Dan Scott and Karen Row stayed together for the first eighteen months of Lucas' life, to have one more daughter born after him. When Dan left, he took their newborn daughter with him and left Karen and Lucas to fend for themselves. Soon after Dan's departure, it was revealed that merely seven months after Lucas was born, Dan fathered a child with Charlotte prom-queen Debra Lee. Conflict arises when Emilia, now a freshman at Tree Hill High, slowly learns the truth about her "half brother" Lucas, and his mother Karen.

. . .

It was the last day of summer. All Emilia wanted to do was sit at home, and sulk. But instead, her friend insisted they spend the afternoon shopping and preparing for the high school party they had received "exclusive" invites to.

"How is it exclusive when we're basically in high school anyway?" Emilia said as she scaled through the shelves of clothing.

Olin looked at her with a blank expression. "Nobody knows us yet, that's why," she said. "I mean, yeah, they know you—everybody knows you—but they don't know me! It's a big deal, okay?"

Emilia rolled her eyes and nodded. Olin didn't care about popularity, or who liked her; but she did care about partying. With a fucked up home life and no real hope in the world, she chose partying as her escape outlet. Whether it was drinking herself into oblivion or dancing the night away, it brought her temporary solace. Emilia knew it was the worst way possible, but she was in no position to judge either.

"Your brother could give us a ride, right?"

Emilia nodded. Nathan wouldn't dare turn her down, especially since she had caught him with a voluptuous blonde that definitely was not his longtime girlfriend, Peyton.

Olin decided on new shorts and a flowy top; simple and inexpensive. Emilia didn't buy a single thing, not caring enough about her appearance that night. She had to be up early in the morning; her dad was forcing her to run with him every morning before school. 6AM sharp, not one minute late. She knew where he was going with it; he wanted her to try out for the girls basketball team. Not a chance in hell, she thought.

. . .

When his daughter came home at three in the morning piss drunk with her best friend in tow, he decided against trying to wake her for a run. He was not known to go easy on his children, especially when it came to sports, but he knew she would be in weak condition. He didn't bother calling the friends parents; he knew they'd be mad either way.

Dan Scott would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous about his youngest child entering high school. It had nothing to do with her capabilities, but more to do with the fact that she would be faced with not one older brother, but two. She was well aware that Lucas was her half-brother, but thankfully, had never made any connection to him. But there were still things that she didn't know—and if he had things go his way, she'd never know.

He heard Emilia and Olin begin to stir upstairs, Nathan still sleeping like the dead. They needed more time to "prepare", as his wife Deb explained it. She was M.I.A as per usual, away on business, expected to return in three weeks. Dan didn't do much disciplining in his mind, but he wished Deb were around to deal with his daughter. With Nathan, he could throw him around a little, pressure him with basketball. Emilia was much more stubborn, level-headed and defiant. Nathan liked to pretend he was, but he knew where Emilia gained her personality traits.

They appeared in the kitchen two minutes before they were scheduled to leave. Nathan was driving them to school, of course. He made his way downstairs five minutes earlier, saving time for a protein shake and a pat on the back from his dad. All to do with basketball, of course.

Olin had no qualms about her appearance at the Scott household; she basically lived there at this point anyway. "Hey Mr. Scott," she greeted him casually. She had tried to call him Dan once, and it didn't go down well. Dan was stern and conservative, unlike Emilia's mother Deb. Olin much preferred it when she was home, other than the fact that she actually gave a shit what they did and made effort to punish them for partying.

Before they left the house, Dan pulled Nathan aside. "Keep her away from Lucas, you hear me?" Nathan nodded his head. "I don't want him anywhere near her. They're not to be associated; and neither are you two, for that matter."

. . .

"I really hope this year doesn't suck," Olin whined on their way to school. Nathan blasted obnoxious rap music, giving Emilia an immediate headache. Nathan and Peyton had had a falling out at the party the previous night, so she made her way to school separately.

"Do you think dad's really going to hound me about basketball?" Emilia asked her brother. He shrugged without a response. "I mean, it's different for you—you're the son, it's sort of expected. You'd think he'd try and force me into cheerleading instead, like mom. I'm not an athlete; I'm sure as hell not a cheerleader either."

"Just don't bring it up."

"You're real talkative this morning. Come on, Olin and I are the hungover ones. You're just pathetic."

Olin let out a laugh, and soon enough, they were pulling into the parking lot. Em had been there enough times to know her way around, and was especially familiar with the gymnasium.

By second period, Emilia was exhausted. She had lost count of how many people asked, "Are you Nathan Scott's little sister?" The girls asked if him and Peyton were finished for good, and Brooke had almost suffocated her with her hug. It seemed as if Emilia had no choice but to sit with her at lunch, which struck her as odd since she was of course a freshman.

During third period, she had gym class with Mrs. Tan. Due to a mix-up in timetables, Junior PE had been scheduled for the same block. When she stepped out of the changing rooms, she slammed right into a tall figure.

"Mother fucker," she cursed, her head already cursing her for the night before. "Sorry."

She looked up at the boy. Lucas. Her half-brother, Dan's life before her and Nathan. She felt bad for him and his mother, the way Dan had treated them, leaving them high and dry. It wasn't right, and she knew that. But Lucas had always looked at her like she was a piece of scum, so her feelings towards him lately hadn't been warm. She'd done nothing to him, and planned to keep it that way.

But today, Lucas had a change of heart. "Emilia, right?"

She nodded. It seemed like a rather awkward exchange, given that they were siblings.

"Good luck this year," he smiled. "Make it count."

With that, he walked into the boys changing room, leaving her stunned and confused.