concordia

twenty seven

word count: 1.6k

date written: 9.11.19

verse: 'claire' canon

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claire watched the clock above reception, slouched down in an armchair by the window. connie was late. even though school had concluded over half an hour ago, she still hadn't appeared, and nobody seemed able to get in touch with her. something claire had learned from eavesdropping on mrs. henderson and the receptionist, listening in as they discussed the situation without her even though she was the one stuck there. she watched the clock's little hand tick along, unable to stop herself from slowly growing more and more worried. 

it wasn't necessarily unusual for connie to be late. sometimes things at the hospital simply got in the way of her schedule, and claire didn't mind, knowing full well that said things were usually beyond her control. but her mum had never been this late before, and she hadn't even called ahead to reassure her or offer an explanation. maybe she's just busy, claire thought hopefully, turning to gaze out of the window. left her phone in the office again. she smiled slightly, resting her chin on the edge of her palm. silly mum.

she was just thinking about how she cold use connie's lateness to get a new book out of her when someone suddenly rounded the corner of the building and caught her attention. it wasn't connie, but it was someone claire recognized. she was quick to slide out of her seat, fumbling slightly with her backpack, but managed to pull it on properly just as elle entered the foyer. claire watched her with a frown, eyebrows furrowed tightly in concern as she hurried over. elle had only shown up at her school on one other occasion before today: when connie had collapsed at work, and she'd appeared unannounced to pull claire out of class. this felt unnervingly like that. 

claire hovered uncertainly by the armchair, reluctant to move even when elle stopped in front of her. "elle?" she leaned to the side slightly, peering around elle's figure, as though she expected to find connie hiding behind her. she didn't. elle was alone. "where's mum?" 

elle grimaced, closing the gap between them to take claire's hand. "i'll explain in the car," she said in lieu of an answer, already coaxing her in the direction of the door. she didn't want to have this conversation in front of others and offered mrs. henderson a strained smile as they passed. she walked so fast that claire had to take two steps for every one of hers just to keep up. 

she tried her best to keep quiet, pressing her lips together as they hurried across the courtyard, but elle was clearly on edge, and it was only making her more nervous. "did something happen?" she finally blurted out just beyond the school gates. elle's car was only meters away, but she couldn't contain her questions any longer. "to mum?" 

elle slowed to a stop, reluctantly turning to her with a quiet sigh, and crouched down to her level before gently taking her hands. there was no easy way to tell her but there was no downplaying it either. claire would only read between the lines. "she was attacked," elle told her slowly, mouth dry. claire gasped faintly, eyes widening in horror, and elle immediately tried to reassure her. "but she's alright! everyone's taking very good care of her." claire didn't answer, tears already gathering in her eyes as the news sunk in. "hey." elle shuffled closer, stroking the edge of claire's hand with her thumb. "try not to worry too much. you know how stubborn your mum is -- she never lets anything keep her down." 

claire's lower lip trembled slightly, but she was quick to nod firmly in agreement. "yeah," she whispered, letting go of elle's hand so she could dry her wet eyes with her sleeve. "mum can do anything!"