I just wanna say a great big thanks to everyone who's reading and reviewing this. Your comments are very greatly appreciated and they do inspire me and give me ideas. Thanks :)

Everybody Needs Someone To Talk To

Lucas sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance. Karen and Haley were bombarding him with a never-ending torrent of questions that he had no intention of answering, at least not fully and honestly. He could see the frustration and fear in his mother's eyes, see the way she tried to hide it, see the way she tried to stay calm when his vague replies infuriated her. But most of all, he could see how much this was hurting her.

Good, Lucas thought as he ignored yet another question thrown at him. I want her to hurt. I want the whole world to hurt.

Haley held Lucas's hand tightly, as if she could drag him out of this nightmare. It broke her heart to see her best friend like this, to hear his detached monotone responses. But no matter how hard she and Karen tried, they couldn't force Lucas to speak openly with them. Until, after nearly two hours of questions and lectures, Lucas finally snapped.

*

"Will you give up already?!" Lucas roared, throwing his hands up in the air. "I have no desire to tell you anything, because there's nothing to tell. Peyton's dead, and I don't want to – I can't – live without her."

Karen started, "Lucas, I know it's hard, so incredibly hard, but you have to move on with your life." After seeing her son's face twist in anger at her words, she quickly added, "I'm not saying you have to forget about Peyton, of course not. I'm just saying that life is cruel, but it carries on."

"For me it does," Lucas muttered darkly. "But what about Peyton?"

Haley dropped her head, trying to fight back the tears that were so eager to escape.

"I thought you of all people would understand Mom," Lucas continued, eyes narrowed and his stare accusing. "How can you be like this, saying all of these things? Can't you remember what you were like when Keith died?"

Karen nodded slowly. "I know how I was Lucas. But how did that make you feel, seeing me like that?" Her son remained mute, so she ploughed on, determined to make him see sense. "I feel exactly the same way now."

"Karen's right Luke," Haley said, stroking Lucas's hand with her thumb. "Listen to your mother. Just remember that you'll never be alone. We're all here for you, no matter what." She gave him her warmest smile, and to her greatest delight, she saw his eyes flicker with emotion, if only briefly, and a ghost of a smile danced on his lips. Yes, she cried joyfully inside. We're getting through to him!

But just as she thought that, Karen suggested something that brought all their hard work crashing down around their ears, and they were soon hurtling back towards square one. "Look Lucas," she said, her voice soft and caring. She sat down on the hospital bed, taking hold of his free hand and stroking it also like Haley. "I love you, and I only want what's best for you. Just remember that…" She sighed. "Lucas, you're gonna have to talk sometime, whether it's to me, or Haley, or Nathan or anyone. You can't keep it bottled up inside forever. It'll eat away at you, driving you crazy until you do something like this again. So I've given this a lot of thought Lucas. If you don't feel comfortable talking to any of us, then I think you should talk to someone…professional."

Lucas's face fell and his eyes widened in shock. Haley and Karen felt his hands clench into fists before he pulled them out of their grasps. "You want me to go see a psychiatrist? Are you serious?"

Even Haley was a little bit stunned at Karen. She thought that would've been the last thing Karen would have proposed. Why did she even suggest something like this? Of course Lucas would never agree. Who ever does? However Karen shot her a quick look, begging her to understand and support her. Haley duly complied. "Hear your mother out Luke," she started, trying to keep the surprise out of her voice. "You do need to talk to someone. If you keep lashing out at us, you're gonna end up driving everyone away, and then you will be alone." Damn, Haley bit her lip, watching Lucas carefully. That sounded a lot better in my head.

"What happened to 'we're all here for you, no matter what', eh?" Lucas scoffed. "I can't believe you'd even have the nerve to suggest something like that." He folded his arms in defiance. "I'm not going to see a psychiatrist, therapist, grief counselor or anything. I'm coping perfectly fine on my own. Has it ever crossed your mind that maybe I don't want to talk?"

Karen chose to ignore the last statement, focusing on his earlier comment. "Coping perfectly fine on your own? I don't call attempting suicide as coping perfectly fine!"

Lucas shrugged. "Lapse of judgment." Of course that wasn't true; when he'd hung his tie as a noose around his neck he had every intention of wanting to die, as he still had now, but he just wanted his mother to shut up. Unfortunately, Karen wasn't fooled.

"Oh really?" she said, raising an eyebrow. "I know when you're lying Lucas." She was well are that she was most probably pushing Lucas further away, but she had to make him see sense, whether it was from her or a psychologist. In the long run, it was worth the hateful way he looked at her. Just. "Believe me Lucas, this is a last resort. I knew you'd be in a terrible state after Peyton died, but I never expected you to try to kill yourself."

"Guess you don't know me as well as you thought you did," he sneered, aiming to hurt.

Haley shifted uncomfortably, not sure of what to do. Lucas caught her movement.

"Wondering what you should say or do, aren't you?" he said coldly; his voice was as hollow and unfamiliar as a stranger. It didn't belong to him. It wasn't Lucas talking. "Well let me give you an idea. Get out."

"You've thrown us out once Luke, and you're not going to do it again," Karen said firmly.

"Just watch me," he scowled, clambering out of bed. "I want you to leave, so I can get changed and get out of here. These four walls are driving me crazy."

Just how crazy, Karen wondered. She looked at her son, his eyes cold and distant, his voice harsh and cruel, his face mocking and tormented…he looked so haunted. He looked like an entirely different person.

"I just want you back Lucas," she whispered, tears springing to her eyes. "Please, just calm down and let us take you home, so we can-"

"So we can what? Talk? I've already told you, I don't want to talk," Lucas spat, then added after a moment's thought. "And mom" - he sneered the word – "when I said I wanted you to leave, I didn't just mean the room. I meant Tree Hill."

Karen's heart hit the floor, her mouth agape, as was Haley's.

"Lucas, you can't mean that," Haley started, seeing Karen breaking down into tears.

"I do," Lucas shot back, turning to face his mother. "Just leave and don't come back. I mean that. Don't come back. Ever."