Ok here it is! It's longer then I would have liked. Not sure if that's a good thing for you guys or a bad thing for you!
PLEASE REVIEW!
Oh and to everyone out there asking about pairings all I will say is that Brooke does meet Peyton, Haley, Jake and Lucas when she runs away!
And she will run away soon!
Chapter 9! The Broken Fall!
It was lunch and Nathan was sitting at their usual table. The jocks and the cheerleaders sat together at lunch everyday.
Nathan was with Damien and Tim. His two best friends from the basketball team. Also at the table were Theresa, Bevin and Rachel. Mandy was all over Nathan as usual but Nathan shrugged her off.
It was then he decided to do it.
"Look Mandy we've had fun but I don't think it's going to work out between us. I'm sorry." Nathan said. Mandy started to cry before running off to the bathrooms.
The scene was over and so was their relationship. Nathan saw Brooke coming towards them, she was late which was extremely unusual, Brooke was always first out of class and whenever Nathan and his friends appeared for lunch she was sitting on the table surrounded by her cheerleader friends.
Nathan walked over to Brooke.
"Brooke." He said. Brooke looked up at him.
"Yeah Nate what's up?" she asked with a fake smile plastered over her face.
"Brooke come on don't so this to me ok?" Nathan said. "Don't shut me out."
"I'm fine Nate." Brooke lied.
"I just want to help you Brookie. Please, please let me help you." Nathan begged her.
Brooke didn't look at him but looked on over to Damien who smiled at her.
"I'll see you later." Brooke said and walked away from their table.
After an uneventful lunch everybody went off to class. Nathan sat in his English class thinking about Brooke. He didn't care what the teacher was taking about. Something to do with creative writing and inner voices and literature.
"Mr. Scott!" the teachers' voice startled him.
"Yeah?" he asked prying his eyes from the window.
"I've been calling you for a while." The teacher said. "Weren't you paying attention?"
"Sorry I was thinking about what you said." Nathan lied but it seemed to please the teacher who smiled.
"You forgot to tell me you had an appointment with a physio therapist." The teacher said. Nathan was confused.
"What? I d-" he started to protest.
"Yeah Nate. Remember? You pulled a muscle at the game and Dad wants you to have it checked?" Brooke said. Nathan only just realised she was in the room. He stared at her.
"And I have to take you coz someone stole your car." Brooke prompted. Nathan didn't need her to continue.
"Are you sure Miss Scott?" The teacher asked.
"Yeah, it's all here in this note." Brooke said handing the teacher a piece of paper. Nathan knew she'd forged it.
"Is this true Nathan?" the teacher asked.
"Oh yeah right." He said gathering his stuff and standing. He looked to his teacher.
"Sorry miss I totally forgot." He said.
"That's ok." She said. "Tomorrow I'll give you some catch-up work." Nathan smiled.
"Can't wait." He said. Brooke took the note back from Nathan's English teacher and the pair left the room. They walked down the corridors together, Nathan waiting for Brooke to say something and Brooke wondering why she had done this.
"So…" Nathan said breaking the silence.
"What are you studying in English?" Brooke asked praying he wouldn't start about the bruises and the party yet. Nathan understood.
"I dunno, wasn't really listening." He said with a small smile.
"What was Miss Jones talking about?" Brooke asked.
"Something about creative writing and literature and inner voices." Nathan said.
"Really?" Brooke asked raising her eyebrows.
"Yeah." Nathan nodded. "If anyone should know it's Miss Jones, I mean she has enough inner voices running around in her head."
Brooke laughed.
"That is true." She said. They climbed into her car and Brooke began to drive. Nathan turned on the radio.
The song 'Can't Break Her Fall' by Matt Kearney came on.
Well half way down
is half way out of here
We're either half way drowned or half way
round the pier
I can't break her, I can't break her fall
She's
lying in the back room, crying on the bathroom floor
Singing I
can't take it, I can't take any more
Just one reason, one to
believe in
That's not that far gone
Not that far gone
Nathan shut the radio off. He was not in the mood to have the fact that he didn't save Brooke from being hurt be shoved in his face when he was already thinking about it and beating himself up. He could tell it made Brooke uncomfortable too.
"So are we going to talk or what?" Nathan asked.
"Or what." Brooke answered.
"Come on Brooke." Nathan said.
"Come on with what?" Brooke asked as they turned into their driveway. Tony let them in straight away. He never seemed to mind when they weren't at school, he'd done the same when he was at school.
"Brooke stop dodging everything and tell me what happened to you." Nathan demanded. Brooke parked the car and shut the engine off.
"Fine!" Brooke yelled. Nathan waited for her to continue.
"I found my best friend and my boyfriend in bed together and ran away. Then I fell down the stairs." Brooke lied.
"Tell me the truth Brooke." Nathan said.
"I can't." Brooke said her eyes welled up with tears.
"Why not?" Nathan asked.
"Look this was stupid. Sorry Nate but I can't. Enjoy your day off." Brooke said as she got out of the car and ran inside.
"Brooke!" Nathan called after her as he followed.
Nathan knocked on Brooke's bed room door and walked inside. Brooke's make up was running because she was crying.
"Brooke do you have any idea how much it hurts to know that someone hurt you?" Nathan asked as Brooke sat at her dressing table removing her make up.
"You think it didn't hurt me?" Brooke asked turning to star at him.
"Of course it did Brookie but that's exactly my point. You got hurt, I didn't save you. I didn't even know!" Nathan exclaimed. Brooke didn't answer.
"You know what hurts the most but? You don't even trust me enough to tell me what happened to you." Nathan said. Brooke got out of the chair and turned to face him.
"Is that what you think?" she asked.
"Why else won't you tell me?" Nathan asked.
"Because I don't want you to get hurt!" Brooke exclaimed more tears falling. She grabbed some more make up removal wipes and wiped at her face.
"I don't care about that." Nathan exclaimed.
"But I do." Brooke said.
"Brooke just tell me." Nathan begged her. "Please?"
"You want to know?" She asked.
"Of course I do." Nathan replied.
"You really want to know?" Brooke asked her voice getting louder.
"Damitt Brooke just tell me." Nathan exclaimed.
"Fine! You want to know then here you go Nate." Brooke said pulling her shirt over her head and throwing it to the floor. Her make up was all gone now revealing the bruises across her cheeks and one her forehead. With Brooke standing there in her bra and jeans Nathan could see the bruise he'd found the day before on her ribs, it was larger then he thought.
"Wait Nathan don't get all squeamish on me now." Brooke said angrily. She ripped the bracelets from her wrists and they landed on the floor.
"See them? See all of them? Well Nate? Can you see my bruises now?" She yelled, she turned to show him the larger bruise on her back and heard him gasp.
"Aww what's the matter Nathan?" Brooke mocked facing him again. "You wanted to see didn't you? You wanted to know!" Nathan was looking at the floor.
"LOOK Nathan!" Brooke yelled. "See them all? See what happened?" Nathan brought his eyes to meet hers and tried not to cry.
"Are you happy know?" Brooke asked him before breaking down. Nathan rushed over to her and enveloped her in a hug. Brooke had no energy to struggle against him, instead she just cried while he held her. After a few minutes they broke away.
"I'm sorry Nate." Brooke said.
"Why?" Nathan asked her.
"For breaking down and everything." Brooke said.
"That's nothing to be sorry for Brooke." Nathan told her. Brooke just nodded.
"Do you want to put something on?" Nathan asked her. Brooke nodded suddenly feeling very self-conscious. She found Nathan's jersey and pulled it on.
"I thought I lost that." He said once she was dressed.
"You did." Brooke said. Nathan smiled.
"I'm ok with that." He said. "How long have you been wearing it?"
"Since like last year or something." Brooke answered.
"Why?" Nathan asked sitting on her bed. Brooke sat next to him.
"Because… I just do." She said and there was no further explanation.
"Ok." Nathan nodded the last thing he wanted was to push Brooke. Not after what she'd been though. He wasn't exactly sure what that was he just knew she was in pain.
"So if I was to tell you something you'd believe me right?" Brooke asked pulling her legs up around her.
"Of course Brooke. Like I said in the car I'll believe anything you say." Nathan said.
"And if I told you what happened last night?" Brooke asked.
"I'll believe every word." Nathan promised.
"Ok." Brooke nodded. There was silence for a moment until Nathan realised Brooke wasn't going to say anything more for now, she'd just wanted to see if he'd believe her. Of course he would.
Love you all!
You all love me too!
PLEASE
REVIEW!
I'm off to write more!
- Liza!
xxx-ooo-xxx
