Title: Hot Mess
Rating: R
Chapter: 10

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 covered her mouth with her arm as Peter walked by her with a tray full of tuna sandwiches. She gagged to herself, trying her hardest not to let the wave of nausea get the best of her.

"Clare!" Peter called out for help, looking over at her. He held his hand up, shaking his head at the sight of her pale face, "Nevermind. I got it."

Clare nodded, turning away to rush to the bathroom before she threw up and then would have to mop up the entire grill. She dropped to her knees, vomiting the little left in her stomach into the toilet. She gripped the infected sides of the toilet as if to save herself from falling into the tainted water. She groaned, sitting back to wipe her mouth with a wad of toilet paper. How she was going to keep this job with her nausea through the next nine months was beyond her comprehension. She rubbed her pregnant stomach, closing her eyes. She had to tell Peter.

DTNG

Clare sighed heavily, putting the broom and dust pan in the back closet. She rolled her eyes out of exhaustion and her tedious work. She bit her bottom lip, knowing she had no right to complain, as she shut the closet door. She took a seat at the bar, facing Peter as he separated the money from register into small, neat piles.

Peter glanced up at her, carefully dropping the twenty dollar bills into a neat stack. When he realized she wasn't going to move, he dropped the money on the counter and looked up at her with a heavy sigh. "What's up?" he asked intently.

Clare smiled softly, rubbing her stomach lovingly, her eyes stuck on the counter. "I'm pregnant," she beamed, looking up at him.

Peter quirked an eyebrow in shock, mumbling, "Your sister's going to kill me." He blinked, a small smile crossing his face, "But you look… happy. Right?"

Clare nodded, shrugging, "I mean, it sucks. But I think I can do this."

"Well if you need anything, you call me, okay?" Peter offered. Just as he started to pick up the money again, he paused and looked back up at her, his eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights. "Do this you need an advance on her paycheck?"

Clare shook her head, laughing assuredly, "No. Every two weeks is fine."

Peter sighed in relief, "Okay. Good." He nodded towards the stack of tea bag tins behind him. "Go make some for your stomach. I saw you paling earlier."

Clare nodded, going behind the counter. She grabbed the tin that read 'peppermint tea', opening the container, and dropped a tea bag into a to-go cup, filling it to the brim with steaming hot water from the faucet.

The bell hanging over the door rang, signaling a new customer.

"We're closed!" Clare called out over her shoulder.

"Uh, Clare…" Peter said softly, turning to look at her. "I don't think it's a customer."

Clare furrowed her brow, turning around, and smiled a bit, "Fitz." She placed a plastic cover over the top of the cup and picked it up, walking around to him. "How are you?" she asked in concern.

Fitz shrugged nonchalantly, "I've been better." He shuffled his feet underneath him, looking at the ground. "I've been thinking about what you said and you're right. It would suck even more."

Clare smiled softly, grabbing the curve of his elbow with her free hand as leverage to pull herself up, and kissed him on the cheek.

Fitz wrapped an arm around her shoulders with a smile. "You're still kissing me?" he questioned her sanity.

Clare shrugged with a playful smirk, "My hormonal imbalance is making my whole body aroused." She bit her bottom lip hotly, tilting her head to the side.

Fitz's eyes went wide in concern, "Do I need to take you to the hospital?"

Clare laughed in reply, shaking her head, "What? No! Fitz, I said I'm horny." She felt her cheeks flush with both amusement and embarrassment.

Fitz sighed in relief, running his hand through her hair, "Thank god." He leaned down, kissing her cheek.

"Clare!" Peter called from the counter.

Clare turned back to her boss, quirking an eyebrow only to have her coat thrown at her. She caught it, pulling it on quickly.

"Keep your sexual desires to a minimum. Please?" Peter asked as she walked out the door with one of her boyfriends.

Clare nodded, waving him off, "Of course."

DTNG

Clare stopped in front of Eli's house with a small smile. She let out a soft breath, looking up at Fitz, "This is my stop." She placed her hands in her backs pockets to maintain control of the hormones she felt rising all around her.

Fitz nodded, swallowing hard as he watched her shake in front of him as if daring him to reach out and send her back over that edge she crashed down so gracefully when lying on her back. "I'll see you tomorrow," he said, finding his words.

Clare nodded with a smile, standing up on her tiptoes, and gave him a peck on the lips. She turned away from him and then suddenly spun around to face him, throwing her arms around him at the same second he crushed his lips against hers. She clawed through his hair with her nails, pulling herself up around him.

Fitz pulled back suddenly, his heart stopping. He had sex with Clare almost everywhere, but now that she was pregnant, he had a hunch that he could not subject her body to such extreme cold. He wrapped his arms around her waist, whispering softly in her ear, "Clare, we…"

Clare sighed out dramatically in frustration, "Is this about Eli?" She shook her head, "Because, Fitz…"

"No," Fitz cut her off, shaking his head, with a pathetic laugh. He sighed heavily, "You're pregnant now. And I don't know much about babies, but I don't think you should be taking off your clothes in the snow." His eyes were full of concern as he ran a gentle hand through her hair.

Clare rolled her eyes, shrugging him off, and crossed over her chest in disappointment, "Yeah. Okay. Whatever." She knew he was trying to be nice, but she was horny and wanted him inside of her so desperately. She sighed, starting up the steps to Eli's front door. "See you tomorrow."

Clare slammed the door behind herself and stormed up the stairs to her room. She pulled her hair out of the ponytail, shaking her curls out. She pulled off her "The Dot" shirt, tossing it in the dirty laundry bin. She walked over to the closet, pulling out a large nightshirt, and threw it on her body. She reached to undo her jeans, when a hand rested on hers. She looked up to meet Eli's green eyes. She rolled her eyes, mumbling, "I'm not in the mood, Elijah." She jerked back from him, taking her jeans off and laid down in their bed.

"Your home. You didn't call me to pick you up," Eli stated softly in concern.

Clare shrugged nonchalantly, picking up her parenting book, "Fitz walked me home."

Eli's mouth turned dry as he quirked a questionable eyebrow, "Fitz?" Jealous raged through his body, but he tried to play it cool for her sake.

Clare looked up at him, shaking her head, "Still jealous, huh?" She turned back to her book with an eye roll, her voice full of sarcasm, "Don't worry. I jumped his bones and he refused; thus, my pleasant mood."

Eli smirked, tilting his head to the side, "I can fix that." He pulled his shirt off, rushing to get next to her in their bed. She shoved him away, shaking her head disapprovingly. He ignored her objections, leaning down, and taking her neck with his mouth. She gasped softly, hitting him over the head with her baby book. "Ow!" he whined, sitting up, while rubbing the back of his head.

Clare frowned at his reaction, dropping her book on the bed sheets, and reached out, kissing him softly on the lips. She cupped the back of his neck, slowly bringing him down on his back when he kissed her back. He placed his hands on her hips, drawing her up on top of him.

"Elijah. Clare."

Clare dropped on top of Eli completely, hiding her face in his neck. Eli ran a hand through her hair, looking up at his dad, who stood in the doorway. "Hey dad," he smiled, his eyes going wide in embarrassment. "I thought you were working the night shift."

Ethan shook his head, "No… They didn't need me tonight." He sighed, looking down at the floor, "I'm giving you guys five minutes to meet me downstairs." He walked out of the room, shutting the door cautiously behind him.

Clare pulled back, dismounting her boyfriend's lap, but Eli gripped her hips, pulling her back down against him. "We have five minutes," he reasoned, playing with the hem of her nightshirt. "That's all it will take, Babe." He tilted his head to the side, kissing her neck gently.

Clare shrugged him away, raising an eyebrow, "Maybe for you." When his face dropped, she laughed and placed a chaste kiss on his lips. "Maybe later, okay?" She ran a hand through his hair and then wiped at his smudged eyeliner concerningly. She bit her bottom lip, wanting to say something, but stood up instead.

Eli stood up behind her, grabbing her arm, and pulled her into a small kiss before leading her down the stairs.

Ethan sat in the middle of the couch in the living room, his head in his hands. He did not seem to notice the teenagers as they cuddled in the comfortable chair in the corner.

Eli frowned at the sight of his father. "Dad?"

Ethan looked up at Eli, his eyes red from having been crying. He wiped his nose with the arm of his shirt, sighing, "Elijah, Clare. Please, tell me you're at least using precautions. The pill, the shot, condoms, something?" His eyes were full of hope. "You don't need to go through what your mom and I went through."

Eli wrapped his arm around Clare's shoulders, pulling her into him. He sighed, looking at her for approval to tell the truth. She nodded, her face flushing in shame. "Actually, Dad…" he started, looking back up at his father, "Clare's pregnant."

Ethan closed his eyes, mumbling to himself, while running his hands through his hair, "Fuck…"

Clare looked over at Ethan, her eyes filling with tears. "I'm sorry…" she whispered, her lips quivering.

Ethan turned his face towards her and smiled gently, opening his arms, "C'mere, Clare."

Clare nodded, getting up, and went willingly into his arms. She leaned into him, crying as soon as his arms wrapped around her. While she could not help her crying, she felt a sense of comfort from Eli's father – as if it was her own father wrapping his arms around her. Ethan rubbed her arm gently, whispering, "It's okay. I'm not mad, just… disappointed. Eli, tell you he's a bastard?"

Clare smiled at the father and son sharing the same sense of humor. She shook her head, mumbling, "No…"

Ethan nodded, smiling fondly as he spoke of his wife, "Yup. Elizabeth and I were just barely sixteen when the little punk popped out."

Clare looked up at him in awe, afraid of what he would say if she told him Eli may not be the father. But she continued to bit her tongue, smiling through her insecurity. "That's insane," she breathed out softly.

Ethan sighed, "It was scary as hell, but totally worth it." He looked over at his son, who was staring numbly at the floor. "Kid's the best thing that ever happened to me." He knew Eli was listening when a small smile quirked across his lips. "And don't let his dark exterior fool you, he'll be great a dad."

Eli looked up, letting out a soft huff. He wiggled his eyebrows at Clare playfully, yet the look in his eyes reflected the disappointment he would be feeling if he was not her baby's father.

Clare let out a soft giggle, masking her nerves. She nodded, looking up at Ethan, "I know he will. He's an amazing boyfriend." She turned back towards Eli, smirking, "And I like the names Lydia and Joshua."

Eli winced upon hearing her choices, "Ew. Lydia I can take, but Joshua… that's just so… biblical."

"So is Elijah," Clare retorted, tugging her nightshirt slightly up her thigh. She bit her bottom lip, shifting forward slightly so her chest stuck out higher in the air.

Eli gave her a smug smirk, his body slowly starting to ache to touch hers. He sighed with a slight shiver, dying to get his hands on her body, "Joshua's good."

Clare tilted her head to the side, her curls falling in her face slightly, as her bottom lip jutted out into a sexy pout.

Ethan watched the two, shaking his head, and threw a pillow at his son. "Go take a cold shower…"

Eli's head snapped around to look at his dad when the pillow connected with his face. "With Clare?" he asked hopefully.

Ethan shuttered, getting up, "Just don't be too loud. And don't force her into the shower." With that, he rushed down the hall to his room before the two teenagers attacked each other.

Eli waited until he heard a door slam before jumping to his feet and scooping Clare up in his arms. She squealed in delight, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Way to not be obvious," she teased, her nails scratching gingerly against the back of his neck.

"Shut up. You want to have sex in the shower too," Eli commented as he walked up the steps.

Clare shrugged, "I didn't say it to your father."

DTNG

Clare stood in the hallway, staring at the health bulletin board, and pursed her lips together thoughtfully. She sighed heavily, reading over the sexual precautions page stapled onto the corkboard. She closed her eyes, her hands shakily resting on her stomach. Too late now.

"Clare…" Fitz called out from somewhere behind her.

Clare spun around, tilting her head to the side, "Fitz, hi."

"I'm sorry for last night," Fitz started to apologize bluntly. "I love having sex with you. It's just that. Now you're pregnant and…"

Clare cut him off, snapping slightly, "Its okay." She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. She could feel her face flushing. "It was just hormones and mood swings. I shouldn't have reacted like that. You didn't deserve to be snapped at."

Fitz smiled, shrugging, "Well, I should still make it up to you."

Clare quirked an eyebrow, her eyes clouding with confusion as he stepped forward, grabbing at her hips. He backed her up into a wall only to have her shove him back, throwing her whole body into a slap across his face. "How dare you," she stated, her whole body shaking with anger. "I'm not that kind of girl."

"So you won't have sex at school, but you'll sleep with two guys at the same time," Fitz stated, furrowing his brow. "Yeah, I see how you can think that's different."

"It is!" Clare exclaimed, on the edge of hysterics. "I love you and Eli! There's a huge difference. And if you two don't get along…"

Fitz shook his head, snapping, "Don't change the subject to make me look like the bad guy, Clare."

Clare shook her head at him, trying not to cry, "Whatever, Fitz." She turned away from him, her heels making tapping noises against the floor.

"And take those shoes off before you fall and lose it!" Fitz shouted after her. He sighed heavily, scratching the back of his neck thoughtfully. This is what he gets for trying to be a good guy.

DTNG

Clare sat on one of the speakers on the stage in the auditorium. She wiped at her eyes, trying her hardest not to cry. There was so much masochism in both of her relationship; and it was hurting them all. Or maybe she was just sadistic. She shuttered at the thought.

"Clare?"

Clare's head snapped up and sighed heavily, looking back down at the floor. "Hi Holly J," she mumbled, kicking off her heels.

Holly J took a seat next to her on the speaker, dropping her arms from where they had rested against her chest. She pursed her lips together, trying to figure the safest route to get Clare to confide in her. "How are you?" she asked, concern hanging in her voice.

Clare sniffled, rubbing at her raw nose, "I'm sick. Trying to make these stupid feelings go away."

Holly J frowned sadly, curiosity taking the best of her, "And how's that working at for you?"

Clare's bottom lip shook with emotion, trying not to cry as she replied, "Not well… I'm still a pervert."

Holly J tried her hardest not to laugh, wrapping a comforting arm around Clare's shoulders. "It's called puberty, Hun. Everyone goes through it," she assured. "Some just handle it better than others."

Clare shook her head, shrugging Holly J away, "No. It's called pregnancy. It causes a hormonal imbalance, although being a teenager makes it about twenty times worse." She closed her eyes, preparing herself to be lashed out at.

Holly J only smiled – exactly what she wanted to hear. Her thoughts having been confirmed, she sighed softly, "I thought that's what you and Fitz were fighting about in the hallway. I mean, I knew there was rumor about one of the tens being pregnant, but I never thought it would be Saint Clare." Holly J gestured to Clare upon the burdening nickname.

Clare looked up at Holly J in alarm, her face flushing in pain, "Are you gonna tell everyone at school it's me?"

Holly J shook her head, "No. But I think you've gotten mixed up with the wrong guy." She frowned in concern, placing a gentle hand on Clare's pregnant stomach. "What happened with you and Eli? I thought you guys were great."

Clare nodded, smiling sadly, "They still are, for the most part. I've been sleeping with them both and neither of them used protection; I'm not on the pill. So I got pregnant. And I don't know who the father is…" She looked down at the black painted floor, chewing relentlessly on her bottom lip to make it bleed. She only stopped when she was satisfied with the copper taste in her mouth.

Holly J's eyes went wide in shock. She blinked, breathing out, "Wow…" She sighed heavily, wrapping her other arm around Clare's shoulder, and pulled the fragile girl into her arms. She closed her eyes, running a hand through Clare's red hair. "Hun, I'm so sorry."

Clare shook her head, shrugging, but did not struggle away from Holly J, "Its okay. I'm learning how to cope with it." She sighed heavily, closing her eyes. "It's Fitz and Eli getting along that worries me." She pulled back from the older girl, looking at the ring Fitz had given her the other day on her right middle finger. "If they don't come up with some sort of compromise, then I don't think I can be with either of them."

Holly J pursed her lips together in thought as to find something to say. She sighed dramatically, shrugging, "Well, it looks like you've got some thinking to do."

DTNG

Clare found Eli in the training room alone, throwing his entire body into each hit he threw at the punching bag. She bit her bottom lip, quickly aroused at the state of he was in; sweaty; breathless; using his whole body with each movement. She shuttered slightly, trying to control her hormones.

"Eli…" she called out softly.

Eli let out a deep breath, turning around to face her. He pulled off his gloves, dropping them to the floor. He quirked an eyebrow, trying to mask his pleasure upon seeing her, but the sweetness in his voice gave him away, "What's up, Edwards?"

Clare bit her bottom lip, thinking about her words as she looked down at the ground. "You and Fitz need to compromise," she stated, daring to look up at him.

Eli's face dropped, his eyes filled with betrayal. He shook his head, "I doubt that will ever happen."

Clare shook her head, her heart breaking as she spoke, "Then I can't be with you. Either of you. Unless you two try to work this out, neither of you are going to be around me."

Eli frowned, closing his eyes, and swallowed the nervous lump in his throat. He opened his eyes, looking back up at her. "But if we make a compromise then… I don't get you. To myself."

Clare furrowed her brow in confusion, "Eli, what are you trying to say?"

Eli sighed heavily, whining bluntly, "Are you gonna sleep with him?"

Clare pursed her lips together tightly to keep her mouth shut and shrugged, her face blushing a light pink tint.

Eli shook his head, scratching the back of his neck.

"Does it really make a difference?" Clare asked, her heels clicking together to stand herself up straighter as she stepped closer to him.

Eli did not move as he replied, nodding, "Yeah. It does. Because that could be my kid. Not his."

Clare stopped merely inches from him, frowning softly, "Eli…"

Eli bit his bottom lip as her fingernails slowly drug down his warm, sweating biceps he had worked so hard to keep chiseled. He tried to swallow the lump of pride stuck in the back of his throat, but he knew he could not. Not this time. "Clare," he whispered softly.

"Shhhh…" Clare hushed softly, leaning in to him, and kissed him soundly on the lips.

Eli kissed her back willingly, wrapping his arms instinctively around her waist. He rested his hand on the small of her back and the other planted on her hip, bringing her body closer to his. She slowly slid her tongue into his mouth, the heat between them practically setting the space around them on fire. She slid a hand up his arm, across the side of his neck, and finally rested it in his hair, gingerly scraping his scale with her neon green nails. He tilted his head to the side, getting better access of the inside of her mouth, his tongue battling with hers. She slowly pulled back with a shaky breath.

Eli nodded frantically, trying to catch his breath, his whole body shaking from the passion pooling inside of him, "Okay. I'll talk to Fitz."

Clare breathed out – whether from the overwhelming intensity of their kiss or relief, he was unsure of. "Thank you," she barely got out between breaths.

DTNG

Adam looked at Eli from where they sat on the floor against their lockers. "Dude, seriously?" he asked in shock after Eli told him what Clare wanted him to do. "Has this baby been fucking with her head or something?"

Eli shrugged, trying to joke his way through the situation, "No, usually Fitz and I do the fucking." He winced at the sound of the bitter words.

Adam frowned, shaking his head, "Don't beat yourself up about it. Clare's a smart girl. She'll make the choice that's best for her and the baby." He looked back down at his comic book.

Eli sighed heavily, nodding hopefully at the sound of Adam's words. He looked down the hall as if it would clear his head only to be met by Clare, her hand gripping Fitz's elbow as she drug him down the hallway only a few steps behind her. Eli somehow found the strength inside himself to stand as they stopped in front of him.

"Talk," Clare stated, looking from Eli to Fitz. Her eyes were half closed from exhaustion, pain, and stress, bloodshot from how many times she had cried in the past few days. Her skin had paled to a ghostly white shade and her cheeks were a permanent rosy pink. She looked like death. "Or I'm not going anywhere with either of you again."

"Stop using that against us. We both know you're too infatuated," Eli stated, rolling his eyes at her.

"Excuse you?" Clare exclaimed, dropping her hold on Fitz. She blinked, struggling to speak, "You're such an asshole, Eli."

"So does this mean that you're gonna stop seeing him?" Fitz asked, hope making him almost shake with excitement.

"No," Clare shook her head in annoyance, looking at Fitz, and could not help herself as she reached out, pinching his arm.

"Ow!" Fitz whined, rubbing the reddening spot on his arm.

Eli almost laughed until Clare reached out, pinching him as well. "Hey!" he exclaimed, rubbing the sensitive skin.

Clare's eyes were wide with anger, her body suddenly awake and about to explode. "I'm not talking to either of you until you work this out!" she stated, trying to keep from screaming, but failing miserably. With that, she walked between the two, stalking down the hall, her heels making her hips sashay from side to side.

DTNG

Clare reached her locker, slamming it open. She did not need to look up to know Alli was beside her at her own locker. "God! Men are so ignorant!" Clare growled, her nose flaring in anger.

Alli sniffled, nodding, "Yeah…"

Clare shook her head, "I mean, they won't even try to put their differences aside for the baby. What kind of dads are they going to be?" She shoved her physics book between her history and advanced calculus ones.

Alli frowned, her bottom lip shaking with emotion, "Shitty ones." She blinked back tears, tightening her jacket around her to keep herself warm.

Clare looked over at the brunette, about to continue her rant, but froze at the sight of Alli. "Alli…" she said softly in concern, her heart racing. "What's going on? What happened?"

Alli shook her head, burying her face into her locker in embarrassment. She pulled a pathetic smile, laughing through her tears, "Nothing. I'm fine."

Clare shook her head, "No you're not. You're crying."

"This is crying?" Alli asked softly. When Clare nodded, she replied, "Then I've been crying all day."

Clare felt her heart snap in two. She took Alli's arm gingerly, pulling her out of the metal hiding place. "What happened?"

Alli looked up at Clare, sniffling as she tried to control her tears, "I'm a week late." Yet as soon as she uttered the words, she broke down again.

Clare immediately wrapped her arms around Alli, pulling her close. "Oh my god," she breathed out in disbelief. First herself and now her best friend. "Did you tell Drew?" she asked gently, rubbing her best friend's back.

Alli shook her head, sniffling, "No. I haven't yet. I still have to take a test." She pulled back from Clare, wiping at her eyes.

Clare gave her a small smile, running her hand through Alli's disheveled hair. "Hey. Look on the bright side. We might be pregnant together," she whispered comfortingly.

Alli looked over at Clare and smiled a little. "I just wish we weren't fifteen," she stated.

Clare nodded, struggling not to cry, "Me too." She wrapped an arm around Alli's shoulders. "You need to tell Drew."

Alli nodded, shaking at the thought of Drew's reply, "I know. I just don't want him to leave me…"

Clare sighed softly, giving her shoulder an assuring squeeze, "Trust me. I know the feeling."