Hey guys, here is the next chapter. Sorry it took so long, but I went on an extended spring break and I didn't have much time to write. And it has been incredibly hard to write since then…But here is the next chapter; I hope you all enjoy it. Please don't be too mad at me for not updating sooner. The next chapter will be amazing, and I will slowly start saying more about her illness. Please review and let me know if you like it. I made this one extra long for you guys.
Thank you for the reviews: kaligator, Sarah111650, luvtheOC09, pleyton117, perfectharmony22, othstewy, and xobabiidoll.
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It is easy to be brave from a safe distance. --- Aesop.
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Peyton woke up to two sets of heavy footsteps on the stairs. She looked up to see them as Nathan and Lucas walked in.
"Hey sleepyhead." Lucas said as he entered the room.
"Hi." Peyton said groggily as she sat up.
"How about some breakfast, Peyt?"
"Did I sleep that long?" Peyton spoke quietly in amazement.
Both boys burst into laughter, "No, it's only three. I got up and Nathan was cooking breakfast."
"I can bring up some if you'd like."
Peyton nodded, "thanks."
Nathan left the room, leaving Peyton and Lucas alone.
"How are you feeling? Any better?"
"I'm not feeling so hot." Peyton admitted, as she began to slide back down on the bed.
"I know." Lucas leaned down and kissed her forehead.
"Why didn't you wake me up when you were throwing up earlier?" Luke said, continuing to hold her in his arms as he rubbed her hand in patterns.
Peyton looked down embarrassed, "I didn't want you to see me like that."
"Peyt, its okay. I want to help." Lucas said sympathetically, feeling horrible for even bringing it up.
"Sorry to break up the moment, but here you go." Nate said, just entering. He sat the plate in front of Peyton, who started eating slowly. Lucas got up from the bed and moved to the chair next to it, while Nate sat in her computer chair.
"We have a game tonight, are you pumped?" Nate asked.
"Yeah, just no after-party for me tonight, just a movie for Peyton and I after the game."
"Hmm, sounds like fun." Nathan said, as he raised his eyebrows at Luke, who in return rolled his eyes.
"Do you think Whitey will go easy on us tonight for missing school?"
"We'll just explain, it's all we can do." Lucas said. He picked up a pillow ball and began tossing it into the air. "But we are going to beat the Eagles tonight, I know it."
Neither boy noticed Peyton jump up until they heard the plate smash on the floor. Both Lucas and Nathan were startled and looked over to Peyton, only to find she wasn't there. Lucas ran out of the room with Nathan close behind. They found Peyton in the bathroom, heaving over the toilet. Lucas fell to his knees by her side and pulled her hair out of her face and gently rubbed her back. She threw up until it was just clear colored bile coming up. Tears ran down Peyton's face as she continued to throw up, and the pain in her throat grew. She finally stopped and collapsed into Lucas's arms.
"I should take you to the doctor."
"No, I'm fine. I'll just sleep for another two hours before I have to get ready for the game."
"But Peyton, you're…" Lucas tried, but was cut off. "No Luke, I'm fine. Honest."
Peyton stood up but began swaying and Nathan reached out to steady her. She pulled back and straightened herself out, then made her way back to her room. Nathan and Luke shook their heads and followed her a minute later. Nathan, remembering the broken glass, stopped Lucas from stepping on it. Lucas looked at Peyton, who was already asleep on her bed. He walked over to the bed and laid a kiss on her forehead before turning to help Nathan pick up the broken plate.
--
It had been two hours since Peyton had fallen back asleep and Lucas was very hesitant to wake her up.
"You know you'll have hell to pay if you don't wake her up man." Nate said. Both boys were already dressed in their Ravens jerseys and had practiced lightly outside while she slept.
"Yeah, I know," Lucas gently shook Peyton until her eyes shot open.
"Luke?" Peyton asked as she blinked multiple times to clear her vision.
"Yeah Peyt, it's me. The game starts in an hour and a half; we need to leave here in about half hour."
Peyton nodded and got up. She once again began swaying but Lucas grabbed her before she fell. He sat down next to her on the bed.
"You really need to go to the doctor."
"No Luke, I'm fine."
"Obviously you're not. You can't even stand, you can't keep food down, and you're dizzy. Not to mention how hot you were this morning and your headaches. I really don't think that's being 'fine'."
"It'll pass Lucas; it's nothing to get worried about."
"Then what were the pills you took this morning?" Lucas said, getting louder with ach sentence he spoke. He was getting annoyed at Peyton because she was acting like it was no big deal, and it was; at least to him.
"What…? Those were just aspirin." Peyton said, trying to stand up, but feeling dizzy, sat back down. She adverted her eyes from Lucas' and that was the clue that she was lying.
"Don't lie to me, those were prescription pills, I saw the bottle."
"Okay, so I have been taking them in hopes of getting rid of whatever is wrong with me," Peyton said quietly.
"How long have you felt like this?" Lucas asked, realizing that yelling was getting him nowhere, he softened his tone.
"About a week and a half."
"A week and a half Peyton? Why haven't you said anything?" Luke grabbed her hand to comfort her.
"Because I knew you'd want me to go to the doctor. I'm not ready for that Lucas; you know I hate doctors. I'll be fine really; it's nothing to worry about."
"No it's not. We're worried about you, you are sick. And if you have felt like this for a week and a half, then you need to go to the doctor. I know that you hate doctors, but I will go with you. I'll be there with you, but please you need to go." Lucas was looking straight into her eyes, letting her know that he meant every word he had just spoken.
"I can't Luke." She said quietly before getting up slowly and going into the bathroom.
Nathan, who had been standing in the corner of the room, felt very awkward. He had never seen Lucas and Peyton fight like that and he knew it was one of the first ones, and it was hurting both of them to do it. Lucas sat on the bed with his head hung, while Peyton was in the bathroom behind closed doors.
In the bathroom, Peyton sat against the door. Her head was pounding once again. Peyton knew Lucas was right, though she didn't want to admit it. The headaches were steadily getting worse, she knew that for sure. Her head felt as if a hammer was pounding away inside her brain. She laid her head down and took deep long breaths as the pain became almost paralyzing.
--
Lucas and Nate continued to sit quietly in Peyton's room. Neither of them had spoken for several minutes and it scared Nathan when Luke started talking.
"Why won't she go?" Lucas asked in almost despair.
"I think she knows that you are right, but he fear is overpowering her. Imagine being forced to go somewhere you were terrified of. You wouldn't be so willing either. Peyton has all but happy memories of the place."
Lucas nodded, "I know, I just want her to be better so that everything can get back to normal."
It was quiet once again as time ticked by. They were expecting Peyton to come out any minute. She was definitely not a high maintenance girl and it seemed that she was taking forever in there. Lucas got up and went to the door, "Peyt, are you ready? We need to get going; we'll be late for the game."
There was no answer. "Come on Peyt, are you mad at me? Don't be okay, let's work this out. I am just looking out for you." Once again, there was no answer. Lucas walked away in frustration, so Nathan got up against the door to talk to her.
"Peyt, its Nathan, listen we need to get going, so please come out? You don't even have to talk to Lucas if you don't want to." He pushed his ear against the door to hear her response. He didn't hear her speak, but he did hear her sobs. He began pushing against the door to get it open. Thankfully it didn't take much, and the door swung open.
Lying on the floor in front of him was Peyton, with her head cradled in her hands. He dropped down to her side next to her.
"Peyt…? What's wrong?"
"My head, it hurts so badly." As Peyton lifted her head to look at him, he could see the tears cascading down her face. He put his hand to her forehead and pulled it back, making sure not to let Peyton notice how hot it actually was.
"Okay Peyton, let's get you into bed okay? Do you think you can walk?"
Peyton shook her head no, so in one swift motion, Nathan had her in his arms.
When he walked out of the bathroom and into her adjoining bedroom, Luke was in there pacing. His head jerked up as he saw them enter the room.
"What's wrong?" He asked as Nathan carried her to the bed.
"Her head..." Nathan laid her on the bed, and then pulled Lucas by the shirt away from her.
"She's burning up."
"I can't go to the game, I need to stay here and be with her. Take care of her."
"She'll probably just fall asleep Lucas, let her sleep it off. It's probably the best for right now." Lucas nodded and walked over to the bed.
He gently kiss her cheek, "Hey Peyton, do you want me to stay here with you, or are you just going to sleep while I'm at the game?"
"Sleep," She muttered quietly.
"Alright. Call me if you need anything, okay? I'll be home in two hours okay?"
There was no response, and Lucas knew she was already sleeping. He kissed her cheek one last time, and then followed Nathan out of the room and the house.
--
Nathan drove as Lucas sat quietly in the passenger's seat.
"Maybe I should have stayed."
"Luke, you know she'll just sleep. She wouldn't have got up earlier if you hadn't woke her up. The team needs you tonight. We'll just explain to Whitey why we weren't there today and talk to him about Peyton, I'm sure he'll understand." Nathan said as he tried to keep his eyes focused on the road.
"Yeah."
They continued to drive until they arrived at the school. It was only 5:55 and they didn't have to be there until 6:10, but they still needed to talk to Whitey. Both boys got out of the car and grabbed their duffel bags from the back seat and headed inside. The gym was nearly empty, except for the few early cheerleader and players. They made their way into the locker room, where Whitey's office was located.
They knocked, then waited quietly for Whitey to answer, "Come in," Whitey said. Lucas and Nathan entered and while Nathan sat down, Lucas shut the door.
"Ahh, my two star players, what do I owe the pleasure?" Whitey said in a half-laugh voice
"Well you see Coach, we weren't at school today, well we were, but we had to leave."
Whitey turned serious, "So why did you have to leave?" He said, emphasizing the word 'have.'
"As you might know, Brooke and Peyton are fighting and Brooke has been saying some awful things about Peyton and her family. She is saying them mainly because Peyton and I are dating now, which Brooke's not too happy about. At the party last night Brooke had been drinking a bit too much and she started things with Peyton. She said something about Peyton and her mom and how they are both sluts. Peyton was really upset and I took her home." Lucas explained, while Whitey nodded for Lucas to continue.
"Well we went into school this morning and were just talking when Brooke came up and started talking bad about Peyton and her moms again, saying how her mom and Ellie died because they couldn't stand her and that he dad took all the jobs he could out on the ocean so he didn't have to deal with her. Peyton ran out."
"So you followed her?" White asked --- Luke started but Nathan cut him off, "Actually, I was walking through the quad when Peyton ran out. She ran past me and I followed her. She was stumbling to find Lucas' car. When she found it I was quickly catching up to her and I seen her fall next to his truck. I rushed over to her and while I was trying to talk to her, I heard Lucas calling for her so I waved him over. Peyton wasn't looking so good so Luke was trying to figure out what was wrong. Her head felt like an oven it was so hot, and she kept holding it in her hands. Lucas and I took her back home, to her house. She was asleep but we made her take some aspirin. It wasn't but maybe three hours later and I heard a noise coming from the hallways so I got up to find Peyton in the bathroom throwing up. She must have thrown up for at least twenty minutes after I went in there and then I helped her into bed."
"So Peyton's sick?"
"Well I think it's more than that though Coach." Lucas said.
"What do you mean more than that Lucas?" Whitey was getting more concerned with each detail Lucas and Nathan said.
"This morning when I went over there she was lying in bed literally jerking she was shaking so bad and then she got up and took a prescription pill. I asked her at first what it was and she lied, and then she told me that she was trying to get rid of whatever she had. I asked her how long it had been going on and she said a week and a half. She is dizzy, had horrible headaches and bruises, she's throwing up everything she eats, she has fevers and I think her muscles hurt because she can't stay standing long. I tried to get her to agree to go to the doctor but she wouldn't, she hates hospital, you know that."
"Yes, I do. I think you are right in thinking it's more than just a cold." Whitey said quietly.
"We thought you should know the whole story behind our absence today, from us."
Whitey nodded, "I am correct in saying Peyton's not here?" they both nodded, "Well than where is she, because I know her dad is away and isn't home to take care of her."
"She's sleeping, I'm sure she'll be sleeping until Luke gets home from the game." Nathan said.
Once again Whitey nodded, "I understand, and I would have done the same. I wouldn't normally let this slide, but I will tonight. But don't let it happen again." Both Nathan and Lucas nodded again, "We won't sir."
They got up and we're going to leave to go into the locker room when Whitey stopped them, "Oh and Lucas, make sure you convince Peyton to go to the doctors and keep me in on what's going on."
"Of course."
He closed the door and Nathan and Lucas both exhaled deeply, "Well that went well." Luke nodded, "I was prepared to not play tonight."
The boys went to change out of their warm ups. They stood at their lockers changing. Luke pulled out his phone and was dialing Peyton's number when Nathan seen him and pulled the phone out of his Luke's hand.
"What are you doing Nathan?"
"You're not calling Peyton." Nate said, throwing the phone into his locker.
"How you kn…"
"I can read that expression.
"I just want to check on her," Luke said, trying to grab the phone.
"Let her sleep Lucas. She's fine and if she wasn't I think she'd call you. She'll be okay; just waking her up probably isn't the best idea."
Lucas thought for a moment, "Alright, then can I at least call my mom to check on her before she comes to the game?"
Nathan nodded and handed back the phone. Luke quickly dialed his mom's number which she picked up on the second ring.
"Hey mom. Are you coming to the game tonight?"
"Yes Luke, I already told you that." Karen said on the other line.
"Well would you mind stopping by Peyton's house and checking on her?"
"Why? What is wrong Lucas?"
Lucas sighed, "She's sick mom, Nathan and I left her there sleeping to come to the game and I just want to make sure she's alright."
"Of course I'll go check on her Lucas. I'll call your phone only if something is wrong, so check it before the game and at half time okay? Don't worry about her though; I'm sure she's fine."
Karen hung up, leaving Lucas lingering on the other end.
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"It is a close game folks, Tree Hill is winning by four points and it's nearing half time. A minute and a half left for the quarter and East has the ball. Skills knocks the ball away to Lucas Scott; there he goes and another two points for Tree Hill."
The crowd erupted in cheers.
"East now has the ball, but once again it is knocked away by the Ravens. Nathan shoots the ball and another two points for Tree Hill. Twenty seconds until half time."
The ball was thrown back and forth between the players and finally the buzzer went off, signaling half time. Both teams ran off and headed to their separate locker rooms.
Lucas went straight to his locker and checked his phone, there was one missed call, his mom had called. He heart started racing and he quickly dialed his voicemail. He plugged his other ear to hear the message clearly; "Hey Lucas, it's your mom. I stopped by Peyton's she's okay, but I'm going to stay here with her. She doesn't look so good. Come over after the game. I love you; good luck."
Lucas hung up and sighed, she doesn't look so good, ran through his mind. She hadn't looked well in about a week, but he didn't tell Peyton that. She already knew it and he didn't want to upset her. He just thought she was tired, not that she was sick. "How is she man?" Nathan said. "That was your mom right?"
Lucas nodded, "I guess she's okay, my mom's going to stay there with her though because she doesn't look so good."
Nathan nodded. "Well let's go win this game okay?"
---
Lucas got out of his truck, dragging his duffle bag out with him. It had been a long day, but they had won the game against East High by twenty two points. He was now at Peyton's house, where he was meeting his mom so that she could go home. As he walked in the door his mom, Karen, was sitting at the kitchen table.
"Hey mom." Lucas said, sitting down next to her.
"Hey honey how was the game?" Karen asked, getting up to get Lucas something to drink.
"Great, we won by twenty two points."
"That's great, Luke. You sound tired though."
"I am. How is she?" Lucas asked with genuine concern.
Karen sat down next to him, "Well I helped her take a shower, she passed out half way through it and I hear her fall so I went in to help her. She's really sick, and she needs to go to the doctor. She won't listen to me, so please get her to go." Lucas nodded.
"Well I'm going to go up and see her, why don't you go home and get some sleep. I'm sure my little brother isn't happy about standing up all the time."
Karen chuckled, "Are you going to come home tonight?"
"No, Nathan is going to be here in a few minutes, we're both going to stay here tonight."
"Okay, take care of her. Lots of fluids." Karen kissed his cheek, then walked down the hallway.
Lucas finished off his bottle of water and then got up to go check on Peyton. As he walked in the room he heard a door open and he knew it was probably Nathan coming in. Peyton was lying on her bed, sleeping. He carefully sat down next to her, so that he wouldn't wake her. But he did, her eyes fluttered open.
"Hi."
"Hi" Peyton said narcotically, "How was the game?"
"We won; ninety eight to seventy six." He said pulling her into his lap, "how are you doing?"
"I'm okay. You're mom had to help me shower, that was so embarrassing." Peyton blushed a little and looked down.
"Look Peyton, I think you should go see a doctor."
Peyton began shaking her head, "I thought we already talked about this."
"We did, but you weren't listening, I mean you passed out in the shower. That's not good. Just go, hell I'll go with you, but you can't keep doing this. Get some medicine and get it over with." Lucas started raising his voice. "I can't Lucas!" Peyton said yelling.
Peyton got up awkwardly and began walking to her bathroom; Lucas got up too and grabbed her wrist loosely to pull her back. Peyton whimpered and Luke picked up her hand to reveal a large bruise on her hand and wrist.
"What happened there?" Lucas said, once again backing down.
"I don't know," Peyton said quietly.
"Please Peyton just go? I'll come too. Just please go, this might be another problem. You don't just get bruises." Lucas pleaded.
Peyton didn't respond, just turned away from him. Lucas waited a minute for her to answer, and when she didn't he pleaded with her again.
"Just go Peyton. It'll be okay, nothing will be wrong you'll just need to get some antibiotics. Nothing to harmful or scary."
Peyton spoke quietly, "I'll go."
Lucas smiled. "Okay, I'll get the phone book and call the doctors if they are still open and see if they have an appointment tomorrow after school. Then we can leave and I'll take you."
Lucas went to leave when Peyton spoke up again, "No, Luke, I want to go alone."
Lucas turned toward her and tried to hide the hurt look in his eyes by smiling, "Okay. I'll go make the appointment," He said and walked out of the room.
They had never fought like that before.
Peyton who had seen the hurt in his eyes, softly began to cry. Nathan had been standing outside the door the entire time went into her room when he heard her soft cries. He pulled her into a hug. "I didn't mean to make him upset Nathan, I just don't think I can handle the pressure of both of us being there."
Nathan sighed, "I know Peyton, I think he understands."
Peyton nodded, but continued to cry letting all her emotions out.