Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Degrassi.

Hello there! This is a story that was inspired by a gifset I saw on Tumblr. The link for this gifset is in my profile, if you desire to take a gander. (I highly recommend you do because wow very nice eye-candy.)

So I looked at these pictures and they gave me a Boarding School kind of vide, then I thought to myself, "Hey. Boarding School Eli and Clare would be really cool." And then this happened.

The chapters will alternate between Eli's and Clare's point of views, to get a better perspective on how they're both thinking/feeling and what they're both going through.

This story is about, for Eli, learning how to love again and, for Clare, trying to figure out what love is. WARNING: Much angst and sappiness. Because what's an Eclare fic without that, right? ;P

Hope you enjoy! Please review!

Eli's POV

Eli sighed and looked up at the clock. Could time go any slower? It seemed like his chemistry teacher had been droning on and on about the elements for hours now. Eli had never seen anyone so able to talk for so long about absolutely nothing.

Finally, the bell rang and the classical music started. Eli closed his notebook, in which he had not taken a single note, slung it over his shoulder, and headed out into the hallway.

He listened to the music playing and figured out that it was Bach. His boarding school had started playing the classical tunes in between classes this year in an effort to get students more interested in school. And to make up for last year, when they cut out most of the arts programs. Somehow, classical music, which no one listened to, was supposed to be counted as an acceptable apology for that. Eli snorted at the thought; music that bored him to death in replace of the fantastic creative writing program the school had once had. Yeah, because that's a fair tradeoff.

He trudged outside onto the grounds and found a decent tree. Sitting down in its shade, he took out his lunch and headphones. He stuck the headphones into his ears ,turned on Them Crooked Vultures, and began eating his cheese-on-rye sandwich. Immersing himself in the music and letting the flavor of the food enfold him, he closed his eyes and thought.

He thought about his friends from back home, who he missed so much. Eli had never had very many friends, but the ones he had had were close. Ray and Jack and Elise and Eliza. He smiled at the thought of all of them together; they'd had some good times. Really good times. And then of course there was Julia...but thinking of her didn't make him smile. Not anymore. Not since...the incident. You know, when he'd killed her. That's why his parents had sent him here; they thought being back home with all the memories of his and Julia's time together would be too much for him, a constant, painful reminder of the accident, and he would crack.

So he had been sent here: Fredrick Wintersole School for Boys. Apparently this Fredrick guy had been huge when he'd been alive. At least, in this town: Fosterville. God, it sounded like it was straight out of a bad horror film. And the school was too prissy and "proper" and preppy and filled with pricks. Eli could not wait to get out of here. Once it came time for college, he would be able to pick wherever he wanted to go, and he wouldn't have to go anywhere his parents told him to.

He did love his parents very much; they were a lot better than most. And Eli knew he shouldn't be angry at them for sending them here; they were just trying to do what they thought was best for him. But it wasn't the fact that they had sent him here that ticked Eli off; it was the fact that they had sent him here, without asking. They had told him he was going; he didn't have any say in the matter. It was like he was some dog they could do whatever they wanted with. It had never been that way before, and Eli didn't know why it was now. If they had talked to him about coming here before shooing him away, he probably would have seen their point and eventually agreed, even if he knew he would miss home and his friends. Or maybe not. Maybe he would've thrown a huge fit and stomped upstairs and slammed the door and put his music on max volume and refused to come out until his parents said that he didn't have to go. But they didn't even give him the chance to do any of that, to be impossible!

Eli wasn't angry at them anymore, though. He couldn't afford to be; he couldn't just waste his days seething at his parents. That wouldn't change anything. Besides, he'd been here for three years, it was about time to bury the hatchet. Or, at least, put as much dirt over it as he could.

He swallowed hard as his thoughts turned once again to Julia. Her deep, captivating eyes, framed perfectly by her long, gorgeous, raven-black hair. Her soft, sweet skin, always so frightfully cold. She always had to wear a jacket, but always seemed to forget one. She'd been wearing his the night she...left. She'd forgotten to take it off and throw it in his face as she slammed his car door shut, so when he saw her body, so cold and still, she was still wearing it. Her parents had insisted on having her wear it over her dress at the funeral. He knew they had been trying to help, and he was grateful to the effort, but it really just made everything worse.

Eli had always found it funny how people looked best at their funerals. Some people even planned what they were going to wear, like it was some big, grand event. And it was, really. Everyone got all dressed up and the guests of honor came in a limo and the event took place and then there was a great big reception. The death was hardly noticed. It was just like a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, when the kid who's actually becoming a man or woman is only given people's attention for two seconds as they say, "Congratulations!" then move on to their next shot. Eli noticed that that was the way with everything, actually. People gave the obligatory remarks and did the required actions, and never anything more. No one cared to actually invest themselves in someone else's lives or troubles. No one cared to actually...well, care.

Suddenly, a loud scream tore Eli away from his silent reverie. He looked around for the source of the shrill sound and found it across the street, at Marie Hamilton Institute for Girls: There was a girl with distinct curls soaked in and dripping water. The girls who appeared to have caused the water, one blonde and one Indian girl, were now laughing and pointing. Either they were all best friends or mortal enemies, but Eli couldn't figure out which. But then the girl with the curls smiled in her shock, and that gave it away. She began to chase the other two girls, shouting, "You will not get away with this!"

Eli smiled to himself, but it was a sad smile. He missed being able to be attracted to girls. But he just couldn't find it in himself after...Julia. He'd done the most terrible thing ever, and he was never going to be able to get over it. Besides, he knew now that him and girls was a recipe for tragedy. He hurt people far too easily, and he didn't want anyone to get hurt. Not because of him, at least.

The bell rang and Eli put his headphones away, stood up, dusted the dirt off his pants, and started walking toward the building where his next class was. Before he entered the building, though, he stole one last longing look at the girl with the curls across the street. Not longing because he wanted her, though.

Longing because he wanted to want her.

So there you have it, sports fans! Please, make my day and review!