All I Ask Of You
Author's Note: I don't own Degrassi nor any other literary or pop culture references. As always, you can find me on twitter at takethecurve or on tumblr at takethecurve dot tumblr dot com.
Chapter 12
Stop and Stare at the Sea of Smiles Around You
I woke up in a sweat, unaccustomed to sleeping next to someone, and I tried not to wake the slumbering boy beside me as I stretched slightly, letting out a quiet yawn. The sun streamed in thin lines between the blinds in my window, and I looked to the clock on my bedside table to find it nearing mid-morning. I had planned to quietly slip out of bed to go brush my teeth and freshen up, but before I got barely an inch away, Eli's arms tightened around me, pulling me back to his chest.
"Five more minutes," he grumbled, his voice deeper than I'd ever heard it.
"You sound like an old man in the morning," I teased, unwrapping his arms. "I'm just going to the bathroom."
I laughed as he rolled on his stomach, still partially dead to the world.
"Please tell me your mom's gone to work or church or something," he yawned.
"Yeah, she probably left a couple of hours ago," I assured him. "But if it will ease your mind, I will double check."
"Yes, please. And I wouldn't hate it if you came back with pancakes," he smiled sleepily at me.
"Don't push your luck," I smirked, opening my bedroom door to hear the expected quiet of my empty house.
I plodded downstairs to double check that my mother's car was indeed gone, not that I had any doubts, before trudging back up to the bathroom. With an empty bladder and freshly brushed teeth, I ran my fingers through my unruly curls before climbing back into bed.
"You can rest easy, the wicked witch is gone," I informed him.
"And so the munchkins will celebrate," he shot back, pushing himself up. "So I can go to the bathroom without fear of stones or… pickaxes?"
"By all means," I laughed as he climbed out of bed, almost tripping over his clothes on the floor.
"Shut up," he called back to me.
A few minutes later, he didn't look any more awake, but as he climbed back in bed, pushing his body flush with mine underneath the sheets, I could smell the faint hint of my mint toothpaste.
"Good morning," I said softly before brushing my lips softly against his.
"You're a morning person, aren't you?" he groaned against my lips, but kissed me back with more fervor, his tongue darting shyly to meet mine. My hand came up to grip the back of his neck as his own slid just under the hem of my t-shirt, pulling me closer still to him, and I hitched my leg up over his hip, tangling us together.
I blushed as his hand sneaked up my back, rubbing the skin between my shoulder blades, and I found myself almost breathless as our kisses became more heated. Suddenly, I gasped as he pushed himself up and over on top of me, settling between my legs. His lips moved to my neck, kissing the small surface of skin my t-shirt left uncovered. I could feel him try to stretch the neck aside, but the fabric wasn't very forgiving, so he just moved back to my lips. I cursed myself inwardly for not wearing something a bit less conservative, if only to feel his mouth on my skin again.
My hands slid underneath the back of his thin t-shirt as I wrapped my arms around him, feeling him begin to gently grind himself against me, and I let out an unmistakable moan as he leaned on one elbow, letting his free hand glide up my side underneath my shirt, stopping just below my ribcage. His fingers left trails of fire on my skin, and I found myself wishing he wouldn't stop there, but not knowing how to say so without embarrassing myself.
His hips continued to push into mine as he moved back to my neck, kissing that sensitive skin just beneath my ear. I blushed heavily, feeling him hard between my legs, and I ran my fingernails down his back before bringing my hands back up near his shoulder blades, pushing his shirt up in the process.
Eli sat up abruptly, startling me as without a thought, he pulled his t-shirt over his head before diving back down to my neck. I think he had intended to bring his hand back to my ribcage like before, but in his fervor, he brushed the underside of my breast, and I jumped at the brief contact. Eli jumped back a bit, his own face reddened.
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to…" he breathed.
"I… it's okay," I tried to assure him, but my own embarrassment must've been evident on my face. He rolled back off me, reaching down to pick up his t-shirt off the floor beside the bed.
"I'm sorry," he said again, slipping his shirt back on. "I should've put the brakes on sooner."
"It's okay, Eli," I tried to assure him. "It's fine." I sat up, reaching to rub his shoulder in comfort.
He took a deep breath before turning back to smile gently at me.
"Why don't we step away from the bed and maybe focus on some breakfast," he suggested.
"Uh… sure," I answered, climbing out of bed and heading for the door. I looked back at him confused when he didn't follow.
"I'll be down in a minute," he said, his face still tinged pink. "You go on."
"Ok…" I said, confused, before heading downstairs.
As I neared the bottom step, I thought I heard the bathroom door shut, but I put it out of my mind as I set about getting out what I needed for breakfast. I took Eli's pancake joke to heart, pulling out a box of pancake mix, before putting our griddle on the stove to heat. I had finished mixing the batter and was waiting on the butter to melt and coat the griddle when Eli came downstairs, having pulled his jeans back on.
"You didn't have to really make me pancakes," he smirked, and I smiled at his disheveled bed head.
"Actually, you should know that your… that I'm the resident pancake chef at la maison d'Edwards," I teased, stumbling awkwardly through my sentence as I poured four small pools of batter on the griddle.
"You can call yourself my girlfriend, you know," he assured me, walking up behind me to put his arms around me as his head rested on my shoulder.
"Sorry," I apologized, kicking myself for the blunder. "I don't know why I stumbled over that."
"No worries," he said softly, kissing my cheek lightly before moving to lean on the counter next to the stove.
Before long, I had a nice sized stack of pancakes, and Eli and I sat down at the table to eat. I marveled at how many he many to eat, eyeing his skinny frame in disbelief.
"You are a human vacuum!" I exclaimed as he reached for a third helping.
"I'm a growing boy!" he shouted back with his mouth full, making me laugh even harder. "Besides, I had a long night, thank you very much!"
"Touché," I said, rolling my eyes. "So what are your plans for the day?"
Eli swallowed before answering. "I have to see my therapist this afternoon, but I'm free after that." I saw his eyes move to the microwave to see the time. "Actually, I'm gonna have to jet soon. I'm pretty sure Doc won't appreciate me showing up without a shower first."
"Wouldn't want her to think you've been gallivanting about all night, right?" I teased.
"Of course not," he smiled as I took our dishes, rinsing them in the sink before loading them into the dishwasher.
"What about you?" he asked. "What grand plans are in store for the day?"
"Laziness," I answered offhand.
"Well, I'll let you get to that," he laughed, before heading upstairs to get the rest of his things.
"Your parents aren't going to be mad that you stayed out all night, are they?" I asked as the idea suddenly occurred to me.
"Nah, I told them I was coming over here last night after I left Fiona's."
"You were at Fiona's?" I asked, confused.
"Long story, but yeah, I had to talk some things out with her before I came over," he admitted.
"It's so bizarre that you two ended up friends," I commented. "You seem so different."
"Yeah well, it just kinda happened," he shrugged.
"Alright, get outta here. Don't want you to be stinky or late for your appointment," I smiled.
"I'll call you when I get out, okay?" he responded, kissing me quickly before heading for the door.
"Bye," I called after him, watching him pull the door to a close behind him.
Even with him gone, the sense of euphoria from our reunion stayed with me. I cleaned up the kitchen, singing to myself, before heading upstairs to make my bed and take a shower. The sheets smelled faintly of Eli's cologne, and I fought the urge to climb back in bed for a bit just to take it all in. Once I was showered, I poured over my wardrobe, trying to decide what to wear. Finally, I decided on a dark blue floral sundress that buttoned up the front. I pulled my thick brown belt out and fastened it around my torso, letting it settle at my natural waist, before darting back into the bathroom to tame my wet curls.
Once I had primped and was satisfied with my makeup, I walked barefoot back downstairs to watch some tv. I was flipping channels absentmindedly when the doorbell rang. I muted the tv before getting up to answer it, and found none other than Adam standing at my door, Bianca of all people on his heels.
"Hi," I greeted, confused by his company.
"Clare, you know Bianca, right?" Adam asked, inviting her in behind him.
"Uh… sure, what brings you both here?" I asked, motioning for them to come into the living room.
"Like you don't know," Adam teased. "Eli called me at a downright ungodly hour this morning."
"Maybe if you weren't so lazy, it wouldn't be so ungodly," Bianca quipped. "Try having a job."
Adam rolled his eyes.
"So you and Dr. Doom got back together?" Bianca asked, clearly lacking any sense of tact.
"Uh… yeah, last night," I answered shortly, still taken aback by Bianca's presence. I felt intimidated, and I didn't even understand why.
"Well, it's about time," Adam commented, adjusting his sling. My brow furrowed as I watched Bianca reach over and help him with it.
"Am I missing something? Excuse me for being blunt, but I thought you hated each another," I blurted.
"Well, I see more of her than I'd like," Adam began as Bianca elbowed him in the ribs on his good side. "But she's working in my dad's law firm this summer, part of her plea bargain from the whole shooting-slash-gang era of our year."
"And today that involves being this one's chauffeur," she followed.
"I have physical therapy shortly, but I wanted to stop by here first, you know, to congratulate you on finally seeing the light," he smirked.
"Ah, well thank you, and sorry for all the drama before," I said vaguely, not wanting to hash out any more details in front of Bianca, since I didn't really know much about her other than her less than appropriate reputation.
"No prob. Alright, Bee, let's get over to the doc, so you can laugh your face off at me trying to lift a kiddie weight or something," Adam laughed.
"Oh don't worry, I won't take too many pictures," she teased back, and I still marveled at their unexpected camaraderie.
I closed the door behind them, with what I'm sure was the most confounded expression I'd ever had on my face, but still, I couldn't help but smile to myself that Bianca seemed to genuinely like spending time with him, and that made me happy. Adam definitely deserved a happy, drama-free summer, and if Bianca could help him with that, then she had my stamp of approval.
My mother arrived home shortly after four o'clock, and I had decided that I needed to breach this Eli topic once more. I would not take no for an answer, and she was going to have to see my side of things, one way or another, so after she had settled in, I sat down across from her in the living room and put on my serious talk face.
"Mom, I need to talk to you about something," I began, hoping not to alarm her, but wanting her to know that I meant business.
"Okay…" she looked at me skeptically.
"Before I say anything, can you please keep an open mind about what I have to say, and not shoot me down right away?" I asked.
She sighed.
"I will try, Clare," she said, sounding vaguely exasperated. I tried not to let her lack of enthusiasm annoy me before I even got started.
"I want to talk about Eli," I stated, waiting for her reaction. I could see the anger flash in her eyes as I brought him up again, but she remained true to her word.
"What about Eli?" she asked cautiously.
"I want him to have a second chance at a first impression," I told her. "I ruined any opportunity he had to impress you during that disastrous first family dinner, and he didn't deserve that."
"It wasn't your best behavior," she agreed. "I'll give you that."
"So," I led on. "I want to try it again. Let's have a family dinner, and allow him to make the first impression without me tainting it."
"Clare, I really don't understand why you keep pushing this," she admitted.
"Because Eli is my friend, and he's important to me," I insisted. "And I don't want to have to sneak around and see him behind your back. It's not fair that you won't at least give him a chance."
My mother leaned back on the couch, and I could tell she was thinking hard.
"I'll only agree to this if it's a real family dinner," she began, and I silently rejoiced. "Which means our new family. Glen, Jake, you, and myself."
My face had to have visibly fallen at her suggestion because I saw the corners of her mouth almost turn up into an evil grin, but I knew exactly what she was playing. She thought that with the suggestion of Jake being there, that I would back out, and I had no intentions of caving now that I had gotten this far.
"Deal," I spoke, raising my eyebrow. "Name the date, and I'll make sure he's in attendance."
She obviously hadn't expected me to agree, but she kept up with me.
"Next Saturday?"
"Next Saturday, it is," I smiled, getting up and heading back upstairs to my room. I had a missed call from Eli from barely five minutes prior, so I quickly dialed him back.
"And here I was thinking you were ready to be rid of me already," he teased.
"Never," I assured him. "Can you meet me at The Dot in say, half an hour?"
"Sure, I don't see why not."
"Great, see you then," I told him, saying our goodbyes before hanging up. I slid on some brown leather sandals before heading back downstairs. My mother was browsing through the mail as I entered the kitchen.
"I'm gonna go meet some friends at The Dot for dinner, if that's okay," I told her, not wanting it to sound too much like a question.
"Sure, don't be too late tonight," she answered, not looking up from the LL Bean catalogue in her hand.
With that, I headed out with my bus pass in hand, and Eli was waiting for me outside The Dot as I stepped off the bus. I suppressed the urge to run to him and throw my arms around him, still so happy to be with him again, but I did settle for grabbing his hand when I got close enough. He leaned down, kissing me quickly.
"I have the best news," I informed him. "My mother agreed to giving you a second chance! She agreed to another family dinner next Saturday."
"Oh really?" he laughed. "Did you drug her?"
"No, but there is one little snafu, just a tiny thing, really," I tried to keep smiling, my confidence waning.
"Uh oh…"
"Glen and Jake will be joining the three of us for dinner," I said very rushed, my brow rising to await his response.
He was silent for a moment.
"This can only end in disaster… but what the hell?" he smirked.
I reached up, hugging him tightly. As I came down off my tiptoes, he took my hand once more before leading us up the sidewalk to The Dot. Leaning in to my ear, he quipped.
"You'd better be glad I like you so much."