Title: In this Life
Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews everybody! Hope you like the chapter!
Author: Leytonunit930
Disclaimer: If I owned OTH, I'd make sure that Peyton and Lucas were together.
Summary: Peyton and Lucas finally got married and are living their happily ever after ending, or are they? After eleven months of being married, Peyton suddenly leaves Lucas leaving Lucas and the whole OTH gang stunned. Fourteen years later, Peyton meets up with Lucas again and he realizes that she's not alone. (Leyton)
Chapter 4: Over my Head
Lucas stared at Peyton whose hands were shaking and then at Emily who looked so confused. He just had to know, whether or not Emily was his child.
"Is she Peyton?"
Peyton stared at the floor and looked up straight into his piercing eyes.
"What would make you think that Lucas Scott? You have no right to interrogate me and MY daughter's life? Where on earth would you get that idea?"
Peyton rushed over to Emily's side and whispered in the young girl's ear, "I'll handle this, why don't you go upstairs, okay?"
The young girl nodded and smiled for her mother and went upstairs.
"WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM LUCAS?"
"Peyton, before you freak out-"
"SO THIS ISN'T ME FREAKING OUT?"
"Peyton-"
"No, Lucas. I didn't ask you to come here so that we could chat. I told you to come so that I could sign the damn papers. I told you Lucas that in this house, we don't talk about Emily's father. He does not exist in my life or Emily's. He hasn't been there since day one and he better try to not come back."
"Peyton, it was just a question." Lucas said trying to justify his actions.
Peyton looked up and sighed and said, "Lucas, remember when you found out about Dan?"
"Yeah, why?"
"You didn't want to talk about him when you were fourteen did you?"
"No." Lucas stared at Peyton.
"Well, my daughter is just trying to find her place in the world and she just doesn't need this."
"I'm sorry Peyton, but I just had to know."
"It's fine, just please don't mention it again."
"I won't. I'm really sorry."
"We're cool. Okay?"
"Yeah." Lucas said with uncertainty in his voice.
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Peyton knocked on Emily's door. It was a rule in the house that one was to knock the door before entering, but after the second knock, the person can just enter.
"Come in."
Peyton opened the door and found her daughter drawing. "I'm sorry that you had to see and hear that."
"It's fine Mom."
"Is it really Em?" Emily just nodded and Peyton patted her daughter's hair.
"You know, I wished that I have your hair, and your eyes-"
"Does he hate me?"
"Why one Earth would you think that?"
"Because he stared at the floor when I passed him."
"Honey, that was because I was glaring at him and was ready to kill him." Peyton and Emily shared a laugh over that.
"Before I came in, I was looking at your album."
"Were you?"
"Yeah. I was wondering why you didn't call any of your friends once you found out that you were pregnant with me."
"I didn't call any of them because they would all tell me to stay with Lucas and to tell him the truth; but at that moment, I was confused and I did the thing I thought was the best at the time. I was scared and young, but when I found out that I was going to have a baby, I knew that I would do anything I could possibly could so that you could be happy."
"Do you regret it? Did you ever think of getting an abortion?"
"Never. When Dan, Lucas's father gave me the money to have an abortion, I threw his money back at him, and told him that his son may not want to be a father, but that was no excuse. You are my daughter and I love you and I never even thought about it. Not for one second, I knew I wanted you to be in my life."
"Do you love him?" Emily looked up
"Did I love him? Yes. I still love the man I married and the man that gave you me, but the man that would leave me alone at home at night and never talk to me, I don't love him anymore."
Flashback
Peyton placed a huge birthday cake in front of her 3 year old daughter, who looked like a young version of Peyton. She had tiny ringlets and hazel eyes that seemed to twinkle and light up a whole room.
"Make a wish, baby!"
"For anything, mama?" Little Emily looked up at her mom.
"For anything you want!"
"I wish my Daddy was here so mama wouldn't be so sad." Little Emily whispered because her mommy told her that in order for the wish to come true, nobody else could hear or know about it.
End Flashback
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Lucas walked back into his hotel room. What the hell was that all about? I didn't mean to upset Peyton or her daughter. But I just get this feeling, oh what am I saying, Peyton wouldn't keep our daughter away from me! But then, why did she leave? I thought she was happy; we were the envied couple at all the social functions. Every couple wanted to be like us. We were the "it" couple.
Lucas snapped out of his thoughts when his cell phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hey Luke! I heard you're in the Big Apple! Whatcha doing there?"
"Well Nate, I'm here in New York to handle some business stuff."
"Oh. Well just wanna check up on ya big bro."
"Dude, your new girlfriend has made you soft."
"Me? Soft? Never gonna happen."
"What's going on? You sound nervous."
"Remember Haley and I had that whole fight before she left?"
"The one where you told her to stay in Tree Hill with you or else the marriage would be over if she went to California to pursue her singing career?"
"No, that was the first fight. The second one!"
"Oh! The one where you told her to stay in Tree Hill and be a family with you or else the marriage would be over if she went to California to pursue her singing career?"
"Yeah, that one. Well guess who's back in good ol' Tree Hill?"
"Who? Haley?"
"No, duh. Yes! Haley is back. She wants to meet with me! What am I gonna do?"
"Meet with her?" Lucas said meekly.
"Are you insane? Yeah, the possibility of that happening is like you finding Peyton again!" Nathan said while laughing hysterically.
"Well then the possibility must be high." Lucas said.
"What? You mean, she's there with you?"
"We both got assigned to the same job."
"Oh, you gotta be kidding me!"
"Nope."
"So what was it like to see her again after so long?"
"It was bad."
"How bad?"
"Let's just say, if looks could kill, I'd probably be dead right about now."
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Peyton looked under her bed for her "Lucas box". On their first year anniversary as a couple, he showed her his "Peyton box." She then proceeded to make one for herself calling it her "Lucas box". Inside she put all the stuff he ever gave to her. It had every letter, every movie ticket, every picture, every drawing, and every thing that had to do with him. Even the first sonogram of Emily and the pregnancy test confirming her pregnancy. Maybe one day, she would be able to look back on everything without crying, but right now the ache and pain in her heart still hurt.