A/N: Hey guys! Some of you might be upset this is not a William Sawyer sequel or The Return of Brooke Davis. Here's the story (excuse). William wont show me his sequel. Everything I write is no good- hence no WS sequel. One day it will come to me, but that day has not come. The Return, I promised to give you guys when I had a bunch of buffer chapters. That is writing itself well, but I don't have enough buffers to post it yet.
So that brings me to this story, which jumped into my head and begged to be told. I am hoping getting this out and onto paper will allow the muse to flow for the other stories. And since I missed you guys and don't have anybody else to talk to, I decided to go ahead and post this one, so I can write AN's and talk to you guys. I am going to be a normal poster and post chapters as I write it, so we will see how it goes. I have no idea where this story is going, so we will take this journey together. This chapter and maybe two more are golden, but after that, only the muse knows. So I hope you enjoy, and feel free to comment on the experience of my entrance into haphazard posting.
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Chapter 1 California Dreamin'
The sun shone brightly on the two lovers as they lay together intertwined, her leg over his hip, his hand grasping hers tightly. Peyton squirmed as she felt a cool sensation on the tip of her toe, pulling her leg up and working it in between his. Lucas let out a sigh, and without waking, adjusted, making room for her in his space. He was used to Peyton's style of sleeping, and it no longer roused him to full wakefulness.
Peyton frowned as, a while later, she felt the sensation again. It was accompanied by the sound of waves crashing and seagulls cawing.
"Did Lucas get a new alarm clock?" she wondered, reluctant to open her eyes. She loosened Lucas' grip on her hand and rolled, attempting to hit the snooze button on the alarm, only to have her eyes fly open at the feel of sand beneath the palm of her hand.
"Oh my God!" She sat up, looking around at the bright blue sky and birds flying overhead, pulling her gaze to the bright expanse of ocean that she and Lucas were currently lying in front of, on a blanket that was half-soaked as the tide had raised the water level to where they were completely dry the night before.
She reached over and shook Lucas frantically, partly to save him from getting wet, but mostly because there was only one thought floating through her mind, which she made vocal. "Your mom is going to kill you!"
"Wha-?" Lucas said groggily, opening his eyes. He smiled sleepily up at Peyton, the sight of her blond hair, shining like spun gold, blowing in the wind with the sun peeking from behind her shoulder, making her look like something from a dream.
"Do you know how beautiful you are right now?"
"Do you know how dead you are right now?" Peyton huffed, impatient with his lack of ambition to move. She squealed as she was pulled down on top of him, his hand going to the back of her head and bringing it down to place a kiss on her lips.
Peyton instantly melted into him, losing herself in the sensation.
"Mmmmmm," Lucas said, some time later, as they finally came up for air, wetter but uncaring as the tide continued to inch its way up the beach. "So worth it."
Peyton giggled, remembering the day they had gotten detention for a similar move in class. "Maybe she won't kill you. Maybe she'll just maim you- like chop off an arm or something." She joked, content to lay where she was.
"Maybe," Lucas mused. He grinned at her as he placed one arm behind his back. "Would you still love me if I only had one arm?" he teased.
Peyton looked down, her gaze serious. "I will love you forever, Lucas Scott." She said, then grinned, "But I think I'll tell her to chop off a leg instead, cause a one legged man is definitely sexier than a one armed man."
"Ohhhh, yes, and I could get you a peg leg, and a parrot, and teach it to say 'shiver me timbers, and…" Laughing, she scrambled to her feet as Lucas lunged at her, fingers outstretched in tickle mode.
Her shouts of laughter filled the air as they cavorted under the rising sun, without a care in the world, enjoying the time they had with each other, forgetting just for a moment, that all too soon Peyton would be leaving for the summer for California.
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Peyton threw the bags in the car and hopped in the front seat of the Comet, leaning over to drop a kiss on Lucas' lips and then returning to her seat. "So I see you have all your body parts." She reached out and stroked the back of his head. "How mad was she?"
"Not mad at all, surprisingly." Lucas shrugged. "I explained that we were on the beach, lost track of time, and fell asleep. She understood, seeing as how was your last night in Tree Hill and all."
"I love your mom," Peyton said, shaking her head. "I mean, she cooks me a farewell dinner last night, she lets us hang out at the beach late, and she lets you have all your limbs you can still give me good hugs. Man, she is the best."
"Yea, she is." Lucas said smiling. Glancing past Peyton, he looked up at the apartment she had just left. "Just what is taking Brooke so long, anyway?"
"Oh you know, packing for California is no small matter. And apparently, it's your fault she's not ready, by the way." Peyton said, glancing up from the cd's she was browsing through.
"And how does she figure that?"
"Well," Peyton said, "According to Brooke, if you hadn't kept me out all night, she would have been able to ask my opinion on what to bring, and then she wouldn't have had to wait until I got back to start packing."
"But wasn't she with Chase all night?" Lucas said, confused.
"So not the point, Broody." Brooke said, popping up at the passenger side of the car. "I needed P. Sawyer's help yesterday and she wasn't available, so today, you had to wait. Besides, that's the past, and the future is now, and presently you are holding us up."
Lucas grinned and looked at Peyton. "I can't wait to hear this one."
Turning his gaze back to Brooke, he cocked an eyebrow. "And exactly how am I holding you up?"
Brooke looked up at the apartment. "My bags won't walk themselves to the car." Getting into the car regally as Peyton held back the seat for her, she waved her hand dismissively in the air. "Time's awasting Luke, chop, chop!"
Lucas got of the car, glaring at Peyton who was quietly laughing at him behind Brooke's head.
"You are too much, B. Davis." Peyton said, smiling at her friend from the front seat.
"I know, but you guys love me anyway." She said cheekily. "Besides, I've got a hot boyfriend, a best friend all to myself for the summer, and California livin' in my future. There is nothing you can say to me today that will take away my joy."
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"Cancelled!" Lucas said, incredulous.
"Yes. Cancelled. And Brooke's pretty upset about it. It turns out there was something that could take away Brooke's joy." Peyton explained as she made her way to where Lucas was waiting with her carryon messenger bag.
"So what are you guys going to do?"
"Well, they offered us a flight tomorrow night, which is the next flight they have. Apparently you can charter a private plane if you want, but the larger airlines aren't flying. Something about air pressure and wind tunnels or something. And since Brooke is not trying to wait, that is what she is doing now." Peyton just shrugged, well-aquainted with Brooke's world. Impatience and a lot of money ensured that they would be, with 99.9% certainty, flying out sometime in the next hour.
"So what, is the air different for a charter plane?" Lucas asked, confused.
"Well, apparently, they can fly around the danger zones better than a larger plane. The one Brooke is reserving will just have us and the pilot on it, so it's easier to navigate."
"And easier to crash." Lucas said grimly, not liking the idea of them flying when the lager airplanes had been grounded.
"Hey," Peyton said softly. "Its my job to bring doom and gloom. You are supposed to show me the bright side of things."
"That's true. If the pilots are cleared to fly the planes, who am I to say it isn't safe?" he pulled her close to him.
"You'll be fine." He said confidently, lowering his head to kiss her.
They stayed locked in the embrace, oblivious to the traffic of people around him. As he raised his lips from hers, she grabbed the back of his neck, keeping him close, their breaths mingling as their lips drew near to each other, but didn't touch.
"Ask me to stay, Luke." Peyton whispered, her eyes pleading with his.
He slowly shook his head. "I wont. You have to follow your dream Peyton, and I don't want to stand in the way of that. So when you've learned all you can from those big shot producers in LA, you can come back here, and start up your own label."
He nuzzled his nose against hers. "Show them how it's done." He teased, trying to lighten the mood. But she wasn't participating.
Tears glistened in her eyes as she gripped him tighter. "You are my dream, Luke. And it's already come true." She gripped his ears and pulled his face close to hers. "I haven't had enough time to live it yet, and I don't want to miss a moment of us."
At his softening look, she continued rapidly, arms flying. "Hear me out. In a couple years, we'll both go out to California. And we'll get a place on the beach. I'll run coffee and mail to the assistant to the assistant while you sit on the beach all day and write your second novel, because by then you're first one will be a number one best seller."
She grinned as he blushed and hesitated, only to grip her arms and push her away slightly. "Oh, no, wily, you are not changing my mind." He cupped her face. "You will not have me stand in the way of greatness because I can't stand to be apart from you. It's just a summer. And we'll talk everyday, and I'll even get one of those webcams so you can see me while I'm watching you." He leered at her, and she smacked his arm playfully.
"Perv!"
She crossed her arms and pouted, then lifted her head as her name was called over the intercom. "That's probably our flight now. Brooke must have worked her magic." she unfolded her arms and grabbed his neck, pulling him down for one last kiss. It was passionate and deep, and it took Lucas by surprise because it wasn't the kind of kiss he was expecting in an airport, where they couldn't finish what she was well aware of starting.
She smirked as he squirmed uncomfortably. Walking backwards towards the gate that Brooke had passed through minutes earlier, she kept her eyes locked with his as she called out her parting shot. "Just a little something to remember me by."
At his glare, she smiled, and stopped. Running back to him, she pulled him into one last hug. "I love you Luke. And that's not going to change, even though you are forcing me to go to California when I want to stay here with you."
Laying kisses on his neck, she gradually made her way to his ear and whispered, "True Love Always. Don't forget," before pulling away and taking off in a run towards the gate, her messenger bag flapping against her leg.
Lucas held up a hand to wave, only to chuckle as his girlfriend disappeared through the gate without looking back. She had never been fond of goodbyes. "I love you too, Peyton." He whispered to air. "True Love Always."
He thought briefly about chasing her down and chastising her for not giving him time to say it back, but he changed his mind. He didn't want to prolong a goodbye that was already hard to do, and that would cause a scene to get through the security gate- he'd wait until she called him when she landed in Los Angeles. Then there would be plenty of time to tell her.
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Lucas paced the floor of his room anxiously, one ear tuned to the baby monitor, the other to the phone. He had not heard from Peyton when she said she'd call, and to have an excuse to stay up, he volunteered for baby duty so his mom could get some rest. Their flight had left at 1, so, allowing for time to get settled in and eat, he should have gotten a phone call sometime around 9, and here it was, 1 o' clock in the morning, and he was still waiting. He had long since left messages on her cell phone, which had gone straight to voice mail. He shook his head. Knowing Peyton, she had probably forgotten to turn it back on.
A snuffling, then a short whimper, signaled to him that his baby sister was in distress. Having just put her down after giving her a bottle, Lucas knew she wasn't hungry, but that still left the dreaded diaper change. He hurried to her room, tucking the phone in his pocket, and reached into the crib, smiling down at the baby who hadn't even opened her eyes to cry. He murmured softly to her, unconsciously humming a lullaby he had heard Peyton singing the last time she helped with Lily, as he carried her to the changing table.
Holding his breath, he quickly cleaned and changed her the best he could without actually looking or smelling what he was doing. Feeling the need to, he carried the freshly diapered Lily over to the rocking chair and sat, needing the comfort of her tiny warm body cuddled into his, since he was missing his other favorite girl. He'd had a gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach all day, and he really needed to hear her voice and know she was okay and had made it safely to California before he could truly relax. It had only been a day and he was already going crazy without her- what would he do for an entire summer? He was beginning to wish he had taken her up on her offer to stay.
He started as his cell phone rang. Not even bothering to glance at the caller ID, he grabbed the phone and brought it to his ear.
"Peyton?"
"Luke?" Brooke said haltingly on the phone.
Lucas hated the cold feeling he had in the pit of his stomach. He hated even more that it wouldn't go away, but grew larger at the sound of Brooke's voice on the phone. "Brooke? Hey, not that you can't do so, but why are you calling me? Where's Peyton?"
The sound of Brookes tear-soaked voice echoed through the speakers, reverberating through Lucas' ears and head, and he felt his heart free fall through his chest to slam into the pit of his stomach breaking into pieces, similar to the way the phone broke when it fell, crashing to the floor, at the sound of Brooke's voice sobbing in his ear.
"Sh- she's gone, Luke. Peyton's gone."
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A/N: So remember, this is a normally posted fic, which means I have no clue when Im posting next, though I do have an outline for the story. This means reader participation! Where do you think Im going to go with this? And before you guys have dreams of Brucas, noooooo I am not an endgame Brucas, so dont even try it (though they can be friends).
What happened to Peyton? How is Lucas going to react when he finds out? And Brooke?