18-year-old Brooke Penelope Davis drove along the stretch to the place she called home. She hadn't been 'home' for almost a year now. There had been no senior prom or graduation for her. Brooke had finally applied to finish up her high school diploma at home on the Internet. Her life had changed so much over the last year. Brooke spent everyday over the last few months missing her friends and family in Tree Hill. Although she and some of her friends were not on the best of speaking terms, Brooke couldn't wait to see them. The only difference would be that Brooke wouldn't be returning home alone. She glanced back at her sleeping daughter in the backseat, and couldn't help but smile

See, Brooke found out she was pregnant exactly a year ago today.

She had gone with the team and cheerleading squad up to Charlotte for the Sparkle Classic. Brooke had spent the two weeks prior heartbroken over her ex-boyfriend and ex-best friend cheating behind her back. But she was beginning to heal with the Classic coming up and Brooke was very excited about her routine. And the weekend was made even better when she won best choreographer. That's where it all started….

Floorboard's filled with baby toys,
An' empty coke bottles and coffee cups.
Drivin' through the rain with no radio,
Tryin' not to wake her up.

Trevor Mulligan had had his eye on Brooke all weekend. For Brooke, it was so nice to have someone that adored her, even for a night. So when Trevor asked her to join him and his buddies after the competition, Brooke was happy to oblige. They hit the clubs and stayed out dancing and having fun. The next thing Brooke knew, she woke up in Trevor's bed, naked. They had obviously slept together. But Trevor was decent about it and they exchanged numbers before leaving to go back to their lives, hundreds of miles apart.

Cell 'phone says "low battery",
God, what if I break down?
I'm just lookin' for an exit with a lotta lights,
A safe little interstate town.

Two months later, Brooke had to make the phone call that every teenage girl dreads. She put off going to the doctor as long as she could. But after two weeks of throwing up every morning and figuring out that she was late, Brooke went to the doctor. After the doctor confirmed her suspicions, Brooke had to tell the father. She remembers bitter sweetly how she spent two hours on the phone with Trevor, both of them crying and talking about what they were going to do. Her friends were suspicious of Brooke's strange behavior before she left. But she never once let on what was going on or what had happened.

Trevor, being much older, offered to get himself and Brooke an apartment and have Brooke move up to where he was going to college to live and raise the baby. He seems to care a lot about Brooke, and they had made a connection that night. Finally after talking to her parents, Brooke decided to move up to be near Trevor and let him help her with the baby. She could never have an abortion. Three days later, Brooke Penelope Davis left Tree Hill, never knowing if she would return. And without any explanation to any of her friends or family there.

Brooke's pregnancy went by fairly smoothly. Trevor made good on his promise, finding them a reasonable two-bedroom apartment. The days were filled with Trevor going to class, to hopefully graduate a semester early. And Brooke reading up on Motherhood and taking care of cooking and cleaning. At night, they would hold each other and Trevor would coo at Brooke's growing belly. Life could not be more perfect. And on July 3, Emily Elizabeth Davis was born, 7 lbs 8 oz. She was the spitting image of her mother, right down to her little dimples. The one feature Brooke found odd was Emily's sparkling blue eyes. But she played it off that they would change, because Brooke's were green and Trevor's were brown. The first time Brooke knew something was wrong was about 7 months into her pregnancy. Trevor began to drink a lot and complained about how they never had sex anymore. But with Brooke being pregnant, it wasn't the easiest task. But that didn't stop Trevor from raising his voice or even a hand to her one night when he was drunk.

The second time Brooke knew something was wrong was about a week after Emily was born. With each day after they came home from the hospital, Trevor became more and more agitated. He would complain about crying and the fussing and the constant attention a baby deserves. That Saturday night, Trevor went out with his buddies and got trashed. He came stumbling in early morning and woke up Emily, who had finally fallen asleep. He then proceeded to slap Brooke when Emily fussed, telling her to shut the baby up. It soon became routine for Trevor to go out, get trashed, come home and expect the apartment neat as a pin and dinner on the stove. Finally, after six months of constant abuse and neglect, Brooke had had enough. One night while Trevor was out drinking, Brooke packed her and Emily's things, and left….

Just a cheap hotel,
with a single bed,
And cable TV:
Is good enough for me an' Emily.

And that's' basically how Brooke Davis wound up coming 'home'. She hated that it took all this time and courage to finally leave Trevor and come back when she belonged in the first place. But all Brooke could do now was make the best life she could for her and her daughter. And that meant going to Tree Hill….

Brooke pulled up in front of the all too familiar Café. She smiled as she saw Haley James (she didn't know Haley and Nathan had gotten married) and Lucas Scott behind the counter. They both looked the same, except for Lucas' hair was buzzed and Haley's was a little lighter in color.

Some day, when she's old enough,
She's gonna start askin' questions about him.
Some kid at school brings his Dad for show an' tell,
An' gets her little mind a-wonderin':

Neither one of them noticed who had walked into Karen's Café after a year of disappearing. Brooke kept the baby carrier with a sleeping Emily by her side, out of plain view. And since Lucas and Haley were behind the counter, they didn't notice it. it wasn't until Brooke spoke, that they recognized her:

"Can I get a hot chocolate to go, please?" Her voice was strangled and low, expecting them to freak out. She wasn't prepared for what happened next.

"Where's my Daddy? Do I have one?
"Does he not love me like you do?"
Oh, maybe I'll find someone to love the both of us,
An' I'll tell her when she's old enough to know the truth.

Both Lucas and Haley's mouths dropped when they saw the girl in front of them. They thought their eyes were playing tricks on them at first. But there in front of them was Brooke Davis, in the flesh. Sure, her hair was slightly shorter and she had gained a few pounds. But it was Brooke. They quickly noticed the cuts and bruises on her face and arms, along with the nice black eye that Trevor had adorned her with.

"Brooke, oh my god…" Haley squealed. She quickly ran around and pulled her friend into a hug. Brooke quickly set the baby carrier down and embraced her friend.

"It's been a while Tutor girl…" Brooke couldn't help but feel at home here. She smiled for the first time in months and her eyes filled with happy tears.

"Brooke, where have you been? What have you been up to? Why didn't you tell anyone you were leaving?" Haley spat question after question at the brunette. Brooke bit her lip, not sure if she could tell them anything right away. So she gave them the best answer that she could for the moment:

"I just had to get away…" Brooke's eyes began to well. She stole a quick glance at the baby, who was still sound asleep. Her eyes then met those of her ex-boyfriend. Those deep-sea orbs began to suck her in instantly, like she had never left.

Will it break her heart?
Will she understand,
That I had to leave?
That's what was best for me an' Emily.

"Brooke…." Lucas breathed out. He was still in shock that his ex-girlfriend was back home. And she looked beautiful as ever. He was however concerned with the bruises and scratches, but decided against questioning her on that just yet. There would be time for explanations.

"Hey Luke…" Brooke smiled softly "Long time, no see …" She tried to play off her disappearance.

"Come here Pretty girl…" Lucas motioned for her to give him hug. Brooke was a little taken back by the warm reception, but decided not to question it. As Brooke slid into Lucas' embrace, she felt home. And neither of them broke apart, until another voice startled them.

"Brooke Davis? Is that really you?" Brooke would know that voice anywhere. It was the voice of the one person Brooke considered to be her mother. Karen Roe stepped out from the back room and quickly embraced the girl she thought of like a daughter. Brooke returned the hug and looked over to see the questioning gazes that the other two teenagers were giving her. Her eyes followed theirs, and she quickly picked up on what they were staring at.

"It's been a long year, you guys…." Brooke said with a sigh, and bent down to check on her daughter. Emily was sweetly sleeping in her carrier, her cheeks rosy and warm and her little chest moving up and down in an even motion. She looked back up and sent Karen a nervous glance, which told the older woman that Brooke had a long story to tell. Seeing that the other two teens were still in shock, Karen spoke up.

"Why don't I get you two something to eat, and then we'll talk, ok?" She asked the young girl. Brooke nodded watched as Karen went toward the back, still remembering Brooke's favorite without her saying and Haley silently went to fix Brooke some hot chocolate. Brooke quietly picked up the baby carrier and went to the booth in the corner and got comfortable with her daughter. Lucas' gaze never left the brunette, his mind racing with many questions.

That house was never clean enough;

His dinners never warm enough.
Nothing I did was ever good enough to make him happy.
So, I guess, he gave me what he thought I deserved,
but it would kill me if he ever raised his hand to her.

Once Karen returned with food, and Haley and Lucas joined the table; Brooke knew it was her turn to explain.

"Guys, this is my daughter, Emily…." Her voice was never more proud. But even at 18, Brooke Davis was a damn good mother "See, about a year ago…" and Brooke began to explain from the beginning. From when they all went to the Sparkle Classic, to meeting Trevor and sleeping with him. She told them about why she had to leave town so quick. And even now, Brooke didn't regret leaving town when she found out she was pregnant. She just wished now that she had come back sooner. Brooke also told them about Trevor's temper and how he was prone to violence. By the time that Brooke was done, she and the two other women were in tears. Lucas just looked plain pissed off.

"I can't believe she went through that…" Lucas thought. He wanted nothing more than to hunt down Trevor Mulligan and bash his face in. How could he have hurt Brooke? She was the prettiest, kindest, most intelligent person he knew. And the baby girl was precious beyond words.

"So now, I'm back in Tree Hill. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. But this feels like home. And I want to raise Emily here…" Brooke smiled down at her sleeping daughter. Emily was still sound asleep. But the last couple of days before Brooke left were pretty rough, and neither of them got much rest for fear of Trevor.

"Well, I'm sure you don't have a place to stay yet. You're welcome to stay in my guestroom. If you don't mind sharing a bathroom with Lucas…" Karen offered warmly. Brooke was hesitant at first, not sure about being around Lucas so much again, just yet. But deep down, Brooke was grateful for the invitation.

"If it's not too much trouble…." Brooke insisted, "I can always get a hotel room or something" She didn't want anyone to feel put out or uncomfortable. The voice that came next surprised Brooke.

"We would love for you to stay. And we can start looking for places tomorrow" Lucas' voice filled the air. Brooke glance his direction, trying to read his face. It looked sincere and genuine.

"Ok, but I insist on helping out around the house until I find my own place…" Brooke told Karen and Lucas. They both grinned and nodded.

"Brooke, I hate to run. But we all have to get together tomorrow. Nathan and Peyton included. We should all go to the beach or something to catch up…." Haley insisted before she left.

"Sounds good Tutor girl. We can all meet for breakfast in the morning and go from there…" Brooke told her friend. The three teens agreed on it and Haley said that she would in charge of getting Nathan and Peyton there.

An hour later, Brooke and Lucas were pulling up to his old house. Lucas quietly got Brooke's bags out of her trunk and went to open the door. Brooke took care of getting her sleeping daughter out of the backseat. She quietly followed behind Lucas into his old room, which is where Brooke and Emily would be staying.

"I'll set up the port-a-crib real quick…" Lucas whispered. Brooke smiled and nodded, holding her daughter in her arms now. Emily had woken up, as they got inside, hungry. Brooke proceeded to fix a bottle real fast and give it to the infant.

Twenty minutes later, Lucas had the port-a-crib set up for Brooke and looked over to see Brooke humming softly and rocking her daughter to sleep. Emily's little eyes were shut again, into a peaceful slumber. Brooke gently laid her daughter down inside the crib and covered her with a small blanket. She and Lucas just stood there watching the baby sleep for a few minutes.

"I'm just so sorry that all of this has happened to you Brooke. If only we had know, we could have helped in some way…" Lucas' voice broke the silence. He still had questions, and many of them. But all that mattered right now was that Brooke and her baby were home and safe.

"I know, and I've thought about that many times…" Brooke admitted with a sigh "I can't thank you and your mom enough for taking us in…" She told Lucas sincerely.

"Nonsense. We are happy to do it…" Lucas smiled softly. But his expression changed to serious for a moment "Did he ever…." His gaze was on the little baby, sleeping so softly.

"No, he never touched her…." Brooke breathed out, thankful.

"Thank god…" They both said in unison.

Big rigs are throwin' rain on my windshield,
An' I feel like they're laughin' at me.
Fin'lly the storm is lettin' up,
An' the mornin' is breakin' free.

The next morning, Brooke woke in Lucas' old bed. It even smelled the same in the room. The room was basically the same, except for some of the clutter and posters. Brooke smiled as she noticed a photograph on the dresser across the room. It was the five of them all smiling, and Lucas had one arm wrapped around Brooke. They took that one afternoon, hanging out at the beach after school. Brooke broke out of her trance when she noticed her daughter wasn't in her crib anymore. Panic began to over take, until she heard the bedroom door open gently.

"Looking for this?" Lucas smiled as he held a happy Emily, who was sucking on a bottle in his arms.

"Yeah, sorry" Brooke stumbled, shocked that Lucas knew how to take care of a baby "I didn't mean to oversleep…" She told him sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it. I was up anyway…." Lucas assured her softly. They moved over to sit on the bed while Lucas fed Emily, both not sure what to say. Brooke knew Lucas had questions, she only wish she had answers. But there was one thing that she needed to clear up quickly. And as much as it was going to hurt or maybe make Lucas angry, Brooke had to tell him.

"Umm, Luke?" Brooke finally caught his attention. Lucas looked up from the baby and met Brooke's gaze. His smile turned to concern at the serious look on Brooke's face "I, umm, I have something to tell you…" Her voice wavered some.

"Whatever it is Brooke, just tell me…" Lucas said in a simple voice. But nothing could have prepared him for this.

"The, umm, the last fight that Trevor and I had. It was because we found something out…." Brooke bit her lip. Lucas nodded, urging her to go on and explain, "She's not his Luke's…" Brooke just spit it out, not sure what was going to come next.

Lucas' mouth flew open. He wasn't sure what to say or what this meant. If she wasn't Trevor's, then who's was she? Then it suddenly dawned on him. Those eyes; those glass blue orbs, they were his.

"Brooke, are you saying what I think your saying?" Lucas finally managed to speak. Brooke just nodded simply and took the baby girl from his arms, before Lucas fell out.

"Her daddy is right here…." Brooke smiled down at Emily and kissed her little cheek.

"What? How…" Lucas fumbled with his words "How did you find out?" He finally asked.

Brooke's face fell and she sighed "Well, Trevor and I had some blood test done, to get a marriage license…." She got a raised eyebrow. Brooke and Trevor were going to get married? "When the results came back, we discovered that there was no way that Emily could be his. His blood type and hers didn't match…." Her voice got low "There was only one other possibility…." She sighed, "After we left the clinic, Trevor and I went home and fought. He hit me, hard. We fought some more and he stormed out, probably to a bar. When I knew he was gone, I packed our things and headed for the one place that felt like home…." Brooke's eyes filled with tears. She held Emily's little body close to hers and held on for dear life. Lucas was still in shock at first. First Brooke comes home after being gone over a year. And now he finds out that the reason she left had to do with him after all.

"Shhh, it's okay. You two are going to be okay…" Lucas finally tried to console Brooke. He wrapped his arm tighter around her and Emily, allowing Brooke to rest her head on his shoulder as she sobbed.

"I wanted her to know her dad. Her real dad, Luke…" Brooke sniffed "If I had known, I would have come back sooner. I didn't mean to keep you away from her…" Her voice was choked up.

Lucas nodded "I know. I mean, I wish I hadn't missed you being pregnant and all. But you're here now. And we have lot of catching up to do…." He smiled down at the two girls in his arm. Brooke sent him a grateful smile and Emily smiled with her eyes as she happily drank from her bottle some more. It was a special moment for the little family reunited.

"I have pictures…" Brooke finally broke the silence and passed the baby gently back into Lucas' arms. She went over to one of the duffle bags that she brought with her and began digging. She finally pulled out a photo looking album. Brooke walked slowly back over toward the bed, smiling through tears.

"I made a book of everything. Every sonogram, every time I noticed my stomach growing a little more. Even the little shower that Trevor's mom's friends gave me…" Brooke sniffed "See, you didn't miss it after all…" She and Lucas exchanged a small smile, before he began to look through the scrapbook at all the milestones and important parts of Brooke's pregnancy and Emily's birth. It hurt a little bit that Trevor was the one that got to be there for Brooke, and that he took advantage of that. But both Lucas and Brooke chuckled as Brooke had put stickers over Trevor's face where he couldn't be seen in the few pictures he was in.

It's a brand new day,
It's a second chance.
Yesterday is just a memory,
For me an' Emily.
Ah.

The next few days and weeks were spent catching up with the gang in tree Hill. Brooke found out that she missed a lot. Peyton and Lucas had dated for a short time while she was away, but quickly realized that their hearts belonged to other people. Nathan and Haley had gotten married. And Haley had just found out she was pregnant the week before Brooke returned. Brooke was also happy to find out that Jake was moving back with Jenny in a couple of weeks and hopefully he and Peyton could be together once and for all. Things just seemed to fall into place pretty smoothly.

Brooke and Lucas slowly began to rekindle their relationship as well. They went on an official date about a month after Brooke returned. And within a week, they were officially a couple again. And little Emily, she was as happy and loved as ever.

Floorboard is filled with baby toys,
An' empty coke bottles an' coffee cups.
Least there's one good thing that he gave me,
An' she's startin' to wake up.

Four years passed since Brooke Davis Scott had returned to Tree Hill. She and Lucas had gotten married six months ago. It was a beautiful wedding with all their family and friends. And today, the small family was celebrating the fact there would be a new addition in about 9 months to their family. Brooke had been feeling under the weather again and it didn't seem to dawn on her at first. But finally after a week of being sick, Brooke remembered when she had Emily. Lucas came home to find a nice romantic dinner and that Emily was staying with her grandmother for the night. He was surprised at first, wondering what the occasion was. The fact that Brooke didn't drink wine with dinner went right over his head. But finally when Brooke gave him a gift bag to open, to which he found a little white stick with two lines, Lucas finally caught on. He was ecstatic.

"Mommy, mommy. Look what I found for you…." Emily said with such enthusiasm. Her soft brown hair blew in the wind. She held out her little hand to reveal several pretty shells.

"They're beautiful baby girl…" Brooke smiled and took them in her own hand "But not nearly as pretty as you…" She told her daughter, as she pulled her into a hug. The family of three, well four, sat snuggled under a blanket. Lucas couldn't help but a smile as he had his two favorite girls with him again.

As the sunset began to fade into the horizon, Emily looked at her parents with her sparkling blue eyes and spoke "I love you mommy and daddy…" Brooke and Lucas' heart melted as they looked down at their little girl.

"We love you two baby…" Brooke held her daughter as she leaned against Lucas' chest with a content smile.

This was best for her and Emily….

Love it? Hate it? Wanna see it as a story? Let me know! Please R & R. Just a little something that I had been working on for a while...

Love you guys!

Laura