meets his gaze, and her eyes look so lost, so sad, that his heart breaks on the spot. She opens her mouth to speak, but then Finn and Raven appear in what Bellamy thinks might be the worst timing possible.
He doesn't figure it out until months later, when Raven appears at his hotel room door at 10 p.m.
"What are you doing here?" he asks when she pushes him back and slams his door. He's very drunk, a nasty habit he's picked up since Clarke has practically cut off any real communication aside from skating inquiries and media.
"He couldn't even wait a day," Raven growls, tossing her phone to Bellamy. He reads the headline, horrified.
ICE DANCER FINN COLLINS SETTLES FOR SILVER BETWEEN THE SHEETS
His first thought is fury. How dare this garbage news sight treat Clarke like the kind of girl one would settle for. How dare they throw her personal life into the open, as if exposing her. How fucking dare they. He'll kill whoever leaked this.
He'll kill Finn. The fucker made Clarke the other woman and lied to Raven. Sanctimonious, lying piece of trash.
His second thought is hurt. Hurt at Clarke for icing him and going to Finn fucking Collins for comfort instead of him. Hurt for her not even telling him.
It's a lot to take in and feel in the span of the five seconds it takes for him to throw Raven's phone back at her.
"You're mistaking me for someone who cares," Bellamy snaps, wondering why in the hell he's serving as a therapy stand-in for one half of the team that stole gold from them. "Time to move on."
Is it cold of him to just dismiss her like this? Perhaps, but he's never been best friends with her or even with her ridiculous partner, who apparently cheated on her with his partner.
Fuck Finn, honestly.
There's a moment of stillness, where Raven just looks at him, and then she starts to undress. First, she removes her boots. Then, she slips out of her jeans.
"What are you doing?" Bellamy asks stupidly. There's no trace of emotion in Raven's eyes as she strips out of her tank top, leaving herself in a sports bra and her underwear.
"Moving on," she replies. She lets her hair out of the ponytail it's pulled up in. "I've never been with anyone but Finn." She walks up to him, steely determination in her eyes. "Take off your clothes."
After, when she leaves, Bellamy sits alone on his bed, feeling like a complete piece of shit. His head swirls with images of Clarke with Finn, Clarke kissing Finn, Clarke holding hands with Finn, and it makes him feel nauseated.
Clarke. He should find her, tell her everything will be okay. Tell her about Raven. Apologize for not being there, for letting Finn get to her, for everything. Surely she knows by now. He should be there for her. He should-
"Bellamy?" comes a muffled voice from his door. Speak of the devil. "Bellamy, I'm sorry, please, I just-" He's at the door in seconds, and the moment he sees her tear-stained face, he pulls her in his arms.
This is so fucked up, he thinks as he holds her in the bed he just fucked another girl in. I'm so sorry, Clarke. I'm so sorry.
February, 2018. Pyeong-Chang, sort of.
@danceromance: Any word on a #GriffinBlake engagement??? Seriously I MUST KNOW.
@GriffinBlakeAlways: I wish the reporters would ask them about their GOLD instead of Clarke's ring omg
"We should fly under the radar for a few weeks," Clarke says on the plane ride back to the United States. "I don't want to distract from Stars on Ice."
Bellamy takes her hand in his and brings it to his lips, kissing each knuckle and relishing in the bright blush it brings to her face. "Define under the radar," he murmurs, saving her ring finger for last. She's not wearing the ring, instead slipping it onto a silver chain and wearing it around her neck, hidden underneath her jacket.
"You and O can go relax somewhere," she says. "I have a few sponsorship things to do, so we can let the internet cool down a bit and hopefully, the media will want to talk about sports by the time we get back together."
"You know they'd probably relax if we just made the engagement public," he points out. Clarke's hand comes up to touch her neck, where he suspects the ring rests. She gives him a small smile.
"I like having this just be ours for a little while," she confesses. "It's been such a long time coming. I just want it to be just for us for a bit."
Bellamy sighs, but concedes. "I'll miss you."
Clarke looks at him with a sparkle in her eyes.
"You do realize you get me for the rest of our lives, right?" she whispers conspiratorially. Bellamy's heart skips a beat, and he grins at Clarke widely. God, he loves her.
Sometime in 2016. Canton.
@GriffinsBlakes: They're both single, y'all. And they're dancing to freaking WEDDING MUSIC.
@IceShipper: NEVER STOP. THEY'RE DANCING TO NEVER STOP?
"I want something romantic," Clarke declares, sitting down across from him at the small dining room table she picked out for him. Bellamy's mind shorts for a hot second before he glances down and sees her phone in her hands, a playlist of potential songs for their return free program cued up.
"Why?" Bellamy asks. Not that he's opposed to playing the longing lover with Clarke again, considering there won't be much acting involved, but she looks oddly determined.
"We're in a new world of ice dance," Clarke replies, "We need to draw on what made us the best in 2010."
"Perfect twizzles?"
"Emotion," Clarke clarifies. "We're the best because we can tell the best stories. Yes, we're great at the technical side, but the difference between gold and silver is what happens in between our lifts and step sequences. It's touching people. Connecting with them."
"And you think we can connect best with a love story," Bellamy guesses. Clarke nods, and begins playing a SafetySuit love ballad on her phone about a forever kind of love, a man who wants to be with this girl for the rest of his life. As the gentle piano melody plays in his apartment, decorated with care by his amazing, beautiful, dedicated best friend, Bellamy decides that she's absolutely right.
Of course, the media leaps at their free skate when they debut it at Skate Canada. Marcus has crafted a stunning and graceful dance that tells the story of a couple's journey from conflict to happiness in each other. His choreography is different from Abby's, more focused on storytelling and touches and lifts than classical dance. The artistry is more subtle, and Bellamy thrives on the spark of inspiration once more in Clarke's eyes as they skate together.
She's like an angel on the ice, moving with grace and lightness that most skaters can only dream of. Their costume designers outdid themselves this season; Clarke wears a white lace asymmetrical dress with a silver cord belt, pulling her hair up in a soft curled up-do. Bellamy wears a simple white shirt with light gray slacks. They look like they're getting married.
It's very hard to not fixate on that as they skate.
"We wanted our return to be about us," Bellamy says at the press conference after Skate Canada. "So when we put together our free, we took inspiration from a journey together and our partnership."
"Your second song reads like a wedding vow," a journalist states. "What about this song in particular drew you to it?" Bellamy glances at Clarke, who is staring very determinedly into the distance. Great, he gets to dodge this question now. Just great.
"Well, uh," he scratches his head, searching for the right way to say that he likes the song because he's in love with Clarke…without saying he's in love with Clarke. "It's about a relationship that stands the test of time. That kind of unconditional love, that's what makes Clarke and I's partnership so strong and special. It's a forever kind of thing."
Platonic. Completely platonic.
"Is there any other part of the song that you connect to?" the journalist presses.
"The lyric about losing my breath every time I see her looking at me," Bellamy responds honestly. You're welcome, internet. "It still blows my mind every day that I get to share the ice with Clarke."
Yes, he, Bellamy Blake, is cool as a cucumber.
"I like the part about choosing each other," Clarke adds, smile radiant. "There's been a lot of challenges in our careers where we could have gone our separate ways. But I've always chosen Bellamy, and he's always chosen me, so that element of our partnership really fits this program so well. I think that's why so many people connect to it."
"And I like that we focus more on what comes after our characters choose each other. I think a lot of stories tend to forget that there's a time after the happily ever after, and it's important to remember," Bellamy finishes. Underneath the table Clarke nudges him, a sign that he's done well.
"What has been the hardest thing about returning to competitive skating?" the next journalist asks.
"Improving," Clarke responds, glancing at Bellamy, who nods. "We can't stay stagnant. We want to be innovative and we want to be the best. Ice dance now is not the same sport it was when we won gold in 2010. We want to be the best now."
"I think we're in a much better place now, too," Bellamy adds. "So despite the pressure that comes with a return, we're more mature and we can count on each other more."
"Oh, absolutely," Clarke agrees, and something tugs in Bellamy's chest.
They wrap up soon after that, and Clarke and Bellamy are almost immediately surrounded by their friends. It's a blessing, Bellamy thinks, to have found such a wonderful, sincere group to lean on during competition season. Wells has trained in Canton with them for years, and Monty is one of the most genuine people Bellamy has ever met. Roan and Luna train in Montreal, but they're both very dry and snarky, which is refreshing in the midst of a lot of divas and egos.
"I like the part about choosing each other!" Wells mimics in a poor imitation of Clarke's voice. "Yeah, great way to slow down the dating rumors."
Clarke shrugs.
"Let them think what they want," she says. "It's our business anyways."
Well.
That's new.
March, 2018. Washington, D.C.
griffinsblakes: I can't stop thinking about that ring OMG
bellarkedance: they wON'T CONFIRM ANYTHING ugh why don't they have mercy on us UGH
icequeengriffin: guys chill they'll tell us when they're ready IF THEY'RE EVEN ENGAGED
Abigail Griffin has never been as terrifying to Bellamy as she is at her family dinner table.
Now, Bellamy has been to her home countless times for dinner throughout the years. But all of those times, Clarke hadn't been wearing an engagement ring on her finger. Abby sits across from him and Clarke at their dining room table, watching them with an unreadable expression.
"You know, I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow, Clarke," she says to her daughter. "You're lucky I made a decent dinner tonight."
Clarke looks at her mom carefully. "Why did you just so happen to have the ingredients for stuffed quail?"
Abby blinks, the very picture of innocence. Bellamy only knows it's bullshit because he's seen Clarke pull that very face dozens of times. He, however, remains silent. Does that make him cowardly? Yeah, maybe, but he's accepted his flaws as a man, and total fear of his future mother-in-law is one of them.
There's a knock at the door, and Bellamy stands to get it, brushing off Abby's insistence that, "No, no Bellamy, I can get the-"
He opens the door, and comes face to face with...his coach. Marcus Kane. For a moment, there's just complete silence as the two men stare blankly at each other.
"What are you doing here?" they both ask at once.
Another pause.
"Clarke and I are telling Abby," Bellamy says carefully. "What about you?" Kane opens his mouth to reply, and then hesitates.
"I may have had...dinner plans," he says slowly. When it hits Bellamy, he has to try really hard to not burst out laughing.
"I guess I'm not the only one who's taking a chance on his old skating partner, huh?" he asks. Marcus cracks a smile.
January, 2018. Canton.
Octavia and Raven decide to coordinate a little trip to see Clarke on her birthday, two weeks before they're set to leave for Korea. Bellamy knows this because they happen to invade her apartment the morning after he spends the night in Clarke's bed.
No, not like that. He wishes it were like that.
It's not unusual for the two to be up late watching a movie together or reviewing film of their skates and for Clarke to say, "Well, you might as well just stay." The first time, he slept on her couch, but was so stiff the next day that the next time, Clarke literally pulled him into her bed.
"Relax, Bell," she had said, "We can be adults about this."
Easier said than done, but sure, whatever she says.
There's a lot of that nowadays. Cuddling. Platonic cuddling. They'll be watching TV and he'll shift down so she can nestle her head into his shoulder and lean into him. He'll hold her hand a little longer than he has to after practice. She'll brush his hair out of his eyes or bop him on the nose.
All in the name of good, innocent friendship.
He stays over the night before her birthday, all with the purpose of waking up early to make her a surprise breakfast.
He's cooking her some eggs and pancakes at 5 a.m. when he hears her door open and his sister and Raven sneak in, holding a few balloons and streamers. They all freeze at the same time, and Bellamy wishes he had remembered to put on a shirt. Octavia's jaw drops, and Raven instantly has to smother her mouth with her hands to keep from laughing out loud and waking Clarke.
"What are you doing here?" Bellamy hisses.
"Birthday surprise," Octavia replies in a whisper. "What are you doing here?"
Bellamy stands before them, shirtless and spatula in hand, and wonders if the cosmos actually hate him.
"I spent the night," he grits out, and as Octavia opens her mouth to scream, he adds, "Platonically!"
"How the fuck do you spend the night with someone platonically?" Raven whispers. "You're cooking her pancakes half-naked, Blake!"
"Who's naked?" comes a sleepy voice from the hall, and Bellamy turns to see a half-dozing Clarke padding in, clad in a tank top and shorts.
"Happy birthday!" croon Octavia and Raven together, rushing over to Clarke and enveloping her in a group hug. Bellamy smiles at the sight before returning to his cooking. Being shirtless with a spatula and wholly embarrassed is worth getting to see the genuine love between the two women who mean everything to him.
He makes enough for everyone, and Raven makes Clarke's favorite mimosas, thanking his lucky stars that Clarke's birthday fell on their one off day. They lounge in her living room after eating, and Clarke almost sits next to him like she usually would, until she notices Raven watching them curiously. A glint in her eye, she sits in between her and O, leaving Bellamy isolated on her other couch.
Eventually, Raven takes Clarke out for a coffee run, leaving Bellamy and Octavia alone in her apartment. As soon as the door shuts, O turns to him.
"So, when did you finally realize it?" she asks. Bellamy sighs. There's no bullshitting with O, and honestly, he's tired of pretending that he isn't completely in love with his partner.
"I don't know if I can pinpoint it, honestly," he replies.
He's always been a little bit in love with her. When they were kids, she was his first real crush. When they were teenagers, he spent every moment trying to impress her, to crack that cool, held-together exterior of hers. In Vancouver, he wanted her, but he wasn't ready. In Sochi, everything was too messy.
He had believed he loved Gina. She was clever and witty and fun, and could picture being happy enough with her. But deep down, he's always known that nothing he could ever have with anyone could compare to what he's built with Clarke.
Octavia studies him with those wise eyes of hers, so bright and fiery. "What are you going to do about it, then?"
Bellamy looks around Clarke's place, littered with paintbrushes and polaroid photos of them throughout the years. He sees parts of himself that she's integrated into her home: an old Capitals jersey of his, framed right next to her Flyers one. Half of her kitchen belongs to him; she can't cook to save her life, so he just takes care of things for her.
"Well first, we're going to win gold," he says. Octavia smiles at that. "After that…I guess we'll see."
April, 2018. Orlando.
@eliseonice: OH MY GODDDDSDFNSJFBWFBW YOU GUYS THE BELLARKE SKATE! THEY'RE SO ENGAGED!
Stars On Ice is a blast. Bellamy and Clarke put together a new routine to "All This Time" that chronicles their career and relationship. Clarke wears the ring. It's completely sappy, but Raven tears up as they're choreographing it, and Bellamy thinks it's one of their best routines yet. They cycle through their lifts throughout the years, bringing back old choreography, and end with Bellamy on one knee, holding Clarke's left hand.
Clarke wears a champagne-colored dress that sparkles and her hair down, curled into loose waves. Bellamy wears a white shirt and khaki pants.
The skate is magical, everything Bellamy could ever want from a routine. Raven's choreography makes him feel like he and Clarke are lost in their own little world. And when the music ends, and it's just him on one knee in front of the woman he loves, he doesn't hear the roar of the crowd.
He just sees the woman he's going to marry. His partner. His future wife.
She pulls him up and smiles at him as brightly as he's ever seen. He raises a questioning eyebrow and she nods, grinning even wider, before leaning up and kissing him at the center of the ice.
There's no way for the thrilled crowd to know how much it took for them to arrive here. And they don't need to know. He'll share this much, because he's done with hiding how much he adores his brilliant partner and best friend. But everything else? The way she looks in the mornings, blonde hair tangled and falling in her face? The soft sighs she gives when he kisses her neck? The way she smiles at him, eyes crinkled and lips curled with mirth?
That's theirs. Always.
@ClarkeGriffin: Yes, it's true. @BellBlake and I are engaged. Thanks for all of your kind words, it's been a wonderful journey so far, and this is just the beginning.
@BellBlake: Hey @ClarkeGriffin I love you.
@TheRavenReyes: Nobody deserves a happy ending more than @ClarkeGriffin and @BellBlake! It's about damn time!
@OctaviaBlakeUSA: Took you losers long enough. Welcome to the fam, @ClarkeGriffin! Love you guys! @BellBlake
@MontyGreen: GUYS WTF @ClarkeGriffin @BellBlake
@JahaWellsSkating: They told me first, just saying.