Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with OTH
Author's Note: Alright, I know I said before that it would be a two parter, but I re wrote the last two and came up with this. Here is the final chapter of Back to You. I just wanted to take a few minutes to say thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story and take a minute to say how sad I am that it's finished. It was my first story I wrote for One Tree Hill and the story that got my Hales to watch the show :-) So for the people who reviewed it constantly, you know who you are (Amanda, L-A-C-18, Brucas4Ever, Gerky, DanceDude09, Jeytonlover... the list could go on and on and I will never get them all out.) I just wanted to say thank you. I am so glad you've enjoyed the story.
Now, without any further note, on with the show
CHAPTER THIRTY-
The Only place my Heart has Ever been
by: D. Sollers
Ten days later…
"This just gets better and better," Haley said as she sat down at Brooke's vanity. The girl giggled from behind her as she nodded her head in agreement. Brooke was busy curling her friends hair into spirals and Haley was talking about the six of them together. "Jake and Peyton are engaged, Nathan and I are together and you and Lucas are going to prom together."
Brooke nodded her head and placed the curling iron down. She stared into the mirror at her friend and her smile fell. "It's a date Haley, but it's not like a romantic date. It would be like if I went to the prom with Mouth," she said.
"Okay you and Lucas have had sex before so I for one am hoping that it wouldn't be like you and Mouth," Peyton said as she entered the room. Her two friends laughed at her and brought the blonde into a hug. Brooke grabbed Peyton's dress from her hands and laid it on her bed.
She turned to look at her friends and sighed. "What if… what if something happens tonight?" She questioned. Her friends all looked up at her, confused as to what she meant by this.
"If something does happen, that means when he goes to UCLA it's going to be THAT much harder," Brooke said. She looked down at the floor and ran her hands over her jeans. "I'm not sure I can loose him like that."
Peyton wrapped her left arm around Brooke. "I don't think Lucas has any intention of losing you," she said, reassuringly. Haley agreed, but Brooke wasn't that convinced.
"Maybe Lucas and I are just supposed to be friends."
Haley crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. "That's it Brooke. I've had it! I know that you're scared and I know that you don't want to trust Lucas but lets face it. You have to start trusting him. The guy has been in love with you for more than two years already. Are you really willing to let that go? Besides the fact that he slept with someone AFTER you rejected him, he has never even looked twice at another girl."
"Haley's right. You two aren't better off as friends and we all know it. Lucas knows it. And I think deep down… so do you," Peyton reasoned.
Brooke walked towards her closet and pulled out her dress, ignoring her friends comments. But in the back of her mind, she was agreeing with them. Lucas and her had been dancing in circles for a long time. Tonight was the night for all of that to change.
……
"You think they're done getting ready?"
Lucas took a seat at the table next to his brother and grabbed some of the chips. Nathan didn't look up from his television, but busily played his game. "Nope, they're going to make us all late. It's a guarantee," he said with a laugh.
"I bet they're not even getting ready right now. They'll wait till the last minute or something," Mouth said.
Jake, Lucas and Nathan all laughed. "If I know Brooke, she'll be getting ready all day. She told me last night she had three appointments today," Lucas laughed. Jake nodded his head.
"We all know that we're going to be late to this thing. They're girls and this is prom," Jake reasoned. He finally defeated Nathan's ninja and he shouted in victory. "Killed you Scott, how about you Luke? Wanna try to beat me?"
Nathan threw the controller at his brother and rolled his eyes. "You only beat me because of stupid over here." He pointed over to Lucas and stood up.
"Where you going?" Mouth questioned.
Nathan looked nervously towards him and shrugged his shoulders. "I have something to pick up at Tim's," he squeaked. It went unnoticed excepted by Lucas who turned towards him.
"Are you sure you wanna do it man? You know that Haley's going to kill you."
Nathan shrugged his shoulders. "At least I'll go down as the king," he grinned. For a moment, Lucas laughed. It was funny to see his brother interested in something other than basketball. He seemed to genuinely want to be remembered for something their father, Dan Scott had nothing to do with.
"Well, good luck bro."
……
They had all agreed to meet at Karen and Andy's home to take a few photos before heading over to dinner. After dinner, the limo would then take them to the prom and to the after party. For the most part, the guys had done an amazing job at planning.
All three guys sat down at Karen's table and waited for their dates. Karen stood in the doorway, a sleeping Samantha warm in her arms. "Can I hold her?" Nathan asked quietly. To everyone's amusement, Karen placed the baby in his arms. He smiled down at the baby and cooed to her. "You're so pretty Sam and we're all so proud you're here," he whispered as he rocked her back and fourth.
The front door opened and Peyton stepped inside, followed by Haley and then Brooke. The three girls had been surprised that they hadn't caused enough attention, but saw where everyone's attention had been. Haley put a hand over her mouth and smiled at her husband. Did he have a baby in his arms? She turned towards Brooke, who just smirked at her. "I told you tutor mom," she said with a grin.
"Hey there gorgeous," Brooke said as she entered the room. All three guys looked at her and Lucas's mouth fell open. Brooke was dressed in a simple white dress with rhinestones that defined the empire waistline and spaghetti straps that plunged down the back. Around her neck was the locket he had given her at Christmas time. Her hair was down and he couldn't help but notice the waves in it.
"I think I should be calling you gorgeous," he said as he walked towards her. She blushed at his compliment and then looked back up at him with a twinkle in her eye.
"You better be calling me more than gorgeous."
Haley made her way over to Nathan and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "You look beautiful Hales," he murmured as he passed the baby to her. She held the baby and rocked her. "And you look great doing that," he said with a wink. Haley laughed and nodded her head. The two of them, surprisingly did look good with a baby.
"Hey babe," Jake said as he showed Peyton her corsage. He slipped it onto her wrist before pulling her into a big hug. Peyton leaned into him and allowed him to give her a small kiss. "You look amazing," he whispered into her ear.
The doorbell rang, causing all three of the couples to jump. "That should be Felix and Alexis," Haley explained. Peyton rolled her eyes but stayed quiet. Sure enough as Andy opened the door the young couple entered, both dressed in their suit and gown. He was about to shut the door when Mouth stopped him.
"Hey guys, I'd like you to meet my date. Gigi, these are my friends," he said as the others waved hello to his date for the evening. Tim bounced into the house, solo as usual.
He walked towards Nathan and highfived him. "I came just in time for pictures," Tim said as Karen sat the baby in her bassinet and Andy handed her the camera.
"Alright you guys, scoot together," Karen said as the group of nine posed for their picture. Nathan had his arms around Haley, Jake with his arm around Peyton's shoulder and Brooke leaning against Lucas lovingly. Gigi and Mouth were in front on one side, Felix and Anna on the other, with Tim in the middle giving the peace sign. "Okay, one… two.. Three…" She snapped the picture and then took a few poses before asking to take individual ones of the different couples.
About a half an hour later, Lucas turned to his mother and gave her a hug. "We have to go now, I'll see you later okay?" He kissed her gently on the forehead and then looked down at his sister who was still sleeping soundly. "Goodnight Samantha," he whispered as he placed a kiss on her head.
"Goodnight Karen," Haley and Nathan both called as they followed Lucas out the door. Peyton and Jake followed behind them and turned around for Brooke.
"Are you coming?" Peyton asked and Brooke nodded her head. She signaled to Peyton to give her a minute and Peyton understood. The couple walked towards the door and towards the limo that was awaiting them.
Brooke looked into the hallway mirror and ran her hands threw her hair before turning towards Karen. "I guess I'll be going then," Brooke said as she took a step out the door. Karen called out for her and held onto her wrist.
"I know you're not my daughter Brooke," Karen said. Brooke looked down at the ground and nodded her head. She wasn't Karen's daughter and she could hardly remember a time that she felt as if she had one. "But I couldn't love you anymore if you were my daughter. That's why I wanted you to have this."
Karen pulled out an antique hair clip and handed it to Brooke. Brooke ran her fingers over it and then looked up at Karen, with tears in her eyes. "It's beautiful," Brooke said softly.
"It was my mother's, I always figured I would give it to Haley on her wedding day. But I guess I missed that one," Karen said with a laugh. Brooke nodded her head and laughed slightly, thinking about how young Haley had been when she had said her I do's. "I think it will look perfect in your hair."
Brooke looked down at it and then back at Karen. "Would you…" She questioned and Karen nodded happily. She pulled back apart of Brooke's hair and pinned in the clip. Running her fingers through Brooke's hair to separate it, she pulled back and grinned at the girl in the mirror.
"Beautiful."
Lucas called from the door and Brooke turned to face him. "I guess I should get going," Brooke sighed. She turned towards Karen and brought her into a hug. "Thanks…" Brooke whispered into her ear as she pulled away. "Mom."
As Brooke walked away, Karen's mouth fell open. There had been a few times over the years that Haley had slipped and called her that but besides that she had never heard any other person call her that. It felt good to know Brooke felt that way about her.
"That has a nice ring to it," Brooke grinned. Karen nodded her head and watched as her son and Brooke exited the house. She leaned against the table and shut her eyes. Her son had grown up before her eyes and here she was about to go through the same thing all over again.
Andy stood next to her and stared at the door. "There's something about that girl," he said with a smile. Karen turned towards him and nodded her head softly. She leaned her head against her husbands shoulder and sighed.
"She really loves Lucas."
……
Dinner had run smoothly and they were on their way towards their school when Brooke's phone rang. She turned towards Peyton and raised an eyebrow. "Who's calling you? You're with all of us," Peyton said with a laugh. She shrugged her shoulders and opened her purse so she could reach her phone. Looking down at the number, she realized it was Sean who was calling.
"Hello," Brooke answered the phone. She felt weird about him calling her, they hadn't talked to each other since she had broken up with him. Lucas had told her that he had stopped by, but when she had called him back he didn't answer. Brooke had just figured he was trying to play games with her.
Sean cleared his throat. "Hi Brooke," he said from the other end. She smiled at how nervous he sounded and turned towards Peyton. She mouthed who it was on the phone and Peyton rolled her eyes. The group then returned to their conversations, all except Lucas who was busy watching his date's face. She seemed confused.
"I stopped by your house tonight but I just missed you," he said.
Brooke nodded her head. "Yeah, we're on our way to the hotel right now," she explained. "I'm sorry I wasn't there when you showed up, is everything okay?" Brooke turned towards Lucas and smiled sympathetically. When she seemed okay, he turned his attention back towards Nathan who was busy talking to Haley about their choice of college.
"It's okay. I'm glad actually."
Brooke didn't understand what he was trying to say. "I don't understand," she said quietly.
"I realized that I was selfish Brooke," Sean paused for a moment. "I was coming to see you to see if you would change your mind about us. But when I got to your house and I realized that you had gone to the dance already… I changed my mind."
Brooke laughed. "Okay… so what does that mean?"
"You said I deserved better than what you could give me," he repeated. "But the truth is, you deserve better than what I could have. There's going to be apart of my heart that will always belong to my ex and I was trying so hard to believe that I could move on with you."
Brooke nodded her head. "I understand Sean."
"No, I don't think you do. You taught me I could move on. I did fall in love with you and I wouldn't change it for the world. That's why I am calling. I know that Lucas is in love with you."
Brooke turned towards Lucas and then back towards the phone. "And I know you love Lucas. So please Brooke, just give it a chance. You'll regret it later on if you don't try."
"Thank you Sean," Brooke whispered.
She could almost picture him nodding his head as he continued. "You'll always hold a piece of my heart Brooke."
"You too Sean."
He waited for a moment and then said his goodbye.
"Bye Sean."
Lucas scooted back beside her and looked down at her. "Are you okay?" He questioned and she nodded her head. Giving him a Brooke Davis smile, she turned towards the rest of her friends.
"We need a toast," Brooke said.
Peyton nodded her head and took the champagne from the mini refrigerator. She poured a little bit into each other their six glasses and turned towards Lucas. "Want to say it?" She asked him, he shook his head no and Brooke sat up a little.
"I'll do it," Brooke said with a smile. "We all know I'm not as good with words as Lucas is. I can't sing like Haley does, or draw like Peyton. I don't play basketball and I am not a computer wiz… but that never mattered with any of you. I just want to say thank you for the last couple of years, you all have been the best friends I could have asked for."
The four couples clanked their glasses together and drank to Brooke's toast. Peyton kissed Jake, as did Haley with Nathan and followed by Gigi and Mouth. Brooke turned towards Lucas and smiled bashfully. "What the hell," she said as she leaned in and placed a kiss on his lips. The kiss was soft and gentle and left both of them smiling even as the car pulled to a stop.
"We're here," the driver told them. Haley gave Brooke and Peyton one last look before exiting the limo and heading off towards the hotel. Nathan followed his wife and took a hold of her hand. Jake helped Peyton out of the car and then Mouth with Gigi. When it came time for Lucas to help Brooke out of the limo, he turned towards her and smiled gently.
"I'm glad you came with me Brooke," he said.
Brooke nodded her head. "Me too Luke, me too."
"Good, because there's something I have been wanting to tell you," Lucas said. Brooke nodded her head again and laughed. They could hear their friends calling in the distance but neither of them cared. The moment of truth had finally come and neither of them were backing down.
Brooke put her hand over his mouth. "You know what Luke? Me first, okay?" He nodded his head and Brooke removed her hand. "I've been meaning to tell you something ever since I arrived back in Tree Hill last year. This whole year we've been running in circles and I know I was with Sean for a while but…"
"It's always been you," Brooke whispered.
Lucas smiled at the honesty in her words and shook his head in agreement.
"I want to be with you Lucas. It scares the hell out of me because I am so afraid we're going to mess it up… But I do want to be with you," Brooke stated.
Lucas took his hands in his and squeezed them. "I know I hurt you the last time and I am so sorry for that but I will never do anything like that again."
"I love you," Brooke said simply.
He brought his hand to her face and ran his fingers over her cheeks. "I love you too." His lips crashed down on hers and she smiled into his. "Pretty girl," he whispered as he pulled away. "We should get inside."
Brooke nodded her head. As he exited the limo, he turned around and took a hold of her hand and pulling her out of the car. Her shoe slipped and she stumbled forward. She would have fallen face first if Lucas hadn't of grabbed her arms. When she regained her composure, she looked up at him and blushed.
"Just hold on to me," he whispered as the two walked towards the door.
Brooke looked up at him and leaned her head against his shoulder.
"I'm not letting go again."
THE END.
Well, ta da! I hope you enjoy it and I am deffinitly thinking about writing a sequal to it so I don't know... depending on what everyone think about the last few chapters I guess. Can't wait to see your reviews
