What Is A Birthday Anyway?

Author-Emily-Grace Mendes (Brookebynature)

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the characters, but I wish I did. Then I wouldn't have to rely on my dad for money...

A/N- So sorry it's taken me this long to update, but this site wouldn't let me load a document, so God knows what happened there. Anyways, thanks for the reviews guys, hope you enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I'll Always Be There

"Lucas…..what?" Brooke quickly wiped at her face with the back of her hand and sat up, straightening her shirt as she did so. She went to get up off the bed, but Lucas sat beside her before she had the chance.

"Aren't you supposed to be playing in a game right now?" Brooke asked, sniffing and dipping her head so that he couldn't see the tears in her eyes.

"Aren't you supposed to be celebrating your birthday right now?" Lucas asked instead of replying. She nodded silently, but then threw her whole body into him, letting him hold her as she broke down in violent sobs.

"Nobody came Lucas" she cried, her hair sticking to her wet face. "Peyton, my parents. I didn't even get a card off them"

Lucas pulled Brooke to him, his heart actually aching for her.

"I'm sorry Brooke" he whispered into her hair, stroking it with one hand while gently rubbing her back with the other.

"Why didn't they come Lucas? What did I ever do that was that bad that they wouldn't want to even ring me on my birthday?"

She could barely get her words out, but he heard them, not clearly through the muffled sound they made against his jumper, but he heard them all the same.

"I don't know" he said softly "But I'll bet they regret it later, especially when they see how beautiful you look"

"Don't be stupid Lucas, I'm a mess" she said, still crying into his chest as he held her even tighter, breathing in her strawberry scent.

"You're not a mess Brooke, and you look beautiful. You always do" he whispered, shutting his eyes, trying his best not to cry with her. Now wasn't the time, he had to be strong for her, be there for her. Nobody else was.

Broke stopped crying and pulled back from Lucas, moving her hand to wipe away the mascara smudges, but he stopped her, placing his hand on top of hers which was resting on her cheek. He moved his thumb gently, catching the last of the tears as she shut her eyes, staying still as she felt shivers going down her spine. Lucas mistook it for being cold and he took off his jumper, draping it around her shoulders.

"I have jumpers of my own in there you know" she laughed a little, indicating her closet.

"Then how come you always wear that grey hoody of mine?" he asked, raising his eyebrows as she caught his eye.

"I just said I have jumpers of my own. I didn't say I was going to wear them"

Lucas laughed, and she smiled back at him, the sparkle in her eyes returning slightly.

"That's more like my cheery" he said as she got up off the bed. "Now you have to come with me because I have your present.

"Ooh a present!" Brooke jumped up clapping her hands. Lucas laughed at her reaction, but it got caught in his throat when he saw her dimpled smile. Every time she smiled like that it made him want to kiss her and close his eyes and just stare at her, all at the same time. He shook himself out of it and smiled back at her.

"Yeah but it's at my house so you might want to put that on" he said, motioning to his jumper.

"Nah" she replied, holding it out to him. "It looks better on you"

They walked down the street, Brooke leaning in to Lucas as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He saw the goose bumps on her arms and rubbed them gently, earning him a smile.

"You should've taken the jumper when you had the chance" he laughed.

"Yeah but then I wouldn't get to enjoy the view of you in it" she replied softly, meaning every word. He knew she did, and he dropped a kiss on the top of her head, closing his eyes as he did so.

By the time they had reached Lucas's house, Brooke's feet were hurting and her eyes were sore and tired from crying. He opened the door and led her in, hearing her catch her breath as she looked at the sight in front of her.

The lights were turned down low, just allowing for the room to look welcoming and comfortable, which it did pretty much all of the time anyway. There were a few candles scattered around-he hadn't gone over the top, just made sure that there was enough to give the room a subtle glow. The couches had been pushed back slightly and the coffee table had been cleared of its usual clutter to make way for the plates and glasses that were positioned neatly and carefully at either side. On the floor were two large cushions and a small box beside one of them.

"Luke it's beautiful" Brooke gasped, staring in awe at the sight before her. Never had she imagined that someone would go to so much trouble to do something nice for her.

"You can come in you know" he laughed softly, holding out his hand. Brooke took it and gave a gentle squeeze, her heart beating faster.

"Thank you so much"

Lucas didn't reply, but instead gave Brooke a lingering kiss on her forehead, taking in the scent of her hair and the feel of her skin. He tugged at her hand, shutting the door behind them, and lead her over to the table, handing her a cushion.

"Thanks" she said softly as she took it from him, their eyes locking as Lucas released Brooke's hand, giving it one last squeeze.

"I'll just get the food" Lucas said as he left Brooke sitting on the floor, her legs crossed in an uncomfortable-looking position, when the truth was, she'd barely felt more comfortable in her life. When just a half an hour ago, she felt like she did, Brooke could barely believe how much better she felt, just for having Lucas there for her.

She looked up to see Lucas balancing three plates: one of spring rolls, another with chicken and noodles, and the final one with salad. He stopped at the table, unsure of which plate to put down first. Brooke giggled and took the spring rolls from him, setting them down on the table as she looked at him quizzically.

"What's cheery brooding for?" he asked, setting the two other plates down.

"You forgot the chop sticks" she laughed, pointing to the table mats which were underneath a plate with a napkin, but no cutlery.

"Right" Lucas laughed "Well I'm no good with chop sticks, so how does good old fashioned knifes and forks sound?"

Brooke giggled at him but nodded her head "Sounds perfect"

Brooke soon found that she was actually hungry, especially since she hadn't eaten all day.

"Brooke Penelope Davis, are you actually going to leave me any food?" Lucas joked, digging his fork into the last spring roll before Brooke could get it.

"Hey!" she replied indignantly, having to pause to swallow the mouthful of food before she could say anything else. "It's my birthday! I get to eat what I want"

Lucas laughed and cut the spring roll in two. "There you go"

"Thank you, but you can have it"

"I want you to have half" Lucas laughed

"Well if you insist" she giggled, taking the bigger half and putting it on her plate, giving him a mischievous grin before she took a large bite, nodding to tell him that she was enjoying it."

"So I guess you like my cooking then?" he asked as Brooke put down her knife and fork and wiped her mouth with her napkin.

"I liked the take-out's cooking" she laughed

"Hey! I made this"

"Yeah, and I made these plates"

Lucas didn't reply as he saw the shine in her eyes as her dimpled smile spread across her face.

"What makes you think I didn't make it?" Lucas asked after a few seconds

"Um, I don't know, maybe the fact that I can see the boxes in the kitchen"

"Damn it" Lucas cursed. Brooke laughed and then picked up her cushion, throwing it gently beside Lucas before she sat back down on it.

"But thank you so much for doing this Luke" she said quietly, almost whispering. "You never told me why you're not playing basketball."

"Because I needed to come here" he replied honestly.

"Why?"

"It's your birthday"

"But you gave up a chance of a life time to just be sat here with me on the floor, eating take out?"

"I'd rather be doing this" Lucas said, taking her hands in his. "You mean more to me than basketball Brooke."

"You should have stayed at the basket ball school" she said softly, not looking at Lucas,

"Why? To be miserable because I knew you were lying to me on the phone? To spend the entire game wishing I was with you?"

"Luke….." she whispered, but he cut her off.

"I left because I didn't want to be there as much as I wanted to be here. My heart wasn't there Brooke, it was with you. Now that's the end of it so I have to go into the kitchen a minute"

Lucas got up leaving Brooke in a stunned silence, her hand still tingling from the feeling that he gave her whenever he touched her. He came back out from the kitchen, holding a board which balanced a small but perfect-looking chocolate cake, complete with lit candles. He sung happy birthday to her, though Brooke's giggles and his own self-consciousness at his crackly voice. To Lucas, it was a bad attempt, but to Brooke it was perfect. She blew the candles out in one go, and made a wish as she cut them both a small slice. Instead of her usual wish for her parents to spend more time with her, she wished for something else, something that she wouldn't tell Lucas no matter how much he asked her.

"Wishes are to be kept secret Broody, otherwise they won't come true!"

Brooke helped Lucas to clear away the plates from the coffee table, although they decided to leave the washing up. With Karen still in New Zealand and Keith staying in Charlotte, there was nobody to tell them to keep the place tidy, so they decided to settle on the couch to watch a movie after they had pushed it back into its original place.

Brooke curled up next to Lucas who gladly wrapped an arm around her, resting his hand on her hip which sent those familiar shivers down her spine. She rested her head on his chest, feeling him relax.

"Oh wait, I forgot to give you your present" Lucas said, getting up off the couch as Brooke forced herself to stay upright without him to lean on.

"But you already did all that for me" she said softly, her eyes showing him so much appreciation.

"Well I got you this too" he said handing her the box. She opened it slowly and gasped when she saw what was inside. It was a silver bracelet with all different silver charms hanging from it. Brooke traced her finger along t gently, taking in the beauty of her gift. There was a heart on the middle of the bracelet which was bigger than the rest of the charms. She looked at it and noticed the inscription.

'Happy Birthday Brooke'

She stayed silent, not able to find the words to tell Lucas how much she loved it.

"I wasn't sure if you'd like it" he started "I wanted to get something that nobody else would have and I couldn't……" Brooke silenced him with her lips, placing a delicate but passionate kiss on his, tracing his bottom lip gently with the tip of tongue. She pulled back to look in his eyes which were busy searching hers for any sense of doubt or regret. Seeing nothing but love and passion, he kissed her back, keeping her body supported with one hand as he gently caressed her cheek with the other. This time she broke off again, but rested her forehead against his, breathing heavily as her lips longed to keep his on them.

"It's beautiful Lucas" she whispered, still trying to catch her breath "I love it"

She rested her head back on his chest as his arm wrapped round her again, tighter this time, as if he was going to loose her. Brooke sensed this and leant up to kiss him softly on his lips again, placing a hand on his chest, feeling safe in the knowledge that it was right to hold each other, and that they didn't have to hide their feelings.

I'll definately do another part to this story, please review, perhaps with some ideas if you want it turned into a full-length fic.

Emily-Grace xxx