By: Justine/ othravenslvr Word Count: 1,661 Pairings: Nathan/Lucas friendship Challenge: Beg/Int, Lucas confesses to Nathan that he slept with Rachel Rating: PG-13
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Lucas walked quietly into the bare hospital room, peeking around the corner to check if Nathan was still sleeping.
"Hey, man," his brother greeted.
Lucas grinned and emerged from behind the corner, walking up to the side of the hospital bed. He bumped fists lightly with his brother and then pulled a chair to the side of the bed and Nathan slowly sat up.
"How's everything going?" Lucas asked.
"Good, good. I'm so glad I'm getting out of here tomorrow!"
"I know the feeling," Lucas laughed.
"So… have you gone to see Cooper and Rachel today?"
"Yeah, I went before I came here."
"How are they?"
"Cooper's still pretty out of it. He hasn't talked to anyone else. Rachel's doing pretty good. She's going to be here for a couple more days though," Lucas said casually.
"Makes my broken wrist seem like nothing," Nathan laughed, holding up his plastered arm in annoyance.
Lucas gave a small smile before looking back down at his hands.
At the time, Nathan and Haley's wedding day had seemed like the scariest situation he had ever faced. When he had driven up to that bridge to see Haley sobbing over the edge and paramedics pulling his brother, Rachel, and Cooper out of the water, he felt as if his heart had stopped. Sitting in the waiting room, waiting for word about his brother's condition as Haley sat beside him in her wedding dress crying into his shoulder was one of those experiences he knew he'd remember for the rest of his life. Now, in comparison to the situation he was currently facing, it was nothing. Nathan spoke, jolting Lucas back to reality.
"So what's up with you? Did you tell Brooke yet?"
"Uh, tell Brooke what?" he asked nervously.
"That you found the pregnancy test in her purse!"
Lucas fell silent, thinking back on the fight with Brooke he'd had the night before. He searched his brother's face for the right words to explain the thoughts whirling through his head.
"L-Luke? What's wrong?" Nathan asked, seeing his brother's face change.
"I um, I made a mistake, Nathan, one that I can't take back," Lucas said slowly, avoiding Nathan's eyes.
"You got Brooke pregnant?" Nathan asked, dreading his brother's answer. He knew Lucas wasn't ready to be a father. As much as he loved Brooke, Nathan knew they weren't ready to be parents, not yet.
"The purse wasn't hers, Nate. The test wasn't hers."
"W-What do you mean it wasn't hers! It wasn't Haley's, it wasn't Brooke's, it wasn't Peyton's, it wasn't your mom's. So whose was it, man?"
There was a pause. Lucas opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. He had only told one other person, Brooke, and he hoped with all his being that Nathan would be a little more forgiving than she had been the night before.
"Luke, whose was it?" Nathan asked again.
"It was Rachel's…"
"W-wait, so, Rachel is pregnant. Please, god, tell me it's not Cooper," Nathan said, expecting the worst and putting his hand over his face.
"It's mine…" Lucas whispered.
Another pause, another silence. Neither of them said another word. Nathan took his hand from his face and stared at his brother in disbelief. This couldn't be happening. Lucas had not gotten a girl pregnant. He was with Brooke, he loved Brooke. How could he have slept with Rachel, after all of the trust issues he dealt with when he got back together with Brooke?
"H-how did you…I mean, when did you…" Nathan couldn't form complete questions. His mind was spinning as his brother stared straight ahead.
"I slept with Rachel…" Lucas finally said.
"I gathered that dumbass! When!"
"The night of the fantasy boy draft dates," he confessed softly, staring at his own hands resting on the side of the bed.
"I thought that you left Rachel to go over to see Brooke that night?"
"I did! I went over to Brooke's place and saw the girl I love sleeping with Chris Keller! I was upset, and Rachel was just…there! I didn't mean for anything to happen, it just did. We went back to her place because I needed somebody to talk to and I guess, after a few drinks, we just…it happened! And we both agreed to forget about it…that is, until…well, you know."
"No! I don't know! Explain to me how you can sit and whine over Brooke sleeping with Chris when you slept with Rachel the same night! Explain to me how you slept with another girl and the thought of her getting pregnant didn't cross your mind! Damn it, Lucas! Do you know what you've done!"
"Yes, damn it. I know that I screwed up, I screwed up worse than ever before, but I don't want to hear that, Nathan! I came to you for advice! Not for a lecture!"
Nathan sighed and leaned his head back, rubbing his temples with his good hand. Finally, after a moment or two, he sat up again and stared at his brother.
"I'm sorry…I just…"
"I know," Lucas said softly, staring down.
"Look, Luke, you did what you did and it's done. There's nothing you can do to change the past. What you can do is try to change the future. Talk to Brooke."
"I did that and she won't speak to me. I told her everything and she completely went insane!"
"Do you blame her?" Nathan asked calmly.
"No…"
"So, does Rachel know you know?"
"Yeah…I talked to her yesterday afternoon. The doctor told her that they managed to save the baby in the crash, and she freaked. She didn't even know there was a baby yet; she hadn't taken the test. She asked them how far along she was and who the father was."
"And?"
"And, she's a month into it and the father is none other than yours truly…" Lucas said, trailing off as he got up from the chair, pacing the room and putting his hands over his head.
"Damn it!" Lucas suddenly shouted, slamming his fist into the wall.
"Luke, calm down…"
"Calm down? Nathan! I'm going to be a father! I can't have a baby! I especially can't have a baby with Rachel! I'm only 17! I can't do this! I can't believe this is happening…" Lucas trailed off again, this time sitting back in the chair and resting his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands.
Nathan slowly sat up in the bed and leaned forwards, putting a steady hand on Lucas's shoulder.
"Everything's going to be okay, man," Nathan said, not knowing how else to comfort his brother.
Lucas looked up and Nathan was taken back to see tears quivering in the corners of this brother's eyes.
"Everything's not okay. I screwed everything up. I can't be a father, I can't be there for Rachel and I just lost the girl that I love!" Lucas said angrily.
"Just because everything's not okay now doesn't mean they're not going to work out the way you want them to, Luke. You screwed up, yeah. But that doesn't mean you can't try and fix it."
Lucas fell silent, not saying a word as Nathan leaned back again, sighing and looking at the ceiling.
"First of all, you can be a father," Nathan confessed.
"How do you know that? How do you know I'm not going to turn out exactly like Dan!"
"Because you're not Dan, Lucas, and you never will be. You know how I know you can be a father? Because you have to be. You've never been one to step down when things got messy, man. As hard as it was, you always handled it. And you can handle this, too. It's just going to be a little harder."
"That doesn't change the fact that Rachel needs me but I need Brooke, does it?"
"No, but you can change it if you try, Lucas. Look, Brooke isn't going to forgive you for awhile. For now, all you can do is take control of the situations you can help. Like, be there for Rachel. I know you don't like her, and I know you don't want the baby, but whatever Rachel wants is how it's going to be, and you need to be there for her either way. Whether she keeps the baby or not, she needs to know you're going to be there, Luke. Hell, she's just as scared as you are, probably more. Be a man and do the right thing, Luke. You can't make Brooke forgive you. If she really loves you, then that will happen in its own time. Just let it go and if it's meant to be, she'll come back to you," Nathan said.
When Nathan was finished, there was silence. Lucas looked to his brother and grinned slightly.
"You know, if the basketball thing doesn't work out, you could make some major money as a Dr. Phil wannabe," he laughed.
"Look, if you don't want the advice then—"
"No, no. Thank you. You um, you really helped, Nate. Thanks," he confessed.
"Anytime, big brother…" Nathan said softly, raising his fist.
Lucas got up from the chair and bumped fists with his brother again before leaning over the bed and hugging him quickly.
"I have to go. I have to…well…you know…" Lucas said quietly, backing towards the door.
"I know. Good luck, man. I'm here if you need me," Nathan said.
Lucas reached the corner and leaned against the wall before turning around.
"I know. Thanks, Nate, for everything."
With that, Lucas rounded the corner and left the room, leaving Nathan alone. Nathan watched his brother leave and leaned his head back in disbelief. A week ago, if someone had told him he would be lying in a hospital bed giving his brother advice on how to handle a random cheerleader he'd gotten pregnant, he would've laughed and told them they were crazy. Now, anything seemed possible.