Chapter 12: Closer

Brooke didn't know what to say. She remembered the time when she first met Nikki. They got along pretty well until she learned that Nikki is Jenny's mother. Brooke has always believed that there is nothing worse than a parent abandoning a child. She's has always been fond of Jenny and she would do anything to protect the sweet four-year old that she and the rest of her Tree Hill friends have come to love. For her boyfriend's sake, Brooke faked a smile to his youngest sister. "Good to see you, Nikki," she greeted as she put her arms around Ethan's waist. She felt safer from Nikki that way.

Nikki just looked at her as if trying to see if Brooke knows something that she should. Nevertheless, she gave a fake smile herself, "You too, Brooke. I'm glad we get to spend the weekend together..." She paused and looked straight into Brooke's eyes before she went on, "You know...catch up on old times."

Brooke gave a sweet innocent smile as the rest watched the two girls', "Yeah, that would be...fun."

"Where are we going, Nate?" asked Haley intriguingly as she sat in Nathan's car.

"Just relax, Hales and enjoy the ride. Don't you trust me?" Nathan asked as he gave her a naughty grin.

Haley just laughed, "Do I look like I do?" She's always been amused every time he does that. "Damn, him and his sexy grins," she thought as she kept smiling at him.

They were silent for a moment when suddenly Nathan spoke up, "You know...it's good to finally have a girl in my passenger seat for a change."

Haley just looked at him in disbelief, "What do you mean? I bet, you took some cheerleaders for a ride in this Mustang of yours!"

Nathan just laughed, "That's where your wrong, Lucas has been the only person occupying that seat since...well, you."

Haley poked him playfully in the arm, "Don't try to flatter me, Mr. Scott. There must have been other girls who rode with you during the summer. Maybe...you just forgot their names!"

Nathan looked at her with a serious expression on his face, "I mean it Hales, there has been no one else since...you."

Haley looked out onto the road and gave a nervous laugh, "Well, I don't know what to say to that."

After another moment of awkward silence, Nathan decided to ask her something he's been too scared to know the answer to, "How about you? Did you date anyone last summer?"

Haley shook her head firmly. "I've been pretty busy," she explained, still avoiding eye contact with him.

Nathan just nodded as he kept his eyes on the road, "Are you dating anyone now?"

Haley shook her head again, "Nope, I'm still pretty busy. Besides, Peyton and I both realized that being single could be so much fun."

Nathan just laughed. "I don't know if I can say the same about me," he sadly thought as he continued to drive.

Lucas would steal glances at Peyton as she drove them in her Beetle. As she turned in a curb, Peyton decided to speak up, "So, what exactly did you guys have in mind for today?"

Lucas just laughed, "It's Nathan's idea actually but, I'm sure you'll like it."
Peyton laughed, "I'm not really sure about that. Back when we were still dating, I didn't exactly like all the surprises he's pulled on me."

Lucas nodded in agreement. He clearly understood what she meant, "Yeah, he pulled some of those surprises on me too."

Peyton gave him a sly smile, "You two really have come so far. I mean, I never expected you guys would actually become...civil...even brotherly towards each other.

Lucas smiled at her, "Well, Haley really affected us in ways we never expected her to...so did you."

Peyton looked at him surprised, "Me?"

Lucas nodded, "Yeah, you and Haley were the two girls we both cared about..."Lucas felt unsure whether to continue or not, but he stammered his words out anyway, "You...you were the reason why I came back to Tree Hill."

Peyton just gave Lucas a sly smile, "Well, we're all glad that you came back, Luke." She turned away, feeling quite uneasy.

Brooke thought about helping out in the kitchen while her boyfriend was talking to her mom in the living room. As she stepped in, she realized offering her assistance at that time was not such a good idea. Nikki was hanging out in the kitchen. She was munching on some cookies as she diced up some vegetables. "Suddenly, this weekend is turning out to be a disaster, "Brooke thought as she walked in.

Nikki looked up and smiled slyly at her, "You might 'wanna grab an apron. Things can get quite a mess in here."

Brooke nodded as she put an apron, "Yeah, I know things can get messy when you're around."

Nikki looked at her with a dead serious expression on her face, "Look Brooke, I didn't mean to leave Jenny the way I did...I didn't mean to show up like that on Jake either."

Brooke gave her a haughty laugh, "You mean, show up to Tree Hill after a century and kidnap Jenny."

Nikki's voice grew louder, "She is my daughter."

Brooke looked at her raised eyebrows, "Wrong, she was your daughter."

Nikki went near her looking furious, "What the hell do you care anyway? This is between me and Jake."

Brooke fumed at her, "Jake happens to be a good friend of mine. I've seen how he's taken care of her, Nikki. Trust me, their lives....are much, much better without you."

Nikki gave Brooke a devilish grin, "Not for long...Jake would have to deal with me again very soon...I'll make sure he doesn't jump into a boat this time."

Brooke gave her another haughty laugh, "Don't worry, he doesn't have to run away from you this time. Jenny's old enough to say who she wants to stay with anyway." With that, Brooke turned her back defiantly on Nikki and strut her way out of the kitchen.

Nikki was left with a smug look on her face as she continued to cut the vegetables. "I will have Jenny, no one can stop me this time," she angrily thought.

Brooke was so upset that she didn't even realize she was running into Ethan already. Ethan immediately put his arms around her, "Whoa...slow down, what's wrong babe?"

Trying her best to hide what had just happened, Brooke did her best to smile at him, "Nothing baby, I'm just a little...dizzy. I think I need to lie down for awhile."

Ethan smiled as he gave her a passionate kiss and whispered into her ear, "Well, I can stay with you if you want."

Brooke just giggled, "Sounds tempting...we might never be able to come down for dinner though."

Ethan pulled her closer to him that she could smell his aftershave, "Well, we've got something more scrumptious than dinner anyway."

Brooke just smiled, "I like it when you go crazy."

Ethan laughed, "What can I say? I'm crazy about you, Brooke." With that, he scooped her up into his strong arms and carried his giggling girlfriend upstairs. Brooke felt very lucky to have Ethan in her life. Suddenly, she completely forgot the confrontation she just had. "For as long as we're together, I can deal with anything else...even Nikki," she firmly told herself as she rested her head on Ethan's broad shoulders.

Nathan parked the car in front of an invitingly empty basketball court. Haley just looked at him with a curious smile, "What are we doing in a basketball court, Nate?"

Nathan just smiled at her knowingly, "Just come down and trust me, Hales."

Meanwhile, Peyton had just parked her Beetle and was coming out of the car with Lucas. "Now are you 'gonna tell me what you guys are up to?" asked Peyton as she looked at Lucas intriguingly.

Lucas just shrugged as they walked towards Nathan and Haley.

When the four have finally met up, Nathan finally gave the girls a little explanation, "Me and Lucas realized that back in high school, you both were pretty lousy with basketball so...we thought we could try to change that this afternoon."

Haley just laughed, "This isn't fun, Nathan! You know I can't even make a decent free throw."

Lucas grinned at his longtime buddy, "Exactly...c'mon Hales, it will be fun."

Nathan turned to Peyton, "So Peyt, what do you say?"

Peyton just shrugged, "Basketball's cool...but you guys have to do something we like too."

Haley suddenly made a devilish grin as she and Peyton knowingly met eyes, "Yeah, it's only fair."

Nathan and Lucas turned to each other. "Alright, you're on," said Lucas with a curious nod.

Nathan went to get a basketball from the trunk of his Mustang. As he returned, he looked intently at his three friends, "Alright, Peyton goes with Luke and Hales...you're with me."

Hales nodded as she smiled at him.

Lucas nodded at his brother, "Alright, first to score 10 wins."

Nathan gave him an arrogant laugh, "Just 10?"

Lucas just laughed, "Don't be so confident now, bro...remember Peyton's on my side."

Peyton playfully shoved Nathan's arm, "That's right, hot shot! Better watch out!"

Soon, the game began. Nathan had the ball first. He was dribbling it towards the hoop for his favorite lay-up. However, Lucas wasn't making it easy for him. He was guarding him so well that he was forced to pass the ball to Haley. Before Haley could catch it, though, Peyton intercepted the pass mid-air and threw it to the hoop for an easy shot.

Peyton and Lucas knocked fists. "You go Peyton!" cheered Lucas as he continued run around the court.

Nathan ran up to Haley and looked intently at her, "C'mon Hales, we can still beat them."

Haley looked at him with desperation, "But I can't shoot, Nate."

Nathan smiled at her knowingly, "You can, Hales...and you will, trust me." He winked at her before heading back to where Lucas was standing.

Lucas let Nathan have the ball. He dribbled it once more and passed it onto Haley. This time, Haley was able to catch it before Peyton was able to intercept the pass again. "What am I 'gonna do? I can't shoot!" she asked herself in a panic.

Suddenly, she felt a pair of strong arms around her waist. Before she could react, Nathan had already lifted her and had taken her to the hoop. "C'mon Hales, put it in!" he instructed her as he supported her body with his arms.

Haley did what she was told, enabling them to score their first point. "Alright!" exclaimed Haley as she watched the ball fall from the ring. She was so happy that she wrapped her arms around Nathan's neck for a hug. It didn't take long before they both felt awkward and Nathan let her down. He gave her a sly smile, "C'mon, we 'gotta game to win."

Haley just nodded as she realized how much she has missed feeling Nathan's arms around her. "That felt good," she remarked to herself. She was still caught up in what had just occurred that she didn't realize she just gave Peyton another easy basket.

Peyton ran wildly again, "Alright, we're winning!" She knocked fists once more with Lucas.

"Looks like I just have to keep passing the ball to you," remarked Lucas to his teammate.

Peyton just laughed, "I can shoot for as long as Nathan doesn't guard me." As Lucas went back to Nathan's side, Peyton turned to Haley, "Hey, great play you two had there awhile ago."

Haley just laughed, "Yeah, I guess so...I made a shot!"

Soon, they found themselves enjoying the game. Both teams continued to make one basket to another.

Suddenly, they let Haley have the ball who immediately threw it to Nathan for a lay-up. "Go Nathan!" cheered Haley as they knocked fists with each other.

Nathan grinned at his brother, "C'mon man, game's not yet over!"

Lucas just laughed, "It would soon be for you, man!"

Peyton had the ball this time and was about to shoot when Nathan suddenly ran over to guard her. Realizing she won't be able to shoot, she immediately threw the ball to Lucas who immediately did a fade-away. Peyton squealed in delight as the ball went in. She ran to Lucas and found herself jumping into his arms. "We did it!" exclaimed Peyton as she found herself face to face with Lucas.

Lucas just grinned, "We could sure use a girl like you in the team!"

The two just laughed in each other's arms until they realized that Nathan and Haley were staring at them. Awkwardly, they let go. Peyton just looked down with a sly smile while Lucas scratched his head.

"So, what do you girls 'wanna do?" asked Nathan as he put the basketball back inside the trunk.

Peyton and Haley just looked at each other with a devilish grin.

Brooke rested her head on Ethan's chest as Ethan smoothed her hair gently. They were hanging out on the porch in the back of the house. Ethan was pretty sure no one would disturb them there. "I'm really glad you came here, baby. Now, my mom could see for herself what a wonderful girl my girlfriend is," said Ethan as he kissed her softly.

Brooke just smiled, "You have a wonderful family, Ethan...I wish my mom was a little like her. You know...caring, thoughtful...just like...a mother."

Ethan turned to face Brooke as he continued to smooth her hair, "I'm sure your mom loves you, Brooke. I don't see how anyone can afford not to love you."

Brooke just laughed as she touched her face, "Well, if my mom loves me...she sure has a bizarre way of showing it. I only see her long enough for her to give me more money."

They stayed close to each other in peaceful silence for awhile until Brooke spoke up, "How are you with your sisters?"

Ethan laughed for awhile before answering, "Bridget and I talk a lot, we've been pretty close since we were young."

Brooke suddenly got intrigued, "What about Nikki?"

Ethan shook his head as he laughed, "Nikki never stays in one place long enough. She's the wild one in the family, sleeping with guys she barely knows and all. One time, she even disappeared for about 7 months. She said she was staying with her boyfriend and things were getting serious between them when she caught him with another girl."

Brooke just nodded as she thought about what her boyfriend had just said. "You mean she got him caught up with a baby girl," she thought.

A/N: I know my updating is 'kinda slow. As I said before, I do each chapter as the story comes to my head. Just the same, I hope you all like it! =)