Lucas pulled the white sheets off the furniture and with it came a cloud of dust. He looked around in amazement at realizing that the place hadn't changed a bit. He entered the bedroom and smiled once he saw that it kept the color that Peyton and Brooke had painted when Brooke moved in.

"All the surroundings are the same, but the people are unrecognizable."

He sighed and sat on the bed when he heard someone knock at the door. He went to open the door and to his surprise he saw Peyton there.

"Can I come in?"

Lucas stepped aside and Peyton entered.

"We need to talk."

"Ok…"

"Why didn't you ever call me?"

"What do you mean?"

"When you first left, the only person you called was your mother and in that call you asked her to not tell me anything about you rehabilitating yourself. Why?"

Lucas looked upon and clenched his jaw.

"I don't know what answer you're looking for Peyt."

"Damnit Lucas, I want you to answer my question without giving me one! Just tell me why I suddenly became unimportant in your life when at one point I was everything!"

Lucas turned his back on her and looked outside the window. He couldn't bear to look at her. "You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

"Look, I called…I called a lot. You were never around!"

"And that excuses everything? Like hell it does!"

"What do you want from me Peyton? Do you want me to tell that I was too sick to even look you in the eye knowing that everything I was telling you was a lie?"

"I told you I would have stuck by your side through thick and thin. Why wasn't that good enough for you?"

"Because I didn't deserve you! I was a drunk that you took pity on."

"I was a woman in love!"

"You just said it. You were a woman in love. Now you have someone else to love, but it sure as hell isn't me. That boat sailed a long time ago."

"Damn right. It took flight the second you walked out of my life to never say another word to me. So much for saying that you would never do anything to hurt me." Peyton puts her hand on the door to leave when she looks a Lucas one last time. "Do everyone here in Tree Hill a favor and leave. We were just fine without for five years."

"That's because you decided to replace me with the first man that pitied you."

Peyton couldn't believe what she was hearing. She let go of the doorknob and slapped Lucas across the face.

"Stay away from me, stay away from the people I care about and lastly, stay away from Tree Hill. You're no longer welcomed here. Obviously there is something else out there more important than the people you once loved. Just as I replaced you easily, I'm pretty sure everyone else did. To me, you're nothing more than the first man I said "I love you" too and even that, I'm starting to regret. I can't believe the man that you've turned into. If once I loved you, now I just pity just like my husband pities me."

And with that, Peyton left the apartment. Lucas wanted to go after her but couldn't fight the strength to do so. All he could think about was how much he could die for a drink of liquor.