The first thing that you used to smell when you woke up was the salt from the water, the faint smell of fish being smoked near the mess hall and the smell of freshly baked bread from the main kitchen on the oil rig. But that was before. Now, as your eyes slowly blinked open, with your fingers rubbing away the sleep from your eyes, the first thing you could smell was the lingering scent of wild berries that surrounded Jasper as he slept beside you. When he first arrived with the others, he had short brown hair, but it had begun to grow out more, and it stuck out in different directions, a few strands hung over his forehead, not quite reaching his eyes yet. At some point, during the night, he had pulled you closer to himself. His right arm hung across your side as you faced him, your hands bunched in the middle of the two of you. Jasper's mouth was parted as he breathed, but he wasn't snoring, he was just breathing deeper than usual.

The birds, outside the window, chirped loudly, waking Jasper up. He closed his mouth and swallowed the saliva that almost dribbled onto the pillow. Turning on his back, with a sharp intake of air, his left arm remained trapped under your body as he struggled to stretch. As his eyes lazily blinked open, he ran his hand through his hair, pushing it back before he rolled over to face you again, closing his eyes as he tried to get more sleep. A smile spread across your face as you placed your left hand on his cheek and stroked gently, feeling the rough, unshaven skin beneath your fingertips. Jasper hummed, edging closer to you. He had a tired, dopey, smile on his face as one eye opened, his other eye squeezed shut still. He hummed to himself again and pulled you closer, tangling your legs together.

"Morning," he croaked out, sighing to himself.

"Do you want to get breakfast?" You asked, knowing the answer already.

"Five more minutes."

Jasper squeezed you softly, moving his head to lay on your pillow as he moved closer. He smiled to himself and breathed deeply as your fingers softly moved through his hair, massaging his scalp before you pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead, resting your own against his as your fingers travelled back to his unshaven jaw. It had become a routine for the two of you, laying in bed together in the early hours of the morning when you both woke up. Sometimes, on the rare occasion, if Jasper woke up before you, he would whisper all the things he wouldn't dare say to you out loud when you were awake. But you always heard him, always. You just never told him, because you knew that if you did, he would stop, and you didn't want him to stop. The sweet words and loving touches were rare, so you let them continue.

"You say that all the time," you reminded him.

"I know."

"Just five more minutes then."

"Thank you."

When he first arrived on the oil rig, he had been joined with Clarke, Bellamy, and Octavia. But when they got ready to leave, he told them that he wanted to stay, that he was tired of fighting, that he was tired of waking up every day in a place that he felt he didn't belong. They understood, waving goodbye to him, but it was clear that they didn't want to leave him behind. Even Jasper saw their hesitation but knew that they wouldn't force him to go back with them if he really didn't want to.

It was when Luna brought him into the small mess hall that he had spotted you. Luna had been explaining a few things to him as she showed him around, but she stopped and turned around to face him when she didn't hear him following her. A small smile etched on her face as she walked back over to him and told him your name. He repeated it, testing how it sounded rolling off the tip of his tongue, and before he knew it, he found himself repeating it more until he accidentally caught your attention. His cheeks flared up in a pink hue and his eyes widened while his mouth hung ajar. Luna patted his back gently before her attention was drawn away by a few of the children who called out to her. Jasper gulped as you stood up and walked over to him with a light smile, introducing yourself formally with a soft handshake, one that Jasper forgot was only meant to last a few seconds, and that he was meant to let go of your hand and not run his thumb across your skin causing goosebumps and your own cheeks to darken.

After that encounter, you knew you were a goner. He had been on your mind non-stop after that, and you were the same for him.

Jasper would never admit it, but you helped keep his mind off Maya. He didn't talk about her because he feared that you would feel like he was just using you, but it was also because you numbed the pain, you brought him back into the light, back above the water. He needed you more than either of you knew it. In a way, you helped him save himself, and for that, he was forever grateful.

It was almost a week later when he had found you again, you were separating the fishing nets to clean them, hanging them up to be ready for their next use. Jasper didn't have any control over his own body when he confidently walked up to you, clearing his throat as he crossed his arms and leaned against one of the wooden beams that were used to hang the nets. When your eyes met his, he could feel his heart rate pick up, and his confidence falter slightly.

"Are you okay, Jasper?" You asked after a minute's silence, while he just stood there staring at you.

There was a sudden jolt inside of him, and before he was able to register what it was that he was doing, he pushed off the wooden beam and cupped your face with his hands and pressed his lips to yours, his eyes tightly shut. A few seconds later, you closed your eyes and kissed him back, grabbing onto the fabric of his shirt to pull him closer while you stood on your tip toes so he didn't have to bend down as much. He didn't care that you had a hint of salt on your lips, or that it smelt of fish around the two of you, he didn't want the moment to stop.

Another smile rose to your lips as you thought back to that moment, and you brought your lower lip between your teeth, trying to stop your smile from growing.

"What's got you so happy?" Jasper questioned.

When you opened your eyes, you noticed that he saw already looking at you with his own smile. "You," you responded.

"Shall we get breakfast then?"

With a nod and a groan, you both sat up. A yawn escaped your lips and Jasper wrapped his arms around you before pulling you back down to the bed. "Jasper!"

He laughed to himself, loosening his grip on you. "It was too tempting," he admitted before he rolled over on top of you. "So, I had to do it."

"I'm sure you did." You rolled your eyes playfully, laughing quietly to yourself as well.

Jasper hummed before he sat up again, this time taking your hands in his to pull you up with him. After you both got dressed and quickly brushed your teeth, you left your shared room and made your way over to the mess hall. Jasper's hand automatically entwined with yours and you rested your head on his upper arm as you walked. Most people had already left by the time the two of you walked in, considering how Jasper's 'five minutes' may have lasted longer than five minutes. You both sat down at a small table and picked up two bowls and two cups of water.

When you first started having meals together, Jasper mentioned something about chocolate cake and roast chicken for dinner but quietened down after it. There was never any need to press on about what he was talking about, which he was thankful for. He soon started making jokes about having fish for every meal, and something about turning into one by the end of the week.

"Are you feeling okay?" Jasper asked out of the blue.

"I'm fine, why?" You looked up at him from your bowl.

He shrugged. "No reason."

You continued to look at him carefully, just to see if he would crack and tell you what it was that was on his mind. But he never did. He just continued to eat, occasionally clearing his throat and tugging at his shirt collar.

By the time it was evening, your body felt like it was on fire. Your eyes stung, your lungs felt like they were filling up with the sea water, and your skin felt irritated by everything, even if nothing was touching it. Jasper complained of being too hot, yet shivering and feeling too cold at the same time. He had small blisters on his neck and face, some along his arms, and that was just what you were able to see. You had red patches and scabs forming along the broken skin on your face and body. The two of you left your room and saw other people had the same problem. Jasper grabbed hold of your hand quickly as the crowd began to grow, and people pushed forward towards where the shipping containers came in.

Luna was stood on top of one of the crates, yelling over the panicked screaming and loud complaints. You stayed close to Jasper and Luna instructed people inside the containers to head to the mainland. Everyone seemed to be getting worse by the second, and when Luna told you both that she was going to help, Jasper squeezed your hand and stood rigid.

"Jasper?" You asked quietly, not knowing what was wrong.

He remained silent, watching as a few shipping containers left and headed off to the mainland. He knew exactly where they were going, and he had a feeling that he knew what was happening to everyone. But he would be damned if he wouldn't go with them, with you, to try and fix what was happening to them.

"Looks like I'm going back to Arkadia after all."