Chapter Three
My How Things Have Changed

Before I got the letter I thought I was at a point in my life when I was prepared for anything. I thought I was ready to move on, or maybe I thought I had moved on. Whatever I thought, I was wrong, really wrong.

Now here I stood in the middle of an airport I had been in so many times before feeling something I had felt so many times before. Anxiety. The feeling was rising through my body. This could not have come at a more inconvenient time.

I was suddenly short of breath. My heart started to race. My hands slipped on and off of my luggage and I started to stumble. I strained my eyes and searched for somewhere to sit for a moment.

A woman in her mid forties with a short blonde bob noticed my troubles and reached for my hand. I let her help me toward a chair. The stranger ran her hands over my hair and down my back, "Honey, can I help you?"

I tried to take a deep breath and speak, but nothing would come out. I reached for a pen from my purse and on my hand I wrote, "Sugar packet."

She nodded and ran toward the coffee shop cattycornered from where I was seated. I sorted through my purse for my blood sugar kit, but it was no where to be found. I closed my eyes and wiped my forehead clean. The sweat was trickling down toward my eyes.

Finally the woman came back with a handful of sugar packets. I reached for one, ripped it open, and poured it into my mouth. I tried to swallow. After it finally went down, all I could do was wait and see if this was going to be another one of those attacks that sent me to the hospital for countless numbers of tests or if I would be okay and able to go on my way.

The woman sitting next to me suddenly looked familiar. It was a woman I had spent Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter dinners with. I had sat next to this woman and told her how much I loved and cared for her son and how I hoped someday I could give her the grandchildren she had always wanted.

Sitting next to me was Deb Scott, my former mother in law.

Right then I almost hoped that this attack would send me to the hospital so that I would have a reason not to talk to her. I couldn't be so lucky. The attack passed and I remained sitting next to Deb Scott, a woman I had not seen in over ten years, silent.

I leaned forward and picked up my purse. I rested my hand on my luggage and turned to her, "Um... thanks a lot for helping me. I forgot to..."

She almost smiled and said, "Not a problem. I saw that you needed help and I'm just glad I was there."

"Yeah," I stood up. She did the same, "Well I better get going. I have a plane to catch."

Deb nodded and turned to walk away, "Haley."

I slowly turned around, nervous to hear anything that was about to be said, "It's good seeing you and... take care of yourself. No one wants to see you get hurt."

I nodded. "Thanks."

I didn't need my former mother-in-law looking out for me. I could look out for myself. I had been looking out for myself for ten years, ever since I drove out of Tree Hill without ever turning back. I didn't look back to see if my parents approved of my leaving and I didn't look back to see if anyone was following me because if I did, I knew I would see Nathan and he was the last person I wanted to see as I raced out of Tree Hill.

I began humming to myself and closed my eyes. Lucas hated it when I hummed...

"I hate it when you do that!" Lucas yelled as he raced back and forth from the kitchen to the living room. "I hate it when you ignore me like this."

Brooke shuffled around the house, baby in tow and said, through clinched teeth, "I am not ignoring you, hon. I am just busy and when I am busy I tend to forget to be there for you every waking second." She narrowed her eyes at him and half smiled.

The couple's townhouse in the newly developing Ashford Hills in Savannah, Georgia was a wreck. Lucas's friends from work and several of Abby's friends had been over the night before. Beer cans cover the living room tables and upstairs Barbie dolls and dress up clothes were thrown throughout the playroom.

Lucas picked up five cans, smashed them, and tossed the cans into the plastic trash bag he was holding. "Brooke!" He sighed and picked up another three cans. She was doing it again, "Brooke! When is my mother supposed to be here?"

As if on cue, there was a knock at the door. Lucas kicked the door open. His mother stood right infront of him.

"Well Luke, you have a party last night huh?" She winked at him.

"Hey mom." He said, giving his mother a hug and making sure not to spill any remaining beer onto his mother's clothes.

Brooke ran around Abby's room, with Beau in her arms. "Abigail Grace, please come take a bath. Meemaw will be here any minute and then daddy and I have to..."

Abby ran up the stairs with Karen just a step behind. "Meemaw is here." She smiled at Brooke.

She smiled back and handed Beau to his grandmother, "Okay, well I hate to do this but Luke and I really have got to go."

"Do you have everything ready? Everything packed up?"

Brooke nodded and she ran a list through her head. Underwear, check. Pajamas, check. Toothbrush, toothpaste, check, check. "I think so." She started down the stairs. When she reached the bottom she saw Lucas looking through a photo album.

"What'cha doin' babe?" She asked as she walked toward her husband and put her hand on his muscular shoulder.

"Just thinkin'." He said, slowly looking up at her.

Brooke sat next to him on the couch and put her head on his shoulder. "Oh?"

He ran his fingers over a picture that was taken at their wedding. Lucas and Haley were dancing together in the middle of the ballroom. He sighed and looked up at her, "What if she doesn't come, Brooke? I mean, I haven't seen... we haven't seen each other in so long and I know she doesn't want to have to see Nathan..."

Brooke kissed him on the head and put her soft hands on his rough face, "She'll come, I promise." She winked at him and smiled.

He kissed her hand that remained on his face, "I hope so." He smiled back, "You know I love you right."

She took her hands off his face and leaned back on the couch, "How could you not?" She asked. "Look at me. I am the most fabulous looking twenty seven year old woman in all of Savannah."

"Speeking of age." Brooke stood up and Lucas followed her up the stairs, "Someone has a birthday coming up."

"Don't remind me." She mumbled. "I am going to be twenty eight and that is almost thirty you know and then... I'll be over the hill."

"Might as well get her a walker, huh Luke?" Karen said as she pulled Abby out of the bathtub.

Brooke nodded, "Might as well."

Abby grabbed hold of her mothers leg, "Momma, are you leaving yet?"

"Why?" She reached down and picked up her soaking wet daughter, "Do you want me to?"

Abby nodded and her dripping blonde hair shook turning spots of Brooke's light blue shirt turn almost navy, "Yeah, sorta, cause Meemaw is gonna let me make cookies and then we are gonna eat all the ice cream we can." Abby smiled, showing the three front teeth that were missing.

"Alright, Abs, but lets hope you don't loose anymore teeth while Meemaw is here because if you do, I don't think you will be able to eat a single thing." When Brooke said "single thing" she tapped her little girl on the nose, making Abby giggle.

Brooke put her back down and she clawed at her daddy, "Hey daddy, guess what?"

Lucas kneeled down, "Whats that hun?"

"I know something that you don't know."

Lucas and Brooke looked back and forth at one another. Brooke shrugged.

"What would that be my little princess?" Lucas picked her up.

"Come here, it's a secret." Lucas smiled and Abby whispered, "Someone called and told me they are going to go to see you," so loud that everyone in the room could hear.

"And who would that be?" He whispered back.

Abby jumped out of his arms and put her hands on her hips, "Nope, can't tell ya." She ran out of the bathroom and into her room. "Bye momma. Bye daddy. I'll save you some cookies."

Brooke and Lucas kissed Beau on the head and gave Karen hugs. "Thank you so much for doing this Ms. Roe. We appreciate it so much."

"Please, Brooke, please how many times do I have to tell you? It's Karen."

"Well Karen, this means a lot to us."

She nodded, "Now you two go. I don't want you to be late!" She pushed them out the front door. "Go, go! And have fun!"

Lucas and Brooke climbed into their SUV and looked at one another, "Here goes nothing." Lucas said as he turned the key.

Brooke looked over at him, "I can only imagine how this is going to go."

She had no idea.