Summary: She was the one that got away. Eli let Clare slip through his fingers and he regretted it ever since. His best friend, Drew, had stepped in and unintentionally swept Clare off her feet. A wedding is being planned and Eli has a plan of his own. Can he stopped Clare and Drew from being married, or will she forever remain the one that got away?
A little info about the story:
-Clare, Drew, Eli, and Adam were all friends. You'll read more about it in the story.
-Drew did date Bianca, but the broke up once she moved away.
-Clare and Eli did not have sex at prom meaning Clare never got pregnant.
-Adam does not die; he and Becky broke up, but she NEVER dated Drew.
I guess everything else will be found out as you read. If I confuse you or you have more questions and I missed a piece of information, please feel free to comment or leave me a PM.
A disclaimer for you all - I legally do not own anything but my thoughts of course. Anything Degrassi related is owned by Stephen Stohn.
Chapter One: The Sound of a Broken Heart
Eli stepped off the plane, looking around and smiling softly to himself. It's been awhile since he's in Canada - five and a half years to be exact. His calling was in New York and he needed a taste of that exciting life. The bright beautiful lights, the crowded streets, and the place where he got the chance to be free.
Although those five years were amazing, something was missing - someone was missing.
One reason Eli had left was to get away from his one true love. His heart was confused at the time and his mind decided to shut up, leaving him to question his decisions. She needed someone better than him; someone who wasn't bipolar. She needed someone who didn't scare her and make her days sunny and rainy at the exact same time. She needed someone stable and that just wasn't him.
After all these years, Eli realized that she was missing. She was a part of his key to happiness and it took him five years to figure that out.
Canada seemed so new to him. Things were definitely different and Eli could sense that.
After moving to New York, Eli cut all ties off. He stopped calling his parents and ignored his two best friends, Adam and Drew. They were all in the "I Heart Clare" committee and Eli couldn't take it. The reason he got away was to forget about Clare; he didn't want to call them and hear things about her.
Eli grabbed his luggages and lugged them to the curb. He looked around for a taxi and flagged one down seconds later. He hopped inside the taxi right after placing his luggages in the trunk.
Home was calling him.
"Oh baby boy, you're home!" CeCe said while pulling her son into a tight embrace. Being able to hug her son after five and a half long years was something so heartwarming.
After releasing him, Eli looked around the house. Things weren't different, but with the parents he had, he wasn't surprised.
"You haven't been returning our calls nor Adam's and Drew's. Even Clare said she couldn't get through to you."
The mentioning of her name sent a pang in his heart. He could just pictured her worried face as she punched his number in the phone and tried to get a hold to him. He can imagine her gnawing on her bottom lip, pacing through her house wondering why he's been unreachable. He hated how he left with no explanation, but he needed to turn his life around and figure out where he wanted to be.
This is where he wanted to be.
"So, Clare you say?" Eli finds himself curious about her. CeCe has loved Clare as if she was her own. He knew that there was no way she'd stop talking to Clare. The two were closer than Clare was with her mom.
"How is she?" He asks.
"Happy," CeCe says before adding, "and engaged."
"Engaged? To whom?" Eli growls. He was too late; five years too late. Someone had snatched up Clare right when he was away and his friends couldn't even warn him about it. Both Adam and Drew knew how he felt about Clare. They knew he was crazy in love with her, but things were complicated. Whenever he got around Clare, it was as if everything had shut off completely and his brain didn't know how to work.
Going away, Eli had hoped that Clare would wait. He hadn't told her in many words, he didn't tell her at all, but he just hoped. He wanted her to still be his when he had gotten back; now it was partially too late.
"Baby boy," CeCe sighs, "you were gone and he picked up her broken pieces. Clarabelle was so hurt when you left. Poor sugar didn't know what to do with herself, but-"
"Who?!" Eli repeated, suddenly getting angry.
"Drew."
...
"So, I was thinking about a blue and white theme. Maybe we can throw in some silver, too," Clare says as she walks around with Drew closely beside her.
After Eli had left them without a goodbye, Clare was devastated. Eli was the guy she thought she'd be doing this with; the guy she thought she'd marry but things changed.
It was the night of Eli's prom. Eli had taken Clare as his date and afterwards, they had plans. Eli took Clare to a hotel and that's when Clare planned on losing her virginity. She was anxious and ready, but when she came back into the room, there was no sign of Eli. He had left without a trace. He didn't even show to his graduation. He had contacted Simpson and asked him to mail his diploma, but wasn't allowed to give anyone his personal info.
Words couldn't begin to describe how Clare felt. She was angry, upset, heartbroken, and felt empty overall.
While Eli had left her with broken pieces, Drew managed to pick them up. He cared for her and tended to her broken heart. She didn't mean to fall for her; but she seen a side to him that she had never saw before. She always looked to Drew as a friend. Although he was more closer to Eli than to her, he was still considered a friend.
Being with Drew sparked something in Clare. He was more mature than she had even imagined and gave her a glow that she has never had with Eli.
"That sounds great, love. Whatever your heart desires."
"This is your wedding, too," Clare says as she playfully nudges Drew. "Have some input on this."
"I love it, Clare. The theme is amazing; it's a fairy-tale theme. It's something you've always wanted."
"I love y-"
"Hey guys," Adam says in his cheery voice. "Look who I found."
Clare's mouth drops to the floor as Adam steps aside. His messy brown hair and his piercing green eyes was the first thing she noticed. Nothing about him has really changed except the fact that he was a bit buffer. His facial features were a little sharper, giving him a more mature look.
Seeing him after all these years managed to hit Clare harder than she thought. She held on to Drew for support; her knees were beginning to buckle. She felt as if her body was beginning to collapse.
"Eli," she and Drew said together.
Drew gulped; it's been years since his best friend had walked out on them. While it had appeared that Adam and Eli were closer, Eli and Drew were closer. When Adam had Whisper Hug practice and Clare would go off writing or watch Adam at practice, Eli and Drew would hang out.
The two of them were very different. While Drew loved to play sports, play with girl's hearts, and slack in school, Eli was more productive. Eli loved writing...plays especially. Eli was more romantic and had his goals for his life. Although the two were different, they were so close. It took them a minute to like each other. At first Eli and Adam were close while Drew was standoffish. He tried to fit in and make friends with the jocks, but a lot of them were assholes. A few of them befriended Drew, but they were cool.
Drew knew how Eli felt about Clare; after all, the guy was madly in love with her. Drew had no intentions of being with Clare, because they were all friends and he was in love with Bianca at the time.
Bianca would hang out with them when she wanted to settle down and stay out of trouble, but once she got her act together and got accepted into college, she left them all behind.
There was a guilty conscious that always nagged Drew whenever he was with Clare. Falling for her wasn't one of his intentions, in fact, he was trying his best not to even be near Clare, but Adam pushed them together.
Poor Adam, always in the middle of things.
"You knew I was in love with her!" Eli growled, charging towards Drew and tackling him to the ground.
Clare gasped and let out a scream, trying to get the two to stop. Never in years had she thought about Eli coming back. He had left them with no goodbye and walked out when she was planning to give him her all. He had no right to come back and get mad. Drew was there for her when Eli disappeared.
Adam jumped in and broke up the fight. Clare ran over towards her fiance, gripping him by the arm, and wiping the blood from his mouth. Her eyes narrowed in on Eli's. The anger in his face scared her and made her feel guilty. He and Drew were close; closer than anyone would have ever thought they'd be. It was hard moving on from Eli, but she was convinced he was not coming back. No one, not even his parents, had heard from him. They were beginning to think that Eli was either dead or decided he wanted nothing to do with them anymore.
"How could you, Clare?" Eli whimpered. "I - I love you and thought that we'd be together. And you," he growled, pointing a finger at Drew, "you were supposed to be my friend! I trusted you!"
"You can't come back and expect me to still be waiting for you!" Clare spat angrily. "You left me the night of your prom, alone in the hotel room! I was confused, upset, and angry! I wanted to give you my all, Eli and you just turned me away like I meant nothing! Drew cared for me; he helped me and yes, it was wrong, but we're in love! All of this was unintentional; we could not help our feelings."
"We were convinced you weren't coming back," now Adam was the one speaking. "CeCe and Bullfrog hadn't even heard from you. We were all worried sick, Eli, and -"
"Bullshit," Eli scoffs.
"No, the one who is bullshitting is you," Drew growls, wiping more blood from his mouth. "You left us, Eli; you left Clare! You didn't think she'd sit around, wasting her life trying to wonder whether you were alive or not? Whether you were coming back or not? How pathetic do you think she is?"
"You don't know shit, Drew!"
"Hey!" the owner of the building shouts as he walks over towards the commotion. "You are making too much noise. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
Before leaving, Eli gave the couple a menacing look that made Clare shudder. She clung tighter to Drew as she watched Eli walked away. Adam told them not to worry as he jogged out of the room, following behind Eli. Clare looked over at Drew, her eyes clouding with tears. Drew pulls her into a hug. He starts to wonder if Clare is beginning to have doubts about this wedding. There's no way he can lose her to Eli; surely he's her first love, but Drew has been through a lot with Clare and he wants her as his wife.
No matter what, he was not going to lose Clare to Eli. Although Eli was his old friend, Clare meant too much to him. If they had to fight for Clare then so be it; Drew was not going to give up until he knew that he had won.