Well here I am. I know, finally, right? I won't babble on, I hope you enjoy it and it was sort of worth the wait.
Brooke raised her eyebrow as Taylor struggled to get through the front door. She was currently carrying two boxes and it was an obvious struggle for her. It had been at least a week since the fall out with Haley. Everything was pretty much back to normal, Haley managed to avoid the cheer Nazis and them confronting her about the party.
"No, no, Brooke, please don't get up, I've got it," Taylor said sarcastically, dropping the two boxes next to the couch. Brooke looked up from her magazine and shrugged.
"I wasn't going to anyways," she said, going back to the magazine. Taylor rolled her eyes and snatched the magazine out her hands, making Brooke gasp. "Hey! I was reading about Avril Lavigne's engagement. Eew."
Taylor wrinkled her nose in disgust and threw the magazine on the table. "Eew is right. Who the hell wants to marry her? Whatever, now get off your lazy ass and help me carry these boxes up stairs."
"Why? What the heck did you bring home?" Brooke made a face and groaned as Taylor pulled her up from the couch. "Jeeze, watch it, I'm getting up, Taylor." Taylor rolled her eyes at how whiny Brooke was being, it was just one box, what was the big deal?
"Well you know how after Mom and Dad died we sort of put a bunch of their stuff in storage?" Brooke nodded and grabbed the lightest box and followed Taylor up the stairs, "well I was feeling sort of nostalgic so I went and got a few things. Just some old home movies and I think a few photo albums."
"Aw, that's such a great idea. I would have never thought of doing something like that. Haley wanted to do something like that last year but I don't think she ever got around doing it." Brooke said, stopping outside their parent's room. Taylor motioned for her to bring the box into the room and Brooke followed, dropping it down on the floor next to the other box.
"Where's Haley? She'll probably want to look at this too," Taylor said, opening one of the boxes and watching as Brooke did the same. Brooke was too engrossed at the photos in the box to hear Taylor. "Brooke?" Taylor snapped her finger to get her attention.
Brooke quickly jerked up and shook her head. "Oh, uh I think she might be in her room. Long day at school I guess. I'll go get her." Taylor nodded and watched Brooke skip out of the room, obviously excited about looking through the old pictures and watching the old home movies.
"Are you decent, baby?" Brooke knocked on Haley's door before she opened it. Haley looked up at her with a frown.
"Tigger, the whole point of knocking is to wait for the other person on the other side of the door to say to come in. I mean I could have been naked!" Haley exclaimed but quickly breaking into a grin when Brooke laughed.
"Hales, we've been through this millions of times, we grew up sharing a room, I've seen you naked." Brooke laughed, sitting down on the bed next to her sister. Haley shrugged and turned away shyly, trying to rid herself of the embarrassment.
"Okay and the naked conversation stops. To what do I owe this pleasure of my sister paying me a visit on this Friday night?" Haley said in surprise, wondering where Brooke's social life went.
"Well," Brooke explained, pushing Haley slightly, trying to think of why she had come in here the first place. Oh yeah, the boxes. "Okay, so Taylor was feeling nostalgic and she went and got some of the old stuff of Mom and Dad's that we put into storage and she wants to go through them I guess. So what do you say? Up for some sisterly bonding?"
Haley shrugged and bit her lip, going into deep thought for a few seconds. "I suppose," she sighed dramatically, "I guess I have room in my busy schedule for you two." Brooke breathed a sigh of relief and pulled Haley off the bed.
"Oh, well thank you so much for penciling us in Ms. James, we'll forever cherish the moment." Haley laughed and linked arms with Brooke as they walked down the hall and back into their parent's room. "Oh my god, Taylor I hope you remember this night for the rest of your life, because our little sister, Haley James has made room for us in our schedule."
Taylor laughed and put her hand to her heart. "Aw, Hales, thanks. I feel so special. Now as fun as that was, sit your ass down and help me look through this box." Taylor turned the box upside down and watched the things fall out.
"Now, if we find that really stupid picture of me in the bathtub, can we just not say anything about it? I was 2, okay 2." Brooke exclaimed sitting down on the floor and leaning against the bed. Taylor rolled her eyes and started searching through the pile of pictures for that one picture. Brooke looked at Haley, who was standing off to the side with her arms crossed.
"Haley, what are you waiting for a bus? Sit down!"
"Oh," Haley mumbled, snapping out of her daze. She looked around the room and noticed there was practically no place to sit with the pictures spread out across the floor. "Where would you like me to sit? Your lap?"
Brooke shrugged and patted her knee, "Well if you insist," Haley shrugged and walked over to Brooke and sat down on her lap, sitting on her hand. "Okay, I said my lap, not my hand." Haley got up a bit for Brooke to lift her hand up and she sat back down.
Taylor was too busy rummaging through the pictures to notice her two sisters but when she looked up she gave them a weird look. "Are we 5 girls?"
"Shut up," Brooke and Haley said in unison making Taylor roll her eyes. "Well where else do you want me to sit?" Haley asked in a cold tone.
"Relax, Hay," Taylor said putting her hand up in defense, "I was kidding. No need to get upset. Look, can we just do this without arguing? We're supposed to be bonding, not fighting."
"Okay," Brooke interjected before Haley could come back with something to say. "So about we talk about something else? Did you find anything, Tay?"
Taylor nodded and smiled widely. "The one of you in the bath," Brooke's eyes widened and tried to stand up but Haley didn't move. "Aw, weren't you the cutest thing ever? Hales, don't get up, I want to embarrass her as much as possible." Brooke grunted and Haley shifted all her weight onto Brooke's lap.
"Stop," Brooke whined leaning her head back onto the bed, "make fun of Brooke day is over! Move on right now." She found the nearest picture and picked it up, making a face when it was just a boring one of Taylor and Haley. "Oh, it's just you two." Brooke frowned giving the picture to Haley.
"Oh this is the one where Taylor was babysitting me and then I fell and broke my arm," Taylor laughed at the memory, still remembering that day like it was yesterday.
"How do you know when the water is boiling?" 7 year old Haley asked, standing on her stool over the stove. She stuck her face over and gazed into the bubbling water.
"Stick your fingers in it," Taylor replied lamely going back to her phone conversation.
"Don't stick your fingers in it!" Lydia said, coming into the room, clipping her earrings on. "Taylor, I thought I told you to watch her."
"I'm on the phone mom. I don't have time to watch the little baby." Taylor rolled her eyes and went back to her conversation. "Sorry my mom's being annoying."
Lydia laughed and walked over to Haley and lifted her down off the stool. "Haley-Bub what have I told you about standing over the stove with Mr. Waffles?" Haley gulped and his Mr. Waffles behind her back.
"I don't know?" Haley replied with a sweet smile, Lydia laughed and poured the macaroni in, making Haley jump in excitement. "Is it ready yet?"
"No, but just a few more minutes, how about you go sit at the table with Taylor and it should be ready soon."
"Mom, can you please be quiet? Like I said before, I'm on the phone," Taylor mumbled something and hung up, rolling her eyes when she saw Haley staring at her. "What do you want?"
"Nothing," Haley stuck her tongue out and climbed into the chair and put Mr. Waffles onto the table. Taylor made a face at the teddy bear and sighed heavily.
"Mom, if you care about my social life you will take the baby with you and let me go out. What kind of 13 year old stays home on a FRIDAY night babysitting their little sister?"
"Apparently you do. Look, Taylor we've been through this a million times, you can't go out until you pull up your English grade. And please stop whining, that's Haley's job."
"Hey!" Haley cried looking at her mother with a sad look. Lydia laughed and put the bowl of macaroni in front of her which made the sad look disappear.
"I'm all ready!" Brooke exclaimed, lugging her care bear suitcase into the kitchen with Jimmy in tow.
"Brooke you're staying at Peyton's for one night! What could you possibly have in there?" Jimmy motioned for her to stop but it was too late.
Brooke sighed dramatically and put her hands on her hips. "Mom! What kind of question is that? I know its only one night, but I don't know what the weather is going to be like tomorrow! It could be hot, so I packed some shorts and a tank top, it could be cold so I packed a sweatshirt and a few pairs of jeans, I packed-"
"Okay we get it!" Taylor yelled getting up from the table. "If anyone needs me, I'll be up in my room wasting my life away."
"Sounds good," Jimmy called out behind her with a laugh. Taylor stomped up the stairs, making him laugh even more. Lydia put a bowl on the table for Brooke and looked at her husband with a laugh. "Trouble in paradise for our oldest daughter?"
"She's mad cause she has to babysit me," Haley said with a mouthful of food. Brooke made a face and put her fork down, suddenly losing her appetite.
"Haley," she said in a motherly tone, "how many times have I told you it's not polite to chew with your mouth open? Just try to remember to swallow first." Both Lydia and Jimmy burst out laughing at their daughter.
"Sorry Brooke, I forgot," Haley said in a whisper. Brooke giggled and reached over and patted her sister on the head.
"Hales, I'm sorry about leaving you all alone tonight with Taylor. But Peyton invited me over like two weeks ago and I just can't cancel. I've been pretty busy these days now that I'm 8 it seems like everyone likes you better when you're 8."
"Well I appreciate you making time for us little people to eat your dinner," Lydia commented watching Brooke take a mouthful of macaroni and cheese.
"You're welcome," she mumbled with her mouth full of food. Haley's eyes widened and she gasped at the sight of her sister.
"Brooke!" Haley mocked her sister's tone, "How many times have I told you not to eat with your mouthful? It's not polite." Brooke rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at Haley. She quickly finished the bowl and got up from the table.
"Come on, I don't want to be late for Peyton's. The best friend has to be there before the other friends!" Brooke exclaimed picking up her suitcase and grabbing her dad's hand and pulled him towards the back door. Haley watched sadly as Brooke rushed over to the door in excitement.
"Brookie, hold on a second," Jimmy said stopping at the door and releasing his hand from Brooke's. "Let your mother and I say good night to Haley-bub and Taylor." Brooke nodded and followed her father over to Haley.
"Night, Hales," she smiled, giving Haley a hug. "I'll see you tomorrow, 'kay?"
Haley nodded and held onto Mr. Waffles as she followed the three of them into the living room.
"Taylor!" Lydia called up the stairs, waiting for her oldest daughter to come down the stairs, "we're leaving now."
A few minutes later, a bored looking Taylor came down the stairs with the phone in her hands. "Whatever mother. I hope you have fun knowing that your daughter is wasting away."
"Oh, shutup Taylor," Brooke rolled her eyes, "you're gonna be with Haley, what's more fun than that."
"Okay, Taylor just keep an eye on her, alright? We should be home by 11." Lydia said before saying their last good byes before heading out. Taylor and Haley stared at each other, Taylor occasionally rolling her eyes.
"Look, kid, you just go play and stay away from me, okay?" Taylor said, picking up the phone and dialing her friend's number. Haley shrugged and watched her walk away before heading up the stairs into her room.
"What do you want to do, Mr. Waffles?" Haley asked, scanning the room for something to do. She spotted her blue ball in the corner of the room and ran over and picked it up. "Come on, we can go annoy Taylor."
"So, anyways, what happened with Kyle?" Taylor asked, digging into her bowl of ice cream, "did he ask you out or what." Haley came into the room, bouncing the ball all around the kitchen. "What"? I can't hear you, Sarah. Hold on, my little sister is here." She put the phone down and kneeled in front of Haley, "Haley, can you stop bouncing that in here, please? I'm on the phone."
Haley smiled and Taylor smiled, thinking Haley was going to listen to her. "No," she replied, bouncing the ball again. Taylor groaned and lifted Haley under her arm.
"Fine, you want to bounce that ball, you bounce it out here on the porch. And stay away from the stairs," Taylor commanded, shutting the screen door behind her. Haley shrugged and continued to bounce the ball as Taylor went back to her phone call. "Sorry, she can be such a pain sometimes. At least now I can sort of hear you."
"What is she doing?"
"She's bouncing some stupid ball outside. That noise is driving me nuts."
Bounce. Bounce. Bounce. There was silence for a minute and Taylor felt herself relax. "So, Kyle, what happened?" Bounce. Bounce. Bounce. "Just speak up a little, it's not that hard!"
As Taylor listened contently, she heard a loud bang outside. She didn't think anything of it until she realized she didn't hear the bouncing. "Sarah? Yeah, can I call you back, I just want to go check on Haley." Her friend sighed on the other end and Taylor placed the phone down on the table. She got up to the door and peered out onto the porch and her heart skipped a beat when Haley wasn't in sight. "Haley?" She called out because stepping out onto the porch. "Haley, this isn't funny! Come back here right now." She heard a distance sob and walked over to the stairs and nearly did a double take at the sight below her. "Haley?" She cried, rushing down the stairs and kneeling down next to her sister. "Haley, what happened?"
Haley cried harder as she held onto her left arm tight, "I, I was bouncing the ball and, and I wasn't paying attention, and, and I fell down the stairs. And my arm hurts, Tay," Taylor scooped her up in her arms and sat her down on her lap.
"Is it your left arm?" Taylor asked, running her hands through Haley's hair. Haley sniffled and held it tighter. "Can you move it?"
"No, it hurts too much," Haley whispered, "I want mommy."
Taylor gulped, realizing she had no idea where her parents were. "Honey, I don't know where they are. So, so, you're just going to have to be brave for, Tay, okay? I'm gonna call 911 and we'll get you a doctor, okay?" Taylor tried to hide the panic in her voice so it didn't make Haley more scared than she already was. "We're just going to go up the stairs, okay? Can you stand up or do you want me to carry you?"
"Carry me," Haley whispered through her tears. Taylor smiled and carefully stood up with Haley in her arms. They got into the kitchen and she sat her on the kitchen counter as she reached for the phone.
"911 please state your emergency."
"Yes, hi," Taylor said nervously, running her hands through her hair, "my sister fell down the stairs and I think she might have hurt her arm and I don't know where my parent's are and I'm only 13 and her arm might be broken and I, just, I didn't know what else to do."
"It's okay, its okay," the woman on the other end said soothingly, "just relax. We'll send an ambulance over there right away. What's your address?"
"112 Chestnut Street," Taylor repeated slowly, nodding as the woman repeated it back. She hung up the phone and walked back over to Haley, who looked so small. "It's okay Haley-bub, help is on the way."
"It really hurts, Taylor," Haley sobbed harder, wishing the pain will go away. Taylor hugged her carefully and listened as the ambulance pull up.
"Okay, Hay, they're here, now, be brave for Tay, okay?" Haley nodded wiping her wet eyes with her good arm. Taylor lifted her off the counter and brought her to the front door, letting the paramedics in. Haley reluctantly let the paramedic take her into his arms and bring her to the ambulance. Taylor followed, trying her best not to cry at the sight of her little sister.
Taylor paced around the waiting room for the hundredth time tonight. She had been waiting at least an hour and she heard nothing.
"You must be Taylor?" A young looking doctor came towards her. "Haley James' sister?"
Taylor nodded frantically. "Yes, yes. Is she okay? Please tell me she's okay." She waited impatiently as the doctor went over his charts before nodding.
"Calm down, your sister is going to be just fine. Although she had a nasty break to her arm. Now, we couldn't get a hold of your parents so we called your next of kin, a Karen Roe? She said she would be here as soon as possible. But until then you can go see your sister, she's in room 215."
"Thank you so much doctor," Taylor said before taking off down the hall. She scanned the numbers on the wall until she spotted 215. She peered in before going in and saw Haley curled up on the hospital bed, a light blue cast covering her arm. "Hi, Haley-bub," she whispered walking into the room. Haley sat up and did her best to smile, her eyes still red and puffy from crying.
"Hi, Tay," she frowned and looked at the cast she was now sporting on her arm.
"I like your cast," Taylor commented with a smile, causing Haley to frown even more. "What's wrong?"
"I wanted pink, but all they had was light blue and black."
"Aw," Taylor laughed, ruffling her sister's hair, "I like it, it matches your shirt," she pointed out, referring to the light blue shirt Haley was wearing. Haley shrugged and let out one last sniffle. "Honey, I am so sorry. This is all my fault, I should have never ever let you play outside by yourself." Her eyes began to fill with tears and Haley couldn't help but smile.
"Tay, it's not your fault," she reassured her sister by hugging her around the middle with her one arm, "it's my fault, okay? But look on the brightside, you can be the first one to sign my cast!" Taylor laughed and wiped her eyes.
"Sure, what do you want me to write on it?" She asked, grabbing the pen from the bedside table.
"To Haley, you are the best little sister in the world and I love you more than anything," Haley said confidently. Taylor laughed again and wrote as she was told before leaning down and kissing her on the forehead.
"Karen should be here soon, maybe she'll want to sign the cast too." Haley nodded and moved closer to Taylor, resting her head on her sisters chest.
"And Brooke too?"
"And Brooke too."
"I felt horrible for like a year after that happened," Taylor remembered, laughing at the childhood memory. After that happened she vowed to never leave Haley alone and she kept her promise for a few months until she realized she missed hanging out with her friends.
"Yeah and I milked it for what it was worth. My favorite was waiting on me hand and foot." Both Haley and Brooke shared a laugh which caused Taylor to groan.
"That was only because I was grounded until I was like 35. Mom and Dad wanted to kill me and Mom almost did. I think she tried to smother me in my sleep or something." Taylor shuddered at that thought. She woke up after she felt a weight on her bed and next thing she knew someone was shoving a pillow in her face.
"No that was me," Brooke said, trying to contain her laughter. "I was so mad that Haley couldn't really play so I wanted to kill you for it." Taylor rolled her eyes before breaking into a smile. It figured Brooke would so something like that.
"You almost killed Theresa once too for making fun of my cast." Haley brought up, remembering the day when she went back to school sporting a hot pink cast.
Haley sat on the concrete steps with a sour look on her face while she watched the other kids in her class run around on the playground. She looked down at her hot pink cast and gently slapped it with her free hand. "Ow," she moaned, remembering the plaster was hard as a rock.
"What the heck happened to you?" Theresa asked, looking wide-eyed while staring down at Haley's arm.
"I fell down the stairs," Haley replied, shuddering at the accident over the weekend. "It really hurt."
"Well obviously." Theresa sneered, making Haley frown. "That's a really ugly cast. Why the heck would someone get a hot pink one? Only Barbie would just to match her pink corvette and I don't think you own or drive a pink corvette."
"It's the only one they had besides black or blue," Haley replied, looking down at her feet just wishing Theresa would go away. "My sister likes it."
"Yeah well it's ugly," she snapped back while laughing, obviously enjoying teasing the girl in front of her.
"Leave me alone," Haley whispered, turning away so her back was towards Theresa. "I never did anything to you." Before Theresa could reply, Brooke skipped over and stood next to Theresa.
"Hi, Theresa," Brooke said in her normal perky tone. Theresa smiled widely and suddenly shifted into a different mood.
"Hey, Brooke! I was just telling Haley that she has a cool cast." Haley's eyes widened at the lie the girl in front of her told her sister. "It's way cool, I wish I broke my arm. Can I sign it, Haley?"
Brooke looked at Haley and Haley looked up at Brooke and shook her head. "No, there's no room for you." Brooke said, her voice lowered and became more defensive. "Leave Haley alone, she never did anything to you." Theresa scowled before she stormed away in a huff, making Brooke laugh a little. "You okay, Hales?"
"She said it was ugly," Haley whispered, watching Brooke sit down next to her. Brooke shrugged and put her arm around her sister.
"Well she's ugly," she giggled, feeling relived when Haley laughed beside her. "Want me to go slap her?"
Haley shook her head and smiled at how protective Brooke could be. "Not yet, Tigger. Maybe tomorrow if she says something else."
"Okay," Brooke said with a small nod, "how come you're sitting by yourself?"
"Lucas isn't here today and Ms. Wells told me I couldn't play incase I hurt my arm again. It's really boring, Brooke." Haley said with a frown. All she wanted to do was play on the playground like the other kids instead of sitting on the steps all recess.
"Well I'll stay here with you that way you don't get lonely and if Theresa comes back I'll make sure she doesn't say anything to you because she's really scared of me. I'm way taller than her."
"You're way taller than me and I'm not scared of you," Haley said, looking up at Brooke. Brooke shrugged and snapped her finger, signaling she had more reasons as to why Theresa was afraid of her.
"Well you're my little sister, you're supposed to be littler than me. Besides, Theresa's scared of me because she knows I could kick her butt. I really could, after watching all those wrestling matches with Mike I believe I could put her in a headlock and make her cry just like the way she made you cry at her birthday party last year."
"Brooke, I think I would probably be lost without you. I mean I wouldn't be able to find my way home from school cause you know the way better than I do. Would you be lost without me?"
Brooke nodded and carefully pulled Haley closer. "I'd be running around like a chicken with its head cut off without you."
"Well, we'll always be together so we don't even have to think about those crazy thoughts," Haley pointed out, standing up with Brooke as the bell rang signaling the end of recess. Brooke smiled and grabbed Haley's good arm and pulled her alongside to catch up with Peyton.
"You two are something else," Taylor said with a laugh. Haley repositioned herself so she could see Brooke's face and shrugged.
"Hey," Brooke protested, "no one messes with my baby and gets away with it," she said, wrapping her arms around Haley's chest and resting her head on Haley's shoulder.
"Who is this Theresa chick anyways? Not that crazy obsessed cheerleader girl that almost died when I told her cheerleading wasn't a sport?" Taylor asked, groaning when Brooke and Haley shook their heads in amusement. "Oh my god! She was so weird! I didn't think it would make her cry when I said that."
"Tay, Theresa is more obsessed with cheerleading than Brooke is," Haley laughed and Brooke nodded her head in agreement. "It's true. Now that she's co-captain she makes them practice in the off season."
Taylor wrinkled her nose and rolled her eyes at how stupid this girl sounded. "Why? You know what I would do if she made me practice in the off season?" Brooke and Haley shook their heads while waiting for Taylor to continue. "I'd tell her to shove a pom pom up her ass." The younger girls burst out laughing knowing Taylor would say something like that. "I would! Jesus, a sport is bad enough in the regular season, but to only prolong it's misery is just terrible."
"So that's why you just had sex in high school?" Brooke asked with a smug look. Haley bit her lip to stop from laughing.
"Exactly," Taylor replied quickly but soon shook her head, realizing what Brooke had said, "no you smartass. I joined the track team!"
"Only because you thought the coach was hot." Haley pointed out with a giggle. "I remember you told me that one night when you skipped practice. You weren't going because he wasn't going to be there."
"Well hey at least I joined a sport and attempted to have school spirit, honey." Taylor said, throwing a knowing glance at Haley.
"Okay, you know I have terrible coordination! I almost drowned-"
"In the balls of Chuck E. Cheese," Brooke and Taylor finished the sentence. They let out a small groan each time Haley told the story. Haley rolled her eyes and punched Brooke in the knee.
"Oh come on, Hales, that had to be the funniest thing I've ever seen in my life," Taylor immediately started to crack up along with Brooke.
"It was not! I was 5 years old and that scared the absolute crap out of me. And besides, you pushed me in!" Haley said, her eyes widening at the horrible story.
"You were holding up the line," Brooke said as her and Taylor laughed some more. Haley frowned and shuddered at the pure thought.
"Haley!" Taylor groaned watching her sister freeze, looking over the edge into the pit of balls, "will you just go in! You're holding up the line." Various people behind them started to yell and scream for the James girls to get in.
"No," Haley whimpered, grabbing onto Taylor's hand, "it looks scary."
"It's not scary, it's fun!" Brooke said happily, while jumping into the pit of balls, rolling around in them to show Haley it wasn't scary at all.
"See? Brooke jumped right in, now you do the same." Taylor demanded but winced as Haley gripped her hand tighter and tighter.
"I don't wanna."
Taylor let out a frustrated sigh, listening to the people in back of them complain. "Haley these people are getting mad and they're gonna throw you in." Haley's eyes widened and within seconds her arms were wrapped around Taylor's waist, holding on for dear life.
"I'm too scared to go in."
"Come on, Hales! I'll hold you hand," Brooke offered, standing knee deep in the pit of balls. She held out her hand for Haley to take. Haley reluctantly peered over the edge again. If Brooke said it was okay, then there was nothing to be afraid of. But before Haley could reach out for her hand, Taylor gave up and pushed her in alongside of Brooke. She looked apologetic to the people behind her and jumped in herself, swimming around in the multicolored balls.
Brooke looked wide-eyed as she watched her little sister flail around in the balls, screaming for dear life. She swam over to her and pulled her up and into a hug. "Tay, you scared her! It's okay, Haley, you're okay," Brooke whispered as Haley clung to her shirt, letting out a small sniffle.
"You could have scarred me for life!" Haley yelled, pointing a finger at Taylor. Taylor put her hands up in defense and tried to stop laughing.
"Baby, come on, you have to admit it was sort of funny." Brooke said, trying to get Haley to see the amusement in the situation.
"It wasn't, I've never been so scared in my life," Haley whispered, folding her arms, trying to rid herself of the memory.
"Okay, we'll stop now," Brooke said while trying to keep a straight face. She motioned for Taylor to stop laughing but it was no use. Pretty soon she started laughing herself and Haley groaned loudly.
"Stop!" She whined, hitting Brooke on the leg again, "pick on little sister day is over, okay?" Taylor let out one last laugh before nodding her head, realizing it was time to stop.
"Okay, okay," Taylor said with a nod, trying to change the subject. "Remember when Brooke got her head stuck in the banister?" Haley started to laugh, this time getting a punch in the knee from Brooke.
"Shut up!"
Taylor let out one last laugh before fallen silent when she took out a piece of paper from the box. "Guys," she whispered, trying to stop the laughter was coming out of her sisters mouth.
"What's that?" Brooke asked noticing Taylor had a frown on her face. "Are you okay?" Taylor looked up and held the piece of paper for them to see.
"It's their obituary notice," Taylor whispered, listening to the deafening silence that filled the room afterwards. It reminded her of the night where she found out her parents lost their lives.
"Brooke, I can't sleep," Haley's voice cracked, making the person beside her sigh. Brooke rolled over to face Haley and did her best to put on a comforting face.
"I know, it's hard," her eyes welled up with tears just looking at Haley's lost face, "but you just have to try, okay?" Haley shook her head and started to cry again. Brooke bit her lip in an effort to stop herself from crying. She had just managed to stop and she didn't want to start up again. "Haley, stop, come on."
"I can't," Haley cried, burying her head into her pillow. Brooke covered her ears to try and drown out the muffled sobs but it just wasn't working. "I want them back."
"I know you do and so do I, but we can't have them back," Brooke's voice cracked at the thought of never seeing her parents again and she began to cry along with her sister. "Let's go see if Taylor is still awake," she sniffled, sitting up in bed, waiting for Haley to do the same.
"Okay," she whispered, clambering out of the bed with her sister. Brooke took her by the hand and led her straight down the hall into Taylor's room. The door was shut but they could see the light peering through the crack at the bottom. "I think she still might be awake," she said, rubbing her tears away with a free hand.
They knocked on the door and looked sad when Taylor didn't answer it. Haley shrugged and turned the door knob, pushing the door open and walking into the room. Taylor was staring blankly at the wall with her headphones on, blasting some loud obnoxious techno song.
"Tay?" Haley whispered, letting go of Brooke's hand and climbing onto her older sister's bed. Taylor remained in her own little world, oblivious to the two guests in her room. Haley gently shook her, hoping to bring her back to reality.
"What?" Taylor yelled, taking the headphones off and looking at Haley with red, puffy eyes. Her voice was nasal and her expressions mirrored her sisters.
"We can't sleep," Haley said with fresh tears forming in her eyes. Taylor was never really close with her parents but no matter what, she still loved them and it was affecting her just as much as it was affecting Brooke and Haley.
"Yeah," Brooke quietly added, climbing onto the bed along side Haley, "can we stay with you?" Taylor wiped her eyes and got off the bed to stare out the window.
"What makes you think you're going to be able to sleep in here?" Taylor said, her voice was low and bitter. Brooke turned away shyly and Haley wiped the tears streaming down her cheeks. "I'm sorry," she sighed, realizing her outburst. "Of course you guys can stay in here, come here," she whispered, trying to choke back her sob. Taylor got onto the bed and pulled each sobbing sister into her arms, trying to calm them down. She knew it was probably useless, but it didn't hurt to try.
The three sat huddled together, listening to the sobs filling the room. Life wasn't fair they all thought. Their parents were gone and the reality had sunk in that they would never be seeing them again. They didn't even get to say goodbye. The ringing of the doorbell interrupted them and the loud knocking made them come back to reality.
"Come on, let's go see who it is," Taylor wiped her eyes and took both of her sister's hand and carefully made their way down the stairs. They could hear a distant sob coming from the other side of the door and tried to brace themselves for anything.
"Are you guys okay?" Was the first thing that came out of Karen's mouth when Taylor opened the door. She threw her arms around the three girls and hugged them tightly with no intention of letting them go. Haley immediately let go of Taylor's hand and wrapped her arms around Karen's middle. She loved Karen just as much as her mother.
"Karen," she whimpered, feeling Karen's arm wrap around her shoulders. "Why did this happen to us?"
"I don't know, honey, I don't know," Karen whispered in a shaky voice. Taylor and Brooke both pulled out of the embrace, leaving Haley still wrapped around Karen's waist. They made no effort to pull her back and watched as Karen led Haley over to the couch and sat her down next to her. "Is there anything I can do? If you need anything-"
"We're fine," Taylor said, managing to muster a tiny smile. Brooke sniffled and gave her a small nod, sitting down on the other side of Karen and resting her head on Karen' shoulder. "Thanks, though."
Karen nodded and looked Taylor straight in her eye. She knew she was trying to be strong for Haley and Brooke but she also knew she was going to crack any minute. "Taylor," Karen said, getting up off the couch and walking over to Taylor, "do you want me to take them? Mike should be home soon, he was talking to the cops about the accident."
"No," Taylor shook her head firmly and glanced back at her sisters who were huddled together on the couch. "No, they're fine here. I need them." Karen smiled sadly and pulled Taylor into a hug, rubbing her back in comfort. "We need some sleep, do you think you could help me convince them, Haley especially, to sleep?"
"Sure," Karen said, walking back over to the couch and kneeling in front of the younger girls. "I think you two need some sleep, it's been a long day. We'll talk in the morning." She held out both her hands and smiled when both girls took them in her own. Taylor mouthed a thank you and followed them up the stairs.
"Can, can we sleep in their room?" Haley asked, looking up at Karen with teary eyes. "I'd feel more comfortable in there."
"Sure," Taylor whispered, taking Haley from Karen and leading her into the room. Brooke stared up at Karen before hugging her tightly.
"I need to be strong for Haley, right?"
Karen bent down to get eye level with Brooke and shook her head. "No, honey you don't. Don't be afraid to cry." Brooke shook her head and bit her lip, trying to stop the tears.
"No, I can't cry. I have to be strong for her, Karen. I have to. I don't want her to think everything is falling apart. Everything is going to be okay, right?"
Karen Roe stood there speechless. It wasn't her place to say it was and she didn't want to upset the girls even more than they already were. "Brooke, in the end everything will be. But sweetie, you need to get some sleep." Brooke reluctantly followed Karen into her parent's room. Her heart skipped a beat just at the sight of their room. Taylor had taken the comforter off the bed and laid it out on the floor. She had somehow managed to get Haley to lie down. Brooke hugged Karen one last time and headed over to the edge of the bed, laying right next to Haley.
"We'll be okay," Taylor whispered, falling into Karen's open arms. "We'll be okay."
"Wow," Taylor interjected before things got too emotional, "it's nearly 1. We should probably get some sleep."
"Yeah," Brooke mumbled distantly. She kept thinking about that night and how hard it was for the three of them. Both her and Haley had stayed up most of the night crying while Taylor tried her best to comfort them in every way possible. Haley stared at the wall in a daze before launching herself to her feet and running out of the room.
"Oh, man," Taylor said with a sigh, "do you want to go or should I?" Brooke shook her head and leaned her head against the bed.
"Just leave her this time. I think she just needs to be alone." Brooke said with a sigh of her own. But before Taylor could protest, Haley came back into the room with pillows and blankets in her arms. She had the arm of Mr. Waffles in her mouth, trying her best to keep everything from falling.
Haley dropped the blankets in the middle of the floor and took the teddy bear out of her mouth, throwing it next to Brooke.
"Um, what's going on, Hay?" Taylor asked with caution. Haley knelt down and began to spread the blankets out just like Taylor did the night their parent's died.
"It would only be right," she whispered, gesturing for the two of them to get up and help her. Once they got everything situated, Brooke and Taylor quickly changed and headed back into the room, each of them lying next to Haley.
"Whoa," Brooke sat up while throwing her hand up, "why do you get to lie in the middle?" Taylor rolled her eyes knowing Brooke would probably launch into a big speech about it.
"Because," Haley said, sitting up next to Brooke, "I need to spread the Haley loving all around. You get it every night, Tigger. Taylor needs some Haley loving."
"Okay," Taylor said while wrinkling her nose, "as much as I would love some Haley loving, there is something wrong about that sentence." Brooke laughed which prompted Haley to roll her eyes.
"I'm just trying to spread Haley loving around," Haley whispered, glancing down at her lap, trying her best to make Taylor and Brooke feel bad. Brooke made a face at Taylor and put her hand on Haley's shoulder.
"Aw, honey,"
"Oh, Brooke," Taylor laughed, reaching over Haley to slap Brooke on the head, "she's just trying to get us to feel bad."
"I am not!" Haley's eyes widened and she looked at Taylor with her mouth wide open. Brooke pushed Haley a little before letting out a laugh.
"It's a typical baby of the family thing to do," Taylor continued, looking at Brooke and gesturing for her to go along. The two of them loved to gang up on Haley sometimes. When Haley was in the right mood they all got a good laugh out of it.
"Yeah, always looking for the attention. I mean god, Baby, stop being such an attention hog," Brooke gasped, trying to keep herself from laughing at Haley's shocked face.
Taylor rolled her eyes at Brooke's lame nicknames but kept with it. "She's right you know. But you're lucky you're adorable, your future husband is going to have a hard time saying no to you."
"I have that affect on people," Haley smiled proudly making Brooke and Taylor laugh. It felt so good to see Haley going back to her own self these days. With everything she went through, it was hard to tell when they were going to get nights like these. "I must admit though, I learned from the best." She looked at Brooke, who smiled widely.
"Well I learned from Tay."
"And I kids, made it all up." Taylor nodded her head proudly before a pillow connected with her head courtesy of Haley. "Okay, you know what?" Taylor replied, picking up her own pillow and smacking Haley in the head with it. "It's a new day, gang up on little sister day is back on."
"Oh yeah," Brooke squealed hitting Haley on the other side of the head with her pillow. Haley whined and did her best to cover her head while she got attacked on both sides.
"That's not fair," she whined causing Taylor and Brooke to stop and listen to what she was saying, "there's two of you and only one of me. You can't do that."
"Says who?" Brooke asked in amusement, dying to hear Haley's answer.
"Says me," Haley said confidently, staring at Brooke's confused face. She took the opportunity to hit Brooke in the face before collapsing back onto the floor with a giggle. "I got you there."
"Yeah you did," Brooke mumbled, lying back down next to Haley. Seconds later, Taylor did the same. The three of them laid in silence just staring at the ceiling.
"Do you think they're watching?" Brooke asked in a small voice.
"I bet they are," Taylor said with a smile, "and I bet they're happy to see us bonding. And happy to see Brooke's grown out of her slut phase," she said with a giggle. Haley laughed and glanced over at Brooke who was currently sulking.
"Just because pick on little sister day is back on, it doesn't mean pick on Brooke day is back on. Now if you losers don't mind, I need my beauty sleep."
The three of them said their goodnights and tried their best to drift off into a peaceful sleep. Just as Brooke and Taylor were about to drift off, Haley's voice interrupted them.
"Taylor," she whined rolling over to face her sister, "your feet are cold."
"Shut up, Haley," Taylor mumbled, shutting her eyes again. She moved them away from Haley, hoping that would satisfy her. "There, now shut up and go to sleep."
Haley rolled her eyes at Taylor's moodiness and looked up at the ceiling. She listened to the silence and couldn't help but smile. Sure her sisters had pick on little sister day, but right now it was revenge of the little sister.
"Brooke," she whined in the same voice, shaking Brooke slightly, "your head is on my pillow!" Brooke mumbled something incoherently and shifted her position. Seconds later silence filled the room and Haley felt herself trapped in between the two of them with no way out.
"Guys," she whispered, waiting for the annoyed responses, "I have to go the bathroom." Brooke and Taylor groaned, neither of them showing them signs of moving.
"Hold it," Taylor snapped, throwing the pillow over her head to try to drown out the silence of Haley's voice. She could go on forever and ever but she was too tired to finish. There was always tomorrow and the next day. As she rolled over, she couldn't help but smile, thinking about the night 5 years ago.
They were going to be okay after all.