Summary: Nathan promised her he'd be there for them, look out for them and protect them. He promised the day he took that vow twenty years ago. Now nine years later he's not there. She's there alone with them. Brathan.
Every Breath You Take
"Why do I have to be the youngest and only girl in this whole fucking family?" The raven-haired teen hissed walking into the house. She had a look of annoyance plastered on her face. She hated being the youngest and hated being the only girl. "Its so insanely ridiculous what I have to put up with having them in my life." She pointed to her older brothers.
"Madeline Penelope. You are only thirteen years old. Watching the language." I warned staring at her. She knew better then to use that language in my house. "One more word like that and your mouth is being washed out with soap."
"Ma, you have to know how embarrassing they all are." Madeline pouted pointing to her three older brothers walking in the house ignoring my comment. "They all think I'm some kind of five year old."
"We are just looking out for you. We know what boys want at that age." My oldest Oliver said walking into the house. He reminded me of his father tremendously, from the raven hair to the blue eyes. "You were all over him Mads, I needed to do something."
"I was just talking to him. I don't see the big deal."
"Talking leads to more, Maddie. Trust us." Weston smiled messing up his younger sisters hair. He was going to get the attitude of Madeline for that. I slowly counted down in my head.
"Don't you dare touch my hair!" Her green eyes were piercing Weston's blue ones.
"I can do whatever I want to you Maddie. When you reach high school, then you can too."
"You still have rules, Weston. Stop annoying your sister." I warned. This conversation happened many times a day.
"You guys are allowed to talk to girls, it's the same thing." Madeline rolled her eyes seeing how this conversation was getting her nowhere.
"Just gotta let us protect you. It's our job." Oliver laughed.
It was their job. Since Madeline was born, two minutes after Ethan on that cold March night Nathan always told the boys to protect her. She was small and weak, especially with being born one month early. When Nathan died, the boys stepped up even more with protecting her.
"That Chase guy isn't one of the nicest guys, Maddie." Ethan chimed in showing off his infamous Scott smirk.
"How am I ever going to have friends mom when you and dad insist that these three have to pick me up? I deal with enough having to have classes with Ethan. Isn't that enough?"
"Honey, it can't be that bad." I gave a supportive smile. "They're just looking out for you. That's all."
"Tell them to do it with a forty millions miles in between us."
"Madeline," I said again looking at her. She looked just like herself at that age. Her boys where always told to look out for Madeline, no matter what by Nathan and they follow through.
"I'll just go lock myself in a tower for twenty years." Madeline huffed stomping up the stairs.
"Stop being so dramatic Maddie or I'll send you with Aunt Haley and you can join her preschoolers." I laughed yelling up the stairs before turning my attention to my sons. "Boys," I gave them the look. The look they knew that meant cut it out. "Leave her alone. Middle school is hard on girls. She needs to find herself."
"Finding herself and boys are two different things." Oliver pointed out.
"Let her be." I warned staring at my sons. "You can protect her without embarrassing her. Yes I know your dad said to protect her but she's having enough problems. Please try and do it that way."
"Do we have to?" Weston asked shrugging his shoulders. "We are only doing what dad said too."
"You tell use to pick her up. We did that." Oliver shrugged.
"Yes, but embarrassing her is not what I told you to do." I stated. "Tomorrow do not embarrass her. Got it?"
"Yes ma." The three Scott boys said walking up the stairs to their rooms.
"Mommy, since you love me so much." Madeline said walking down the stairs batting her eyes.
"That doesn't work on me, Maddie. I invented that." I laughed. From the minute Madeline was born, she already had Nathan wrapped around her finger. If she was crying- she needed Nathan, not me. It made me melt inside. The differences of relationship that Nathan had with Madeline compared to the boys made me smile. Nathan would never tell anyone that he would put on a princess crown and play tea party with her when the boys decided she wasn't tough enough for basketball. "Spill it."
"There's a dance this Friday and Chase asked me to go with him." She smiled embarrassingly as her cheeks gained a bright shade of red. "I know daddy always said that I wasn't allowed to date till I was thirty, but it's not really a date date. Just a dance."
"Honey," I didn't want her growing up yet. The older she got meant the longer Nathan has been gone. Nathan passed away when Madeline was six-years-old. "If you want to go, you can go."
"Really?" Her eyes lit up with excitement.
"Of course. Its your first school dance, you can't miss it." I gave her a hug. "How about we go to the mall and find you a dress? I'll tell the boys to go get pizza for dinner."
"Can Mia come?" Mia was her best friend since they were born.
"Of course. Go see if she can." I smiled.
"Thank you for this mommy. It means a lot." She smiled and wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into a big hug.
"I would do anything for you, Mads." I kissed the top of her head before watching her run out the door and across the yard to Mia's house and then walking up the stairs.
The hallway was decorated in family photos. Most of them were school photos as the boys now refuse to take family photos. I knocked on the door at the end of the hallway that was covered in different drawings. "Oliver, you're in charge. I'm going to leave a twenty for you to go get pizza for dinner."
"I won't be home." He said throwing on a sweatshirt. "Lindsey invited me to dinner."
"Okay." I know I wouldn't be home, but having my children leave makes me feel like they are growing way to fast. It makes me miss the baby and toddler stage even more. "Be home by curfew. You know the rules."
"Yeah, yeah." He rolled his eyes playfully as he kissed me on the cheek. "See you later, Ma. I'll be home by 10."
"Be home by 9, Oliver. It's a school night."
"Fine. See you then." He said running down the stairs.
I laughed to myself moving to the next door. This door was covered in posters of bands I've never heard of before. "Ethan?"
"Yeah?" He said pulling his headphone out of his ear.
"I'm leaving twenty on the counter for pizza for you and Nate. I need to take Madeline to the mall."
"Shopping?" He raised his eyebrow in disgust.
"She's going to her first dance on Friday and needs the perfect dress for it." I smiled. I wished for a little girl after the first two boys and when I got my chance to with Madeline I went a little crazy. I had everything pink and still to this day Madeline loves pink.
"Your letting her go to that?" Oh the protective older brother is shinning through Weston brooding behaviors.
"Yes." I warned. "She's growing up. Let her have fun."
"She doesn't need boys."
"Weston she's thirteen, the boy craze only just become." I laughed at him. "I know your father said to look after her and you're following through with that, but let her enjoy herself. There will be many boys coming and going from her life."
"No boys mom." His eyes stared at me causing me to let out a small laugh.
"Oh Wes,"
"Seriously Ma, boys are horrible. They think bad things about girls. I don't want any boys thinking of my baby sister like that."
"Well she's not a baby anymore. I left the money on the counter. I will let Ethan know and you two can decide when to go."
"You're not helping what dad wanted, Ma."
"Weston you're father wanted you all happy. That's all he cared about. Madeline is finally happy. Let her enjoy it." I warned leaving the room.
"Mia can't come." Madeline sadly said walking up the stairs. "Her sister's are home from school for break. Why couldn't I have sisters?"
"I was not risking having another boy, Maddie." I laughed. "Go get you're shoes on and I'll meet you outside in the car."
"Got it!" She smiled giggling as she ran back down the stairs.
The final door on that side of the hallway was decked out in different basketball logos and teams that Ethan loved. Ethan followed the Scott's name the most with his desire to play basketball every single day of his life if allowed. Weston and Oliver loved basketball also, but not as much as Ethan.
"E?"
"Yeah?" He opened the door.
"I'm taking Madeline shopping, do you need something to wear to the dance on Friday?"
"I don't do to those childish dances Ma."
"Okay then. There's money on the counter for pizza." I turned and left the room and headed down the stairs towards the car.
"Ready Baby Girl?" I asked getting in the minivan I told myself I would never buy.
"Lets go shopping!" She giggled.
Two hours later we were at the fourth store and Madeline still has not found anything she liked enough to wear to the dance.
"Okay Madeline, everything you've tried on looks perfect on you. What's wrong?"
"I don't want this to show." She pointed to her chest where a scar was laying on her skin.
"Baby girl," I tried holding in the tears. The scar was the one reminder of that night.
"It was my fault Ma. I get this stupid reminder of it every day."
"Madeline Penelope," I warned "don't you ever think that."
"But if I didn't wanna come home from the birthday party then daddy will still be here." She was in tears now. Karen didn't know what to do besides take Madeline into her arms.
-Flashback-
"I'm sorry daddy to wake you." It was just past three in the morning on a rainy night in Tree Hill. The blue eyes little girl smiled at her father as he took her into her arms and placed her in the pick up truck. "Don't forget Mr. Stan!"
"It's okay baby girl." Nathan smiled at his youngest. "Mr. Stan is right in your bag."
"I love you daddy."
"I love you too Maddie." Nathan said kissing her forehead before climbing into his seat.
"I don't like getting scared at night and I didn't want Peyton to laugh at me."
"Don't worry about it. I'm use to this."
"Don't daddy. Daddy's need sleep."
"Well when daddy's have four kids they don't get sleep because mommy gets worried and has to check on you guys all the time."
The rain was picking up, making it hard to navigate the roads for Nathan. He had the windshield wipers going as fast as they could, but it wasn't helping much.
"Its nasty out there as Mamma says." Madeline smiled proudly. Nathan looked back at her with a smile matching hers. He was so proud of how strong Madeline became with having three older brothers looking out for her. That one-second his eyes were off the road is the one-second Madeline will never forget.
All Madeline remembers is waking up with her mom next to her in a small stark room.
"Mamma?" Madeline slowly opened her eyes. She was confused and scared at where she was.
"Oh baby, thank god you're okay." Brooke hugged her tightly.
"Ouch, that hurts Mamma." Madeline let a small smile fall on her face.
"I'm sorry Maddie." Brooke said concerned. "Do you remember what happened?"
"Daddy was looking at me smiling. That's it." She didn't remember the accident, which was probably a good thing. "Where's daddy?" Her eyes lit up with worry. Madeline was a daddy's girl all the way through.
"Honey, daddy went to heaven." Brooke's heart broke for the millionth time that week.
"When he coming back? I got the dance soon." The dance was a father-daughter dance that was presented by the Brownies Girl Scout organization as a fundraiser.
"Madeline, he's not coming back. You know when Mr. Bob the fish died and daddy said it was going to fishy heaven?" Brooke asked receiving a nod. She was trying to make it reasonable for a child to understand. She explained it already to the boys' earlier- them just as scared and heart broken as she was, but Madeline was going to be the hardest for it "Well daddy went to human heaven. We will see him again when it's our time to go there but daddy will always see us."
"I killed daddy."
"Madeline, don't cry." Brooke wiped the tears falling. "This is not your fault at all. You did not kill anyone."
"But if I didn't come home then he would've lived."
"For being six baby girl, you are smart." Brooke tried to make the situation better. "But this is when you don't think like that. You think of how daddy wanted to come get you."
"But,"
"No buts baby. Daddy will always love his little girl."
"Duh!" Madeline smiled a little; it was at least a start.
-End Flashback!-
"Madeline look at me sweetheart." I lifted her angelic face. "I do not want you to feel guilty. Accidents happen, this was just one. I want you to go and have fun at your dance and enjoy yourself. I'll even allow you to wear some reasonable make-up." So I bribed her a little? Nothing wrong with that.
"But ma,"
"No buts allowed. Go try on the last dress. I think it will be a winner." I gave a soft smile to her and watched her walk back into the dressing room.
"You in a dress?" Ethan laughed walking down the stairs later that week. I looked between the twins and knew they will always have the bond that she hoped for. "You don't wear dresses."
"I would if I was allowed too, Ethan." Madeline hissed resting her hand on her hip. I let out a tiny laugh at them. "Cut it out with the pictures, Ma."
"I'm sorry B, but this is a very important moment in your life and I have to capture it." I defended myself.
"She can't be wearing that? Guys are going to be all over you." Oliver walked into the house followed by Weston who was bouncing a basketball.
"No ball in the house."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Weston rolled his eyes.
"Watch it Wes." I warned.
"Ma, can I talk to you?" Madeline looked at me sadly.
"Yes of course. Come on," I smiled to her leading her outside to the porch where a swing hung. "What's wrong baby girl?"
"Do you think daddy's watching me still?" Her green-eyes stared at me looking for an answer.
"Honey, you're daddy is watching you every step, every breath and every day." I smiled kissing her forehead. "Go have fun at the dance with Mia. I'll see you when I pick you two up later."
"Thank you Mamma."
"Your welcome baby." I smiled watching her walk down the sidewalk.
I knew he was here I have that feeling. He would be so proud of the kids. If only he could see them now.
End!
I found this on my computer and decided to finish and edit it a bit before uploading it. I was bored tonight so it occupied me. Hope you enjoyed it!