Disclaimer: One Tree Hill is not mine. *sigh*
Warning: Mention of the school shooting.
Ships: One-sided BL. Mentions of NH and LP.
A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed my first story! It means a lot! Okay, here's a few things to know: Assuming there is an LP wedding, and it goes perfectly, this is set after whenever that would be. Brooke is not with anyone. (That means no Chase. No Owen.) Brooke is at Naley's house and has been given the liberty of tucking Jamie in. (The quote is from 6x02.) Enjoy!
Jamie: "Were you ever in love with Aunt Brooke?"
Lucas: "Long story."
A heavy streak of moonlight is spread over Jamie's bed. You help him climb under the illuminated covers and can't help but smile when he stifles a sleepy yawn.
"Aunt Brooke?"Jamie asks with a hint of panic.
"What is it buddy?" You ask him concerned.
"Can you check on Chester? I forgot to say goodnight to him."
"I can do just that." You reply.
You peer into Chester's cage.
"He's here, all fuzz and floppy ears. Good night Chester." You tell the rabbit.
Jamie's face visibly relaxes. He gives a soft sigh and snuggles into his pillow.
"Okay Jamie, I love you goodn–"
"Aunt Brooke," Jamie interrupts you gently. "Can you tell me the story again?"
Your heart drops to the bottom of your stomach.
"Oh, Jamie, I don't know." You sigh painfully.
"Please?"
"Aren't you a little too old to like fairytales?" You attempt to trick him.
"It's my favorite."
"Honey, I don't –"
Jamie pouts.
"I really don't –"
Jamie's pout grows larger.
"Okay." You finally give in.
"Awesome." Jamie puffs out.
"Yeah. Awesome." You mumble under your breath.
The moonlight has slowly retreated behind dark growing clouds. A light rain begins to patter against the roof.
You take a deep gulp of air and begin the story that you know best, the tale inside of your heart.
"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful blonde prince." You ruffle Jamie's hair and he grabs your hand.
"This boy had the kindest heart, the deepest soul, and the best basketball skills in the entire kingdom. Except for maybe his brother."
Jamie lightly chuckles.
"His brother was the crowned air to the throne, and in love with the prince's closest advisor. The advisor was a lovely girl who loved the brother right back."
"The brothers did not get along. Although our favorite prince wanted a chance to rule his country and beat his brother out of the throne, he had bigger issues on his mind."
"He was—he was in love with a beautiful blonde girl." Your voice cracks.
"There was a problem though, Blondie would not be his. This girl was very stubborn and did not want this boy because she feared he would break her heart."
"One night when Blondie got sick, the prince got a message at the castle from her best friend."
"This best friend was a cruel troubled little brown-haired girl. She could hide her feelings behind a smile or an insult. No one could ever see. No one will ever see."
"All night, the girl and the prince took care of Blondie. They became good friends. In fact, they still are today."
You feel a tear begin to form in your eye, but you blink it back quickly.
"The girl and the prince began dating, and she was falling in love."
You can't hold back the flow now, light as it may be, and you turn your head from Jamie as you continue. Jamie squeezes your hand lightly.
"Although the prince was changing the girl to become good, he was still in love with Blondie and could never fully accept the brown-haired girl."
"Eventually, the prince and Blondie got together without the girl's knowledge. When she found out about their love, she banished them from her life, but the prince and Blondie found that they cared for her more than she could accept."
"By this time, the prince and his brother had fought, and fought, and fought, until they decided to form an alliance.—"
"—Aunt Brooke, what's an alliance?" Jamie asks you quietly.
"It's a friendship formed that provides protection, in most cases."
"Okay." Jamie whispers.
The rain begins to intensify. Water is whizzing down the window in a quick flash.
"Okay, so the prince is now friends with his brother, and begins to date Blondie. Soon though, Blondie and the prince find that they cannot stand to betray the brown-haired girl any longer, and they break up."
"Over a long period of change in the kingdom, the girl and Blondie become best friends again, the prince's brother weds the prince's closest advisor, and the prince finds he is missing something."
"The entire realm becomes shocked when the prince begins chasing the girl again to find what he was missing. The girl begins to love him even more, but cannot be with him because she is with another nasty prince from a faraway land."
"When the girl leaves the nasty prince, the good prince tells her his feelings, but she finds that she must move away."
"Brooke?" Jamie hesitantly disrupts your train of thought.
"Yeah buddy?"
Your tears have stopped, but you feel that they can begin at any moment.
"You won't ever leave me will you?"
"I will never leave you Jamie. Where did you get that idea?" You press gently.
"People always leave." Jamie replies matter-of-factly.
The rain is now pounding above your heads. The room is almost pitch black.
"Not me." You whisper.
"I won't leave you, little man. I promise. Don't you believe that phrase."
You kiss him on the head and begin to get up.
"Aunt Brooke!" Jamie tugs you back down.
"What about the rest of story?" Jamie sniffles slightly.
"It's really late, Jim-Jam. Besides, you know it by heart."
"But you already started, and now you're leaving."
You exhale slowly.
"Alright, where was I?" You ask.
"The part where the girl has to move away." Jamie informs.
"Okay."
"The girl finds that she must move away. She gets ready to leave, and the prince is her last visitor before the carriage takes her off."
"He kisses her, but she still leaves him. She has no choice. It was her evil parent's choice for her to move."
"One night, about three months later, the prince gets word that the girl has come back. After much heart-break and arguments, the girl gives the prince a box of letters. Every day she was away from the boy, she wrote him a letter. That's how she spent her time."
You guard your eyes against tears and you know they won't come again tonight.
"The prince and the girl finally got together and fell even more in love than they were before. They were finally happy together."
"Then one day everything changed." Your voice darkens, whether from guilt, regret, or sadness, you can't tell.
"A boy came to the kingdom with a weapon."
"This boy was not evil. This boy was simply hurt." Your body trembles with memories for a second, and then calms down again.
"The girl and Blondie, long best friends by now, had been taking a walk in the castle, when the hurt boy released his weapon toward them. He hit Blondie in the leg, but the brown haired girl ran, thinking Blondie was— thinking she was behind her." Your voice hits a snag in emotion, and frees itself.
"The girl, once safe outside the castle, runs into her blonde prince and realizes Blondie is still inside. The prince goes after Blondie while the girl sits outside and cries."
"While hiding with the prince, Blondie kisses him. The prince says nothing, but he saves her."
"Blondie fully recovers, but never tells the girl of the kiss. The prince says nothing either."
"When the girl finally finds out about the kiss much later, she can learn to accept it. Something else happens though. Blondie tells her that she loves the prince."
"At this news, the girl goes to the prince. After much heartache, they break up. All the prince says is 'I'm sorry'."
"Eventually Blondie and the prince get back together. 'It's always been you' the prince tells her. They fall in love even more."
"The girl finds that she forgives them, even though they put her through so much pain. She becomes their friend again."
You're not going to cry. Nothing escapes your eyes. No tears threaten to fall. Your mind is set. You're not going to cry.
"After much more conflict, the prince and the Blondie wed. All stand in attendance at the royal ceremony. The wedding goes by perfectly, smoothly."
"The only smudge on their perfect picture is the brown haired girl. She was their maid of honor. This smudge was so small, that no one even noticed it was there. No one will ever notice it was there." Your face is hard, and your eyes show no emotion.
"The blonde prince would come to rule the kingdom with his brother. The brother and advisor would live together with the purest love ever seen. They would have a beautiful blonde son." You smile at Jamie.
"A very beautiful blonde son."
"The prince, now a king, would always be with his Blondie queen. They would be happy. They would be perfect. They would live happily ever after."
You grin convincingly at Jamie, but for the first time after his favorite story, he has a frown on his small face. Maybe it was a little too melancholy this time?
"Aunt Brooke?" Jamie scrunches up his button nose in discontent.
"Hmm?" You mumble.
"What ever happened to the brown-haired girl?"
The heavy rain pounds all around you. It hits the roof. It hits the window. It hits so hard that although you are under a house's protection, you can almost feel it hit you.
"She lived her life alone."
You can hear thunder building up above.
"That's not a happy ending."
You try to give Jamie a convincing smile.
"Oh, no honey! It is happy! It is. They—they get married and live happily ever after!"
You can't even convince yourself.
"But... they leave the brown-haired girl all alone."
Lightning strikes outside in a sudden crash. Then, it is eerily calm.
"That's a sad story, Aunt Brooke."
"I know. Goodnight, Jamie."
You kiss Jamie on the cheek, and stay outside his door until you hear him lightly snoring. That kid is too smart for his own good. Without him, Haley, and Nathan, you'd be on your own. You love them, but Peyton and Lucas left you all alone. They really did.
As you descend the steps to meet Haley and Nathan, you think of Jamie's truthful words.
"That's a sad story, Aunt Brooke."
You know.