Lucas and Peyton drove straight from the beach to Nathan and Haley's house, and Peyton had insisted they stop to get Haley flowers along the way. Lucas had made a comment about Haley not needing them, and Peyton told him that it was never a bad thing to get flowers. Ever.

When they got to the door, he handed the bouquet to Haley.

"Lucas! That's so sweet. Thank you," she said, the evidence of her joy written in her smile.

"You're welcome. I just thought you might like them," he said with a smirk.

"Luke!" Peyton shouted, slapping him on the chest. "I bought those!" she explained to Nathan and Haley. They all laughed and Lucas just shrugged his shoulders when Peyton accused him of trying to steal all the credit.

They all made small talk for a while before Nathan, Lucas, and Jamie went outside to put steaks on the grill. Peyton and Haley stayed in the kitchen and chatted while finishing up with salads and other sides. Haley was putting together quite a feast. Peyton sat at the counter on a stool with Matthew on her lap. The two women talked and laughed and Peyton doted on the baby in her arms.

Nathan caught Lucas looking in at her and shook his head. Lucas just rolled his eyes. He was about to tell his brother not to make any comments, when a voice stopped him.

"Uncle Luke, did you know that aunt Peyton used to be my dad's girlfriend?" Jamie said, causing Nathan to almost spit out the sip of beer he'd just taken.

"Where did you hear that?" he asked his son.

"Peyton told me," Jamie said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"She did, did she?" Nathan asked, looking to Lucas, who was laughing.

"Yup. It's kind of weird," Jamie said nonchalantly.

"Why's that weird?" Nathan asked.

"I dunno. I just always thought that you only ever loved mom," he explained.

Lucas shot Nathan a look as though to say, 'I'm so glad I'm not you right now.'

Nathan looked down at his son. "Well, I did only ever love your mom. Aunt Peyton and I just used to hang out, but we weren't in love," he explained delicately.

"OK," Jamie said, before running back into the house, satisfied with the answer he'd been given.

As soon as the door was closed behind him, Lucas started laughing.

"Good cover," he directed at his brother.

"Jeez. Of all the questions that kid asks, he had to ask me that one," Nathan chuckled.

"Yeah, he asked Peyton why she and I never dated," Lucas said. Immediately, he regretted it. He knew before he even saw the smirk on Nathan's face, that he was about to face some more questions.

"I've been trying to figure that out for years," Nathan admitted with a raised brow.

"Stop it," Lucas warned.

His eyes traveled back to the kitchen where Peyton was talking to Jamie while bouncing Matthew on his knee. Whatever she said made Haley laugh, and he couldn't stop the smile that formed on his lips. He glared at Nathan when he heard the laugh escape his brother's lips.

The six of them enjoyed their dinner on the back patio beneath an umbrella. Peyton watched Lucas as he and Nathan talked about one of their players who was returning in the fall, and Peyton saw a side of him she'd never seen before. Coach Scott. Sure, she'd seen him call plays from the sidelines, but this was different. He was talking about how to make the student play less selfishly, and treat his teammates better. He was saying how he wanted to help the player off the court as well - how he hoped his influence would translate into the boy's schoolwork. She smiled as he spoke, and when Nathan noticed, she looked away.

After dinner, Nathan was ordered by Haley to clear all their plates and do the dishes, but Peyton insisted on helping after Haley went to all the trouble to cook and host them. It hadn't taken the two of them long to tidy up - Nathan and Peyton used to perform the tasks when she'd stay for dinner at his house when they were teenagers. It was even quicker now because they didn't stop to kiss after every plate he dried like they used to.

"So how are you feeling?" Nathan asked. He walked to stand beside her at the back window. "We haven't really gotten a chance to talk yet."

"I'm actually feeling really good," she said, smiling out at Lucas and Haley as they sipped iced tea and laughed at the kids. "You guys have all been great."

She wrapped her arm around his waist and felt him staring down at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing!" he exclaimed defensively. "Just...we have been great, or he's been great?" He gestured towards Lucas with the glass he was holding in his hand.

"Both," she admitted with a smile. "I'm lucky to have you." Her gaze hadn't left his brother's and Nathan hadn't failed to notice.

"You know he worries about you a lot," he said. She pulled away from him and turned to look at him. "Like, more than a normal amount."

"Nathan..."

"He worries about you like I worry about Haley," Nathan said with a smirk.

"Oh my God," she said, frustration in her tone. "Don't."

"What?" he asked innocently.

"Nathan!" she said forcefully. "I don't know how many times we have to tell people, but Lucas and I are just friends, OK?"

"Whatever you say, Sawyer," he said, throwing a wink her way. She rolled her eyes and sighed deeply.

"Just because we are close, doesn't mean there is anything else going on. You, of all people, should know that," she said softly.

He didn't know how to say what he wanted to say without really pissing her off. But then, he thought, he used to piss her off all the time without even intending to. Even so, he tried to choose his words carefully. He thought back on his earlier conversation with his son.

"Peyton, who was the first guy you were ever in love with?" he asked. "And don't say that it was me, because I know that's not true."

"Nate..."

"Who was it?" he repeated. She said nothing, and looked to the floor instead of at him. "That's what I thought. Now, how many people do you know who are still that close with their first love?"

"Um," she chuckled. "You, Haley, Brooke..."

"Haley and I are married. That's totally different," he said with a smile. "And Brooke was never in love with Lucas like you were."

"What are you trying to say, Nathan?" she asked, aggravated that he was taking so long getting to his point.

"I'm just saying that you and Lucas are great friends, but can you honestly say that you don't realize that it could be more?" he asked. She took a breath and was about to speak, but he stopped her. "I know you're still getting over what's-his-name, but just...You and Luke are like....you're weird!"

"Weird how?" she asked. "And also, his name was Joshua."

Nathan hadn't ever really warmed up to Joshua. They had little in common, and Nathan would joke that he just couldn't be friends with someone who didn't like basketball. The reality was, he just didn't think that Joshua was the one for Peyton. He was a good enough guy in Nathan's eyes, but he wasn't at all the type he'd pictured for her. He bit his tongue on the topic, because he could see, in the beginning anyway, that Joshua made Peyton happy. Inwardly, however, he was still skeptical. Maybe it was because he'd always held out hope that some day she and Lucas would realize they were supposed to be together. He'd never voiced that to anyone; not even his wife.

"You and Luke have this really creepy like, unspoken connection where you can just look at each other and know what the other is thinking," he said with a laugh. "It's not normal."

"That doesn't mean we should get together," she pointed out.

"It also doesn't mean that you shouldn't," he said, bumping her shoulder with his.

She just sighed and offered him a weak smile. Maybe he was right...

----

Peyton and Lucas stayed until after both kids had been put to bed, so the adults could have some serious conversations without having to edit details. Peyton told them about the beach earlier, and what Brooke had made her do. She kept the words her best friend had spoken private, as she thought that was a moment between her and Brooke that wasn't meant for anyone else to hear. Nathan's eyes went wide when she told them she'd thrown her ring into the ocean, and Haley dropped her hand on Peyton's thigh and offered a reassuring squeeze. They all acknowledged that she had finally let go.

They got back to Lucas' house at about midnight. They'd each dropped their things and Peyton made a remark about how it had been a long day.

"I'm proud of you," he said with a smile as she walked to stand in front of him in the hallway.

"I'm proud of me too."

He chuckled and smiled at her again, and said goodnight, pivoting to go into his bedroom.

"Hey," she called out, and reached for his hand. "Come here."

He turned and took a step back towards her, and she wrapped her arms around him.

She wanted to say 'I love you'. But now the words seemed too intense. Normally, they'd throw the phrase around in moments like these, but with the way she was feeling, she couldn't say the words. They had said it to each other casually before bed since she'd been staying with him. They were true. She loved him. There was something different about that day. Something shifted inside her and she felt like she was open to the possibility of falling in love again. And she couldn't say 'I love you' to Lucas without it feeling heavier than she intended, especially after her conversation with Nathan, and the way he'd explained things from his perspective.

So, she muttered 'thank you' for the thousandth time since she'd been in Tree Hill, smiled at him, and disappeared into her bedroom.

Then she realized - he hadn't said it either. He hadn't said 'I love you.'

He made his way to his room and stood for a few moments in the silence. He missed the three words she hadn't spoken. His mind was overrun with questions. Why hadn't she said them? He began replaying the day in his head. He wasn't trying see where he might have gone wrong. He just wanted to remember her. Her laugh as they played in the water. Her blonde hair dripping water onto his skin as she rested on his shoulder. Her attention to Matthew as the little boy sat on her lap. Her body pressed against his when she hugged him...

He was lost in thought until he heard her door open. He turned around to see her walking towards him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him towards her, searching his eyes for the green light to continue what she wanted to do. She saw a sparkle of hope along with the confusion. She leaned up and captured his lips with hers.

After the initial shock wore off, his hands found their way to her face before getting tangled in her hair. Her kiss was soft and gentle and tentative, and when she pulled away, she wouldn't look him in the eye. He leaned his head down while lifting hers so their eyes met, and he smiled. That smile made her stomach flutter. Her bold and brazen move hadn't been a mistake. She smiled back, and he kissed her passionately, gently nibbling her bottom lip before parting her lips with his tongue.

They stood like that for what seemed like forever. Just kissing. Their hands did not roam, nor did their mouths. They had kissed before - years and years ago - but those times had been different. They had been frantic and hurried; stolen moments in hotel rooms or hallways. This was just them. No distractions or other people to think about. It was just the two of them, kissing because they wanted to.

They parted after a few moments and she looked into his eyes, trying to hide her embarrassment, though she knew it was futile. She'd just kissed her best friend of 10 years. And he'd kissed her back. He went to speak, but she pressed her fingers to his lips.

"Don't," she demanded softly. "Goodnight, Luke."

She smiled again, traced her fingertips down the side of his neck so delicately that it made his spine tingle, and left his room.

It was all he could do not to run after her and finish what she'd started. She had just kissed him. He looked around his room quickly, as if searching for a witness who could confirm that it had actually happened. But she had been right - it had been a long day. One that saw her acknowledge for the first time that her three-year marriage was truly over. He couldn't get involved with her right now, no matter how much he wanted to. God, he wanted to.

Instead, he lay down on his bed and thought about her like he used to as a teenager. He wondered if she was thinking of him.

She was.

She lay awake for as long as her tired eyes would allow. She'd just kissed Lucas. Her best friend. The one who'd always taken care of her. She wanted to think it had been a silly whim - an emotional girl who was confused and acting on impulse. But every time she thought of his lips on hers, she felt butterflies in her stomach.