Title: Together

Disclaimer: Still, sadly I own nothing worth mentioning. I don't even own this song.

Summary: Five years later and Jake's personality had done a 180 since Nikki took Jenny all those years ago. He's not the man she fell for, so when she runs into Lucas again she's forced to reevaluate all the decisions she made. It also doesn't help that Lucas is married too.

Author's Note: Hey, guys, hopefully you're all not mad at me for my severe lack of updates. I kno its been forever, but gosh I've been extremely busy so maybe this will make up for it a little and you'll like this story, its gonna be short, only about 5 or 6 chapters so don't expect much. All I can say is I'm kinda stumped with my other stories now so I'm hoping a new story will get my mind working again.

– 'Something just isn't right, I can feel it inside. The truth isn't far behind me, you can't deny' –

She laid quietly under the covers in their king size bed, alone. He had left nearly ten minutes before without a word, she wasn't sure where he went every morning, the only guarantee she had was that he wasn't with another woman, even as the goodness in his heart had deteriorated after he returned, he was not a liar nor a cheater, this much she knew.

She immediately tensed up at the sound of their front door opening again, and as his footsteps came through the hallway she immediately turned over and closed her eyes. Jake entered the room, glancing around for a different shirt he picked one up from the hardwood floor beneath him, grabbed his briefcase and left again.

She breathed a sigh of relief when he finally closed the door behind him, for some reason her whole mood rose when she was alone. She could still remember the day he returned, early November of their senior year.

She and Lucas were sitting on a bench mid-way through the day, they were supposed to be in history but sometime after lunch they both decided that class just was not entertaining enough to sit through on a Friday. So there they were, laughing at some events from earlier in the day. He had finally gone exclusive with Brooke about a month before and though she was still worried about what that relationship would do to their friendship he assured her nothing was going to change.

"Uh, Peyton," he nudged her shoulder as she continued to ramble on about the fight that nearly broke out at lunch, "Peyt!" at the sound of the name only he used she was pulled out of her daze and back into the real world for a minute.

"Huh?"

"Peyton, look," he pointed out to the street where a man with a motorcycle helmet sat. Her eyes widened, but she couldn't convince herself to believe it. It was only when he pulled his black helmet off and flashed a smile her way that she jumped from the bench and into his open arms.

"What're you doing back?" as her question floated in the air, his eyes darkened significantly.

"I, um...well I talked to the cops and private investigators, they finally found her, but apparently they couldn't hold a case against her, which was bullshit. I tired for five months to get that case and the judge completely blew me off. There's nothing I can do anymore, I had no choice but to come back and just hope maybe some day soon Nikki will become human for a minute and let me see her.," his eyes glazed over at the thought of his little girl and she swiftly wrapped her arms around his neck tightly.

Of course they had gotten back together, and though she remained friends with Lucas things did change, things always had a way of changing just when you get comfortable with life, Peyton had come to notice this over the years. She and Jake had gotten married a year after high school ended, and everyone had been present at their wedding, even Lucas who was no longer with his old high school flame, Brooke Davis. From the first month of their married lives she knew it was going to be a struggle, they were always surrounded by papers and constant phone calls and faxes, he was still fighting for Jenny though no progress was really ever achieved.

From that first year Jake constantly deteriorated, and he continued to fall apart while Peyton watched on helpless. He got angrier, he drank more, he wasn't the man of honesty and thought, he wasn't the man she fell in love with in high school. But she continued to try even when he didn't want to, he hadn't even touched her in over six months, the most he'd done was give her the occasional forehead kiss when they went out to dinner with a few friends.

And it was on those hard nights that she called her old high school friend, Haley James who remained married to Nathan. Things still weren't back to where they were, it took Nathan another year or two to be able to put some trust in her, but she was willing to wait, she'd once said there was no other man for her so it didn't matter if she had to wait for Nathan because he was the only true love she got. Peyton respected that, though she couldn't say she would've done the same. She and Haley had patched things up sometime after school started, while Peyton wanted to be mad she knew Haley was a huge part of her life, and even under all the anger she held she had to admit she did miss Haley's friendship.

– 'When I turn the lights out, when I close my eyes, reality overcomes me, I'm living a lie' –

It was three hours later that she was dressed and folding some clothes that the phone startled her. She dropped Jake's t-shirt that was in her small hands and ran to find a phone underneath some blankets that were strewn across the couch from Jake having slept there the night before. He very rarely slept in their bed anymore, and though it hadn't really bothered her all that much at first, now it did, now it made her wonder what he felt for her anymore.

"Hello?"

"Peyton, hey," Haley spoke nonchalantly into the phone from her spot on her couch. They were both off on Wednesdays considering they both worked for the same place, though their departments were so different Peyton rarely got the chance to see her petite friend.

"Haley, what's up?"

"Hmm, well I know we're not really supposed to be taking off work and all, but you in the mood to get outta here for a few weeks?"

"A few weeks? How do you plan to get us off work for a few weeks, Hales," after much debate Peyton decided to sit on the messy couch and put her mind into the conversation.

"Eh, I'll work my magic. But are you in?"

"Depends. Where we going?"

"Okay, I know you might not like this, but I think it'll be good for both of us, I mean we've been living up here for so long, maybe -"

"Tree Hill?" Peyton guessed and Haley became silent. Of course she didn't want to go back, there were so many memories there, but then there was a huge part of her that wanted to know what changed, who still lived there, and some part of her wanted to relive her high school days, because she was a hell of a lot happier then, compared to the life she was living now. She took one look around the apartment she and Jake were residing in and made up her mind right away.

"So?"

"I'm in. When do we leave?"

"I was thinking tonight, road trip!" Haley squealed and Peyton laughed at her friend's excitement. They agreed on Haley coming to get her at midnight after Jake was asleep, she had no intention of telling him that she was leaving because there was a good chance he would keep her from leaving, and he didn't rule her life.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment after she hung the phone up and remained on the couch. Her thoughts drifted to the man Jake had once been and it physically hurt her to think of what he had become, how different he was. And she thought of how big of a lie their wedding vows had been because even then up in front of all her friends and God she knew that she didn't love him the way she used to. And then it occurred to her that her whole life was a lie and she had wasted a significant part of her life being miserable with a man she didn't love, and she knew right then and there that she would not live the rest of her life that way.

– 'When I'm alone I feel so much better, when I'm around you I don't feel...together it doesn't feel right at all, together, together we've built a wall, together holding hands we'll fall, hands we'll fall' –

She tip-toed through the house, very cautious as she crept past the couch where Jake slept soundlessly. It was a liberating feeling as she closed the door behind her, picked up her suitcase and backpack and made her way to Haley's car.

"Does Nathan know you're leaving?"

"Yea, he was the one who suggested it actually," Haley turned the radio up as Something Corporate played through her speakers and Peyton sat in the passenger seat.

"Going old school?" Peyton teased the girl beside her while Haley stuck her tongue out and sped off.

Many hours later they switched spots and Peyton began to drive while Haley dozed off next to her. So often her thoughts drifted back to Lucas, the boy who had stolen her heart in the beginning of junior year and became her best friend by the end of it. That year had been the year of change for them all, it was the year Nathan and Haley married and nearly got annulled, the year of the love triangle and Brooke finally ended high school with him. The year Peyton went through three guys, each of which she loved fully at some point. The year had started and she had high expectations but never in her wildest dreams did she expect to end that year on the beach with Lucas Scott, but that's exactly where she ended up.

The past year had been monotonous. She had gone through the same routine with Jake, though through the year he managed to become more distant than he already was, and she figured that was some sort of accomplishment. She had also managed to take up a full king size bed when he slept on the couch, which was nearly every night, so she usually slept well. Also, she had learned to run their water bill through the roof with her hour showers and even better was that she wasn't the one paying for it. And finally, she had learned to sneak out of the house, a trait that she hadn't needed in high school considering her father was never home through her high school years anyway.

– 'This has gone on so long, I realize that I need something good to rely on, something for me' –

It had taken a few days but they finally arrived back in Tree Hill. The sun was shining brightly when they pulled up in front of the only motel in the small town and upon checking in Haley's cell phone began to ring. She answered, telling Nathan they were fine and they were about to go check the old town out, she giggled a few times at a joke he made, and it had only depressed Peyton seeing her friend so happy. Minutes later when Haley hung up she looked over at her blonde friend who had a huge smile plastered on her face.

"Let's go," she led them through the front door and out onto the streets.

It hadn't taken much hoaxing from Haley to get Peyton down to the River Court, and when they walked up to the asphalt where the basketball nets still stood Peyton was sent reeling into her memories. She could still remember the roar of the crowd as Lucas scored the winning basket against Nathan, and standing on the court after Lucas had blown his first varsity game. There were several more occasions there but the one that stood out was mid-way through senior year when she and Lucas spent the night there, well spent the night sitting there talking.

"Take a deep breath," he spoke gently, wiping a few tears from her cheeks as he sat next to her, almost reminiscent of their time at the beach that summer.

"It's just...I don't know what he did that for, Luke. He had no reason to scream the way he did, or say those things but he did " she sobbed through her explanation and he kept her tucked near him.

"Do you wanna go home?"

"NO, no I can't go there. He's probably waiting there trying to apologize, and I can't face him right now," she sniffled once or twice, and as he raised an eyebrow he looked over at her.

"Do you wanna just stay here tonight, we can just hang out," his suggestion seemed crazy but it was just what she needed.

"You're serious?"

"Definitely. I feel like we haven't spent a lot of time together since Brooke and Jake, so I think a whole night should catch us up," she laughed and nodded her head slowly.

"Staying here sounds pretty good to me."

– 'My heart is broken, I'm lying here, my thoughts are choking on you my dear, on you my dear, on you my dear' –

After a long day of wandering through their old town, Haley was beat so she had opted to go back to their room, but Peyton couldn't stop her mind from working. Her brain just continued to race and she knew there was no way she would get to sleep. She had nowhere to go, but her feet took her back to the beach and it took her back to the night many moons ago.

As she sat down in the soft sand the tears filled her eyes, she wiped at them furiously. Her life was something she had never wanted, she living a life that didn't make her happy, hell she wasn't even involved in art anymore and there was a hole in her heart because of it. But Jake had told her she couldn't make enough money in that profession and she had very reluctantly started answering phones at some big business, something the old Peyton Sawyer never would of done. But that was just it, he had sucked the life out of her.

She was no longer the Peyton Sawyer that everyone in Tree Hill knew, because Jake had made sure that girl was no longer a part of the girl he married. And she often missed that girl that she once was, and deep down she knew that girl still existed somewhere inside of her. As she sat on the beach she decided her goal for the trip was to bring the old Peyton Sawyer back, because she so desperately wanted to be happy again.

"Peyt?" she snapped her head back quickly at the name that only one person had ever used and was shocked to see the boy - man who stood behind her. His now dark brown hair was a little longer than usual, but it was gelled and spiked in all different directions, his beard had grown in slightly - the scruffy look suited him well. He wore loose jeans that hung low around his waist and a white t-shirt as though he hadn't really planned on going anywhere but the beach seeing as the white t-shirt was obviously just an undershirt. While he didn't look all that much different he had filled in slightly, he looked more manly and grown up than the boy she had known in high school.

"Luke," her smile grew as she met his eyes on that dark night, she noticed how pain filled his crystal blue eyes looked, she just wondered if hers were as noticeable.

Okay, so it might be starting off a bit slow, but I hope you like it & review!