Lucas leaned up against the side of the Davis house with a cigarette hanging delicately between his lips. He took a long drag before running his free hand through his matted hair. He could feel the bags under his eyes and it seemed like he could feel every pulse and every motion of his internal parts.
He had a lot on his mind to say the least. He had left Lindsey's house around 4 in the morning and now that the Davis's were back in town, he had no choice but to begin working again. Working included being at the Davis estate at 7 each morning, so he had only received a mere three hours of sleep, and it was taking its toll on him.
However, of all the things that clouded his mind, Brooke was the most prominent. He hadn't planned for all of this to happen. When Lindsey had left, he had no intention of cheating on her. But he had. And he had done it with a girl who was not just any other girl. Brooke deserved more than a guy like him; this much he knew. And Owen had made it completely clear if he hadn't realized it on his own. But, Lindsey's early arrival complicated his plans. He had wanted to spend the rest of the vacation with Brooke by his side and had anticipated that things between he and Lindsey would get right back on track when the two girls returned to their normal lives: Lindsey in California, Brooke in North Carolina.
He wasn't sure if one of his friends had let Brooke know about Lindsey's unexpected arrival yet, but he didn't doubt it. After being lectured by Owen, Lucas had no doubt that he had called Brooke immediately after seeing Lindsey walk through the hotel room's door.
She was leaving soon, though, so normally, he wouldn't have to worry about her nor explain himself to her, which saved him the heartbreak of watching her hurt.
But, these were not normal circumstances. Before meeting Brooke, he was the Davis's driver. And he had an obligation to continue his work, whether Brooke was around or not. He owed it to his father. He owed it to the Davis's.
He would only have to deal with Brooke for another few days before she was on her way back to the east coast and then she could go home and curse his name for the rest of eternity.
He didn't want to be etched into her memory like that.
"Lucas," Brooke called happily from the other side of the lawn breaking Lucas from his whirring thoughts. She bounced over to him, seemingly unaffected by arrival of his girlfriend, if she even knew.
"Hey," he said softly as she reached him. He threw his cigarette to the ground and put it out with the toe of his shoe. He stood nervously for a second, not knowing what she would say or do. Maybe she was acting nice so that she could get close enough to slap, or maybe even choke, him.
But, instead of lunging at him, she placed a soft kiss on his lips. "You look like shit," she commented, noticing his tired appearance.
"Thanks," he replied sarcastically. "I was up late."
"Yeah, so was I…" she started. She had stayed up until 3:30 waiting for Lucas's promised call, but it never came. "You never called me."
Shit. "Yeah, I'm sorry… I got so caught up in what I was doing and then just passed out. I didn't wanna wake you up."
Her face became sad and serious instantly. "I needed to hear your voice," she said softly. "I got into a fight with my mom about--..."
"I told you I was sorry, Brooke," he stated sternly, his lack of sleep affecting his attitude.
Brooke was taken aback. Was this the mellow, loving boy that she had spent the last week with? Tears burned the back of her eyes, but she refused to let them go further than that.
"You don't have to be so obnoxious about it, Lucas."
"I'm sorry," he said tenderly before placing his warm hand on her face. "I just… I have a lot on my mind."
She smiled at him sympathetically, putting her problems with her mother to the side for a moment. "Anything you wanna talk about?"
"Not really," he stated.
She sidled up to him, wanting to be close to him. Victoria could say whatever she wanted. Brooke just felt it when she was close to Lucas. She was crazy about him.
He placed his hand on the back of her head nervously. "Brooke…" he started. Tell her. Tell her.
"Mhm?" she murmured into his chest.
"I… I'm…" he fumbled with his words before feeling himself chicken out. "It sucks that your parents are home and I actually have to drive them around," he breathed nervously.
"Yeah, but maybe I'll even let you take me for a ride every now and then," she smirked at him from his chest.
He forced a light chuckle at her sexual innuendo.
"Lucas, I have to ask you something," she stated, her tone becoming serious again. "I mean… I know it's not true. It's just my mom wanting to start trouble… But I have to make sure."
Lucas gulped uneasily, realizing where this conversation was heading. He kissed her softly on the lips, realizing that it would possibly be the last time he would get to.
"Do you wanna go inside?" he suggested, knowing that Brooke's screaming would wake up the entire neighborhood once she found out the truth.
"Yeah, I guess…" she said nervously. She couldn't understand why Lucas was changing the subject. As they walked across the lawn, he laced his fingers with hers: something else that would possibly never happen again in a few moments.
Once they were inside, Brooke put her back against the door. Lucas decided to avoid the conversation for as long as possible. He couldn't hurt her. He couldn't let her know that there was someone else when all he wanted was to spend her last few days kissing her.
So instead of confessing, he put his hand on the door, above her shoulder, and kissed her passionately, his body rubbing against hers.
"Lucas," she murmured between kisses. "I really need to talk to you."
In response, he just kissed her harder. "It can't be that important if you're playing with the hem of my shirt," he chuckled before diving in to meet her lips again.
She placed her hand softly on his chest and pushed him backwards lightly. "It is. I just need to ask you a question."
Once again, he gulped down as hard as he could and racked his brain for another method that would distract her from the heavy tension that lingered in the air.
"Are you seeing someone?"
"What?" he asked, feigning surprise.
"You heard me, Lucas. Is your 'friend with benefits' really a girlfriend?"
He closed his eyes tightly, hoping that maybe this was a dream.
"She's your girlfriend," Brooke answered for him, noting the look on his face. "She is your girlfriend."
Her tone was flat, yet somehow, it affected him more than screaming would. He knew she cared, but the shock hadn't set in yet and her voice was emotionless.
"How could you do that to me?" she whispered as a tear made it's way down her porcelain skin.
