Alex woke up to the sound of rushing water. Confused, he slid out of bed and walked over to the guest bathroom, hand on the MK25 he kept on his person at all times. Quietly, he slid across the hallway and next to the door. He heard the shower turn off and a few quiet steps as the perpetrator attempted to move quietly. The door slowly slid open, creaking as it did so, and no sooner had that happened then did Alex lower his gun and sigh. "You know, I didn't give you a key to my place so that you could sneak in and out."

Natalie, the oldest of his younger siblings, jumped back at her brothers voice, saw him, sighed and nodded. "Look, you're right. I'm sorry."

Alex crossed his arms. "So, you wanna tell me why you're showering at my place at six in the morning?"

Natalie shrugged and feebly replied, "Long night?"

"Kiddo, you aren't an adult yet. You're still living with Mama. Does she know where you are?"

Natalie shook her head. Alex nodded. "I didn't think so."

"Look, we didn't do anything bad, I promise!"

"I don't mean to sound skeptical, but I don't think I've ever snuck into someone else's house to shower after a night of helping feed the homeless."

Natalie gave an exasperated sigh. "You know how Mama would have reacted."

"With good reason, I'd argue."

"It was just a night with friends! We hung out on the beach, and we were having such a good time, it just slipped away from us. I had sand all over me and just needed a shower before going into work this morning."

Alex was quiet for a minute. Natalie softly asked, "Don't you remember what it was like when you were my age?"

Alex chuckled. "When I was your age, I was at BUD/S."

"Alex…"

Alex waved his hand. "Go on, Karen is gonna be mad at you if you're late."

She gave her brother a tight hug, to which he rolled his eyes and muttered, "I'm such a fucking softie."

Brooke paced impatiently back and forth across her store, waiting on Harvey to come pick her up. Since arriving from New York in an attempt to get her back up to the city, he had constantly ridiculed how small the town was. Now, the big city lawyer was late, not able to find her store on time, and that was not making Brooke happy.

Brooke's phone dinged, and as soon as she grabbed it, she wanted to throw it at the wall. "Had a few drinks. Not able to drive. Grab yourself a cab and I'll meet you there."

Brooke bit her tongue, holding back her remarks, before walking outside to find someone who would give her a ride. A town Tree Hill's size did not have cabs to begin with. "That might be one thing I miss about city life."

Karen had just walked outside of her store and was locking up, preparing to head over to Tric, when she saw Brooke coming towards her. Karen smiled and wrapped the girl in a hug. "Brooke, it's so good to see you!"

"Aw, it's so good to see you too, Karen."

"How are things?"

Brooke feigned a smile to hide her annoyance. "The store is great! Listen, can I ask you a favor?"

"Of course."

"Can I get a ride to Tric? My ride had to bail at the last minute and all this time in New York has gotten me used to having cabs on every corner."

Karen smiled. "Of course. I have to run one errand on the way over, but I'd be happy to drive you."

Karen turned into a neighborhood that was all too familiar for Brooke and stopped at a house that Brooke knew like the back of her hand. Karen looked over, grabbed a package, and said, "I'll be just a minute."

Karen left the car, leaving Brooke to stare back at the house. The white two-story colonial, the white picket fence, and the red door. Instantly, she was thrown back into her memories.

Lucas slowed his car, pulling it to a stop in front of Brooke's house. As usual, the lights were off. The driveway was empty. No one was home.

Brooke leaned into Lucas's chest and said, "I really don't want to be alone."

Lucas kissed her forehead and said, "You know something? One day, it's going to be you and me in a house like that. You, me, our kids playing in the yard, our friends over for dinner. We'll rake the leaves in the fall and plant the flowers in the spring. We'll grow old together and watch as life goes on and on and on. Together."

Brooke looked up at him and smiled. "You promise?"

"I promise…"

Brooke was snapped out of her memories as Karen bid goodbye to the owner of the house. Two kids ran past Karen and the woman, chased by a smiling teenager that was clearly their older sister. The three fell onto the grass in a massive hug, laughing and smiling as they played with one another.

Brooke attempted to compose herself and looked away from the window as Karen walked back towards the car, hoping that Karen wouldn't see her tears.

Alex looked up from the running waters of the river, his deep contemplation snapped as he heard a person walk up behind him. A few minutes later, Quinn emerged from the woods behind the river, walking up and taking a seat next to Alex on the bank. The pair was quiet for a minute before Alex remarked, "You really should know better than to try and find your way around these woods near dark."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Please. I know these trails like the back of my hand."

"Could've fooled me. I heard you tramping around back there five minutes before you showed up."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "That's not fair. You're trained for that kind of thing."

Alex nodded. "Fair enough. But still, shouldn't be walking around here this time of day. Dark falls quickly."

"I just felt like I needed to talk to you."

Alex chuckled. "You were going to see me in a couple hours at the concert. Was it that urgent?"

Quinn nodded and wiped a tear away from her eye. Alex noticed and put an arm around her. "…Look, I'm sorry. That came across badly. What did you want to talk about?"

"…Alex, I'm worried about you."

Alex nodded. "I figured as much, but that doesn't really answer my question."

"Alex, what's wrong? Why are you acting like this?"

"Acting like what?"

"You're different. Angrier. More violent. Constantly lashing out at others for small things. I've known you to be a defender and have a short fuse with assholes…but this is different."

"I don't really know what to say. I feel like I am the same guy I've always been."

Quinn, tired of dancing around the point, asked, "Did something happen over there?"

Alex's eyes blinked and in a moment the memories flashed in front of him.

Smoke. Blood. Bullets zipped past the SEALs rapidly. A voice screamed, someone hit the ground with a thud, and Alex yelled, "MAN DOWN! MAN DOWN!"

Alex shook off the cobwebs, but not before Quinn saw the fire flash in his blue eyes.

"I'm fine, Quinny. I promise."

Quinn shook her head. "You're not, Alex. You know that, whether you want to admit it or not."

Alex shrugged. "I mean, if that's what you believe, that's what you believe."

Quinn, slightly angered that he wasn't taking this more seriously, lashed out. "This act is pissing me off! Did you know that Karen is about ready to ban you from Tric?! Do you know how much trouble the cops have let you off for since you got back?!"

Alex scoffed. "Please. It was just a couple of fights. It's not that big a deal."

Quinn yelled, "You used to avoid fighting! You used to use that as a last resort! Don't you remember what it was like in high school?! Don't you remember how you used to reason and win people over?!"

Alex rolled his eyes. "That was high school, Quinn. Long time ago."

Quinn shook her head and quieted, her throat tight as she held back sobs. "…I just want my cousin back."

Alex softened a bit, not wanting to upset Quinn any more than he already had. "Look, Quinny, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell. I shouldn't have. I apologize."

Quinn nodded and Alex wrapped her in a tight hug. Quinn whispered, "I just want to make sure that you're okay. We all worry about you…a lot."

Blood and sweat covered Alex. His vision was red. In the distance, a voice screamed out, "ALEX! HELP!"

Alex willed the vision away and nodded, holding Quinn close so that she couldn't see his misty eyes. "I've got it under control, Quinny. I promise."

The Killers were playing Tric, yet another fantastic concert that Tric was putting on as they transitioned into the summer concert series. Brooke and Harvey were there as a couple as Harvey attempted to win over her friends from back home. Needless to say, the haughty New York lawyer was doing poorly.

Annoyed with the situation and Harvey's continual subtle jabs at him, Lucas left the group and headed for the bar, where he found Alex with his usual cup of water. Lucas slammed his glass down on the bar in a fit of anger, garnering a raised eyebrow from Alex, who said nothing. Lucas vented, "I can't stand that guy!"

"Well, ex's usually don't like the next man up, just saying."

"But he's such a haughty prick! He thinks he's better than everyone. He's talking down to Brooke, talking down to the family, talking down to me…I mean, what does she see in this guy."

Alex shrugged and took a sip of his water. "He's safe. Big wig lawyer with a partnership at his firm. Sure beats someone who gets shot at for a living."

Lucas rolled his eyes. "Well, that's a stupid reason."

Alex shook his head. "Not to her, it's not. You've made peace with not coming back. So have I. But those we love. Our families. Our friends. They didn't choose this life. They're the ones who have to sit back and hope that the next time they turn on the news, it's not your face with a date of death. They're the ones who have to hope that the next time someone knocks on their door, it's not two men in their dress blues with a bible and the worst thing they could ever hear."

Lucas looked over at him. "Are you defending her?"

Alex shook his head. "I'm not defending anyone. I'm simply reminding you that this life can be much tougher for someone who didn't choose it. I can understand why someone would want safety instead of us."

Alex took another sip of his water and let Lucas ponder that sentiment for a moment before saying, "That said, Harvey is a dick. Let me know if we need to kick his ass."

Alex slapped Lucas on the back and walked off, leaving Lucas to ponder the wisdom that his commanding officer had offered.

Alex ended up at the other end of the bar, sensing that Lucas needed a little bit of time to himself. No sooner had he done so than had Faith appeared, wrapping her arms through Alex's. Alex chuckled and remarked, "You really don't give up, do you?"

Faith smirked and shook her head. "Do you want me to?"

Alex shook his head and Faith winked. "I didn't think so."

"So what does a gorgeous model like yourself find herself doing on a night like tonight?"

"Welllllllll, it's pretty nice to hear music like the Killers. The guys are pretty cute, too."

Alex looked around, nodded a couple of times, and then responded, "Yeah, they're not bad."

Faith replied, "You know, I wasn't talking about them."

Alex smirked and said, "Well, I'd say I'm better than not bad. I'm downright fine."

Faith smacked his shoulder and said, "Geez, you're so cocky!"

"If I had a dime for every time that I've been told that…"

Lucas summoned up some self-control from deep within his psyche and walked back over to the table, where an exhausted and annoyed group of Tree Hill natives continued to listen to Harvey drone on and on about himself. However, as soon as Lucas walked up, Harvey took the opportunity to take yet another shot at Lucas. "Well, lookie here, Lucas shows up out of nowhere! Seems to be a common trend these days."

Lucas seethed and replied, "You got a problem with me, Harvey?"

Brooke shook her head, angry at both, and said, "Both of you, cut it out!"

Harvey smirked and threw a couple of hundred dollar bills on the table. "No hard feelings, Luke? Here, I'll give you a little bit of change from the other night. That should cover a couple months' rent. Looks like you might need it."

Lucas reared his arm back, but Alex intervened, running over and yanking Lucas away. "Enough, Luke! Calm down. Walk it off."

Lucas stormed off for the back of the bar, Brooke shook her head and left the bar entirely, and Alex stared daggers at Harvey. "I think you need to go."

Harvey rolled his eyes. "Or what?"

Alex grabbed the man by his collar. "Or I'll kick your ass seven ways to Sunday. Get out. Now."

Harvey glared, but turned around and left. Alex sighed. "Maybe Quinn has a point…"

Faith walked up and wrapped her arms around Alex from behind. "You know, that was REALLY hot."

Alex shook his head. "No. No, it really wasn't."

He looked over at her and asked, "Do you want to get out of here?"

Faith grinned and kissed his neck. "I've been waiting for you to ask me that."

Lucas pulled up to the Clothes Over Bro's store, parking his truck and sitting for a moment, biding his time and preparing his words. After a moment of gathering his thoughts, he walked in, knocking as he did so. "I saw your light on. Which isn't that surprising. I know how hard you work."

Lucas took a seat, with barely a nod from a slightly guilty Brooke. "You know you haven't been yourself lately, Brooke. I mean, not the Brooke I remember."

Brooke scoffed. "I haven't been that Brooke for three years."

"What's going on?"

Brooke bit her tongue, and then replied, "Outside of you and my fiancé getting into a dick measuring contest? I went by my old house. There's a teenage girl living there now. But the door is still there. The beautiful red door, in front of the white house. You know what that reminded me of? Lucas and Brooke. True love always…

…Always, Lucas. That's what we were supposed to have until you decided that I wasn't good enough for you and that you'd rather hook up with Peyton than spend your life with me! And then, as if that weren't good enough, afterwards, you ambushed me!"

Lucas scoffed, "…If by ambushed you mean proposed to you?"

"Oh, yeah. The worst timed proposal ever. A proposal that was driven by some insecurity that I have never been able to understand."

Lucas scoffed again, now angry, and replied, "Insecurity? Right. Let me tell you how you get always, Brooke. When a man asks you to marry him, you say yes. You don't say no and call him insecure."

Exasperated, Brooke replied, "I never said no! I said that I loved you and that I did want to marry you someday. But you screwed up! I couldn't trust you! And, oh, God, Luke! I wanted to so bad! But you gave up on us."

"I gave up on us? By proposing, I gave up on us?"

"No, by not waiting, not letting us heal, you gave up on us, and you know that's the truth!"

"That's great, Brooke! You want to talk truth, let's tell the truth."

Brooke crossed her arms and replied, "Go for it!"

Lucas pointed and angrily said, "You gave up on me. That's why you didn't say yes! You didn't think I could do it. You didn't think I could get through BUD/S. You thought I would be a washed out dreamer who thought he could be a SEAL. Or Maybe you just didn't care, because it wasn't about you or what you wanted."

Brooke screamed, "Well, if that's the truth, if I never cared, then how come every time I see this stupid trident on something, I buy it! Every stupid damn time, Luke?! You said I was great! You said I could be great! You said we were destined to be together! You said it to the world, you said it to me, and I wish you never had because you did not mean any of it!"

Lucas held up his hands, angry and exasperated. "I'm gonna go."

Brooke shouted, "Okay, you know what? I want to pay for your help the other day. I feel bad about taking it and want to pay. I don't feel right about it."

Lucas rolled his eyes and replied, "It's called me being nice. You should try it sometime."

"Well, it needs to stop."

"Maybe you're right."

Lucas stormed out and slammed his fist against the wall, angry with Brooke, but angrier with himself, knowing how badly he had screwed up.

Alex pulled his truck to a stop near the beach before walking around and opening the door. Faith hopped out, Alex grabbed a blanket from inside the truck, and the pair headed out for the beach. Faith ran ahead of him, pulling him along by the hand, before they found a spot, spread out the blanket, and laid down. Faith immediately squeezed herself on top of him and winked, "Making out on the beach. Very high school. VERY sexy."

Alex rolled his eyes and gently lifted her off. "I did NOT come out here to get laid…although, you are certainly not making that an easy decision."

Faith, confused, asked, "Well then…why are we here?"

"Because I want to spend more time with you outside of a bar. That's why."

Faith smiled. "That's…that's really sweet."

Alex shrugged. "I really wanna get to know you better."

Faith's smile grew ever wider. "I really want to get to know you better too, Alex."

Alex chuckled. "Then why didn't you just say that? It's a lot more attractive than your…act."

Faith shrugged. "That seems to be all that guys are interested in."

Alex propped himself up on his shoulder and focused on her. "Tell me about yourself."

Faith winked, bit her lip, and rolled back on top of him. "I mean, I COULD tell you, but maybe I should just show you."

Alex chuckled. "Well, when you put it like that, maybe you should."