One week. Seven days. Clare could count on both hands how long it had been since Eli had asked her to go with him to New York. They had talked for hours about how it would work if she were to go. She would be alone for entire days with only school work and the babies while he would be in class,since Eli would also be going to work after his classes. She wouldn't know anyone, and she would be leaving her friends and family behind. But, she would be with Eli, and he was a huge factor. He would be making good money, and he had already found a decent sized apartment that didn't cost too much. Clare sat on the bed watching Eli finish packing his suitcase. She would be crying all day at the loss, but how long could she cry when Eli would be wiping her tears away in New York?

"You know, I could pack more of what we need if someone hadn't packed so many books.", he joked as he filled the last of many suit cases. Eli had been so relieved when Clare agreed to go with him to New York, and he had helped her decide what to take or leave for nearly three hours the day before.

"Hey! At least half of those are yours and you had to bring your music, and what about that huge binder I'm not allowed to look at?" She had been packing when she found a black binder filled with random bits of writing but hadn't gotten through the first page when Eli snatched it and put it into his own bag.

He looked up from his packing and smirked but didn't answer her question. She hadn't really expected him to. "When do you want to tell your mom and Alli?"

Clare sighed. The only down side about choosing New York was the conversation she would be having with her mom and best friend. Bullfrog and Cece weren't even surprised and had already gotten them both going away presents. Apparently, they were the only ones in the house who were unaware of their trip together. Eli had gotten money which he tried, but failed, to return and Clare had gotten two bassinets, because she still hadn't bought anything for the twins. She had also tried to return her gift, but Bullfrog claimed to have lost the receipt. "Since we're leaving tomorrow, I guess I should tell them a week ago."

Eli was zipping the final bag, so the only things left to pack were hygienic items to be used the morning of their departure. The flight would be long, and at first Clare was worried about the risk of flying while pregnant. Dr. Lein had assured that the second trimester was the safest time to fly, and she should be fine as long as she drank a good amount of liquids to prevent dehydration. He congratulated her and told her that he was sorry to lose her as a patient as well. "Packing's done, so do you want to go now?"

She gulped and looked at him nervously, but he was being completely serious. "My mom? Now?" She had been hoping she could call from New York, and the area code could tell her mom for her, but that wouldn't be right. She stood and then sat back down. "If we're going, I'll need help with my shoes.", she admitted in an annoyed voice. Clare hated feeling like she couldn't do something as simple as putting on shoes anymore. "Eli, be honest, how long would it take me to sink a ship if I got on one?"

Eli looked up from where he knelt at her feet with her right shoe still in his hand. He realized that if the shoe were traded in for a ring, this would be a life altering situation but pushed those thoughts from his mind. "I'm confused? Are we planning a terrorist attack now or something?"

Clare did not appreciate his joke while she was being so serious and upset. "Eli, I'm huge! I know you've noticed, how could you not? I even have stretch marks, and I can't see my feet!" Clare had been appalled when she looked in the mirror after stepping out of the shower to the discovery that she had stretch marks running over the sides of her belly.

Eli was upset that he had to tell Clare how beautiful she looked to him. She had gained some weight, but she was still more beautiful then any super model or movie star he had ever seen, but he couldn't say that. If he did, Clare might realize that his feelings for her weren't gone. "No amount of stretch marks will ever make you less beautiful. I know you're upset now, but when the twins are born, won't this all be worth it just to finally see what they look like and hold them in your arms? You can't do that without doing this first."

Clare had never considered herself one to complain about every little thing, but she liked complaining to Eli. No matter what was wrong or what made her upset, Eli always made her forgot why it had ever been a bother by explaining something to her that should have been so obvious. "It will be worth it. So...are you ready?"

Eli slid the shoes on her feet, stood, and held his hand out for her to take. She took it and they walked out of the house to where Morty waited. "I'm going to miss you, buddy. You've been great over the years and even came back after I crashed you into a wall."

Clare shook her head, because she would never understand the relationship Eli had with his car. "He'll be here when we come back for winter break, you know? This isn't good bye forever, and I thought I'd be the one to cry." She laughed at the mock offended look Eli shot her.

He put his hand over his heart and stumbled forward. "Edwards, you wound me and my good friend Morty. Also, I don't cry, but we both know you will." Clare punched him in the arm which he grabbed reflexively. "Ouch, woman. That's abuse!" They laughed and got into the hearse.

Eli drove the short way to Clare's house, and Clare's face grew more solemn. "Oh no. We can't do this now. Everyone's home! Glenn and Jake will be there. I thought I would only have to deal with mom, I can't do this." To Clare's horror Glenn stepped out on the porch after seeing the hearse in front of the house and waved for them to go inside.

Eli took Clare's hand to remind her that she wasn't facing them alone. "Glenn seems okay, and we can do this. It's four on three, so we have the advantage of number on our side.", he said while glancing to Clare's belly. She laughed, because again Eli had helped calm her nerves and make her feel like she could do anything. She felt a loss of warmth when Eli released her hand in order to step out of the car. He walked to the other side and opened the door for Clare to get out as well.

"Eli, Clare, what brings you here this afternoon." Glenn directed the question to both of them kindly but was staring at Clare's bulging stomach when he spoke. She had forgotten that Glenn had only heard about the twins but had yet to see her, so for him she went from skinny to four months pregnant with twins. Oops.

"I need to talk to mom, and you." Clare had added him into the equation, because it would be easier to hear from her instead of a hysterical Helen. He led them into the house and called to Helen who was upstairs putting some laundry away.

She walked down the steps and smiled pleasantly to Clare and Eli. Clare felt so guilty that she was dropping this bomb when her mom had finally gotten back to normal after the pregnancy announcement, going to Eli's, and the twins announcement. "Hi, Clare-Bear.", she said using the nick name. Clare only tolerated that name from her mother, because from anyone else it wasn't sweet and caring. "This is a nice surprise, are you staying for dinner?"

Clare smelled chicken casserole baking in the oven but knew that invitation wouldn't be welcoming for long. "Actually, I don't think we are. I wanted to talk to you about something."

Helen's smile fell right away. "Please tell me you're not having triplets now." Helen tried to make it sound like a joke, but Glenn seemed a little worried about what this news could be too and glanced to Clare's belly quickly.

Clare knew that every time she said she had news it always seemed to be more shocking than what had come before it. This was no exception. Helen walked the rest of the way down the steps and stood beside Glenn across from Eli and Clare. "No triplets, still only two in here. Um...I guess I should go ahead and say this fast. I'm moving...to New York...to live with Eli...in his apartment." She thought, after seeing her mother's expression, that she should have saved that last part, but it was in the open, and she couldn't take it back.

Helen and Glenn had identical expressions of shock right down to their mouths hanging slightly open and eyes goggling out of their heads. Glenn managed to close his mouth, but Helen had only progressed to opening and shutting it wordlessly, much like Clare had done when she was talking to Parker so many months ago. Glenn spoke first, since Helen had just regained control over her own mouth. "You're moving in with a boy, the one that isn't the father? And you're just dropping out of high school?"

Clare realized how awful she must look in the light of what she had said. "Oh, no! I'm going to do home schooling, but I am moving in with Eli. He's no the father, but he's helped more than Parker ever did or would have. He already has an apartment on hold, and he has a job with good pay secured. I'm not running into this blindly, I've looked both ways, and I know what's on the other side of the street."

Helen was processing everything her daughter had told her. Pregnancy was bad enough, but now Clare was running away with a boy. Eloping might not have been this bad, since an annulment would have been an option. "What about college, and who will take care of the babies while you're doing school work? How can Eli's salary alone pay for both of you and two babies?" She knew the only way to make Clare stay was by convincing her it was the best option.

"He already has money saved from working at the radio station for a year and not spending any of the money, and the job pays better than some starting salaries for adults who are already out of college. I will be far enough ahead by the time the babies are born to do school work and take care of them. And, you said college was a slim option anyway, so why stay here, if I can go where I have a better chance of going at all?"

Eli saw Helen gearing up for round two, so he stepped up to the plate. "Mrs. Martin, I assure you that I would never ask Clare to accompany me if I wasn't one hundred and ten percent sure that I can provide for her and the twins. If she wants to go to college, we'll make it work. By the time she graduates, I might have enough money saved up to pay for day care, and Clare is smart enough to get a scholarship to any college. You can't change her mind if she wants to go, and I'm not forcing her to do anything she doesn't want to. She can choose to stay anytime she wants, but we came here as a courtesy to you and Mr. Martin. This isn't an opportunity to change her mind, it's your chance to say good bye. Our flight leaves tomorrow at five in the morning."

Helen started crying softly, and Eli felt bad for being harsh with her, but he would rather she cry than Clare. He took a step back, and Clare squeezed his hand in thanks. He had just done what she couldn't make herself do. She wanted to tell her mom those things, but it wasn't easy. They stayed for a little while longer, so Clare could say her good byes to everyone, but she was ready to leave before too long.

Dinner was ready at the Goldsworthy residence when they arrived back from their escapade, and Clare was ready for food. They ate and talked for a while. Bullfrog had to get up at five to go into work, so he offered Clare and Eli a ride. Cece hugged them both tightly and ordered Eli to call when they arrived. She then told Clare to make Eli call when they arrived, because she knew Eli would forget after an eighteen hour flight.

Eli brought all of their bags to sit beside the front door, so they could be loaded quickly into Bullfrog's mustang the next morning, and he and Clare went to bed early that night. While they were lying in bed together, Eli finally realized something that had slipped his mind when making plans. "Clare, the apartment has two bed rooms, so you can have your own now if you want."

The ball had just been thrown into Clare's court. She had to either leave the comfort of Eli's arms or admit that she wanted to continue sharing a bed with him when she didn't have to, but the answer was given to her in the form of a kick. "Maybe it would be better to make the extra room a nursery. I want the twins in a room with me for at least a few months after they're born, but they will need their own room before long. If you don't mind continuing this arrangement, we could have the master bed room, and they could have the extra."

She didn't want to force the idea on him, so they had both tip toed around a definitive answer. Eli smiled, because he knew they both liked the way they were doing things. It had become normal and comfortable to share a bed with Clare, and he was glad to have a reason not to give it up. "That sounds like a better idea. We already have the bassinets for them to sleep in, and soon I should be able to afford a changing table and maybe a rocking chair. Do you want me to paint the room a certain color?"

This was one of the craziest moments ever. Eli and Clare were lying in bed together discussing how they would decorate the nursery. It felt so surreal that she was having this conversation with him like they were in a relationship, sharing a bed, talking about raising children together, but they weren't in a relationship. "It has to be a neutral color, and not black. That's not a baby color, and I don't care what you say.", she joked with him but knew he wouldn't have proposed it.

Eli laughed with her and pulled her closer to him. "What about a green, like forest green, not lime green please." He would do whatever color she wanted, but he wasn't against giving his opinion.

"Green is a nice color, but let's paint after we have all of the necessities. I don't think the babies will care about the color of the room if they have no clothes to wear." That wouldn't happen though. Clare had called Alli after dinner and had been informed that the baby clothes would arrive by four-thirty, which was when they were leaving for the airport. Alli had also told Clare that she wanted weekly pictures of the twins and calls or texts as often as possible. Since Helen had asked the same favor, Clare couldn't say no.

The next morning Alli rang Eli's front door bell at Four-twenty in her pajamas, weighed down by very full duffel bags. "They're going to get wrinkled, but you left me no choice. Boy clothes are in this bag, and girl clothes are in this bag. I bought clothes all all the way up to seven months old, so they won't need new ones for a while."

Eli and Clare stood in shock at the door. Alli had gone beyond expectation, and the duffel bags were the largest size she could find but still looked like they may burst. "We don't even know what we're having yet."

"That's why I got so much of each. You will have a very spoiled boy and girl or just enough for two of either. You can thank me by sending lots of pictures and hugging me before I feel unloved!" Clare laughed and cried, as did Alli, when they hugged each other tightly. Eli side stepped past them to put the two extra bags in the trunk of the car.

Alli and Clare broke apart with both wiping their eyes and crying profusely. "Alright, are you kids re-" Bullfrog cut off in the middle of his word at the sight of a hugging Clare and Alli. "Boy, how many girls are you taking on this trip?", he asked obnoxiously.

Clare and Alli blushed while Eli pushed Bullfrog out the door and told him they would be out soon. "I should go. My mom only let me borrow the car this morning, because you were leaving so early and she didn't want to get up when I could drive. I love you, and call me as soon as you get there and take lots of pictures of everything and don't forget us here, okay?"

Clare's tears were streaming harder down her face, but she managed to stutter out, "I co-uld n- never for- forget you." They shared one more hug before Alli turned and walked to her mom's car. She looked back and waved to Clare who was holding tightly to Eli's hand as they watched Alli go.

The drive was quiet but peaceful. Clare went back to sleep, although it was only a ten minute ride to the airport, and Eli felt like he was the luckiest person to ever walk the earth. Clare was asleep on his shoulder while they were on the way to catch their flight to New York where she would live with him. They arrived at the airport and went through all the formalities before boarding their plane where Clare promptly fell asleep on Eli's shoulder again.

Eighteen hours and many boring conversations later Clare and Eli were stretching their legs in the United States of America's melting pot. Eli stretched his arms high above his head and groaned in relief. "So, want to go get some real food?", Eli asked looking over to Clare.

Her stomach picked that moment to growl. "Maybe we should get everything to the apartment and then go eat." She would have suggested skipping food in favor of sleep, but she had to feed her babies. Eli nodded and went to get the luggage. He had six large bags and one rolling suit case, because Clare was only allowed to take two of the rolling ones. She had grumbled at first but quickly decided on being helpful instead.

Eli had already called a taxi, so there was a yellow car with small, round man standing beside it waiting for their arrival. Eli gave the taxi driver their new address after he had loaded the bags into the car, and they departed. When they arrived Clare offered to help with the bags, but Eli insisted that she only get her own rolling bag, if she had to get any, which she did. He took the rest of the bags to the elevator and paid the taxi driver before making his way inside their new apartment with the bags. They stood there in the doorway with their bags scattered around them and knew that this was where they were both ssupposed to be. Together.

August 20

"Are you sure you want to go?", Clare asked Eli for what seemed like the hundredth time. Eli didn't have a class that day, but he had a paper to write and tests to study for, but instead he was going to Clare's doctor's appointment with her.

He rolled his eyes and answered again. "You're going to a new doctor in a new city to find out the gender of the babies. I'm going. My paper is over half done, and those tests are over barely high school level material." She knew he would go no matter what she said, so she sighed and ate her lunch.

"Clare Edwards.", a nurse called to the waiting room. Clare stood up with a little difficulty and walked with Eli behind the nurse to an exam room. The nurse took blood, checked Clare's blood pressure, and told them the doctor would be with them shortly.

A woman entered the room and looked at Clare and Eli. "Hello, I'm Dr. Shayne. Mrs. Edwards, I see you are into your sixth month, and you're having twins." The doctor asked many of the same questions as Dr. Lein had before continuing. "Now, it is possible to see the genders of your babies. Would you like to do that?", she asked looking between Eli and Clare.

Clare found herself not correcting Dr. Shayne's obvious assumption that Eli had fathered the twins. Instead she allowed the moment to pass and answered the question. "We want to know.", Clare said confidently. She had been waiting since her last check up to find out what she was having, and the moment had come.

The doctor smiled and nodded before calling a nurse. She went back to where Clare was and asked her to lie back and raise her shirt over her belly. Dr. Shayne measured her abdomen and told them everything was developing normally. The nurse entered the room and greeted them. "Hello, I'm Kara, and I'll be doing your ultrasound.", she told them as she sat down beside the machine.

Clare received the usual caution about cold gel and watched the screen intently. The babies appeared, bigger than ever, on the screen, and their swooshing heart beats filled the room with an ambient warmth. They had been moving quite a bit as of late and that day was no exception. She watched as her twins squirmed and kicked while she felt it happening. "I see the babies are developing as they should. There are no obvious abnormalities, and all of your previous tests look good. Sometimes with twins you just can't tell the gender with them moving so closely together, but I see very clearly what you're having.", Dr. Shayne announced. She told Clare and Eli and watched their faces glow in happiness.

Eli took Clare's hand and she looked up at him. "Looks like we're having Daniel and Tori."

Even though you all know what Daniel's middle name will be, I won't officially say it until they're born...because Eli doesn't know yet. Happy? Sad? Review!