Since I promised - and since this week's episode was SO GOOD - I'm updating. Apologies for another long wait. I had essays in my 'to-do' pile all that time and me being the procrastinator I am, put them both off until the last minute. Ah well! I have the whole Christmas break free! Just another few chapters after this, my lovelies. And obviously, a big thank you to Cari because without her 'Independent Women' update, I probably wouldn't have updated this.
Chapter Forty-Two: Still Waters Run Deep
"So… I had a really good time tonight," Jennie smiled coyly at Lucas as she held his hands outside her dorm room.
"Yeah, me too," Lucas offered a tight smile.
"Do you maybe… want to come in?" Jennie looked up at him half-nervously and half-excitedly. Lucas opened his mouth to say something.
Come on, you idiot. Nod your head and go inside. Have some coffee, get comfortable, and get laid.
"Shoot, I forgot that I have a paper due in tomorrow. Rain check?" Lucas pulled away and pretended to look at his watch. Jennie, clearly crestfallen, simply nodded and pecked Lucas on the cheek before disappearing into her room.
Lucas walked briskly back to his own room and opened the door, to find Matthew typing up an essay on his laptop.
"You're home already?" he asked as Lucas appeared.
"Yeah. Jennie had to get up early so I left." Lucas lied. He knew Matt would probably knock him upside the head if he found out it was Lucas who'd made the excuse.
"But it's only seven in the evening," Matt told Lucas, "Who goes to bed at seven?"
Lucas looked at his clock and sighed. "Okay, fine, I ducked out of there early."
Matthew tore his attention away from his essay and looked at Lucas.
"What was wrong with this one?" he asked. "Jennie is a great girl, she seemed sweet and smart and-"
"That's exactly the problem!" Lucas cried, "We're at dinner and I was talking about 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' and all of a sudden she's blabbering on about how it's the greatest American novel and comparing it to 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'."
"So what? She sounds exactly like you."
"Which is precisely my point. I don't want to date someone like me. I want to date someone who'd talk about what Britney Spears was wearing, or cry over some stupid lame movie that she dragged me to see. And I'd want her to ask about my favorite book, and when she says she's never heard of it, I'd want to watch her listen to me talk about it and then grin because she has no idea what I'm saying but was counting my forehead wrinkles instead." He grinned, "I want someone so wildly and completely different to me that she teaches me something new everyday. Be it who the hell Jimmy Choo is or which celebrity is jumping up and down Oprah's couch this week."
Matthew remained silent for a few moments, "Say…" he said finally, "This girl wouldn't happen to be like the one that popped by a few weeks ago, would it?" he asked.
"Who? Brooke?" Lucas asked. Matthew nodded.
"Yeah, I mean… I thought you were over her. I thought you two had your 'closure' and were ready to move on. Of course, if I'd known that all it would have taken for the nightmares to stop was a little action between the sheets – I'd have more than willingly complied…" Lucas gave Matt a look, "But that's off the point. I still think you're a little hung up on her."
"I'm not hung up on Brooke. I'm just… bored of dating girls who aren't-"
"Brooke?"
"Interesting." Lucas said firmly.
"Dude, you are so seriously messed up. I met Brooke all of five seconds and I can see that all the other girls you've been out with since have all been way different to her – and you've taken none of them out on a second date."
"What's your point?"
"My point, dear roommate, is that maybe you should try going for someone like Brooke – not entirely like her – but just someone who's like what you just described. Maybe then you can begin to develop feelings for someone other than her and move on."
"I am moving on!"
"Just follow my advice," Matt said, "I bet Brooke's moving on with a guy named… Rufus or something."
------
"Okay, so I have just met the greatest guy!" Brooke announced to Peyton and Haley as she sat herself down on Haley's couch.
"Oooh, what is he like?" Haley asked, her interest peaked.
"Totally smart! But not nerdy smart, like… smart. He's read all these books and he plays baseball and is kind of funny in the smart funny sense. And he has these adorable dimples and sometimes he squints…"
"What's his name?" Peyton asked. Brooke looked away and mumbled something incoherent. "Brooke…?"
"His name is Luke." She finally confessed. Peyton and Haley exchanged a look, Haley even put down her yogurt.
"Luke?" Peyton repeated, "As in Luca-"
Brooke held up a hand, "Okay, I know what you're going to say but he is so totally different to Lucas and it's not even close to being his name… it has different letters in it!"
"He even plays a sport." Haley said.
"Which is baseball and nowhere close to being basketball."
"Well add two letters to it and it is basketball!" Peyton shook her head. "Brooke, this is crazy, it's you and Lucas again – except it's Lucas-lite."
"It is not crazy. So I'm dating someone who might sound like Lucas and do stuff Lucas did – but he is so not Lucas." Brooke reiterated. "Come on, guys, I need your support. This is the first guy I've liked in months. Can you just please give him a chance?"
Peyton and Haley sighed, knowing they weren't really being fair on Brooke.
"Fine, fine. But I'm going to give you something to mull lover," Haley moved to the DVD cabinet and began rooting through it, finally stopping and pulling one out. She handed it to Brooke.
"Why have you given me this?" she asked looking at the copy of Friends in her hand.
"You want to see the episode 'The One with Russ'. I think it's highly appropriate at this point!" Haley and Peyton descended into knowing giggles and Brooke raised her eyebrow at them both.
"Ha ha, very funny!" she said dryly, throwing the DVD back at Haley.
------
Thanksgiving
Lucas pulled along his suitcases with him as he entered the Scott household and simultaneously greeted by several people.
"Lucas! Finally!" Karen approached him with a brief hug and kiss. "We've been waiting for you to turn up."
"Aw, I missed you too-"
"I need you to go and get more yams!" Karen snapped.
"Now?"
"Yes, now. I have eight mouths to feed and not enough yams!" Karen's slightly panicky expression told Lucas that he'd better go and get the yams or they'll be eating him.
"I'm going, I'm going." Karen smiled and her eyes flicked to the suitcases.
"Why did you bring three suitcases?" she asked, "You're only here for a weekend."
Lucas blushed, "Yeah… most of it's my laundry." He offered a bright smile but Karen scowled.
"Get my yams – I'll do your laundry." She agreed.
"Deal." Lucas gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving the house less than thirty seconds after he'd come in.
At the local supermarket desperately hunting for yams on Thanksgiving, Lucas heard a familiar voice coming from an adjacent isle. Curious, he worked his way towards it and was met by a very familiar brunette.
"Brooke?" he said, "Is that you?" Brooke saw Lucas and instantly broke into a smile, giving him a warm hug.
"Hey, you're back." She said, "What are you doing here?"
"My mom sent me out for yams. I didn't even think you knew where the supermarket was!" Lucas crossed his arms over his chest. She punched him lightly on the arm.
"As a matter of fact, your mother sent me out for some more cranberry sauce. And by the way, who doesn't have cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving? We've tried, like, three stores and none of them had any!" she complained.
"We?" Lucas asked. Brooke opened her mouth to answer as a tall, blonde guy sidled up to her from behind.
"I found some!" the mystery guy exclaimed as he proudly showed off the item to Brooke. His eyes flicked to Lucas and he frowned.
"Who's this?" they both asked together.
"Lucas, this is Luke. Luke, this is Lucas." She introduced quickly. They politely shook hands although Brooke could sense neither one of them wanted to. "Luke is my boyfriend." She explained.
Lucas just nodded his head, "Pleased to meet you," he said as nicely as he could.
"Likewise," Luke replied. "Um, Brooke… are we done? Do you want me to go pay for this?" he asked.
"Uh, actually, you can go on home. Lucas can give me a ride back." Brooke told him with an encouraging smile. Luke hesitated at first but gave in, giving his girlfriend a lingering kiss before he handed her the cranberry sauce and left - with a wary look in Lucas' direction.
Once he'd gone, Brooke looked up at Lucas.
"So?" she asked.
"Let's go find some yams," Lucas announced. Brooke sighed.
"Come on, Lucas. Aren't you going to say anything?" she wondered, "I know you probably have one or two things to ask me about Luke."
"He seems nice," Lucas replied in a tone that suggested to Brooke that he was just telling her what she wanted to hear so she'd get off the subject.
"We've been dating three weeks," she said, "He plays baseball, has a younger brother called Jason, and his favorite book is The Great Gatsby." She explained.
"Sounds like a keeper!"
"I thought you'd be pleased I'm moving on. That whole thing between us ended back that day at Duke. We're supposed to be done."
"That thing between us is done, Brooke. I'm moving on too but you don't see me parading my girlfriends in front of you."
"I was not parading him."
"Well it seemed like it." Lucas huffed.
"Can we not argue?" Brooke asked, "Because it's Thanksgiving and the last thing I want to do is spend it angry at you."
"Fine, fine," Lucas raised his hands in defeat. "But I'm just going to ask you a question."
"What?"
"Is his hair always like that?" his scrunched his face up in disgust as Brooke gave him a look and walked off in search of yams.
-----
"Oh, um… I'm glad I caught you two," Karen said as she pulled Brooke and Lucas aside some time during the festivities. "I need to ask you a favor."
"Sure, Karen. Go ahead," Brooke said, hoping neither of them had to go out for more food.
"Since Royal and Mae are here for Thanksgiving, I put them in Lucas' room… would it be alright if you both slept in the same room?" she asked.
Lucas and Brooke exchanged a look.
"I know you have a long history but I forgot they were coming, especially with both Nathan and Haley joining us this year, and the guest room still isn't finished…"
"It is fine," Brooke piped up. "I mean, if it is fine with Lucas, it is fine with me."
"Are you sure?" Karen asked, "It won't be… awkward? Because otherwise I could make-"
"Awkward? Pfft! No! Awkward would be the total opposite of what this will be." Brooke began to babble. "This will be fine. Won't it be fine?" she turned to Lucas who nodded uneasily.
Although the subject was not broached during the rest of the festivities, Lucas could tell Brooke was thinking about it. By evening, Brooke was nervously twitching her leg as she sat with Nathan and Haley on the couch. Although Lucas suspected that at least some of the nervousness was due to the glares Dan was shooting all four teenagers all evening.
"Just so you know," Lucas said as he walked into Brooke's room when it was time for bed, "I don't mind sleeping on the floor if you're uncomfortable with me being here."
Brooke sighed, "No, it's not like we haven't shared a bed before. Plus, Peyton slept on the floor the other night and hurt her back. The bed is just fine… y'know, if you want to sleep on it."
"Well… are you comfortable with sharing? I know you're a duvet hog." Lucas teased. She stuck her tongue out at him.
"Just get into bed." She instructed as she picked up her pajamas. Lucas frowned. "What?" she asked.
"You wear pajamas?" he asked.
"Yes. Why?"
"You've never worn pajamas. You always wore a tank top and shorts."
"Well it's almost winter. I get cold." Brooke shrugged as she placed them on the bed and gathered her hair into a ponytail. Lucas picked the pajamas up.
"These have horses on them." Brooke snatched them away.
"They're not horses," she replied indignantly, "They're unicorns."
Lucas arched an eyebrow and undid his shirt, revealing a white wifebeater before climbing out of his jeans.
"I'm done." He announced. Brooke rolled her eyes.
"Again with the wifebeater/boxers ensemble?" she asked.
"What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing… it's just… a little too Ryan Atwood." Lucas frowned.
"I'm not going to even begin to understand what you just said." Lucas climbed into the bed and laid his head on the pillow, slowly closing his eyes.
Brooke cleared her throat noisily and Lucas opened one eye warily.
"What?" he asked.
"You're on my side of the bed." Lucas looked around.
"I always take the right side. You like the left." He reminded her.
"I know and you're on the left!" she pointed at the bed.
"Brooke, my right is your left." She made a 'O' shape with her mouth and nodded.
"Sorry." She apologized. Her ears pricked to the sounds coming from the bathroom. "Crap! Someone else is taking a shower. I'll just have to wait until morning."
Lucas mumbled something as he tried to get some sleep.
"Are you asleep?" she asked tentatively.
"Yes." He replied.
"Good because I'm changing into my unicorn pajamas and I don't want you peeking." She told him firmly.
"Whatever." He said, "I've seen you naked before anyway." He smirked. Brooke threw her jacket at him and he groaned. "Tired teenager trying to sleep here!" he complained.
She turned her back to him as she whipped off her blouse, throwing it carelessly beside her and slipping on her pajama top as quickly as she could. Although she knew Lucas had seen her naked and she was usually comfortable in her skin, the thought of him seeing her in that state made her blush. She couldn't help but feel his eyes on her.
She silently cursed whoever was occupying the bathroom as she sat on the edge of the bed and changed into her pajama bottoms. Brooke made sure she was done blushing before turning back to face Lucas.
She swore she saw him quickly clamp his eyes shut when she did.
"I'm done." She announced as she piled her day clothes on one side.
"Oh really? That was quick." Lucas said pretending not to care. She shook her head lightly as she got into bed next to him and turned out the light.
They lay silently next to one another in the dark; only the dim moonlight streaming in from the windows.
"It's strange," Lucas began, "being here again." Brooke turned her head to look at him, barely making out the rough outlines of his face.
"Home?" she asked.
"No," he shook his head and faced her, "I mean… here. In your room again."
She turned away and looked up at the ceiling. "Oh."
"I'm sorry," Lucas apologized, "I didn't mean to bring 'us' up again."
"It's okay," she said earnestly, "It's kind of strange to have you here again. Except in that moment… before you started speaking, that is… it almost felt normal. You know what I mean?"
"Yeah, I know what you mean." He replied quietly.
Sensing a possible awkward moment, Brooke cleared her throat. "Goodnight Lucas."
"Goodnight Brooke."
------
Christmas
Lucas walked into the Scott household armed with presents, knowing full well that if he didn't make his gift-bearing clear, he probably wouldn't get any attention from the women that occupied the home.
"I'm here!" he announced. "I know I'm late but…" he stopped in mid-sentence as Brooke and Luke pushed themselves off of one another and sat up on the couch. Brooke flushed with embarrassment at having her ex-boyfriend walk in on her and her new one.
"Lucas!" she stood up and smoothed down her clothing. "I thought you were coming down tomorrow."
"I thought I'd surprise you," he looked at Luke in the eye, "And I guess I did."
"Okay," Brooke moved in between both of the guys, "I think we should all take a deep breath and relax. Uh… Luke?"
"Yeah?" both boys looked at her expectantly.
"I meant Luke," she pointed over at her boyfriend, "I think it's best if you went home."
Lucas struggled not to say a word as Luke kissed Brooke briefly and left the house.
"Lucas-" Brooke began.
"I'm not saying anything." He held up his hands innocently though inside he was seething. "What you and… your boyfriend get up to in your own time is no business of mine."
"Thank you." Brooke told him.
"Although…" she glared at him and he shrugged. "Again, not saying anything. I just didn't expect to see you both still together, Where's mom?" he asked changing the subject quickly.
"Out. Why are you early?" Brooke tidied the disarrayed pillows on the couch.
"I got bored at Duke. Everyone else left a few days ago and it seemed stupid to be there alone." He explained. He looked at the Christmas tree glowing in the corner of the room. "The tree looks impressive." He complimented.
"Thanks. Luke helped me."
"Doesn't Luke have his own tree to decorate?" Lucas muttered.
"Lucas, he can decorate my tree any time he likes," Brooke said before pausing and realizing what it sounded like, "Ew. Not like that."
"Oh… so you haven't-"
"None of your business, Lucas!" Brooke warned.
"Is that a 'yes'?" Lucas asked.
"I'm telling you that."
"Quick question… if you are, and you're in bed. When you scream out 'Lu-'" Brooke's eyes widened and she clamped her hands over her ears.
"Oh my god, why are you still talking!" she huffed as she hit him with a pillow.
------
"And this is for you," Lucas handed Brooke a medium sized gift which she opened with more enthusiasm than he'd seen before.
"This is that bag I saw ages ago," Brooke gasped as she admired the handbag Lucas had given her. "The one that I said matched those boots!"
He nodded, "Which is why I also got you this." He handed her another box.
Brooke's squeal of delight made several of the others jump with shock as she pulled out the pair of boots and pulled them on.
"Oh, Lucas, I love them!" she hugged him tightly and gave him a kiss on the cheek before returning to her new boots.
He chuckled as she happily sang a little 'boots' song to herself.
"How did you know what size to get?" she asked after a little while.
"Catherine is the same shoe size as you so it wasn't hard." Lucas told her.
"Who's Catherine?" she asked, figuring it was some girl from his classes or near his dorm.
He hesitated at first, "She's um… she's my girlfriend." Brooke looked at him in shock before realizing she hadn't said anything for a good minute.
"Oh! I… I had no idea. How long-"
"A few weeks. Three or four." Brooke nodded. "She's nice. You'd like her." Brooke forced a smile.
"I'm sure I would," she said a little snidely. "Why didn't you bring Catherine with you?" she asked.
"She went back to her parents' house in Ohio." He explained, "But we're spending New Years together."
"You're not staying for New Years?" Brooke frowned, "But we had a big party planned."
"She invited me to spend it with her family." Lucas scratched his head.
"Well I hope you have fun." Brooke said getting up from the floor. "I'm going to get a drink." She walked towards the kitchen and Lucas groaned as she got up and followed her.
"I thought we were supposed to be happy for each other." He said leaning against the door frame.
"I am happy for you and Catherine. I mean, I have Luke. I'm just pissed that you're not staying for New Years."
"It was a last minute decision."
"You've known her for three weeks."
"No, I've dated her for four weeks. That's almost as long as you and Luke." He defended.
"I suppose." Brooke grumbled. "I guess I just thought that since none of us have seen you since Thanksgiving, you'd stay longer than a week."
"I'll be back after for a few days. And then I'll visit a few weekends."
"It's not the same, Lucas. We all miss having you around. It's different without you here."
"I call."
"Yeah but that's only ten minute conversations every other day. Duke is two hours away. Your mom is having a tough time with Dan and Nathan and Haley hardly talk to you."
"I IM them all the time!" Lucas cried, "What do you suggest, Brooke? That I just quit Duke and move back here? After all the crap I went through trying to get there, I'm not going to give it all up because some people miss me. It's life, Brooke. It moves, it changes."
"And you don't think I know that? I practically uprooted from New York to be here with a new family and new people. I just thought you'd want to spend time with us before-" Brooke cut herself off.
"Before?" he asked.
She shook her head, "Nothing. Never mind. I'm going to lie down for a while." She excused herself as sheescaped into her bedroom.
Lucas slinked back to the living room where Karen had heard the whole exchange. She wrapped an arm around his shoulder.
"What's going on with her?" he asked his mother. Karen gave him a sad sigh.
"You have no idea."
Brooke stared up at the ceiling and let out a huge sigh. Realizing that she'd probably over-reacted and come across as a jealous, ex-girlfriend, she made a mental note to apologize to Lucas later. Her hand reached across to the newspaper by her bedside and she looked at the pages once again.
Scanning the classifieds carefully, she took out a red pen and circled a particular advertisement that had caught her eye. With the same red pen, she looked at her calendar and counted the days until her eighteenth birthday.
45 days left.
To Be Continued…