Lucas had finally found sleep and the little bit of piece that came with it. A few hours of rest would do him good and it was exactly what he needed to face the world and mainly face Brooke…which he knew was inevitable. But for the moment, he wouldn't be a man. He'd be a little boy, curled up in his childhood bed. Soon his mommy would come home and make his favorite meal for dinner and he could spend one night in his favorite Spider Man pajamas watching television before it was back to the real world. Yes, sleep sounded good. It felt even better. The knock on the door, which seemed so premature, made him grown.
"Come in", he moaned, faced buried in his pillow.
"Luke?"
"What's up, Hales?"
Haley didn't look good. Her skin was pale and clammy and her expression looked like something from the bad end of a horror flick.
"Luke…"
"Hales? You okay? You don't look so good, Buddy. Why don't you sit down?"
"Yeah…I think I better", she said, practically collapsing on the bed.
"Haley? What happened?"
"Remember when we were talking, Luke? You know, earlier, about your little woman problems?"
"Yeah?"
"Um, you never told me the girl's name."
Lucas wiped the sweat plastered lock of hair from Haley's forehead.
"Her name? Oh, it's Brooke."
Haley nodded.
"Why do you ask?"
Haley shrugged.
"I don't know. Um, where did you say you met this Brooke person again?"
"Uh…I didn't. Um, actually, we kind of met online."
"Online?"
"Yeah, look Hales, I know that sounds totally weird but…"
"Weird?" Haley said, standing up. "Weird? Meeting someone online or through computer personals is not weird. Dating a girl named Brooke is not weird. You want to know what weird is? Weird is sitting down, watching your favorite soap on TV, praying that your favorite character will wake up from her coma, then having the doorbell ring and guess what? You want to know what? Want to know who is standing in your mother's living room right now? Guess? Oh God, you'll never guess because I can barely believe it myself but Savannah Spaulding apparently has escaped the hospital in Springfield because she's sitting on Karen's couch!"
"What?" Lucas asked, hopping out of bed without his cane, causing a fall.
"Oh God, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Now what do you mean, Savannah, I mean Brooke…oh shit, is she actually here?"
Haley nodded frantically as Lucas gathered himself to go out to the living room.
"Lucas, what the hell is going on? Is your Brooke, you know, my Brooke?"
"Your Brooke?'
"Yeah, my Brooke as in Savannah. She was my Brooke before she was your Brooke. Luke, I have loved that show since middle school!"
"Hales…look it's a very long, complicated story that I promise I will explain later", he said as he hurried to the living room area.
Sitting on the sofa just as Haley had stated, he could see the back of Brooke's head.
"Hey", he said softly.
"Hey", she stood and turned to face him.
There was awkward silence for a brief moment.
"Brooke, what are you doing here? How…how did you find me?"
"I had to."
"Brooke…"
"I know we seriously have to stop meeting like this. Both of us playing FBI and tracking the other one down", she chuckled lightly.
"About yesterday…"
"I know. I know everything that happened. Peyton told me."
Lucas turned around and there was a wide mouth Haley standing in the corner hanging on in disbelief to their every word.
"Oh. My. God. Savannah Spaulding. I mean, Brooke Davis. You're actually here and you're dating Luke and…"
"Hales", Lucas pleaded.
"I cannot believe this. No one is ever going to believe me. Heck, I don't believe me right about now" she repeated quietly to herself.
"Brooke, um, let's take this to my room…where there is privacy", Lucas cut his eyes at Haley.
Brooke nodded and followed him.
"Um, you two crazy kids go and work everything out. Take all the time you need. I'll just be out here…on the couch…in the living room…not going anywhere at all…watching Guiding Light. Watching you on Guiding Light, if you're still on it. I mean, of course you are but you've been kind of MIA for a few months which is totally unfair and I'll have you know I did sign the online petition to have Savannah wake up and…"
"Hales…just let it go", Lucas whispered with a half smile.
"Right."
"Thanks", Brooke smiled. "Hales, is it? Thank you for the support and the petition and all. That's pretty cool."
"It's Haley, actually. Haley Scott but you would have known that had Lucas introduced us. But you can call me Hales. Everyone else does, well, at least Lucas and my husband, Nathan, who by the way is Luke's little brother. And my daughter, Brittany by the way. Which I keep telling her to call me, 'Mommy' but the pediatrician says it's just a phase and…"
"Hales! Jesus! Look, Haley, this is Brooke Davis. Brooke, meet my slightly neurotic best friend slash sister in law. Happy now? Look, just give us a minute and after we're done feel free to get an autograph or whatever", Lucas said as he ushered Brooke in his room and shut the door.
"Wow. Does she always talk that fast?" Brooke grinned.
"Sorry about that."
"It's cool. I just…Lucas, I had to see you. What Felix said…"
"Yeah that guy is a jackhole and everything he said totally got to me."
"I'm sorry about that. Sorry you had to hear it. And I'm sorry it made you mad or sad upset but he's just an ignorant jerk, okay? He doesn't mean anything, Lucas."
"I know. But his words made me rethink a lot of stuff."
"Like what? Like us?"
"Yes", he said softly.
"And…"
"And we're different, Brooke. We're as different as night and day. We come from two separate worlds."
"So? I like that we're different and I like your world. I like you, Lucas."
"But the accident…"
"I've told you. I don't care about your leg. You have to know by now that I'm in love with you. You, Lucas. Not your leg or your cane or your wheelchair. I don't see any of that. It doesn't matter. I just want you…and I want you to want me, too. I want you to want Brooke, the real me. God, we're so good together and meeting you has totally changed my life and brought me a happiness I could barely remember before. I just want to be together."
Tears were clouding her eyes and upon the last sentence, her voice had dipped into that sexy little whisper thing he liked so much. His heart totally melted.
"I want that too", he said in a voice barely above a whisper.
"Well, then you have to trust me. We have to trust each other. I know there are going to be obstacles but I don't want anything else to come between us."
"Me either", he nodded, pulling her in for a long hug.
"Lucas, I want you to see me and love me, faults and all. Don't just see the spoiled little rich girl or the actress who has everything. Because I don't and I'm not. I'm not that person. I don't always have all the answers. I may not always know what I'm doing but I'll try to make things better. And when I make a mistake, because face it, we all do, I promise will ask for your help. Luke, I can't do this alone. And I don't want to but if you'll take a chance on me, I know we could do great things together. But you have to believe in me."
"I do", he said in a strong, sure voice.
Brooke smiled, a tear of happiness and relief trickling down her face as she kissed him.
"Remember that book you gave me? The one with all the quotes and stuff?"
"Yeah. Well, I read it on the flight over here. You know, John F. Kennedy once said, 'The courage of life is a magnificent mixture triumph and tragedy. A man does what he must, in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers, and pressures'. That, Lucas, is the basis of all morality."
Lucas smiled in awe as he kissed her nose.
"You know, Girlfriend, you're pretty sexy when you're smart. Quoting President Kennedy?"
"Hey", she shrugged with a grin. "It beats Where The Wild Things Are."
"It sure does", he laughed. "You know something? I'm in love with you, too."
They kissed a sweet, lingering kiss, holding onto each other for dear life. It felt so good to be held like that by the arms of their true loves.
"This feels so right, Luke. I was tired. Tired of searching for something more."
"Me too. But you know what? Looks like we won't have to. Looks like the search is over."
She nodded in agreement.
"I'm glad."
"But there's still one more tiny obstacle…"
"Oh no. What's that?"
Lucas looked at the door again before laughing and kissing her.
"Who's gonna explain this to Haley?"
