Epilogue – Monday Lunchtime.
"Hey bestest friend," Brooke Davis greeted with a grin as she slipped her arm through Peyton's, and the two walked slowly down the halls of the school, "Pretty interesting weekend, huh?"
Peyton shrugged, "It was definitely… educational," she conceded, "Although I'm not too keen on spending another Saturday stuck in a room."
"I know what you mean," Brooke agreed, "By the time I finished my pedicure, it was too late to go down to the beach and check out all the cute boys."
"Is that why you came to my house? Because you were bored?" Peyton feigned annoyance. Brooke rolled her eyes.
"What else is a best friend for? Plus, we had a pretty good time."
"We watched 'The Breakfast Club' – again. I would have thought that after doing it in real life, you would have gotten bored already," Peyton said. Brooke shrugged.
"What can I say? I like my 80s movies," she grinned as they stopped outside the Principal's office, "Come on, let's go get some lunch."
Peyton hesitated, "Actually, I'll have to catch up with you."
Brooke gave her a look, "And what, may I ask, is more important than lunching with your best friend?"
Peyton pointed a finger at the Principal's office.
"My, my, P. Sawyer; you know he's married, right?" Brooke joked, a little too loudly for Peyton's liking.
"Shh!" she silenced her friend, knowing how fast gossip traveled in their small school, "He asked me to come see him at lunch. I don't know why," Peyton said.
Brooke sighed, "Okay, well, I need to go and grab some stuff from the gym. I'll meet you back here."
"Brooke, go ahead and have some lunch. I shouldn't be too long."
"No, no, I'll just wait. I hate eating lunch alone," Brooke grumbled.
"What about Bevin, Theresa… that cute guy I saw you chatting up earlier?" Peyton suggested.
"None of them hold a candle to you, Goldilocks," Brooke winked playfully, and Peyton shook her head.
"Okay, Brooke. I'll see if I can make it quick." Peyton said as she knocked on the door and waited to be called in. Brooke waited for her friend to close the door before making her way to the gym.
Principal Turner looked up as Peyton walked into his office.
"Ah, Miss Sawyer. Right on time; thank you for coming," he told her, "Please take a seat."
Peyton obliged and nervously chewed her lip.
"Are you feeling okay?"
"Uh… yes, thank you," Peyton said, "I'm just wondering why I'm here."
Principal Turner smiled broadly and leant forward, his hands clasped together. .
"Do you know why you were in detention?" he questioned. Peyton looked around the room.
"Because I cut school to go to the mall?" she guessed.
"Yes. Did you learn something from that experience?"
"Um… not to cut school and go to the mall?"
Principal Turner smiled; "What was it like, Miss Sawyer? Being stuck in a room for three hours with total strangers?"
Peyton wasn't sure what he meant, "Um… well, they weren't total strangers. Brooke's my best friend and I know Nathan-"
"Of course they're not strangers. Tell me, if you passed by Miss James this afternoon; what would you think?"
"Uh… that she's Haley?"
"Would you say 'hello'?"
"I don't know."
"Would you want to?"
Peyton chuckled nervously, unsure of what Principal Turner was getting at.
"I'm not sure-"
Principal Turner opened the drawer of his desk and pulled out the picture Peyton had drawn.
"This is a very nice picture, Miss Sawyer," he complimented. Peyton looked down at what he had in front of him.
It was one of the pictures she'd drawn during the detention.
"Uh…"
"What does this say to you, Miss Sawyer? What were you thinking when you drew it?"
"I don't know."
"You want to know what I think?" he asked.
"Sure."
"This drawing shows five people. Five people who were put into a room with nothing in common and yet here they are together as friends."
"Um…" Peyton was still confused.
"Why did you draw this?"
She looked at the drawing carefully. It showed the five of them together. Brooke and Nathan were sitting on a bench, while Peyton stood in between them, and Haley and Lucas flanked either side of her. All of them were touching at least one other person and the image projected was that of five friends, relaxing comfortably with one another and sharing a joke.
To be honest, Peyton had no idea why she'd drawn it. The image hadn't even been in her head. She'd just let her pencil do the work and ended up with that result. She hadn't even had time to see the finished product properly as it had been completed moments before they were allowed out.
"Because I was bored?"
"No, I think it was more than that. I think you could see beneath the surface of whatever labels people stuck on you, and saw that you're all the same. You could all be friends."
Peyton laughed, "I'm sorry, Principal Turner, but I don't think that's true. I was just bored. I drew individual pictures of us too. It doesn't mean anything."
Principal Turner sat back in his chair and conceded, "Fair enough," he said, though he was far from convinced. "I also want to tell you that I have a friend that works at T.H.U.D. magazine. I showed him these pictures and he wants to see more."
Peyton didn't know what to say, "You showed him my picture?"
"I'll set up a meeting for you if you want me to. I just think that a talent like yours will be wasted otherwise. And I'm sure that it'll look good on your college transcripts," Principal Turner continued.
Peyton was speechless, "I don't know what to say," she told him.
"Well, say 'yes' and let me call my friend."
Peyton smiled and nodded, "Okay then. Set up the meeting. Thank you."
"No problem, Miss Sawyer. You may go," he told her. Peyton stood up and was about to leave, when he stopped her. "You can take this, if you want to."
Peyton stood at the doorway, looking at the picture he was extending. She shook her head, the blonde curls bouncing as she did.
"Keep it," she told him. He gave her a smile, and she left the office with a huge grin plastered on her face.
In her moment of bliss, she didn't realize Nathan in front of her, and bumped into him.
"Sorry!" she apologized. He gave her a slight grin back.
"No problem."
Since they'd broken up, they'd found that they didn't really need to talk anymore, although sometimes Peyton wished he would.
Even though he'd been a bit of an ass, she enjoyed his company, and he was a pretty fun guy when he wanted to be.
"I need to see…" he began pointing behind her; Peyton realized she was in his way.
"Sorry," she apologized again, moving out of his way. He chuckled slightly.
"No problem," he repeated as was walked past his ex-girlfriend and towards Principal Turner's office.
As she stepped out into the halls, Peyton noticed Brooke wasn't there yet. Looking out of the windows into the car park, she could see Brooke talking to Lucas. With a small sigh, Peyton wondered if Principal Turner could have been right.
Maybe with a little bit of effort, and a whole lot of luck, the five of them could someday become friends.
Brooke walked out of the gym with all of the cheerleading stuff she'd left behind earlier that day. She grumbled with annoyance of having to drag all of the bags with her to school, and then having to cancel practice because there was a History make-up test most of her squad was taking part in.
The bags were heavy and Brooke usually enlisted the help of her fellow cheerleaders (usually Peyton) to help her take them to her car.
"Need some help?" a voice asked as Brooke struggled with the two bags.
She turned around and smiled as she saw Lucas Scott looking at her. "If you're man enough," she said as he stepped up and grabbed one or two of the bags. He winced slightly with the surprising weight of it. "Geez, what do you have in here?"
"Lots and lots of cheerleading stuff," she said, "Usually I get Peyton to help me," she said, and off Lucas' look, she elaborated, "That girl is freakishly strong."
As Lucas loaded the bags into Brooke's car, she took the opportunity to talk to him.
"So, what were you doing in the gym?" she asked. He looked up at her. "I saw you in Whitey's office when I went in," she explained. "Signing up to be a cheerleader?" she teased, "Because I think you'd look pretty good in a skirt."
Lucas chuckled, still trying to get to grips with Brooke's mix of fun flirtation and witty remarks.
"No, no. Whitey called me in," he looked at the ground quickly, "He wants to offer me a spot on the basketball team."
"You mean with Nathan?" Brooke asked. Lucas nodded.
"Yeah, we'd be on the same team."
"Are you going to take it?" she asked genuinely interested.
"I don't know. I'd love to play on the team," he told her.
"But you don't know how Nathan would react, right? I mean, he could be totally pissed that you're coming onto his 'turf'," she said, reading him. Lucas was a little surprised that he was having his discussion with someone he'd only ever flirted with before. And she was Brooke Davis. Every guy's biggest fantasy.
"Exactly." Lucas leant on her car as he thought about it. Brooke sighed.
"I think you should go for it," she told him, "Tree Hill could need another Scott on the team. You and Nathan are practically two of the best players this town has. I'm wondering why the offer didn't come sooner."
"That was because of Dan," Lucas replied, "How do you think he's going to feel with having both his sons on the team and working together? If you think Nathan's going to be mad…" he trailed off, with a shake of his head, "Plus, my mom would have to come and watch my games and I don't want her to have to come and see Dan Scott and his wife every week."
"Look Lucas," Brooke said as she sat next to him, "It's your choice. You can't worry about Nathan, or Dan Scott, or your mom. If you want to do it, and if you think you're good enough, then you should go for it. Plus, I'll be there cheering for you," she winked.
He looked at Brooke and smiled slightly, "Well, if you're going to be there," she grinned widely.
"So, you're going to take it?" she asked. He nodded.
"I think so," he replied.
"Well then," she said as she locked her car. "I guess we'll be seeing a lot more of each other," Brooke gave him a smile, "Thanks for helping me load up the car," she told him.
Lucas nodded as he stepped away from the car, "Thanks for the pep talk."
"It's my job," she said, "I'll see you soon, okay?"
Lucas nodded and watched as she made her way back into the main building to rejoin Peyton.
Shaking his head, he grinned.
Brooke Davis was a mystery if there ever was one.
But he was looking forward to spending more time with her.
Haley James made her way into the library, bumping into Lucas on her way.
"Hey," she greeted, "How are you doing?" she asked.
After the detention, Lucas had invited her back to Karen's Café, where the two and Karen had played catch-up and reminisced about past times. It had brought up happy and embarrassing memories for both, and the following day, they'd spent doing what they used to do. Hanging out at the Rivercourt. Even Mouth had been pleased to see her, and she quickly became acquainted with Skillz, Junk and Fergie.
"I'm okay," Lucas told her, "I have to talk to you; do you have a minute?" he asked.
Haley glanced at one or two empty tables before agreeing, and leading him to one. As they sat down, Haley could feel a few stares from some people.
They were probably wondering what Haley was doing hanging around Lucas Scott, since they'd previously never spent time together in High School.
"What's up?" she asked.
"Whitey offered me a place on the basketball team," he told her, "I wanted to know what you thought about it."
Haley was a little surprised, "Well, um…" their friendship had only been renewed two days ago and he was already asking for help on a potentially dangerous move. "Nathan's on the team."
"I know."
"And Dan Scott wouldn't be too happy."
"I know."
"Oh gosh, you're mom would probably have a hard time processing it. Cos then she'd have to see Dan and Deb Scott – and there's no way to avoid it since she wouldn't want to miss your games."
"I know." Lucas replied again.
"Well, what do you want to do?"
"I want to take it," he said, "But I'm just worried I won't be good enough or it'd be difficult for Nathan and me to get along."
"You and Nathan would probably never get along. Not unless you had one common link – and I don't think your genes or love of basketball counts," Haley said.
"Brooke said that I should go for it," Lucas said. Haley raised her eyebrows.
"Brooke, huh?" she asked, "You talked to Brooke before you talked to me?"
Haley was admittedly a little hurt, but then again, they had only been friends for two days.
"I was helping her with her bags. She had seen me in Whitey's office," Lucas explained.
"Ah," Haley said as she ran a hand through her hair, "Well, I guess that if you want to go for it, you should. I'm on your side."
Lucas nodded, "Thanks Hales. I'll have to run it past my mom first."
"Yeah, I'd love to be there for her reaction," she muttered. Lucas stood up.
"Are you coming for lunch?" he asked. Haley shook her head.
"No can do. I'm working," she apologized.
"Oh, tutoring," he nodded, "I have to remember that. I'll see you at my mom's café after school then?"
Haley nodded, "I'll see you after school," she promised. Lucas gave her a quick wave and left the library.
Haley opened up one of her notebook and waited patiently for her tutee to show up.
Brooke rounded the corner of the halls as she made her way to her locker. Having forgotten to get her Math book out, she'd decided to run and get it since he hated waiting until the last minute. Peyton was waiting for her with her lunch, and Brooke thought it would be a good opportunity for Peyton to help her with some of the homework questions she'd had to face the night before.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Nathan. With a grin, she skipped towards him.
"I know a secret," she sang. He narrowed his eyes at her.
"And that would be?" he asked.
"Not telling!" she said.
Nathan sighed in an exasperated tone, "Brooke, I really don't have time for your games. Are you going to tell me or not?"
Brooke opened her mouth as if to tell him, but gave him another grin, "Not!" she said, "I just think it'll be much more fun when you find out on your own."
"Fine, then leave me alone. I have places to go," he told her.
"Okay…" she said as he moved past him. Nathan closed his eyes and turned to face her,
"Wait!" he called as he moved closer to her. "On Saturday, you were going to tell me something before Turner dismissed us. What was it?" he asked.
He'd spent the weekend thinking about what she could have said, and the curiosity was killing him.
Brooke felt her throat tighten slightly and a little uncomfortable. She licked her lips and thought about whether she should confess or not.
"Nothing," she lied, "It doesn't matter anymore," Brooke forced a smile.
"Oh," Nathan tried to hide his disappointment, "Okay. I'll see you then," he told her. She nodded.
"See you," she replied as she walked slowly back to the cafeteria, wondering if she'd made a mistake by not telling him what she'd wanted to say.
She knew one thing for sure; she'd be sleepless tonight.
Nathan strolled into the room he'd been standing outside for a few minutes. He'd been thinking about what Brooke had told him moments before – and what she'd neglected to tell him.
That girl was definitely something.
He sighed as he walked further into the room, looking around for familiar faces and whether anyone would wonder why he was there in the first place.
Principal Turner had requested his presence this morning, but Nathan had forgotten until someone had reminded him.
He'd listened to Principal Turner babble something about learning lessons and slacking off, but Nathan hadn't really been listening. His mind on Brooke, Peyton, Lucas and the weekend detention.
Although now his mind was on someone completely different.
He stood in front of a table and watched as the figure slowly looked up.
"Hi," he said, "I guess you're my new tutor," he grinned. He watched as there was a mix of horror and disbelief form on their face.
"Oh gosh," Haley James groaned as she looked up at Nathan Scott. With a sigh, she pushed out the seat opposite her, "You better sit down. We can get this over and done with."
The End.
I just want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you who reviewed. I hope you're satisfied with the result, I know I am. I wanted to keep it a little ambiguous ending, yet setting it up for a slightly different slant to the actual show.
I was very happy to see that this fanfic appealed to many different people – those who shipped Brooke/Lucas, Nathan/Haley, Peyton/Lucas, Brooke/Nathan, Lucas/Haley – and even those who didn't ship anyone at all.
This started as something I wasn't even sure I wanted to do, but your reviews and enthusiasm kept my spirits up and this became one of my favorite projects. It definitely kept me busy over the summer.
Although this has ended, keep an eye out for future fics; I'm not sure what ships they'd be but I'll see if I can venture into something for all of you. For now, there's 'Hidden Weeds Flower' (which is Brooke/Lucas with small amounts of Nathan/Haley), and 'Fairytales' (which is both Nathan/Brooke and Brooke/Lucas - and Lucas/Haley andNathan/Haley angst if you want to get technical).
Anyway, I wish I could thank each and every one of you individually, but I'd be here forever and I need sleep :). But for now, please remember that I appreciate every single one of your reviews – even if you only reviewed once, or if you reviewed each and every chapter – and I love you all for it.
You've definitely made all the difference, especially since this fic was nominated for an award.
Thank you once again, and I think I've rambled on enough so I'll let you go,but please tell me what you thought!