WELL ALL THE AMAZING REVIEWS MADE ME UPDATE SOONER THAT I THOUGHT.
I WANT TO THANK ALL THE PEOPLE THAT GAVE ME REVIEWS, ALERT MY STORY, ME AS AN AUTHOR AND OF COURSE PLACED THIS PROJECT AS FAVORITE, ALSO MY ANONYMOUS READERS. SO THANK YOU: BJQ(MY FIRST REVIEW), DIANE HERMANS, ARTEMI, PRINCESA KARLITA411, LOVE ME SOME JULIAN, THE TODDSTER, DDBDDB123, ILY BRUCAS, xMITSUKIMOONx, MONKEYLOVER012, EXOTIC LIL´MAMI, BDAVISRULZ, HALEYDAVISBAKER, CHRISTINE, BDAVISLSCOTT23, ETFANALLTHEWAY, KELLY-STARFLY, NIGHTLYEVILTM, TANYA2BYYOUR21, ARUBAGIRL0926, OTH-BRUCAS-LOVE, GOSAL11444, BRUCASFAN4LYFE, MARRYROYALTY, BERT, BRUCASFOREVER1418, JENN, BECS AND MICKEI.
I WISH TO THANKS MY WONDERFUL BETA / TRANSFORMER CASEY FOR THIS GREAT CHAPTER AND BECS FOR TEACHING ME HOW TO UPLOAD CHAP.2 SINCE I DIDN´T HAVE A CLUE LMAO. BY THE WAY I REALLY LIKE THIS CHAPTER, PLUS THERE IS AN INSIDE JOKE IN IT(I HOPE YOU WILL CATCH IT)
I FORGOT TO TELL YOU GUYS IN THE OTHER CHAPTER THAT THE STORY WILL HAVE SOME TIME JUMPS BUT IN EVERY TIME JUMP I WILL TRY TO STAY FOR A COUPLE OF CHAPTERS.
DISCLAIMER: I DON´T OWN ANYTHING ABOUT OTH. IT ALL BELONGS TO MARK SCHWAHNN, THE CW, WARNER AND TOLLINS - ROBBINS.
I DON´T EVEN OWN THE SONG THAT BELONGS TO NICK LACHEY, AND HIS RECORD COMPANY.
HERE IT IS.... ENJOY AND PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW, THAT IS THE BEST GIFT YOU CAN GIVE ME.
What's Left of Me
Chapter Two
"Brooke…?" Rachel asked softly, moving towards her friend in worry. This was such a life changing moment and no one should have to do it by themselves. "What does it say?"
Rachel's raven haired friend was in a state of shock, unable to move or pronounce a single word as her eyes remained glued to the outcome on the small white stick.
"Brooke, what does it say?" Rachel repeated her question, worried about her closest friend.
"I'm…I'm pregnant." It took Brooke another minute to begin to speak coherent words, and when she finally looked towards her friend, Rachel noticed the tears in her eyes.
Rachel grabbed the stick away from her friend, forgetting what bodily fluids covered the stick. "You're pregnant." She found some need to unnecessarily repeat her words. "I told you so." She added with a Gatina smirk.
"'I told you so' is not helping me." Brooke snapped at her friend slightly, "Rach, what am I going to do?"
"Do what you want with it, but first you should probably tell Luke."
"That's not helping me either, why would I tell Lucas?" Brooke had an excuse to be a grumpy bitch now.
"He's the father of this baby. Isn't he?" Rachel raised one eyebrow to rile up her friend. Brooke, after all, used to be just as wild as Rachel.
"Because," Brooke sighed, finding the right words to explain. "If I told him, he would do the right thing which would be to stay with me, if not marry me. And I know that deep down who he really wants is Peyton."
"How would you possibly know that? That boy is nuts over you, he's probably heart broken that you ended things with him; thinking about you and not…Peyton." Rachel shuddered as she spoke the blonde girl's name. The two did not get along.
"I know it. Period. I want someone to stay with me because he really loves me, and not because of some baby."
"Did it ever occur to you that all Luke wants is you, and that he just wants to be friends with Peyton?" Rachel knew that it was her friend who broke up with Luke, and she hated knowing that Brooke was still madly in love with him.
"In this triangle of death," Brooke referred to the love triangle that had been going on between herself, Luke and Peyton for a year. "Friendship just doesn't exist. Plus, Peyton has already told me that she's still in love with him and every one knows what Peyton wants, Peyton eventually gets. Everyone and everything she hurts along the way is just collateral damage."
"Because you always let her get what she wants." Rachel's voice was rising in annoyance.
"Rach just shut up." Brooke was on her last nerve. "All I want is your help, and your silence. No one, especially Luke can know about this."
"Fine, but if I'm in this for the whole thing, I'm going to become a god mother." Rachel sat down next to her friend and wrapped her into a comforting embrace.
Brooke's mind flashed to the future, of her friend turning either her daughter or son corrupt.
"We'll see how the god mother thing goes."
- - -
"Can I stop now?" Luke collapsed into the swivelling office chair that was positioned in front of Peyton's computer, a thin layer of sweat covering his body after spending the better part of the afternoon moving heavy objects around her room.
"I guess." Peyton collapsed on top of her bed, unaware of how hot the room had become until now.
"I talked to Brooke last week." Peyton spoke after a couple of minutes of comfortable silence, the topic of conversation coming out of nowhere and surprising the male.
"How'd that go?" Luke had started to casually look through the CDs that had been left littered against the desk. He knew that the relationship between the two women was strained and after that night, it would have been close to ruins.
"Not great. I wanted to explain about what she saw." Peyton was picking at the loose threads of cotton on her bed spread.
"How'd that go?" Luke repeated his previous question. "When I tried to explain, she refused to listen."
"Well, she listened to me; she just said that she didn't care anymore and that it was over between the two of you."
The sad, pathetic expression that Peyton saw flash across Luke's features was all the confirmation she needed; and she knew who had ended it with whom.
"Did she give you a reason?" Her voice had suddenly quietened and softened, playing the role of caring friend.
"She said she didn't miss me anymore." Luke spoke after a minute, still trying to make sense of the reason.
"I don't know Peyt," He sighed, "she did say that she was over what happened that day in the library, but if it's not that then I don't know what it is."
"I'm sorry Luke," Peyton jumped off her bed and sat on top of her desk, brushing her fingers against Luke's. "You know I'm here for you if you need anything."
"You can call, or come over, anytime." Peyton continued when Luke didn't continue the conversation.
"I love you Lucas." She grabbed his hand softly.
"I love you too Peyt," Luke laughed softly. "We've been through a lot together."
"No Luke." Peyton now had urgency in her voice, eager to get this out now that she had an actual chance. "You don't understand. I've been holding this in for a really long time; I need you to know. I love you; I'm in love with you."
"Oh." Luke's mouth formed a perfect 'O' shape.
The sudden declaration of love left Luke speechless for several minutes, he would never have believed that he would hear that from Peyton after they had managed to get their friendship back on track from the last time.
Peyton couldn't stand the silence, and the shocked expression on Luke's face, it wasn't the reaction she had been hoping for.
"What does Oh mean? Luke, please say something." Peyton needed to know what was going through his head; sometimes the male species was just so bloody unreadable.
"It means I love you too Peyton…as a friend. I'm sorry, but I don't love you the same way."
Peyton's face and expression dropped, but instead of being dramatic she tried to play it off as a joke. "Forget everything I said." She moved quickly away from him, moving towards her bed again. "I feel a little stupid at the moment."
"You're not stupid Peyton. You know how I feel about Brooke; nothing's going to change about that."
"Luke, are you sure? I know how you feel at the moment, but she hurt you really bad – I don't know if it would be healthy to fight for her again."
"You can't help who you love Peyton." The both of them understood the meaning of that sentence.
- - -
The white sterile walls and plastic waiting chairs did little to ease the nerves of eighteen year old Haley James Scott. There were children playing in the corner set aside for games and colouring books, and adults waiting – some in pairs, some alone – to be let into the doctor's office.
The small woman was in the latter category; about to go through this appointment alone in case what she believed was happening was just a figment of her imagination.
She was terrified about what was possibly happening, and there was a part of her that didn't want to confirm the fear; but there was a larger part of her, a louder part of her that needed the certainty.
Her mind was racing, not focusing on what was happening in the waiting room; until the grey haired receptionist called out her name.
"Mrs. Scott." Her voice lacked emotion, going through the routines of her day. "The doctor's ready for you now."
She pushed herself off the plastic chair, and started walking down the long hallway, painted the same white as the waiting room to the waiting doctor's office.
After five minutes of waiting in the office, unaware of what the doctor would be like since she had been too scared to use the doctor she had been seeing since she was a child; the middle aged man entered the room and took a seat at his desk.
"Good afternoon Mrs. Scott; I'm Doctor Murray. What seems to be the problem today?"
"I think I might be pregnant." Haley spoke quickly, before she lost all confidence and quickly excused herself.
If he was at all surprised by her admission and her age, he didn't show it. Instead he smiled and opened her patient file to start writing down some notes.
"How have you been feeling recently?"
"I'm throwing up in the morning, I'm feeling nauseous and light headed all day long and I've been feeling really fatigued lately."
"Okay, well, I'm going to perform a quick exam okay, so I'll take you straight to the next room where you can change, and then we'll be able to determine if you are or are not pregnant."
Haley nodded, and followed him to the next room; wishing that she had just confronted her fears and brought someone with her – Nathan or Brooke; someone to offer her support in this time.
"I'm going to do this as quickly as possible Mrs. Scott; I know you're feeling pretty uncomfortable here." After arranging herself on the examination table Doctor Murray had re-entered the room. "Just remember the most important thing, you need to relax."
Doctor Murray's promise had stuck, and before too long, Haley was back in the office, curled up into herself, waiting for him to return with the results.
"Well, Mrs. Scott." Doctor Murray breezed back into the room, flipping through the results that were already in her file. "It seems as if you are indeed pregnant."
- - -
In the middle of Tree Hill High School's courtyard the figures of the school's hottest girls, Brooke Davis and Rachel Gatina, sat alone at a table, talking quietly while everybody avoided them, giving them their privacy.
"The doctor's given you a month to make up your mind, what are you going to do?" Rachel had accompanied her friend to the doctor's office that morning for moral support, where he had confirmed the news and gave her pamphlets discussing her options.
"Are you going to…?"
Brooke cut off her friend before she could speak the word.
"I don't think I can." Brooke spoke softly to avoid being overheard, playing with her hands. "Not after seeing it on the screen like that, and its Luke's too, no matter what I don't want to lose that."
"I didn't think you'd be able to do that." Rachel knew her friend too well. "You know I'll always be there, but if you're planning on keeping it, I really think Luke should know."
"No." Brooke was not going to talk to Rachel about that subject anymore. "And shut up, Haley's coming."
"Hey Brooke," Haley slid into the seat next to her friend, "Rachel." Nodding to the girl she barely got along with.
"Hey Tutor girl." Brooke brushed all her worries to the back of her head and smiled to her friend.
"Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" She added, glancing at Rachel hoping she got the hint to leave.
"Fine, I was about to leave anyway. See you at the house Brookie." Rachel grabbed the bag that had been next to her feet and walked towards the table full of cheerleaders.
"How have you been holding up?" Haley asked her friend, knowing that the breakup couldn't have been easy, no matter who instigated it.
"Okay. Great." Brooke shrugged, forcing a bright smile. "At least I will be."
Haley wrapped her friend up in a one-armed hug. "Of course you will; you're Brooke Davis."
Brooke laughed at Haley's advice. It sounded so simple and easy.
"What about you?" Brooke quickly diverted the conversation. "You're hiding something from me. I know it."
"Not much get's past you." Haley smiled a little bit, "But I want you to be the first to know, I'm pregnant."
"Haley, that's great." Brooke was happy for her friend; even though they were in the same condition at least she was in a happy, stable relationship.
"I haven't told Nathan yet." Haley admitted
"Why, Hales? He loves you; I bet he'd be really excited about being a father."
"But we're not even out of high school yet, and what happens if he gets that Duke scholarship?"
"It doesn't matter if you two have each other. Just make your famous Mac and Cheese and tell him over dinner."
"I might do that." Haley said after a couple minutes of thought; just as the loud shrill sound of the warning siren sounded. "Come on, we've gotta go."
- - -
The late afternoon air had made way for evening, and the basketball court at the River Court was occupied by the figures of Nathan, Skills, Junk and Fergie.
They were in the middle of a two-on-two game – Nathan and Skills versus Junk and Fergie, with Nathan/Skills kicking some ass 11-5 when the brooding form of Lucas Scott appeared on the edge of the court.
"What are we playing?" Luke asked, a small smile forming across his lips, as he held out his hands to catch the orange ball in Skills hands.
"We're playing ball." Skills spoke when no one else did. "You're not playing anything. Remember your life threatening heart condition dog?"
"One basket isn't going to kill me." Luke hated this basketball ban that had been imposed on him it was ridiculous.
"If basketball doesn't your ma will." Fergie laughed, they all knew Karen Roe since childhood and they knew that she would hurt them if anything happened to her boy.
"So, are we still playing?" Nathan took the ball from Skills hands to move back to the court, but Fergie and Junk didn't move.
"We don't really want to be humiliated again tonight." The two boys didn't move from the edge of the court, and the game came to a sudden stop.
"What's up Luke?" Nathan sat down next to his half-brother; noticing that something was worrying him.
"Nothing." Luke gave a small, grim smile, convincing no one.
The four other boys laughed, "What's going on dog?" Skills repeated the question.
"Well, Peyton decided to reveal all her feelings, about how she's in love with me."
"What did you say?" Nathan asked looking down at his feet, he remembered the time he was in a relationship with the blonde; how hard it could be sometimes.
"Oh."
The others couldn't help it they started laughing.
"How are you going to stay friends with her, when you're trying to get Brooke back? It could really complicate things." Nathan said.
"I don't know if I can…"
The five of them remained at the court for several more minutes, bursting out in random fits of laughter as they talked, before Nathan realised the time.
"I promised Haley I'd be home in ten minutes." He jumped up off his seat and gathered up his bag.
"Be careful you don't trip on the leash." Fergie joked as Nathan walked away.
- - -
It was late afternoon by the time Luke made it back to his childhood home, reluctant to go home after enjoying his walk through the small town he had grown up in.
What he found when he walked through the kitchen door was the last thing he expected. His mother was sitting at the small kitchen table, a cup of tea in front of her; talking lightly to the one man in the world he despised, his father.
"What the hell is going on?" Luke's voice rose angrily, this was the man that left the both of them behind forgetting them the second he had the chance.
"Luke." Karen went to stand up reaching for her son. "Dan's here…"
"I don't want to hear it ma. I want you out of this house now Dan."
"It doesn't matter Karen, I'll leave. We can talk another time…when we have more privacy."
"Lucas Eugene Scott, what was that?" The second Dan was out the house Karen exploded at her son; she had not raised him to be so rude.
"It's Dan ma. The man who abandoned us, you can't just let him waltz back in here."
"He brought back your crib, which I had left on the side of the road. He fixed it up so I could use it for the baby." Her hands stopped on the small bump forming in her stomach.
"One good action doesn't redeem him of anything. He's evil. Men like him can never change."
"People can change Luke. Look at Nathan or Brooke."
"They're different ma." He wasn't about to compare his brother or the love of his life to his father. "They were never evil."
- - -
Nathan unlocked the front door to the small apartment he shared with Haley, the smell of pasta and cheese wafting through the door.
"Hales, I'm home." He called out, surprised when Haley came running from the kitchen, jumping into his arms.
"I love you too babe." Nathan laughed, "Dinner smells good."
"Great." Haley took his hand, leading him to the dining table where the steaming plates of Mac and Cheese were waiting for him.
"Wow, Mac and Cheese. You must be worried about something." He knew Mac and Cheese was Haley's comfort food.
"Well, I do have something to tell you." Haley admitted sitting down and picking up her fork quickly. She wanted some food in her stomach, to calm her nerves before she changed their lives forever.
Nathan started eating slowly, his eyes never moving off his wife.
"Hales, you're worried about something. What is it?"
"I have something really important I need to tell you…and I need you to not freak out."
"Okay…" Nathan put down his fork again; it wasn't like Haley to get this worried about telling him something.
"I know we're both young, and this was never planned…but I'm…pregnant." She ended up just spitting out the word before she lost all confidence in herself.
There was silence in the room, and now it was Haley's turn to carefully study her husband's face; terrified how he would respond.
"Wow." He eventually said, smiling slightly. "That's a surprise."
"Good or bad?" Their dinner was momentarily forgotten.
"…Good, unexpected, but good." Nathan answered carefully. "I got a call from Coach K today." He added afterwards. "I got that Duke scholarship."
"Nate." Haley laughed, "That's great; it's your dream. What did you tell him?"
"I told him I'd talk to you before I answered, but this baby, this baby changes everything."
"Nate, you have to take that scholarship." Haley wasn't going to let him give up on his dream like that so easily.
"But…you…and the baby…." Nathan stuttered slightly, basketball had been a dream but Haley and his family were his life.
"We'll still be here after your scholarship that scholarship won't wait for you though."
- - -
"You know you shouldn't be doing that." The feminine voice surprised Luke as he was stealing in some much coveted hoops while no one was at the River Court.
He caught the ball, spinning around to find the woman he had asked to meet him here, despite the cold air of the night.
"It's not going to stop me though." Luke wasn't about to let Rachel Gatina tell him what he could or couldn't do. "I didn't ask you here so you could order me around."
"Then why did you ask me here?" Rachel wrapped her jacket around her; fighting to keep warm. "It's freezing."
"I need your help, how's Brooke going?"
"Fine." Rachel answered shortly. Even though she believed that Luke should know that Brooke was going to carry his child, she wasn't going to tell him when Brooke swore her to secrecy.
"I want your help." Luke said afterwards when he realised Rachel wasn't going to tell him anymore on his ex-girlfriend. "I need to get Brooke back."
"How do you think I'm going to help you on that? The girl hasn't been listening to me lately."
"Well, say I came around to talk to her, or I wanted to leave a present for her. You wouldn't send me away; you would let me into the house."
"I don't know Luke…" Brooke had been the only one there for Rachel when she had been in dark places, and she felt like if she helped Luke out now that she would be betraying her friend.
"Come on Rachel, this is the only favour I'm asking you for. Brooke won't have to know that you helped me. It'll be a secret."
Rachel rolled her shoulders and shrugged, she wasn't feeling comfortable about this at all.
"I'm desperate Rachel; you know how I feel about her. How she used to feel about me at least…"
How she still feels, Rachel added silently. "I'll think about it." She finally conceded.
