A/N: I started writing this story after episode two of OTH. You'll notice that the story actually has Seyton in the first few chapters. She got on my nerves by episode three and once I saw Brooke, she totally went the way of the death star in this story. The basic premise of the story is the relationship between Nathan and Lucas and what happens when events force Dan into his estranged son's life. Oddly enough, I wrote several things way before the show did (the wreck, the adoption issue), but the story is fairly AU even though its close to the original premise of the show. The story is complete at 33 ish chapters and I decided to post it here after a few requests to see the story on . Purg is still being posted and I should have a chapter up by the weekend at the latest. As the show takes place during the first episodes, there are no characters from the later years of the show. The story involves the Scott Family as well as Naley and Brucas with a bit of the adults thrown in for some added angst.

*~* Blood Brothers *~*

Chapter 1

The school bus pulled out onto the highway, heading back toward the small town of Tree Hill. Nathan Scott watched from his seat near the back of the bus as his father's Jag grew smaller and smaller in the school parking lot. Slumping down into the stiff vinyl of the seat, Nathan wondered how much hell he'd catch once he got home.

Hearing a noise across the aisle, Nathan looked over and saw that the bastard spawn had claimed the seat directly across the aisle from him. Figures, he silently thought, first my team, then my girl, now my personal space. Was there anything that he had that Lucas was not determined to take from him?

Lucas shot him one of his patented sneers before putting his headphones on and closing his eyes. The last thing he wanted to see after scoring a personal best of 18 points was the sullen face of Nathan the Jerk. It was during times like these that Luke was convinced that his mother should have demanded paternity tests when he was born. Because as far as Lucas was concerned, there was no way he and Nathan could have anything, let alone biology, in common.

Turning away from Luke, Nathan pulled his iPod out of his bag and proceeded to ignore Tim, who was prattling away about the next haze they'd inflict on Luke before the next game. Nathan didn't want to hear anything else about the guy. It was bad enough that he'd come close to topping Nathan's game totals for the first time, but Whitey had designed most of the crucial game plays around Luke's can't fail three pointer.

Something in his stomach lurched at the thought of what his father would do to him when he got home. Dan Scott had little patience for failure on his son's part. And while he still outscored Lucas, Dan would be furious that Nathan had not found a way to shut the kid out of the action all together.

In life, as in basketball, Nathan never seemed to please his father. He glanced over at Lucas, who appeared entranced by the foggy weather and lull of the speeding bus.

Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing to have to share his dad with the guy, he thought.

Perhaps the two of them could split the unreasonable expectations of the one father.

Karen flipped the closed sign on the front door of the café and watched as Haley started the evening shut down ritual. Haley moved about the counter, singing along to some song on the radio that she'd flipped on once they were officially closed. The older woman smiled at the happy, carefree girl and couldn't help but recall the days when her life was a lot simpler, defined by dates with Dan and cheerleading practice.

"Haley, Keith and I are taking off now," she said, trying to get the girl's attention. Haley was super smart but could also be flighty at times. Especially over the last few weeks. Karen had attributed it to the new guy she was tutoring coupled with Luke's lack of free time. Karen had watched the two grow up and even secretly harbored a tiny hope that the two would some day get romantically involved. Keith had scoffed at her thoughts, noting that the two were as close as siblings and nothing more. But Karen loved Haley and knew that she'd make some young man very happy and content some day. Was she wrong for wanting that for her own son?

Haley looked up as the sappy love song finished and noticed Karen's questioning face.

"What? Did I do it again? I swear, I don't know where my mind is lately," she lamely offered, knowing exactly where her heart had been. It was on a school bus along with her best friend and Nathan Scott. No matter how many times she had hardened her heart against the guy, he still managed to worm his way into her thoughts. More than once she'd found herself drifting off in class, imagining how nice it would be to melt into his arms . . .

"HALEY!" The words startled her out of her latest Nathan induced haze.

"Lucas should be back from the game in a few hours. Tell him that I will call him when we get to Florida," she said. Karen's elderly aunt in Florida was having surgery and she and Keith and had decided it would be a nice break to drive down and help her recover. It had been nearly two years since either of them had closed their respective business down and left town, and both were secretly looking forward to the trip. No more gossipy neighbors or busybody basketball moms, she thought. And while she and Keith had never really tried to be a couple, their need for companionship was growing as Lucas took even more steps into an independent world.

Haley took her in boss's dreamy expression and refrained from singing "Karen and Keith sitting in a tree". She and Lucas had made the mistake of suggesting the two get together four years earlier and they'd both been soundly reprimanded. "Yeah, I can tell him, though you've only written her number down in eight places for him," Haley joked, laughing at her boss's legendary protectiveness of Lucas.

"You'll look out for him, won't you? I hate leaving him, even for a few days. But he insisted he'd be okay with both Keith and I gone," Karen replied. Between basketball and homework, Luke had promised he'd be more than occupied. Still, she'd carried the responsibility for her son for so long, with no one to share it with, that worrying was second nature. She immediately stopped the automatic thoughts about Dan. Dan should have helped carry that concern, Dan should have helped feed and clothe the boy, Dan should have paid for his braces and for his insurance over the years.

She stopped herself from going down that path for the thousandth time. Dan was incapable of being a good parent. The only child he ever concerned himself with was a walking basket case, and the son he openly despised wasn't much better off. She and Deb had promised to try to stop their sons from destroying each other. Deb had even promised to try to work on Dan's treatment of Lucas.

Karen stared out the window, to the fog enshrouded street. The chances of Dan treating Luke better were nearly as good as the fog suddenly disappearing: next to none.

Haley hugged her as she shoved her boss out the door. "He'll be okay, I promise. And he's going to hang out with my family for meals. Trust me, no one will even notice the extra body with all my sibs around."

Seeing Keith pull up, Karen smiled and tried to force herself to relax. Lucas was a good kid with a great sense of right and wrong. He'd be okay while she and Keith were gone. As they drove out of town, she couldn't shake the feeling of dread that surrounded her.

Dan fought his way through the fog as he speed along the interstate to Tree Hill. Miserable Tree Hill, population 10. As long as he'd live there, he'd never seen the population grew beyond the few poor souls that seemed as trapped as he felt.

He thought basketball would be his ticket out of this miserable berg, but those dreams had come crashing down when his spirit had failed to keep up with the demand of college ball. He'd sacrificed so much for nothing. Much the way Nathan feels right now, he thought. But Nathan could still succeed. After all, he'd been groomed from birth to play basketball. Dan had limited his time spent on other sports, in order to maximize the boy's muscle memory. They'd installed a home gym when Nathan was 12 in order to increase his daily workouts.

And now all their hard work was threatening to collapse. All because of one miserable boy. Dan sighed in frustration, thinking about Karen's son's latest game. His defensive abilities were growing, as was the team's confidence in his three pointer.

At some point, Dan had to take responsibility for this train wreck himself. After all, if he'd managed to convince Karen to have an abortion, then his dream wouldn't be in danger now.

A twinge of guilt rose up from some place deep inside the man. In all fairness, the kid hasn't asked to be born. And Karen could have demanded child support a long time ago. No matter what he told Nathan, he knew that Karen had never been with another guy when they were in high school. But everyone had pressured him to move on. Whitey, his parents, his college coaches. It would have been difficult for him to go to school, attend practice and take care of a baby. The ironic thing was that he'd done precisely that a few months into school, when he'd gotten Deb pregnant.

His one saving grace was that his son seemed to be better at using birth control than he was. At least Nathan could do something better than him, he mused. As for Lucas, Dan didn't know much about the boy. And it was better that way. He'd always assumed that Karen would marry someone else, and the boy would have a full time father. Not just a guy who dropped by every other Saturday for a few hours.

And once he and Deb and Nathan had returned to Tree Hill, things grew even more complicated. The few times he'd made an effort to give Karen some money, or to help out with the boy (at Deb's insistence), Karen had totally rejected him. No matter what she or Keith had told Lucas, he'd made a few gestures to support the kid. But Karen had rejected every offer of support, as lame as they had been, and it grew easier for Dan to ignore both mother and son, rather than be constantly confronted with his teen-age mistake. And with time, Lucas' hatred of him had made the entire process even easier, while relieving Dan of his initial guilt.

Dan saw a bright orange glow ahead and cautiously slowed the Jag down. His concern grew as he realized that a massive wreck involving a school bus littered the southbound interstate lanes as well as the median. A small group of people stood around, screaming as others attempted to vacate the inferno that the burning bus had become.

Dan's stomach dropped with fear as he pulled over on the roadside near the accident, and saw the words "Tree Hill" on the side of the burning bus.

*~*~*~*~*

Lucas' thoughts drifted, lulled by the drone of the bus. He stretched a bit, hoping to get some feeling back in his arms and legs, having been stationary for too long in the cramped bus seat. Basketball players were definitely NOT meant to travel like this, he mused. Most of the bus was quiet, and even the cheerleaders in the front seemed worn out by the game's activities. A few people were talking about the up coming Christmas holidays and where their families were planning on traveling. Lucas was amazed at how fast the semester had flown by. He'd need the next few days to go shopping for gifts, since there would be no school or games for a change.

Some of the players were discussing the after party and what dates they'd be taking. Lucas shook his head in amazement. No wonder they had the energy to play an away game and then go out and get drunk. Not a single teammate of his had a part time job and few of them besides him and Jake bothered to do much homework. After he practiced, went to games, helped his Uncle and mom out with their various business, Luke didn't have much time to sleep, let alone party. Even Haley had accused him of being no fun to hang out with since he joined the team.

Lucas rolled his eyes and glanced over to the seat across the aisle where Nathan was sprawled. Everything about the guy screamed money, from his expensive clothes to his iPod. Not even a part time job allowed Lucas to spend 400 dollars on a MP3 player. Not when he needed to help his mom out with expenses. He glanced down at his worn out Discman and grew angry. It was bad enough having to listen to Nathan talk about his family ski trips and his family's beach house, but to be constantly reminded that his own father showered one son with gifts while not caring if the other had food to eat was unbearable. Glancing over at Nathan and the offending iPod, Lucas' eyes grew hard with jealousy. He could admit it, he was jealous of Nathan.

Not for the SUV that was replaced every few months or the money, but for the security that he'd grown up with, while Lucas and his mother struggled for the bare necessities.

Nathan's eyes fluttered before they opened and focused on Lucas' glaring face. He followed the devil spawn's eyes to his MP3 player. "I have two more, one in my car and another in my room, if you want to go lust after them, too," Nathan caustically replied.

Luke smirked at Nathan, rising to meet the other boy's baiting tone. "There's only one thing you have that I lust over and it's not your iPod." A collective range of gaps sounded throughout the bus, as all eyes moved toward the front where Peyton sat with the rest of the cheerleaders.

Lucas' words were a blow to both Nathan's ego and his heart. Everyone knew that he and Peyton were finished. They had basically ended things a few weeks before after one of their constant fights. It didn't help that she was attracted to the devil spawn, while Nathan was secretly pursuing Haley. It wasn't just Peyton, he realized. Nathan subconsciously feared that he would lose his scoring title, his captainship, and his father to Lucas, as well.

After all, Dan only wanted the best. What would stop his dad from becoming Luke's biggest supporter if he continued to out play Nathan? A son/star player by any name was Dan's goal.

Nathan's resentment of Lucas flared. "Well, we all know you aren't going to get what you want. That includes my house, my iPod and my dad. But cheer up: Maybe he'll buy you one for your birthday," he said bitterly, before pausing. "Oh wait, he doesn't acknowledge you, let alone your birthday."

Lucas reacted before Jake could move between the two brothers. Nathan stood up, met the other boy in the aisle and immediately started returning Luke's punches.

Somewhere up front Coach Durham yelled for them to sit down. Lucas turned toward the front of the bus for a second, before a set of high beams hit his eyes. He was distracted by thoughts that something was wrong, a car shouldn't be approaching them on a four lane interstate, but the words were drowned out as the bus slammed into the vehicle.

Nathan noticed the look of horror on Lucas' face and followed his gaze at the front windshield of the bus. His last conscious thought, before he and Lucas were thrown toward the front of the bus, was that they should have been wearing seatbelts.

I think this was one of the first fanfics I ever wrote, so it's a bit iffy in places. It's hard to read this and remember the characters being so young, lol. Thanks for reading!