I'm so excited for this!

This is just a small experiment. I'm getting out of my comfort zone of writing stories for manga and anime… so I hope that you will enjoy this!

Title: I'm me.

Pairing: Clare-centric. Eclare

I do not own any of Degrassi: the Next Generation franchise.

Just want to let everyone know that I'm not exactly good with English, so my grammar may suck. Don't flame about it.

-x-

It's difficult. I feel like I'm leading this whole different side of me that I keep secret from everyone. I'm a high honors "gifted" student during the day, and afterschool, I'm me.

I'm the me that no one really knows about.

-x-

My life is pretty much set out for me. I graduate from Degrassi, hopefully being valedictorian, and go to Banting or some preppy Ivy League school in the states. Every month my parents put a large sum of money into my college funds, and talk about how I'm "destined for success."

I have to be different.

I have to be different than Darcy- even if she is the pretty and popular one.

After she got raped and got into all that trouble, my mother refused to acknowledge her. And after she left for Kenya, my parents pushed all their hopes and dreams onto me.

People don't understand how much pressure I have to deal with. It's suffocating me, and there's no way out.

-x-

I sit outside of Degrassi on one of the bench tables, scribbling notes onto my composition notebook. I see all the students smiling and laughing, hugging and kissing—having a great time. They look like they have absolutely nothing to be worried about.

I wish I could be that carefree.

I look to my right and I see Alli ranting about her horrible life, being "unpopular" and "having no social circle."

I wish I could worry about those sorts of things.

I wish I could be a real teenager. I feel like I'm a thirty year old stuck in a pathetic sixteen year old body.

I scribble some more notes, trying to keep focused on this assignment.

"Clare! Are you even listening to me?"

I blank out and look back at Alli, who's pouting and crossing her arms.

"Uh…" I blink my eyes several times. "Yeah, I was listening." I continue looking at my composition book.

"No you weren't. Way to be a good friend." She takes her stuff of the table, stuffs in into her bag and leaves the table. Alli will cool off later.

I look into my notebook and I start a new page. I jot down ideas of what I should write about next for my vampire story and my phone starts vibrating.

It's a text from my mom telling me that no one can pick me up from school and that I'll have to take the bus. I grimace at the text and shut my phone.

-x-

If it's not my mom, it's my dad. Every single day they argue and argue, getting absolutely nowhere.

Why can't my dad just tell my mom that she's a prude and that he sleeps with this girl whose twenty years younger than he?

And why can't my mom tell my dad that she could be laid off from her job?

I take my stuff off the table, put it all in my tote bag and I walk home.

-x-

It's a good half hour walk to my house from Degrassi. It would have been easier if I had taken the bus, but then I realize that if I'm home sooner, I'll have to deal with my parents.

I walk over to The Dot and I sit down on one of the chairs. I never realized how cool the new restaurant was.

I order a small coffee and a muffin and I continue finishing all my homework.

-x-

Being one of the "gifted students" at Degrassi really isn't all that hard. Once you put aside all the teasing and taunting, it's really not that bad.

I never understood how people could complain about homework and studying, considering it's all I do. Those two things run my life. School and academics is my life.

The door opens and I look back to see one of the new students. He sits on one of the tall bar stools and starts talking to one of the servers. I can barely hear their conversation over all the other people, but I ignore them and take another bite of my muffin.

I start chewing and I look around at all the occupants in the restaurant. Their murmurs and voices surround me and it starts suffocating me. I feel like everyone is talking about me, pointing at me and laughing at me.

But I'm different. I'm not like Darcy.

Why do these people have to remind me of Darcy?

I quickly stand up, pay the bill, and get my things and leave.

As I open the door, I feel the people's stares piercing into my back. What did I do wrong this time?

-x-

I quickly run over to my house and unlock the door.

I throw my tote bag down onto the ground and walk to the kitchen to get a glass of water. I peer into the living room where I see my father… making out with…

It's her.

I drop the glass and it shatters all over the floor. My father stops and looks up.

"Clare! I didn't know you would be home… your mom said…"

I stared at him. "Yeah."

He cleared his throat, buttoned up his shirts, redid his belt and stood up. "I would like you to meet Georgia."

I feigned a smile and waved to her. "…N-nice to meet you."

I looked into the living room where I saw all the family pictures. My father really had no dignity, did he? Here he is, making out with some stranger, practically in front of my family!

I clear my throat and blink. "Um… I'm going to go." I walk past the broken glass and run to the door. I grab my bag and shut the door quickly.

-x-

I hate my life.

Between acting as a Darcy 'fill-in,' getting straight A's and keeping all these secrets, I really have no time to relax and chill out.

I walk over to the park near my neighborhood and I sit on the bench. I take out my phone from my tote and I realize that Alli has texted me over ten times. I smile and look at my pictures.

There are a bunch of pictures on my phone. I have pictures with Darcy, my parents, Alli, Connor, and K.C.

K.C. Guthrie.

I repeat his name many times in my head. I remember the day he broke up with me. I remember crying about our breakup all summer.

I thought that I had a boyfriend, everything would be different. He could help me forget all about my parents, my 'Perfect Clare' life… but in the end, he left me.

He left me for her.

He left me for Jenna.

Jenna ruined my life. Trying to make it worse and worse by pretending and playing coy, trying to be my 'BFF,' and then spreading around the rumor that I got a boob job.

She really doesn't want me to have K.C.

That's fine. I don't care. She can have K.C., and she can deal with him. He's no longer my problem. I want nothing to do with him.

I look at the cars driving down the street. I wonder if I stand in the middle of the street, I could get run over by a car and all of my problems could all go away.

I take my bag and walk up to the street. I take one step off the curb and quickly get back on the sidewalk.

I'm scared.

One more try.

I take a step and a large black car suddenly stops. A lanky teenager opens the door and walks towards me.

He scoffs at me and smirks. "What do you think you're doing?"

-x-

Here it is!

I don't know if it's good, I'm not sure where it's going yet… but I'll figure it out.

Read and review! I know that Eclare fics are all over the Degrassi archive, but I thought I could give it a try. It's more Clare-centric. :D