Hi guys! Sorry it took me so long to update- I was just on vacation, so I couldn't post this chapter earlier... Without further delay- here it is, and it is packed with Brathan and Brachel, just like I promised, so I hope you guys will enjoy it! ;-) As always- please share your thoughts with me! ;-)

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the OTH characters.

Chapter 9

Everything around her was completely dark. She didn't see any objects or people around her, just an endless dark space that prevented her from recognizing the place she was currently in. Flowing in a cloud of numbness, Brooke tried to open her eyes and move her arms, but even those two simple tasks were beyond her ability at the current moment. She was unable to feel, unable to move and unable to respond- simply like a lost soul hanging somewhere in space.

Brooke continued to lie in place, consumed by the great darkness that surrounded her, when suddenly the numbness began to slightly fade away as she felt the most gentle touch, like a stroke of a feather, gliding through her hair, and the darkness that had been engulfing her get penetrated by specks of light. The feeling was so nice and soothing that Brooke thought that she had reached somewhere new and better than the places she knew so far.

An incredible feeling of lightness and tranquility overcame Brooke as she felt the soft touch continuing to caress her carefully. The black sea in which she had been sailing so far soon brightened up, adding to the soothing sensation that Brooke was feeling. As she tried to open her eyes once again, she was now able to let them gently flutter and after a bit of a struggle, finally open them half-way.

Brooke stared around the white room that she was lying in, blinking due to its brightness. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she surveyed the ceiling, let her eyes move down the wall and suddenly stilled them as she spotted a figure that sat before her and stared at her. Brooke stared back for several seconds until her vision finally became sharpened and focused enough for her to recognize Rachel, who was stroking her hair with tears in her eyes, tears that started flowing much faster as she saw Brooke's dull hazel irises finally appear from underneath her heavy eyelids.

"Hi there," was all Rachel could say through her rising emotions. Had she been more composed, she would have probably teased Brooke with something along the lines of 'It's about time you drag your fat ass out of bed' or 'Nice of you to wake up, slut, you were starting to get me worried…', but she was truly so concerned for Brooke's wellbeing that any cynicism she would usually have flew right out the window. Rachel continued to softly stroke Brooke's hair as she watched her blink and look around in confusion.

"Rachel…" Brooke softly let the name roll out of her lips, "Are we dead?"

The genuine sincerity with which Brooke asked her question caused Rachel to start sobbing. Not only did she suddenly realize that Brooke had been so worried about her after she left Tree Hill, she was afraid that she had died, but she also understood that Brooke must have been aware of the gravity of her condition before slipping away and of the fact that she was at risk of not waking up.

"No, baby, you're gonna be O.K…." Rachel told Brooke in between sobs. As Brooke continued to blankly stare at her, Rachel took Brooke's uninjured, frail hand into both of her hands and squeezed it gently, "It will be alright now, Brooke. You're safe with me now. I promise…" Rachel swore as she held onto Brooke's hand securely, forcing herself to push her tears back.

Brooke let her eyes slip away from Rachel's flooded ones. She was actually disappointed that she had returned to the place where she needed to face all of her troubles again. When she first saw Rachel's face, she had been truly hoping that now she could forget about everything. "Where am I?" she finally asked, after a long, pensive silence, her eyes still hanging in space and avoiding Rachel's emotion-filled ones.

"You're in the Silver-Crest Hospital in New York, honey," Rachel sniffled and softly replied, bringing her hand back to Brooke's hair and smoothing it out soothingly. When Brooke failed to respond to this newly-acquired information, Rachel felt obligated to further explain, "I found you passed out in your apartment earlier tonight, Brooke. You must have been walking in the rain before you reached your apartment, and I guess that drinking too much didn't help you either…" Rachel carefully reminded Brooke of the state she had been in earlier that night, purposely choosing to leave out Brooke's earlier acquired and more serious injuries. She knew that she needed to receive some answers from Brooke, but decided to leave that confrontation with Brooke for another day, considering Brooke's current condition.

Rachel sighed as she studied Brooke's features and realized that she was processing the information that was given to her and remembering what she had been through that night. In an instant, a flash of pain ran through Brooke's bruised eyes and then she winced, obviously overcome by agony, and shut her eyes.

"Brooke?" Rachel immediately tensed up and looked at her friend worriedly. Her heart almost dropped as she realized that the frail brunette before her didn't only look banged up, but was also suffering from physical pain. Little did she know that Brooke's sore body was not the only thing affecting Brooke. The events of the past few days- Angie's departure, the attack, her defeat in the battle over her company and the feeling of betrayal from Lucas and Peyton, all entered her mind at once and hit her full force, causing her to feel as though someone just took a blow at her. Brooke felt as if her head was spinning and as though someone just punched her straight in the stomach. She squeezed her eyes shut as much as she could, considering their swollen state, and just wished she could make all the pain that she was feeling disappear.

"Brooke, are you alright?" Rachel asked, her voice sounding even more concerned and anxious than before. Even though Brooke didn't reply, Rachel sighed in relief as she saw Brooke's distressed features slowly easing their tension. She quickly wiped the few new tears that managed to escape from her eyes and roll down her cheeks and then proceeded to carefully run her hands through Brooke's hair in an attempt to sooth her troubled friend, which soon proved to be successful, as Brooke's pale face gradually regained its color and her eyes fluttered open once again.

Both girls just remained silent; the first- staring at her friend intently and wishing she could go inside her head and learn what was troubling her, while the other simply wished that she could disappear into thin air along with all the hardships that had been finding their way to her lately. She had no strength left to fight, nor did she see what she had left to fight for.

"Why did you bring me here, Rachel?" Brooke finally spoke, her emotionless tone taking Rachel by surprise. Rachel stared at her in shock for several seconds before she could find her voice and speak again.

"Brooke… Honey, I told you already…" she patiently reminded her friend, unable to mask her slight confusion, "You were unconscious and barely breathing… You seriously needed medical care," she explained. As she searched for Brooke's eyes, which were still hanging in space, Rachel suddenly remembered how much Brooke hated hospitals and felt the need to apologetically add, "I had no choice, Brooke. You were in pretty bad shape…"

"You shouldn't have brought me here" Brooke coldly stated, her lack of emotion was now not only frightening Rachel, but beginning to piss her off.

"You could have bled to death! I probably saved your life tonight, Brooke!" Rachel exclaimed, not understanding how Brooke could have said that.

"I wish you hadn't…" Brooke quietly replied, causing Rachel's heart to freeze. Rachel's eyes starting welling up with tears again as she watched Brooke turn her back to her and face the wall, only now realizing just how broken Brooke Davis had become…


"Where is she?" Rachel's head shot up as she heard the familiar masculine voice calling out with urgency from afar. It was the middle of the night and she had fallen asleep in the waiting room to which she had been directed when Brooke's doctors came over for a checkup, but Nathan's low, worried voice instantly woke her up.

"Sir, you're going to have to calm down…" Rachel heard a nurse respond to Nathan strictly. She quickly sprang to her feet and rushed over to the source of the voices, wanting to help out before the argument could get even more heated up.

"Look, lady- my friend was rushed over here tonight…" Nathan raised his voice with anger and tension, but the nurse, who was getting impatient, cut into his speech.

"Sir, either you keep your voice down or I will call security" the nurse threatened, effectively silencing Nathan up. Just as she was about to continue to speak, Rachel finally reached the two.

"Nathan," she called out, causing him to turn and face her. His nervous and worried expression turned sad and compassionate the moment he saw what a mess Rachel was with her red, swollen eyes, tangled hair and trembling lips. Without even thinking, Nathan pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly out of a need to comfort both her and himself. She might not have been one of his close friends, but he truly couldn't stay indifferent to how upset she looked and personally needed some support after the long and nerve-wrecking day he had been through.

"She's gonna be O.K…. The doctors want to leave her here for a few more days, but they say that she's gonna be O.K…." Rachel informed Nathan in a shaky voice, gripping onto his shoulders tightly.

"Thank god…" Nathan closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief. Throughout the entire flight, he had been preparing himself for a variety of different conditions in which he might find Brooke, so hearing that she was out of any life-threatening danger was just what Nathan needed. However, when he realized that Rachel's body was beginning to shake in his arms, he frowned and pulled her away from him, so he could look at her face.

Rachel tried to smile at first, ashamed of the way her emotions were overpowering her as a result of Nathan's familiar and supportive presence, but as she felt his hand securely and comfortingly grabbing onto her shoulder, as if urging her to speak, she couldn't help but let both a loud sob and her thoughts out, "They said that if I wouldn't have gotten to Brooke when I did… that if I wouldn't have reached her on time… that she could have…" Rachel struggled to complete her sentence as the sobs wracked her body and choked her throat, but Nathan understood just what she had been trying to tell him and felt his stomach drop at the thought of what could have happened if Rachel hadn't gone over to Brooke's apartment that night. He quickly buried Rachel's form into his embrace again and comfortingly rocked her in his strong arms.

"You can't think about that, Rachel" he told her sternly, "The important thing is that Brooke is here now, and trust me- I won't leave her side until she is well again" Nathan vowed, fully intending to keep his promise this time. He knew that Brooke was lucky enough to have gotten out of the dangerous condition she was in for a second time, and most certainly wasn't intending to allow her to tease fate a third time.

"I know," Rachel whimpered, forcefully suppressing her sobs, "But Brooke… She's just so… defeated… that I don't know how to help her," Rachel shakily told Nathan, pulling apart from him and beginning to nervously pace before him, "And I don't even know what I'm dealing with… I mean- did she fall? Did she get into a fight? Did she…"

"Rachel," Nathan grabbed onto Rachel's shoulders and halted her tense stride and concerned rambling. When her eyes met his, he quietly told her, "Brooke was attacked"

"What?!" Rachel felt her mouth completely dry in an instant as her legs suddenly grew weak. Nathan, who observed the effect his words had on Rachel, quickly helped her sit down on one of the hallway's chairs.

"Someone broke into Brooke's store while she was there and attacked her." Nathan explained, watching Rachel's eyes widen in horror.

"Wh… When?... How?... Was he caught?" Rachel blurted out in shock, obviously completely horrified to learn what Brooke had been through.

"Why don't we go get some coffee and then I can tell you everything that I know and you can tell me everything the doctors told you… We still have a lot of time to kill until visiting hours start…" Nathan offered, knowing that he needed a decent cup of coffee before he could start reliving the horrible events of the night of the attack. Rachel nodded in agreement, knowing that she needed a decent drink as well before she could go into the specifics of Brooke's condition.

The two of them rose to their feet and walked over to the hospital cafeteria in silence, knowing that they would have plenty of time to talk later. Not in a million years did either Nathan or Rachel imagine that they would spend that entire night together, talking to each other, but they did, for the sake of their dear friend. They did, because they were both determined to look after Brooke and be there for her in this time of need…


The minute that visiting hours began, at 8 AM sharp, Nathan was quickly and angrily striding towards Brooke's room in the general ward, with Rachel racing after him, close behind him. After Rachel had told him that Brooke had said to her that she wished she wouldn't have saved her, he became quite angry, but when she added in the fact that she found Brooke passed out with a vodka bottle in her hand, Nathan's blood simply boiled in his veins. He just couldn't believe how irresponsible and careless Brooke had been. He just couldn't understand how she dared to gamble her life away when there were so many people who loved her and cared about her so much.

"Nathan…" Rachel called out after him, breathing heavily due to the quick speed she had to maintain in order to keep up with Nathan's speedy pace, "Maybe you should calm down before you go to see Brooke…" Rachel suggested, concerned about the consequences an encounter between an angry Nathan and a stubborn, emotionless Brooke could have.

"Hell no. She is going to listen to what I have to tell her right now!" Nathan furiously replied, only picking up his pace and causing a frustrated Rachel to groan as she started running in order to narrow down the gap that Nathan was creating between them. Her efforts were in vain though, as Nathan soon disappeared from her sight, leaving her to race after him and pray that in the few moments that he would be left alone with Brooke, the two brunettes would not bite each other's heads off.

As soon as Nathan entered Brooke's room, he found her lying on her side, facing the wall with her back to him. He stared at Brooke curled up under the hospital blankets, and became truly enraged as he mused over the fact that her foolish actions could have cost Brooke her life and prevented her from lying there before him now. With that thought carved deeply in his mind, Nathan marched over to Brooke's bed, intending to lecture her for the scare she gave them and for her irresponsible behavior.

"Brooke!" Nathan placed his hand on Brooke's shoulder, intending to turn her over, so she could face him, but at the instant that his fingers touched her skin, Brooke yelped and pulled away from his touch. She whirled over, clutching her blanket in her hands, and stared at Nathan with pure fear in her eyes.

At the moment that he locked eyes with those terrified hazel orbs, all of Nathan's anger faded and was replaced with concern and care. Just by looking at her, Nathan understood how lost Brooke was, and could only feel sad for her, and not angry at all. He carefully approached her, refraining from touching her trembling body, and soothingly spoke.

"Brooke, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to scare you," he apologized, looking at the frightened woman before him with remorse and sorrow. It simply broke his heart to see just how deeply Brooke had been affected by the attack. When Brooke just continued staring at him and failed to respond, Nathan took one more step towards her and looked deeply into her eyes, "Brooke, it's me… I swear I'm not gonna hurt you" he promised. He carefully brought his hand up to Brooke's shaking shoulder and gently cupped it with his palm. Brooke slightly flinched but didn't draw away from Nathan's touch this time. Nathan sadly looked at her as she blinked and shifted her gaze over to the ground, trying to hide her vulnerability away.

"Why did you come, Nate?" Brooke quietly asked, if even possible- breaking Nathan's heart even more.

"I came because I was worried about you and because I promised you I would be there for you…" Nathan immediately replied, squeezing Brooke's shoulder gently, wanting to convey to her that he was there to support her. As the fragile brunette before him continued to stare at the floor with glassy eyes, Nathan frowned, realizing that there was something even more broken about her than at the last time he had seen her.

"Brooke, what happened today?" he gently asked her, looking at her intently, yet Brooke didn't even seem to acknowledge that he had spoken to her. He carefully began to stroke up and down her arms, as if attempting to help Brooke warm up to him, and tried again, "We were so worried about you… Where did you go, Brooke?" but Brooke once again failed to respond. She just sat there, holding her blanket tightly to her chest and feeling completely detached from Nathan. Brooke knew that he wouldn't understand how she felt. Even though he was there with her now, Brooke still felt completely alone. She felt as though Nathan was sitting by her bed purely from pity, and preferred that he would simply go away.

"Brooke, please talk to me… You're starting to get me really worried" Nathan pleaded, unable to stand Brooke's disturbing silence for any longer.

"Go home, Nate" Brooke sighed and said without even glancing at Nathan. She felt as though there was no use for Nathan's attempts to help her out, as she was shattered beyond repair, yet Nathan wasn't planning on giving up so soon.

"Pretty soon I will, but I'm taking you with me" he told Brooke in a serious tone, wanting to show her that he wasn't about to leave her behind. He watched Brooke slightly shift on her bed and inch away from him and after sighing sadly, he said, "We're gonna get through this, Brooke. I won't give up on you"

Brooke didn't say anything, but shied away from his touch when Nathan tried to pull her in for a friendly hug.

"Brooke…" he said with frustration and sadness, but all the brunette did was pull her blanket to her chest more tightly and lower her gaze even more. Nathan ran his hand through his hair in defeat, not knowing what else to do in order to try to get through to his friend. He suddenly wished that Haley had come with him, for she would always know what to do or say in cases like this.

Nathan let out a relieved sigh when the door opened, and even though she wasn't Haley, Rachel came in and helped the tightness in his chest ease slightly as he was reminded that he wasn't in this alone. Little did Nathan know that she had been watching him and Brooke from outside the room for a while, having wanted to give the two friends a few moments alone, and had decided to come in as she saw how desperate he had become.

"Nathan, why don't we let Brooke rest a little" Rachel gently suggested, approaching Brooke carefully, "Brooke, sweetie…" Rachel wanted to help Brooke ease into a horizontal position, but Brooke already slid onto her side on her own, turning her back to her two friends.

Rachel and Nathan shared a concerned look, which Rachel finally broke when she came up to Brooke's bed and, as carefully as she could, placed a hand on the brunette's back, yet still caused her to flinch.

"We're not going anywhere, Brooke" Rachel sincerely promised Brooke as she gently stroked her back and looked at her with sad eyes. Brooke didn't say a word but just closed her eyes and tried to block everything away, as even with Rachel and Nathan around, she still felt completely and utterly alone…


AN: Alright, I hope you guys liked this chapter. I know that there was no Lucas and that all of you must already want to kill me for the lack of Brucas, but I promise you that I am not teasing you when I tell you that it's coming up! This is all for this time! ;-)