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CHAPTER…uhh…13! Rest, and Returning to School

By the time everyone had left except for Nathan, Haley, Peyton and Jake, Lucas was fighting sleep as hard as he could. Brooke glanced at Karen with a look that said 'what does he think he's trying to pull', and turned to her beau. "You need to get some sleep."

"I'm fine, Brooke," he insisted in the middle of a yawn. Brooke couldn't help but giggle…he was so adorable when he was tired. She knelt down so that she was eye-level with him. "Lucas Eugene Scott, I will tell everyone your secret if you don't go to sleep." As soon as the words came out, she wished she could take them back. She hadn't even thought about what 'secret' she had against him…but his eyes reminded her instantly. The only real secret that he had was the heart condition.

"Fine," he snapped, hurt and angry. He felt a little betrayed…he may not have asked her not to say anything to anyone, but it just seemed to go without saying. Yet she threatened to tell the ones he cared about most, none of which had any clue that what he had told them hadn't been the truth.

"Luke-"

"Just forget it, Brooke. I'm going to go upstairs," Luke muttered, cutting her off. He pushed himself up to his feet, but regretted it an instant later as he swayed from dizziness. Nathan caught him before he could lose his balance.

"Easy, bro. There's no way you're going to make it up those stairs alone. Why don't you just go to the living room?"

Brooke stepped forward. "My temporary room is down here…he can stay there till he can walk on his own," she whispered, angry with herself for hurting Lucas. He had enough to deal with, without her telling him she'd tell everyone about his HCM. She watched from a distance as Jake and Nathan helped Lucas get to her room, and then slowly followed once they had him laid down. Once the other two had left the room after glancing back to Brooke then to each other, she shut the door quietly behind her.

"Brooke, I don't want to talk," Lucas insisted half-heartedly. His hand was over his eyes, but she could sense the hurt still in his voice easily, and it broke her heart all over again.

"You don't have to…but please...just listen." She sat down on his bed carefully, and he looked up at her. When their gazes met, she was unable to speak for a long time. It was as if he had a hold on her, keeping her words inside of her…and reading her soul at the same time. Finally she took a deep breath and tried to explain. "I'm so sorry for what I said, Lucas…it was thoughtless of me. I didn't even realize what I was saying until it was out…hell, I hadn't even thought about the 'secret' I would've told them. But I promise you I will never tell anyone…that secret. But damn it, Lucas, you should. They deserve to know. They love you too…what would happen if something happened to you? Please…please tell them the truth."

Lucas was silent for a long time, before he gestured for Brooke to lean down. As she did, he wrapped his arms around her, and she was shocked to feel him sob. "Brooke…I'm scared…what're we going to do?"

"I don't know, Broody…but I won't let you go it alone. I'll be here every step of the way, you hear me?" Brooke questioned, pulling back and staring into his gorgeous blue eyes once more. He gave her a knee weakening half-smile, and nodded. He tried to suppress a yawn, but his face showed just how exhausted he was. "Now you get some sleep. I love you."

"I love you too, Cheery," Lucas responded. When Brooke moved to stand, he tightened his grip on her waist. "Lay with me?"

Brooke was only partly surprised, but agreed nonetheless. She slid down next to him on the queen-sized bed, and he let an arm slide around her waist. Within seconds, Lucas was asleep, and Brooke soon realized how much the past month had taken out of her, more specifically the last two weeks, and was also drifting into a peaceful rest. Her last thought was wondering how people would react when she didn't come out of the room.

-

The next morning, Haley and Nathan came to pick Brooke up for school. They found her wide-awake in the kitchen, speaking animatedly with Karen. She smiled when she turned to the couple, her eyes bright and her face glowing.

"Wow…someone seems…cheery today. Something happen while we were gone?" Haley questioned jokingly, ducking to avoid a projectile grape that was headed in her direction.

"Nothing happened…I'm just so relieved that Lucas is okay…and remembers that we're together again. Now…you two promise that you won't tell anyone that we're together, right?" Nathan and Haley nodded, and Brooke grinned. "Thank you. For now, we're just kind of going to keep it quiet…We may go to the point of not talking in public, or acting like we hate each other…for one just to see everyone's reaction…and for two to keep the rumors down once word gets out that we're living in the same house."

Haley giggled at the thought, and Nathan shook his head. He wondered how long that would last…saying as just looking at them when they were in the same room, anyone could tell how much they adored each other. "Well, Miss Bubbly, let's get to school before you decide to play hooky with Lucas, though Karen probably wouldn't allow it," he teased, stealing a glance at Karen. She laughed, and shook her head.

The three of them were out the door and at school within fifteen minutes. Peyton and Jake met them, hand in hand, at the front door, and the two couples and Brooke made their way into the building.

Brooke braced for the rumors to come to her. After her last experience, she was a little wary. Hearing anymore of 'Lucas died' might send her into another breakdown. Even though she knew it wasn't true, it still terrified her. What if something went wrong, and that came true?

-

"Brooke! Brooke! How have you been? What happened? Is Lucas okay?"

Those were things that Brooke had heard all day at school. It was like she couldn't avoid anyone…even when Nathan, Haley, Jake, and Peyton tried to shoo them away…they just kept coming.

By the time everyone got home, Brooke was ready to collapse into bed. It was going to take her a while to regain all of her energy; no matter how 'bubbly' she was in the morning. It was only a few hours before she felt like she didn't want to do anything, and a headache had begun to form.

"How'd your first day back go?" Karen asked softly. By just looking at the young woman, she could see that it hadn't gone well.

"No one would leave me alone for a second…everyone was asking me what had happened…asking me how Lucas got so hurt and I only got a broken wrist." Tears started to form in her eyes as she thought about what people had been saying to her. Karen immediately pulled her close, giving her a shoulder to cry on. Brooke's tears fell without resistance after that. "I don't want to remember the accident…I don't want to remember how he got so hurt…I don't want to think about how he almost left us…but they won't let me be."

"Oh honey, it'll be okay…I promise everything'll be okay," Karen soothed. She saw Lucas come into the kitchen, using the wall for support, and pulled away from Brooke.

"What's wrong, Cheery?" he questioned affectionately. Brooke turned to him, and made her way over to him. Taking his hand, she guided him to the couch just as much as he guided her. He brushed the tears from her cheeks as soon as they were seated on the couch. "Don't cry, baby. Everything's okay now…everything's okay." He pulled her tight, an over-protectiveness taking over.

"I was so afraid…I was scared I was going to lose you…and I kept remembering the accident from last year…how hard it was to watch you lie there, unconscious. But this time, it was different…I was more worried…I…I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost you."

"Hey..." Lucas pulled back, and gently held her jaw. "I'm not going anywhere. I love you too much to leave you." He hesitated. "I…I know it already pretty much seems like it goes without saying right now…but would you be my…official…girlfriend?"

Brooke grinned widely, and nodded…even though the gesture seemed so small, it meant a lot to her. She kissed him with all her might, and then slowly pulled away and settled back onto his chest, where they both relaxed until they drifted into sleep.