Disclaimer: Don't own One Tree Hill, too bad for me.

Author's Note: There were a lot of reviews so my personal thanks are at the bottom of the story. Thanks again everyone who reviews my stories :-)

Back to You Chapter Sixteen

"On (Un)Common Ground"

By: D. Sollers

Nathan stood in his father's rehabilitation room waiting for him to come back in. He paced back and forth, wondering to himself if he could really go through with seeing him. As Dan entered the room in a wheelchair, Nathan instantly regretted his decision to have come.

"Nathan."

Nathan swallowed. "Dad."

Dan turned towards the younger nurse and smiled up at her. "Thanks Ginger, but I'd like to talk to my son if you wouldn't mind," Dan said as he rubbed the brunette's hand and Nathan rolled his eyes in disgust. The nurse smiled and left the two alone in the room. "How was high flyers? I suspect you did alright all things considering. Your mother told me that the teams undefeated so far again this year."

Nathan tried to hide his animosity and ignored his fathers questions. He had been there after all to get to the bottom of things and that was what he was going to do. "Dad I came here to check on you and to see how you were doing," Nathan lied. He made a mental note to kick Lucas's ass the next time he saw him and pushed on. "Mom and I have been worried about you."

"It's not me you have to be worried about," Dan replied.

Nathan looked at him, a bit confused as to what his father had meant. Dan lifted up the city newspaper and pointed towards a picture of Keith. "Now your uncle on the other hand might need your fake concern. Especially when I get through with him, no one gets away with trying to hurt Dan Scott. Not even my own brother."

Nathan nodded his head and knew that was true. He remembered feeling the same animosity towards Lucas a year or so before. But things were different between Lucas and him and their father and Keith. Keith was the good guy in the picture and Nathan couldn't help but feel as if the wrong person was going to be punished.

"Keith's a good man dad. You and I both know that."

Dan snickered. "Sure a real hero."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"Nothing." Dan held his hands up in the air and grinned slightly. "It just seems that Keith has messed up plenty of times before this. He was drinking when he got into that accident and almost killed Lucas. He slept with your mother before we had even signed the divorce papers. If I had done those things you and our family would have thrown me out to the wolves already."

Nathan looked down at the floor and tried to reason with himself. What his father was saying was true, Keith had made some mistakes in the past. But he wasn't a bad person. His father on the other hand was a master manipulator. He could make the pope look guilty. Nathan stared up at his father and held his gaze.

"You know Keith would never try to kill you."

Dan shrugged his shoulders and replied "then why'd he confess?"

As Nathan looked away from his father once again, he knew he had lost the argument. Nothing he could say could defend Keith and the two of them knew that. Dan Scott wouldn't let anyone win, not even his son.

But as Nathan left the room that day, he made a promise to himself that it would be the last fight that his father would win. He was going to prove Keith innocent even if that meant turning someone else in he cared about.

……

Halloween day was always Brooke's favorite holiday. To her, it was her last attempt at recapturing her youth. She could shut her eyes and remember the countless costumes she had come up with over the years for not only her to wear but Peyton as well.

As she stared at herself in the mirror she ran her fingers over the leather pants and top. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail and she had a cat mask placed over her eyes. There was a gentle tap at the door and Lucas appeared, smiling slightly at her costume.

"You look great," he offered as a compliment. She twirled around for him to get a full look and he held his breath. Brooke made anything look gorgeous, but as he stared at her he realized that she would once again become the object of every males desire in Tree Hill.

"Um, you too…" Brooke replied. He knew she was being sarcastic and Lucas looked down at his own outfit and shrugged his shoulders. He hadn't really planned on going to the party at Tric, so when Brooke had asked him if he was going he had very little time to come up with an outfit. So hobo it was.

Brooke walked towards him and grabbed his hand pulling him towards the door. "Thanks again for agreeing to go with me. I'm sorry that you're stuck with me," she said to him as he smiled down at her.

Lucas wanted to tell her that there was no where else he'd rather be, but knew that he couldn't. Tonight they would go to the party and have a good time and when 12 o clock came she would leave him and find Sean somewhere. That part made him sad but at least he had her for a few hours and he wanted to be near her for as long as he possibly could.

When they arrived at Tric, they had found their friends and offered compliments to everyone. Nathan and Haley had dressed up as Frankenstein and his wife and Peyton and Nathan had simply dressed up as vampires. Lucas glanced around and spotted his mother smiling across the room at him. He smiled back and then turned towards Brooke.

"Wanna dance?" He yelled over the clubs music. She sat down her drink and nodded her head and grabbed onto his arm.

"Try and keep up okay?"

……

The party at Tric was winding down and there were only a few students left still there. Brooke, Haley and Peyton were still dancing to the music as Felix approached Lucas at the bar. Lucas rolled his eyes and turned towards him lifting his hands in the air in defeat. "I'm not fighting with you tonight. So save your shit for another day."

Felix leaned against the bar and Lucas could tell he was staring at Brooke. He had a smile stretched out on his face and he shook his head. "Damn what is with that girl," he asked turning towards Lucas.

Lucas looked towards Brooke as she moved to the music and felt a slight bit uncomfortable. Brooke moved her hands seductively over her body and smiled coyly at him. He watched her dance, painfully aware of the fact that he wasn't the only one staring at her. But as she danced, her eyes never left his even as the music ended.

"Looks like she has a spell on you too," Felix said. Lucas broke his concentration and turned towards Felix who chuckled. "It's okay man. Just admit it. You want a piece of that again too." Lucas rolled his eyes and leaned back against the counter.

His smile faded. "It's not even like that."

"You don't have to explain to me anything. I for one am with you. Brooke Davis is the whole package. She's sexy. She made me feel things I didn't think I was capable of feeling, and she's a freak in the bedroom. All things that as a man- I go for."

Lucas turned towards Felix and could feel the anger rage inside of him. "How about you just stop talking about Brooke like that okay?"

Felix chuckled. "Too bad she's not interested in either of us. I heard she's moved on to an older man. And to think, I betted money you'd be weaseling your way back into her bed."

"Well I didn't," Lucas said. "Brooke deserves better than both of us."

Felix turned towards Lucas and for a moment, he dropped his act. He nodded his head and stared back at Brooke. "Yeah, I think she does too." Lucas was surprised, but didn't push it.

"She deserves better than him too," Lucas said as he noticed Sean in the exit way. As he looked back at Brooke, he had realized that she too had seen him. She sent him a smile and waved to him gently. He watched as she walked towards the exit and made her way out of the club hand in hand with Sean. Lucas stared at the ground for a moment and then turned towards Felix.

"So I guess we actually agree on something," he said.

Felix nodded his head and let out a snicker. "Just don't let it happen again." Lucas laughed and Felix made his way back towards his friends. Peyton and Jake walked towards him and Peyton turned to face Felix. Lucas could tell by the look on her face that she wanted to say something to him but she refrained.

"What did he want?"

Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "So you and Brooke were out there dancing right? That's a good thing," Lucas changed the subject. Peyton smiled up at him and nodded her head hopefully. He looked down at his watch, and sighed. "I'm gonna go home okay? It's been a long night."

Peyton and Jake nodded their heads and watched as Lucas left. Jake turned to face Peyton and pulled her towards him, kissing the back of her neck. "I wonder how much more he can take," Jake said to her.

She turned to face him. "Lucas can handle Felix."

Jake shook his head and replied "no I meant about Brooke and the other guy." As Peyton stared at Lucas exiting the building, she too wondered. Lucas had always been so strong about everything, but Peyton had begun to notice the toll Brooke and her new relationship was taking on Lucas.

……

Thump.

Thump.

Jake woke up from the noise coming from downstairs. He felt his heart thumping against his chest as he stood and made his way towards Jenny's crib. She was sleeping soundly and Jake couldn't help but release a sigh of relief. He was beginning to think he had dreamt the noise when he heard it again.

Thump.

For a moment he thought maybe it was his parents but then he remembered they were out of town at his grandparents. And Peyton had gone home after the party complaining of a really bad headache. So whoever it was, wasn't supposed to be there.

Jake pulled the bat from behind his chair and opened the bedroom door, careful not to make any noise. He tiptoed down the stairs and could see a figure standing in his living room. Whoever it was had their back to him and as he lifted up the bat he tried to remain calm.

"Don't move."

The person in front of him giggled and turned around to face him. As he looked at her face, he dropped the bat and rolled his eyes. "Nikki, what the hell are you doing here?" Nikki smiled slightly at him and tried to touch his face.

"It's nice to see you too Jake."

Jake stepped away from her, careful to keep distance between the two of them. He wasn't sure what she was up to, but he knew her. And wherever she was, trouble followed. "What are you doing here?"

Nikki walked to the couch and sat down, her eyes never leaving Jake. She pulled her hair down and let it fall against her face, brushing through it with her fingers. Jake could tell she was stalling and he asked her again. "Are you going to answer me or what?"

"I came to see you and Jenny," Nikki replied.

Jake sat down on the chair opposite him and shook his head. "You're unbelievable, you know that right? You can't be here. I have custody of Jenny and there's nothing you can do about it," Jake said. He was normally so reserved, never really the type to get heated. But Nikki was invading his life once again and he knew what she was capable of.

"I just want to see her," Nikki said.

Jake shook his head no and stood up. "Nikki you left her. And all your tricks and schemes didn't work. She's my daughter and you need to leave." He walked towards the door and held it open for her.

"She can't replace me. Peyton will never be Jenny's mother." Nikki stood and walked towards him but paused a minute. "I am. And when Jenny's old enough she'll know the truth. And she'll hate you for keeping her away from me." She pushed past him and walked outside.

"I'll be seeing you Jake."

He slammed the door behind her and could hear Jenny crying upstairs. As he walked up the steps he couldn't help but wonder if Nikki was right. He tried to convince himself that his daughter would understand the truth and she would know that he was only trying to look out for her. But Nikki always knew just what to say to make Jake doubt himself. As he rocked his daughter back to sleep, he wondered how to protect his daughter the best.

……

Knock.


Knock.

Karen knocked on the hotel door and turned to face Keith's car. She had talked to Lucas and he had confirmed that Keith was staying there, but was still not answering the door. She turned the doorknob and opened the door calling out for him.

"Keith? Are you here?"

As she stepped inside the hotel room she immediately heard the shower coming from the bathroom. She shut the door behind her and sat down patiently on the bed. Karen knew that Keith would probably be mad at her for just barging in, but she didn't care. She needed to speak to him and it couldn't wait.

After a few minutes of waiting she knew she needed a distraction and glanced around the room her eyes landing on a picture frame on top of the nightstand. It was one of Lucas, Keith and herself when Lucas had been a child. She was touched that after everything that they had been through and all the things that had gone on the last year that he had kept a picture of her and Lucas.

"Karen. What are you…what are you doing here?"

She turned to face him, a bit embarrassed. "Keith. I really needed to talk to you about Dan," Karen said. She stood up and walked towards him, hugging him briefly. Keith was the first to pull away as he turned his back on her.

"There is nothing we need to talk about Karen," Keith started. "What's done is done." She could tell from his tone of voice that he was hiding something and she reached out to touch his arm. He flinched and pulled himself away from her. "You shouldn't even be here. I don't want to get you involved in any of this."

Karen shook her head and sighed. "I am involved. You were there for me when I had no one. I just want to understand, that's all. Just tell me what happened," Karen pleaded with him. "Please. Let me help you."

Keith laughed bitterly.

"You can't help me. No one can help me. I did this. Now let me deal with it."

Karen knew she wasn't going to get anywhere and she sighed in defeat. After years of sharing everything with each other, Keith and her had become strangers. She wondered who's fault it had been and realized that they both had their faults in the falling out. But she agreed with him. The past was the past and more than anything she wanted her friend back. She needed him.

"I'm pregnant."

She hadn't come to tell him, the thought had never really crossed her mind. Keith was in a lot of trouble and the last thing he needed was to hear her happy news. But being there with him reminded her of a time when she could share anything with him and he would help her.

Karen could tell by the look of surprise on Keith's face that he hadn't been expecting her to say it. But after the initial shock wore off he smiled slightly. A year ago he would have been jealous. He had loved her so much and she had just rejected him. But he had seen her with Andy and Keith knew that Karen had never been happier.

He reached out to her and brought her into a hug, forgetting about his problems for a moment. Keith kissed her forehead and without thinking he put his hand onto her belly. "Does Lucas know?" Karen nodded her head gently and put her hand on top of his.

"Congratulations Karen. That's great," Keith said as he pulled away and turned his back on her once more. "But I'd really like to be alone. Send Lucas my love okay?" Keith said as he stared into the mirror at Karen.

"But Keith…"

Keith shook his head and stared at her. "Just go." She nodded her head and made her way out of the hotel room and towards her car. Keith leaned against the bathroom sink and stared deeper into the mirror.

And now, more than ever he knew he had done the right thing. Keith was trying to protect the people he cared about the most and nothing else had mattered to him.

Nothing.

……

"Brooke, we shouldn't be doing this," Sean said in between kisses. Brooke ignored him as she placed her hands around his neck. It was Monday and they had already successfully snuck two make out sessions in the janitors closet. The first time it had been Sean that had pulled her inside, kissing her gently on the lips offering a sweet hello. The second time Brooke had grabbed him and was attacking him with kisses.

Even as the words left him, he still wasn't pulling away. He ran his hands through her hair and then rested them on her back. Sean must have tickled her because she let out a tiny giggle and he smiled in between kisses. Brooke pulled away for a minute and looked at him. "What's so funny?"

"I love it when you smile," Sean explained to her. He kissed her again and continued. "You look so cheerful. So happy." she pulled away unexpectedly and backed up away from him. His smile fell and he reached out to her. "What? Did I say something? Brooke, what's wrong?"

Brooke wasn't really sure what was wrong. Hearing him say the word cheerful had just done something to her. She could hear Lucas calling her cheery in the back of her mind and as Sean kissed her, she felt guilty. Like she was doing something wrong. And that seemed so stupid to her.

She shook her head no and leaned back into his arms. "Where were we?" She asked him as she leaned into him and kissed him once more. They kissed back and forth for a while, until she once again moved away. "You're right, we shouldn't be doing this here," Brooke said. She walked towards the door and turned to face him.

"Okay. How about tomorrow night, at my place. I'll cook you dinner," Sean said. Brooke smiled and nodded her head and opened the door. She turned to give him one last smile and walked out, shutting the door behind her. Sean waited several minutes and then he too opened the door. As he shut it behind him, he accidentally bumped into Nathan.

"Excuse me. Uhh," Sean trailed off.

"Nathan."

TBC...

Uh-oh!

Nathan just found out about Sean and Brooke! What's gonna happen? One thing is for sure, Brooke and her friends will never be the same. So, what are you guys thinking? Love it, hate it? I love to know, so review please! The more I get the faster I write. What's next on Back to You?

Chapter Seventeen- No one to share the blame

- Sean resigns from Tree Hill

- Jules talks to Deb and Karen

- Alexis and Felix go to the movies "together."

- Peyton freaks out about Nikki

- Brooke comes home from Sean's apartment upset

As I promised, here are the individual thank yous to all of my reviews.

JojoGirlThanks for such a wonderful review! I agree with you when you say quality needs time. For me, mostly it's just the ability to have the time to sit down in front of the computer without the interruptions (my 5 month old daughter for instance). So at night, when everyone is asleep- I stay up to write. As for my story...well the idea came to me that Brooke would need someone a bit older because most of the guys at their highschool wouldn't appeal to her. So when she fell for Sean...it wasn't an intentional thing. And if you remember she didn't know for sure he was a teacher until after she realized she found him attractive. They had chemistry. And I am sure the readers have, at some point all had chemistry with an older person but knew that it wouldn't work out for a number of reasons. For Brooke, it's not the fact that he's an adult or even a teacher. Honestly I think the real reason their relationship is doomed is cause as a writer I am a Brucas fan. And Brooke truly loves Lucas (in this story and on the show.) So sorry for the long reply. Hope you enjoy this chapter :-)

OTHRetard: So that was good? Hopefully this one will be good as well. I was a little nervous that I would somehow mess with the flow of the story since I had been gone for over a month...but as soon as I sat down in front of the computer the last chapters came out. I think I am finally getting back into the flow of this story. I am gonna miss this story when it's over as well because to be honest it has been my favorite one to write. I love the fact that Brooke and Lucas love each other but still can't seem to get on the right track... but with the story almost over that only means one thing. Brucas getting together. Hopefully it will be worth the wait (but they still have a while to go!) Interesting theory on "who done it". lol, I am not going to say if you're right or wrong...but still. Interesting theory. Well here's the new chapter...and hopefully you'll enjoy the Felix scenes! lol...drama drama drama.

Lindsay23: Thank you so much! I just wanted to let you know that although this is your first time reading the story your review was really appreciated! Thanks for taking the time to let me know that you're liking the story. There will be plenty of Nathan and Haley moments ahead. Enjoy

Kelz3192: Jake's such a sweetie! I am such a fan of him and I am not sure why cause I am not really a Peyton fan. But as for Brooke being confused...I don't think it's confusion where as- she knows what she wants...but is afraid to have it. And there's a great guy who has fallen for her. She thinks it's easier then risking her heart for Lucas when he's already failed her. more than once. Yes Nikki does add drama to the story as does Felix! So this chapter should be drama filled

L-A-C-18: Yay! Thanks so much for your long review! It makes me so happy to see it in my emails. Hmm...let me think... oh! when the show first started as much as I loved Brooke and Lucas to be honest I think Haley was my favorite charcater. And then they had Nathan and Haley get married (which is kind of a good thing cause it hadn't really been done before) and she left him to go on tour. That made me so angry. Because you can have your dreams and your significant others. She left him and waited forever to finaly come back. I promised myself that if I was gonna write a story and include them in it that I would justify her actions and make her remember what's the right thing. She needs to be there for Nathan now. Sean and Brooke are great together too. There's not much more between the two of them so you'll just have to wait and see but they really do care for each other. But I think the deciding thing in getting Lucas and Brooke back together should be Sean. Almost everyone's theory is that Jules and Deb are in on it together but you'll just have to wait and see ;-) Well here's the next chapter- hopefully I will get another long review :-D

NateandJake: glad you're enjoying the story. Thanks for the review

Brucas4Ever: I am so glad you like the story. Here's more

BrucasNaleyLuvr: I don't think it's a question really if Brooke is happy with Sean. She's content. And we all know that means she isn't happy but she isn't upset either. She loves Lucas and that's always going to be an issue for her- with any guy. And as for Nikki and Felix, they deffinitly bring all sorts of drama to the story. And with them...anything is possible and most of the time is.

DanceDude09: I agree. There deffinitly was a lacking with Nathan and Haley. But I promise I have something really sweet planned for them in chapter twenty. But there will be problems floatng ahead in their romance- after all when you get married at 16 you have a lot of issues you have to work through. But Brooke really opened up to Sean and let him know her. Trouble is he asked her a question and she's not sure how to answer it. Here's the next chapter

Michelsita: I am glad you think the Peyton/Jenny thing was cute. There is more cuteness to follow in the chapters ahead

KaraokeDiva419: Hmm...I don't know whether that is a complement or not but thanks I guess :-) Brooke and Sean have more moments ahead enjoy.

KarahBella: I am glad you like this story. Thanks for your review