Hi! I know I said I wasn't going to abandon my other stories and I MEANT that. Lately, I've been busy with school and grades. My mom got on my case about my grades and she took away my laptop for a while... as you can see, I'm now just getting it back. Okay, now, I have a FULL schedule about when I'll update. I'll tell you in each of my stories and I'll put it on my profile.

Love the Enemy will be updated every Monday. Degrassi: MY Edition will be updated every Tuesday. Closer to You will be updated every Wednesday.

About the story: Adam and Eli didn't go to Degrassi, therefore, Clare has never met them until she gets older. Clare is 27 along with Jenna, Alli, and Adam. Jess(my character) and Eli are 28.

The first part of the story is third-person, but the rest of the story will be in Clare's POV. There will be a few chapters that might have Eli's POV, but I'm not sure because I'm now working on the story.

If you have any more questions, feel free to PM me or ask me in the comments. I'd be happy to know what you all think about this, so please leave reviews.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Degrassi related in any way.

Chapter One— Fear of Moving On

Clare twirls in the mirror one last time. She fixes her dress one last time. Her lips curls into a smile as her bridesmaids come over towards her to give her a hug. They all squeeze her tightly, telling her how much they love her and how happy they are for her.

A soft knock breaks the friends up and Jenna goes to open the door. In walk Helen Martin. Her mouth drops as she stares at her gorgeous daughter.

"You look beautiful," Helen says as she pulls her daughter into a tight hug, "I can't believe you and Dustin are finally tying the knot. He's such a good man, Clare."

"Thank you mama," Clare says before turning to her newest best friend and her former roommate, Jessie, "and thank you, Jess, for introducing me to Dustin. I don't know what I'd do if it wasn't for you."

"No problem, hot mama," Jess winks.

"Are you all set?" Alli asks as she rakes her fingers through her dark hair.

"Yep," Clare smiles, "I cannot wait to become Clare Crawford. It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

"Yes," everyone says in unison.

Another knock appears on the door. This time it's Glen asking if everyone is all set. Clare smiles and nods her head. As everyone began to walk out, Clare takes a deep breath and grab on to Glen. Before they can even make it to the aisle—before they could even see everyone waiting for her to walk gracefully down the aisle—gun shots began to echo through the church followed by piercing screams.

Clare looked at Glen in confusion. What the hell was going on? Glen told Clare to stay put, but she ignored him and followed him into the room she was supposed to get married in. Everyone was running passed her, screaming to the top of her lungs.

Clare's heart began to pound against her chest. She searched the room to see if she could see Dustin. Once everyone was cleared out, Clare spotted him lying at the altar, surrounded by blood.

"NO!" Clare screams as she hikes up her dress to run towards him. She flops down and cradles Dustin in her arms. His breathing was uneven and deep down, Clare knew that she was seconds away from losing him.

"SOMEONE CALL AN AMBULANCE!" she screams to whoever is near. Then, she whispers to Dustin, "Help is on the way, baby. We're going to take you to the hospital, and then we can plan this whole wedding over. Maybe this time I'll take you up on that one offer. We can go on that cruise to get married."

Dustin struggles to give Clare a small smile. Clare giggles through her tears as she sees his enthusiasm. Unfortunately, Dustin time is running short. His breathing becomes slower. She pecks his lips as his eyes rolls to the back of his head. Clare cries harder and begins to run her fingers through Dustin's hair.

How could someone do this to her? How could the most beautiful day of her life turn into a living nightmare within seconds?

Glen walks over towards Clare and sits down next to her. Clare doesn't take her eyes off Dustin. She just cries and lays her head on Glen's shoulder. Glen wraps his arm around Clare's shoulder and kisses the top of her head.

"Uh, Clare—"

"How could someone be this heartless?" she whispers before yelling, "How could they kill my fiancé on our wedding day? What did he ever do to deserve this?!"

"Clare, calm down, baby. Come on let's get you outside with the girls and your mother."

"No, I can't leave Dustin. He wouldn't want me to leave him."

"Clare—"

"No, Glen!"

Glen mumbles an "okay" before he got up and left Clare alone with Dustin. Clare continued to cry and hold Dustin before the paramedics came. They pulled Clare away from Dustin which made her cry harder. As Dustin was being carried away, Clare screamed and cried. Glen came to hold her and rub her bathing soothingly. Jess, Jenna, and Alli were standing by her side, crying with her.

…

Glen dropped Clare and the girls off at Clare and Dustin's place. As the four went inside, Clare excused herself to go into her and Dustin's room. As she looked around, all she could think about was Dustin. She cried as she slipped off her bloody wedding dress. She went to retrieve one of Dustin's t-shirt from the closet. She slipped it on and walked towards the bed. She got under the covers and inhaled his scent. Clare grabbed Dustin's pillow and hugged it tightly to her body. It's been hours since Dustin had left and Clare missed him like crazy. He was her rock and has been since her second month at university.

Before drifting off to sleep, Clare's phone began to ring. Clare looked at the screen and that it said: ANONOMOUS. Puzzled, she decided to answer the phone.

"Hello?" she said slowly.

"I know who killed him," the voice said, "I know who killed Dustin."

Two Years Later

"You are such a delightful woman, Clare Edwards. I'd love for us to be something more than just friends."

There was a hopeful tone in Eli's voice, but I know that I can't be with him—not yet. It's been two years since Dustin's death and I can't seem to move on. I won't move on.

There was nothing wrong with Eli, though. He was everything I'd want if I was searching for a man, again. He was sweet, gentle, and had the same interests as me. He's been a good distraction from Dustin every once in a while, but sometimes my mind would drift back to him.

Eli looks at me with those green, hopeful eyes. I take a deep breath and brace myself to reject him. I know that it'll crush him since I always tell him no. Somehow he seems to understands, but that'll never stop him from trying.

"Eli…" I start in a soft voice.

"You're still not over your ex," he says then sighs sadly, "I understand, you know I do."

Over one of our dates to a book signing, Eli told me about his ex, Julia. He told me how he felt for her and how much she meant to him. He told me about her death and how much that impacted him. I was a little grateful that I had someone who had gone through a similar situation as me.

Eli and I had met at a club one night. He was out with his close friend, Adam, and I was out with Jess. Jess had dragged me out the house. Although she had felt sorry for what I was going through, she thought that it was time for me to stop moping around and go out. Honestly, I agreed with her.

She dragged me to some raging club one of her ex's recommended we went to. When we walked in, all eyes were on us—well, mainly Jess.

Jess is supermodel beautiful. She has long, blonde hair and mysterious gray eyes. She has an "hour-glass" body shaped. I know looks aren't everything, but Jess has more than that. She has a flirty, fun personality and she's my level smart. She and I had no trouble getting along.

Jess scanned the club while I just stood there, wanting nothing more than to go home and curl up in Dustin's pillow. I begin to pout when Jess turns around to give me a sharp look.

"Oh hell no, hot mama," she says with a disapproving look, "You're not about to get all pouty on me. We're going to have some fun. So, come on hot mama, let's go find us a couple of hot guys to buy us some drinks."

Jess dragged me through the club and we stopped at the bar. Jess looked around and pushed up her boobs a little to get extra attention. I scoffed at her and she just laughed it off.

A couple of seconds later, two guys came up to us. One had piercing green eyes and a dazzling smirk. He was wearing a gray button up and black skinny jeans. His dark hair hung over his eyes and his smell was sort of… intoxicating. His friend had blue eyes and shaggy brown hair. He wore a white V-neck with blue jeans. Around his nose were a few specs of freckles. He had the eyes for Jess, which was fine by me because I had the eyes for the green-eyed boy.

"Hello gorgeous ladies. I'm Eli," the green-eyed boy said.

"And I'm Adam," the blue-eyed boy said.

"I'm Jessie," Jess says flirtatiously.

When I don't quickly introduce myself, Jess says, "And this is my best friend, Clare. She doesn't get out often so excuse her awkwardness."

I rolled my eyes and scoffed at Jess. Leave it to her to embarrass me in front of two cute guys.

"I think her awkwardness is cute," Eli says, causing my cheeks to go bright pink.

"Earth to Clare," Eli says, snapping me out of my memory.

I look at him, sort of dazed and confused. He shakes his head and smirks.

"It's so cute when you get lost in your thoughts," he chuckles.

I blush and bite my lip. Besides Dustin, Eli has this sort of effect on me. He makes me blush and do crazy things. I like him… a lot, but the thought of replacing Dustin just doesn't settle with me.

Jess, Alli, and Jenna always tell me that I'm not replacing Dustin. They tell me that Dustin wouldn't want me to be stuck on him forever. I know they're right, but I just can't move on yet.

"Want to double tonight?" Eli asks as we walk out of the Dot.

Since the night the Eli and I met, Adam and Jess has been hooking up. Then, they developed a relationship. Jess tells me that Adam is like no other and that he's different from most of the men that she's been with. I'm happy for Jess; it's about time she found someone that treats her right.

"Uh, yeah, I guess that'll be cool," I smile.

"Great, I'll just text Adam and tell him."

"You know Clare," Eli says as we cross the street, "I cannot wait for us to be a couple. I think that we'll be great together, what you think?"

"Eli now is not the time to talk about this. Please," I plead as memories of Dustin rush through my mind, "Relationships are still a sore subject for me."

"I know," Eli sighs as we walk over towards his car, "Look, I think it's time to move on, Clare. I understand Dustin was killed on the very day of your wedding and I understand you're having a hard time opening up, again. I need you to understand that once you and I are a couple, you'll never regret it."

I think about it and I start to wonder why Eli always pesters me about getting together. He's had his heart set on us being together since our first two months of knowing each other. I always decline his suggestion kindly, but this time I might consider taking it.

Eli and I would make a great couple—or so people (and by people I mean Alli, Jenna, Adam, and Jessie) say. I think about how they will react when I tell them Eli and I are finally a couple. Their hearts will be warming with joy and their smiles will be wide! They will be happy, but will I?

"Eli, you're a great guy—"

"You're not ready, Clare. I understand. I'm sorry that I keep bothering you about this. I just really like you and I thought you felt the same but—"

"Uh-Oh! The guilt trip is coming!" I thought before I immediately said, "Eli, I do like you! I just want for you to give my heart a chance to fully heal. I'm still not over Dustin and it may take some time considering that we've been together since my freshman year of college. He's been my boyfriend for five years and we were finally going to get married."

"Okay, no more asking you," Eli says as he forces a smile on his face, "I'll wait until you're ready, beautiful."

"Thank you, Eli," I smile as we get in the car.

Eli drives me home—Dustin and I's home—and a rush of sadness hit me. Eli takes notice and asks me if I'm okay, but I tell him I'm fine. I get out of the car and go on the porch to unlock the door of my house. I go inside and close the door behind me.

When I turn around, I see Jess sitting on the couch with Jenna and they're smiling at me. They probably want to know if Eli and I are a couple, yet. Honestly, they have nowhere better to be. If Alli wasn't with Dallas 24/7, I'm pretty sure she would've been here, too.

"So, how'd it go?" Jess asks, grinning from ear to ear.

"We're not a couple if that's what you're wondering."

"What the hell, Clare?" Jess snaps, standing up.

I wince at her tone, because a) Jess never snaps at me and b) she never calls me, Clare unless it's something important.

"Dustin is gone. Can't you forget about him and move on? Eli here has been trying to get with your ass for months and you're still turning him down? A guy can only take so much rejection before he turns on his heels and leave!"

Jenna sees my face and tries to cut Jess off. "Jess, maybe you should give her—"

"You're so damn selfish, Clare! I miss Dustin, too. We all do, but we're not moping around and putting our lives on hold for him!"

"He was the love of my life, Jessie," I scream, "I was ready to be his wife and his was taken from me the very day of our wedding. So, excuse me for being a little heartbroken and traumatized for the rest of my damn life! I still get out and have fun, but I just don't want to date! What's so hard to understand about that?"

"Hot mama," Jess says in a softer tone, "I hear you some nights crying all night, mumbling that you miss Dustin. I peek through your door sometimes to see you still hug his pillow while you look at his picture. I know you miss him, but he'd want you to move on."

I look over at Jenna to see her giving me a shy smile. She's nodding her head encouraging and I know they both want me to move on. Hell, I want myself to move on. But, the thought of letting Dustin goes just scares the hell out of me. I love him so much and it'll seem too weird to open my heart to another man.

I have a mini debate in my head, figuring out if I should call Eli up and let him know that I'd like to try the new couple thing. After coming up with my decision, I take out my cell and dial Eli's number. Immediately after the second ring, Eli answers.

"Hello, beautiful. Miss me already?" Although we're on the phone, I can tell Eli has that signature smirk of his on his face.

"Ha," I laugh nervously, "Eli, about that couple thing—"

"Clare, I told you I understand. I'm ready when you are."

"Eli, I—"

"I get that you're not over Dustin and that's fine. I wasn't completely over Julia and it took me a few years to understand."

"Eli!" I yell, making him go silent. Then, I quickly add, "I want us to be a couple. I'd like to be your girlfriend."