Author's Note: hey guys thanx for all of you that read and reviewed my fic.....I will try and make them longer it's just that I have work all this weekend and I didnt have time to write a longer one so after this weekend I promise to make them longer...thanx again!!
A cool early evening breeze ruffled Scott's hair Tuesday night as he opened the Merricks' sliding screen door and stepped onto their deck, balancing a tray of condiments in his free hand. Shelby followed behind with a pitcher of iced tea and a stack of plastic cups. Walt was manning the grill while Mrs. Merrick and Scott's sister bustled about setting the table and carrying out platter of food.
"My sister couldn't believe how many clams we found, " Scott said as he deposited the tray on the table. "Good thing, considering that Walt forgot to pick up the baby back ribs." Shelby poured herself a glass of iced tea, frowning as some splashed on the table. "You know, I could've used your and Andy's help this afternoon. I must've cleaned a gazillion clams by myself."
"Sorry," he said, his thoughts drifting back to Tara's butterfly tattoo. If he'd been shucking clams, he'd never have run into her. "We'll , uh make it up to you," he said absently. " I won't hold my breath." She adjusted the strap of her tank top.
"Guess who I ran into on the beach today?" he said.
"Daphne?"
"Nope. Guess again."
"The McNally brothers."
"Not even close."
"Well, who, then?"
"Tara!" Scott explained. "She was walking her dog." He waited for Shelby's reaction, but to his dismay, she didn't even look up. "What kind of dog was it?" she asked.
What kind was it? Who cares? Scott waved his hand dismissively. "Some little white thing. But that doesn't matter." He paused dramatially. "What does matter is that I asked her out....and she said yes!"
At least this got a reaction. "She did?" Shelby said, suprised. "Tomorrow night I'm gonna call her and we're going to make plans." He showed Shelby his palm. "Doesn't she have nice handwriting?"Shelby barely glanced at it. "I guess." She took a tray of hamburgers from her mother. "Thanks, Mom."
"I hope you two are hungry," Mrs. Merrick said as she went back into the house for napkins. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving," Scottsaid, helping himself to a burger. Shelby spooned some pasta salad on her plate. "I'm not that hungry."
"You aren't hungry? Since when isn't your stomach a bottomless pit?" he chuckled. "Remember when you and Andy entered that hot-dog-eating competitiion on the beach? Remeber that, Mom?" he asked his mother and Shelby's parents joined them.
Mrs. Barringer sighed as she looked at Shelby. "How you put all that food into that little body, I'll never know." Shelby groaned. "Just the thought of doing that again makes me sick."
"You've gotta do it again this summer, Shelby." Scott said. She took a bite of pasta. "Thanks, but no thanks. My dance aerobics instructor would kill me."
"You're taking dance aerobics?" Scott asked, suprised. "Is something wrong with that?" "No, ofcourse not." Scott said, hastily backpedaling. It was just that Shelby always liked the same sports as he did: swimming, basketball, football. But dance dance aerobics?
"Hey Shelby?" he asked, out of their parents earshot. He decided to bring up something that had been in the back of his mind all day.
"Hmmm?"
"Andy said something really crazy this morning."
"What?"
Scott spun the ketchup bottle on it's base, wondering how to word this. "He thought you were getting annoyed when I was talkin about Tara."
She put down her fork. "You've got to be kidding."
Scott laughed, relieved. Ofcourse Andy was wrong. "I know. O told him he was losing it-like you would care if I was going out with somebody." He took a big bite og his burger.
"You're not going out with her, though," Shelby said. She arched her eyebrow. "Are you?"
Scott took another bte. "Who knows?"
"Want to get a movie?" he blurted out. That would lighten their moos-watching movies together was one of their favorite things. Shelby paused, then shugged. "Sure."
"We're going to go get something at Movie Madness," she called to her mom. "Feel Free to watch it in the den," Mrs. Merrick offered. "If you get something good, maybe we'll come in and join you." She turned to Scott's mom , who nodded in agreement.
Shelby and Scott exchanged uneasy glances. "It's not that we dont love you guys-" Scott began. "But I think we'll probably watch it in my room like we always do," Shelby finished.
Mrs. Merrick took a sip of coffee. "Okay. There's plenty of junk food in the kitchen, so help yourselves.
"So what do you make of that?" Shelby asked under her breath as the walked next door to get the jeep.
Scott leaped up and dunked an imaginary basket in the net overhead. "Of what?"
Shelby looked at him as if he had 3 heads. "Obviously they didn't want us in my bedroom together."
"What?" Scott exclaimed. He glanced over at Shelby, waiting for the punch line. But to his suprise, he realized she was being serious. "That is the dumbest thing I've heard all week!"
Shelby slipped on her sweater. "Yeah, well, I'm not arguing with you. I just got that feeling from them, that's all."
Scott shook his head.