"Discover Yourself" - Act 6
Disclaimer: The characters of Peter and Sophie, and any Cliffhangers mentioned, do not belong to me. I have added some of my own characters into the mix.
"Knowing others is wisdom; Knowing the self is enlightenment; Mastering others requires force; Mastering the self needs strength." - Tao te Ching
June 1, 2001
Noon
"Peter!" The voice on the other end of the phone sounded almost hysterical. "Peter, I need your help!"
"Juliette, I need you to take a deep breath and calm down!" Peter waited a moment until he could hear her breathing slow down. "Okay, now what's going on there?"
"Peter, it's my mom, I don't know what to do! She wants to send me to some boarding school in France. She doesn't think I'm getting enough culture at Horizon, and she found some all-girls school in France that also has a shrink of staff to help with my ... issues. Peter, what am I going to do?" she wailed. "I can't imagine not going to Horizon!"
Peter closed his eyes, rubbing his temples with one hand. This was just what he didn't need right now. "Okay, Jules, listen to me. All I can do is talk to your mother about this, okay? Do you want me to try that?"
"Yes! Please, Peter, you have to do something! I won't go there, I'll run away if she makes me go there!" She was now sobbing into the phone.
"Jules, please calm down. Listen, I'm going to have Sophie call you as soon as she can and talk to you some more. Then, we can talk to your mother. Is she home?"
"No, of course not. She's on an Alaskan cruise right now with Hal." Juliette had stopped crying but was sniffling now.
"Okay, Jules, hang on. I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best to convince your mother to let you come back to Horizon." Now, I just have to figure out what to say to her to sway her, he thought. "We'll talk to you soon, okay?"
"Okay, Peter. Thanks. Bye." Sounding somewhat dejected, Juliette hung up before Peter had the chance to say goodbye.
What else can go wrong, Peter wondered.
Ali was mortified. She hadn't heard Sophie come into the kitchen until it was too late. Now, Sophie just stood there, looking at her with pity.
"Ali, sweetie," Sophie started to say as she moved closer to Ali, but Ali cut her off.
"This isn't what it looks like," Ali said, thinking quickly as she looked around at the open food containers everywhere and the food on the floor. Wow, I made a mess in the dark, she thought. "I, uh, got in a food fight with John and Mike after we finished cleaning up the kitchen. They had to leave to do other stuff, so I volunteered to clean up," she said, trying to sound convincing.
Sophie assessed the situation, trying to decide if she should push the issue. She could tell Ali wasn't being truthful, but she wanted to gain her trust so Ali would open up to her. She decided to try a backdoor tactic. "Well, I'll have to give those guys a hard time for leaving you with this mess." She noticed Ali's look of panic.
"No! I mean, then they'd just razz me, ya know? Really, Sophie, it's okay, I don't mind." She looked at Sophie again and gave her a small smile.
Sophie was sure now that Ali was covering up for herself, but decided to drop it. "Okay, why don't you finish cleaning up, because lunch is soon. The reason I was looking for you was to have our one-on-one meeting."
"Oh, that..." Ali sighed, thinking how she was dreading it. "Can we do it after lunch?" she asked hopefully.
"We're having a short group meeting after lunch, but we'll meet right after that. Okay?" Sophie looked at Ali for a response, but Ali seemed to be daydreaming. "Ali, is that okay?"
"What? Yeah, that's fine," she answered with a feeble smile. Geez, why can't I listen? Now she's going to be all over me, she thought.
Sophie walked out of the kitchen and went to find Peter. She wanted to get his input on how to handle this situation. Outside, lost in her thoughts, she bumped (literally) into Troy. "Oh, sorry, Troy. Guess I need to watch where I'm going more," she said with an apologetic smile.
"Hey, no problem. I have my head in the clouds at times myself." He gave her his now-famous easygoing smile.
Sophie couldn't help but smile back, he was just such a nice guy. "How is your day going so far?" she asked.
"Well, I held my own doing the laundry with the two ladies. And I just got off the phone with two other ladies, my mom and my daughter." Hearing his daughter's little voice had been just what he needed. He hadn't realized how much he would miss her, but he was comforted to know she was staying with his parents. She loved her grandparents, and they certainly doted on her.
Sophie all of a sudden had an idea. "Hey, could you do me a favor?"
"Sure, I'm not doing anything at the moment. What do you need?"
"Well, I didn't realize how close it is to lunch. I'm trying to find Peter, and then we'll need to have lunch so we're not off schedule for the rest of the day. Ali should be in the kitchen already. Could you go and tell her that I asked the two of you to make lunch for everyone?" She hoped she was doing a good thing for Ali. Troy just seemed to have a positive effect on people, something Sophie thought Ali could use right now.
"Sure, no problem. I'll head that way right now." With a salute and a smile, Troy jogged off toward the main lodge.
Afternoon
Peter looked around at the group as they all formed a circle after lunch. Sophie had found him earlier in his office, and they had each told the other their stories. They had called Juliette together before lunch, and had succeeded in calming her down a bit more. Now, they just had to find the best way to persuade her mother to allow her to return to Horizon.
Peter glanced over at Ali, sighing inwardly. He didn't quite know what to make of her situation. He and Sophie had decided to talk more after Sophie did her one-on-one.
"Okay, gang, I hope everyone is having a great day so far," Peter said with a smile. "We're going to keep this short and sweet, just something to keep you on your toes and keep those wheels turning in your brains. Soph?" He looked over at her, admiring how she was always on top of things, no matter what.
"Okay, like Peter said, this will be quick. You're going to each finish the sentence I give you. Ready?" The group of six just kind of shrugged, not sure what all this would entail. "Okay, Mike - 'When I have problems, I...'"
Mike looked annoyed. "I get high. Isn't that what you expected me to say, Peter?" He looked around the room. "Man, I've had enough of this shit, I'm out of here." With that, he charged out of the room.
Sophie looked at Peter, who motioned for her to keep going. Peter wanted to give Mike some time to cool off.
"Alright, we'll continue. Lynn - 'When others offer help and support, I...'"
Lynn looked uncomfortable with the statement. "I guess I thank them for the offer, but take care of things on my own," she said matter-of-factly.
"Okay, Troy - 'When a situation changes, I...'"
"Adapt the best I can," he responded without hesitation.
"Good. Ali - 'When I am stressed, I...'" Sophie watched her face intently.
Ali, as usual, was looking down. "Uh, I guess I try to relax," she said quietly.
Sophie was tempted to ask her how she relaxes but didn't want to single her out, so she filed the question away for their one-on-one session later. "Okay, John - 'When I fail, I...'"
"I don't fail," John said angrily.
Peter couldn't help but respond. "John, everyone fails at some level. We wouldn't be human if we were perfect." He watched as John dropped his head.
"Yeah, I agree. Okay, um... I learn from my mistakes so I succeed the next time." He smiled at his answer.
"Good," Sophie said with a nod. "Liz, you're the last one - 'Before making a decision, I...'"
Damn, Liz thought. The one thing I'm not good at. "Well, I guess I weigh all the options first and decide what would be most beneficial."
"Great. Okay, good job, everyone. Ali, ready for our one-on-one?" Sophie looked over at Ali, who looked less than thrilled, but nodded.
"What do we do now?" John asked unenthusiastically.
Peter quickly made a plan. "Okay, Troy and Lynn, you two will make dinner later. I need Liz and John to clean up from lunch. And we'll be finishing the one-on-ones today and tomorrow Okay?" Everyone nodded their agreement.
Mike headed down the side of the road towards Agnes to catch the bus. I can't take any more bullshit, he thought to himself. It would be much easier to be home with his friends, partying, than dealing with this. Besides, his family would still be on the cruise for another two weeks. They would never know he came home early.
He spotted a figure coming toward him and tried to distinguish the features. It appeared to be a teenage girl, struggling to carry a couple of large bags. He could hear her cursing under her breath as she approached him.
"What are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere?" she asked demandingly, ready for a fight.
"Hey, chill, I was just hoofing it to Agnes. I need to catch a bus," he replied, studying her. She was attractive, but a bit too young for him.
"Oh, well, if you don't mind - I'll be on my way." She tried to keep walking, but one of the bags fell from her shoulder.
"Hey, do you need help with that?" he asked, knowing she would say no.
"No, I'm doing just fine." The girl paused and looked at him with curiosity. "Where did you say you were coming from?"
"Oh, Mt. Horizon. Do you know where it is?"
She gave a short laugh. "Yeah, believe it or not, that's where I'm headed right now. Home, sweet, home," she muttered.
He was surprised she was going there. "Oh, are you here for the summer program?"
She looked at him, confused, but then remembered. "Oh, no, not that. I go to Horizon. For school, I mean." She paused, looking at the sky. "Look, I'd just love to stand here and chat, but I'd like to get there before dark, know what I mean?"
Mike was weighing his options. He didn't want her to have to lug those bags for the next few miles to Horizon, and he could leave whenever he wanted. "Listen, I forgot something there. I think I need to go back, too. Mind some company?"
"Sure, whatever." She started walking, but seemed glad when he offered to carry one of her bags. "I guess I should know your name, then."
"Oh, sorry. I'm Mike. Mike Wells."
"Well, Mike, it's a pleasure. I'm Shelby Merrick."
Coming up:
Will Mike stay at Horizon?
Why is Shelby back?
Will Sophie get Ali to open up to her?
Disclaimer: The characters of Peter and Sophie, and any Cliffhangers mentioned, do not belong to me. I have added some of my own characters into the mix.
"Knowing others is wisdom; Knowing the self is enlightenment; Mastering others requires force; Mastering the self needs strength." - Tao te Ching
June 1, 2001
Noon
"Peter!" The voice on the other end of the phone sounded almost hysterical. "Peter, I need your help!"
"Juliette, I need you to take a deep breath and calm down!" Peter waited a moment until he could hear her breathing slow down. "Okay, now what's going on there?"
"Peter, it's my mom, I don't know what to do! She wants to send me to some boarding school in France. She doesn't think I'm getting enough culture at Horizon, and she found some all-girls school in France that also has a shrink of staff to help with my ... issues. Peter, what am I going to do?" she wailed. "I can't imagine not going to Horizon!"
Peter closed his eyes, rubbing his temples with one hand. This was just what he didn't need right now. "Okay, Jules, listen to me. All I can do is talk to your mother about this, okay? Do you want me to try that?"
"Yes! Please, Peter, you have to do something! I won't go there, I'll run away if she makes me go there!" She was now sobbing into the phone.
"Jules, please calm down. Listen, I'm going to have Sophie call you as soon as she can and talk to you some more. Then, we can talk to your mother. Is she home?"
"No, of course not. She's on an Alaskan cruise right now with Hal." Juliette had stopped crying but was sniffling now.
"Okay, Jules, hang on. I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best to convince your mother to let you come back to Horizon." Now, I just have to figure out what to say to her to sway her, he thought. "We'll talk to you soon, okay?"
"Okay, Peter. Thanks. Bye." Sounding somewhat dejected, Juliette hung up before Peter had the chance to say goodbye.
What else can go wrong, Peter wondered.
Ali was mortified. She hadn't heard Sophie come into the kitchen until it was too late. Now, Sophie just stood there, looking at her with pity.
"Ali, sweetie," Sophie started to say as she moved closer to Ali, but Ali cut her off.
"This isn't what it looks like," Ali said, thinking quickly as she looked around at the open food containers everywhere and the food on the floor. Wow, I made a mess in the dark, she thought. "I, uh, got in a food fight with John and Mike after we finished cleaning up the kitchen. They had to leave to do other stuff, so I volunteered to clean up," she said, trying to sound convincing.
Sophie assessed the situation, trying to decide if she should push the issue. She could tell Ali wasn't being truthful, but she wanted to gain her trust so Ali would open up to her. She decided to try a backdoor tactic. "Well, I'll have to give those guys a hard time for leaving you with this mess." She noticed Ali's look of panic.
"No! I mean, then they'd just razz me, ya know? Really, Sophie, it's okay, I don't mind." She looked at Sophie again and gave her a small smile.
Sophie was sure now that Ali was covering up for herself, but decided to drop it. "Okay, why don't you finish cleaning up, because lunch is soon. The reason I was looking for you was to have our one-on-one meeting."
"Oh, that..." Ali sighed, thinking how she was dreading it. "Can we do it after lunch?" she asked hopefully.
"We're having a short group meeting after lunch, but we'll meet right after that. Okay?" Sophie looked at Ali for a response, but Ali seemed to be daydreaming. "Ali, is that okay?"
"What? Yeah, that's fine," she answered with a feeble smile. Geez, why can't I listen? Now she's going to be all over me, she thought.
Sophie walked out of the kitchen and went to find Peter. She wanted to get his input on how to handle this situation. Outside, lost in her thoughts, she bumped (literally) into Troy. "Oh, sorry, Troy. Guess I need to watch where I'm going more," she said with an apologetic smile.
"Hey, no problem. I have my head in the clouds at times myself." He gave her his now-famous easygoing smile.
Sophie couldn't help but smile back, he was just such a nice guy. "How is your day going so far?" she asked.
"Well, I held my own doing the laundry with the two ladies. And I just got off the phone with two other ladies, my mom and my daughter." Hearing his daughter's little voice had been just what he needed. He hadn't realized how much he would miss her, but he was comforted to know she was staying with his parents. She loved her grandparents, and they certainly doted on her.
Sophie all of a sudden had an idea. "Hey, could you do me a favor?"
"Sure, I'm not doing anything at the moment. What do you need?"
"Well, I didn't realize how close it is to lunch. I'm trying to find Peter, and then we'll need to have lunch so we're not off schedule for the rest of the day. Ali should be in the kitchen already. Could you go and tell her that I asked the two of you to make lunch for everyone?" She hoped she was doing a good thing for Ali. Troy just seemed to have a positive effect on people, something Sophie thought Ali could use right now.
"Sure, no problem. I'll head that way right now." With a salute and a smile, Troy jogged off toward the main lodge.
Afternoon
Peter looked around at the group as they all formed a circle after lunch. Sophie had found him earlier in his office, and they had each told the other their stories. They had called Juliette together before lunch, and had succeeded in calming her down a bit more. Now, they just had to find the best way to persuade her mother to allow her to return to Horizon.
Peter glanced over at Ali, sighing inwardly. He didn't quite know what to make of her situation. He and Sophie had decided to talk more after Sophie did her one-on-one.
"Okay, gang, I hope everyone is having a great day so far," Peter said with a smile. "We're going to keep this short and sweet, just something to keep you on your toes and keep those wheels turning in your brains. Soph?" He looked over at her, admiring how she was always on top of things, no matter what.
"Okay, like Peter said, this will be quick. You're going to each finish the sentence I give you. Ready?" The group of six just kind of shrugged, not sure what all this would entail. "Okay, Mike - 'When I have problems, I...'"
Mike looked annoyed. "I get high. Isn't that what you expected me to say, Peter?" He looked around the room. "Man, I've had enough of this shit, I'm out of here." With that, he charged out of the room.
Sophie looked at Peter, who motioned for her to keep going. Peter wanted to give Mike some time to cool off.
"Alright, we'll continue. Lynn - 'When others offer help and support, I...'"
Lynn looked uncomfortable with the statement. "I guess I thank them for the offer, but take care of things on my own," she said matter-of-factly.
"Okay, Troy - 'When a situation changes, I...'"
"Adapt the best I can," he responded without hesitation.
"Good. Ali - 'When I am stressed, I...'" Sophie watched her face intently.
Ali, as usual, was looking down. "Uh, I guess I try to relax," she said quietly.
Sophie was tempted to ask her how she relaxes but didn't want to single her out, so she filed the question away for their one-on-one session later. "Okay, John - 'When I fail, I...'"
"I don't fail," John said angrily.
Peter couldn't help but respond. "John, everyone fails at some level. We wouldn't be human if we were perfect." He watched as John dropped his head.
"Yeah, I agree. Okay, um... I learn from my mistakes so I succeed the next time." He smiled at his answer.
"Good," Sophie said with a nod. "Liz, you're the last one - 'Before making a decision, I...'"
Damn, Liz thought. The one thing I'm not good at. "Well, I guess I weigh all the options first and decide what would be most beneficial."
"Great. Okay, good job, everyone. Ali, ready for our one-on-one?" Sophie looked over at Ali, who looked less than thrilled, but nodded.
"What do we do now?" John asked unenthusiastically.
Peter quickly made a plan. "Okay, Troy and Lynn, you two will make dinner later. I need Liz and John to clean up from lunch. And we'll be finishing the one-on-ones today and tomorrow Okay?" Everyone nodded their agreement.
Mike headed down the side of the road towards Agnes to catch the bus. I can't take any more bullshit, he thought to himself. It would be much easier to be home with his friends, partying, than dealing with this. Besides, his family would still be on the cruise for another two weeks. They would never know he came home early.
He spotted a figure coming toward him and tried to distinguish the features. It appeared to be a teenage girl, struggling to carry a couple of large bags. He could hear her cursing under her breath as she approached him.
"What are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere?" she asked demandingly, ready for a fight.
"Hey, chill, I was just hoofing it to Agnes. I need to catch a bus," he replied, studying her. She was attractive, but a bit too young for him.
"Oh, well, if you don't mind - I'll be on my way." She tried to keep walking, but one of the bags fell from her shoulder.
"Hey, do you need help with that?" he asked, knowing she would say no.
"No, I'm doing just fine." The girl paused and looked at him with curiosity. "Where did you say you were coming from?"
"Oh, Mt. Horizon. Do you know where it is?"
She gave a short laugh. "Yeah, believe it or not, that's where I'm headed right now. Home, sweet, home," she muttered.
He was surprised she was going there. "Oh, are you here for the summer program?"
She looked at him, confused, but then remembered. "Oh, no, not that. I go to Horizon. For school, I mean." She paused, looking at the sky. "Look, I'd just love to stand here and chat, but I'd like to get there before dark, know what I mean?"
Mike was weighing his options. He didn't want her to have to lug those bags for the next few miles to Horizon, and he could leave whenever he wanted. "Listen, I forgot something there. I think I need to go back, too. Mind some company?"
"Sure, whatever." She started walking, but seemed glad when he offered to carry one of her bags. "I guess I should know your name, then."
"Oh, sorry. I'm Mike. Mike Wells."
"Well, Mike, it's a pleasure. I'm Shelby Merrick."
Coming up:
Will Mike stay at Horizon?
Why is Shelby back?
Will Sophie get Ali to open up to her?