Dance With Your Enemies, Chapter 1

Clare's fingers hastily fumbled with the lock on her locker trying to get the combination straight. In all her rush last night, cramming to finish a poster, it seemed she had forgotten one of the most vital parts of her schedule - sleep. So, this morning she'd accidently slept in and was forced to skip breakfast and catch a ride with her mother to Degrassi, and running on two hours of sleep was making it extremely difficult to be functional.

Finally successful with the lock she grabbed her text books and slammed the locker just as the bell was ringing, practically running to her first class of the day.

"So what is this today? Are you just going to ignore me or something all day?"

Clare jumped slightly, coming out of her little world of reading during lunch, waiting for Alli to show up and bother her about whatever new news she had on her little Drew situation. But the voice was from a guy, not a girl which surprised Clare at first.

Turning her head slightly, she glimpsed dark hair and shiny green eyes staring back at her, with a mouth curved in a bothersome smirk and eyebrows raised, poised for an answer. Clare furrowed her own eyebrows, confused.

"What do you mean? I haven't talked to anyone today, or seen anyone aside from the people in my morning classes."

Eli lowered himself all not too gently on the seat next to Clare, putting his bag on the table. "Ha!" He let out a fake laugh, "I've said 'Hello' to you at least three times now and all three times you've just pretended I'm nonexistent. Is there some hint in there that I should be leaving you alone?"

Clare paused for a moment trying to recall if this was true, the part about being greeted by him that morning multiple times. "But - no you didn't. What? I'm so lost here. Obviously I didn't hear you or see you because I definitely would have at the very least waved." She shook her head and sighed, "That or it's my lack of sleep kicking in."

Leaning his elbows on the table and fiddling with a paper clip, Eli's eyebrows were raised again, "How much sleep did you even get last night? I mean, I know you were working on that poster for Dawes but seriously it wasn't that hard. Flip on a few pictures and captions and ta-da you're done."

Clare looked away from him and glanced at her book not actually reading it just needing something else to look at, "Well I'm not exactly one for settling for an average grade because of an average poster, unlike you. I actually put effort into mine."

Eli laughed sarcastically, "Wow, quite the blow there for someone getting a worse grade in that class than I have."

Clare's face got red and she pouted slightly, "The only reason you have a better grade is because of that stupid writer's block I had for only a couple assignments." Her chin was then turned slightly by Eli's finger which had slipped itself under,

"No need to get frustrated, I'm just playing with you."

And just when Clare's heartbeat had started to speed up for any number of reasons she couldn't explain at that current time, Eli poked her cheek laughing boisterously and grabbing his bag getting up, and walking away to catch up with Adam.

The nerve the boy had really got Clare going sometimes.

"Presentations will go in order from each column of desks, starting over to my left."

Mrs. Dawes gestured towards the column next to the one Clare's desk was situated. Letting out a small sigh, Clare fiddled with the corner of her poster. The assignment had been to choose a biography and draw some images you thought might illustrate the most important events, with captions explaining. Clare's poster had come out better than she had hoped, and she was really feeling good about it, it was simple, to go along with the book's cover, but still had decorations and well placed boxes with their contents to make it look sophisticated, almost a work of art. The drawings had taken her forever too, and she had drawn most of them at least three times before finally choosing which one she liked best. Now all that was left was the presentation of the poster, a quarter of the grade. And being tired was really not going to help her at all in that situation.

Minutes passed by, she watched Eli do a presentation, though she wasn't even paying attention by that time nor had any more attention span left due to the number of people that had already presented. Then her turn came up, and as Clare made her way to the front slowly, dragging the Glass Castle book and her poster with her, praying for a bell to ring to signal the end of class - like a godsend, it did ring.

She rushed to her seat and stuffed her poster back into her bag along with the book, eager to head home and catch a few z's. Momentarily interrupted though by Eli who blocked her way out of the classroom, "I know you're tired, but you should so go with me to the Dot in twenty. Wanna?"

Clare shook her head and tried a smile, "Sure whatever. Twenty. But only for twenty. Or I might pass out."

"Sweet! See you in a bit!" Eli rushed away out of the door. Clare meandered along slowly, wondering why she had agreed to that when she knew she was so tired already. And also why Eli had asked her, was it just to chat? A date? Friends? Whatever it was, she was about to find out.

Chapter 2 Coming Soon,

Did Eli invite Clare as a friend? Or a date?

And why all the mixed signals?

Also featured coming up: Fitz