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 10
"Forgiveness is the answer to the child's dream of a miracle by which what is broken is made whole again, what is soiled is made clean again." - Dag Hammarskjold
She had her eyes closed sitting in her and Lucas's hotel room. She was trying hard to restrain herself. As mad as she was at Lucas, she was in too deep with him. She didn't want to leave him and the fact that she knew and acknowledged that she would eventually forgive him just made her even more pissed off at the woman who had initiated the whole thing: Serena, the stupid whore. She wanted to march over there and get into a good old fashioned cat fight but it wouldn't solve anything, and just make Lucas feel worse.
She wanted him here with her, to convince her that he only had eyes for her. It was her fault he wasn't around. After yelling at him last night she had made Haley drop her to the hotel and then sent her back with some of Lucas's clothes with a clear message that he shouldn't come to the hotel for that night.
There was a soft knock on the door and Brooke got up to answer it, hoping it was Lucas. It wasn't, it was Nancy with a bag of Doritos and a big jar of French onion dip.
"When I'm pissed off at the world I always lock myself in my room with a bag of Doritos and some dip." Nancy said pushing her way past Brooke. "Because in the end I know food can't hurt me but the actions of others can."
Brooke smiled. "When you knocked I had hoped it was Lucas."
"Lucas feels terrible if it makes you feel any better." Nancy said. "He's locked himself in his room as well. I'm sure he has the Doritos and dip already out."
"I don't want him to be miserable, he made a mistake I understand that." She said. "He probably thinks I hate him."
Nancy nodded. "Something like that."
"I'm not mad at him, not anymore at least. I just need some time to get past it." She said.
"Hey it's fine with me, but can you tell Luke this so he can stop killing himself about it?" Nancy asked. "Which by the way I'm going to pistol whip that dumb bimbo I knew she was up to no good."
Brooke laughed. "Can I help?"
"I'll give you the first shot." Nancy promised. "Are you sure you're not mad at Lucas?"
"No I'm not sure at all." Brooke admitted. "I want to forgive him so badly but how do I know that it won't happen again? We're here for 2 more weeks and Serena LIVES here."
Nancy shrugged. "There are never any guarantees about anything but what does your gut tell you?"
"That I love him and despite what he did last night I trust him." She whispered. "I don't want to be in love with him Nance, it's too soon for that! If it hurts this much and it's only been a month what happens when he cheats on me again a year from now? It'll ruin me!"
"Who said you could control you heart?" Nancy said. "Love isn't this simple thing that just comes to you. You have to fight for it. You have to claim him as yours and make sure both Lucas and Serena know it."
"That sounds so cave man like." Brooke said giggling. She wiped away a few tears. "Thank you Nancy."
"How about we get out of here? Sitting in this room is starting to depress even me." Nancy said wrinkling her nose. She looked through Brooke's closet and tossed her some clothes. "And jeez, I know you experienced major drama last night but put on some makeup!"
Brooke laughed. "Nance, you're a trip." She walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. Just as she finished putting on her clothes and was beginning to put on her makeup she heard a commotion at her door.
"Nance what's…?" She opened the door and peeked outside and gasped when she saw Serena at the door. "What the hell is she doing here?"
"Nice to see you too Brooke!" Serena said giving her a large smile. "I was just asking Nancy where Luke was and I guess I'm not wanted around here."
Brooke stared at her in disbelief. "Lucas wants nothing to do with you."
"That's not what he was saying last night." Serena said smirking.
"Oh I'm sure that what he was saying, for him to want anything to do with an anorexic bubblehead like you is beyond me." Nancy said. "Go find a new hobby Serena, terrorizing us isn't going to be an option."
Serena mock gasped. "Terrorizing? Is that what they're calling it? I thought we were just having a friendly conversation about your cheating bastard of a boyfriend."
"You disgusting whore, if it wasn't for you he wouldn't have cheated on me." Brooke growled. "Why can't you go find someone else's relationship to destruct?"
"You see I would go and mess up Nate and Haley but she's used to him being a dick which is why going after the proverbial good boy is more fun." She explained as if it was common knowledge.
Brooke was fuming and she was sick of Serena's know-it-all attitude. "Serena, get out of my hotel room and go find something better to do with your time."
"Unless you want a black eye, or some broken limbs." Nancy added. "I'm pissed as hell right now and broken bones would make my day."
Serena smirked again. "Now ladies, no need to resort to threats. I'm just here to see how Brookie is doing with the news of her little saint of a boyfriend cheating on her."
Brooke growled and launched herself at Serena before Nancy pulled her back. "You little bitch, get the hell out of my room now and don't let me see you on the streets or I guarantee you won't make it."
"Well, no need to be so pushy…I'm going…" Serena said finally. "See you later ladies."
Nancy slammed the door and Brooke sat down heavily on her bed wanting badly to go after the girl and beat her up. "Nancy she did that on purpose."
Her friend nodded sitting down next to her. "Your right, she wanted to rub it in your face."
"I wanted to hurt her, I STILL want to hurt her." Brooke admitted.
"Trust me Brooke, you aren't the only one. That girl hurt two of the people I'm closest to. If I wasn't worried about jail time I'd kill her myself." Nancy muttered.
"Hey Luke, I thought you'd want some company." Haley said as she sat down outside with him. Lucas had been out there most of the afternoon after Nathan had forced him out of his room.
"I'm such an idiot Hales." Lucas said sighing. "Why did I recognize earlier that Serena was playing me?"
"You were in love with her all of high school Luke; you haven't been in contact with her since then. How were you supposed to know that she had changed so drastically and was bitter enough to come up with an elaborate plot to screw up your life?" Haley reasoned.
"I don't want Brooke to leave me." Lucas said eyes filling with tears.
"She's not going to Luke." Haley reassured him. "You two will work through it. If I can deal with Nathan for five years she can deal with you."
He smiled weakly. "Hopefully."
"This vacation isn't exactly turning out how I wanted it to be." Lucas said. "My girlfriend quite possible hates me, Serena's out to ruin my life, what could happen next?"
"Don't say that, the next thing you know you'll be in the hospital again." Haley warned.
"So where's Nate?" Luke asked changing the subject.
Haley shrugged. "After he got you out of the bedroom he took off somewhere. He's probably meeting up with some of the guys."
Lucas's phone rang and he jumped not expecting anyone to call him. "Hello?" He asked.
"Hey Luke its Jake." He said.
"What's up?"
"Peyton and I are flying down tomorrow. We were trying to get in contact with Brooke but she isn't picking up her cell."
"That's probably my fault." Lucas said sighing. "I think she broke it when she threw it at the wall last night."
"Whoa what? Brooke has a temper but she's on vacation I didn't think she'd be angry at anything. What happened?"
"I messed up really bad." He said. "I don't know if I'm going to be able to fix it."
"I'm sure everything will turn out fine in the end Luke." Jake said. "I got to go, I'll call you tomorrow when we get in town."
"Alright." Lucas shut the phone and glanced at Haley who was dozing off. "Whatever happened to keeping me company?"
Haley laughed. "You were on the phone, and to tell you the truth Luke you're so depressing right now you aren't that much fun."
"Well cheer me up, let's go do something." He suggested.
"Well…" She said considering. "There's this new club I heard about on the radio this morning called Club Neptune. I want to go try it out."
"Hales I don't know." He said warily. "Brooke might take it for something else."
"I can remedy that too!" Haley insisted. "Nancy's over there with her doing damage control since Peyton's not here to do it so I'll just tell her to bring Brooke to Club Neptune under the same guise. That way you can grab Brooke and have time to talk so that you guys can get the reconciliation over and done with."
"You really think we're going to get back together?" Lucas asked hopefully.
Haley stared at him for a couple seconds. "Luke sometimes you're so dense! Brooke cares about you a lot, she may even be falling in love with you this may hurt you both for awhile but it's not going to kill your relationship. Trust me!"
Lucas nodded. "If there's one thing I can count on Hales, is that you're almost always right. I just hope you're right about this as well."
The floor of Palm Beach's exclusive and newly renovated Club Neptune was packed with young adults of all ages. The room was pulsating with the sounds of The Neptune's and the place was screaming outrageousness with neon lights dancing to the rhythm of the music in the darkened club.
Haley and Nathan had already begun to dance. Tossing back enough liquor to keep each of them very occupied for the night. Nancy was on the prowl for a new boy toy. It wasn't easy being a publicist that worked all times of the day and night. It left little to no time to yourself and tonight she was determined to think about herself.
Brooke noted these facts about her three friends and decided to leave well enough alone. They deserved a break from she and Lucas's crazy argument and she wasn't about to infringe on their fun. She hadn't seen Lucas. She knew he was around because he arrived with Haley and Nathan but he had headed straight to the bar and immediately disappeared.
Brooke made her way to the bar as well dancing with random people as she went. She hadn't been to a club in years. The last time she remembered drinking was at her graduation party in high school where she had made a fool of herself. After that night it had been a vow of sobriety. She didn't want to risk ever being that out of control of her actions ever again.
She spotted a mop of blonde hair and immediately picked Lucas out of the crowd of people at the bar. They had been there probably an hour and a half and he already looked as if he was drunk. Her eyes filled with tears when she realized it was his guilt that was doing it to him because Lucas Scott didn't drink for no reason, he had told her that during one of their many heart to hearts.
"Lucas." She said pulling at his arm.
He stared at her confused for a second. "Brooke?" He slurred.
"Yeah it's me honey, we need to get you out of here." Brooke said dragging him along behind her. On their way out the door she snatched Haley away from Nathan a second to retrieve her keys and tell her to find Nancy when they wanted to go home.
When they were at the car she sat him down on the concrete next to it and sat next to him. "If I put you in the car will you throw up?" She asked softly.
He shook his head and then groaned. "Maybe…" he croaked. "I'm sorry Brooke."
"Its okay, come on…" Brooke helped him into the car and then slammed it shut going around to the other side. She periodically checked him as she drove them back to their hotel. When they were both finally situated in their hotel room she looked him over and sighed.
"Why are you doing this you hate me." Lucas said groaning. "You have a right to you know, I did a stupid thing with Serena yesterday, but Brooke I didn't mean it!" He insisted again.
"She visited me today." She said.
"She WHAT?" He yelled then grabbed at his head. "Damnit, my head hurts."
She cracked a smile at his pained state. "Serena wanted to flash her success in my face. I got to say she really did succeed. I had to really use the self control so I didn't kill her."
An amused look passed over Lucas's face before it was replaced with sadness. "I would pay to see that. You would definitely beat Serena down any day of the week." He sighed. "Serena's a vindictive bitch, there isn't any way to sugar coat it. I just wish she didn't have to use me for target practice and I wish you didn't have to be hurt by it."
"I know you didn't want to almost have sex with Serena, and I know that she basically manipulated you into it." Brooke said. "I don't hate you anymore, I never could hate you."
"But yesterday…" He started.
"When I'm angry I lash out Luke, you surprised me and hurt me at the same time. The only thing I could think of to do was to attack you." Brooke said. "I was so angry at you and I just wanted you to feel the same way that I did—hurt."
"Oh I feel it." Luke said laughing bitterly. "If I didn't feel it before it's going to be even worse in the morning."
"Why'd you do that?" Brooke asked. "You said you didn't like to drink too much."
"When Haley, Nathan, and I first arrived at the club I saw you dancing with some guy and it made me realize just how much I screwed up and how I probably lost you." Lucas said. "It hurt…it hurt so much and I just wanted the pain to stop. Nothing dulls better than vodka." He laughed again and he sounded pained. "I sound pathetic."
Brooke wrapped her arms around him, reassuring him and herself that they were going to last. "You didn't lose me Luke, I'm still right here." She said. "I'm not going anywhere because it'd hurt me too much to leave."
"Thank you." Lucas said softly showering her face with small gentle kisses. "Thank you so much."
"For what?" She asked confused.
"Forgiving me, taking me back, being so understanding, I don't know pick one." He said happily. "I want to stay like this forever."
"I want to be with you forever." Brooke admitted.
"Brooke, I know it might be too early in our relationship for this and it might sound silly that I'm saying it but ever since I met you you're the only thing that's been on my mind and you've helped me and changed me so much for the better." He took a breath and smiled slightly. "I love you…I'm in love with you."
Brooke's eyes filled with tears again and Lucas brushed them away kissing her gently, but passionately showing her how much she meant to him. "You don't have to say it back." He said quickly after he broke the kiss. "I'm not expecting you to return the words, I want you to do it when your ready and you know how you really feel about me. But after what happened yesterday and how I felt last night and tonight it made me realize my feelings and I hate that it had to happen that way but I'm glad something good came out of this."
"Oh Lucas…" Brooke said kissing him again. "I want to say it back to you…I do…but I can't not right now, not after what happened."
He smiled sadly. "I know, and I don't want you too. Not until you can say it without thinking of what if I mess up again and break you heart because I'm not Brooke, not ever again."
Lucas broke their embrace, moving towards the bathroom quickly and Brooke couldn't help but starting laughing when she heard him throwing up in the bathroom. "You're such a mood killer!" She said playfully.
She heard him brushing his teeth and he came back out in his boxers a few minutes later. Sliding under the covers he smiled up at her. "I would love to finish this but…my head…it's killing me." He said ruefully.
"Go to sleep." She urged softly. "I'm not going anywhere."
"I know, and I'm glad. I love you." He repeated.
She nodded and watched him as his eyes drooped closed. She wanted to repeat the words back to him so badly, but her heart was hurting. As much as she wanted to forgive and trust him he had to earn it back. Serena the bitch had thrown her world a part but she knew that she and Lucas would survive it. They would, she had no doubt in her mind, be able to bounce back and continue on because she loved him, and he loved her and she knew that love always prevailed.
TBC
A/N: So they're back together, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to have with the issues between Serena and Brooke. Reviews are my drug!