Chapter Six
The brisk, cool wind stung his exposed skin as he made his way down the empty streets of Tree Hill. It was cold, maybe a little too cold for the first week of November but he didn't care. All he could think about was his mother's betrayal and the arrogant words spoken by his father.
He couldn't understand why after all this time had Dan decided to become a permeate fixture in there lives. Then again when did he ever understand anything his father did?
Was it possible that Dan actually loved him and his Mom?
Was the man finally ready to confess to the world that he had made a terrible mistake over a decade ago by marrying Deb?
Was he really, truly sorry for every horrible thing he's ever said or done to them over the past decade?
Lucas smirked and shook his head at these questions.
Of course not, he though. Dan is an ass. Always has been, always will be and there was nothing in this world that was going to change him. Not even the love of his mother and soon to be sister.
Off his contemplation he stopped mid stride and shook off the all too familiar sensation that was creeping up on him.
He wasn't going to do this. Not again. He wouldn't allow Dan to suck him back in and trap him into his web of lies and deception and he sure as hell wasn't going to allow the man to destroy his mother or his new sibling. He had to do something to get rid of Dan. As for what this something was he couldn't say but the only thing he did know was that it had to happen fast.
Suddenly the sound of his cell phone ringing lured him from his thoughts as he retrieved the small phone from his pocket.
"What?" he barked rather loudly.
There was a short pause on the other end until a soft, shaken voice called out
"Please don't hang up"
Lucas rolled his eyes.
"Listen Hales I'm really not in the mood to talk about this right now"
"Lucas I…"
"Haley, please" he sighed rubbing his temples.
He didn't feel like getting into an argument and that's exactly what was going to happen if the young woman kept talking. Deep down he knew that none of this was Haley's fault but this fact did nothing to soothe the raging lion that was inside him.
"Ok" her voice trembled.
Lucas felt horrible about being so cold to his best friend but he was in a really bad place right now and getting her off the phone as soon as possible was for the best.
"Call me as soon as you can Luke" she paused "And I'm sorry, for everything"
With those last words spoken the young woman hung up once again leaving him with nothing but the company of his own thoughts. Placing the phone back in his pocket he continued making his way towards the only part of his world that hadn't changed, the river court.
The dry autumn leaves crunched loudly under his feet as the wind sent cooler, crisp air his way. He then pulled up the collar on his jacket and snuggled in to it's warmth as he walked over to one of the many unoccupied park benches and sat down.
Little did he know that someone had been hidden well within the shadows waiting for him to make an appearance. The blond headed girl slowly made her way over to him, being careful not to set him off in any way. Of course she knew that he would never lash out at her or hurt her but it was better to be safe then sorry. She then lowered herself onto the empty space next to him as the blond continued to stare straight ahead.
For quite sometime the couple sat side by side listening to the sound of the heavy wind and the rustling for the leaves without saying a single world. This continued well into the evening hours as artificial light illuminated the park and silence still dominated them.
This was until the young woman turned to him and spoke.
"Maybe it won't be so bad"
"Let me guess, Nathan called you"
"It doesn't matter who called me Lucas. I just think that maybe you need to cut the guy a little slack"
"Don't defend him"
"I'm not, I'm just saying that maybe you should give this a try for your mom's sake. I mean it's pretty obvious that this is something she wants"
"Is it? How do I know that he's not trying to manipulate her somehow" he questioned looking at her for the first time.
"Look Luke I know that you guys have had it pretty rough over the past several years but you're an adult now, you'll be heading off to college soon and I think that Karen deserves to be happy once you're gone"
"I never said that she didn't deserve to be happy. I just wished that her happiness didn't come with such a heavy price tag"
"So you're afraid of the risk?"
"I guess"
"Risk to what Luke, and be honest with me"
"To my sister's life, to my mom's heart" he looked away as the raw emotion became more evident in his eyes.
"What about you?" she questioned.
The young woman then gently caressed his face so that he would turn to look at her. Once he did she could see the pain in his eyes, the conflict.
"What about me?"
"I know what you're thinking Lucas. You're thinking that he's going to hurt you again. That he's going to find some flaw or reason to reject you so that you'll be left alone, trust me I know the feeling" she looked down to the ground for a moment before looking back up into his eyes.
"Maybe"
"Well don't. I mean I know Dan can be a world class jackass but he's still your father and right now he's making your mother very happy. As sickening as that might sound"
They both laughed a little.
"Listen to me. Emotions are a very powerful thing. They become even more dangerous when we chose to live in the past. I think that we both know who the prime example of this is" she said giving him a knowing look.
"So maybe now he'll be a better person. You know because of her, because of them. And just maybe you two can start over again and for once leave the past where it belongs. In the past"
"Maybe"
"It's not going to be easy Lucas. Nothing in life worth having is but if you let go of it all, all the pain, all the hurt and anger then perhaps everything will work out for the better. But as long as you continue to keep that score of who did what to whom then everything will remain the same"
He smiled and kissed her on the forehead.
"Since when did you become such a philosopher?"
"I learned from the best. I learned from you"
"Oh is that right?"
"Yeah, so do you want a ride home to face mommy and big daddy Dan? Or are you going to sit out here and brood all night?"
"Oh please, as if you never brood little Miss Sawyer"
"Hey we're not talking about me right now, we're talking about you" she smirked at him as she stood.
"Ok maybe I do brood a little"
"Or a lot" she shouted back to him.
Lucas simply shook his head and smiled before following Peyton to the car.
