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R e v i s i t e d
Chapter Two: Breaking All the Rules

She didn't fail to grasp the irony of the situation.

How could I? she thought. It's staring right at me. Peyton Sawyer adjusted her arms to more comfortably bear the weight of a child and watched, fascinated, as Jenny Jagelski blew contented little spit bubbles in her direction. The irony of it was that Peyton, who'd lost her mother young, was now in all but blood a young mother herself. Though she hadn't given birth to Jenny, she bathed, clothed and fed the baby. She read to her, played with her, helped her learn to crawl, even sang her to sleep. Where Nikki had failed her daughter, Peyton was determined to excel. And all the time she was spending with Jenny allowed her to spend time with Jenny's father. What had once just been a perk of the job was now turning into so much more; every moment she spent with Jake and Jenny she treasured, and every time Jake looked at her and smiled, she knew that all of her help and love was appreciated.

"Your daddy," she said to the gurgling infant, "is late."

Jenny simply started up at Peyton and smiled that megawatt Jagelski smile. After a moment, Peyton smiled herself.

"You're right. He's always late."

It was at that precise moment and time that Jake decided to walk in, all smiles to see his little family together in Peyton's bedroom. Immediately, Peyton stood, a smile blooming over her face at just the sight of him. He always brought with him the scent of summer and the promise of something greater, he was so grounded that he gave her heart wings.

"My two favorite ladies," he said warmly as he walked to them with his arms outstretched. Being careful of Jenny, Peyton looped her free arm around him and rested her head against his shoulder. Jake dropped a kiss to Jenny's uplifted cheek before brushing his lips over Peyton's curls. It never ceased to amaze him how even the slightest light could bring out the gold hidden in those ringlets. He loved to watch the way the sun moved over her hair, he loved watching her draw or throw her head back and laugh, completely unaware of the fact that she was the most beautiful woman in the world. At least in his opinion.

He knew he shouldn't have let himself fall so hard so fast. When Nikki had bolted, leaving him with his infant daughter, he'd vowed to be more careful with his heart, for Jenny's sake if not for his own. But that was impossible with Peyton. She wiggled her way past his defenses. Watching her as she held his daughter, watching her naturally become a mother before his eyes, he'd lost a part of his heart to her.

He caught her gaze then, saw a question lurking in her eyes, which at the moment were just this side of green. He smiled to reassure her that nothing was wrong; for now, everything in his life was perfect. These were the moments that kept him going.

"Welcome home. How was work?" she asked, setting Jenny on the bed. She kept a close eye on the baby. Jenny loved to roll, so Peyton had to constantly make sure she wasn't getting too close to the edge of the bed.

"Work. But it helped to know I was coming home to you and Jenny." He paused and walked over to the bed, kneeling before her and taking her hands in his. "Look, Peyton…you've really pulled me through some hard times. You and Jenny."

"Jake, you don't have to say thank you." She smiled at him, pulling her fingers from his grasp to touch his face gently. His smile turned wry and he nodded, almost bashful suddenly.

"Yeah…" He trailed off slowly. Straightening, he scooped Jenny up and tossed her in the air, then set her in her little play pen. As she went to town with several rattles, he returned to the bed and tilted Peyton's head back for a long, slow kiss. As she wrapped her arms around his neck, she finally made her decision. She was going to go through with her plan, as radical and out-of-character as it was for her to do so. For Jake, for Jenny, and for herself.

•••

There was no rush, not as the late afternoon rays blanketed Tree Hill in oranges and pinks. As he wandered along the sidewalk toward 'home' slowly, Lucas gave himself the time it took to properly appreciate the beauty of his town just before sunset. He had a couple of things to do before he went over to Brooke's for dinner, but he was reluctant to spend too much time in Dan Scott's home. Fate, he decided as he passed by his mother's café, had dealt him a very interesting hand.

He'd barely finished that thought when a familiar figure turned onto the street, walking slowly in his directionor, to be completely in honest, in the direction of his mother's café. A very familiar figure…but that simply couldn't be, could it? He squinted, wondering if he was imagining things.

"Lucas!" She burst into a sprint and a half-second later, she collided with him in an almost-violent tangle of limbs.

"Haley!" he replied, barely able to keep from stuttering in his surprise. Haley James-Scott pulled back in his arms and flashed him her biggest, brightest, happiest Haley smile, still holding him tight. "I…didn't think you'd be back for at least another few"

"I left early," she said quickly. "Listen, that's not important. How are you? What's been going on here since I left? And how's Peyton? I know you told me that Jake and Jenny are staying with her, but I"

"Nathan's fine." Lucas lifted an eyebrow. "That's what you were really asking, wasn't it?"

Haley's shoulders dropped as she pulled back, her smile fading. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but closed it again and shook her head. Finally, clapping a hand to the top of her head like she always did when she was particularly troubled, she looked back at him and sighed.

"Yes." There was a long pause as she grappled with how to tell him why she left, the way being out on tour made her feel, the way singing gave her wings and being away from Tree Hill had made her feel like she was flying…why she had come back. Her eyes searched the horizon for the answer, and failing to find it there she turned her gaze back to her oldest friend and shoved her hands into her pockets. "I don't know how to explain any of it, Luke. I think you'll understand one day, no matter how mad you are now. And I know I screwed up with Nathan, leaving the way I did, but…"

"There is no but, Haley." Lucas took her shoulders and met her eyes head-on, his face serious. "Listen, Mom can wait, Peyton and Jake can wait, I can wait. But you need to go see Nathan now."

She dropped head, letting her hair fall forward to obscure her face. "I know that, Luke. I do."

"So go. Surprise him and put this to rights." He gave her a playful nudge and an encouraging smile.

"You're right." She sucked in a breath and steeled herself for what was to come. "I'm going, I promise."

As she pulled back and started to turn to go home, he caught her arm.

"Haley."

"Yeah?" Her eyes were curious as she waited for him to tell her whatever it was that was on his mind. His smile surprised her a little bitit was the smile he used to give her, before Nathan, before Brooke, before the basketball team and Dan Scott.

"I'm glad you're home," he finished, releasing her arm. Moved, Haley managed to smile back. Lucas was the one thing she could fall back on. He was a pillar, a wall of strength and support, and in the coming days, she was going to need him more than ever.

"Thanks, Luke," she replied, and with a little wave, she turned away and started for home, leaving Lucas on the street only a few yards from Karen's Café and his mother.

Sooner or later, he knew, he'd have to square with his mother. Perhaps after he knew that Haley and Nathan were going to be all right, or else after he'd managed to gather enough dirt on Dan Scott to drag the man down for good. But he wasn't ready, not yet. To reconcile, he'd have to tell her too many things that she wasn't ready to hear yet, at least not from him, not the least of which was the fact that he did have a potentially fatal condition. Something that Dan did know. For now he was stuck where he was.

He started walking again, this time with a little more speed. Seeing Haley back in Tree Hill was an unexpected surprise, and he hoped that Nathan would calm down now that his wife had returned. But they had issues to sort out, and the road to recovery wouldn't be easy. Still, having Haley back would also provide Lucas with enough emotional support to continue his campaign against the Scott patriarch and battle his feelings for Brooke. He'd missed having someone to talk to.

Was this what she had gone through when he'd decided to leave Tree Hill with his uncle? Abandoned, even lonely? A twinge of guilt struck him as he continued toward the house. Her homecoming would be hardermuch harderthan his.

Too soon for his liking, he was walking up the drive toward the front door of the Scott house. He wondered if Deb was home, or Dan. He really wasn't in the mood to see either of them. He just wanted to sit and think for a moment, devise a plan for getting through dinner with Brooke without wondering how things had gotten so complicated between them.

He managed to slip into his room without being stopped and caught sight of himself in his mirror. There was a furrow to his brow and a curious tightening around his mouth, the physical signs of the stress he was surrounded by.

He'd been neglecting his river court friends again. He still say Mouth on a fairly regular basis, but Skillz and the boys…suddenly he missed them, with an intensity that surprised him. They were friends from another life, from before varsity basketball, Dan Scott, before losing a best friend to his worst enemy, before losing love but gaining a brother.

He shrugged out of his coat and dropped it on his bed, then turned to his closet and shoved around, trying to find something a little nicer to wear than his battered t-shirt. He plucked out a comfortably faded sky blue, long sleeved shirt, a belt, and dark blue pants. It was a slight improvement, he decided. Besides, Brooke had always liked him in bluebrought out his eyes, she said.

As he pulled the shirt over his head, he wondered if he was making a huge mistake. He felt like he was on the verge of something big, like a turning point was fast approaching. There would be no going back to what had once been after tonight. He didn't know if that was a blessing or a curse.

He finished changing and, making sure he had his wallet and cell phone, he quickly made his escape from the house of Scott, wondering if he was walking away from one mistake only to embrace another.

•••

General Notes: I actually meant to get to the dinner in this chapter, but finishing it was taking a long time and I know that the dinner with be a major portion of the next chapter, so I decided to separate it. I know the story has been very focused on Lucas and Brooke so far, but I promise it will broaden out to include the rest of the characters very soon.

Thank yous:

•sweetgirl73: Thank you so much for taking the time to review! You were my very first reviewer! I hope the updates satisfy you.

•Alie2105: Thank you for reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this part.•gooseles: I'm glad you liked the start. I wanted to include more of the characters, but it so naturally ended there for me. I hope this chapter was as intriguing for you as the first one, let me know if you liked it!

•tutorgirl323: Thank you! I hope you continue to like the story

•Lilybee2003: Your compliments are so sweet! I was hoping I stayed true to the characters, at least as much as I possibly can. I wanted Lucas to be reflective like he was toward the beginning of the first season. And I'm a huge Brucas fan, too. Let me know if this chapter was as good as the last one!

•BrucasRocks: Thank you so much! I really appreciate it!

•Ali213: Thank you, your compliments are very sweet! I hope you enjoy this installment as much as the first one!