Author's Notes: Thank you all for your amazing reviews. They make me write a lot faster. Also,a bit of a lighter chapter here to begin withbefore we cut tosome more drama!

Chapter 3: Support

Pulling up in front of Karen's Café, Peyton got out of the car, pulling the blue duffel bag out of the back seat. Lucas had already gone inside the café, too anxious to wait for her. Taking a deep breath, she followed, remembering that they were there for Brooke's benefit.

Lucas gave Deb a small smile as she greeted him when he entered. Karen returned from one of the tables she'd be waiting on and gave her son a quick kiss on his cheek.

"How's Brooke?" he asked, turning around when he heard Peyton enter. She stood next to him at the counter and handed him the duffel bag. "We've got her clothes," he told Deb and Karen.

"She's in the kitchen," Karen told them both, "Feel free to go and see her. Do you want lunch?" Lucas shook his head.

"I'm just going to check on Brooke first," he told her making his way behind the counter.

"How about you, Peyton? Want anything?" Karen asked the blonde in front of her. Peyton shook her head, "You want to see Brooke?" Peyton hesitated before finally nodding.

"If that's okay."

"Of course. It's just through there." Karen pointed in the direction Lucas had just gone to before excusing herself to serve some customers. Deb gave Peyton a smile as Peyton reluctantly entered the kitchen.

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Lucas snuck up behind Brooke, who had her back turned to him as she hummed some unrecognisable tune. Unable to resist, Lucas blew in her ear. She squealed in fright and immediately threw the chocolate covered spoon in Lucas' direction. Too slow to react, Lucas groaned in pain as the object hit his face.

Brooke laughed out loud at the chocolate stains on his face and clothes. "Serves you right. What kind of idiot are you?" she said angrily, although she couldn't help but laugh. Lucas picked up the spoon that had fallen onto the floor after connecting with his body.

"Haha!" he said sarcastically. "Why are you even cooking?" he asked. Brooke took the spoon off his hands and dropped it into the sink.

"Because, Broody, I wanted to do something to repay your mom for her help and chocolate fudge shortcakes are my specialty," she told him matter-of-factly.

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Peyton watched and listened to the two, who were blissfully ignorant of her presence. She knew that Brooke and Lucas were on their way to becoming friends but she didn't know that they were that close. And she also never knew that their friendship didn't include her.

Dejected, she decided it best to leave them alone and went back to the front of the café. Deb saw the look on Peyton's face when she came out, "Everything okay?" she asked. Peyton shrugged.

"I thought that maybe Brooke and Lucas should talk first. I can always catch up with her later." Peyton explained. Deb nodded.

"Well, you must be hungry. How about some lunch?"

"I'm not that hungry, thanks Deb," Peyton told her sadly. Deb took out a chocolate fudge shortcake and put it in a bag.

"Something quick then?" she handed the bag to her. Peyton took it. "Brooke's been making them all day. They're delicious." Deb smiled. Peyton smiled back.

"I know. Brooke and I used to make them all the time when she came over. I forgot these were her favourite," Peyton sighed.

Deb leant closer to her son's ex-girlfriend, "Are you sure everything is okay, Peyton? You can tell me, I won't tell anyone anything you don't want them to know," Peyton seemed to consider it but a glance back at the kitchen made her want to leave the café as quickly as possible.

"It's okay. Like I said, I'll catch up with Brooke later on. Thanks!" she said leaving the café. Deb frowned as Karen came up to her.

"She didn't stay long," Karen commented. Deb nodded.

"I know. Peyton seems different. Quieter,"

"She was always quiet, Deb. It's not easy losing a mother like that and Larry seems to be absent most of the time. I think she might just be feeling alone."

"But she's not alone. Whenever she was with Brooke she seemed happier. It's strange; you'd think she'd want to be here for her best friend at a time like this." Deb mused.

"Well, I'll try talking to her. But you never know what's going on in the heads of teenagers nowadays. Maybe it's nothing." Karen told her friend. Deb nodded.

"Yeah, you're probably right. Who wanted this coffee?" Deb questioned looking at the beverage she'd been making before her conversation with Peyton.

"Oh, table 12… over there!" Karen said pointing to a table in the far corner, almost hidden from view. Deb nodded and made her way there with the coffee.

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"I brought you your clothes." Lucas told Brooke showing her the duffel bag at the other end of the kitchen.

"You went to my house?" she asked in alarm, "What about Felix?"

"I didn't go. I thought it'd be too suspicious. Peyton went, although Felix was there."

"Peyton?" Brooke asked, "Well, what happened?"

"Not much. I remember Peyton telling me that she made some excuse about a CD and sent him to the mall. You're safe." Lucas said, trying to remember his earlier conversation with Peyton.

"Is she here?" Lucas nodded.

"She should be, we came in her car. I think she's in the front. Want to see her?" Brooke nodded, "I thought you wanted to stay hidden."

"Well, yeah, but if Felix is at the mall then I should be okay. Plus, your mom helped me with my make-up. And I really want to see Peyton, I wonder why she didn't come into the kitchen. She loves chocolate fudge shortcakes." Brooke said racing out of the kitchen.

"Brooke!" Deb said when she saw the two come into the front of the café, "You finally came out, huh?"

"Where's Peyton?" Brooke asked scanning the café.

"You just missed her, I'm afraid. She left a couple of minutes ago," Deb informed her. Brooke sighed, "She said she'd call you later anyway." Brooke nodded, disappointed that her best friend hadn't come to see her.

She sighed and turned away, "Guess I should get back to those shortcakes. Thanks, Deb." Lucas followed Brooke as she slinked back into the kitchen.

Less than half a minute later, Anna got up from her seat at Table 12 and threw a couple of notes down to pay for the coffee. Although her purpose for being there was to talk to Lucas about the Formal, she'd been intrigued to see Lucas go straight into the back and Peyton disheartened from staying the café. She'd been about to follow Peyton when she'd noticed Brooke and Lucas emerge from the kitchen.

With a tinge of jealousy, she waited until they'd disappeared out of sight before leaving the café and pulling out her phone. Her brother had been looking for his girlfriend for two days and he'd voiced his suspicions of her involvement with Lucas to Anna, who'd dismissed the claims as ludicrous. But seeing her boyfriend with his ex-girlfriend gave her the proof that her brother had wanted.

"Felix?" she said into the phone when it picked up, "She is with Lucas,"

"I told you. Where are they?" Felix demanded to know.

"At Karen's Café, they're hiding in the back."

"Okay, Anna. I'll be there soon. That Peyton bitch told me Brooke was at the mall."

"I'll deal with Peyton," she informed her brother, "Just make sure both Brooke and Lucas get what they deserve."

"Don't worry, little sister, they will," Anna hung up and began walking the short distance to Peyton's house.

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Peyton paced the length of her room for the umpteenth time as she contemplated telling somebody about what Felix had done. She examined her wrist, now beginning to turn a deep purple colour. She rubbed it slightly as it stung and bit her lip.

It would be so easy to pick up the phone and call Brooke or Lucas, or anyone. But even harder to tell them. She knew that Brooke had a lot to deal with, seeing she'd been suffering Felix's rage longer than Peyton had, and Peyton didn't want to take any of the attention away from Brooke. This was Brooke's problem, not her's. Felix had hurt her once and she was sure as hell not going anywhere near him again.

She also knew that Lucas was so involved with protecting Brooke, the burden of having to protect Peyton too was unfair. Peyton had survived long enough on her own and she could continue doing so without needing anybody else.

Sighing in frustration, Peyton collapsed on her bed and stared up at the ceiling that Brooke and Lucas had helped her paint months before hand. Brooke had been adamant to stick glow-in-the-dark stars up on the ceiling because she liked the thought of somebody watching over Peyton at night.

"You spend way too much time alone, P. Sawyer," she had told her friend, "It's time I did something about that!"

Peyton had had her doubts but that night Peyton heard Lucas had been in an accident. Though her initial reaction was to go to him, she'd told Brooke and let her go to her boyfriend. She'd lain in bed, distressed and distraught, but when Peyton had glanced up at the ceiling, the stars had glowed reassuringly and Peyton had been able to get some sleep.

And how had Peyton repaid Brooke? By committing the worst sin anyone could do to their best friend - fooling around with her boyfriend. Peyton still felt guilty about that. Every time she saw Brooke or Lucas, a twinge of guilt ran through her body and she almost couldn't face either of them.

Peyton didn't feel anything for Lucas anymore. She was certain of that. Her eyes lay upon the drawing of Jake and Jenny she'd ripped in half after the dance. Tentatively touching the drawing, she realised just how much she missed the pair. Her life had seemed to turn upside down in recent months and she had the increasing feeling of feeling more and more alone.

She grabbed the pen and sketch pad that permanently resided next to her bed and turned to a fresh, blank page and began to draw.

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Karen watched Brooke and Lucas talking in the corner of the café while she cleaned the counter. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but she could hear Brooke repeatedly laugh out loud and her son chuckled so she assumed it wasn't anything serious. She was glad that Brooke seemed to be happier than earlier and hoped the young girl would easily move past what had happened to her. Karen enjoyed Brooke's company and was pleased to see her getting on with Lucas again.

"I know what you're thinking," Deb told her as she counted the money up. Karen turned around to the blonde.

"Oh yeah? What's that?" Karen asked. Deb nodded in the teenagers' direction.

"You're wondering if they're going to get back together," Deb said with a slight smile on her face. Karen didn't know what to say "Don't worry, Karen, it is clear there are still… feelings there. I mean, think about it, when she needs help, she turned to Lucas. And Lucas, well, he's very supportive. Did you notice Lucas didn't go back to school after lunch? He's been in the kitchen with her all day,"

"Yes, I saw the mess." Karen said shaking her head as she remembered the state of the kitchen less than an hour ago. "Doesn't mean they'll be getting back together. Brooke's a nice enough girl, but I think that she still hasn't forgiven him for cheating on her," Karen said sadly.

Deb looked at Karen, "She told you that?"

"No. But I could see it in her eyes," Karen told Deb matter-of-factly.

"How?" Deb questioned. Karen looked at Deb and hesitated before answering.

"Because it's the same look I had when Dan told me about you," both women looked away awkwardly before Karen continued, "there's no easy way to forgive someone you love for cheating on you."

"I'm sorry, Karen."

"Why? It's not your fault. You are my friend, Deb. My relationship with Dan, or lack of it, won't affect that" Karen promised her new friend. Deb nodded, grateful that Karen didn't hold a grudge against her for Dan's mistakes.

"Thanks, the same goes for you," Deb told her with a smile. "I've just about finished here. Do you want me to do anything else?" she asked. Karen shook her head.

"No, it's fine. I'll get the kids to help me lock up. You can go." Deb smiled and grabbed her bag from under the counter. "Good night." Karen said as Deb began to leave.

"Night Karen, night kids!" Deb called to Brooke and Lucas who interrupted their conversation to return the gesture.

"You kids hungry?" Karen asked the two. They looked at each other, as if waiting for one of them to make a decision.

"I'm fine, Karen." Brooke told her, "I think it was all that chocolate from earlier." Lucas agreed with his friend.

"Very well. It's still early so if either of you get hungry later on, just get something from home,"

"Are we going, mom?" Lucas questioned as Karen shut off the cappuccino machine. She nodded. "Come on, Brooke, time to go back. I'll help you with your physics homework,"

"Joy!" Brooke mumbled sarcastically before grinning, "Does that mean I can beat you in that basketball video game you always go on about?" Lucas scoffed teasingly.

"As if!"

"Hey! I beat you that one time!"

"Just one time. And that's only because I let you win," Lucas defended.

"Yeah, right. Please, I got more skill in one finger than you have in your whole body"

"Wanna bet?"

"I'm game for that. If I win, again, then you… have to do all my homework for me,"

"And if I win?" Lucas questioned.

"I'm not going to let that happen!" Brooke told him grabbing her coat.

"Are you two going to be like this all the way home?" Karen complained as she ushered them out of the door.

"Mom, it's her fault! She's saying she's better than me!" Lucas whined mockingly. Karen rolled her eyes and suppressed a smile as she locked up.

"In the car! And not a peep out of either of you or no TV tonight!" she played along, much to Brooke's delight.

On the short journey home, Lucas spent the whole journey pretending to pout because Karen let Brooke ride in the front seat, and cringed at the embarrassing stories of him both Brooke and Karen told and laughed at.

As they pulled up to the house, Brooke raced Lucas up to the front door and they waited for Karen to unlock the door. As they walked in, their smiles faded and they surveyed the scene in front of them.

The whole house had been turned upside down, as if someone had broken in, except nothing had been taken, all there was written on the wall was one word: 'SLUT'.

To Be Continued…