http://www.askjeeves.com/main/metaanswer.asp?metaEngine=directhit&origin=0&MetaURL=http%3A%2F%2Fask%2Edirecthit%2Ecom%2Ffcgi%2Dbin%2FRedirURL%2Efcg%3Furl%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Efoxfamilychannel%2Ecom%2Fhigher%5Fground%2Fstory%2Ehtml%26qry%3DHigher%2BGround%26rnk%3D5%26src%3DDH%5FAsk%5FSRCH&qCategory=jeeves&metaTopic=Higher+Ground&ItemOrdinal=4&logQID=A0B4AF1E1825E74C92BAEA7E53DC0456&sv=212&back=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Easkjeeves%2Ecom%2Fmain%2FaskJeeves%2Easp%3Forigin%3D0%26qSource%3D4%26site%5Fname%3DJeeves%26metasearch%3Dyes%26ads%3D%26ask%3DHigher%2BGround%26x%3D14%26y%3D10
I don't know if that will work, but ask jeeves got me to the HG section of FFC's website...so we can still pretend that it's on! (There's even some behind the scenes videos of the cast!) also, I'm not sure what site I was on...but there is this one site that has ALL the episodes and you can watch them on real player....FULL LENGTH EPISODES NO COMMERCIALS! SHE ROTATES THEM EACH WEEK. Will let you know when I find that site again!
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Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters and frankly, I have no clue who does, if anyone. :( and :) I don't know which one to be....ANYWAY I do own Chelsea Barringer (I wish Scott knew...he will soon enough) and Brad Javenson. I own no one else.
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Sorry it's taken me so long to get this out. We're having finals all week and I'm swamped with work. It won't be so long for the 9th Chapter. 8th probably will because I am going out of town Friday-Sunday afternoon to Gatlinburg for a Christian Youth Seminar...more like a big concert....called Resurrection.....it's a whole lot of fun, so I won't be on for a little while. :( ANYWAY, here's the story!
In Your Darkest Hour
Ch. 7
The phone rang around 2 P.M. waking Scott from his steady sleep. Chelsea was still asleep so he left her in the bed and went to answer the phone.. He entered he living room and picked it up.
"Hello?" he asked groggily.
"It's Peter."
"Oh. Hi, Peter."
"So are we on for next Friday? Like every year?" he asked. The cliffhangers went every year to Peter's to watch a football game and get reacquainted. Peter still ran Horizon so they usually met there.
"Actually....um.....could everybody come here this year? I'm kinda tied down right now. Could you get away?" he asked
"That could be arranged." He said. "I haven't called anyone else yet, so I'm sure we can work something out. Same time, right?"
"Yeah." Scott confirmed.
"Ok, well, it's set then."
"Great."
"Oh, Scott......do you know if Shelby will be coming this year?" he said.
"No, um, it's a long story. Don't even try to reach her, you won't be able to. I'll enlighten you when you get here."
"Okay, see you next Friday." Peter said.
"Yeah, Friday."
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4:26 P.M. 2387 Casselberry
Road. Apartment #171. 4th floor. New York City. Scott Barringer's home. 2 weeks later:
Scott hadn't heard from Shelby since the night he left the hospital with Chelsea. Not even to check on the baby, and he thought that was strange to Scott. The doctors released her a few days...at least she had told Scott they were going to.
He was worried about her. What if she had gone home and he had hurt her again. Only worse. Scott thought he would kill him if he got another call saying Shelby was hurt or in the hospital.
Scott thought sanity had taken a little vacation time on him when he invited everyone over while he still had Chelsea. He didn't know how he would explain Chels to all of them without telling them all about Shelby's situation. If he knew the Cliffhangers, and he did, they would want to know who, what, when, where, why, and how. And he wasn't ready to give those answers..
But it didn't matter. They were coming over in an hour now, and he had to think of some excuse, and quick. And then it dawned on him. Why make up an excuse? They were all good friends with Shelby. They would want to help.....
"Yeah...." he said to himself when this thought had registered in his mind. He was sitting on the couch holding Chelsea and taunting her with a plush ball. "Yeah, Chelsea....Mommy's friends are gonna help...I know they will." He cooed at her. The doorbell rang.....
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The same time, 14 Baychester Avenue, Springfield Gardens.
The Javenson home:
At home, Shelby was busy trying to make amends for everything she had ever "done" to make Brad angry with her. So, since it was his birthday, and he had no family nearby, she invited hers over. Her mother, Jess, and her new stepfather, Jake, who was a priest compared to Walt. She also invited two of the couples she and Brad were friends with. She would cook a nice dinner, Brad's favorite, and try her best to please him.
She put on a long, elegant, black dress, swept her hair up, and put on makeup to make herself as pretty as possible. Maybe then Brad would be happy with her.
During dinner, all Brad did was glare at Shelby angrily while picking at his food. The guests caught wind of it a few times and tried to make light of the situation and ease the tension that was building in the room.
"Well," Shelby said into the silence. "I'm gonna go get dessert." She said and got up and went into the kitchen. Jess got up and followed her. Jess shut the kitchen door behind her.
"Shelby?" she asked
"Yeah, Jess?" she asked opening the fridge.
"Where's Chelsea?" she asked
"I told you already. She's with Daisy." Shelby lied.
"I know you told me that, but where is she really?" Jess accused. Shelby paused for a minute.
"With Scott." She finally admitted with a sigh.
"SCOTT?! I thought you hadn't talked to him in a year!" Jess exclaimed.
"Well, I hadn't." she said setting a cake on the counter and began sticking birthday candles into it. "Until about three weeks ago when he called and said he was going to be in town."
"You didn't have an affair with him, did you?" Jess whispered excitedly.
"No! No. Jess....no." she said. "He just took Chels so Brad and I could work on our relationship. What are you so worried about?"
"You just seem different, Shelb, and I don't wanna see you get into something you can't get out of." Jess said concernedly. Shelby picked up the cake and brushed past her.
"Your concern is noted, but I can handle it." And she went into the dining room singing happy birthday. Soon everybody joined in and she set the cake down in front of a scowling Brad. He didn't blow them out, just glared at her.
"Maybe we should go." Shelby's mother said when the last candle smothered itself.
"Yeah." Everyone agreed. They murmured their goodbyes and left Brad and Shelby to a silent house.
"Brad...what's wrong?" she asked him with a shaky voice. "What did I do?"
"What did you DO? I'll show you what you did." He growled and dragged her down the hall to the guest bedroom's bathroom. He placed her in front of the mirror.. "Look at yourself! All this shit on your face!" he said referring to her make up.
"I just thought....." she started
"Well, you thought wrong!" he snapped and turned away from her. He turned on the shower and shoved her into it with her dress still on. She hit her cheekbone on the faucet and then stood up, the water falling down on her. "And don't come out till you get every last bit of that shit off your face!" he yelled and walked out, slamming the door behind him.
It took a minute for the searing pain to register in Shelby's head where she had hit her face, but when it did, she burst into tears. Her dress was sticking to her, he head was pounding and she was crying like a little child, She calmed herself when she realized this. What was she doing? It was then that she knew what she had to do. She had to leave, and she had to do it that night...............................................
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Okay, asking for 10 reviews. You'll get the next chapter around Monday since I am going out of town.
NEXT: The cliffhangers get to Scott's...Shelby leaves....where does she go and what do they decide to do?? (hint: they aren't going to murder anyone. Sorry)
PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!