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"Peyt, is everything okay?" Lucas leaned against the bathroom door.
"I'm fine Luke. Can you go get Sawyer's bag and put them in the car?" Lucas let out a deep sigh and turned back towards his daughter's bedroom. It had been a year and a half since Lucas moved his family from Tree Hill.
"Hey baby girl" Lucas picked up his daughter from the floor and clutched her in his arms. "How about you carry….. this one!" Lucas showed her the pretty red pack back which had a few of her stuffed toys in it. Sawyer turned around to let her dad put the bag on her back. He showed Sawyer the way to the car and put the bags in the trunk.
"Luke. Can you give me a hand?" Peyton was trying to lift one of the many boxes that occupied their house. Lucas laughed as he picked Sawyer up on the run and went to help Peyton.
"Hi baby girl!" She pressed her nose against her daughters
"Mama" Her daughter grabbed her nose in excitement.
"Peyt, you ready to say goodbye?" She looked back at the house where they had shared the last year and half. The house they had brought their daughter up in from a baby to a toddler. It was a house of firsts, first fever, first hospital visit and Sawyer's first birthday but it wasn't their home. It was going to be hard for Peyton and Lucas and maybe even little Sawyer but they knew this was the right thing for them to do.
"Lets go home Luke." She nestled her head on Lucas's chest as he put his arm around her shoulder. A flash back from Peyton's past came rushing through her mind. She wasn't sure if she was ready to go back to the place that had once caused her so much pain yet so much joy. When Lucas kissed her on the forehead her mind vanished from the vision of her sitting in her car at the traffic lights. She missed her home, she missed her old life, she just missed being in high school. They put some of the bags in the car and the rest in the moving truck. The family drove back to the one place that they ever really could call home with the wind in their hair and the long road ahead.
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"Nathan! Can you please help me with Lydia?" Haley Paced along the wall of her daughters room. "Shh… it's alright sweetie. Nathan!" She yelled back. Jamie came running into the room.
"Mom, dads at the river court with Jude and Davis, is Lydia okay?" He put his arm out in attempt to sooth his baby sister.
"Oh sweetie, she is going to be fine, she's just a little tired and she has a cold. Would you mind getting me the cold and flu syrup?" Haley rubbed her sons head as he ran out of the room to get the things his mother asked for. Haley bounced her body up and down and eventually Lydia fell asleep in her arms.
"Hales?" Nathan quietly knocked on the door.
"Hey, how was the river court?"
"Yeah good. Jude and Davis are a great audience. Is Lydia okay?" He picked his sleeping daughter up from her mothers arms and put her in her crib
"Yeah she is just sick."
"God I love you Haley."
"I love you too Nathan, is everything alright?"
"Yeah, I mean just being out in the river court I don't know just felt like I was in high school again, so much has happened since then Haley, I….I don't know" Nathan sat next to Haley and rubbed her upper thigh.
"You know what I think…..I think deep down, you miss Lucas and going down to the river court helps you deal with that."
"Maybe you're right Hales. I might give Lucas a call" Nathan gave Haley a kiss on the top of her head and walked out to find his cell.
"Well I have to go to the café; Brookes got all that stuff going on at Baker Boys so she needed the day off"
Nathan sat anxiously as the phone dialled Luke's number and rang.
"Hey little brother, I'm driving with Peyton and Sawyer, is everything okay?"
"Oh sorry Luke. Everything is fine, just give me a call when you can okay? I love you man"
"I love you too Nate…."
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"No, I said the blue in the checked shirt not the striped!" Brooke threw the latest order sheet on the desk. "Those sandals go perfectly with the beach shorts and the striped singlet. Get the outfit dry cleaned and ready please."
"Brooke, baby….calm down alright everything will work out." Julian passed his wife a cup of coffee.
"Julian, everything is a mess! My orders haven't arrived and I still have to check them and get everything ready for the show. There's just so much work to do!"
"Baby relax, like I said everything will work out. Nathan just dropped off Jude and Davis there in the back.
"Where did they go?"
"Nate took them to the river court… he told you. Don't you remember?"
"You see Julian! I can't even keep track of where the twins are!" Julian laughed as his wife put her cup down and ran her fingers through her hair.
"Come on, let's go to the café and get something to eat. You need a break." Brooke and Julian put the twins in their stroller and pushed them across the street to 'Karen's Café'. She remembered how much of her life she had spent sitting in that Café. How many significant moments had passed and happened just by being around the place that she and all of the Tree Hill High kids formally knew as a second home. She couldn't grasp the fact so much had changed over the years and she too, like everyone else missed the way things were when they were in high school.
"Where's your head Brooke?" Julian reached his hand out to grab Brookes.
"I miss it Julian. I really do." She fought back the tears as she spoke.
"What'd you mean Brooke?
"You know I love you and the boys and I wouldn't change anything in the world about our family, but I miss it. Walking the halls of Tree Hill High and leading the cheers. I miss the basketball games and the parties after, the cheer tournaments and sneaking out with the boys on the team and coming back way after curfew, but if you strip all that away, you take all the parties, the games, the cheers, mostly.. I guess I miss my best friend." She squeezed Julian's hand tighter than she ever had before as the tears began to fall.
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"Welcome home Mrs Scott….Welcome back to Tree Hill" Lucas held Peyton's hand as they walked up the steps of their new home.
"Luke, do you think Brooke will be mad at us for not calling and telling her about the move and you know?"
"I think….she will love the surprises" The two engaged in a passionate kiss.
"This really feels like home Luke; thank-you for bringing us home." She placed her hand on her small daughters back and rubbed it gently
"Peyt, I always knew how much of your life was in Tree Hill. We were always gonna be coming back here. You needed time to heal from the past." He helped the moving guys bring the boxes into the house. "Hey Nate sounded pretty messed up, maybe we should stop by there first?"
"We are cool with anything, aren't we Sawyer!"
"Yes mama and dada." Lucas pulled his family into a tight hug.
"How you feeling after the drive" Lucas kissed his wife on the top of her hand
"Not too bad. Could be better but um…. Could be worse" Peyton laughed as she helped Sawyer up the steps.
Once they got all the boxes into the house and unpacked Sawyer's things they decided to go to Nathan and Haley's house. Lucas's hands shook as she turned the car down Nathan's sheet.
"Baby, are you okay?"
"I'm fine Peyt…. Just fine" Lucas stepped out of the car, stretched his legs and opened the back door. He un-clipped Sawyer from her baby seat and walked her up to the front door of his little brother's house.
"I'll get it Jamie! You go check on Lydia and make sure she is still asleep." Nathan walked towards the door and opened it with his head facing the floor. He raised his head when he saw two sets of adult feet and the little shoes that he had bought his niece for her first birthday.
"Oh my God….. Luke!" He pulled his brother into a hug. His heart was pumping harder than ever.
"Who is it dad?" Jamie yelled from the top of the stairs.
"Come here son! Take a look for yourself" Jamie ran closer to his dad
"Uncle Lucas!"
"Hey J-Luke!"
"Oh my God, look at how big you are Sawyer" Nathan took his niece from her mother's arms. "Peyton!" She laughed as Nathan said her name and grabbed her into a hug
"Nate, you seemed pretty worried on the phone, is everything okay?"
"Yeah….. I guess I just needed to hear your voice man, I missed you big brother"
Jamie was playing with sawyer on the floor and chasing her around the house.
"How Lydia and Hales?" Lucas took a sip of coffee from the mug Nathan had given him.
"Haley is going great, she is at the café and Lydia has a cold so she is sleeping upstairs. Actually I probably should go check on her. I'll be back in a minute." Nathan put his coffee down and headed up the stairs to check on his daughter.
"Luke, are you alright?"
"Yeah I'm fine. It just feels weird being back here that's all"
"Sorry about that, Haley will literally kill me if she doesn't get enough sleep." Nathan looked at Lucas but he couldn't make eye contact
"Nate is everything okay?" Peyton had gotten up to check on Jamie and Sawyer.
"Yeah, why Luke?"
"You can't even look at me Nate. What's going on?"
"Oh, you noticed that. Um…. Luke I know you just got here and I don't want you to go home but how long are you guys planning on staying in Tree Hill?"
Lucas laughed as he sat down next to his brother. "Nate, we aren't going back. We bought a house in Tree Hill and we are planning on staying for a long time. There's no other place in the world I would want Sawyer to grow up, she needs to be closer to her family….. so do I" Nate was so happy that his brother was home. Lucas and Peyton stayed at Nathans for a while before Peyton said she was tired and needed to rest. Lucas gave his niece and nephew a kiss and said goodbye to his brother. One of the best parts about being home was that he could say goodbye and know that it was only going to be for a few hours…a day max.
Peyton was laying in bed when Lucas walked in and unpacked the last box. He jumped on the bed next to his wife.
"How you feeling Peyton? You look a little pale." He put his hand over the top of her head to feel how warm she was. "Argh, Peyt you're burning up. We gotta get you to a doctor." He sat up on the bed and tried to help Peyton up to but she wouldn't move.
"Luke, I'm fine…. I promise I'm just tired and have a headache…. Everything is fine."
"Peyton! We can take any chances."
"Lucas Eugene Scott! I told you I'm fine. Believe me please!"
"Well I have to talk to principle Turner about the Ravens but I can call Haley as see if she could come here?"
"No Luke it's fine. You go talk to Turner."
"Okay well I'll take Sawyer with me." Lucas kissed Peyton on the cheek and grabbed his car keys.
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"Lucas Scott, now how long has it been since you walked the halls of Tree Hill High?" Principle Turner reached out to grab Lucas's hand and shake it.
"A long time" Lucas ran his fingers through his hair. "How the Ravens doing?"
"They're good, but they are nothing like the team that won the state championship. Is this you daughter?
"Yeah…. This is Sawyer. Peyton and I got married the day she was born."
Well congratulations to you both. Look Nathan and Antwon are good coaches…. But they need someone else, someone who can get through to those boys in a different way."
"Sir… if you're asking me to coach…. I mean that would be amazing."
"Yes Lucas… I am asking you to coach the Ravens."
"Thanks….. It really means a lot" Lucas shook his old principles hand and turned to walk Sawyer out to the hall. Lucas was on his phone texting Peyton when he turned around to hold Sawyers hand.
"Sawyer?" Lucas spun his body around in a full circle but he couldn't see his daughter "Sawyer Brooke Scott come here now!" Lucas searched the hall. He couldn't find her anywhere.
"Sawyer come on! You won't be in trouble if you come out okay…. God, where are you baby girl" Lucas ran around the school. Every time he turned the corner and saw that his daughter wasn't there his heart broke a little more. He turned away for a minute and she was gone. There was one place he hadn't looked….. the basketball court. He ran down the halls and pushed the doors to the gym wide open. His heart began to settle as she saw his baby girl sitting on the centre circle with a basketball in her hands.
"Sawyer, Daddy was worried about you come on baby girl, let's get home to mommy."
Lucas walked into the house and let sawyer play with her colouring books.
"Peyton? Are you home?"
"Yeah Luke I'm in the bedroom" Lucas sneaked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"I missed you" He kissed her on her cheek
"Luke, you were gone like an hour. How did you miss me?" she laughed as she spun around and wrapped her arms around Lucas's neck.
"An hour…..a minute…. I can't stand being away from you."
"That's sweet Luke but how did it go with Turner?"
"Well…. You're looking at the Ravens new coach. Me, Nate and Skillz. This is gonna be great Peyton. Everything we ever dreamed of."
"Luke, I already have everything I dreamed of… I have you and sawyer. I couldn't be happier" She pulled Lucas closer and kissed him on the lips.
"Have you told Brooke yet?"
"No, I'm too scared"
"Well I was thinking that we should go visit her and the boys…. You okay to go now?"
"Yeah I'm feeling better." Lucas felt her forehead to make sure she wasn't just saying she was okay to get out of the house. Once again he put Sawyer in her car seat.
"Poor thing has been in the car basically all day. She must be so tired." Peyton turned around from her seat to look at her beautiful daughter.
"She had a nap on the way to seeing Principle turner. She'll be full of energy when she see's Jude and Davis."
"Oh my God Luke….. This is our first time seeing the twins." She turned back around and looked at the road ahead. She could see the café in the distance and across the street was Baker Boys. She was so close to seeing her best friend again but still she had a nervous ache in her heart.
"Luke, should we bring Sawyers bag in?" Peyton tumbled everything over in the trunk until she found the bag.
"Peyton! Stop procrastinating… I know you're nervous but you shouldn't be…it's just Brooke"
"Yeah that's what I'm worried about Luke. What if she is so mad at me that she doesn't want to see me!" Lucas pinned Peyton to the car.
"She won't do that Peyt. You guys have been through so much. You're just thinking the worst okay. It's going to be fine….. I promise."
"Luke…" Lucas picked up Sawyer into his arms and put his arm around Peyton's shoulder. She nestled her head into his chest. They walked past the café and crossed the street to 'Baker Boys'.
"Here goes nothing" Peyton pulled the door open. Brooke was standing behind the desk looking through the paper work with her head down.
"Sorry, we aren't open to the public today; you'll have to come back tomorrow."
"Well it's a good thing I'm not here to buy anything" Peyton smiled as Brooke raised her head.
"Peyton!" Brooke threw the papers into the air and ran to her best friend. The two were in tears as they hugged each other tightly and rocked side to side. "It's so good to see you. How long are you staying?"
"Well… we kinda….. moved back to Tree Hill"
"Peyton! This is amazing! Julian, bring the boys out!"
"Lucas…. Peyton… hi" Julian have Peyton a kiss on the cheek and shook Lucas's hand.
Brooke picked up her twins. "This is Jude and Davis. Boys…. This is you're Aunt Peyton and Uncle Lucas"
"Brooke. They're gorgeous. You did a good job B Davis"
"Look at you Sawyer. You're such a big girl!"
"It's okay sweetie, go say hi" Lucas urged his daughter to talk to Brooke.
"I missed you P Sawyer Scott. You too Luke. Have you gone to see Nathan and Haley?"
"We went to Nathan's but Hales is at the café. I'll go later." Lucas took Davis from Brooke's arm.
Brooke made them all coffee and they sat down at the back of the store. "So… how are the three of you doing anyway?"
"Well…." Lucas rubbed Peyton's leg. "You mean the four of us." Brooke's mouth opened wide with a smile.
"Peyton are you….. are you….?" She couldn't get the final word out.
"I'm pregnant Brooke."
"Peyton, that's amazing! How far along?"
"About ten weeks. We haven't told Sawyer yet. We don't want to tell her and then something happens, it'll be too hard to explain to her."
"But nothings gonna happen Peyton. You and Lucas are going to be fine okay. I'm happy to take Sawyer with me all day so you can rest and help around the house. Peyt I'm gonna be there for you."
The two couples laughed as they shared stories from the past 18 months.
"Hey guys…. I do you mind if I go and see Haley?"
"No, go baby. Why don't you take Sawyer and grab her bag on the way back?" Lucas gave Peyton a kiss and grabbed his daughter's hand. He stood at the doors of the café, waiting to go in. Every part of him wanted to just run in and act like everything was the same but the other part of him wanted to run back because he was scared of what he would walk into. That's what sucked about coming back after 18 months of being away. People move on and change and when you come back things aren't the same.
"Daddy, I wanna go inside" Sawyer looked up at her dad in adoration.
"Well…. Here goes nothing." He pulled the door out and walked into the Café. "I love what you've done to the place!"
"Luke!" she ran up to him and jumped into his arms. "I was only just talking to Nathan about you a few hours ago. What are you doing here?" She pulled him into another hug.
"I'm home Hales….. for good this time"
"Hey! What about me Aunt Haley!"
"Oh Sawyer how could I forget about you!…. Look how big you're getting" she lifted her into the air and put her back down.
"How's Peyton?"
"She's good…. She's great." Lucas couldn't wipe the smile of his face.
"Luke. What aren't you telling me?" She hit Lucas on the arm in a joking manner.
"Um…. Peyton's pregnant. We only found out a few weeks ago."
"Luke that's amazing! About time Lydia had a cousin around the same age! Well my sister Quinn and Clay just found out that they are having a baby." Lucas called Peyton and told her that they were going to have dinner at the café and to invite Brooke and Julian. Haley called Nate and Quinn and Clay. The four couples sat at the café for dinner and laughed and shed tears as they watched their kids play where little Lucas and Haley once played.
"Hey guys….. why don't we take the kids to the river court?" Nathan stood up and begun to clear the plate.
"That's a good idea Nate. Come on kids…. Lets go!"
The others agreed and they all went down to the river court. They split into even teams and played against one another. They laughed as the memories of the past flashed before them. This is what they all missed the close friendship and fun. So much of the last years at High school were spent arguing, competing and fighting for their own lives that they forgot to sit and enjoy the moment. Finally they could have one of those special moments again and none of them wanted that to change.