Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own One Tree Hill. If I did, well, we'd have had Brucas, Leyton and maybe Breyton. Oh, and BP wouldn't be fighting. And in the first season we would have kept the Stella storyline. But I don't own it, so they are fighting.
Pairings: Peyton/OC and then eventually Peyton/Brooke
Description: Low and behold, here comes a new girl. She's got a pretty messed up life, but she takes an interest in Peyton. It takes Peyton finally being herself for Brooke to realize how she really thinks of her Goldilocks.
Anyway, my story, my rules. We're going back in time to before Peyton was shot. BP will not fight and the girls, Brooke & Haley, won't get pregnant. This is femslash, people, so I won't be having Brucas. As much as I love the idea of Leyton or Brucas, this story is about Brooke and Peyton and their awesomeness together. The chapter titles will be lyrics from songs.
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Chapter One: Ashes of Another Life
((From 45 by Shinedown))
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She huffed irritably, her arms folding neatly across her chest. So, this was where she ended up for her senior year of high school. In a little city on the east coast, miles away from her real life in Texas. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she stood outside the front office.
North Carolina.
Her brushed her dark brown hair from her steely blue eyes. She wasn't happy about this arrangement at all. She'd been shipped from her home in Temple, Texas to Los Angeles, California. From there she was forced to move four times more.
Los Angeles, California to Pinedale, Wyoming to Chicago, Illinois and then to her last place of residence, Boston, Massachusetts. Now she was here in Tree Hill, North Carolina.
This place was smaller than other cities, though it rivaled Pinedale in size. She wasn't sure if Pinedale was bigger or if Tree Hill was. It was most likely that Tree Hill was larger. After all, Pinedale was tiny.
A emo looking boy suddenly opened the door, walking gloomily out of the Principle's office. He was muttering something darkly under his breath as he roughly brushed past her. The teenager's body tensed up at the contact.
"Miss Lander?" The man's voice said from inside the room. She stood still for a few moments before giving in and reluctantly entering. "I'm to understand that you are indeed Melissa Lander and not just some student loitering in the hallway."
"I'm a student and I was loitering. So, yeah, I am Melissa, but I'm also wasting time." She pointed out, her tone irritable and blunt. The teenager really didn't want to be at this school. Sooner or later her dear mother and father would find her, then she would have to pack up and move again.
As it turned out, getting emancipated from parents like that wasn't difficult. However, trying to escape from them was. After being apart from them for three years and counting, she didn't want to have moved all those times for nothing. Her rich uncle helped her when she needed to move, but otherwise she was on her own with no one to catch her when she screwed up.
"Here's your schedule, Miss Lander. I'm sure you'll enjoy here at Tree Hill High." The principle smiled charmingly.
Melissa nodded, a tight smile on her face before she turned and headed out to explore the depths of the school. Once she was down the hall, the smile vanished to be replaced by a look of boredom.
"Go Ravens." She muttered, glancing down at the schedule card in her hands. "Okay, first class…"
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"Okay, so spill!"
"On..."
"New girl, P. Sawyer!" Brooke, ever excitable and adorably nosey, demanded of her best friend. This had to be big news. Tree Hill didn't commonly get new people to their school, especially now in their senior year of high school.
Peyton's eyes scanned the masses of students. It was easy to pick out the newest student. She was very attractive with delicate, light skin and a soft shade of brown hair. Brooke followed her gaze, grinning when she saw the new kid. She was lying on one of the benches, not a food tray in sight. From this distance, Peyton couldn't tell much more about her.
"C'mon, recon." Brooke said a mock-conspiratorial tone as she seized Peyton's hand and dragged her in the girl's general direction. After a few minutes of stopping to talk to random people, like Bevin and Theresa, they finally reached the bench. They stood in silence, glancing at each other. The new girl was just lying there, still and silent, with one arm behind her head while the other lazily brushed over the concrete.
Now that they were closer, Peyton could make out the spattering of light freckles across her cheeks and nose. She had a fleeting thought about how cute they were before hurriedly brushing it off. She had too many thoughts like that concerning Brooke. She didn't need more of them.
"Whatcha want?" She opened one hazel eye, bringing her hand up to guard herself from the sunlight.
"Uhm—" Peyton was cut off by Brooke's quick input of questions. She was taking a slightly new approach to things. Instead of waiting to hear the gossip, she had decided she should go up and just talk to the new kids herself. Well…she was improving.
"So, new girl, who are you? Where'd ya come from?" Brooke asked before Peyton could actually say something.
The girl exhaled, bringing her hands to rest on her stomach. She frowned slightly as she pushed herself into a sitting position, her eyes carefully scrutinizing both Peyton and Brooke. Her gaze lingered on Peyton longer than it did on Brooke.
"Well, apparently I'm 'new girl.'" She said, her eyes still on Peyton. The cheerleader shifted, feeling rather odd at being subjected to such a thorough examination, even if it only was visual. The girl smirked, finally breaking her intense gaze. "Well, Buttercup, if you insist on knowing, it's Melissa. That's all you need to hear for now. So, now you and Bubbles can-"
"Brooke, who's this?" Rachel had arrived, looking beautiful as always. She brushed her red hair back from her face, her eyes trained on the new girl. The young woman, Melissa, grinned at the sight of the cheerleader.
"Well, what do you know? Looks like all three of the Powerpuff Girls are here." Melissa got to her feet, reached down and grabbed her bag from behind the bench. "Now, Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup, I might see you around later. I guess it all depends, doesn't it?"
With that said, the new girl vanished into the masses of students wandering around, heading to various classes. Brooke stared after her, looking as though she didn't know whether to be pissed or amused. She looked exasperatedly at Rachel and Peyton.
"Wait, what did you want?" Brooke asked Rachel abruptly. As of late, the pair had been getting along better than usual. Of course, they still were slightly edgy around each other at times. They didn't trust each other enough to truly be friends.
"Want?" Rachel paused, before hurriedly frowning. She didn't feel like saying something just to get in a fight with Brooke. It wasn't worth it. The redhead just shook her head and spoke briefly, "Nothing. I'll see you later."
"Come on, P. Sawyer." Brooke sighed, linking their arms together. Every time Brooke did something innocent like that, Peyton felt her heart flutter and her stomach flip-flop. They were things that Brooke took for granted. After all, they had always done things like looping arms or holding hands, ever since they were little kids.
Of course, as luck would have it, there she was in their next period class. New Girl Melissa sat in the second row from the back, staring out the window. Her pencil rapidly tapped on her notebook. It was a habit seeing as she seemed oblivious to what she was doing. Even when Brooke rolled her eyes and took a seat in the back, Peyton decided that she wanted to satisfy her curiosity. So, the blonde chose to sit right next to the new girl. She dropped her books on the desk. The resulting thud seemed to awaken the musing teenager.
"Oh, hey Bubbles." Melissa said blandly, averting her eyes almost immediately. It seemed that when it came to nicknames, she was like Brooke. She stuck to them. After all, Brooke still called Haley "Tutor Wife" or "Tutor Girl."
"It's Peyton."
"Hmm?"
"My name. It's Peyton. I don't fly around in a little dress trying to save the city of Townsville." She rolled her eyes slightly, watching the other girl's face for changes in expression.
"Peyton…what?
"Sawyer."
After mulling over the name in her mind, she asked another question, "What about Blossom and Buttercup?"
"Rachel and Brooke."
"Uh-huh…." Melissa sat back in her seat, her hazel eyes flickering back to Brooke for a couple of seconds. After her silence, she looked back to Peyton, a smirk curling her lips. "You know what, powderpuff? I think I'll stick with Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup."
Peyton narrowed her eyes, annoyed. Powderpuff? Before she could retort, Melissa cast her an infuriating wink and the teacher started speaking. Peyton flipped open her notebook, slipping a pen from her bag.
From the back of the room, neither of the girls knew that they were being watched. Little miss Buttercup wasn't very happy with the way things were going. The brunette's gaze was fixated on Melissa.
She recognized that behavior. By being annoying and irritating, she was actually flirting with Peyton. It was the way Brooke had sometimes behaved around Lucas. She was subtly, or not so subtly, aggressive. She was asserting herself by saying things how she wanted to instead of using proper names. Peyton was independent, strong, and usually very sure of herself. But, Peyton had no idea that she had just lost her place as the dominant one in Melissa's eyes.
Brooke berated herself for her brewing jealousy. So what if some new girl was hitting on her Goldilocks? It wouldn't matter. Yes, it would turn out about as well as Peyton and Anna did. Peyton was straight after all, wasn't she?
The party girl had always made sure that Peyton knew she was in charge, at least when they weren't fighting. Not that Peyton realized her position in their relationship; she just knew that they were best friends. Brooke was the only one who paid attention to those details.
Brooke just sat there in the back, watching the pair as they argued by way of steady eye contact, glares or even short notes. It was one of the longest hours she had ever experienced. She wanted to get up and force Melissa to quit bugging Peyton. When the bell finally rang, she wasted no time in rising from her desk to hurriedly make her way over to Peyton.
Melissa had gone with a smirk, leaving Peyton seemingly seething in her wake. The blonde glared after her murderously. When Brooke lightly touched her arm, she finally turned around, gathering up her belongings.
"She called me 'powderpuff.'" Peyton grumbled, though she smiled as her best friend nudged her in the ribs.
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The teenager winked as she slowly trailed her fingers down the chest of a boy she had been flirting with. With her orientation, it was no wonder that she quickly became bored. So, after teasing him for a few more seconds, she simply turned and walked away.
It was a very stupid thing for her to do, especially considering the identity of the boy she had been playing with. His name was Anthony Michaels. He was big, strong and very sexually frustrated at that moment. His girlfriend had dumped him because he "had a temper."
Melissa, however, was completely unaware of all of that with his added reputation for being forceful and a player. As she strolled down the halls at a languid pace, her eyes scanned the crowd. At her old school, she had had a girlfriend. At least, until she had been trapped into moving again. Her mother and father were obsessive.
She caught sight of the pair she had met earlier, Peyton and Brooke. Heh, now she called them Bubbles and Buttercup. While Buttercup was beautiful, there didn't seem to be a chance in hell that a girl like her was a lesbian, so she turned her attentions to the second, Bubbles.
Now, there was just something intriguing about Bubbles. Her name, Peyton, was unusual in her opinion, but it suited her nonetheless. There seemed to be so much more to her than what she could just see. Melissa wanted to get to know her.
And then….she felt her back meet the lockers with stinging force. Her hazel orbs widened in surprise as she caught sight of "horny boy" she had been messing around with. He seemed pissed for some reason or other.
"What can I do for you?" The new girl attempted to stay calm, though this had been the last thing she expected to happen.
"I want you to stop fucking teasing me. I know you want me." His voice was low and demanding. One of his large hands was pressed against the locker on one side of her head, keeping her trapped between him and the wall. Melissa drew back, preferring to be closer to the wall.
"Hey, I was just havin' some fun-" Anthony cut her off sharply with a brutal kiss. Of course, this seemed to be normal and not exactly noticeable in the crowded hallways. No one else could tell, from looking, that they weren't a couple. After all, no one had any idea who she was.
That was uncalled for. Melissa used her hands to shove against his chest, causing him to draw back, though it just ticked him off even more.
"Anthony." A big guy with dark hair and eyes pushed Anthony aside, receiving an angry glare for doing so. "Go screw yourself."
Anthony was shorter and lighter than the other guy. He did the only smart thing he was capable of and skulked away, his eyes flitting from Melissa to the big guy. It didn't take long for him to vanish into the masses.
"Are you okay?"
"Just peachy, thanks." Melissa gave a half-hearted smile, "Probably my fault anyway…"
"No way, Anthony is always a dick. You didn't deserve that."
Melissa paused in the middle of brushing her hair back. Her hazel eyes carefully examined the boy. He seemed nice enough. Of course, people always seemed nice at first. That didn't mean they were trustworthy.
"So, yeah, I'm Melissa…kind of new here. That's why…" She trailed off vaguely, tucking her hair neatly behind her ear.
"Why you didn't know about Anthony. I figured as much. Nathan." He introduced himself, smiling.
"Nathan." Melissa repeated musingly. She liked him already just for being a nice guy. He seemed to have the whole Clark Kent and Superman thing going for him. All he needed was a little plaid and he would be all set.
"Nathan, hey!" A brunette happily seemed to just float on over. There was such an air of happiness and joy around her. She had that spring in her step that told everyone that she was so obviously in love. Her hand immediately went to his chest as she turned in front of him, planting a light kiss on his lips. Her eyes shifted to Melissa and she smiled once more. "Who's this?"
"Melissa. Anthony was being a prick." Nathan said. It didn't seem to be a surprise. The girl just sighed and rolled her eyes as though he acted like that all of the time. "This is Haley, she's my wife."
Okay, now that wasn't expected.
"Wife?" Yeah, single to double syllables were her friends. She wasn't much of a conversationalist unless she knew it was going somewhere. The only exception to that was when she was with her friends.
"Brooke and Peyton are waiting." Haley nudged Nathan slightly, looking up at her husband expectantly. "It was nice to meet you, Melissa."
"You too." Melissa nodded slightly, her arms crossing over her chest. This was slightly strange. A couple married in high school with no signs that the wife was pregnant. Now how often did that happen? "Later."
Oh yeah, there was no doubt that there was only one Tree Hill.
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"So, bestest friend, what do you think of this? Pink or red?" She held up the nail polish selection for emphasis. Peyton laughed as she finished painting her own nails. This was one of those girly nights she had with Brooke.
"Go red." The artist pointed her little brush at the bottle.
"Very nice choice, P. Sawyer." Brooke cheerfully started applying the paint to her nails. After a few moments of comfortable silence, she began talking once more, "P. Sawyer, what do you think of new girl?"
New girl could only mean Melissa. Anna had been Neighbor Girl, Haley was Tutor Girl or Tutor Wife, and Peyton had many names. She even gave Lucas the nickname of Broody.
"She seems nice enough, you know? But, she's also-" Peyton cut herself off. She knew what she was about to say might upset Brooke. Melissa was acting exactly how Brooke acted. Brooke was outgoing and flirtatious and more than "happy" with one night stands. But, she also had trouble letting people into her heart. She was scared of getting hurt. Peyton suspected the same about new girl Melissa. "She's just nice."
Brooke shrugged slightly, making sure to not mess up her toenails. Peyton thought new girl was nice. She wasn't quite sure what to make of that new information. All she knew what that she couldn't lose Peyton. Of course, if she admitted how she felt to Peyton, she just might end up getting hurt and rejected.
The cheerleading captain smiled softly as she thought about how she felt. Her stomach had butterflies whenever Peyton started playfully modeling lingerie or just cool clothes for her. Her heart fluttered and soared when she spent those long nights over at Peyton's house. Her entire body hummed pleasantly from the core when they slept in the same bed after talking for hours about thoughtless crushes or painful past mistakes.
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Melissa sighed as she dropped onto her soft, cushiony bed. She was tired. It had been a very long, interesting day. There seemed to be a lot of unique people in Tree Hill, North Carolina.
Her ever faithful cat, a young grey tabby with a blazing white chest, hopped onto her bed alongside her. The teenager sighed, lightly scratching behind the feline's ear as she thought.
"What do you think, girl, should I go for it? I mean, she seems nice, and she's really hot." A wolfish grin spread across her face at the thought of Bubbles. Peyton Sawyer. She'd have to try and get a tour out of the girl. Alone, without Blossom or Buttercup. Her companion simply curled up on one off her pillows. "I guess I can at least try to enjoy it here, right?"
She had so much shit to deal with, no doubt it would only be a matter of time before she had to pack up and leave again. So, what was the point to even trying to build a relationship with anyone? She could, however, have a couple of flings here and there. No harm done, right?