I don't own One Tree Hill or any of the Characters or Flashbacks, just my plot.
Peyton sat on the couch, sandwiched in between Haley and Brooke. She hadn't expected Brooke to show up. The doorbell had rung unexpectedly, less than five minutes after Lucas left for work. A face so angelically contrite and depressed that it shook her to the core started babbling on in that way of hers before she could say a single word. "Listen, Peyton, it's been too long. I didn't think I could ever forgive you for leaving town before I had the chance to say goodbye without any of us knowing where you were going, but I did. I met Anna today, earlier when she came to visit Jenny for the second time. Can we please talk again? Have things be like they used to, when the sky was blue and the sun was shining and all we had to worry about for the day was having fun?" A shocked, puzzled, and somewhat disheveled Peyton smiled at her former best friend. "I remember our times together very well, and while a couple of them were like that, the majority weren't quite as simple and platonic." The brunette let out a huff. "Well, so maybe I am painting this in a nice shade of rosy red, but who cares? I just want my best friend back." The weary look on Brooke's face brought the memory of all she'd been going through the last couple of days home. "Of course we can be friends again. Now come in, sit down, and don't be afraid to just spill your guts. I know you must be going through hell right now." They'd sat there, just talking the way they used to, for over an hour. By that time, Haley was tromping up the front steps. "Okay, guys, so I've got a bunch of different bridal magazines, and yes, Brooke, I remembered to bring a box of cake samples for us to pig out on." "Nice going tutor girl," Brooke said with a puerile smile and wink. Peyton guffawed. "You still call her tutor girl after all these years?" "Well, you know, if she can hook a guy for life by just tutoring, I'd say that's quite an honorable title." The three laughed and laughed. "Guys, you do realize we're acting like we're still in high school, right?" Peyton finally managed in between streams of glee-filled giggles. "Well you know, those were some of the best days of our lives P. Sawyer," Brooke said with a hint of the old seductiveness that got them all in stitches all over again. "She's soon to be P. Scott," Haley reminded. "And what about you guys? B. Jageilski and Tutor Girl Scott?" Everyone stared at Peyton. "I was always just Tutor Girl," Haley said, as if Peyton had no idea what she was talking about. "Well, I say we should rename you then. You're new name is... H. Scott." Brooke smirked. "That's real inventive, but since you just got engaged we're all going to go along with whatever you say anyways." The three best friends spent the rest of the day planning all the different details. At one point they even called Lucas up, putting Brooke on the line. "Hey, Broody! Guess what? Well I'll tell you what. We have the bridesmaid's dresses, Peyton's dress, the cake, the meal, the place, and all the guests figured out. Aren't you so proud of us? Now all we have to figure out is a murder alibi if Nathan and Jake decide to throw you a bachelor party." "Uh, Brooke, where are you calling from?" Lucas asked in that cute little uncomfortable voice of his. "Oh, don't worry. We'd never kill YOU, only mutilate you. Well, see you later." With that, she hung up the phone, and the three of them laughed, a sound that never sounded quite as joyful when the three of them weren't together.
Anna had been sitting at the hospital, just talking and visiting, for over two hours. The nurses had finally eased up, and Mr. Jageilski had to go to his job. Brooke hadn't been home for over sixteen hours. After the three had talked for awhile, Jenny had drifted off, and Anna had finally convinced Brooke to just cave in and go home. "She'll be fine with me. I'll take special care of her. Besides, I need someplace quiet to catch up on all the homework from my new school," Anna had said in a light and somewhat falsely manufactured tone. "Well, if you're sure..." Brooke had finally said in a voice infinitely smaller than a mouse's. "I'm sure. Now why don't you go and do something fun to get your mind off of all this? You've been great about it, but Jake says that you're a fashion queen at heart. Why not shop for a little while?" The mother smiled a little, than it grew larger. "You know what? There's a certain someone who used to be my best friend who just got engaged, and I wouldn't mind paying her a little visit." "Then go!" the blond had exclaimed with a laugh. That had been over three hours ago, which was exactly what Anna wanted. Ironically, she'd actually finished all her homework assignments and had started in on a portrait of Jenny. She didn't quite have the same style as her mother, but she was just as good. Her mother had always said, "I draw things as I see them, which plays on people's emotions. Anna draws things as they are, which makes people stop and think, and then think again." She'd selected a somewhat long piece of paper, narrow as good sketching paper goes. Then she'd selected on of her softer pencils, also pretty light. The blond had started the drawing right above Jenny's head, where the hospital machinery was. Then, Anna had worked her way down to her face, selecting a bolder, thicker pencil. She'd continued in that fashion, a stickler for details, until she got to the foot of the bed, where she'd finally decided to end the portrait. For a moment Anna considered whether or not to color it, or even give it a light gray shade. No, she decided; this is one that needs to be seen in black and white. Twenty minutes later, Mr. Jageilski came and took over the vigil by Jenny's bedside, telling Anna to go home and get some dinner before her mom started to worry about her. "Mr. Jageilski, I don't know who you would prefer to give this to, but I would like someone in your family to have it," the girl so much like Peyton had said, slipping the paper into his hand before gracefully exiting the room. Jake had to sit down when he looked at it. The joy of his daughter, her laughing spirit, her twinkling eyes, and the pain and numbness from now were all mixed together, without even showing her eyes. There were no apologies, no regrets for being so open, just the simple, plain truth.
Anna drove around town, not quite sure where she wanted to go. She'd called her mom on a whim and told her she was going to check something out, but she wasn't sure what she was "checking out." Then, Karen's Café came into view, along with an old flyer of her mother's announcing Open Mike Night. The soft guitar chords and mellow vocals from a song inside drew her in. She stopped to give Karen a quick hello before slipping into a seat. The next person came up, but she couldn't see his face. Anna recognized his voice, though. "I'd like to dedicate this song to someone I met recently, who I really messed up with. I want her to know that even if I never get another chance with her, this is how I've felt tonight and most likely will feel all the other nights of my life." Then is started... "Welcome to the planet/ Welcome to existence/ Everyone's here/ Everybody's watching you now..." She bolted up from the table, trying to move forward through the transfixed crowd. "... Everybody waits for you now/ What happens next? / I dare you to move/ I dare you to lift yourself up for existence/ I dare you to move/ Like today never happened/ Today never happened before..." Her motions got more desperate, and she didn't care about the puzzled looks people were giving her. "... Welcome to the fallout/ Welcome to resistance/ The tension is here/ Between who you are and who you could be/ Between how it is and how it should be..." finally, her journey was over, and she quietly jogged up to the stage, standing to his back. "Maybe redemption has stories to tell/ Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell/ Where can you run to escape yourself? / Where you gonna go? / Where you gonna go? / Salvation is here..." With her famous smile, she waited until the song reached the chorus again, and softly started singing, making the dumbfounded performer go silent. "... I dare you to move/ I dare you to lift yourself up for existence/ I dare you to move/ Like today never happened/ Today never happened before..." As the last note was silenced on her lips, she looked at him. "Well?" she asked hesitantly. "I won't have any problem moving right now," he responded with so much assurance no one would doubt him. Without another word, he took her in his arms and in front of the whole café, in which not a soul had dared to as much as breathe, applauded like they'd never done before, and would never do again.
Anna and Jake walked to her doorstep, fingers laced and eyes locked. "So this is what it feels like," she murmured. "What's that you said?" he replied, cocking his head in an exaggerated motion. The curly-haired teen sighed contentedly, answering, "Oh, I was just thinking about how over the years, I imagined what the perfect fairy-tale ending to the modern, realistic life I lived, and I never really expected it to come true. Then, just because of a basketball tryout, all my wildest dreams started coming true, and I got more than I ever imagined. I feel like a princess." "No princess could be good enough to compare herself to you," Jake said. "You're embarrassing me!" she said with a light tone. "I'm dead serious, Anna. In fact, you better be lucky we aren't five years older or I'd be kidnapping you and driving to Vegas." At this, both of them laughed. "See you tomorrow at school?" he asked. "You bet Mr. Jump-shot-turnaround-make-it-every-time," Anna answered, winking as she turned around and went inside. It was only then that she noticed her dad jumping back from the curtained window, and her mom chuckling while hiding her face behind her sketchpad.
That night, Lucas sighed in contentment. He flipped over and looked at Peyton laying there beside him. It was something he'd wanted for so long. Whenever he had thought that they would never work out, he told himself it wouldn't really be all that he'd thought it would be. He was right in a sense; it was more. Anna was his daughter, and Peyton would be his wife some time in the near future. The thought of a dozen little Peytons or Lucases, all looking like their big sister Anna made him smile. That would be the only thing to possibly make him happier. Luke focused back in on Peyton. She was an angel, really. Her lips carried the slightest bit of a half-smile, and her curly blond hair fell all over her face. She looked more than just sexy, she looked gorgeous, and beautiful, and like the mother of his daughter. This was what he'd always wanted, and nothing was nagging him, nothing was telling him it couldn't happen or couldn't be, nothing made him doubt this. It was his very own fairy-tale ending.
Jenny wasn't aware of anything else except the sound of voices. She knew that she would feel better if she allowed herself to wake up completely instead of staying in this half-asleep half-awake state, but people said more around her lately when her eyes were closed. "The doctor really said she's stable enough to take home?" there was her mother's voice, as excited and cheery as always. "Yeah. I'm just worried about her, though. I mean, what if something happens to her again?" She frowned at her father's broken-down voice. "Nothing will happen again. I promise you, and I promise her too. The best thing we can do for her is get her home and back in school. We can get her counseling or therapy if you want, and there are so few kids at her school who know what happened to her. Why do they have to know unless Jenny wants them to? They don't. Now, I'm going to start packing her stuff." Jenny finally woke all the way up. "You're letting me go home, now?" "You're up!" her mothers smile blossomed to its full capacity. "You know we weren't the ones keeping you here, and we won't let you stay here a minute after we sign you out." "Mom, is anything going to be like before?" Her mother hesitated, and then Karen, who'd been standing at the doorway, came in. "You know, I've been debating if I should tell anyone this, but now seems like a good time. Dan raped me before we started a serious relationship. It was hard, but now things are going better, and I think I've done pretty well for myself. It's like it all happened to someone else now, and I consider myself an even happier person today than I was beforehand." Brooke gave Karen a look with a million thank-you-so-much messages attached. "Then I can go home," Jenny said happily and got up out of bed. Everyone lurched forward, but she said, "You know what? People around here treat me like porcelain, but I think that I'm ready to pick up my clothes, walk into the bathroom, and take a shower and get dressed." Her first step was unsteady and unsure, but the next ones were easier, and she sauntered over to her dresser. She picked a long-sleeved skintight tee-shirt and a pair of low-rise jeans, both some of her favorite, that coincidentally happened to cover up all her bruises and scabbing cuts. Then after picking up all the other necessary items, she made her way to the bathroom, turning back at the door and giving everyone a playful wave, and somehow letting everyone including herself know that she would be okay after all.
Basketball practice was grueling. This coach didn't let anyone slack off. Even the star of the team, Ariel, didn't get a chance to sit back and shoot a couple free-throws. Every once in awhile, Anna noticed people staring at her. She knew she was one of the better players; instead of that making her cocky, though, it made her uncomfortable. At the end of practice, Ariel came up to her. "Look, I appreciate that you're really good, and you have a love for the sport that's really evident. I just want to warn you, though, there are three types of girls at this school: the cheerleaders, the basketball players, and the losers and sluts who couldn't make either team. They number from highest to lowest on the social totem pole in that order. Don't make friends with anyone below you, and only select cheerleaders are acceptable. If you start making us look bad on the court, or if you start overpowering me on the court, you'll get knocked down so low you won't be able to ever get back up." With that she walked off. "What was that about?" Jake questioned coming up behind her. "You scared me! Oh, we were just talking about our team's line-up for a minute," she replied lightly. Inside, though, she was shaking. That was okay, though. She enjoyed a challenge.
Okay, so I MIGHT end the story here if I don't get some more reviews. I'm seriously debating that though, because there's a lot more I feel that I could add to this. PLEASE R&R, and thank you so much to lysser&tardychick for your constant reviews! OnTheOutsideLookingIn