It has been awhile hasn't it? Sorry, I've tried to get on here and write but I'm losing my inspiration for this story so I'm going to be ending it soon. Thanks for all my reviewers. Reviews are always appreciated. I will be updating my stories once at least once a week probably on weekends. So here it is a weekend and here I am updating just like I said above! Please keep reviews, ideas, baby names coming
"You're mother's crazy." Lucas snuggled Bella close to his chest and headed back to Haley's room, his pace quickened as he got closer, "But that's why I love her."
"Did you find her?" Jake asked as Lucas ran back in the room.
"Yeah," Lucas did not feel like letting these people in on his personal life right now. He was in a hurry, "Two favors?"
"It depends." Jake said timidly. Last time Lucas asked for a favor Jake was stuck with Braden and Bella and Braden somehow managed to get to the phone and dialed 911. The cops were at the door and everything.
"Watch Bella for me." Lucas held Bella out towards Jake, "And let me use you car."
"For how long?" Jake reluctantly took Bella from Lucas and cradled her in his arms, "What happened to your car?"
"Long story," Lucas said grabbing Jake's keys from his hands, "Got to go now!"
"Bring it back in one piece!" Jake yelled back wondering what could've been going on.
"Where can she be?" Lucas asked himself as he drove all over Tree Hill looking for her. There was no where else that Brooke would go, "Maybe she'll come to me."
Lucas pulled up by the river court but there was already someone there; a girl shooting a basketball with a little boy. Lucas jumped out of the car.
"Brooke!" He ran towards her. A sigh of relief came over him as he enveloped her into his arms, "I'm sorry."
She didn't say anything. She was all talked out. She just stopped there in the comfort of his arms hoping the moment would never end. She felt so safe but she knew it wouldn't last.
"Can we just start this whole being a family thing over?" Lucas said his face nuzzled in her neck.
"You think you can just start this over?" Brooke pulled away from Lucas, "These are you children's lives we're talking about."
"I know and that's why I know I need to change." Lucas picked of Braden and hugged him tightly, "I promise."
"Some promises are better let unsaid." Brooke didn't come closer. She just stood there looking at her feet.
"What do you mean?" Lucas stepped closer to her.
"Because there's less disappointment in them." Brooke let the tears fall.
"I'm not going to screw this up Brooke." Lucas said in a reassuring voice. He wasn't going to screw it up because he loved Brooke with all his being and he loved his kids even more than that.
"I want to believe you but I'm just not so sure." Brooke let herself melt into his arms. Nothing bad could ever happen to her when she was in his arms.
"Brooke I'm going to change. I want to change." Lucas was on the verge of tears as all his mistakes whirled through his head, "I need to be a good father and a great husband. I just don't know how to do it."
"It's not that hard Luke. It just comes naturally." Brooke pulled away and took Braden's little hand.
"No it doesn't. I never had a father. I don't know what I'm supposed to do with my kids because my father never did anything with me." Lucas let silent tears slip down his face, hopefully unnoticed.
"I didn't really have parents either. I still don't. They're off somewhere 'on business'." Brooke lifted Braden into her arms and hugged him. This was her life. She didn't understand how any parents could leave their kids if the loved them.
"But it wasn't the same for you Brooke. They always came back sooner or later. Dan looked at me with disgusted whenever he saw me. I was always Dan Scott's bastard kid never his son like Nathan was." Lucas actually envied Nathan because no matter how much of a monster Dan was he was still there for Nathan. Just like Lucas had been for Braden and Bella.
"Lucas, do you love me?" Lucas nodded because he knew his voice would quiver and that was the last thing he needed to let Brooke hear, "Do you love your kids?"
"Of course I do." Lucas steadied his voice ready to hear Brooke's point.
"And you know we love you." Brooke took a second for it all to sink in, "That's all that matters Luke. We love each other. We're one big happy family. Just remember that next time you want to go out to shoot hoops with Nate and Jake. They're not going to stay this little forever. You've got to enjoy it while it lasts."
"When did you get so insightful?" Lucas smiled pushing his tears away.
"It was all those nights when I sat home alone waiting for you to come home." Brooke said jokingly.
"I guess I deserved that." Lucas slipped his arm around her waist as they walked back to the cars.
"Oh yeah and you know your daughter Isabella?" Lucas nodded, "I don't even know if she's yours."
"Very funny Brooke." Lucas ended the little bashing session by starting a game of basketball. Brooke and Braden against Lucas. (A/n, I was going to put a tickle-fest in there but I remembered I do that a lot. How's a basketball game instead?) The game lasted most of the evening and when the ended their sides hurt from laughing and their faces were red from the sun. Even at two, Braden had indeed inherited the Scott's basketball gene. Though he couldn't reach the hoop without some help, he could shoot, dunk and even dribble a little bit. The kid showed promise.
"I think we should relieve Jake of parenting duties for the rest of the day." Lucas said missing his little girl to pieces.
"Well he better start spending time with her, he could be her daddy." Brooke returned to her earlier joke, "Then again there's Nathan, Tim, some guys I met at a bar..."
"Okay, okay, I get the picture." Lucas held up his hands in defeat, "But there's no denying she's mine. Have you seen her eyes?"
"Never doubted she was yours for a second." Brooke smiled and kissed Lucas softly on the lips.
"Yucky," Braden said as he watched his parent's kiss. This was a word he learned from his Uncle Nathan every time Brooke and Lucas kissed each other.
"We got to keep this kid away from Nathan." Lucas laughed lifting the boy into his arms as they walked, as a family, minus one, to their cars.
"I'll see you back at the hospital." Brooke said giving Lucas a parting kiss.
"Yucky! Yucky!" Braden yelled from his father's arms.
"Yucky huh?" Lucas held him upside down, "How yucky is it now?"
"Give that to me!" Brooke rescued her son from Lucas' grasp. She didn't want her son to turn out like Tim and his empty-mindness.
"I was just teaching him a lesson." Lucas said defensively.
"What that it's okay to kiss girls?" Brooke didn't even want to think about Braden's first girlfriend.
"Good point." Lucas said thoughtfully, "And Brooke wins again!"
"You know it!" Brooke smiled feeling a release from all the pressure she'd been feeling lately.
"Love you babe." Lucas went in for a kiss and then heard in his head Braden's little voice saying 'yucky'.
"Love you too." Brooke strapped Braden in his seat and got in the car, leaving Lucas watching her taillights disappear back into town
"I'm back!" Brooke waltzed into the room all smiley and bubbly.
"Where'd you go?" Peyton asked rubbing her slightly protruding stomach.
"Just out." Brooke motioned for Braden to come into the room and in his tiny arms he had bouquets of flowers, "We got you these."
"Aw, thank you Braden." Peyton bent down to take them from Braden.
"Aunt Hawey!" Braden held the other bouquet to the side of the bed.
"Thanks a bunch honey bunny." Haley's voice was tired but she had to sound cheery for her soon-to-be nephew.
"I wove you!" Braden yelled as Haley smelled the flowers.
"Sh!" Brooke hushed her son, "You got to be quiet in here."
"Otay momma." Braden sat contently next to Peyton.
"Man that boy's whipped." Jake said cradling a sleeping Bella in his arms.
"That's my little man." Brooke ruffled his hair.
"Momma's boy is more like it." Jake laughed thinking about what Lucas thought about it.
"Who's a momma's boy?" Lucas walked into the room holding Bella's carrier.
"Daddy!" Braden yelled jumping off the chair and into his father's arms. It had only been minutes since they'd last seen each other but it was like they hadn't seen each other in months.
"What's up buddy?" Lucas smiled watching carefully as Braden crawled onto his back, gripping tightly on his neck.
"Sh!" Braden mocked his mother, "You gotta be qwiet in here."
"Oh okay." Lucas pretended like he was being punished releasing Braden's grip on his neck and let him slip back into his chair.
"Welcome back Lucas." Haley's voice was hushed but her smile was genuine.
"Well hello all my lovely ladies." Lucas placed a kiss on all three of the girls, starting with Haley, then Peyton and ending with Brooke, who's kiss was longer and more passionate.
"Yucky!" Braden said again.
"He is my nephew." Nathan high-fived Braden and gave him a big wink. Nathan couldn't wait until he had children of his own but they decided that they needed to wait until after college, "We should start trying Hales. I want a son."
"Oh that's going to work." Haley said fighting back the tears, "You want our kids to have a mother that can't run with them or go to the park with them."
The color drained from Nathan's face. He hadn't really thought about it all like that. He just figured when she went home she'd be all fixed. Nothing would be holding her back from anything. But there was something holding her back and it was all his fault. He bolted from the room and ran down the hallway. He must've looked like he belonged in the mental ward not the outgoing ward. He would be going home today and Haley was stuck here, confined to her bed. Not really confined, just not able to get out of it. And it was all his fault.
"Go after him." Brooke said not believe what had just happened, "Family first remember?"
"Yeah," Lucas turned to run after his brother, "We'll be back!"
Okay so there's the chatper. Give me some suggestion because if I don't get any there will only be a few more chapters. Please let me know. I will be updating this by next weekend, maybe even sooner, depending on my homework and schedule. I am looking for names for Peyton's babies so whoever is interested in naming them let me know!