Teen Mom Confidential: Secrets & Scandals From MTV's Most Controversial Shows (10 page)

Farrah Abraham with Daniel Alvarez and his parents in 2011.

MTV often overlooked Farrah's treatment of those around her, and, in many cases, was forced to smooth things over with members of the general public. Daniel remembers one visit to a grocery store when Farrah encountered a cashier who struggled with her English.

“Farrah started yelling at her…telling her she shouldn't be a cashier and should be mopping the floor. I was so embarrassed that I started to walk out of the store. I couldn't believe some of the things she'd say to people,” he says.

Still, many of Farrah's former friends admit that she could also be fun to hang out with. “In the beginning, we would have a lot of fun and just do normal couple things, like go to the beach, go out to eat or hang out by the pool. I was trying to show her that things aren't always bad, and not everyone is out to use her like she thought,” Daniel says. “She had a lot of good qualities too. She's very ambitious and driven. She's dedicated to making money, even if she has to step on someone to do it, she will. I went into the relationship not knowing anything about Farrah or her show. I met a person that I was attracted to both physically and emotionally, and was trying to give her a chance, just like I would anybody else.”

Things quickly imploded for the couple during a mid-summer trip to Daniel's hometown of Austin, Texas, he says. MTV cameras were close behind as they explored the city, lunched with Daniel's family and hung out with his friends.

“We had a really good time,” he remembers. “She met my dad and stepmom and a chunk of my friends at a big dinner. MTV was there and all my friends had to sign contracts and stuff. The dinner and the parent meeting were on film. After that, the camera crew left. We went downtown to some of the bars and she ended up drinking and getting a little out of control.”

And that, Daniel says, is when he began to see Farrah in a different light: “I saw what most people have been seeing on TV for years - an unappreciative and self-centered individual.” When their story was edited together for the final season of
Teen Mom
, it appeared that Daniel broke off the relationship rather abruptly. Not so, he says. What viewers never saw was the way Daniel says Farrah began treating his friends at a Florida nightclub.

“She was telling my friend to 'go get her another drink right now' and being really rude and demanding,” he says. “Afterwards, we went to my friend's house and Farrah was disrespectful to people I've known my entire life. Finally, I told her to get out of the house and had my friend Lauren take her back to the hotel. I told her to never talk to me again.”

When news of the breakup trickled back to producers, they were eager to have Daniel come back and recreate the drama for the camera. “They tried to get me to go back to the hotel and meet up with her and fight it out on camera but I wasn't having it,” he says. “They even tried to stall me at the hotel so Farrah and the camera crew could come. I was standing there and saw Farrah coming around the corner and a camera crew running towards me, and just bailed. I got out of there quick.”

Alethea and John both say their relationship with Farrah grew so strained that they simply decided to stop associating with her. The day she moved out of the building, “Farrah saw me in the hall and called me 'trash,'” Alethea remembers. “She was yelling at me and called the police and said that she was going to have me arrested for yelling at her. When the cops got there, they actually told her she had to leave because technically she was trespassing and didn't live there anymore. All the neighbors started clapping.”

In all the commotion, John says, “one of our neighbors comes up and says that Sophia was downstairs in the car, with all the windows rolled up, screaming and crying. The neighbor said he waited 15 minutes by the car to see if Farrah would come back out, but she didn't so the neighbor went upstairs and knocked on her door and asked her if she had forgotten Sophia in the car. She said, 'Yeah, she's waiting for me.' I filmed it all on my cell phone, but didn't tell the cops because I didn't want them to take Sophia away from her.”

Although his time with Farrah caused him to be publically ridiculed by
Teen Mom
fans, Daniel says he doesn't regret the experience. “I don't have any hate towards her, I'm just telling the truth,” he insists. “In the long run, I look at this as a learning experience. I do not regret my time with Farrah or Sophia and am happy that I was able to be a part of their lives. I wish them both the best and hope Farrah finds happiness.”

We reached out to Farrah and her mother, but both declined to be interviewed for this book. Farrah also chose not to comment on specific remarks made by Daniel, Alethea and John. Contacted by telephone, she told us: “You shouldn't talk to losers. They are all horrible people. That is why they are not in my life. They make shit up. I had to call the police on them. It wasn't even the last day. It was a lot of days. I had to call the police. I had to involve my mother. I had to get help from my family. I had to move out of my apartment building early. The building was messed up. They were selling drugs. So believe me. They don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. I discredit anything that they say because they are such mental cases.”

Stormie Clark desperately wants to see her granddaughter, Sophia. But Farrah Abraham has been determined not to let that happen. The two headstrong women have been locking horns in a bitter, public feud since shortly after the preschooler was born in February 2009. Stormie is still grief-stricken over the loss of her only son - Sophia's father, Derek Underwood - who was killed in a December 2008 car crash. Not being allowed to have a relationship with Derek's only child, she says, is “absolutely not fair” and just compounds her heartache.

Stormie, a small business owner, took Farrah to court in 2010 seeking regular visitation under a “grandparent's rights” statute. She lost after being unable to prove a pre-existing relationship with the child, who was born two months after her son's death. “Farrah wouldn't let me see Sophia so the judge ruled against me,” she explained at the time. “She's a heartless, spoiled brat... If Derek were alive he'd be devastated.”

Farrah had a famously tumultuous relationship with Derek. In a 2012 memoir she even admitted he died without ever being told he was Sophia's father. Still, she wrote: “He was my first love, my only true love. We hadn't spoken in more than two months, but crazily I had still hoped we had a future together - me, him, and our baby, as one happy family.”

Farrah's book also characterized Derek as thoughtless and immature, which Stormie has vehemently denied. Now, she's finally setting the record straight, revealing for the first time that Derek's sister was also 16 and pregnant in high school, and went into labor the day of his burial. What follows is an emotional and heartbreaking letter Stormie has written to her granddaughter about the father she'll never know and the family who so desperately wants to be a part of her life.

October 12, 2012

Dear Sophia,

I am your biological grandmother, Stormie Clark. Your father, Derek Underwood was my son. He tragically died in a car accident on December 28th, 2008. I am taking this opportunity to tell you everything that you need to know about your father and why you and I are purposely being kept apart.

Right now, I am unable to see you, per your mother's and grandmother's request. We live in the same town, Council Bluffs, Iowa, literally three miles apart. There is no good reason why you and I are being separated, other than sheer selfishness and jealousy. I have wanted to be a part of your life since day one. I will never stop trying to do so.

When your mom and dad dated for approximately two-and-a-half years, your mother and I did not see eye-to-eye, due to the way that she handled their relationship. There was a lot of jealousy and control.

This is my story to you….

Derek was born on May 8, 1990. He weighed 8 lbs., 8 oz. We lived on a farm outside of St. Joseph, Missouri for several years until we moved to the city. Derek loved being on the farm. He wasn't scared of anything. He would walk right up to a cow, a snake, a dog... He was fearless. He was also allergic to any kind of bee. (This is something that you should know. You may be as well.) Derek was a very happy little boy. He always had the biggest smile on his face. He was so full of life. He was also very close to his sisters: your aunts Kassy and Alissa. They were always together, even more so when they became teenagers.

When Derek was eight, he had a dog named Jody. He was a big animal lover. Jody became sick a year and a half into her life, and she passed away right around Thanksgiving. It broke my heart to see how upset he was. He cried for two weeks over that dog.

Derek broke both bones in his left arm when he was 11. He was at a friend's house and a boy purposely threw him off a trampoline. They did surgery and put Derek's arm in a cast, and he had to stay the night at the hospital. I stayed with him until he fell asleep then quickly ran home to check on his sisters, and to take a shower and bring him a change of clothes to wear home. I felt so bad leaving him. As I headed back, a song came on the radio called “You'll Be In My Heart” by Phil Collins. And I just lost it. I cried all the way to the hospital. I told Derek about it, and from that day on, it became “our song.” Whenever I heard that song, I would think of Derek. We played it at his funeral. To this day, I fall apart whenever it comes on the radio.

Derek's father and I divorced when he was eight. Derek, his sisters and I made a new start, and moved to Council Bluffs. His dad and I had made visitation arrangements to meet every other weekend. Derek's dad and I eventually remarried, and were both happy. My husband, Mike, was a wonderful stepfather to Derek and his sisters. We were very blessed to have him walk into our lives. Derek loved to fish, and would go on annual fishing trips to south Missouri with his Grandpa Neil. Derek loved anything that had to do with the outdoors. We went on several vacations to Branson, Missouri. That's where Derek met his first girlfriend.

Derek was a very handsome young man, and very popular with the ladies. He was also an amazing athlete. He played baseball right up to his senior year. He was in cross-country, wrestling, basketball. But he also loved swing choir. He wanted to play football, but I felt that it was too dangerous for him. I have filmed all of his sporting events, and would love to show them to you someday. I also have home videos of all of our holidays and school functions.

In high school, lots of girls wanted to date him. He had a few relationships, but your mom was the only girl that he had ever brought home for me to meet. She seemed sweet and was very pretty. They were a cute couple and looked very happy together.

My husband Mike and I decided to buy Derek his first car when he was 16. It was a 1996 maroon Chevy Lumina. He loved having his own car. He took your mom on lots of dates in it. They attended prom and high school sporting events together. But eventually, they began to have little arguments. I wasn't too concerned at first, but soon, I noticed some changes in Derek. He seemed quiet and distracted.

Before long, Derek was basically breaking down in tears. So we talked. His relationship with your mom was slowly going downhill. There were a few break ups that I didn't know about. Derek had finally told me that Farrah had been dating other guys when they were supposed to be together, and everything just fell apart. I remember the night when Derek called Farrah's dad and told him that Farrah was at a party and that he was concerned with what was going on there. I believe her dad called her and told her to get home.