If Jason sought to obliterate my love for Clarke Griffin, Bellamy Blake, and Bellarke, I’m happy to report he failed. Spectacularly.
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almost home
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Monterey Bay Aquarium

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#extradirty
Cosimo Galluzzi
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@otp-armada
If Jason sought to obliterate my love for Clarke Griffin, Bellamy Blake, and Bellarke, I’m happy to report he failed. Spectacularly.
bellarke — every touch
Is Bellarke misinterpreted or not?
I know this post is long overdue, so sorry for that. I’ve started writing for a publication and it takes a lot of my time. But as promised before, here’s a list of reasons suggesting Bellarke romance and why…
It follows the romantic arc of a lot of romance movies and series. I even created a thread on Twitter comparing some of their lines to the most romantic lines in movies yet the viewers seem to misinterpret. Well, I call bullshit, simply because it is. Now, I can’t give you false hope that they will be paired romantically but I will say this. If they’re not, the writers and producers are less than subpar in their depiction of a platonic couple. Aka they have no idea what they’re doing.
In a show that’s ultimately about survival, it’s difficult to incorporate romance without shifting the emphasis and genre but they seem to do it perfectly with Murphy and Emori, Kane and Abby, Gabriel and Josephine and even Lincoln and Octavia back in the day. What’s sobering about this, is that Bellarke’s scenes are written, filmed and produced more intense, overpowering and chemistry-induced than any of the above-mentioned couples.
This tells me they know exactly what they’re doing and where they’re going with it. Can it be fan service and bait? Sure. But that would make bad television, resulting in audiences looking back on The 100 with dread instead of excitedly recommending it to friends to binge. After Lexa’s death, a lot of fans left the show because of such a sudden horrific end to a fan favorite. I think they might be trying to avoid such a subduing concept again.
Jason explained in his article that viewers slightly misinterpreted Bellamy’s arc and believe it or not, I somewhat agree with him. Bellamy had no other choice than to save all his people by using Josephine’s mind drive as a bargaining chip BUT of course he wanted to save Clarke too. She’s his person, he’d do anything for her. If he was given a choice between saving his people and Clarke, what would he have done? It just so happens that saving her, meant saving everyone.
From season one to six there are highly robust moments which suggest Bellamy and Clarke love each other a lot more than friends should. I’m not including season one scenes in this list because I don’t think they had quite crossed the verge of friendship there, although the “I need you, Bellamy” and “You look like you could use a drink” scenes were emotional and flirty, laying the premise for the most beautiful romance I’ve ever witnessed.
1. Love is weakness
Listen to the background music of that scene, the intensity and relief on their faces, yeah, that shit’s not platonic. If you wanted to show me they’re besties, they should’ve done a similar hug to Raven or Octavia’s.
When Clarke wakes up in Mount Weather, she asks about both Finn and Bellamy. And the same when she makes it to Camp Jaha. Once Bellamy returns, she runs and throws herself in his arms, which she hasn’t done with any other character except for Madi, her daughter. When Bellamy suggests he infiltrates Mount Weather, Clarke claims she can’t lose him too yet when Lexa tells her love is weakness, she agrees Bellamy should do it by saying she was being weak. Uhm, love is weakness.
2. We can’t lose Clarke
Bellamy crosses an entire grounder army by himself to go after Clarke. Then, limping on a stabbed leg, he’s still hellbent on saving her. All this while his girlfriend is back home, worrying about him. The desperation is in this scene is palpable, bringing us to the realization there’s nothing Bellamy wouldn’t do for Clarke because he clearly loves her.
3. You left me
Clarke refuses Bellamy’s offer to go home with him and stays behind in Polis with Lexa. Of course, he’s hurt and furious. When Clake tells him she needs him, he responds with, “You left me.” If you translate that, it would mean, you abandoned me when I needed you most, you chose Lexa over me and now you expect me to help you?
But apart from the dialogue, look at the way the scene is filmed, Bellamy’s in a proposal stance with soft affectionate hand-holding. The way they look at each other, hurt lingering in Bellamy’s eyes. Clarke crushed his heart and yet he still loves her. That scene tramples the edge of romanticism.
4. Start with Bellamy Blake
ALIE is an AI, more intelligent than any of our average human minds. She had the knowledge of all Clarke’s friends and family combined. When they had to choose someone to break Clarke’s steadfastness, ALIE suggested Bellamy. Granted, I doubt Clarke was in love with Bellamy at this point since she had just lost Lexa, and still, the AI concludes she cares about him more than anyone else.
All the same, a person can love two people at once. Clarke was willing to co-operate with Roan to save Bellamy’s life. The tears that fell while he yelled at her in Hakeldama, suggests she felt something. While their passionate hug and consoling conversation on the beach could be seen as friendly, they’re not that intimate with anyone else.
5. The list
This was probably one of The 100′s most romantic scenes, until 4x13 and 6x10. “If I’m on that list, you’re on that list.” is a simple way of telling someone you can’t live without them. If I live, you live too. I’m not doing this without you. I need you and ultimately, I love you enough to die with you if necessary.
It’s a sobering thought and I think Clarke may have realized the depth of Bellamy’s feelings for her at that moment.
6. If I don’t see you again
Boy, was this scene a bust. Ruined by Roan, who I’ve since dubbed Ruin Roan (I love the Azgeda king). Raise your hand if you know why he didn’t finish the sentence. Here’s a thought, it breeds mystery, but better yet we never got to hear him confess his feelings though we know he would’ve. Giving the writers a scapegoat.
Clarke probably wouldn’t have reciprocated, making the story awkward but Mr. Bellamy Blake was 100% going to tell Clarke Griffin he loved her. Otherwise, he would’ve continued. Now, does he still love her? Absolutely. When you lose someone you love, does your love for said person die with them? Not at all. You find ways to cope and move on but it lurks, showing up when you’re alone or reminded of them. I’m speaking from experience.
7. The oxymoron
When you look at the cold sweat scene, any regular viewer might miss the intimacy but the soft subtle touches do somehow exceed the boundaries of friendship. Bellamy’s face though when he realizes Clarke might be right, he might lose her, shows a lot of fear. Most importantly, this is the first time we’re introduced to the head and heart concept, showcasing their soulmate dynamic. The metaphor compares them to the two lead features of the human body, neither of which can survive without the other.
But, that’s nothing compared to Bellamy’s devastation when he realizes he left the woman he loves behind to die. That hurt in his eyes and voice was heartbreaking.
8. The radio calls
In essence, there’s nothing wrong with calling your best friend every day for six years but when you use him as a way to keep you sane, you might wanna re-evaluate your relationship. Six people left for space, yet Clarke called Bellamy. This is also the first time we clearly see Clarke’s feelings for him. I’m sure they were there for a while, bubbling below the surface but with years of time and peace, one tends to come to terms with who you are.
And in 5x01, when Madi gushes over Octavia, Clarke longingly stares into space, hoping her heart will return. The pining is further emphasized by her expression when she sees Bellamy and Echo kissing. Yeah, camera work doesn’t lie, it was focused on her and Octavia’s faces for a reason.
Then, that hug in 5x03 was so profound, a hundred different emotions rolled into one. Clarke asks, “And now you’re home?” What is home, earth or herself?
9. Pleading for the life of a traitor who you love
There are two sides to this story. One, Octavia explicitly compared Bellamy’s feelings for Clarke to those of his girlfriend. That line was written into the script on purpose. If someone knows him, it’s his sister, she’s witnessed their entire relationship first hand and uses it to draw a reaction from him. Why? Because she knows he’s torn up about it.
Secondly, in 5x12, Lexa contrasts herself leaving Clarke outside Mount Weather to Clarke leaving Bellamy in Polis (and the gorge). She calls it her biggest regret and tells her former lover not to make the same mistake she did.
Both times these characters feelings for each other were paralleled to their love for canonical partners. Coincidence? I highly doubt it.
10. The head and the heart
The emotion in this scene, wow! Throughout season six there are subtle hints of Bellamy’s love for Clarke. He mourns her, Josephine says he cares more about Clarke than anyone else, he tells her the radio calls weren’t crazy but refusing to accept she’s dead and bringing her back to life in Fairytale fashion is nothing short of a beautiful romance.
If the writers had changed their minds about the status of Bellarke’s relationship somewhere along the line, this scene was completely uncalled for. Once again, all I see is I can’t let you go again, I refuse to live without you, I need you in my life because I love you.
11. I tried to do better
Show this to anyone who doesn’t know the show and they’ll tell you this couple’s in love. Clarke goes to Bellamy, no-one else, for comfort when she’s falling apart. Although short, they share another one of their signature hugs where the passion and emotion are louder than nightclub music. With the rising sun as backdrop, this is as far from platonic as you can get.
A few last things
The writers of this show aren’t stupid, they carefully build their plots around the foundation like using the neural mesh in ALIE’s chip to save Clarke. They know exactly what they’ve written, filmed and produced. Bellarke was always meant to end up romantically. Unfortunately, in a fast-paced show with one problem after the other, there’s almost no time to reflect.
If they wanted audiences to become invested in Bellamy and Echo’s relationship, they would’ve shown it to us. In 6x12 the cameras focus on Bellamy and Clarke’s faces when he reunites with his girlfriend. His whole arc (misinterpreted or not) revolved around her. That’s the message they convey and 90% of the audience cannot be wrong. When you watch reaction videos or podcasts, most of them agree.
And, they cautiously circumvent the word love in relation to Bellarke. Best friends love each other, Bellarke love each other. The question is in what capacity. My opinion is this, if I dated Bellamy, I certainly would have at least questioned his devotion to Clarke, yet Echo says nothing. Highly unrealistic.
Lastly, go and rewatch all of the above scenes without shipper goggles. Do you still see the depth and intimacy? I do. I specifically chose these because of the romanticism they entail. All the hugs are great, but best friends hug, these scenes have deeper meanings and though we could’ve misinterpreted Bellamy’s arc in season six, all of their scenes can’t lie. Not bringing them together canonically will do a great injustice to a magnificent show.
Yes, The 100 does not fall into the romance genre but the story revolves around Clarke, Bellamy, and Octavia. For six season they’ve shown us how much the two leads love each other and failing to conclude that book is bad storytelling, to say the least. I believe it should at least be addressed if they decide not to trot down the romantic road.
Happy Hiatus everyone. I might post a few more things while we wait for season 7. I’ve written an article about the anomaly as well. But for now, I’ll focus more on other shows, I’m still writing fanfiction though. Let me know if there’s something specific you’d like me to write about or your opinion on the list.
Bellarke AU: Bellamy comes to ask Kane and Abby to babysit his son so he can take Clarke out for their wedding anniversary.
↳ Happy Birthday, @stardust-blake!!!
I’m trying hard to ignore how much it hurts that Abby, Jake, Aurora and Marcus will never see the Bellarke baby(s) and only Abby ever met Madi.
Yes I’m crying like a baby and I’m not ashamed!
July 16th, 2019 - Happy 4th Year Bellarke Kiss-Of-Life Anniversary "The head and the heart."
Something I noticed.
I’m currently writing through a fanfic (True Face) that focuses on the implementation of Felicity Smoak as a vigilante in her own right in S1 and all the problems that come with it, before Oliver even returns to Starling (though it’s set episode 1). It’s very much an Olicity story.
As I was writing, I noticed something that interested me. Fans of season 1, LL stans specifically, promote that season like it’s their creed. I’m pretty sure that as far they are concerned, the subsequent seasons don’t exist. But, in writing this fic… honestly, how can they see it the way they do? LL was insulted so damn much in S1 ALONE, especially by the way the love triangle (Oliver/Tommy/LL) was handled. I know we’re all well aware by now that they started writing towards Olicity even then - even when it was platonic - and that they’d always planned on the triangle ending by 1.23, but …WOW.
Get this.
It doesn’t matter how you feel about the relationships on Arrow, they happened. We moved on. The narrative tells us what’s coming and what’s ending.
So I was stunned to find that, throughout S1, we were being constantly told that Oliver was making a mistake with each woman he slept with. Each one. That includes LL.
I didn’t see this before.
I make it a rule to not only watch episodes of Arrow if I’m writing fiction about them, I also endeavour to remain unbiased (as difficult as that may be). So I watched a few episodes to give me insight into Oliver’s mental space.
We know he hated himself but even back then, Oliver was trying to establish a connection with a woman. It wasn’t just about loneliness, though that was the presiding factor. He was trying to find someone who fit him, as he was. The messed up vigilante killer. He wanted someone to receive him, his darkness and his flaws, even if it meant rejecting that person later. For their own safety. He wanted it. Yearned for it. He wanted to confirm that his current then self, could be loved.
Acceptance.
To be proven wrongly about himself. I am worth loving.
But of course, anyone who loved him would have to be messed up too, right?
It explains why Helena’s departure hurt him. Not only had he failed to help this person who was so like him, he’d also realised that a relationship based on a connection with who he was then (who he thought he was), was doomed to failure. Which meant, his then self couldn’t be in a full and complete relationship with anybody.
Helena’s last straw was discovering that Oliver stilled loved Laurel, which puzzled me. Helena was in love with a dead man. Oliver, in love with the past. What was the difference? With time, Oliver’s affections could have changed. Did I want them to? No. Helena couldn’t give him what he wanted or needed, even without the drama. But I think Helena was looking for any reason really. She wanted her revenge. It took everything she had to hold her own darkness in check and when she realised she didn’t want to, her only obstacle was Oliver.
She chose her dark path over him. Did that mean he’d do the same?
And really, it didn’t matter who the woman was.
Oliver didn’t actively pursue a relationship with LL. He may have loved her. But he didn’t want to be with her. He was fine with her being with Tommy because in his head, he wasn’t good for her. I’m not the man you thought I was and I never will be. He couldn’t love her the way he should have but didn’t. The way she thought it did but was blind to. Compare the seasons. When Oliver wants someone, he never fought for it. Not really.
But has shown it.
S3, 4, 5, 6 – They’ve been one big show and tell of who Oliver loves and why.
S1 was very different.
He was searching in season 1. For a partner.
Unfortunately, he ignored Diggle’s words but not because he dismissed them. That love doesn’t mean changing or saving a person, but finding someone who’s the right fit. After Helena - after being shown that the right fit for him was another monster, because he was one too - finding someone who was his right fit, another figure of violence, wasn’t an option. And he wanted desperately, to live in the light like everyone else, but didn’t feel like he deserved it.
(Sometimes, looking into Oliver’s mentality makes me want to curl up into a ball.)
So after this, he puts on a face. One that hides his darker side, showing only the man he wants to be, but it’s a shadow of who he is.
And he dates McKenna. And it’s so blissfully normal; it actually does something for him. Even though it’s clear, that it’s a lie.
And it’s no coincidence that he pursues this, after bringing Felicity on board. After all, in episode 3 - after meeting her - he’s gripped by the need to immediately bring Diggle in on his secret.
Because his IT girl, she’s… good. She IS light. She’s crazy smart, available and she SEES him. Somehow. Miraculously. She makes him aware of just how lonely and wanting that he is. And bless Emily, she was given very little to work with (understandable since she was supposed to be in the show at first), but managed to convey, subtly, that Felicity understood not only why Oliver was the way she was, but also accepted that he was the way he was. She may not have known how deep the darkness inside him went, but she knew it was there. And how it might have grown. It was why she could compartmentalise the violence.
She pushed him to be more – to allow himself to be what she saw in him – without actually pressuring him. She never expected a thing from him because he was already giving her everything. He just didn’t know it. It takes him so long to see that she loves him, even with all his faults, because he doesn’t see anything about himself that’s worthy of her.
Ad how is she able to fit him like that? Laurel is just as different from him as Felicity is, but there’s nothing there to link them. He and Felicity are opposite as opposites come, and yet so much connects them. There’s something there, spiritually. In their souls.
Felicity sees him. He sees her. But he doesn’t want to be seen and he doesn’t know enough of himself to risk anything more…
So, he thinks he can have ‘normal’ instead.
Normal isn’t what he is, nor is it all it’s chalked up to be. But it makes him think the worst once McKenna leaves him.
I can’t have normal, because who I am kills it. I can’t be with someone who’s like me – because who could understand me except someone like me – because we’ll either kill each other or hurt someone I care about. The only thing I can do is-
Fix the past, which we know, isn’t possible.
He isn’t Barry; he can’t rewind time whenever the urge comes.
But what he can do is try again with Laurel. What he can be is the kind of person who doesn’t cheat on his girlfriend. What he can attempt, is to heal what he broke. To fix history by being the person Ollie Queen should have been. Good. Right. Decent. Worthy.
Except, the moment he does go to her, they still hurt someone they love. They hurt Tommy. Because it wasn’t about a pair of star crossed lovers coming together. It was about two people who chose to not only ignore the problems they had/have and the reasons why they didn’t work before without fixing a thing, but to be their worst and most selfish selves. And going to her doesn’t fix them. In fact, he finds himself lying more than he did before; but that’s ok, right? To lie, because he’ll never be the vigilante again. He’ll bury selfish Ollie and the Hood deep inside himself and Laurel will never see them. Or know him completely.
But a life lived at 60% is good enough for season 1 Oliver. A life of penance to the woman he betrayed, sounded good to him because he didn’t think he could have a life at all before returning and he was all about penance. Anything to mitigate the guilt of being a dick, of starting the cycle of pain he felt being a dick caused (instead of Malcolm Merlyn) or loosing Sara… of killing his father. Until he realised they couldn’t, because sometimes there’s just TOO much history.
If Laurel had been THE woman for him, the one he could marry, he’d have never cheated.
In fact, going by ‘Ollie’ Queen’s profile, if Ollie met that woman, he’d have never started a relationship with her in the first place. He’d have known deep down, what she meant and he wouldn’t have touched her. Not even to spoil her. He’d have pushed her far away.
Like. He. Does. With. Felicity. In. Season. 2. And. 3.
Felicity, who isn’t dark, but has shadows that hurt her. A woman with enough light in her, that his own (that he thought had died) arose and responded to hers. A woman whose kindness, intelligence, PATIENCE, warmth and love made Oliver see the person he wanted to be, come to life in the mirror. Felicity Smoak, who made him look to the future for once and not see death, but life. Marriage. Children. A legacy.
Once S1 ends, Oliver stops searching for a connection, because it’s impossible to find.
Because, she’s in the Foundry with him.
But he can’t have what he wants. Not yet. He isn’t enough and probably never will be. And once that realisation dawns, he pushes her towards Barry and repeats his cycle with the Lance family.
Sara who he could be with because he doesn’t ‘really care about her or anyone else the way he would with Felicity’ (STEPHEN’S TRUE, REAL LIFE WORDS, I KID YOU NOT). Not knowing how much he hurts her by doing so, because Oliver is blind. It literally isn’t until their MARRIAGE that Oliver sees that Felicity’s love for him, actually matches the impossible depth of his own.
The point is this - In the history of Arrow, Oliver broke up with two women. Laurel and Susan.
Laurel, because they couldn’t change the past, because it was unfair to her to pretend and because the pain from their history was stronger than the love they once had.
Susan, because he knew that loneliness should never be the deciding factor in any relationship and because it was unfair to her to pretend it was more.
“I don’t know what I was thinking dating her…”
“You were lonely Oliver.”
And that’s never the reason why you being a relationship.
He left two women because it was unfair to them to pretend he was reaching for the same goal they were. That he could. That he wasn’t constantly lying to them. He had to tell them, it wasn’t real.
Because all Oliver has ever wanted, but never thought he could have, was real. Save with Felicity. And then he screwed it up. And she let him.
The other women have left him:
Helena left him because he wasn’t enough for her to stay and because his affections for her were conditional on her ability to change.
McKenna, because a) his ex-girlfriend destroyed her career and b) he wasn’t enough for her to stay.
Sara let him go… because she wasn’t enough for him. Wasn’t right for him. And, vice versa. Probably the only time this can be said. An equal standard.
(Isabel was sex, not a relationship. His thing with Shado fell to pieces. Tatiana who?).
Felicity dumped him, hard… and for the first time in history, Oliver followed and tried to show her the depth of his love and the everything that she was to him. But he’d hurt her too much, more than he’d ever hurt anyone.
Everything he’d learned over the years showed him that all he was worth was a half life. Ergo snoozan. Ergo, pushing his son away. Ergo, his decisions in S5 (which Stephen verified as being symptoms of the twisted way he saw himself). Ergo, trying to destroy his vigilante alter ego that he’d worked so hard to build up as a hero, all because he thought it was a symbol of his evil and that if he casted it off, everything would eventually be fine and he would never have to touch the piece of himself that scared him to death. That made him sure he’d lose not only Felicity’s love - he knew she still loved him and that any man she was with would never truly have her, and he knew that because it was the same with him - but her presence in his life.
For, it’s better, right, to have her there in some capacity than not at all??
Of course, thank God, he learns.
It’s better to risk it all than to live a half life. It’s the ultimate irony of 5.08’s ending. Oliver promises Barry that he’ll LIVE. What we DIDN’T know, was that Oliver’s idea of living meant hurting people. So he couldn’t really do that. And he knew it. So living meant, lying. It meant settling. Pretending. It meant, sort of.
It meant, no marriage. No kids. No legacy (he almost destroys it without Adrian’s help). No FULL life. No REAL love.
It all comes to a head in 5.20 and FINALLY, Oliver learns the lesson.
None of it ever mattered.
It didn’t matter who he was or what he’d done. That’s all in our own heads, all a matter of perception. What mattered was who is, and what he is doing. What’s real is a true and honest relationship with the woman who taught him how to be true and honest. So he has her, Felicity, as anchor after that. A guide, instead of his light. The hand in his grasp and the woman walking beside him, not ahead or away. With.
They become the pillar of Arrow.
It never mattered that he was dark. Or that he’d done bad things. What works on paper doesn’t always work in life.
So… I mean, the glorious thing about fiction is that you can play with plot points and progression but my point, was that Oliver was deeply unhappy in season 1 and that his idea of happiness, was no happiness at all. He’d forgotten what that meant or he never knew in the first place.
The so-called love triangle in S1 was a lesson. And a power-point presentation aptly titled: how messed up Oliver Queen really is. And even then it didn’t really tell us. The love he brought with him in S6 would - could - be the only love he can ever really have. A real love. A true love. A soulmate.
Looking at it that way, makes the mistakes of each season a tad more bearable. After all, no show is perfect. Arrow has mega faults but the pros make up for a lot of them.
Just something I noticed.
(you really can ignore this)
@ruwithmeguys this has given me a lot of FEELS before 8am. I love it.
Something stood out to me about halfway through this: You said Felicity let Oliver see the person he wanted to become.
Laurel was always hoping Oliver would become the man she wanted him to be. Felicity helped Oliver become the man he wanted HIMSELF to be. ❤️
“Because it wasn’t about a pair of star crossed lovers coming together. It was about two people who chose to not only ignore the problems they had/have and the reasons why they didn’t work before without fixing a thing, but to be their worst and most selfish selves. And going to her doesn’t fix them.”
I screamed.
The worst thing on Arrow for me will always be the way Oliver treated Tommy after he hooked up with Laurel. Tommy seemed so hurt, more by Oliver than Laurel, and Oliver just kind of shrugged him off as if he didn’t care. He made no apologies and almost seemed like he thought he had some kind of claim on Laurel the whole time, even though he pushed Tommy to go for her and supported their relationship.
Now, I get where you’re coming from there @smoaking-greenarrow
But let me say this?
Oliver, at the last minute, made the most selfish decision. But, Tommy - at the moment where he was supposed to prove himself the right man for Laurel - quit on her.
He decided for her who she should be with. As much as I’m no fan of Laurel, I didn’t like that. Didn’t like Tommy deciding who she loved. Deciding for Oliver that he couldn’t love another. Deciding for Laurel that she’d go back to Oliver, meaning he doubted her feelings for him could ever be more than what she’d felt for Oliver. After all, after five years, Tommy still held Oliver on a Pedestal too. Didn’t matter what he did, Oliver was always king.
Didn’t matter who he slept with, Laurel would never not love him.
It kind of proved how little Tommy thought of himself.
And we know now that Laurel didn’t love Tommy the way he deserved, but we didn’t know it then. Just as Oliver didn’t love Laurel the way she’d always wanted/needed him to. Laurel wouldn’t wait for him to see that. She’d fall back into old tricks and back into bed with Oliver without trying to solve a damn thing about what wrecked them to begin with. It was shallow, weak, selfish… understandable. They were both feeling very needy and hopeful.
Fooling themselves.
He decided that he wasn’t good enough. And he punished Oliver for it.
I mean, he gave her up first. How easy it must have been for her to fall back into Oliver. There was nothing standing in her way.
Except her own self-respect and the fact that she couldn’t see Oliver, didn’t know him but was conceited enough to think that she was enough when she never had been.
But if Tommy had stuck with her? Maybe, just maybe, she’d have fallen for him.
Or maybe, she’d have proven him right and done the worst. That might have actually been better, because Oliver wouldn’t have. He would never have slept with her if Tommy hadn’t stepped back so forcefully. But we know now, that she wouldn’t have had such moral qualms.
So, in Oliver’s head - as bad as it may seem - Tommy let Laurel go. Not only did he do that, he changed. He turned cold. He pretty much treated Oliver like he was something that crawled out from underneath and rock and, more than once, made Oliver feel like he’d have no qualms with him crawling back down there.
He took too long.
(Let’s face it: once LL found out that Oliver may still love her, even if he never said it, she was gone).
And when he found out, instead of doing what he should have done, instead of going right on up to the apartment, faking innocence, and catching them in the act (reminding them), he went and got drunk as a skunk. He lashed out at Oliver, when he’d given up all rights to Laurel.
I never saw Oliver acting like he had a claim on Laurel. In fact he pushed her away again. She’d caught him in a vulnerable moment (and as usual, she didn’t see or care that he was upset: she juts wanted him to help her) and he’d realised he couldn’t do that. Then he gave in. He decided to have something for himself because, in that moment, he thought he’d earned the right to take what she was clearing willing to give him.
Tommy tried to goad him, hit him and basically said that he wished Oliver had died on the island.
Oliver has done a lot. But he’s also suffered a lot. More than Tommy. Tommy suffered from neglect. From unrequited love and the loss of his mother. It was bad.
Oliver’s was worse.
Tommy couldn’t get past the fact that Oliver could kill. That he was so unlike the best friend he used to mess around with. That he knew, instinctively, that he was never meet LL’s standards the way Oliver did effortlessly. Unearned.
But it was what it was.
I think neither best friend dealt with the situation well. And LL revealed the worst of herself. It was something she, nor Oliver, would never be able to rectify. The start of them was the end of them. I think, in the end, Tommy understood Oliver. It’s why he apologised, why he saw the difference between Oliver and his father. He saw a hero in Oliver, when he himself had been the hero the city deserved at that moment. Of course LL wouldn’t choose him in the end when this amazing guy named Ollie stood there.
It just so happened that Tommy’s realisation was also Oliver’s.
If the price of a relationship with LL - of being selfish - was Tommy, then he’d rather serve the city then have a moment of comfort. There were more important things. He and Laurel tarnished themselves and the goodness of Tommy. We just didn’t know that LL did’t see it that way (shudder). where Oliver had come from a place of aching loneliness and a need to heal/fix things, LL’s came from a moment of pure selfishness: it didn’t matter, none of it. The five years of pain, Tommy, Sara… it was all fine as long as, in the end, LL got Oliver.
There was clear pain in Oliver’s face when Tommy confronted him. He knew he’d been a selfish, ridiculous ass. But for one day, he’d chosen to believe he could be. That he’d earned it. He’d chosen, for once… to choose himself over Tommy. Tommy let her go. Why can’t I do this?
After Tommy died, Oliver realised it hadn’t been worth it.
I feel sorry for the trap Oliver stepped into, created by his own doing.
I feel for the way Tommy saw himself and the way he loved a woman who loved a memory that didn’t love her back the way she’d craved.
I feel for the way it all came to nothing, shattering into pieces.
But I’m glad it happened the way it did.
Don’t get me wrong, Tommy deserved better, but the fallout of Tommy’s death was much higher than it would have been had LL died instead. His death revealed to them the error of their ways. Both took the full season to learn from them.
Oliver and Tommy… they never talked. Never addressed the multitudes of elephants in the room. Never spoke of how they’d changed and in what way. It was lie after lie after lie. They neglected their friendship. If they hadn’t, maybe it could have been different.
Laurel made it worse.
I‘d like to add that they’re human beings who’ve made mistakes. Humans who make expectations.
Or ego’s the size of mountains.
Ego doesn’t always equate to vanity.
In Laurel’s case, I’d say that she most likely hated her own naivety when she was 22. Oliver’s a constant reminder of how deeply she loves him: deep enough to miss signs that they weren’t this golden couple she’d been told they were by everyone. It’s pretty clear they bring out the worst in each other, as stated above… but she can’t let go of the past, where she was most happy.
Where she was most wanted and loved, even though it was because she had blinders on which makes it so much worse.
She believed she was good enough for him not to cheat. He didn’t just betray her heart, he betrayed her vanity. Her belief in herself and in them as a couple. That’s a hard knock to get over. But Laurel isn’t the type to think she wasn’t enough and, you know? Why should she? However it would 100% be part of the reason why they’d never work after his return, her inability to understand Oliver and herself.
And when that happens, you have to question whether you can ever love a person you don’t know.
You can’t. It’s not real.
I think that’s the interlining theme with Laurel and that’s… horrifically upsetting.
Why?
Because in the end, rather than move forwards, Laurel decides to hold onto what she knows is a lie. I feel like 4.18 was Laurel’s last chance to let the ghost go and she did. It was clearly not a love confession. But look how long she lived in it? Everything about Laurel was focused on the past over her shoulder.
And in that way, I feel sorry for her.
Tommy.. Tommy…
He was content for a while, to lie to himself too.
His best bro returned! That means hi-jinks and party time, right? That means his life will be better now, right? That means everything will be ok!!
Question?
Why did Tommy wait until Oliver’s return to ask LL to dinner? Because he needed to know how they felt about each other first. Now if Oliver never returned, would he have waited forever? It’s a plausible question.
Now clearly, his love for Oliver overrode all else. In many ways it wasn’t LL and O. It was Toliver.
And Tommy was so worried about hurting his best bud, he put his own wants on hold. He broke up with LL because he was sure, he could never hold a candle to Oliver. That lack of self-respect also meant that he put Oliver first BEFORE LL too. He was right of course, but he didn’t know that. He was the architect of destruction for his own relationship. He felt so little about himself, he didn’t give her the chance to prove him wrong.
And he was so hurt by his own feelings, so convinced by them, that he pushed them both away to the point that he turned cold and callous.
Oliver didn’t expect a thing from anyone. He just believed he was at the root of every bad thing and harsh memory, every moment of conflict and choice made by others.
Oliver who was sure that every single person who’d known him before the gambit would never be able to accept the real him and, he as right. Tommy’s reaction told him that.
LL becoming a vigilante? His fault. LL changing so much from the innocent woman he left on the dock to sleep with her sister? His fault. Sara dying then returning then dying? His fault. LL choosing violence over logic? His fault. LL dying because she wasn’t strong enough, fast enough, good enough? His fault. LL choosing to be alone for years even after his return? His fault.
E.T.C.
No matter how ridiculous he knew it was, he would forever feel the guilt for showing the world and all the people around him, how far he could fall.
At his core, Oliver feels like he corrupted her.
‘If I’d told her the truth way back then, maybe she’d have found a way to move on (she wouldn’t). If I was better, i could have loved her the way she deserved… instead I let her just think I did.’
Now in season 5, he finally let all this go… BUT.
He still holds onto that slight vanity: if I’d trained her, she might not have died.
I think it doesn’t mater whether LL knew Oliver used to cheat or that they slept together at the end of S1. It doesn’t matter that Tommy would always suffer because of the lies, expectations and ego’s. They were always going to ruin each other and they did.
LL gave Oliver the keys to the kingdom years ago; like it or not, she never took them back.
Tommy didn’t confront or treat his feelings or Oliver’s (even LL’s) they way they deserved to be treated because he was still very much the Tommy left behind by Oliver, his mother and his father. Tommy, like LL, gave Oliver the keys to his kingdom when he was a child.
And Oliver-
No one held his keys. He didn’t feel like he deserved the keys inside him so he locked them away (until a pair of hands and painted nails stepped inside his gates and filled the tumblers in the keyhole…). Both Tommy and LL were mirrors to who he used to be: they both found him wanting but still expected/hoped ‘Ollie’ would return. Oliver knew he wouldn’t. It’s almost suffocating.
It’s almost like they were created to hurt each other. To miss the mark. To not see the wood for the trees.
Unfortunately, the one most blind was LL, who was at her happiest aged 22.
breaking news: ur actually gonna make it through and everything will turn out just fine
I’ve never, not once in my life, reblogged a good luck post. But this has to be it.
What would the delinquents all living together include?? (Bellamy and clarke have a secret thing going on pls if u could)
Hope this is alright!
Monroe and Harpers room:
Miller and Murphy’s room:
Jasper and Monty’s room:
Octavia and Raven’s room:
Clarke’s room:
Bellamy’s room:
It’s a college share house so finals week is brutal
They have giant beanbag/floor study sessions where they all share headphones and highlighters
Summer jobs at the waterpark and local pool
Food fights that’s usually start with Jasper refusing to pass Monty the salt
Raven won’t stop stealing everyone’s knick and knacks like lightbulbs and bobby pins for her experiments
Bellamy casually checking Clarke out every morning as she dances while making everyone breakfast
Clarke casually checking Bellamy out as he does pull ups in the entry way to her room
Octavia is still a senior in high school so they take turns dropping her at school in their crappy cars
The have the biggest house parties on the street even thought there’s only about 20 people there each time
Having sex in the house is next to impossible because the walls are so thin and everyone makes a game of impersonating your sex noises the next morning
Clarke and Bellamy are the only smart ones that think to use the clunky bangs of the washing machine to hide the fact his head board is smacking into the wall
Bellamy scolding Miller and Monty for running through the halls because Clarke hates patching them up then Clarke’s comes barrelling after them yelling about how she’ll shove them out her window if they touch her charcoal again
Harper sets up very strict rules for how each bathroom is used (and it always ends in her and Murphy butting heads)
Brining someone home is a feat on its own because everyone is so judgemental, whether it’s subtle needling questions (Clarke) or out right “no I don’t like them get a new one” (Murphy)
They set up a roster for who gets to choose what to watch each night after the Great Netflix War of 2012
The Mario Kart 8 comps are very intense
Clarke and Bellamy secretly cuddling into each others sides and letting their hands wander during movie nights
Monty insists that he cuddles everyone when he’s high so Murphy tries his absolute hardest to hide from the tiny octopus (you find the strangest things on the roof - for instance, Jasper)
Clarke and Murphy drinking everyone under the table with their hands tied behind their back
Possibly the weirdest traditions to ever exist I.E. A camping night in the backyard at the end of each month and drawing/writing messages on the birthday wall for everyone’s special day
Murphy doesn’t tell anyone when his birthday is but Harper and Raven make it their mission to find out and surprise him with giant essay long messages from everyone
From then one Murphy spends a lot of time sitting and throwing balls against that wall on his bad days
Jasper gets into the wrong kind of crowd for awhile so they take turns helping him though his withdrawals and recovery for a few weeks under Clarke and Abby insturctions
Everything Raven needs is really on the bottom level but whenever she wants to go upstairs someone will always carry her up and help her slide back down the bannister
SO MANY DECORATIONS FOR ALL THE HOLIDAYS!
Easter egg hunts that stretch both inside and outside the house and every year Miller and Harper forget to count them so they find old mouldy eggs months later
Murphy and Raven organising 4th of July fireworks for the whole block gives Clarke stomach ulcers from the stress alone
Monty and Jasper work together to turn the house into a temporary horror house every Halloween
Monroe and Clarke go all out for thanksgiving dinners
Bellamy and Octavia always lead a whole group effort to make Christmas in November the biggest and best holiday for everyone (and actual Christmas special for Murphy and Raven)
New Years is a shitstorm every year that thrashes the house
It’s also Clarke and Bellamy’s favourite because everyone is always too blind at midnight to the catch them sneaking a kiss
Summer storms start with everyone dancing in the warm rain and laughing and splashing and end in huddling in the lounge room in a giant pile of blankets and limbs to keep away from the thunder
Black outs turn into murder in the dark marathons (that leave the best bruises)
Celebrating the first snow by going out in their bathers and having snow ball fights
Building bonfires in the backyard every other winter weekend
The rest of their neighbourhood is terrified of the crazy ass semi-lawbreaking bunch of Rugrats down the road but their a loyal bunch nonetheless
send me in a “what would _____ involve?”
“People are inherently terrible” no!!! Have you ever seen a child wait for their friend while they tie their shoelaces? Have you ever known someone who would bring hurt squirrels and rabbits and mice to the nearest vet just so it doesn’t suffer? Have you seen someone grieve? Have you ever read something that hit your heart like a freight train? Have you looked at the stars and felt an unexplainable joy? Have you ever baked bread? Have you shared a meal with a friend? Have you not seen it? All the love? All the good? I know it’s hard to see sometimes, I know there’s pain everywhere. But look, there’s a child helping another up after a hard fall. Look, there’s someone giving their umbrella to a stranger. Look, there’s someone admiring the spring flowers. Look, there’s good, there’s good, there’s good. Look!!!!
"We took in a kitten that was starving, injured, and shot with a pellet gun."
"Oh my god, people are awful!"
"They're not. A person rescued her, other people who are trained in helping animals treated her injuries to make her healthy again, and so so so many people contributed to pay her medical costs, I don't even know how many. That she was hurt by...what, one person? Three? Certainly not many. Is honestly maybe the least important and least meaningful part of her story."
"...Oh."
I am holding a triumph of human kindness in my lap right now and her name is Fancy.
I’ll never forget I once had to break the news to two women that their dog had cancer, and as they cried and hugged and asked me questions I said something about how I was grateful this pup had such a loving family to support her- only for these ladies to inform me one of them wasn’t actually an owner at all, she was just the other woman’s Uber driver…
So this driver tells me she’s literally never met the other lady in her life, but when this passenger started crying in the car with her dog because she was worried, this angel in the form of an Uber driver went off the clock, came inside the building, and waited over an hour in a busy emergency room with a complete stranger just so she would have someone there by her side in a scary situation. This woman even took notes about everything I said so the owner wouldn’t have to try and remember it all later.
I see plenty of stuff at my job that makes me tempted to lose my faith in humanity but all I do is remember that Uber driver and it comes roaring back to me just like that. Humans are so unbelievably good, man.
#weirdly it ended up being a uterine tumor (not super common) and the dog was cured with an OVH#a rare feel good story from the ER 🥹#Uber driver came for the dog’s follow up appointment as well!!!
"the world is a cold and uncaring place" then warm it up. care, dammit
Streets are saying once more that Bellarke is still That Girl™️
bellarke going viral on twitter of all places in the year 2025 brings me so much joy. forever the people’s princess
A week belonging to the Bellarke history book
This doesn't count the other couple dozen tweets circulating, ranging from 300 to 2k+ likes. All of this in less than a week.
‼️Helping me means helping 5 members of my family..‼️
🥶We're freezing🥶
Hello, I'm Wasim from Gaza, in Al-Mawasi specifically... My family and I were displaced from Rafah after hardship, bombing, displacement, and hunger.😭😔
Now we have been away from our city and our beautiful home for 9 months. We have lost our house that my father built stone by stone and he worked 24/7 to build this house. But the occupation destroyed it, and no house remained in my beautiful city remained intact.😭💔💔
We are now living in a tent or semi-tent, which does not protect us from the cold of winter or the rain. Our lives are very difficult.😔😭
Thanks to your donations, we have been able to buy food and flour, and now I am asking you for help to buy a tent that will protect us from the cold of winter. We do not know what it means to sleep because of the extreme cold.🥶
This is our tent made of fabric and some nylon, not closed on one side. We are freezing from the cold. Help us to buy a new tent. You are our last hope.😭🥶🥶🙏
I also want to ask for help for my mother, who is the most precious thing in my life. Without her, I am nothing...
She has a back cartilage disease and is in great pain. She needs physical therapy, medicine, and vitamins, and I am unable to provide them. Help my mother receive treatment.🙏🙏😭
Campaign Link⬇️⬇️⬇️
My name is Freya Knarr and I live near Chicago, IL. Because Gofundme does not allo… Freya Knarr needs your support for Help Wasim's family r
@gazavetters
Support My Family Journey to Safety and Peace I hope everyone is well Your donation is not just a donation; it's an opportunity to rebuild life and brighten a better tomorrow. Be part of our hopeful story, for we need your hand to start anew.
this is the campaign link 👇
Hello everyone, this is a fundraiser for someone close to me, here is his message. I hope me mess… Lauren Delimata needs your support for S
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Oh, Bellarke. You are so loved and so so missed.
(And to the fandom that's currently crashing out that Bellarke is still beloved, we know the one, y'all stay safe out there.)
almost 36,000 likes and counting
their power 🤌🤌🤌🤌😮💨
Oh, Bellarke. You are so loved and so so missed.
(And to the fandom that's currently crashing out that Bellarke is still beloved, we know the one, y'all stay safe out there.)