Scott stalked back to breakfast. He angrily muttered expletives under his breath, directed at Shelby, himself, and anyone who happened to cross his path. He was ready to take out the next person who so much as looked at him the wrong way. But when he walked back into the cafeteria, something strange happened. Even though Auggie was whispering into a giggling Juliette's ear, he had no desire to punch him. He could have cared less what Juliette was doing. The implications of his indifference were not lost on Scott. He swiftly changed his course and instead headed back toward the docks to think.
Daisy, the only one who saw Scott's short reentry, leaned back in her chair, deep in thought. Something strange was going on. First, Shelby left the dorm room last night, looking haunted. She stayed out all night, then returned in the morning looking almost giddy. Not two seconds upon her arrival to the room, she switched back into her usual gloomy self. Her mood further deteriorated until breakfast, where she hardly ate anything and didn't insult anyone at all. Then, instead of letting Juliette have it at the skank comment, she ran away. But the real kicker in this conundrum was Scott. His behavior was positively bizarre. Instead of fending off Shelby's not so subtle advances, as he usually did, he stared at her. Instead of making out with Juliette at the breakfast table, he ignored her. He actually DEFENDED Shelby to Juliette and ran after her when she left. But the most surprising part, he didn't flip out when he saw Auggie and Juliette getting cozy in his absence. Daisy frowned. What did it all mean? It was no secret that Shelby wanted Scott, but for her to ignore him and for him to be the one chasing Shelby...it just didn't make any sense.
Ezra looked over at Daisy. She was obviously deep in thought. Her eyes gazed at a meaningless spot on the table while her head tilted slightly to the side. Her brow was furrowed in deep contemplation.
"Earth to Daisy!"
Her eyes lifted to meet his. She leaned toward him dramatically. "Have you noticed anything strange going on here?"
He gave her a blank look. "Like what?"
"Not what, who," she corrected. She raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to realize what she was talking about.
"I'm going to need more to go on than that," he sighed.
She rolled her eyes. "With Scott and Shelby," she whispered loudly.
He shrugged. "I haven't seen Shelby since yesterday. Sarcastic as usual. But Scott..."
Daisy leaned in even closer. "What about Scott?"
"He sneaked out last night. Didn't come back until this morning."
Daisy smiled in triumph. "Aha! That's it. That's the missing link."
Ezra's face scrunched in confusion. "Okay, mind filling me in?"
"I think something's going on with Scott and Shelby," she whispered confidently.
"Scott and Shelby?" he said loudly.
"Shhhhhh!" she hissed, giving him a warning glare.
"Scott and Shelby?" he whispered. "No way, they're always at each other's throats."
"You know what they say...it's a thin line between love and hate."
"But Scott is with Juliette," he argued.
Daisy shrugged nonchalantly. "Not for much longer."
"How do you know?"
"I don't. But all the signs point to that conclusion."
"Well, I think you're crazy," he said, sawing away at a sausage link.
"We'll see about that," she said mysteriously.
Scott sat on the edge of the dock, in the exact same spot he had occupied only hours before. He sat with his feet on the dock shoulder width apart and knees bent. His elbows rested on his knees, his right hand holding on to his left wrist. He stared out over the water without really seeing it.
Something had changed. Somewhere over the course of the night, as he had held her in his arms, he had developed feelings for her. Or maybe he just felt sorry for her, because he knew what she was going through. That had to be it. Why else would he be acting this way? He didn't even like her as a person, so how could he have feelings for her?
But then again, he had never seen her as a person, not until she broke down in front of him. Up until then, she had been nothing more than a mask, refusing to let anyone see what was hidden beneath. He raked his fingers through his blond curls, spiking them up haphazardly. He bowed his head, eyes closing in frustration.
He didn't know what he felt. All he knew was that there was more to Shelby than she let on, and he was going to discover it. Because she deserved that much. Because he knew what it felt like to be abused that way. But most of all, because he had felt more when he touched her than he had ever felt in any of his kisses with Juliette.
The Cliffhangers gathered at the lodge for group that night. Shelby had finally come out of the forest acting like her usual self. Scott steered clear of her. In fact, they both avoided each other like the plague, which Ezra noted and pointed out to Daisy.
"Okay," Peter said. "You know the drill. Pass the staff, one line beginning with 'when.' You're up, Scott."
Scott glanced at Shelby, then returned his gaze to the ground. "When you think no one is looking, I see you." He passed the staff to Daisy.
She gave Ezra a pointed look, then cleared her throat. "When you least expect it, everything changes." She tossed the staff across the circle to Shelby.
She was silent for a moment. Should she offer a sarcastic comment as usual, or really say something this time? "When I push you away, it's because I don't know how to let you in," she said, the truth in her statement disguised by her disinterested tone of voice.
The staff was passed around the rest of the group, but Scott and Shelby were no longer listening. They regarded each other neutrally, from opposite sides of the circle. They didn't notice that at least three pairs of eyes were watching their exchange with no small amount of interest, while one pair of eyes rested on Shelby suspiciously.
Peter, sensing that the Cliffhangers needed time to work things out on their own much more than they needed group at that point, called an early end to the meeting. He left them up to their own devices, reminding them to be back in their dorms by curfew.
Juliette bit her lip as she watched Scott and Shelby drawing toward each other from opposite sides of the room, as if by some magnetic force. She wasn't stupid. It was time to end it.
"Hey Jules, want to walk back with me?" asked Auggie hopefully.
She smiled at him genuinely. "I would like that," she said sweetly.
Daisy called out to Ezra. "C'mon, time to go."
"Wait a second," he said distractedly, eyes glued to Scott and Shelby.
Daisy rolled her eyes. "I meant now," she said, dragging him to where Kat stood waiting.
"But Daisy.." he protested, as she dragged him outside.
Shelby looked up at Scott, wondering what was going to happen next.
"Can we go somewhere and talk?" he asked urgently.
She ignored the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Alright."
Peter watched them go, wondering if he should follow. No, he decided. They need to work whatever it is out on their own terms.
By some unspoken agreement they found themselves at the dock once more. They sat silently, neither wanting to broach the subject first. Scott cleared his throat.
"Look, I just want you to know...what I mean is...what you told me last night. I...well, I know what you're going through. What it's like..." he trailed off.
"...To be abused by a step parent," she finished for him. She glanced at him, knowing instinctively what he was trying to tell her. "Step father or step mother," she asked gently.
"Step mother," he admitted painfully.
She nodded in understanding. "Do you want to talk about it?"
He shook his head. "Not right now."
"Okay."
Tentatively, she reached over and laced her fingers through his. He looked at their clasped hands, warmth spreading through him. They sat there, bathed in the moonlight, under the watchful eye of an unseen Peter. It wouldn't matter if they were late for curfew that night.
Daisy, the only one who saw Scott's short reentry, leaned back in her chair, deep in thought. Something strange was going on. First, Shelby left the dorm room last night, looking haunted. She stayed out all night, then returned in the morning looking almost giddy. Not two seconds upon her arrival to the room, she switched back into her usual gloomy self. Her mood further deteriorated until breakfast, where she hardly ate anything and didn't insult anyone at all. Then, instead of letting Juliette have it at the skank comment, she ran away. But the real kicker in this conundrum was Scott. His behavior was positively bizarre. Instead of fending off Shelby's not so subtle advances, as he usually did, he stared at her. Instead of making out with Juliette at the breakfast table, he ignored her. He actually DEFENDED Shelby to Juliette and ran after her when she left. But the most surprising part, he didn't flip out when he saw Auggie and Juliette getting cozy in his absence. Daisy frowned. What did it all mean? It was no secret that Shelby wanted Scott, but for her to ignore him and for him to be the one chasing Shelby...it just didn't make any sense.
Ezra looked over at Daisy. She was obviously deep in thought. Her eyes gazed at a meaningless spot on the table while her head tilted slightly to the side. Her brow was furrowed in deep contemplation.
"Earth to Daisy!"
Her eyes lifted to meet his. She leaned toward him dramatically. "Have you noticed anything strange going on here?"
He gave her a blank look. "Like what?"
"Not what, who," she corrected. She raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to realize what she was talking about.
"I'm going to need more to go on than that," he sighed.
She rolled her eyes. "With Scott and Shelby," she whispered loudly.
He shrugged. "I haven't seen Shelby since yesterday. Sarcastic as usual. But Scott..."
Daisy leaned in even closer. "What about Scott?"
"He sneaked out last night. Didn't come back until this morning."
Daisy smiled in triumph. "Aha! That's it. That's the missing link."
Ezra's face scrunched in confusion. "Okay, mind filling me in?"
"I think something's going on with Scott and Shelby," she whispered confidently.
"Scott and Shelby?" he said loudly.
"Shhhhhh!" she hissed, giving him a warning glare.
"Scott and Shelby?" he whispered. "No way, they're always at each other's throats."
"You know what they say...it's a thin line between love and hate."
"But Scott is with Juliette," he argued.
Daisy shrugged nonchalantly. "Not for much longer."
"How do you know?"
"I don't. But all the signs point to that conclusion."
"Well, I think you're crazy," he said, sawing away at a sausage link.
"We'll see about that," she said mysteriously.
Scott sat on the edge of the dock, in the exact same spot he had occupied only hours before. He sat with his feet on the dock shoulder width apart and knees bent. His elbows rested on his knees, his right hand holding on to his left wrist. He stared out over the water without really seeing it.
Something had changed. Somewhere over the course of the night, as he had held her in his arms, he had developed feelings for her. Or maybe he just felt sorry for her, because he knew what she was going through. That had to be it. Why else would he be acting this way? He didn't even like her as a person, so how could he have feelings for her?
But then again, he had never seen her as a person, not until she broke down in front of him. Up until then, she had been nothing more than a mask, refusing to let anyone see what was hidden beneath. He raked his fingers through his blond curls, spiking them up haphazardly. He bowed his head, eyes closing in frustration.
He didn't know what he felt. All he knew was that there was more to Shelby than she let on, and he was going to discover it. Because she deserved that much. Because he knew what it felt like to be abused that way. But most of all, because he had felt more when he touched her than he had ever felt in any of his kisses with Juliette.
The Cliffhangers gathered at the lodge for group that night. Shelby had finally come out of the forest acting like her usual self. Scott steered clear of her. In fact, they both avoided each other like the plague, which Ezra noted and pointed out to Daisy.
"Okay," Peter said. "You know the drill. Pass the staff, one line beginning with 'when.' You're up, Scott."
Scott glanced at Shelby, then returned his gaze to the ground. "When you think no one is looking, I see you." He passed the staff to Daisy.
She gave Ezra a pointed look, then cleared her throat. "When you least expect it, everything changes." She tossed the staff across the circle to Shelby.
She was silent for a moment. Should she offer a sarcastic comment as usual, or really say something this time? "When I push you away, it's because I don't know how to let you in," she said, the truth in her statement disguised by her disinterested tone of voice.
The staff was passed around the rest of the group, but Scott and Shelby were no longer listening. They regarded each other neutrally, from opposite sides of the circle. They didn't notice that at least three pairs of eyes were watching their exchange with no small amount of interest, while one pair of eyes rested on Shelby suspiciously.
Peter, sensing that the Cliffhangers needed time to work things out on their own much more than they needed group at that point, called an early end to the meeting. He left them up to their own devices, reminding them to be back in their dorms by curfew.
Juliette bit her lip as she watched Scott and Shelby drawing toward each other from opposite sides of the room, as if by some magnetic force. She wasn't stupid. It was time to end it.
"Hey Jules, want to walk back with me?" asked Auggie hopefully.
She smiled at him genuinely. "I would like that," she said sweetly.
Daisy called out to Ezra. "C'mon, time to go."
"Wait a second," he said distractedly, eyes glued to Scott and Shelby.
Daisy rolled her eyes. "I meant now," she said, dragging him to where Kat stood waiting.
"But Daisy.." he protested, as she dragged him outside.
Shelby looked up at Scott, wondering what was going to happen next.
"Can we go somewhere and talk?" he asked urgently.
She ignored the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Alright."
Peter watched them go, wondering if he should follow. No, he decided. They need to work whatever it is out on their own terms.
By some unspoken agreement they found themselves at the dock once more. They sat silently, neither wanting to broach the subject first. Scott cleared his throat.
"Look, I just want you to know...what I mean is...what you told me last night. I...well, I know what you're going through. What it's like..." he trailed off.
"...To be abused by a step parent," she finished for him. She glanced at him, knowing instinctively what he was trying to tell her. "Step father or step mother," she asked gently.
"Step mother," he admitted painfully.
She nodded in understanding. "Do you want to talk about it?"
He shook his head. "Not right now."
"Okay."
Tentatively, she reached over and laced her fingers through his. He looked at their clasped hands, warmth spreading through him. They sat there, bathed in the moonlight, under the watchful eye of an unseen Peter. It wouldn't matter if they were late for curfew that night.