Title: Hot Mess
Rating: R
Chapter: 9

Fandom: Degrassi: The Next Generation
Summary: Clare uses her womanly whiles to protect Eli. Eclare. Flare. Misfits!
Comments: "Hot Mess" by Cobra Starship.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the idea.

Clare sighed heavily, shuttering from the cold. She had forgotten her jacket at work, but did not find it worth it to go back inside for. She banged with all her might against the door of the Bhandari house, her tears practically turning to icicles in the below zero temperatures.

The door creaked open to Mister Bhandari; before he could utter a sound, Clare rushed forward wrapping her arms around his waist and shoving her face in his chest as she sobbed painfully. Mister Bhandari's eyes went wide in shock before slowly wrapping his arms around the shriveled girl.

"Unash…"

Unash rubbed Clare's back gently, refusing to turn away from the child as if she were his own Alliah. "Naija, go get Savtaj," he demanded softly.

Naija sighed, turning to her son, who walked over. His eyes went wide in astonishment, "Clare…?"

"Can you carry her upstairs to Alliah's room?" Unash asked as Sav took the fragile girl in his arms.

Sav nodded as he situated her in his arms, "Yeah, I got it, Dad."

Naija frowned at the sight of Clare in Sav's arms as her son walked past him and up the stairs. "I'll call the Edwards," she stated, heading for the kitchen phone.

"No," Unash held his hand out as if to stop her. "Let her sleep and we'll wait for the morning."

DTNG

Eli hit his break hard with his foot, having gone seventy miles per hour the whole way home, which caused his car to screech to a sudden stop. He quickly got out of his car, turning it off, and rushed inside his house. "Clare?" he called out, rushing up the stairs to his room. He looked around, alarm ringing through his whole body. "Clare!" He ran to the bathroom, knowing she could very well be hanging her head in the toilet to throw up any second.

He sighed heavily, running a hand through his hair. "Where is she?" he growled through his teeth.

DTNG

Sav laid Clare on Alli's bed beside his sister carefully before sitting on the edge. "Are you okay?" he asked, concern rising through his being.

Clare shook her head, her tears stopping and her mood suddenly changing to anger. "No. I'm not because I'm pregnant, don't know who the fucking father is, and now I'm turning into an icicle!" She shuttered, bringing her knees to her chest. "Fucking Fitz and Eli…"she mumbled hatefully.

Sav frowned, astonished by her words. "You're pregnant…?"

Clare looked up at him, her eyes filled with a fearful innocence, and the buried her head between her knees. "I didn't mean to lead them on," she confessed quietly. "I just love them both so much and I couldn't hurt them. And now I have more than ever…" She shook her head, looking back up at him, as she spoke honestly, "If I wasn't pregnant, I'd probably kill myself."

Sav shook his head, wrapping his arms around her, "Clare, never say that again!"

"Sav… shut up…" muttered Alli from where she lay in her bed half-asleep.

"Alli…" Clare called softly, turning her head to her friend, as she leaned into Sav's arms.

Alli rolled onto her other side with a groan, opening her eyes. She shot straight up into a sitting position at the sight of Clare, gasping, "Clare!" She shoved Sav away from Clare, pulling her into a hug. "Oh, Sweetie! What are you doing here?"

Clare closed her eyes, shuttering at Alli's warm body against her own, "I didn't know where else to go."

DTNG

When Naija walked into her daughter's room the next morning to make sure the girls had woken up, she was surprised to find them cuddled together in a sitting position against the headboard as they slept soundly and her son was on the end of the bed, fast asleep. She sighed, shaking her head, "Alliah, Clare, Savtaj, c'mon. We have to get you school."

Clare and Alli let out sleepy groans as Sav rubbed his eyes. Clare rolled her head into the crook of Alli's neck and Alli tightened her hold on her friend.

"Alliah, it's snowing," her mother informed knowingly.

Alli dropped her hold on Clare, jumping up off her bed. "SNOW!" Alli screamed, running out of her room and down the steps in her nightgown to go outside.

Clare whined, "Alli…"

Sav scooted into Alli's spot on the bed. "I don't want to wake up," he muttered.

Clare smiled a little, finally opening her eyes and poked Sav in the stomach. He groaned, covering the area she had jabbed. She laughed in response, getting out of the bed to go after Alli.

DTNG

Alli had jumped into the snow in her nightgown, barefooted. She dropped back into the snow, spreading her legs and arms out to make a snow angel. She laughed the entire time, even though the cold was numbing her entire body.

Clare laughed, shaking her head, "Alli, you're going to get sick!" She walked through the snow, grabbing her friend's arm and pulled her up to her feet.

"Oh, c'mon, Clare! Live a little!" Alli exclaimed, hugging onto her friend. "You only have so much longer to be a kid!"

Clare's face dropped at the phrase and she pulled back from Alli. She did not even bother saying anything as she walked back inside to eat.

"Clare…" Alli called after her with a sigh.

DTNG

Clare took a big bite of eggs off her overflowing plate of food – eggs, bacon, toast, pancakes, and syrup overflowing across the whole plate. She took a long gulp of orange juice before looking up at Naija with a smile, "Thank you, Mrs. Bhandari. This is amazing!"

Naija could not help but laugh as she put her own plate in the sink, "You are very welcome, Clare." She shook her head, rinsing off the plate. "You eat like Savtaj."

Sav's face flushed from where he sat at the table next to Clare, putting his fork down. "I'm not hungry anymore…"

Clare smirked, trying her hardest not to giggle, as she took more bites of food.

"Don't make yourself sick," Alli stated, raising her eyebrows, because she did not want to spend gym class holding Clare's hair back while she threw up the buffet Alli's mom had made for them.

Clare furrowed her brow angrily at Alli's words, "I won't. I'm just hungry, Alli."

Unash suddenly cleared his throat, interrupting the conversation. "Clare, I was wondering what you were doing out so late last night?" he asked gently yet bluntly.

Clare swallowed her bite of toast and pursed her lips together in thought. "I was working," she replied, looking down at the lace covering the table. "And I thought about going back to Eli's but we got in a big fight right before I left The Dot and decided that Alli would try her hardest to convince you to let me stay the night."

"Eli? Who is Eli?" Unash asked curiously.

"Daddy…" Alli snapped in disbelief. "That's her business."

"I'm just curious as to why my daughter's best friend was out wandering the streets in the middle of a November night," her father informed.

Clare shook her head, looking up, "Alli, it's okay. He has a right. I kind of woke you all up on a week night." She turned to Mister Bhandari, starting to shake slightly, "Eli's my boyfriend, Sir. I'm staying with him because my mom kicked me out…" She trailed off, her eyes filling with tears. "And now he won't even look at me. So I went to find the only person in the world I know cares." She looked over at Alli, biting her bottom lip as she started to cry.

Naija frowned, going over to the child and instinctively wrapped her arms around her. "Unash, please. Clare, is our guest," she hushed her husband before he could say another word. "And the children need to get to school."

Unash looked at his wife, his eyes intense with wonder, but he nodded, "Of course."

DTNG

Clare closed her eyes, dropping her head inside her locker as if to hide. She felt nauseous again, but refused to throw up because it made her feel even more ashamed. She did not want anyone else to know about her situation; she already felt miserable without someone there to point fingers at her and whisper.

"Clare…"

Clare sighed heavily, turning around. She froze, her eyes going wide at the sight before her. She quirked an eyebrow with a playful smirk, "Most guys just buy flowers."

Fitz squatted before her on one knee, holding his hands out with a small ring that she was sure he took from a child's quarter machine at Walmart. He did not seem to notice her comment as he started to babble, "Clare, I love you so much. And I can't live without you. Even if this baby is Eli's, I will love it as much as I love you. And I want to marry you…"

Clare cut him off before he could ramble on any further with a nod, "Okay."

Fitz's eyes went wide with shock; his mouth hung agape, "What?"

Clare nodded, stepping closer to him, "I said okay."

Fitz grinned, jumping to his feet, and wrapped his arms around her tightly. Clare closed her eyes, pursing her lips together, as she placed her hands securely on his shoulders. She turned her head slightly, kissing him softly on the lips. He kissed her back, immediately tugging at her bottom lip with his teeth. She pulled back slightly with a gasp, her face flushing in embarrassment, cold, and exhaustion. She shook her head, "Later."

Fitz nodded, the smile not faltering from his face, "Of course. Anything you want."

DTNG

Clare sat shakily in the seat behind Eli, taking a deep breath. She glanced over at Adam, who nodded for her to talk to him. She nodded a little, leaning forward and whispered in his ear nervously, "Hey Eli…"

Eli rolled his eyes at her greeting, mumbling, "What do you want?"

Clare swallowed the feeling of her vomit back down her throat. "I wanted to see if you wanted to talk?" she asked hopefully, rubbing her stomach gently.

Eli turned in his seat, looking at her intently. "Talk then. Tell me, Clare. Tell me why you decided that you were going to fuck with both of us, lead us on, and then decide to continue to be pregnant when you don't know who the father is." His words stung, yet she knew he had every right to say them. His eyes were bloodshot, tear-filled.

"You're mad; I get it. But I'm the one who has to go through this," Clare stated quietly, not faltering from their intense gazing. "I love you both so much, Eli. I don't know what I'd do without either of you. And then I got pregnant. It's not your fault that you hate me…"

Eli shook his head, struggling not to cry, "I don't hate you. I love you. I just don't understand how you can hurt me."

Clare shook her head, looking down as she gulped down the vomit filling her mouth. She bit her lips together to hold back the sickness as it attacked her from the inside.

"Clare…?" Adam questioned, his eyes turning concerned.

Clare hunched over her desk, vomiting all over the furniture. Eli jumped up and backed away from her as she threw her arms out in disgust before continuing to throw up on herself.

"Miss Edwards!" Ms. Dawes gasped as she stood from her desk in the front of the room. She sent a student to get the nurse and a janitor.

When she stopped throwing up, Clare covered her face with her messy hands, sobbing in pain and embarrassment.

Eli stood in front of her, struggling to hold himself back. While part of him wanted to hold her and comfort her, the other – and much stronger part of him – wanted her to feel his pain. He clenched his clammy fists, his bottom lip quivering with emotion.

DTNG

Clare stood in the locker room as Alli carefully pried the vomit soaked clothes off her body, shaking as she held back tears.

Alli sighed heavily, dropping the blouse on the ground, her own eyes welling with tears at her best friend – cold, naked, shivering, hurt, pregnant – before her. "Clare…" she whispered, picking up the redhead's gym clothes and handed them to her.

"I can't believe I said yes to Fitz. And Eli hates me," Clare shuttered, closing her eyes in disgust.

Alli sighed, "Clare, you need to get dressed or you'll freeze to death."

Clare shook her head as she blinked a few tears out of her eyes, smiling sadly, "Maybe that's not such a bad thing."

Alli's heart stopped, her face flushing with anger. "No. It is. Because you are going to get married, have a beautiful baby, and live happily ever after."

Clare sniffled, reaching out and taking the clothes, "You're too good to me, Alli." She slowly pulled her gray sweats on and then her short-sleeved yellow top that read 'panthers' across the chest in bright blue. She gasped softly in pain at feel of the tight fabric against her sensitive breasts.

As soon as she was dressed, she looked up at her friend desperately. "Alli…"

Alli shook her head as she pulled the pathetic girl into her arms, hushing her gently, "It'll be okay."

DTNG

Clare stood in the hallway, dressed in her gym clothes as she pulled her coat out of her locker. She slid it on, closing her eyes, as she sniffled. She closed her locker, turning around, and tilted her head to the side, "Eli…"

Eli looked up at her and then back down at the floor, heading down the other direction of the hallway – away from her.

"Eli, wait," Clare called after him, rushing after him, and grabbed his shoulder, turning towards him. "Please don't go. We have to talk."

Eli sighed heavily, turning back to face her. "We already talked, Clare. What more do you want?" he asked, his eyes catching the gleam off her left ring finger. "To shove your engagement in my face too? Because you sleeping with him isn't enough to make me want to kill myself, right?" He shook his head in disgust, "I love you. But you know you're not worth the pedestal he's putting you on."

Clare shook her head, "No, I want in my baby's life… But if we're going to be like this… I just…" She trailed off, looking away. She swallowed the lump stuck in her throat, dying inside as the words fell from her lips, "I don't think I can be around you anymore."

Eli closed his eyes in thought, biting his bottom lip. He sighed, nodding, as he looked back at her, "Maybe that's for the best."

Clare frowned at his reply, pulling the zipper up on her jacket. She met his eyes with her own, taking a step towards him.

"Unless…" Eli started softly, grabbing her left hand in his and using his thumb to play with her poor excuse of an engagement ring, "You get rid of this."

Clare blinked thoughtfully, whispering loudly, "Wow…" She snapped her hand back from his, shaking her head in repulsion. With one last look at him, she walked away.

DTNG

Clare ran down the hall as fast as she could, to escape Eli. She stopped once she was in the library and looked down, touching her stomach gently. She smiled sadly, thinking, "You poor thing having to deal with me as your mother." She laughed quietly to herself, shaking her head.

Fitz snuck up behind her, snaking his arms around her waist behind her. He rested his hands on top of hers, giving them a gentle squeeze. "What's so funny?" he asked softly.

Clare relaxed back into him, closing her eyes, "The thought of me being a good mother."

Fitz spun her around to face him, frowning, "You'll be an amazing mother."

Clare met his eyes and sighed, biting her bottom lip. "Fitz, we shouldn't get married." Before he could respond, she continued, looking away from him. "I mean, you may not be the father and I would hate to marry you and spend the next nine months in the wonderful honeymoon period and then I give birth and the baby turns out to be Eli's. I think marrying you would make that more painful than if we were just… together."

Fitz swallowed hard, pursing his lips together painfully. "Okay." He did not understand how he was hurting so much. Just merely a month ago if a girl said she wanted to be 'just friends', he would have thrown a party. Now, he just wanted to die.

Clare started to take her ring off, but Fitz grabbed her hand. "Keep it. We'll call it a friendship thing," he shrugged nonchalantly before he turned, walking away.

Clare sighed heavily, biting her lips together in thought. She tilted her head to the side, watching him walk away. She knew she did the right thing. It would make him walking away from her in the future a lot less painful. It would be fairer to her child.

DTNG

Clare sat on the hood of Morty, watching her legs dangle below her. She was tempted to lay down, but knew the exhaustion building inside of her would put her out for the rest of the day if she so much as closed her eyes. Instead she pulled a book Sav had stolen from his family library and secretly given to her in their car ride to school – What to Except When You're Expecting.

"What to Expect When You're Expecting. That lady on the cover looks much bigger than you," Eli pointed out, dropping his backpack on the ground in front of her. "Did you need something?" he asked gently.

Clare closed the book and put it back in her purse with a shrug. "I'm not engaged anymore," she informed, holding her hand up – she had left Fitz's ring in her purse. "I thought about what you said and then I realized how much it would suck if I married Fitz and this baby turned out to be yours." She looked up at him, pursing her lips together skeptically. "Forgive me?"

Eli rolled his eyes playfully, leaning into her, as he spoke, "Well, I guess I could." He took her biceps in his hands, kissing her hard on the lips, and gently pushed her back on the car. She gasped against his mouth, but willingly kissed him back, resting her hands on his shoulders. He slowly rested a knee on the hood between her legs, making her moan softly.

"Awww. Don't you two look cute."

Eli pulled back from Clare, standing straight up, to face Fitz. Clare sat there, leaned back on her elbows, her eyes looking from Eli to Fitz. "What are you doing here?" Eli demanded, trying to be civil for his lover's sake.

Fitz shrugged nonchalantly, getting close to Eli. "I have a present for you," he informed.

Eli smirked his classic look, opening his mouth to thank his enemy only to have a foot kick up into his balls. Clare shot up off the hearse to her feet as he withered to ground. She shot daggers at Fitz.

Fitz looked back at her, whispering, "I'm sorry." He watched her for a moment before walking away.

Clare dropped to her knees and Eli immediately put his head on her lap. "What can I do?" she asked urgently.

"Don't… touch… anything…" Eli replied through short, painful huffs as he tried to regain his breath.

DTNG

Eli sat on his bed, his head resting against the headboard as he waited for Clare to come back with something to ice his family jewels. He groaned painfully while closing his eyes; driving home so quickly had been a total bitch, but he knew the sooner he got home, the sooner he would receive ice.

He stiffened, shuttering at the feel of a bag of froze peas being gently pressed against his groin. He opened his eyes to find Clare, who had quickly pulled it back, thinking she had hurt him by his reaction. Her face was etched in fear.

Eli cupped her face gently with a small smile, assuring her, "You didn't hurt me. You just surprised me." He took her wrist in his hand, slowly bringing it gingerly down on his most sensitive area. He shuttered again, but more from the cold than surprise this time.

Clare sighed in relief, her other hand drawing small circles on his thigh with her nails. She pressed a chaste kiss to his temple and whispered, "Good. I'm trying to quit the whole hurting people thing." She could feel the estrogen scale inside her tipping, her nails slowly making their way across his thigh and up to his belt. She leaned down into him, pressing her lips against his passionately.

Eli kissed her back hungrily, wrapping his arms around her torso. He pulled her on top of him, causing her to shiver from the extreme cold of the iced bag of peas between them. He carefully moved the object from between them before resting his hand on her hip.

Clare pulled her head back, pulling off her Degrassi shirt and tossing it to the floor. She ran her hands up Eli's back, tugging his shirt off carefully. He lifted his arms up to help her and then wrapped them back around her, unclasping her bra. Her breathing hitched slightly, looking at him. She searched his passionate eyes, whispering guiltily, "Eli… I don't want to hurt you anymore…"

Eli smiled softly, nodding, "You never made me have sex with you." When she smiled back, practically beaming, he leaned in, capturing her lips with his own. He rolled them around so he could be on top of her. He pulled back for a minute, undoing his belt and jeans. He shimmed out of the last of his clothing before untying her sweatpants and taking them off her body, along with her thong.

Eli grinned at the sight of warm center, reaching out and rubbing her folds gently with his thumb. Clare shuttered in pleasure, letting out a soft gasp. He smirked, continuing to rub her spot for a minute before slowly leaning down to attack her with his mouth.

"Oh god…" Clare moaned out loudly, grabbing him by the back of his head and shoving him down closer to meet her bucking hips. His tongue rolled her clit passionately as if he were making out with her mouth. She felt his tongue move down, delving deep inside of her, which caused her to call out, "Eli!" She threw her head back on the pillows, gasping for air, as her body tightened.

Eli's tongue searched the inside walls of her body, enjoying the taste of her wet warmth. He pulled his head back, mumbling hot air against her sensitive clit with a moan, "You taste so amazing."

Clare shivered, whether from his words or his breath blowing against her was not clear, but enjoyed it nevertheless.

Eli pulled back from her, going into his nightstand. He pulled the foil pack out and she could not help but laugh, "I'm already pregnant. Protected sex won't make a difference."

Eli shrugged, tossing it to the floor with a smug smirk, "The one time I decide to wise up, huh?" He moved back between her legs while their arms slowly tangled around each other with a kiss.

Without warning, Eli slowly entered Clare, causing her to stiffen beneath him with a gasp. He ran a hand through her hair, looking at her face, as he stayed still. She opened her eyes, looking up at him, and nodded slowly for him to continue. With her signal, he moved completely inside her with a low moan. She gripped her nails into the skin of his back, biting her bottom lip. He moved out and then back in slowly, continuing the pattern. He looked into her deep blue eyes, slowing his breathing down to meet hers. She smiled a little at the sentimental man hovering above her, her heart racing as their breaths came to the same soft pace. He leaned down completely, kissing her softly on the lips. She tilted her head to the side, kissing him back desperately, as one of her hands combed up through his hair.

When he felt her tightening quicker, he thrust harder. She twisted beneath him, moaning against his mouth. He swept his tongue into her mouth, starting a wrestling match between the two muscles. She pressed her chest up against his as if trying to rid any chance of air between each other, her limit starting to burn through her whole body. He could feel how tense she was getting and shut his eyes tight, trying not to finish so quickly.

Yet, once again, Clare won, her tightness overcoming Eli's will to hold back. He gasped, his eyes going wide, as he came inside of her. She trembled at the feeling, turning her head from his with a loud string of moans, as she came crashing down shortly after him.

Clare's face soften, her whole body relaxing as she felt the pleasure subside into a small warmth. A smile spread across her face, fluttering her eyes open to look up at Eli.

Eli ran a hand through her curls, sighing heavily. He felt content, as if he could lay there on top of her forever. While enjoying the feeling, he rolled off of her, afraid he was hurting her. He wrapped an arm behind her back, pulling her into him. She turned into him easily, resting her head in the crook of his neck. He gently rubbed his fingertips up and down her arm, having an urge to comfort her all of a sudden.

"I love you," he whispered softly in her ear.

She smiled sweetly, nodding, "I love you too."