Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, or One Tree Hill.
Chapter Six
Slide
Saturday rolled around, and Brooke woke up to the sun shining through her windows. She looked bleary eyed over at her clock, which told her it was 10:30.
'Damn,' she thought as she climbed out of bed. She was meeting Nathan at eleven. She was just walking into the bathroom when the doorbell rang. Groaning, she dragged herself into the main room. Through her peephole, she saw Nathan standing on the other side. 'What the hell?' She thought frantically to herself. Grabbing a hair elastic, she pulled her hair into a messy ponytail, and opened the door.
Nathan grinned at the site of Brooke in her old grey cheerleading shorts and white wife beater. Her hair was a mess, and she had sleep in her eyes. And no make up. Somehow, she still looked hot. "Morning, sunshine," he said sarcastically, grinning. He walked inside carrying a Starbucks bag.
"Ha ha," she muttered, as she closed the door behind him. "What are you doing here?" She asked, yawning.
"Thought you would like some coffee. Did I wake you up?"
She shook her head. "No, but I got up only about ten seconds ago."
He laughed. "Sorry. You sleep late."
"I had a late night last night," she said in defense.
"Oh yeah? So did I," he challenged her. "But I managed to get up at a decent hour."
"Its only ten thirty," she argued. "Excuse me if I don't get up at the crack of dawn. Besides, we weren't meeting until eleven."
"You can get ready in half an hour?" He asked, cocking his head to the side.
"Yes!" She sighed, frustrated. "I'm going to take a shower. Make yourself at home," she muttered. She hurried into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her.
He laughed, shaking his head at her. She was unbelievable sometimes. He took her advice, and sat on her couch, turning the television on. He settled back for some ESPN.
In the bathroom, Brooke took a record shower and, with not enough time to dry it, she scrunched her hair. Deciding it looked presentable, she started to work on her make up. She was putting eye liner on when she heard her television blaring sports scores. She rolled her eyes. "Typical." She went back to work on her face. Then, she chose her silver hoops as earrings, and then walked over to her closet. She selected her Express jeans and then a cardigan sweater she had bought at Bloomingdale's last year while she lived in New York. That was definitely one plus about New York. The shopping there was awesome.
She put her Nine West suede boots on and checked her reflection in her full length mirror. She agreed with what she saw, and looked at her alarm clock. 10:57. "Perfect," she whispered to herself.
She walked back into the other room. "See? I can get ready in less than half an hour," she bragged.
Nathan clicked the television off. "I'm so proud." He walked over to the Starbucks bag and pulled out a expresso. "Your favorite."
She took it from him. "Thank you. How'd you know it was my favorite?"
"You mentioned it a few weeks ago."
She slipped on her jacket. It was starting to get cold outside, and she loved showing off new clothes. "Ready to get out of here?"
"Lets go." He led her out the door.
He was going with her to buy a new puppy. Brooke got lonely at nights, and she had never had a dog before. Her parents always thought they were dirty, and would never allow her to have one. She had to resort to stuff animals. When she was in college, she was too busy to have a dog. But now that she was back in Tree Hill, and living by herself, she could afford to give a dog the time it needed. When she shared her new idea with Nathan, he had offered to go with her. Always up for the company, Brooke had agreed.
Once they were in Nathan's SUV, he asked, "So, where do you want to go? Pet store or dog kennel?"
Remembering what Jenny had told her, she said, "Kennel. Please," she added, not forgetting her manners.
As they drove along listening to the radio, Brooke couldn't help but feel at ease and relaxed. It was so comfortable, just being there with Nathan. They didn't need sex to have fun. They could just be friends, and both were fine with that.
Nathan pulled up to the kennel and the two walked into the lobby. The receptionist flashed them a warm smile.
"Hello, welcome to Tree Hill Kennel. How can I help you?"
Brooke said, "We're here to look at your dogs. I want to get a new one, and figured I would stop here first."
She smiled, coming around the counter. "Anything special you are looking for?"
Brooke bit her lip, unsure. Nathan answered for her, "A puppy, not a full grown dog."
Brooke added, "And something small. Not like a golden retriever or anything."
The lady said kindly, "Lets go see what we have." She led them to the back, and soon they were in a room full of yipping puppies.
Brooke's hand flew to her mouth. She squealed, "They are all so cute!"
The lady laughed. "We have quite the selection. All of these have had their shots. Outside their cage, you can see their tags. It says what kind of dog they are. The majority of these are strays, so we can only guess their age. Feel free to look around. If you need me, I'll be right outside."
"Thank you," Nathan and Brooke said in unison.
After the lady left, Brooke started walking down the aisle. She wished she could take all of them home. They were so sad looking, desperately in need of an owner.
Brooke looked at the tags. Most of the puppies were labs, or golden retrievers. Meaning, most of them were big. "Nathan, why is this date there?"
He walked over to see what she was talking about. The date of the dog was a months from now. "I think that's the date that says they have been here six months."
"What?" She asked, surprised. "Why does that matter?"
He said gently, "They usually put a dog to sleep if it isn't adopted or something."
She exclaimed, "They're only puppies!"
"I know," he said. "But they can't keep them forever."
"So they just kill them? I knew they did that for the older dogs, but the puppies? That's horrible."
He put his hand on her shoulder. "I know."
She sighed. She noticed a cage at the very end. In the kennel was a small dog, shivering. It was a light brown colored dog, and in the corner. It had very fine hair. Brooke fell in love with the dog.
"Nate, look!" She walked over, and leaned down, cooing to the dog to come there. The dog, happy for some attention, ran over and licked Brooke's fingers. Brooke laughed. "Aren't you adorable?"
Nathan was reading the tag. "It says the dog is probably six months old."
Brooke smiled at the dog, petting it through the wires. "What kind of dog is it?"
Nathan scanned the paper. "It says it is a mutt, with various breeds."
The door opened and the lady walked back through. "Have we found one we like?"
Brooke grinned. "We found one we love.
Nathan asked, "Are you sure this is the one you want?"
Brooke stood up, and looked around. "I don't know. Maybe I should keep looking." She peered at the tag. The date was one week from that day. "Oh my God!" She exclaimed. She said to the woman, "If nobody adopts this dog in a week, you guys are going to kill her?"
The lady said, "We like to say put to sleep. But yes, we will. We can't afford to keep so many dogs."
Brooke leaned down, petting the dog. "That's horrible." She looked up at Nathan. "I want this one."
The employee smiled. "Very good choice. We have had her since she was born. She was found on our doorstep, and she couldn't have been more than a few days old. She was very lucky we could save her. She is doing great now. She is a little small for her age, but other than that she is perfect."
Brooke asked, "Is she going to be a small dog or big dog?"
"Definitely small. One of the breeds she has in her is Jack Russel Terrier." She took out a key ring. "Are you sure about her?"
"Yes," she said firmly. She stood back as the lady unlocked the kennel. The puppy bounded out, and right into Brooke's arms. Brooke stood up with her, and giggled as the puppy licked her face. "Nathan, look at her."
He petted her head as she wiggled in Brooke's arms. "She's cute," he admitted.
Brooke nodded. "She's adorable."
They followed the woman into the lobby again, and she prepared the papers for Brooke to sign.
Brooke and Nathan were sitting in chairs with the dog. Brooke said, "Now we can go shopping!"
Nathan rolled his eyes, but was laughing. "Joy."
She pushed him lightly with her shoulder. "Shut up. You know you love her."
"What are you going to name her?"
"Hmm...I don't know."
"Maam? Sir? If you could come sign these, please," the woman called.
Brooke excitedly got up, and handed the dog to Nathan. "Be right back," she promised. She quickly walked over to the counter and started filling the forms out.
With Brooke over there, Nathan looked at the squirming dog in his arms. She was definitely meant to be owned by Brooke. She just had to be the center of attention.
Brooke bounced back over to them, and scooped the dog into her arms. "Ready to go?"
Nathan nodded. "Paper work all set?"
"Yep," she answered. They said thank you to the woman at the counter, and together they walked outside. Nathan opened the door for them before sliding into his seat.
"Where to?"
"Pet store," she confirmed. "I need a collar, leash, the basics."
They arrived at the store, and Nathan said, "Don't you have to leave her here?"
Brooke rolled her eyes. "In case you hadn't noticed, this is a pet store. Meaning, pets are wecome..."
Nathan grinned. "Whatever."
An hour later, they walked back into Brooke's apartment. She had pretty much bought out the store. After getting all the essentials, she had splurged for toys and snacks.
Brooke set the dog on the ground, and she ran all over the place. Brooke laughed as the dog tumbled over. Nathan grabbed a Sprite out of the refrigerator and then sat next to Brooke.
"Got a name for her yet?"
Brooke sighed. "Yeah, but you are going to think its weird."
"Since when do you care what I think?"
She jabbed him lightly. "Since now. Anyways, it's the name I gave my stuffed dog when I was six. I got the dog from my grandmother. I'm sure it cost a hundred dollars. I named it after my grandmother's middle name, which was Audrey. God, I loved that dog. I still have it somewhere, in my box of childhood junk."
"So...?"
"So, this is Audrey," Brooke said, picking her new dog up. "Audrey, meet Nathan." She introduced him. "He hangs out here a lot, so you might as well get used to him." She smiled in Nathan's direction as she spoke.
Nathan stood up. "I better get going. I was going to meet Luke to shoot hoops down at the court."
Brooke stood up with him. "Okay. Listen, thanks for taking me today. It means a lot to me."
He reached out and lightly touched her arm. "Sure thing. I'll talk to you this week, okay?"
She smiled, and said goodbye. After he was gone, she sat back down on the couch with Audrey. "Audrey, Nathan is a really great guy. Don't forget that."
Author's Note: I'm so sorry it took forever to update! I have been so busy with other stuff right now, so i sincerely apologize. This chapter was a sort of filler chapter. I am trying to show the softer side of both Brooke and Nathan. Hope you liked it! Thank you so much to my loyal reviewers, you guys rock! Please continue reviewing, because it really does help me. the next chapter is going to drive you guys crazy! it will be fun, though, trust me.
spoiler: Someone has a birthday, and someone has a surprise planned...
To my faithful reviewers...
Mony99: Thanks so much, you are too sweet! I also have a guy best friend, so I know where you are coming from. However, we all know that Brooke and Nathan can't always resist temptation... so we'll see what happens.
belle: Thanks. Technically, they aren't dating. They are strictly friends. They both have rough romantic pasts, and don't want to jump into anything.
ababy: Thanks!
Belle-Baby: I also love Peyton and Brooke's interesting friendship, and I wanted to bring it back. In the next few chapters, she will also find a new friend in Crystal.
Swedishblonde and nookieforever07: Aw, thanks! They are a fun pair to write.
Agel15: Yeah, you will definitely be seeing more of Crystal and Peyton. Peyton has always been blunt with Brooke, and that will definitely be transparent in the coming chapters.
Thanks again to all who reviewed... and to those who didn't, try now! lol, thanks!