The Ones On The Ground (sequel to The One Who's Fallen)

Chapter 30

Clarke's POV

I swiftly buy the rings, giving the woman more than she asks for but say goodbye and flee with them before she can try to contest how much I've given her. I find a secluded area and sit down, opening the pouch the woman placed then in before handing them to me.

They're identical except for the jewel. Luckily, I chose ones where the inside are scored along the inside so I don't have to go back to her. They should stay on our fingers even when we're sweating and moving around. Hopefully.

The bands themselves are a duller color than I have usually seen in jewelry, but that's exactly what I was looking for. Too shiny, and it glinting in the light could be a distraction. And while fighting for your life, a second's worth of distraction could mean death. Or a lot of pain. Either way, not fun. They're a nice color that I think Lexa will like too, a bluish gray that makes the jewels stand out beautifully.

And yes, I did the cheesy thing where I chose the gems based on the color of our eyes. Lexa will get the one with the sapphire and I'll get the one with the emerald. Well, I'm assuming that's what they are. They're green and blue, and I'm no jewel expert.

I take in a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to calm the racing in my heart. Float me, I'm going to ask Lexa to marry me. But when? How? Gods, I have no idea what I'm doing. I guess I'll just... Let myself get used to the idea of proposing for a little bit. Then I'll figure out the where, the when, and the how.

I look back down at the rings and smile softly, slipping mine onto my finger. It fits surprisingly well, and oh. That's something I didn't think about. Ring size. I don't know if this'll even fit Lexa. On the plus side, I do spend a lot of time with her fingers. Whether holding hands, or looking at them, or daydreaming about them, or having them in- okay, I'm going to cut myself off there. I know Lexa's hands like my own by now. Which still sounds dirty, but it works. I think about her hands, her ring finger. The finger she'll have the ring on. If she says yes.

I grin dopily, staring at nothing. She's going to have that ring on her finger. Okay Clarke, focus. I shake my head and think. How big is her finger? Do I have a finger that kind of resembles it in width or size or something?

I squint down at my own hands and grin. Okay, maybe this'll work. I slide Lexa's ring onto one of my fingers that kinda resembles hers. It fits better than I had expected. I smile down at the rings, hoping that Lexa will like them when I get the guts to ask her.

I carefully slide them back off and place them gently back into their bag. I put it in my pocket and let out a shaky breath. Gods, I'm not even proposing to her yet and I'm this nervous. I can't imagine how it'll be when I actually propose.

***

Raven's POV

Dinner is full of good food and stories about Floukru. Anya says some of the stories, but it's mainly Luna that tells them. I love how passionate she gets. Once I'm finished wolfing (ha) down my food, I prop my head up on my fist and grin dopily at her.

"... And so the pirates came onto our ship. The others were terrified and it was all I could do to keep them calm enough to be able to fight back. The pirates had their scimitars and... Yes?" Luna asks, looking confused when I raise my hand.

"Sorry, babe. I don't mean to interrupt. What's a sim... A sim-ih-tar?" I say.

Luna stands and I watch her, confused as she heads into her storage room. I exchange a look with Anya, who just shrugs. After a couple minutes of hearing her rummage around in there, I can hear her walk out. Anya, who is facing her, does a double take and her mouth drops open slightly.