Chapter 6

"Girls and Boys"

At home Lucas and Nathan were getting pretty close, but at school Nathan virtually ignored Lucas; except for saying a quick hello when they passed in the hall. Nathan hung out with all the popular kids in school, while Lucas was closer with the guys from the rivercourt.

Lucas sat at a table in the quad and ate lunch with his friends Skills, Fergie, Mouth and Junk. They sat at the same table everyday and were ignored by all the popular kids. "So Luke, are you up for a rematch at the rivercourt today?" Skills asked. "Junk and I are about to take the title away from you and Fergie."

"Name the time and I'll be there," Lucas replied.

"Don't you guys ever get tired of losing?" Fergie asked as he and Lucas slapped hands.

"The game has yet to be played, but the trash talking has already begun," Mouth stated into his microphone.

Lucas laughed as he took a sip of his blue powerade. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see Nathan walking by. "Hey man," Nathan said as they slapped hands. "I'll catch you later."

"Later man," Lucas said.

Lucas turned back towards his friends and was met with their confused stares. "Tell me you didn't just slap hands with the devil," Skills said.

"He ain't that bad," Lucas said with laughter in his voice.

Skills placed a hand on Lucas' forehead. "Are you feeling okay, dawg?"

"Yeah…why?" Lucas asked in confusion.

"You just said that Nathan Scott wasn't that bad," Skills replied. "Are you drunk or something?"

"No…Nathan and I have gotten pretty tight at home. He's stood up to Dan for me."

Skills nodded his head. "If you say so."

Nathan set his lunch tray down on the table and then placed a kiss on Haley's cheek before sitting next to her. Moments later Peyton, Brooke, Tim, and Teresa joined them at the table. "Did I see you talking to Pucas?" Tim asked as he stole a French fry off of Nathan's plate.

Nathan shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah…so…he's my brother."

"He's a river rat," Brooke said in a stuck up tone.

"Don't call him that," Nathan warned. "You don't even know him."

Brooke rolled her eyes. "And you do?"

"As a matter of fact I do…he's pretty cool."

Haley was happy to hear Nathan sticking up for Lucas. She had always wanted the boys to start acting like brothers, and it looked like she was going to get her wish. "He's a great friend," she said.

Peyton found herself staring at Lucas. She was drawn to his icy blue eyes. "He is kind of cute," she said.

Brooke shook her head. "You guys would never work as a couple."

"Why not?" Peyton asked.

"Think about it, a popular cheerleader and a not so popular brooding basketball player; you guys have nothing in common."

"I think Peyton and Lucas would be good together," Haley stated.

Nathan nodded his head. "She should know…they've been friends forever."

"They haven't been around forever," Tim said with a confused look on his face.

Everyone turned their eyes to Tim. He made for some interesting conversations, and he was always good for a laugh. "Tim, just eat your lunch," Nathan advised.

"How about you introduce me to him," Peyton suggested while her eyes were still glued to Lucas.

Haley nodded her head. "I think we can work something out."

"I've got the perfect plan," Nathan said.

"Scott for the win!" Mouth shouted as Lucas let his shot go from just behind the foul line. It hit nothing but net. "And Lucas and Fergie remain undefeated against Skills and Junk."

"Man, I think it's time we switch teams," Skills complained.

"I think the teams are just fine," Fergie said with a smile.

"And we're joined by Junk Morrety in the booth," Mouth said when Junk sat down next to him at the picnic table. "Do you feel that the teams need to be switched?" Mouth asked before shoving his microphone into Junk's face.

"You don't have a booth," Junk replied, "And I have no comment."

"Yo, let's go to the café and get something to eat," Fergie suggested as he wiped sweat off of his face.

Lucas hadn't been to the café since his mother died. It was too hard for him to go there and not see his mother behind the counter. Karen had left the café to Lucas, but Deb was running it while he finished school. He knew he would eventually have to go back there, but right now he wasn't ready. "You guys go ahead," he replied. "I'm going to work on my fade away."

Skills nodded his head and then slapped hands with Lucas. "I'll catch you later, dawg," he said.

"So what's he into?" Peyton asked as she and Haley lay on her bed and discussed Lucas. "…I mean besides basketball."

"Lucas is different from most of the guys at school…but in a good way," Haley replied. "He love to read and watch movies. He's into the whole emo-rock thing. He's caring and loyal to the bone. He's the kind of guy you want in your corner."

Peyton smiled. "Sounds like my kind of guy." She got up from the bed and put on The Killers CD. "So how do I nab him?"

"Just be yourself and Nathan and I will take care of the rest."

Lucas sat on the picnic table at the rivercourt and took a long sip of his water. He had been practicing his fade away for over an hour, and now was taking a much needed break.

"I thought I might find you here."

Lucas looked up to see Nathan standing there. "How'd you know?" he asked.

"Well, considering that I just left Haley, and my mom said you weren't at the house, I figured you had to be here," Nathan said as he took a seat next to Lucas.

"Am I that predictable?"

Nathan nodded his head. "Yup. So what are you doing Friday night?"

Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "Probably just catching up with some Steinbeck."

"You can do that anytime; you're coming to my party at the beach house."

"I don't know Nathan…"

"Oh come on, Haley's going to be there, and it'll give you the chance to meet some of my friends."

Lucas thought about it for a moment before replying, "Fine…I'll come."

Nathan slapped him on the back. "I promise it will be a lot more interesting than reading." Step one of his plan was complete.

The title of this chapter comes from the song "Girls and Boys" by Good Charlotte.