Meet the Parents:
Chapter 4

Disclaimer: As you know, HG is NOT MINE!!!!
Author's Note: Hey everybody!!! Long time, no see!!! That's actually my fault. I'm sorry I haven't posted since April!!! I've been SOOOO BUSY!! Anyway, I'm leaving next Friday for camp, and I'll pretty much be gone 'til the end of the summer :-( So I'm going to TRY and finish this story up before the new school year. With ALOT of reviews, it'll be no problem, though ;-) So PUH-LEASE REVIEW!!!! I KNOW YOU'VE GOT THE TIME!! Oh! The phrases/words that have stars in front of/behind them are the chracter's thoughts! Love ya'll!!!
Scott nervously ran his fingers through his hair as he glanced behind him. *Okay, where did they go? They were here just a second ago.*
He tried not to notice the sympathetic looks people were giving him. They were probably thinking, "Aww, look at that boy. He's probably lost. I hope he finds his mommy soon."
Scott grit his teeth. He'd show them. He wasn't a lost six-year old boy. He was sixteen years old, and he WASN'T LOST. He just couldn't find Shelby and Jake.
He looked back at the door where they had gone out of. There was no limo in sight. Scott groaned. *Maybe they went out a different door. No, no, they didn't! You watched them go through that door right there.*
He quickly turned around as he felt a tap on his shoulder. To his dismay, it was a young mother of two, not Shelby or Jake.
Her brown eyes were full of concern. "Are you lost?" she asked in a deep Southern accent.
Scott took a deep breath to control his anger. "No, I am not," he replied calmly.
The young woman nodded, but Scott knew she didn't believe him. "Well, you've been walking in a circle for the past twenty minutes, so you're obviously looking for SOMEBODY."
*Geez!! Why can't everyone mind their own business?* "If I am looking for someone, that is MY problem," Scott snapped.
The woman jumped back, obviously surprised, causing the baby in her arms to cry. She gently rocked the baby back and forth and glared at Scott. "Look, I was just trying to help," she spat trying to talk over her baby's cries.
"WELL, I DON'T NEED ANY HELP!!" he yelled. By now, everyone had stopped what they were doing to watch Scott fight with a young mother.
Scott heard someone say, "Kick his ass!!!"
The woman quickly grabbed the hand of her other son and placed her baby son against her hip. "You certainly need SOME kind of help. And some manners wouldn't hurt!" she yelled just as loud as Scott had before. And with that, she angrily stalked off.
She hadn't gone fifty feet when her older son pulled out of her grasp and ran over to Scott.
All of a sudden, the four-year old socked Scott in the balls.
Scott's jaw dropped in pain, and he winced in pain.
"Don't mess wif my mommy!" the boy screamed.
The boy's mother hurried over to him and quickly picked him up. "Sorry," she mumbled, obviously embarrassed her son had done that.
Scott didn't say a word. He couldn't; he was in too much pain.
The woman apologized again and then quickly led her kids away, scolding her son the whole time.
To make the pain even worse, Scott could hear several snickers and giggles from passer-bys.
He was about to give the finger when he heard his name being called on the loudspeaker.
"Scott Barringer, please report to the Delta ticket desk. I repeat, Scott Barringer, Shelby and Jake are waiting for you."
Scott groaned in embarrassment. *Could I humiliate myself ANYmore?*
He then pushed aside his thoughts and hobbled over to the ticket desk across the airport. But not until he heard the applause everyone was giving him, obviously praising him for finding Shelby and Jake.
When Scott reached the ticket desk, he could tell Shelby was trying not to laugh.
"Hey," she greeted him, a smug smile on her face.
Scott didn't even bother to greet her. "Where the hell did you go?" he asked angrily.
Shelby's eyes widened in surprise. "I went out THAT door, Scott," she replied, pointing to the door on the right. "And you were right behind me. It's not my fault you got lost."
It was all so clear now. *The one door I don't go to is the door that led me to them.
Scott just tiredly scratched his head. "Okay, whatever. Can we just go? All of a sudden I wanna get out of this place."
Shelby eagerly nodded and couldn't help but say, "Yeah, let's go. Wait, you want me to hold your hand so you won't get lost or get beaten up by a four-year old?"
Scott rolled his eyes as Shelby burst out laughing. Even Jake was snickering.
"Wait...you saw that little boy attack me?" Scott asked hoping to God she hadn't seen it.
Shelby stopped giggling. "No, I didn't have the pleasure of seeing it, but I heard about it from about every person who walked by."
"Great, just great," Scott mumbled. *This has certainly been a day from hell.*
Shelby grinned. "Oh, cheer up. It's not a big deal," she told him.
*Yeah, because YOU didn't feel like a little kid, getting lost and then getting beat up by a toddler.*
Scott was trying so hard to be mad at Shelby, but he knew it wasn't possible.
He sighed and then put his arm around Shelby, the tension leaving his face as he touched her. "Let's go," he said softly, leading her to the door.
Jake quickly followed, still laughing to himself about the bizarre events that had just take place.
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As Scott settled into the comfortable seat of the limo, he remembered that Shelby had to talk to him. "Okay, you wanna explain everything to me?" he asked suddenly.
Shelby looked at him, confused. "Huh?"
Scott exhaled sharply. "Remember, before my, uh, incidents you were going to 'explain everything in the car'."
"Oh," Shelby said quietly, her eyes on the floor.
Scott could sense that whatever she was going to tell him wasn't going to be good.
Shelby then courageously glanced at Scott. "I'm going to tell you something, but you have to promise not to get mad," she informed him.
Scott swallowed. "Um, okay," he said slowly.
Shelby nervously twiddled her thumbs and then took a deep breath. "My parents don't know you're coming," she admitted quietly.
"WHAT???" Scott yelled so loudly that Jake almost crashed the car.
Then after Jake had safely recovered and moved the car back on the road, Scott turned to Shelby. "They don't know I'm coming?" he hissed more quietly this time.
Shelby shook her head. "But you have to listen to me!" she pleaded. "See, I told my parents about you, I did! I told them how great you are and how cute you are and...", she paused, her cheeks turning pink, "how much I love you," she said softly, squeezing Scott's hand.
Scott wanted to hug and kiss her so badly for saying that, but he couldn't. *You're mad at her, remember?*
"But they, or really my father, insisted that I didn't know what love was and that you were probably some druggie I met and stuff like that," Shelby explained.
Scott looked away, not wanting Shelby to see the hurt in his eyes.
Shelby gently put her hand to his cheek and turned his face towards hers. "So, I decided that I'd show him how wrong he was and let him see what a great person you are," Shelby whispered, her eyes searching for any kind of understanding or compassion in his light blue eyes.
For a second, Scott relaxed. *Maybe it'll all be okay.* But then reality hit him. His expression hardened a little, and he took Shelby's hand off his cheek.
Shelby's hand, all of a sudden, felt very cold dangling at its side. She shivered a little, longing for Scott's warm touch.
"Why didn't you tell your parents I was coming?" Scott finally asked.
Shelby heisitated a little but then answered. "Because now they have to meet you. They can't say no."
Scott then closed his eyes. *I can't believe this is happening.*
"Scott?"
He opened his eyes and looked over at Shelby. His heart fell when he saw her. No longer was she all smiles and excited. The twinkle in her eyes was gone. Her usual slight grin was replaced with a line. A straight line.
He sighed. *Might as well make the best of it.* "Yeah?" he asked as he cradled the back of her neck with his hand.
Shelby's body relaxed at his touch, and she managed a small smile. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you," she said softly.
Scott smiled also and laced his fingers with hers. "It's okay," he said.
Allof a sudden, there was a snicker heard from the driver's seat. "I'd say that you two have a dilemma!" Jake exclaimed.
He then stopped laughing when he realized Scott and Shelby weren't laughing with him.
Scott then turned back to Shelby. "So what's the 411 on the parents?" he questioned.
Shelby took a deep breath. "Well, my dad used to be a lousy father. All he and my mom would do was fight." She paused. It was hard for her to talk about her past. "The thing is, Scott, my father is an alcoholic."
She slowly looked up at Scott, scared of his reaction.
Scott just squeezed her hand. "Go on," he told her.
*Please don't let me cry in front of him.* Shelby's gaze returned to her shoes. "When I was younger, he would go out and drink every night. I don't even remember him being at home at all," she explained, her eyes starting to water. *Don't cry! Don't cry! Don't cry!*
Scott just watched her sadly. *She's really had it rough.*
Shelby glanced at Scott. *Oh, no. It's the pity look. I hate being pitied! Come on, Shelby, pull yourself together!*
She quickly wiped her eyes, hoping that Scott hadn't noticed and continued. "Anyway, he and Mom got divorced when I was nine, and then my mom married..." It still hurt to say his name. "Walt," she said slowly. "And then everything happened with him, and I came to Horizon," she explained quickly, praying to God that Scott wouldn't ask any questions about that whole ordeal. Thankfully, he didn't.
"So, when did you reunite with your dad?" he asked, trying not to mention Walt.
"I'm getting to that," Shelby answered.
Scott nodded.
"Well, uh, some time ago my dad checked into rehab. And eventually, he became okay," Shelby explained. "Then he met Melissa, and they fell in love and all that and got married."
Shelby averted her gaze from her shoes to Scott's comforting eyes. *The worst part of the story is over now. Just make eye contact with him.* "Melissa comes from a VERY rich family. Like "Ritchie-Rich" wealthy," she informed him.
Scott cracked a smile. *She is too cute.*
So now that he was married and had money, he decided he's try and make things right with Jess and me."
Shelby swallowed. "He called me one day at Horizon," she said slowly.
Scott's jaw dropped. "He called you?" he asked in disbelief.
Shelby nodded. "And he apologized for his drinking and everything." She stopped for a second.
Scott knew not to say anything to push her; she'd talk when she was ready.
She gently tucked a blonde strand of hair behind her ear and went on. "My dad didn't know about Walt and everything he did to me, or really Jess and me, and when I told him that day on the phone..." Once again, Shelby trailed off.
Scott anxiously waited a few seconds for Shelby to finish her sentence. When she didn't, Scott couldn't take it anymore. "So what'd he do?"
Shelby heisitated once again.
Scott groaned to himself. *Why can't she just finish a story without stopping?* Right after he thought it, Scott instantly regretted it. *This is hard for her to do; give her time.*
Suddenly, Jake spoke up again. "Yeah, so what happened?"
Scott then felt very uncomfortable. *Jake's heard the entire conversation. Will he tell Shelby's parents what I said?* Reality then hit Scott again. *He's the limo driver! I don't think he and Mr. Merrick have personal chats about guests in their home...or do they?*
"He literally flipped out." Shelby's voice interrupted Scott's thoughts. "He wanted to make sure Walt got the death penalty, or worse if it was possible."
She gave a slight smile. "In a weird way, that was exactly what I needed. My mom said she believed me, but I feel like she secretly blames me for what happened."
Scott looked away. He knew that feeling all too well.
"Anyway," Shelby said quietly, "he then gave me a whole speech about how sorry he was for not being there for me when I was a kid," Shelby paused, but then gave a slight smile as a tear fell on her cheek, "and when I was being abused by Walt," she finished.
Scott watched Shelby with amazement. *Wow, she really is a strong person.* "So, uh," he stammered lamely, "why couldn't your dad support you after the whole thing with..." Scott heisitated to say his name, "Walt? I mean, why didn't he take you in?"
Shelby thought a minute. "Financial problems. When my parents were together, my dad was a gas pumper at Texaco. He had always wanted to go into law, but with his drinking and stuff, he, uh, couldn't. Well, atleast until he met Melissa. She encouraged him to be a lawyer, and now he is. A successful one, too," Shelby answered quickly. *Okay, Shel, you don't want to tell your whole life story here.* "And, uh, that's about it," she finished.
Scott took a second to register all of this information. *Okay, Shelby's dad was an alcoholic. He neglected Shelby when she was a kid, followed by a divorce with Shelby's mom. He was pretty much a dead-beat father after that until he changed his ways and married a rich woman. Now that he had money, he came into Shelby's life again asking for forgiveness. Shelby forgave him, and now they live happily in a perfect world with limos, mansions, and MONEY.* He smiled to himself. *I should become a therapist.*
A voice interrupted Scott's thoughts. "Okay, kids, we'll be there in about two minutes," Jake informed the two..
Shelby excitedly glanced out the window like a little kid on her way to Disneyworld.
Scott, on the other hand, didn't share her excitement. *Okay, come on! It's just like football. You know the play. Just go and make a touchdown!* But the nervous feeling in his stomach didn't alter. *If only everything in life was as easy as football.*
"Hey, Scott."
Scott turned to look at Shelby. "Yeah?" he asked, trying to cover up his quivering voice.
Shelby bit her lip. "I, uh, just wanted to warn you about my dad."
Scott rolled his eyes. *I've heard this a million times! She must think I can't deal with her dad. I'll show her!* "I know, I know. He's over-protective," he stated.
Shelby shrugged. "Yeah, but he also has a away of getting to people," she explained seriously.
Scott laughed. "What do you mean?"
Shelby sighed. "He can really be a mean guy if he doesn't like you. He can make your life miserable."
Before Scott could say another word, Jake exclaimed, "Okay! We're here!"
Scott looked out the window and was shocked at what he saw. It was the hugest house, no MANSION, he had seen in his entire life! It was 6 stories high with stone pillars surrounding it. It looked Victorian, for it was made of brick. Some ivy was growing on the sides to prove this. Plus, there were atleast ten cars in the large circular driveway. A few limosuines, some SUV's, two BMW's, and a couple of Lexus's.
He was now officially nervous.
Jake parked the car in an open spot in the driveway and stopped the car.
Then after he got out, he headed over to trunk of the limo to get the suitcases.
"Okay," Shelby looked over at Scott as she took off her seatbelt and started to open the car door, "this is it."
"Yeah," Scott replied unenthusiastically, "this is it."
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Author's (in between) note: Okay, originally I was going to stop here and let Scott meet the parents in the next chapter, but I decided not to since I received many faithful emails and reviews. So I combined two chapters for ya'll!! So how about, since I did that, ten reviews???? Puh-lease???
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Shelby gave Scott a warm smile and then opened the door. Before she started to get out of the car, she turned back to Scott.
Scott then felt a flicker of hope. *Maybe she's going to tell me this is all a joke, and I don't have to go through with this*
"Scott, don't stress about this," Shelby said quietly.
Scott looked down at his hands. *Too late*
Shelby sighed. "What I mean is, just be honest! They're just my parents! Don't feel like you have to prove anything to them."
Scott looked up and met Shelby's eye.
"Just be yourself," she whispered.
Scott took a deep breath and then smiled. Truly smiled. *Shelby's right. Just be polite and spend the weekend with these people, and you'll be fine* "Let's go," he said to Shelby.
Shelby grinned as she pushed the door all the way open. "Yeah, let's," she replied.
Scott followed her as she stepped out of the car and gently laced his fingers with hers. But to his astonishment, Shelby, all of a sudden, looked very uncomfortable.
"Um, I don't think you should do that," Shelby said quickly as she unlaced her fingers from his.
Scott's eyes went wide in confusion. "What? Why not?"
Shelby nervously placed her hands in her pockets. "I have another confession to make. My parents don't know..."
"Shelby!"
Scott looked behind him to see a pretty woman rush over to Shelby. *You just had to interrupt us at this EXACT moment*
The woman then pulled Shelby in a big hug. "Hi, Melissa," Shelby forced, for Shelby was squeezing the daylights out of her.
Scott took a step back, embarrassed. Obviously he wasn't invited in this family bonding.
He glanced at Shelby's step-mother. *So this is Melissa*
He took a second to notice her features. She was pretty tall, maybe 5'8. She had long, skinny legs that showed off her bright tan. She was wearing the shortest shorts possible with a quarter-length button up shirt with a strapless tank top, which, Scott tried not to notice, was slipping down to reveal a full cleavage. She had long, white-blonde hair that had probably been dyed MANY times which was pinned at the top of her head. She had full, pouty lips that was a nice purple color, from her lipstick Scott knew. Her nose was pointy, and Scott figured she snubbed others with it. Her eyes were a sea-green color, and they resembled that of a cat. *She's really model-like. You can tell she's a BIG snob.*
A perky voice interrupted his thoughts. "I was just giving Laura a break by working in the garden here, and I saw you pull up! I've missed you so much, sweetie!" Melissa exclaimed as she hugged Shelby once again.
Shelby managed a small smile. She looked over at Scott. *Okay, I'm supposed to introduce him now. What do I introduce him as? My friend? My boyfriend? No, just don't worry about it, yet. Hopefully Dad and Melissa won't be TOO madwhen they find out Scott is my boyfriend*
Melissa followed Shelby's gaze. She then looked very embarrassed. "Oh! Excuse me! Here you go; here's twenty," she said to Scott as she handed him a twenty dollar bill.
Scott looked down at the money, confused. "Uh," he started.
Melissa looked back at the limo. "Wait, did you get the bags out of the car?" She let out a little laugh. "That's what I'm paying you for," she added.
Scott then understood what Melissa was talking about. *She thinks I'm the baggage unloader!* [AUTHOR'S NOTE: I DON'T KNOW WHAT THOSE PEOPLE ARE CALLED!] "No, no, no. I'm not the baggage unloader. I'm..."
He was interrupted by a booming voice that sent shivers down his spine. "Shelbeee!"
As Scott turned around to hear the source of the voice, he realized what Shelby had been talking about.
There stood the scariest-looking man Scott had ever seen. He was tall, giant-like, maybe 6'2 and was VERY built. Scott could see his bulky muscles poking out of his t-shirt. But that wasn't the scary part. He had deep, intimidating brown eyes that seemed to stare a person down. He had a long nose with big nostrils that, Scott guessed, flared in anger when messed with. His mouth was curved in a loop-sided grin that was probably the closest thing to a smile he would give.
"There's my baby girl!" the man exclaimed as he pulled Shelby in a bear hug.
"Daddy!" Shelby squealed as she willingly returned the hug.
Scott watched as Mr. Merrick's eyes turned from tough to warm and inviting.
After the father-daughter reunion, Mr. Merrick turned to Scott, the stern expression on his face returning. "Who the hell are you?" he asked loudly.
"Dad!" Shelby exclaimed in embarrassment as she poked him in the ribs.
Mr. Merrick didn't even flinch, his eyes never leaving Scott. "I believe I asked you a question, boy."
Scott nervously took a deep breath. "Um...I, uh..." *Shelby, help me out here*
As if on cue, Shelby took over. "Dad, Melissa, this is Scott," she explained.
Melissa and Mr. Merrick glanced at Shelby expectantly as if to say "And what relation does he have to you?"
"He's a friend of mine," she added, hoping they'd buy it.
Scott jerked his head towards Shelby. *Friend?*
Shelby tried not to look at Scott, for she knew what he was thinking.
There was then an awkward silence.
"Well," Melissa stated, trying to act friendly, "it's nice to meet you, Scott," she greeted as she shook his hand.
She then looked over at her husband and tilted her head towards Scott.
"Yeah," Mr. Merrick said slowly, "I didn't know Shelby was bringing someone, but oh well," he added as he also shook Scott's hand.
As he shook Scott's hand, his face hardened a little. "A weak handshake. That always indicated a weak man with SECRETS," he said as he emphasized the word "secrets".
There was yet another silence.
Shelby looked at the ground. *Oh, shit! He knows!*
The silence was broken by a low, bellowed laugh. "I'm just kiddin with ya, Seth," Mr. Merrick smirked.
"It's Scott," Scott corrected him, the tension not leaving his face.
"Whatever," Mr. Merrick mumbled, obviously not caring.
He then turned to Melissa. "Go tell Linda and the cooks to make dinner early. I want to find out EVERYTHING about Sam," he said as he tightly gripped his hand on Scott's shoulder.
Melissa nodded. "Hey, Joe, how about you come and help me?" she suggested, obviously hinting she wanted to talk to him.
"Nah," Mr. Merrick replied, his eyes on Scott and Shelby, "you can do it on your own."
Melissa rolled her eyes and then pulled Mr. Merrick's strong arm. "I REALLY need some help," she said more firmly this time.
Mr. Merrick groaned. "Fine," he mumbled as he followed Melissa into the house, his eyes never leaving Scott and Shelby.
Once they were out of earshot, Scott glaned expectantly at Shelby. "Well?" he asked, wanting an explanation.
Shelby nervously looked at the ground. "I better go unpack," she said quickly as she turned and walked away, leaving Scott by himself in a stranger's front yard.
When she had successfully made it into her room, she blew a sigh of relief. *Whew! They don't suspect anything!*
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"This is the boy Shelby was talking about," Mr. Merrick explained matter-of-factly.
Melissa shook her head. "You don't know that," she replied. "He's probably just a friend, like Shelby said."
Mr. Merrick then shook his head. "No, just look at the way she looks at him." He paused. "You don't look at a friend that way," he added.
Melissa just sighed and walked away.
Mr. Merrick didn't even notice. *That boy is going to pay. He's stealing my little girl's heart, and he WILL be sorry.*
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I hope ya'll like this chapter! It took FOREVER for me to write. I just realized how hard it is to write a humorous story. None of this stuff probably sounds funny because you're not ACTUALLY seeing it, but I just imagine Scott being socked in the balls, and I crack up!! So you pretty much have to just IMAGINE it happening. But anyway, someone asked me in a review if I was trying to follow the show. Everyone, please listen...YES, I am trying to follow the show. In this chap, I kind-of explained where Shelby's father fit in all this. Like when they reunited, met, etc. I PROMISE you, everything will be cleared up soon. In the mean time, PLEASE REVIEW!!!!! In my "leave of abscence", I received many emails encouraging me to continue. I'm a sucker for encouragement. So please, if you like this story or not, REVIEW!!!!