Title: Maybe

Author: leytonunit930

Pairing: Leyton though it starts off Brucas

Disclaimer: I do not own OTH or anything having to do with OTH. Some quotes in this story have come from the show because they have a purpose in the story.

Author's Note: Hey everybody! Thank you all for the reviews. I'm glad everybody liked it. I hope this epilogue matches your standards. Hope I didn't disappoint! To the person who reviewed (nikki?) who wrote, leyton sucks and i hate how u made brooke come off so bitchy. i mean is youre boyfriend cheated on u with your best friend and then u get back together and u find out she is still in love with him and they kissed i think u have a right to be insecure and pissed. anyway brucsa is made for each other forever and for always and leyton is gross and peyton is a blonde skank-ass backstabbing boyfriend stealing bitch, or at least that is how my friend describes her. My advice to nikki? who didn't leave an email address at all was To the person who criticized and bashed my story, do you not see my pen name? I'm sorry if you don't like Leyton, but that does not mean you should disrespect other people and their stories because you like a different couple. This is a story that I wrote which if you had read the disclaimer said that I don't own OTH, this story is a figment of my imagination. So do us all a favor, use appropriate capitalization and punctuation and respect all the other readers, writers, and stories even if they do not support the same ship that you do. Thanks to all the other reader who helped defend me! This chapter/epilogue is dedicated to you guys. ENJOY!

Pain.

Loneliness.

Fear.

Slaps.

Heart-breaking.

Giving up.

Silence.

Love.

My life story summed up in a couple of words. Most people that I know don't have the fucked up life that I have. Who loses their birth mother, their best friend, the boy she asks to marry her and then gets rejected by him, and the boy who never left her heart? And then gets shot at school?

Me. I'm the one who pushed by birth mother away and when I finally decided to talk to her, I only had a few months before she died to breast cancer. Ellie was full of life, but was afraid to live it. Sometimes I pity her. She gave me away, got hooked on drugs, got cancer, and then died. She was probably lonely most of her life. She told me to go out and have fun, enjoy life, hell even embrace life. She told me to go after Lucas, but I didn't.

Why?

Because he's with Brooke. Because he loves Brooke. Because he got over me. That's why.

Brooke. My best friend. Wait, make that ex best friend. Her last words to me were this friendship is over; I don't care if I never see you again. Harsh, huh? Yeah. I admit it. I'm an idiot. What kind of person tells their best friend, Honey, I'm in love with your boyfriend! Yay!

Yeah. again. it's. me. But you know why I did it? I did it cause I wanted to be honest. And maybe, I did it because I couldn't handle not telling anybody how I felt about him. Was it worth it? The title of my next strip.

Was it worth it? I don't know. That's an honest answer.

Jake. The boy who helped me escape from my drug addiction. Did I love him? Yeah, I love him for being there for me. Am I in love with him? Probably no. No one can ever fill that void but him. When he told me to follow my heart, my voice ached to say, but I did; that's why I'm here. But the truth was, if I did follow my heart, I would be saying, I need to leave Jake. I'm sorry, you're right.

Maybe, I'm the one at fault here. I pushed them all away. Even him. Maybe he couldn't even take it anymore, who knows?

But enough thinking about the past, I need a new start. I've decided to wear my hair in curls now. Looking in the mirror, I don't see the old me. I see someone who's gone through a lot of pain and suffering.

I repainted my room. Surprising, not black, but white. White for a fresh new start, a new slate. I'm leaving in about 3 months to go to college. UNC. My dad wanted to sell the house, he told me yesterday. You know what I did? I said no. Plain no. He looked surprised, but I think he understood. I said to him that this house is the only memory of mom that I have. He looked at me and I saw tears in this house. I think he just realized that maybe his little girl was growing up.

So I got a new hair cut and I repainted my room. What's next? As I finished painting the door to my room, someone cleared their throat. I just realized I wasn't alone. Looking up, I was faced with two blue piercing eyes.

"What do you want?" I ask. "Didn't your girlfriend tell you to stay away from me?"

I didn't mean to sound so harsh, but all this drama and all the problems were getting to me.

"You left early from the wedding. I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine."

"I don't believe you."

"Fine, then don't."

"I won't."

"Lucas, this is stupid. Please leave before your girlfriend finds out that you're here."

"It won't matter."

"Oh really? Your girlfriend won't care that you're here?"

"ex."

"ex-what?"

"ex-girlfriend."

"oh."

"yeah."

"sorry."

"It's alright. We both saw it coming."

"Is that why you're here?"

"No."

"Well then, why are you here?"

"To see if you're okay. Didn't we go over this already?"

"Yeah."

"Why have you been avoiding me?"

Maybe because I'm in love with you, but you don't love me back. "No I haven't."

"Don't lie to me, Peyton."

"I'm not."

"So you painted your room and switched back to curls."

"Why did you break up with Brooke?"

"I told her about the library kiss-"

"Which you said meant nothing to you."

"And I told her that I couldn't be in a relationship with her if she was so insecure and unable to trust me. She asked me why didn't I let her in and give her my heart."

Lucas was now sitting on the floor next to me. His piercing blue eyes. I could get lost in them forever. He moved closer to me and I moved back trapping myself between him and the door.

"What did you say to her?'

"I told her that maybe I couldn't give it to her because I gave it to a girl a long time ago."

"Oh." It couldn't possibly be me. We didn't even date for pete's sake.

"Anna?"

"Nope."

"Rachel?"

"Nuh-uh."

"Nikki?"

"Not in a million years."

"Who Lucas? If not Brooke then who? Those are the three girls you dated."

"I never said I dated her."

My eyes widened as soon as he said that. He was talking about me. Putting me through that torture. His expression was completely serious, not even playful.

"I need to-"

"No Peyton. I let you go before. I'm not letting you go now."

"What about-"

"None of them matter. Just you. It's always been you and only you and no matter what I do it will always be you and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Lucas…"

"I've been wanting to do this for the longest time and I hope, no I pray that you won't interrupt me-"

After he declared that I was the only one for him, I couldn't stand it anymore. I kissed him. Yeah I know, he said not to interrupt him, but I don't think he'll mind.

"Sorry, I know you said not to interrupt-"

He interrupted me by kissing me! I was kissing Lucas Scott!

"What does this mean then Peyt?"

"I definitely want to be with you. Can we just take it slow?"

"If it means I get to be your boyfriend, then absolutely. But can I ask you something?"

"Yeah?"

"Before you were so hesitant, but now?"

"Now, I've realized that life's too short. And you can't predict the future. I want you to be in my life and I'm tired of being scared. Maybe, I just want to listen to my heart and stop over thinking about things and over analyzing them." I said while leaning up to kiss him.

So yeah, I've been through a lot. A lot of heartaches, grief, and pain. But I'm thinking things might be better now. Maybe all I had to do was open my eyes to reality and open my heart to love.

5 years later

After everything Lucas and I went through, both together and separately, it was all worth it. As I watch him sleeping so peacefully, I can't help but count my blessings. Brooke finally accepted as a couple with no angry feelings, Nathan and Haley are having a baby boy in a couple of months, and me and Lucas: just got married.

When Lucas proposed to me, he looked me dead in the eye and said,…

"Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering." I want you to be in my life present and future. We've been through so much in the past, that what we have now, I appreciate and value it. I don't take it for granted. I can't imagine my life without you. I see us getting married, having children, getting older together. I want us, not just right now, but forever. Will you marry me Peyton Sawyer?"

I realize that pain and suffering are important. They make you treasure your life. You don't take it for granted. You value it. You take care of it. And like Ida Scott Taylor said, you make it beautiful so you can remember it."

Fin

THANKS EVERYBODY FOR READING THIS! LEAVE COMMENTS, PLEASE? THANKS! The first quote is by Ida Scott Taylor.