Hey guys its Tasha again! With a new fic officially my third one! It was originally a request by Monica (cabot007) Its an AU story about them all being in boarding school, the couples are Naley, Bake, and Peyton/Chris. Now I just need to say a very special thank you to Miranda! My wonderful beta! And Monica for believing that I could take on this fic!
Disclaimer: I unfortunately don't own One Tree Hill, any of its characters or any storylines, they all belong to the great Mark Schwahn and WB/CW, I also don't own the initial story idea that belongs to Monica but I do own the plot!
Chapter One
Leaving the Strangers Behind
"Brooke, hurry up! We're gonna miss the flight!"
"Shut up Nathan!"
"Why, in God's name, did I have to get Brooke Scott as a sister?!" Nathan muttered to himself as he dragged his own suitcase out into the hallway.
"Where's your sister?" Dan exclaimed, seeing only one of his two children.
"She'll be here soon dad."
Dan walked past his son and reached the bottom of the enormous staircase before bellowing to his daughter. "Brooke Scott!!"
"I'm just coming!" Brooke hollered back.
Dan sighed loudly and turned his attention back to his son. "Now as soon as you get there I want you on those weights. I hate to say it, but these past weeks you've gotten soft son and the last thing we need is Whitey taking your ass off the team!"
Nathan groaned inwardly. Dan had been pressuring him all summer about basketball. Not a day had gone by when Nathan wasn't woken at the crack of dawn and been forced to spend the next four to five hours with his dad pumping him with weights, sprints, cross country runs, anything that Dan could think of.
"Now remember son, this is your team. We want all the scouts to know that so you need to get your ass in gear!"
"Whatever," Nathan muttered under his breath.
"What was th-"
"All ready!" Brooke exclaimed, beaming at her father and brother as she carried along her suitcases.
"About time!" Dan muttered, momentarily taken away from replying back to his son's comment.
"You know full well that Nathan needs to get to school early. He has his whole career to consider, he can't just shake some pom poms and be a whore like you seem to have mastered making a living out of!"
The words felt like a slap to the face and Brooke flinched back in horror as tears started to burn at the back of her eyes.
"Leave her alone Dad!" Nathan angrily said, coming to his younger sister's defence.
"Nathan! At least you have basketball! What's she going to do with her life? Become a druggie like her mother?"
"Stop it Dad!" Nathan warned before going over to his sister and picking up her bags. "Come on Brooke the cab's waiting outside."
Nathan came towards her putting as arm gently around her shoulders, but she pulled back from him.
"Where's mom?" Brooke whispered, tears threatening to spill.
"She's probably out on the lawn, it's her new bedroom these days," Dan answered, a smirk playing on his lips.
"I think she's in her room," Nathan said quietly, looking intently at his sister.
"I'll be back." She quickly ran up the long winding staircase, but not before she heard a loud sigh from her father.
Brooke honestly didn't know why it still hurt so much, being around her father all these years she had gotten used to being completely ignored and having her brother favoured over her. But every time Dan came up with a new way of assaulting her, it still managed to break her into pieces. The petty insults and the name calling, but worst of all was the being ignored, the way that he walked by her as if she wasn't even there.
Brooke rounded the corner into the left wing of the Scott mansion, reaching the door way to the guest bedroom she took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for what was about to face before slowly opening the door.
The room stank of alcohol and as Brooke ventured further into the room dirty clothes and make up lay about as well as dozens of empty pill bottles. Among the mess she finally caught sight of her mother sprawled across the sofa opposite the plasma TV that was mounted on the wall.
Brooke sighed. No matter how many times she had witnessed her mother like this, it still shocked and scared her. It also brought back her father's words. Was she really going to turn into this? Brooke quickly brushed the thought away.
As Brooke made her way over to her mother she saw that Nathan had already cleared some of the bottles away and realized he was probably the one who had placed her on the sofa.
She knew that her mother wouldn't have managed to get there by herself, whenever her mother went out Nathan would always wait up for her hoping, praying that she's wasn't in some drunken stupor which she usually was. Many a night Brooke silently watched her brother from the shadows as he carried their mother up to the guest room and stayed with Deb the whole night to make sure she was okay.
Brooke picked up the rest of the bottles and placed them near the bin. She walked over to the sofa where Deb laid, tears trickled down Brooke's face as she brushed away strands of blonde hair from her mother's face. She gently leaned over and placed a kiss on her mother's cheek.
"I love you so much mom," she whispered.
Deb shifted slightly in her sleep, unaware of her daughter's presence.
She got up and slowly covered her mother with a blanket, thinking of the many times when Deb had done the same for her.
As Brooke turned away from her mom she spotted a full bottle of pills lying on the floor, glancing at her mom quickly she pocketed the pills before she walked out of the room. She turned back to look at her mom briefly before closing the door behind her.
Nathan had already placed his own two suitcases and his sister's five piece luggage set into the cab before he went to stand outside on the porch, looking back at the place he called home.
Dan, although ignored by his son, continued his rant about the one thing that he always ranted about - basketball. Nathan finally turned his attention from his thoughts back to his father.
"Son you know I wouldn't have minded driving you to the airport."
Nathan held back his anger at how his dad only mentioned himself, not even sparing a thought for his sister.
"Its fine Dad," Nathan muttered. He couldn't stand his father ranting on at him now, so he definitely didn't want him doing it all the way to the airport.
The other reason was Brooke, Nathan knew that she could hold her own, but he also knew that Brooke had done more than enough suffering and the last thing he wanted was to give his father the satisfaction of watching her crumble to pieces.
Brooke quickly ran out the doorway and quickly approached her brother and father. "Sorry I just needed to pick up a couple of things," Brooke muttered before she turned away.
Nathan hadn't failed to notice her eyes though which were faintly red and puffy. "Let's go Brooke," Nathan spoke quietly to his sister who seemed to have not heard anything and just stood there looking at the house.
Nathan turned to his father. "Well see you Dad," he muttered before he started to make his way to the cab.
"Hey! Not even a hug for the old man?" Dan exclaimed, pulling Nathan back and bringing him into a manly hug. "Now remember everything I told you. It's your team, always has been and always will be. Don't let anyone take that away from you son!"
"Right Dad," Nathan muttered before he made his way back to the cab, opening the door to let Brooke in.
Brooke walked over to her Dad with a big smile that lit up her face. "Bye Dad. I'll miss you,"
"Get in the cab Brooke, the last thing we need is the school to call and say you've already screwed up," Dan muttered before he brushed past her and strode back into the house.
Brooke stood there, momentarily shocked, staring at the retreating figure of her father. The words had stung, but she willed herself not to cry. Quickly gathering herself she fixed a smile back on her face before she turned towards her brother and walked to the cab.
Nathan sighed, feeling his sister's pain and anger and what she had become because of Dan. He briefly glanced at the top right window where he knew his mother still lay asleep, dead to the world before he walked around the cab and got in himself.
"LAX airport," Nathan instructed the driver.
He glanced at the rear view mirror, watching his sister as she gazed at the house. He followed her gaze thinking back to the year before when they had first left home for boarding school. He remembered feeling sad, angry and afraid. But as he looked back at the Scott mansion slowly vanishing out of sight he could only feel relief that he was finally getting away from it all.
Hey hope you liked reading please let me know what you think; whether you liked it, hated it or think it could improve. All constructive criticisms are welcome!