HAPPY BIRTHDAY KRISCRABLE! :D XX
Thelostcullengirl phewf, I'm really not sure what time this is set anyways haha, probably now if I had to make a choice :L
Rosalia, it's cool, it's an old song I didn't think many people would know anyway, it was just for the lyrics really :) the song itself is "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division, if anyone's wondering, although I think Clive would have covered the Fall Out boy (who just got back together yayay ^.^) version :)
Lolidge19, as a matter of fact I am, quite a big one too haha :D x
Starstar :3 I have NO IDEA! I think it might be because it's all squidgy and stuff, but I honestly do not know :') OOC means out of character though, like, Flora swearing would be out of character, or something like that :)
AllTimeLol and Ayasumi (Aya.. Like in Mad Father.. *shivers because just watched it again and has convinced herself there's a chainsaw murderer in her kitchen*) this is for yooou ~nellen :3 xx

Clive deliberately took the longest way home that night, he still had a lot on his mind. There was something wrong with Flora, he knew that, and it was definitely Mark's fault. Now whether it was to do with the whole abusive past or not, he still wasn't quite sure.
He also knew that she was annoyed about him and the other girls at the Benbow, which made him wonder if she liked him a bit more than she let on.
He got these thoughts a lot, but he didn't mind. He just hoped she couldn't tell what he was thinking about.
He had a habit of beaming like an idiot when he daydreamed about life with Flora, about what they could be. Sometimes the feelings these sparked got a bit much for him, the animalistic 'urges' to protect her and keep her safe occasionally even scaring him, especially in unprovoked circumstances.
All he wanted to do was hold her in his arms and kiss her until his lips couldn't kiss her anymore. To look after her, and comfort her, and be there for her when she needed someone.

All he wanted, was her.

And she didn't want him.

He should have known she'd be cross, it was pretty late after all.
He just didn't expect her to be so upset.

"I'm surprised you came home," she spat, regarding him with narrowed eyes, "I thought you'd have gone home with one of those floozies at the pub."
"Bit harsh really, they were just being friendly," he shrugged, but she was no where near finished.
"What, so feeling you up through your shirt and kissing your cheek and wrapping their long whorey legs around you is just being friendly is it?"
"Woah. I don't know what your issue is, but please, don't make this into a thing. I didn't ask them to do that."
"You didn't try very hard to stop them though did you?" She muttered, cheeks flushing angrily. She hadn't planned many counter-arguments for this, she really hadn't expected him to come home.
"It's very hard to fend of a horde of drunk women single handedly whilst remaining a gentleman, you know," he replied matter-of-factly, causing her to fall silent as she brooded over a retaliation.
"I didn't like them anyways, they weren't very nice," he added quickly, giving her the smallest of reassuring smiles.
"They were very pretty though, one of them had to be a model surely." Anger still lingered in her voice, although she was slightly less aggressive this time.
"It was all makeup, they had orange lines under their chins, I'm not even joking," he gave a short hollow laugh, drawing an imaginary line across Flora's neck with his fingertip. His brow furrowed slightly when she flinched, but he shrugged it off, inspecting the end of his fingernail.
"Um, I didn't, the makeup thing wasn't meant to be offensive or anything..." he mumbled, wiping the foundation off on his jeans. "Yours isn't noticeable though, you look naturally pretty, these girls had been tangoed or something."
He stopped again, taking both of her hands in his own as she began go cry.
"You're beautiful, with or without makeup," Clive whispered, gently brushing away her tears with his thumbs. He frowned again as he found yet more makeup on his hands, a horrified gasp escaping his lips when he noticed the spot that he'd wiped it from.

A large, purple bruise had blossomed around her eye, and the makeup had kept it well hidden. But now the makeup was gone, and Clive could clearly see the extent of the girl's 'relationship issues'.

"Did Mark do this to you?" The boy growled, all traces of kindness gone.
"Yes," Flora squeaked, cowering in fear, "but, it was, I deserved it!"
"Flora, no one deserves this," the boy sighed, raking his fingers through his hair, "no one except him. Has he hit you anywhere else?"
She nodded, slowly lifting up the bottom of her shirt to reveal a pattern of bruises. She tugged on her sleeve, using the corner to clean away the rest of the makeup, and tied her hair back into its regular ponytail.
Clive's jaw dropped, a glint of anger flashing in his eyes.

"I'll kill him," he muttered, "I'll bloody kill him."