First (semi-)oneshot—constructive criticism really appreciated!
Notes: it takes place around the start of Boys R Us when everyone but Claire has left Massie and the characters are all in ninth grade—the story is rather AU, so it might be a little confusing at the beginning.
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Characters go to Lisi Harrison. Title is from a Train song (This Ain't Goodbye) which you should listen to as you read this, because it's fits well with the story.
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on the way to letting go—
It's Skye Hamilton's sweet sixteen, and she's known for hosting the craziest parties in the county, so there's people dancing everywhere and drinking themselves into oblivion and making out like there's no tomorrow with other random people. So Cam thinks that it's okay he wants to kiss his girlfriend—not some faceless slut like the rest of his friends—and when she pushes him away hastily, is it so unreasonable that he gets so frustrated?
"Not now, Cam!" Claire whispers in a low voice, looking around quickly to make sure no one saw that. When she's made sure, she puts her blue-eyed gaze on him. "Don't you know that someone could've seen us? Massie would've killed me if—"
There she goes again, Cam rolls his eyes, on a stupid speech on how Massie Block basically controls her life. He tunes her out and instead thinks about how things have changed. It's been a month since the Pretty Committee disbanded and abandoned Massie, except for Claire that is. Like always, the brunette alpha rose above the ashes and had come back better (read: bitchier) than ever before. Claire had been made Massie's beta and the two formed an unstoppable duo—or at least that's what all the gossiping girls were saying—and Claire had changed before his very eyes.
"Cam, are you listening to me? Because—"
He cuts her off swiftly, saying, "Claire, we need to talk."
Claire freezes, stares at him for a long moment like she's trying to figure out what this is about, and slowly nods.
He grabs her hand and leads her outside.
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Outside, the night is drenched in moonlight and the sky is littered with stars and it's breezy out—something out of a romantic movie, the perfect night when the guy says 'I love you' to the girl for the first time, although Cam knows that Claire and him aren't out here for anything like that. Claire pulls her hand away and crosses her arms, looking vulnerable for the first time in forever as she looks at him expectantly.
Cam clears his throat, not really having thought out what he was going to say, but goes with the first thing that comes to mind. "Claire, I think that—"
"Are you breaking up with me?" Claire interrupts this time, staring at him hard and biting her lip. She looks like she's trying not to cry and it reminds him of how sensitive she used to be, a little of the old Claire shining through.
Cam shakes his head, says, "No, but we need to talk because I don't know if I can keep going on like you haven't changed. And not for the better."
"'Not for the better'?" She asks, harsh, her eyes flashing. She's gone again. "I can finally stand up for myself, Cam! I no longer need to hide behind you or Massie or Layne to defend me when someone feels like picking on the dorky new girl. I'm finally Massie's equal."
"You have a point," Cam says. He watches as her face softens a little, until it hardens again at what he says next. "But in becoming Massie's equal, you've become exactly like her! You gossip about and insult other girls, and maybe you don't let anyone push you around anymore, but you still follow Massie like a lost puppy."
Claire's glaring at him now, her eyes shooting icy daggers at him—looking exactly like Massie as she puts her hands on her hips, it's scary. "No, I don't. Just because you don't understand the whole alpha-beta concept, doesn't mean you can—"
Cam interrupts her again:
"I know perfectly well what that means, watching your little group for years until it finally broke up for good." He paused and looks her square in the eye, making sure she's listening to his next words. "Dylan, Alicia, and Kristen got away from all that superficial shit, and look at them now! They're still popular, but friends with lots of other people and not being stuck-up bitches all of the time. Why couldn't you? Especially since I thought you'd be the first one to leave." His voice softens at the end, exhausted but feeling lighter because he finally told her what has been on his mind since this whole thing started.
She just stares at him, hard, looking like she wants to fight back but gives up, shoulders slumping in defeat. Cam moves to her and wrap her in his arms, reveling in doing this for the first time in a month. He scatters kisses into her silky, flaxen hair, as she rests her head in the crook of his neck like she'd done a million times before.
"Cam?" Claire asks quietly. He looks down to meet her gaze. "Are we still together, or…?"
He's silent; they've been going out for a long time, but wonders if it's better if they took a break for a while.
"I don't know. I'm kind of glad that I got that out and maybe we can fix our relationship, but to be honest?" Cam looks at her, as she nods for him to continue. "A part of me is saying that it'd be better if we took a break. We've been together for three years now and we've never gotten the chance to meet other people. If we still feel something for each other, we could just get back together."
Cam waits for her response, unsure of how she'll react. Old Claire would've cried and ran away and Bitchy Claire would slap him and tell him they're over—and he's not entirely sure which one she is at the moment.
"Okay." Claire untangles herself from him and starts to straighten her dress, until his confused stare makes her stop. She adds, "You're right, Cam. It's healthy for us to take some time off. We're just in ninth grade, anyway; we have all the time in the world." Claire flashes him the grin that'd made him first fall in love with her, leaning forward to brush her lips against his cheek and Cam thinks he likes this Claire the best.
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So…how was it?
This was just a little idea I got out of nowhere. My first oneshot and it's Clam, a pairing I don't even like xD Anyway, I know this was really AU and short and drabbly, but I liked it. (: I was going to make him it end as DylanXCam, but I think that was the best place to end it.
Review please?
-helena.