A/N: This is my first fanfiction! I love Eclare forever! Please read and review! I know the first chapter is short but they will get longer and this will be an awesome story, I promise!
Disclaimer: I do not own Degrassi- though I wish I did!
Chapter 1: At First Glance
The date was September 8th, present day. It was the first day of classes for Degrassi High School in Toronto, Canada. The air was cool, crisp, and full of opportunity for Claire Edwards. This was the year that everything for Clare would change; at least this is what Clare had hoped. Her start at Degrassi High two years ago brought pain and sorrow, with the destruction of her home life. Her only sibling was gone, traveling the world and doing good. The only thing that let Clare keep her head on her shoulders about this what that her older sister was giving back; it was one thing Clare admired about her sibling. Her parents were recently divorced, and much to Clare's distress, always at each other's throats. The least they could do is act civil with each other, since they've both moved on and found other people. This was Clare's state of mind.
Leaving the world of her gradually disintegrating family behind, Clare rolled out of her bed at precisely 6:30 am. Clare was never one to try to impress the students around her, so half hour was an adequate amount of time to shower and run her fingers through her auburn waves before the day began. Clare dressed in tight jeans, with a loose floral shirt. Most girls in her school would dress over the top for this oh so enticing day, but Clare was never one to stand apart from the crowd. To her boyfriend, Elijah Goldsworthy, Clare never even needed to apply makeup. She was content with who she was; him, ecstatic. Eli Goldsworthy could never ask for a more perfect match than the one he found within Claire Hamilton. They were an odd couple at first site. She was of a medium height, with auburn waves running to her petite shoulders. Her skin was porcelain, her lips like Snow White, and blue eyes that could shock you with one look. Her eyes were the first thing Eli had ever complimented her on. She was simple, but nonetheless, she was stunning. He, on the other hand, was not so simple looking. It was easily seen by the way that girls stared at him with lusting eyes. His heart belonged forever to Clare though. He was tall, slender, with a toned body. His skin was as white as snow, drastically making his deep green eyes stand out. In Clare's cliche words, his eyes held more color than any true hue. The two were always fascinated by each other's eyes; they spoke the words they had no need to say out loud; they held emotion. His shaggy black hair seemed to always match the black clothes he was wearing. She was the pastels of the Spring day, he was the darkness of the winter night. From their appearance, they were opposites. But one would never know how well Clare and Eli really knew each other. They were two perfect pieces of a puzzle; they meshed so well together. They knew each other better than the back of their own hand.
To say the least, Eli surprised Clare at first sight. She reminisced on the first time they interacted. She was walking with her best friend, Ali, when her glasses were thrown into the street. Before she could react and grab them from the graveled pavement, a pair of wheels screeched over them. Looking up in slight despair, Clare noticed a hearse sitting in front of her with a boy playing rock music throughout the vehicle. Without question, it was one of the strangest things that Clare had ever seen. What teenage boy drove a hearse? Any other sane person most likely would have been scared of this boy sitting here in a funeral car with a skull on the front, but not Clare. She was intrigued, drawn to him, and by the looks of it, he was the same to her. His eyes stuck out to her immediately. The green was in such contrast with his white skin and black hair. He was beautiful and unlike anyone Clare had ever seen.
"You have pretty eyes." The dark hair boy purred into her. Being awkward and too nervous to respond, Clare simply gave a bashful smile while her cheeks pooled into a rosy red. It was in situations like this when Clare Edwards was actually speechless. She wanted, with all of her might, to say something to the boy, but she just reached down to grab her glasses- though she didn't need them anymore thanks to her recent eye surgery. As her fingers were centimeters from the crushed glass on the ground, Eli reached down too, lightly brushing her hand with his own. The spark was instantaneous and electric. It was a feeling that Clare had never felt before, and she desired more of it as soon as it came. She yearned for his touch each and everyday since then.
Waiting on her front stoop, bag packed, and a head full of daydreams, Clare waited for Eli to arrive as her ride to school. She thought of the first time they met many times, replayed it in her mind over and over. It was her favorite movie; it was her own romance. As she saw the black hearse, Morty, pull in front of her house, Clare couldn't help but feel those same sparks she felt again on the first day she met him. Those sparks never went away, the butterflies still pooled in her belly, his touch still gave her chills, and their kisses always felt like the first. Every interaction between Clare Edwards and Eli Goldsworthy was old and new all at once, passionate and romantic wrapped together, and simply marvelous each and every time.