Hello everyone!! I would like to thank everyone for reading and reviewing the last chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed it!! So here's the next chapter, and I'm almost done chapter 5 as well and hope to have that up by the end of the week! Enjoy!! And as always, love hearing from you all!
Love me some Julian- Thanks for the review, I'm glad you liked the last chapter! And I should have the next few chapters up sooner as I have a general idea of what I want happening! Yes, this story is my first of which Peyton actually goes after Lucas and don't worry, I have no intention of keeping them together, initially maybe but not permanently! As for spoilers, Rachel and Haley are going to be in this story, and look for Brathan to finally become a couple soon and you totally read my mind about Lucas being all upset about Brathan but Lucas will be back in the picture!! Down the line, Jake and Brooke will become closer as well! Hope you like this next chapter! Love hearing your feedback and suggestions!!
bdavisrulz- Thank you for the review! You will see in this chapter that you're right and Lucas owns up to sleeping with Peyton. Peyton in this one, will never be friends with Brooke again, this is different for me, writing her that way, cuz in all my other stories, she's a loyal friend but it's fun to write! I think Brooke and Peyton are great adversaries but I think it'll be most fun writing the Rachel/Peyton dynamic! Yes! Look for Rachel to be back in Chapter 5! I have been contemplating Jake and Rachel as well, I think he would mellow her out! Thanks again for reviewing!
fggt16- Thanks so much for reading and reviewing the last chapter! I'm so glad you like having Jake and Jenny in the story! This will be my first story where Jake is a main character but I love him!! I always thought that he should've come back to the show!! There is some Brathan for you in this chapter, but there will be way more in the next couple coming up!! I'm so happy that you're liking this story!! Hope you like chapter 4!
Mony19- Just wanted to thank you for the review! Yeah, it shouldn't be much of a surprise that Peyton and Lucas messed up again, but I'm glad you're enjoying the Jake-Nathan-Brooke dynamic!! Jake's gonna be a big part of this story as he will become closer to Brooke as well! Well, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
darkshadowarchfiend- Thank you for reading and reviewing my story!! I'm glad that you're enjoying it so far!! Hope you get a chance to read this next one!!
ILoveSarahSophia- Thanks for the review! I'm glad that everyone seems to like that Jake is in this story, I think he is just the friend that Brooke needs! I really appreciate the review, I hope you like this next chapter too!
Treenuh- Thank you for reviewing the story!! I love the trio's dynamic too! Look for Jake to become closer friends with Brooke as well and not just Nathan!! He will definitely be one of the main characters in this story! Thanks again for reading and reviewing! Let me know what you think of chapter 4!
BreakingDawn007- Thank you very much for reading and reviewing my story! I'm so glad that you're enjoying it so far!! I also love Brathan stories and there's tons of great ones out there! All of mine are about them! *I may have a bit of an obsession!* lol, anyhow, I hope you like where I take it from here on! Let me know what you think!!
Leni
Chapter 4:
Brooke placed her towel on the chair she had dragged from Nathan's beach house to the beach. She slightly reclined the chair before laying on it. She sighed in content, taking off her oversized sunglasses to avoid the horrible sunglasses tan. It was a beautiful hot and sunny day in Tree Hill and with summer being more than half way over now, she wanted to take advantage of as many lazy beach days as she could. It was funny to Brooke how things could change so rapidly. At the beginning of the summer she had been devastated by Lucas and Peyton and now, six weeks later, she felt content. She still had yet to speak to either one of them and intended on keeping it that way until at least school started, even then, she was pretty sure she could get away with not talking to them.
Brooke reflected on how she had spent her summer so far, the drunken teenage parties, though there were fewer than she had predicted there would be, except there was one that night but anyway, the lazy days on the beach, watching Jenny while Nathan and Jake practiced and sketching, something she had been doing a lot of lately. Through it all, she came to realize that she didn't need a lot to be happy and that the little things were what really mattered to her. Her little VW Bug was all fixed and good as new but she was still staying with Nathan. Brooke had every intention at the beginning of summer to find her own apartment but before she knew it, two weeks became three, then four and now summer was more than half over. Though she knew that Nathan wasn't opposed to her staying. And if she was being completely honest, she wasn't big on the idea of moving out either.
Over the course of six weeks Nathan and Brooke had become significantly closer, not just because of the mutual hurt that their loved ones caused them but because it turned out they genuinely enjoyed each other's company, which caught them both off guard. Not only that, they discovered that they both have more in common than originally thought, they connected on a level they had never been able to with anyone else. Throughout their lives, they had both been down similar paths and that realization is what brought a completely new understanding between the two. That's not to say that they didn't argue and bicker, because they certainly did, but once it was over, it was just that, over. Things were going pretty well considering the circumstances. And though she wasn't quite ready to admit it yet, she wasn't sure if her feelings for Nathan were purely platonic anymore, and when that changed she wasn't sure.
"Brooke." a familiar voice brought her out of her thoughts.
Her body tensed at the sound. Lucas. Brooke kept her eyes closed, pretending to be asleep in hopes he would get the hint and leave.
Brooke." Lucas said again nervously, except this time the voice was closer.
Shit, she thought to herself. She sighed and opened her eyes and turned towards him. She had to face him eventually, she supposed.
"What." she responded emotionless.
"Can I sit?" Lucas asked staring at the beauty laying on the white beach chair.
"It doesn't really matter what I say, you're gonna do what you want anyway." Brooke shrugged.
Lucas looked a little relieved and moved closer to sit in the sand beside Brooke. As he sat, he inhaled her familiar sweet scent and his heart ached for her. Everyday since that fateful day, he missed her. Lucas had found himself walking past Brooke's old bedroom, which still had her furniture in it and occasionally he would step in and sit on her bed, remembering how things once were. He regretted everything that had happened that day and the days leading up to it. Lucas spent the last six weeks re-evaluating himself, his relationship with Brooke and his relationship with Peyton. He realized that Brooke was right, he was shutting her out, unintentionally but nonetheless, that's what he did and he realized that he had turned to Peyton and perhaps leaned on her a bit too much. What he came up with was that he was still in love with Brooke and always had been. Sure there had been residual feelings left over for Peyton and he wasn't going to deny it but they weren't worth losing Brooke over. And if Brooke were to even consider giving him another chance, he wouldn't mess it up this time, he would cut all ties with Peyton, he would do anything she wanted.
Lucas had also told Peyton this, and that conversation didn't go too well either. After Brooke and Nathan had left his house that day, Peyton had initially regretted her actions, knowing how much they had hurt her best friend. She and Lucas had decided that it wasn't worth all the pain they had caused, and decided to be friends. And initially that's what it was, until one day a few weeks ago Lucas decided to tell Peyton about wanting to try and reconcile with Brooke. At first it seemed Peyton understood but as the conversation progressed and it became perfectly clear that Peyton wanted to be more than friends with Lucas and when Lucas explained that it didn't change the way he felt about Brooke, she became upset. Needless to say, things were pretty awkward between the two blondes…
"How have you been?" asked Lucas.
"Good." replied Brooke, not looking at him.
"That's ugh, good." Lucas stuttered, he didn't expect her to be so stoic. Upset, yes, annoyed, yes, but not to be completely indifferent. This was a side of Brooke that he had never seen before and he didn't think he liked it.
Brooke remained silent, turned on to her stomach and faced away from Lucas.
"Uh, so, I was hoping we could talk." Lucas tried again, starting to feel a little defeated. He wasn't used to this lack of emotion and it was starting to freak him out a little bit.
"Look, I just wanted to apologize for what happened that day." Lucas started again. "It was wrong and inappropriate and I'm sorry for hurting you again. Peyton and I aren't together…but the reason I'm here is because I still love you Brooke, I never stopped. Nothing will ever change that, not Peyton, not anyone or anything. I know that you're mad at me and you have every right to be, but I just needed to tell you. And if you will even think of possibly considering talking to me again, I'm going to be here. I'm not giving up on you Brooke. I'm fighting for us this time and I'm going to wait until you're ready."
Lucas waited for Brooke to reply and sighed when she didn't. He started reaching his hand out to touch her but stopped himself at the last minute. He knew that he should walk away now and allow Brooke to digest what he just told her but just being in her presence made him feel whole again. He closed his eyes and inhaled her sweet scent one last time before getting up and walking away.
Nathan walked into the beach house with a couple cases of beer. A beach party was planned for the evening and he wanted to make sure he, Brooke and Jake wouldn't run out of supplies at any point. Since his separation from Haley, Nathan and his parents were on better terms now, not perfect, as he still despised Dan but things with his mother were a lot better, especially since she left Dan. In fact, Deb had offered to take Jenny so Jake could go out and be a teenager for a night. The trio had decided on staying at the beach house for the evening, well Brooke decided as she said it'd be like a slumber party, except less girls and more drunk.
Nathan smiled upon thinking of the beautiful brunette. Brooke had been amazing to him for the past six weeks, he swears if it wasn't for her, he would be in a depressed rut and unable to function. She had led by example and really tried to move forward without looking back, not to say there weren't any set backs, but it was her resilience that inspired him to do the same. It had been hard for Nathan at first, adjusting to living with Brooke, the realization that things were over between him and his wife. He missed Haley to the point where it physically hurt him and at first he tried contacting her but to no avail.
Then slowly, he started thinking about Haley less and things began to feel comfortable with Brooke.
Through it all, the good and bad, she had been there for him, whether it was through one of his crazy rage fits, as she called them, or when he needed someone to listen or tell him to shut up and even when he needed an opponent in NBA on his Xbox 360. And Nathan was attracted to her, that's for sure, but lately, her touches began elicit goose bumps on his skin and he found himself unable to take his eyes off her. Of course, she was easy on the eyes, whether she was all dolled up for a party, first thing in the morning, or as she currently was, in a bikini on the beach but he thought she was most beautiful right before she went to bed. Her long hair brushed back, her face clean of makeup and her skin soft from the fruity lotion. It was then that Nathan could see her, really see her for who she was. She was beautiful, obviously, had a bit of an attitude, yes, kinda bitchy, definitely. But she was also vulnerable, compassionate and understanding. The beauty of her soul was unlike anyone he had ever met and he wondered how he went so long without noticing it.
Naturally, all his friends had assumed that he and Brooke were now hooking up since they live together but they weren't. Nothing physical had occurred between them at all, and Nathan didn't want to jeopardize their friendship by doing something that could make things really uncomfortable for them, no matter how much he wanted to. Earlier that week, Nathan finally came to terms that he had developed feelings for Brooke somewhere along the way and when Nathan had confided in Jake about his feelings, Jake didn't look surprised at all nor did he judge him for it. Actually, Jake encouraged Nathan to say something to Brooke and told him he wouldn't be ruining things with Brooke, but Nathan was unsure.
He sighed as he walked into the kitchen to drop off alcohol into the fridge. Then he walked out on to the patio with a beer in hand and looked out onto the beach. Nathan spotted Brooke almost immediately, she had been sitting in the same spot with the same chair on the beach all summer. He frowned when he noticed her sitting with her knees up to her chest, arms crossed and her face buried on top. Nathan put his beer down and made his way down to the beach to see his friend. Upon closer inspection, he could tell something was definitely up, even with oversized sunglasses on, he saw that Brooke was upset.
Nathan wordlessly took a seat on the beach chair at Brooke's feet. He studied her face, seeing her nostrils flared slightly and her lips tight in an attempt to prevent herself from crying. It was a face that Nathan knew well from the course of their time together, unfortunately. Nathan offered a kind smile while gently grazing her arm with his hand and that was all it took for Brooke to launch herself into his arms and he pulled her tiny frame into his chest, squeezing tightly. He felt Brooke's body mold itself to fit into his as she sought comfort in his embrace and he felt the silent sobs and tears on his chest.
"What's wrong?" asked Nathan gently. It had been a while since he had seen Brooke like this and it worried him.
Brooke just took a deep breath and shook her head in response. Nathan knew that she didn't want to talk about it yet, but he had an idea about what or who, specifically, was the reason for Brooke's current state. Instead of pushing, he rubbed her back soothingly and kissed the top of her head.
"Thanks Nathan." Brooke said, her voice raspy and quiet. She slowly removed herself from Nathan, trying to shake it off. She hated that Lucas could still get to her, Brooke had thought she was close to getting over him, but then he had to come and profess his love for her and how he wasn't going anywhere and wasn't giving up without a fight. If only he had that attitude months ago, and Brooke had wanted to tell him it was too late for his revelations but part of her still loved him. And she hated that, after everything that had happened, how could she still love him, but she knew, deep down that she will always love Lucas, he was her first love and she knew that you don't forget that.
Nathan just looked at her inquisitively, and reached to fix her hair that had become out of place from leaning on his chest, earning him a small one dimpled smile from Brooke.
"Anytime Davis, but I haven't really done anything." said Nathan.
Brooke took off her sunglasses before grabbing Nathan's hands into her own.
"You have no idea what you've done for me these past few weeks." Brooke said seriously. "If it weren't for you…I don't even know where I'd be right now."
"Come on now, you, not knowing what you'd do? Davis, you're the most resilient person I know, you would've been fine, I don't doubt that." replied Nathan honestly, giving Brooke's little hands a squeeze.
"I don't know about that." Brooke said sceptically. "I thought I was getting over it you know?"
Nathan nodded in hopes she would continue, he didn't have to ask what 'it' was. He knew she was referring to Lucas and Peyton.
"Then he just shows up here and tells me that he loves me and that he's not giving up on me." Brooke says, her eyes widening with a bewildered look on her face. "He's sorry for what happened between him and Peyton, and they're not together because he wants me. What am I suppose to do with that?"
"What do you want to do with that?" asked Nathan. After the last encounter at Lucas' house, Nathan had hardly seen or heard from his brother and had assumed that Lucas and Peyton were together again.
"I don't know!" admitted Brooke exasperatedly. "I hate that he can still do this to me. I really thought I was done, but after hearing him say that, I just don't know. I wanted to move on…but part of me still loves him, I think, ugh… I don't know!"
Nathan involuntarily tensed upon hearing the last part of Brooke's statement.
"What are you going to do?" Nathan tried to ask normally. The thought of Brooke reconciling with Lucas bothered the hell out of him, but he wasn't about to show it.
"Nothing, I mean, what is there to do? I'll never trust him again and I think it's just going to take more time for my feelings to go away." Brooke reasoned. "He was my first love, that doesn't go away just like that, no matter how much I want it to."
Nathan relaxed and nodded in agreement to her response.
"Do you still love Haley? If she came back today, what would you do?" inquired Brooke, playing with his hands by intertwining their fingers and rubbing them.
"Wow, that's a loaded question. Of course I still love her, but I don't miss her as much as I did before." Nathan said thoughtfully. "If she came back today, honestly, I don't know what I would do. I'm still really pissed at her but I guess part of me will always want to just forget it all happened and go back to how things were."
Brooke felt her heart clench a bit, surprised how much it stunned her to hear what Nathan's answer was. She quickly nodded, trying not to let on her disappointment in his response. Brooke mentally scolded herself for feeling this way, she knew that she had been wrestling with her feelings for Nathan lately but upon hearing his answer, she knew if she gave into her feelings, it wouldn't end well for her. Haley was bound to come back sometime, and technically, Nathan and Haley were still married, ugh…it just wasn't a can of worms she was willing to open. Damn Scott's, she thought to herself, wondering how she could possibly be developing feelings for her ex boyfriends brother. It was obvious now, because if she didn't have feelings for Nathan she wouldn't be feeling so jealous…
"Yeah, I know what you mean, that's how I feel about Lucas." Brooke replied, she didn't know why she said that, she didn't want to go back. She sighed and untangled her fingers from Nathans and sat back on the chair.
Nathan noticed the warmth leaving him when Brooke let go of his hand, he watched as she fidgeted with her towel.
"So then you are considering working things out with Lucas?" Nathan asked not really wanting to hear the answer.
Brooke shrugged without saying anything and continued to play with her towel. She put her sunglasses back on so her eyes couldn't reveal her true emotions to Nathan. She wasn't really thinking about getting back together with Lucas but she wasn't about to tell Nathan that.
"If you get back together with him, then you're stupid Davis." Nathan said abruptly. He couldn't believe after everything that had happened Brooke would actually want to be with his idiot brother. If Lucas couldn't see what he had to begin with, then he didn't deserve another chance in Nathan's mind. He knew his comment would piss Brooke off and that he was picking a fight but that was his intention at the moment, anything to distract him from how much the thought of Lucas and Brooke together bothered him.
"Excuse me!" Brooke said with a hard glare. His comment caught her off guard and pissed her off a little. "You're considering doing the same thing with Haley!"
"Yeah, well Haley hasn't cheated on me twice with my best friend." Nathan said sternly. Talking about Haley was definitely hitting a nerve for him. But he didn't know why he was surprised that Brooke would bring her up.
"No, she just left your sorry ass for a creepy, horndog wannabe singer." Brooke smirked, narrowing her eyes. "What's that say about you?"
Brooke knew it was a low blow, but she didn't care, she was angry, angry that Nathan was picking a fight with her and angry at herself for being upset at the thought of Nathan getting back together with Haley.
"You are such a bitch sometimes!" Nathan sneered, the old Nathan attitude back in full force now. "Haley left me to follow her dreams, but Lucas left you twice for Peyton. So what does that say about you?"
"Go fuck yourself." Brooke said in a hard tone.
She got up quickly, pushing past Nathan and storming back to the beach house, but not before Nathan noticed her nostrils flare slightly and her lips purse together. He knew he upset her and he wished he didn't care but he did.
Nathan groaned and rubbed his face with his hands. This whole thing was incredibly frustrating. He knew he had feelings for Brooke but he didn't feel right acting on those feelings since nothing regarding his marriage had been finalized yet and he felt it was still too soon for him to tell Brooke. It has only been six weeks since everything went down with Lucas and Peyton. And if Nathan was being honest to himself, he still had unresolved feelings for Haley, it just wouldn't be the right time to tell Brooke how he felt about her. That and Nathan Scott doesn't deal with rejection very well, he didn't know how Brooke would react to his confession, he didn't even know if she felt the same though, he was pretty sure that after their little tiff, that would be the last thing on her mind.
Brooke slammed the patio door as she walked into the beach house. She threw her sunglasses on the counter but the momentum caused them to bounce off the wall and on to the floor. She didn't bother to pick them up as she blinked away some tears. It wasn't that she was sad, she was upset, definitely, but not sad. She was frustrated and annoyed and the whole day just didn't turn out the way she had hoped. Brooke was breathing heavy still and was trying to calm down and not let those idiotic Scott's ruin her day.
Brooke let out a frustrated growl and stormed around the kitchen in an attempt to blow off steam. What the hell is his problem, she thought to herself, what right did he have judging her? It really wasn't any of his business what she decided to do with Lucas. Though she knew that wasn't what was really bothering her. What bothered her was that he was willing to take Haley back and that realization drove her crazy. She didn't want the thought of Nathan and Haley to bother her.
Haley didn't deserve him, she left him high and dry for that loser Chris Keller. Brooke just couldn't figure out why Haley still had such a strong hold on him. They had only been together for a few months before they had gotten married and Haley had taken off before they made it to their six month anniversary! It was difficult for Brooke to imagine now that she had gotten to know Nathan, to really, truly know Nathan, how Haley could've just up and left like that. Yeah, Nathan was still cocky and a little arrogant but she liked that in a guy. He was also kind, caring and loyal, that was something she wasn't expecting from him. Not to mention, the man was chiselled like a God from basketball… Things suddenly became startling clear, Brooke had somewhere along the six weeks fallen for Nathan.
"Oh God." Brooke said aloud, pacing even faster around the island in the kitchen. "No, no, no!"
Brooke was unsure of what her feelings were exactly before, but now, well, actually who was she kidding, of course she realized she had feelings for Nathan, she just didn't allow herself to admit it until now. She thought back to all those nights where they had hung out together, doing nothing, just watching a movie or hanging out on the beach and how they always had a great time together and how she always came home with an extra raspy voice from talking and laughing so hard. She had never felt so free, free of makeup, perfect hair, designer clothes, just free to be herself. Or the first time she felt goosebumps on her skin when he accidentally brushed against her coming from the bathroom, the memory of his touch causing her blood to rush to her face and the tingle up her spine was something she wouldn't be able to forget. She was about to reach for one of the beers in the fridge when she heard the patio door opened. Brooke tensed as she knew it must've been Nathan coming in, causing her to momentarily freeze and not know where to go or what to do. She felt her face flush a bit as she heard him behind her, mentally scolding herself for being so ridiculous. Brooke Davis does not blush over boys, boys blush over Brooke Davis.
"Brooke?" Nathan called out, picking up her sunglasses from the kitchen floor. That's not a good sign, he thought to himself, examining the broken Diors and gently placing them on the counter.
"What do you want? Cuz if you're gonna tell me how dumb I am, you can forget it." Brooke retorted, finally turning around after the heat left her cheeks. She twisted the cap off her beer and took a large sip. Her plan was to play angry in hopes it would distract Nathan from catching on to her true feelings. He had gotten pretty good a reading her lately. Truthfully, she had gotten to know him really well too, and she knew he didn't mean any by it when he called her stupid, he was upset, about what she had no idea, but that was his way of dealing with things when he was pissed, she knew because that's what she did too. This time she was ready to fight, even full out brawl with Nathan, anything to avoid what she was really feeling.
"Look, I'm sorry about what I said out there. It was uncalled for and I didn't mean it." Nathan apologized sincerely, staring at Brooke intently. He hoped that she would accept his apology because it was the truth, he was jealous and just acted out of that jealousy.
"What the hell Nathan?!" Brooke raged. She could not believe he was actually apologizing, what is wrong with him, how was she suppose to stay angry now that he's apologizing, she thought. That was not the reaction she was expecting from him, she expected to continue the fight and then she could avoid him the rest of the night! And she definitely couldn't stay in the kitchen any longer as Nathan's shirtless body was beginning to break her. She slammed the fridge door and stalked into the living room. She had no idea what she was suppose to now, she was pretty sure Nathan thought she was crazy at this point.
"Whoa, Davis, you need to chill out. I'm trying to apologize." Nathan said, obviously confused as he followed Brooke into the living room. He had no idea what was going on with her but he was going to find out. Still he couldn't help but notice how incredibly sexy she was walking around in her bikini, even if she was pissed, if anything, her feistiness was even more of a turn on.
"Well, I don't want your stupid apology." Brooke spat out, getting more and more flustered by the minute, she didn't know why he was following her and why wasn't he getting mad at her yet. Fighting with Nathan, she could deal with, but feelings for Nathan, she didn't even know where to even to begin.
"What is going on with you?" Nathan asked incredulously. He stood in the middle of the living room, watching Brooke walk around unable to settle on a spot. Finally he reached out and took her arm. He immediately felt the electricity flow from her fingers to his as he slowly turned her so she was facing him. His pulse began to race and his breathing became uneasy. He swallowed hard, trying to calm himself down, hoping she wouldn't notice. No one had ever made him feel this way before just with a simple touch and he wanted to desperately tell her that. He looked down at the tiny brunette in front of him, her face was flushed still and she was avoiding his gaze.
Brooke closed her eyes and took a deep breath. His familiar aftershave and body wash scent filled her nostrils, intoxicating her. She swallowed hard and tried to get a hold of herself. But, her emotions weren't going to allow her do that this day. As she opened her eyes, she was met with the most beautiful dark blue eyes baring into her soul and they were her undoing. Now that she had realized her feelings for Nathan, it was as if the flood gates opened because now all she could see was him. But she knew that she wasn't all he saw, he still had Haley in his heart.
"Nothing. I don't know what you're talking about." Brooke said unsteadily, finally looking up at him. She was having problems keeping her breathing even as her heart was pumping a mile a minute. She naturally gravitated closer to him without even noticing she was doing so.
Nathan couldn't help but smile a little when he was finally met with those bright hazel orbs, quickly finding himself lost in their beauty. He couldn't say a word, all he could do was stare. Oh yeah, he was a total goner. Being in such a close proximity made his pulse race and his blood rush throughout his body. Never had he reacted this way to someone before, not Peyton, or Haley. He knew he was staring but he couldn't help it, literally, he couldn't do anything at the moment.
"I have to go." Brooke suddenly said. And with that, she flew to the front door and was gone, leaving Nathan utterly confused about the whole thing that had just gone on.
"What the fuck just happened?" he asked outloud.