A/N: Since I'm still not 100% sure on this whole 'Eli-killed-his-girlfriend' thing, I decided to make the main issue of this story Eli not wanting to get to close to Clare in case he somehow hurts her. Yup. I still believe Eli's a good boy (: The smirk just kills me every time. & yes, the last chapter was pure evil :P

Different pairs of soft, warm lips collide, and Clare's eyes widen is surprise. She was kissing her one of her best friends. This was wrong. She couldn't date one of her best friends. Just look at how that had ended with KC. She couldn't risk what she had with Eli. No, if she lost Eli's friendship then it would all be over, and she would be back to square one.

Eli pulled back, breathless. Had he seriously just kissed Clare? He shouldn't have, no, not when he knew it would just result into two broken hearts. Clare stared up at him, her eyes huge and her mouth wide open. A loud clatter could be heard behind them, and once they both had turned around, they were met by Alli and Adam, who both stared in shock.

A large amount of papers had scattered around them, their binders lying at their feet. On top of the pink binder sat Alli's brightly cased iPhone, her most prized possession, a small crack appearing on the side of the phone's case. Clearly, Alli had been surprised.

Adam however, just stood there with his jaw to the ground, his backpack sliding off of his shoulder. An awkward silence had filled the air, and after about 5 minutes Eli unwillingly retracted his arms. "I have to go," He mumbled, pushing past Adam. Clare had merely breathed when he turned back around, a sad look in his eyes.

She returned his gaze with a questioning one, but he shook his head and simply walked out of the building, his head ducked down. Alli bent down quickly to retrieve her fallen items and raised an eyebrow, both her and Adam shooting her quizzical looks. "Clare?" Adam asked, his voice loud and clear, as if she had fallen into some semiconscious dreamland. "It's nothing," She responded quickly, hiking her oversized green and black tote bag higher up her shoulder.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow," Clare whispered before rushing out of the school, hoping to catch a glimpse of Eli and/or Morty. But they were both gone, Eli's usual parking spot bare. Clare slumped her shoulders and sighed. She knew that kiss would come back to bite her rear.

Eli passed by her in the halls, his arm brushing against her's occasionally. She sighed inwardly every time he did, and resisted the urge to reach out and grab his wrist. He was taking way too long for her liking on this 'Are-we-just-friends?' situation. Adam leaned over and patted her shoulder sympathetically.

"Eli likes you a lot. He just has some things to work through before he's ready to have a girlfriend again," He mumbled, giving her a reassuring smile. Clare nodded and frowned as Eli passed by once more, his eyes landing briefly on her face before flickering back onto the head of the boy in front of him.

"It doesn't seem like he likes me," Clare grumbled, crossing her arms. "Well he does. Give him some time, he'll come around in no time." She huffed and offered Adam a weak smile. "Thank you, Adam. I've got to go or I'll be late for History," The boy grinned and bopped his head up and down.

"OK, later!" He waved before walking off in the opposite direction, headed for Science. Clare's eyes lingered on the windows of the Media Immersion classroom, scanning the room for the familiar dark-haired 16-year old.

He sat in the neglected corner of the classroom, his head propped up in one hand, the other running over the side of the desk. Clare drew in a sharp breath as he turned, looking out the window. He looked straight past her, making her feel unimportant and ignored. The bell finally rang, and as Ms. Oh walked into the classroom, Clare sighed and left, making a run for the History classroom.

"Ms. Edwards, you're late," The teacher, Mrs. Espinoza, spoke, an obvious hint of disapprovement in her voice. Clare winced and grinned tiredly at her. "There was traffic in the hallways, and I fell trying to help one of my friend's bring their project into their classroom." Mrs. Espinoza nodded and put a hand on Clare's arm.

"In that case, I'm glad you're alright. Was it a hard fall?" "No, it was just a minor accident, tripped over some kid's backpack." She lied, mentally cursing herself. Mrs. Espinoza smiled and said, "Well it's good that you could make it to class. Take your seat, Ms. Edwards,"

Clare nodded and sat down, trying her best to ignore Alli's unimpressed smirk. "Daydreaming about Eli again?" She whispered, jabbing her in the back with her pencil's eraser. Clare jumped slightly at the sudden poke and whirled around, fuming.

"No! He's still ignoring me," Alli frowned and dropped her pencil onto her desk. "Still! Ugh, someone needs to set him straight. He's in love with you and he's too much of a wimp to admit it to you face to face," Clare raised an eyebrow.

"Love?" She asked, surprised. "He looks at you like you're a Goddess. He hangs onto your every word as if they were his lifeline. Clare, all the signs are there. Elijah Goldsworthy is falling in love with you."

Clare frowned and stared down at her lap. No, Eli wasn't in love with her. He couldn't be. The kiss, the kiss sure was something. But it was probably just the heat of the moment, that kind of stuff. Nothing special.

Boy, was she wrong.