A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed! Seriously made my day, didn't think many people would respond to be honest! Man, some of you are too damn smart as well. I'm not giving anything away. Lips are sealed. I've got a plot, a twist and an ending already in my head and up to chapter 6 already written. If people continue to like this then I'll be updating every 2 days! Let me know what you beautiful people think! Also, I haven't been on in ages so I'm not sure if people want me to respond to their reviews? I will do it, because I love reviewers, but only if you want me to, I often feel like I'm annoying people when I do... Anyway! Not much Eli in this one but don't worry, he and Clare are pretty much the main focus from chapter 2 onwards. Review pretties? :)
DARE ME, NOT
Chapter One:
"The Bakeoff Confessional"
oOo
Clare avoided Adam for the rest of the morning and knew that he had his therapist appointment in the afternoon. She texted him to meet her at the Church at 8PM and went home to help her mother begin to bake. Friday was already rolling in fast and Clare still had the displeasure of the dare at the back of her mind. Going to a strip club definitely wasn't ever on her agenda, but Eli said he would get her a fake ID and what was better was that he wanted to help, he wanted to come with her. As she shoved the cupcake mix into the oven, she realised that she was really starting to like Eli. Like really like him. As more than a friend and Clare could feel he liked her as more than a friend too. There was something between them, like sparks. Okay, they were completely different in every single way imaginable but maybe that was okay. Maybe she was Heaven and he was Hell and that was okay. Maybe that's why their attraction towards each other surged throughout the air every time they were in the same room as each other.
Clare hadn't wanted to admit it really, but Eli was causing a change inside of her. Sure, there was that thing with Declan a while ago - he was the one that awakened what she thought would never come. Then she bit Wesley. Awkward. But since then, she hadn't felt a smidge of those kinds of urges - not even with He who must not be mentioned. But now Eli had walked into her life, no barriers held and no restrictions and she was starting to come to life. The sexual tension was palpable around him and every time he came within two yards of her, Clare wanted to slam his back against her locker door and shove her tongue down his throat, until she was pulling his hair, and he was dragging his nails up her bare thigh and she was leaning backwards in his arms, panting his name. Her cheeks burned at the thought of their library encounter and how she had wished she could have gone further with him.
The ache began again. Ever since Eli had awakened her with his arousal, she was beginning to ache every time she thought of him. More than anything, it wasn't what Clare thought self pleasure would be. This was torture. All she wanted was Eli's fingertips along her thigh and slipping inside where nobody had ever gone before, even herself. If this what sexual awakening was, Clare wanted to hand it back to Eli. This was ridiculous. She could see a guy with black hair, think of Eli and bam, she was turned on. She could see Alli's black nail polish, think of Eli and bam, she was turned on. The worse encounter yet was when she and her mother were leaving the house to store the cupcakes in the trunk before they headed to the Church Bakeoff. She looked up from her car and almost dropped the tray of cupcakes in her hands. A hearse was driving past her street. Just a normal hearse with a dead body in the back and Clare felt the ache in between her thighs surge. "You've got be to kidding me" Clare growled, grimacing.
The sun beat down on her and Clare leaned against the side of her car, feeling the hot scorching metal across her bare legs. She took a deep breath and fished her denim shorts for her phone. She wanted so desperately to text Eli and bite his full lips until he groaned her name. She wanted Eli to pick her up, in that stupid hearse of his and take her somewhere where they could both be alone. What was happening to her? Her nipples were hard again, her skin was sore to touch and she felt on fire. Was this what being a teenager was? How did anyone handle it? The sound of her front door closing caught Clare's attention and she looked round to see Helen, her mother, walking towards the car with the last batch of cupcakes. Her smile fell slightly at the sight of her mother in a flowing floral dress. Her hair was neatly groomed and she was wearing make up. That had been happening a lot lately and Clare's heart panged every time. Her father was living across town, her mother was dating someone else and Darcy was in Kenya. Her 'family' wasn't really a family anymore, was it?
Clare knew her mother was thinking her own disapproving thoughts of Clare's outfit. She was wearing blue denim shorts that clung to her every curve, a well fitted white embroidered top that snaked up along her soft sides and barely contained her breasts. Her mother scolded Clare for leaving the first few buttons undone but Clare ignored her, shaking her head and making her short curls fly everywhere. Her mother was not telling her what to do anymore; she was sixteen and at the prime of her independence… Well, almost. Clare got in the passenger seat and listened to her mother lecture her about teenage pregnancy and STI's and it was all Clare could do not to think about Eli, on his bed, thinking about her. She knew it was silly but the thought made her temperature rise. She bit her lip and smirked to herself as she remembered how easily she could turn him on, just by being pushed up against her. She had never felt the need to self love, because, Clare thought it was sinful and unholy and impure, but lately, all those beliefs were going to pot. She knew she would have to do something about her raging urges and yes - even considering doing that. She was almost wanted to, in her bath Thursday night, but she had held herself back and instead just squeezed her thighs together to give herself some ease.
Was this how guys felt? This constant need to self pleasure? They probably enjoyed it, Clare thought bitterly. If a guy did it, hey, he's a guy so it's normal. But the moment a girl does it, it's disgusting, she's disturbed. It infuriated her how when a guy bared his sexuality, he was seen as being 'outgoing and bold' but when a girl was ready to claim her own sexual independence, it was considered unhealthy and 'whorish'. "Why is there such social sexism?" Clare suddenly spat out in the middle of the drive to the Church Bakeoff. Helen turned her to look at her daughter, giving her the most puzzled look. Clare sighed, knowing she should not have said that to her mother, as they were on their way to Church. "Never mind" Clare shook he head, sighing. "Forget I said anything".
"Clare" Helen frowned, "Are you okay? I can't help but notice this past week you've been acting a little weird. At first I thought it was just 'Dare Week' annoying you like it usually does but then… I don't know, you've got that look in your eyes".
"What look?" Clare asked defensively.
"That look that I get whenever I think about Glen" Helen replied with a dreamy smile. "There's no boys in your life, right?".
"Apart from Adam" Clare shrugged, "No, there's no boys in my life" she paused, "So that's the first time I'm getting a name for your new boyfriend, is it? His name is 'Glen'? Sorry but you wouldn't suit a 'Glen' mom".
Helen smiled slightly, "What kind of name would I suit?".
"Randall" Clare sighed sadly. "You suit a 'Randall'. Least you used to".
"Oh Clare, I'm sorry this is so hard on you" Helen looked over to Clare sadly for a brief moment, "But at some point, you will have to come to terms with the fact that your father and I don't make each other happy, like we used to. I've found Glen, who does me happy and soon your father will too and I'll be happy for him. Can't you see Clare-bear, this is the best thing for everyone".
"Whatever" Clare rolled her eyes as her phone dinged. It was a text message from Adam, asking Clare what one wears to a Church Bakeoff. Clare told him to keep it casual and waited until Adam replied. Clare sighed unhappily when Adam text back asking what her dare was. She didn't reply and shoved her phone away. She had no idea what the hell she was going to tell him. On the one hand, if she told him, Adam would never let her do the dare and probably out himself to Degrassi, which would probably be worse. But if she lied to him, and did the dare, and the horrible Dare Overlord outed Adam anyway then Adam would have no idea and Clare would feel like the worst friend in the history of the world. And she hated lying. It was the cheapest way to live.
When Clare got to the Church Bakeoff, she walked inside the Church and glanced around at the many stalls filled with cupcakes and sweets, just waiting to be sold. She helped her mother set up their stall, ignoring the red decorations that were dangerously bright. Clare knew some people were looking at her for her questionable outfit but when she'd gotten home from school, it had been sunny and scorching. It was soon nearly 8PM and the sky was beginning to darken slowly, but the air and atmosphere was still warm. Nevertheless, Clare pulled on her denim jacket and felt more presentable. She smiled widely when she looked up and saw Adam cautiously enter into the Church. Their eyes found each other and Clare waved him over enthusiastically. "Hey!" Clare greeted him with a hug. "How was your appointment?".
"The usual" Adam shrugged, "Just trying to deal so I don't lose the plot" he laughed slightly and then glanced around, "Is it weird I'm not really a God believer and yet I'm standing in a Church?".
"Maybe" Clare sighed softly, "But you're my best friend and I don't care" she looked him dead in the eye, "I mean it, Adam. I don't care what you are. You could be a secret half fish half zombie mutant and I wouldn't care. You would still and always will be, my best friend".
"You're really special, Clare" Adam smiled back, "One day someone will see that and make you forget about He who must not be mentioned" Clare didn't want to tell Adam that she could have possibly already met a certain someone who made her forget about He who must not be mentioned. That certain someone was Eli Goldsworthy and he was a boy whose smile and look gave her chills that thrilled her in places that yearned for his touch. "So, what did that dare say? Is it something bad?" Adam suddenly asked and Clare froze, feeling her blood rush erratically.
Shit. What was she going to say? Clare smiled nervously and scratched the back of her neck impulsively. "Yes" Clare said slowly, "Yes, the dare… That dare" she grinned again, "Hey do you want a free cupcake?" she went round to the stall and handed a chocolate cupcake to Adam, "Totally free. No charge".
"Thank you" Adam took the cupcake. "Now tell me what's going on Clare. What did the dare say?".
"It told me to kiss Ms. Dawes" Clare blurted out, not even realising what she had said. Kiss Ms. Dawes? Clare shook her head internally and sighed externally. She noticed Adam's conflicted face and forced a smile. "I'm not going to do it, of course. Yeah, I ripped it up and threw it away".
"Wow" Adam grimaced, "So you're not afraid of the Dare Overlord and the repercussions if you don't do it?" he laughed at the thought.
"No" Clare shrugged. "What can be worse than having to kiss your middle-aged teacher?" her heartbeat raced horribly. She knew she shouldn't be lying to Adam. She should tell him the truth, even if it was just to warn him, because this was his secret and he had a right to know who else knew but at the same time… If Adam found out and stopped her from doing the dare… Clare would always regret it. She would always wonder what would have happened if she went through with it. So she had already decided. She would get a fake ID from Eli, go to the disgusting Sticky Ricky's and get a lap dance. Then this would all be over. Hopefully.
"Clare" Helen caught Clare's attention and Clare spun around to see her mother, standing next to tall brown haired man. "This is Glen, Clare. Glen Martin" it took Clare all of three seconds to realise that she knew Glen Martin! Her mind hadn't even twigged in the car, but now she knew his last name and saw his face and… She couldn't even believe this. Her mother was dating Glen freaking Martin, father to…
"Howdy kids" Jake Martin sauntered up to the stall, smirking at Clare with the most peculiar smile. "Did I miss anything?".
"Clare, you remember Jake, you two used to be friends" Helen added. Clare wanted to scoff. She and Jake Martin had never been friends. God he used to piss her off so much, so much so that she wanted to punch his stupid smug face in right now.
"It's great to see you again, Clare" Glen said suddenly. He smiled over at Helen, "Your mom has told me so much about you". Glen Martin had been friends with both of Clare's parents and had moved away quite some time ago and to be honest, all Clare wanted was them to move back to whenever the hell they came from and leave her and her mother alone. Jake - who Clare had known for six years - looked like he hadn't changed; still cocky, still smug, still annoying.
"You too, Mr Martin" Clare said dully, glancing back to Adam to shoot him a look of awkwardness.
"Please, call me Glen" Glen grinned at Helen again and all Clare wanted to do was vomit.
"Excuse me" Clare said as her phone 'dinged'. She turned around, faced Adam and pulled her phone out of her pocket to see she had a text message from Eli. She couldn't even contain her smile and Adam frowned at her.
"Who's the mysterious guy making you smile?" Adam asked.
"That would be Alli" Clare swallowed the uneasy lie in her throat. "She's freaking out about that dare. She says she's still going to do it though, ridiculous really" Clare made sure Adam couldn't see her screen as she unlocked her phone and clicked onto Eli's text message; You are going to love me. Already got your fake ID fixed so whenever you wanna hit the town, let me know.
Clare smirked and typed back; Thank you Mr Goldsworthy, I'll be sure to come get it soon.
The thought of just skipping out on the Bakeoff and getting a taxi to Eli's house made her heart skip a beat. She had no idea where he even lived but she was almost 100 percent sure he would tell her if she asked. As Adam was called away by Helen to help the other guys cart around some boxes that had to be moved, Clare sat down on the chair behind the stall and felt her thoughts drifting back into inappropriate places. She glanced up over to the doors, wishing with all her being that Eli would walk through them, in his tight skinny jeans, fitted t-shirt, black leather jacket and combat boots and whisk her away. He oozed sex appeal, and he didn't even know it. She thought about his dark luscious hair and the ways it darted out carelessly, much like him. Clare's phone buzzed again and she glanced down at Eli's text; You can get it whenever you want it. Was he trying to be that obvious? Because it had Clare's eyes welling up with lust at the thought of just how she'd 'get' it. Secretly Clare was dying to be a fly on his bedroom wall, or even bathroom wall.
The thought of watching him self pleasure sent her thighs jerking forwards of their own accord. She wanted the gaze of his dark eyes - that weren't even really one specific colour - piercing through her blue eyes and making her weak at the knees. She wanted his electric touch, setting her nerves and cells on fire, causing goosebumps to appear everywhere. She wanted to take his full plump kissable lips in between hers and bite them until his hips jerked into hers. She wanted every inch of him pressed against her and that half crooked smirk gazing down at her that sent butterflies everywhere. He smelled of pinecones and fresh air and a mix of old spices you might find at the back of someone's cupboard. He was intoxicating and Clare almost growled at the ache in-between her thighs. Why was she torturing herself like this? She was supposed to be Clare Edwards; the good sensible one, not Clare Edwards; the crazy horny one.
Clare let out a deep breath and tried to compose herself as she typed back; What are you doing right now? Her heartbeat was racing erratically as she nervously awaited his reply. She could imagine it now. Sitting in Morty as they inched closer together, enjoying the heightened atmosphere that had Clare's head rolling backwards. She just wanted to see him. So completely. What was even happening to her? If only she could tell her mother, or even Adam at least. Then she felt slightly bad. She'd literally ditched Adam the entire night and sat on her phone. When she glanced up, she saw from across the space that Adam was in a conversation with Jake Martin. Her stomach churned horribly at the thought about what they were talking about.
Then her phone buzzed again and she glanced down at Eli's reply; Nothing worth mentioning. Want me to bust you free? I can be there in ten minutes. Her smile grew wider but two shadows behind her made her jerk forwards and hide her phone from prying eyes. She turned around and saw that Adam and Jake had suddenly walked behind her and she hadn't even realised.
"Who's the dude?" Jake asked Clare like he had every right in the world to know.
"He's no one-I mean, there is no one" Clare fumbled for her words as she glared at Jake. She watched with disgust as he wiggled his eyebrows at her and sauntered away.
"Cut the crap Clare" Adam said harshly once Jake was gone, "You've been acting all weird one minute, and then all smiley and lovey the next. Do not lie to me, okay? I trusted you with the most important secret in my life and now I demand you do the same. I'm your best friend, even better than Alli, who just flits in and out of your life whenever she feels like it. I'm always in your life" his expression softened, "So tell me, please".
Clare nodded slowly and then took Adam's hand to guide him towards the front doors. They managed to leave the stuffy Church and embrace the cold air outside before anyone stopped them. Clare pulled Adam to the side and then glanced around cautiously to make sure nobody was in hearing range. Then she leaned in and whispered, "Okay don't freak out because it's really not a big deal" she waited until Adam reluctantly nodded, "I became friends with Eli Goldsworthy this week".
"Eli Goldsworthy?" Adam's eyes widened ridiculously, "Eli Goldsworthy; the emo punk who hangs around with Queen bitch Jenna, King jock K.C and their band of mindless followers? That Eli?".
"Yes, that Eli" Clare nodded back.
"Clare, what the hell?" Adam pulled back a bit, "When did this even happen?".
"I don't know" Clare shrugged, biting her lip. "I guess I've just always noticed him, you know? Like in the back of my mind, I always looked at him, because… he fascinates me. The first time he spoke to me was Monday morning, you remember, you were there".
"He called you 'Virgin Girl' and then sauntered off with his bestest buddies" Adam shook his head, confused.
"Yeah but only after I called him 'Emo Boy'" Clare grimaced. "Then on Wednesday, during a free period, he came into the library and started talking to me. He told me that he thought me standing up to Jenna was cool. We just connected I guess. Then on Thursday, he messaged me on Facerange and asked if we could be friends" she shrugged, "It's simple really".
"Clare, do you even hear yourself?" Adam gaped, "This is Elijah Goldsworthy, he's friends with the people I'll be sitting next to in Hell, and when you die, you won't be in Hell Clare, you'll be in Heaven, with all the little ponies and the little daisies-".
"Okay way to make me feel appreciated as a person and not just a stereotype" Clare interrupted.
"-and Elijah Goldsworthy and his stupid friends will probably be sitting next to me. Not you" Adam continued like he had never been interrupted. "All I'm saying is, he's poison and he's bad news and why would an arrogant dickhead like him want to be friends with someone who usually wouldn't give him the time of day?".
"Okay, so many contradictions in that speech" Clare sighed, "First of all Adam, you can't assign people to Heaven and Hell if you're not A) God and B) a God believer, okay, that's not how religion works. Second of all, why the fudge do you think you're going to Hell? That's never going to happen so give up your reservation for someone who's really going to Hell, like Jake Martin. Third of all, Eli is not just some 'arrogant dickhead', he's actually really nice once you get to know him, it's just his friends that give him a bad persona, and lastly, fourth of all, why don't you take a step backwards and remind yourself that the terrible 'Hell condemned' group you're talking about just so happens to have your brother in it".
They both took a silent awkward moment to think. Adam was the first to speak. "Okay, I'm sorry I blew up at you. It's just… Even though I know deep down my brother's a good person, he can be led astray by the wrong people, the same people who Eli has hung about with since he got here. I just don't want you to get hurt, that's all, like last time".
"I'm not going to get hurt" Clare promised, smiling slowly. "Eli and I are just friends".
"But you want more" Adam stated knowingly, "And that means he'll probably want more too. Just be careful Clare, okay? You don't want to rush into any more stress right now. It's not just Eli you should worry about, what about Jenna and her minions when they find out Eli is newest BFF's with the girl she's made it her personal mission to destroy?".
"I exactly hadn't thought of that" Clare sighed sadly. "But I don't know, I can't explain it, Adam. We just have this connection I've never felt with anybody before. He makes me come alive in ways I didn't even know were possible".
"Please take it slow, Clare" Adam stressed to his best friend, "Let's be honest, haven't you already been down this road? With He who must not be mentioned?".
"No" Clare admitted honestly. "I haven't, because He who must be mentioned isn't Eli. Eli isn't him, he's so much better. I know it in my bones, I've never been down this road with anyone".
"Okay" Adam sighed, giving in. "But if he hurts you, I'm kicking his ass".
Clare laughed, only remembering her text messages with Eli when her phone buzzed again. Clare read Eli's text; Blue Eyes? You there?
"Let me guess. He wants to come pick you up in his hearse and drive around town romantically" Adam teased his best friend.
Clare noticed the dulling in Adam's eyes and suddenly realised that her best friend needed her more right way. There were times when they'd talk about Adam's conflicting mental state, and right now, she could tell, he needed someone to talk to. "Not tonight" Clare replied, smiling up at her friend. "Let's get out of here though. We can go a walk and we can talk, or you can talk, about anything".
"Are you sure?" Adam narrowed his eyes. "I'm no Eli Goldsworthy" he smirked.
Clare nodded. "Of course I'm sure. Come on, before my mom finds us out here" she grabbed Adam's arm and they began to walk away from the Church.
Clare replied to Eli with; You have no idea how much I want that but my friend needs me tonight. Rain check?
Clare was halfway down the street when she got Eli's reply; Hope everything's okay. I'll definitely take you up on that.
