In My Line of Vision (Clexa)

Chapter 4

"The lake isn't too far from here, with my help, can you walk?" I hear Lexa's voice after she enters through the tent. 

"As long as you make sure I don't trip and fall on my face, then yes." I try a smile, hoping to relieve my own tension. 

"Don't worry, I won't let you go." I hear Lexa tell me, her voice sounding light this morning. Her hand gently grabs my arm, guiding me as we begin to walk out of the tent together. I can hear the sounds of the village waking up, the crackles from the fire, the light wind blowing through, and the soft conversations being passed. The air is a bit chilly this morning, but should be warm enough once we get to the lake.  

Lexa walks with me, telling me where to step, and guiding me in the right steps as we begin to make our way away from the village and to the lake. Her guards walk beside us, none of us really speaking a word in the time, only when Lexa is directing me. I take deep breaths as I walk, just trying to stay on my own two feet long enough to get there.

I listen to the sounds of the forest around me, desperately wishing that someday I'll get to see the greenery again. That I'll get to match colors of the feathers of the birds I hear chirping, or the changing of the leafs, letting me hear them crunch when I walk on them while they age. It's not fair, I just began to see earth, and now that has been taken away from me.

"So when I first got here, my friend Octavia almost was eaten by this big snake-fish thing in a river closer to our camp . . . there's none of those in this lake right?" I ask Lexa, breaking the silence, breaking my depressed thoughts. 

"The lake is safe, my people use it every day." She reassures me, her hand gripping tighter on my bicep when we have to step over something. I find the whole situation a bit uncomfortable as her hand stays on my arm knowing it would just be easier if I were holding her hand instead. I think about what the consequences could be, but thinking the pros are better than the cons in this situation. So what do I do? I bring my hand up and grab hers, very much hoping she doesn't take my action offensively. 

I can feel her hand stiffen, but soon her fingers intertwine with my own. I was right too, it makes the whole walking thing a lot easier. Also, her hand is really soft and I'm quite enjoying holding it to be honest. I gulp though, hoping she isn't feeling uncomfortable with us holding hands. I hate the disadvantage of not being able to see her face and expressions, I can rarely tell what she's feeling.

Soon enough, we get to the lake. I can smell it as soon as we get there, the fresh water and air being my favorite thing since I've crashed down on earth. Lexa tells her guards to stand by outside by the tree line, I start to feel my heart race as I begin to think about emerging into water again. I begin to hear Lexa's voice in the distance as she gives commands to the guards, which helps calm the nerves a bit. 

I take a few steps towards the water, slowly letting my feet become the first of my body to disappear underneath the surface, my toes beginning to feel the mud and moss beneath. I crouch down and put my hands in the water, getting a feel of the temperature. My palm grazes the surface, the water is semi-warm, making me glad that it isn't freezing. 

"Are you ready Clarke?" I hear behind me, I move my head towards her voice. I give her a small nod, hoping she knows that I'm nervous and so I don't have to admit it out loud. She begins to walk, myself barley able to pick out her feet walking on the rocks. I stand up and soon feel her hand grab mine once again, I feel my cheeks heat up a bit, hoping she doesn't notice. 

"Why don't we just walk in, let yourself get used to the water first." She tells me, starting to walk in herself. She leads me into the water, making me gulp when I feel it begin to cover more and more of my legs. Her hand holds onto mine a bit tighter the deeper we get into the water. 

The water is up at my shoulders now, both of our hands linked together underneath. I take deep breaths, hating that I can't see anything while doing this. "Are you alright Clarke?" She asks me, standing only a couple of feet in front of me.

"I'm fine, I think." I lie somewhat.

"Just know that I'm here, I won't let anything bad happen to you." She tells me, making it hard for me not to push my nervousness away and smile.

"Why are you so kind to me?" I ask her, knowing I've been thinking about this question intensely the past few days. 

"Because you're different from everybody I've met. I saw that immediately the moment you grabbed my boot." She confesses, honestly surprising me. I wasn't expecting an answer like that to come from her.

"Now, I'm going to let go of your hand." She starts, not giving me a chance to reply. "I want you to move your arms and legs, not too fast, but not too slow either."

I nod my head, mentally preparing myself for my first attempt. "I'm right here, so don't be afraid." She reminds me once again making me smile lightly. Her hand lets go of mine and I begin to take a few steps until my toes can't reach the ground anymore, I start to move my limbs like she told me to. 

At first, my head begins to panic. Lexa's encouraging words help me try harder, finding that it isn't as difficult as my mind thought it out to be. After a few moments though of sloppy swimming, my limbs become very tired and I feel myself begin to fall under. I stop moving my sore limbs, letting myself dip underneath the water completely. 

Hands are on my arms very quickly as I'm being pulled back to the surface. I take a deep breath as I surface, a grin plastered on my face even though I was just about to drown again. Lexa helps me back to where I can stand again, letting me hear her soft chuckle.

"I did it-"I smile taking deep breaths, "Well I did it for a little bit."

"You swam though, that's all that matters. Once your body heals a bit more, and you have more practice, it will be very easy for you." She tells me making me smile even more. 

"Thank you...you know, for helping me out through this whole week. And now you're teaching me how to swim...so thank you." I tell her, there's silence for a moment making me wish I knew what she's thinking.

"You're welcome, Clarke of the Sky People." She responds, she then helps back deeper into the water to try again. We keep at it for a good few hours, I'll try to swim and then take a break. It seems like we do this a hundred times, but i'm improving each time, so it's worth it.

Lexa is starting to open up a bit with her emotions, I even made her chuckle again, which seemed like a pretty big accomplishment. I have to admit, I wouldn't want anyone else out here with me. She's just someone that is different from most of the people I've known my whole life. Considering that everyone that I have ever met, was from the sky, it isn't hard to see why she's so different.

It's a good different though, she's grounded, she's kind and gentle. I have no idea if she's like this with anyone else, but i'm kind of hoping she isn't. Deep down, I want this side of her reserved for me and me only.