CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNING: MENTIONS OF SUICIDE AND ATTEMPTED SUICIDE, RAPE, CHARACTER DEATH(S), TRAUMA, DRINKING, MISCARRIAGE, THE BUS CRASH, GRIEF
This chapter revolves around some heavy material coming from the end of Next Class Season Three. There is also somewhat graphic imagery regarding a character's death, and mentions of Clare's miscarriage. If any of this content is triggering for you, PLEASE SKIP THIS CHAPTER!
Also, Darcy makes a comeback uwu
Once again, I don't own Degrassi or any of these poor unfortunate souls who just need a goddamn hug
Winter break at the Edwards household consisted of more alcohol than Clare knew her mother even had. Glen and Helen planned a night in, but Helen decided to start the night babysitting her household to make sure nothing was destroyed.
"Helen, I promise you, there will be no roller skating down the stairs. You don't need to hover. We're adults." Jake had gotten home earlier that morning and already set his sights on a particularly expensive bottle of champagne.
"You know, you said that when I caught you smoking weed your senior year," replied Helen. "An event which, if I remember correctly, had you roller skating up and down the stairs and had Eli somehow wind up naked in Clare's bed."
"Okay, he was not naked, first of all," Clare explained. "Second, we are adults now, Mom. We're mature and can handle a night of drinking and having fun, sans parents." Helen smiled, knowing that at the end of the day, her kids could handle any chaos that came their way.
"Okay," she conceded. Clare and Jake high-fived each other as Eli walked through the front door.
"MY MAN!"
"JAKEY!" The two men leaped into each other's arms, holding on as though they would never see each other again.
"What am I, a grilled cheese?" Clare joked.
"Hey, you live with the guy," said Jake, his arms still wrapped around Eli. "Let me get some quality time for once." As the three laughed, Helen walked over, phone in hand and a smile on her face.
"I have a surprise that just arrived for you," she said.
"What is it?" asked Clare.
"Close your eyes, all of you." Confused, they all shut their eyes. The sound of the front door opening was heard, along with a second set of footsteps. "Okay, open your eyes." After readjusting to the light, Clare couldn't believe the sight that was in front of her.
"Darcy?!" she cried out.
"Surprise!" The two sisters hugged as Jake and Eli looked on in confusion.
"Not gonna lie, I kinda forgot you had a sister," said Eli.
"You're still alive?" Jake asked jokingly.
"I had to meet you in person at least once," replied Darcy. "Nice to finally see you, step-brother."
"The pleasure is mine, step-sister," drawled Jake, hugging her as well.
"Eli, good to see you again."
"Welcome back, Darcy," Eli replied. Helen moved to grab a drink and headed for her room.
"I suppose I'll let you all have fun," she said with a slight side-eye. Darcy and Clare both gave her a look and she retreated to her room, Glen shouting goodnight before shutting the door. Jake ran for the booze and came back with the champagne and a half-empty bottle of vodka.
"Let's get this party started."
*Several drinks later*
The friends, now joined by Imogen, were all laughing in the living room, all of them pretty drunk.
"Wait wait wait," Darcy cried. "So you got high during school, got naked in the girl's locker room, and through the halls and into Mr. Simpson?!" Eli buried his head in shame, but laughed anyway.
"It was legendary!" laughed Jake.
"Definitely a sight to behold," said Clare. "You somehow managed to make me both angry and kind of horny."
"Oh really?" said Eli. "I like how honest drunk Clare is."
"Keep it in your pants, Goldsworthy," slurred Imogen. "The spirit of Drew Torres might return to claim her and her womb once more." At this sentiment, Jake promptly spat out his drink and yelled "YOU HAD SEX WITH DREW TORRES?!"
"You were pregnant?!" cried Darcy.
"Okay, so here's the thing," Clare started. "I only had sex with him once, thought he was the father, but it was actually Eli, and then I had a miscarriage because cancer ruined my uterus." Darcy and Jake looked stunned while Imogen took a shot and Eli started laughing again. "Yeah, senior year was a giant clusterfuck."
"Jesus Christ, I've been gone too long," mused Darcy. Imogen quietly handed her a shot, which she quickly downed.
"Oh hon, this is just the tip of the iceberg," said Clare.
"Yeah, these two knuckleheads dated for a while," Eli said, gesturing to Clare and Jake. Jake sank into his seat and Clare's face turned red as Eli and Imogen laughed.
"Was this before or after our parents got married?" asked a wide-eyed Darcy.
"Both!" laughed Imogen. Darcy took another shot along with Jake.
"Hey, we ended it shortly after the wedding," said Clare.
"And then I made out with Katie Matlin and the rest is history," Jake said, pouring out some more champagne, only to find the bottle empty.
"Speaking of which, where is Katie?" asked Imogen. "I thought you said she was coming."
"She's probably just running late," answered Jake. A second later, his phone went off. "Speak of the devil."
"Tell her to pick up more booze!" yelled Eli as Jake walked away to take the call.
"Yeah, we're gonna need it," laughed Darcy. A startled cry from Jake brought the noise to a grinding halt.
"Oh my God," he said. "No, I'm coming right now."
"What's going on?" asked Clare, as Jake ran around looking for his shoes and jacket.
"Katie's at the hospital," Jake cried.
"My God, what happened?" Darcy asked. "Is she okay?"
"She's fine," Jake said, pulling out his phone once more. "It's her sister, Maya. She OD'd. They think she tried to kill herself."
"What?!" cried Imogen. "Oh my God!"
"You're not driving," Darcy stated.
"Hell no, I'm taking an Uber." Jake ran out the front door as the other sat in shock. Clare looked at Eli, who was slightly pale and staring at the floor.
"Isn't Maya-" she started.
"Campbell's girlfriend?" whispered Eli. "Yeah."
"She was a founding member of WhisperHug," sighed Imogen sadly. "She was always so bubbly and nice. I mean, she was kinda different after Cam died, and she was in that bus crash, but I never thought she would-"
"You never know," said Darcy. "You never know what kind of demons haunt a person." Imogen sat crying while Clare stared at Eli, pale and focused on his feet.
"Eli…" she started.
"I'm okay," he said, taking a breath and sitting up to face her. "I'm okay."
"It's late," said Darcy, helping Imogen to her feet. "We should all try and get some sleep. Imogen, you can stay with me in my room." The two made their way up the stairs followed by Eli and Clare. Sometime later, while Eli went to the bathroom, Darcy came into Clare's room.
"Is Eli okay?" she asked.
"I think so," Clare said. "It's just a touchy subject."
"I could tell. Who's Cam?" Clare tensed up at the mention of his name. The memory was just as traumatizing for her as it was for Eli.
"Um...Cam was a student who went to Degrassi with us. He and Maya dated. When I was a junior...he killed himself. In the school greenhouse. Eli was the one who found the body. I was with him, but I only caught a glimpse before Eli pulled me away and told me to call the police." Clare sat on her bed, her nails digging into her knees.
"Oh my God," sighed Darcy, sitting next to her.
"Eli didn't cope with it really well. He kept having nightmares, and he wound up taking MDMA. That's why he went streaking, he was trying to find a way to deal."
"Clare, I am so sorry you two had to go through that." Darcy pulled her little sister into a massive hug. She had missed her so much, and felt guilty that she wasn't home when Clare was struggling with everything she had gone through.
"Hey." Eli stood in the doorway, a sad smile on his face.
"I'm gonna check on Imogen," said Darcy. She kissed Clare's head and made her way out, patting Eli on the shoulder. Suddenly, the sound of the front door broke through the silence.
"Jake?!" Clare cried out. The three ran to landing at the top of the stairs, with Imogen stumbling out of Darcy's room.
"What happened? Is she okay?" asked Imogen.
"She's gonna be okay," Jake said, looking at them from the bottom. Everyone sighed, and Imogen staring crying again. Clare looked at Eli, whispering, "She's gonna be okay" before hugging him tightly.
"Katie and her mom are staying at the hospital overnight," continued Jake. "I'm gonna go back in the morning, see if there's anything I can do."
"That's very sweet of you, Jake," said Darcy. "Get some sleep, okay?"
Clare was woken up by the sound of someone screaming. The sound of Eli screaming. She bolted upright to find Eli sitting up, breathing heavily, tears streaming down his face.
"Hey hey hey what happened?" she asked, her hand on his shoulder. Footsteps came hurtling toward her room, and Darcy threw the door open and entered.
"What's going on?" she gasped.
"It's nothing," said Eli. "Just…"
"Had another nightmare?" finished Darcy. Eli shot her a confused look. "Clare told me about Cam. I know this whole is probably very triggering for you." She sat on the edge of the bed.
"You have no idea," whispered Eli. "This shouldn't be happening again."
"But it's okay if it does," Darcy said. "Trauma is a lifelong struggle. I deal with too."
"Really?" Darcy nodded.
"When I was in high school, I was raped. I went to a party and someone spiked my drink and took advantage of me. They never identified him. Right after it happened, I was really suicidal. Everywhere I turned, I was scared that he was there. I got help, and I healed over time, but sometimes I still get that feeling that any of the men around me could be him. And I panic. Sometimes I dream about the night it happened and wake up in a cold sweat. It's perfectly normal to relive the trauma sometimes, and there is absolutely nothing to be ashamed about."
"I don't know why I keep thinking about that day," sighed Eli. "After everything that's happened… Julia, Adam, Little Adam, the hearse, the whole thing with Asher...it's always Cam."
"What about Cam was so different?" asked Darcy.
"I wasn't there when Julia and Adam died. Losing the baby was really sad, but not to that degree. But seeing Cam...lying there...blood all over the floor a-and his skates…" Eli started crying and put his face in his hands.
"It's more personal," said Darcy. "Because you witnessed death, not just the aftermath."
"It not fair," Eli whimpered. Clare laid her head on his shoulder, a few tears coming down her cheeks. "I didn't know him. I should be over it."
"That's not how grief works, Eli," Darcy said, shifting so that she was closer to them. "I'm gonna tell you what my therapist told me. Grief acts like this big box, and in the box is a big red button and a ball. At first, the ball is huge, and it constantly hits the button and makes you feel awful. Over time, the ball gets smaller and it hits the button less and less. But sometimes it still hits the button, and you feel that same amount of pain and sadness. And that's okay."
"Darcy's right," whispered Clare. "And this time, it's different. Maya's alive. She's gonna be okay."
"And you're gonna be okay too, Eli. You are not the same boy who crashed his car during a manic episode. You are stronger and wiser, and you and Maya will get through this." Eli looked at Darcy with puffy eyes.
"Thank you, Darcy." Darcy pulled the two of them into a hug.
"You're my family too, Eli. Don't forget that." Darcy let them go and Eli wiped away his tears. "If you ever need anything-"
"I'll make a pit stop in Kenya," joked Eli. The three laughed for a moment, and everything felt more normal than it had been in a long time. "Clare, remind me in the morning to call my therapist." Clare nodded, and Darcy gave her another kiss on the head before heading back to bed. "Have I ever told you how much I love your siblings?" Clare giggled as they held each other and fell back into bed.
"I feel the same," she said. She kissed Eli and wrapped herself around him, the two falling back into a peaceful sleep.
PHEW what a rollercoaster... I promise future chapters will be more lighthearted, but not without their drama hehehe... Let me know what y'all think!
