A/N: Ok, I'm not gonna lie. Its been a long time. Nearly a year, which is shocking to me. But here I am, with a new a idea, and something I've never done before. A chapter fic. Now, I'm not lying when I say this is different. And maybe a little confusing. So let me break it down. This first chapter is sort of the prologue and also its in "the present". Each chapter that follows will be in the past, and tell this fic in reverse. Once things are all clear, I will get back to the present. It's just gonna take a while.
-This is whole thing is dedicated to Steff! Thanks for the push, and for also always keeping the LP fics going, by consistently and awesomely writing them! =)
ll Asking You to Stay,
The words are finally Here,
Lets Rewind, And Rewind... ll
"P. Sawyer!" Brooke yells over the receiver.
"Hey Brooke!" Peyton shouts back into her cell as she tries to hold the phone to her ear and carry another full box from her bedroom to the hall.
She's always hated packing. Who wants to shift those things and decide what to keep and not to keep? Who wants to lug boxes and make sure things are properly label, when you know that things will either get left behind or put in the wrong box? Sorting and packing and moving just sucks.
But then again this time it was different. Peyton was packing up her apartment, the one she's had for the last four years, and she was finally going home.
Home.
It seems like it's been forever since she's really called Tree Hill her home, but in the back of her mind, it's always been the one place you knew she belonged. In spite of all the hurt and bad things that have had happened, something about that little town has always brought her a comfort she's never really understood.
Really it has more to do with the people in that town, then the town itself. And as things go, she is the last one everyone is waiting for.
Brooke's been back for the last year. After finishing design school in New York, Peyton's best (girl) friend opened a boutique two doors down from Karen's Café. And as Brooke's mentioned on more than one occasion in the last year, when she realized her own ally in their small town was Lucas, she was more than eager to get Peyton back home. But as Brooke has also mentioned, the last month hasn't been so bad now that Nathan and Haley have come back from California.
The almost married Scotts had been away at Stanford, and after Haley finished her degree in Education, and Nathan very happily received word that he had been drafted to the Charlotte Bobcats, the pair decided to make Tree Hill their home again too.
So now they were all just waiting on Peyton.
"So are you almost done packing? Excited to be coming home? Can't wait to see Me?" Brooke rambles, so happy that her best friend is finally coming home. It's been a long few years, but Brooke always knew that no matter what Peyton would be back. She had promised after all. However drunk they might have been when they had promised each other, they had promised it none the less.
"Yes, yes, and yes.." Peyton laughs at her friend. She knows its been awhile since she's lived in Tree Hill, but its not like she didn't visit tons, or have her friends visit her. But she also knows that things are different now. All of them have come such a long way since high school. They've lived and experienced. But more than that, they've all have come to realize that there is no place like home. And that's why she's almost relieved that it's finally her turn to be going back.
"Good. So am I still picking you up tomorrow from the airport?" Brooke asks. She technically has to do inventory tomorrow, but nothing (especially math) comes before her best friend.
"Yeah, the movers should be here by 8 to pick up all my stuff and then my flight is at noon…" Peyton responds distractingly as she starts to pack her bookshelf and a photo album on the top shelf catches her eye.
ll You See Your the Only Star,
In the film I never Made.
Would You Rewind it All the Time
Rewind it all the Time... ll
That old book had seen better days.
But she could only smile as she looked at the cover. Looked at that picture of two kids with blonde hair and matching smiles.
She can still remember that day.
Her and Lucas had been playing in her backyard when Peyton decided she had had enough playing outside and wanted to draw instead. And of course Lucas couldn't tell her no. Somehow or another when the young girl couldn't draw the next door neighbor's dog right, she decided it was time to try to draw her best friend instead. But he wouldn't sit still. That was the thing about Lucas that Peyton could only laugh about now.
He could never tell her No, but when he didn't want to do something she literally had to force him to participate. So finally Peyton had taken measures into her own hands and went and got her Dad's camera. She figured it would be easier to draw from a picture then bother to tell Lucas one more time that it would be just five more minutes. When her mother walked in and saw the two arguing about how Lucas should pose, she only laughed and instead had the two still together, arms around one another and smiling, to the take picture.
The following year for her sixth birthday her mother had given her the album-with the picture of the two kids placed on the front cover- to keep all her favorite pictures. So that's what she did. Every year after that, no matter what, she would be sure to add at least a full page of pictures to that album.
There was a picture of her at seven, with a green cast on her right arm (from when she fell out of a tree) and Lucas standing on her left with a bandage on his head (from when she fell on him because she fell out of the tree).
There was a picture of her and Brooke wearing pink jackets and poodle skirts for Halloween. They were the Pink Ladies from Grease. And if you looked closely, you could see a very dorky looking Lucas dressed as superman in the background, trying to run so his cap would move behind him.
As she flipped through she caught glimpses of some of the most important moments of her childhood. The way she saw it, it was only because of who she was sharing those moments with in those pictures.
Eventually she got to the end, and while she knew she had two or more of these albums somewhere else already boxed, when Peyton looked at the last picture, she realized that that picture was why this album was her favorite.
It was of all five of them during the summer before she turned 15. That had been one of their best. No one had other commitments or obligations. No camps or summer school or family trips. It was just them and the sun and fun. Her favorite picture was of them at the beach, on the sanding laughing about…well she doesn't remember anymore, but considering how happy they all look, it must have been hilarious.
And what she realizes as she puts the album in a box labeled "If it breaks, you die", is that's why she wasn't nervous or scared about going home after four years away at college. It was because she's going home to them. All of them. Yes, things are different now, and Ok, they might be considered grown-ups. But really, they're still the same kids at the beach in that picture. They're still all friends (for the most part they're more then that now). They're still young (is 22 old?). And most importantly, nothing will ever come between them (She knows that for a fact).
"Peyton? Helllooo? Are you still listening to me?" Brooke asks, frustrated that her friend isn't giving Brooke her undivided attention.
"Huh?" Peyton responses, completely lost in her own thoughts.
"I said, did you want to go to the cafe tomorrow afternoon for a late lunch with everyone?" Brooke says for the second time.
"Um…yeah, sure." Peyton answers still not fully focused on what Brooke is saying. But she learned a long time ago it's easier to agree with Brooke Davis than anything else.
"Is everything gonna be ok with you and.." Brooke begins as delicately as possible. She knows it has to be brought up. She also knows its slightly her fault for what happened last year, and why things aren't great between Peyton and Kate.
"Yes! Jeez, Brooke…I don't hate her, you know? I was neutral, hell I didn't care. But then you.." Peyton says accusingly, as she remembers what happened last summer. Okay, maybe she does hate her, even if just a little. She just won't admit to it.
"Okay, Okay P., I got to go. But call me tomorrow before you take off." Brooke cuts her off, before the whole debate starts all over again. She's not quite sure how things got so complicated. But that's what happens when Tequila gets mixes into suppressed feelings, right? So Brooke's not entirely to blame, right? Even if she threw those thoughts out there, she knows they were already in her blonde friend's mind.
Brooke has always known. She had realized it well she dated (can you call three weeks dating?) Lucas and saw how he watched Peyton from across the quad as they sat together for lunch. It was why she broke up with him, after she saw how Peyton looked back at him that day in the quad. Its way she's been nudging them for years.
Its also why shes so pissed that they never got it together. Why she really hopes Peyton and Lucas will just stop denying it and get married and have babies already... Jeez.
Her best friend is in love with their other friend.
But Peyton won't act on it (She's not scandalous enough to wedge herself between Lucas and his fiance).
So Brooke is gonna have to (try again) to do something about it.
"Will do B., Bye." Peyton says tiredly as she closes her cell. Ok, so maybe not everyone will be excited to see her, but she's hopeful the situation will improve now that she's coming home.
She's hopeful, but she's not stupid.
You can't call you best (boy) friend's girlfriend (who is now his fiancé) a bitch and not expect for things to be awkward.
Oh well.
ll It's a long Way Out,
I'm asking you to Stay,
The words are finally here,
So let's rewind ... ll
"Guess who I talked to, who talked to someone who is coming home tomorrow?" Haley says with a laugh. That's probably the most confusing thing she's ever said, but she's just too excited to care.
"What?" Lucas asks as he sits across from her in his office. His new office. Because he's just become the new head coach of the Ravens and now has the entire weight of Whitey's legacy on his shoulders. But all he's doing right now is to not laugh at his friend and her weird way of starting a conversation.
"I talked to Brooke, who talked to Peyton, who confirmed that she will be here tomorrow!" Haley rambles out.
"I know. I talked to Peyton yesterday, before she talked to Brooke, who talked to you…" Lucas says jokingly with a raised brow.
"Oh…" Haley responses with a sheepish smile. Can you blame her for being excited? The last time they were all together was last summer for Brooke's huge 21st birthday/ Fourth of July weekend. And needless to say the tail end of the weekend was memorable for a whole other reason.
"Well, aren't you excited?"
"Of course, my other best friend is finally coming home…" Lucas says with certainty.
"But…." Haley questions.
"But nothing. I can't wait for her to be home. You and Nate have been home for a month now. And Brooke's been here for like a year. And it's been great, its just-"Lucas motions with his hands as he tries to explain.
It had been a long 4 years. While Nathan and Haley were off at Stanford, and Brooke was in New York and Peyton was at UNC, Lucas was here, in Tree Hill. Left behind. Ok, he wasn't exactly left behind, but sometimes he felt that way. Of course it had been his choice, and a choice he didn't regret. But it had definitely been hard to stay and go to school locally so he could stay and be there for his family. It was certainty hard to watch as everyone else experienced new things and met new people, while he stood and kept the Body Shop going doing the week and ran Tric on the weekends, while juggling school and stuff at home. Not that he would complain. Not that he ever did, to anyone. But it had been hard. Really hard. Working and going to school and trying to help his mother as much as he could.
But it had been worth it.
Now here he was, the brand new head coach of his old high school basketball team. He still had all those other responsibilities, but now they felt less like burdens. Now he had something that was just for him. His own dream to pursue. And he was more that sure that he would do great at it.
He also had someone, to help him carry his burdens. Someone who he loved, and who would very soon become his wife. But as much as he loves his fiancé he was also aware of the fact that she didn't get along with his best friend. Which he understood, to a degree, only he really didn't get it. He's a guy, could you blame him?
"Just?" Haley repeats his last words. But she doesn't have to guess what he's thinking. She knows that technically Lucas has a right to be unsure now that Peyton is coming back, because things between her and Kate, while it's all sketchy at best. But really it's all just ridiculous, and why both girls can't just put it all aside for the sake of it, is even beyond Haley.
Well, ok. She sort of knows why things are the way they are. But still….
"It's just I know Peyton and Kate don't exactly get along. And yes, Kate is my fiancé, but Peyton is my best friend-my other best friend." Lucas says as he smiles knowingly through his explanation. It's always been a running joke between the group. While Lucas might consider both Haley and Peyton as his best friends, things were always just a little bit different about the relationship between the two blondes. (Just a little bit, more.)
"And you don't want to be put in the middle?" Haley answers with understanding in her voice.
"Yeah…" Lucas says annoyed by the whole situation. To this day, he's still not exactly sure all of what happened. It all seems so childish and stupid really, but for whatever the reason those girls have never been able to get over what happened last summer at Brooke's party. And what's more madding is that neither of them ever want to talk about it to him. Like they're afraid that after he hears the whole story he choose one side over the other. Like he'll choose one girl over the other.
"While Brooke mentioned something about lunch tomorrow, are you in?" Haley mentions hopeful. She really wants to say more on the subject. About why he's so bothered about the whole thing. About why he can't just dismiss how Peyton feels, even if she tried to explain. Why a part of him has already pick a side, and won't admit to it.
She knows.
It's been the hugest freaking elephant between them all, since…the beginning really.
But the years have passed, and many, many things have happened along the way. And what she's learn is that it's better for everyone not to get in the middle of those two blondes. She learned that through past experience. And yes, that might be the most naïve and dangerous thing to do. Haley knows that choice might just lead to the of all their friendship, but she just can't get in the middle. Not again. Not after last time.
Even if she really wants to. Even if she thinks Lucas is marrying the wrong girl.
Well, hopefully now that Peyton is coming home, things will finally get set straight. Or not.
But Haley is the eternal optimist, so she's really praying for the first option.
"Sure..yeah." Lucas say uneasily. He doesn't know why he's so nervous about her coming home. It's not like they lost touch through the years, or changed. They're still the same. Well, the same in all the important things.
He still knows her favorite movie. Its "It's A Wonderful Life", which is very surprising. (He found that out three Christmas' back).
He knows she would rather draw outside then inside. Apparently she feels more when she's outside.
He also knows that no matter where his life has taken him (or hasn't taken him), there has always been something looming between him and her.
Something that feels more than friendship.
Something he knows shouldn't be there, but just is.
Something that's been there, since probably the beginning and yet has never been really been thought about then more than just a "What If?'…
ll Do We Make it to the Sequel?
Second Chance for Our Survival? ll
She had been waiting for the last twenty minutes, luggage in hand, for Brooke to show up. It's not like she could forget about her. She had called before she left, as discussed. She had given her the flight number and terminal. And yet here she was…Waiting.
She was just so annoyed that she was ready to go the cab line and have him take her to Brooke's boutique just to yell at her for forgetting.
But then she heard him calling her. And when she looked up and saw her other best friend standing there waiting for her, it all came back to her.
That feeling in the pit of her stomach. That special smile she had only for him. The reason she consciously (or subconsciously, she still isn't sure) called his fiancé a Bitch last summer.
She may never admit to it (or never dare act on it), but when she saw him standing there, with a smile just as bright as it was when they were kids, she knew she couldn't deny that she was in love with her best friend.
And she probably had been since the beginning.
Only she didn't know it back then, when it might have actually mattered for something. And it most definitely didn't matter now, because he was about to marry someone else.
It somehow just happened along the way. Somewhere between falling out of trees and playing tag. Between Third period French and Junior Prom. Maybe it was after high school. Like after she broke up with her boyfriend during her second year of college and Lucas came to check up on her. Or during finals last semester, when he was the only one could talk her down from the ledge when she was stressing out. She's not really sure when, but it's been there. Maybe always.
But it just doesn't matter anymore right? They had made their choices and those choices had led them to here. With him engaged. And her back home after four years away. So it just didn't matter anymore.
He had been in the middle of working on plays, when Brooke had called with a certain something in her voice, that she couldn't get Peyton after all, and he was the only one who could. Now he knew Brooke Davis. They had known each other for years. Dated (very) briefly for three weeks during the summer before Freshmen year. And he was more then sure she was lying about something coming up, and she just really wanted him to pick up Peyton. Now he wasn't gonna say No- He never could say that word when it came to Peyton- but he also wasn't stupid. Their friends had been pushing them together for years. He never complained because she was Peyton, and who would complain about spending time with her? And he always assumed she never said anything because he's her best friend and they get along like it.
And thats why he's never acted on anything. Because she sees him as her Best Friend. As only her best friend. They had promised each other years and years ago, that they would always be best friends. He had no business breaking that promise. Right?
But as he saw her standing there waiting, it took everything in him to stay in the present. To where he had a fiance, who he loved. Who he was gonna marry and be with forever. And he wouldn't break that promise either. He had worked so hard to do the right thing, for everyone. And this was just another choice he had made long ago, that he couldn't take back now.
"Hi." She whispered as she walked closer.
But before he responded back, he was pulling her into a bone crushing hug, and thinking he wished he didn't have to let go.
"I missed you…" He said softly into her ear.
And right there, with those three words, he hoped she heard everything he couldn't say to her that he really wanted to.
I'm so happy your finally home.
I wish you never left.
I love you, more then can I explain.
"I missed you too." She said with the same tone, hoping that he understood that she really meant all those other things too. Even if she should even feel those things.
Because even if she shouldn't, it was all still true.
/ Oh, we all need a Hallmark Ending,
And a change of Heart.
Lets Rewind, and Rewind... ll
TBC...
-
So Like I said, starting the next chapter we're gonna go backwards in time, sort of explain how they got to this point. If anything is confusing I don't mind explaining. I sort of blame the fact that I'm a history major, and as I was working the past few weeks researching for one of my last classes, me and my Prof. started to discuss the essence of History. We finally came to the agreement that people always have a choice, and each choice -whether they realize it or not- can change their lives. So we study history to understand those choices my going backwards in time and piecing it together to make a story. Does that make sense? Does this fic make sense? I don't know, you tell me. LOL
