So I will apologize again for the wait! But I think you all will appreciate the length of this chapter (unless you get bored with long chapters. If you do, then I apologize for that too.) Anyway, I tried to cut it into 2 chapters, but I just couldn't find the right spot to cut it so I just kept it as one.
Had a difficult time writing a lot of this chapter because I have no experience whatsoever in anything you will find in the chapter. I only know what I've seen in movies and TV and from doing my own research. So I apologize for any inaccurate information. And I also want to acknowledge the fact that the story has been moving very, very slowly and it may not feel like it has progressed at all. But this chapter is kind of the start to get the ball rolling, and there will be some time jumps after this.
Anyway, on to the story. Please read it all the way through and review at the end! Thank you so much! Your reading and your reviews are very much appreciated!
Chapter 20: Custody
"I want to take Ava with me to California, Brooke. I want her to live with me."
"Absolutely not, Chase," Brooke sneered through her teeth as she'd moved closer to Chase on the porch. She then shoved her finger at him and spoke to him sternly. "You. Are. Not…taking my daughter away to live across the country from me."
Brooke had turned away then, and she'd stormed into the house, the screen door slamming after she'd entered. Chase followed her into the house.
"Brooke," he said with a sigh. "She's my daughter, too."
Brooke turned swiftly, glaring at him. "Yes, I know. But this is her home, Chase. Her home is Tree Hill…with me, and with the people she considers to be family. I am not going to let you take that away from her."
"Mommy?" Their daughter's small voice had interrupted their argument then.
Brooke and Chase both looked as Ava came around the corner into the main room.
"Mommy," she said again. "I'm all ready for bed."
Brooke swallowed. She cleared her throat. When she spoke to her daughter, she tried to keep her voice calm enough. Though, inside, Brooke was still fuming.
"Alright, baby," she said. "Um, mommy and daddy are still talking. So can you go to your room and pick out what book you want to read tonight?"
"Okay, Mommy." Ava looked over at Chase then. She waved. "'Night, Daddy."
"Goodnight, honey," Chase said.
Brooke watched and waited until Ava had gone upstairs before she'd turned back to Chase. She'd folded her arms and glared at him again.
"You are not taking her to California, Chase," she said, finality in her tone. "End of story."
Chase glanced briefly at his feet. He looked back at Brooke with his brow creased.
"Yeah, well, I'm not asking you, Brooke."
"What?"
"I've already spoken to my lawyer. I'm contesting custody."
Brooke turned away from him when she felt the tears well up in her eyes. She shook her head, disbelief washing over her as she considered what his words meant. He was contesting custody of Ava, of their—of her—little girl. He was going to try and take Ava away from her.
Why does he hate me so much, she wondered. Was this his way of punishing her for sleeping with Lucas? It wasn't exactly fair.
Brooke turned back to him, her eyes swollen with tears.
"How, Chase…" she choked out. "How can you do this to me?"
"I'm not doing this to hurt you, Brooke." Chase stepped closer, but Brooke stepped back, not wanting to be close to him now. His case in his attempt to get custody of Ava would only be made stronger if Brooke allowed her anger to escalate to violence with him now; something that might just happen if he came too close.
Chase went on. "I just want to remain in my daughter's life. I don't want to be replaced."
"So instead you want to push me out…her mother?"
"If anyone is getting pushed out, it's me, Brooke. Whenever I see Ava, she has another story about how 'Uncle Lucas did this, and uncle Lucas did that'. You know what she told me last night, Brooke? She said, 'Uncle Lucas put me to bed like you used to, Daddy'."
Chase paused, shaking his head. "I am her father, Brooke…not Lucas."
"I know that, Chase."
"Yeah? Well, does Luca know? Maybe I need to remind him that while he may have stolen you away from me, he is not going to take my daughter too."
"I am not something to be stolen, Chase! I am at just as much fault in this situation as Lucas is."
"God, that's not even the point, Brooke!"
"Damn it, Chase…keep your voice down!"
"Well, if you'd listen to me, I wouldn't have to shout!"
"God, just stop it!" Brooke threw up her hands. "I'm so tired of arguing with you!"
She turned away from him, frustrated. She was shaking her head when she spoke to him again.
"Don't do this, Chase," she pleaded, in a voice more calm than she'd spoken in a moment before. "Please don't do this."
Chase shook his head, his gaze returning to her. "I don't have another choice, Brooke."
"You're being selfish, Chase."
"Maybe. But I'm doing it for my daughter. Whether you believe me, that's up to you. But…I'm filing for sole custody."
Brooke glared at him again, stunned again by his words. Not only was he contesting custody, but he wanted sole custody?
"Like hell you are!" She sneered.
"It's the only way, Brooke. I'm sorry."
Chase turned to leave. He made it out the door only a moment before Brooke groaned and threw (with all of her strength) a vase at the door, shattering it to pieces.
The following day…
Brooke groaned as she tried dialing the number on her phone again. She heard the doorbell chime, and she held the phone to her ear as she walked over to open the door. She waved Haley inside as she spoke into the phone.
"Hello, Jack. This is Brooke Davis callin…again." Brooke spoke with agitation as she walked toward the counter. Haley listened as she set her purse and keys down on the couch next to the front door.
"This is the third message I've left for you. I have a legal situation, and I really need to speak with you. Please call me back as soon as possible. Thank you."
Haley watched with concern as Brooke slammed the phone down on the counter. As hard as she slammed it, Haley was surprised that Brooke hadn't broken the phone.
"Damn it," she heard Brooke mutter.
Haley moved closer to her friend. "Brooke…honey, what's wrong? What happened?"
Haley moved closer to her friend. "Brooke…honey, what's wrong? What happened?"
When Brooke turned around, there were tears in her eyes. Haley found herself growing more concerned by the second.
"What is it, Brooke? Is it Ava? Did something happen?"
Brooke nodded. "Yeah, something happened. But Ava is fine. She's playing next door."
Haley sighed, relieved that her neice—well, not technically her niece, but she considered her to be anyway—was okay. But she was still concerned for her friend.
"What happened?" she asked again.
Brooke wiped away the tears that had slipped down her cheeks. She sat down on a stool.
"Chase brought Ava home last night. And he told me that he his filing for sole custody of Ava."
"What? He can't."
"Well, apparently he did." Brooke reached for a manilla envelope on the counter, and she held it up to show Haley. "He got a lawyer, awhile ago I guess because I got the papers today. I called my lawyer, but he hasn't returned my call yet."
"Oh…my gosh, Brooke. I'm so sorry." Haley sat on a stool across from Brooke. "I didn't think things between you two were this bad…for him to want to take your daughter from you."
"He says that he's not doing it to hurt me. He's been given a promotion, but he has to move to San Fransisco for it. And he wants to take Ava with him so that he doesn't 'get replaced' as he put it."
"So this isn't even about him wanting to be with his daughter, or even about keeping her from you? It's about Lucas?"
Brooke nodded. "Lucas has been over a lot. And he has taken care of her when I wasn't feeling well. And Chase thinks—"
"—That Ava loves Lucas more," Haley finished. She shook her head and mumbled, "Idiot."
Without warning, Brooke started balling.
"He can't take my daughter from me, Haley. I can't lose my daughter too."
Haley pulled her friend close instantly, attempting to comfort her. "Oh, you won't, honey. You won't lose her. He won't take her from you. He won't win."
Brooke sniffed. "But what if he does?"
Haley pulled away. She caught Brooke's tear-filled eyes and she spoke to her again.
"He won't. He doesn't have a case, Brooke. You are around for Ava more than Chase is. He is always working. Yeah, he loves Ava, but can he care for her like you do?" Haley shook her head. "Talk to your lawyer. I'm sure he will say the same thing."
"Yeah, I would talk to my lawyer…if he would answer one of my damn phone calls—ow!"
Haley jumped off the stool when Brooke hunched over in pain, her hands over her tummy.
"What?" Haley spoke worriedly and rushed, touching her friend's shoulder as Brooke cringed again. "What is it, Brooke? What's wrong?"
Brooke winced in pain again. "Ow! I don't…I don't know. Something's wrong."
"Oh, oh…okay," Haley stuttered, helping Brooke off the stool. "We need to get you to the hospital, okay? Come on."
"So, did you have a good weekend, Miss Ellie?"
Lucas glanced in his rearview mirror at his daughter, seated in her booster seat in the back of his truck. He looked back at the road as the light he'd been stopped at changed to green.
"Yeah, I did," Ellie answered. "But I miss mommy. I'm glad she is home from her trip."
"Well, I'm sure your mom is glad she is too. I know she must have missed you too."
A few minutes later, Lucas pulled up in front of the house he once shared with Peyton and their daughter. He put the truck in park and shut off the engine before unbuckling his seatbelt and climbing out of the truck. As he walked around to the passenger side of the truck, he glanced up at the house and saw Peyton step outside. He waved to her as he opened the back door and pulled Ellie from her booster seat and out of the truck.
"Hey you," Peyton said with a smile as Lucas set Ellie down.
"Mommy!"
Lucas watched with a smile as his daughter ran toward her mother.
Peyton knelt down and opened her arms for her daughter. She was still grinning as she scooped Ellie up.
"Oh, I missed you, kiddo," she said as she stood up again, hugging Ellie close to her.
"I missed you too, Mommy," Ellie said as her mother set her down again. "Did you have a good trip, Mommy?"
Peyton nodded once. "I did. How about you?" She glanced over at Lucas. "Did you two have a good weekend?"
"Yep."
Peyton looked back at Lucas. "You too?"
Lucas nodded, one hand in the pocket of his jeans, and one hand holding Ellie's duffel bag. He handed the bag to Peyton.
"Yeah," he answered. "We had a great weekend. It was nice getting to spend a whole weekend with her. Thanks for the extra day."
Peyton nodded. She sighed as she looked back at Ellie and folded her arms.
"So Ellie-belly," she said. Ellie looked up at her. "I was thinking we'd do pizza for dinner. What do you think?"
"Yeah!" Ellie said excitedly, jumping up and down twice. "Pizza! Pizza!"
Peyton and Lucas both chuckled.
"Alright, goofball," Peyton said, still chuckling. She handed the duffel bag out for her daughter to take. "How about you take your stuff inside and start unpacking? I'll order the pizza when I come inside."
"Okay," Ellie agreed, taking her duffel bag. She waved to Lucas.
"Bye, Daddy."
"Bye, honey. I love you."
"Love you too," Ellie said as she ran toward the house.
Lucas and Peyton were both silent as they watched their daughter head inside.
"Well," Lucas said slowly. "I guess I'll get going."
"Oh," Peyton said, "Well, did you want to join us for some pizza?"
"Uh, no thanks," Lucas declined. "I told my mom that I'd have dinner with her and Lily tonight. But thank you for the offer."
Peyton nodded. She shuffled her feet and glanced down at them. "Well, do you have a few minutes for coffee or something?"
Lucas stared at her, his brow creased in confusion. Peyton's attitude with him seemed to have changed quickly. Had a weekend away really made her forgive what he'd done?
"There's just, um…" Peyton spoke again. "There's something that I needed to talk to you about."
Oh, Lucas thought. So she wants something. Yeah, that was it. She was buttering him up, offering him dinner with herself and their daughter, like they had done when they were a family, and then offering him coffee. She was buttering him up because she wanted something. But…what could she possibly want from him? He and Peyton both understood that they were not meant to be as a couple, or at least he thought they had both had realized that. Peyton hadn't changed her mind, had she? She didn't want to…get back together? Not again? Hadn't she realized yet that they were just better off as friends? That they got along better as friends?
"It's about my trip," Peyton said, answering Lucas' silent questions.
Before Lucas could respond, though, his cell phone rang.
"Oh, hang on," he said as he pulled his phone from his pocket. He glanced at the caller id before looking back at Peyton. "It's Haley. One second?"
Peyton nodded, and Lucas pressed TALK on his cell.
"Hey, Hales," he spoke into the phone. "What's up?"
"Lucas," Haley spoke from the opposite end. Lucas thought that her voice sounded a little panicked.
"It's Brooke. I'm at the hospital with her."
"What?" Lucas heard the panic arise in his own voice now. "Is she okay? What happened?"
"I don't know yet. She was having some pain, some cramping, so I brought her to the ER. The nurse just took her back, so the doctor should be seeing her soon. Brooke asked me to call you and let you know."
"Yeah, yeah…thanks. I'll, um…I'll be right there."
Lucas ended the call without saying goodbye.
"I'm sorry, Peyton," he said as he walked back toward his truck. "I have to go. Haley took Brooke to the hospital."
"What?" Peyton couldn't help but feel the concern the flooded over her when she heard that her friend had been taken to the hospital, despite the hurt she felt because of said friend. "What happened?"
"I don't know," Lucas said as he walked around to the driver's side of his truck. "Haley just said come to the hospital. I…I have to go. I'm sorry."
Peyton watched as Lucas headed off to Brooke's rescue….again. And though she was still hurt by what they'd done, Peyton could not deny the fear she felt that her friend might be hurt. And because of that fear, she was glad Lucas was off to rescue her, and she hoped that he would make it in time.
After making the phone call to Lucas, Haley found her way back to the exam room that the nurse had brought Brooke back to.
"Lucas is on his way," she said as she entered the room. She shut the door again and walked toward Brooke, who was seated on the exam table. "How're you doing?"
Brooke shook her head while she held her hands to her belly.
"I don't know, Haley," she said. "The cramping has stopped, and I'm not bleeding, but I'm still terrified that something is wrong with the baby."
Haley took her friend's hand, hoping it would help to comfort her or relax her a little. "I'm sure everything is fine."
"Yeah, well, I wish the damn doctor would get in here so that I could be sure of that."
Brooke rubbed her belly again as she took a deep breath in and let it out, trying to relax herself. As she let the breath out, she whispered to her-self, "I need to be sure."
A few minutes later, the doctor finally arrived.
"Hello, Brooke," the doctor said when he entered the room. "I'm Dr. Gibson." He set the chart containing Brooke's information that the nurses had collected down on the counter.
"So," Dr. Gibson said as he sat down on a stool with wheels. "You're experiencing some cramping?"
Brooke nodded. "I was, but it stopped on the way here."
"Any bleeding accompanying the cramps?"
Brooke shook her head. "No, thank God. I'm really hoping that that is a good sign."
The doctor did not respond to Brooke's comment. He moved on to his next question after writing down on Brooke's chart, the information she gave him through her answers to his questions.
"And…." Dr. Gibson flipped back to the front of the chart, glancing at the information the nurse had collected. "It says here that you are fifteen weeks along. Is that correct?"
Again, Brooke nodded, too nervous to actually speak.
Dr. Gibson nodded and made some more notes in the paperwork, leaving Brooke and Haley to stare at one another in silence. They both looked back at the doctor as he stood up to grab some gloves.
"Okay, Brooke," he said as he snapped the gloves on. "I already had the nurse draw your blood for some tests, and she will let me know when the results of that come back. So now let's just take a look on the ultrasound, okay?"
Brooke nodded, and she laid back on the exam table.
"Would you like me to wait outside, Brooke?" Haley asked, wondering if Brooke may want her privacy for the exam to follow the ultrasound.
"No, no, you can stay," Brooke said. She reached for Haley's hand again. "Please stay."
Brooke shivered as the doctor squeezed the gel onto her abdomen—without warning her first. Brooke could feel her heart race as she stared at the blank screen of the ultrasound machine, waiting for the image to appear, and waiting to hear her baby's heartbeat. She knew that she would not be able to relax until she heard that heartbeat and knew that her baby was okay. And if she didn't hear it…if what she was afraid of was true…that would be devastating. Brooke wasn't sure that she would be able to survive another loss like that.
The doctor placed the transducer on Brooke's abdomen and turned on the machine. Brooke relaxed instantly when she finally heard that heartbeat—the most precious sound in the world—fill the silence of the room. She was in tears instantly.
"Thank God," she cried. "There's still a heartbeat."
Brooke glanced at Haley, and Haley smiled at her and squeezed her hand.
"Yep," the doctor spoke slowly, as he continued to watch the screen, checking out every angle of the image on screen. "Definite, strong, healthy heartbeat. And…there doesn't appear to be anything wrong here."
"Really?" Brooke asked, glancing at the doctor. "There isn't anything wrong? You're sure?"
Dr. Gibson nodded as he turned off the machine. "Yes, everything appears fine here. I'm not sure what caused the cramping. Some women at this stage of pregnancy experience the cramping from the body's stretching to accommodate a growing baby. It is also the point when some women begin to experience Braxton-Hicks contractions. Or, it very well could have been gas that caused the cramping.
"Considering your last pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, I would like to send you upstairs for some monitoring. We just want to make sure that you aren't having actual contractions. We can also have the OB/GYN on call perform an exam. I don't see anything wrong here…everything appeared fine with the fetus and we found a heartbeat so…but I think speaking with the OB doctor might give you some piece of mind?"
Brooke nodded. "Definitely. Thank you."
"Have you been under a lot of stress, Brooke?" Dr. Gibson asked as he rolled his stool back over to the counter.
"Oh, you could say that," Haley answered for Brooke. Brooke looked at her. Haley smiled. "Sorry."
"Uh, yeah," Brooke said, answering Dr. Gibson's question for herself. "I've had a lot of family stuff going on."
Dr. Gibson nodded. "Well, as a general practitioner I know only the basics of maternal medicine. But I do know how important it is for the mother-to-be to avoid as much stress as possible, especially one who has a history of miscarriage. So I must emphasize to you the importance of that."
Brooke nodded her understanding and agreement.
"Alright. Then, if you don't have any other questions for me, I am going to go have the nurse call upstairs and make sure they have a room for you. Since it's late anyway, I think we'll just have you rest here tonight, okay? Make sure you take it easy."
"Okay," Brooke agreed. "Whatever I need to do."
Brooke glanced down at her belly and said, "I'll do anything."
Lucas stepped off the elevator on the maternity floor of Tree Hill Memorial Hospital. He walked up to the receptionist at the front desk of the unit.
"May I help you?" The receptionist greeted.
"Yeah," Lucas answered. "I'm here to see Brooke Davis. They told me in the ER that she was brought up here for some testing?"
"Luke!"
Lucas turned at his name. Haley waved to him from down the hall. He left the desk and walked toward Haley down the hall.
"Hey," he said when he'd reached her, standing right outside room 615. "What happened? Is Brooke and the baby okay?"
"Well, Brooke was having some cramping," Haley explained. "So I brought her to the ER. The cramping stopped before we even got here. The doctor in the ER did an ultrasound and some blood tests, but he didn't find anything wrong. He said it could be Braxton-Hicks contractions or a result of the body stretching, or indigestion even, but he admitted her overnight so that Brooke could rest and get some advice from the OB/GYN on call, which, as it turned out, is Brooke's actual doctor. So her doctor is in doing an assessment and talking with Brooke now. That's why I'm waiting out here."
"So they're okay?" Lucas asked. "Brooke and the baby?"
Haley nodded. "From what the ER doctor said, yeah. They're both fine. Hopefully, Brooke's doctor will come out any minute and tell us the same."
"Well, after your exam, I really don't see anything to be wrong, Brooke."
Brooke relaxed again, and she smiled this time, at hearing those words from her own doctor.
"You're sure?" She asked. "I mean, you're positive…there's nothing wrong with the baby?"
"Not that I can tell right now," Dr. Martin answered as he finished drying his hands over the sink. "The cramping you were experiencing was most likely a result of your body stretching to accommodate the pregnancy changes."
"Really? I don't think I've ever felt that with my last pregnancies. Or, at least I don't remember having cramps like that before."
"Well, every pregnancy is different, remember," Dr. Martin reminded her. "Some women feel it, others don't. And…I think that, given how your last pregnancy ended, your fears were a little more heightened than they probably would have been normally, and so your reaction reflected that. It's understandable, though, and good that you came in, if for nothing else but to give yourself some peace of mind and remind yourself to relax."
Brooke nodded her agreement.
"There is one thing I am concerned about, Brooke." Dr. Martin sat back down on the stool next to the counter. "I'm concerned that you're not avoiding stress as well as you should be. And I know that's difficult, given the situation you explained to me you're in. But I must emphasize again how very important it is that you not put too much undo stress on yourself, especially since you've had a prior miscarriage."
Brooke nodded. "I know, Dr. Martin. I am…really going to try.
"Well, that's good. But for now, I need more than trying. I'm ordering it. It's important that you take this as a sign of your body telling you to relax, so I am going to put you on strict bed rest for three weeks. Like I told you before, I did not find anything wrong with the baby. But, if you don't start taking the time to relax and take care of yourself…well, then your baby will be affected. So take this as a reason to relax: because your doctor said so."
Dr. Martin offered Brooke a smile. Brooke returned the gesture.
"Well, I guess that's everything for now then. Unless you have any other questions for me?"
Brooke shook her head. "Nope. I think you covered everything."
"Good." Dr. Martin stood up again. "Then, I'd like for you to stay overnight, just to get some rest. And I will do another assessment and go over everything again before I discharge you, okay?"
"Thanks, Doctor."
"Sure," Dr. Martin said as he walked to the door. "I mean it now, get some rest."
Lucas and Haley were both still waiting in the hall when Brooke's doctor stepped outside. Dr. Martin explained to them what he had discussed with Brooke. He told them also, that he was concerned that if Brooke did not start taking it easy, that he was afraid Brooke would have another episode like this, one that could result in miscarriage or pre-term labor. Dr. Martin was serious about Brooke getting the rest she needed, so he only wanted one visitor in the room at a time.
So Haley had gone in first to see Brooke. She gave Brooke a hug and promised to take Ava home with her for the night so that Brooke would not have to worry about her. Brooke thanked Haley for everything, and she hugged her again before she left. When Haley left Brooke's room, Lucas said goodbye to her.
"Thanks for bringing her in, Hales," he said after hugging his best friend. "And for staying with her."
"Of course. She's my best friend too. I'll, um…I'll talk to you later, okay?"
Lucas nodded.
"You don't stay too long, alright? Let her get some sleep."
"I will. Thanks, Hales."
After Haley left, Lucas entered Brooke's room.
"Hey you," he said, closing the door behind him.
"Hey," Brooke returned. She pulled the blankets higher over herself in the bed.
"So…you had a bit of a scare tonight, huh?" Lucas asked as he sat down in a chair next to her bed.
Brooke nodded. "Yeah, you could say that. Even though it turned out to be nothing more than normal pregnancy stuff." She touched her belly. "But it definitely brought everything into perspective for me."
"Well," Lucas reached over the bed and took Brooke's hand in his. "I'm glad that you and the baby are okay."
Brooke looked over at Lucas. She stiffened, and glanced down when she felt him take her hand. Her heart fluttered when he did. His hand felt warm there. It fit there. It belonged there. That's what her heart told her anyway. But her brain overruled her, and reminded her of why she was sitting here in this hospital bed. The doctor told her she needed to relax, needed to avoid as much stress as possible. And this…this hand holding, Brooke knew, would lead to more between them than there already was. More, to herself only Brooke had admitted she wanted. But it was more, her brain told her now, than she needed at the moment. She had enough to deal with right now.
Brooke pulled her hand away from Lucas', and she tried to ignore the hurt she'd seen register on his face when she did.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, Luke," Brooke answered, trying to avoid his concerned gaze. "Nothing's wrong."
"Well, if nothing is wrong, then how do you explain why you just pulled away from me? Like my holding your hand is the last thing you want?"
Brooke stared at him in silence. She wasn't sure how to explain it. She didn't want to hurt his feelings, especially since she thought she shared those feelings. But right now…she just had to put her baby before herself. Brooke's silence seemed to answer Lucas' question.
"That's…not it, is it?" He asked her, trying to stare into her eyes. "That you don't want me holding your hand?"
Brooke finally looked at him, but she still didn't respond. She was still figuring out what to say.
"Well, is it just the hand holding? Or, is it all of this…us?" Lucas was very careful not to raise his voice. He knew that Brooke didn't need that kind of stress. Still, Brooke could hear the hurt in his voice as he drew his own conclusions from her lack of response to his questions.
Finally, Brooke found her words.
"Luke…you know I care about you…so much. It's just that I can't…I can't be close to you…like that…right now. I just need to focus on staying well. And with the whole custody thing with Chase…"
Brooke paused, and Lucas remembered the conversation he'd had with Haley in the hallway while the doctor was still in with Brooke. Haley had explained to him what Brooke had told her about earlier, that Chase was contesting custody of Ava.
"With all of that going on," Brooke continued. "I just don't have time for any distractions right now."
"Distraction?" Lucas said, offended by her words. He stood up from the chair. "Wow…I really had no idea that you thought of me that way."
Brooke glanced away then, sorry that she had hurt him. Despite what he was probably thinking of her now, it hadn't been what she wanted.
"I'm sorry you feel that way," Lucas continued. Brooke looked back at him as he spoke. "But I know how you feel about me, Brooke, even if you're not ready to admit how you feel. I can tell already that you are going to distance yourself from me. Maybe not because you want to, but because you think it's what you need to do. I can tell you that staying away from me really won't help or hurt the custody thing with Chase. But I understand that you're afraid that it will. So, I will do what you're asking. I won't push this. I'll leave you alone, as long as you promise to take care of yourself."
Brooke nodded.
"Good. Then, I'll back off on us. For now. I'll just be there when you need me, or when you want me, I guess. You get some rest."
As he opened the door, Lucas looked back at Brooke and said, "Call me if you need anything. I, um…I guess I'll see you around."
Brooke watched as Lucas left her room, thinking to herself, Damn it, Brooke…what did you just do? And why the hell can't you just tell him how you feel?
Lucas headed back over to Peyton's after leaving the hospital. He'd promised to let her know what was going on as soon as he knew something, and he remembered that Peyton had started to tell him something when he'd gotten Haley's call.
"Hey, Luke," Peyton greeted as she held the front door open for him. Lucas stepped inside. "How's Brooke?"
Lucas sighed. "She's okay, she and the baby. They are both okay for now. The doctor said Brooke just needs to start taking better care of herself and relax more, avoid all the stress she's under. I guess Chase is contesting custody of Ava. Haley told me that Chase wants to take Ava away from Brooke and move her to California with him.
"Oh…wow," Peyton responded, thinking that would put a lot of stress on anyone, especially Brooke.
"Yeah," Lucas agreed, nodding. He sighed and then changed the subject.
"So, um…you said earlier that you had something you wanted to talk to me about?"
Peyton nodded. "Uh, yeah. So you know that I went out of town this weekend for work."
Lucas nodded.
"Well, this trip actually led to a new job."
"Really? That's awesome!"
"Yeah, it is. Especially since it is a record executive job."
Peyton watched as Lucas' eyes widened in surprise and excitement.
"Wow, Peyton, that's great! You got a promotion! That's—"
"—No, it's not a promotion." Peyton paused, and Lucas watched her, curious. "It's for a new record company…it Atlanta."
As Peyton was expecting, the thrill left Lucas' face as soon as she had mentioned Atlanta.
Lucas cleared his throat and glanced down at his feet. "Uh, as in Atlanta, Georgia?"
"No. Atlanta, North Carolina." Peyton rolled her eyes. "Yes, Luke. Atlanta, Georgia."
"And you're going to move there? You and Ellie?"
"Yeah…" Peyton nodded. She braced herself for another reaction from him when she said her next words. "Next month."
Lucas covered his face with his hands, and he turned away briefly. This was just too much. He understood Brooke not wanting to pursue a relationship with him right now. She wasn't ready. She had a lot on her plate. But this….Even though Peyton was hurt by what he and Brooke had done, Peyton had already promised that she wouldn't let it affect Ellie. And this surely would.
When he looked back at Peyton, Lucas felt the anger had risen inside him.
"Peyton…" he said her name through his teeth. He held a finger out, pointing at her and speaking sternly. "You said you wouldn't take her away from me."
Peyton glared at him, angry at his selfish thinking. He couldn't see that this wasn't about him. For once, it was about her, about what she needed.
"I'm not taking her away from you, Lucas," she said. "This has nothing to do with you. For once, in a really long time, I am doing something for me. I am looking out for me."
"That's great, Peyton," Lucas spoke sincerely, trying to keep his voice sounding more calm than it had been a moment before. "I want that for you. But why can't you do that here? Or, even somewhere closer to here than Atlanta."
"Because there is nothing for me here, Lucas!" Peyton shouted at him. She was thankful that Ellie was a hard sleeper. She didn't want her daughter to hear her shouting at her father. She never wanted her daughter to see them argue. "There is nothing left for me here! Not anymore, Luke. And I need…something. I need to have a life. I need to be happy. And I can't be happy here. Not right now."
Peyton paused. She shook her head and glanced down at her feet. When she looked back at Lucas and spoke, her voice was almost normal—except for the pain that Lucas could hear with her next words.
"It hurts too much for me. To be here right now, to be around you and around Brooke. And while you and I, for Ellie's sake, may have settled things as far as our relationship goes…I still need some time…for my sake. I need a fresh start, something that I can't get here in Tree Hill. So please, Luke…don't make this any harder for Ellie than it already will be."
Lucas took in Peyton's words. He understood now that she really wasn't taking Ellie away from him, not like he was sure Chase was trying to do to Brooke with Ava. Lucas understood that Peyton needed to take herself away from him, and from Brooke. And if she and he did not have Ellie between them, it would be a lot easier for Peyton to do that. But the fact of the matter was, they did have Ellie. And he could not stand the thought of only seeing his daughter every other weekend (possibly less if Peyton was moving her to Atlanta).
"Peyton," Lucas started slowly and calmly. "I understand all of that. I understand all of your reasons for needing to go. But you have to understand where I am coming from, too. If you take Ellie to Atlanta, I'll see her even less than I see her now."
Peyton nodded. "I do understand where you are coming from, Luke. And I really don't want to keep the two of you apart. I could never do that intentionally. You are just as much her world as I am. So I want you and I to work something out, some kind of schedule so that you can still see her whenever you want.
"Because I am taking this job, Lucas. I've already said yes and agreed to move down there. And I am taking Ellie with me. I just don't want to put her through the drama of a custody battle in the process, not with the confusion she's already feeling from the whole situation, and not after everything she has already been through in her life."
Lucas did not say anything right away. He mentally compared this new situation to the situation between Brooke and Chase. He remembered the stress Brooke was already under with that, so much stress that it was most likely a part of what sent her to the hospital today.
Lucas agreed with Peyton. He did not want to put that stress on his daughter. He didn't want to do that to Peyton either. He'd already done enough to hurt her. And if he turned this into some custody battle, then it could potentially damage whatever kind of friendship that may one exist between him and Peyton again. And as much as he wanted Brooke to let him be with her like he so wanted to be with her, he wanted to have a friendship with Peyton again.
"Look, you can have some time to think about all of this if you want, Luke," Peyton spoke again. "You know, figure out what you want to do. Like I said, though, we leave next month. And before we go, I just need to know that you're not going to—"
"—I won't."
Lucas stood up from the couch and stuffed his hands into his pockets. Peyton stared at him as he continued. "I won't take it to court, Peyton. As long as you and I work something out, I won't contest custody. You have my word."
Peyton nodded. "Thank you, Luke."
Lucas nodded once before he headed for the door.
Okay, so this is definitely not my best chapter. But I did work really hard on it. I had to do a few rewrites here and there, so please forgive me if some things are not very realistic or are confusing, or not correct at all. I did my best, and I admittedly did my research only as I was writing this chapter. I wanted to rewrite the whole chapter to make it better with the info I found researching pregnancy, but I didn't want to keep you, my awesome readers waiting any longer. So, again, I apologize if it was crappy, but I hope you will review anyway and let me know what you thought. Also, I have had no personal experience with pregnancy, and have only known a few people who have experienced miscarriage, but I had no details, so I did my best to incorporate what I found out about pregnancy and cramping and miscarriage from reliable internet sources into this chapter. Anyway, thanks again for reading and sticking with me. Can't wait to read what you guys thought of the chapter!
-Maureen
