CHAPTER 8
Scott's mom was delighted that Scott made some progress with his father. She looked over at Shelby and asked, "So do you want to go shopping?"
"I'm actually not the shopping type but this sounds like fun." She looked over at Scott, "Any requests?"
Susan, "Don't ask him. Guys don't know about things like this."
Scott, "But mom"
"Don't worry Scott, we know what we're doing. Shelby will be the best dressed girl at homecoming."
Scott smiled and gave his mom a hug. "Thanks mom, that's all I want."
Martin walked into the house but didn't seem to be in as good of mood as Scott. Susan looked at him and wondered why he looked so glum. She went over and pulled him into the den so she could talk privately with him.
"Martin what's wrong? Scott gave me the impression that you two had a great time together."
"We did it's just . . . I don't know about him. Why does he keep things to himself all the time? He never told me about Elaine and now something traumatic happens to him last night and he doesn't tell anyone." He looks over at Susan. "Did he tell you? I don't even know if he told Shelby. Why must he keep things bottled up inside of him all the time."
"I'm not sure what you're talking about. He hasn't told me anything traumatic. What happened and how did you find out?"
"Well I found out from our neighbor Dan Wilkes who we ran into at the club. It appears that Scott was almost rapped by some gay men last night."
Susan threw her hand over her mouth, "OMG how awful. If Shelby knows than she never told me. Maybe I can see if she'll talk later on tonight while we're out alone shopping. Is he going to be ok or should we press charges."
"He said that he won't go through that kind of interrogation again because he always comes out the guilty party. He doesn't trust the court system to help him and he doesn't want to be dragged through the dirt again. Do you blame him?"
"No I don't blame him but do you think that he might need some kind of psychological help though?"
"Let's just see how he acts for awhile. Maybe this whole homecoming will help him take his mind off of it. That's the only reason why I changed my mind about letting him go. I told him that if he wanted me to trust him than he needed to start opening up to me and stop shielding me out."
"Well Shelby and I are going shopping so you two men can hang out and do something. I'll see ya later."
Once the females left, it was just the men at home. Scott was finished with his homework and seemed bored without Shelby there. Martin didn't know what to do to keep Scott from mopping around the house. He asked Scott about going to the movies and he said no. He asked Scott about watching a game on T.V. but he still said no. Martin didn't know what to do to get his son's attention. Then the thought occurred to him. Ask him about the one thing that means the most to him.
"How are you and Shelby doing?"
Scott snapped his head around and looked at his father with disbelieve. He never asked about Shelby before. "We're doing fine. Does that make you mad?"
"No, why would you say that?"
"Because you never talk to her. You never look at her and you pretend that she's not even here most of the time. How do you think that makes her feel? Did you know that she was abused by your stepfather just like I was? Why do you think we understand each other so much? When you hurt her feelings than you are also hurting mine."
"I'm sorry son. I never looked at it that way. I just couldn't stand the fact that I was loosing you."
"That's what mom said. The only way that you could loose me is to not accept Shelby as part of this family."
"Ok I'll make a deal with you."
"Dad you're beginning to sound like a game show host. Always "Let's make a Deal."
Martin gave him one of those looks that said, don't be sarcastic. "If you would just open up to me and tell me things that are going on in your life than maybe I wouldn't feel so sheltered from your life."
"Dad you can't expect me to tell you everything. Than I wouldn't have any privacy."
"I'm talking about the major or traumatic things. Not every little detail. You could have come to me last night about what happened over at Gary's house but you chose to hide that pain all by yourself until you exploded in school. Why?"
Scott was beginning to get uncomfortable with this conversation but at least they were talking. "I just didn't think that you would believe me."
"Why wouldn't you think that I would believe you if you were telling the truth?"
"Because you didn't believe me the first time and I was telling the truth than."
Martin could hear the hurt in his son's voice and he started to realize the pain that he must have put Scott through. "I'm sorry Scott. It was just so hard to hear. I think that I didn't want it to be true so I pretended that it wasn't. It was much easier to deal with. I'm sorry. What is it going to take for you to trust me again?"
Scott thought real hard and decided to give it a shot. "It would take your permission for me to marry Shelby." Martin didn't know what to say. He just ran his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture. Scott than continued on. "We are going to do it when we both turn 18 so what's the difference if it's 6 months earlier. I really want the baby to be born with the right start. Why won't you give your written consent?"
When Martin didn't say anything Scott decided to press on. "I want to have my name on the birth certificate and I want it to have the Barringer last name. Unless we are married they won't do that. I don't want Shelby walking around as someone's pregnant mistake. She deserves better than that."
"Well how soon are we talking about?"
Scott was in shock. "You mean you are actually going to consider it?"
"I guess the inevitable is going to happen anyway. I guess it wouldn't be so bad if the date was moved up. At least it makes the sneaking into her bedroom in the middle of the night ligament. " Scott just raised his eyebrows with an innocent look. "What you didn't think I knew about that?"
"Yeah, whatever. Well Shelby is 3 months along so I figure that if she wants to fit in a wedding dress that we should do it within the next month before she starts showing."
"Listen, you get together with your mother and plan whatever and I'll sign the papers. You also need to get Shelby's mother to sign. Don't forget the license and the blood test need to be done. All that will take several weeks so you should get working on it if you want this to take place anytime soon."
"Well how long are we talking about? What's the soonest that you think?"
"I'd say that you are going to need at least three weeks."
Scott became all excited. "Great, I need to go make a phone call." Scott ran out of the room and up to his room to call Horizon. He figured the best place for a wedding would be in the great outdoors where Shelby and him met. I'd have to ask Peter if they would go for it.
When he got on the phone with Peter and asked him about the wedding taking place at Horizon, Peter was more than willing to help out. He asked Peter if he could walk Shelby down the aisle to give her away because he knew that Shelby wouldn't want her father to have that honor. He asked to have Auggie as his best man and Ezra and David as ushers. He'd let Shelby make the call regarding the maid of honor and the bridesmaids. At least he had the date and the location set. Peter said he would help out by booking the Agnes town preacher to perform the ceremony. Peter couldn't wait to tell everyone at Horizon that there was going to be a wedding there and they all had three weeks to start making decorations and getting the place ready.
Scott was wearing a whole in the floor pacing back and forth waiting for Shelby to come home. His father actually enjoyed the irritation that he was causing. "Scott would you just relax. You're not getting married today."
"I know, I know. I just can't wait for Shelby to come back so I can tell her the good news."
"What if she says no?"
"She won't. We've been talking about this for some time. All we needed was the date and time. I've got that covered now." He heard the car pull up in the driveway and ran to the door. He hesitated to open it. Martin looked over at him and asked, "Well what are you waiting for?"
Scott turned around with a worried look on his face. "What if she does say no?"
"Scott you're making my hair turn gray. Get out of here and go talk to her." Martin just shook his head at the indecisiveness of his son. What it must be like to be young and in love again. It brought back a lot of memories for him.
Scott ran out to meet Shelby. "Scott go away."
Scott stopped dead in his tracks. He became paranoid. "What did I do?"
She went around to the back of the car and into the trunk. "Relax, I just don't want you to see the dress until the day I have it on so go back in the house until I can get it inside."
"Ok but you better hurry because I have some major news for you."
Shelby stopped and put the bags back in the trunk. Both Susan and Shelby stopped and gave Scott their undivided attention. Susan spoke first, "What 's wrong Scott?" They both were expecting something bad.
"I got Dad to consent. The wedding date is set for Saturday October 21. It's going to be held at Mt. Horizon and Peter is going to give Shelby away." Shelby's mouth just dropped opened and she became paralyzed.
Scott couldn't tell by Shelby's reaction whether she was upset or not. He nervously said, "Shelby, you ok? You do want to still marry me right?"
Shelby just threw her hand over her mouth and tears rolled down her cheeks. Scott thought "Great I upset you." She slowly shook her head and screamed "OMG." She than ran and threw her arms around his neck. He picked her up off her feet and spun her around and around as she squealed. He finally set her down and brushed the hair out of her face. "I take it that you approve?"
"How did you do all this? We were only gone for two hours."
"Well you're going to have to go back out and buy a wedding dress now but not tonight."
Susan came over and hugged them both. She knew that a lot of planning was going to have to take place. They needed a color scheme, the guest list, the invitations made, brides maid dresses ordered, tuxedos, flowers, rings etc. etc.
Shelby had one of the hardest decisions to make and that was who would be her maid of honor. Daisy was considered her best friend but she knew that it would mean more to Juliet. Juliet seemed to live for a moment like this. She decided to call Horizon and talk to Daisy on the phone. She told her what her dilemma was and Daisy made it very easy for her. She told Shelby that since Auggie was the best man than it would only be fitting for Juliet to be the maid of honor. Shelby really missed Daisy and how she seemed to understand things so easily. She was glad that Daisy made her decision so much easier for her. The next three weeks were going to be the busiest three weeks of the Barringer's life. They still had homecoming to get through also.
Scott's mom was delighted that Scott made some progress with his father. She looked over at Shelby and asked, "So do you want to go shopping?"
"I'm actually not the shopping type but this sounds like fun." She looked over at Scott, "Any requests?"
Susan, "Don't ask him. Guys don't know about things like this."
Scott, "But mom"
"Don't worry Scott, we know what we're doing. Shelby will be the best dressed girl at homecoming."
Scott smiled and gave his mom a hug. "Thanks mom, that's all I want."
Martin walked into the house but didn't seem to be in as good of mood as Scott. Susan looked at him and wondered why he looked so glum. She went over and pulled him into the den so she could talk privately with him.
"Martin what's wrong? Scott gave me the impression that you two had a great time together."
"We did it's just . . . I don't know about him. Why does he keep things to himself all the time? He never told me about Elaine and now something traumatic happens to him last night and he doesn't tell anyone." He looks over at Susan. "Did he tell you? I don't even know if he told Shelby. Why must he keep things bottled up inside of him all the time."
"I'm not sure what you're talking about. He hasn't told me anything traumatic. What happened and how did you find out?"
"Well I found out from our neighbor Dan Wilkes who we ran into at the club. It appears that Scott was almost rapped by some gay men last night."
Susan threw her hand over her mouth, "OMG how awful. If Shelby knows than she never told me. Maybe I can see if she'll talk later on tonight while we're out alone shopping. Is he going to be ok or should we press charges."
"He said that he won't go through that kind of interrogation again because he always comes out the guilty party. He doesn't trust the court system to help him and he doesn't want to be dragged through the dirt again. Do you blame him?"
"No I don't blame him but do you think that he might need some kind of psychological help though?"
"Let's just see how he acts for awhile. Maybe this whole homecoming will help him take his mind off of it. That's the only reason why I changed my mind about letting him go. I told him that if he wanted me to trust him than he needed to start opening up to me and stop shielding me out."
"Well Shelby and I are going shopping so you two men can hang out and do something. I'll see ya later."
Once the females left, it was just the men at home. Scott was finished with his homework and seemed bored without Shelby there. Martin didn't know what to do to keep Scott from mopping around the house. He asked Scott about going to the movies and he said no. He asked Scott about watching a game on T.V. but he still said no. Martin didn't know what to do to get his son's attention. Then the thought occurred to him. Ask him about the one thing that means the most to him.
"How are you and Shelby doing?"
Scott snapped his head around and looked at his father with disbelieve. He never asked about Shelby before. "We're doing fine. Does that make you mad?"
"No, why would you say that?"
"Because you never talk to her. You never look at her and you pretend that she's not even here most of the time. How do you think that makes her feel? Did you know that she was abused by your stepfather just like I was? Why do you think we understand each other so much? When you hurt her feelings than you are also hurting mine."
"I'm sorry son. I never looked at it that way. I just couldn't stand the fact that I was loosing you."
"That's what mom said. The only way that you could loose me is to not accept Shelby as part of this family."
"Ok I'll make a deal with you."
"Dad you're beginning to sound like a game show host. Always "Let's make a Deal."
Martin gave him one of those looks that said, don't be sarcastic. "If you would just open up to me and tell me things that are going on in your life than maybe I wouldn't feel so sheltered from your life."
"Dad you can't expect me to tell you everything. Than I wouldn't have any privacy."
"I'm talking about the major or traumatic things. Not every little detail. You could have come to me last night about what happened over at Gary's house but you chose to hide that pain all by yourself until you exploded in school. Why?"
Scott was beginning to get uncomfortable with this conversation but at least they were talking. "I just didn't think that you would believe me."
"Why wouldn't you think that I would believe you if you were telling the truth?"
"Because you didn't believe me the first time and I was telling the truth than."
Martin could hear the hurt in his son's voice and he started to realize the pain that he must have put Scott through. "I'm sorry Scott. It was just so hard to hear. I think that I didn't want it to be true so I pretended that it wasn't. It was much easier to deal with. I'm sorry. What is it going to take for you to trust me again?"
Scott thought real hard and decided to give it a shot. "It would take your permission for me to marry Shelby." Martin didn't know what to say. He just ran his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture. Scott than continued on. "We are going to do it when we both turn 18 so what's the difference if it's 6 months earlier. I really want the baby to be born with the right start. Why won't you give your written consent?"
When Martin didn't say anything Scott decided to press on. "I want to have my name on the birth certificate and I want it to have the Barringer last name. Unless we are married they won't do that. I don't want Shelby walking around as someone's pregnant mistake. She deserves better than that."
"Well how soon are we talking about?"
Scott was in shock. "You mean you are actually going to consider it?"
"I guess the inevitable is going to happen anyway. I guess it wouldn't be so bad if the date was moved up. At least it makes the sneaking into her bedroom in the middle of the night ligament. " Scott just raised his eyebrows with an innocent look. "What you didn't think I knew about that?"
"Yeah, whatever. Well Shelby is 3 months along so I figure that if she wants to fit in a wedding dress that we should do it within the next month before she starts showing."
"Listen, you get together with your mother and plan whatever and I'll sign the papers. You also need to get Shelby's mother to sign. Don't forget the license and the blood test need to be done. All that will take several weeks so you should get working on it if you want this to take place anytime soon."
"Well how long are we talking about? What's the soonest that you think?"
"I'd say that you are going to need at least three weeks."
Scott became all excited. "Great, I need to go make a phone call." Scott ran out of the room and up to his room to call Horizon. He figured the best place for a wedding would be in the great outdoors where Shelby and him met. I'd have to ask Peter if they would go for it.
When he got on the phone with Peter and asked him about the wedding taking place at Horizon, Peter was more than willing to help out. He asked Peter if he could walk Shelby down the aisle to give her away because he knew that Shelby wouldn't want her father to have that honor. He asked to have Auggie as his best man and Ezra and David as ushers. He'd let Shelby make the call regarding the maid of honor and the bridesmaids. At least he had the date and the location set. Peter said he would help out by booking the Agnes town preacher to perform the ceremony. Peter couldn't wait to tell everyone at Horizon that there was going to be a wedding there and they all had three weeks to start making decorations and getting the place ready.
Scott was wearing a whole in the floor pacing back and forth waiting for Shelby to come home. His father actually enjoyed the irritation that he was causing. "Scott would you just relax. You're not getting married today."
"I know, I know. I just can't wait for Shelby to come back so I can tell her the good news."
"What if she says no?"
"She won't. We've been talking about this for some time. All we needed was the date and time. I've got that covered now." He heard the car pull up in the driveway and ran to the door. He hesitated to open it. Martin looked over at him and asked, "Well what are you waiting for?"
Scott turned around with a worried look on his face. "What if she does say no?"
"Scott you're making my hair turn gray. Get out of here and go talk to her." Martin just shook his head at the indecisiveness of his son. What it must be like to be young and in love again. It brought back a lot of memories for him.
Scott ran out to meet Shelby. "Scott go away."
Scott stopped dead in his tracks. He became paranoid. "What did I do?"
She went around to the back of the car and into the trunk. "Relax, I just don't want you to see the dress until the day I have it on so go back in the house until I can get it inside."
"Ok but you better hurry because I have some major news for you."
Shelby stopped and put the bags back in the trunk. Both Susan and Shelby stopped and gave Scott their undivided attention. Susan spoke first, "What 's wrong Scott?" They both were expecting something bad.
"I got Dad to consent. The wedding date is set for Saturday October 21. It's going to be held at Mt. Horizon and Peter is going to give Shelby away." Shelby's mouth just dropped opened and she became paralyzed.
Scott couldn't tell by Shelby's reaction whether she was upset or not. He nervously said, "Shelby, you ok? You do want to still marry me right?"
Shelby just threw her hand over her mouth and tears rolled down her cheeks. Scott thought "Great I upset you." She slowly shook her head and screamed "OMG." She than ran and threw her arms around his neck. He picked her up off her feet and spun her around and around as she squealed. He finally set her down and brushed the hair out of her face. "I take it that you approve?"
"How did you do all this? We were only gone for two hours."
"Well you're going to have to go back out and buy a wedding dress now but not tonight."
Susan came over and hugged them both. She knew that a lot of planning was going to have to take place. They needed a color scheme, the guest list, the invitations made, brides maid dresses ordered, tuxedos, flowers, rings etc. etc.
Shelby had one of the hardest decisions to make and that was who would be her maid of honor. Daisy was considered her best friend but she knew that it would mean more to Juliet. Juliet seemed to live for a moment like this. She decided to call Horizon and talk to Daisy on the phone. She told her what her dilemma was and Daisy made it very easy for her. She told Shelby that since Auggie was the best man than it would only be fitting for Juliet to be the maid of honor. Shelby really missed Daisy and how she seemed to understand things so easily. She was glad that Daisy made her decision so much easier for her. The next three weeks were going to be the busiest three weeks of the Barringer's life. They still had homecoming to get through also.