SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

AmandaTron: Oh, all right. No, there was no confusion. Thanks. Thanks.

Lizz1Ove: Thanks. Glad you thought so. Thank you. Glad you liked it. Thanks. Here you go.

Sweetcrimefighter: Thanks. Wait and see. Yes, you do. Thanks, here you go. Thanks.

Long Live BRUCAS: Thanks. Well, she makes him feel safe. Yep. That's right. We'll see. We'll see. Maybe. Yes, he did. We'll see.

DISCLAIMER

Title is inspired by the song Alyssa Lies. One Tree Hill Belongs to Mark Schwahn and the CW. I only own the plot. Once again, changes in POVs. And as for the project that Lucas was partnered up with Nathan for, it was assigned on a Monday. A couple of days have passed so now it's about Wednesday. Sorry I didn't clarify that earlier.

It was late by the time Julian and Lucas finished with all of the boy's assignments. Lucas yawned and stretched out.

"It's late. Why don't you go to bed?" Julian suggested.

"Okay," Lucas agreed. The older man turned to set the alarm on his watch as the boy quickly changed into a shirt and sweats. Then, he made himself comfortable under the covers and closed his eyes. Julian sat in a chair intending to watch guard, but soon fell asleep. Back at the Scott house, Dan paced around the kitchen. What was he going to do? He knew he had to tell Nathan's friend the truth. His eyes clouded. What if Lucas didn't want to have anything to do with him? What if he had grown up all this time believing his biological parents didn't want anything to do with him? With a weary sigh, he ran his fingers through his hair. Hearing footsteps, he quickly turned around.

"Couldn't sleep, huh?" his wife asked sympathetically. He shook his head.

"I don't know what to do, Deb. I mean, Lucas deserves to know the truth, and I'd like to be a part of his life, but what if he's happy where he is? Maybe he doesn't need or want such confusion in his life," he commented.

"I don't know what to tell you, Dan. Only Lucas can answer those questions."

"Yeah, but---"

"You won't know until you make an effort. Maybe he'll be happy for the chance to know you," she reminded him. He sighed.

"You're right…of course." She laughed.

"Of course. Now, come on. Let's get back to bed." The two walked back upstairs to their room. At her own home, Brooke tossed and turned in her bed. Figures. The one night my parents aren't arguing and my brain can't turn off, she thought to herself. If that wasn't a good example of irony, she didn't know what was. She wondered how Lucas was doing. She wondered if he was getting any sleep, or if he was being plagued by nightmares. The girl sincerely hoped that he was having a peaceful night. She didn't know of anyone who deserved it more. However, what she didn't know was that her wish was going unanswered. Lucas moaned softly as he shifted in the bed. He burrowed into the covers as if trying to escape something or someone. Then, he emitted another loan moan. Lucas looked around and felt his body tense. He was in his old house. How had he gotten here? Hearing footsteps, he turned around.

"You lying little brat," his father sneered.

"Dad. Dad, please," Lucas implored, backing up. This action continued until he felt himself hit a wall.

"You think you could get away with it?" the man demanded. He lunged forward and Lucas jumped to side. The man turned to him and---Lucas jerked awake.

"Oh, man. Just a dream," he sighed in relief. It had just been a dream. He was safe. He got out of the bed and headed for the bathroom. Without warning, the front door burst open! Lucas barely had a chance to move as his father grabbed and pinned him to the ground.

"How did you---" the question was cut off as the man put a hand around the boy's throat.

"Did you really think the police would believe those lies about your mother and me?" he demanded.

"Julian," Lucas rasped. There was no answer. "Julian," he tried to say again. The only response was his father increasing the pressure around his throat.

"Please. Please," he begged.

"You broke the rules, Lucas. You're going to have to be punished," the man stated. He used his other hand to tug at the boy's pants.

"No," he said. He began to fight. "No! No! No!"

"Lucas! Lucas, hey!" Julian tried to calm Lucas' wild thrashing. Finally, the boy awoke with a start. "Hey. Hey, it's all right, kiddo. Everything's okay," he comforted.

"They---they let him out and---and he just busted right in," the boy said shakily. Julian wrapped the boy into a hug.

"I would never let him get anywhere near you," he promised.

"Yeah. I---I know. It's just---I'm so afraid," Lucas admitted. "I---I mean---what if---what if Mom and Dad manage to convince them I was lying? If they got out, I would get it so bad."

"If I have to, I'll take you and we'll run away." Lucas nodded. He knew Julian was serious. He could tell by the look on his friend's face. Then, he hunkered back down in the covers.

"Take two," he joked and the older boy chuckled. He watched as the other boy closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep. Then, he rubbed his face with a hand. Why can't this kid catch a break? he wondered. It wasn't fair. Then, he settled back in his seat. The next thing either boy knew, Julian's watch was beeping. Lucas moaned.

"No. Don't wanna get up," he complained.

"Sorry, Kiddo. You gotta go to school," came the response. He let out another groan.

"Oh, I hate you," he complained. His friend laughed and then turned around as he got up and quickly got dressed. After a quick breakfast, Julian drove Lucas to school, where the boy headed for the entrance. What he didn't know, was that in the coach's office, Principal Turner and Whitey were having a discussion about his lack of a decision.

"Look, Whitey, I know you're holding out for this kid, but if he doesn't want to play, it's not fair to the other kids that tried out," the principal reminded him.

"Derek, I understand what you're saying, but my gut's telling me that this is what's best for the team," Whitey responded. Principal Turner sighed. He didn't know what to say to that. Whitey didn't get his gut feelings very often, but when he did…well, let's just say the man had learned to trust the coach's gut.

"Okay. I'll give you a couple of more weeks. But if doesn't work out---" the principal started to say.

"I'll pick someone else," the Raven's coach promised.

"Thank you," the man said, and then walked out. As he headed back to his office, he noticed the new boy, Lucas Mallone. He frowned, remembering the boy's quietness and somewhat guarded behavior he had exhibited since he had shown up. Then there was Whitey's description of how Lucas had turned down a spot on the Ravens, which normally wouldn't have raised suspicions since there were a lot of people who were good at things but didn't like joining teams or clubs. However, the man had stated that it had seemed like Lucas had wanted to say 'yes'. He began to approach the teen, but was cut off by Brooke Davis who bounded up to the blonde-haired youth. He saw her say something to him and he shrugged. Whatever was going on, the girl seemed to know about it. The man glanced at the clock and sighed. No time to question the two. He had to be in his office. Reluctantly, he headed in that direction as the kids in the halls went in different directions. In class, Lucas sat at his desk and drummed his fingers on the wood nervously.

"Hey, it'll be okay," Brooke told him.

"Brooke, what if they get out? What if they convince the police that I was lying?" Lucas worried.

"Luke, that won't happen. They have documentation of your bruises and---everything else. The police will use that," Brooke reminded him.

"I'm scared Brooke. The dream last night felt so real," Lucas admitted. She leaned over and put a hand on his wrist.

"Hey, you're safe now. You just have to hold on to that," she reminded. He smiled softly, and then stared straight ahead as the teacher came in and started the lesson. Surprisingly, the rest of the day went by fast, and in no time at all, the last bell had wrung.

"Hey, Haley, I was wondering if we could put in some extra tutoring tonight. The equations that Mr. Gregory taught us have me completely confused," Nathan said, as they headed out.

"Yeah, sure. No problem," Haley agreed. A thin, gangly boy walked up to Lucas and Brooke.

"Hi, Brooke," he greeted.

"Oh, hey. Oh, we need to do our project, don't we?" Brooke realized.

"Yeah. Due date's coming up. I wrote everything down. If you want---" he began to offer.

"No. That's not fair to you. We were paired up and you have the right to expect me to be just as committed to this as you are," she interrupted. Then, turning to Lucas, "Listen, I don't want you to think that I'm bailing---"

"No, no, no, no. I totally understand," he interrupted. "Go," he encouraged.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure." She squeezed his hand. "Call me later."

"I will." Brooke walked off with the other boy and Lucas walked out of the entrance and down the steps. To his surprise, Nathan's father was standing near the bottom of the steps.

"Hey, you're Nathan's dad, right?" he questioned. The man nodded.

"And you're Nathan's friend," he confirmed.

"Lucas," Lucas stated. "If you're waiting for Nathan, I heard him ask a girl named Haley if they could get in an extra tutoring session," he continued.

"Actually, I was waiting for you," the man corrected him.

"Me?" Lucas repeated. Why had been waiting for him? He hadn't done anything. Or had he? His eyes clouded as he tried to think of what he could've done to get himself in trouble with this guy.

"You're not in trouble," the man assured. "In fact, if anyone's in trouble, it's me," he added with a laugh. Lucas looked at him in confusion. What was he talking about?

"I don't mean to be rude, but I am waiting for someone," the boy reminded.

"Oh, right. Of course," the man recalled. "Lucas, I understand that you had to get some blood work done the other day," he continued. Lucas stiffened.

"Yeah, so?" he asked guardedly. Was this one of his dad's tricks? Had he paid this guy to threaten him?

"You don't have anything to worry about," Dan hastened to assure, seeing the look. "The only reason I know about it is because they called me," he told him.

"Why would they call you about my blood?" Lucas questioned, not understanding.

"That's a valid question," Dan allowed. "They called me because apparently, your blood matched Nathan's," he continued. Lucas stared, and then blinked.

"Wait. What?" he asked. What was this guy talking about?

"Lucas, I'm your father," Dan said.

TO BE CONTINUED…

AUTHOR'S NOTE

The second half will be called Independence Day Part 2. Yes, I know it's weird to have two different titles for episodes that connect, but this series does it all the time.