A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews. And thanks to my beta: Leeese

Chapter Thirty Six

Remember Me as Time of Day

Brooke didn't let the disastrous lunch get her down. Instead, she concentrated on preparing herself for Rachel's wedding. Brooke had nothing to worry about. Rachel's wedding went without a hitch. Even though Brooke wasn't the bride, Lucas thought she looked beautiful anyway. It made him fall in love with her even more. He also thought that Brooke did a great job on Maddie's flower girl dress as well.

After Owen and Rachel left for their honeymoon, Lucas, Brooke and Maddie spent the rest of the weekend sightseeing. No matter where they went, Maddie stated that Central Park was her favorite place. She even enjoyed it better than the toy store. Once Millie arrived with Bridget and Jenny, Maddie wanted to show her friends what she had seen. Lucas didn't want to see the sights again so Brooke and Maddie gave the visitors the grand tour while Lucas stayed home with Victoria.

The vacation continued throughout the week where the adults took turns to watch the girls. One day, Brooke and Millie went shopping while Lucas watched the kids. It left him exhausted by the end of the day, but the kids had fun. That was all that mattered to him.

One evening, Millie volunteered to take care of the children while Lucas and Brooke went out on a date. Both Lucas and Brooke were grateful to be able to spend some alone time together. Lucas wasn't sure if they were going to be able to get it on the trip.

That evening, Lucas took Brooke to an Italian restaurant. "It's so nice to finally get out by ourselves, isn't it?" Lucas asked once they were seated at their private table. They looked over the menus as they talked. "It makes me wonder if I would want more kids whenever I get married again. Those little girls have too much energy."

Brooke was quiet for a moment. "Do you remember a few weeks ago when Maddie was upset about us going to New York without her?" she asked. Lucas nodded. "Well, I finally managed to find out the reason why. She has been feeling a little left out since we started dating."

Lucas frowned in confusion. "Wait a minute; I thought she wanted us to date."

"She does, but she doesn't want us to forget about her," Brooke replied. "That's why she was so looking forward to this trip. She knew that she would be able to spend some time with us."

Lucas sighed. "That does explain why she was upset. I'm glad Peyton agreed to let Maddie go on this trip. But it now makes me wonder what weekend she will pick to replace this weekend."

"I don't understand why you are arguing with her about the weekends when you have full custody of Maddie," Brooke said as their food arrived. She waited until their waiter left before she continued. "Shouldn't you have full control of when she sees Peyton?"

"Peyton wants to see Maddie now," Lucas said. "So we are doing our best to agree on which weekends she gets to see her." There was a short pause before he spoke again. "I have to admit that I never thought that I would be sharing custody of Maddie with Peyton. It's a little weird, but thankfully, Peyton is cooperating with the schedule."

"I'm surprised that she still wanted visitation rights after everything that she put you and Maddie through," Brooke said. "But I guess she felt that this was the only way for her to see Maddie without causing trouble." Lucas didn't respond. She could see that he didn't want to discuss it anymore. So Brooke changed the subject. "So did you really mean what you said about not having any more children?" she asked him as she sipped her water. "Maddie would be disappointed to hear that. I know how much she would love a baby brother or sister."

Lucas tried not to laugh. "Yeah, I know. I'm more worried about her pushing me to get her a pet right now."

"Lucas, she is going to be five in a couple of weeks," Brooke gently reminded him. "And she is going to go into kindergarten in a few months. She's growing up. She wants a little more responsibility."

Lucas raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You sound like an expert for a woman who doesn't have kids yet." Brooke just laughed. "Do you still want kids after what happened to you?"

Brooke nodded. "Ever since I was little, I've always dreamed of getting married and having a big family."

"How big are you talking about?" Lucas asked her curiously.

"Well, I certainly don't want seven kids like the Von Trapp family," Brooke joked. Lucas laughed this time. "But I think I'll settle for three or four kids. As long as I have a daughter in the mix, I don't mind raising boys."

Lucas gave her a wide smile. "I'm sure you'll end up with a mini Brooke. If not, I'm sure one of your sons will have your fashion sense and want to run your company someday."

"We're a long way off from that," Brooke reminded him. "I first have to get my company up and running."

"Don't worry. Your clothing store will be a big success," Lucas assured her. He then heard his cell-phone vibrating in his pocket. He checked to see who was calling, hoping that it wasn't Millie. He frowned when he saw it was his mother. "I'll be right back," he told Brooke and headed outside to take the call.

Brooke waited patiently until he was able to return to the table. He had a worried look on his face. "Lucas, what's wrong?" she asked anxiously. "Are your parents okay?" she asked. Lucas wasn't able to speak. He was still in shock over the news he had received. Brooke tried to get him to speak. "What happened?"

Lucas finally managed to get his words out. "Do you remember my former high school basketball coach, Whitey?" he asked her. Brooke nodded her head. Lucas had often spoken of Whitey. She hadn't been able to meet him yet. Once he had retired from coaching, he had moved to Florida. He had visited the Scott family a lot over the years, but he hadn't been able to get back up in time to support Lucas during the custody trial. "He has just passed away. My mom said that there was some incident at a fair and Whitey rescued a little girl from falling debris. But that caused problems with his heart and he died from internal injuries."

Brooke felt so bad for Lucas. She knew how close he was to him. She quickly sprung into action. "We'll cancel the rest of the trip so you can get back to Tree Hill for the funeral." Lucas smiled gratefully at her. They quickly finished up their dinner. Well, Brooke ate the rest of her dinner. But Lucas wasn't in the mood to eat. He was too upset to.

Lucas waited until they were back in Tree Hill before telling Maddie about Whitey. She was just as upset as he was, but she put on a brave face for him and her grandparents. She then started to ask questions about death and where he had gone to. Her grandparents answered them as best as they could.

Since Whitey didn't have any immediate family, Keith and Karen took care of the funeral arrangements. However, Whitey had a few requests about how he wanted to be buried. He wanted to be cremated and his ashes were going to be scattered in front of the high school gym. Lindsey didn't object to that arrangement.

The adults didn't believe that the children belonged at the funeral, but they wanted to give him a proper good-bye. So Jamie, Jenny and Maddie all were given permission to attend the funeral while Bridget and little Edward would stay home with Millie.

Lucas looked at himself in the mirror. He never enjoyed wearing black. It always showed how depressing and sad the situation was. The last time he had gone to a funeral was Larry's. Even though his death was sad, Lucas wasn't too upset over his death. He had never been close to him.

Whitey was different. This person wasn't just his former coach. He also had been his mentor, not to mention a part of the family. He had helped him through some tough times. Lucas still couldn't believe that he was gone. He wished that he had a chance to say good-bye to him, but he guessed that he had to settle on doing it by attending and speaking at the funeral.

Once Lucas, Maddie and Brooke arrived at their destination, they went their separate ways. Lucas went to the receiving line while Maddie hung out with Jamie and Jenny, who had already arrived with their parents. Keith and Karen were also already there.

Brooke looked at the many pictures that were spread out on the table that had been set up for people to look at. She smiled to herself as she saw a picture of Whitey holding baby Maddie. "He loved those kids like they were his own grandkids," Haley told her as she came up next to her. "He even came up for a couple of weeks to help Lucas with Maddie after Peyton left."

"I wish I could have known him," Brooke said sadly. "Do you think he would have liked me?"

Haley gave her a wide smile. "He would have loved you just because of the fact you were helping Lucas with taking care of Maddie." There was a short pause before she spoke again. "How is Lucas holding up?"

Brooke sighed. "I don't know," she admitted. "He won't talk to me. I'm trying to give him space, but I feel that it's not enough. I want to help him, but I don't know what to do. I've never been in this situation before."

Haley nodded understandingly. "I know. Me neither." She gave her a comforting smile. "Just give him time. He'll come around. I think you being here for him is enough for now." Brooke wasn't so sure. However, she also knew that Haley was right. Lucas just needed some time to grieve. She had to be patient and supportive. That's all she could do for right now.

Once the funeral started, Brooke joined Karen, Deb, Haley and the children in the front row. Lucas, Nathan and some of the former basketball players were behind Keith, who was doing the eulogy. Lucas and the players were each planning to say something about their beloved coach.

Keith started the ceremony by telling the crowd about Whitey's life. Brooke squeezed Karen's hand as tears came down her cheeks. She gave her a grateful smile in response. After Keith spoke, it was Lucas's turn. He cleared his throat before he spoke. Brooke didn't realize how much of an eloquent speaker he was. She could tell that it was hard for him and wished she could comfort him.

When everyone was done speaking, Lucas took Whitey's urn and spread his ashes on the lawn in front of the gym. Then everyone started to get up from their seats and prepared themselves to go to the reception at the Scott house.

However, Lucas stayed where he was. His family knew that he wanted a moment alone. So Brooke took Maddie to the car. They waited patiently until he was ready to return to the car. Once he did, he didn't say anything to either of them. Brooke hoped that he would be able to get back to his usual self soon. It would just take time.