Hey Guys...
First off I just wanted to apologize for how long it has taken me to get this chapter up. Again, it is kind of short, but it has a lot to it, so hopefullly you will enjoy it.
I also wanted to say thanks to everyone that has read and who had replied. It truly means a lot. Thanks Again.

Flashbacks are in italics.

Summary: Lucas abandon Brooke and their unborn child, but what happens when he returns in an attempt to salvage his relationship with his son? Does Brooke let him back into their lives? Does he get his life he always wanted but was too scared to have?

A LACK OF COLOR
CHAPTER 9

"Are you ready?"

Nathan found himself doing something that he had never actually done before: praying. He nodded silently to the waiting doctor, giving him permission to continue. Nathan's hand clamped his brother's. His eyes were clamped shut and his lips moved mutely in prayer.

"This is it." The doctor stated. He waited a brief second, giving Nathan time, but when he didn't respond, he continued.

One by one Nathan could hear the machines shut down, the room falling gradually quieter in the process. His hand absently squeezed Lucas' harder, his pleas becoming more frantic in his mind as time progressed.

The steady beep that filled the room for the past few days slowed. "Come on." Nathan whispered, his hope dwindling with every second that passed. Another beep. They were coming erratically.

Nathan nodded, his arms wrapping tighter around his nephew who lay asleep against his shoulder. One look at the boy and he knew what he had to choose, for him, and for everyone else.

The doctor stood readily, waiting patiently for Nathan's decision. "What would you like Mr. Scott?" He prompted.

"I don't know what I want." He whispered. His eyes forcedly moved from Lucas and focused on the confused man in front of him. "But Lucas would want to fight."

The doctor nodded, his pen scribbling on the chart in his hand. "And you're sure?" He questioned. "I just want to make sure that this is your decision. You understand that its not guaranteed that a heart will become available for Lucas? There is a chance that he could be hooked up to the machines for a prolonged period of time. Are you sure this is what he would want?"

Nathan's eyes darted back to his brother for a second, which only helped to reassure his decision. "He's strong. It's what he would want." He nodded, smiling fondly at Ryan. "It's for the best."

He briefly allowed himself to meet the brunette's eyes across from him, but quickly adverted them. The pain and disappointment was clearly evident. She disapproved. But this wasn't about her; it wasn't about him. It wasn't even about Ryan.

It was about Lucas. It was about what Lucas would want. "I'm sorry." He whispered. She simply nodded, silent tears streaking down her face onto the still boy's bed.

Another beep was emitted from the final machine, followed by another. Nathan allowed his eyes to open, focusing them on the motionless blonde. He noticed the pinkish color filling his usually pale skin. The line on the machine became more patterned, the beeping becoming increasingly regular.

"Nathan." His eyes met the doctor's. The elder man flashed a quick smile, the joy evident in his eyes. Nathan quickly matched it. He sprung from his seat, instantly enveloping the doctor, squeezing him gratefully.

The door swung open at Nathan's loud outburst, the two women waiting nervously in the hall appearing in the room. Haley was the first to approach him. She shifted anxiously in front of him, waiting for any type of sign of his emotions.

His blue eye's met hers. He saw the regret in them. She had told him to give up, to let Lucas go. She told them that it wasn't worth it. But now standing here in the room, with the steady beat of the heart monitor, and the still living man, she knew that it was worth it.

"Nate…" She trailed off. For once in her life she had no words. He quickly shook his head, silencing her. His long arms wrapped securely around her, pulling her smaller body against his.

"We're not out of the clear yet." The doctor's voice filled the otherwise silent room. He hung an IV above Lucas' head, allowing it to pump into his arm. "It's going to be a long road for him. We still don't know if his body is going to accept the heart. And even after that, we don't know how long it will take for him to recover. Or even how long until he will wake up."

Brooke let out a shaky breath, taking another deep one in. "But assuming that his body is fine with the new heart…he will wake up, wont' he?" She questioned uncertainly. The doctor visibly winced at the question, not sure how to answer it.

"Basically…" He began, making sure to choose his words wisely, as not to give them any false hope. "It's a wait-and-see type of thing. We have to wait now. It's up to Lucas what happens from here on out."

All three nodded, the gravity of the situation hitting them hard. Ryan wiggled from Brooke's tight embrace, climbing down from her and onto the bed. Brooke soon joined him, opting to sit in the chair next to the bed. She stroked Lucas' blond hair, whispering into his ear.

"Can he hear us?" Nathan questioned curiously. He remembered that when he was in a coma that he could hear people around him.

"Probably not." The doctor shrugged. He flashed a light smile at the little boy who glanced over at the question. "But I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to try." With that he left, leaving the four alone.

Nathan stood wearily in front of his wife. Even though he towered, easily, a foot above her, she still terrified him. She stood before him, her neck arched upward to stare him in the eye, her arms position menacingly on her hips.

But that wasn't what frightened him. It was they way she was eerily quiet, and yet, even though she wasn't talking, her eyes told everything. "I'm sorry Haley." He mumbled. "I just think it's for the best."

"It's not!" She cried exhaustedly. "He shouldn't have to lay there in some random hospital bed hooked up to god knows what for the rest of his life."

"He won't be." Nathan protested. "He'll get better."

"You don't know that!"

"It's Lucas, Hales…" He murmured, his hands gesturing toward his brother.

"Exactly. He deserves better…"

The door swung open, the doctor revealing himself, interrupting the conversation going on between the couple. "I'm sorry." He stated. "It's just that…I've got some good news."

Both of their heads snapped in his direction, eager to hear anything. "We've found a donor…but I have to ask, is this what you want?"

"Of course!" Nathan quickly answered.

"Alright…" The doctor nodded, again writing something onto his clipboard. "We have to prep Lucas soon, so I advise that you get your talking in."

"Brooke…" Nathan questioned uncertainly after Haley took Ryan home. It was now just the two, standing quietly, awkwardly, in Lucas' room, as he lay unconscious in the bed. "I'm sorry about before."

"It's alright."

"No. It's not." He shook his head, timidly inching closer to her in the process. He gently laid his hand on her shoulder, ignoring the jolt of her body as he touched her. She slowly relaxed, her entire body falling against his. "I was just so…"

"Me too." She whispered as he wrapped his arms around her stomach. He rested his chin against her head, both their eyes cast upon Lucas. He looked remarkably better, his skin no longer pale, and the beeping on the monitor emitting a steady beat throughout the room. "Nate?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think…He'll be ok?"

"Yeah." He smiled slightly. Lucas was a fighter that was certain. And even now, as his brother lay motionless before him, he knew in his heart that he would get better.