Disclaimer: I do not own any of the One Tree Hill characters, I am using them purely for my entertainment of writing.

A/N: Please read and review. I hope you all enjoy this story. It's set in season two, around the time Jake came back, but I'm changing the history a bit around that time. Just read and find out! I hope you enjoy! There will be some Leyton, Jeyton, Brucas, Naley, and Caley. (Chris and Haley).

The Coming Storm

She had been so broken lately. Life had been rough and hard. She wasn't exactly sure why she had let herself give into temptation with the drugs that night at Tric. Peyton Sawyer wasn't the type of person to give into weak feelings. She usually kept herself away from others and kept to herself. The funny thing about her life was, she was known as one of the popular girls at school, being best friends with Brooke Davis and all, the title came along with. Peyton wasn't who everyone thought she was. Yeah, she was a cheerleader, but big deal. She had so much more to her life then that.

Sitting on her bed, she couldn't think of anything to draw. The last thing that she had drawn was a picture of Jake and Jenny before they had left for Savannah. Every time Peyton looked at that picture, it broke her heart. She missed Jake so much, but it's like not she was willing to admit that to anyone or anything. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to happen, something bad. It's like no matter what Peyton tried to hold onto in her life, she always lost it, everyone always left her. Her mom, her dad, Jake, Jenny, and even Lucas. Even though Lucas was still around, she couldn't turn to him for anything. As she sat on her bed, she saw someone standing at her door. What the hell was going on? Did people just think they could walk in her house or something? Well, some people did, in fact. They all knew Peyton wasn't likely to answer the door if they rang the doorbell. With a sigh, she glared at the person at her door.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him as she shook her head a bit.

"Peyton, I told you the other day I cared for you and still wanted to be your friend."

"So, what, after months of us not talking you come to my room and you're supposed to expect me to forget all that's happened and let you hold me and comfort me? I'm sorry, it doesn't work that way, Lucas!" Peyton belted out in an angry tone as she saw him walk closer in her room.

"Peyton, I'm sorry. What are you mad at me for? Are you mad that I left for Charleston without a goodbye and just left you a letter that you burned? Are you mad at me for caring so much about you? Peyton, help me here. I don't know what I did. Explain it to me." Lucas stood before her pleading for her to tell him what he had done so wrong for her to be so mad at him that she didn't even want him around.

"Yes, I'm mad at you for caring! Why do you have to bother? Do you remember the last time you cared so much? You hurt me, you really hurt me, Lucas. The last time we tried caring about each other, I fell.." Peyton stopped not finishing her sentence as she realized what was about to come out of her mouth.

"You what?" He asked with a puzzled look on his face not quite knowing what to say to her.

"I fell in love." She told him as the words escaped her mouth in a whisper.

"Do you think I didn't?" Lucas asked her as he spoke with such passion in his voice.

"I don't know. I don't know anymore. I don't want to get hurt again. I want you, I want to be your friend, but I want to love you at the same time. I can't do both, Lucas. And I don't know how you feel and I can't talk about this with you, it's hard." She stood up from her bed walking a few feet away from him. She didn't want him getting any closer to her, she didn't want him touching her, that would only make her want to love him even more.

"Why don't you just ask, Peyton?" He asked as he moved the way she did. He moved closer to her even though he could see she didn't want him to.

"I can't ask!" She yelled at him as she got even more angry than before.

"I do. I do love you. I always have. The night we were together at Nathan's party, I told you I wanted you, I wanted your heart. You ran away. So I chose Brooke, and then you decided you wanted me. That is pretty much how our relationship has went so far. It's messed up, but we can't change how we feel. If we didn't care for each other, you wouldn't have risked losing one of the people you care most for just to be with me." He told her as he grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.