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"The human heart has hidden treasures, in secret kept, in silence sealed; the thoughts, the hopes, the dreams, the pleasures, whose charms were broken if revealed." –Charlotte Bronte
"Pure love and suspicion cannot dwell together: at the door where the latter enters, the former makes its exit." –Alexandre Dumas Pere
"The more connections you and your lover make, not just between your bodies, but between your minds, your hearts, and your souls, the more you will strengthen the fabric of your relationship, and the more real moments you will experience together." –Barbara De Angelis
"Nothing I've ever done has given me more joys and rewards than being a father to my children" –Bill Cosby
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Nathan woke up to the sound of clatter and clanging. He looked to his right side at the alarm clock. 4:00 AM. What the heck?! Who was even up this early? He glanced over his shoulder and saw that his fiancé was sleeping soundly, not affected by the racket downstairs.
"Ugh god, shut the fuck up!" he grumbled into his fluffy Ralph Lauren pillow.
But the clamor continued. Did Home Makeover come this morning or something? He couldn't take it anymore. Nathan jumped out of the bed, not bothering to put on a t-shirt, his appearance being the last thing on his mind right then.
He stormed down the stairs, curious to who was giving him hell this early in the morning…
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"Damn it!" Brooke squealed as a line of mannequins tumbled down like dominos, one right after another.
Twenty-five different shades and styles of fabrics came that previous night for Brooke to scrutinize. She had thought it would be smart to put each one on a mannequin and decide from there. Unfortunately, her idea hadn't quite worked out the way she had wanted it to. She started at the array of expensive fabrics all tangled up in each other, just lying on the floor as if they cost merely nothing. This was harder than she had expected. But before she could try to fix her disaster, the sound of footsteps and a pissed off voice stopped her.
"What in the world is going on?!"
She rolled her eyes. What did it look like she was doing? She turned around to face her ex-lover with attitude but the sight dried up all the words in her mouth. He was shirtless, his nicely chiseled body in full view. He had unquestionably been working out hard since high school. But then again, he was on the NBA. With the messy dark locks, the irritated look and the exposed abs, Nathan was certainly good for the eyes, or at least her eyes. She definitely wasn't complaining.
He let out a cynical smirk. "I know I'm hot and all, but it's kind of rude to stare. I thought you of all people would know that, Brooke."
Cockiness. The state of being overly self-assertive or self-confident. Aka, being a self-centered arrogant bastard who needs to have his no-good-for-nothing ass kicked. Definitely not attractive.
Brooke rolled her eyes again. "In your dreams…Sorry, babe, but I definitely wasn't checking you out. Actually, I was thinking about how indecent and inappropriate you look. How would precious Nadia feel if she knew her flawless fiancé was walking around in his boxers in front of the decorator she hired for her new house?"
Sarcasm was dripping from her words as she crossed her arms and kinked her eyebrow, ready for him to retaliate back.
Nathan sighed. He hadn't come here to have another fight with the brunette leaning on the couch.
"Look, Brooke, I just want some sleep. I have practice all day today, and I really need some rest. So, can you just turn it down with whatever the heck you are doing?" he pleaded, weariness evident in his voice.
She immediately softened. He did look tired. "I'm deciding on the patterns."
"Come again?" Patterns? Huh?
"I'm trying to decide on the patterns for the curtains. Nadia wanted brown and gold, and there's a lot of brown and gold. There's silk, cotton, nylon, polyester. And then you have the designs. You have plain, bordered, lace trim, rope trim―"
"Let me see," he whispered, cutting her rant off.
She was taken aback. He wanted to see? Just the other day he seemed as if he could care less about the house never the less what color the curtains were.
Nathan gave her a small grin. "You just gonna stand there like a shocked ice sculpture or am I actually going to be able to see these designs?"
"Come on," Brooke responded. A dimpled smile spread across her face, as she motioned for him to follow her. "Oh, and by the way, I don't look like an ice sculpture. I'm definitely hotter than that."
He let out a throatily laugh as he walked behind her, shaking his head slightly. She might've changed after all these years, but you still couldn't take the vivacious Brooke-ness out of her…
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Nadia opened her eyes slowly, the bright yellow rays streaming through the bedroom window directly into her eyes. Definite Ouch. She rolled over in the bed, expecting to see her lover sleeping right beside her but instead he was standing up, changing into basketball shorts and a t-shirt. She instantly sat up, a bewildered expression plastered on her face.
"Baby, what are you doing? It's still morning. Come back to bed."
Nathan looked up from his busy state and gave his fiancé's sleepy face a quick kiss on the lips.
"Morning, Nad. I have practice in ten minutes, and I'm running really late. Reschedule for tonight?"
She let out a long drawn out sigh. Practice Practice Practice. Is that the only thing he cared about? Whenever she wanted to do something…go to the movies together or take a walk in the park or go to a party…he always had practice. Something she wished she could come first before all his basketball nonsense. But then again, wishes didn't always come true.
"Fine. Tonight. Have fun," she leaned up and gave Nathan another kiss before he disappeared out of sight.
Collapsing back in bed, Nadia was full of questions. What to do…what to do…there was a sale at Bloomingdales…or she could buy that new dress she saw at Saks…Jessica had called her over to have a girls day out―
Ding Dong! Ding Dong! Ding Dong!
Guess fate already planned out her morning activities. Nadia jumped out of bed and made her way downstairs, clad in Victoria's Secret Pink pajamas. However, someone else had already beaten her to the door. Instead of intervening immediately, she watched the sight. Curious to why the two were getting along so well…
"Luke!" Brooke cried as she enveloped him into a huge hug. "What are you doing here?"
"Morning, Pretty Girl. Do I need a reason to see my fabulous best friend?" he joked.
Pretty Girl? Best friend? What in the world was he talking about? They met only a few days ago…why the sudden closeness? Oh my god…no! They couldn't be having an affair, right? That would explain the peck on the cheek and the lingering of the hug…
"Of course not! You are welcome at all times," she said, giving him a wink. "How's the blonde whore doing?"
"My wife's good, Brooke. Thanks for asking. Now, what are you doing up this early? You're never up this early."
Winking? Blonde whore? There definitely was something going on. She didn't know what, but there was certainly something. He knew her sleep routine for crying out loud! No guy knows that unless he is either screwing her or visiting her quite often! And what type of guy is he if he lets some random girl call his wife a blonde whore? Nadia was appalled! What type of brother did Nathan have? And what was going on between Brooke who was supposed to be one of the most prestigious, well-mannered ladies and Lucas who was already married to his high school sweetheart?
"Lucas!" Nadia cried as she made her way to the front entrance, surprising both the blonde and brunette in front of her, as they immediately ended all forms of physical contact. "It's so good to see you!"
Nadia Sharp. In Lucas' opinion, she was a gorgeous, sweet girl. Not the brightest of the bunch but had an amazing personality. Was she good enough for Nathan though? Absolutely not. Only one person was and that was the brunette standing right beside him.
"Nadia! So good to see you, too. I just came by to see if Nathan was around. I forgot to give him something he needed for practice."
Oh god. Not again. Was practice the only thing guys talked about these days?
She plucked on a sympathizing look. "He just left two minutes ago, Luke. You just missed him. I would go drive it over, but I'm heading over to Jessica's."
"I can't either. I have a doctor's appointment…―"
"I'll do it," Brooke offered.
The other two head whipped around in her direction, definitely surprised by her proposition.
Nadia instantly softened up. How could she have thought Brooke Davis would be having an affair? I mean, the girl was so sweet and generous! To give up her morning to go give Nathan something for basketball practice. Ah, the hated word. She was an idiot for thinking of such things.
"Are you sure, Brooke? I mean, I know how boring basketball is, and I know you have tons of work to do," Nadia asked.
Brooke gave a small chuckle. "Nah, I'll be fun. I've never been to an NBA training gym before. And besides, the seamstress is right by that road."
Lucas scrutinized the brunette's face. Something was different. Just the other day his brother was making her cry her heart out. Why the sudden happiness or desire? He would have to get Peyton to investigate. Chic flick, carton of ice cream and some gossip would reveal it all.
"Yah, I think Brooke should go. I mean, Nathan really needs these papers."
Brooke smiled. Contraire to popular belief she actually did like watching Nathan play ball. "Okay, it's settled then."
"Yup, it's settled."
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"Lawson, pass it to Scott! Nice play guys! Good teamwork…Lawson, you have to keep your eyes more open and stop hogging the ball. Scott, come over here," the coach of the New York Knicks bellowed out.
Nathan ran to the sidelines, sweat dripping from his forehead, him panting heavily.
"What's up, Coach?"
"There's something different about you today. What is it?"
"Excuse me?" Nathan was taken aback by the question.
"There's something different about your game today. You haven't missed one shot. You seem extra happy. It's a new look for you and I like it. So, what's the cause for this change?"
The young raven-haired man chuckled. "It's just been a good day. I―"
"Nathan!"
Both jerked their heads around to see a gorgeous brunette dressed in a green Juicy Couture dress with a white pearl Chanel necklace and a matching pair of white Chanel sunglasses coming their way.
"Brooke? What are you doing here?" Nathan questioned, very flabbergasted at the sight in front of him.
"Luke said that you left these papers at his place, so I thought I would bring them over," she replied, smiling at the two men.
"Oh, the contract papers! I totally forgot I left them there…thanks a lot, B."
Coach Patterson cleared his throat, not liking being the oblivious to the conversation.
Nathan instantly was brought back into reality. "Oh, where are my manners. Brooke, this is my coach. Coach Patterson, this is Brooke Davis. She's designing the house for Nadia and me."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss. Davis. I've heard quite a lot of good things about your designing techniques from some of my friends."
She gave him a huge dimpled smile. This was the guy who had helped make Nate's dream come true. She owed him more than the world.
"The pleasure is all mine, sir," she sweetly said. "Well, Nate, I'll see you later after practice. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Patterson."
She turned around to leave, but in that moment Nathan only saw one thing. He saw her slipping away…disappearing like she had all those years ago.
"Wait! Brooke!" he screamed out. She whipped her head around, cocking her head slightly to the side. "Do you want to watch for a bit?"
Her eyes started twinkling, and her heart started racing, mirroring the Brooke from the high school years.
"I'd love to."
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He couldn't concentrate. That asshole was flirting with her, and she was flirting right back. Did this look like a freaking hook up party? He watched as she leaned back, her laughter echoing across the gym, her long voluptuous chocolate wavy locks cascading down her back. And all this was for him. Stupid Jeffery Lawson. Asshole.
"Scott! Get your ass over here!" Coach yelled, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.
Nathan dragged his feet over near the bleachers on which Brooke and "the ass" were sitting.
"Yes, Coach?" he grumbled.
"What the heck is going on? One minute you're playing like a pro, the next you're missing every single shot."
"Nothing, okay?" he snapped.
Coach Patterson raised an eyebrow. Did he seriously just talk to him like that?
"Scott, go run two miles. Then, maybe you can get that stick out of your ass and actually play like you deserve it."
"Stick up my ass?! Are you fucking kidding me? That idiot isn't even playing and just sitting there flirting with some random chic," pointing to Larson and Brooke, "but noooo, I'm the one with the stick up my ass! You know what, I'm done!"
Nathan slammed the door shut as he ran out of the gym, furious like scorching fire from the depths of hell. Looks like someone hit a nerve.
"Nathan! Nathan Royal Scott! Stop right there!"
Nathan jerked around to see a livid Brooke who must've followed him out of the gym. He just rolled his eyes and continued to walk away.
"Don't you dare walk away from me!" she screamed.
"Oh, you mean like you did to me?!" he countered.
Brooke stopped in her tracks, a hurt expression crossing her face.
"What's going on with you, Nate? I thought that this morning we were getting along that we were actually starting to be―"
"What? Friends?" he spit out, like the word was venom.
"Yeah…friends…." She whispered. "Why are you suddenly acting like a self-absorbed jerk? This isn't you!"
"Yeah and I thought running away wasn't your thing either but I guess we were proven wrong. Why did you even run away, huh? Was it to flirt with random guys? Was I not good enough? Did you need a better lay? Or did the slut want more guys? I mean, once a whore always a whore right?"
Every word spoken cut deeper and deeper into her heart, breaking her soul piece by piece. She felt like she had been slapped, or even worse, like her heart was yanked out of her. Tears of melancholy and anguish poured down her face one by one as she stared at the monster in front of her. She couldn't take it anymore.
"I can't have children. I'm unable to bear any children because of my accident during senior year. That's why I left. I did it for you. I wanted you to have all those dreams…the NBA title, the large happy family, the huge white house…I left for you," she whispered, each word holding so much emotion.
Brooke broke into a fit of tears as she darted in the opposite direction, running as far as she could, trying to leave the past pains that finally came out. Her secret…the one thing that hadn't been spoken of to anyone in over six years was finally revealed.
He fell to his knees, tears running down his own face, as the realization hit.
The truth was finally out.
And both Brooke Davis and Nathan Scott couldn't run away from it any longer.
Guess life isn't as pretty as it seems.
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"To love is to suffer. To avoid suffering, one must not love. But then, one suffers from not loving. Therefore, to love is to suffer; not to love is to suffer; to suffer is to suffer. To be happy is to love. To be happy, then, is to suffer, but suffering makes one unhappy. Therefore, to be happy, one must love or love to suffer or suffer from too much happiness." –Woody Allen
"The most valuable things in life are not measured in monetary terms. The really important things are not houses and lands, stocks and bonds, automobiles and real state, but friendships, trust, confidence, empathy, mercy, love and faith." –Bertrand Russell
"There comes a point in your life when you realize who matters, who never did, who won't anymore, and who always will. So don't worry about people from your past, there's a reason why they didn't make it to your future." –Anonymous
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A secret. One thing that is kept hidden from the world. One thing that has so much power. One little thing that can change the perfect lives of two people in just one second.
Avoidance. The act of keeping away from someone else in fear or in regret. The exact thing two very people were doing that morning in the household of Christina Sharpe.
"You know you can't keep on hiding in the nearest room every time he walks by," Lucas said as he entered his best friend's room.
"And why not?" Brooke retorted, not bothering to turn her head around.
"Umm…because the two of you need to talk."
Her head snapped up and her eyes narrowed, lethal rays of venom shooting out towards the blonde.
"Talk? You seriously want me to talk to him? Do you remember the recap I so desperately spilled to you last night or have you had a momentary lap of judgment?"
Lucas shifted nervously from foot to foot, wishing hardest not to explode the Brooke bomb. The secret had finally been revealed to both Peyton and himself the previous day, and it would be an understatement to say that both of them were shocked. More like speechless and chocking with astonishment. Never in their lives would they have thought that that was the reason for which Brooke Davis fled Tree Hill.
"I plead momentary insanity?" he finally said, the statement coming out more like a question.
"Good job. At least one Scott knows what to say." She turned her head back around and continued to type furiously on her Blackberry. "Ugh, never ever become an interior decorator. You have to deal with stupid, incompetent people who don't know the difference between silk and rayon. I mean is it that hard? One's extremely smooth and the other isn't!"
Lucas hid a laugh before it escaped out into the open. Before he could reply back, though, there was a knock at the door.
"Brooke? Are you in there? It's Nadia."
The brunette and the blonde both froze at the voice. Neither had talked about how the secret and how their past would affect Nadia. Would she be mad? Would she kick Brooke from the job? Or would she kick Brooke's ass? Would she end the engagement? Maybe not telling her was the best thing after all…
"Come in, Nadia," Brooke called out.
The door opened, revealing the red-head, all decked out in an elegant garden party dress.
"Hi! I just wanted to tell you that Mother, Peyton, and I are heading out to attend a party for one of our friends. Lucas is coming, too, and I just wanted to know if you wanted to accompany us?"
Brooke slightly smiled. The elaborate dresses and the frequent parties reminded her of high school when her mother used to tour her around from friend to friend showing them how beautiful her daughter was. But that was like a lifetime ago and right now, the last thing Brooke needed was to be transported back into her high school years.
"Thanks for the offer, Nadia, but I have a lot of work still to do so I think I'm just going to stay here. You guys have fun though."
"Okay, if you insist. Come on, Lucas. Everyone's waiting downstairs." Lucas followed his future sister-in-law as he gave the brunette a huge and a wave goodbye.
As the door closed shut, Brooke couldn't help but let out a sigh. Life was getting so stressful and complicated verses its previous serenity and simplicity. When had it all changed?
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"Lucas, don't take this the wrong way, but what the hell is going on with you and my employee?" Nadia asked as she laid back against the smooth seat of the black Mercedes. Peyton and her mother decided to take another car just incase one of them wanted to leave early. And Nadia found the arrangement the perfect time to express her true feelings to Lucas.
The blonde slammed on the breaks as he heard the red head's comment, causing the car to almost loose control.
"Excuse you?!" he bellowed, not caring that six other cars were blaring their horns at his reckless driving.
"Damn it, Luke! Are you trying to get us killed?! If you haven't realized this dress is a Chanel original meaning that it costs more than your face, so I would appreciate it if you paid more attention to the road."
"What do you mean what's going on with me and Brooke?" he asked again, ignoring her jibe.
Nadia just rolled her eyes. "Are you sleeping with her or not? I rather skip the small talk."
Lucas just started at her incredulously. "What?!!? Are you fucking kidding me? I'm married!"
"So is half the population but they are still having affairs. It's not like its illegal or anything."
"I can't seriously believe you are accusing me of cheating on my wife. I'll have you know that I love Peyton with all my heart, and I would never in a million years cheat on her. Ever."
"Yeah, I thought that, too, before I saw how chummy you and Brooke seem to be. You've known each other what…a week or so? And you're giving her hugs, kissing her cheek, and don't even deny coming out of her room the other day at 3:00 a.m. I saw it with my own two eyes."
Lucas looked down in his lap. He had come out of Brooke's room but that was because she was crying her heart out because of Nadia's fiancé. Maybe he wasn't the one who needed to be interrogated.
"We're friends, Nadia. And I sure as hell don't need to be explaining what I do throughout the day to you. Peyton knows we are friends, and she's fine with it. I'm not having an affair with Brooke, so I advise you to stop snooping in my business."
She glared at him. How despicable of a creature! She despised cheaters but she loathed liars way more. Did he seriously think he could fool Nadia Alexandria Sharpe?
The car suddenly came to a stop at a magnificent building, the entrance filled with butlers and other elite individuals, including a glowing Peyton and a sour-looking Christina. Nadia got out of the car before Lucas could even attempt to open the door for her. She turned back, though, before she joined her mom.
"Oh, by the way, Nathan doesn't deserve a cheating, lying, two faced brother like you. He would never in a million years cheat on someone, especially his wife. So I advise you to stop whatever the hell is going on or else leave. I don't want an outcast in society attending my wedding."
With that, she gave him another withering look and joined the other residences near the door. Contraire to popular belief, though, her judgment of her fiancé was going to take a toll real soon.
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Nathan stared at the multicolored bottles in front of him. Grey Goose Vodka. Casa Noble Tequila. Jack Daniel's. Crown Royal. Smirnoff. Absolut Vodka. His goal? To get exceedingly drunk into the point of oblivion. As he started pouring some tequila into a cup, he heard footsteps descending the stairs. Turning around he came face to face with the last person he wanted to see.
Hazel met sapphire as both just stared into each other's eyes, regret radiating from his as hurt poured from hers. Neither said a word for what seemed like an eternity, their powerful gaze not yet broken.
"I―I should umm….I should go back upstairs," she finally whispered, stuttering from the ongoing awkwardness.
Brooke turned around to head back into her safety zone, but was beckoned back by Nathan.
"Stay."
She kinked her eyebrow and whipped her head around, obviously taken aback by his comment.
"What?"
"Stay. I mean, we're the only ones in the house and I know how much you love Strawberry Smirnoff and we have plenty. Plus….we need to talk. About yesterday."
He needed to apologize. For yesterday, for the past six years, for her thinking that he wouldn't have loved her because she couldn't have kids.
Even though the offer was extremely tempting, Brooke couldn't help but scoff. He wanted to talk? Umm, no thanks.
"I think that's a bad idea, Nathan."
"Bad idea? I think this whole fucking arrangement is a bad idea, Brooke," he grumbled as he drowned his whole cup, the russet liquid burning his throat as it traveled downward.
"Well, what do you want me to do? Quit? FYI, Nathan, this wasn't my idea! I never for one second wanted to be in the position where I was in between you and your fiancé!"
It was his turn to sneer. "Well, Princess, it's a bit late for that, huh?"
"Gosh, do you know how big of an ass you are? One conceited idiotic ass!" The brunette was screaming by now, not caring if everyone in the whole fucking planet heard.
"And you're a bitch! A bitch who won't even accept a damn apology! I'm sorry, Brooke, okay?! I'm so sorry." His voice turned into a whisper as he said the last part, the reality of the situation shinning at last.
And in response, she did the last thing he would have ever imagined.
She started crying.
Tears started pouring as her petite figure started shaking from the extreme emotion.
So he did the only thing he knew how to do.
He enveloped her in his strong arms, right there in the kitchen surrounded by various alcohol beverages, letting her tears soak into his white polo as he too started forming tears in his own eyes.
"I can't believe you said that I would leave you because I wanted sex…I can't believe you…" her cries echoed in Nathan's ears as he continued to massage her back
"Shh, baby…I swear I didn't mean them…I swear. I just was hurt. I'm sorry, Brooke," he whispered back, kissing her gently on her forehead.
It was her turn to look up, her face just a few inches from his. "No, Nathan, I'm sorry. I should have told you. I was just scared and hurt and I wanted what was best for you and―"
"―and that would've been you. I didn't need the children or the big white house or the basketball career or whatever the heck we dreamed about, Brooke. I just needed you because I loved you and you were the only thing that mattered to me most in the world. All I wanted was you."
Then, without thinking, she closed the gap between them and captured his lips in a searing kiss. Instantly, Nathan reciprocated, his hands slowly encircling Brooke's waist to bring her closer to him. It didn't matter that he was engaged or that she was their interior designer. All that mattered was that she, Brooke Davis, was all he wanted. In the past and right then.
Avoidance. The act of keeping away from someone else in fear or in regret. Something that one day has to be broken.
Things in the Sharpe household just got a lot more tangled.
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