Home for the Holidays

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I'm not sure where this would fit in chronologically with the series, like before or after which episode. It's just something I felt like writing. I didn't really think about making it fit into a certain timeline.

Also, I have another HG story but this has nothing to do with that one, they are totally separate and their stories don't exist together lol.

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Scott was nervous. He was going home for Christmas, at the request of his dad. His dad had said that as long as Scott behaved, he could spend a week at home for the holidays before going back to Horizon. Scott wanted to go, in spite of everything, he missed his dad. He was hoping that maybe they could set aside their issues and the holiday, at least, would feel like the old days. As long as Elaine kept out of things, Scott thought, he'd be fine. He just wanted a Christmas with his dad like he used to have.

When his dad and Elaine arrived at Horizon to pick him up that evening, his dad hugged him tight and said, "I've missed you, son" and Scott grinned and hugged him back. Elaine smiled at him, but hung back and didn't say anything, just let the father and son have their moment.

Martin was optimistic about the visit; Peter had told him that Scott's behavior had improved since coming to Horizon. Maybe Horizon had cured Scott of his teenage rebellion, and Martin would have his old son back.

"Ready to go, son?" Martin asked. "I want to get home before dark."

Scott nodded, and turned to shake hands with Peter. "Have a good visit, Scott," Peter told him, smiling. But he looked deep in Scott's eyes and said, "You have my number if you need anything," Scott nodded.

Scott hadn't told anyone at Horizon about his problem, but Peter could tell that something had happened at home that had caused Scott's behavior. But with everyone wanting this visit, even Scott himself, and with everyone so optimistic, Peter had decided it would be okay to give it a try. After he decided to allow the visit, he had called Scott into his office for a long talk, and then had given Scott his business card to make sure the boy had someone to help him if any issues arose. Scott had tucked away the business card in his pocket just in case.

Martin helped Scott get his things in the car, slammed the trunk, and opened the passenger side door for Elaine to get in. Scott slid into the back seat.

There wasn't too much talking on the way home, a little chit chat about Scott's schoolwork and Martin's job, but mostly they just played Christmas songs on the radio. It wasn't an angry silence, like they used to have during drives, it was different now. It began as an awkward silence, but after they talked a little, then decided to put on music, it became a pleasant silence, listening to carols together in the car on the long drive home.

Once home, they went into the house and Scott took his things upstairs to unpack. Martin and Elaine went into the living room. They had decorated most of the house yesterday, and now it was really beautiful. The only things left to do were hang stockings up over the chimney, put the last of the ornaments on the tree, and stick the star on top. But they'd wait till Christmas Eve to do those things. For now, Martin began building a fire in the fireplace and Elaine went in the kitchen to put some easy slice-and-bake cookies in the oven. She had tried to make cookies the old fashioned way the day before, with disastrous results, but Martin only thought it was "cute" and so he just went out and bought her a bunch of packages of slice and bake cookies.

When Scott walked into his room, he stopped in his tracks and dropped his bag. His room was different. Not drastically, but things had been changed. The furniture was rearranged; his bed was in a different place. There was a new blue bedspread on his bed, and there was a flat screen TV in his room. Someone had put up a big shelf above the desk, and arranged on the shelf were all his sports trophies, which had been dusted and polished. There were also pictures in new frames around his room, and he went around looking at them. Some were from when he was a baby. Some were of him and his mom, some were from football games, and there were a few of his dad with him. When he found one of him and Elaine, he stared at it for a moment. Taken before all this trouble started, they were both smiling in the photograph. It even looked like they had been laughing together. Elaine had her arm around him in the photo. Scott put down the picture frame and turned it face-down on the desk.

He picked up his bag again and dumped it out onto his bed. He put away his things and then went back downstairs.

Martin smiled at him when he came down. "Hey, Scott, did you find your new TV?"

Scott smiled, "Yeah thanks…shouldn't that be, you know, under the tree?"

Martin shrugged, "You've got plenty of other stuff to open on Christmas…this way you can enjoy that all week."

"Thanks, dad," Scott said.

"Okay, the cookies are done," Elaine said. "Who wants cocoa?"

Elaine brought a tray out to the living room of hot chocolate and cookies. "We thought we could watch a movie or something tonight, unless you're too tired and want to go to bed?"

Scott looked at her. "Um…no, we can. I guess."

"Okay," Martin said, "You can pick."

Scott looked until he found "National Lampoons", which he hadn't seen in forever but he remembered that when he was little, they'd watched it every Christmas and laughed and laughed. So he thought it might be nice to see it again.

Martin sat down on the couch. Elaine sat next to him, holding his hand. But then she said, "Come on, sit down here Scott." She patted the couch cushion next to her.

Scott stood still for a second, then said, "I'll sit over here…" He started pulling pillows and blankets off the recliner in the corner which was far away from them.

"Scott, don't be silly…there's stuff all piled up on that old thing…just sit with us, it'll be cozy." Elaine coaxed.

Martin said, "Scott, would you just sit down already, the movie's starting."

Scott put the blanket he had picked off the recliner tightly around himself and sat down on the couch with them, as far away as possible, looking rigid.

Elaine laughed in her girlish voice. "Scott, you don't look at all comfortable. Come over here," and she pulled him close, he sort of got yanked backward. Now his head was resting on her hip. Scott panicked and couldn't breathe. He struggled to get up, but the blanket he had wrapped himself in now felt like a straightjacket. "Scott, quit moving around, the movie's on now," Elaine said, running her fingers through his hair.

Scott shut his eyes. He could hear the movie, but he couldn't seem to understand any of the lines the actors were saying. He was about to push free from Elaine when his father's voice cut though, saying, "Isn't this nice, our family all together? I'm glad you're home with us, Scott, I hope we'll have a good week." So Scott just nodded and said "Me too," in a tiny voice. For his father's sake, he wouldn't cause problems.

He tried to focus on the movie even though he was being cradled by Elaine. She wasn't doing anything wrong to him, she was just holding him wrapped up in his blanket while they watched the movie. Scott realized that if she had never abused him, then the way she was holding him right now would just have felt motherly to him and nothing more. But she had abused him, so now, he couldn't trust anything she did, no matter how innocent it felt.

When the movie was finally over, after what felt like the longest two hours of his life, he struggled free and said, "I'm gonna go to bed,"

"Ok honey," Elaine said, collecting the dishes. Martin hugged him again, which was weird to Scott, who wasn't used to his dad being so…nice. "Goodnight, son," he said

Scott showered before bed and then went into his room and put on some sweatpants and a t-shirt. He used to sleep in boxers, but that was before. Now he felt the need to cover up. He was nervous to go to bed, nervous that she might come in, but he was exhausted from the brief interactions with his parents. He was surprised at how strange it felt to talk to them, almost like they were strangers and he had to get to know them all over again. He got in bed and pulled the bedspread up around him, snuggling deep down into the covers. He left his desk lamp on, he hated being in the dark now. Every time it was dark, images came into his mind. That was why he sometimes couldn't sleep- you could leave a light on in your room, but you couldn't do anything about the darkness that came over you when you closed your eyes.

He was woken up a couple of hours later by Elaine coming into his room. "Oh, God, not again," Scott thought. He pretended to be asleep. Except that he could see the clock next to his bed, and it was only midnight. That didn't make any sense. His dad would only have just gone to bed…was she not even going to wait till his dad fell asleep??

Elaine leaned over and faced the wall, fiddling with something. Then she walked over to his desk and turned off the lamp…the room still had a glow. Scott peeked out and saw the reason why. She had plugged a nightlight into the outlet on the wall.

"Elaine?" He asked, his voice sounding hollow.

She turned and faced him. She had obviously thought he was asleep. "Hmm?" She breathed.

"I'm not a baby. I don't need a nightlight."

"You don't want your desk lamp on either, then?"

Scott was silent.

Elaine said, "That's what I thought. I don't want your desk lamp on all night. It's too bright. The light seeps out into our room and your father doesn't sleep as well with all that light."

"Ok," Scott whispered. When was she going to get out? He didn't care about the light any more, he just wanted her to leave.

But instead she came over and sat on the side of his bed. "I could tell tonight that you were trying to be nice for your father's sake, and I appreciate it."

Scott nodded without saying anything.

Elaine asked, "But are you mad that I moved your furniture?"

"You did? I thought my dad moved it."

"Why?"

"Because he's the one who put the TV in."

"No, I moved the furniture. I thought…well, I didn't know how well you would sleep in this room, and I…I thought it might be easier for you to sleep here…if it wasn't the same as it was when… I mean…"

"…Yeah." Scott responded. He kind of understood. His furniture had always been in the same places, and now that it was different, it made him feel a little disoriented. But at the same time, it seemed to help him sleep, because with the furniture all changed around, he could almost imagine it wasn't the same room he used to sleep in.

"Scott?"

"Hmm?"

"Goodnight." Elaine leaned down and kissed him, but just on the forehead.

Scott let her, but he didn't respond to the kiss at all and he didn't say anything to her as she left.

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