Stand in the Rain

A/N: Thanks for the reviews!

Chapter Two: Our Little Secret

Clare groaned and poked her head out from under the covers when she heard her cellphone ringing on her bedside table. She blindly reached out a hand to grab it, wrapping her small, slender fingers around the object and bringing it torwards her. She lifted her head from the pillow and stared at the phone, seeing Eli's name flash on the tiny screen. At first, she smiled when she saw that her boyfriend was calling her so early in the morning, on a weekend. Then she remembered what had occured the night before. She didn't know what she was going to say to Eli. It really wasn't as if she could tell him the truth. He would surely have a cow. But she had never really lied to him before, either. It was something that she didn't feel comfortable with, but she couldn't just not answer, so she slowly pushed the talk button on her phone and brought it up to her ear. "Hello?" She asked hesitantly, biting her bottom lip.

"Hey, Clare." Eli said into the phone, voice soft with emotion. "My mom wanted me to call and ask you if you wanted to come to my house for dinner. She's making Manicotti Florentine."

A smile lit up her face at first at his words as she let out a laugh and climbed out of bed. Since she'd met Eli's parents and had begun to go over to the Goldsworthy house to help Eli fix up his beyond cluttered room, she'd gotten to know CeeCee and Bullfrog really well. They were a bit odd, and the total opposite of her own parents but she'd gotten close to them. She almost considered them a second mom and dad. She slipped her feet into her fuzzy zebra print slippers. "Hmm...I don't know." She teased lightly.

He groaned into the phone and then just as teasingly he said, "Well fine! I'll just tell my my mom that you don't want to come and break her heart."

Clare could almost hear the smirk in his voice and she had to shake her head affectionatly. "Well I wouldn't want to do that, would I?" She asked of him, a small smile curving her lips once again as she giggled lightly.

"So we can expect you here?" Eli questioned hopefully.

"Sure. What time should I be there?" She asked curiously.

"About five. Five thirty. Dinner should be at six." He replied.

"Okay. I'll see you there. Have fun hanging out with Adam today, Eli." She said as they said their goodbyes and ended the conversation.

Clare was still smiling as she hung up her phone and walked out the door and down the hall. When she passed the closed door of the guest room, she stopped short and a frown took over her face. Fitz was here. How was she going to manage to go to dinner at Eli's and face him, knowing that his enemy was staying here in her home for a few days? He'd be pissed. It had been easy to avoid the conversation on the phone, but it would be different going over to his house. He'd probably be able to tell that she was keeping something from him. Grabbing her small, cross necklace, she squeezed her eyes shut and prayed silently that everything would work out for the best and she'd have the strength to get through the dinner without spilling her secret.

0000

Fitz groaned as he woke up in the unfamiliar room. He opened his eyes and blinked against the sunlight that poured through the large window, even through the curtains. He threw his arm over his eyes before opening them slowly. His eyes studied the room, closely. He looked over every little thing. He hadn't gotten the chance to pay attention to the room last night. He hadn't been in the mood. Snorting, he rolled his eyes as he realised that it was everything one would expect from a family like Clare's. Warm and inviting, with pictures of Clare and her older sister, Darcy hanging on the walls and sitting on the dresser.

He sighed as he climbed out of the bed, knowing that it was the beginning of another day. Clare had offered to let him stay here for about a week while her father was out of town at a conference and her mom was visiting her grandmother, but he had no idea what he would do after that. He didn't really want to go back home and have to face Richard again and he really didn't want his mom asking him questions about where he'd been and then assuming the worst when he didn't answer her. He tried not to think about it as he walked out of the room and headed torwards the stairs. It was no use worrying about it at the moment.

He raised an eyebrow when the smell of food cooking assaulted him. He walked into the kitchen to see Clare standing by the stove with her back torward him. Syrup, orange juice, fruit, and milk sat on the island.

Clare turned her head when she heard him walk into the room, smiling slightly when she saw him. "Hey." She said simply, before turning back to the stove to turn it off. She grabbed something from up the top of it and brought over two plates stacked chocolate chip pancakes sitting one infront of him. "My mom used to always make Darcy and I chocolate chip pancakes when we were having a bad day, or something. She thought that it would cheer us up. Of course, alot of the times me or Darcy would just pretend to be upset just to get them. If mom or dad knew, they never said anything." She grinned softly at the memory and looked down at her plate, cutting off a small piece of the pancake and bringing it up to her mouth.

They ate in silence for a few moments before Fitz finally spoke up, "My dad used to take me to basketball games. He got me really interested in the sport. My mom didn't know anything about the game, so she never went. It was just something that we used to do together before-" He stopped speaking and shook his head, indicating that he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

She stared at him softly, wondering what else she didn't know about Mark Fitzgerald. All she'd really seen him as before, was a bully. A guy who was at war with her boyfriend and who picked on people smaller than him. She was beginning to realise that there was way more to him than she'd originally thought and he was a real mystery to her.

000

Clare sighed as five o'clock rolled around. She slipped her phone into her small purse and slipped her feet into a pair of red and white striped flats, looking at herself in the mirror. She'd told Fitz that she was going to dinner at Eli's and that she'd be back later and had told him that there was tons of food in the fridge if he wanted it. Of course, he'd chosen to go hang out with Owen and Bianca for a little bit and she didn't try to argue with him, knowing that it was no use. Running down the stairs and out the door, she hurried to her bike and rode it to the Goldsworthy home, parking it beside Morty.

The door opened before she even got up the steps and CeeCee pulled her in, hugging her tightly as soon as she was in the room. "I'm so glad you could make it, Clare. Did Eli tell you that I made Manicotti? I know that it's your favorite."

The younger woman laughed and nodded her head. "Thanks for inviting me, Mrs. Goldsworthy."

The blonde woman put her hands on her hips and looked affronted. "Haven't I told you before to call me CeeCee? Mrs. Goldsworthy is way too formal."

"Sorry CeeCee." Clare told her, smiling apologetically as Eli came into the room, walking over to wrap his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into him.

"You're not giving Clare a hard time, are you mom?" He asked of her, smirking at her.

She smirked right back at him, rolling her eyes and heading back into the kitchen.

"I'm glad you could make it." Eli said standing infront of her and holding her in his arms, staring down at her. He pressed his lips to her's in a gentle kiss before pulling away.

Clare furrowed her brow and looking at him in confusion. "I said that I would, didn't I?" She asked him.

"Yeah, but you sounded really weird on the phone. Everything's okay isn't it?" He asked of her, studying her closely.

She swallowed hard and said, "Why wouldn't it be?"

Eli shook his head and shrugged as he let go of her, still feeling a little bit suspicious.

"I've got to go the bathroom." Clare told him, smiling nervously and walking past him.

Just as the door to the bathroom, Eli heard Clare's cellphone ring. Smirking, and thinking it must be either Adam or Alli, he picked it up, staring at the screen. Clare had told him that neither of her parents were in town for the week so who would be calling from her house? Curiousity getting the best of him, he pushed the talk button and brought the cellphone up to his ear. "Hello?" He asked.

Next Chapter: Fights, flashbacks, confrontations.