"I'll call you back," Nathan muttered into his cellphone before flipping the device closed and shoving it into his pants pocket. "Peyton-"
"He's getting married!" Her voice rose to a shriek and Nathan winced.
"Peyton-"
Again he was interrupted.
"He can't be getting married, Nate. He can't! We're supposed to be flying to Tree Hill and I'm supposed to tell him that I still love him and that someday is now and that I do want to marry him... We're supposed to be together, we're 'True Love Always'... He's not... He's not supposed to marry some other girl!"
She was crying now, tears that she hadn't shed in well over two years freely flowed down her cheeks. And Nathan's heart dropped at the sight of them... He moved towards her, stepping over the puddle of water and broken glass, and pulled her into his arms. He rubbed soothingly against her back, his lips pressed against the top of her head because he was at a loss for words at the moment.
What could he possibly say to this girl? What could he possible say that he hadn't said to her before?
Her face was pressed against his shirt, her tears soaking through the thin material. Her words muffled against his chest. "He's not supposed to be another woman's husband. Our story can't possibly end like that, Nate. Him leaving me all those years ago... It can't end there. It just can't!"
He opened his mouth and said the only thing that came to mind. "I'm sorry..."
And Peyton cried harder as he continued to whisper his apologies, knowing that there was nothing left to say. And she clutched at him, like she had done those four years prior when Lucas had broke her heart. Now, he had not only broken her heart again but crushed her dream... The only dream that hadn't come true in Los Angeles, the dream that she had thought would eventually become reality when they returned to Tree Hill.
She had dreamt of becoming a Scott. Namely, she wanted to be Mrs. Lucas Scott.
But Lucas had effectively killed that dream with the wedding invitations he had sent, inviting them to attend the union of Lucas Scott and Lindsay Strauss...
And, who the hell was Lindsay Strauss, anyway, Nathan couldn't help but wonder as he held his best friend in his arms. While a part of him, a really big part of him, could care less about things concerning his brother, another smaller part of him, tiny in fact, wanted to put a face to the woman that had taken Peyton's place in the older Scott's life. Because then he would be able to express his condolences to her if she did in fact marry his brother. Lucas Scott wasn't worth it, and he just hoped that Peyton would realize that soon...
When she had cried herself to sleep, Nathan picked her up in his arms and carried her to her bedroom. Pulling the covers down before placing her in the middle of her bed. He pulled the covers over her sleeping form, tucking it around her body. "Things will get better, Sawyer," he whispered to her planting a light kiss on her forehead. "I'll make sure they will."
He watched her sleep for another minute before he returned to the other room. He picked up the shards of broken glass and mopped up the liquid that had pooled and scattered. He also decided to call Brooke back, and informed her of what had happened.
"So, what do we do now, Hot Shot?" she asked him after he had finished his story.
And he shrugged. "What we always do, Brooke. Whatever she wants. Whatever it takes."
The line was silent for a moment. A long moment where Nathan began to wonder if the call was dropped before she spoke again. "I"m getting on the next flight to Los Angeles, and I'll be bringing Rachel with me. Will you please call Chris and Jake and see if they're free? Peyton's gonna need all of us right now."
Nathan agreed, wishing Brooke a safe trip and to pass the sentiment on to Rachel before hanging up with her and quickly dialing the number of Chris Keller.
While Jake's friendship had been easy and expected, with their shared love of basketball and Peyton, befriending Rachel Gatina and Chris Keller were not on his list of things to do, but it had happened and he couldn't have asked for more loyal friends. They had been there since the school shooting, concerned about Peyton and grieving over the day's unexpected event (Chris had been there because he was scheduled to talk with the music department), and they hadn't left since.
But, while he and Peyton were in Los Angeles, and Jake was usually with them as well, but he had taken some time to visit his grandparents in Savannah, Georgia, Chris was touring the country and Rachel was with Brooke in New York.
Although they were in different parts of the country now, Brooke was right when she had said that Peyton would need them all. And Nathan knew them well enough to know that they would drop everything just to help their favorite curly haired blond.
"What's new, Nate?" Chris answered after the fourth ring.
"My brother's an ass." He replied and Chris chuckled on the other end.
"I asked you what was new; Lucas has always been an ass."
"Yeah, well, he's an even bigger ass than we gave him credit for."
"What the hell did he do this time?" All traces of humor were erased at that point.
"He's getting married, apparently."
"He sent you an invitation!" Chris asked incredulously.
"Yup."
Chris sighed on the other end. "Please tell me that Peyton didn't get one, too."
Nathan echoed his sigh. "She did, and Brooke, too. I'm gonna assume that Rachel has one, and that another one is laying in a pile on the floor of Jake's apartment."
Chris scoffed. "And, what, mine just got lost in the mail?"
Nathan smirked. "He never did like you."
"Oh, woe is me." Nathan could tell that he was rolling his eyes, it was typical Chris Keller, really. "But, enough about him... I'm actually on my way back to the hotel right now. I'll grab my stuff and hop on the next plane to LA."
"I didn't even ask you."
"You didn't have to, Nate. I care about Blondie, too."
"We all do. See you later."
"Later. Tell Blondie that I miss her!"
Nathan chuckled. "She's asleep right now and she probably won't be awake until much later so I'm sure you'll get the chance to tell her that yourself."
They exchanged a few more words before Nathan was able to call Jake.
"Hello?" Jake Jagielski's distracted voice answered.
Nathan arched an eyebrow. "You busy?"
"Nate?"
"Yeah. Should I call you some other time?" Nathan frowned at the voices in the background.
"No, no... It's fine. We just have family over and they've been gushing over how big Jenny has gotten. It was fine at first, but they've just been going on and on and on. I've just been keeping an eye on her, making sure that she's okay."
Nathan nodded. "I get it. But, I was actually wondering if you could come back to LA soon..."
"How soon?"
"Well, not right now, but sometime in the next couple of days or something. I know you were planning on spending the rest of the summer with your family, but..." Nathan trailed off.
"But what? Nate, what's going on?" Jake sounded both confused and worried.
"It's Peyton. She found out that Lucas is getting married and she's not taking it too well."
"Lucas is getting married?"
Nathan mumbled in the affirmative and next he strained to hear what was going on on Jake's side of the country. He heard Jake letting his family know that it was an emergency and he was needed back in LA and Nathan was grateful for their friendships. He didn't know many people that would drop everything for someone. The fact that he was able to call not only one but five of them (Peyton included) his friends amazed him.
"So I guess I'll see you soon?" he couldn't help but ask once Jake had gotten back on the phone.
Jake chuckled on the other end of the line. "Like I would want to be anywhere else in the world. Peyton needs us, and I'm not going to turn my back on that."
Nathan couldn't help but agree with his friend.
Author's Note: Hmm, I don't really know how I feel about this chapter, but would really like to know what everyone thinks. Please review, it'll be greatly appreciated. =D Also, let me know what you think about the story so far... It's still pretty slow, but it will pick up, I promise!