Equal But Opposite Reaction
By: Sari
Disclaimer: No, I don't own OTH. If I did Brooke and Lucas would be back together and Felix would be in a ditch somewhere. Haley wouldn't be going insane and she and Nathan would be back together.
Summary: AU Brucas. Successful bachelor Lucas Scott meets hard to get, feminist Brooke Davis and a rollercoaster ride occurs as both begin to fall in love.
Part 8
"People only see what they are prepared to see." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
One Month Later
Brooke leaned back comfortably in the first class seat she was riding in for the two hour flight from New York to Florida. It was hard to believe that a month and two weeks had passed by since she had met Lucas and he had swept her right off her feet. Now here she was, flying down to Florida to meet his parents and old friends. Nathan, Haley, and Nancy had all come along. All hoping to ease her worries about meeting the well talked about Scott family, but all Brooke needed was Lucas and he was there, albeit sleeping right now but he was there.
She smiled as she thought of the last month. After Lucas's run in with the hospital she had watched him like a hawk for over a week before he could convince her that he wasn't made of glass and he would not break if she went to work. Even then she had called him almost every half hour to check on him, but he had understood saying that is the situation was reversed he would be even worse. In that time she also grew closer to Haley, Nathan, and Nancy. After their initial bad start, she and Nancy were not the best of friends but they were allies and in her mind that was good enough for now.
In the silence of the early morning flight she was left to her own devices reminiscing on the times that had changed her life in the past month and half with the people that besides Peyton, Jake, and Jenny she now knew to be her extended family.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Lucas asked looking at her with sleepy eyes. "You've have this adorable look on your face, you must be thinking about me."
She grinned and kissed him lightly on the mouth. "Luke, cockiness doesn't become you." She commented. "I was thinking about the past month and a half. It's gone by really quickly."
He raised an eyebrow. "It should have, between you working and me working, you being a jailer when it came to my health, and all those lunches with Haley, Nathan, or I; we've had a pretty busy month."
Brooke's mouth curved into a smile. "I called Peyton and Jake while you were sleeping. They said they were in need of a vacation as well and would meet us there as soon as possible."
"Tell them to hurry, we're only here for three weeks. Any longer and my parents lectures will start to corrode my brain." He joked.
Brooke looked apprehensively at him. "What if your parents don't like me?"
"My parents will love you. They'll be so grateful about you taking care of me they'll skip all the interrogations and lie detector tests!"
She rolled her eyes. "Don't joke around I'm serious! Nancy already told me enough horror stories from when she first met your parents. If I have to go through anything like that I'll pass out!"
Nancy poked her head around the seat at that comment, obviously she had been eavesdropping. She was sitting behind them by the aisle. "Brooke I was exaggerating! Dan isn't that horrible! He's a little evil and manipulative but he won't call a private investigator on you."
Lucas laughed. "You told her he called a private investigator?"
Nancy smiled. "It was too good of an opportunity to pass up. You really looked frightened for a second Brooke."
Brooke glared at her. "Nancy, be glad I have a window seat." She threatened.
"We're almost there thank god! I hate airplanes." Haley said from in front of them. She turned back towards the pair and Nathan stuck his head around the seat mimicking Nancy's actions.
"Who's meeting us at the airport Nate?" Lucas asked. "It's the middle of the day everyone's at work."
Nathan smiled. "Remember Anna?" (A/N: Yes, the Anna that is in One Tree Hill right now)
Haley gasped. "Anna Rodriguez? Felix's little sister?"
"That'd be the one." Lucas grumbled. "Did you have to ask her? What happened to Rob or Kyle?"
"Okay we're feeling left out here." Nancy complained. "Not all of us are from Florida we don't know who any of these people are!"
Brooke smiled gratefully at Nancy. "At least someone else understands. If it was just me with these three I'd never know anything!"
Lucas shot her an apologetic look. "Sorry, got caught up in the conversation. Anna and Felix Rodriguez are the brother and sister pair who moved to Palm Beach from North Florida sophomore year. They started hanging around with our group and it was fine, Anna's a nice person and Felix, well he grows on you."
"I'm sensing a 'but' in this dialogue." Nancy predicted.
"I was going out with this girl named Serena in high school and we were really close and serious. Well one day I messed up and cheated with another girl and we broke up. A week or two later Felix started going out with her and it made me miserable. I never got over that and didn't speak to him the rest of the time we were in school." Lucas finished.
"He's forgetting to mention that he cheated on Serena with her best friend Kelly." Nate contributed smirking at Lucas's embarrassment.
"Definitely not one of Lucas's good years." Haley commented. "If I remember correctly that was the year you decided to stop being the 'good kid'" She said laughing.
Brooke and Nancy looked interested. "Lucas not being a good kid? Who would have thought?" Nancy asked.
"It was the year he got on the basketball team. The whole year it was detention after detention, getting drunk, tattoos, girls, and just basic chaos. I probably can't think of a thing Lucas didn't do." Nathan said.
"You have a tattoo?" Brooke squealed. "What of and where is it?"
Lucas glared at Nathan. "It's on my back and it's the Chinese symbol for 'fun'" He grumbled. "Dumb, drunken mistake but whatever."
Their conversation was interrupted by the pilot's voice asking everyone to prepare for landing. Brooke smiled brightly looking out the window at the pretty landscaping. The next three weeks would definitely be something to look forward to.
Lucas squeezed her hand. "Welcome to Florida!"
Palm Beach International Airport was a bustling airport that was obviously geared towards the rich. It was beautiful inside and out with small boutiques lining the streets on either side of the entrance to the airport.
"Well…" Brooke gasped. "Remind me to come to Florida more often."
Nathan smirked. "Welcome to Palm Beach County, Florida. Home of the rich folks with too much time on their hands."
Haley and Lucas rolled their eyes while searching for Anna and Felix. Lucas would have preferred to just rent a car and leave but he figured it would be rude to just leave their rides standing here waiting for them. From across the baggage claim area he heard someone shouting Nathan's name and he turned seeing the happy faces of Anna and Felix.
"Nathan Scott and he brings along the brother and the wife. Good to see you again!" Felix said clapping Nathan on the back. "Why don't you introduce me to these two lovely ladies right here?"
Lucas struggled to stop himself from rolling eyes before stepping in front of Nathan. "Felix this is Brooke Davis my girlfriend and Nancy McAllister, Nathan's publicist and close friend of ours. Nice to see you again." He drawled sarcastically, he looked at Anna. "Hey Anna, you're acting like a stranger."
Anna smiled. "Hi Lucas, Nate, Haley it's good to see you back in Florida." She said softly.
"I'd love to stand around here and have small talk but I'm starving and this airport is starting to close in on me. Can we leave? Now?" Nancy asked.
"Oh sure, let me take some of your bags." Felix said taking one each of Brooke and Nancy's bags. Anna did the same and they headed to the car. "So how long are you guys staying here for?"
"Three weeks." Haley said. "At least that's the estimated amount of time. I know Lucas and Brooke have to go back but Nate and I need a break so we might stay longer."
Felix nodded. "So how's life up there in New York. You guys act like you couldn't keep in touch with the little people when you got your big careers." He teased.
"Sorry about that man." Nathan said. "But once Luke and I got out of this place it was like heaven and besides our parents who we can barely stand half the time we cut ties with everyone here."
"Understandable." Anna said. "This place wasn't exactly the best place to be back in high school. You're lucky you got out of here."
Sensing that there was more to the story from Anna's aggravated look Lucas prodded for more information. "What happened to you Anna? Your parents weren't really into the whole bonding scene you could have left here at anytime."
Anna shook her head. "I got pregnant a year after you two left and the father lives down here. There's not way I was going to let my child grow up without his father."
His eyes widened and Anna smiled softly at him. "Didn't expect me to get knocked up?"
Lucas smiled back. "Not really Anna, you used to preach about protection to Serena and me."
Nathan suddenly looked curious. "Whatever happened to Serena? Did you guys keep in touch with her?"
Lucas tuned out the conversation have no intention of hearing anything about the first girl's heard he had ever broken. Instead he turned to Brooke and kissed her lightly. "You tired?" He asked.
She shook her head opening her eyes and looking at him. "I'm nervous and hungry." She said. "Don't worry about it though you can keep catching up with your friends."
"We'll be at the hotel in 30 minutes." He said.
"Hey Luke, Serena is still in town are you going to visit her?" Haley asked.
"Why would I want to? I'm sure she wants nothing to do with me." He said.
"On the contrary" Felix but in. "Serena has been asking about you ever since she ran into your mother who said you were coming down. You should probably go visit her as soon as possible."
Lucas glared at Felix. "Whatever, I'll see what happens."
They pulled up in from of the Hilton and they all piled out checking in and then receiving their rooms. They were on the third floor of the magnificent hotel that would be their home for the next three or more weeks. Each of the couples and Nancy had a large suite to themselves. Nathan and Haley's suite was across from Brooke and Lucas's and Nancy's suite was to the left of Nathan's.
They bid Anna and Felix farewell before retreating to their rooms to unpack. It would be a few hours before the group would have to leave for the Scott home so they decided to reconvene in the downstairs lobby thirty minutes before it was time to go.
Lucas smiled contently as he watched Brooke squeal about the contents of the room. It had a private whirlpool Jacuzzi bathtub and continental shower in the large expensive bathroom, the mini bar was filled to the rim with all types of liquor and snacks, and the view from the window was absolutely amazing overlooking the hotels crystalline blue pool and the outlying city.
"I'm guessing you like it?" Lucas said a smile playing on his lips.
Brooke's eyes widened comically. "Like it? Are you insane? I absolutely adore it. This hotel is beautiful Lucas."
"You know what the best part is?" He asked holding out his hand.
She crossed the room and took it, and he pulled her closer to him so his arms were around her small waist. "What?" She murmured huskily.
He kissed her, taking his time to explore her wet mouth. "A large Jacuzzi and a bottle of champagne with our names on it." He said smiling.
She pushed him away laughing softly. "Lucas Scott did you just bring me down to Florida to wind and dine me?"
"That and a whole lot more beautiful." Lucas replied. "Tomorrow night after we sight see around Palm Beach I figured we could go to dinner in Orlando" He sat down on the bed and tugged her down next to him. "It's this cheesy tourist attraction, but it's really a lot of fun."
"What's it called?"
"The Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament." He said. "The restaurant is set in the medieval time period and you watch a jousting tournament while you eat."
Brooke cocked an eyebrow. "Sounds interesting."
"It's worth the money, the shows very cute. Now I think we should take a nap because I'm tired."
Brooke nodded kicking off her shoes and climbing under the covers with Lucas. "I'm still nervous about meeting your parents."
He wrapped an arm around her and laid her head on his chest. "You'll be fine." He mumbled.
Brooke was a nervous wreck as the crew sat in the Scott's living room. Everyone had tried their hardest to reassure her, but all their words fell on deaf ears. After the stories Luke had told her in the past month about his childhood she was left with the distinct impression that the Scott's were evil people. That was the only solution she could come up with in her head.
They had obviously arrived earlier than Lucas's parents had expected because they had been ushered in by maid and gave snacks with instructions to sit and wait until everyone arrived. She and Nancy had occupied their time by receiving a tour of the house from Lucas and Nathan. Brooke had grown up in a big house with lots of money but not compared to the Scott's house.
The house was more like an estate. It had 6 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms, each individual bedroom acting as a personal suite. There were two stories and a smaller guest house and pool house. The pool was olympic sized and the backyard was fully equipped with basketball court, tennis court, and area for the grill and outside bar. This house was truly loaded.
Finally the group heard a commotion coming from the door and Brooke steeled herself, grabbing Lucas's hand for support.
"Dad!" Nathan said as got up and hugged his father. "Hey Karen, Hi Keith!"
Dan Scott hugged Nathan back and then Karen and Keith took their turns hugging him. Everyone then tackled Lucas, asking him about his health and what the doctor's had said before stopping to be introduced to their friends.
"So who is this?" Dan asked Brooke. "Lucas I hope you aren't creating a harem."
Lucas rolled his eyes. "Dad, mom, Keith this is Brooke Davis my girlfriend."
Karen hugged Brooke. "So you're the girl that was taking care of my Lucas the past month?"
Brooke nodded weakly. "That'd be me."
"Well then we have to thank you." Dan said. "Lucas needs someone looking after him."
He turned and gave Nancy and Haley both quick hugs and Keith and Karen followed suit. "Nice to see both of you. I thought Nathan was going to keep you in New York forever Haley."
Haley bit back a smart retort. "We've been busy, we're sorry we haven't visited more often."
They went on with the small talk until dinner was announced by the maid. They all sat down enjoying the good meal before starting up conversation again.
"So Brooke what do you do?" Karen asked.
"I'm the executive editor of Filly magazine." She said.
Dan looked surprised. "I have a few employees at the office who read that magazine. You started it or took over?"
She smiled proudly. "I started the magazine myself a couple years ago."
"What do your parents do?"
"My mom is fashion designer based in Paris and my father is an archaeologist."
"How long have you and Lucas been going out?"
"A month and a half." She said smiling across the table at Lucas who was rolling his eyes at the questioning. Nathan, Haley, and Nancy were all hiding amused smiles as they kept quiet trying to figure just how much questions Dan was going to ask.
"How'd you two meet?"
"I wanted exclusive rights to interview all of his agents. We met at a meeting to discuss the issue."
"You don't have a problem with his work schedule? I know some of his other girlfriends hate it." Karen asked concerned.
Brooke shook her head. "I have a busy work schedule as well, I run a whole magazine. I understand that sometimes work is impossible. So no, I don't have a problem with it."
Dan was sizing her up and Brooke knew it, she didn't expect him to break out in a huge smile though. "Well, I must say you're a lot better than those money grubbing beggars that Lucas usually picks up."
"DAD!" Nathan said trying to keep back his laughter. Lucas just groaned and dropped his head in his hands.
He shrugged. "It's true."
Lucas sighed. "So Keith, how's the car dealership going?" He asked trying to change the subject from his very unsuccessful love life.
"Very good, car sales have been up this season."
Brooke relaxed into her seat as the conversations picked up around her. She was satisfied now that she had seemed to pass Dan's initial inspection of her. Karen and Keith seemed to approve as well. Now she couldn't wait to meet the rest of the uncanny people that made up Lucas's past.
A/N: Another shorter than normal chapter but I wanted the arrival and parent inspection over with before I started the drama. Sorry for the delay, I had a busy weekend.