Family Ties
"Peyton, wake up!"
"No . . ." Peyton Sawyer mumbled in her sleep, smiling. Her boyfriend Lucas Scott and she were still completely covered in their cookie-dough caked clothes from their cookie-dough fight the night before. She snuggled up closer to Lucas, pretending to be asleep. They'd fallen asleep on the kitchen floor.
"Peyton, there's someone at the door," Lucas said. Peyton sighed as she heard the sound of knocking.
"They'll go away. Let's just sleep," Peyton said. The knocking proceeded and Peyton groaned. "Fine, fine, I'll get it." She kissed Lucas deeply on the lips before standing up. The knocking became louder, "I'm comin'!"
She rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she walked from the kitchen and down the hall to the front door. She opened the door and crossed her arms.
On the front porch stood to very tall and muscular men wearing fully, black army suits complete with patches and hats. She frowned, "Can I help you?"
"Are you," one the men looked at the sheet of paper in his hands, "Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer?"
Peyton nodded, "Yeah. Look, are you guys selling something? 'Cause if you are I'm not interested."
The man on the left shook his head, "No, we're not selling anything. My name is Corporal Roger McKeon." He gestured to the other man, "This is Corporal Maddocks Williams."
Peyton shook their hands, "Nice to meet you."
"Peyt, who's at the door?" Lucas came up behind her and put his arms around her waist.
Peyton introduced all of them and Lucas shook hands with the Corporals, "Unfortunately, we have some bad news."
"What?" Peyton raised her eyebrows.
"Is it correct that your brother Private Derek Sommers is currently serving in Iraq?" Corporal McKeon asked.
"Yeah," Peyton said, "What's going on?"
"We have some . . . unsettling information that you need to know," Lucas tightened his embrace around Peyton in support, "Private Sommers was killed in an air raid two days ago. I'm so very sorry."
Peyton felt her knees go week and was extremely thankful Lucas caught her. She put her hand on his arm, "What?" Her voice cracked.
"He was rescuing a fellow soldier just outside the city of Baghdad when an Iraqi bomber flew overhead and hit the building Private Sommers was in. He, the fellow soldier, and six other American soldiers were killed," Corporal Williams explained.
Peyton's mouth hung open with words she could not say.
"Was it quick?" Lucas asked, "Did they suffer?"
"From what our unit could find, no. Though there is no way to be sure," Corporal Williams replied. Lucas nodded.
"Miss Sawyer, are you all right?" Corporal McKeon asked.
Peyton looked up at the Corporal, unsure of what to do. Her gaze shifted back up to Lucas, who had nothing but concern on his face, "Peyton?"
"W-Why did you come here?" Peyton said.
"Excuse me?" Corporal Williams asked politely.
"Why are you here–in Tree Hill?" Peyton said.
"Private Sommers is your brother, correct?" Corporal McKeon said.
"Yeah," Peyton said, "But I'm only his half-sister. Don't you have to go to the immediate family first? The parents . . . or wife?"
"Usually, yes," Corporal McKeon nodded, "However Private Sommers had no immediate family except for you and—"
"But he never said that. He never told me that he didn't have anybody."
"Private Sommers's grandmother, his last living relative besides you, died just six months before he went to Iraq." Corporal Williams told her.
The truth finally caught up to Peyton. Tears rapidly fell down her face and she buried her face in Lucas's chest.
"When you're ready, come to this address and ask for one of us. We'll fill you in with the rest of the details," Corporal McKeon dug in his jacket pocket and handed a card to Lucas.
"Thank you," Lucas took the card.
They were about to turn away but Corporal Williams looked back, "Miss Sawyer?"
Peyton looked up, red-faced and teary.
"I knew Private Sommers, very well. We've been in the same unite ever since he joined, and, well, we pretty much tell each other everything." Corporal Williams chuckled, "He told me about you and the attack by the s.o.b. who stole his identity. I could tell, then, that even though he really didn't know you, he cared about you. And you changed him–for the better. He was lucky to have you as a sister."
"No," Peyton sniffled, shaking her head, "I was the lucky one."
Corporal Williams tipped his hat and Corporal McKeon and he left. Lucas shut the door and Peyton leaned against him as they went inside.
Lucas stopped just inside the door, facing is very distraught girlfriend, "Are you okay?"
Peyton held her breath and suddenly let out a gasp before bursting into sobs. Lucas wrapped his arms around her and held her close.