FUMBLING TOWARDS ECSTASY

Chapter 10: One More Time Again

Rating: Rated PG for mild language, violence, and sexual content

Disclaimer: HG is not owned by me; I am just trying to keep it alive!

Author's Note: Sorry it's taken me a few days to get this chapter out! I've had homework, basketball games, etc. I really do try to get chapters out as soon as possible for you guys! But I do have a hectic schedule, so a chapter, most likely, will not be out like every day, or even every other day. But I will finish this story and other stories as well, in the future. It may take me a little while, but I will! So, please bear with me! Oh, I realize that I haven't really had parts with any other people besides Scott & Shelby, but I will…promise! This story is not only a S&S fic, but also a fic with all of the Cliffhangers, and even Peter and Hannah. And maybe there will be some surprise characters that will pop up…you'll just have to wait and see!

A Note for Liz and Katie: AWW!!! Y'all win the "sweetest reviews" award! No, I'm kidding! I mean, it was SOO SWEET, but I have gotten a lot of sweet reviews, so there would be no winner…okay, I'm rambling! Anyway, I'm sorry if y'all have to like sneak around to read my story! I'll tell you what…to help you guys out, I'll start a mailing list if you want. Whenever I post, I'll send you an email right after I do, and a link that leads you right to the new chapter. If ANY of y'all are interested, either say so in a review and include your email, or just email me at afgirl122@hotmail.com. I'd be glad to do it! Anyway, Katie, you asked about The Strong Are Saying Nothing. Bee and I haven't started writing the next chapter, but I will let you know when it is posted…okay? Thanks for the BEYOND SWEET reviews! They made my day!

A Note for Niki: I decided to shorten my chapters, so I can post more often. I'm trying to make them as long as I can. You'll have to wait and see about Jules cutting. Thanks for reviewing!

A Note for Jen: It was VERY late at night, and I was not thinking clearly…but I agree, Scott would look good with a purple face! LOL-thanks for review!

A Note for Beth: Thanks for the compliments! My day was a lot brighter when I read it-hehe!

I'm seriously going to stop singling people out! I love ALL OF YOU GUYS! And all of your reviews are sweet and I love them!

Recap: Group is held, and the outcome is not pretty. Scott insults each of the Cliffhangers, and each takes it their own way. Fed up, Scott runs away from the group, and Juliette stands up to him and speaks her mind. Scott and Juliette, although she tries to save their relationship, break up. Shelby confronts Scott, once again, at the docks.

Last Line Said: Shelby-"Okay."

Last Thought: Shelby- God, he is so gorgeous. This is the LAST time I am going to try this. If this doesn't work, I'm letting go of Scott…FOREVER

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Scott rolled his eyes as felt Shelby's piercing blue eyes on him. "Would you please just leave me alone?" he asked, annoyed.

Shelby looked away, embarrassed. I was staring at him? Geez…this is bad! "I'm sorry…I never realized this dock was owned by you. Besides, I'm not even talking to you, so I can't possibly be bothering you," she stated slowly, her eyes on the rippling water.

Scott sighed and then rubbed his eyes tiredly. "You don't always have to be such a smartass, you know that?"

Shelby turned to Scott, her eyes full of rage. "Here we go again! You don't know me, Scott…GET OVER IT!"

Scott jumped, for Shelby's little outburst had startled him.

He then relaxed and coolly replied, "Actually, I think I do. I know EXACTLY what kind of a person you are."

Shelby bit her lip angrily, until she felt the salty taste of blood in her mouth. WHY DO YOU LIKE HIM? Ugh! You may have some weird thing for him, but you are NOT going to let him insult you! "You DON'T know what kind of person I am! You STOOD ME UP the one time you were supposed to get to know me!" she yelled, now standing up, her hands placed on her hips.

Scott then stood up and faced her, also angry. "I SAID I WAS SORRY! WHY IS IT SUCH A BIG DEAL?" he questioned, his eyebrows furrowed.

"It's a BIG DEAL because you told me you would be there…and you WEREN'T!" Shelby hissed, her head cocked to the side.

Scott shook his head, his eyes closed. "Look, I said I was sorry. What do you want me to do?" he asked, calmer this time.

Shelby's eyes softened, as did her heart. I want to be with you! That's what I want! "I don't know," she lied, breaking Scott's gaze.

Scott mentally groaned. You know what she wants, man. Just make it up to her by meeting with her again…………Wait, you don't owe her anything! Why are you trying to act all nice and caring?

But before he knew it, words were tumbling out of his mouth. "Do you wanna try the whole 'getting to know each other' thing again?" he asked, in a soft voice. Since when I have talked in a SOFT voice?

Shelby's eyes lit up, a twinkle now in shining her baby blues. "Yyyou mean it?" she stuttered.

Before Scott could reply, she then corrected herself after taking a deep breath to calm herself. "I mean, I don't wanna know show up if you're gonna be a no-show," she said easily.

Scott sighed. You owe her. "Yeah, I mean it." Why am I doing this again?

Auggie looked up from his drawing as he heard the door slam.

Ezra stepped in towards Auggie, who was lying on his bed. "Guess what?"

Auggie sat up on his bed and then gave Ezra a bored look. "What?" he asked unenthusiastically.

Ezra sat down on his bed, which was next to Auggie's. "I just talked to Katherine outside, but she had to go in 'cause she was comforting Juliette."

He stopped, waiting for Auggie's reaction.

Auggie's dull brown eyes then widened. "What? Why?" he questioned, eager to hear about the girl he loved.

Ezra smirked. Well that sure got him interested. "Well, she and Blondie broke up earlier tonight." he finally answered after a beat.

A gasp escaped from Auggie's lips. "They did!? How's Jules taking it?"

Ezra shrugged, surprised at Auggie's question. "She just experienced a BREAKUP. How do you THINK she's taking it?" he asked sarcastically.

Auggie solemnly looked at the floor. He's right. She must have cared about Scott since she's obviously taking it hard.

After a moment of utter silence, Ezra finally spoke up. "Sorry, didn't mean to sound harsh. So…you gonna hook up with Juliette now that's she single? It's much easier to sleep with girls right after they break up with someone. They're vulnerable and just waiting for…"

Before he knew it, Ezra was pinned up against the wall, Auggie holding his wrists. "Don't you say that, meat. I wouldn't do that…no one should! You understand?"

Ezra gulped, scared. "Uh, yeah. I hear ya loud and clear," he stammered.

Auggie held him there for a second, a glare on his face, but he then released the small boy's hands as he dropped to the floor with a loud thump.

Auggie walked back over to his bed and then picked up his drawing once again, as if nothing had happened. I'll make my move on Juliette…eventually. I just gotta allow her time to heal.

Ezra remained motionless on the floor, pain taking over his body. Damn…who knew someone of Auggie's size could beat ME up? Sheesh!

Katherine shuffled into the room, as she gingerly handed Juliette a tissue. "Here ya go," she said sweetly, her fingers outstretched.

Juliette grabbed the tissue of her friend's grasp and then blew her nose with it. "Thanks," she said softly, sniffing.

"You're welcome," Katherine answered sympathetically, sitting down next to the brunette on her bed.

Juliette then gathered up all the wads of tissue from the floor and threw them into the trashcan, which was a few feet away from her.

Katherine then broke the silence. "I know this is said a lot, but it really is true…especially in this case."

She paused, her eyes on Juliette's, trying to make her understand. "You're better off without him," Katherine finally finished.

Juliette slowly nodded, as she turned to look at Katherine. "I know. I just…."

She stopped, for she wasn't ready to talk about it just yet.

"I just miss him," she lied, her eyes on the floor.

Katherine just pulled Juliette in a small hug, her arm around her neck. "It'll be okay, Juliette. You're gonna get over him," she said comfortingly.

Juliette just sat there, swallowed in Katherine's friendly embrace. I know I will. That's not the problem. God, damnit…how am I going to tell Mother?

After a few minutes, Katherine pulled away and gave Juliette a small smile, who just gave her a fake one back. Time to hook up with her Auggie.

"So…every night at 8?" Shelby asked, after a beat, her voice hopeful.

Scott's gaze left the water as he glanced at Shelby. "Yeah," he answered simply.

Shelby just nodded, looking at the water, also. Don't act so excited, Shel. You wanna play hard-to-get. "And you better show up this time, Scott. This is the last time I'm doing this," she stated sternly.

Scott rolled his eyes. "Chill, I'll be here." And I'll prove to you what a SLUT you are.

Shelby just gave another satisfied nod, as she stood up and started to walk towards the dorm. "Well, it's almost lights out, so I'd better go," she said softly, Scott's back to her.

"Okay," Scott said dully.

"Tomorrow at 8?" Shelby asked once again, making sure.

Scott quickly thrust a rock in the water as he stated coldly, "Damnit, Shelby, I said I'll be there!"

"Okay, okay. Sheesh! You might wanna follow my example and get some sleep, get that good mood back," Shelby advised him, biting her lip.

Scott didn't answer, for he was just staring out at the water.

Shelby rolled her eyes and then stepped off the dock, her mind racing.

Once she had taken two steps towards the dorm, she turned to hear Scott say something. "Why didn't you find somethin to diss me about at group?" he questioned, his attention now on Shelby.

Shelby's eyes widened. Wow…he can actually ask me a simple question without saying something mean. "'Cause I know how ya feel. I WAS a newbie once, ya know," she answered honestly.

And with that, Shelby finally made her way to the dorm, never looking back.

Scott just watched her walk away, different thoughts swimming through his head. Why can't everyone act that understanding?

Shelby slowly opened the door to the girls dorm, a visible grin on her face. Aah…I wish tomorrow was here!

She peeked in to see Katherine and Juliette deep in conversation.

They stopped once they saw Shelby.

"What are you so happy about?" Juliette questioned curiously.

Shelby smirked. "Nothing you need to know about. I'm just meeting your boyfriend tomorrow! Today has just been a good day, and tomorrow is going to be, too."

And with that, she glided to the bathroom and shut the door, leaving two confused girls in the dust.

Once the door was shut and locked, Shelby sunk to the floor in pure bliss, her heart singing. It's now official. No matter how he treats me, I am not going to be able to fall out of love with Scott Barringer.

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I know that's a little confusing because one minute, Scott and Shelby are at each others' throats, and the next Shelby is daydreaming about him, but it's really hard to explain. It's like Scott hasn't changed Shelby…she's still the same badass who's really tough, but Scott does give her these HAPPY feelings. So one minute, she'll be mad…the next, ecstatic. And Scott doesn't like Shelby…in ANY way, friend-wise, or romantic-wise. He's meeting with her because he feels bad and because Shelby won't leave him alone about it. However, at the end of this chap, he does kind of realize that Shelby is understanding…but I can go ahead and tell you that it's not a big deal to him, and he's not going to just start being nice to her because of that. You'll have to wait and see if Scott and Shelby end up being friends…or possibly something more. Anyway, sorry this is kinda short, and a lil rushed, but I'm really busy! Oh, there's some things you guys can help me with. I need some GOOD questions for S&S's meeting(s)! I have some, but I need more! I mean, not stupid ones like "What's your favorite animal?" but good, thought-stimulating ones. You can tell me in your review or you can email me at afgirl122@hotmail.com Also, there's a part that I kind of want in this story, kinda don't want in this story. I'd love to know what you all think, but if I decide to use it, I don't want to give anything away. SO, if you're interested in helping me out and helping me decide, and if you don't mind possibly knowing a SMALL future part of this story, EMAIL ME! ONE MORE THING: if you're interested in being on my lil mailing list (which I will set up to save you time), email me, also! Whew…what a long message! 10 REVIEWS, AND CHAPTER 11 WILL BE POSTED!!!

In chapter 11: Scott and Shelby's first REAL "meeting"…will he show up? Juliette talks to her mom, and some more Daisy and Ezra action!