Ow to Chapter Eight: A Traitor At The Palace

Months had gone by since Nathan and Lucas' reconciliation and it seemed like everything was beginning to get back to normal. Nathan had become almost a permanent fixture at the school and many people were glad to see him return. Though he knew he was far behind and treading on thin ice with both Whitey and Principal Turner – neither of whom thought that wallowing in self-pity was a good enough excuse for missing almost half a semester of school – Nathan was doing pretty well.

He'd even agreed to have a tutor to help in catch up. Despite his initial hesitation to go back to the place where his relationship with Haley first started, he was more encouraged when he heard that Haley would not be a tutor this year, and that his new tutor was a guy.

Haley had also returned to school but Nathan made it a point to avoid her. She had become accustomed to being ignored by her estranged husband and had almost given up all hope; but encouragement from Lucas to just 'give it time' allowed her to hold on whatever shreds of confidence she had and hope that one day he'd give her any sign that he was willing to talk about it.

So far; nothing.

Meanwhile Brooke, Lucas and Nathan had unwittingly become an inseparable threesome. When they went out to restaurants, it was the three of them. When they wanted to watch a movie, all three had an input.

Sometimes Nathan felt intrusive, especially when Brooke and Lucas were being all cutesy with one another, but at other times he was grateful that they were allowing him to gatecrash their plans.

Their biggest get-togethers were when they were wedding planning. Peyton had jokingly stated that, as the maid of honor, she was feeling left out with the three of them making all the plans together, but she quickly admitted that Jake and Jenny took up a lot of her time and she was just happy to go along with anything they decided.

Nathan had taken Peyton's place as Brooke's confidant about dresses and flowers and girly stuff, although he'd joined Lucas in vetoing the hideous yellow bridesmaid dresses and the cheesy wedding favors Brooke wanted to offer.

In all, everything seemed to be working out.

"So, brother-in-law in T-minus one month," Brooke cheerily said as she plopped herself down besides Nathan during lunch. He jumped slightly at the brunette who had suddenly appeared beside him. "What are your plans this afternoon?"

Nathan shrugged, "Algebra."

Brooke made a face at him and shook her head, "How about you blow off the rest of your classes and come with me."

He seemed to brighten at the thought of skipping the said algebra. "And where would we be going?" he questioned, knowing that it was always necessary to get as much information as possible before agreeing to any one of Brooke's plans.

"Dress shopping," Brooke clapped her hands together in excitement.

"No." Nathan immediately returned to his textbook. Algebra definitely trumped shopping for dresses. Brooke's good mood suddenly fell as her grin became a pout.

"But it's important."

"Then take Peyton with you."

"She's with Jenny this afternoon."

"And?"

"And I'd rather not have a baby spit up all over the dresses and crying its head-off. Plus, she already said she couldn't do it."

"Lucas?"

"Are you kidding! He can't see any of my dresses. So that rules both Lucas and Peyton out and leaves you." She pushed him gently.

"Nice to know I'm at the top of your list." He mumbled pretending to be invested in his algebra, though none of it was making sense.

"Oh, you know what I mean. It'll be fun," she sing-songed the last part as she clutched onto his arm and gave him her best puppy-dog eyes. "I need you."

Nathan sighed and closed his textbook, stuffing it into his bag. "Fine, but if anybody asks, we're going to buy macho stuff."

"Deal!" Brooke jumped out of her seat and waited impatiently for Nathan to pack up the rest of his belongings before pulling him towards her car.

Lucas, who had been with Skills and Fergie during lunch, looked up at the figures getting into his fiancée's car. He frowned slightly.

He was fully aware that Brooke was going to try on her dress, but he'd assumed she would have taken Peyton or one of her girlfriends to accompany her- and not his best man.

Lucas shook his head, telling himself that it meant nothing and that maybe they were going to get something else too. If he had to be honest, he would agree that Brooke and Nathan's new friendship bothered him slightly, but he was just happy that Nathan was getting more involved.

He just hoped that eventually Nathan would get more involved in the state of his own marriage once this one was over.

-------

Two hours later and Nathan was sitting in a chair decorated with a pink and white floral pattern. With the exception of a couple of sales girls, it was only him and Brooke in the room.

Although Brooke spent more time concealed in a dressing room than with him.

Looking at his watch, he sighed loudly. "Brooke!" he called, "How many dresses are you going to try on?"

"Just two more!" she yelled back.

"Why do you even need so many dresses?" he asked. "I thought you only needed the one."

"Sure… but then I need one for the rehearsal dinner, the after-wedding dress and the honeymoon outfit. Plus, there's the wedding night lingerie that I haven't even begun to decide on."

Nathan raised an eyebrow at the last item on the list, "Any chance I can help you out with the last one?" he teased. Brooke scoffed.

"In your dreams."

"Believe me," Nathan muttered under his breath as he tapped his fingers on the arm rest in boredom. "Are you done yet?" he asked.

Instead of answering, Brooke pulled back the curtain to reveal her choice for the after-wedding dress. A simple ivory dress that reached just below her ankle. Nathan nodded in satisfaction.

"That's nice." He told her. She gave him a look.

"Nice?"

"Okay, it's better than nice. It's great. It's awesome. It's 'can-that-please-be-the-last-dress-so-we-can-leave'." He was practically pleading. She rolled her eyes.

"Fine," she told him as she drew the curtain. "There's only one dress left anyway."

Nathan sighed in relief. "Okay, well just throw it on and then we can go." He told her as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "What one is it anyway?" he asked.

"You'll see." She replied cryptically, much to Nathan's annoyance.

Ten minutes later, she pulled back the curtain, waking Nathan from his slumped position on the chair.

"What do you think?" she asked nervously as she stood in her wedding dress. Nathan sat up straight and his jaw dropped in awe.

"Wow." He said looking at her. His response caused her to grin from ear to ear.

"Really?" she asked. Nathan noted how she seemed to glow with excitement and a childlike giggle.

She looked at her reflection in the mirrors and sighed happily. The dress fit her perfectly, and was exactly like the expensive one she'd wanted before. Thanks to Nathan and his unusual eye for a bargain, she was getting it at a really good price.

Match made in heaven.

Brooke noticed how Nathan was still staring, "Okay, Nate, I get it. I look great. You can close your mouth now." She told him with her hands on her hips.

"Not great." She frowned at his comment. "Beautiful." He said sincerely. The edges of her frown lifted into another beaming smile and she blushed.

"Thanks." She replied softly.

Nathan stared at the beauty in the white dress, wondering just how something so close to perfection was in front of him.

"Do you think Lucas will like it?" she asked, snapping Lucas out of his thoughts.

"Lucas?" Nathan repeated, and when she nodded, he cleared his throat and replied, "Oh, he'll love it."

More than satisfied with his answer, Brooke took another look at herself in the mirror and sighed contently. "This is really happening," she said to nobody in particular. She glanced back at Nathan and nodded. "Okay, before you die of boredom, I'll change out of it and we'll go do something manly." She suggested as she drew the curtain, cutting off Nathan before he could protest.

As the curtains drew he sat back in his seat and let out a deep breath.

The image of his future sister-in-law standing in front of him in her wedding dress and looking breathtaking was stuck in his mind.

Nathan was suddenly reminded of his own beach wedding with Haley's simple white dress that she'd donned for the occasion. She had looked beautiful too, but there had been a sense of naivety between the two of them.

The wedding, though a sweet and loving event, had obviously been a mistake for the teenagers. Neither of them knew – or cared- about the reality of the situation. They had managed to get by for a few months caught up in their new and exciting adventure, but eventually they had started to feel that the marriage only seemed to restrict their different dreams and desires.

Of course, Nathan had loved Haley and he was certain that she had loved him.

But it was only after Haley left him when he realized that the two of them had made a huge mistake.

It could have been getting married in the first place, but also the fact that neither of them had understood that marriage – or any relationship for that matter – was about compromise and supporting one another.

Unfortunately, by the time either of them did realize it, Haley had been on tour for almost six months and Nathan was drowning his sorrows.

And when she'd come back; Nathan was in too much pain to care about salvaging what was left of their marriage.

Brooke drew open the curtains dressed back in her jeans and t-shirt. She looked at Nathan's oh-so-pensive expression.

"Penny for your thoughts?" she asked as she gathered some bags. He looked up at her and sighed.

"Yeah," he said getting out of the chair. "I was thinking about how much Playstation time you owe me." She rolled her eyes and pushed him.

"I get the hint, come on, I'll go pay for this stuff and we'll go." As they walked towards the pay desk, she shook her head. "Would it kill you to get a little more in the wedding mood?"

"I am!"

She cocked an eyebrow at him. "Really? You have a funny way of showing it. You looked bored out of your skull."

"I told you that you looked great in your wedding dress."

"Yeah, but you also said that about the three other outfits I had on before." She seemed a little disappointed in Nathan's apparent lack of enthusiasm. "You didn't even cry!"

"Brooke, I'm a guy. We only cry when our favorite basketball team loses or when we're drunk." She still didn't look impressed with him. He stopped her and looked directly in her eyes. "You looked amazing." He told her sincerely.

"Really?" she brightened.

He held a hand to his chest. "Really. I mean, I was crying on the inside." He made a melodramatic sniff and lowered his head. She punched him on the arm.

"Very funny." She replied dishing out her credit card, "But thank you."

"So," Nathan said while the sales girl processed Brooke's shopping, "Are you looking forward to tonight?"

Brooke frowned at him, "What's happening tonight?" she questioned.

"You know… the bachelorette party that Peyton… set up as a surprise and told me not to tell you," he groaned and put his head in his hands. "Sorry."

Her eyes widened in surprise, "Peyton's throwing me a party? But she told me she had Jenny today and Bevin said she was visiting her sick grandmother and oh my god! They lied! They are throwing me a surprise party!"

Nathan offered a small, apologetic smile.

"I cannot believe they got the hints," she grinned before frowning again, "And that I was stupid enough to believe whatever excuses they fed to me."

Nathan patted her reassuringly on her shoulder, "Come on, you're busy and stressed planning the wedding. It's okay to be a little more dense than usual."

She narrowed her eyes at him, "I'll take that as a compliment," she told him as she took back her credit card and gathered her bags, Nathan chivalrously taking the heavy ones from her.

"Since you ruined my surprise," Brooke said as they walked back to her car, "I need a favor."

"Brooke, I'm not letting you try your make-up on me again."

"No, I meant I need you to keep my wedding dress in your closet until the wedding. I don't want Lucas seeing it."

"Oh, yeah, I can do that… if you do something for me."

"What's that?" she asked.

"You act surprised tonight. I promised Peyton I wouldn't say a word and if she finds out I told you… well you'll be short one best man."

She smiled, "My lips are sealed and my eyes are ready to widen in surprise," she did a mock-gasp and held a hand to her chest, tearing up, "'Oh my gosh, you guys, I had no idea!'" She waved a hand in front of her face as if to stop tears from flowing. Then she straightened up and looked at him, dabbing at her eyes with the back of her hand. "How was that?"

He thought for a moment, "Less Gwyneth, more Julia."

"Hm," she pondered, "And for you, I'm thinking less E! and more ESPN." She teased.

"Hey! I would if you didn't take over the remote whenever you're at my apartment." He shot back.

"Aw, come on Nathan. You know you love it." Brooke flashed him a winning smile and got into her car patting the seat beside her. "Hop in, shopping buddy."

------

Nathan let out a deep breath and flicked off the TV. There was nothing on.

Not even a basketball game.

Had the world gone mad? All of those 'reality' shows were going to drive him crazy.

He flopped back onto the bed with a sigh.

Staring up at the ceiling for what felt like a lifetime, he rolled to his side and faced the closet.

Brooke's white wedding dress peeking out from the closet. Frowning ever so slightly, he pulled himself up off the bed and opened the closet door.

There is was, in all its blinding-white glory. He didn't know why it fascinated him – only that it did.

Pulling it out to have a closer look, he was kind of impressed with its style. Brooke definitely had the most fashion sense and he was grateful she hadn't picked out some God-awful meringue from the 80s.

This one was simple yet intricate. From what he could remember when Brooke modeled it earlier, it hugged every curve of her body and the train was just the right length.

He was glad he wouldn't have to hold it up.

The dress was strapless and he could make out the two slight bumps near the top that would support Brooke's breasts.

Poking it down gently, it retracted back and Nathan noted that there were breast pads sewn into it - although he had no idea why - Brooke's breasts were perfect enough already.

And then his thoughts froze. He hadn't been ogling his brother's fiancée, had he?

Pushing the wedding dress back into the closet, he shut the door tightly and moved away, trying to get all thoughts of Brooke and her breasts out of his mind.

He thought of basketball, and then Michael Jordan, then Dennis Rodman. Then Dennis Rodman in a wedding dress, which led him back to Brooke in her wedding dress. And then she was naked.

Dammit!

He took another deep breath. This was not him. Well, it was him...but it was obvious that all that time spent alone and out of love had addled his brain.

No, he was pretty sure the only way he was feeling like this was because the impending nuptials of his brother and his fiancée were reminding him of his own and the heartache that came with it.

Yes, that was it. It had to be it. After all, Brooke wasn't his type. No, instead her excitement had reminded him of Haley's and then all of a sudden they were spending time together and he was thinking about being all 'couple-y' again.

He groaned. How did he get so damn messed up? Why did he have to meet Haley James, and why oh why, did he ask her to marry him after only four months of dating?

Before he could analyze his thoughts and actions any further, the sound of someone knocking -or, rather, banging- on the door caused him to jump up and investigate.

Pulling open the door, his mouth fell when he saw Brooke standing in front of him. She seemed to not notice him until he called her name. Getting her attention, she grinned at him and launched into his arms, "Nate!" she giggled uncontrollably.

"Have you been drinking?" he asked, knowing the answer by scent alone.

"Just a tad," she said guiltily, "But only because everyone else was doing it."

He sighed. "If everyone jumped off a cliff, would you do it too?" Dear God, he was his father. She giggled again and Nathan shut the door behind them. "Aren't you supposed to be at your bachelorette party?"

This, it turned out, was a bad question to ask, as it elicited tears and sobs from the drunk girl.

"Shit," he muttered as he led her to the couch and sat her down. "What happened?" he asked.

"Stories...Haley...Rain..." were the only coherent words he got in response.

"Haley?" Nathan echoed, "What about Haley?" he gulped. Brooke, having forgotten that the H-word was forbidden in front of Nathan, nodded.

"We were all in the bar and exchanging stories of our beaus and Haley began telling us how you proposed. You know? You'd been all assy to her and then you'd turned up on her doorstep and apologized to her in the rain." Nathan remembered it well.

"Uh huh...And you're crying because?" He prompted.

After a loud snuffle, she tried to explain.

"I've never had that. Nobody has ever done anything as romantic as kissing me in the rain. It's like the freakin' Notebook!" she sobbed, both at the lament and the movie.

"Didn't Lucas propose to you while singing in front of the whole school?" he reminded her, "That's pretty romantic - and corny."

"That's so beside the point!" She moaned. "I mean, that was embarrassing at the time...The rain kissing thing is sweet and tender." More sniffling. "Have you ever heard Lucas sing?" Nathan smirked as Brooke lay down on the couch, "But a kiss in the rain is just so..." she sighed dreamily.

"Soggy?" He supplied.

"But what if I never get that? Why if me and Lucas just end up like my parents... or you and Haley?"

Nathan decided that he should take the reigns as the best man.

"Look, you and Lucas are different to me and... Haley. I kissed her because I was sorry and I loved her. I didn't want her mad at me. And Lucas sang horribly to you because he loved you."

She snorted, her tears ebbing away. "It was kinda romantic..."

"There you go," he stroked her cheek with his hand, "Plus, you'd probably have caught a cold anyway."

This time she laughed. "Yeah, that would have sucked."

Nathan sat down beside her, moving her legs so he could sit down before putting them over his own legs.

"Your wedding dress is amazing, by the way. I'm not sure if I said it before but Lucas will be blown away by it. When you see his face when you're walking down that aisle, you won't care about any stupid rain kiss. All you'll know is you love him and you'll spend the rest of your life with him." Nathan told her quietly as he stared at the closet in his bedroom. The wedding dress was teasing him. He could feel it. When Brooke didn't answer, he nudged her gently, "Brooke?" he questioned. "Did you hear me?"

When she failed to respond, he started to panic. She was out cold. That was not good.

"Brooke, wake up!" he shook her urgently but she was still not moving. Nathan tried to recall everything they'd told him in health class about alcohol but all he could remember was a stupid song about STDs.

Then he remembered a scene from one of Brooke's girly movies. They had thrown the passed out drunk guy under a cold shower. Maybe that would help here!

Picking Brooke up from the couch and making his way as quickly as he could to the bathroom, he jumped into the shower with her in tow and slammed on the water.

It took a few seconds for it to start up and when it did, the jet spray almost knocked the two of them off their feet.

Maintaining his footing, Nathan pushed her head under the water, vaguely realizing that he was getting rather wet as well.

It took a lot of effort to keep Brooke upright and Nathan impatiently waited for any signs of consciousness. He almost started to worry when nothing seemed to be happening.

Then she started to splutter and come to life in his arms, and he heaved a huge sigh of relief. Letting his emotions take control, he pressed a kiss to her temple and then to her lips. "There's your rain kiss." Her eyes fluttered open.

She gave him a lazy grin as the water dropped onto her face. "I love you," she muttered with a small yawn. "Lucas." she added.

Nathan froze as reality came slamming down upon him like a ton of bricks, and he realized what he had just done.

He'd crossed a line, a boundary that he really should have left well enough alone. And now here he was, sopping wet, in a shower with his drunken soon-to-be sister-in-law, who he had just kissed!

This was very, very bad. He had to get her out of his apartment, and fast.

Turning off the water, he dragged Brooke out of the shower and dried her off. She was still a little drunk and in no condition to drive. Sighing, he pulled out his dressing gown and began helping Brooke out of her cold, wet clothes, draping the dressing gown over her body blindly so as not to look at her bare skin.

He'd already done enough tonight.

In her alcohol-induced haze, she moved to hug him, and he leapt backwards to avoid her touch. "Go lie down," he instructed, leaving her no option to argue. "Go rest and Lucas will be here soon."

God! Lucas! He would find out about the kiss and, subsequently, his feelings and they would be feuding all over again...But Nathan knew it was his own fault this time. He would not pretend otherwise.

He watched as Brooke stumbled into the bedroom and flopped onto the bed. Nathan sighed as he shut the bedroom door behind her and returned to the bathroom to place her wet clothes in the dryer. He hoped they'd be dry before Lucas arrived to pick her up. He was in no mood to explain how she was now in his dressing gown.

He could try to explain it. Pretend as though seeing her with barely anything on hadn't affected him at all. But she'd mention the kiss, and the shower, and his expression in the boutique that afternoon, and he knew that Lucas would not be quite so understanding when it came down to it.

There was only one option. Lie.

Brooke was drunk. There was a huge chance she would not remember a thing and she did call him Lucas. Maybe she thought it was him.

The only thing Nathan could do was deny everything. Maybe then he could still keep Brooke in his life, and save his ass from being kicked.

Of course, he'd feel guilty for the rest of time, and would have absolutely nobody to talk to about it. But, really, it was all for the best.

So, when Lucas turned up an hour later, Nathan plastered a fake smile onto his face and retrieved a sleepy – fully dressed – Brooke from his room.

"Hey, thanks for calling me." Lucas said, helping his fiancée into a seat at the kitchen table.

Nathan tried to smother his irritation at the action. Why couldn't they just leave? He shrugged easily. "Not a problem. I thought you might get a little worried." Lucas nodded.

"Peyton called twenty minutes ago, wondering if Brooke made it home okay. I was starting to get worried when she wasn't there but then you called. It makes sense that she'd turn up here."

The guilt-ridden 'what's that supposed to mean?' almost flew from Nathan's lips without a second's thought, but he caught himself at the last moment. "Yeah..." He managed, hoping it didn't sound as feeble as he felt. "Wait… Peyton let her drive here in that state?"

Lucas shook his head, "Peyton said she dropped Brooke back home. Unless Brooke walked all the way here..." he scratched his head, "Isn't that weird?"

Weird, maybe. Irritating, definitely. He forced a laugh. "Yeah. She's been here so much lately that it's probably like a second home. Maybe even a first, 'cos it's got all her wedding stuff scattered around it."

Lucas chuckled as Brooke murmured something from her slouched position at the table.

"What was that, sweetheart?" Lucas asked, leaning closer to his bride.

"Rain..." Brooke yawned and Nathan's eyes widened.

Lucas, meanwhile, was oblivious. He grinned at her. "No, babe, it hasn't rained..." He turned to his brother. "She says the strangest things when she wakes up."

Nathan forced a smile and looked at his watch, "Oh, look at the time. You both must be exhausted. Maybe you should take her home before she falls asleep again."

Nodding, the other young man stretched and reached out to help his fiancée up. "Yeah, she'll kill me if she's running late tomorrow." He agreed. "Thanks," Lucas said to Nathan as he carried Brooke in his arms, "For taking care of her. You're a good brother."

Nathan gulped hard and forced another smile before following them to the door and watching to make sure they both got into Lucas' car okay. He gave Lucas a small wave as they drove off.

Shutting the door behind him, Nathan ran his long fingers through his dark hair and sighed.

Yup. He was just the best brother in the entire world.

To Be Continued…