SECOND BEST

007.

TORY HAD called and they were trying to find her a job when Amanda called that dinner was ready. Scarlett groaned and came down the stairs. She sat down at the table and continued to text Tory. "Scarlett, phone, away," Amanda commanded.

"I'm texting a friend."

"Who?" Sam questioned. Scarlett knew Sam was confused because all of Sam's friends were partially Scarlett's friends. It was something she wasn't proud of but she wasn't the best at making friends at school. However, Sam was and she always coaxed Scarlett into her group.

Scarlett glanced at her sister, "No one you know," she lied. If Sam found out that she was talking to Tory, she would flip. She would pester Scarlett about it for days until eventually telling their parents, leading to Scarlett being caught in her plans.

"Phone away," Daniel told his daughter. Scarlett sighed and put down her phone.

"So how's business?" Carmen asked.

"Uh, the dealership's been the best it's been in years. It should practically be on autopilot by the time Sam takes over. Right, Sam?" Daniel said causing Scarlett to slightly roll her eyes. Anthony chuckled and she nudged him.

"Dad..."

"You're gonna take over? That's awesome," Miguel stated.

"Well -" Sam tried.

"No, it's just an inside joke. See when Sam was a little girl, she used to walk around like she owned the place," Daniel stated. While Sam always went to the dealership when they were younger, Scarlett hadn't been until she was 8.

"Can you blame her? She was practically raised on the showroom floor," Amanda laughed, "Almost born on it too."

"Hey, whatever Sam wants to do with her life, that's entirely up to her. If she decides to go to school nearby, get her MBA. USC, UCLA, I'm just saying... it's all icing on the cake."

"So Miguel, how's school going?" Amanda changed the subject.

"Uh, good. Uh, great actually," Miguel shrugged.

"Straight A's this semester," Carmen said proudly. Scarlett pushed the food around her plate, glaring at it. If only her parents were as proud of her as Carmen was proud of Miguel. Maybe they wouldn't get the shock that was coming to them eventually.

"Yes, a total nerd," Johnny joked.

Daniel laughed, "See, with grades like that you can go anywhere you want."

"Yeah, I'd like to go to Stanford," Miguel said.

Daniel was surprised, "That's a pretty impressive school."

"Yeah, I think it's like number six in the country. The campus is beautiful," Miguel gushed.

"It's definitely a top choice. But that tuition, wow," Carmen said, "We're also thinking about Santa Monica Colege, right? Save some money, live at home, then see where we can go from there."

"SMC's great too. It's right by the beach. Have you checked out their campus?"

"No, actually, I haven't," Miguel looked a bit flustered as he reached for the salad. The wine tipped over and he became even more embarrassed, "Oh, oh! Mr LaRusso, shit! Ah, I mean I'm sorry." Scarlett chuckled from her place looking at the chaos that had erupted at the table.

"No, don't worry about it. Please it's just a little wine," Daniel smiled wholeheartedly and Miguel sighed.

Things settled back down and Scarlett's phone buzzed. She discreetly glanced at it and saw Tory's icon pop up. She ignored it as Carmen turned to her.

"So where would you like to go to school?"

"Uh, I had a Gymnastics scout come see me from UCLA two weeks ago," Scarlett said shocking her parents and her sister. The interview had gone well and she had performed to the best of her ability, she was now just waiting for a letter.

"Since when?" Sam asked.

"Since two weeks ago," Scarlett said. They would have known if they weren't so wrapped up in themselves. But Scarlett wasn't the golden child so they would ignore her anyway.

"And who was with you for this?" Amanda asked.

"Nana." Her grandmother had been very supportive of her decisions and Scarlett knew she could go to the woman whenever she had a problem.

"That's amazing. If you get it what would you like to major in?" Carmen asked.

"Environmental Engineering," Scarlett smiled.

"It seems like Miguel's not the only nerd," Johnny laughed.

"Yeah," Scarlett muttered pushing the food around her plate once more.

The dinner finished and the guests left. Scarlett returned to her room and prepared for her late-night training session with Robby.