Disclaimer: I don't own anyone (*tear*) except the people you don't recognize (Chase Anderson, Paige Dolan, etc.)
AN: Alright every1, I have some bad news…I'm going to camp for a month, and I'm leaving on July 1st. That means that I'll only have time to get a few more chapters up before I go to camp…(Since I have 2 pack and everything.) N/ewayz, I'm gonna write lots of chapters at acmp so that when I get home (on July 28th), I can post a ton of chapters to make up for all the time that I wuz away…Now, on with the fic…Oh yeah, if anyone has any suggestions for future chapters, please email me at
Chapter 5 - Miracle
Scott froze. He could picture Shelby behind him in his head. She was wearing the same plaid shirt she had been wearing when they'd hiked up to Dog's Peak, and an old pair of jeans. Scott took a deep breath. He didn't know how to react. Should he follow Peter's instructions and pretend not to know her, or should he just talk to her normally?…Scott turned to face her.
"Hi. Um, what's your name?" he asked, barely able to get the words out. Shelby gave him a confused look, and then she caught on.
"I'm Shelby." She said quietly. Scott nodded.
"It's nice to meet you." He replied. He couldn't quite read the look in her eyes.
Noticing that he was staring at her, Shelby tucked a strand of hair behind her ear nervously…She remembered how he used to brush the hair out of her eyes. No one else had ever done that for her. She quickly blinked back the tears that were threatening to surface. She sat down next to Scott.
"So, what does one have to do to get into Horizon?" she asked, changing the subject. Scott thought for a second.
"Drugs, cutting, get abused…" Scott replied. He could have continued but he knew Shelby already knew the answer. She had already experienced the answer.
"All of that, just to get into a place like this?" she asked, pretending that she thought Horizon was more of a jail than a school.
"It's not really that bad." Scott answered.
"It seems like a jail."
"It's the safest place any of us have ever been." Daisy said, coming over to join them on the log.
"But I thought you guys had all sorts of restrictions and rules." Shelby paused. "That's what my teacher said." She covered for herself. Scott and Daisy looked at each other.
"I'd rather have rules and restrictions than have pain and suffering." Scott said. Daisy nodded in agreement.
"Well, whatever, I still think it would be pretty bad here." Shelby lied as some of her classmates came to gather around the log.
"Having fun bonding with the drugees?" Paige Dolan asked Shelby sarcastically.
"Just making sure you're screwed up enough to get accepted here." Shelby shot back.
"Well she hasn't lost her sarcastic wit." Daisy whispered to Scott.
"Yeah, but she's lost hope." Scott whispered back.
"You sound more and more like Peter every day." Daisy replied with a slight smile. "Don't be so quick to judge her." She added.
"I'm not judging. I saw it in her eyes." Scott muttered back.
"Hey, no secrets allowed!" One of the boys said to Scott and Daisy in a little kid voice.
"Yeah, now tell us what you were saying, and we won't tell on you." Another boy laughed.
"We were just deciding what get-to-know-each-other game we we're going to all play." Daisy said, thinking quickly. The group groaned. Scott chuckled to himself.
"Alright everyone, get in a circle." Scott said. He waited patiently while they all formed a circle on the ground and sat down. "Now, one by one we're going to go around the circle and you're going to say your name, and what you want to learn or achieve this weekend." Scott paused as Peter walked up and joined the circle, sitting between Shelby and Scott. "Anyone want to go first?" he asked. When no one moved, Scott volunteered himself. "Ok, I will then." He paused, thinking. What could he say? He smiled to himself as he decided to make Peter happy. "Alright. I'm Scott, and I want to fully take advantage of the point of this weekend by spending as much time with you guys as possible so that I can begin the process of readjusting to what you guys call the 'real world'." Scott looked at Peter, who just smiled slightly.
"Ok Daisy, it's your turn." Peter said. "We'll go counterclockwise around the circle." Daisy sighed.
"Ok, my name is Daisy, and Scott stole my answer." Daisy said.
As they went around the circle, all the answers were pretty much the same. Most of the students wanted to learn more outdoor skills. Scott tuned them out as he watched Shelby nervously biting her lip. She looked so lost, so lonely.
Suddenly it was her turn. Shelby thought for a few seconds. She already knew what she was going to say, but she was trying to get the courage to say it. She breathed deeply.
"I'm Shelby, and this weekend I want to…" She paused, pretending to think. Scott saw right through her act. "I want to get up the courage to say something that I should have said a long time ago." She finished. She focused her eyes on everything but Scott. She could tell he was watching her, and she knew she wouldn't be able to look him in the eye.
Finally Peter spoke, taking the spotlight off of Shelby. She relaxed a little.
"Ok guys, that was good. We don't really have anything planned for right now, so we thought we'd give you a tour of the campus." Peter announced. Scott glanced and Daisy, not having known that this was going to take place.
"This is what Peter was talking to me about earlier. He saw that Shelby was coming over to us at the same time that he was, so he just talked to me so that she wouldn't have to sit there by herself." Daisy explained quietly.
"Oh." Scott replied. He watched as the group followed Peter towards the dorms. Shelby was walking by herself. "Hey Daisy, you want to go save a friend?" he asked with a slight smile on his face. Daisy followed his gaze to Shelby, and smiled back at him.
"I'll see you later." She replied, hurrying to catch up to Shelby. Scott smiled, and hurried to the front of the crowd, where he fell into step with Peter.
Peter looked at him for a few seconds.
"Where's Daisy?" he asked, glancing around to see where she is.
"Walking with Shelby." Scott answered, keeping his eyes on the ground ahead of him.
"I see…So, how do you think this is going so far, Scott?"
"It's going ok I guess. It's harder than I thought, you know to pretend…" His voice trails off when he remembers that there are students nearby. Peter nods.
"I never said it would be easy." He replies quietly.
As the tour went on, Shelby wished more and more that she were still attending Horizon. She missed everything about it. Even the hikes and the rules…even being on shuns for being out after lights out with Scott…Daisy…Maybe even Juliette, well, that was a bit of a stretch…But, as she watched Scott walking next to Peter, she realized what she missed the most: having someone who knew all her deepest, most horrible and embarrassing secrets, and who loved her anyway.
* * * * *
Later that night, all the students from Agnes High School sat around the campfire. While Scott and Daisy's group had been getting the tour of the campus, Ezra, Juliette and Auggie's group had been setting up their tents in the same field. Now, it was nighttime and everyone was huddled around the campfire, talking and roasting marshmallows.
Juliette head was resting on Auggie's shoulder, as he held a stick with two marshmallows on it over the fire. Once they were cooked, Juliette got up and made two s'mores. (You know, the chocolate and marshmallow between two graham crackers?) She brought one to Auggie, and then continued around the fire to where Shelby was sitting by herself, staring at the stars. Juliette handed her a s'more.
"I thought you might want one of these." She said quietly. Shelby looked at her for a few seconds.
"If I wanted one I could get it myself." She replied coldly. Juliette's face fell.
"Ok, whatever." She said, turning back to go and sit next to someone else. Shelby bit her lip.
"Juliette wait! I didn't mean that. I-I'm sorry." It was hard to get the words out after so many times she'd made fun of the brunette, but Shelby was desperate for a friend. Juliette smiled and sat down.
"It's ok. I understand." She said happily. Scott, who was sitting a few people away was amazed at what he saw. Was Shelby really being nice to Juliette? He smiled. It had taken her long enough.
Shelby and Juliette sat in silence for a long time. After a while, Daisy came over to them.
"Juliette, I'm going to bed. Um, can you try not to wake me when you come?" Daisy asked, as an excuse to come over and say goodnight to Shelby. Juliette nodded.
"Actually, I'm pretty tired, I'm gonna come too." She replied. "See you in the morning Shelby. It was nice meeting you." Juliette said quietly. Shelby gave her a little smile.
"It was nice meeting you too." She said.
"You might want to go to bed soon, otherwise you might be so tired in the morning that you might miss one of Peter's lessons." Daisy said with a little laugh. Shelby laughed.
"I wouldn't want to do that!" She answered sarcastically. "Goodnight you guys." She said as they walked towards their tent.
* * * * *
A few minutes later Scott sat down next to Shelby. He watched her in silence as she looked at the stars. She had been doing that a lot tonight.
"Have you ever made a wish on a star?" he asked her after a few minutes.
"Every night. I sit on the roof out side my bedroom window." She replied, not able to look at him.
"Did you make a wish tonight?" he asked softly. Shelby just nodded. "What did you wish?" he asked.
"If I told you it wouldn't come true."
"Do you actually believe that your wishes would come true even if you didn't tell me?" he asked.
"They have so far." She looked at him this time. "I'm going to bed." She got up and started to walk away. She turned back. "Goodnight Scott." She said. He looked at her for a few seconds and then spoke.
"Are you sure you don't mean goodbye?" he asked. Shelby froze. She knew he was probably still mad about that, but she hadn't expected him to bring it up in front of everyone. Peter, who was sitting next to Sophie and Mr. Campbell, gave Scott a look. Shelby saw it and shook her head.
"Yes." She replied. "Just goodnight."
* * * * *
It's taken much too long
To get it right
Would it be so wrong
To maybe find someone
A miracle
Hours later, Shelby opened her eyes. It was getting lighter out, and she could tell the sun was about to rise. It had been months since she'd seen the sunrise. In fact, it hadn't been since before she'd gone home. Quietly she got up and slipped quietly out of her tent.
And all you really need
Is everything you could never be
And so you'd give it all
For a miracle
Shelby walked across the dew-covered grass towards the docks. She could've gotten there with her eyes closed. Once she was there, she was surprised to find someone already sitting there, with their feet dangling over the edge.
Is there a trace
Inside her face
Of a lonely miracle
And so you wait
And lie awake
For a lonely miracle
Shelby sat down next to him. He looked at her for a few seconds, and then smiled.
"Can you see the sunrise from your window?" he asked. Shelby shook her head.
"Only from my sister's." They sat there in silence for a minute, watching the Horizon.
You never really know
What it is
Not until it goes
And if it comes again
It's a miracle
"You know, I meant to say it…"Shelby paused. "It was just so hard. I knew I wouldn't be able to without falling apart inside."
"You didn't think that maybe I would fall apart when I found out that you were gone?" Scott replied, a glimpse of anger in his voice.
"Every night, ever since I left, I sit on my roof, and I make the same wish…To come back here."
"You got your wish, but you still haven't said it." Scott said.
"That's because it's not goodbye yet. I'm not leaving until Sunday…So, until then, do you think we could just, you know…"
"Cross that bridge when we get to it?" Scott found the words for her. She nodded.
Scott smiled.
"If we keep talking we're gonna miss it." He nodded towards the tree line. Shelby very cautiously rested her head on his shoulder.
But what you miss is love
In everything below and up above
And could she bring it all
A miracle
He slipped an arm around her shoulders, taking in the moment. The others wouldn't be up for a few hours, so they had some peace.
"I've never felt more safe then I do with you." Shelby whispered. Scott looked at her.
"I'm not going anywhere." He whispered back. He very gently took her hand. She smiled at him.
"Thank you." She said, and for the first time in months, she felt totally relaxed. Completely safe.
All you wanted was (a miracle)
All you needed was a miracle
A miracle
All you wanted was (a miracle)
All you needed was a miracle
A miracle
They sat there for a while longer, watching the sunrise. There was a cool breeze coming over the water that blew Shelby's hair into her face. Shelby was about to push it out of her eyes when Scott reached over and gently brushed her hair aside. Shelby blushed slightly, and then smiled. Scott smiled back.
It's taken so long to get it right
Could it be so wrong
To maybe find someone
A miracle
"It's been too long since I've seen that smile." He whispered in her ear. Shelby relaxed, taking advantage of the moment that she knew would have to end in a little while.
Is there a trace
Inside her face
Of a lonely miracle
And so you wait
And lie awake
For a lonely miracle
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Ok, guys, that's it for chapter 5! Please review and tell me what you think! Also, I need ideas for what to write while I'm at camp, cause I won't be able to get your advice along the way…The song used was "Miracle" by Vertical Horizon…Well, tell me what u think!!! Toodles :)