'We're here at Tree Hill High, which is just two days away from reopening its doors to students after the shooting that took place just one week ago behind these blue doors.'
Lucas blinked his eyes and tried focusing them on the tv that had been left on all night. Yet another news broadcast about the place were his uncle died. Reaching for the remote on the tv stand, he turned the tv off angrily. There was no need to keep talking about it over and over and over again. People got it. People died. Couldn't they just let it the fuck go?
Rolling onto his back, he sighed and rubbed his eyes angrily. "Morning babe." Her words are soft and a little cautious. Her voice is raspy in the way that he loves and after a second or two of more darkness, he opened his eyes to look at her. She stood in the doorway of his room, the newspaper under one arm and two cups of steaming coffee in her hands. She wore a pair of pajama pants and one of his T-shirts. Had this been before the shooting she probably would have worn his Keith Scott Body Shop sweatshirt, but she refrained from doing so in light of what happened.
She'd spent every minute with him since it happened. She only left him once and that was to check on Peyton at the hospital. She'd made sure that both he and Karen ate and that the house remained clean. She'd talked to Haley about what to do with the cafe until Karen felt up to it again and she'd called Deb to come back home. She stayed up with him until he fell asleep and somehow was always up before him and had breakfast waiting.
She didn't look sleep deprived, just sad and he feels bad for taking away her dimpled smile. He patted the space next to him on his bed, the spot that still smelled like her. She walked over and crawled into the bed, handing him his cup of coffee and tossing the newspaper towards the end of the bed. She looked at him a little quizzically as he just stared at her.
His blonde hair was messy and getting a little on the long side. His T-shirt was wrinkled and was starting to smell so she made a mental note to do laundry today. His eyes looked tired despite the amount of sleep he was getting and his piercing blues were almost hard to look at because of the extreme pain she could see in them. He looked like he was about to say something, but was having trouble forming a sentence.
They hadn't really talked at all since it happened. He kept to himself about how he felt about everything. She'd leave him alone when he cried because the first time she walked in on him crying, he yelled at her to leave. He'd never really yelled at her before, not since the night she told him she lied about the pregnancy. He apologized after he'd yelled and she had just nodded and told him that it was okay, that she understood that he needed to be left alone.
"What is it?" Silently he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. He'd been doing that a lot, holding her tight just to make sure she was there. That he hadn't lost her too.
"You're beautiful you know that?" She looked sort of shocked at first, but then slowly a small dimpled smile appeared on her face. She tucked a few strands of brown hair behind her ears, trying to hide how incredibly happy she was to hear him talk to her again. The most they'd talked about for the past week was the food she got for them to eat.
She wrapped her arms around her neck, resting her head against his shoulder. "Ya know," she started after a bit, lifting her head to look at him, "it's a blessing that we're both still here." He nodded, almost sadly and she felt the need to comfort him more. "We are still here Lucas," she repeated, her tone a little forceful yet gentle, like the way one speaks with a child.
She lifted her hand and placed her palm on his chest, over his heart. He leaned into her hand, relishing in the feel of her touch. Using her free hand, she brushed back a few strands of his hair before catching his eye once more. "You're heart's still beating." He'd been acting like a zombie since it happened, not that she blamed him. He deserved to have time to mourn, but bottling up wasn't good for him. It hurt to see the light in his blue eyes gone.
"That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt." He looked down at her creamy white skin against his faded blue shirt.
Her smile was long gone now. She tilted his head up to look at her. "And that's how you know you're still alive. It's always going to hurt Luke. There wont be a day that goes by where it wont. But you gotta keep going. He'd want it that way."
He nodded, blinking furiously to try and keep back the tears. He couldn't cry in front go her. Keith never would've cried in front of his mom. "Lucas." He looked back up at the sound of his name. "It's okay to cry in front of me."
"No it's not," he mumbled quietly, his voice shaky. "Keith never cried in front of my mom." He reminded her of a child, aspiring to become someone he thought so highly of.
Grabbing his hand off her waist, she placed it over her own heart. "I'm here Lucas. Please, just let me in. I want you to cry and scream and yell if you need to. You won't be any less like Keith." He kept his gaze on his hand, her own smaller hand keeping it there. "Keith loved you so God damn much. He wouldn't want you to live like this."
He stayed quiet and she watched as tears slowly made their way down his tan cheeks. Tears have formed in her eyes too and she began to second guess herself. Maybe she shouldn't have pushed him, but then they wouldn't have made any progress and Lucas would still be all... poddish. "He's gone Brooke," he chocked out, tears rushing down his cheeks faster than before.
She took his face in her hands, kissing each trail of tears. He sobbed as she she repeated that everything would be okay. Suddenly his lips found her's, tears still streaming down his cheeks. His lips pressed against her's forcefully, pouring everything he had into her. Somehow that in turn caused her own tears to fall and she kissed back with just as much force. "I love you," she mumbled against his lips as his hands lifted up the oversized shirt she was wearing.
Pretty soon she was on her back, Lucas over her. He was still crying, letting out all of his emotions that had long since piled up. "I'm gonna love you," he replied in between kisses, Brooke's legs pushing down his pajama pants, "until the end of time."
And with that her dimpled smile returned.
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She stood outside his hospital room, trying to muster up enough courage to go in. She hadn't seen him since he was at the cafe and since she'd gotten to the hospital she'd stuck by Haley's bedside with Nathan. She felt like it was wrong to go to Lucas's room when she wasn't his girlfriend anymore. Peyton belonged in the chair next to his bed now. Not her.
Peyton had gone home to shower, meaning that she had some time. So taking a deep breath she walked into the white room, trying not to gag at the hospital smell. He was hooked up to two monitors, tubes going in and out of him. She sighed as she stood in the doorway, watching him with sad eyes. "Luke," she muttered dejectedly.
His room looked so damn depressing. The walls were covered with plain wallpaper, random paintings hanging on the walls. Blue curtains surrounded his bed, a lighter blue blanket draped over his body. Had they been dating she would've done something to make the place at least appear cheerful, but she didn't have the right to do that anymore. That was Peyton's job. His girlfriend's.
She ran her hand through his long blonde hair and grimaced slightly. "What've you done to yourself?" she wondered aloud. She lowered herself onto the wood framed chair next to his bed and Peyton's familiar scent gathered under her nose. Slowly, she grabbed Lucas's motionless hand into her own and placed it over her heart.
"I'm still here Lucas," she said slowly, pressing his hand further against her. "And you promised you'd love me until the end of time. I know that Peyton's in the picture now and that's okay. It's a different type of love between you and me, I get that. But it's not over yet." She placed her cold hand against his chest. "Your heart's still beating and so is mine. That means time isn't over. So you need to open your eyes and come back to me. Come back to her."
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They're in a bar in New York, sitting on swirly stools as they drink into the night. Lucas swirled the beer in his mug as Brooke patted his back. "Okay, enough wallowing. It isn't healthy for you to brood this much." He glanced over at her before looking back at his beer and taking a gulp. "Let me see it again." Reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out the small velvet box and popped it open. A smile once again returned to her lips. "You've got wonderful taste Lucas. Peyton was crazy to say no."
"Congratulations!" Both turned to look over at the bartender who is staring intently at them. "Champagne on the house for the engaged couple!" His voice boomed throughout the small bar and suddenly everyone's eyes were on them. Then cheers break out and random men are patting Lucas on the back in a congratulatory manner.
Brooke and Lucas look at each other questioningly before Brooke shrugged and slipped the ring on her finger.
After the bottle is emptied they left and made their way to other bars along the same street, earning free drinks along the way before getting into a white carriage for a free ride. The late fall air was cold and Brooke laid a blanket over them and Lucas wrapped an arm around her shoulder, bringing her closer to him. She sighed contently, looking out at Central Park. This was prefect. Sitting next to Lucas, late at night on a carriage where they could just be.
"So what do you two have planned for your lives?" Their driver asked after they traveled a few minutes through the park quietly.
Brooke and Lucas exchanged looks and after a moment of thought Brooke answered the driver. "Well, we're definitely gonna be a power couple. He'll be a famous novelist, I'll have my own fashion line."
Lucas looked at her and smiled, deciding to add to their fantasy future. "But we'll still have time for a big family."
Brooke nodded. "Two boys and a girl."
He smiled a little wider. Who knew Brooke Davis would want sons. "I'll coach little league," he threw in. He was a Scott and she was a Davis. They would probably have very active children.
"And I'll bake treats for the team. Well, buy them anyway," Brooke said, laughing a little at her own weakness. It's probably good that she won't bake considering they'd want their teams alive to play.
"We can spend summers at our beach house." That would be down the beach from where Dan's used to be in Tree Hill. Their little slice of paradise where they grew up and where they could watch their family grow.
"And winters in the South of France."
They're staring at one another now, blocking out the driver and envisioning the future they seemed to have all planned out. "It won't matter where we are as long as we're together."
"That's the key. Success is wonderful. But finding someone to love. Having them love you back," the driver started, smiling at the couple that looked so in love before turning back around to guide his horses on the right path. "Love is what it's all about."
They both nod in agreement and settle against the plush red seat, Brooke's gaze traveling back out to the bare trees. Lucas turned to look at the brunette next to him and found himself smiling stupidly. After talking about their 'future' it as like he saw her in a whole new light. Now he saw her as the mother of their three children and as his wife.
Feeling his eyes on her she took her eyes off the trees and looked at him with a content dimpled smile on her face. The moonlight hit her skin just right and he couldn't fight the urge to kiss her. So he pressed his lips against hers softly warily. Her eyes closed automatically and even though she knew it was wrong and that this was bad she kissed back. He pulled away slowly and looked at her, her eyes still closed and a smile still on her lips. She opened her eyes, already repeating the lie she would use if Peyton found out. 'It's the alcohol, it's the alcohol.'
She pressed her lips against his, her hand snaking behind his neck ad pressing him closer to her as se heard the driver chuckle. "Nothing beats young love."
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She walked down the wooden staircase, her bare feet barely making a sound on the maple steps. She clutched the purple sheet around her tighter as she walked into the kitchen, going over to the fridge and getting out some milk.
He watched her from the doorway, observing her as she made herself hot chocolate. Her brown locks were sticking every which way, a few strands still curly from the night before. Her porcelain skin looked soft and creamy in the morning light and he wanted to reach out and touch her.
He walked over to her slowly, reaching out to touch the purple fabric around her. He grabbed a hold of it, spinning her around to face him. She looked up at him with green eyes that closed as soon as he placed his hands on her hips that had been hidden underneath the mass of purple fabric.
"Why are you still here?" He didn't answer her, instead just pressed his lips against hers. He wanted to stay like this for as long as possible. He should've felt guilty, but instead he only felt the need to touch her again.
She didn't kiss back, not like he wanted her to. She didn't pull away though, just stood there, pressing her lips against his. When she pulled away she lifted his hands off her hips. The sheet hung around her loosely now, going dangerously low on her chest. "I want you to go."
He looked into her green eyes once more and knew she was lying. So he stood there, watching her. He looked at her neck, the dark spot just below her ear, the spot that only he knew about. "Don't pretend we didn't happen."
His hands were back on her hips, their bodies up against each others and her back against the granite counter. His lips hovered above hers and she wanted to kiss him this time. His hands trailed up her sides, brushing against the sides of her breasts and she closed her eyes and bit her lip.
"We shouldn't do this," she said, shaking as his hands began to peel back the fabric. "We shouldn't have done this."
He kissed her lips, his hands still moving the fabric away from her body. "But we did and we can," he murmured in between kisses. She brought her hands up to his neck, her fingers rubbing the soft skin just below his hair line. She was getting swept up in the moment, losing herself in him.
The sheet was on the ground then and her hands moved to his boxers that laid low on his hips, revealing all of his perfectly sculpted abs. She tugged at them almost impatiently and his hands moved to the small of her back, pressing her even further into him.
Suddenly she stopped, tearing her lips away from his. "This is it." He looked at her confused, his blue eyes searching hers for an answer. "You're with her."
"I want to be with you," he replied, his hands gripping her hips.
She let out an almost bitter chuckle. "You had your chance."
And with that her lips were back on his so that he couldn't reply.
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When they finished, they laid on the floor, tangled up in the purple sheet. Her skin was cold against the floor of the kitchen, goose bumps forming on her sweaty body. He leaned against the white wooden cabinets, playing with a lock of her brown hair and watching as her chest heaved with each breath she took. Her eyes were closed, her mouth open slightly and a small smile on her soft lips. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself."
She opened her eyes only to roll them at him. She sat up, the sheet pooling at her waist. He placed his hand on the small of her back, leaning her towards him. He tried to kiss her but she dodged him, laughing lightly. "I said that was it."
He brought her closer once more, this time a little more forcefully. She cocked her eyebrow, surprised by the force, a smile still on her lips. "You know that wasn't it." She looked at him quizzically, searching his face that gave away no answers. "This," he said lightly, motioning between the two of them, "is never over."
She leaned away from him them, unsure of how to handle that. It had to be a lie because they'd been over for so long now that there was no way a future was left for them. "But you're with her. Hell, you were going to propose to her yesterday."
He let go of her then because she's backed him into a corner and he wasn't quite sure how to tell her his reason for proposing. He couldn't tell her it was because he saw Peyton slipping away and that he didn't want to be alone. That was just like saying he only wanted to be with her because at least she was somebody. He watched as she stood back up, leaving the sheet on the ground around him, her naked body walking away from him. "Marry me."
She stopped and turned to face him. "Marry you? You're with Peyton! You want to marry her!"
"I love you! And I know it doesn't seem like it but I do! Peyton and I have slowly drifted apart and we just aren't compatible. I was going to propose to her because she was better than being alone." Brooke stood there, her face emotionless.
"So I'm your backup!?" she shouted back and he stood up, taking a few steps towards her.
"NO! You're my first choice! Because you are so busy now with your business and your mom and everything! You haven't dated anyone since Chase and I knew there was no way you'd give me another chance," he finished desperately. She folded her arms underneath her chest and she stared at him like she's trying to figure out if she should believe him or not. The sun caught the diamond ring that's still on her finger and he smiled that smile she's only seen him give her. "That ring looks damn good on your finger too."
She turned away from him, trying to hide the amused smile on her lips. He'd already won her back over and for a second she thought he'd gotten her almost too easily. But they've been going at this friend thing for the past couple years and he was right, the ring did look damn good on her finger.
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He looked down at Brooke, her face glistening with sweat, her plump cheeks a little bit red. She had hated the fact that she had gotten fatter in her face, but at this moment he didn't really think she cared. She was staring at their son with wondering eyes and a big dimpled smile.
"God," Brooke sighed breathlessly. "We created this." It still amazed her that just 3 hours, 22 minutes and 4 seconds ago this little thing came out of her. This was what she had waited 9 months to see, to hold, to watch, to touch. This is what caused her morning sickness, her back pains, her weight gain. To think that he started out the size of something microscopic and turned in to a beautiful 8 pounds 9 ounces baby boy. She reached her hand up slowly and softly rubbed the little blonde hair the baby had. She glanced up at Lucas who was staring intently at the little bundle.
"He's perfect," he cooed before pressing a kiss on to Brooke's lips.
William Keith Scott was the most beautiful little boy he had ever seen. He had a bit of blonde fuzz on top of his head and the bluest blue eyes they'd ever seen. His facial features were still uncertain, but one thing that was were the two dimples on his cheeks. He was wrapped in the blue hospital blanket, snuggled up against Brooke's breast yawning. Lucas wanted him to stay awake because then he could look into his blue eyes longer, something he was sure Brooke wanted to do as well.
Up until he was born they were still unsure on his name. They had agreed on Keith for his middle name but couldn't agree on a first name. He wanted something simple and she wanted something unique but they both agreed that the name couldn't be something like Penelope or Eugene. Lucas had been reading her 'Between The Dusk of a Summer Night' and he had just finished it when she felt her first big contraction. She wasn't clear on the meaning of the poem but the last two lines made her fall in love with it:
'Is all for the joy of woman and man/And the longing that makes them one.'
So when the nurse had asked for a name, she'd turned to Lucas and asked who had written the poem he read. "William Ernest Henley why?"
She smiled and looked down at the baby who laid in her arms and nodded. "He definatly looks like a Will."
And he did. The name fit him perfectly. It was unique yet seemingly simple and wasn't anything like Penelope or Eugene. It was a name you don't forget and a name that rolled off your tongue.
It took them a long time to get to that point. After their on and off relationship in high school, they had found their way that night in New York City. They spent their first year of marriage alone, but the day after their first anniversary Brooke took a pregnancy test, the result positive. And now here they were in the hospital holding their son. "I told you we'd have a boy."
He looked at her funny and she continued, "That night in the carriage. I said we'd have two boys and a girl. We're one thirds of the way there."
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Brooke stood at the edge of the pumpkin patch, watching her family run through the green vines, stopping every so often to observe an orange pumpkin. She took in a deep breath of cool country air, the breeze blowing back her short chestnut locks and carrying the sound of the laughter that were coming from her family's mouths. She pushed her dark aviator sunglasses to the top her head and began to search around in her oversized purse for the camera she brought.
Lucas had Will on his back, their blonde hair and blue eyes matching perfectly. He was pretty skinny for a seven year old, but then again Lucas had been too. Logan was at Lucas's feet, his slightly longer blond hair going every which way as he tried to climb up his father. And then there was Madelyn, their baby girl, sitting on a large pumpkin contently with a small pumpkin in her lap. It amazed her that all of their kids had blonde hair.
Logan looked the most like her though. His dirty blonde hair came close to brown and his hazel eyes matched her own. Will and Madelyn both had bright blue eyes and blonde hair. While Will's hair faded into a sandy blonde like Lucas' as he got older, Madelyn's remained platinum blonde due to her youth.
He looked up and searched around for his wife and found her standing between the two red Radio Flyer wagons that the patch had provided them with in order to carry their pumpkins back to the check stand. She wore a simple pair of blue jeans that were frayed at the ends and an old shirt that she'd borrowed from Haley and never returned. The small silver digital camera was in her hands ready to snap a picture of them and he put on a small crooked smile just before she pressed the button.
When she removed the camera from her face he could see her dimpled smile, the thing that each of their children got from her. He used his only free hand to wave her towards them and she almost wanted to stay back. Standing their, watching him with the kids they'd talked about so long ago was perfect and she felt like watching them a little longer to try and preserve the moment. But after Lucas got their three to call her over, she grabbed the handles of the wagons and jogged closer to them.
"Have you guys found pumpkins yet or have you just tried to throw your dad into the vines?" she asked them with a cocked eyebrow, her voice amused.
"We found a few, but none were perfect," Will answered, jumping off of Lucas' back and landing on his knees in the dirt.
"Madelyn found one though," Logan replied, walking over to his two year old sister who now had a handful of dirt in her hand, ready to throw it at her nearest target.
"Madelyn Emma Scott put that down now," Brooke warned. Madelyn did as she was told, a pout finding it's way on to her face. Brooke glanced over at Lucas who already had a sympathetic smile on his face. He never could be firm with Madelyn and it broke his heart every time he saw her sad. He bent down to pick her up and kissed her cheeks repeatedly until she got a smile on her chubby cheeks. Brooke shook her head with a small smile, she was such a daddy's girl and had Lucas wrapped around her little finger.
"You guys better hurry up and pick your pumpkins before the good ones get taken," Lucas said, lifting Madelyn on to his shoulders after Brooke had taken her pumpkin and put it in one of the wagons. They nodded and ran further down the rows of pumpkins, taking one of the wagons with them.
Lucas's hand slipped into Brooke's as they walked down the dirt road to keep up with their two elder children. It stayed quiet between them, Madelyn interrupting the silence every so often with a random observation about the pumpkins ( "There no blue ones..."). Logan found a pumpkin first but his four year old arms prevented him from getting a good grasp on the pumpkin. So before it could fall to the ground, Brooke removed her hand from Lucas's to go and take the pumpkin from him.
After another ten minutes Will got his own as well and they started the long walk back to the front of the field. The boys walked on the ends, pulling the wagons now filled with pumpkins by themselves, although Logan needed a little push every once in a while. Madelyn still remained on Lucas's shoulders and Brooke's hand found its way back into Lucas's as they stood between Will and Logan.
Lucas glanced over at Brooke who had a large dimpled smile on her face. "What're you smiling about?"
She shrugged and turned to look at him. "This was one of those days." He looked at her confused. "It's the random days that you end up looking back on and saying 'That was perfect'." This put a smile on Lucas's own face and he squeezed her hand gently.
Brooke tugged on Lucas hand and he stopped and turned to face her. She went on to her tip toes and kissed him softly. "I love you," she whispered, causing his smile to get bigger.
"Until the end of time."
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY PIMP!!!!