Work Text:
“Speed dating,” Clarke said, looking at Madi with eyebrows raised. “You can’t be serious.”
“Oh, come on, Clarke! Live a little!” Madi jerked her hand out of Clarke’s, nearly smudging the delicate design that Clarke painted on her nails. Clarke grabbed her wrist gently and Madi sent her an apologetic smile.
“I mean, come on! It’s Friday night and you’re at home, in your pyjamas.”
“I’m spending quality time with my daughter.” Clarke put down the brush and started blowing gently on Madi’s nails.
“Yes and if you went on a date, I could go over to Gaia’s and then we’d have the chance to miss each other and those evenings together would be that more special!”
Clarke looked up at Madi, her eyes squinting.
“So, it’s actually about your social life, not mine,” Clarke teased.
“That too. But seriously, since we’ve met you’ve been on what? Two dates? Don’t you miss having someone?”
“You’re all I need, Mads,” Clarke told her and Madi rolled her eyes, exasperated.
“Yeah, and in six years I’m gonna go to college and you’re gonna be alone again!” Madi insisted and Clarke snorted lightly.
In the past six years that she’d spent with Madi, it felt like she barely even had the time to think about relationships, much less to actually miss having one but truth be told, sometimes she did long for a partner.
“Where did you even heard about this whole thing?” Clarke asked.
“Jordan’s parents run them once a month.”
“I thought they were farmers.”
“They are,” Madi confirmed. “But they sell their produce to this restaurant owners, who rent it out to them on weekends, so they can do those speed dating evenings.”
“And you like them, don’t you? You said they were nice, so those things are probably fun, right?”
There was so much hope and encouragement in Madi’s eyes that Clarke couldn’t help but actually consider the idea. Madi was right, she did like the Greens, so whatever party they planned, probably wouldn’t be a disaster. And besides, it definitely couldn’t hurt for her to meet some new people.
***
“Alright, ladies,” Jordan’s mom clasped her hands together with a brilliant smile on her face, “let’s begin!”
Clarke was seated at the table farthest from the door, her back turned to the entrance. Feeling more and more nervous, she raised her hand to run in through her hair but stopped herself when she remembered the intricate half-up-do that Madi helped her create. She tucked one of the loose tendrils behind her ear instead, and listened to Harper’s explanation—the women would sit while the men changed their seats every ten minutes. Afterwards, they’d write down the names of the people they liked and if there were any matches, they’d get each other phone numbers. And in any case, after the dates, they were all invited to stay for drinks and mingling.
Clarke took a deep, if a little shaky breath when Harper finished and motioned for the men to take their seats for the first round.
She had actually been on four dates since she’d adopted Madi over six years ago but none of them ever really led to anything and Clarke knew that a big part of it was because she didn’t exactly made an effort to see them through. It was easier to say that she didn’t have the time for all that and that Madi was enough for her.
But this time, it would be different.
She hoped.
***
The first guy she met was—nice. The ten minutes passed in a perfectly pleasant small talk but frankly, when the bell rang Clarke was rather relieved. Sterling was very nice but after talking about their jobs, the weather and their Netflix queues, it seemed that they were absolutely out of topics.
Roan was very clearly a veteran. He started off admitting that he found her attractive but wasn’t looking for anything serious. Clarke was flattered but also not interested in a one night stand, so they spent the rest of their time recommending books and telling dirty jokes to each other, and a promise that he’d hook them up with some soccer tickets.
And then the third guy was—
“Bellamy!” Clarke exclaimed in surprise and felt a blush crawling up her neck when she noticed the pair sitting at the nearby table stared at her.
Bellamy blinked quickly, as if he wasn’t quite sure if he believed she was real and sat down on the chair, his mouth slightly open.
“Clarke?” he rasped and cleared his throat, and suddenly, Clarke was 18 again, slightly drunk on the ‘thank fuck the finals are over, let’s get hammered before we all leave for the summer’ party and Bellamy was leaning over her, his hand on her waist, his lips dangerously close to her ear and moving even closer towards her lips and—
And then, a fight broke out in the living room, which sent everyone into a frenzy. Clarke and Bellamy got separated by the crowd and the next thing she knew, it was the next morning and he was telling her that next semester, he’d be taking a year off because his mother was sick and he had to go back home and help her out. And then, Clarke hadn’t seen him for the next ten years.
Clarke smiled at him and let her eyes roam over his face. There were a few lines across his forehead and a few grey hair on is head but he still had the same beautiful smile and kind eyes.
“You’ve got a beard,” Clarke noticed with a small laugh and snapped her mouth shut, embarrassed. Bellamy rubbed his hand over his cheek and smiled at her.
“And you cut your hair,” he motioned with his hand. “It suits you.”
Clarke ducked her head, blushing, and bit her lip. She felt her cheeks stretch in a wide smile.
They met ten years ago during their freshman Latin class at Arkadia University and then promptly proceeded to rip each other’s heads off when they got paired up for a project. He acted like a cocky asshole who mocked her and resented her for her family’s money and she was so eager to prove herself, that she fought him off with a deadly stubbornness. With time, they managed to figure out how to work together and even become friends, and by the time the year was ending, she was really hoping that maybe, they were headed towards something more. And then he moved away.
“So, um, how are you?” Clarke asked, finally becoming aware of the passing time. “How long have you been back?”
“I moved back a few years ago to finally finish my degree and now I’m teaching history over at Ark High School, if you can believe that.”
“Oh, yeah,” Clarke nodded enthusiastically. “I think that fits you perfectly.”
“Huh, and where have you been when I was agonising over that choice, worried I’m gonna crash and burn?”
“That’s just because you’ve never watched yourself when you were tutoring half of our Latin class,” Clarke shot back quickly, which made Bellamy smirk at her with just enough smugness that she suddenly felt the urge to duck under the table so he wouldn’t see her blush.
“But you have watched me, haven’t you?” He leaned with his elbows on the table, his face so close that Clarke could see it was still smattered with freckles, his gaze hot on her.
They stayed quiet for a few heartbeats, just staring at each other, until finally Bellamy moved away but still stayed close enough that Clarke was able to notice the laughter lines around his eyes.
“How about you,” Bellamy finally asked.“Did you become that surgeon, like you wanted?”
“A general practitioner, actually. I’m finishing up my residency soon,” Clarke explained, impressed that he still remembered what she wanted to do after all that time. “My mom’s former colleague invited me to join his practice when I’m done.”
“Okay, I gotta ask,” she followed up. “The Bellamy Blake doing speed dating? This is probably the last place I would’ve ever expected to see you, of all people.”
Now he ducked his head bashfully and rubbed his neck before looking up at her again.
“Yeah, I didn’t expect to see myself here either but Monty and Harper are good friends and it’s been almost a year since my ex and I broke up, so I figured, why the hell not. At the very least, I can get drunk afterwards.” He grinned and Clarke found herself reciprocating.
After a moment, he cocked one eyebrow at her and smirked.
“Come on, Princess, it’s only fair if you explain yourself, too.”
Clarke squinted at him with mock-indignation for the use of the old nickname but couldn’t hold it for long and she giggled instead.
But here came the tricky part, the one where she had to decide if she wanted to spill her entire life story and find out if Madi was a deal breaker, or wait and get invested before breaking the news. But this was Bellamy and even though she hadn’t really known him for all those ten long years, she felt strangely calm about this. And quite certain that if anything about her would make him run for the hills, it’s not gonna be her kid.
“My daughter thinks I’m getting old and lonely, so she found me they quickest way to date as many people at once as possible,” Clarke said quickly, lightly, and Bellamy’s eyes widened in surprise. Her heart skipped a bit when he said nothing but before she had the chance to doubt her instinct, Bellamy’s face broke into a huge grin and Clarke felt herself relax.
“You have kids?” he asked, interested. Clarke’s heart grew a size.
“Just one. Her name’s Madi, she’s 12,” Clarke explained and huffed a breath of laughter when she noticed Bellamy’s confused expression, him no doubt going through some serious maths in his head.
“She was adopted, six years ago,” she offered. Bellamy’s face cleared. “I’m a mother now, can you believe that?”
She half-joked but he just huffed a ‘yeah’ with such a certainty that Clarke had to blink and look away before she did something reckless—like reach across the table and kiss him.
This couldn’t possibly be this easy, right? After ten years of living separate, different lives, there should be more awkwardness but instead, all Clarke felt was like they just jumped right back into their last conversation.
That and incredible attraction.
Bellamy cleared his throat and broke her out of her reverie.
“So, uh, you think I can get your number?” he asked, uncertain and Clarke grinned at him. She leaned closer to him and noticed his eyes dropping to her cleavage for a split second before coming back to look at her face, his cheeks tinted with a soft blush.
“I think that’s the whole point of this evening,” she whispered conspiratorially and winked at him, which made Bellamy laugh so brilliantly that she felt warmth spreading in her belly.
He opened his mouth to say something but the bell rang before he had the chance and the caught-off-guard expression he had on his face made her think, not without some satisfaction, that it seemed like he’d forgotten he was supposed to switch dates now.
Bellamy rose from his seat and made a move to walk away but before he did, he looked back at her and asked hopefully “talk to you later?”
Clarke nodded and the smile he sent her made her head spin.
She couldn’t remember one single thing her next date told her.
***
Clarke came into the house and put down her heels gently, so that she wouldn’t wake up Madi. But clearly, Clarke needn’t have worried because when she came into the living room, her daughter was still very much awake.
When Madi saw Clarke come in, she jumped from the couch, dropping the blanket on, and skipped over to her, excitement all over her face.
“So, how was it? Did you like it? Did you meet anyone? Are you gonna see them again?”
“Aren’t you supposed to be in bed by now?”
“Yeah, like I was gonna sleep when you’re out there finally having a life,” Madi said with a snort. “So? Come on, I’m dying here!”
Clarke moved past her and grabbed the blanket. She handed it over back to Madi who started to fold it and Clarke sat down on the couch with a quiet sigh.
She never introduced Madi to anyone before and a part of her was a little wary too talk about it now but it was different with Bellamy. After the dates were over, she stayed to have a drink with him and they only went home when Monty came by to tell them they were closing already.
It felt so good to reconnect with him and Clarke realised that even if things didn’t work out between them, she’d still want to keep him in her life as a friend and that definitely meant introducing him to Madi. And she felt really good about that.
Clarke waited until Madi tidied up after herself and sat next to her.
“Actually, I ran into an old friend from college. His name’s Bellamy and I think we’re gonna—”
“Wait, Bellamy?!” Madi interrupted with an tiny excited squeal. “You mean the guy you were totally in love but neither one of you ever made a move and then he just disappeared?”
Clarke stared at her blankly while Madi was almost shaking with excitement.
“What are you—I wasn’t—we—” Clarke stuttered, shaking her head. “How do you even know about Bellamy?”
“Murphy told me about him.” Madi shrugged.
“Murph—why was he even—You know, never mind.” Clarke threw her hands up and rolled her eyes. By now, Madi was pretty much jumping in her seat. “Yes, that was him and before you ask, yes, I am going to see him again.”
Madi let out a high-pitch squeal and threw her arms around Clarke’s neck. Clarke rubbed her hand on her daughter’s back, the other one combed through Madi’s long hair. Yeah, she was pretty happy, too.
***
Clarke was more nervous about her first date with Bellamy than she’d ever been before. She spent half an hour doubting all her wardrobe choices before finally agreeing with Madi that the dark blue dress with deep cleavage she bought on a whim a few months ago would actually be perfect. She considered heels for a while but picked a pair of pale gold ballet pumps instead in hope that maybe he’d just walk her back home, just like he used to after their evening study sessions.
When Clarke arrived at the same restaurant they met for the speed dating evening, he was already standing in front of the entrance, looking ridiculously hot in the dark button down and slacks. As she exited the cab, he turned around and she notice he had a small bouquet of pink carnations in his hand—and he was clutching at it like his life depended on it.
Clarke smiled to herself and approached him. Bellamy grinned at her when he saw her. He gave her the flowers and Clarke felt a light shiver when his warm, rough fingers brushed against hers.
“I wasn’t sure about the flowers,” he started explaining, sounding unsure and Clarke felt warm all over. “I did remember that you didn’t like roses, though, so I figured—”
Clarke didn’t let him finish. She stepped closer, rose to her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his in a quick kiss. For a second after she moved away, Bellamy looked like a deer caught in the headlights but she didn’t get the chance to step away any further. He put his large hand on her waist and chased her lips with a much longer, much more demanding kiss.
When they finally separated, Clarke’s breath was quickened and Bellamy’s hand was flexing on her waist, and she never wanted this moment to end.
“I can’t believe we waited ten years to do this,” Bellamy said, his voice hoarse and it made Clarke squirm.
“Well, we don’t have to wait anymore,” she said with a smirk that Bellamy immediately kissed right off of her lips.