Okay, so as you can see, I've decided to continue this story. There's been a few amazing stories about AU Brucas Season 5 or 6, and I got inspired to do my own. This is definitely a bit different from those typical fanfics, because it takes place 2 years after graduation and not four. I'm thinking about doing a time jump, but I'm not sure yet. I hope you like this chapter! Review and let me know what you think! :) Also, for those who read The Good Life, I've been having writers block, plus I'm trying to work on the YT series for it, but I promise I will continue it!

Also, I'd like to give a couple shout outs to those who reviewed the first chapter of Never Let You Go:

Katexonetreehill: Thanks for the suggestions! I'll definitely keep that in mind, and thanks for reading :)

Nikki593: Yes, there will definitely be some drama coming later in the story. Everyone will be reuniting in Tree Hill very soon, so stay tuned! Thanks for reviewing.

bjq: Thanks for reading and inspiring me to continue this! Reviews like yours help keep me going :)

aimee: Thanks for inspiring me too continue this as well. Means a lot that people actually read my stories!

wrestlingfan29: Thanks for reading! I've never thought of myself as that great a writer, so thanks! It was tough to decide whether to continue this because I liked it as a one shot, but I figured I have nothing to lose. Plus, I didn't want to deny anyone some brucas love haha :)

BabyBlueBeauty: Thanks for the encouragement, and we can never get enough of those adorable brucas scenes!

dianehermans: We all need our hot brucas love haha :) Thanks for reading and keeping up with my stories! You're definitely my biggest follower!

The Morning After

Lucas nuzzled closer into Brooke in his sleep. Her eyes fluttered open at the movement. She had her back to him with her legs curled, and Lucas was snuggled up against her with his arm draped over her. For a moment, Brooke had forgotten everything that happened the previous night. She turned softly to look at the man in her bed, and everything came flooding back. It wasn't a dream. This had actually happened.

Holy shit…this actually happened… thought Brooke, I fucked my best friend's boyfriend…well ex-boyfriend…just hours after they broke up.

Brooke wanted to stay in his arms for the rest of the day, but this couldn't happen. Last night, everything that had happened between them felt so real and honest. She was happy and content, but a huge part of her felt guilty. She tried to make herself believe that they had both been drunk. Lucas had to have been drunk from all the champagne they had. Otherwise he wouldn't have said all those things to her just hours after he had proposed to her best friend…or almost proposed, and Brooke wouldn't have admitted everything she had to him. Brooke kissed Lucas' forehead before sitting up in bed. She lifted the covers, careful to not disturb his peaceful slumber, and got out of bed.

Lucas opened his eyes at the feel of Brooke's lips. Her attempts to not wake him obviously failed. He smiled to himself as he watched Brooke's naked form walk to her closet. She threw on a robe and headed towards the bathroom door.

"Hey pretty girl," Lucas greeted her as he sat up in bed.

Brooke stopped in her tracks in front of the bathroom door. She remained with her back to him looking towards the floor. She hoped that she would have time to think and process everything before having to face him. Now they would have to deal with the consequences of their drunken hookup, or at least what she hoped was just a drunken hookup.

"Hi," she said softly.

"What's wrong?" asked Lucas noticing how tense she was. He threw off the covers and grabbed his boxers off the floor to slip them on. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed, urging her to face him.

"Nothing," she lied, "I'm just gonna take a shower." Brooke turned her head to the side, peering at him from the corner of her eye. "You can leave whenever," she stated unenthusiastically.

Lucas winced in confusion at her words. "What?" That was all he could manage to get out. Brooke finally turned around to face him.

"Look, I know what last night was," insisted Brooke, "We had been drinking and…it was a mistake. You don't have to say anything." Brooke shrugged after finishing. It seemed as if she were trying to convince herself more than she was trying to convince Lucas.

He shook his head in disagreement at her words. "Brooke, last night was not a mistake," argued Lucas as he walked over to her. Lucas couldn't believe that she thought what they shared was just a one night stand. She would never be that to him. It wasn't some drunken mistake that he regretted. "It wasn't just some random one night stand that I'm going to forget about and move on from. I want to be with you," he continued.

Brooke could feel her heart beating faster than normal as he spoke. She locked eyes with him, and she could see the hope in them. "Lucas, you and Peyton broke up yesterday," replied Brooke trying to go about this rationally. She needed to think with her head and not her heart right now. "We can't just be together all of a sudden," she went on, "It's not that simple."

It could be that simple…thought Brooke after she spoke. Screw Peyton and her damn feelings. What about my feelings and my heart? I could be with Lucas right now, and we could be happy, right? No, I won't do that…because I won't do the same thing she did to me. Even though they are broken up, I can't be this person.

Lucas could feel her slipping away with every word, and he didn't want that to happen. This couldn't be what she wanted. He saw the love in her eyes last night, and even now.

"You want this just as much as I do," Lucas returned, "I can see it in your eyes right now."

Brooke looked down avoiding his gaze. He always had the ability to see right through her.

"Peyton's my best friend. I love her, and even if you don't want to admit it right now, so do you," Brooke acknowledged, "I can't do this to her."

"You can't or you won't?" questioned Lucas. He would never be able to understand Brooke and Peyton, their friendship. It was so surreal to him how Peyton could hurt Brooke so much and be easily forgiven. Then again, part of that was his fault. Brooke would always put everyone else's feelings above her own. He loved how selfless she was, but sometimes he wished she was just a little more selfish. This was one of those times.

"Both I guess," answered Brooke. Lucas swallowed at her answer. He knew he couldn't change her mind right now, because her stubbornness was getting the better of her. He looked down at her hand as she slipped the ring off that he had given her last night. Seeing her take it off made his heart melt, because he wished that they really were engaged. He had pretended that they were the entire previous night.

Brooke stared at the ring she held between her fingers. She wished that Lucas really had proposed to her last night, because the evening they spent together felt too real to give up. She couldn't let herself give in to him though. Brooke grabbed Lucas' hand and placed the ring into his palm. He closed his fingers, and Brooke dropped her hand away from him.

"Brooke, I love you…" began Lucas.

"Luke…" said Brooke trying to stop him. She knew he was about to give her another one of his amazing speeches that always touched her heart and soul.

"Let me finish, please," he said sternly. Brooke nodded to let him continue. "I love you, and I know you love me too. You don't have to say it right now, but I'm gonna fight for you. I know I've promised you this before, but this time is gonna be different. I'll never let you go again."

"I can't be anything more than friends with you right now," sighed Brooke. Truth is that was all her heart could handle. Lucas nodded at her reply.

"Okay, we'll be friends then," he accepted. Brooke half smiled at him, knowing that friendship could never be enough for either of them, but it would have to do for now. "I am still the guy for you Brooke Davis, and one of these days you're gonna realize how much I love you."

Lucas wanted to wrap his arms around her, but he knew that would be too much for that moment. He would take it slow, and he would prove to her that they could work.

Brooke grabbed her dress and undergarments from the previous night off the floor and tossed them onto her bed. Lucas slipped on his jeans and threw his shirt back on. He looked over at Brooke as he buttoned it up. She was leaning against the bathroom doorframe watching him.

"How long are you staying in New York?" she asked him.

"Just a couple of days," answered Lucas watching her reaction. He noticed that she seemed disappointed. "It could be longer depending on how things go with the book."

Brooke nodded in response. "I should go take a shower and…get ready for work," muttered Brooke.

"Right, of course," returned Lucas. He looked over at the digital clock next to the bed. It was almost eleven in the morning. "I have to get going. I have a meeting with Lindsey," said Lucas.

"Okay," she returned with a melancholy tone.

Lucas headed to the bedroom door to leave.

"Can I call you? Maybe we can do something tonight?" suggested Lucas stopping in the doorway.

She knew he was being sincere and trying to uphold their friendship agreement, but she felt like it would be too soon after everything. This was all just happening too fast for her.

"I can't tonight," answered Brooke. She immediately saw the disappointment in his face, and it killed her. "But call me. Maybe we can grab lunch tomorrow or something?" proposed Brooke.

His eyes lit up, surprised that she had even made the offer. They each muttered a quick goodbye before Lucas left. Brooke stared at the empty doorway where he had stood, wondering what could become of this.

For now, she had to go to work and deal with Victoria. Luckily, she had her good friend Rachel there to help her make it through the day.

Brooke stood in the elevator waiting to get to her office floor. Victoria was going to kill her for being late. Brooke checked the time again, it was 12:08. Finally, she reached her floor and the elevator doors opened. Brooke stopped at the receptionist desk on the way to her office. She grabbed her mail and went to her office.

"Brooke, where the hell have you been?" questioned Victoria Davis. Brooke looked up to see her mother sitting on her desk with her arms crossed. "We have a meeting with the Macy's executive at noon, and it is 12:10 right now. Not to mention, you need to check on the models that are being fitted for the runaway rehearsal!" exclaimed Victoria in anger.

"Okay, sorry, I overslept," sighed Brooke annoyed.

"Overslept?" repeated Victoria incredulously. Brooke just nodded. "There are photos in every magazine and on every website of you and that boy all over midtown together! Please tell me you were drunk, because I swear if you marry this boy then I'll…"

"Relax, Mom!" Brooke cut in, "It was just a joke."

"Oh…good," returned Victoria softly, "You have far too much to lose, especially now with the magazine and the couture line."

Brooke rolled her eyes as she looked away from Victoria. She did not need to be lectured about her decisions by a woman who wasn't even there for most of her life, especially when it came to her relationship with Lucas. "Mom, can we just go to the meeting now?" suggested Brooke.

"Of course," replied Victoria grabbing folders off of Brooke's desk, "We're already late, and call me Victoria. I told you I hate that whole mom thing."

Brooke followed Victoria out of her office into the conference room. The meeting seemed to last hours, although it was only about forty five minutes. It was successful despite the fact that Brooke was distracted. She couldn't seem to focus on anything. All she could think about was Lucas. She shouldn't be thinking about him though, she needed to get back to work.

Brooke sat at her desk and grabbed her sketch pad. She knew there was something else she was supposed to be doing, but sketching seemed like the best way to clear her head. She had all of these ideas floating around in her head, and she needed to get them down on paper. She was so caught up in her work that she didn't even notice when Rachel had come in.

"Hey slut," beamed Rachel as she plopped down on the couch in Brooke's office.

"Hey," returned Brooke without looking up. Brooke set her sketch pad down and looked over at the phone on her desk. She had four calls on the line, and apparently her assistant, Millicent, wasn't taking care of it. Brooke sighed as she ran her fingers through her newly short cut, brown hair, not wanting to deal with whoever was on the end of those lines.

"You look stressed," noted Rachel taking in Brooke's features. She wished there was more she could do to help Brooke with the company, but she was just a model.

"You could definitely say that," agreed Brooke relaxing in her chair and finally bringing her eyes up to look at her friend.

"We missed you at the fitting and the rehearsal," said Rachel. Brooke mentally cursed herself for forgetting to check on the models. "Bitchtoria was pretty pissed," added Rachel.

"Shit, I completely lost track of time," she groaned in response.

"What's going on with you today?" asked the red head worriedly, "You're usually so on top of things like this."

"I just have a lot on my mind right now, that's all," answered Brooke nonchalantly. Brooke knew she was caught once she saw Rachel's mouth curve into a smile. She was bound to mention it at some point. There were photos of her and Lucas in at least a dozen local magazines. Brooke had been too buzzed and too happy to care about the paparazzi that were following them around midtown.

"Meaning Lucas…" smirked Rachel, "I heard about your night on the town."

"It was nothing," added Brooke before Rachel could imply that it was anything more than that, "Just two old friends hanging out. He's getting his novel published."

Brooke couldn't help but smile as she said this last part. She was proud of Lucas, and she knew he was going to change the world, just like he said she would.

Rachel eyed her friend curiously. "You fucked him, didn't you?"

Brooke's mouth dropped open at the remark. She didn't know how to respond. Rachel knew her too well. Luckily, Brooke didn't have to say anything as Rachel continued. "I guess that would be pretty ridiculous, though, considering he's with Peyton."

"Actually, they broke up," Brooke found herself throwing in.

Rachel's eyes lit up at the comment, and she smiled knowingly at the brunette. "So, you did sleep with him," beamed Rachel.

"I never said that," Brooke quickly replied.

"You haven't denied it either," acknowledged Rachel. Brooke sighed deeply as she glanced away from her friend. "Oh my God, you did!" exclaimed Rachel jumping up from her seat, "I want details, tell me everything!"

"We are so not talking about this right now," said Brooke fumbling with random papers on her desk.

"Fine, I'm coming over for dinner tonight, and you can tell me all about it," smiled Rachel, "I'm not taking no for an answer, so don't even try to un-invite me."

"Rach, I kind of want to be alone tonight," returned Brooke trying to avoid explaining what happened between her and Lucas.

"As if I'm going to let you spend a perfectly good Saturday night alone," said Rachel, "I'll see you tonight, bitch!"

Brooke watched as Rachel skipped out of her office. Rachel was not going to let this go. And the worst part was…Brooke didn't think she would be able to let it go either.

Lucas typed vigorously on his laptop editing his novel. His meeting with Lindsey had gone surprisingly well, although she wanted him to make so many changes, which he didn't completely agree with. He couldn't stop thinking about Brooke. Last night was so surreal and unexpected, but he didn't think it would end so quickly. His feelings for Brooke came back in an instant, and he realized that he had never truly gotten over her. He never would. She wanted to be friends. He would respect that, but he didn't understand it. Then again, their relationship was never that easy for anyone to understand, even them.

He was shaken from his thoughts when his cell phone rang. His heart skipped a beat, hoping it might be Brooke, but it was just Haley.

"Hey, Hales," said Lucas bringing the phone to his ear.

"Hey, Luke how's L.A?" wondered Haley.

"I'm actually not in Los Angeles anymore," corrected Lucas. He began absentmindedly surfing the internet as he talked to his best friend.

"Okay…" muttered Haley confusedly, "Well, where are you?"

"New York, my novel is being published," smiled Lucas as he thought about the moment he first heard the news himself.

"Oh my God, Lucas, that's amazing!" beamed Haley, "I'm so happy for you! How's Peyton? She must be thrilled."

The smile fell from his face as she said Peyton's name. He didn't know what he was feeling, because ever since he got to New York, he'd only had Brooke on his mind. Now he had to tell Haley, and he wasn't sure what to expect. "We…uh…we broke up," he managed to say.

"What?" asked a shocked Haley, "What happened?"

"I went to L.A, asked her to marry me, and she said no," sighed Lucas.

"So, you completely ambushed her," said Haley a little too harshly than she intended to.

"Haley, I really don't need you to lecture me about this right now," interrupted Lucas before she could continue.

"I'm sorry," she returned sincerely, "How are you doing?"

"I was confused, but now I think it's for the best," he replied honestly. Lucas' eyes focused on a photo he had come across on some gossip website. It was of him and Brooke holding hands as they walked along the streets of midtown. "Peyton and I were drifting apart, and it took me one night to realize that we aren't meant to be together," he went on to Haley.

"You two could work it out," tried Haley supportively.

"Not this time," returned Lucas. He then changed the subject, not wanting to talk about Peyton. "How's my nephew doing?"

"Jamie is doing well," answered Haley knowing not to push the subject of Peyton, "He's getting bigger every day. He misses his Uncle Lucas, though. Nathan and I kind of miss you too."

"Funny, I miss you guys too," he said, "I just met with my editor, and she said I'll probably be here for about a week and a half. That way we can get most of the work done in person."

"That's good, hey, are you gonna visit Brooke while you're there?" asked Haley curiously.

"We actually went out last night," smiled Lucas, "She was the first person I called when I found out about my book. We went all over the city."

"Oh that sounds fun," noted a surprised Haley, "How is she?"

"She's great," answered Lucas staring at the picture on his computer screen, "She's changing the world just like I knew she would."

Haley couldn't help but notice the change in him as he talked about Brooke. He sounded hopeful and excited and…maybe in love. "Well, tell her I miss her when you see her again," said Haley.

"Okay…" he replied unsurely. He wasn't so sure if he would get another chance to see Brooke again after what had happened. Sure, she said they could be friends, but he could tell that she was scared.

"I have to go, Jamie's crying again, but I'll talk to you later, Luke," rambled Haley.

"Bye," Lucas quickly put in before Haley hung up.

Lucas scrolled through his address book in cell phone. He stopped once he reached Brooke. He couldn't call her tonight; she already said she was busy. Lucas sighed as he set his phone down. He looked back at the photo up on his computer screen. He needed to see her again. He wasn't going to let her slip out of his life like before. Not again.

A/N: You know the drill! Love it? Hate it? Suggestions? Needs to be longer? Let me know what you think! Review or message me and thanks again for reading :)