AN : I ship Brucas, and so obviously, I do not own One Tree Hill.
Humming to herself softly, as she bounced the little girl on her hip, simultaneously trying to pour herself a cup of coffee, Brooke Davis almost laughed to herself. Who would have though? Her? A mother? She'd certainly risen above her freshman days as a bitchy cheerleader : partying, sleeping around. Sure, she still knew how to have a good time, it's take more than motherhood to beat that out of Brooke Davis, but she had still changed. She was responsible, and mature, and yet, there was a part of her that would always remain a bouncy and excitable cheerleader.
As she brought the coffee mug to her lips with one hand, careful not to upset Angie, the little girl she was balancing at her side, she closed her eyes for a moment, letting the caffeine and warmth spread all over her. She's grown accustomed to having this little angel at home, but that still didn't make any of it easier. Work at the Clothes Over Bros office to make sure the Tree Hill transition went smoothly was a challenge on its own, but coupled with a baby who was alternatively cranky or fussy or gassy (if not all together), it was a wonder she hadn't gone insane yet. But she wouldn't trade her life for anything, it was perfect, just like little Angie.
The sound of the doorbell snapped Brooke out of her reverie in an instant. Setting her mug down on the countertop she moved towards the living room, where she set Angie down carefully in her crib. After making sure that the little girl was comfortable, Brooke moved towards the door, and opened it, only to find herself staring into a pair of blue eyes. Eyes she'd never forget, as long as she lived.
"Hey, Lucas, what're you doing here so late?" Lucas shifted slightly, almost blushing as he retrieved a bright yellow pacifier from his pocket, "Umm… I think you guys left this over at my place yesterday, I found it on my couch." Brooke smiled slightly, as she leaned over to take the pacifier from her ex-boyfriend's hands. "Well, I guess we did. Thanks for bringing it back though. But you didn't have to come so late." Lucas smiled at ran his hands through his short, blond hair. "I know it's her favorite one. And it's not like I have much to do at home anyway." Brooke responded sympathetically, "So no word from Lindsey still?". Lucas simply shook his head.
The two stood in silence for a while, until the sound of thunder rolling jolted them out of it. Brooke suddenly snapped up "Oh my god! Why are you standing at the door? It's going to pour tonight. Come in." She pulls him in, and with that one touch, Lucas is transported back to high school, back to a time when she was his Cheery.
The sound of the thunder and the closing door seem to have awakened Angie, who starts to whimper. Her cries intensify in volume until she is wailing. Brooke is about to walk up to the crib, but Lucas stops her. "Can I take care of it? Please?" Brooke acquiesces with a smile. Truthfully, she's thankful for the help. Lucas walks to the crib, and gingerly picks up the crying baby. He rocks her slowly in his arms, whispering soothing words as he does so. The crying stops almost instantly. As Brooke stares on in awe, Lucas smiles at the child in his arms.
He sits down on the sofa, still cradling Angie in his arms. Brooke takes a seat next to him, gently stroking Angie's hair. Lucas and Brooke just stare in silence, and for the next few moments, they are a picture of domestic bliss. Lucas can't help but wonder if this is them in another life. If maybe, if he had fought a little bit harder for his Pretty Girl, this would be their family. But his thoughts are punctured by Angie, who has begun to whimper once more.
"I think she's hungry. Her bottle's in the kitchen, I'll just go get it." "No, it's fine, I got it" Lucas says, as he carefully places the baby in Brooke's arms. He strides into the kitchen and grabs the bottle of the countertop. He turns to go back to the living room, but something else on the countertop catches his eye. It's a book, hardbound, with a cover that Lucas would recognize anywhere. 'An Unkindness of Ravens – by Lucas Scott'. He chuckles, and picks the book up.
Lucas hands the bottle to Brooke, who begins to feed Angie.
"Since when does Brooke Davis read in the kitchen? Or read at all for that matter?" Lucas grins playfully as he holds up the book.
Brooke laughs, a little embarrassed that Lucas found the book. "Well, normally I don't. But this guy? The author? He's not bad."
"Not bad?" Lucas raises his eyebrows playfully.
Brooke kinks one eyebrow, in a fashion that is so typically her. "Yeah, and I've heard he's pretty cute too."
Lucas laughs. He misses hanging out with Brooke, he misses having her there to make him laugh. That's another reason he's thankful for Angie. She's given him an opportunity to reconnect with one of the most important people in his life. Someone who ahs always been there for him. Every step of the way.
Angie's finished feeding, and is now fast asleep in Brooke's arms. Brooke presses a light kiss into her hair and then sets her down in the crib. Making sure she's tucked in tight, she returns to sit next to Lucas.
They can both hear the storm raging outside. "Well, Broody, I don't think you're going home tonight."
Lucas is pleasantly surprised at the use of his old nickname. Deciding he might as well have a little fun tonight, he squints and leans in closer, "Well, well Ms. Davis. Are you trying to seduce me?"
Brooke, always up for a challenge, leans in even further, close enough that she can feel his breath on her skin. "In your dreams, Scott."
Lucas is increasingly aware of how close they are. He also realizes how long its been since they've been so close, and how much he's missed it. Hastily, he opens the book, hoping to come across some sort of distraction. The book opens to a page that had been marked by a deep red bookmark. Curious, Lucas shifts the bookmark and quickly scans the page, while Brooke suddenly gets nervous. She nudges him softly, "That's a little narcissistic Luke. Coming here to read your own book."
She holds her breath as he reads his own words on the page. For a fleeting second she hopes he won't get it. He won't realize what was on the page. He won't understand what it was on that one page that made her unable to move forward. That hurt her so much that she lost the will to continue. But she knows it's not possible. Lucas knew that book better than anyone else, it was his baby, his triumph.
Lucas didn't have to spend much time to realize which part of the story the book had been opened to. His eyes found the lines in less than half a second. "The realization that we had always been meant for each other and every instinct to the contrary had simply been a denial of the following truth. I was now, and would always be, in love with Peyton Sawyer." He re-read the lines over and over again, not because of what the words meant, but simply because he needed an excuse not to meet Brooke's eyes.
Finally, Brooke grabbed the novel out of Lucas' hands, replaced the bookmark, and snapped it shut. She set it aside, and looked hesitantly at the brooding blond sitting next to her? "Luke?", she ventured cautiously. He looked up at her, and attempted a smile. "That's an interesting part for you to stop at."
And in that moment, Brooke wants to tell him. She wants to tell him that she didn't just stop there. That was the paragraph she read, over and over, because she was a twisted masochist at heart. Because every time she opened the page she wished that the words would have changed. That the first boy she ever loved hadn't just written her off as a distraction.
Instead, she settled for "Yeah, I guess it is." Lucas attempts to lighten the mood and change the topic. "Let's just forget about it. I don't know about you but, that writer's style seemed lacking to me. So how's work?"
And Brooke knows. That she may never get a chance again, to tell this boy how she felt. She's hated herself for all these years for never telling him in high school how much it hurt to be apart from him, and then to see him with her best friend. So she takes a deep breath and says "No."
"No?" Lucas looks at her quizzically.
"No. We can't just forget about it." She turns to Lucas. "I was there Luke, I knew how the story turned out. I knew how it ended, and I knew I wasn't a part of your happy ending. But a denial Luke? That's all I meant to you? A fiercely independent, brilliant, beautiful, and brave denial of the fact that you loved Peyton?"
The pain in her voice stuns Lucas, and in that moment he hates himself for hurting her so badly. "Brooke, please – "
"I loved you Luke. So much. And that means a lot coming from me. I grew up in a home where I couldn't even be sure if my own parents loved me. I was so afraid to let other people in. But I didn't just let you in Luke. I gave you my heart. And all you wanted was Peyton's". Brooke didn't even realize that tears had collected in her eyes, but blinked furiously, not wanting them to fall in front of Lucas.
"Brooke, I know how it sounds. And I am so, so, sorry, because I never meant to hurt you. I wish I could tell you that Lindsey made me change the lines, or something like that, but I did write them. But I wasn't thinking Brooke. I was honestly just trying to sound as good as possible, I wanted to sound like a writer. I needed to say something dramatic, this was the climax, boy-meets-girl, the fairytale ending. I didn't think."
He holds Brooke's hands in his own. He expects her to pull away, but she doesn't. The storm is still thundering outside, and he's remembering another stormy night that seems like it happened lifetimes ago. "I loved every second I spent with you Brooke Davis. And I would give anything to be back in senior year, sitting with you on that beach, or at home, or at the rivercourt. You made me a better person Brooke. You made me laugh, and you completed me. And I loved you for it."
He looks out at the rain smashing onto the windows. "You know Cheery," he says, a small smile playing at his lips, "thunderstorms always remind me of you. Sometimes I wish we could be back out there. Me and you, rain streaming down our faces. Because then I could have told you. I'd have stayed out all night and told you why I loved you."
"Even if you got pneumonia?"
Lucas laughs. "Even if I got pneumonia. And I think we can call this embarrassing speech number three."
That finally gets Brooke to smile. And suddenly she's giggling like she's in high school all over again. She leans forward and envelops Lucas in a hug. "I'm so glad you're here Broody."
And in that moment, Lucas never wants to be anywhere else.