Disclaimer: I don't own Degrassi, or Treacherous by Taylor Swift
Put your lips close to mine, as long as they don't touch. Out of focus, eye to eye, till the gravity's too much
Clare
Eli and I planned meticulously, and finally the plan was complete. I won't spoil it for you, but you will find out eventually. This plan took many afternoons on Eli's cluttered bedroom floor – as any regular teenage boy's room would be – with a map of the school and everything planned on a notepad down to the minute. It was complex, but it could be done by two people.
Ever since that night when Eli and I jumped over that wall, I feel like maybe I do have a chance. The way he looked into my eyes was magnetic. His hands on me felt like electricity. I really hope things can work themselves out, or else I would be extremely disappointed if it didn't, and not to mention completely shattered. Eli had become more important to me than I had ever imagined. If it were to just disappear and fall apart, I would too. That's how I know that my feelings for Eli are particularly strong – because I'm terrified to lose him.
It took us over a week to get the plan perfect – and we even practiced our plan b's or what ifs in case something went wrong. The plan was separated into 4 parts, and each part had 2 or 3 separate back up plans. It was like a complicated graphic organizer: If this happens, advance to step 2, and If not, advance to step 3, or in case of emergency, break glass, advance to Go and collect $200.
We went over the plan so much that we had it memorized. Eli chose to have the day to act be on Friday, exactly two weeks before opening night of The Fault in Our Stars. I had high hopes that this plan would turn out just as well as I wanted it to turn out.
Sure enough, Friday morning came briskly. Eli drove me to school, and we went over some last minute plans and had a little mini pump up pep-rally type deal to get us excited and energized. This involved blaring rock music with the windows down, head banging, and air guitarring.
We came prepared with high tech walkie-talkies and dark attire. Eli suggested synchronized watches but I told him we a) weren't the FBI or CIA and b) didn't have the technology available to us.
And from then on, we made the transformation from Eli and Clare, to total and complete badasses.
Dropping me off at the front steps, Eli glanced at me with those sparkling green eyes, "You know what to do, Clare," he said. I nodded, doing quick salute and getting out of the car. My first job was to watch Eli park the hearse, and then make sure the coast was clear for him to sneak into one of the back doors to the control room. It was an easy entrance, whispering into my walkie-talkie, "Fly, eagle, fly," which was code for "the coast is clear".
My job was just as easy. I snuck letters into both Imogen and Jake's lockers, telling them to meet the other at a certain place. All that I hoped for was that they went without questioning, and that their lust-induced bodies will do as they did when Eli and I saw them at Jake's house. That was our plan: to catch them in the act, and broadcast it to the entire school, but it would be anonymous. No one would know that it was Eli and I, hence the dark wardrobe and secrecy.
After that, there was nothing we could do until the afternoon announcements that Mr. Simpson would be talking about. Upcoming things for student council, buy tickets for the school play, yada yada yada. I think he figures that by having announcements later in the day, people will be more awake to pay attention.
Walking to sixth period, I noticed Imogen open her locker and find my note. She opened it and smiling after reading it, rushed to put her things in her locker and ran down an empty hallway to the boiler room. It was in the most secluded hallway in the school. The only classes down there were electives that were quiet, like photography, culinary arts, and the like. I made sure to walk by Jake's locker too, and saw him do the same thing Imogen did. He ran off to the same location.
"Bait the worms, eagle," I whispered in my walkie-talkie.
It wasn't long until I got the response, "Fire in the hole, sparrow." I nodded. Everything was set. Eli rewired the connections from the news room camera to the one in the boiler room that he planted. So he can cut Simpson off when the automatic timer goes off exactly a minute after the news start. After that, the student body will be watching the lusty hookup of Jake Martin and Imogen Moreno, and the best part was, they were completely oblivious to the whole thing.
And the other best part: everything was automated and hidden so well (Eli planted the camera in one of the ceiling tiles) that we didn't have to stand around doing any of the work at all. With the wires redone and the camera functioning, all we had to do was sit in class and watch the action. Although I might advert my eyes, because I really don't want to see Imogen and Jake getting it on, because that's repugnant.
Sitting in Mrs. Dawes' class, she was talking about the importance of symbolism in Lord of the Flies, when the news theme came on, and then Simpson's face appears on the television screen. I made eye contact with Eli, and he winked. I blushed, before paying attention to the TV. It had been about thirty seconds in, and I was shaking on the inside with anticipation but did my best not to show it on the outside. I looked over at Eli again. He had a look of nervousness on his face, but only I could stare at the clock and wait for it to strike.
...58
…59
…60
I received a text, "The Eagle has landed," from Eli. Simpson's face was cut off and it was adverted to a small, dusty, and messy room that looked like the location of an illegal drug deal. There were two figures in the room – I identified them as Imogen and Jake – and Jake had Imogen pushed up against the wall. They were both naked, and Imogen's legs were wrapped tight around Jake's waist. Her moans filled up the room, vibrating off the walls, as Jake pushed into her hard. Is this what it is like to watch porn? I thought, because this is disturbing.
There were miscellaneous whispers thrown around the room. I only caught a few words, but mostly they went along the line of "how disgusting", "I never would have guessed", or "that explains a lot." I smirked to myself in satisfaction. I looked over at Eli again, and he smirked as well.
Mrs. Dawes wasn't really paying attention, but as soon as she heard the first moan, her head snapped up and her jaw jumped because she realized what she was watching. She quickly got up and tried to turn off the TV, but she couldn't find the remote and the device was perched so high that she couldn't reach it. The entire class was erupting in laughter, although some were highly disgusted and shut their ears with their hands.
Much to Dawes' happiness, the news was cut off completely. There was a black screen for awhile, some static, and then Mr. Simpson appeared on the television again. "It seems that there has been an interruption with our wiring. Please excuse the inconvenience." Simpson pursed his lips and a wave of anger crossed his face. The screen went black again.
Not two minutes later, the intercom sounded, "Jake Martin and Imogen Moreno come to Mr. Simpson's office immediately." I had to stop myself from whooping and hollering in complete glee. Eli was smiling, and then the bell rang.
I saw Imogen come out of the hallway, happy as can be, and then the whispers hit her. At first she didn't pay any attention, but then she realized that people were talking about her. She walked a little faster. A few seconds later, Jake came out of the same hallway, his hair a little messed up, but what he got, was the cheers from the football team, as they clapped him on the shoulder and almost hoisted him into the air, as he is standing there with a look of confusion on his face. One of the players leaned in and whispered to him, and Jake's entire demeanor changed. He literally took off running around the corner, down to the office.
Eli and I kept our happiness in until we got to his car and drove a good distance away, and Eli shouted, "Back to the Nest!" which was code for "mission accomplished", and then the loud music started up again and we head banged all the way home. We went back to his house, where Eli declared it a time for celebration. I couldn't have been happier. My parents were going out for the weekend and wouldn't be back until late Sunday night, and Cece and Bullfrog didn't mind me staying over. I was there enough as it was, even if I was only their son's friend.
But little did they know, I wanted to be more than that.
"Cheers!" Eli said, clinging two wine glasses together. He actually had wine stocked in his room, "for special occasions," he said. I never took him for a wine drinker, but neither was I. He diluted the wine a little bit with water so it wasn't as strong, being that I was a first time drinker for recreational purposes, but that didn't stop the tingly feeling I got in my stomach with every glass that I enjoyed. Snack foods littered the floor – along with a cascade of at least twenty pillows and blankets all over the bed. We hung some sheets up, connecting to the wall, then the ceiling, then the other wall. We wanted to build a fort, so a fort we did. And we called it the Castle.
We laughed all night, watching movies and cuddling, too drunk to realize that we were just friends.
"Eli?" I asked, after the rolling credits of Easy A came on.
"Yes, Clare?" Eli mumbled, his eyes fluttering with drunkenness and cloudy, but still beautiful.
"Do you like me?" I asked.
"I think you're lovely," he answered.
"Is that it?" I asked.
"Of course not, but I didn't know if you wanted to hear the entire list that I have memorized since the first moment I saw you," he elaborated. He turned to face me, his eyes misty and his hair disheveled.
"Shoot," I said. I took another sip of wine and faced him, sitting crisscross apple sauce.
"I think you are beautiful, radiant, sweet and intelligent. I love the color of your eyes. You smell like vanilla, and I like vanilla. Your skin is so smooth that I want to run my fingers over it countless amounts of times. I have to fight the urge to kiss your lips because the desire is too much. I love the way you read books and write poetry and act out a scene that makes me want to cry because it is so beautiful. You're a star, my shining star, that keeps me going every day, and I know that is really cheesy, but it's true. You're beautiful, and I like you, Clare Edwards," Eli said. My heart fluttered.
I leaned forward and kissed him. A simple kiss that lasted maybe a second or two, and when I pulled away, the look in Eli's misty eyes was different than it was five seconds ago. It was a mixture of shock and desire at the same time. It might have been the alcohol, but he was looking at me like I was golden, and I loved every second of it. Eli was my center of gravity. I was pulled toward him at a constant rate and now this is where we would collide.
Eli cupped the back of my head and smashed our lips together. It was a tangle of frantic lips and clinging to the other in fear that one of us would break away.
All of a sudden, I am on my back, Eli positioned neatly between my legs. His breath was warm and smelled faintly of wine, but it was a sweet smell, not a sour one. We devoured each other's lips; Eli's leaving mine for a second to kiss down my jaw and to my neck, sending shockwaves through my body. He bit down a little, but instead of it hurting, it felt really good. A small moan escaped my lips, and I almost slapped my hand over my mouth at the sound of my own pleasure, but Eli merely smirked against my skin before biting down again somewhere else, making the skin red.
Tease.
Eli set his chin in the valley between my breasts and looked up at me. His eyes were shining and beautiful and I kissed his lips again, softer this time. We parted with a slight popping noise.
"Clare?" Eli said.
"Yes, Eli?" I answered.
"Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked. My heart jumped. He was asking me to be his. Well, I already was. I would have jumped miles into the sky if it meant I would be with Eli. I had known him for a few short months and I have fallen for him faster than I ever thought I would fall for anyone.
Without even thinking about it, I said, "Of course," and he kissed me again.
That night, I slept peacefully in Eli's arms - both of them wrapped around my waist protectively. His bed smelled like him, and I was in a cocoon of Eli, and I loved it. He placed small butterfly kisses on the back of my neck and my shoulder as I fell asleep in paradise.
End of Chapter