What Did I Do?

Clare's POV:

"You are beyond grounded young lady," my mom sternly informed me when we were in the car, just me, he, and my stepdad Glen.

"Okay, mom," I conceded, looking out the back passenger seat window at the passing trees. Flowers were blooming at the side of the road, pops of bright pinks, yellows, and whites in fields of green and gray.

"Are you even listening to me, Clare Diane?" She asked, exasperated.

"Yes, mom. I am in trouble. I am grounded," I repeated back to her, acknowledging what she had already expressed to me.

She hmphed from the driver's seat, but said no more. There was nothing left to say; what's done is done.

The drive to the house was short, but only because I was distracted. Distracted by thought of Eli, thoughts of Drew, thought of what Drew did to me, and thoughts of how Eli handled the information.

He really is one of the best people I have ever met, will ever meet.

When we arrived home, I exited the car, purse in hand and moved quickly through the house up to my bedroom. This is where I pulled out my journal and began writing about the exhilarating adventure on which Eli and I just embarked.

Ten minutes into writing, a knock bounced on my door. I tucked away my journal and said, "Come in."

The doorknob turned slowly, and a head popped in. I tilted my head curiously at the tall figure trying to make his way in.

"Can I come all the way in?" My stepbrother, Jake, asked.

"Yeah, sure," I replied, clearing a spot on my bed for him to sit.

"Thanks," he said, "So, you were hanging out with Eli?" He observed quite well for a boy his age.

"Yes, but we were just hanging out. It was all just a huge misunderstanding, I swear," I rambled.

"Clare, you got arrested," Jake said, pointing out more of the obvious.

"Yes, and I got out as soon as they called my mom. I don't really understand why they arrested us anyway. It should have been a warning, at most," I really hated being in trouble, and if I could talk myself out of it, all the better.

"Clare-," Jake started.

"I just needed to talk to Eli, all right?" I said defensively, cutting him off.

"That's fine, Clare, but did you have to get arrested in the process?" He was trying to speak level-headedly to me, but my emotions were running high, and I wouldn't hear any of it.

"You just don't understand," I threw my arms up to my head, gripping my hair. While performing this over dramatic action, my sleeves fell down to my elbows, revealing my bruises.

Jake's eyes darted to the blue and purple on white skin.

"Clare..." He trailed off, not really knowing what to say.

I quickly brought my hands down and struggled to grip the sleeves' hems to pull them back to their rightful positions covering my wrists.

"Clare, who did this to you? Was it Eli? Did that dirtbag hurt you more?" Jake asked, getting angrier by the second.

"Jake, no. Eli was helping me. He got me talking about it. About what happened," I tried to explain to him.

"Well then, what actually happened, Clare? And why did you talk to Eli? Why not your boyfriend? Drew probably won't be happy you did that."

And just like that, I was crying again. Not even pretty crying, I was full-on ugly crying at the mere mention of Drew's name.

Jake was looking at me, concerned and confused as to what he said to set me off.

It was then that my phone rang, but it was across the room, so I motioned for Jake to pick it up.

"It's Eli," he said, holding the phone as if it would shatter spontaneously.

"Answer it, he can explain what happened," I told him, not trusting myself to get the story out again.

He took a breath and looked at me. When I nodded, he pressed and slid he "answer call" prompt.

He held the phone up to his ear and said, "Eli, it's Jake." He shook his head as he listened to Eli talk on the other end. "She's not really in the mindset to speak right now. She asked me to have you tell me why she didn't talk to Drew about her problems. Why she came to you."

I heaved a body-wrecking sob out, clenching a pillow to my chest in dire need of a grounding force.

I watched Jake nod as Eli reiterated the story on the other end of the line. Jake was already mad before the call, but after Eli was finished, he was downright wrathful. He looked at me, fire in his eyes.

"He did what to her? I'm going to fucking kill him," he swore. I got up off my bed, tears rolling down my face and hugged him.

"Jake, please don't do anything. Just keep it to yourself. You weren't supposed to see," I pleaded. His ear was still pressed up against the phone, but he then brought it down in front of my face.

"Eli wants to speak to you," he said monotonously, trying obviously to keep his temper in check. After I had a hold of the phone, he peeled me off his waist and left the room, still fuming.

"Hello?" I said into the speaker.

"Hello, beautiful girl," responded the ever-sexy Eli Goldsworthy. I smiled through my tears.

"Hi," I simply said back, replacing my butt into the semi-permanent impression on my bed.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, worry consuming every syllable.

"Not very well. I can't even hear his name without completely shattering. How am I going to make it through school tomorrow?"

"I will be there," he said proudly.

"You already graduated, dummy. Don't remember that big ceremony where you had to wear a dress for a flimsy piece of paper?"

"Ha, ha. So what? Simpson loves me! He's even seen me naked," Eli boasted, knowing it would get a giggle out of me.

And it did.

"You were high, doofus," I clarified his reasoning.

"Still happened. Still counts," I could practically see him winking at me over the phone. "And what with all this name calling?"

"I smiled and said, "Just making up for lost time. And fine, have fun convincing Simpson to let you crash."

"Oh, I will," he replied.

I was looking in the mirror across from me. My face was puffy and red from crying. My mascara was staining my cheeks in the most unattractive streaks. "I'm a disaster," I said out loud to myself.

"No, you're not, Clare," Eli stated through the line.

"I look like a trainwreck, Eli," I pressed the issue.

"You are always gorgeous to me, Blue Eyes."