PROLOGUE:
Shelby turned swiftly on the balls of her feet, hot tears stinging in her eyes.
They had lied to her, deceived her. She felt betrayed and stripped of all trust for those around them. Her heart was broken for far too many reasons.
Without realizing it, she had broken into a sprint. Her skin glistened with a cold sweat. Suddenly, she felt herself crashing into someone's chest.
"Oh, sorry," she mumbled, feeling no real sympathy for the person she had just bumped into.
"I'm not complaining," a low, sext voice answered her. "You running away, kid?"
"I-I don't know yet." Her voice sounded meek and childish, nearly breaking with sobs.
"What's your name?"
"Uh, Shelby." Don't talk to strangers… Her father's voice rang in her ears, and she pushed it away. As if he actually cared if she was kidnapped or killed. As long as she never found out his dirty little secret, right? "What's yours?" Something about this man intrigued her, entranced her. It was ridiculous, he could be her father! But something in his stormy, dark blue eyes made her want to stay trapped in his gaze for eternity.
"Mark Fitzgerald, but you can call me Fitz."
CHAPTER ONE:
"Morning!" Shelby bounced cheerfully down the stairs, her thick brown waves swinging with each step.
"Morning, Shell," Clare and Eli answered their daughter in unison, looking up from their papers.
"Your eyes look pretty Shelby," Clare flashed her a motherly smile. "New makeup?"
"Yeah, but I hate my eyes. Why couldn't I have gotten Mom's eyes?"
"You just look like your father, that's all," Clare murmured nervously.
"Nothing wrong with that," Eli looked up from his newspaper and flashed Shelby that infamous smirked that had won her mother over all those years ago.
"Cocky, much? Good to know you still haven't changed since my sophomore year," Clare raised an eyebrow at him.
"That's right. I'm still hot enough to win you over." He smirked again and leaned over to kiss her.
Shelby chucked a Cheerio at them. "Gross! Cut it out!"
"It's not like you don't know Shelby, I mean… We're pregnant. And let me tell you, babies don't actually get delivered by storks…"
Shelby stuck her fingers in her ears and sang. "Lalalalalalalalalalalalala!"
"Elijah! Not in front of Shelby!" Clare scolded, smacking him playfully on the arm.
"Ok, before you two officially scar me for life, I'm leaving for school." She kissed them each on the cheek and headed for the door.
Despite the inappropriate table conversation of how Clare got pregnant, Shelby was ecstatic to have a brother or sister. She hoped he or she would look like Clare. Shelby, for unfathomable reasons, hadn't a single trait from her mother. Not her sparkling blue eyes, her auburn curls, or her thin, pink lips. She was all her father, except for her hair. Her hair was thick, dark brown, and wavy. Eli always told her that it was Clare's mother's hair.
Not that she'd ever met her grandmother. Clare's parents had split when Clare was a teenager, and wanted no part of Clare's new family.
She walked up the front steps of Degrassi, where she always met her life-long friend, Holly. Holly's dad was Eli's best friend in high school, and I guess the tradition had carried.
"Hey, Shell! Wanna come over after school?"
"Sure, Holly. But can your dad drive us? I have to take my guitar home for the weekend and I hate lugging that monstrosity around."
"Sure," Holly laughed. "Now let's get to class."
A/N AUGGGHHH! That sucked! Sorry, it was a filter chapter… I just wanted you guys to get a look at Shelby's teenage life. And just for clarification, Holly is Adam and Fiona's kid. Get it? Holly? Named after Holly J? Yeah so, don't give up on this story! I swear to Alexisonfire it'll get better! Ten reviews equals new chapter… Thanks for reading!