A/N: I really 'wanna thank everyone who has given me reviews...I hope you keep reading! Enjoy! =)
Chapter 11: Beyond Expectations
It's 6 'o clock in the morning on a Saturday. Both Haley and Peyton were sound asleep. All dressed to go out, Brooke carefully opened the door to Peyton's room and slowly tiptoed her way inside. She gently sneaked herself onto her best friend's and slid under the covers. "Just like old times," she thought smilingly as she remembered the times when she would do the same thing with her back when they were young. Whenever something was bothering her, Brooke would usually sneak into Peyton's house and lie down beside her in her bedroom. They would talk throughout the night until she felt better. It has always worked for Brooke and that morning, she was hoping it would work just as well.
As she expected, Peyton sensed that she was not alone in bed and opened her eyes. Brooke smiled as she did, "Hey girlfriend!"
Peyton just smiled, "Brooke...what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be on the road by now?"
Brooke gave her a sly smile, "I'm just waiting for Ethan. He said he'll pick up a few things before heading here..." She took a deep sigh, "I'm scared, Peyt. I know I'm supposed to be excited and happy, but...I'm just so nervous."
Peyton just laughed, "You do know that worrying will just give you wrinkles, right?"
Brooke just smiled, "Ethan told me time and time again that there is nothing to worry about but...I got this feeling that I should expect the unexpected."
Peyton just laughed even more, "C'mon Brooke, this is no CSI."
Brooke whined softly, "But I don't think it's a no-brainer either! Peyton, I'm serious...there's something...fishy about to happen."
Peyton looked at her friend intently as she put a hand on her shoulder, "Well, if there is...I'm sure that you and Ethan can get through it."
Brooke gave her friend a grateful smile. Suddenly, they heard a familiar honk outside their apartment. Brooke's face was suddenly full of excitement as she sat up and peered at the window from Peyton's room. "That's him," she exclaimed.
Peyton nodded as she smiled, "You go along. See you when you get back!"
Brooke nodded as she gave as she grinned at her friend, "Yeah, I'll tell you all about it when I get back."
With that, Brooke hurriedly walked downstairs and into Ethan's car. As for Peyton, she remained lying down under her covers and was determined to go back to sleep.
About two hours later, Nathan and Lucas were going around the streets in Nathan's Mustang. Lucas suddenly turned to his brother, "Are you sure this is a good idea."
Nathan turned to Lucas from the corner of his eyes, "Yeah...I mean, it's a weekend and we all could use a bit of fun!"
Lucas just laughed, "I don't know, man. They might get annoyed at us, showing up this early in the morning!"
Nathan grinned, "Maybe not if we bring them breakfast!"
Lucas smiled as he nodded, "Alright, good idea."
The two stopped by a coffee shop by the corner and grabbed some coffee and a box of donuts. As they walked out, Lucas felt his spirits soar once again. He felt that the weekend will go well for him. Meanwhile, Nathan couldn't help but let a grin creep into the corners of his mouth. He knew this was a good idea.
The Scott brothers got back into the car with four cups of coffees and a mouthwatering box of freshly made donuts. It was a sunny morning and both Nathan and Lucas believed their day was about to get even brighter.
They parked beside a 2-storey apartment by the road. The two immediately stepped out of the Mustang and walked to the door. "I hope they're up," said Lucas as he rang the doorbell. The two waited patiently outside for someone to answer the door.
Haley was surprised to hear the doorbell ringing so early in the morning. "Damn, just when I'm finally able to get some sleep," she annoyingly thought as she realized someone was at the door. She dragged herself out of bed and put her robe on as she made her way downstairs.
She didn't even bother to look at the peephole, she just wanted to entertain whoever it is so she'd be able to go back to sleep. As she opened the door, she was surprised to see the Scott brothers smiling in front of her. "What the..." she thought with surprise.
"Good morning, buddy!" Lucas greeted as he leaned over to give Haley a kiss on the cheek.
"Hi Hales!" greeted Nathan with a wave of a hand.
"What are you guys doing here at 8 in the morning?" Haley asked with a surprised smile on her face.
Nathan smiled at her. "Um well...we planned to surprise you. Hey, we got you breakfast," he explained as he held up the box of donuts.
Before she could say anything, Lucas handed her a cup of coffee, "So, can we come in?"
Suddenly, Haley heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "Hales, who is it? It can't be Brooke."
Hales looked down as she laughed and turned towards Peyton's direction, "You're right, it isn't. It's breakfast."
Brooke rested her head on Ethan's shoulder as they drove through a spectacular view of green fields. "Oh, this is so beautiful," Brooke remarked as she smiled with much satisfaction.
Ethan smiled, "Yeah, it is. Just like you."
Brooke gave him a light kiss on the cheek and whispered, "I could get used to this, you know."
Ethan just laughed, "Good, then I can start scheduling our future trips to my family's ranch."
Soon, the wonderful-looking ranch of Ethan's family appeared from the window. Brooke just looked at it in awe, "You know...this is even better than the pictures."
Ethan smiled and placed a hand in hers, "Well, it looks much better inside."
As they pulled into the driveway, they were welcomed by Ethan's mother who was standing by the driveway with a big smile on her face. As Ethan stepped out of the car, he rushed immediately over to his mother. "Mom, it's so good to see you," exclaimed Ethan as he gave his mom a big hug and kiss on the cheek.
Ethan's mom just laughed, "Oh Ethan, I've missed you so much!"
Brooke just stood by the car, watching Ethan and his mother. "This must be a pretty tight knit family," she thought as she looked on.
It wasn't long before Ethan approached her and led her by the arm to his mom. "Mom, this is my girlfriend Brooke. Baby, this is my mom," he said as he introduced two of the most significant women in his life to one another.
Ethan's mom smiled at Brooke as she reached over to give her a hug, "Welcome to the family, darling. You can call me Carmen."
Brooke smiled gratefully, "This is such a good place. Thank you so much for inviting me over, Carmen."
With that, the two women walked into the house while Ethan got the bags from the trunk of his car. Carmen led Brooke by the hand as they walked into the living room. "I want you meet Ethan's sisters," she said as she turned to her with a pleased smiled on her face.
A girl was seated on the couch with her feet propped up on the table as she flipped through some magazines. She didn't bother to look up when she heard her mom enter the room.
"Bridge, I want you to meet Ethan's girlfriend, Brooke. Dear, this is Bridget," said Carmen as she introduced the two.
Bridget looked up as she remained seated. She smiled at Brooke, "Hey, it's great to finally meet you. We've heard so much about you."
Brooke smiled graciously at Bridget, "Thanks, Ethan's told me quite a lot of stuff about you too."
Bridget suddenly looked intriguingly at her brother's girlfriend, "Really? What did Ethan tell you about me?"
"That you're a self-centered man-hater!" exclaimed Ethan as she joined the women in the living room.
Bridget smiled as she saw her brother. She rushed over to him and gave him a hug. Breaking away, she suddenly gave him a playful punch on the arm, "It's career-centered, not self-centered, bro!"
Ethan just laughed, "Aren't they supposed to mean the same thing?"
"Yeah sis, Ethan's right," remarked another girl coming down the staircase.
Ethan's smile grew wider as he met the girl from the lowest step of the staircase, "It's good to see you, Nick!"
Nicole just grinned at his older brother, "Yeah, I missed you Ethan!"
At that time, Brooke was having a little chat with Carmen and didn't really notice Nicole coming from downstairs. Ethan and Nicole walked towards Brooke. "Baby," Ethan began, "I want you meet my youngest sister..."
"Nikki?" Brooke said as if to finish Ethan sentence.
Nikki smiled at Brooke knowingly, "Hey Brooke, good to see you."
Ethan looked quite surprised as he looked from one girl to the other, "You two know each other."
Nikki continued to look at Brooke knowingly, "We sure do..."
Meanwhile, Peyton, Haley, Lucas and Nathan were enjoying a delightful morning with coffee and donuts in the girls' breakfast table. "So, what exactly are guys up to today? You plan to just hang out here all day?" asked Peyton before she took another bite of her donut.
Lucas shook his head and took a sip of his coffee, "Um...not exactly." He turned to his brother with a knowing smile.
Nathan understood and grinned at the two girls, "We thought we could do something fun together...after all, we can't just let a good weekend go to waste, right?"
Haley looked at Nathan intriguingly, "And just what did you have in mind, Nate?"
Nathan smiled at her in a know-it-all fashion, "Just trust us...it's 'gonna be fun."
