So the song in this chapter is by Blue Rodeo. To all loyal readers who never gave up on me, I've already started on the next chapter. Enjoy.
Jake watched Brooke stretch languidly, the firelight reflecting off her dark auburn hair. He kissed her stomach as she sat up, the sheet pooling about her waist. "You're beautiful." She smiled down at him, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that it was forced. "Brooke?" Brooke looked at him. Jake. Her Jake… "Are you alright? What's wrong?"
"Jake, I…" She looked around the room, wracking her brain for ways to bring up the topic weighing heavily on her mind. "This… this was… amazing…"
"Brooke…" Jake said sitting up quickly. He reached out to touch her and was slightly hurt when she pulled away.
"No, Jake, you can't touch me… I'll lose my head," she smiled wryly, "then I'll never be able to get this out…"
"What is it?"
"I- did you plan this? Was this," she gestured between them, accentuating their nakedness "the reason you brought me here?"
"What?" Jake's eyes darkened slightly in anger "No, I would never! I can't believe you-" He stood up and wrapped one of the sheets around his waist. "How could you think that?"
"I-" She looked up at him with tears glistening in her eyes. "You- you said before… You told me that- that you love me. Was it- Did you mean it?"
Jake kneeled next to her and cupped her cheek with his hand. "Brooke." He turned her face towards him and looked into her eyes. He was definitely surprised by the amount of vulnerability he saw there.
"I just… No one's ever said it to me before- well people have said it… Nobody's ever said it and meant it… and I-"
Jake smiled at her and kissed her softly. It wasn't a kiss filled with lust or passion; it was something she'd never felt before. "I meant it. I mean it now. I love you Brooke." He brushed some stray hair from her face and kissed her again. "I love you, and your babies…"
Brooke smiled brilliantly, and despite the tears streaming down her face looked the happiest she'd ever been. She wrapped her arms around his waist tightly and pressed her tear stained face against his chest. "Jake-"
He shook his head and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Don't say anything yet. I've got something else for you."
Brooke nodded and watched as he left the room. She shivered, despite the fire, and pulled the sheet Jake had left for her up and around her shoulders.
"Cold?" Jake asked, returning, guitar in hand.
"No." Brooke smiled softly, "I'm fine."
Jake smiled back and sat directly across from her, placing his guitar in his lap. "Okay, so it might be kind of cheesy, but I kind of wrote a song…"
"A song?" Jake blushed slightly and nodded. "Well," She asked after a few seconds of silence "Are you going to sing it for me, or are you just going to sit there?"
Jake smiled and plucked lightly at the guitar strings. "Okay," he breathed "here goes."
Strange and beautiful
Are the stars tonight
That dance around your head
In your eyes I see that perfect world
I hope that doesn't sound too weird
And I want all the world to know
That your love's all I need
All that I need
And if we're lost,
Then we are lost together
Yeah, if we're lost,
Then we are lost together
I stand before this faceless crowd
And I wonder why I bother
So much controlled by so few
Stumbling from one disaster to another
I've heard it all so many times before
It's all a dream to me now
A dream to me now
And if we're lost,
Then we are lost together
Yeah, if we're lost,
Then we are lost together
In the silence of this whispered night
I listen only to your breath
And that second of a shooting star
Somehow it all makes sense
And I want all the world to know
That your love's all I need
All that I need
And if we're lost,
Then we are lost together
Yeah, if we're lost,
Then we are lost together
Brooke stared at her boyfriend, tears streaming down her face. "Stop making me cry, you asshole." She smiled and hit him lightly on the shoulder.
He looked at her for a minute, studying her face. "Brooke?"
His unasked question was answered when she flung herself at him. "You are… the most romantic guy in the world…"
"I-"
"I love you too."
"What? Brooke-"
"No. I do. I love you. Wow, I've never said that before… I love you… I-" Jake kissed her, effectively cutting off her rambling. The two of them laid down together, Brooke's head pillowed on Jake's chest. And Jake ran his fingers through her hair. "This is by far the best date I've ever had."
When Brooke and Jake finally arrived home, to Tree Hill, they could hardly keep their hands off each other. Jake had an arm settled firmly about her waist when they entered his apartment and Brooke had her own hand tucked into his back pocket.
Peyton, who was caring for Jenny recognized their new closeness instantly. "You two had sex."
Jake started blushing instantly, while Brooke just stared. "We didn't-"
"Oh no," Peyton smirked, moving Jenny to her other hip "You guys had sex, don't try to deny it…"
"Stop saying sex, Peyton. Do you want it to be Jenny's first word or something?"
Peyton had the decency to blush at Brooke's reprimand. "You did though…"
Jake cleared his throat and reached out to take Jenny. "I'm just going to… go." He snatched his daughter from Peyton's arms and hurried down the hall. Brooke smirked when she heard her boyfriend barricade himself in his daughter's nursery. She glanced at Peyton and without saying a word waltzed into the kitchen.
"Brooke." Peyton whined, following her best friend.
"Peyton." Brooke mimicked.
"Tell me."
"Tell you what?"
"You had sex and you won't tell me… I don't believe this…"
"I love him."
"What?" Peyton was floored by Brooke's simple statement.
"I love him."
"Wow," Brooke nodded. "So, does he- Did you tell him?" Brooke nodded again. "And he?" Brooke kept nodding, unable to speak. "Okay," Peyton said seriously "first you're going to have to stop nodding, because you look like a bobble-head doll. And second, we have to go find Haley and you have to tell us every detail."
Brooke stuck her tongue out at her friend for calling her a bobble-head, then nodded again, just to get on the blonde's nerves. "I just gotta change first; remind me, no more jeans. I'm getting too big."
Peyton just laughed.
"Oh my God…" Peyton said wistfully. "He really did all that?" Brooke nodded and swiped her french fry through a blob of mustard.
"Do you think you could get him to give Nathan some lessons or something?"
Brooke laughed and licked a bit of mustard off her finger. "I think I liked the Rocky Road craving better." Peyton said scrunching up her nose.
"Hmm? Oh," Brooke said, "at least I'm past the tuna thing." She grimaced "I hate fish. They're all cold and slimy and… fishy…" She shivered.
Haley and Peyton glanced at each other and both burst out laughing. "Fish are fishy?"
Brooke glared at her two friends. "Listen I'm all hormonal and hopped up on the best sex I've ever had… you can't expect me to just shoot out adjectives right and left…"
Haley laughed and put an arm around the red head's shoulders. "Come on Brooke, I've got to go pick up my paycheck, but I want to hear more about the amazing sex."
Peyton nodded and followed the two "Me too."
Brooke grinned "Okay… Have you ever had a guy kiss the inside of your knee?"