Family
Taking a seat on the counter stool, Brooke watched Haley zoom around the kitchen, preparing what looked to be a very delicious meal. Brooke would have offered to help, but even though she'd managed to gain a few cooking skills over the years, she really wouldn't have been very useful. A few weeks ago, Haley had decided that it had been too long since their group of friends had gotten together and just hung out so she'd organized a little get together at her and Nathan's house. It was a perfect escape for Brooke, who for the past week had been mulling over the return of Victoria. Brooke assumed that Victoria had returned to New York by now, but the talk they'd had when she was in Tree Hill didn't offer much peace to her.
Her life was back to normal, though. She and Lucas were enjoying the perks of being a couple again and it was something that she was still getting used to, but couldn't get enough of. She was also adjusting to life with Rachel again, which was interesting to say the least. Rachel was still her wild self, although she had toned it down a notch over the years, something that Brooke was grateful for. She'd long ago given up her partying lifestyle, and it seemed Rachel was slowly finding her way out of it too.
Next to Brooke, Peyton took a seat. She didn't look very happy. This didn't surprise Brooke, though, because tonight would take an interesting turn in the Peyton love triangle saga. Jake was in town for the weekend to record and he'd been invited to Nathan and Haley's tonight. Julian, who was now back in town for the movie, was supposed to be coming over as well. Peyton hadn't seen Julian for a few weeks, so naturally she was a little worried about his return, but Brooke knew she was more anxious about the fact that she, Jake, and Julian would inevitably be thrown all together tonight.
"You alright, P. Sawyer?" Brooke asked.
"Yeah," Peyton replied, turning to Brooke with a forced smile, "I'm fine."
"Are you sure? Because I wouldn't exactly blame you if you weren't. It must be kind of awkward to know that Julian and Jake are both going to be here tonight."
Peyton just shrugged. "I'll be fine."
"I, for one, cannot wait to meet this Julian everyone's been talking about. I hope he's hot."
Brooke turned to find Rachel had entered the kitchen. The redhead smirked over at Peyton, but it was hard for Brooke to tell if she was teasing or not. Peyton wasn't amused, but luckily she just ignored her, something she'd learned to do when Rachel was in her taunting mood. Brooke was thankful that Peyton and Rachel seemed to have put their differences aside to try to get along, but they still had their arguments almost daily. Brooke had a feeling, though, that their fights were just a part of their so called friendship. It was kind of amusing, actually.
Thankfully, Haley saw fit to change the topic. She didn't, however, change it to a topic that Brooke actually wanted to think about, let alone talk about.
"So, Brooke, your mom still hasn't tried to get a hold of you again, has she?"
"No. I think she's back in New York."
"She knows what's best for her, then," Rachel said. "She goes to hide in the big city where she knows it'll be a billion times harder for me to go find her and kick her scrawny whorish ass."
Brooke laughed. Rachel had been particularly spiteful of Victoria lately, not that Brooke minded. It was nice to know that she had Rachel behind her all the way. But Brooke was glad when Haley didn't push the subject any further. The last thing she wanted to think about on a happy day like this was Victoria.
A few minutes later, Nathan appeared in the kitchen. He made his way over to the counter, jumping up to sit on it, and then sent Peyton a teasing grin.
"Guess who's here?"
Peyton's eyes widened nervously. Brooke wasn't sure whether it was Jake or Julian, but she couldn't help but find it a little funny at how much Peyton was freaking out over this. It really wasn't the end of the world. Still, Brooke did have some sympathy for her, not that she'd ever been put in this type of situation, nor did she have any desire to. But she felt for Peyton. She knew that Peyton was simply worried about hurting both of them and that couldn't be an easy thing.
"Hmm, let's see," Rachel said and then she nudged Peyton playfully. "I'm guessing his name starts with a J, but that doesn't really narrow the list down...I'm gonna guess Julian?"
Nathan chuckled. "No, actually it's Jake. But Lucas did just talk to Julian on the phone and he's just leaving the airport. He should be here in about a half hour."
"Great," Peyton mumbled.
"Great!" Rachel grinned.
Brooke shook her head in amusement. Rachel really was finding way too much pleasure in taunting Peyton over this. Peyton glared at Rachel before standing up and heading into the living room to greet Jake and Jenny.
"Don't go overboard with this, Rachel," Brooke said as soon as Peyton was gone. "I want you on your best behavior tonight."
"I'll see what I can do." Rachel grinned as she popped a grape into her mouth. "But you know that I can't make any promises."
And then she was gone, probably to go see Jake and tease Peyton once again, and Brooke knew that Rachel wasn't going to go easy on Peyton tonight.
A second later, a distraction came in the form of her godson. Jamie darted into the room and Brooke immediately pulled him up in her arms.
"Aunt Brooke," he giggled as she playfully tickled him. "Let me down."
"Mmm, I don't think so. In fact, I think you owe me a kiss, J. Luke."
Jamie scrunched up his face, but didn't protest when Brooke swooped her head down to kiss his cheek. Jamie just laughed before jumping down and running out of the room once again.
"My son is such a ladies man," Nathan said, looking proud.
Haley just rolled his eyes before swatting him off of the counter and pushing him out of the kitchen. Brooke and Haley were alone now and Brooke could only assume that Haley would use this to her advantage. All day long, it seemed like Haley had been holding something back. But when Haley spoke, it was not about Victoria or anything equally unpleasant.
"So, how are things with Lucas?" Haley asked with a grin.
"Great," Brooke said, holding back a smile at the mention of her boyfriend. She suddenly had the urge to go find him. He was probably in the living room with the others. She was already missing him, even though she'd spent most of the day with him. She'd even come here with him.
"Look at you," Haley said, laughing. "You're totally lovesick."
"I am not."
"Yeah you are. Don't deny it."
Okay, maybe she was, but there was nothing wrong with that, right? It had been so long since she and Lucas had last been together and everything was so new and fresh again and she couldn't help but bask in the wonders of their reawakened relationship. They'd only been back together for a little over a week anyway. In her mind, they were still in the honeymoon phase of the relationship.
"Okay, maybe I am just a little lovesick..."
Haley chuckled. "Not just a little... But it's okay. It's cute, actually. The last time you acted this way was pretty much the last time you and Lucas were together."
"That's because he's the only one who makes me feel this way."
"I think that's clear to just about everyone," Haley replied. She leaned against the counter and sent Brooke an encouraging smile. "We're all really happy for you both, Brooke. I don't think I've told you that yet, but we are. Nathan and I both agree that you're the girl for Lucas. He's just not the same without you. And Jamie...well, let's just say he's all aboard the Brucas bandwagon. He pretty much jumped for joy when we told him that you and Lucas were together."
Brooke laughed at the thought of Jamie's sign of approval for their relationship. She was glad that he was happy about them, though. She'd known for awhile that he wanted his godparents to get together. He'd been very sly about it, but after awhile it was very obvious to Brooke where Jamie was siding when it came to her relationships.
And she was glad that Nathan and Haley approved too. Not that she'd thought they wouldn't, but it was still nice to here that they thought this was right. Because it really was right. She and Lucas were meant to be together. Everything had finally fallen into place.
"I'm just so happy that you're happy," Haley continued. "You deserve it, Brooke."
Brooke just smiled. "Thanks, Haley. That means so much...it really does."
888
Peyton was more than grateful that Rachel had finally decided to leave Jake alone. She hadn't gotten in more than a hug before Rachel came swooping in to distract him for a good fifteen minutes. Jake had just sent Peyton an amused smile before politely focusing on Rachel.
Now Jake was sitting by the pool, dangling his feet in the water as he watched Jenny swim around with Jamie. Peyton pushed off her flip flops and dunked her own feet in as she sat next to Jake.
"Aw, look at the cute little couple." Peyton nudged Jake, sending him a teasing smile. He chuckled as he glanced over at Jamie, who was pushing Jenny around on a floaty.
"You know, I'm really not looking forward to when she's actually gonna be interested in boys." He grimaced at the thought while Peyton just laughed.
"If she finds a guy even remotely like you, I wouldn't be too worried."
Jake, however, looked horrified. "I knocked a girl up at sixteen."
"That's true, but, well..." Peyton crossed her arms thoughtfully and then gave up. "Okay, yeah, that's not so good. But I'm sure Jamie will be a perfect gentleman when he's older."
"Jamie, huh? You've already decided who's she gonna end up with?"
"Well, yeah. Look at them. They're adorable together. Plus, you can't go wrong with Jamie. He's pretty much the coolest kid around. Although he is the son of Nathan Scott, but I'm sure he won't take after Nathan's pre-Haley days, so we don't have to worry."
"If you're sure," Jake said, chuckling. "Do you think we should go to Nathan and Haley and start discussing an arranged marriage?"
Peyton sent him a grin. "Might be worth looking into."
They shared another laugh before settling into silence. Peyton was glad to have Jake back in town. Life without him was weird, which in itself was weird too, considering she'd gone over five years without him. But now that he was back, she didn't know how she'd gone so long without him. One thing she did know, though, was that she couldn't let him go this time. Now that he was back in her life, there was no getting out. He was stuck, whether he liked it or not. But judging by the way he was looking at her right now, as if she was the only girl on world, she didn't think he minded.
Her eyes locked onto his and she couldn't look away. She was losing herself in him, something that had happened once before since his return— that night at Tric, when they'd kissed and then he'd sang their song. That had been one of those moments that just felt so completely right that there was no way it could possibly be wrong. And this was another one of those moments.
All she wanted to do was kiss him, even here in Nathan and Haley's backyard, where anyone, including both Jenny and Jamie, who were only a few feet away, could see them. But she didn't care. She didn't care about anyone else, not Julian, not Rachel, not the Jenny or Jamie. This was just too good a moment to give up.
Jake seemed to feel the same way. He leaned forward, closing the distance between them, and his hand covered hers, pulling her in as his lips came closer and closer...
And then the moment was lost.
Jake jerked back just as Rachel's obnoxious voice came pouring outside, followed by the actual appearance of the redhead.
"Your other boy's here," Rachel said, "and my God, is he gorgeous"
Then Rachel was gone again and it was in that moment that Peyton really hated Rachel Gatina. Not only had she ruined a perfectly good moment between her and Jake, but she'd brought them both back to the harsh truth of the real world— there was another guy, one who sometimes made her feel just as good as Jake made her feel. And if she'd kissed Jake then it wouldn't have been fair to either of them.
So maybe she didn't hate Rachel. Because, really, Rachel had only spoken the truth. She just hated the fact that she was risking breaking the hearts of two great guys and, in that aspect, she really hated herself.
"You should go," Jake said, motioning inside where Julian was sure to be. He wasn't looking at her anymore, but she could see the pain in his eyes and she knew it was too late— she was already hurting him.
"Yeah." She stood up, pausing before she turned to leave. "I'm sorry, Jake."
He didn't say anything; his head just bobbed into a nod. And then she left him and she felt the worst that she had since that same night she and Jake had kissed, when they both ran into Julian at her house. But this was her reality. She'd gotten them all into this mess and she would get them out of it.
By the time she reached Julian, Rachel was already there. Not that Peyton was surprised. She'd fully expected for Rachel to jump on him any chance she got. At this point, Peyton was fully aware that Rachel was doing all this to annoy her, rather than having genuine interest in either of them. Although Peyton was sure that Rachel would gladly have her way with either of them if she could. She wouldn't, though. Not unless Peyton gave her the okay. She might have liked to tease Peyton by flirting with the two boys, but she wouldn't do anything more than that. Brooke would kill her if she did.
Peyton watched from the sidelines as Rachel's hand grazed Julian's arm as she openly admired his body. While Julian seemed a little taken back at first, his lips twitched into his charming grin as he took Rachel in. Julian didn't even appear to notice Peyton.
"So," Rachel asked as her eyes flickered back to Peyton and then back on him, "what's your take on models?"
Peyton crossed her arms in annoyance as Julian flirted right back.
"Oh, I love them. Especially redheads."
And that was enough. Peyton cleared her throat. "Hey, Julian."
Julian tore his eyes away from Rachel, his gaze landing on Peyton. His eyes seemed to light up at the sight of her and it was obvious that his playful flirting with Rachel was just for fun. His attraction to Peyton, however, was still there. Stronger than ever, it seemed, which Peyton wasn't sure was a good thing or a bad thing.
Rachel took a step back, allowing Julian to move over to her.
"How are you?" he asked, and he seemed slightly nervous.
"Great. What about you?"
Something came over him when she asked him this; his grin faded and a small frown took over.
"I'm okay."
She could tell he was lying. Something was up, but he didn't want her to know.
"Are you sure?"
Then the grin was back. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. It's great to see you again, though. I missed you."
Peyton knew he really wasn't fine, but she wasn't going to push it. Not now, at least.
"I missed you too."
He pulled her into a hug and she smiled, glad to be back in his arms again. She felt the same about Julian as she did with Jake when it came to not having him in her life. Julian had become such a great friend to her since he'd come to Tree Hill and not having him around just didn't feel right.
When he pulled away, he smiled softly down at her and she felt the guilt she'd been trying to suppress rise again. Jake was here. Julian was here. She had feelings for both of them. And soon they would all be together. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all.
888
Lucas lounged on the couch, his feet resting up on the coffee table in front of him. He'd been sitting here for awhile, mostly observing his friends and family, something he always found to be very interesting. Especially when Rachel was involved. She was most definitely a very interesting person. Like the way she seemed to thrive off annoying Peyton. It was kind of amusing, although he felt that it shouldn't be so funny since Peyton was one of his best friends. But Peyton didn't seem to take her seriously, which was probably good.
He was happy when Brooke dropped down next to him. He kissed her forehead as she nestled her head onto his shoulder. His arm wrapped around her and her hands grabbed for his.
"Why are you brooding, Broody?" she asked as she tilted her head up to grin at him.
"I'm not brooding."
"Oh, right. That squinty look you've got going on is just natural."
"It is," he said, shrugging.
"I know it is. I'm not denying that."
He chuckled before leaning down to kiss her. "Are you having fun?"
"Yeah, I am. This whole thing is really nice. I feel like all of us haven't all been together like this for so long."
"That's because we haven't. With Jake back, this feels like a high school reunion."
"It kind of does," she said. Her eyes fell on Peyton and Julian, who were quietly talking by the stairs. "I wonder what's going to happen with Peyton now that Julian's back again."
"I don't know. It'll be interesting to find out, though."
"I'm personally rooting for Jake right now, but looking at Peyton and Julian, that might change."
Lucas just laughed. "You probably shouldn't root for anyone, Brooke. You don't want to end up disappointed."
"I know," she admitted. "I guess I really just want Peyton to be happy. It doesn't matter who she's with as long as she's happy. Well, actually, I should really say it doesn't matter who she's with as long as it's not you."
"I don't think you have to worry about that," he said, chuckling.
"Good, because I'm not ever planning on letting you go again, not even for Peyton."
"You have no idea how happy I am to hear that."
He smiled softly down at her, their eyes locking, and gently kissed her lips.
"Aw, how precious."
Lucas pulled away from Brooke to glare at his brother, who'd just taken a seat across from them. Brooke just laughed as she nuzzled her face into Lucas' neck.
"What?" Nathan said, sending Lucas a teasing grin. "You two are just so darn adorable."
"Thanks, Nate. I always love being called adorable."
Nathan was about to retort when Julian walked up to them.
"Hey, guys."
"Hey, Julian," Lucas said. "It's good to have you back."
Julian nodded, sending them all warm smiles, but Lucas could almost immediately sense that something was up.
"Are you still up for meeting for coffee tomorrow?" Julian asked.
"Yeah."
"Good, because there's a lot we need to talk about."
There was something in the way Julian was speaking that told Lucas that something was definitely wrong with the movie. He was suddenly very anxious to know what was going on.
"Do you want to talk now?"
"Tomorrow," Julian said firmly. "We should do it in private."
"Okay," Lucas murmured.
Julian just nodded before excusing himself. Brooke was looking at Lucas anxiously.
"Was it just me or did something seem off?"
"No, it wasn't just you," Lucas replied. "I think something's going on with the movie."
"Yeah," Brooke agreed. "I guess you'll find out tomorrow."
He nodded slowly. The worst case scenario was that the movie was being scrapped, which for some reason didn't bother Lucas as much as it should. Not having his book being made into a movie wasn't the end of the world. Yes, he'd be losing money— a lot of money— but he already had plenty enough as it was. His book sales brought in enough income to last for years to come. So he wasn't going to worry, whatever the problem may be. After all, tonight was not a night for worrying; it was a time to spend with his friends and family, to focus on the people who mattered most in his life.
He smiled as he kissed the top of Brooke's head. Tonight was going to be good.
888
It was a little strange to see Jake and Julian talking together, Peyton decided. Actually it was more than strange. But they seemed to be getting a long, which was really good. It probably wouldn't have been such a good thing if the two of them hated each other. That would have just made things ten times more complicated.
After a few minutes of idle chat, the two of them parted ways. She let out a sigh of relief. Jake disappeared somewhere, while Julian remained perched on the edge of the couch. He was looking her way now, so she headed over to him.
"So," Peyton said, sitting next to him, "I see you and Jake were getting to know each other."
"Yup. He's a pretty cool guy."
"Yeah..."
They fell into silence for a few seconds. Julian looked distracted as he stared down at the ground. She was about to ask him just exactly was going on before he looked back at her, a frown on his usually cheerful face.
"We need to talk, Peyton."
She looked at him seriously. She knew they did.
"When?"
"I have to meet Lucas for coffee tomorrow morning, but can you meet me for lunch?"
She was supposed to be recording with Jake at that time, but she could tell that Julian didn't have a lot of time to offer so she nodded.
"Yeah, that'll work."
Then he stood up. "I'm gonna go get some food," he said, before walking away and disappearing into the kitchen.
Peyton was a little surprised at his behavior. He seemed so distant, sad even. Something was definitely up with him. She wondered for a second if it was having Jake around, but then she considered that it could possibly be the movie. And that led to her wondering if maybe the movie was being canceled, which in turn meant that Julian wouldn't be around Tree Hill much longer.
And that thought just made her want to cry.
"Hey, Peyton."
Jake appeared at her side, a big smile on his face as he handed her a plate of food.
"Thanks," she murmured.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah," she lied.
"No, you're not."
She sighed; Jake knew her way too well, even after all these years. She stared down at the food, not in the least bit hungry. Julian leaving was inevitable, even if the movie was still being made, but he was supposed to be around for many more months to make the movie, so she thought she'd have plenty of time to find ways to get him to stick around. If the movie wasn't being made, though, he'd be gone in a few days, possibly never to return again.
"People always leave."
He knew those words well. She'd used them to describe him, as well as those other important people who'd left her long ago.
"Yeah, they do," Jake said and his words left her feeling broken. "It's just a part of life, I guess."
Silence enveloped them as they both observed all the people around them. Brooke and Lucas were on the couch, her head resting contently on his shoulder, while Nathan and Haley sat across from them, Haley laughing as Nathan whispered something in her ear. Jamie was chasing Jenny around the living room. Mouth and Millicent could be seen talking with Skills, Junk, and Fergie out in the backyard. Julian was walking back out of the kitchen with Rachel on his heels. These people were her family. She loved them all. And life without them was just wrong.
Then Jake turned to her, a small, but hopeful smile on his face. "But sometimes they come back."
And he was right. Sometimes they do come back. And she had a strong feeling that that would pertain to both Jake and Julian. They'd be back, no matter who her heart belonged too. And that was really all that mattered.
888
As the night died down, Brooke found herself out by the pool. The sun was setting and people were starting to leave. It had been a good night, almost perfect actually. It was one of those special nights that would always remind her of the people who really mattered in her life. She wasn't blood related to one single person in that house, but they were more her family than her own mother and father.
A pair of arms wrapped around her waist and she didn't even need to look around to see who they belonged too. She just knew.
"You okay?" She nodded, resting her head along Lucas' chest. "What're you thinking about?" he asked.
"Just about how lucky I am to have all these people in my life." She tilted her head up to look at him. "Cheesy, I know, but I can't help but be grateful for every single person here. They're the only family I have."
"I don't think it's cheesy, I think you're right. We're your family, just like your a part of ours." He rested his chin on her shoulder. "And speaking of family, I just promised our godson that I'd hang out with him after school tomorrow. Care to join us?"
"Of course. I haven't spent nearly enough time with my favorite boys lately."
She could feel him grinning against her cheek. "Jamie will love that."
Then he twirled her around in his arms and she was looking right up at him. He bent down to place a soft kiss on her lips before leaning his forehead against hers.
"This is working, isn't it? Me and you?"
"Yeah," she said, knowing that it really was. There was nothing more right than this. "It really is."
A/N: So, yeah, this was mostly a filler chapter. I hope you enjoyed it anyway. I know it was pretty light in terms of Brucas, but there was only so much I could do for them this chapter. Next chapter, you'll see more of them and, if all goes as planned, Letter 85 will make it's appearance.
So thanks so much to everyone for reading and please, please, please remember to review! (hint: reviews get me writing faster :D) I will love you forever if you do!
Lena: I feel like I haven't responded to your reviews in forever and I'm so sorry for that! I absolutely love every single one of your reviews, though, just so you know! Onto your review, I know that Lucas could have been angry with Peyton a little longer, but I decided not to drag it out. I thought it was time she came out and told Lucas that she knew she was wrong and explain why she didn't tell him. And yeah, I agree, Peyton always acts like she was alone while she and Lucas were apart, which is crap, as we now know. So I'm glad you were happy that I put that in there, because it's something they'll obviously never address on the show. They'll never address a lot of things, actually, but that's why I'm writing this story. To fill in some of those holes, mostly when it comes to Brucas of course. Which is why I included the letters in here too. Because we're never going to know if Mark really just forgot that there were only 82 letters, not 86 (and if he did then he's truly an idiot) or if Brooke actually wrote four more letters. It's kind of sad that that question will most likely never be answered, but we might as well answer it in fan fics, right? So I'm glad that you thought the letter was well done. I hope I can do the other two justice as well. Thanks so much for taking the time to review, Lena! It really means so much!