A/N: Sorry for the huge delay. School work got a bit out of hand. But here's a new chapter. Merry Xmas to everyone!
Chapter 4: Anger
Karen was the first to react when she immediately reached for the phone and began to dial a three-digit number.
"Don't call the police" Brooke told her quietly, he gaze never quite leaving the writing on the wall. The other two people in the room looked at her in surprise. "It was Felix who did it"
"And that's why we have to put him behind bars!" Lucas said, using all the strength he had to control himself. Brooke shook her head at the mere suggestion.
"We have no proof, Lucas" she tried her best to stop the tears forming behind her eyes. After such a perfect day with no reminders of her next-door neighbour, it had to end like this.
"This is proof!" Lucas almost yelled waving his arms around his dishevelled living room, "and that" he roughly pulled down the collar of Brooke's t-shirt, exposing the bruise on her shoulder, "we cannot just let him get away with any of this" Lucas realised that he was unintentionally shouting at Brooke, who was on the verge of tears.
"He'll get away with it, Lucas. No matter what we do. He has money and it's not like the police around here will choose justice over a few hundred dollar bills"
"What do you suggest we do?" Karen asked the teenager. She was well aware that she was supposed to be the adult here, but in all her thirty-five years, she had never ever experienced something like this before. Even through all the snide remarks and gossip she'd been the subject of, nobody had ever violated her property.
Brooke shrugged in reply, "I don't know. I'll find some way to deal with him, I guess. And I'll totally pay for any damage done to your home."
"With what money?" Lucas shot back, "We know you don't have much by way of finances. Plus, it should be Felix who pays for it all"
Brooke began to open her mouth but was silenced by Karen's intervention, "Arguing will do no-one good. Let's just start… cleaning this mess up. All damaged or irreplaceable goods go on the kitchen table, everything else goes back where it was" Karen took charge and sighed in relief as both teenagers silently agreed and began to clean up.
-----
Anna knocked on Peyton's door, disturbing the artist's current project. Peyton looked up to see who it was and Anna noticed the slight hesitation that overcame her.
"Hey, what are you working on?" Anna asked. Peyton closed her sketch book almost immediately and dismissed it.
"It's nothing. I was just bored. What are you doing here?" Peyton pulled down her sweatshirt sleeve to cover the bruise that was looking a deeper hue of purple.
Anna walked slowly into the room, "I needed to talk to you. You're best friends with Brooke, right?"
Peyton nodded slowly. Sometimes it was hard to tell, especially recently, "I guess. We've been friends since we were little, anyway. Why?"
Anna sat down on the edge of Peyton's bed, "It's just that… well, you know that Lucas and I had a fight at the Formal, right?" Peyton nodded, "And I really want to make it work with him but… do you think Lucas and Brooke are together?"
If Peyton hadn't known the truth about Brooke, then she would probably have agreed with Anna's view but in the interest of protecting Brooke's secret, she laughed out loud.
"Come on, Anna. Brooke's with your brother and Lucas… he's a decent guy, he'd never cheat,"
"He did with you" Anna reminded her. Peyton looked away guiltily.
"That was a long time ago and it was a mistake. After all the trauma and drama of last year, I think we've all learnt that cheating is just not worth it. Lucas would never hurt you that way, and Brooke's been through a hell of a lot after being hurt like that. Neither of them would even come close to doing that." Peyton reassured.
Anna sighed, "I guess you're right. It's just… they seem to be spending a lot of time together. I mean Felix saw Lucas and Brooke together after the formal and now Brooke's avoiding Felix, I haven't heard from Lucas since our fight and I just get the feeling that somehow, I'm being frozen out"
Peyton nodded, the sentiment feeling familiar.
"Urgh!" Anna exclaimed lying back on the bed, "Don't you ever wish there were no boys in the world? They're so much work." Anna said looking up at Peyton.
"Sometimes" Peyton chuckled, "But then where else would we get our kicks?"
"We don't need boys to have some fun," he paused, "Have you ever thought about experimenting?"
"Uh, e-e-excuse me?" Peyton shifted uncomfortably.
"You know, girl-on-girl stuff. Just for fun, anyway. You and Brooke must have…"
"No! No way… I've always been a guy-oriented girl." Peyton pushed away from Anna. She was then shocked to see Anna burst into tears.
"I'm repulsive, aren't I?" Anna asked in tears, "That's why you won't kiss me and Lucas wouldn't sleep with me," she sobbed.
Peyton felt bad for reacting so badly and put a comforting hand on Anna's shoulder, "That's not true, Anna. You are gorgeous. I'm sorry for hurting your feelings," she reassured. Anna seemed to respond well to the comfort. Peyton sighed.
"Okay, if I give you a quick kiss, will you be happy? Just for fun, nothing more. We won't make a big deal about it" Peyton reasoned. Anna brightened up almost immediately and nodded.
Peyton sighed. Truth be told, she had kissed Brooke once and that was during Dare Night because Brooke hadn't wanted to kiss Felix. Plus, that too had been just for fun and it hadn't meant anything. This one, though almost forced on her, would also mean nothing. Peyton just wanted to make Anna feel better.
She closed her eyes and brought her face closer to Anna's. She felt her lips faintly brush another pair but before Peyton knew what was happening, Anna had crashed her lips onto Peyton's and pulled her face closer. Unable to instantly move away, Peyton was left wondering what Anna was doing.
The mere five second kiss felt like forever and it took all of Peyton's strength to pull away and stop Anna from pursuing the kiss deeper.
"What the hell-" Peyton protested, looking up at Anna. "This wasn't the deal!" Anna shrugged and looked towards the doorway where Felix stood.
"What in the world were you thinking, Peyton!" Anna almost yelled at the blonde. "Felix, she forced herself onto me"
"I know, I saw," Felix smirked. Peyton looked between the two in confusion.
"Wait, no… Anna kissed me!" she insisted, "You must have seen it!"
"I'm sorry, Goldilocks. When word gets around that you're a lesbian and you forced yourself onto my sister – you'll be done for,"
"Why are you doing this?" Peyton asked. Felix pretended to think for a minute.
"Let's see. My girlfriend is cheating on me with my sister's boyfriend and you lied to me about where she was. I know Brooke is staying with Lucas and you knew all along,"
"You've been beating her!" Peyton yelled. Anna looked at her brother in shock.
"Felix?" Felix shot his sister a look.
"She's lying, Anna. You know I'd never touch her like that. Peyton's just trying to get out of the mess she's gotten herself into,"
"Look at my arm if you don't believe me. Felix did that to me earlier when I was packing Brooke's bags for her." She said showing the bruise to Anna.
Anna seemed to not know what to do until Felix put an arm around her, "blood's thicker than water, Peyton. Believe me, by tomorrow everyone will know what you are, whatever you say"
With that, the siblings left Peyton alone in her room, wondering what she'd face the next day.
-----
After almost an hour and a half of cleaning, the house was more or less in some organized state. The only items broken or damaged to an extent were two lamps, a crystal figurine Karen has received for her birthday one year, a floral vase Karen had intended to get rid of anyway, and a few other bits and pieces.
Tired, stressed and in desperate need of some R&R, Brooke decided it best to get changed into some of her own clothes and lounge around the house. Karen had gone out to get some take-out as nobody had felt like cooking and Brooke was staying out of Lucas' way while he brooded.
She slipped into Lucas' room and turned on the light. Lucas' room had remained more or less intact; it seemed Felix decided to only target the living room. "Ass" she muttered, "can't even be bothered to mess up the whole house" she said pulling some clothes out of the duffel bag Peyton had packed for her.
Pulling out her pyjama pants and a tank top, Brooke unzipped her jeans and climbed out of them, before whipping off Lucas' grey sweatshirt, followed by the t-shirt she'd borrow from him.
-----
Nathan walked around Lucas' house. After his argument with Haley, he needed to get out of their apartment and do some serious thinking. He decided to see if Lucas wanted to play some Playstation or just talk as he knew that his brother was the one person who understood Haley.
Seeing the light in Lucas' room on, he assumed that that was where he was. He could see a figure move around in the room and his assumption seemed to be correct. Nathan didn't bother knocking as he'd seen Lucas in various states of undress in the locker room and so just walked in casually.
"Oh my God!" he said as he witnessed a startled Brooke standing in Lucas' room in just her underwear. She looked as shocked as he was and immediately reached for Lucas' grey hoodie to cover her modesty.
"Don't you knock?" she yelled. He looked dumbfounded and she snapped her fingers in front of his face, "Hey, peeping Tom, I asked you a question. Does Tutor Wife know that you go around walking in on girls undressing?" she snapped.
Lucas, upon hearing the commotion, ran into his room, "Nathan," he said looking at his brother, then shifting his gaze to the girl, he said "Brooke" obviously impressed with what he saw.
Brooke, realizing that both men were staring at her made several attempts to get them to leave, "Why are you both here?"
"I came to see what all the screaming was about"
"I came to talk to Luke"
"Okay, I don't care. Show's over. Go away!" she ushered them out of the room, "Geez! Can't a girl get some privacy?" she complained as they reluctantly left the room. She slammed the door.
The brothers stood outside it for a few seconds before moving away. "Dude, I had no idea you two were back on!" Nathan exclaimed, before Lucas could reply, the door opened and Brooke popped her head out.
"We're not, thank you very much, and I can still hear you!" she said irritably slamming the door away. This time both Nathan and Lucas moved away from Brooke's earshot.
"So, what's going on? Or do you just randomly let her undress in your room?" Nathan asked.
"It's not like that. She's in trouble and I offered to let her stay here for a while."
"What kind of trouble?" Nathan asked as they both entered the living room. Lucas pointed to the graffiti on the wall.
"That kind. Felix has been beating her and we found this when we came home,"
Nathan was speechless. Through all his recent troubles with his wife, he had no idea this had been happening.
"Where is he now?" Nathan asked, "He better be in jail"
"Nope," Lucas shook his head, "Brooke wouldn't let us call the cops because Felix can easily bail himself out. I don't know what we're going to do."
"I'll tell him what we're going to do, we're going to go and beat his ass if he comes near Brooke again."
"Join the line. I think its best we avoid him for the time being at least. I don't know if I can so much as see him without wanting to pound him," Lucas said, "Anyway, why are you here?"
"Can't a guy come and talk to his brother?" Nathan asked, bottling out of telling Lucas his problems, considering he seemed to have his plate full with Felix. Lucas shook his head.
"C'mon, tell me what's going on." Nathan shook his head, "Okay, maybe later then. Want to play some Playstation?" Lucas suggested. Nathan nodded and Lucas began setting up the console as they settled on the floor in front of the couch.
They'd only been playing for less than ten minutes when Lucas paused the game. "What's the matter?" he asked his brother.
"What do you mean?"
"You usually beat the hell out of me and you just missed, like, five free throws. What's going on?" Lucas questioned, "Is it Haley?" Nathan knew Lucas wouldn't let it go, especially if he thought his best friend was involved. Nathan put down his controller and rubbed his eyes.
"You know Haley is doing her music thing, right?" Lucas nodded, "Well, she's been getting help from this guy called Chris. Know him?"
"Heard of him. Is he that guy who refused to perform at Tric?"
"Yeah. Anyway, he's been spending a whole lot of time with Haley. She was late for the formal because she was recording some duet with him. Of course, I got pissed off and Haley and I got into a fight after I… I told her she couldn't see him again"
Lucas laughed and put a hand on his forehead. "You didn't, did you?" Nathan nodded in embarrassment, "Oh man!"
"Why? What's wrong?" Lucas looked at Nathan.
"Nate, Haley is a lot like Brooke. You know how Brooke gets pissed when people tell her what not to do, right?" Nathan nodded, "Well, you just broke one of the first rules of dating… marriage, or whatever. You can't tell her what to do. All women are like 'Argh!' when that happens. I once told Brooke that she couldn't wear this really short dress out on our date and she got so pissed of that she went and changed into something even more… well, you get the idea," Lucas explained, "Don't forget that whole speech she gave me about women's rights and oppression in the 50s"
"Wow" Nathan commented, "Here's me thinking Brooke never listened in history!" the boys shared a laugh and Lucas patted his brother on the shoulder.
"Don't worry, man, just let her cool off then apologize. And if you have any more trouble with that Chris guy, I've got your back." Nathan thanked him and they banged fists and resumed their game.
Brooke came out of Lucas' room and immediately made herself at home on the couch, purposely sitting in the middle so her legs would be in between the two boys. "Whatcha doin'?" she asked pushing Nathan out of the way slightly so she could get comfortable.
"Playing. Want to watch?" Nathan asked.
"Pfft! I'd rather play. I already bet that I'd beat Lucas." Brooke said proudly. The two boys exchanged a look before laughing. "What's so funny?" Brooke demanded.
"I'm sorry, Brooke, but this game isn't for girls. Why don't you go straighten your hair or something?" Nathan told her, knowing full well she wasn't going to like his suggestion.
Brooke narrowed her eyes and reached down to grab the control off Nathan. He was a touch too fast and managed to ward her off, forcing her to try and grab Lucas'. There was a small struggle between the two and Brooke leaned a little too far off the couch, enabling Lucas to pull her off it. The shock of the loss of control was too much for Brooke to bear and she went crashing onto the floor, hitting it with a thud.
"Ow…" she complained holding the back of her head. Nathan and Lucas cast a glance at each other before immediately going to Brooke's aid.
"Are you okay?" Lucas asked, hoping she wasn't too badly hurt. He shook her gently and panicked when there was no reply from the girl. He shook her again, "Brooke?"
He and Nathan were about to get really worried when the body started shaking. It was only when they heard stifled laughter when they realized that Brooke, of course, was joking. Brooke laughed openly as she felt them start to back off and she sat up, removing stay hair from her face.
"Gotcha!" she grinned.
"That wasn't funny," Lucas told her pointedly. Brooke looked at Nathan, who also didn't mind it too funny. She shrugged as she got up off the floor.
"At least I got control of the game. Okay, guys, which one of you boys is brave enough to face me?"
-----
Peyton's heart raced as she impatiently waited for the traffic light to go red. The streets were unusually empty for this time of the day. Peyton had done this countless times before, imitating the circumstances that had led to her mother's untimely death and then wondering why nothing happened to her when she tried it. It reduced the sixteen year old to tears most days and the feeling of abandonment haunted her every single day.
She could have easily broken down completely if it hadn't been for Brooke's constant presence. Brooke was there for Peyton through it all and tried everything in her power to help the blonde forget her troubles and have as much fun as teenagers their age should do.
As the light went red, Peyton put her foot on the accelerator and zoomed across the road, feeling the wind blow fiercely through her unruly curls. She added more pressure to the accelerator pedal as she realized just how unfriend-like she had been to Brooke during the Lucas-drama last year.
How she had just ignored Brooke's call for help just because she wanted to be with Lucas.
How guilty she'd felt when she'd bumped into a heartbroken Brooke at the mall and how she was more worried about what Haley would think of it all.
That day Peyton had ditched Brooke for Lucas and then again for Haley, completely disregarding how Brooke felt and not being there for her when she needed a best friend.
Peyton could feel the car go faster and faster as tears fell carelessly down her cheeks.
Peyton had felt horrendously guilty for her behavior towards Brooke that time and it had lead to her friendship with Brooke almost disintegrating the following months.
Now she had Brooke back and she was putting it in danger when Brooke needed her again.
Peyton tried to forget the pain she'd felt when Felix and Anna had threatened her earlier. She knew that the best way to get even with the siblings was to be there for Brooke and open up to her.
She frowned as she remembered the threat and wondered what it would be like tomorrow. Peyton wasn't sure if she could take the looks, snide remarks and the gossip flying around her all day and she also knew that she couldn't let Brooke fight her battles for her this time, especially since it was against the person Brooke was desperately trying to avoid.
Lost in her own thoughts, Peyton suddenly felt all control of her car slip away from her and she was veering carelessly towards a tree. Trying to regain control, Peyton managed to swerve the car away, but it spun and Peyton closed her eyes in fear until it finally stopped with a crash.
Slowly opening her eyes, Peyton took in her surroundings. Realizing that she was alive and her body or car had not sustained serious damage, Peyton began to laugh loudly before her laughs gradually subsided into deep sobs.
To Be Continued…
