Chapter 9: Skull Charm

Eli grabbed his history book out of his locker, trying to repeat in his head the battles of World War One. He had studied for the test over the weekend, but had been distracted by Clare. His heart had practically been leaping for days after she told him that she loves him.

Eli finally felt like he was in a good place since Julia. Ever since Julia's death, his world had been in shambles. He had vowed to never love again, but then he found Clare. Yes, his world was so consumed in darkness from his pain that he tried to shut her out, but nonetheless, her love penetrated through all that. He fell so hard for Clare, that he was finally able to let go of Julia. Eli had forgiven himself for Julia's death.

Before closing his locker door, he pulled a jewelry case from the top shelf. He was planning on giving Clare the bracelet when he saw her that morning. It was a charm bracelet, dawning a skull charm. Eli knew that the skull wasn't exactly Clare's style, but he also knew it would remind her of him, therefore she'd love it. He slipped the box in his pocket, and turned around, spotting Clare in the crowd. For some reason, she looked distressed, but Eli assumed it had to do with something school related. Didn't she tell him she had a math test today? That must be it, Eli thought.

Eli took a deep breath upon seeing her, nervous that things might be a bit weird post-love declaration. He made it a point to wave in her direction and smile lovingly as he walked towards her to ensure that there was no weirdness on his side of the spectrum.

"Hey," he said to Clare, giving her his half smile and a kiss. Her lips felt hard. They weren't as warm and welcoming as usual. "You feeling better?" he asked, starting to grow concerned with her behavior.

"What? Oh…yeah, much," Clare answered. She seemed to be avoiding eye contact with him.

The two stood awkwardly, which was not how they normally behaved with each other. "So, I got this killer history test first period," Eli mentioned, trying to get Clare's attention. "But I didn't really study that much cause I couldn't stop thinking about you," he said, putting his arm around her as they walked, noticing that she was shaking.

"I'm sure you'll ace it," Clare replied quietly. Well that wasn't the answer I was expecting, Eli thought. He was hoping for something a little more admiring, given he just told her she's all he thinks about.

"Thanks…" Eli responded. "Is there something the matter?" he asked, wanting an answer for her terse behavior.

Clare stopped in her tracks, taking his arm off of her shoulders. She started breathing quickly, looking like she was about to puke. "Eli, there's something I need to tell you," she said, wringing her wrists.

He looked at her inquisitively. "Come here," Eli said, motioning towards the gym where he knew they'd be alone. The Spirit Squad didn't meet until after school, so he didn't have to worry about their privacy.

Their footsteps echoed as they walked towards the bleachers. They both sat down, and Eli put his hand on Clare's leg. "What's going on?"

"Ok, please don't overreact by what I'm about to say," Clare warned, her forehead crinkled with worry. Eli didn't exactly know how to respond to that comment. She took a deep breath before speaking. "The other night, the movie night, that is, after you left…" Clare stopped, too petrified to go on.

"Yeah?" Eli asked, bidding her to continue.

"KC came back over. I didn't invite him, he just came. He wanted to talk, and we….we….kissed.," Clare confessed in one breath. She looked at Eli, hungry for a reaction. He immediately removed his hand from Clare's leg.

The moment the words fell from Clare's mouth, Eli's stomach dropped. They kissed, Eli thought, his blood boiling over. He clenched his fists as he grew hot with anger, wanting to beat the living hell out of KC. Without saying a word, Eli got up and headed towards the door.

"Eli, wait!" Clare cried out, trying to stop him. She grabbed his arm, but he jerked it away in a cold manner. "Eli, it meant nothing! He kissed me. I didn't instigate the kiss!" she tried to reason.

Eli turned around abruptly, his face red. "Then tell me you didn't feel anything," he quipped. "Tell me you pulled away as soon as his mouth touched yours." His eyes were daring her to say otherwise.

Clare froze at his order, tears forming in her eyes. "I…" was all she could muster. What could she say?

"Well, that's all I needed to hear," Eli shot, turning around again.

Clare ran after him in tears, "Wait! Eli, please! Let me explain!" she begged, but he wouldn't listen. Clare was scared to death of what Eli would do. She knew what he was capable of, given his past encounters with Fitz, and she didn't want KC to get hurt. Clare felt stupid for not telling Eli everything. Why didn't I tell him about this morning? I should have told him what we talked about, she thought, wanting to kick herself. Frankly, she had been too scared of his reaction to go on, plus Eli didn't exactly give her a chance to explain given that he stalked off.

Eli pushed his way through the crowded hallway, in pursuit of KC, knowing that Clare was trailing in protest behind him. I knew that dirtbag was gonna ruin things for me, Eli thought, feeling like an animal on the prowl. He felt so hurt and betrayed right now, he was shaking. How could Clare do this to me, he thought as he scanned the hallway. Clare of all people. She was the last person Eli thought would ever hurt him. He had trusted her, and she failed him. And right after I told her I loved her, he thought, trying not to cry. Eli couldn't trust love anymore. It always ended up hurting him, be it death or someone being unfaithful. Eli drowned out Clare's voice yelling his name, willing him to listen to her. I'm done listening, he thought, too sick to his stomach to hear anything else about her conflicted feelings.

Eli's radar went off when he spotted KC, talking to Dave, another sophomore.

"Hey!" Eli yelled, his eyes filled with anger. He walked up to KC, giving him a forceful shove against a locker. "It's not enough that you barge into Clare's life after screwing her over, but you have to steal her from me?" he screamed, shoving KC again. Clare ran up to them, trying to pull him away from KC, but Eli pushed her away. A crowd began to form around them.

"Look, man, let me explain," KC pleaded, trying to push Eli away from him.

"There's nothing to explain!" Eli interrupted, his face red with anger. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick your ass right now," Eli shot, punching the locker right next to KC's face.

Eli's behavior reminded Clare of Fitz, making her sick to her stomach.

KC, letting all common sense go, answered, "Well, maybe if you were more of a man, emo-boy, she wouldn't so willingly cheat on you!" now towering over Eli. Clare's stomach dropped, vexed at KC for not taking the higher road, and for implying that they had had a full-on love affair, which wasn't the case.

With that, Eli swung his fist at KC, hitting him square in the jaw, causing KC to land on the floor. KC then got up, grabbing Eli by the shoulders and shoving him against the wall. "Want me to put you in the back of that hearse of yours?" KC threatened, breathing heavily, his jaw bright red.

"I'd love to see you try," Eli quipped, trying to get out of KC's strong grip. Clare stood there helplessly, knowing there was nothing she could do to stop them from fighting. KC then punched Eli in the stomach, who bent over in pain, causing Clare to cry out.

The two continued to throw punches and shoves, until a strong, authoritative voice consumed the hallway.

"Hey!" Coach Armstrong yelled, grabbing both Eli and KC by the shirts, separating them from each other. "Knock it off!" He looked at both of them sternly, letting them know that he meant business. "I want the both of you to go straight to Principal Simpson's office. NOW. He'll know what to do with you," he ordered, shaking his head in disappointment.

Everybody around this little show was frozen with terror, until Armstrong ordered them all to disperse.

Clare ran up to Eli, but he didn't even look at her as he walked towards Simpson's office, obviously in pain, both physically and emotionally.

The morning bell finally rang, causing students to filter into classrooms. Clare didn't budge, but only watched in defeat as the guy she loved to no end, whom she hurt so much, walked away from her. Tears ran down Clare's face, thinking that things between her and Eli would never be the same. How was Clare to fix this?

As she stood there, she noticed a small black box on the ground. Curious, she picked it up, lifting its velvety lid. Inside was a small piece of lined paper that read "For the love of my life – Eli". Underneath the paper was a beautiful silver charm bracelet, and attached to it was a skull charm. Looking at the note and bracelet, Clare's heart broke in two, and she began to contort her face, knowing more tears were coming. Eli was going to give this to me, she thought, and I broke his heart. Clare felt like she was ready to faint, and had to rest against a locker. She tightened her grip on the bracelet, wanting more than anything for things with Eli to go back to normal. Did she lose Eli forever?

Do you guys think that Eli's reaction was realistic? Or would he have listened to what Clare had to say. I wasn't sure, but I decided to go with this. What do you guys think? Comments really help! =D