What He Left Behind

Chapter 15

BELLAMY POV

1 October 2155

When Raven came to me last night to tell me that we were going home, I almost didn't believe her. For five years, going home is the only thing I've had to look forward to. For the past six months, it's felt as if it was some untouchable fantasy, always just barely out of my reach. But here we are, having just landed on Earth, and I have no words to describe the myriad of emotions flowing within me right now.

"Bellamy, would you like to do the honors?" Raven asks, motioning to the lever that will open the doors to the planet we call home.

A feeling of déjà vu hits me hard, and suddenly I can't breathe. Six years ago, I was going to open the dropship door when a know-it-all princess told me to stop.

"The air could be toxic," she said.

"If the air's toxic, we're all dead anyway," I retorted.

That's where it all started, Clarke's and my thing with closing the door on each other, with me opening that dropship door. She closed the dropship door on me during our battle with the grounders in order to save our people, the 100. Not too long after that, I closed the rocket door on her in order to save myself and our friends. And now I stand, preparing to open the door to the Eligius ship. Albeit, it's not the same door I opened years ago, but it feels all too familiar. Only this time, I'm opening the door to a world without Clarke Griffin in it.

"Come on, Blake, we're not getting any younger," Raven speaks again, shaking me from my thoughts. I steel myself as I reach for the lever and pull, opening the door.

For a few moments, no one moves or speaks. We stare into the trees as we take our first breath of fresh air since Praimfaya. Finally, Murphy is the first one to step foot on the ground.

"We're back, bitches!" He hollers, mimicking what my sister said in our first moments on this planet what seems like a lifetime ago. We slowly make our way out into the sunlight, reveling in the indescribable feeling of the sun's warm rays on our faces. The only way this moment could feel any better is if Clarke was here with me.

Suddenly, I hear rustling of leaves from the trees to my left and I turn my head just in time to see a figure rushing towards me. The child stops just a few feet away from me and she looks up at me completely mystified.

"Dad?" She asks in a dazed voice. "Mom knew you guys would come!" She launches herself into my arms before I get a second to process her words.

Dad. Mom.

"Look, kid, no offense, but who are you?" Murphy asks abruptly.

She pulls herself out of my arms and looks to everyone else standing around us before speaking again.

"Oh, right, sorry. I haven't met anyone since I was five, so this is pretty new to me. I'm Madi. And you guys are..." she pauses briefly, as if deciding where to start. "Murphy, the funny one. Raven, the strongest, coolest person ever. Monty, the smart one. Harper, the loving one. Emori, the survivor. And Bellamy, fighter, leader, protector. Someone's missing, though. Where's Echo?"

Everyone is too stunned to speak, seeing as she just named and described us all with complete accuracy.

"I'm sorry, Madi," Harper breaks the silence, "I think we're all just a bit confused here. How are you alive? And how do you know our names?"

"And you called me Dad..." I trail off, leaving the question open-ended. I still can't think straight. Dad.

"Impressive intel, I know, but I've been getting to know you guys since I was five. I'm Clarke's daughter. She found me about two months after Praimfaya, we've been together ever since. And—"