A/N: HELLOOOO, I'm back, thank goodness.
Okay, so my last chapter , although long and eventful, was full of freaking errors :/ Sorry about that.
Message to EVERYONE who reads: all suggestions were put in consideration, and actually most suggestions are included in the NEXT (not this one) chapter.
Message to X. SilverWind. X : Where was your review last chapter? I like your review, I mean, I always can count on you for one, but BOOM there wasn't one from you.
We'll heres another chapter, I cut it in half, because this was actually long enough to be called a chapter. So enjoy.
CHAPTER TEN - SWEET
(Clare's POV)
Eli remains sitting seemingly uncomfortably on the bed with the cover over his body - for obvious reasons - while I continue to let my inner question stir inside my head before I come right out with it. I furrow my eyebrows slightly at him. "What do you mean 'again', Eli?" I ask, stating my internal question aloud this time. He opens his mouth as if he is going to give me some long answer, but he chokes.
"I-" is all he manages to get out followed by a long pause.
I raise my eyebrows at him. "Well," I say impatiently, waiting for answer as to why he had his arms around me while we were asleep and/or why he grew a freaking boner throughout the night. I mean, any type of answer would be okay right now - a simple "I had a wet dream, Clare. Sorry", or even an "I don't know" would suffice. Just any response would stop my heart from beating so rapidly at this moment. "Well?" I repeat.
He opens his mouth again. "Oh, I, uh," he sputters nervously. "I-I didn't mean about you. By 'again', I meant...you know, in general - it happens. Like it just sort of...happened, and for no reason. I was asleep. I-I-I had no control over it." He emits a sorrow filled huff, "I'm really really sorry Clare. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. If it makes you feel better, I'll just go back to sleeping on the floor."
With saying this, he slowly removes the cover down off of the upper half of his body, careful not to move it any cover lower, so that his "tent" wouldn't become visible to me again. He grabs a pillow and begins shifting out of the bed.
"Eli," I sigh and he turns to look at me, "I'm not just going to force you out of thee bed just because of that. You can stay here, I guess. Just...Just sleep in the opposite direction this time, and keep your distance. And as for all that," I glance down at Eli's covered midsection. "It never happened."
Eli nods silently at me in understanding and I uneasily climb back into the bed while he eases himself in again, scooting himself further away from me. He rolls over, so he and I now facing back to back.
Glancing up and over to the nightstand beside my side of the bed, I spot the missing remote that I had been searching for earlier before I discovered Eli's member. I roll my eyes, snatch the remote off the stand, and click off the tv.
...
(Eli's POV)
The whole group sits at a table in the diningroom for breakfast again. Everything is pretty much the same as yesterday and all is normal. According to Clare and I, last night's incident between her and I never happened. Clare has kindly forgotten about it, and we are back to our fake coupley selves.
So all is the same, but I cant help but notice how distant Vivian is being today. For one, she did not insert herself in the seat next to me when we arrived in the dining room, she decided to take the one on the opposite side of Jake - which is further from me. I've remembered how she always seemed to cling herself closer to me, but ever since she sent and I received that picture and never directly responded to her, she has spaced herself away from me.
I think she's afraid that I might've mentioned her attempt to seduce me through a picture to Clare, so she's trying not to attract attention to herself. I haven't told Clare, and I don't think I'm going to. I don't know, I just don't think I should bring it up.
"So...," Darcy beams. "What are we all doing today?"
Helen shrugs, "I don't know. I didn't really have a group activity planned for today, I guess you guys can feel free to do what you want. But Glen and I are getting a couples massage in an hour - if you guys want to get one, you all can."
I glance over to Peter, whose humming. "Sounds great," he comments with a smile, "I'm in dire need of one. What do you think, Darc?". My eyes flicker over to his spouse who seems less excited about the activity.
"I don't think we should get one," Darcy says honestly. "I really don't want another woman running her hands all over you - especially not when I'm in the room."
Peter grins, "Why? Would it make you jealous?"
Darcy responds, "very" before leaning in to peck Peter on the lips. I have to admit, Darcy and Peter are cute, they aren't annoying like most couples who just can't seem to get enough of each other so are always clinging to their other for dear life, or the couples who have only a physical attraction to each other and make out all the time; they're simple and sweet.
I wonder if Julia and I would be labeled under annoying couples...Most likely, and probably for the second reason.
"How about the rest of you?" Helen questions, "Do you want to come with us, or just hang out for the day?" Jake grabs Vivian's hand and declines Helen's offer to go get the massages and states that they're just going to chill at the beach today, which Darcy and Peter jump at the opportunity to accompany them.
Helen then faces us, Clare and I, and asks again.
Clare shakes her head. "Nah Mom, I don't really want to go either. We're good."
"Are we going to the beach with the others?" I ask, and Clare nods.
...
(Clare's POV)
I sit on the bed, applying sunscreen onto my legs while Eli is changing into his beach attire for today's outing. I don't know why I even agreed to go to the beach, it's not like I plan on swimming. I wear my yellow and white stripped bikini underneath a white tank top and jean shorts, I plan on just sitting at the beach and reading a magazine.
Creak. My head snaps over to the door as Eli exits. Immediately catching sight of the straw fedora placed on his head, a small smile crosses my face as I reminisce on the day when he had first displayed it to me at my job.
He wears blue swim trunks with white flowers printed on - one of the swimming trunks he also has shown me -, brown sandals, and a big green and white stripped towel that hangs over his forearm.
He glances up at me and asks, "Why aren't you wearing your swim suit?"
I creep my hand up to my shoulder and pop one of my bathing suit straps against my skin, signifying that I do, in fact, have a swimming suit on (but I'm still not gonna need it).
Eli nods, then I quickly toss the bottle of sun screen over to him. He barely catches it with his fingertips before dropping it.
"Next time, catch it." I joke, laughing a little.
"Next time, throw better." Eli shoots back, laughing, too, as he crouches down to pick up the bottle. He sits on the edge of the bed and starts to put the lotion onto his skin. I mentally debate whether I should help him or just let him do this on his own. I mean, it would be sort of awkward for me to...because after the whole thing last night...I don't know.
Eli's hands rub the sunscreen onto his shoulders, then fidget to get his back covered completely. I shake my head softly, then scoot my figure closer to his. "Gimme," I demand and without a second thought he hands me the bottle. I pour the lotion onto my hand and anoint his back with it in the most simplest and least awkwardest way I can.
It takes only 20 seconds to finish and afterward Eli thanks me.
"No problem," I say nonchalantly.
...
(Eli's POV)
When we arrive at the beach, everyone careless ditches their towels and bags and dash out to the ocean. I'm walking out to the water until I look back over my shoulder to see Clare spreading out a blue and yellow towel on the sandy ground and plopping herself down. She sits cross-legged on the towel then reaches into her beach bag, she wrenches out a magazine.
"Oh boy," I sigh internally, "this girl is seriously gonna read."
I change course and walk back over to her. Approaching the girl, I question, "Are you really going to read a magazine on a day like this? At a place like this?" I gesture the beach surrounding us.
Clare looks up at me, squinting her eyes because of the brightness of the sun. She twists her lips and shrugs, "I guess."
"You agreed to go to the beach. What's the point of coming here and wearing a swimsuit if you're not going to even get into the water - what are you going to do, read all day?"
"I'm not just reading, I'm also guarding our things." Clare proclaims, tapping Darcy's bag that lies on the other side of her bag. "See?" she smiles.
I roll my eyes and I state, "Screw the stuff; it'll be safe."
Clare opens her mouth to shoot a rebuttal, but her words are thrown off, because without warning, I bend down, pull her to her feet, then toss he over my shoulder. "Eli," she shrieks as I sweep her up. "Put me down!"
I look around and spot a bunch of people at the beach are now staring at us.
"Shh," I say to Clare, chuckling and walking closer to the water. "Dont scream, Clare; people'll think I'm trying to kill you, or drown you, or something - which I'm not. We're at a beach, it's hot, and I just want to get you wet..."
I stop from continuing my speech any further when I realize how naughty my sentence sounded, and I think Clare caught on, too, because she stays silent - we stay silent for few seconds, then Clare bursts out with laughter.
"Poor choice of words," Clare states, laughing still.
"I know," I chuckle, "but you know what I was trying to say, I just want you to get you to go in the water, even if it is for only 5 seconds." My body is now in the shallow part of the water. The water's level is halfway up my legs. I finally decide to set Clare down. As I place her frame down, I say, "See, not so bad, huh?"
She shakes her head. "No, it's not that bad," she smiles. "But now, that I've been in the water, I can get out now. Bye." She gets a few feet of distance from me, before I jog closer to her, snake my arms around her waist, and pull her back to sea again.
"Oh no you don't," I protest, "you have to stay a bit longer."
"Eli," she squeals, giggling and wiggling to get out of my grip.
As Clare wiggles her body and I pull her back, my foot steps on something semi-sharp in the sand and she and I fall down onto to wet sand. I end up laying on my back against the sand with Clare atop of me. We both let out pained groans.
"Ow," Clare groans, lifting her head up off of my chest. "Sorry Eli."
"It's okay," I sigh with an added smirk. "It's really, really okay," I sleazily comment in my head, liking the fact that our bodies are on each other right now.
Suddenly, Clare realizes our closeness and she quickly pushes her body up and off of mine. "I-I'm going back to guarding our things," she announces fastly, rising her feet. "Wouldn't want anyone to take our things."
"I'll go with you." I suggest.
"No-no-no-no, you stay. Stay here - swim."
"There's no fun in swimming if you have no one to swim around with. Plus, I'd love to read Cosmopolitan with you, or whatever magazine that was..."
"Seventeen," Clare blurts.
"Huh?"
"That's the magazine, and I highly doubt you'd want to read it with me."
"Sure I would," I smirk, and Clare give me an odd look before giving up and letting me stay with her.
...
After many "Who Wore It Better?" pictures and a "Boy Band Comeback" article, I get bored of the girly mag and snatch Clare's bag without her knowing, because she's too invested in reading at the moment. In her bag, I sift through until I find something that sparks my interest. "Sunscreen, sun glasses - ooh la la, phone."
I swipe her phone and decide it's time for me to be nosy. Not the creepy-jealous-boyfriend nosy, but the I-had-nothing-better-to-do-and-I've-always-wanted-to-go-through-your-phone nosy.
I unlock her phone scroll through her texts. "Mom. Adam T. Alli B.? Connor D.? K.C. G.? Cassadee W." I don't recognize half of the people she has texted recently. I open Connor and her's messages just because I don't know who this Connor kid is and he's the only boy name I see.
"Wait, maybe I am being the creepy-jealous-boyfriend nosy."
I read their texts - nothing interesting, it was a short conversation, and sounds like they were just catching up on each other. I press back and keep scrolling till I spot my name. I don't remember ever texting Clare. I open the conversation - our last text exchange was just a boat load of texts from her telling me to wake up and that was from friday. I smirk and press back.
Continue down the list, I reach the last recorded message, it was sent from Jackson over a month ago and never deleted. I hesitantly open it and read the one paragraph Jackson had sent Clare that she had never responded to but obviously read.
Clare, even though I know that you're not going to answer this, because you also havent answered any of my texts or calls lately, I just want you to know I truly am sorry for cheating on you and I DO want us to hopefully get back together. If it makes it any better, I will wait awhile for you until you're ready. I like you, Clare, and I hope you still feel the same. Please text back. Please.
- Jackson F.
I roll my eyes at the text. That guy is so full of shit! He's a player, and always will be. I wonder why Clare kept this. Was it because it was an apology? A plead to get her back? Or What? I exit out of her messages completely and glance up at her. She still unaware that I am snooping through her cell phone. She just sits there, magazine in hands, and specks of sand on her skin still from when we fell.
I smile at her and open the phone's camera. I take a quick shot of her sitting there reading intently. Click. Clare looks up when she hears the clicking sound.
(Clare's POV)
I look up from my magazine to see Eli with my phone and taking pictures of me. "What are you doing?" I ask irritatedly.
"Taking pictures of you," he responds before taking another. Click. I block me face with the magazine and I hear Eli chuckle.
"Stop," I demand, then explain, "I don't like when people take pictures of me without my consent."
"Well, can I take pictures of you?"
"No."
Eli huffs, "Okay." I roll my eyes and return back to debating whether Rhianna or Charlize Theron wore this particular red dress better. My mind is telling me Charlize, because she made the outfit look safe and stylish, but my heart is chanting Rhianna, because she took a daring chance with it.
Such a hard decision to make...
"Did you really like him?" I hear Eli's voice ask me, I glance up and behold a picture of Jackson and I huddled close together, sitting on a park bench. His arms around me and we're both smiling. We both seem happy, we bother were happy.
I shrug at Eli's question. "Can you give me my phone?" I inquire, and he hands it to me. I should have deleted these pictures like the rest. Without hesitation, I delete the picture and make sure there's no others that I have forgotten to obliterate from my SD card.
I hand my phone back to Eli. He looks down and furrows his brows. "Why'd you delete it?"
I shrug once again. "Just seemed like something I should do, or should've done."
"Here's a different picture," Eli smirks, scooting closer to me, "one of you and your new - although fake - boyfriend. Smile." I reluctantly smile into the camera as he takes another digital picture. One of both of us this time. He scans the picture that he and I have just taken. "Perfect," he comments, smiling at the picture then over to me.
I unknowingly roll my eyes then bite my lip. "Eli's sweet," I internally swoon.
A/N: My apologies if this chapter isn't well liked - which I doubt - , or if it has errors, I just really wanted to update ASAP.
Reviews are greatly appreciated, they tell me whether all of you like or dislike where I am going with this story.
I hope you all had a merry merry christmas...1 2 3. 3! days ago. I...did not. Well yes I did. OH WELL happy new years in 1 2 3. 3! days. Hopefully I'll have the other chapter up by then.
-MFFITS
P.S. Review :}