A/N: This story will NOT be following the new season of the show. All the things in the Boiling Point happened, obviously, but this story is just going its own way. I know in the new promo Clare says something along the lines of spending the night with Eli, but this was outlined before that. For those of you who like my writing, and God bless you, I will probably do one shots of most episodes with Eclare. Yay!
Disclaimer: I still don't own Degrassi. If I DID, Eli would have BEEN IN THE FREAKIN' PREMIERE
Eli
Mom-Staying with Clare for a night or two; her mom is going out of town and she doesn't want to be alone. Love, Eli
Eli looked at the text he typed up one more time before pressing "send". His mother wouldn't care he was staying with Clare; she trusted him.
He just wasn't so sure he trusted himself.
His phone buzzed almost immediately.
Okay, Eli. Be good. Take your meds. Love, Mom
Eli hurriedly typed back; Clare was waiting for him in Morty.
I will. Love you.
Clare
"Well, here we are…" Clare shouldn't have been nervous; Eli came to her house practically every other day. But it wasn't everyday a girl (especially a girl like Clare) spent the NIGHT with her boyfriend. "What do you want to do?"
"Well, Edwards," chuckled Eli. "You could start by telling me when the North Pole threw up all over your home!" Clare blushed as Eli took in all the Christmas decorations around her house.
"Well, we've always loved Christmas in this house!" She smiled. "I'm actually surprised-pleasantly so-that Mom did all of it this year." Her smile fell. "She hasn't really been herself since Dad left."
Eli moved to put his arms around her. As he brushed her bangs out of her face, he inquired about her mother's drinking.
Clare shrugged. "It's not gotten any worse, but it hasn't gotten any better, either," she replied. "I don't want to talk about it, okay?" She smiled nervously. "What do you want to do?"
"Hmmm…what do I want to DO, Edwards?" He smirked as he leaned in for a kiss. Clare happily obliged, opening her mouth to his before his tongue had the chance to beg for entrance. They danced lightly; Eli pulled Clare flush against him, one hand in her hair, the other on the small of her back. Clare wrapped her arms around his neck then pulled his face closer to hers, deepening the kiss. This earned a groan from Eli, and without thinking, he picked her up and sat her on the dining room table. He pulled away, looked at her lustily, and climbed on top of her. Clare gasped, but didn't object. Running her fingers through his hair, she moaned when he nipped her bottom lip with his teeth. He pulled away and ripped her coat off, then his own. Testing the waters (of her chest) again, he gently cupped her breast with his palm while kissing her fiercely. Clare surprised herself by placing her hands under Eli's shirt and running her nails down his back. He pulled away, breathing heavily, and Clare squeaked a bit when she saw the look of lust on his face.
Eli
"Fuck this," Eli panted, and tore his red polo off, earning a stare from Clare. With shaking hands, his fingers grazed the bottom of her shirt; his eyes searched hers for permission. She nodded slowly, and he gently pulled the shirt up and couldn't help but stare at Clare's chest in awe. She was extremely, ahem, well endowed, even in her simple white cotton bra. Eli had never been so turned on. To make sure this wasn't his usual dream, he attacked her lips again and (not so gently this time) cupped her breast. He then traced kissed down her chest, making her gasp with surprise. "God, Clare, you are so damn soft." She blushed (naturally) and ran her fingers through his hair.
"Eli…can we…" Clare breathed heavily as she spoke.
"What, Clare? Do you want to stop?" Clare bit her lip.
"Just for now. I'm cold." She didn't know HOW she was cold when she had never felt so…hot, but she was. "I'm sorry."
"Clare, don't apologize…" Eli muttered as he climbed off her. "It's completely okay, I just got carried away."
"No, Eli, I want to be with you." Clare's voice didn't waver as she put her polo back on. "Just…not yet. Soon, though."
"Really?" Eli smiled stupidly.
"Yes! Just, not tonight. I actually have an idea." Clare grabbed his hand with one hand and his bag with another then led him upstairs to her room. "Let's get in our pajamas and drink cocoa!"
She looked so elated that Eli didn't dare refuse her. "Okay, Edwards. You know, we could stay up all night…no school til' after New Year's." Clare's grin grew; Eli loved making her smile.
"Really? Like a slumber party?" Eli snorted.
"Yes, but if you MUST paint my nails, I INSIST on black polish!" He smirked as he grabbed his grey sweats and black thermal from his duffel. "And I'm not braiding your hair. Clare made her way to the wardrobe in the corner and chose black leggings and a slightly baggy, long, turquoise flannel. "Well…I'll just go to the bathroom to change…" Eli trailed off awkwardly.
"You don't have to," Clare spoke softly. She bit her lip as she began to undress. Eli stood there, watching her, and may have actually begun to drool. "Eli!" Clare cried.
Eli chuckled as he took off his shirt to change, earning a stare of Clare's own. "You're one to talk, Edwards…" he shuffled over to her, still shirtless. Clare trembled in her leggings and button-up she had yet to fasten. Eli pulled her close to him, his hand on her bare back, and kissed her chastely. He then buttoned up her top and kissed her forehead. "Hurry up, Clare," he whined. "I want some hot chocolate!" Clare obliged, and once the finished changing they headed downstairs.
Clare
"I only have the stuff for instant!" Clare yelled from the kitchen. "Is that okay?"
"That's fine!" Eli called back as he made sure the fire he just built in Clare's living room was secure. Clare walked in with two steaming mugs: one red, one green. "Man, Edwards, you really DO love Christmas, don't you?" Clare smiled.
"I love the TIME of the holidays," she confessed. "Not so much the actual DAY of Christmas, because then ChristmasTIME is over…I love walking into department stores to see them all decked out with holiday cheer! And I always hate after the first of the year, when Mom puts the decorations away. I think each year I feel more and more said at the end of the holidays." She frowned. "I USED to love doing church activities every year, such as the pageant…" Eli laughed. "Shut up! It's fun. Anyway, Mom hasn't been waking up for church. We've been going less and less. I don't think she's told her friends about the divorce."
Ring. Ring.
"Oh!" Clare cried. "Be right back!" She ran to the phone in the kitchen. "Hello?"
"Hi Clare!"
"Alli!" Clare grinned. "I completely forgot about our chat date!" The pair of best friends agreed to talk once a week on the phone while Alli was in India.
"I see how it is!" Alli giggled.
"Sorry, today has been a bit nuts. Mom went to Cleveland to meet with Dad and Eli is staying with me."
"WHAT? Eli is spending the night?"
"Yes," Clare mumbled.
"Oh man, Clare! Are you guys gonna-"
"Not tonight, Alli." Clare laughed. She told Alli a few weeks back that she was thinking of sleeping with Eli. Alli supported her friend and encouraged her to be safe.
"Well, if you do, E-MAIL ME RIGHT AWAY AND I WILL CALL YOU BEFORE THE NEXT SET CHAT DATE!" Clare laughed.
"Yes ma'am. How are you? When are you coming home?" Clare asked this question every time she talked to her best friend; she missed her more than she ever thought possible.
"I'm good. Actually, I might be coming home for spring semester!"
"Really?" Clare screamed like a fangirl. Eli wandered into the kitchen, looking a bit alarmed. "It's Alli," she mouthed.
"Yes! My parents miss me. I miss them too. Almost as much as I miss you!"
"I miss you too!"
"Alright, well I'm going to let you go Clarebear. Have fun with Eli! Tell him I say hi!"
"Will do. Bye Alli! Love you!"
"Love you too!"
Clare smiled as she hung up the phone. "Alli might be coming home for spring semester!" She ran to Eli and hugged him. "Oh, and she says hello."
"That's great, Babe!" He smiled at her, then pouted. "Wait, this means I won't get you to myself all of the time!"
"Ha-ha. No, this means I will have someone to hang out with while you and Adam have your guy's nights!" They walked back to the living room. "Hey! Come here!" Clare lay down beneath the Christmas tree, her head faced towards the blinking lights.
"Um, Edwards?" questioned Eli.
"Join me Eli!" Clare giggled like a child on Christmas morning. Once again, Eli couldn't refuse her (and really, when can he?) They held hands under the tree, enjoying each other in silence as they watched the lights flash. "Oh, this won't set off your epilepsy, will it?" Clare turned her head to look at him, worried.
"No," sighed Eli. "For some reason, only panic attacks do that." He squeezed her hand. "I don't know why, the doctors don't know why…I've always had the panic attacks. From the age of like, four. The seizures didn't start until I was eight or so."
Clare kissed his cheek. "I love you, you know."
Eli grinned. "Yeah, I know."
After a few moments of comfortable silence, Clare absentmindedly muttered "Darcy and I used to do this. For hours, we'd stare at the lights, playing games and just talking."
"You really miss her, don't you?" Eli moved his head closer to hers, making them touch.
"So, so much," breathed Clare. "I wish she was here. She was supposed to come home for Christmas but e-mailed last week that she couldn't get away from Kenya."
"What sort of games did you play?" Clare giggled.
"Oh you know, would-you-rather, twenty questions, that sort of thing."
"Do you want to play twenty questions?" Eli asked.
"Really?" Clare sounded hopeful.
"Sure, I'll go first." Eli pretended to look thoughtful. "Okay, Edwards, you must answer honestly, okay?" His voice was completely serious.
"Okay, Eli," Clare laughed. "You too."
"But of course! Okay, Clare Edwards…what…is your absolute favorite color?" Clare cracked up.
"That's your deep question, Elijah Goldsworthy?" He nodded. "Well, I'm going to go with turquoise. It honestly used to be purple, but the stupid uniforms changed that!"
"What do you know; I'm rather partial to turquoise too."
"You don't say?"
"I DO say…you look hot in it!"
"Thanks, Eli." Crimson crept onto her cheeks. "Hmmm…okay, my turn. Since you started off light, I will too: Who is your favorite author?" Despite all the English assignments they completed together, Clare didn't know the answer to this question.
"Well," began Eli. "It's sort of a tie. As far as poetry goes, definitely Edgar Allan Poe."
"Why am I not surprised?" Clare rolled her eyes.
"Hey, he's not ALL about black and shit," defended Eli. "'Annabel Lee' is beautiful. As is 'The Bells'."
"I'll give you that," agreed Clare.
"But when it comes to novels and short stories, I pretty much worship Faulkner."
"Oh! The Sound and the Fury is one of my favorite books!" Clare declared.
"Yeah, that's a good one, but my favorite is probably As I Lay Dying. I find the differing point of views fascinating; Faulkner was one of the first writers to do that.
"Really?" asked Clare.
"Yeah. And his writing is just so damn obscure; I love it." Eli kissed the bridge of her nose. "Okay, my turn." He smirked, which gave Clare an uneasy feeling (in this game, anyway). "When did you 'fall for me', Edwards?" Clare groaned.
"I don't know, Eli!"
"You do, too!"
"Ugh. I thought you were cute the day you ran over my glasses," Eli looked smug at this answer, "but I didn't really know I LIKED you until you helped me with that first English assignment. I knew I was looong gone when you showed up at my house with your headphones." Before Eli could say anything, Clare asked her question: "What made you decide you were ready? I mean, when you kissed me in the library."
Eli smirked (again, dammit). "When you set off the stink bomb, actually. I knew I wouldn't need much time though. I mean come on, Clare; we spent every day together after I told you about Julia!" Clare grinned. "But seriously, after that badass move, I couldn't wait any longer. Had to make you mine."
"I'm glad you did," Clare whispered before kissing him softly. "Your turn."
"Hmm…would you be completely opposed to celebrating Hanukkah with my family and me this year?" He blushed. "Mom really wants you to."
"I'd love to!" Clare answered, to Eli's surprise. "I told you, I LOVE the holidays! Aren't there EIGHT NIGHTS of Hanukkah?" Eli laughed at her face; he loved this childlike Clare (which barely creeped him out).
"Yes, but we really only have a gathering the last night. Which is actually tomorrow, the ninth."
"I'd love to Eli…will your mom be home?"
"Yeah. She'll be in by six or so. It's just me, mom, and Bubbi."
"Yay! Okay, my question…will you celebrate Christmas Eve with me?" Eli smiled.
"Of course Blue Eyes. Are we going to church?"
"Would you be willing to do that? I know you did that with Julia…" Clare frowned. "I wouldn't want to like, take that memory from you."
"Clare, we're making new memories. Of you and me. Stop worrying, okay?" He kissed her temple.
"Okay. I don't know if we'll go to church, but we'll definitely have dinner and sing Christmas Carols off-key."
"I'll be sure to learn the music on my keyboard."
"Your turn, Eli."
"Do you actually want to sleep with me?" Clare tensed up.
"I honestly do," she answered. "In fact, here, give me one of your bracelets." Eli did as he was told, raising his eyebrows. Clare took the purity ring off of her finger and looped in through the bracelet, then clasped it back on her boyfriend's wrist. "Let's just call that a metaphor for things to come."
"Clever, Clare!" He laughed and kissed her. "Are you SURE?"
"Ah-ah, Goldsworthy. MY turn to ask the question!" She thought long and hard. "Do you…do YOU want to sleep with ME?" Eli laughed so loud and for so long, Clare began to worry about his oxygen intake.
"Edwards, how do I put this…DUH!" Clare relaxed. Eli did want her. "Why on earth would you think I wouldn't?"
"I don't know, Eli. I thought maybe you only liked me because I'm 'pure' or whatever."
"Clare, your HEART is pure. The only reason I asked if you actually wanted to is because if and when it happens, I don't want you to regret it. And I want to be prepared…and it should be perfect." Eli turned his head toward her. They lay under the tree, facing one another. "I love you, and I want it to be special."
"That's good," Clare said. "I'd like it to be special, too. Okay, since you asked 'what could possibly make me ask that', it's my turn!" Eli groaned.
"You're cheating!"
"Never! Ha-ha. Okay, what did you mean by 'prepared'?" Eli hesitated.
"You know, Clare…prepared. Condoms. We don't want any little Eli's running around!"
"Oh, goodness, no," teased Clare. "ONE of you is enough!" They laughed. "But, er, you don't have to worry about condoms if you don't want to."
Eli just stared at her. "Come again, now?"
"I'm on birth control. I have been since I was thirteen. When Darcy got…raped, my parents put me on The Pill. It was kind of necessary anyway, because I had TERRIBLE periods." Eli flinched at the word. "Really, Eli, we're talking openly about sex, but you can't handle me saying 'period'?"
"I know, I know…sorry. Anyway, you're seriously on birth control?"
"Yeah. Not the Pill, anymore, though. Didn't tolerate it very well, so I'm on the patch."
"They make a PATCH for THAT?" Clare laughed at the look on Eli's face.
"Yes, Eli. It works like a nicotine patch or something. So if and when it happens, there will be no need for condoms. Provided you haven't had sex with anyone but Julia, she didn't cheat on you, ect…in which case, we wouldn't be having intercourse until after you got tested."
Again, Eli stared at her. "Intercourse, Clare? Really? And no, she didn't cheat on me. And she's the only one I was ever with, so definitely no STI's here."
"Okay, good. Sorry, I just want to be safe."
"I LIKE that you want to be safe, Clare."
"Good."
"So," began Eli. "Is this really happening?"
"I think so," she whispered. "Whose turn is it?"
"I'm not sure," answered Eli as he pulled her in for a kiss. "Want to go to bed?"
"Eli, it's only eight o'clock..." he gave her a look. "Ooooh…okay!"
Eli
Eli couldn't believe he was in Clare's bed. To sleep. Sure, he had sat on it before, but damn, he was under the covers with her in his arms, and they were both shirtless. She let him take her bra off, and he nearly fucking lost it. As he softly kissed her, he thought something along the lines of this is what Heaven must feel like.
"Eli…" gasped Clare.
"Hmm?"
"Thanks for staying with me."
A/N: Love the game 20 questions. Yeah, next chapter will probably be the last "T" rated one. FAIR WARNING.
