"Look, Brooke, I'm not asking her out on a date" I insisted, despite the smirk the red head was giving me over her shoulder. "I'm not doing this anymore. I don't want you dating other guys, and I sure as hell don't want to be dating other girls" I finished will all seriousness. I was so sick of this non exclusive shit Brooke wouldn't give up on.

"You say that now" Brooke stated, before spinning around to walk away. I grabbed her arm and spun her back towards me. The look on her face showed that she was nothing short of pissed off, and I knew that I, once again, was the cause of it.

"Brooke! How many times do I have to apologize before you understand that I only want you!?" I exclaimed, becoming angered myself. Peyton and I were over and done with. That was that. Peyton knows that, I know that, and I just don't understand why Brooke doesn't. Her facial expression hardened as her eyes bore into mine.

"I don't know, Lucas. I really don't. All I know is that after you kissed me I spent three months wondering if you were off somewhere making out with my best friend" she admitted, her composure falling further apart by the second.

"Brooke! Seriously?! That's not fair" I insisted, my tone get louder and angrier. I didn't even realize that my hand was still on her arm until she jerked it away, tears forming in her eyes, breaking through my angriness.

"You know what's not fair, Lucas? The fact that you hurt me, and now you are begging me to forget and forgive. It's not fair to me! You can't expect you and me to go back to the way we were before you hooked up with Peyton. You made a choice, and you have to live with it. This isn't my fault, and I'm sure as hell not going to let you tell me my reaction is unfair. If you really love me, you would keep fighting for me" She yelled, before shooting me the deadliest look I'd ever seen from her and stomping away. That's Brooke Davis for you. Before I could even process what had just happened, miss Peyton Sawyer herself appeared at my side.

"What's wrong with her?" Peyton asked, motioning towards Brooke's angered figure that was disappearing into the distance. I shook my head, twisting words around as I tried to figure out how on Earth to reply to that question.

"No idea. It started out as me telling her I want to be with her, and ended with her yelling at me and storming away" I explained, scrunching my face in a confused manner. How do things always seem to fall face first when it comes to Brooke and me? "This whole situation, it just sucks, you know Pey? I love her" I admitted. Peyton bit her lip and nodded. She touched my hand lightly.

"It'll be fine, Luke. She'll come around" She told me, squeezing my hand once before letting go and walking away. Things with Brooke are tough. They always have been, and I can't help but think that they always will be. I groaned once more before heading off to class.

Brooke Davis is a force to be reckoned with. She hadn't spoke one word to me all day; hasn't even looked in my direction. Even Nathan made a remark about it, awkwardly I may add, during lunch. It caused Brooke to scoff, mumble something incomprehensible under her breath, grab a startled Peyton off the chair next to her and storm off. I sighed recalling the event as I pulled up to Peyton's house. I needed some advice. Swallowing my pride, I walked through her door and up the stairs towards her room. Peyton was sitting on her bed, focused intently on her artwork. Luckily, Brooke was nowhere in sight. I knocked lightly on the side of her door to hopefully break up her concentration. She jumped up, slightly startled.

"Oh, hey Luke! What's up?" She asked, and it made me laugh to myself. I couldn't help but feel bad; Peyton seems to always be who everyone goes to.

"Hey Peyton. I just thought I'd stop by because I kind of need some advice about something" I explained, hoping she'd get the hint. She smiled knowingly and put her sketchbook down, patting the bed next to her.

"It's Brooke, isn't it? Come here" She motioned, and I complied. That's what I love about Peyton; she's always willing to help, no matter how much people ask. I walked towards her bed and sat down next to her, sighing.

"We're kinda done. She's not ready to be with me exclusively and I just can't be non exclusive anymore. I don't want to listen to her beg me to go out with other girls and I really don't want to watch her with other guys- but I certainly can't listen to her tell me I'm being unfair. Sometimes things with Brooke are just so hard, I mean, all the time they're hard. It's just like, I don't think it's worth it anymore. Fighting for her this hard. I think I'm more in love with the way Brooke loved me when we dated than I am with Brooke. I don't know, it's just, I'm so done, and so is she. I just wish it could've worked out for us" I babbled, on and on until Peyton placed her hand on my knee to cut me off. She laughed once as she watched me. "What? Why are you laughing?!" I insisted, laughing myself when she began to laugh even harder. She smiled, looking up and calming herself down.

"It's nothing, really. I just think that you've got it all figured out. You're coming to me for advice, but the truth is, the problem is already solved. You just need to deal with it" Peyton elaborated. "Sometimes people just aren't meant to be" She added. "Love isn't supposed to be this hard. You shouldn't have to jump through a million hoops. If things were meant to be with you and Brooke, she would know it too, you know? You've been pursuing this with her, and she loves you, yes, and you love her, but sometimes that doesn't mean you are meant to be" Peyton explained. I had to give it to the girl- she was great with words. I nodded, agreeing with what she was saying. I remembered back to Peyton and my night in the motel room last year; the easiness of it all, until we realized what we were doing that is. Being with Peyton, both as friends and romantically had always been so easy. She forgave me when I made mistakes and we made mistakes together. With Brooke, it was the two of us constantly making mistakes, and neither of us being able to forgive the other.

"Yeah, Pey, I think you've got something. I just remember that night at the motel room in the storm, and every other time we've hung out as well. Even when we are friends, it's just so simple and easy. It's so natural. Where as with Brooke it feels like we have to fight each other for everything" I explained, trying to do my thoughts justice. She laughed once again. "Seriously, Pey?! What did I do this time?!" I asked jokingly, laughing once.

"That's not what I meant Luke! I mean, yes, that is what I meant but I didn't mean us! But you have the idea. I love you and I love Brooke, and I don't think either of you should have to be going through so much turmoil. I swear you two have spent more time yelling at each other than not in the past year and that's really not good for either of you" Peyton explained. I nodded, thinking to myself. I remembered back to when Brooke and I were dating for real last year, and when I kept thinking to myself that I wished I had just waited for Peyton to come around. I definitely fell for Brooke, but Brooke wasn't my first choice. In that moment, I couldn't help but to feel that I'd done both Brooke and Peyton a disservice. Brooke because I had put her through all of this and now I'm not actually sure that it's her I'm in love with, and Peyton because I think I may actually like her and she's Brooke's best friend. "You okay there? Looks like there's a lot of wheels turning in that head of yours" Peyton added, placing her hand on my upper arm. I turned to look at her, faced with an utter confusion.

Then it happened. I truly don't know why or how, and I'd like to say I don't know who started it but I know it definitely wasn't Peyton. Before I could really register what was happening, Peyton was pinned under me on her bed, our lips on a hot, lustful agenda. I felt her nails scrape up my back as I cupped her face with one hand and moved the other down her side. Our tongues were in a heated battle, and I was so lost that I didn't hear a pair of footsteps walk up the stairs and into the room. That is until a shoe hit my back, causing me jump and consequently hit my head on the post of Peyton's bead. I looked over at the door, holding my head in my hands, to see an extremely angered Brooke Davis. But instead of letting out a string of curses or shouting like I'd expected, she bit her lip hard, and ran out of the house. I heard the door slam hard even from upstairs, and I knew that I should go after her, but I just couldn't.

"Leave" was Peyton's only demand.

"Look, Peyton, I'm sorry-" I started, only to be cut off.

"I said leave" She repeated, more angry this time. She had moved, and was now sitting cross legged in the center of her bed, her head down. I sighed, frustrated with all things related to life, and walked out of her room and down the stairs.

Welcome to my life. Or, as some people like to call it, the Bermuda Love Triangle.