CHAPTER TWO

"i'm gay, guys." 

***

 The main thing that I noticed on this new planet, was that it was really hard to walk. The gravity was much different, pressing down on my shoulders and making me stumble, grabbing on to Monty's shoulders to keep from falling over. Once I got used to walking, I allowed myself to feel carefree for the first time in two years. 

In short, earth is beautiful. And I would be lying if I said I didn't spend my first few minutes laughing and running around like a lunatic. 

 The colors were like things I have never seen before. Vibrant and real. I used to think that the colors Clarke used in her drawings were the most beautiful things I have ever seen. But after the whole getting my mother floated and me arrested thing, I found beauty in the walls of my cell. 

 I climbed up the ladder running up the side of the drop ship, and grinned at the sky. It was blue, and the wind tickled my face. I could see forest in all directions, the lush green of the trees overriding my senses slightly. This was it. this was earth. A place I have only seen from space, a place I have only heard about in stories. I saw a mountain peak in the distance, and a frown tugged at the sides of my lips. Mountain. The chancellor was saying something about a mountain. That's where the food is... But why would they drop us on the wrong side of the forest? Unless they wanted to just be bitches and make us starve since radiation didn't kill us first.

Some loud yelling from below snapped me out of my trance, and I peered down to the ground. Wells Jaha, the chancellors son, was on the ground, and John Murphy, some kid I met like, twice back on the Ark, was standing over him. I rolled my eyes, swinging down from the top of the Drop Ship and landing on the balls of my feet in between the two. A shot of pain trickled up my ankles, and I almost fell right on my face. Thankfully I didn't, since that would have been ver embarassing. Murphy cursed loudly, stepping back in shock. I couldn't help the smirk that slipped onto my face. 

 "Hey, yeah you know I think it is super cool to beat up someone with only one leg." I gestured to Wells, who was struggling to stand. "But you should probably wait until it is a fair fight. Unless you can only fight someone with one leg, that it." Sarcasm practically dripped from my voice, and Murphy shook his head, his lips curling in distaste. I wasn't exactly the eptimome of indimidation, but I crossed my arms and tried my best to stare him down, mentally making a list of all the insults I could use on this kid. 

 The tension was too thick to even cut with a knife, but Octavia slid in, winking at me flirtatiously, "Hey Nate," she crowed, her hand dusting over my bicep, "save me next."  

 I chuckled awkwardly, definitely blushing like the awkward loser I am as Murphy and his gang dispersed. Bellamy gave his sister a disapproving look, and I heard her chuckle, "what? He's cute." 

 Aw, I'm so honored. 

 "Oh my God." 

 And now I'm not. 

 My eyes lifted up slowly to meet familiar blue ones. Clarke stood in front of me, clutching papers in her hands so tight her knuckles turned white. She looked nearly the exact same she did when we were fifteen, and she stared at me with the exact same expression I saw just before I was arrested. Familiar sparks of anger twisted in my chest just at the sight of her. She turned me in. She got my mother killed. 

 Before I could even fully comprehend what was happening, I had lunged forward, not really sure what my plan was, and someone stepped in front of me, pushing me back. It was Finn. The Spacewalker. 

 "Wow dude, chill." He tried, standing firm between me and the blonde girl. "We're all cool here, okay?" 

 I glared, but stepped down, my heartbeat irregular and my breathing heavy. Clarke opened her mouth as if to speak, but decided not to at the last second. Smart move, Griffin. 

 "You know about the mountain? The supplies?" I asked curtly, aiming my eyes at the ground. It was a half-heartened attempt to change the subject, and I closed my eyes for a second as I stared at the ground. Even the dirt was beautiful, wow. 

 "Uh, yeah." 

 "Good. I'm coming." 

 Clarke looked uncomfortable at the idea of me frolicking in the woods with her, but Spacewalker just grinned, patting me on the back. "Nice, we could use some muscle."

I finally looked up, pursing my lips. "I've been in prison for two years, bold of you to assume I have any muscle." 

 "How are the three of you gonna carry enough food for a hundred?" Wells asked, obviously not keen on Clarke wandering into the forest with two strange dudes. 

 As a response, I twirled around and grabbed onto Monty and Jasper's shoulders. "Actually, five of us." 

 "Sounds like a party!" Octavia skipped over, giving me a flirty grin. "Make it six." 

 I should really tell her that I am gay... 

 Bellamy stalked over to his sister, staring her down. "What do you think you're doing?" 

 "Going for a walk." She responded dryly. I snorted and turned away. 

 "Were you trying to take this off?" Clarke asked, gesturing towards Finn's wristband. He shrugged, "yeah, so?" 

 "So, this wristband transmits your vital signals to the Ark. Take it off, they'll think you're dead." 

 "'Cause I have a loving family waiting for me back on the Ark." I snapped, finally fed up with hearing her stupid voice. Clarke's cheeks flushed red. "Nate, I said I was-" 

 "I'm sorry I got your mom killed." I mocked, making my voice as high as possible. "I've already heard it." 

"But I-" 

 "Already heard it!"  I sent her a sharp glare. "Now let's go for a hike." 

***

"Before you get any ideas, Nate's mine." 

 "Before you get any ideas, he hates me... and I don't care." 

 "Before you get any ideas, I'm gay, guys." 

 I patted Octavia's shoulder, before jogging to catch up with Monty and Jasper. 

"Have you ever seen this many plants?" Jasper asked, plucking a leaf off a tree. "Like, this must be what the inside of Monty's brain looks like!" 

 "This is totally what the inside of my brain looks like." Monty grinned, popping a small, green leaf in his mouth. "Mint." He held out another, and I took it, chewing thoughtfully on the bitter plant. 

 We all watched as Finn plucked a purple flower from the bushes on either side of us, and tucked one behind Octavia's ear. 

"That, my friends, is game." Jasper pointed out, smiling softly. Monty smirked. 

 "That, my friends, is poison sumac." 

 "What? It is?" Octavia cried, quickly swiping the flower out of her hand. Monty chuckled. 

 "The flowers aren't poisonous." He explained, picking a flower and taking a bite out of it. "Their medical, calming actually." 

 "Calming?" I asked, grabbing a flower and shoving it in my mouth, shooting my friend a lopsided grin. Monty snickered. 

 "Guys, could you try to keep up?" Clarke asked from the front of the group. I rolled my eyes. 

 "Come on, Clarke, how do you block this out?" Finn asked, gesturing around to all the life around us. 

 "Simple. I wonder why we haven't seen any animals. Maybe because there are none, maybe because we have already been exposed to enough radiation to kill us! Sure is pretty though, come on." 

 "Jeez, someone should slip her some poison sumac." Octavia muttered, and I didn't even try to hide the laughter that came with her statement as I tripped over a tree root jutting from the ground.

We all fell into a brief silence, following Clarke through the radiation-soaked wilderness. Finally, Finn spoke up, turning back to us. "Look, I gotta know what you guys did to get busted." 

 Monty chuckled dryly. "Sumac's not the only herb in the garden if you know what I mean." 

 "Someone forgot to replace what we took." 

 "Someone's already apologized a thousand times." 

Finn snorted at their banter, before turning back to me. "Nate,  what'd you do?"

 I made a motion like I was grabbing something from the air, flipping my hair away from my eyes.  "Best thief on the Ark." 

 Finn's eyes widened, "really?" 

 I shrugged, "It's a self-proclaimed title." I jumped over a rock. "Never got caught." 

 "Obviously." Finn teased, grinning slightly. "What was the reason you did get caught?" 

 My lips pursed as I sent a pointed glare in Clarke's direction. Finn winced, "ouch."

 An uneasy silence fell over the group. Jasper cleared his throat awkwardly. "What about you, Octavia? What'd they bust you for?" 

 "Being born." She hissed, her tone suddenly volatiles, picking up her pace and joining Clarke at the front of our group. I winced. Ouch for that one. 

 "That is so not game." I winced. Jasper and Monty nodded in agreement. 

 Up ahead, Octavia and Clarke were crouching down behind some bushes. Clarke turned her head, gesturing for us to be quiet and approach them. Just because she wants us to be quiet, I was tempted to just straighten up and scream as loud as I could. But I am not a complete asshole, so I didn't. 

 Instead, we crouched down next to the two girls. My lips parted in amazement. It was a deer. I recognized the creature from the storybooks we had back on the Ark. It was... beautiful. 

 "Wow..." I spoke in a breathy whisper, and Finn turned to smirk at us, taking a step forward. The sound that a twig made when he stepped on it was loud enough to make the deer's head snap in our direction. A sound of revolt bubbled in my throat. 

 It had two heads. One normal head, molded together with another by red fat that bubbled beneath the tan fur. It blinked once, as if we were the ones who were scary as hell, before scampering away. 

 We fell into uncomfortable silence. I cleared my throat. "We should keep going." 

 "Yeah." Clarke sent me a look, which I purposely ignored. "We should."