DISCLAIMER: I own no
one. I claim to own no one (with the exception of Alex, Connie, Brittany, and
anyone else I want to throw in there to confuse the heck out of you guys), and
if I did, Hayden wouldn't see the light of day again. LOL…. I don't own any of
the songs either. The complete list will be at the bottom of the story if you
want it. I also have no clue where Scott's father lives so I just took a guess.
If anyone can help me on that I'd be really appreciative.
(~) Means flashbacks
(*) Means dreams
Any other questions
e-mail me at Darlasfriend@aol.com
~The eyes are the windows
to ones soul. ~ Unknown
That
night, everyone slept soundly in the lodge. Everyone, that is with the
exception of Shelby. She was constantly sitting up and watching as Brittany
stretched out and wrapped her tan arms around Scott's waist. After about ten
minutes of just laying there, watching them sleep, Shelby stood and wandered
out onto the deck. She had no way of knowing that Auggie was also awake, and
watching her. Slowly he kissed Juliet on the forehead as he detangled himself
from her. Juliet woke and said nothing as she saw her boyfriend walk out the
door to be with Shelby. She didn't have to say anything. Juliet knew that
Auggie was hers and Shelby was merely a person in pain.
Auggie
plopped down next to Shelby and smiled. "Lemme guess," he tried to joke. "You
couldn't sleep?"
Shelby
didn't know what to do. Should she tell Auggie and listen to his guidance? Or
should she just tell him to go back to bed and sit in silence? Neither option
seemed too appealing to her. So she just decided to sit there and wait for
Auggie to tell her something useful. The crickets chirped happily as the tears
rolled down her face. She wasn't sure why exactly she was crying. It wasn't
something that Shelby was used to doing in front of people. Though she did seem
to do it more lately. Since Scott had returned. Wiping her eyes, she decided
that silence around Auggie was not always a good thing, so she turned her head
to him and attempted a smile. "Why'd you come out here?" She asked, her voice
catching in her throat.
"Because
I can remember the strong girl that saw me through the window of her mother's
Accord." He replied gently, brushing the tears aside. "I'm not going to tell
you what to do. Nor am I going to pretend I know what you're going through."
Shelby could see the concern in his eyes, even when he smiled. "What I am going
to do, however, is sit here with you until you feel like talking."
After
about five minutes of silence, Shelby turned to him. "How much do you
remember?" She asked him bluntly.
"How
much do I remember about what?" Auggie returned her stare.
"Me."
Her voice was stronger than it was a few minutes ago. "How much can you
remember about who I was before I met Scott?"
The
night air got just a bit warmer as he began to speak. "The Shelby I remember
when I first got here wasn't the nicest person to talk to." Auggie conjured up
a mental picture of the girl that they all thought of as harsh. "In fact, I
don't think I ever had a conversation with Kat when she didn't call you Bitch
of the Year." Shelby giggled a little, more than she did earlier. "We all knew
you had your daemons Shells. We all saw the way you watched each guy that
passed you. We just figured you were scooping out the area for possible
'victims.'
"You were always
copping an attitude with Peter, and everyone seemed to hate you for one thing
or another. Kat didn't like the fact that you never said anything you didn't
have to in Group. Jules blamed you for every punishment she ever got, even when
she deserved it, and you had no real use or EZ. Lets face it, the boy was in
love with you." They both laughed and Shelby leaned back against the one of the
support beams. "And me? I had no clue what to do with you." Shelby smirked at
that. It wasn't everyday that you get Auggie to tell you what he thought about.
"But we all noticed that there was something missing in your life that you
couldn't seem to figure out how to get for yourself." His statement was calm,
calculated. He wanted to talk to her like he did over the summer.
"How did you know?" She
asked him bluntly.
"Something about the
way you would stare at Meat once he got here." Auggie let go of any feelings
that he would have thought he had when it came to Shelby and told her the
truth. "The way you watched him and Jules without saying a word. Every Group
you got louder, every act you had got bolder. Peter couldn't stand how you
would be sarcastic and hateful one minute, and then Scott would walk in and you
would become docile and agreeable." He pushed her hair out of her face and their
eyes met. "You would become a completely different person, and we liked it."
Shelby giggled and
scooted closer to him. "So what are you doing out here?" She asked him with a
smirk. "Jules roll over in her sleep?"
Auggie hit her lightly
in the head. "I heard a friend cry for help." He said simply, wrapping his arms
around her. Shelby laughed one more time and he looked at her cautiously.
"You're not going to
kiss me again, are you?" She still teased him on that one. They both remembered
that day very well. "Although, I can't complain about the first one. I now know
why Jules likes you." Her smirk lit up the dark porch, and Auggie laughed. "If
you ever want to do it again, just let me know."
"I'll be sure to give
you warning." Auggie joked as she leaned back onto his arms.
"I still can't figure
out what happened to me?" Shelby said absentmindedly. Her voice dropped
dramatically. She stopped moving, and for a moment, she was completely still.
"What do you mean?"
Auggie leaned forward to see her face, which was devoid of all emotion. Her
eyes were beginning to water again, but she didn't seem to notice. "Shell?"
"Like you said, when I
first got here, I was a bitch." He tried to smile, but he couldn't muster the
strength. "I kept my cool, I had my attitude, I was the only person I know who
could tell Peter where to stick it while smiling." She leaned into the railing,
and allowed her head to hit the wood. "Now I'm freaking out, falling apart, and
hell, I've started throwing things around."
"So you're human
Shelby, there's nothing new about that." Auggie pulled her over into his lap
again, and began to stroke her soft blonde hair. "Nothing happened to
you since Scott got here. You just seemed to find that thing that you wanted.
You found that thing that Walt had convinced you that you couldn't have."
Without thinking, Auggie leaned into her and kissed the back of her neck.
Shelby smiled as she leaned into his lips. Her eyes fluttered shut, as she
smiled. "You're strong, Shelby. Stronger than anyone I've met out there
on the streets. I know it's hard to live each day knowing what that sick
bastard did to you, and what you were reduced to so you could get away from
him. But look at yourself now." Auggie forced her to turn around and look
directly into his eyes.
"Scott didn't fall in
love with you because you're beautiful, you know that. He fell in love with you
because you don't run away from what you're afraid of. Not anymore anyway. And
you sure as hell didn't back down when he freaked about your life on the streets."
Shelby tried to turn away from him, but for once Auggie's hold was too strong
for her. "He fell in love with you for the same reason Alex did. For the same
reason I did."
That got Shelby's attention.
"Auggie, I thought we talked about this. You've got Jules-"
"I said I loved you,
not that I'm in love with you." Shelby began to calm down, and he let go
of her. "Up here, even through the worst of it, you always were the strongest.
You certainly had you're moments that proved you were just like the rest of
us," Images flashed through both of their minds: The evening that Shelby
trashed the camp, the time she ran away from her Solo site, the various times
that they found her in the bathroom after she had cut herself. "But after all
that happened, you came back to us. You were back to being the bitch that we
expected." Both of them laughed and Auggie turned away from her. "You couldn't
be bruised, you couldn't be broken, and for that, you were loved."
Shelby slid down onto
the next step and turned around to face him. "You think that's why he fell in
love with me." Her eyes were so full of hope.
There was nothing
Auggie could think to say to her to keep her from thinking that there was a way
that she could get Scott away from Brittany during the Morp. "You know that I
can't answer that fairly." He tried to give her his best Peter look. "But what
I do know is that you should get some sleep if you're going to be up early
tomorrow." Shelby tried to pout, and Auggie just laughed at her. "Get in there,
cuddle up to that cute little sister of yours, and get some rest." He kissed
her forehead and pulled her up and into the lodge. He watched as she slid into
the spot between Brittany and Jessica, and here eyes were closed as soon as her
head hit the pillow.
"Okay you two, time to
get up now." Peter called out as he pulled the blanket off of Shelby's bare
legs. "Come on guys," he added as Shelby actually started to wake up. The
person lying to her left however didn't move. "I really should give you two
shuns for this." Shelby's feet were hit with a blast of cold air. Her stomach,
although it was as uncovered at her feet, stayed remarkably warm.
"You don't get shuns
for trying to sleep late." Shelby murmured, as she groped for her blanket. It
slid just out of her reach as the person next to her pulled it over his or her
own legs. As she rolled over, whatever it was that was on her stomach
readjusted. Scooting closer to the direction of the heat, Shelby found that
there was now hot air being blown onto her cheek. Opening her eyes slightly she
realized why Peter was threatening her with shuns.
"Shelby, get up!" Peter
knelt and moved Scott's arm off of Shelby's waist. Scott unconsciously scooted
closer to Shelby. "Scott!" Peter coughed close enough to the boy's ear. "Boys
have kitchens this morning." Scott shook himself awake and realized that he was
practically lying on top of Shelby. He jumped slightly before regaining his
composure and standing, heading directly into the dining hall without even
glancing back at Shelby. Shelby sat up and looked at the place on the floor
where Brittany laid sleeping, utterly alone. "Alex has a surprise for the girls
out in the gazebo." Peter laughed at how fast Shelby stood and made her was to
the door.
The Cliffhanger girls
were sitting in the gazebo, some awake, most half asleep. Shelby slid into the
seat next to Daisy and smiled at how her sister was leaning up against Juliet.
Her eyes turned to Alex as he walked up to the group. "I know you girls want to
get ready for tonight's…festivities, shall we say." He paused to watch as the
girls stared blankly at the front of his white shirt. "So I'll make this short
and sweet-"
"That would involve
less talking." Shelby cracked sarcastically.
"I didn't realize
that," Alex bit back the urge to call her Slate. "So I'm just going to let the
surprise speak for itself." He turned around to face the side of the trees, and
smiled. "You can come out now!" He shouted for only a second before something
cracked a twig and a figure emerged from the wood.
"Oh My God!" Juliet
shrieked, and for once no one seemed to mind. Once the figure was out into the
clearing, Juliet launched herself at it.
Kat reacted faster than anyone thought she would. Taking a few steps back, Juliet had to stand and dust herself off before pulling Kat into a huge bear hug. "Now that I know one of you have missed me." She joked as Juliet took a step back to allow the others access to their old friend. Daisy reached her next. "It's good to see you're still alive." She joked as she grabbed at the pale girl.
"Well I keep meaning
to, but with everything Peter and Sophie have had us doing, I just haven't
found the time." Daisy turned and pushed Shelby up closer to Kat. "This one on
the other hand keeps trying to make time."
For a few minutes, no
one said anything. Shelby just stood there staring at Kat. Neither girls moved
closer, yet they didn't back up. Daisy was about to open her mouth when
Shelby's thin lips curled up into a strange smile. "Well, you know me, Scott
goes away and I have to find something to do around here." Kat pulled
her into a hug and Shelby tried to cover up how she was feeling. "A girl gets
bored of the fresh mountain air too easily up here."
"I know what you mean."
Kat joked in her usual friendly tone, while mentally making a note to talk to
the younger girl. Looking around the group she noticed the one Cliffhanger that
she hadn't hugged yet. "You gonna come over here Jess, or do I have to tackle
you?" Jessica moved over to Kat and they hugged briefly. "Where are the guys?"
"Kitchens," Shelby said
shortly, not bothering to tell them how she knew this. Daisy threw a strange
glance her way but she shook it off. "And you must meet the newest
addition to the Cliffhanger group as soon as possible." Shelby sounded way to
happy to be talking about Scott's friend. Off of Kat's look Shelby smiled.
"Brittany Woods, Scott's new…shall we dare to call her, girlfriend...? We'll
fill you in on the rest during breakfast."
"I'm sure the guys
might want to see her too." Alex said shortly, noticing how everyone forgot he
was even there.
"Oh, I forgot to thank
you." Kat nodded to Alex. "You really shouldn't have spent all that money for
me to come to the Morp. I promise you I'll-"
"Not even give it
another thought." Alex pulled Kat to the back of the group heading to the lodge
and pointed at the smile on Shelby's face. "That's why I did it. That's the
only thanks I need." Kat noticed the sincerity in his voice and decided that
Alex was another thing that she had to talk to Shelby about. The last she heard
about Shelby, they had to call in Doctor Madison twice due to her cutting
herself. Now she was smiling and joking about Scott having a new girlfriend.
"She's very lucky to
have you in her corner." Kat said pointedly and Ezra, who seemed to come out of
nowhere, pulled her into a huge bear hug. "Breathing…becoming a necessity." Kat
gasped as Ezra held her tight. Finally she just pushed him backward. "Can I get
some air?" She asked him harshly, both of them knew she was joking.
Auggie was the next to
hug her, followed briefly by David. Then she saw them. Scott and some blonde
that looked a lot like Shelby in the corner of the room. "You coming over to
give me a hug Barringer, or do I have to beat one out of you?" Kat watched as
the girl to Scott's left shifted uncomfortably as Scott pulled her into a small
hug. "And who would your new friend be?" She asked, trying to smile at the girl
she presumed to be Brittany.
"Katherine Cabot,"
Scott pointed to the girl. "This is Brittany Woods." Then as if he felt
compelled to do so: "She's an old friend of mine from high school." Scott
watched as Kat glanced at Brittany's outfit and frowned. "Brit, this is
Katherine Cabot. She's a former Cliffhanger. She was our group leader last
year."
"Nice to meet you." Kat
tried to sound enthusiastic about Scott's new/ old friend but she kept
glancing at Shelby, who looked almost utterly alone standing between to Ezra
and Auggie.
"Likewise." Brittany
smiled and leaned into Scott's arm. "I've heard so much about you from Mr.
Scarburrow and the rest of the Cliffhangers." Suddenly, Brittany felt the urge
to get out of the room and away from all of the eyes glaring at her. "I think I
need some fresh air, Scotty." She whispered lightly. "I'll be back in a
minute."
Once outside Brittany
stopped on the deck and looked out over the campus. It felt so weird to be out
in the open, so exposed to anything and everything. She didn't even know why
Scotty came back to this place. It was so unlike the lifestyle that he had back
in L.A. There, he had been a king. Here, he was just another fucked up kid on
the side of a mountain. It was only then that Brittany realized that the Scotty
she knew wasn't around anymore. He had a different way of thinking now. And if
she didn't think fast, there was no way she could get that Scotty she had
become infatuated with back in her arms. "If only I knew." She whispered to
herself.
"If only you knew what?"
A voice from behind her asked carefully. Brittany turned to look directly into
a pair of deep blue eyes. Shelby stood a few feet away from her, arms folded in
front of her chest. She didn't know why, but Brittany felt a strange connection
with Scott's former love. Maybe it was just the fact that they looked so much
alike. "Come on Brittany," Shelby said hurriedly. "What is it that you wish you
knew?"
"Only what time we were
leaving to get ready for the Morp." Brittany tried to smile but came up with
just a twisted frown.
"Do I have to call you
a liar? Or are you going to tell me?" Shelby took a few steps closer to the
girl and stopped. "We don't have secrets up here." Shelby moved to where she
was leaning on the railing, her eyes scanning the horizon for something neither
of them could figure out. "If you don't want to tell me I'd at least mention
something about what you're thinking to Scott. He hates liars." Shelby pushed
her body away from the wooden railing and moved to go inside.
"Did you love him?"
Brittany asked simply, not turning to see Shelby stop short of the huge door.
Turning slightly,
Shelby saw a small tear in Brittany's eye. "Did I love who?" She blinked back
her own tears and smiled harshly. "Scott?" After a slight nod from Brittany,
Shelby closed her eyes. "What I felt for him didn't even come close to being
called love." Shelby took one last look at the girl that caused her so much
trouble and headed back into the building. "It was so much more."
Brittany
turned and watched Shelby go into the lodge before taking a few steps off of
the porch. "Maybe that's your problem, you love him too much."
