Hey everyone. I posted both chapters today, because the last one was a little pathetic and you all deserve the best. I can't believe that this is done. "Taming of Clare Edwards" is no more after this. 38 chapters later, it's done. To be honest there were times where I thought to not even continue this one because I didn't think this idea was worth it all. But you guys proved me wrong. And I love you all for it! This has been my favourite Eclare story to write so far. I appreciate you all for keeping with me, especially when some things were getting kind of tough. And you all are amazing! All your subscriptions, favourites, and reviews! They made my day to read all those! :D Well I don't want to keep you guys so long from the story. :D
But this is the one you guys have been really waiting for, and you didn't even know it. This one is kinda long. There are a lot of parts to it. It's titled "Raise Your Glass" by P!nk. I thought, in a way. If you think about it, it makes sense. But it'll seem a little jumpy because it's all chopped up. But I think it's good. But I guess that is your decision, so to all you guys, READ, REVIEW, and ENJOY!
Months passed since the whole "homecoming" drama, as what Clare put it. The holidays passed, celebrating Thanksgiving with her new family the Bhandari's, staying at the Goldsworthy's for Christmas and New Years. Still happily in love with Eli. She officially moved into the Bhandari's, as none of her belongings were left at the Edward's home. Including the heart shaped sealed locket that held a tiny bit of Darcy's ashes that replaced her cross necklace. She hadn't talked to her father, Randall in months. She had no idea if he still lived in the house. Clare was on top of the world. Until one January night.
Alli and Clare were in the washrooms as Drew and Eli paid for their double date dinner. Alli was fixing her makeup as Clare sat idly by. Clare admired the locket for a moment when Alli wasn't looking. She caught her as they were leaving Alli pointed out, "You don't think it's kind of creepy wearing a thing of ashes around your neck all the time?"
"It's a completely sealed locket. It's just a part of my sister and I like to feel like she's always with me. When someone close to you passes, it's nice to have something with you to make you know they are there." She sighed lightly and glance at Drew and Eli talking from across a few tables. "Like Eli. His necklace used to be Julia's. And he wears it to remember her."
"Yeah well. That's a belonging, not a cremated person."
"Alli just shut up about it."
Eli and Drew scooted out of the booth, standing by their girlfriends. "Ready to go?" Drew asked, and Alli replied with a nod and hugged his arm. "Clare?" Alli asked.
"I think I'm going to hang at Eli's for a little bit. I'll be home later tonight." Clare responded as they all headed out of Little Miss Steaks, and into the lightly falling snow. They waved goodbye and headed their separate ways. Eli placed his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close away from the snow. Clare groaned, "And why didn't you bring Morty?"
"Because I thought the walk home would be fun."
"Freezing is fun to you?" Clare sarcastically asked.
"No, I was thinking more along the lines of…" Eli said, and Clare caught the snowball he made, sliding his hand a top a small fence. Clare interrupted, "This?" she shoved him into an area of snow covered grass. He sat up shaking the snow off him. And while Clare was laughing he grabbed her hand and pulled her down next to him.
She grabbed a handful of snow and shoved it in his face once she hit the ground. Then rolled on top of him, using him like a blanket above the snow. Once he wiped the ice flakes off his face his expression grew smug with revenge. Grasping her waist, he flipped her over onto her back and crawled on top of her. Straddling her hips, and keeping his upper body up with his arms. She beamed a smile up at him once she stopped struggling. "Fine. You win."
"That's what I like to hear!" He lowered himself to kiss her. Then he moved his hands to her side to tickle her and she pulled away began to giggle.
"That tickles Eli!" a boisterous laugh came out. "Eli! Stop! Stop! Please!" Continuing to chuckle.
"Clare?" A familiar older female voice said worryingly.
Eli and Clare froze. Eli stared into Clare's widened eyes full of what almost looked like fear. "Clare, what is it?" He whispered.
"We need to go. Now!" She hushed back.
Once Eli was up and helping Clare on her feet as he dusted the snow off her. The voice returned, "Clare!" Eli snapped his head up to see a dark figure running toward them from the street. Once she got in the light, Eli could recognize her as Helen, Clare's mom.
"Mo—mom? What are you doing here?" Clare stuttered. Eli reached for Clare's hand as he took a step in front of her.
"I told you I was going to come back for you." She sweetly smiled.
Clare squeezed Eli's hand, gasping quietly. "You take off, and I don't see you for four months. And you think you come back and just take me?"
"Honey. You're my daughter. Please. Just at least talk with me," Helen begged.
Clare let it run through her mind until deciding, "fine. We will talk."
Eli turned around, moving close to her, "Little one. Are you sure? We can leave now and go back to my place for our movie night. And forget this."
Clare bit her lip. "I have to. She's my mother. I'll be by when I'm done, promise." Eli nodded in agreement. When she leaned in to kiss his cheek, he grabbed her neck and pecked a kiss on her lips.
Eli paced back and forth, flipping his cellphone open and closed. "Baby boy, I bet she's alright." Cece said from the kitchen table.
"It's been two hours! She promised she'd be over when she's done!" Eli screeched, looking at his phone reading "No New Messages".
"Son! She hasn't seen her mother in months. They probably have a lot to talk about. Give it time," Bullfrog said as he entered the room to get another beer. Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and Eli raced toward it. When he opened it, there stood Clare with a light smile on her face and a bag on her shoulder.
"Let's go upstairs," she said quietly, as they made their way to Eli's room.
"What's with the bag?" He asked shutting his door. She walked over to a drawer where she kept her stuff for when she stayed at Eli's. Pulling out a shirt of hers and tossing it in the bag made Eli explode. "What are you doing?"
Clare rubbed her eye with her sleeve. "My mom asked me to move in with her."
"And may I ask where that is exactly, that you can't keep some stuff here?" Eli calmed down, hiding his anger.
"Ottawa."
"Ottawa? That's like 300 miles away!" Eli screeched.
Clare begun to explain, "She moved there and has a job, and an apartment, everything. She left to create a better life, for me!" Clare quickly argued.
But Eli interrupted, "But what about Alli? Sav? Adam? The Bhandari's? Cece and Bullfrog?" He listed growing a more tone of anger every name, then he grabbed her hands, "What about us?"
Clare hesitated, biting her tongue as she slid her hands out of his. "But…What about my mother?"
"The one who left you? The one who knew the bastard she left you with? If anything she's a heartless weakling!" Eli snapped.
"Don't you dare call my mother heartless!" Clare threw another shirt on her bag as she screamed at him, staring him dead in the eye. "What if I called Cece that?"
Eli furrowed his brows, scrunching his face in anger. "Yeah, but who was there for you likea TRUE mother when your real one LEFT you?"-Clare crossed her arms looking down.-"Cece! Her and Bullfrog will do anything for you! They invited you to live with us. Speaking of! Your OTHER family. The Bhandari's! They've been there for you the most! Took you in. They've been some of the best parents I've ever seen."
"But they aren't my REAL family."
"Who the hell decided biology makes a REAL family?" Eli screamed. "What I've learned is families are people who love you. People who are there for you. People who DON'T take off and HURT you."
"But she does love me. She only left to work for a better life for us," Clare cried.
"And what's better than the life you have right now?"-Clare didn't answer-" And, of course she loves you! She had to carry you around for nine months!" He took a breath and inched closer and she put up her arms where he grabbed her wrists to make her look at him. "But why leave with ONE person who loves you and betrayed you, away from dozens of others who would be lost without you."
Clare struggled away from his grasp and didn't speak, just lowered her head to hide the tears she had been holding back. Eli moved his hands, catching her face in his palms and kissed the top of her hair. "I love you Clare." He raised her head to look at her. "I fucked up big in the beginning. But I've spent the last months proving to you that I'd be nothing without you. You made my world whole again. And you're going to leave that for a woman who you haven't even spoken to since September." He whispered as the tears broke through, saddening the tone in his voice. "You can't go."
Clare looked away again, and Eli grabbed the silver heart around her neck. "What about Darcy?" He managed to get out. "What if Darcy was here with you? What would you do with her influence on your decision?"
Clare stared at the locket, before breaking down and collapsing in his chest, grabbing handfuls of his shirt in fists holding her up as her legs grew feeble below her. Eli wrapped his arms around her as they both fell to their knees and leaned against the side of the bed both crying. "I'm sorry," Clare mumbled into his t-shirt. "I can't…I can't…I'm sorry."
Eli shushed her quietly. "Everything is alright. Nothing to be sorry for. Just…do me one favor and don't leave?"
She wiped her tears with her sleeve again and said, "Never." Eli kissed her head, with a huge smile on his lips. "If Darc was here… She'd want me to stay. You're right,"-she looked up at him-"I can't leave my true family." They held each other tighter as they let their final tears finish falling down their cheeks.
"Yeah… It was an emotional night for her. So I just let her crash," Eli said on the phone with Alli, after explaining to her everything that happened with Helen, and his and Clare's "argument".
"Alright sounds good. Tell her I'll see her in the morning," Alli said. "Oh and Eli…Thanks. I know if Clare decided to go with her mom she would of regretted it soon enough. And I'd be heartbroken if she left. We all would."
"Don't worry. I know how you would feel. Well, I'm going to go to bed. I'll be sure to have her call you when she wakes up tomorrow," Eli finished.
"Thanks. Night Elijah!" Alli concluded.
"Night Princess!" Eli chuckled, shutting his phone as he made his way down the hall. Opening his bedroom door; he froze and leaned against the door frame, looking at the sight of the moonlight shining through the window, lighting the area of his bed where Clare laid, delicately asleep. Cuddling the pillow where she rests her head and holding a huge smile upon her face. He rested his head against the frame, lightly smiling with admiration.
"Hey baby boy. I'm off to bed for the night," Cece said walking over to him in her robe and slippers with a cup of tea in hand. "Are you going to be alright?" She set her hand on his shoulder as she pecked a kiss on top of his head.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he said nonchalantly.
Cece noticed how he adored looking at Clare asleep. The love in his eyes made her grin. "She's not going anywhere."
"I know. It's just. When I first met her, she was…a shrew. So filled with all these bottled up emotions, like me… But, I felt like it wasn't really anything to worry about though. But then, once I got to know her. I fell for her. Harder than I did even for Julia. She was the first one to make me feel like… Julia's death wasn't my fault." Cece smiled at him as he ranted. He glanced over at his mother. "When she showed up today telling me she was leaving… I felt like I was going to die. It seemed like Julia all over again. I couldn't stand it."
"However, you talked her out of it. You got her to stay." Cece said in a sing-song voice. "You've both been through a lot in your young lives and I know things can be tough sometimes. But I can see the love you two have for each other. You guys are going to be fine. I can see you two going far together. Trust me, I can tell."
Eli smirked with a sigh, and then glanced back at Clare. "What do you think she's dreaming about?" Eli smiled as Cece hugged him with one arm and kissed his head again.
Clare laid in a field staring up at the skies when Eli leaned over from her head staring down at her. She beamed up at him, "Why Elijah, what are you doing here?" She flirtingly asked.
"C'mon! I have to show you something!" He pulled her up and made her follow him into the woods. She kept following him, until he vanished through some bushes. "Eli!" she shouted, climbing her way through the bush. On the other side, there was no sign of Eli, but a waterfall. She was blown away by the beauty.
"Hey Clare bear!" That voice, it made Clare jump. She twisted around to see Darcy sitting on a boulder in a long white sundress.
"…Dar-Darcy?..." She was scared to even speak her name, as if she would disappear if she did.
"Yep sweetie. It's me!" She gracefully glided off the rock as if she just floated down. She made her way over to Clare and brushed her curls behind her ear. "It's so nice to see you again."
"Darcy…" Clare was tearing up out of joy, before she wrapped her arms around her for the most loving hug she'd ever given. "I can't believe you're here! It's unreal. It's not possible."
"I'm always here Clare bear. I could never leave you," Darcy pulled away and held Clare's shoulders as she spoke. She slid her hand down and grabbed hold of Clare's as they walked alongside the river. "I love the haircut! And I wouldn't think dark brown could uphold your original blondish-brown. But I must say it's cute. And way better than that black hair you had."
Clare giggled, "Yeah well. It was a weird, tough time." They both smiled at each other, taking a seat on the green grass. "Darc…can I ask you something?" She looked up, prepared for her little sister's question. "This is all a dream, isn't it?"
"Afraid so. But dreams are the best part of living. Where we can put our imagination to the best. We can see the things we want to do, places we want to go, people we want to see. Dreams are the most powerful thing to humans. You can't master the creativity that you have in your dreams, when you're conscious. That's why we all live for our dreams. They're the places to go, when nothing else is right. What you see when you don't like what you're already looking at. It changes people worlds. Makes us hope for something in the day." She paused to notice the smile appear on Clare's face. "Dreams are what make us who we are. So a nightmare may come along every now and then. But just because you have one bad dream. Doesn't ruin your life.
"Like Eli… All he does is worry about you. Fear that he will lose you. He has nightmares of you going just like his innocent ex, Julia. But when he does dream. He thinks of the good. The unimaginable. The only problem is we don't have the guts to make those dreams come true in reality."
"What does Eli dream about?" Clare asked.
"You. He sees his mistakes and sees you forgiving him." Darcy said, allowing Clare to interrupt.
"Well I already forgave him. So what is he so scared of to do in reali—" Clare was cut off by Darcy continuing.
"He sees himself growing old with you. Getting married. Having children. Living the life he used to believe he would never have." Darcy said with a tone of happiness.
"We've only been together for like four, almost five months. He doesn't seem like the guy who'd think that far ahead." Clare argued.
"Oh but he does. He wants to travel the world with you. Take you to Paris, Rome, Venice!" Darcy said with exuberance. Clare giggled from Darcy's enthusiasm. Darcy looked up at the glowing sun and spoke, "Well, I have to go now."
"What no! You just got here!" Clare quarreled. "Stay for a little longer. I really miss you! I don't want you to leave again!"
"Clare…I'm always with you. Forever! All you have to do is think of me. I'm always going to be there." Darcy smiled and the both jumped for a hug, making each of them glow. "I love you Clare."
"I love you Darcy!" The light grew until there way just white…
Clare woke up, with her eyes snapping open. She realized she was in Eli's bed, and his arm was hugging her. She looked out the window to see the full moon shining in on them. Moving a bit so she could look at Eli, woke him.
"Clare? Are you okay? Did you have a nightmare?" He asked, scooting back to keep from crushing her.
She completely flipped over so she was facing him. "No, the complete opposite. The most amazing dream ever." Eli smirked at her, sliding his arms back around her. She nuzzled herself into his bare chest, smiling from the warmth of his skin. "Eli?"
"Yeah?" He mumbled as he was snuggling back into slumber.
"Will you take me Venice some day?"
His eyes opened again in surprise. "Uh…sure. I will."
"Promise?"
"I promise!" And he squeezed her closer to him. Both falling back to sleep with smiles of love.
Yes, yes. This was such a cheesy chapter for me. But, I was in the mood for a happy ending. Not really am, so this is a rare occasion. So this is what you guys get. :D I really hoped you liked it. I've fallen in love with this story. I have to thank Degrassi for the character Ideas, and 10 things I hate about you, plus Shakespeare for the story Idea. But most of all, I have to thank you guys for actually reading it! I've had so much fun writing it, but the best of things come to a close some time. I guess it's now. Well I love you all! And I would appreciate your reviews for the way I ended this. Do you like it? Hate it? Too cheesy? I'll take anything. And if you really liked it. I would appreciate it if you would recommend it to friends or whoever that are also into Eclare fanfics and might like this. Again, thank you all! I love each and every one of you for supporting me. And if you aren't sick of me yet, and you haven't already, go check out my other stories. Thanks one more time! :*(^_^) ~Eli