Chapter 2
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Lucas knocked on Keith's door. "Come in!" Keith shouted. Lucas opened the door and peered inside his room. Keith looked into the mirror and saw that it was Lucas. "Hey." He continued to adjust bowtie. Lucas shut the door behind him.
"So, you ready?" Lucas put his hands in his pocket. Keith nodded. "Whatever happens, Keith, always know I'm here for you."
Keith turned around to face the teen. He smiled nervously. "Thanks, Luke." He put his hand on Lucas' shoulder and they walked out to the where the priest was standing. Shortly thereafter, Deb and Karen walked down the aisle. Everybody stood up as Jules appeared in the doorway. The veil covered her face as she pulled at her dress. Keith smiled as Lucas stared at Brooke, who had come with Felix. He remembered what she had written in the note. Lucas—I just wanted to thank you for the present again. I love it! I've been thinking a lot lately about love and about me and you. Love is about trust, timing, sacrifices, connection, and most importantly destiny. My faith in love was renewed when Nathan and Haley got married. I realized that there is one perfect person out there for everyone. I truly believe that Haley will come back and that she still loves Nathan. I know that Nathan loves her too. I'm rambling now. What I want to say is this—I still love you Lucas and I've never stopped loving you. I tried to forget about you by sleeping with Felix and then dating him, but I'm tired of it. I'm going to leave him. I don't want to keep leading him on. I love you Lucas and I always have. The question is, do you still want me? You don't have to answer it, but I just wanted to let you know. Love, Brooke.
Jules had arrived at the alter. The priest began, "We are gathered here today to join Keith and Jules in holy matrimony…You may now kiss the bride." Keith kissed her passionately and then took her hand as they walked down the aisle. Flowers were thrown at the happy couple. Dan clapped with an ominous smile plastered on his face.
Keith and Jules sat at a table, feeding each other strawberries. Suddenly, Nathan got up on stage and held up his glass. He spoke into the microphone. "I'd like to make a toast to my Uncle Keith and his new wife." Keith smiled as he wrapped his arm around Jules. Lucas stood with Mouth as they turned their attention to Nathan. "I just wanted to say, congratulations. Marriage is a sacred bond that should never be broken, but in our screwed up world, that's not always what happens." He paused as he licked his lips. "I have faith though that you two will always be together. I see you two and I see love and happiness. May you always have each other. To Keith and Jules." Nathan raised his glass and applause rippled through the crowd. He stumbled off the stage and approached Lucas and Mouth.
"That was…very touching." Lucas smiled and patted his half-brother on the back. "Don't worry, she'll come back." Nathan nodded and downed his champagne. A tall girl accosted the three. "Hey, you're Mouth, right?" Mouth looked at her disbelievingly. "Uh…yes, I am." The girl grinned. "I'm Beth. Would you like to dance?"
Mouth looked from Lucas to Nathan and back to Beth. Lucas smiled and nodded encouragingly. "Sure," he replied as she took his hand and led him onto the dance floor.
"Did I miss something?" Nathan asked. Lucas chuckled. Dan walked over and patted Nathan on the back. "Moving speech, son. Too bad it's not true for your marriage." Nathan immediately lunged at him, but Lucas stepped in between them. Nathan's punch connected squarely with Lucas' jaw. Dan laughed as he walked away. Nathan glared after him.
"You okay?" He asked as Lucas held his jaw in his hand. "Dude, killer punch." Lucas grimaced.
"You shouldn't have gotten in the way." Nathan answered curtly and left, leaving Lucas to stare after him.
Peyton and Jake approached Keith and Jules, holding hands and smiling. "Um, hey you guys." Peyton started. "Congratulations." Keith smiled and nodded, as did Jules.
"We gotta get going. I promised my parents we'd be back before six to pick up Jenny." Jake said.
"Uh, sure, go ahead. Thanks for coming." Keith replied. Jake and Peyton left and got into their car.
"Man, they sure look happy don't they? They look so in love." Peyton asked. Jake turned on the engine and pulled out of his parking space.
"Yeah, they are. Do you ever think we'll be that way?" Jake asked as he kept his eyes on the road.
Peyton glanced over at Jake and paused. "I sure hope so." They sat in silence the rest of the way. Jake pulled up at Peyton's house. "What are we doing here? Don't we have to pick up Jenny at your parents' house?" Peyton inquired bemusedly.
Jake smiled mischievously. "I told my parents that I'd pick Jenny up at seven." He walked around the car and kissed her.
Peyton broke the kiss, still confused. "Then, why'd we leave early?" Again, Jake smiled.
"We got the whole house to ourselves and you're complaining?" Jake answered. Peyton finally understood and cracked a smile. She led him up the stairs, half-running. Jake closed the door behind them.
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