The silence on Imogen’s end when it came to her question about how much her mom worked wasn’t lost on Clare. From the little she heard via second hand at school the curly haired girl was aware of her dad’s health situation, but she knew little of her mom. Whether you wanted to call it journalist instincts kicking in or her own curiosity that often led her to trouble with her need to dig for the truth Clare just knew that there was more to this story than Imogen was willing to tell her. With their strange, undefined relationship, were they friends? Acquaintances? Two girls who were simply lonely and in need of help, seeking out one another’s advice on topics they couldn’t ask any one else? Whatever they were the curious girl knew that it wasn’t her place to question Imogen further or demand an answer from her for a question she probably had no right knowing. If today went well maybe the two could forge ahead with some kind of friendship where they’d get to know one another better. But even as those thoughts floated through her mind Clare doubted their acquaintanceship would ever cross into the land of friendship. It was a thought that surprisingly disappointed her, something she didn’t think she’d ever feel when it came to the quirky girl. But even spending a few minutes in the presence of the confident older girl had Clare thinking that maybe the previous judgments she had once harbored for her were wrong. Maybe, just maybe, Imogen was someone she could eventually call a friend. But that all depended on where today left them, and so far she wasn’t sure after today’s tutoring she’d ever be able to look her in the eyes again.
"S-sure," Clare agreed shakily, not quite sure what it was she had been agreeing to. It wasn’t that she had spent the past few minutes ignoring Imogen’s instructions. No, because she had been listening. At least she had been trying to listen, a task made all the more difficult by the way Imogen’s feather light touches hovered by her shoulder before lightly dancing down her arm, resting right above her elbow. The simple touches shouldn’t have turned her into such a stuttering, flushing mess, but somehow they had. Her heart thumped beneath her chest in a steady rhythm, making her wonder briefly if the older girl could hear the consistent thump-thump-thump of her heart too or if the sound was simply only echoing in her ears. Clare’s bright blue eyes searched Imogen’s darkened brown orbs trying to figure out where she was supposed to place her hand to give her light reassurance like she had instructed. That was what she had instructed wasn’t it? Too late to ask her to clarify she reached her hand out towards hers, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Her fingertips brushed against Imogen’s and for only a second did she worry about how this would look and what Imogen would think. It wasn’t uncommon for Clare to reach out for her closest friends hands, giving them reassuring squeezes in times of need. While this certainly didn’t qualify as a time in need it took her only a few seconds to come to her senses and pull her hand away. Her eyes didn’t tear from Imogen’s, even as a wave of embarrassment washed over her. An apology sat on the tip of her tongue, ready to spill at any second. Instead, a stuttering flow of words spilled from her lips. “S-sorry. That.. uhh probably wasn’t what you meant in terms of um.. reassurance..,” she trailed off, her words sounding more like a question as they trailed off rather than a statement. Making no move to place a gap of space between their bodies Clare boldly kept her eye contact, something she normally didn’t in times of embarrassment. “Is it uh too soon to ask what the next piece of advice is?” she asked trying to keep her voice light to ease some of the tension that seemed to fill the air.
Imogen knew that Clare had probably been hoping for a more detailed answer about her mom, but at the moment she didn't particularly care. The two of them were little more than acquaintances, and while she was relatively certain that the younger girl wouldn't spread around stories about her home life the way Marisol had when she'd found out about her dad, but she still didn't feel entirely comfortable talking to the younger girl about her problems. More importantly, Clare had come here for a reason, and that reason didn't exactly involve her complaining about problems the younger girl had no means of fixing. As such, she was relieved when, despite her inquisitive nature, the curly haired girl dropped the issue and allowed her to move the conversation into safer waters... Well, safer for her, anyway.
She smirked at the shakiness in Clare's voice as the younger girl agreed with her instructions, loving how distracted and flustered she was managing to make the girl already. Her tongue flitted ever so slightly out as she subconsciously wet her lips, her heart pounding against her chest as she waited for Clare to follow the instructions she'd just given. She knew that it was a seriously terrible idea to allow herself to get so into this little tutoring session, but she simply couldn't help herself. The best thing to do at this point would be to get up, to take a step back and take a few breaths to calm herself, but she refused to back down. Bad idea or not, she was going to see this through, no matter what direction it took. Clare had asked her for help on how not to seem like a prude after all- despite whatever negative things that might imply, it also meant that Clare thought that she was fun, that she was flirty, and most importantly, that she wasn't the type to back down from anything. Wise idea or not, she was determined to prove the younger girl right, which would be difficult to do if she chickened out on this whole project the moment things started getting more intimate than she had expected.
With freshly renewed resolve, she watched as Clare's hand reached out for her, mildly surprised when the younger girl chose to go for her hand rather than her arm, a shiver running up her spine as the girl's fingertips danced across her own. She blinked when Clare suddenly pulled away, surprised by the flood of stuttering apologies spilled forth from the girl's mouth. "No, no, that was fine! You did great," she assured the curly haired girl quickly, a warm smile appearing on her face as she reached out to clasp Clare's hand. "I mean, it wasn't exactly what I asked, but instinct's more important than following a specific set of instructions, anyway. Whether it matches what you think you're supposed to do or not, just do whatever comes naturally, okay? No judgement zone" she assured the girl, giving her hand a small squeeze as she spoke. "I mean, having a list of guidelines to follow is great, but nothing beats instinct" she continued "So... no, definitely not too soon to ask for the next piece of advice" she continued with a small smile, subconsciously moving in closer still to the younger girl as she spoke. "But more important than what you should do next... What do you want to do?" she asked, waiting to see what the younger girl would do next. She didn't necessarily mean what Clare wanted to do with her in specific of course, but she felt as though the girl was doing well enough that it would be interesting to see where her instincts took her.
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