The Way We Were

AN- Lots of you asked for Fluff, honestly not sure if it's gonna happen yet, you'll just have to read on…

Disclaimer- Don't own it.

P.S. - Song lyrics, Flashbacks and dreams are in italics.

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Lucas' eyes slowly opened. He looked to his right and all he could see through his blurred vision was brown hair. As his vision adapted to the morning, he saw that the brown hair was not silky and long like Brooke's, but short and matted. He reached his hand out and tap the person's head and saw Jake's brown eyes look up at him, smiling slightly.

Lucas cleared his throat, and then whispered, "Hey."

"Hey." Jake paused a moment, then continued, "Sorry, that I haven't been by too much lately, it's just, uh… I've been dealing with my overly- emotional little sist…"

"Don't say it. If you came to talk to me about her, you can save your breath."

"Sorry, man, I didn't, but just know, she's hurting. That's all I'm going to say."

Lucas nodded, understanding that Jake was first and foremost Brooke's brother. He wished that he was strong enough to ask how she was doing. He missed her more than he could admit, but he knew that if he enough heard her name, he would break down.

"So, how have you been, Jake?" Lucas asked, trying to push Brooke out of his mind and their conversation.

Jake laughed. 'Yep, same old Luke,' he thought to himself. He was always putting other people first, even when he couldn't use his legs. Little did Jake know, that today was the first day that Luke hadn't woken up, wanting to die.

"Uh… As well as can be expected, I guess. How are you? I mean I should be the one worrying about you." Jake said.

Lucas laughed at his best friend's concern. "Absolutely great. I love the hot nurses that bring me the amazing hospital food and help me out when I piss myself, without even knowing it. What more can a guy ask for?" He asked sarcastically.

Jake looked Lucas in eye, showing him that he was serious. Lucas looked away, unable to handle Jake's stare. "The truth?" Jake whispered.

Lucas sighed, and then laughed in spite of himself. "The truth is, I'm hurting Jake. Not just physically, because physically, I'm basically numb. Emotionally is a different story, I wish I was numb." He paused for a moment and looked up at Jake, letting him see the tears that were welling up in his eyes, and then he continued. "I wish everyone would stop throwing me a pity party. I wish that I wouldn't have pushed Brooke away, because God knows, that I need her more than ever right now, but I don't want to hold her back for the rest of her life. I know that she'll hate me more than she already does if I do."

"She doesn't hate you." Jake replied.

Lucas looked up at him, silently begging for him to continue.

"She hates herself, definitely not hating you right now, though. She's in love with you and she's not throwing you a pity party, she's throwing herself one. I know that you don't want to hear this right now, but I'm gonna tell you, she needs you right now, just as much as you need her, even if you're too stubborn to admit it. Dude, you're my best friend, but she's my sister, and I have to defend her a little. If you gave her a chance, she'd never leave you, and not just because she feels obligated to you, but because she's been in love with you since she was like 10. So, I think that you should call her and tell her to come down and beg for her forgiveness, otherwise, both of you are gonna keep hating yourselves and eventually start hating each other and everyone else around you."

Lucas let Jake's words soak in, and then replied with a nod. Jake got out of his chair and gave Lucas a manly hug, then said, "Just don't wait too long."

Once Lucas was alone again, he broke down completely, realizing what an asshole he had been to Brooke.

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You say hello, inside I'm screaming I love you
You say goodnight, in my mind
I'm sleeping next to you
You drive away from my car crash of a heart
And I don't know

But you gave me the best mix tape I have
And even all the bad songs ain't so bad
I just wish there was so much more than that
About me and you

Brooke sat in her bedroom, crying and listening to the same song over and over again. It had always reminded her of Lucas. It was on the first CD that he had ever burned for her. She remembered that day like it was yesterday.

Lucas and Brooke had been secretly dating for about 2 weeks. Luke was at her house, hanging out with Jake, when he excused himself to the bathroom. He snuck upstairs to Brooke's bedroom, which had become somewhat of a routine for him, and rapped lightly on the door.

She yelled, "Come in." and smiled when she saw who walked into her room. She jumped off her bed, ran towards him and said, "Finally!" as she threw her arms around his neck. She looked behind him, noticing that one of his arms was holding something behind his back. "What's that?" She asked, hoping it was for her.

Lucas laughed at her eagerness. "Calm down, Cheery." He led her over and sat down with her on her bed. He took out the poorly wrapped gift and set it in front of her.

Her eyes got wide with excitement, and she asked, "For me?"

He nodded and watched her open it. "It's a CD. Aw… Luke, you made me a mix? That's so cute. Let's listen to it."

"I wish I could, but I'll bet that your brother is waiting for me downstairs, and it's kinda embarrassing, so how about you listen, and tell me what you think." He got up off her bed, dropping a kiss on her forehead, and then made his way towards her door.

"Hey Luke?" Brooke asked as she stood up. She ran towards him and kissed him with as much passion as she could at the young age of 13. As she broke the kiss, she whispered, "Thanks." He nodded, kissing her lips lightly.

"Bye, beautiful." He said as he opened the door and went back downstairs.

Brooke walked back to her bed in a daze. She thought, no she KNEW that she was in love with Lucas, and not just the 13 year-old, first boyfriend kind of love, but the real kind. She opened the CD case and saw a note fall out. She got the CD out and put it in her stereo, then sat back down on her bed and opened the note. It read---

Cheery- These are just some songs that make me think of you more than I already do on a regular basis. Hope you like them. You're amazing. I love you- Luke

Just as Brooke read the last sentence of the note, the first song came on-

You say hello, inside I'm screaming I love you
You say goodnight, in my mind
I'm sleeping next to you
You drive away from my car crash of a heart
And I don't know

But you gave me the best mix tape I have
And even all the bad songs ain't so bad
I just wish there was so much more than that
About me and you

You talk to him, and it burns me like the sun
You talk to her, and you say that you feel like he's the one
I talk to me, but you can't hear the pain I feel
You don't know

Cause you gave me the best mix tape I have
And even all the bad songs ain't so bad
I only wish there was more than that
About me and you

Oh, don't turn around and say bye again
Yeah it crushes my head when you call me
Your friend and I'm not the same person
From back in the day in the back of the class
That you thought was gay
No I can't find the words cause I lost them
The minute they fell out of my mouth
And it's love and I'm in it, so give me your lips
And just let me kiss 'em
And let's get messed up and listen to possibly...

The best mix tape I have
And even all the bad songs ain't so bad
I just wish there was more than that
About me and you

By the end of it, she knew that she would never forget any of the words, or that moment, for the rest of her life. Lucas loved her, and maybe to him it was just 13 year-old, first boyfriend kind of love, but at that moment, that was fine with her.

Later that night, when Lucas took a "Brooke Break", she couldn't stop gushing about how much she loved the CD, the first song in particular.

"I'm glad." He replied, as he scooped her up in his arms and just held her near him. He wanted so badly to tell her how he felt, but he didn't want to rush things.

At the same time, in a body less than a centimeter away, Brooke was having the same exact thoughts, but she too decided that it was too soon to express her love to Lucas.

He pulled away to look at her for a moment. He stared in awe of her beauty. Her hair was in a messy ponytail, she was wearing a white v-neck T-shirt and sweatpants, but to him, she was absolutely gorgeous. She stared back at him in confusion. "Lucas, what? Do I have something on my face or something?" She asked, feeling self-conscious about his staring.

He laughed at how oblivious she was to her true beauty. "Definitely not, you're beautiful." She smiled at his compliment, then gave him a peck on the lips and wrapped her arms around his waist once more. All her life, people had told Brooke that she was beautiful, but she had never believed it, or felt complimented, until Lucas told her.

She groaned as she felt him pulling away. "I know, I'm sorry, but I gotta go back in there. Night, gorgeous." He took her face in his hands and kissed her slowly, then rested his forehead against hers. She smiled.

"Goodnight, handsome." He kissed her on the forehead, and then went back to Jake's room. That night, they both fell asleep, imagining the other's arms wrapped around them.

Brooke was pulled back to reality when she heard her phone ring. She picked it up, not recognizing the number, but answering it anyway.

"Hello?" She said as she answered the phone. She sniffled to stop her tears. "Hello?" she said again after a moment of getting no response. She finally heard a sniffle on the other line. "Look, I know someone's there, so stop wasting my time and say something." She said angrily into the phone.

She heard the sniffle once more and sighed, frustrated with whoever was on the phone. She finally heard a voice clear and began to speak. "Brooke, I need you."

"I'll be right there." She hung up the phone, grabbed her purse and headed out the door, without even looking into the mirror.

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Brooke quickly parked her car and ran to the main entrance of the hospital. She finally got outside of Lucas' room, when she stopped. She had to keep her emotions in check, so that she could be there for him. She finally opened the door slowly and saw him look at her as she walked into his room. She paused to look at him, almost asking for permission to come any closer. He nodded his head and waved her towards him with his hand. She took slow, delicate steps, until she reached the chair to the right of his bed. She took her seat, and then let out a sigh, relieved that he hadn't yelled at her for being there.

She felt him tug at her hand and met his eyes. She entwined her fingers with his and smiled, while he returned the gesture. He let go of her hand, causing Brooke's smile to falter. He was adjusting himself in his bed, to make room for her. He patted the space next to him and she got out of the chair and moved towards the bed. She sat on the side of the bed and took his hand again. She kissed his hand as she felt tears start to sting her eyes. "Lay with me?" He asked quietly, breaking the ice further. She nodded and lay next to him, still holding his hand. Her head lay next to his on the pillow, but there was no real contact between the two of them, besides their hands. "Cheery, I'm not gonna break if you lean on me." He whispered, in a joking tone. She nodded her head with a smile and leaned on his shoulder, then wrapped one arm carefully around his stomach, stroking it slowly. Her smile faltered once more, as tears entered her eyes again.

She continued to stroke his stomach, and then lowered her arm to his waist. She looked up at him, he saw the questioning look in her eyes and nodded, urging her to go on, silently telling her that he wouldn't get angry. She looked down, where her hand was stroking his waist, and asked quietly, "Can… can you feel that?" She tried to stifle her tears as she looked up into his eyes. He was shocked at her question, but he looked down into her eyes and saw that she was genuinely concerned. He shook his head, no. She broke down and moved closer to him, holding him tightly, without hurting him. "I'm sorry, baby." She said in between sobs. He nodded and pulled her closer, kissing her forehead. "I love you so much, Lucas."

"I love you too, Brooke." He whispered into her ear.

"Always and forever?" Brooke said as a question and a statement, with a smile.

"Always and forever." Lucas replied and kissed her temple.

Brooke took her head out of the crook of his neck and he looked at her, scared that she was going to leave; instead, she put her hands on either side of his face and pressed her lips up against his. He reacted by pulling her closer to him, for easier access. She licked his lips and they parted. Her tongue massaged his and he moaned in pleasure. She giggled against his mouth, and he laughed back. He took a moment to look at her and he got lost in her deep hazel eyes.

"I love you." He said, and then gave her a peck on the mouth.

"I love you, too, Luke and I'm gonna be here no matter what. You know that right?" She asked. He nodded, kissing her once more on the lips. She then settled her head on his shoulder and buried it back into his neck, breathing in his scent, and then she whispered, "I missed this so much." He nodded, telling her that he missed it too.

That night, Brooke and Lucas fell asleep in each other's arms, both of them knowing that that was the way that it was supposed to be.

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The fluff was there. I hope y'all liked that chapter, it was fun and easy to write, but don't worry, there will be more drama… PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW and give me you thoughts and ideas!

Xoxoxox