Disclaimer: Don't own Degrassi. Or Lord of the Flies, or Coral Island. 'Nuff said.
Author's Note: Alright! My midterms are finally over, so now I can get back to writing. Yay!
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Broken Glass
Sealed Lips
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The November air was crisp and cool.
That was the first thing that Fitz noticed when he stepped outside for the first time in weeks, now finally free of the ankle monitor that had kept him confined to his apartment, bored out of his skull. It just sucked that there was nothing worthwhile to look at, aside from the buildings across the road and the drug deals taking place in secluded alleys. Old, beat up cars lined the streets and police sirens sounded in the distance, but that was nothing new.
Fitz shivered as a gust of wind picked up. He rubbed his hands together, then slid them into his pockets to retrieve his lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He lit one and brought it to his lips, inhaling deeply and savouring the taste. It had been way too long since his last.
"Smoking will kill you."
He rolled his eyes, peering over his shoulder just as Clare appeared beside him, adjusting the strap of her bulging book bag. She made a face, scrunching up her nose in disgust and leaning away from him.
"Doesn't it bother you? You could get lung cancer." She said matter-of-factly.
Fitz couldn't help but snort. "You should be thrilled, then."
Clare frowned, clearly not amused by his accusation. For a brief moment, he thought about apologizing, but decided against it and took another drag instead.
"How did you even get them? It's not like you're of age or anything, so how -"
"I know some people."
He wasn't lying. Half the guys at the ravine - guys he used to hang out with, like Johnny and Bruce - were legal. When they couldn't hook him up, there was always Bianca who had no problem swiping some from her mom or her cousins. He'd also had a fake I.D for about a day, but that turned out to be a setup arranged by the same punk who had been pissing him off all year. Fitz scowled.
"Does your mom know?" Clare asked softly.
He sighed in exasperation, growing more and more irritated by the second.
"What's with the twenty questions, Edwards?" He barked, tossing the butt to the ground before rounding on her. Instinctively, Clare backed away, notably startled by his sudden outburst, and Fitz couldn't help but smirk. He closed the space between them, pinning her against the railing behind her. "Trying to figure me out, huh? Is that it? Am I a mystery that you want to solve, Clare? 'Why is Fitz the way he is' - that's what you want to know, right? Answer me!"
"N-no… that's not why I… I-I just…" Clare stammered weakly, before trailing off and squeezing her eyes shut.
It wasn't until a whimper escaped her lips that Fitz drew back instantly. A wave of nausea washed over him and he held a hand over his mouth, turning away from the trembling girl while he recomposed himself. He couldn't explain what had come over him; why he had wanted to see her cowering beneath him, terrified. It was sick. He was sick.
"Sorry," he rasped out, after a while. "And no. She doesn't know. So don't go telling or anything, alright?"
"Y-yeah." Clare replied shakily.
Shoving his hands into his pockets, Fitz cautiously turned back to face her, but kept his gaze lowered.
"So, uh… where to now?" He asked in a feeble attempt to change the subject - to somehow make her forget what had just happened.
She wouldn't, though, and they both knew it.
"Umm… I was thinking the Steakhouse." She said, tucking her hair behind her ears. "I figure we can get a bite to eat and go over Trig. Kill two birds with one stone, you know?" She joked, giving him a nervous smile. "You did your assignments, right?"
Fitz guffawed.
"Yes, mom."
The tension in the air seemed to evaporate, and Clare smacked him playfully on the arm.
"You could be a little more enthusiastic, you know."
"About school? Yeah, okay."
She shook her head amusedly. "Let's just go."
oOo
As per usual, Little Miss Steaks was packed - but fortunately, not with anyone she recognized. That was part of the reason Clare had chosen this particular location over the Dot. It was, first and foremost, a family-oriented restaurant, not a popular "hang out" for the students of Degrassi, and so chances of accidentally running into anyone they knew were slim.
Just to be safe, however, she picked a booth in a secluded corner. As Fitz slid into the seat across from her and took in their surroundings, Clare opened her bag and pulled out a few textbooks before placing them on the table. She heard him groan and fought back a smile, and was about to tease him when an all-too familiar voice stopped her.
"Well, here's an unexpected sight."
Clare's heart stopped.
Her eyes widened and she could practically imagine the color draining from her face like she'd just seen a ghost. She felt like she was going to throw up, but somehow managed to maintain her composure as she slowly turned to find Holly J. Sinclair standing next to their table, looking no less intimidating than usual, even in pigtails.
The older girl narrowed her eyes before shaking her head, like she didn't even want to know what was going on, and taking out a pad of paper.
"Welcome to Little Miss Steaks. I'll be your server for this evening. My name is Holly J but of course… you already know that." She glanced up. "Can I start you off with anything? Drinks, appetizers, salad… some condoms, maybe?" She lowered her voice for the last one, and Clare buried her face in her hands to hide her embarrassment.
"It's not… I mean… we're not -" she stumbled over her words and then shot Fitz a look that practically screamed help me.
But Fitz just grinned lopsidedly, completely unperturbed by Holly J's implication, and glanced up at the redhead.
"Yeah, I'd like some onion rings and a coke." He told her, sliding out of the booth and standing up. "Be back in a few."
He gave their student council V.P a once over, eyeing her up and down, before walking away. Clare watched him leave, glaring at his retreating form all the while and fisting the material of her skirt.
Damn him! How could he just leave her at a time like this?
"Well, well… you're just full of surprises this year, aren't you?"
Clare drew her attention back to Holly J, who was staring at her with an amused expression on her face.
"I mean, I knew you had a thing for bad boys, but this is a bit much, don't you think?" She went on, her lips curling into a knowing smirk. "What's next? Tattoos and tongue piercings?"
Clare frowned. "It's not like that."
Holly J rolled her eyes.
"Whatever you say, Baby Edwards." She said dismissively.
"It's not!" Clare snapped, wiping the smirk off Holly J's face immediately. "I'm just tutoring him, that's all! Nothing else is going on - I swear." She bit her lip nervously, anxiety building and suffocating her from the inside out. "And… I would appreciate it… if you didn't tell anyone. Please."
Holly J stared hard at her for a moment, before nodding numbly.
"Sure. Fine. Your secret's safe with me." She assured her. "So, uh… what do you want to eat?"
Clare smiled gratefully at her and then picked up a menu.
"What's the special?"
.
.
.
"So, where have you been for the last ten minutes?" Clare inquired when Fitz finally returned, peering over her glass of water to pin him with a suspicious look.
"I needed some fresh air." He answered curtly, shrugging.
"I hardly think that smoking qualifies." She shot back.
Fitz glared at her.
"You know, you should try out for one of those PSA commercials." He told her. "You're already like a walking anti-smoking ad."
"Ha ha," Clare deadpanned. "Well, now that you're back, we can finally get started." She unzipped her bag and dug around, pulling out a small stack of paper and handing it to him. "That's all the work you've done till now, marked by all of your teachers." A smile slid into place. "I'm impressed. You've improved a lot. I think you're finally getting the hang of it!"
She watched Fitz's eyes skim over the pages briefly before pushing it aside.
"Cool." He said nonchalantly.
Clare gave a defeated sigh.
Was it too much to ask for him to show that he at least cared? Even a little?
Apparently so.
"Have you started reading Lord of the Flies, yet?" She asked. "You need to write an essay on its symbolism, so I would try to finish it before next week."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll get to it." Fitz muttered.
Clare tilted her head. "You never know. You might like it. There's lots of blood and violence."
Fitz opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, Holly J reappeared at their table.
"Did you tell him about the part where they sodomize a pig?" She said, placing a basket of onion rings in front of Fitz - Fitz, who now looked visibly mortified. The older girl smirked, deeming her job done, and then turned to Clare. "Your food will be out in five minutes."
With that, she was gone.
"What."
Clare laughed. "It's definitely… something."
Fitz's face contorted in disgust.
"Do I have to read it?"
"It's a requirement." Clare reminded him.
"Fuck…" he groaned, "What the hell? Why?"
Clare shrugged. "Because it's symbolic. I also heard that Golding wrote it in response to books like Coral Island. He wanted to give the opposite view; that things wouldn't be all fine and dandy if a bunch of kids were stranded on an island with no adults - in fact, it would be chaotic. But it doesn't just apply to kids. He's talking about humans in general, and that if there were no rules or laws to govern society, then we would all revert to savagery."
Fitz blinked, trying to process everything she'd just said, before raising a quizzical brow.
"… you got all of that from reading the book?"
"Well, I did some research first." She admitted. "Also, it helps to pay attention in class. Or go to class, for that matter."
The bully rolled his eyes.
"Just read it, okay?" Clare pressed.
"Fine. But you owe me."
"I don't owe you anything."
oOo
His mom was already home by the time he got back. She was sitting at the kitchen table, mulling over bills, when he walked through the door. As soon as she saw him, her eyes lit up almost immediately.
"Finally!" She said excitedly, standing up and making her way over to him. "I have some good news, Mark."
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… and that's all for chapter 9.
First of all, let me just say that I wrote that scene with Holly J and Clare long before the second half of season 10 started. So for the sake of the fic, the Steakhouse is not a popular place to meet up in the Degrassiverse. It just so happens that HJ works there. But aside from that… The Dot is the "cool" place to be. I love how there are only two restaurants in the Degrassiverse though, don't you?
I feel like I'm forgetting to say something, but whatever.
Hopefully, you guys enjoyed.
Please REVIEW and tell me what you think. Seriously. Review.
