Sometimes it sucks, being in love with your best friend. Of course, maybe it wouldn't be so bad if Clarke could just tell him she's in love with him, especially if, you know, it turned out he's in love with her too. But she's pretty sure he's not, so she just… pines in silence. It's only ninety per cent pathetic.

Normally it's fine. Not great, but fine. He spends most of his time with her anyway, and if she just squashes any thoughts about wanting to kiss him, she can pretend she doesn't want anything else from him. Then there are other times, like now for instance, that it's complete torture.

Bellamy has asked her to come Christmas shopping with him, because apparently he's crap at it and needs advice. That part is fine. Clarke actually kind of loves Christmas shopping. It's who he's buying a present for that makes it hard. He won't actually tell her the name of the person, but apparently he's looking for something to give the girl he likes. And she knows it's not her, because she was there when he bought her Christmas present.

"I was thinking jewellery," Bellamy tells Clarke, veering towards the jewellery section in the department store they're in. "I want it to be romantic, you know?"

"Yeah," Clarke says. She hasn't exactly been talkative since he told her about his plan.

"Like I said, I'm pretty sure she likes me too, if my sources are correct. So it shouldn't be creepy, right? If I get her something expensive?" Bellamy asks. He looks a little anxious about the whole thing, and Clarke suddenly feels bad that she's been less than helpful so far.

"I think jewellery is a great idea," she tells him. She doesn't wear much jewellery herself, mainly just earrings, but if a guy she liked (Bellamy) bought her jewellery, she wouldn't exactly be upset about it.

"Earrings?" Bellamy suggests hesitantly, his eyes flicking to Clarke's ears.

"How about a watch?" Clarke counters. Okay, so she doesn't want to be too helpful. A watch isn't exactly romantic, and maybe she can't help a little sabotage.

"A watch, Clarke? Really?" Bellamy seems unimpressed.

"Everyone needs a watch," Clarke shrugs.

"Okay, for starters, I'm trying to be romantic, not practical. And besides, you don't wear a watch," Bellamy points out.

"I have a watch though. My dad's watch. And I don't wear it because it gets in the way when I'm painting," she reasons.

"Exactly. Watches are dumb. Everyone just uses their phones anyway," Bellamy says. "So help me pick out some earrings." Clarke sighs and follows him over to a glass cabinet full of earrings on display. She's not really focused on the earrings at all, her eyes scanning over the case but not really looking at any of them. That is until a pair catches her eye.

They aren't particularly flashy, just a simple drop earring with a little star at the end. But they're the kind of earrings that if Bellamy were buying jewellery for her and not some mystery woman, then these would be the ones. They remind her of a night not long after they met. They'd been out with their friends and he'd dragged her outside to watch a meteor shower.

"Did you make a wish?" she'd asked him.

"I wouldn't even know what to wish for," he'd replied. Clarke wonders if that's still the case. She herself had known in that exact moment what to wish for, and it still hasn't changed.

"You like those?" Bellamy sidles up to her.

"Um," Clarke turns to him. "They're okay," she says. "You can probably find something better."

"I saw your face Clarke, you looked like you wanted to make love to those earrings," Bellamy snorts. Clarke rolls her eyes. Okay, yeah, she likes the earrings. A lot. But she doesn't want Bellamy to buy them for someone else.

"They're nice," she says lamely. "But whoever you're giving them to might not have the same taste as me."

"I trust your judgement," Bellamy grins. "If you like them, she'll like them." Clarke makes a noncommittal sound and Bellamy gets the attention of the sales assistant.

Clarke knows she has no right to be mad, but she is anyway. It's not that he's buying earrings for another girl. Well, maybe that's partly it. But it's also that he's buying another girl the earrings she likes, that she wants Bellamy to buy for her. And now she's going to have to watch some other woman prance around wearing them, reminding her that his heart belongs to someone else.

The sales assistant tells Bellamy the price, and he doesn't even flinch. Clarke thinks it's way too much for someone he's not even dating.

"I'll take them," Bellamy tells the sales assistant.

"You really like her, huh?" Clarke whispers, a little sadly. Bellamy considers her carefully.

"Yeah," he says finally. "Might even be in love with her."

"Oh," Clarke nods, and she knows she can't be mad anymore. Sad and disappointed. But angry and jealous? She doesn't have that in her, not when his are so soft and his smile so genuine. He looks so happy. And that's all she's every really wanted for him. "Good luck," she says, forcing herself to smile.

"Thanks," Bellamy grins back.

It's tradition for Clarke to have Christmas with her friends on the 23rd, before everyone has to go home to their families, and as much as Clarke loves her mom, she prefers this one. It's at Raven's place this year, and they all get drunk and exchange Secret Santa gifts, and regular gifts, and she's surrounded by people she knows she can truly be herself with. For the most part. She still hasn't gotten around to telling Bellamy how she feels about him, but it's probably a moot point now anyway, considering he's confessing his love to another girl through a pair of earrings Clarke picked out.

It's fun anyway, even knowing all that. She opens Bellamy's present to her and pretends to act surprised at the paintbrushes he got her, and he does the same for the stack of books he picked out for her to buy him. They always buy each other practical presents, things they want but things they also feel they need, that they'll use.

Once presents are out of the way the group eats and talks shit, play a couple drinking games and then watch Love Actually. It's only just midnight when Clarke decides it's time for her to leave and get to bed.

"I'll drive you," Bellamy says.

"Haven't you been drinking?" she points out. Bellamy shakes his head.

"I'm sober," he assures her. Clarke hadn't noticed but she nods, and they say goodbye to their friends and Clarke follows him to his car. There's a comfortable silence on the ride home, and Clarke closes her eyes and leans her head against the car window, sleepy and slightly drunk, but the alcohol is wearing off and she feels content. She opens her eyes when she feels the car stop and turns to Bellamy.

"Thanks," she smiles, unclipping her seatbelt.

"Clarke," he says, licking his lips. She can just make out his features in the dim streetlight.

"Yeah, Bell?"

"I suppose you told everyone about the earrings?" he ventures.

"I told Raven and Monty," she says. She doesn't mention how pathetic and forlorn she sounded when she told them. Bellamy nods.

"Which means everyone knows," Bellamy shakes his head with a grin and Clarke can't help but give a short laugh. No one in their group of friends can keep a secret, not even Monty.

"I assume whoever it is will be hanging out with us soon enough anyway, right?" Clarke sighs. Bellamy doesn't say anything. "Bell?" Clarke prompts.

"Yeah," he says vaguely. "Look—I didn't want to do this with the others around, in case I was wrong," he says, swallowing. "But, uh. I got you something else." Clarke frowns as she watches him pull something out of his jacket pocket and she can't quite comprehend what's happening at first. Maybe it's the alcohol, or maybe it's because everything just feels like a dream at the moment. But then he places a little velvet box in her hand, and her heart stops, and when it starts beating again it's beating at twice the speed. She looks at him, questioning, and he looks so nervous, waiting for her to open it, to say something. So she lifts the lid, and sitting there are the star earrings she picked out. The earrings she picked out for him to give to the girl he likes. The girl he might be in love with.

"These are for me?" she squeaks. Bellamy nods.

"Remember that night I made you come and watch the meteor shower? And you asked me if I made a wish?"

"You said you wouldn't know what to wish for," Clarke says.

"I figured it out now. What I'd wish for." It's as if it suddenly hits her then, what he means, and she feels a rush of emotions. Relief, hope, and a pure giddy joy that brings a huge smile to her face. She almost drops the earrings in her haste to rain kisses on his face, and he laughs as her lips come down on his. Then she remembers what he put her through and she pulls away, frowning at him.

"I can't believe you made me think you wanted somebody else," she huffs. "That's just cruel."

"Come on, you had to know it was you," he says, his voice a little hoarse.

"I didn't know," she tells him, and he has the decency to look a little sheepish.

"Then I'm sorry," he apologises. "I wanted it to be romantic," he shrugs, and Clarke knows she can't stay mad.

"You giant dork," she grins. She looks back down at the earrings. "I'm going to wear these forever."

"Clarke?"

"Yeah?" she says absently as she removes the earrings she's already wearing to replace them with the ones Bellamy got her.

"I love you, you know?"

"I know," Clarke laughs. "And everyone else will too once they see me wearing these." She finishes putting them on and turns to him. "How do I look?"

"Beautiful," he tells her and she leans over to kiss him again.

"I love you too," she whispers against his mouth. "Merry Christmas, Bell."

"Merry Christmas, Clarke."