Explanation: If our favorite group of profoundly dysfunctional adolescents were just a group of slightly dysfunctional adolescents, what would be different? This is assuming, of course, that they all happen to go to the same high school. This explores how the relationships of our heroes would be different if they weren't forced to get to know each other in a place like Horizon, and instead had to live by the code of All High Schools Everywhere: AKA cliques and other stereotypes. This takes place during their senior year, and will mainly focus on the developing relationship of Scott and Shelby.

Disclaimer: To FFC or ABC Family Channel or whatever the heck you're calling yourself these days: SOOKIT! SOOK. IT.

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Breaking the Stereotypes

Chapter 1: It Was The Best Of Times, It Was The Worst Of Times...

Shelby Merrick hurried up the concrete stairs leading to the main entrance of her high school. She cursed as she tripped over the top step. Her books flew out of her hands as she grabbed on to the metal railing. She scrambled around the ground and shoved the loose papers back into her binder. She glanced at her watch. Crap! She was almost ten minutes late for homeroom again. She resisted the urge to scream at the sky until it came crashing down on top of her. Instead, she blew a wisp of hair off of her forehead and started to jog toward the main entrance.

She was having a miserable morning. It had started yesterday, when she had worked a double shift at the diner after school. She hadn't gotten home until after ten. Then, she had stayed up doing homework until she had finally conked out in the middle of finishing her physics lab report. By some stroke of luck she hadn't overslept this morning, but her little sister, Jess, had. Shelby had to make sure her sister was ready for her ride to school before she could leave for school herself. And to top it all off, her mother hadn't bought more coffee, so she was desperately missing her morning caffeine fix.

She yanked the heavy glass door open and immediately headed to the Attendance Office for a late pass.

"I'm sorry Shelby," said Mrs. Bauer, her favorite office attendant. "This is your fifth late this semester, so you'll have to serve a detention this afternoon."

Shelby sighed and swallowed her protest that it was her afternoon off from work. Instead she nodded and accepted the pink slip of paper.

"Did you have to work late again yesterday?" Mrs. Bauer inquired.

Shelby nodded. "My mom is home sick from work, so I've been working doubles after school to make up for it. I have to go now, thanks Mrs. Bauer!" She ran out of the door before the pretty red haired woman could say another word.

The soles of her shoes squeaked and echoed in the empty hallway. She had missed the morning announcements and was going to miss homeroom completely if she didn't hurry up. What a way to start the day.

Finally, she reached her homeroom. She was tired and out of breath from all her running around. She handed her pass to the teacher, murmuring a soft apology, and then walked to her seat.

"What's the matter, Shelby? Late night last night?"

She stopped in her tracks to address the speaker. It was one of the idiotic football jocks. He was leering at her suggestively as his eyes roamed over her body.

"Bite me," she said through clenched teeth as she glared at him.

"Is that an invitation?" he asked with a smug grin.

"Brett, chill," Scott Barringer said under his breath. He would have liked nothing more than to watch Merrick beat the crap out of Brett, but they needed him for the big game that weekend. Luckily, Brett heard him and backed off. With one last appraising glance at Shelby, he turned back to the brunette he had been flirting with.

Shelby stomped to her seat. She really hated football players. They were big and stupid, and thought that the whole school, or female population, should bow down and worship them. She sank down in her seat and began the process of sorting out all of the homework she had dropped outside.

"I'm sorry about that."

She looked up. It was Mr. Football himself. Scott Barringer. She'd only had a few classes with him over the course of the past four years, but she knew enough to know that he was just like the rest of them. "Look," she said, continuing to rifle through her papers. "Thanks, but I don't need your help. I can take care of myself."

"Okay," he said, raising his forearms in a gesture of surrender.

The bell rang. She gathered her books and papers and shoved past him on her way to the door. He shrugged his shoulders. Shelby Merrick was one girl he knew better than to mess with. He scooped his books off of his desk and strolled into the hallway.

He smiled and nodded at the people he knew. He had played a great game on Saturday and he knew it. So did everyone else. They worshipped the ground he walked on. He would lead the team to their eighth consecutive state title, its fourth since he had joined the team.

He spotted Juliette at her locker chatting with her friends while she exchanged books. "Hey," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist.

She giggled. "Hey, you."

Her friends giggled as the captain of the football team and the head cheerleader engaged in a very public display of affection.

"Gross," Daisy Lipenowski said, wrinkling her noise in disgust.

"What?" asked Shelby, her question muffled by the pencil in her mouth.

"Mr. Football Hero and his prom queen going at it over there," she said. She stuck her tongue out and made a face.

Shelby rolled her eyes. "Tell them to go reproduce somewhere else."

"Ah, but that's Scott and Juliette. They can do whatever they want wherever they want, because for some unknown reason, we have chosen to worship the jocks and their airheads. Our opinions don't matter because we're just the average folk. Our lives are meaningless and revolve around the antics of the lucky few." She pointed across the hallway. "That, my friend, is high school in a nut shell. Which football player had his tongue down the throat of which cheerleader will be, sadly enough, the only thing that anyone remembers about these four years." She finished her tirade, delivered in a sullen monotone, and her face adopted a look of mock regret. "So what's up with you this lovely morning?" she asked with false cheer.

"I have detention after school today."

"Again?"

"Shut up," she sighed.

After one last kiss, Scott drew away from Juliette. "I'll see you at lunch," he said winking at her.

She blew him a kiss. "Later."

He continued his trek down the hall. He arrived at his destination: the guidance office. He opened the door and sat down in one of the cushioned chairs to wait. His appointment wasn't for another ten minutes, and someone else was in Miss Becker's office. He could hear their voices as they drifted out of the partially opened door.

"She can't go on like this," a woman was saying. "She goes to school, works double shifts, and takes care of her sister. She does everything she can to help out her mom, but I don't think she's given any thought to college or what she's going to do when she graduates."

"I'm well aware of Shelby's situation," said Miss Becker. "But I had no idea she was spreading herself so thin. Her grades are still perfect."

"But have you seen her attendance record? I don't know how she does it, but you can see the exhaustion in her eyes."

"I'll schedule an appointment with her," Miss Becker promised. "Thank you for your concern, Hannah. I'm glad to see someone looking out for Shelby."

Scott absorbed this new information. It explained a lot. He found he had a whole new respect for the girl that the rest of the school whispered about. For the first time, he began to question if all the rumors circulating about her were true. Either way, she had to be one of the strongest girls on the planet.

***

Shelby walked with her head held high as she passed the table full of jocks and cheerleaders. She hated them more and more each time one of the airheads whispered behind or back or one of the guys tried to grab her butt because they thought she was an easy score. But she endured it, because Shelby Merrick would not give them the satisfaction of being superior. She made it to her table unscathed. She shoved Them, the popular crowd, to the back of her mind. She slipped her headphones over her ears and started cramming for her Spanish quiz instead.

"Skank," Brett muttered under his breath. He had a clear view of her from his vantage point at the table.

"That still doesn't stop you from trying to get into her pants every morning, dude," laughed one of his friends.

Brett shrugged. "A lay is a lay, even when it's a whore like Merrick."

He was thrown backward as a fist connected solidly with his jaw. He found himself sprawled on the floor, his chair and the remnants of his lunch scattered around him. He jumped to his feet, rubbing his sore jaw, ready to deck whoever had hit him. He was shocked to see Scott staring down at him, a look of controlled rage in his eyes.

"Son of a...what the hell are you doing?"

"You'd better watch your mouth," Scott said calmly.

"Why? Oh, I'm sorry. Maybe you'd like to screw the slut."

Scott tackled him onto the floor. The whole table erupted into a cacophony of sound. More guys jumped in. Soon, there was a whirlwind of flying fists and flailing limbs rolling around the floor.

Shelby, her face turned away from the brawl, remained blissfully unaware. She munched on a bag of pretzels.

The noise in the cafeteria died away as Mr. Scarbrow, the principal, pried the fighting boys away from each other. "My office, now!"

They shoved at each other one last time, then followed Mr. Scarbrow out of the cafeteria.

END

Thanks to Amethyst Crow for the inspiration. You are my patron saint of HG.