Peyton gave a relieved smile. The club was filled to its capacity, the drinks were flowing and Mouth McFadden was rocking the deejay booth as usual. From across the room, Jules gave her a thumbs up and a smile and Peyton relaxed. It would be a good night somehow. At the end of the bar sat Jake, the smiling calming angel of a man always by her side. Normally he left running a club up to Peyton in favor of staying home and spending time with his daughter but it had been an evening Peyton had been particularly stressed put about so instead, they had opted for the services of a babysitter.

"Place looks good, P. Sawyer. I see Mighty Mouth is still rocking the house."

Peyton smiled and turned to see Brooke. The two old friends hugged.

"Dude, I'm surprised to see you here. Didn't you have some work conference thing in like Atlanta or something?"

"It ended early and I'm back and bored so I decided to see what my best friend and her own little Tree Hill Version of The Viper Room are up to", Brooke smiled.

"Well, thank you for gracing us with your presence, oh mighty queen…wait, you did pay to get in here, didn't you?" Peyton teased with a raised eyebrow.

"No. But don't worry, it wasn't a total freebie. Broody covered the charge."

Peyton made a face.

"Lucas is still in town? I thought he went back to Philly."

"Nah. He's still here. He and Nathan are talking to some people over by the dance floor."

"Nathan?" Peyton practically yelled.

"Yeah…Nathan. Nathan Scott as in Luke's brother, our friend…"

"Oh God. Is Megan here, too?"

"Yeah. We all came together. She went to the bathroom…"

"Shit!"

"Why? Pey, what's up? What's the problem?"

In near panic, Peyton grabbed Brooke's arm and dragged the brunette into the back.

"Ow! Peyton! What the hell?"

"Brooke, my musical act cancelled last minute", Peyton whispered tersely.

"Uh…okay. Should I do my best American Idol impression or would you prefer I tell jokes?"

"No, Brooke…dammitt, I'm being serious. I…I found someone else."

"Okay…sorry Friend but I'm not getting you…"

"Take a right. Check it out", Peyton motioned to a nearby dressing area.

Brooke's eyes widened. She couldn't believe it. After the first few seconds of shock wore off, she pushed past Peyton into the room. Lightly strumming her guitar with a pick was Haley James.

"Tutor Wife! Oh God, it's really you?"

Haley looked up in shock before smiling nervously. Brooke Davis. Her hair was a little longer and her still beautiful face much softer from less make up but the voice and the demeanor were still the same.

"Tigger", Haley sighed, using the teen nickname she had bestowed upon Brooke. "Long time no see."

"Tell me about it. Ever since you skipped town with Rock Star and deserted your husband without a second thought."

"Brooke!" Peyton pinched her.

"Ouch! What? It's true. Everyone knows it."

"Thanks, Brooke", Haley said, more than a little hurt.

"Oh don't be so sensitive, Tutor Wife. I don't hold it against you. You did what you had to do, right? And obviously it paid off because you're like ultra famous and rich now. I even saw you on TV on the red carpet for the Grammys. Fabulous dress by the way, although the hair could have used some help. Anyway, I think it sucks that you ran off without saying good bye and it sucks that Nathan got hurt because of your little fling…"

"Wait, Brooke. There was no fling. Chris and I were friends. It's never been anything more than a friendship."

"Whatever", she rolled her eyes with a smirk.

"Okay, you two can skip down Memory Lane later and debate the whole Chris Keller issue but right now, we have bigger fish to fry."

"What's up?"

"Haley, remember how I was nervous for you to play here because this is where it all started for you and also because you'd probably run into old faces?"

"Yeah."

"Well…uh, Lucas is here."

"Luke?" Haley asked, her heart pounding.

"Yes."

"Well, I know I'm not exactly on his list of favorite people right now and maybe our last little meeting didn't end that well but I think it'll be okay…"

"Trust me, Tutor Star, you've got worse problems than that", Brooke added. "Broody should be the least of your worries. Your husband or ex husband or whatever the hell he is to you these days, is in the house with his fiancée."

"Peyton!" Haley called out in a panic.

"I know. I know, Haley. I'm sorry. I had no idea they were going to be here and I'm sure they had no idea you were going to be playing tonight. I didn't advertise or anything. Look, it's going to be okay. I'll find them and I'll talk to them and warn them. If they want to leave, then that's fine. I just don't want to cause a scene."

Peyton and Brooke rushed back into the crowd searching for Nathan and Megan. They didn't have any luck but Lucas was at the bar, beer in hand.

"Broody! Thank God!"

"Nice to see you, too", he smiled.

"No! We have a Tree Hill drama code red!"

"Okaayyy…"

"Lucas, Haley is still in town and she's playing here tonight. She's in the back about to go on in a few minutes", Peyton announced.

"What?"

"Look, I had no idea you would be here or that Nathan and Meg would show up. Can you just help me before this gets ugly?"

Lucas nodded, quickly imaging the scenario that could unfold as he and Brooke combed the area looking for his little brother. They searched the bars and the restrooms and the outside surrounding area. With each second and no luck, two hearts sank as they could only stare at each other helplessly.

"What are we gonna do, Broody? We have to find them."

"No shit. Nathan will have a seizure if he finds out Hales is here."

Brooke's eyes scanned the people until finally she had found her target. There in a corner was the handsome dark haired man with the piercing blue eyes signing an autograph for a local fan. His tanned skin was accentuated by jeans and a white shirt and on his arm in jeans and a frilly pink tank top, was his beautiful bride to be.

"There they are!" she whispered loudly.

Lucas grabbed her hand as not to lose her in the crowd and they pushed their way over to the couple.

"Empty handed, bro?" Nathan joked. "I guess the first round of drinks is on me…like always, you cheap bastard."

"Nate, Meg…come with me. I need to tell you guys something."

"Lucas, is everything alright?" Megan asked, obviously concerned.

"No…"

Before he could finish his sentence or even offer an explanation, all attention was diverted to the stage where Peyton stood at the mic.

"Hey you guys. Thanks a lot for coming out tonight. As always, we have a lot of great music coming your way. I know we had an advertisement for Peppermint Soldiers to play tonight but unfortunately the band couldn't make it. That's the bad news. The even better news is a pleasant surprise. Someone who may be familiar to some of you. She is an award winning singer and we're proud to say that like the title of her latest CD, she has decided to Come On Home back to the place where her musical career started. So please put your hands together and give a warm Tric welcome to Maverick recording artist, Haley James."

"What the fuck is this shit?" Nathan muttered under his breath.