Chapter Thirty

Eyes Wide Open

Lucas

Rob is staring at us like we're the ghosts of Christmas past and present, and with his past and present, that's got to be something to be scared of.

"Uh… look, before you… do whatever you're going to do, I think…" Rob's stuttering, like a pathetic spineless wimp.

"Shut up!" Nathan yells. His eyes are filled with this intense hatred and once again I feel like a complete prick for wrecking what he and Haley had. I was jealous, I thought I was in love with her my self.

And I was. Kind of. Only it was more that I loved her than I was in love with her. I think over the years, because we were friends for so long, we were meant to be friends.

But I still don't think Nathan is good enough for her.

"You're weak, and you're pathetic," Nathan is saying now. "What kind of an asshole spikes a drink?"

"Calm down Nathan," I say, staring at Rob with disgust in my eyes. He actually throws me a look of gratitude. The idiot. "Rob had to spike them, no girl would look at him otherwise. He's repulsive and slimy."

Nathan smirks at me, and for a second, we share a moment of friendship.

"Now, why shouldn't we pound you into the ground like you deserve?" Nathan asks. Oh that's good, make the guy think he has a chance.

"It's not as if I spiked anyone you were interested in Nate! I mean, it was an ex-girlfriend and…" he throws a furtive glance at me, "And Luke's girlfriend. I didn't think you'd mind."

I have to physically restrain myself from jumping forward and punching Rob over and over again. It's just the satisfaction of making him sweat that stops me.

"Right, because I really would have liked my ex-girlfriend in your grubby paws?" Nathan says. I'm surprised he doesn't mention Haley.

"No… no she was an accident. She took the drink I made for Haley…"

"You prick!" I yell jumping forward and burying my fists into his face. Each punch brings me more satisfaction. Nathan pulls me back.

"Stop, okay?" he says. I throw him a look of disbelief.

"The worm deserves to suffer!" I shout. "You more than anyone should think so. He spiked Haley! The only reason he didn't get his way with her is because she fell in the pool and nearly died!"

Rob throws a confused look up at Nathan, "What does he mean you more than anyone? You don't have a thing for Haley, do you?"

Nathan flexes his fist but still doesn't do anything. "You think Haley would want us to do this?" he asks me.

Is he stupid. Of course! This guy spiked her and her best friend. "Of course she would."

Nathan shook his head. "I don't think she would, see, because Haley's not like that. She'd want us to rise above this… dog. If we beat him up now, as a gang, two against one, then we're just as cowardly as he is."

My mouth drops open. "So we're just going to let him get away with it?"

Nathan shakes his head. "I'm above him, but I'm not a damn saint!" He turns to Rob and bends down until they're at the same level. "I'd say goodbye to my basketball career now Rob, because me and every single boy in that team are going to haze you until it gets so bad, you cry yourself to sleep at night. We're going to make your life hellish misery, you hear me? So drop out of the team, or get ready for a whole year of us hazing you. And I expect there'll be a few beatings in there to, I mean what with all of the testosterone."

Nathan stands up again and I stare at him in amazement. That guy is surprising me every day. He turns to me and gestures towards the door. We're in Rob's bedroom.

"Let's go," he says. I don't argue with him, and we both walk out, leaving Rob a huddled mess in the corner of his room.


Brooke has completely outdone herself. This place is beyond amazing. It's decked out in navy blue and deep purple silk, and the ceiling is swathed over with black material and fairy lights. She said the theme is outdoors, because when people first settled here, they would have partied outdoors.

I didn't have the heart to tell her that they were Puritan's and didn't believe in partying. She was just so adorably excited that I couldn't stop her. And besides, it's a party, who cares if its historically inaccurate? Not me, that's for sure.

And she looks stunning. Her dark hair is swept up, kinda loose with tendrils framing her face and creamy shoulders. Her dress is stunning. A long red strapless thing that seems to move like liquid. I hadn't seen her until now, because I left before she changed earlier on. I was helping her set the room up when Jake rang me telling me that he'd saw Rob going into his house. I could tell he wanted to come along and get the jerk back for what he did to Peyton, but I persuaded him not to. After all, it was mine and Nathan's problem to handle. We started it, we had to finish it.

"You scrub up pretty well Scott number one," Brooke says when she reaches me. It's still early and not many people are here yet. She reaches up and hugs me. Her hair smells of cherries and papaya. Sweet and zingy at the same time.

"Well, you look… amazing Brooke. Absolutely amazing," I tell her. I wasn't really planning on saying anything. Maybe just a quick, 'you look nice', but when my mouth opened it was like a torrent of unfamiliar words just rushed out.

Brooke looks down in an unusually demure way and then smiles up at me. "I'm glad you think so, because…"

Brooke's cut off though as a vaguely familiar blonde approaches us and greets me. "Lucas Scott! Hi!"

Brooke looks annoyed, but she smiles pleasantly anyway. "Hi, I'm Brooke Davis," she says while I try to figure out where I know this blonde from.

"Uh huh," the blonde says, nodding at her and then turning back to me. "I'm Taylor James, Haley's sister…"

"Oh!" I say, recognition dawning. "You used to be the one who stole my action men when Christina babysat me!"

Taylor frowns. "Oh my God! I never even put you together with that geeky little boy! Wow, you've certainly grown into your frame, haven't you?"

"Enough of the geeky please," I say, laughing.

"Well, come on Luke. I'd steal your action men and you didn't even care! You used to just sit in a corner and read a book. A book, Lucas! You were six or something."

"Oh, Lucas reads a lot," Brooke adds in. She's looking a little uncomfortable and she has her arms crossed.

"Are you okay?" I ask. She raises her eyebrows and smiles.

"I am now," she says.

And then it hits me. Brooke likes me. The Head-Cheerleader likes me. Oh… this is weird. I mean, that explains the whole pretending to read Iliad thing – it was just way too obvious – and the constant smiling and flirting. I thought she did it with everybody, but… why was she even in my room that night?

And… I do like her… as a friend, right? I mean, yeah! As a friend. She's sweet and cute, despite what everybody says about her. I know she has a reputation, but that doesn't really bother me. But… we are just friends. We have to be. It would be too weird if we weren't. Not so soon after Haley and I have broken up.

Taylor's saying something, and I realise that I've just been staring down at Brooke.

"What?" I say, dragging my eyes away.

Taylor sighs in annoyance. "I knew this was hopeless. Nathan said that you and Brooke had a thing…"

"What?" Brooke and I shout at once.

Taylor smirks. "I'll be seeing you," she says with a wink.

The second she goes an awkward silence of the like I'm not used to experiencing with Brooke enshrouds us. I look up at the fabric-covered ceiling and Brooke looks down at her sparkly red shoes. Oh God this is terrible.

"Brooke, do we need to talk?" I ask, knowing full well that we do but not wanting to be the one to openly admit it.

Brooke looks up and her dark hazel eyes catch mine. She gives a small smile and an awkward little shrug. "I guess we kind of do," she tells me.

The ball room is starting to fill up now. I can see Peyton and Jake arriving and I nod towards them. Brooke turns and sees them, giving an exasperated sigh. I guess I am kind of putting off the inevitable.

"Okay," I say, putting both of my hands up in a sign of surrender. "So… you have a thing for me?" I don't mean for it to come out cocky, but it does. Brooke rolls her eyes.

"Jeez, don't get so big-headed over it. I like a lot of guys."

She's putting on a bravado act and I'm not buying it. Well, it's pretty obvious when she raises her hand to push a strand of hair from her face and it's shaking.

"I wasn't getting big-headed" I say, putting my hand at the small of Brooke's back and pushing her towards a small alcove. From here we can't see anyone, and they can't see us. "I was just repeating what Taylor had said."

"Yeah, well," Brooke snaps. She's getting really fired up and I love her feistiness. "If you'd listened, Taylor said that we had a thing. As in me and you, not completely one sided."

Oh God, how do I tell her that I didn't have a thing for her? Don't have a thing for her?

Who am I kidding? She's Brooke Davis; of course I have a thing for her. It's just, I never though that there would be a situation where anything could be done about it. I mean, yeah, I've always thought she was hot, and these last few weeks I've got to know her a bit more and I really like her personality, but… well, the thought that anything could happen between us is mind-boggling.

She's looking at me now with raised eyebrows and a pout. She looks adorable, but I don't think that's the look she's going for. She's waiting for my response and I honestly have no idea what I'm supposed to say.

"I… I had no idea," I say. I know that it is in no way the right thing to say, but it's the only thing that seems to even remotely fit.

Brooke groans in frustration again. "Why are we even talking?" She asks me. "God Lucas! I… I've liked you for so long and you've been clueless, and then Taylor says that she heard we had a 'thing… do you have any idea how happy that made me? For like, a second I thought you liked me back! But now you're acting like the idea of me and you together repulses you!" She takes a deep breath and lowers her voice. "Well don't worry about it, I'm leaving. You don't have to so much as look at me tonight if that makes you feel better."

She turns to walk away, but what she's been saying really get's through to me somehow. For a moment, I completely forget about all the reason's we shouldn't be together – the fact that me and Haley have just broke up, the fact that she's Nathan's friend, the fact that we have little to nothing in common – and instead think about one single thing.

I like her.

I can't let her walk away thinking that I don't, so I reach out and grab her wrist, gently. I pull her towards me until we're stood chest to chest.

"Lucas, what are you…" she starts, but I don't let her finish. I lower my head and put my lips on hers. It's a sweet kiss, not passionate, but perfect anyway.

We both pull away from each other and she smiles up at me. "Wow," she whispers, "just when I'd given it up as a lost cause."

I grin at that. "Look, we're going to have to go slow, alright?"

"Absolutely," Brooke nods.

"Because I've just broke up with Haley and it could be awkward…"

"She knows that I like you."

"I don't mean it like that. I just don't want people to think that you're my rebound girl."

Brooke's eyes light up. She reaches up and kisses me, deeper this time. There's definitely passion there. It's like we've both acknowledged something together, as one.

"Oh!" Brooke says pulling away. "I'm not a big reader. I just didn't want that lie hanging in the air."

I laugh. She looks so serious. "Brooke, I know that you haven't read Iliad, it just seemed so important to you that I thought so that I didn't want to burst your bubble."

Brooke kisses me again. "Wow Mr. Scott, I think you may just be perfect."

Likewise, I think to myself. Brooke Davis is perfect.