So, this is short. But I couldn't come up with anything else and didn't want to keep you waiting:
Chapter 17: Where I Went Wrong
"Breathe in. Breathe out. Remember that." She coached herself in the mirror. Jeans and a plain solid color shirt were the staple for this high school science teacher on any normal day. This, however, was not any normal day. Today she was meeting Owen Daniel James for lunch to "catch up." Those were his words, definitely not hers. If they were hers she might have been able to decide what to wear. Owen, she knew, liked to keep his statements short, sweet, and meaningful.
It drove her insane.
The clock on her bedside table flashed 11:52. She glanced back into her closet and weighed her options. She slipped on a knee length flowy aqua skirt and a solid white shirt. Looking back in the mirror, she shrugged indifferently and spritzed on her favorite perfume. Not that she had deemed the lunch meeting worthy of perfume. Then, sliding into her matching flip flops and grabbing her keys and purse in one fluid motion, she ran to her car.
Of course, her mad dash to the restaurant isn't necessary as Owen is predictably tardy. Yet another trait he carried that made her jaw clench and her patience run thin. The waiter, who she mentally notes is incredibly handsome, seats her at a table for two out on the patio, and winks knowingly when she says she is waiting on an old friend.
"I swear." She promises, but her voice falters from nerves. He only gives a respectful little bow and turns on his heel. Once he's gone her surroundings become clear. She probably looks pathetic sitting alone on the patio to all the people walking the boardwalk past her with their significant others. She checks her watch for the nth time since she sat down after an elderly couple moseyed past and gave her a sympathetic smile. It was almost twelve forty.
"Meredith." His cool and smiling tone greeted her and she felt her back straighten slightly.
Not trusting her voice yet, she smiled and acceptd his apology for being late.
"How've you been?" He asked as he sat in the chair. His outfit made her pleased she wore the skirt instead of her staple.
She swallowed the bit of water and spoke, "I've been well. You?"
"Good." He replied and the handsome waiter interrupted the brief silence that followed after.
"Now that your MALE old friend has joined you, would you care to order?" He asks pointedly and playfully at Meredith. She snorts and nods.
"I'll have a caesar salad and a diet coke, please." She smiles flirtatiously. Well, he does look like a young George Clooney after all.
Owen clears his throat, looks at them both strangely and orders, "A beer and a cheese burger please."
Meredith laughs at his typical choice of foods. "So what have you been doing since high school?"
"I'm a lawyer."
She didn't mean to be rude, but she choked on her piece of bread. "You, a lawyer? Are you serious?"
"Yeah, I work at a firm in Chicago." He laughs, finding it slightly funny himself.
"Don't they make sure that lawyers aren't convicts first?"
"Don't they make sure that teachers aren't convicts first?" He challenged back and quirked an eyebrow.
She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms. "It was your idea. I just went along with it."
"I know. It still makes you a criminal." He shrugs and takes a long pull on his beer that was just set in front of him.
"One, it was twelve years ago, and two, it was bogus we even got caught." She laughed. "It just so happens that on the one night we break in, the night janitors weren't in the science wing smoking pot."
"You are only still bitter because your parents took away your BMW and mine only laughed." He grinned and she was struck with how gorgeous he still was. His boyish good looks had grown up into a more chiseled man, but he still bore a hint of the deviancy that had first attracted him to her.
"I would of given up the country club membership, my credit cards and a whole lot more if I could have had your parents," She admitted.
He looked pointedly at her, "But not the shoes."
"No, not the shoes." She laughed in agreement, "I can't believe your remember that."
"Neither can I." He swallowed another gulp and smirked at her in only the way Owen James could. When they were teenagers, straight laced Meredith had fallen hard for that unconcerned, careless smirk. Oh, how she wished he would stop smirking.
-.-.
"Brooke? Brooke, are you ready to go?" Lucas called up the stairs. Checking his watch again, he tried to keep his frustration in. He had rushed home for this appointment, which he knew would only put him farther behind in his work, and he had found Brooke not ready and in a horrible mood.
"Yes, yes. I am ready! God, let's just go already." She spat at him as she walked down the stairs. Her expensive heels clicked on the way down. Maybe her outfit was a tad over reaching for the doctor's office, but who knew when she could fit into these clothes again? She grabbed her purse off of the table and marched dutifully to the car.
Lucas turned on the radio and the crooning tone of Frank Sinatra came floating through the speakers. He took Brooke's hand and sang along to "Just the Way You Look Tonight." She had a difficult time keeping the smile from spreading across her face.
"Luke, we've been over this before. You cannot sing." She laughed. "You're horrible at it. I'm sorry."
He feigns offense, "Well, that is just about the meanest thing anyone has ever said to me. I mean, I try to be romantic, but I get shut down. By my own WIFE! Real nice, Brooke. Real nice."
Brooke snorts in laughter, "Since I am being honest, you really can't dance very well either."
"Well, this is just great! I rush home from work to come with you and I get made fun of." He faked a bitter laugh and pounds his hands against the steering wheel. She was smiling again. Thank the universe, she was smiling again.
"I know one thing you are great at," she whispers suggestively in his ear. Gripping the wheel tightly, his knuckles go white. She slides a hand down his chest.
"Brooke, honey. I don't think you should be doing that while I am driving." He clears his throat.
She winks and sits back straight in her seat, "You're right. I'll have to save it for tonight."
"Not that I am complaining, but what is with the sudden mood change?" He smiles as they pull into the doctor's office parking lot.
She licks her lips and shrugs, "I am pregnant, remember? And since when is it a crime to find my husband sexy?" She quickly gets out of the car, leaving him stunned and in a much better mood. He follows her in, wiping his sweaty hands on his jeans. The waiting room is full with women and they stare at him as he walks in alone. The lone man in the corner is huddling over his newspaper. He scans the room and finds that Brooke is not among the women in the room. He walks to the front desk, "Brooke Scott?"
"You are late. She is in room seven." The old woman points to the door on her left and Lucas walks quickly away from her, slightly afraid of her, but mostly of being the lone man in the corner.
He gets into the room, finding Brooke already lying on the examination table. "So I lied to you."
"Huh?" Is all he can respond with.
"I lied to you. I don't find you sexy. Well, I mean I do, but that's not why I was all... you know, over you. I need to tell you something," Brooke winces slightly. She looks guilty, and he looks terrified.
He swallows, "Should I be angry or worried?"
She hesitates and he nods for her to start, "Isignedupfortheultrasoundtesttofindoutthesexofourbaby!" She blurts out and slams closed her eyes. Silence. She peels open one eye and sees that his mouth is moving. She peels the other eye open.
He is dissecting her run together sentence. Finally, he laughs, "Okay, whatever."
Her face drops and her eyebrows scrunch together, "You aren't mad that I signed up for the test without asking you?"
"Not really. I mean, I would have liked to known I guess, but it's fine with me. " He shrugged simply. "Are you sure that's the only reason you were all over me?"
"Lucas!" Brooke shrieked. "This is a very big deal and you don't even care!" For the umpteenth time that day, her shoulders shook and she started to sob uncontrollably. "I - I'm sorry. God, why can't I stop?"
"Brooke, you never need to be sorry for crying. I'm the one who should be sorry, I upset you. Look, it's not that I don't care, I do. This baby is so important to me, just it doesn't really bother me that you want to know the sex. I'm surprised you lasted this long."
Her face contorted again, "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing," he soothed quickly, "it means nothing. Just that I know you have always been impatient."
"Lucas Scott, you better chose your words carefully or I might just-"
"HELLO!" The doctor swung the door open, letting Brooke's words hang in the air like a mean stench. "Well, Brooke and Lucas Scott. Shall we take a little peak at baby Scott?"
-.-.
"Where you goin' Daddy?" Megan's bottom lip quivered. Haley glanced up at Nathan sadly then turned her attention back to her feet. Nathan sighed loudly and squatted down to his daughter's level. He tucked a strand of her curly brown hair behind her small ear. She wore just a pair of light blue underwear and a white undershirt, and in her hand she held the Cinderella doll he gave her. Looking into her eyes, he was struck again that she had his eyes. The eyes that for most of his life he had hated, but now, seeing them on his little angel's face, made him wonder why he ever had. Hers were now cloudy with tears that had yet to spill over.
He cleared his throat, "Megan, I'm going back to my house."
The little girl looked around at the beach house, "But dis is your house Daddy. Member? My room is upstairs and your room is a door and da bathroom with the Dora night light away." Her voice squeaked with such innocence it made him want take her in his arms and tell her that he was not going anywhere ever again.
"No, not that house." He looked up at Haley who was avoiding eye contact with him completely. "Um.. Angel, do you remember when I told you that I play basketball professionally?"
She grinned proudly and nodded, "Like on da TV!"
He chuckled, "Right, on the TV, and to play on the TV I have to live somewhere else far from here. That's the house I have to go back to."
"Far away?" She repeated sorrowfully and he nodded, "Oh."
He rubbed her tiny, chubby cheek, "I promise I will come visit you as much as I can, and I can call you and you can call me whenever we want to talk to each other."
Megan looked up at Haley quickly, "Is momma goin' too?" She took in a sharp breathe, looking panicked.
Haley shook her head, "No baby, Momma is staying right here with you." Megan let out the breathe, relieved.
"I'm gonna miss you, Daddy." Megan said quietly, letting her tears finally fall. She drove into Nathan and clung to him. "I love you."
"I love you too, Meg." He promised, rubbing her back. "Look after your mother for me, please?"
She nodded and let go of her fierce grip on Nathan, and took up one on Haley's leg. Outside, Nathan's cab honked and he muttered a curse word. Haley mustered a brave smile, "You better go, Nate."
"Yeah, I guess so." He admitted, but made no movement. They stood there in the silence for a moment, a family about to be torn apart. Again. He stepped toward her and offered out his arms. She stepped into him and instantly, the tears fell. "I love you, Hales. I love you so much."
She nodded through the tears and tried to say the same back, but found her voice wouldn't allow it. He knew. It was okay because he knew. Only, she wasn't okay. For gosh sakes, her husband was leaving her! God only knew how long it would be until she would see him again, even though they had agreed on Thanksgiving.
The car honked again and he broke apart from her. He wiped off her tears, "I'll see you soon alright?" Again, she nodded woefully, and opened the door for him. "Always and forever, Hales." He said finally, kissing Megan and Haley's forehead separately and leaving.
"Good bye Nathan." She whispered at the closed door and then looked down at Megan. "I love you too."
-.-.
"Ready to see your baby?" The doctor asked excitedly. She snapped her glove against her wrist and Lucas flinched. There were so many machines hooked up to his wife. Why were there so many? She's a tiny woman, why do they need so many?
Brooke grinned and practically screamed "Yes, I want to see my baby! I really, really want to see my baby!"
"Daddy-to-be?" The doctor smiled. Was it just him or was she extremely happy?
"Yeah, I am ready to see my little Scott guy too." Lucas internally shrugged off his apprehension and turned his attention to the ultrasound monitor.
The doctor made all sorts of funny noises as she moved the machine over Brooke's stomach. "Well, Mr. Scott, your little guy has a vagina."
Lucas choked on the breathe he was holding while Brooke shrieked, "A girl! I'm having a baby girl. Oh, Lucas! Can you believe this?"
"No, it's.. no I can't." He sat there, flabbergasted, barely aware that the appointment was ending. Brooke had almost left him in the room.
"Lucas? Luke, you coming?" She asked, giving his hand a little tug.
"A girl." He echoed blankly. "Like you, a girl like you."
"Yes, Luke. I am a girl. Now let's go home. I need to call Peyton and Haley and everyone!" Brooke tugged again and he followed wordlessly out to the car. "Are you going to make me drive?"
He obediently got into the driver's seat and drove them home. Brooke laughed at his stunned actions, but he couldn't seem to glare at her. She got out of the car when he pulled into the driveway, but he sat there momentarily before suddenly tearing out of the driveway and speeding off into the night. He wasn't really aware of where he was headed, but was heading there anyways. Before he consciously knew what he was doing, he had already started knocking on the door.
"Lucas? What are you doing here?" A surprised, yet happy man greeted him, and motioned for Lucas to step inside.
He mustered a slight smile back, "Hey Keith. Is my mom here?"
"Uh oh. What's wrong?" He said playfully, but his smile faded when Lucas was silent. "Karen! Lucas is here." Lucas followed Keith into the living room of the house he grew up in. He was hit with a wave of nostalgia, and couldn't help but think of all of the basketball games he had watched on that small television or how many nights Haley had camped out on their couch forcing him to watch endless movies because her parents were off visiting a random family member.
"Lucas, good to see you." Karen greeted warmly, rasing her eyebrows when he stands politely when she enters the room. "And you brought the manners I taught you so what's wrong?"
"W-we, she.. Brooke... she's having a girl!" Lucas stammered, slouching into the couch when he finished.
Karen looked simply ecstatic, "Congratulations! Oh, this is wonderful!"
Keith patted Lucas's shoulder, "Yeah, Luke. That's really great. Congratulations."
"No!" He spat out. "It's not great! I don't know anything about girls! I never was one!"
Karen laughed, "We know you weren't, Luke. We changed your diapers."
"Real funny, mom." Lucas rolled his eyes, and rubbed his large hands over his face.
Karen sat next to him on the couch and rubbed his back, "Lucas, I raised you, and I am not a boy. Plus, you do know about girls." Karen nudged him and ticked off on her fingers, "Haley is your best friend, she's a girl. Megan is your niece, she's a girl. Peyton is your friend, she's a girl. Brooke is your WIFE, and she's a girl. And I am your mom, and we have already established that I am a girl. Face it, Luke, you are living in a world dominated by estrogen. Get used to it."
-.-.
UP NEXT: -Back to SCHOOOoooOOOoooOOOL
So sorry guys. I don't have time to do individual shout outs so here's a comment for y'all!
Comment: I'm sorry this update took so long, especially for one so short. I just got back from vacation and then had writers block like crazy. So I slapped this together since I couldn't think of anything better. I know you guys are probably mad at me for not giving more NH but... you'll see.