Earth Kills.

CHAPTER THREE , YOU OVER THEM

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"Aaand done."

Aiden looks at herself in the reflection of the metal and she raises her brows. "Not bad."

"Not bad?"

Aiden turns to the boy and chuckles. "I think you mean, "Amazing job, John!"."

Aiden knits her brows together, "That's how you think I sound?" She snorts. "I think you might have a hearing problem."

"My hearing might be shot. But my braiding skills..." Murphy examines the braid in Aiden's hair. "...off the charts."

Aiden rolls her eyes, "Thank you." She looks back at him.

Murphy gives Aiden a soft smile and the blonde's stomach flutters. "Uh--I should check on Jasper." She points at the dropship.

"Was the eye contact too much for you this time?" Murphy raises a brow.

Aiden shakes her head, "I'll see you later, John."

The blonde stands up and gives Murphy a wave as she walks away. Murphy watches Aiden walk away and he exhales sharply trying to keep his breathing under control.

"His pulse is 380."

Aiden's breathing hitches. Her eyes shifted to Jasper, who was groaning uncontrollably. Her blue eyes burn with tears.

"Go back to sleep!" Someone shouts from downstairs. The delinquents that didn't care about Jasper's condition had been growing antsy from how loud he's been. But the boy was in pain, of course he was going to relay that with groans.

"Quiet!"

Aiden bites her tongue. She brushes some of Jasper's hair out of his eyes. "Don't listen to them." She whispers, a small smile on her face. "You're gonna make it through this, ok? Come on, J."

"Can he just die already?"

"I'm gonna get clean water," Clarke says.

Clarke leaves the room. Aiden looks at Monty who was looking at Jasper with worry.

"You think he's gonna be okay?" Monty asks.

Aiden bites the inside of her cheek and shrugs. "Hopefully."

Monty turns to her with his brows pulled together. "What happened to your optimism?"

Aiden smirks, "It's kind of exhausting." She chuckles. "I don't know how you and Jasper do it."

Aiden runs her hand over her ponytail and exhales sharply. "Do you..." she chuckles. "Do you remember when I met you guys for the first time?"

Monty laughs, "How could I forget? Earth skills class. You didn't know any of the answers."

"Pike was an asshole," Aiden says. "He knew I couldn't understand it and yet he still...picked me every time."

"Your face always got tomato red!" Monty laughs. "Then you would start stuttering and sweating."

Aiden places a hand on her forehead. "I regret this trip down memory lane already."

"Then when you sat back down, Jasper said--"

"I only thought girls got that red from me flirting with me." Aiden finishes.

"And you actually thought that was cute." Monty shakes his head.

"It was cute!" Aiden defends.

"We were inseparable ever since," Monty says. "Pike never let us sit together."

"Like I said...asshole." Aiden inhales a breath. "The point is, Jasper saw that I was embarrassing myself in that class and he immediately came over and made me feel better." her eyes softened and a small smile formed on her lips.

"Then after that, it was the three of us. Always. And you two," Aiden reaches forward and grabs Monty's hand. "have been there for me--even when I didn't deserve it."

Monty gently squeezes her hand and reciprocates her smile of gratitude. "Thank you for never giving up on me," Aiden whispers. Her eyes shift to Jasper, still groaning in pain. A lump forms in her throat. "The least I could do is not give up on us."

☆

"The grounders cauterized the wound. Saved his life."

"Saved his life so they could string him up for live bait," Finn says. "Garden of Eden this ain't."

Aiden tilts her head while looking intently at Jasper's wound. "It's infected."

Clarke nods her head and looks at Aiden, her worry evident. "He could be septic," she says.

Aiden saw that Clarke was stressed about not only helping Jasper but also trying to find a way to contact the Ark. The least she could do was look at Monty. Before Clarke could reply, Aiden looked at Monty. "Any progress on using the wristbands to contact the Ark?"

Monty doesn't answer, his eyes never leave Jasper's. The blonde's eyes soften. He's been so quiet since Jasper's been injured and she couldn't blame him. Aiden was motivated to find a way to keep Jasper alive. That's why she wasn't breaking down right now.

"Monty." Aiden's voice was still soft.

Monty blinks and he looks at the blonde. "That would be a firm no."

Clark exhales quietly, "My mother would know what to do."

"Hey."

Aiden jumps, "How were you so quiet coming up here? You're...ripped."

"Uh...thank you?" Wells pulls his brows together. He looks back at Jasper. "How's he doing?"

"How does it look like he's doing, Wells?" Clark snaps.

"Hey, I'm just trying to help," Wells says, not wanting to fight.

"All right, you want to help?" Clarke looks at Wells. "Hold him down."

"I'm sure Wells will have no problem with that. I mean, he's just so--"

"Ripped, yeah--we get it." Clarke quickly says.

Aiden presses her lips together. Wells and Finn hold Jasper down. Clarke places the knife into the fire.

Aiden's face pales. She keeps her hands on Jasper's face, hoping to bring him any kind of comfort.

"I'm not gonna like this, am I?" Monty asks.

Aiden closes her eyes as Clarke cuts into Jasper's wound. Jasper's screams fill the dropship and the rest of the campsite.

"Hold him still! I need to cut away the infected flesh."

Jasper's eyes roll the back of his head and he falls unconscious. Aiden presses her fingers against his neck. "He's alive."

"Stop it! You're killing him." Octavia rushes to Jasper's side.

"She's trying to save his life," Aiden softly assures the brunette.

"She can't."

Aiden's jaw tightens and she lifts her gaze to Bellamy.

Wells stands up and looks at Bellamy, "Back off."

"We didn't drag him through miles of woods just to let him die," Clarke says.

"Kid's a goner," Bellamy states. "If you can't see that, you're deluded. He's making people crazy,"

"Sorry if Jasper's an inconvenience to you, but this isn't the Ark," Clarke states. "Down here, every life matters."

"Take a look at him. He's a lost cause." Bellamy says.

Aiden felt her stomach turn. She looks down at Jasper and inhales a shaky breath. "Don't listen to him, you're going to be just fine." she softly whispers.

Clarke notices how much Bellamy's words took a toll on Octavia and Aiden.

"Octavia, I've spent my whole life watching my mother heal people," Clarke states. "And Aiden has always helped my mother and I," she adds. "If I say there's hope, there's hope."

"This isn't about hope, it's about guts," Bellamy states. "You don't have the guts to make the hard choices. I do. He's been like this for 3 days. If he's not better by tomorrow, I'll kill him myself."

Aiden felt the air from her lungs disappear.

"Octavia, let's go." Bellamy barks.

Octavia doesn't even spare her brother a glance. "I'm staying here,"

Aiden smirks as Bellamy leaves the top level.

"Power-hungry, self-serving jackass," Monty grumbles. "He doesn't care about anyone but himself."

Aiden softly laughs. Monty and Aiden look at Octavia.

"No offense."

☆

Aiden wanted to keep Jasper company while Clarke, Finn, and Wells went to find the seaweed to help with Jasper's healing process. The blonde had ended up falling asleep with her back against the metal wall and her knees pulled toward her chest. Aiden normally didn't sleep in the drop ship, she and Charlotte made comfort underneath a tree slightly secluded from the camp. Even though they were together, it didn't stop Charlotte's nightmares and paranoia. Charlotte had every right to have nightmares. But Aiden didn't know how to help her. All she normally did was hug Charlotte and reassure her that she's safe. But the truth is, Aiden didn't think she would be safe. Seeing Jasper speared and strung up like he was hunted—it made her even more protective of her sister.

Out of nowhere, Aiden quickly lifts her head—jolting awake. Still in her sleeping daze, she stands onto her feet and keeps her back against the wall. Her heart was beating out of control, and the only thing on her mind was the whereabouts of her baby sister. Aiden glances at Octavia, who was cleaning Jasper's face with a wet rag. "I'm...I'll be right back." She wipes her nose. "I just need to check on Charlotte."

Octavia tuns to Aiden and gives her a small smile. "I'll still be here." She looks at Jasper. "Both of us."

Aiden softly chuckles, she grabs her jacket off the floor and climbs down the ladder. The blonde drops to the first level of the dropship and before she could make it outside, she heard abrupt screaming coming from outside. Aiden pulls her brows together and quickly stops in her tracks. The crowd of delinquents rushes into the dropship, causing Aiden's eyes to widen. She steps aside, making sure to stay out of the way.

Everyone begins to close the doors and any opening to the outside world. "Uh, what's going on?"

They close the doors and any opening. Aiden raises her brows, "What's going on?"

"Air got thick and everybody's skin started burning."

Aiden's eyes widen, "Where's my sister?" She asks. "Where's Charlotte?"

"I saw her go out to the woods after the boys."

Aiden's heart practically stops. Her eyes quickly snap over to the doors and her breathing quickens. "N-No, no, no, no..." she runs to the door.

"No, Aiden--don't!" Monty runs over to the blonde. He grabs her arm to keep her from leaving.

"Monty, let me go—Charlotte...sh-she's out there!" Aiden screams, tears in her eyes.

"And my brother!" Octavia says, panicked.

"They'll be fine," Monty looks between Octavia and Aiden. "We'll all be fine."

Aiden shakes her head. She falls to her knees and exhales a shaky breath. Octavia walks over to Aiden and wraps an arm around her shoulder.

"Hey, they're both smart," Octavia says. "They're going to be okay."

Aiden swallows the lump in her throat and looks away from Octavia. She appreciated Octavia's words of reassurance, but it didn't stop her worrying and it sure as hell wasn't going to make her feel better. And Octavia could see that across her face. The brunette bites the inside of her cheek. "Let's go back upstairs and help Jasper, okay?"

Aiden moves some of her hair behind her ear and sniffles. "Yeah, okay..." she stands up with Octavia and they go back up to the second level where Jasper was.

...

The only way Aiden could focus on something else was by taking care of Jasper. She and Octavia were upstairs, with him for hours. It was dark when Monty climbed up the ladder with an urgency. His breathing was quick and his eyes were wide. "Murphy's going to kill Jasper!" He screams. Monty jumps into the room. Aiden's eyes widen, "What?!"

Not needing anymore of an explanation, Aiden crawls over to the hatch as Monty slams it shut. She and Monty sit on top of the hatch, keeping it shut. Murphy bangs on the hatchet and screams.

"The locks on the other side!" Aiden shouts, she presses the bottoms of her boots against the metal floor.

"Don't let him in!" Octavia says, jumping onto her feet.

"That's what we're doing!" Monty shouts.

"I'm gonna kill him, ok? Let me in!" Murphy bangs against the hatchet.

"John, stop!" Aiden shouts.

Octavia runs over to the side and grips the pole. She yanks on it aggressively.

"No rush. We're fine here!" Monty groans.

"Come on, John! I thought we were friends?!" Aiden shouts.

"Open up and let's discuss it!" Murphy shouts right back at her.

"Move it!" Octavia runs over to them. She slides the pole into the handle to lock it. Aiden and Monty get off the door.

"The three of you better open up this hatchet right now!"

Aiden huffs, "This is turning out to be the best day ever."

☆

"Oh, my god, Charlotte!"

Aiden sprints over to her sister and falls to her knees. She cups her sister's face and looks across it for any cuts or bruises. "Someone told me you were out there in the fog." A small whimper comes from Aiden's lips. "Are you okay? You're not hurt, are you? Would you tell me—"

"Yes." Charlotte grabs Aiden's hands. "I would tell you." Her eyes soften. "I'm okay..."

Aiden pulls her brows together when she sees tears become more evident in Charlotte's eyes. "Char...? What's wrong?"

Charlotte sniffles and wipes her tears. "I'm okay. But Atom, he's..." she covers her face and cries harder than before. The blonde pulls her brows together. She slightly opens her mouth, "What happened to Atom...?" Her words trail off when she sees Bellamy carrying in someone on a stretcher. A gasp escapes Aiden's lips. "Oh, my god..."

Charlotte wraps her arms around Aiden's neck. Aiden immediately wraps her around Charlotte and touches the back of her head. "Hey, I've got you..." she softly whispers. Her eyes follow Atom's body. Bellamy sets the stretcher on the ground. Not far behind him were Clarke, Finn, and Wells.

"I'm really sorry about Atom."

"I guess we're gonna have to get used to people dying down here, aren't we?" Octavia questions. Her eyes shift to Jasper. "But not you. You hear me?" She whispers. "You're not allowed to die."

A small smile forms on Aiden's lips.

Charlotte stands up, "I'm going to sleep outside." She says.

Aiden looks at her sister, "Okay, I'll meet you out there later."

Charlotte gives Aiden a small smile before leaving.

They all wait patiently in the room, passing around the whiskey Finn found earlier.

"Smooth." Monty coughs, he hands the bottle to Octavia.

Octavia takes a sip and she groans. "Disgusting...love it." She hands it to Aiden.

Aiden grabs the whiskey and takes a sip of it. The burning liquid runs down her throat and she coughs. Everyone laughs at the Walker girl. She hands it to Finn and shakes her head, "Oh, my God--no."

"Can I Uh...get a hit of that?"

Everyone looks at the groggy boy.

"Jasper!" Aiden stands up and runs over to him with the others.

"Let's start with the soft stuff." Finn chuckles. He gives Jasper some water.

"Welcome back, Buddy."

Jasper grips Monty's hand. He then gives Aiden a wink which causes her to laugh.

"Was that a dream or did I get speared?" Jasper asks.

"You'll have a very impressive scar to prove it," Clarke says, coming up the ladder.

"My savior." Jasper warmly smiles.

"Thank you for not dying," Clarke says. "I don't think I could've taken that today."

"I'll try not to die tomorrow, too, if that's cool," Jasper replies.

"That would be much appreciated," Aiden sniffles she softly laughs with everyone else.

Octavia touches Jasper's leg and he looks at her. Jasper's eyes light up, "Oh, hello."

It's like his body was fighting his want to be conscious. Immediately after he greeted Octavia had closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Aiden hangs her head low and laughs. Tears of relief found her eyes and she looks at Clarke. "Thank you so much, Clarke."

Clarke gives Aiden a soft smile. "Thank you for trusting me to take care of him."

...

Aiden was sitting on a log, her hands interlocked. She hears twigs snapping behind her, she turns and her body immediately grows stiff. Aiden looks forward again, her anger not being subtle.

"You're not gonna try and kill me, are you?" Aiden grumbles.

Murphy softly chuckles, "Oh, come on. Don't be so dramatic--"

"You tried to kill Jasper." Aiden snaps her eyes back over at Murphy. He keeps his eyes on hers for a moment. He's never seen her angry before. She's only been calm, especially in front of her sister. It was nice to see a different kind of emotion from her.

Murphy points at the spot next to her. "Can I sit?"

Aiden scoffs and shakes her head. She looks down at her dry hands. Murphy lets out a soft breath, "Please?"

Aiden stops and a small chuckle of disbelief comes from her lips. "Did you just...say please?" She looks at him.

"I have some manners." Murphy sits next to her.

"Yeah? Well, I didn't tell you, you could sit." Aiden subtly nods her head and traces a finger through the dirt.

"Jasper woke up, y'know?" Aiden looks at him. "So, your friend Bellamy was wrong. And so were you."

"I guess so."

Aiden raises her brows, "That's it?" she looks at him. "I guess so?" she mocks in a deep tone.

Murphy hangs his head low and chuckles. "I didn't think you were funny."

Aiden's jaw clenches. "I'm not joking, John."

Murphy's stomach clenches when her storm blue eyes look back at him. "I get tensions are high and nobody's getting a lot of sleep. But if we start killing each other..." she inhales a shaky breath and looks away from him. Murphy's throat tightens as a silence settles between the two. It was bugging him so much that Aiden could barely look him in the eye. All he wanted to do was make her feel better, and he knew exactly where to start.

"Aiden, I am sorry for trying to kill Jasper." Murphy softly speaks. "Really."

Aiden keeps her eyes on the dirt. She's never heard him speak so soft before.

"You were right. I wasn't getting enough sleep, then with Bellamy leaving I was looking after camp and..." Murphy swallows. "lets just say being leader isn't really my thing."

Aiden frowns, then she wrinkles her nose. "Was that hard for you to say?"

Murphy pulls his brows together and looks at her. Aiden then turns and meets his soft gaze with a smile on her lips.

"Do you wanna throw up or wash yourself clean of that weak apology?" Aiden continues to tease him.

"Weak?" Murphy laughs. "Are you kidding? I put my heart and soul into that apology and I acknowledged what a bad leader I am."

Aiden hums, "But, we all knew that you would be a bad leader. So, that's nothing new."

Murphy chuckles and looks to the side. "Well, now this seems like the right motivation to try leading again."

Aiden softly laughs, "Oh, god, please don't."

☆

After talking to Murphy, Aiden went back to the spot under the tree where she and Charlotte sleep. But Charlotte wasn't there. Aiden had looked all over camp, despite everyone being asleep. She was ready to wake up everyone and get them to help them find Charlotte when the girl came back.

Aiden was pacing back and forth, chewing on her thumbnail. Twigs snap behind her and she turns around with wide eyes. Her eyes meet her little sister's.

"Oh, Thank God."

"Aid--"

"Where the hell have you been?" Aiden asks, grabbing Charlotte's arm.

"Wait, don't." Charlotte sniffles. She yanks her arm out of her sister's grip.

Aiden knits her brows together. "Char, what's...?" she stops talking as she sees the blade in her little sister's hand. Aiden's jaw goes slack. "Where did you get that from?" she snatches it from her. "Why the hell do you have a knife?"

"I-I—"

"Oh, God..." Aiden whispers. With the help of the moonlight, Aiden caught sight of the blood on the blade. Aiden's stomach turns. She lets out a gasp and she drops the blade. Her eyes stay on the red crimson that was now her shaking hand. Her mind starts to race at a million miles per hour. Aiden then snaps her eyes over to her little sister. She was ready to ask what animal she was hunting with the boys, but then she saw the tears and the paling look across Charlotte's face.

"Ch-Charlotte, what happened?"

Charlotte doesn't answer and Aiden's gut painfully turns. "Charlotte, what did you do?" She questions in a shaky whisper.

"I-I had to," Charlotte whispers with desperation. "I couldn't sleep and, and—"

Aiden inhales through her nose. She grips Charlotte's arm in a bruising manner. Charlotte gasps in pain and her eyes quickly shift to Aiden's with fear and panic.

Aiden's blue-grey eyes were storming with so much rage. It made Charlotte want to throw up. She has never seen Aiden so mad before.

"Charlotte, I don't care about you not sleeping. Just..." Aiden stops talking as she notices that she was squeezing Charlotte's arm too hard. Aiden inhales a deep breath, trying to control her shaking voice. She releases the pressure on Charlotte's arm and inhales a quiet exhales. Her eyes skimmed across Charlotte's fearful face and her gut turns.

Aiden didn't want to scare her. But if Charlotte did hurt someone, she couldn't be calm about it. Aiden was just scared. "Just tell me. Please." Her voice was calmer.

"When I was in the cave with Bellamy...he told me I had to slay my demons in order to not be afraid." Charlotte inhale, "I couldn't sleep, my nightmares are so bad and I didn't know what else to do but slay my demons."

Aiden's throat closes up and her eyes burn with tears.

"I killed Wells--"

Aiden slaps a hand over Charlotte's mouth. A small yelp came from Charlotte's lips.

"Shut up," Aiden says, her whisper harsh. She looks around the camp and notices no one stirring in their sleep. She closes her eyes, trying to control her breathing. Aiden felt her entire body go numb. She couldn't think and she sure as hell couldn't look at her sister.

How could Charlotte do something like this? A lump forms in Aiden's throat.

She swallows it and forces herself to look back at her sister. What if someone found out she killed Wells? What would they do to her? No matter how much fear, disbelief, and anger Aiden had towards her sister right now; she couldn't have any suspicions get pinned on Charlotte.

Aiden had to protect her.

I'm sorry, Wells.

Aiden loos back at the blade on the ground. She reluctantly grabs the blade and looks across it. On the back of the knife she saw the initials, J.M. She exhales sharply. Her stomach churns and she knew she was going to be sick.

Murphy was her friend, and the thought she had running through her head was going to ruin everything. She then looks back at Charlotte. Her over them. Aiden had to do this now before she regretted it.

"Listen to me," Aiden says, her voice firm.

The blonde slowly takes her hand off of Charlotte's mouth. "You will not whisper a word to anyone about this." Aiden orders.

Charlotte nods her head. "Not good enough—you need to promise me, Char," she says, desperation. "If people found out you did this..."

"Wh-what would they do?" Charlotte whispers.

Aiden's jaw tightens. "We're not gonna find out, okay?" she raises her brows.

"Now. Promise me."

"I-I promise, Aiden."

Charlotte sees the disappointment and rage in Aiden's eyes. "You're mad--"

"Of course I am, Charlotte," she whispers harshly. "You murdered someone—an amazing person because you were having nightmares—"

"I told you about them and you didn't help me." Charlotte quickly defends herself. Aiden's jaw clenches. She used to be so good with helping people with their emotional state. But after being with Nolan, she didn't even know how to support herself. He always pushed her feelings away and told her to wipe her tears. Nolan considered Aiden weak—even lucky that he took pity on her.

Aiden wasn't going to take the blame for Charlotte's horrifying mistake. She just shakes her head. "I can't believe you listened to Bellamy Blake." Aiden runs a hand over her mouth.

"H-He's not a bad guy...you're friends with Murphy and he's much worse." Charlotte points out.

Aiden looks at her sister in disbelief.

Says the murderer.

Aiden shakes the harsh thought out of her head.

"Yeah, but I'd choose you over them everytime," she states. "That's what I'm doing now."

Charlotte's lower lip trembles, she wraps her arms around her sister's neck. Any other time, Aiden wouldn't hesitate to hug Charlotte back. But this time it took her a few moments. Her little sister just murdered Wells in cold blood.

Aiden lightly touches Charlotte's back with her clean hand. "I'll take care of this...I'll take care of you, like always," she says in a soft tone.

"I'm sorry..." Charlotte cries.

Aiden shakes her head. "You can't cry." She separates from Charlotte and wipes the girl's tears. "No suspicion. We just have to act like...everything's normal."

Charlotte wondered how Aiden got so good at this. Holding in her pain and feelings. But she never knew that's what Aiden had to do in her entire relationship with Nolan.

Charlotte nods her head, wiping her tears. "I...I need you to show me where you...did it." Aiden says, quietly.

Charlotte sniffles, "Okay." She holds her hand out to Aiden. The blonde's gut turns. Her over them. Aiden grabs Charlotte's hand.

When they were walking through the woods, Aiden could feel the guilt weigh even heavier on her. Suddenly, Charlotte stops and points down near a log.

Aiden shakily walks over to the log. A gasp leaves her mouth, she slaps a hand over her mouth to stay quiet. Her eyes never leaving Wells' dead body. Blood was still leaving his neck. In her heart, Aiden knew he suffered.

"I--"

"Don't," Aiden says, her voice completely weak. She touches her stomach. She just had to hold on for a little while longer. She closes her eyes, thinking about every situation. She needed to focus on her sister now. She was never letting her leave her sight again.

Fucking Bellamy.

Guilt immediately forms in her stomach. It wasn't Bellamy's fault and Aiden knew that. The blonde opens her eyes with an idea in her head. "I have to place this somewhere..." she says quietly. She looks around the area where Wells' body was. She spots his two severed fingers on the ground.

I'm gonna be sick.

Aiden grabs a cloth from her jacket pocket. She pulls it out and jumps down where Wells' body was. The brunette grabs the two fingers. She shifts her gaze from Wells' severed fingers to his cold face. Aiden swipes her tongue across her lower lip and bites it. She tries to do anything she can in order to distract herself from the hesitation of doing what's next. Doing what's right.

"I am so sorry..." her voice trembles, her heart heavy with guilt. I have to protect her.

She crawls back up to the grass where Charlotte was standing. Charlotte opens her mouth to say something. But Aiden walks past Charlotte, not sparing her a glance.

Earth was supposed to be different.

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author's note.

I love this chapter so much.

words : 4541