"You okay?" Nathan asked.
"I'm fine", Haley sighed. "Why do you ask?"
"You just look sad."
"I am. You look sad, too."
"I'm not sad."
Haley raised an eyebrow.
"What, babe? Sorry, it's not very macho to be sad. But I guess I am pretty close to it."
"Can we way you're bummed?"
He managed a small smile.
"I guess that's manly enough. I'm bummed."
Deb joined them with a crate of freshly washed glasses.
"What are we talking about?"
"We miss Brooke", Haley took a deep breath.
Deb shook her head.
"Join the club. She hasn't been gone more than a couple of hours and already everything seems so different."
"Do you think she'll ever come back?" Haley asked.
Nathan shook his head.
"Nah. She's going back to her old life. We don't fit into that, Hales."
"That sucks."
"That does suck", Deb agreed.
"She was really fun", Haley remembered. "And a lot of fun to be with. I swear sometimes she would say the silliest, most off the wall comments like ever. She can give Jessica Simpson a run for her money any day. Like this one time she was arguing with a customer and I went over to see what all the fuss was about and I look down and on his plate is this hamburger patty just as naked as it wanted to be. So I ask what's wrong and the man goes he ordered a hamburger with nothing on it. Brooke says, 'Exactly'. Of course he meant plain, like no lettuce or tomato or mayo but Brooke took it literally so she didn't give him a bun either. He was so mad and she was not backing down and I was about to pee on myself and she just looked over and was like, 'what?'."
"Yeah", Deb grinned. "And she was so sweet. Always willing to learn and help out and please. I really liked having her around. And when I was sick? I don't know how I would have gotten through those rough patches without her."
Nathan smiled as well.
"Brooke was cool. She was really easy to talk to. I guess I'll miss that most, along with how I'd be in the back office and she'd come with a piece of pie and a guilty look on her face."
"Pie?"
"Yeah. She knows I love pie so whenever she broke something, which was pretty often, that's how she'd deliver the news."
They all chuckled. There was only one Brooke Davis and she would be missed.
"I just hope Luke is going to be okay", Haley added.
"Me too", Deb sighed. "It's not going to be easy. We just have to rally around and make sure he's okay even the times he'll make it difficult on us."
"Speak of the devil", Nathan said as the doors opened and in walked Lucas.
He looked tired and a little pale and it didn't take a genius to figure out his eyes were red and puffy from crying and many sleepless nights.
"Hey, sweetie", Deb hugged him.
"Hey, guys", he mumbled.
"You okay?" Haley asked.
Lucas shrugged.
"Right now? No. But it's cool. I'll be alright."
Nathan bit his lip.
"Want to have a beer and talk about it, bro?"
"I appreciate the thought but I don't think that's a good idea. We all know one beer might turn into ten with me. I'm cool. How about a water and a rain check on the talk?"
"You got it", Nathan said, tossing him an ice cold bottle of Evian.
Lucas tried to smile.
"Look, I know you guys are worried about me and I really appreciate it. I also know you're on pins and needles waiting for the big showdown but I promise you that's not gonna happen. I've had a lot of time to think and I've decided to handle this one like a man. It's going to be tough and I feel like my life is over because my heart has been ripped out, but I'm gonna make it. I'm not gonna run away. Deb, if it's cool with you, I'll keep on living at your place and working here. And I'm not gonna turn to the bottle to drown my sorrows. I'm gonna face my problems and I'm going to get through this and everything is going to be alright."
"Good for you, sweetie", Deb smiled. "Of course you're welcome here any my home is your home."
"Yeah", Haley agreed. "I'm real proud of you. We're here for you and it might be hard but I think this made you a much better person. Everything does happen for a reason. People come into our lives for a reason. You needed Brooke and she needed you two. Even though she's gone and it sucks and it's sad, at least you can hang onto the good memories. And there were a lot of good times. There is nothing wrong with remembering that. It is better to have loved and lost, then never loved at all."
He nodded.
"Thanks, Hales. I appreciate it."
"Maybe we can do something next week", Nathan volunteered. "I don't know, go see a game or go fishing or camping."
They were all putting themselves out there, willing to do whatever to offer a welcome distraction and sympathetic arms and ears.
"Sure, man. Sounds good."
"Well, this place is dead today for sure", Deb observed. "Oh well. I have a freshly baked Marble Cake in the oven that has our names written all over it. What do you say, kids?"
"Marble Cake?" Lucas frowned. "That's my all time favorite. I didn't know you could make it. My mom used to make it for me all the time."
"True but she can't do it like I can", Deb winked. "And face it, Mae always liked me better anyway. Karen's not the only one with the super secret Scott family recipe."
They laughed and licked their lips, four mouths literally watering as Deb brought out the cake along with napkins, forks and plates.
"Mmmmm, this looks so good", Haley moaned. "And it smells even better."
"Let's just hope this place stays empty long enough for us to enjoy it. I don't feel like sharing", Nathan added.
"Don't jinx us, dude", Lucas smiled. "As soon as we dig in those damned doors are gonna open."
"Oh well. Haley is the waitress, aren't you, babe?"
"Hey!" she balled up a napkin and hit her boyfriend. "Why don't I get to enjoy cake?"
Laughter and teasing quickly turned into groans as they heard the doors open.
"Damn", Deb wiped her mouth. "Oh well. Duty is a calling."
"You never know who is gonna walk through those doors", Lucas shrugged.
At the moment he had no idea just how right he was.
"Oh God, is that Marble Cake?"
Four heads whipped in the direction of the front. That voice, only one person in the world had a voice like that but it couldn't be. She was long gone. Her flight had probably already touched down in New York.
"Brooke!" Haley yelled, hopping over the counter and running to her. "What are you doing here?"
The pretty brunette shrugged, out of breath.
"I am flipping exhausted! First thing tomorrow, I am so investing in a cell phone. One of those bad boys would really have come in handy as I just finished walking my ass from the airport exit."
"You walked? All the way from there?" Nathan questioned. "Brooke, that's six…"
"Six whole miles, I know, I know. Trust me, look at the bunions and corns forming on my poor feet. If I'd had a phone, I could have called you guys to come get me. Or in my haste to escape my crazy parents and friends in the limo ride from hell, if I had remembered to grab my purse, maybe I would have had spare change to call you guys or ay least a taxi. And speaking of, that brings me to my second order of business tomorrow. After I get a cell phone tomorrow, I am so writing the mayor to bless him out for not having enough random cabs on the road. I swear in Manhattan, you never have this problem."
Everyone was still pretty much speechless.
"So you're getting a cell phone and you're gonna complain to the mayor", Deb grinned. "Does this mean you're back for good?"
Brooke shrugged.
"Hell yeah. So excuse me while I kick off my shoes and don't just stand there, somebody cut me a slice of cake. All that walking really works up a girl's appetite."
Lucas felt like he was dreaming. At least his dream girl was standing in front of him. It had broken his heart when she left. But now she was back. Just like that. He wanted to scream for joy. He wanted to run around naked and sing a happy tune. He wanted to cry. He wanted to wrap his arms around her. Instead, he eyed her nervously while managing to croak out a single question.
"You're all cut up. What…what happened to you?"
"Oh I just jumped out of a moving car."
"What?" they all exclaimed in horror.
"Calm down. It was only going like 10 or 15 miles per hour and I didn't break anything. I tried to remember the MacGyver tuck and roll stuff and if I had I would have been fine."
"Honey, why on earth would you jump out of a moving car?" Deb asked. "That's crazy!"
"No, Deb. What's crazy is that I got in that car in the first place. It was all wrong. I know I shouldn't have done it. I know I should have listened to you guys in the first place. I should have listened to my heart. If I had then it would have avoided a lot of pain and tears but it's okay because the important thing is, I'm here now…if you guys will still have me."
"Of course we will", Deb said.
"Thanks. So Deb, if it's not too much trouble, I'd really like my room and my job back. I'm here to stay."
"It's all yours, kiddo."
"Thank you for all your help and just for being you. You are the sweetest person I know. And Haley? It's nice to have a real girlfriend. I'm really glad we met. Nathan, you know how I feel about you. I had to come back. Who else was gonna teach me about cars and take me jogging before dawn."
Nathan smiled as he motioned to his brother.
"Aren't you forgetting someone?"
"Oh yeah", Brooke said as she swallowed a mouthful of cake. "So here's the deal. We first met, we hated each other and then you stopped acting like an ass so it grew on me. Bottom line, I couldn't leave you because you're the best thing that's ever happened to me and because of you, I jumped out of a moving car, broke up with my fiancé, got disowned by my parents, talked my way out of a lucrative inheritance, and walked six miles. So for all that you've got to know by now that I am crazy about you…or just plain crazy. The jury is still out on that one. Anyway, let's have cake, we'll go home, you can rub my feet, which let me pre warn you are pretty gross right about now, and we'll talk and maybe, Deb close your ears, make love and uh, hopefully you'll forgive me."
There it was. There she was. And nothing else mattered. Lucas jumped off the barstool and ran and picked her up. Her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist as he answered with a big, wet kiss as the others applauded.
"I think you're forgiven", he said breathlessly after pulling away.
She looked in his blue eyes.
"I did it the hard way and for that I'm sorry but now I know and I can finally say what's been in my heart all along. You're my soul mate, Lucas Scott. I love you and you're the one I want to be with."
He sighed.
"It won't always be easy. I get on your nerves sometimes. I'm a cover hog. My family is crazy. I'm friends with Tim Smith."
She smiled.
"Yeah but it's gonna take a lot more than that to get rid of me. I think I can handle it."
God, that woman made his heart melt. Brooke was truly the best.
"I love you, too", he whispered over and over again, hanging onto her for dear life.