Chapter 5- Anticipation

Saturday morning Brooke woke up with a huge smile on her face. All she could think about was how much fun she had last night with Nathan. She really was looking forward to seeing him on Monday. Thankfully she had a lot to do this weekend so Brooke knew that time would pass quickly.

Brooke started to get out of bed but realized she wasn't quite ready to stop basking in the glow from the night before. She reached over to her nightstand and grabbed her cell phone, she hit #1 on the speed dial.

"Hello."

"Good morning P. Sawyer. How is my favorite best friend this morning?" Brooke knew that Peyton wouldn't mind hearing about what was going on.

"Tired, Jenny wasn't feeling well last night and Jake had a job interview early this morning so I was up with her all last night." Peyton had leaped head first into the mother role when it came to Jenny. Peyton loved her with all her heart and the six year old girl loved her back. There had been a lot of drama surrounding Jake getting full custody of Jenny, but thankfully Jenny was only a baby and couldn't remember all of it. Peyton was the only mother Jenny had ever known.

"Well guess who I went out to dinner with last night? I'll tell you, Nathan." Brooke couldn't keep it in a second longer.

"Nathan as in Nathan Scott? Brother of Lucas Scott?" Peyton was shocked.

"Of course that Nathan."

"How did that happen?"

"Well, last week I went to grab a quick bite at McDonalds and Nathan walked in. His mother lives here now and he is staying with her for a little while until he has to start practice. Thing is I might like him. Did you know he will be playing for the Miami Heat?" Brooke tried to ramble right past the part she was afraid to admit.

"No I didn't know he was going to playing for the Miami Heat. And what was that part? You might like him?" Peyton knew her best friend all too well.

"Well here's the thing, I tried to convince myself that it wasn't a date, but then it felt like a date. I dressed like it was a date, which, by the way, Nathan seemed to love what I was wearing. We acted like it was a date, he walked me to the door afterwards, he kissed me goodnight. He is making me dinner on Monday night."

"He kissed you?" Peyton was still in shock. Of the people she went to high school with she never pegged Nathan and Brooke to get together.

"Yeah, just on the cheek. It was sweet. Thing is, now I can't stop thinking about him. I can't wait for Monday."

"Brooke, I have to run, Jenny just got up. But I am glad you are so happy. Just be careful, take things slow, I don't want to see you get hurt again."

"Neither do I. Go, take care of Jenny, I will talk to you again soon."

ooooOoooo

That same morning Nathan woke up early and went for a run. All he could think about was how amazing Brooke looked last night. He couldn't get the image of her out of his head. Nathan also couldn't get past how comfortable he felt while he was talking to her. He was a little nervous at first, but he really felt himself opening up towards the end of the date.

Date? It wasn't a date. Just two friends having dinner, Nathan tried to convince himself. Then again, a girl doesn't normally dress like that when it is just two friends having dinner. Wow, Nathan had to admit it to himself. He had gone on a date with Brooke Davis. Not only that, he had had a great time. All he could think about was seeing her on Monday.

ooooOoooo

Monday morning Brooke woke up extra early. She went for a quick run around her neighborhood and came home and jumped in the shower. Picking out her outfit for that day was key. It was really important that she made the right first impression on her first day at work. After long deliberation she decided on her red skirt suit. Not only was the suit professional, but red was definitely her color. She felt like the suit was the best choice, after all, Zodiac sold upscale women's clothes. They were trendy, but professional.

As she was getting dressed her thoughts drifted to Nathan. She was boiling over with anticipation, not only for her new job but also for her date with Nathan. Brooke figured she might not want to wear her work suit all night so she threw some jeans and a cute tank top into a duffle bag. On a whim she tossed her bathing suit in as well, Nathan had mentioned he had a Jacuzzi.

Brooke finished getting ready, threw on her black stilettos and grabbed her black purse. When she looked in the mirror she saw a young professional looking back. She smiled to herself, she knew this was going to be a day to remember.

ooooOoooo

Brooke's first day at work was going so fast. Before she knew it she was out to lunch with her new boss. Within one minute of walking into Zodiac's offices she knew that the suit had been the right choice. Everyone was dressed very professionally, and Brooke fit right in.

Allison, Brooke's boss, was only a few years older than Brooke and really easy to get along with. Allison explained that her and Brooke would work side by side. The company's policies were pretty lax, as long as you got your work done you could pretty much come and go as you pleased. Brooke was relieved to hear this. She liked having a little bit of freedom.

Throughout lunch Allison was telling Brooke about all the perks of the job. There was a lot of opportunity to travel and attend fashion shows and seminars. While the researching of the hottest trends was the biggest part of the job it sounded like it would be research Brooke would thoroughly enjoy. Of course the employee discount wouldn't be all that bad either. Each employee got one free outfit the beginning of every new season and anything else they wanted was 50 off, now that was a perk Brooke could adjust to very easily.

Brooke and Allison finished lunch and headed back to the office. On the way back Brooke checked her cell phone and saw she had a text message from Nathan, 'Can't wait to see you tonight.' The message alone gave her tingles, she couldn't wait to see him.