Oh my Stohn! You guys are seriously awesome! I loved all your reviews and I'm so glad you guys are into this story as much as I am! That just warms my Fimogen/EClare heart! Here's the third chapter! Read, review, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Degrassi or Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

Chapter Three

"Hi, Clare."

Clare turned her head and saw a grinning Imogen standing by her locker.

"Hi, Imogen," she replied, slightly surprised that this girl was talking to her.

"How have you been?"

"Okay, I guess," she shrugged before closing her locker and going down the hall. She hoped that Imogen would remain behind; instead, the quirky senior arrived by her side and kept following her lead.

"Are you enjoying grade eleven?"

"I guess," Clare answered, still perplexed as to why Imogen was speaking to her in the first place.

"Are you doing anything new or are you still on newspaper?"

"What's with the twenty questions?"

"I'm just trying to make conversation."

Clare turned around until she was facing Imogen, both of them stopping in their tracks.

"Listen, I don't want to be rude, but if you're just talking to me just so you can pull some stunt with Eli again –."

"Clare Edwards, I am hurt," she said semi-dramatically, slapping her hand over her heart. "I have moved on from that."

"So . . . you're not trying to get Eli back or anything?"

"This has nothing to do with Eli Goldsworthy whatsoever," Imogen reassured, crossing her fingers behind her back. "I am completely over him and I have a new someone in my life."

"Well, that's good," Clare said with a grin. Imogen observed how that grin came to her lips when she stated that she was completely over Eli; the wheels in her head were beginning to turn.

"But we ended on a bit of a bad note last year and I think it's time to bury the hatchet," Imogen proposed.

"Um . . . okay," Clare accepted. "Consider it buried."

"So we're good?"

"I guess so," she shrugged.

"Brilliant!" Imogen exclaimed with a slight jump in the air. "May I walk you to your next class then?"

"Uh . . . sure," Clare said, accepting the offer.

As the two girls went down the hall, Clare saw this as the beginning of an unusual friendship. Imogen, however, saw it as a step closer to her and Fiona's ultimate goal.

()()

"I have some good news then I have some better news," Imogen declared as she sat across from Fiona at their lab table.

"And they say no news is good news," Fiona said as she looked up from her science book. "What's up?"

"I just had a teeny-tiny conversation with a certain someone who our beloved Eli is possibly infatuated with."

"Really?" she exclaimed. "You talked to Clare?"

"You are looking at her newest acquaintance."

"This is great! How did you do that?"

"I was nice to her; simple as that."

"Alright, so what's the better news?"

Imogen looked around to be sure that no one was in earshot when she leaned across the table and began speaking to Fiona.

"I think she may just be interested in Eli."

"Details! Details!" Fiona urged.

Smiling at her enthusiasm, Imogen continued what happened during her and Clare's encounter.

"She asked me if I was just talking to her to try getting back with Eli, I said no, and she was smiling."

"Really?"

"And it was a smile of relief," Imogen concluded as she sat back in her stool.

"But that could just mean that she's glad you're not doing anything crazy," Fiona reminded.

"Yeah, but she knows I'm friends with Eli; maybe she has a scheme of her own up her sleeve to get back with him through me."

"I doubt it, but it's possible," she nodded.

"And . . . I have this one idea that is not absolutely crazy and it could be useful, but it's a bit of a sacrifice."

"What's that?" Fiona asked, hoping that Imogen would not go too far.

"Um . . . she doesn't sit with anyone at lunch, so . . . maybe it will be beneficial if I sit with her."

Imogen said this with so much guilt, not wanting to leave her girlfriend. Sure, Fiona would have Eli at lunch, but she knew that Fiona loved it when she ate lunch with her. She wrung her hands together and watched her as she tapped her pen on her book in deep thought.

"We can think of another way if –."

"It's a good idea."

Imogen was taken aback, amazed that Fiona agreed.

"You think so?"

"Definitely," Fiona answered. "If helps us get through to Clare, go for it."

Relieved that Fiona was not reacting negatively to this, Imogen smiled and sighed.

"Well, this means I need to start thinking of what I could say to her and how we can approach the topic of relationships and boys; it'll be a matter of time before she confesses her hidden love for Eli."

"You're so devious."

"Why thank you," Imogen said with a nod.

"I'll miss you at lunch though."

Imogen smiled before reaching over to take Fiona's hand.

"I promise that I'll make it up to you."

"How so?"

"Hmm . . . will two dozen homemade chocolate chip cookies do the trick?"

"Only if you make them."

"Deal," Imogen said with a final smile.

()()

"Is Clare bi?" Fiona demanded of Jake.

"What?" he exclaimed.

Imogen went on to Art class, so this gave Fiona the perfect opportunity to ask Jake Martin a thing or two about his stepsister.

"Is Clare bi?" she repeated

"No," he said.

"Lesbian?"

"No."

"Has she been curious about –?"

"She's a hundred and fifty percent straight," he finalized before any more questions about Clare's sexuality were asked.

"Okay, good to know," she asked before beginning to walk away.

"Hold up," Jake said, causing Fiona to turn around. "You can't just ask me if my sister is gay and walk away."

"Sure I can," she shrugged. "Watch."

She began to make a beeline to the exit when Jake cut her off, towering over her in the process.

"Fiona, what is going on?"

Knowing that he would not move out of her way until she confessed, she looked straight up at him.

"My girlfriend is having lunch with her and I just want to be sure."

Jake chuckled.

"You were worried that Clare was going to steal your girlfriend?"

"I know, it sounds weird, but I'm protective that way."

"Okay, fair enough. But, FYI, Clare has been the victim of that stuff before; I doubt she'll ever do that to someone else."

"Got it," Fiona said, feeling instantly relieved. She walked around Jake before pausing and facing him again. "Can you do me a big favor and not mention this to Clare or Imogen?"

"My lips are sealed," he promised, wishing that he did not partake in this situation at all.

"Thank you," Fiona said before leaving the room.

()()

Imogen had been having lunch with Clare practically every day, they hung out after school, and they even spent a few study periods together. Fiona was a bit annoyed at the fact that Imogen was spending a lot of time with Clare, ergo less time with her. Every night, however, they would chat online and Imogen would always reassure her that Fiona was the number one girl in her life. The very idea that Imogen felt that way made her grin, let alone hearing the words for herself. Whenever she saw Clare and her laughing, she did feel that small pang of jealousy, but it passed; they were doing this to help Eli and that would be worth all the time they were spending apart.

Two weeks past and they were exactly where they started. Imogen still did not have the slightest clue how Clare felt and Fiona had yet to get Eli to admit his feelings. She had tried, but every time they approached the subject, he recoiled. Since they were alone at lunch, it gave them some alone time together, so she hoped for something after a couple of weeks, but zilch. Many days she just wanted to strangle him until he admitted that he still had feelings for Clare, but she had the feeling that do that would get her nowhere.

After another day full of unasked and unanswered questions, Fiona and Imogen were sitting on Fiona's couch, trying to figure out what they could possibly do about this couple.

"Maybe we need to think of a new approach," Fiona suggested.

"Like what? Torture them until we get a confession?"

"Doesn't sound like a bad idea at the moment," she sighed.

The two of them leaned back and groaned, wishing that there was some way to get the two of them to open up and admit their feelings.

"This shouldn't be this difficult! Why must they be so hardheaded?"

"It's the way they are," Imogen sighed. "Maybe we should retire from this matchmaker thing. We obviously suck at it."

"Are you crazy? We can't quit on them now."

"We've been working on them for two weeks with nothing to show for it."

"Exactly," Fiona said. "Let's not let them be a waste of time."

"I don't know what else we can do; I can only take so many conversations about vampire fiction and, if I don't get anywhere with Clare soon, I might just lose my mind."

Fiona scooted closer to Imogen and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Remember why we're doing this?"

"To make Eli happy," Imogen recalled.

"To make Eli happy," she echoed. "And all of this endless waiting will be worth it once they're together again."

Imogen sighed, knowing that Fiona was right; she loved Eli as a friend and she hated seeing any of her friends sad, so just going to continue doing all she could to help.

"I'm going over to Clare's tonight; maybe I'll find out something then."

"That's the spirit," Fiona grinned, trying not to be affected by the fact that Imogen was, once again, bailing to spend time with Clare.

"I just wish they could get back together soon; I miss spending all my time with you."

Fiona grinned at her before placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"Don't worry, they'll be hand-in-hand soon enough."

"I hope so."

"We'll get them back together somehow, whatever it takes."

()()

An hour later, Imogen and Clare were in Clare's room, hanging out and talking.

"When was the last time you had a friend of the female sex over?" Imogen asked, recalling how Clare said at lunch that she did not have many friends who were girls.

"Um . . . summer, I think," she recalled. "My ex-best friend and I are still avoiding each other."

"Why? I mean, she's with someone and you and Jake were back together for a certain period of time."

"I don't know; past experience, I guess."

Imogen nodded in understanding, knowing all too well what it felt like to have feelings for someone who had feelings for someone else.

"Speaking of past experience –."

Knock! Knock!

"Dammit," Imogen hissed under her breath; she was just about to ask Clare about Eli when Jake knocked and stuck his head in the room after given permission.

"Hey, Imogen," he greeted Clare's guest before turning to his stepsister. "Clare, can you give me a hand with something real quick?"

"Depends on what," she agreed.

"Uh . . . my computer is messing up."

"Again?" she exclaimed; this must have been the third time this week that this has happened.

"Yeah, I clicked enter and then it started acting up."

"Fine," she sighed in aggravation. "Sorry, Imogen, I'll be back in a sec."

"Don't worry about it," Imogen said, still slightly annoyed about the interruption but knew that it would be no use to dwell on it. Clare and Jake soon left the room, leaving her all alone. Deciding to stretch her legs a bit, Imogen got on her feet and began to walk around the room, looking at all the pictures and posters on the walls.

She was innocently looking at Clare's bedside table and saw a framed picture of a younger Clare, another girl around thirteen, a woman who she knew to be Clare's mother, and a middle-aged man; this must have been Clare, her sister, and parents before the sister (Imogen thought her name was Darcy or Marcy or something but she could not be sure) left and her parents split up. Curious, Imogen picked up the picture, only to have it slip out of her hand and hit the floor.

"Drat," she said before leaning down to pick it up, relieved that it did not get damaged. She was about to stand back up when she noticed a small object underneath the table; wonder taking over her, Imogen snaked her hand through the cramped space between the opening and the floor. Seconds later, a small, dark blue book was revealed to her.

Imogen looked over her shoulder before putting the picture back and opening the book, millions of thoughts running through her mind. This had to be Clare's diary; why else would it be out of sight? She flipped to a random page; the date and a heading that said Dear Diary were at the top of the page. She flipped through the pages, not reading anything but looking inside; there were pictures taped inside, doodles in the margins, and thousands – maybe millions – of words.

She saw Eli's name in there a lot, even in some of the most recent entries. That fact lifted her spirits; this was exactly what she could use to get inside Clare's head and it would reveal if she still liked Eli. She did not have time to read it now, for Clare could be back at any second.

Clare.

They had just become friends and Imogen did not want to ruin that; she had grown rather fond of Clare over the last couple of weeks and she didn't want to hurt her. But then there was Eli. This girl made him happy and she swore to herself that she would get them together again. It was a choice she had to make and she had to make it fast.

Imogen had to decide now before Clare came back: take the diary and put their effort in jeopardy or leave it behind and waste more time. She was in the middle of this debate in her head when Fiona's voice filled her head:

"We'll get them back together somehow, whatever it takes."

Imogen sighed and nodded, her decision being made.

"Whatever it takes," she declared before stuffing the diary in her backpack.

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