Chapter 10
The four of us were left standing there as we watched Brooke drive away. I saw Rachel and Peyton link hands. They knew that their best friend just left them. They knew that without one of them they just weren't as strong. They knew that they meant nothing without her. Everyone knew that.
"look, guys…" I try to talk to them, but Peyton turns around and the phrase 'if looks could kill' comes to mind. Rachel doesn't even bother to look up. Both girls on the brink of crying, but refusing to let any more emotions out.
"no, let's get one thing straight. The only reason why we even talked to you was because Brooke liked you, but now that she's gone, we have no reason to even acknowledge you" Peyton snaps at me.
"come on Peyton, she was just trying to help" Lucas cuts in. I almost forgot he was there.
"Lucas, stay out of it" Peyton says trying her best not to be mean to him. Yeah, she totally likes him too. "come on Rach" Peyton says pulling her towards their cars. They both get in their own and Lucas and I watch two more girls drive away in pain.
"come on buddy, I'll take you home" Lucas says softly as he wraps one arm around my shoulders. I just let him take me to the car, all the time pondering the question 'What am I supposed to do now?'.
…
Lucas dropped me off at my place, both of us completely ignoring that school is still in session. I enter my house and start heading for my room, knowing that I just need to sleep right now and pray that when I wake up this nightmare will be over.
"aren't you supposed to be in school?" a voice asks me. I turn around to see Taylor wrapped up in a blanket eating cereal on my couch – watching TV.
"aren't you supposed to be working as a waitress in Connecticut?" I ask back.
She pauses for a moment, still not looking in my direction. "come talk to your sister" she says patting the seat beside her. So I step down from the stairs I'm on and sit down beside her. "what's wrong?" she asks, eyes still attached to the TV.
"Brooke just had a huge fight with her friends, that's all."
"oh, right, your girlfriend" she concludes.
"she's not my girlfriend"
"if you say so" she says holding the bowl of cereal in one hand and flips through the channels with the remote in the other. I take the spoon from the bowl and get a bite out of it. "what's going on between you two anyways?"
Might as well tell her, she knows something's up anyways. "we've been hanging out lately and getting close, but she's been having some problems with her friends and some people vandalized some things at school because of Brooke, and it just got out of hand really quickly"
"you couldn't have dated some chick with less problems, could you?"
"and make life easy? Never"
"so wait, is she angry at you?"
"no, I don't think so"
"so then why are you here? Go comfort your girlfriend" she says pushing me off the couch.
"I don't think she wants to talk to anyone right now" I say getting back on the couch. In fact I don't even want to talk about it right now. "have you talked to mom and dad lately?"
"no"
"what about Vivian and Quinn?" my other sisters.
"no, and I haven't talk to Jacob or Daniel either" she says listing our two older brothers.
"so how much money do you need this time?"
"I don't want any money… I just need somewhere to stay for a while"
"alright, well it's a two story house. Sleep anywhere but my room"
"why? You and Brooke get it on in there?"
"Taylor!"
"I'm kidding…" she says. "I'm sure you and Brooke get it on everywhere…" she mutters. I do the only thing I can do and swat her in the head with one of the couch cushions. I get up off the couch and head up to my room for that long awaited nap.
"hey, Haley-bub?"
"yeah?"
"I'm glad you found someone"
"… yeah me too." I just hope I won't let her go.
I spent all day in my room. I didn't eat or sleep, just got up to go to the bathroom and that's it. I've been staring at my phone all day waiting for Brooke to call. I tried calling her hours ago, but she wouldn't pick up. It's about 2:30am and I still can't sleep. I'm not even tired. All of a sudden I hear a tapping sound.
I remember that tapping sound. I jump out of bed and run to my window to find Brooke there. How she gets to my second story window I'll never know.
Without even saying hi I help her into my room, trying not to let her fall.
"I have a door you know"
"I know, but I didn't know how your sister felt about girls coming over in the middle of the night… can I sleep with you tonight?"
"of course, you're always welcome here." I say helping her out of her shirt. She just stares at me with a surprised look. "I know you hate restrictions" I say. She smiles and gets out of her jeans too.
"better?" I ask.
"yeah, but it'd make me feel even better if you lost your restrictions too" she says with a light smirk. I can't help but laugh at her trying to get me naked.
"how about a compromise? I'll take off either the shirt or my pants" I say with a smile.
"alright, lose the shirt then" she says helping me pull it over my head. As soon as the clothing hits the floor we crawl into bed and under the covers. I feel her wrap an arm around my stomach and I place my hand over hers. Her fingers trace small circles on my stomach and I know she's deep in thought.
"penny for your thoughts" I say.
"just thinking about today…"
"Brooke, you have to make up with your friends" her fingers stop moving.
"I don't know if I'm ready to" she whispers into my ear.
"haven't you guys ever fought and made up before?"
"yeah, but we've never fought like this. We never had the guts to bring up our biggest secrets like this"
"so no one else knows about the rape and pregnancy… and abuse?" I ask softly.
"no" she replies softly. Even through one word she manages to put forth so much emotion.
"Alex is…"
"Rachel's son" she answers me.
"and Peyton…"
"internet stalker gone bad" she says with pain in her voice.
"and your dad?"
"…he had a bad temper" Brooke says like it was nothing. "I remember it was the first time my dad hit me, I was 12, and I didn't know what to do. So I ran away to Peyton's house. She saw what happened and didn't really ask me about it. She invited Rachel over and we sort of had a slumber party. I don't even remember what we were talking about that night, but we stayed up all night pigging out on ice cream and having fun and laughing… and for those few hours I totally forgot about what happened. And for those few hours my friends made me feel happy, like nothing was wrong. They made me feel better"
"they're your friends, it's what they do best"
"but they didn't make me feel better this morning…"
"no, but they tried… until all hell broke loose. Brooke, what do you want to happen?"
"what do you mean?"
"for you to be happy, what do you want right now? What will it take?"
"I want to be at school, where no one hates me, I want my friends to be there for me when I need them and I want you to hold my hand through it all" she says quietly.
I look down at her hand on my stomach and lace my fingers with hers. "well one out of three ain't bad" I comment as we take a minute to let everything set in.
"thank you" she whispers and we both soon fall asleep, thinking things can only get better from here.
The next morning I woke up a few minutes early to grab some coffee. I woke up to the same position I fell asleep in, with Brooke's arm around me, my hand still in hers. I turn over in my bed and give her a loud, wet kiss on the cheek earning a groan out of Brooke. I laugh as I pull a tank top on and hop out my bedroom door, I silently shut it and leave Brooke sleeping. In the kitchen I find Taylor already sipping some coffee, still in her pyjamas and what looks like one of my sweaters.
"morning" she says.
"morning, I greet back" pouring myself some coffee. "what's on the schedule for today"
"I think I might walk around, see if there are any jobs available…"
"a job?" I ask surprisingly. "Taylor James working for someone else? That I have to get a picture of"
"too bad you'll be in school all day." Damn, she's right.
"what ever, I'll find a way" I say.
"you do that. In the mean time I'm going up stairs to get changed" she says heading up the stairs with her coffee still in hand.
"okay, just stay out of my room!" I yell, but at this point that might have been a mistake.
"why? Are you hiding something?" oh crap.
"no" I reply quickly. Probably too quickly.
"what is it Haley? Is it porn?" she asks already going up the stairs. I grab my coffee and try to chase after her. As soon as she sees me coming towards her she starts running too. "no, wait, it's drugs, isn't it!?" crap, when did she become so fast. If she finds Brooke in my room, half naked, I'm never going to live it down. She's at the top of the stairs and about to open my bedroom door.
"wait, I know, it's Brooke, isn't it!?" she says excitedly swinging the door open, expecting to see Brooke sleeping on my bed. I run up beside her and we both look into my room to see an empty bed and an empty room.
"what would make you think that?" I ask, now calm. Holy crap! Where the hell is she?!
"what ever, I'll find out what you're hiding later" she says. I watch her walk down the hall and into her room and I quickly shut my door and run over to my closet. I open the doors to see Brooke smiling and holding her clothes at the same time.
"well, that was close" Brooke says dropping her clothes on the floor and walking closer to her. I'm so glad Taylor's not smart enough to look in the closet.
"do I get a good morning kiss?" I ask slyly. She smirks and leans in closer to press her lips down to mine. Just as our mouths finally meet my bedroom door swings open.
"I knew it!" Taylor yells, seeing Brooke only in her sleeping gear. Brooke pulls back and steps behind me to conceal her body.
"Taylor, get out!"
"nothing gets by Taylor James" she says referring to herself in the third person. Loser. "plus, I saw her car parked on the curb"
"out!" I yell again. She laughs and closes the door as she exits my room. I turn around to face Brooke who is right in front of me. "sorry, my sister has a problem with privacy"
"mhm" she yells pressing her lips down onto mine.
"mmkay, we have to get ready now" I say with my lips still pressed against Brookes"
"mm mm" she disagrees.
"mmhmm" I reply. She's in a surprisingly good mood since yesterday. "we have to fix everything between you and your friends, and get started on that life you want"
"can't we start tomorrow?" she groans as she finally breaks the kiss and takes a seat on the bed.
"no, I have a feeling it's going to take a while to get your friends back, so we better start early"
"but what if I'm not ready to accept them back?"
"Brooke, if that's what you're wondering you have to ask yourself where would you rather be… facing this whole vandalism thing on your own, or back with Rachel and Peyton? You and I both know that you need them just as much as they need you…"
We went to school in Brooke's car today, parking in a different spot than usual. It turns out that our school doesn't want to display any sort of vandalism so they got rid of the cement block and paved over Brooke's spot. We head towards the school, and on the way we see Lucas and Nathan. We meet up with them and join them in a small circle.
"morning boys" I say.
"morning" they reply together.
"hey Brooke" Lucas acknowledges her.
"hey Luke" she says meekly. I forgot Lucas knows just as much as I do.
"how are you doing?"
"fine" she answers. We all know when someone says they're fine it means anything but.
"that's good" he answers. Just simple conversation. "Nate here's a little bummed that he missed a girl fight yesterday" he said trying to get a rise out of her. Just then Peyton and Rachel walk up behind us and 'accidentally' knock Brooke in the shoulder. Peyton turns back only to glare at me and Brooke and then continues walking into the building with Rachel.
"well stick around, you may see another one later" Brooke said as she and I head into the school after the two girls.
As soon as we were inside we looked around for Rachel and Peyton but they were no where in sight. But we did see everyone staring back at us. That vandalism really made people rethink their decision. Well, that and they probably heard about the elites 'break up', temporary break up, that is. Wow, it sounds like they're in a relationship.
"hey are you going to be okay going to class with Rachel and Peyton?" I ask.
"yeah… I'll be fine" she says hesitantly.
"are you sure?" I ask.
"yeah, don't worry about me"
"okay, well if you need me I have my phone on. I'm just going to ask a friend of mine if he knows anything about the spray paint thing"
"alright. I'll see you at lunch then?"
"yeah, definitely. Bye"
"bye"
I left Brooke in the hall as I went to look for Mouth, he seems to usually know something about everything. I found him sitting in the library just reading a book by him self. I take a seat next to him and he finally looks up.
"Hey Haley" he says with a smile.
"hey Mouth, listen I wanted to know if you knew anything about Brooke's parking spot"
"oh yeah, I saw that. That was pretty vicious"
"any idea who it was?"
"uh, let's see. My sources tell me it's some guy in our class that's had a crush on Brooke for like 4 years now. I'm thinking the guy just snapped when he heard about Brooke"
"do you know his name?"
"no sorry, there's too many guys who have had a crush on Brooke to narrow it down. But I bet Brooke or one of the elites would be able to tell you"
"alright, I'll try them then, thanks Mouth. You're my hero" I say and give him a kiss on the cheek. Just as I'm leaving the library to go find Brooke the bell rings. I guess I'll have to talk to Brooke later. But for now, on to Math.
I enter the class room just before the final bell rings and take my seat up front beside Lucas.
"hey" he greets me. Maybe he knows something.
"hey, by any chance do you know any guy who's had a crush on Brooke for 4 years or so?" I know, it's a really random question.
"um the only person who comes to mind is Joey Grewal" he says.
"Joey Grewal?" I repeat, I have no idea who the hell that guy is.
"yeah, he's this huge slime ball that thinks he's all that, but he never gets invited to any of the elite's parties. Why do you ask?"
"it's just Mouth said that the guy who spray painted Brooke's parking spot had a crush on Brooke. Do you think Rachel and Peyton know it was most likely him?"
"maybe, I don't know…" we go back to paying attention in class. About halfway through I get bored, well because it's math and all, I find my self looking out the windows. The math room's got a pretty good view of the quad area. There's the nice green grass, bright blue sky, Brooke, the stoners, etc… wait, Brooke? I thought she was in class. What is she doing out there sitting alone?
I discretely take out my cell phone and start texting her.
What r u up 2? I text, come on Brooke, don't lie to me.
Nthing she texts back. At least she isn't lying.
How's class?
Boring without u she texts back. As sweet as that is, she just lied to me. I look out the window to see her playing with her cell phone, oblivious to my stares.
Did u talk 2 P&R?
They're not talking 2 me yet
Did u even try 2 talk 2 them?
Of course I did. I wouldn't lie to u! yeah right.
Rly? Then y did u tell me u were in class when I can c u in the quad? I text her. As soon as she gets the message I see her look up and around to see where I am. She finally sees me and gives me an apologetic look.
I couldn't face them
We'll talk next period I text her and put away my phone. I see her receive the message and nods to me through the window.
As soon as the bell rang I was the first one out of the room and I hurried out to meet Brooke outside. I found her sitting in the exact same place I saw her in from the window. I take a seat beside her and I'm sure to sit close, just for my benefit.
"hey" I say softly. She looks up and smiles at me. "so what happened?" I sigh.
"well see, it's a funny story actually, I was going to class when I saw them… and then bailed" yeah, hilarious.
"Brooke, you have to face them sometime"
"I know, but I don't want to. They're pretty pissed at me."
"you called them bad friends"
"hey, whose side are you on?"
"I'm on yours, and your side also wants your friends back, so I'm just trying to help" I say putting my arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer. She rests her head on my shoulder and just pouts. "oh, so I had a break through on our soon to be victim"
"you found out who spray painted my spot?"
"yeah, I think so. Does Joey Grewal ring a bell?"
"pft, only his own. That guy is so full of himself. He's been trying to date me for years" she says. "so it was him?"
"that's what I heard."
"good job, Veronica Mars. So what now?"
"um, I don't know, do you think Rachel and Peyton know?"
"I'm not su-" Brooke's response was cut short by my cell phone. Lucas was calling me.
"hold on." I tell her and answer my phone. "hello?"
"hey, come down to the parking lot, you're going to want to see this" he says.
"what?"
"the elites found out about Joey" he says and hangs up.
Without even telling Brooke where we're going I grab her by the wrist and drag her to the parking lot.
Despite Brooke's constant questions about where we are going I ignore her and pull her towards the parking lot. We see a big group of people all near the flag pole. We keep running and finally push our way through to see Rachel, Peyton, Nathan and Lucas surrounding a guy I suspect is Joey Grewal.
He's lying on the floor with Rachel's high heel shoes pinned against his neck.
"why?!" she yells angrily, pressing more pressure onto his neck, I don't even know if he can breathe.
"oh my god" Brooke says.
"why did you do it?!" Peyton yells as she crouches down beside his helpless body.
"Lucas do something!" I yell at him. He just looks at me and shrugs.
"I'm not getting in the middle of that" he says holding his hands up in the air.
"Nathan?"
"nuh uh" he backs away.
"Rachel, get off of him, you're suffocating him"
"good!" she yells, probably pressing harder onto his neck. He's got his hands on her shoe, trying to push her away but it's useless.
"do you think it's fun to torture other people?" Peyton asks him. "how would you like it if you felt like you didn't want to be who you were?!" she yells louder for everyone to hear. I'm surprised there are no teachers around here.
"Brooke, do something" I mutter to her.
"oh I will" she says as she goes in and kicks him in the side of the body.
"I didn't mean that!" I yell.
"what? He deserved it" she said angrily.
"hold on, I think he's trying to say something" Peyton says bending down to hear him closer. Rachel let's off a little and everyone quiets down to hear him.
"bitch" he manages to call Peyton. At the sound of the word Peyton nearly jumps at him, but Lucas is quick to grab her and hold her back.
"whoa there tiger" Lucas says making sure she doesn't get away.
"how dare you call her a bitch!" Rachel says twisting her shoe ever so slightly so that the point of her shoe is nearing is head. "and how dare you call anyone a dyke, let alone my best friend!"
"you want to know what it feels like to not want to be you?" Peyton asks as Lucas slowly lets her go.
"oh, we'll show you"
…
I don't know how they did it, but there he his. Hanging is head in shame. Somehow the elites managed to strip him of all of his clothes and duct tape him to the flag pole, with the word 'jackass' written in his crotch area, that is now covered by tape.
You can hear the laughter of the students surrounding him, mocking him. He tries to say something but his words are only mumbled as his mouth is also covered with tape.
"was this really necessary?" I ask Brooke.
"you know what this means don't you?"
"Joey Grewal is going to have some major hair removal when he gets down?"
"no… well yeah" she smirks. "but this means they still care about me!" she says referring to Rachel and Peyton. They're still pissed at her but she's right, they do still care about her. They wouldn't have gone to all of this trouble if it wasn't for her.
"hey you guys!" she yells as she waves frantically and runs over to Rachel and Peyton who are talking with Lucas and Nathan.
"what?" Rachel sneers back.
"thank you" she says going in for a hug, but Rachel and Peyton are quick to step out of the way. "oh come on you guys"
"no" Peyton says firmly.
"look, I know you miss me too. You wouldn't have beat his ass if you didn't" she says pointing up to Joey who is still attached to the flag pole.
"we only did this so that the elite name isn't disgraced" Peyton says.
"but-" Brooke starts.
"-stop" Rachel cuts her off. "just forget about it and move on" she says. And with that Peyton and Rachel walk away, arm in arm, minus their third part. I take this chance to walk up beside her and hold on to her arm for support.
"you okay?" I ask.
"they stood up for me… I know it. It's just going to take some time to win them back" Brooke states.
"alright, well we'll think of a plan to get them back"
"yeah…" I think it's really starting to sink in to Brooke that this just isn't any normal fight.