Disclaimer: I dont' own OTH or the characters!

Author's Note: Oh my gosh, thank you so much to all my reviewers! i'm so glad you liked it so much. i got chapter two out as fast as I could. I hope you enjoy it, I tried showing as much brathan as possible. Thanks again, and please keep the reviews coming!

Mony19: I know, I love them too. (besides brucas, they are my number one) And you will definitely be seeing a lot of Peyton. A little Jake/Peyton, but Peyton will be making numerous appearances.

Belle-Baby: Thanks so much! I think you will enjoy his reaction. (at least I hope so)

LilAngel413: Thanks! I will try to bring him in. Maybe in a few chapters.

Ababy99: Yes, its one of my first, but hopefully I will have others. and thanks for the compliment!

mcwalterk: thanks!

S.: you got it!

Chapter Two

Glad

Nathan looked at Brooke. He looked like he had just seen a ghost or something. He tried to remember the last time he had seen her. It had to have been five or six years ago.

"Nathan?" Brooke asked, just as surprised as he was. She took a few steps so that she was directly in front of him.

"Brooke," he said. Unsure, he moved towards her and engulfed her in a hug. "What are you doing here?"

She returned the hug, smiling. "I'm back for good."

"Really? That's great," he grinned. "God, its good to see you."

"Same here. I'm sorry I haven't gotten around to visiting."

"That's alright. A lot of shit has happened."

She said softly, "I heard. Nate, I'm sorry."

He didn't want to talk about his shitty excuse of a marriage. "Lets not talk about that. How long have you been in town?"

"A couple of days. I have an apartment here. I am starting a business with a woman I met."

"That's great. How long has it been since you left?"

"Six years," she admitted.

"Damn," he whistled. He ran a hand through his dark colored hair. "What are you doing here?"

She shrugged, and walked over to a bench, and he followed her. "I was at Karen's Café, and she caught me up what I've missed. Its amazing at how much that woman knows."

Nathan laughed. "Tell me about it. Everybody tells her everything. She's the 'Tree Hill Friend'."

Brooke laughed with him. "Well, I didn't want to go home afterward, so I came here. I needed a sense of familiarity. After everything she told me, I was just so shocked with how much things changed."

He nodded. "Yeah, things are sure different around here."

They were quiet for a moment. Brooke asked, "So, I heard you are in sporting sales?"

"Yeah, business is pretty good right now."

"That's great," Brooke said earnestly. "I'm happy you're doing so good."

He said scornfully, "Yeah, I'm great."

Brooke sighed. She wasn't sure what she should say.

Nathan asked, "What about you? Are you seeing anyone?"

She giggled, shaking her head. "Nope. I haven't had a serious relationship since high school."

Nathan pretended to be shocked; he showed mock surprise. "What? Well, that means you were a tease through college."

Brooke laughed, and shoved his arm. "Shut up. I was not a tease. I was just focused on school."

"Yeah right," he laughed. "You? Focused on school?"

She glared at him. "Yes, it is possible you know."

He held up his hands in defense. "Sorry. I guess people really can change."

She nodded. "I'm not the same person I was before. When I moved to California, nothing seemed important anymore. Guys were a background image. Now, I am definitely wishing I had that special someone in my life. But I'm not desperate. If its meant to be, then I'll find him. I'm not in a rush."

Nathan stood up and stretched. "You're hot, you'll find somebody."

She rolled her eyes and stood up next to him. "Sure." She was quiet for a moment. "So, are you still in touch with any of our old friends?"

He shoved his hands in his pockets, and shrugged. "I still talk to Lucas a lot, but mainly because he's my brother." Brooke withheld her smile. She always thought it was sweet when Nathan or Lucas referred to each other as family. They used to hate each other; now they were closer than ever. "He's moving back next week, you know."

"That's cool. Maybe I'll go see him."

"Then, there's Peyton and Jake. You know their story?" Brooke nodded in response to his question. "Well, I haven't talked to them in a couple of months. I saw Jake last week, but only for a second. Whenever they come around, its usually because they feel sorry for me or something. It pisses me off."

"I hear you," Brooke murmured. "My friends used to feel sorry for me just because I was single."

"That's about it. My ex wife is out there probably sleeping with every man she sees," he said harshly.

Brooke put her hand on his shoulder. "Nate, I was so sorry to hear about Haley. If it makes a difference, I never liked her."

If it had been anyone else, Nathan probably would have told them to piss off and shut up. But this was Brooke. She and him had grown up together. Their parents were in the same organizations, and they were both the stereotyped only children in their families. They had hated each other most of their life. The hatred and meaness started around age twelve, when Nathan became serious about basketball and Brooke became serious about cheerleading and partying. They stopped hanging out so much, and went their separate ways.

Nathan shot her a grateful look. She really understood. She was just about the only one. "Thanks."

Brooke said brightly, "So, do you still play basketball?"

He shrugged. "Sometimes. I play here a lot, and with Luke whenever he's in town."

Brooke nodded towards his car. "You have a ball in there?"

He nodded. "Why?"

She grinned. "Go get it." He retrieved the ball, and gave it to Brooke. "Wanna play a little one on one?"

He started to laugh. "You're wearing heels." She kicked them off, tossing them off to the side. She then whipped out an elastic and pulled her hair back into a pony tail.

"Now?"

He was still unsure. "You know I can beat your ass so bad, right?"

She smirked at him. "If you still work out, then you won't have a problem. Lets see what you got."

"Okay, lets go." Brooke started dribbling towards the goal. Nathan kept up with her, and in about three seconds stole the ball from her. He shot and of course made it.

Brooke stuck her tongue out at him. "One shot. Big deal." She took the ball and tried getting around him. He was strong, and wouldn't give her an inch. "Nathan!" She was laughing uncontrollably.

He grabbed the ball and shot. Again, he made it.

After another half hour of playing, Brooke was hot, sweaty, and tired. "Okay, you win," she said, breathless. She was still laughing. "I haven't had that much fun since I don't know when."

He grinned. "Me neither. You're not so bad, Davis."

"At the game?"

He laughed. "No, as a person. At the game, you suck."

"Thanks," she said sarcastically. She looked at her wrist watch. It read 9:30. "I better get home. It was great hanging out with you, Nate."

He nodded. "Same here. Six years ago, if someone had told me I would have fun with you, I would have assumed they were on crack or something."

She giggled. "Me, too." She grabbed her cell phone. "What's your number? If I ever need to have fun again, I'll know who to call."

They exchanged cell numbers and then got in their separate cars and drove home.