Okay! Hi there, I'm back to writing. I'm not sure if anybody reading followed along with the stories I did last year, (which, unfortunately, I really lost momentum for and will not be returning to) but recently a huge burst of motivation hit me. I'm extremely excited about this story and scout's honor, I intend to write it from start to finish.
For the sake of being brief in this author's note, I'll only say that this concept was adapted from the movie Timer, though it has no ties to the film whatsoever other than the soul mate timer element. It takes place during season ten, i.e. the Misfit's golden age, so the story will revolve heavily around them.
I'm sure I've said more than enough already so please do enjoy the first chapter! I'll be relying heavily on feedback and reviews to see where I want to go with it next, so please don't be shy about telling me what you think!
If he could have scratched it out of his skin, he would have dug his nails right under his flesh long ago, scraping it out of his veins and tossing it aside. If there had been a way to avoid its installation in the first place, there was no doubt that he would have opted out of the procedure. Infancy hadn't offered him much in the way of options, a fact that never failed to color his expression with a grimace.
Rolling onto his opposite side in bed, Eli ignored the persistent beeping of his alarm clock, not bothering to stifle back a groan of displeasure at the sound. As a rule of thumb, he rarely ever felt settled but today was a special brand of disconcerted; a kind he had convinced himself for the past four years that he would never experience.
Reluctantly, he dragged himself off to the bathroom for a shower, mechanically going through the motions and eventually finding himself right back in his room, a towel wrapped snugly around his waist. It was only before washing up that Eli removed his thick black buckle wristband, exposing the LCD screen embedded in his skin behind it.
At one point in time, he hadn't looked at it for a full year, already knowing that far more time than that was still on the counter- not to mention the fact that he'd grown so apathetic to the gadget. While everyone else around him was either checking their counters compulsively or happily paired with whoever was on the receiving end of theirs, Eli liked to pretend he hadn't been born with one at all. Ignoring it didn't gnaw at him, never succumbing to a compulsion to look at it like most; essentially developing a complex over the entire concept. He could understand the appeal, the anticipation of watching the seconds dwindle with each passing day. Though fleeting, he'd felt similarly about the timer when he was younger, always having had a perfect example of its accuracy in his parents.
It made him feel better to obscure the screen once again, tightening his bracelet around it securely before digging out clothes from his dresser. Though other people might have put effort into their first days at school, Eli's apathy truly knew no bounds, pouring over into just about every facet of his life. After randomly picking a black t-shirt and a pair of jeans, he threw them on, raking his fingers carelessly through his still dampened locks.
From just outside the door, he could hear heavy footsteps approaching, Bullfrog's telltale stride identifiable by sound alone. Moments later, a knock could be hear at the door, Eli grunting out a "hrrm" through the door to invite his father in.
"I'm shocked you're even awake." his dad commented incredulously, not sparing Eli a mocking laugh at his uncharacteristic punctuality.
Waving his hand dismissively, Eli scanned the clutter of his room for his backpack, completely forgetting where he'd left it a few days prior. "Don't go assuming this is me turning over a new leaf or anything. I wouldn't want to get your hopes up unnecessarily." he griped in return, finally spotting the strap of his tattered bag and tugging it closer to him.
"It wouldn't be the worst thing, you know. This is your fresh start, kiddo."
"There's no such thing as a fresh start. Your baggage follows your everywhere. Running from it is only placating yourself into believing you can even leave it behind." he rebutted, busying himself with shoving his notebooks and class schedule into the bag.
Eli wasn't about to persuade himself that anything he endured while at his old school could easily be stored away in a proverbial box, taped shut with a sticker that read, "do not open". The box was ever-present, not even requiring a dusting off with how frequently he came back to revisit it mentally. If ever there was a king of ruminating thoughts, he felt confident in claiming the title for himself.
Entering a little further inside the room – side stepping a plethora of comic books stacked just left to the door – Bullfrog propped himself up against the side of his bed. "Listen, your mom and I, we just want-"
"The best for me. You want the best for me, I know." Eli interjected, exhaling slowly before looking to his father, giving him his full attention finally. "And I want to be whatever it is you two are hoping I'll be, but I know better than to promise that switching schools will be a miracle cure. But I'm trying. I am." he replied, a sudden rush of ineptitude filling him to the brim. It was rare that Eli ever felt as though he was something even close to a success, falling short of his own expectations as well those of everyone else around him.
The past year had been a cycle of withdrawing and crumbling in on himself, mixed in with a hint of bitter, enraged lashing out. To say it was tumultuous would be a severe understatement, and at this point, Eli sincerely wondered why his parents even bothered to have faith in him anymore. It seemed like the least he could do was make them proud and give them less of a reason to be concerned, and yet that was the most impossible task of all for him.
It was the constant hopes, the expectations, the preconceived notions about who Eli should be and how from those around him that made him the most unsettled, and having a timer installed in his arm that dictated when he would supposedly fall in love only added to that nagging pressure.
Taking a step forward, Bullfrog's full, calloused hand settled on his son's shoulder, gripping it affectionately. "Eli, you're everything I've ever hoped my son would be, and then some." he assured, his voice just as gruff as it ever was by nature, but harboring a sincerely warm tone beneath it. Bullfrog was the most adept at talking Eli down from his ledges, even when he couldn't understand exactly what they were. "You've got nothing to prove to me or Cece. We just want you to be happy. You deserve that after everything you've gone through."
Though comforting, his father's words came with a hint of a sting, Eli inwardly marveling at how he used the word 'happy' in a sentence so fluidly. As if it was the most achievable thing in the world, grasping such an elusive emotion and wearing it on your sleeve, day in and day out. To Eli, there wasn't a more complex and practically fictional concept in the world; except perhaps the idea that one could meet their soul mate at the end of a timer.
Turning his head slightly, he caught sight of the small indentation on Bullfrog's wrist, a rectangle shaped scar where his timer had once been. It reminded Eli of the fact that for him, his happiness had been achieved years before in the form of Cece, taking a very lost and emotionally battered Bullfrog and gradually bringing giving him new purpose. He'd always said she saved his life, and it was clear in every smile of gratitude he sent her way. Their love was the tangible kind. Eli was convinced that even if timers never existed, they inevitably would have found their way to each other regardless.
Such a thing didn't exist for him though, there was no way he could ever come to deserve it after all was said and done.
With a simple nod, he mustered up as genuine of a smile as he could despite his regret-addled mind, trying to be grateful for the limitless support his parents offered.
"Be downstairs in ten though, alright? We gotta get you to the main office and make sure you're all set up for your classes." he called while exiting the room, leaving it ajar before bounding down the stairs again.
Resigned once more to his room and the task at hand, Eli drew in a slow breath, letting it out and grasping the strap of his backpack. Slinging it over his shoulder, he tried not to focus on the inevitable outcomes attending this school would bring. It would mean adjusting to a whole new version of ostracizing at the hand of his peers- something he was prepared for but certainly not enthused about. It would mean becoming familiar with classes and people he wouldn't come to care about, creating a routine that he didn't feel even remotely interested in.
But to him, those matters didn't even make it to the top of the list. What was pressing most heavily on his mind since enrolling at Degrassi was the fact that up until that day, curiosity hadn't hit him concerning his timer. He'd gone so far as to put a strip of tape over it, shielding the numbers on the screen. It never occurred to him to look, making it so he practically forgot it existed. When he finally- out of morbid curiosity- decided to take a peek, the numbers staring back at him that day took him by surprise.
Pulling off the wristband momentarily, Eli turned his arm over, a rising sense of dread engulfing him at the numbers he knew would be ticking themselves down.
0010d 16h 45m 28s
Toying with a stray curl that hung beside her face, Clare was keeping herself busy getting ready for school, her body jolting in panic as she heard a loud bang from just down the hall. Her heart was left racing even as awareness of the source hit her, emitting a soft groan to herself a beat later.
The fighting was becoming a normal presence in the home, as familiar as the doorbell chiming or the phone ringing. The fact that Clare could even apply the term 'normal' to what was quite obviously a chaotic and stressful living situation was remarkable to her, her entire definition of family life being re-written with each fight her parents had. She couldn't be sure what it was about this time but without a doubt, it was something blown entirely out of proportion, escalating into a screaming match that easily could have woken the dead.
Trying to shake the rattled disposition out of her body, she sat up from her desk chair, pushing it in and settling her hands on her hips. The first day back always left Clare feeling an excited sort of anxiety, mixed with a rejuvenated hope for what was to come. Grade nine hadn't been a cake walk, filled with multiple events an eighth grade Clare never would have foreseen for herself, but this year was sure to be different than any that came before it. For one, she'd abandoned the wire-frame glasses that ordinarily adorned her face, undergoing surgery to correct her vision. It was something she'd always hoped to do as a child, and it hadn't become a decision she regretted.
Already she could feel her confidence tripling, a new sense of self emerging with the fresh appearance. She'd been enrolled in all honors classes, including a grade eleven course that most younger students wouldn't dream of getting into. All in all, the year was looking up, but especially for one specific reason.
The one thing that kept Clare afloat in times that she felt utterly alone, secluded in her room with a book while her parents traded enraged insults, was the timer on her arm. Though silent, the constant ticking of each second brought her that much closer to companionship, to belonging. To comfort and what she'd always dreamed of – true love.
Like many girls over the years, Clare was all but fixated with the device, checking it even when she knew the date was far off. She couldn't think of a more romantic concept, her entire life leading up to the point that her timer indicated. It hadn't taken long for her to do the math, realizing that the date would fall during her grade ten year, when she was fifteen years old. It was much to the chagrin of her best friend, Alli, whose timer added up to her eighteenth birthday exactly. Though her friend was boy crazy essentially from birth, Clare always knew that whoever it would end up being for her, was well worth the wait. Daydreaming about how the situation would play out beat chasing after boys any day, Clare allowing Alli to adopt those habits instead. She believed in the timer's validity and accuracy without question, having seen it work for family members before. Even her parents were soul mates, which added an extra sense of ease when the two found themselves butting heads. Surely if they were meant to be together, eventually the bad parts of their marriage would peter out, leaving behind a better, more stable relationship in their wake.
Years had been spent fantasizing about how the meeting with her soul mate would take place, what he would look like and what his reaction would be to her. In her most idealistic imaginings, the boy was always relieved to finally have encountered her, immediately and willingly becoming close to her. More pessimistic versions occasionally reared their heads, but Clare never failed to talk herself out of those worries.
There were stories about people who had their timers stop without warning, a sign that their soul mate had died., The two connected timers failed to work without the other living individual. It was a chilling thought to consider, her heart breaking for those who actually had to experience it. Of all the things Clare was afraid of, even when stacked up against her own death and every other imaginable event of impending doom, her timer stopping out of nowhere was her biggest fear. It wasn't just her unwavering devotion to Nicholas Sparks (though that certainly added to the tendency) that shaped her opinions about love, but the fact that she couldn't even begin to imagine a purpose in life without it. Such a thing surely existed, and everyone deserved to experience it.
A booming shout from the floor below tore Clare away from her thoughts, jumping yet again at the sound. After turning off her bedroom light and checking herself for what was quite possibly the fiftieth time in the mirror, she descended the stairs to the living room.
There, it was impossible to tune out the bitter exchange of words between her parents, annoyance and concern rippling through her in equal quantities at the sight of them. Clearing her throat as obnoxiously as she could in the midst of their heated debate, they finally turned to face her, almost surprised by the fact that she'd even entered the room.
"Hi, I'm your daughter, Clare. Remember me?" she asked rhetorically, not at all remorseful for taking a tone with the pair.
"Not right now, Clare. I already get enough of a smart mouth from your father, I'm sure that's where you got it from." her mother, Helen, snapped, rolling her eyes at her father, Randall.
He wasn't without a rebuttal, Clare's heart sinking into the pit of her stomach as she realized she'd only given them more ammunition to work with.
"From me? Seriously? We both know what's a lie, not to mention the fact that if you think Clare's bad, you really need to reevaluate yourself." he barked back.
As the volume of their words only increased to a deafening degree, Clare eventually lost her cool, her eyes beginning to sting behind her closed lids.
"Stop!" she yelled over their voices, adrenaline tunneling through her as she began to tremble slightly. "I need a ride to school." she forced out, her voice shaking. "Can one of you please just drive me there?"
After a moment of silence, her dad finally relented, grabbing his car keys off the hook and gesturing for her to follow him out to the driveway. Clare murmured a low "bye" to her mom on the way out, only returned with a curt wave.
The ride to school was an uncharacteristically quiet one, Clare keeping her mouth shut for fear of fanning the flames any more than she already had for her parents. Instead of making conversation, her focus drifted to the digits ticking dutifully on her wrist, a small smile curling her lips up.
0010d 16h 25m 48s
Eli's low expectations for the day hadn't been going unfulfilled, fourth period passing by in practically a blur. The school staff was nice enough, each teacher more than willing to show him around and be patient while he adapted to the new settings, but Eli was sure it was all first day phoniness regardless. The students there didn't differ at all from what he was anticipating, cliques visible in every corner of the building. He knew he'd never fit into one, and didn't want to either, internally scoffing at even the mere thought of acquiring a steady group of friends. Loner was his general setting, one he'd become all too comfortable with over time. Being surrounded by new people wasn't likely to change that innate tendency.
Fifth period brought about lunch, a blank sort of indifference hitting him at the prospect of being around so many other students as the new kid. Already he'd gotten several looks from people around him, ranging from curious to blatantly nosy or rude. The latter ones amused him more than anything, always making sure to shoot back a grin in return. Eli knew how unapproachable he was; it was a trait he openly prided himself on. From his vantage point, it weeded out the few people that could be worth befriending from the ones who would simply be a waste of time and energy. The list of those people seemingly began and ended with one person, but Eli fought off the temptation to get carried away in thoughts of her. This wasn't the time or place.
The lunch line was excruciatingly long, so lengthy that Eli nearly decided to forgo eating at all, but the incessant rumbling in his stomach persuaded him to stick it out. After grabbing a burger and an apple he wasn't entirely sure was even edible, he retired himself to a table in the corner of the wide room, nearest to the exit. All around him was constant chattering, no one conversation discernible from the rest. He felt like he was covered in camouflage, blending in perfectly with the backdrop behind him. It suited him just fine, content to dig out the latest copy of The Goon from his bag and flip through it. Though he'd already read it over at least four times, he never tired of the series, immersing himself back into the plot effortlessly.
Only after twenty minutes of steady reading and only intermittent breaks to eat was Eli torn from his secluded reverie, feeling a presence hanging over him on the opposite side of the table. Slowly lifting his gaze, his brows furrowed in confusion at the face before him, taking a moment before lowering the comic book.
"Can I help you?" he asked pointedly, briefly taking in the boy. He looked slightly younger than Eli but most definitely taller, a smile of curiosity painting his lips, with a beanie holding down a mop of brown hair. His appearance seemed more youthful than most for a reason Eli couldn't quite pinpoint, all smooth contours and innocent features. It was almost a pleasant sight in comparison to the motley population that the rest of the school consisted of, this boy differing from them.
"Is that The Goon?' the boy asked, his voice matching the innocence that his outward appearance suggested. "The latest edition?"
Shaking his head subtly to himself, he tried to wrap his head around the fact that someone was speaking to him at all, eventually returning his focus to the boy. "Yeah, I just got it the other day and I've already flown through it multiple times." he replied.
It wasn't everyday that someone – let alone a complete stranger – expressed an interest in the same things he liked. It led Eli to feel inclined to actually mingle, as mind-blowing and unlikely as that was.
"Oh dude! You're so lucky, I haven't been able to get my hands on it yet. I'm still stuck on that crazy cliffhanger from the last one." he lamented, huffing out a short breath. Pulling up a chair, he took a seat beside Eli, only pausing after getting comfortable. "Oh, um, I guess I should have asked if you even minded me sitting here first."
"It's...fine, yeah." Eli mumbled, still puzzled by the friendly stranger who apparently found his company desirable. It was enough to make him question the boy's sanity, if he were being honest with himself.
"But yeah," the boy started up once more, quickly recovering from his social faux pas and diving right back into his rant about the comic. "I'm seriously getting more and more impressed with each new one. The art insane and then like, the plot itself is addicting as hell." he spoke animatedly, as if this wasn't the first time he was speaking to Eli at all. "I'm Adam, by the way. Adam Torres." he followed up, smiling with enthusiasm.
"Uh," Eli stuttered briefly, lifting his brows in genuine shock at his forwardness. More shocking was the fact that he didn't find it at all off-putting.
It didn't take much to annoy Eli, even the simplest of requests to converse turning him off at once. He was antisocial to his core, all attempts on his parent's behalves to make him more personable failing miserably. The fact that someone was sincerely capturing his attention was nothing short of miraculous, and he knew better than to refuse it.
"Eli. Eli Goldsworthy." he responded, following the same format Adam had used to introduce himself.
Nodding his head in acknowledgment, Adam reached for his backpack and withdrew from it a paper bag, beginning to speak again as he dug through the contents. "I thought I was honestly seeing things when I looked at you and saw the cover. Every time I bring out my comics in public, I always get crap for it. As if they aren't good literature."
"I couldn't care less what people think about my preferences in reading material." Eli shrugged, biting into his apple – which he had deduced wasn't necessarily fresh but wouldn't kill him to eat either.
Unwrapping his sandwich, Adam didn't bother to chew with his mouth closed or wait to speak again until he was done, instead carrying on without a care. "Yeah, well, it's hard being the new kid and being branded a geek right off the bat."
Looking up towards him, Eli tilted his head. "You're new here too?"
Adam finally forced himself to swallow, his expression a mixture of relief and surprise. "I'm seriously glad I'm not the only one. My brother and I just transferred here. Kind of a long story but to sum it up, coming here wasn't really my choice."
"Likewise." Eli responded, settling back more comfortably in his chair and stretching out his legs beneath the table.
In almost no time at all, Adam had Eli caught in a discussion about everything ranging from their old schools, to bands they had in common, (a topic Eli felt especially invested in), eventually coming to a head with a debate of Marvel versus DC when the bell rang for sixth period.
"What's your next class?" Adam asked, pulling his backpack up his arm as he got up from his chair.
"Economics. I'm just itching to get there." he mumbled, his disdain for the subject palpable. "And you?"
"English. My schedule isn't too shabby this year, I gotta say."
Following Adam as they made their way out of the door, the two walked down the hall, eventually reaching a fork. "That makes one of us. I'm heading this way." he spoke, gesturing in the opposite direction that the other boy was heading.
"Oh, wait," Adam said, slowing his stride. "Do you think we could like, I don't now, eat lunch together sometimes? You're honestly the only person around here with good taste in comics and just about everything else. You're practically a unicorn as far as I'm concerned."
Scoffing at his absurd comparison, Eli shrugged his shoulders, then nodding his head. "Yeah, I don't see why not." he said, offering the boy a small smile. "I'll be seeing you around then."
"See you tomorrow!" Adam replied before turning the opposite corner, disappearing into the crowd of students hurrying to their classes.
Despite his own reservations about befriending people, Eli couldn't deny that a small sense of promise had filled him, making him think that maybe Degrassi wouldn't be quite as miserable and pointless as he'd previously chalked it up to be.
"You should have been there, oh my god, Clare, you really need to transfer into my History class. The cutest guy in the whole school sits right in front of me." Alli chattered lively, Clare listening while she sipped occasionally on her SoBe. As much as Clare was grateful to have her best friend in the same lunch period, she knew without having to ask that a lengthy rundown of everything Alli had seen and done was sure to follow. It was a labor of love, one that she would willingly accept to be in the company of someone as amazing as Alli.
"His name is Drew Torres, and he's literally just, ugh," Alli continued, tossing her head back in frustration. "It should be a sin to look that gorgeous."
"I'm sure he's a masterpiece." Clare quipped back, rolling her eyes playfully at Alli's misery. "Did you get into that chemistry class you were hoping for?" she asked, glancing over at her.
"But I didn't get a good look at his timer. I didn't want to crane over his shoulder and blatantly stare. Because that would have given me away immediately. The last thing I need is to make Drew think I'm this huge creeper on the first day of school."
Realizing she wasn't going to get a reply to her question, Clare allowed the mindless banter to carry on, figuring she could fit in the important questions once Alli eventually exhausted herself.
"For all I know, we have the very same number ticking on our wrists and I'm here just wasting time!"
Pausing, Clare's mouth pressed into a thin line, unsure of how to phrase her thoughts to Alli. "Don't you think if you were soul mates, your timers would have gone off?" she asked, trying not to force disappointment into Alli with her concern.
"I didn't actually meet him. We didn't make eye contact. It's once you make eye contact that things happen." she replied matter-of-factly, shaking her head to Clare. "There's still a chance. I just have to get him to talk to me."
Clare knew that Alli was wrong; that even being near the person with a matching timer would make them both reach zero, and Alli's was still stuck at her eighteenth birthday. Her idealism was verging on pathetic, but she couldn't blame her for the optimism. She was equally as eager to meet her other half, her mind always running through possible scenarios for the big day.
"Aren't you curious about who it's going to be for you?" Alli queried, a small whine in her voice. "Your date is coming up so soon. It's literally going to happen this year. In..." she trailed off, abruptly reaching for Clare's wrist and checking the counter. "Ten days? Already?"
Sheepishly, Clare withdrew her arm, crimson sweeping over her cheeks as she smiled. "I'm really nervous, but I can't stop thinking about it. It's practically all I think about."
"It could be someone in this room right now. Someone watching as their timer ticks down too. Just waiting to meet you." Alli beamed, reaching for Clare again and letting out a soft squeal.
Cringing just slightly at Alli's blatant excitement, she felt her face only heating up more, shaking her head in spite of herself. "It's like...I've waited my whole life for this. I almost feel like whoever it's going to be, I've missed them this entire time. Even if I don't know them, they've been on my mind so often." Clare moused, a wistful sigh leaving her.
Alli echoed it back, her shoulders rising and falling once she exhaled. "But you listen here, Clarebear. Soul mate or no, he still has to get my approval, got it? I don't care what some timer says about it." she warned, wagging her finger with mock conviction behind it.
"I know, I know. I'll make sure to get your blessing."
After saying their goodbyes at the sound of the bell, Clare exited the cafe and started down along the hall to her next class, the swarm of students beginning to thin out as each wandered into different classrooms. The air of mystery and excitement enshrouding the school year hadn't let up in the least, the sensation only doubling inside of her with Alli's words.
Whoever it would be, he really did have to be around somewhere close, wandering the very same halls she was, their clocks ticking in unison until the time would come for them to wind down to zero.