A/N: As always, thank you for the reviews! I don't have much to say, so...
Here you go!
One month and one week later, Clare found herself sitting in a familiar table – the same table where she sat for the speed dating with Alli. Only this time, Alli wasn't with her. If she had it her way, she wouldn't even be there at all. The only reason she was there was to get Alli to leave her alone about moving on from Eli. They never really spoke after the wedding, as Clare figured. She tried to contact him, but he kept finding excuses or just never replied back. She gave up talking to him and when he finally tried to initiate a conversation, she never bothered to call him back.
She pretended to listen to the guy in front of her, nodding here and there. This was the fifth guy she had spoken to and all she wanted to do was rip her hair out. The bell rang and she tried to muster the nicest smile she could. As the guy left, Clare rolled her eyes.
"Not your cup of tea?" a female voice asked.
Clare turned to see Donna, the woman in charge of the speed dating.
"I'm sorry, I guess I just haven't found the right guy yet," Clare made an excuse.
"He'll come soon enough," the woman winked.
Clare gave her a small smile out of courtesy. Donna gave her a sympathetic look.
"I don't usually do this, but considering the state you're in, I'm going to change things up a bit," she said.
The younger girl looked at her curiously.
Donna continued, "There's this guy that has been eyeing you the whole night. I talked to him for a bit and he seems to be smitten by you, saying you're one of the most beautiful girls in this room."
"Oh," Clare let out a nervous laugh, "That's flattering."
"And if I do say so myself," the older woman leaned in, "He is definitely worth meeting."
"I'll take your word for it," she said, "Thank you."
Donna gave her another wink and walked away, probably "to change things up a bit," as she said. Clare turned around and wondered who this mystery guy was. She started to envision how he might look like and what their conversation would consist of. If it went well, she wouldn't be opposed to an actual date. She bit her lip to control her smile.
"Hey."
Clare looked up and her smile instantly disappeared.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!"
Eli awkwardly took a seat across from her as she glared at him the whole time. The pair looked over at Donna, who smiled widely at them. They had no choice but to smile back.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed.
"Alli told me you'd be here," he answered.
She let out a frustrated sigh, "I am going to give her a piece of my mind when I get home…"
"Clare," he spoke up, "Can we please talk?"
"Funny, that's what I wanted to do the day after the wedding," she snapped, "But you decided to avoid me like the plague."
"I'm sorry," he said sincerely, "I can explain myself."
She let out a sigh, "I let you explain yourself when I kept trying to contact you."
Eli pleaded, "I wasn't ready to face things yet. I know I acted like a jerk, but please… I'll explain myself this time."
Clare looked at the timer, "Too bad you only have a minute left to explain yourself."
The bell rang.
"Oh, too late," she shrugged.
Eli remained in his seat. They guy behind him had an annoyed look on his face. Clare just stared at him angrily.
"I'm not leaving until you give me a chance to explain," his tone was serious.
"Time's up, Eli," she pointed to the timer.
He remained in the seat and stared at her.
"Dude," the guy behind Eli said, "The bell rang. Get up and move."
Eli turned around to glare at him.
Clare watched the exchange. She didn't want to talk to him, but she didn't want an altercation to occur.
She started to feel uncomfortable, "You're making a scene."
He scoffed, "Like I care."
Clare looked around, trying not to look as worried as she felt. Eli leaned on to the table.
"Let me explain and once I do, you can do whatever you want with the information," he looked at her with sad eyes.
To avoid any other confrontation from the guy behind Eli, she let out a long sigh, "Fine. Lunch, tomorrow. If you don't show up, kiss your chances good bye."
He smiled, "I'll be there. Thank you."
"Mhmm," she unenthusiastically replied.
When the speed dating came to an end, Clare tried to leave as soon as she could. She successfully avoided Eli, who was lost in the crowd. She was close to the door but was stopped by Donna.
"So," she interrogated, "He was cute, right?"
The younger girl hesitated, "Yeah, I guess so."
"Did you snag a date?" Donna continued.
She thought it over, "Yeah, you could say that."
"Oh that's great," Donna cried, "You two are going to hit it off. I just know it."
"Oh, I'm sure," Clare laughed as she thought of the punch she would giving Eli when they met for lunch tomorrow.
A/N: Next chapter is the talk. I've got something planned for it and I can only hope I pull it off well =/ Heh. Review, please? Thank you!