Wow, I wasn't expecting such a huge turn out of reviews. Thanks you guys! That seriously made my day. Seven reviews for one chapter is a lot for me. It takes people a while to get into a story, but thanks, and please keep it up. Anyways, I have a lot of stuff planned for this story. I decided to write another one because I got writer's block for my other story SUMMER TIME (which you all should read as well) Ha! Talk about bad advertising. This story will only get better; trust me. Well, here it is. Chapter 2. I hope you all enjoy it! Please read and review.
Chapter 2
Unrequited
The room was dead silent. Neither of the occupants could hear a pin drop. The only sound of life originated from the shuffle of papers and the constant ringing of the phones that the he and she could hear from behind the hospital door. Ten minutes seemed to had passed without an exchange of pleasantries as two former lovers stared awkwardly at another from different sides of the room. It was as if an invisible boundary separated them; it was almost like two roommates who shared a mutual hatred for each other and expressed this abhorrence by placing a piece of duct tape across the room to split their areas. Peyton felt like she was literally in third grade again, and she sighed in aggravation as Lucas stood there like the ill at ease schoolboy he was. It was time for someone to break the ice, and evidently she was the one to do it. "Men," Peyton complained to herself as she rolled her eyes.
"So, I heard about what happened. I'm sorry for your loss." Lucas looked down at the ground attempting to avoid eye contact. He nodded his head dejectedly. Keith's death had caused quite a ruckus in the quaint, little town of Tree Hill, and Lucas' popularity had soared. Lucas could not count the number of anonymous people stopping him on the street to express their condolences. It's not as if he needed to be reminded of his uncle's death. He was aware of it. Those close to Lucas knew not to address his loss; otherwise, there would be hell to pay.
"Thanks." Peyton nodded as she realized Lucas wasn't going to elaborate and looked out the same window she had been intrigued with earlier. She turned her head back in Lucas' direction when she heard Lucas speak again. "So, how are you doing?" Peyton's response was slow as she reacted with surprise to Lucas' unanticipated question, but somehow she recovered.
"I'm doing well," she paused as she contemplated her next words. "Thanks to you." Peyton smiled as Lucas looked up from floor into her speckled, brown eyes, whose tint changed as the seasons progressed. Lucas attempted to return her smile, but found it difficult as his lips contorted at the effort. His smile looked as if he had just drunk a glass of bitter lemonade.
"That's good to hear," he offered weakly.
"Yeah, the doctor said I should be out of here tomorrow, cane and all."
"Cane?" Lucas' ears perked.
"Yep, it's only temporary until my leg gets better."
"Oh?" Lucas added.
"Maybe I can qualify for senior citizen discounts," Peyton chuckled until she noticed Lucas apathetic response as his eyes wandered towards the floor.
"Lucas, is something wrong? You've been acting weird ever since you got here. What's going on in that brain of yours?" Peyton's voice was full of concern as she scrutinized his face and tilted her head towards Lucas. Lucas exhaled noisily as he shifted his eyes back to the pretty blonde.
"I don't know. Maybe I'm just getting tired of people asking me what's wrong." Peyton's eyes enlarged at the dreaded vocabulary that spewed from her friend's mouth.
"I'm sorry," she offered meekly. Her meager apology proved inefficient as Lucas continued to rant.
"What were you thinking, Peyton?" Lucas raised his voice an octave as Peyton flinched at his retort and shook her head as she appeared utterly clueless.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know what I'm talking about." Lucas raised his eyebrows at Peyton's naiveté. Peyton shrugged her shoulders.
"Maybe if you elaborate a little, I can understand why you're going off at me," Peyton added with a hint of irritation in her voice.
Lucas sighed. "Do you remember what happened in the library?" Peyton froze and her heart nearly stopped as the sound of his words became familiar. Not only did she remember the incident, but she had tried to ignore it. In a moment of life or death, when the blood seeped through the knee of her favorite fatigued jeans and she felt agonizing pain as the bullet burrowed itself deeper and deeper into the muscle of her leg, she had confessed to him. She had declared her undying ardor for her best friend's boyfriend. It was a love that had never wilted, was perhaps hidden for a brief amount of time, but it had always remained deep within the recesses of her heart. It was a love that had flourished. And then she had selfishly acted on her temptation as she had shared a forbidden kiss with him. It was a kiss she never intended to happen, but in a moment of pure panic, she found her lips eagerly pressed against his.
"Oh that?" Peyton now found herself in Lucas' position as she instead looked at the floor in mortification. She could feel Lucas' glare seep through her skull as she peered downward. She struggled with her speech as she continued. "About that…I'm really sorry." She looked up at Lucas to demonstrate her apology was earnest. Lucas' angry glare softened at the sound of regret.
"Why would you do that, Peyton? After everything you, me, and Brooke went through last year?" he implored.
"You're right, I'm sorry. I guess I just got lost in the moment. I thought I was going to die, Lucas. And you were there, and so was I." Her voice was full of shame as she spoke but became clearer as she realized that she was not the only one at fault. "Besides, it takes two to tango." She cringed as she predicted Lucas' response would be none to kind. Peyton's prediction rang true as Lucas clenched his fists in anger.
"Excuse me?" he shrieked as he motioned to himself, "but I wasn't the one who initiated it."
"You're missing the point," Peyton said as she rolled her eyes sardonically.
"What point are you trying to make?" Lucas pointed at Peyton as if indicting her. "You were the one who kissed me."
"That much is clear," Peyton nodded. "But you didn't exactly pull away."
Lucas snorted. "And what is that supposed to mean?"
"It means whatever you want to mean," Peyton grimaced as she sat up and to stretch her bandaged leg. "Clearly you wanted to kiss me back; otherwise you would've pulled away sooner."
"But that's not fair. I thought you were dying."
"That's exactly my point. I kissed you because I thought I was going to die," Peyton leaned back in her hospital bed and sighed in physical relief, although immediately she grew uneasy at the direction the conversation was going.
"I still don't understand why you would kiss me." Lucas raised an eyebrow as his anger subsided. "Uh, oh," Peyton thought to herself. "Unless…did you mean everything you said before you know," he paused and continued, "you kissed me?" Lucas asked
Peyton's eyes grew wide in fear as she confronted his question, and she looked down at her lap abashedly. Her voice was quiet as she spoke. It was as if she reverted back to her elementary days in which she was the quiet girl in the back of the classroom that everyone else ignored. "I could always fake cough him. No, I can't. Tell him, Peyton; just tell him," Peyton silently urged herself. And oh, how she yearned to tell him. Oh, how she longed for him to know her unrequited love. But she couldn't tell him. After all, Lucas was her best friend's boyfriend. Peyton had already betrayed Brooke's trust the year before when she used to sneak into the janitor's closet to exchange passionate lip locks or steal secret kisses in the library with Lucas. Lucas was right. The last thing she needed was a repeat of last year's turmoil. No matter how she felt about Lucas, she couldn't do that to Brooke again. She couldn't risk losing the most extraordinary friendship she had ever had. She would suffer before she could induce such pain upon Brooke.
"I did mean everything I said," Peyton acknowledged as she watched Lucas' expression change from curiosity to panic. His blue eyes grew startled at the prospect of her revelation. Lucas was speechless as he continued staring at the bottled-blonde. "Damn, how long does it take someone to get snacks from the vending machine? Brooke, where the hell are you?" Lucas asked himself as his heartbeat quickened.
"But as a friend," Peyton bit her lip as she spit out the gracious term. Lucas' face relaxed.
"Oh, thank God," Lucas sighed in relief as his heartbeat steadied. Peyton smiled uncomfortably.
"Lucas, I…" Peyton's words were cut off by the sound of approaching feet.
"Knock, knock!" As if on cue, and to Lucas' relief, the door flung open to reveal an ecstatic Brooke in her snug, pink tank top and jean capris that fell just below the knees of her shapely legs. In her tiny arms she carried a variety of chips, candy bars, and gum, which she immediately piled onto the chair adjacent to Peyton's bed. "Whew, sorry it took so long," she smiled at Peyton.
"Yeah, we were beginning to wonder." Brooke looked over at Lucas, who stood on the opposite side of Peyton's bed.
"As a matter of fact, your boyfriend here was about to send out a search party for you." Peyton replied.
Brooke looked astonished. "Really?"
"No," Peyton patted her friend's shoulder and smiled. Brooke giggled and swatted Peyton's hand away. "So, what could've taken so long to occupy the mind of Brooke Davis? Did you break a nail or did you have female problems?" Peyton added dryly.
Brooke opened her mouth in protest. "As a matter of fact, I emptied out the entire vending machine," she gestured toward the chair stacked with goodies. "I figured you could use a little more nutrition than jello," Brooke scoffed at the thought of hospital food. Peyton laughed.
"Oh yeah, cause Snickers is so healthy," she said sarcastically.
Brooke rolled her eyes as she grabbed a Snickers candy bar and flipped it over as she examined the nutrition facts label. "Okay Miss. Pessimist, I happen to know that this candy bar has 4 grams of protein, oh, and 5 milligrams of cholesterol." Brooke looked up from Peyton after reading the label. "See, a candy bar can be healthy."
"Brooke, unless you want to die from a clogged artery, cholesterol is bad for you." Peyton corrected her friend. Brooke nodded uncertainly.
"I knew that. I was merely comparing and contrasting bad stuff versus good stuff," she added innocently as she peeled the wrapper of the Snickers and nibbled on the end. Peyton giggled in delight as Lucas smiled at Brooke's gullibility.
"So, did you two have a good talk?" Brooke asked in between bites, only half paying attention to Lucas and Peyton's nervous expressions. Peyton's eyes widened in alert.
"Same old, same old," Peyton answered as she glanced at Lucas from the corner of her eye. Brooke looked over at Lucas, who still stood on the opposite side of the bed.
"Oh, you didn't bore her to death with that Voltage stuff, did you?" She arched an eyebrow as she placed the half-eaten candy bar on the chair. Lucas chuckled.
"That would be Voltaire, and no I didn't bore her." Lucas crossed the width of the bed and advanced toward Brooke as he put his arms around her shoulders in a loop and drew her to him against his chest. Brooke smiled as she leaned against his taut chest. Peyton was clearly bothered by Lucas' display of affection towards Brooke and averted her eyes to the window as Lucas placed a warm kiss on the gape of Brooke's neck. "Besides, I thought you liked Voltaire," Lucas whispered into her ear.
Brooke flashed a grin. "Only when you read it to me, and only in small doses; I mean, the guy's like Shakespeare on crack." Poor Peyton appeared to be nonexistent as the couple continued bantering.
"That is the most bizarre analogy I have ever heard, but I guess you make sense in your own kind of way," Lucas laughed as he released his grip around Brooke's shoulders.
"I always make sense," Brooke pouted.
"Of course you do, Brooke," Lucas added sarcastically. Brooke swatted his arm, and he responded with laughter.
"Lucas Eugene Scott!" Brooke exclaimed.
Lucas bowed his head in defeat. "Oh, I am so regretting telling you my middle name." Brooke giggled. Lucas glanced behind him at the door. "Anyways, as much as I would love to spend more time with my beautiful girlfriend, I have to get going. I promised my mom I would cook dinner tonight." Brooke nodded in understanding. Ever since Keith had perished, Karen had been working overtime at her café. Brooke assumed it was Karen's own way of coping with her loss. Everyone handled the aspect of death differently.
After both of Peyton's mothers died, her method of management was reclusion. In fact, that was how Peyton usually dealt with predicaments. She would lock herself in her room for days on end, refused to return Brooke's phone calls, and would paint the most morbid mosaics. They're friend Haley had once called her a "tortured artist". These were the perfect words to describe Peyton's character. Brooke, on the other hand, her method of dealing with grief was shopping, of course. Brooke never much cared for painting bizarre, impressionistic art or working abundantly. To Brooke, life was precious and shouldn't be abandoned to paper or overtime. Besides, not only was she atrocious at any aspect of art, but she also found no enjoyment in working. Working required too much effort; and what better remedy than to shop! While she was more relaxed, Karen, however, was the exact opposite, a workaholic if you will; not to mention, a neat freak. In other words, you couldn't get crumbs on the couch. Prior to Keith's death, she had always been in control of every aspect of her life. Things changed drastically after Keith's absence, and both Lucas and Brooke watched painfully as Karen quickly fell apart. Brooke had even started working regular shifts at Karen's Café in order to aideKaren in her recovery, but to no avail. As a result, Karen was a complete wreck until recently as she began to put the pieces of her life back together again. Until then, Brooke, Lucas, and Haley were Karen's support, and she relied heavily upon them to maintain her sanity.
"Peyton?" Lucas directed his attention to the patient, who was still watching the window with her lonesome, doe-eyed stare. Peyton looked up from her aversion as she heard Luke's familiar voice, and she acknowledged him. "I'm glad you're alright."
Peyton forced a smile and nodded. "Thanks for coming to see me."
"Anytime."
Lucas leaned down and gave Brooke a quick peck on the lips. "See you tomorrow?" Brooke asked hopefully as Lucas edged toward the door. Lucas smiled slyly and tilted his head as an idea came to him.
"I don't know. I was kind of hoping I would discover you in my bed tonight before I fell asleep." Lucas' eyes penetrated Brooke's eyes as she felt a slight blush redden her cheeks. It was a form of shynessthat only Lucas could provoke. She smiled tauntingly.
"Maybe, if you're lucky," she replied. With one last smile at Peyton and a wink at Brooke, Lucas left the room.
Brooke turned around and beamed at Peyton. "I never thought he was going to leave," Brooke said with relief. Peyton looked at her in bemusement, and Brooke snickered. "Just kidding." Peyton laughed. "So, Blondie, what's new with you? Have you met any cute hospital guys?" Brooke took pleasure in the thought of being served by hot, buff, guys in tight, white uniforms. There was something about the combination of attractive guys and uniformity that got Brooke all hot. She looked at Peyton with expectancy as she sat in an empty chair beside Peyton's bed.
"You mean orderlies? No, let's just say Pauly Shore gives these guys a run for their money?" she added
"Pauly who?" Brooke asked
Peyton rolled her eyes. "Never mind."
"You always do that!" Brooke complained by pouting her full lips.
"Do what?"
"You never answer my questions when I'm completely retarded. C'mon, help a girl out here," she prodded Peyton. Peyton sighed.
"Have you ever seen Bio-Dome?" Petyon attempted to familiarize Brooke with the infamous eighties star. Brooke looked dumbfounded.
"Bio-whattie?" Brooke asked completely stumped. Peyton laughed heartily as she threw her hands up in the air in defeat.
"I give up! You see, that's why I never answer your questions." Brooke laughed along with Peyton and her expression grew serious after their laughs decreased.
"Peyton?" Brooke locked her hazels with Peyton's brown eyes, and attempted to seek redemption. Peyton ceased laughing as she noticed Brooke's intense gaze. She put her hand over Brooke's outstretched arm in distress.
"Brooke, what is it?" Peyton inquired of her best friend.
"I wanted to let you know that I feel terrible about what happened at the school." Brooke's soft voice trembled as she appeared to be on the verge of tears.
"Brooke, what are you talking about? You weren't responsible for that shooting?" Confusion swept Peyton's face as she examined Brooke's face for an answer.
"I know. But I am responsible for what happened to you. It's my fault you go shot." Tears fled from Brooke's almond eyes as Peyton attempted to wipe them with her hand.
"Why do you blame yourself? You had nothing to do with me getting shot."
"I should've been there for you, Peyton. I shouldn't have let you out of my sight. It should've been the one to go back into that building to look for you, not Lucas!" Brooke wailed as Peyton brushed Brooke's mane with her fingertips, attempting to soothe her cries. As Brooke's cries settled, Peyton drew Brooke's face into her smooth hands, and Brooke was forced to look into the eyes of her best friend.
"You had no idea that I was still in the school when you left. It's not your fault, Brooke. All that matters is that someone like Lucas was there to save me. If it hadn't been you, it would've been someone else. Stop blaming yourself."
"I just wish I could've been there to help in some way," Brooke sniffled as she grabbed a tissue from her purse, and Peyton attempted not to laugh at the obnoxious nose blow that came from Brooke's tiny nostrils. But she couldn't contain herself as the tips of her small mouth pointed upward into a slight grin, and she was forced to conceal her mouth with her hand to avoid Brooke's detection. Brooke looked up from her tissue as she heard Peyton begin to speak.
"You were there for me," Peyton patted her chest and pointed to her heart. "You were right in here." Brooke smiled.
"Now, don't go getting mushy on me, P. Sawyer."
"Me? Never." She grinned with satisfaction as she had cheered her best friend up.
"Excuse me?" Brooke and Peyton whipped their heads quickly around and noticed a curvaceous nurse standing inside the doorway. Brooke could detect the outline of her hot pink bra beneath her white nurse's dress as her abundant cleavage nearly spilled out over her small uniform. Clearly, the woman's build was too big for her small dress, and Brooke immediately thought her suffocated frame needed ventilation. They had been so involved in their intimate conversation that they did not hear the nurse arrive.
"Yes?" Peyton asked.
"It's past visiting hours." The buxom nurse pointed at Brooke. "You're friend needs to leave."
Peyton nodded. "Okay, thanks." Peyton and Brooke waited for the nurse to leave, but it was apparent she was going nowhere in particular after she remained in the doorway. Brooke raised her eyebrows in annoyance.
"Okay," Brooke mouthed to Peyton. Peyton rolled her eyes.
"I'm sorry," she mouthed an apology to Brooke.
Brooke smiled. "So, I will see you tomorrow?" Peyton nodded again. "Yep, the doctors said I can leave tomorrow."
"Cool, I can pick you up. Just give me a call?"
"Sure." Peyton opened her arms and hugged Brooke warmly. "Have fun at Lucas' house." Brooke looked taken aback and opened her mouth wide in surprise.
"How did you know I was…." Brooke stammered. Peyton held up her hand to quiet Brooke.
"I'm your best friend. That's my job." Brooke smiled and Peyton followed henceforth. Smiling had become so addictive to the duo.
"Well, best friend, I will see you tomorrow." Brooke looked over at the nurse, who wore a scowl on her wretched face. "Better go before someone bites my head off," she whispered to Peyton. Peyton laughed infectiously.
"Bye," Peyton replied. And she was gone. Peyton sighed as she thought about the day's events. She replayed the conversation with Lucas in her head, and noted bitterly how ridiculous she must've looked to him. But all was said and done. Lucas was not hers to keep. Lucas was with Brooke, whom she loved wholeheartedly. And that's the way it would have to be. She would have toencounterBrooke and Lucas' kissing in the school halls. She would have to bump into them making out in the library. Someday she might have to witness them exchange their "I dos" as she would watch in torment at her lost love declaring his body and soul to somebody else. As much as it pained her to see them together, she knew it was the right thing to do. She needed to forget about Lucas. That was the only thing she could do in all in hopes of maintaining her bond with Brooke. After a succession of sighs, Peyton rolled over on her backside and closed her eyes with the knowledge that Lucas would continue to haunt her dreams. There is no rest for the wicked. And then there was one.