Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original Higher Ground characters. I do however own Chase and anyone else you don't recognize.
AN: Sorry it's been SUCH a long time!!! I've been pretty busy and the site was being stupid…sorry. Ok, I'm not getting very many reviews anymore, so I might stop writing this story. If you want me to continue, please REVIEW, email me or whatever, I just want to know if I should continue. My email address is jd108@hotmail.com. Thanks!
Second Chances
Chapter 7
A little smile formed on Peter's face as he watched Juliette free her hand from Auggie's and grab her notebook from her tent. With a little smile towards her boyfriend, she made her way into the woods. She needed some time alone.
Juliette sat cross-legged on a huge tree trunk, writing in her journal. The brunette had seen Shelby writing in hers earlier that day, and it was then that she realized that maybe Peter was right. Writing was the only way of speaking when you didn't trust your mouth enough to say anything out loud. It felt good to be away from everything for a little while, even if that meant immersing yourself in the outdoors. Listening to the soft wind as she wrote, Juliette couldn't help but feel a strange sense of discomfort suddenly. Someone was watching her.
She glanced around frantically, finally noticing the silent figure standing in the shadow of a large tree, a few feet away. He watched her for a few seconds before stepping into the sunlight. There was something about the sunlight that made him feel so uncomfortable. So exposed.
"How long have you been there?" she asked timidly, backing up slightly, despite her efforts not to. There was just something about the new Cliffhanger that made her uncomfortable, especially when she was alone with him in the woods.
"Long enough." There was nothing around her she could use t defend herself. Chase noticed her unease and looked away. Was that guilt in his eyes? Juliette wondered silently.
"What are you doing out here?" she questioned.
"I wasn't going to hurt you." Chase replied defensively.
"I didn't say you were." Juliette softened a little.
"I know, but you're scared of me." Chase continued. Juliette had expected to hear him boast this fact, but instead the teenager seemed ashamed.
"How could I not be?"
"What do you mean?" Chase asked, genuinely confused.
"Shelby's the strongest person I know. She doesn't need anything or anyone to survive. Nothing can hurt her…but you did."
"No one else has ever hurt her?" Chase seemed amazed. Juliette hesitated.
"No one who she doesn't hate now."
"What about Scott?" The question hit Juliette by surprise. It was something she had definitely not been expecting.
"He's the only one who's apologized for the pain he put her through."
"How did he do that?" Chase wanted to know. If he wanted a chance in hell to get the Cliffhangers to like him, this was the one answer he needed.
"With two simple words." Juliette replied. Chase gave her a look of utter confusion, but he knew that was all she was going to say. Chase was silent for a few seconds as he pondered this honest response.
"Why are you here?" Chase asked quietly.
"I wanted some time alone." The brunette replied.
"No, I mean, why are you at Horizon?"
"Oh, that. My mother tried to control me and as a result I became self destructive." Juliette summed her story up quite simply. The explanation had become almost like a routine. It was said with no emotion, no pain. "What about you?"
"Uh…I thought you already knew."
"I already know what you did to Shelby, but I'm not naïve, Chase."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"There's always more, something you're hiding. Everyone has their secrets."
"I didn't have the best home life." Chase admitted quietly.
"Continue." Juliette said, surprised that Chase had thought his extremely vague explanation would have been enough. Chase was taken aback by her response.
"I don't really want to explain. I mean it's kind of embarrassing and personal."
"Ok, but you're going to have to tell your story soon enough."
"That's the moment I'm dreading the most."
"And the one we're looking forward to."
"What?"
"It's kind of like a game with us. Trying to find out the newbie's story. A lot of the time when we're actually listening to them divulge their past to us we almost regret wanting to know."
"Why?"
"Because it's only then that we realize that you're hurting too. Sometimes we almost rip a newbie apart trying to get them to tell all, but once we feel your pain, we regret even wondering."
"Is there a Cliffhanger that you guys hurt that way?"
"Shelby had it pretty rough."
"Wasn't she here before some of the others?"
"Yeah, but it took her longer to open up to us. When she finally did it was like a slap in the face. She had gone through so many things that none of us ever imagined."
"Like what?" Chase pried. Juliette looked at him for a long time.
"I think she should be the one to tell you that." the brunette answered with a slight chill in her voice. She wasn't sure whether or not Chase could be trusted. Without another word, she turned back to her journal..
* * * * *
Half an hour before dinner, Peter called the Cliffhangers to the campfire. It was time for group. Not much was said as the teenagers trudged towards what was quite possibly their least favourite activity at Horizon. Jules sat between Sophie and Auggie, with Ezra next to him. Daisy was next to arrive, taking her seat between Ezra and Shelby, who carefully took Scott's hand to find the support she knew she would soon need. Peter sat next to Scott, to separate him from Chase, who finished off the circle by sitting between the two counselors.
"Does anyone want to start?" Peter asked. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke up again. "Come on, guys, you've been talking to each other all day long. Why the sudden clamming up?" Peter wondered out loud. The group remained silent as they stared at the fire Peter had been tending to for most of the day. "Does anyone have anything to say?"
"Hey, this wasn't our idea, ok? Don't expect us to just suddenly start talking." Scott finally spoke up. The hurt of the betrayal he had mentioned the day before was clear in his voice.
"Scott, I know you're mad."
"Actually, I think the word you're looking for is `betrayed'." Scott shot back.
"Ok, so tell me Scott. Why do you feel betrayed?"
"Haven't we been over this?"
"Scott, I understand-"
"No, Peter. You can't possibly understand, because if you did, you wouldn't have put Chase in our group." Scott temper was rising.
"But he did put me in your group, and there's nothing that will change that." Chase said suddenly. Everyone turned to look at him as he continued. "Scott I know you hate me. You'd probably kill me with your bare hands right now if you could, but I know you won't."
"Oh yeah? Why wouldn't I?" Scott asked.
"Because Shelby asked you not to. It's obvious you would do anything fir her, so maybe you should stop worrying about how you feel, and start concentrating on how she feels. Maybe it's time you realize that you're not the only one who's hurting."
Chase's comment left Scott dumbfounded. He glanced at Shelby to see her reaction, but she looked away. Right then Scott knew that Chase was right. Shelby had come back to Horizon because she needed help, and instead of giving her what she desperately required, Scott had spent all his time worrying about himself. Slowly he lowered his head, ashamed that Chase had been the one to point out his failure.
"Chase is right. We're all hurting, and I think that to get through this, we need to be sensitive to each other's needs and stop concentrating on ourselves. The more self centered we are, the more we hurt each other." Juliette spoke up softly.
"Could you define `this'?" Shelby asked, slightly confused.
"The next second, the next day, our last year at Horizon, our lives." Daisy explained for the brunette.
"But aren't we already doing that?" Ezra asked. "I mean, I talked to someone today, and it seemed to me that maybe I helped them."
"I'm sure you did." Shelby replied seriously, not wanting to give away that it was her that he had helped, but also wanting Ezra to know that he really had helped.
A silence settled over the group as they each thought about how they had each other, or had been helped themselves.
Peter watched their faces and could tell almost immediately what they were thinking about. He let them think for a few minutes, and then he changed the subject.
"Alright guys, `I feel', starting with Scott." Peter handed Scott a rock to replace the stick they usually used.
"I feel…unsure." Scott handed Shelby the rock, squeezing her hand reassuringly at the same time.
"I feel hopeful." She said calmly, remembering the quote Peter had given her. (In all things it is better to hope than to despair) The blonde handed the rock to Daisy, who stared at it as she held it in her open palm. It felt cold against her skin and she smiled. "Finally something that doesn't reflect how I feel." she muttered quietly to herself. "I feel relieved." She said a little louder, knowing that her friends had been waiting for her to speak. Slowly she rolled the rock from her hand to Ezra's outstretched one.
"I feel needed." Ezra replied, glancing at Shelby who nodded slightly. The silent exchange went unnoticed by the rest of the Cliffhangers. Ezra quickly handed the rock to Auggie, happy to get rid of it.
"I feel uneasy." He handed rock to Jules, who smiled at him slightly.
"I feel understood." Juliette passed the rock to Sophie, who passed it to Chase.
"I feel…I feel alienated."
"We're going to do something a little different tonight guys. I want you to try and guess why the person to your left is feeling the way they feel. Scott, you can start with Shelby." Peter explained what they were going to do.
"Uh, ok. I think Shelby is hopeful because she thinks that eventually everything will work." Scott glanced at Shelby to see if he was right. She smiled slightly and gave a little nodded.
"I think Daisy feels relieved because she can see that no matter how bad life may seem right now, as long as we have each other, it will eventually be ok." Shelby guessed. Daisy smiled at her friend.
"Ezra feels needed because he helped someone with their problems." Daisy said right away, knowing already that she was right. She had been the only one to catch the non-verbal communication going on between Shelby and Ezra. Daisy smiled to herself, happy that Shelby had opened up and had maybe even gotten that much closer to being ok. No one at Horizon ever really felt good or happy, Daisy realized sadly. There was always a dark shadow, a hidden secret. But, she thought silently, at least they were alive.
"Auggie feels uneasy because he can't always be there for the people he loves, and he doesn't want them to get hurt while he's gone." Ezra's calm voice broke through the heavy silence. Everyone was deep in their own thoughts. Ezra had been one of the few who to see Juliette and Chase come out of the forest together. The Cliffhangers could only wonder what had been said. Ezra passed the rock to Auggie.
"Jules feels understood because she found enough trust in someone to be able to open up to them, and maybe found out that they aren't as bad as we all think." Auggie glanced at Jules, who just smiled to herself.
"Chase feels alienated because he's hurting, but there's no one there to ease his pain. We're all watching him drown in his pain because we don't realize that maybe there's more to his story. We won't understand unless we listen." Juliette finished, glancing at her group, as a realization slowly sank in.
Peter smiled to himself. Maybe getting Chase accepted wasn't going to be as hard as he had thought.
Coming soon:
Chase reveals something about his past, Daisy helps a friend and Scott gets a step closer to accomplishing his task.
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