Lol thanks for the responses! You guys are awesome! This story finally got over 20,000 hits, so thank you very, very much for your support. I hope you like this chapter.
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CHAPTER
16: Blocked…
Lucas sat silently on a cushion in Brooke's room, watching her as she wrote down the answer to a homework question. A sudden thought hit him. "You know, it looks like DWnotI hasn't worked well yet, we'll have to work on it some."
Brooke looked up at him, confused. "What?"
"DWnotI. We got hit by a drunk driver…so I guess that means DWnotI hasn't started working well enough yet. We'll have to promote it soon. Whadda ya say?" He asked goofily, earning a dimpled grin from his girlfriend. "But first we have to pick up my meds, ok?"
Brooke nodded, and closed her book. "Where are we going to promote?"
Lucas thought for a moment, and then shrugged. "Not sure yet, but we'll figure something out. C'mon," he murmured, offering her his hand. When she took it, he pulled her up and spun her around, then leaned her back like a pair of dancers. Their eyes were locked for a long time, and the electricity flowing through their bodies felt almost like it would've been visible to someone watching them.
It was that moment that Lucas realized that he saw forever in her eyes. Even though they were still in high school, in that moment, he saw for the first time, their children in her eyes. The thought brought tears to his eyes. He couldn't picture his life without her.
Brooke watched the tears begin to form in his eyes, and felt a pang of concern. A sudden thought hit her…one that didn't sound like her own thought…it almost sounded like Lucas' voice…this is the man that you're going to marry. There is no one else for you. So kiss him, already!
So she did. His lips felt warm and sweet, like they always did…but this kiss was different from their others. She understood that he felt the same way that she did. She felt all of the love he had for her, moreso then than ever before.
"We have to go before the pharmacy closes, Cheery," Luke whispered, breathless with joy. He slid his hand in hers, and grinned at her before tugging her towards the door.
When they approached the new car, Brooke hesitated. Lucas turned to her, and saw the tears in her eyes. "What's wrong, baby?"
"Luke, I'm sorry. I just can't help but remember that night," she sighed. Lucas watched her for a long moment, then hugged her close to him.
"Hey, it's okay now…I'm okay now. And I swear to you that I will never leave you again." He kissed her forehead, and they slowly made their way to the car.
The drive to the store was silent. While Lucas went to get the medications, Brooke picked up a few things she needed. Lucas dug in his pocket to find the card that Andy had given him to pay for the meds with, and handed it to the pharmacist.
"You're Lucas Scott?" the man questioned professionally. Lucas nodded, and was surprised to see the man automatically return the card. "I'm sorry, but this card cannot pay for these medications. There has been a request made by Mr. Dan Scott to only accept his card."
Lucas raised an eyebrow questioningly. "These medications are for me. Why would I not be able to buy my own medicine?"
"Mr. Scott explained to me that you may want to buy the medicine on your own and are not in proper financial situations to do so. I'm sorry, sir, but I must obey his request."
Lucas growled in frustration. "How much did my father pay this time!" With that, he spun on his heel, and stalked off to find Brooke, who had just finished paying for her things.
"What's wrong, Broody?" she asked, her voice full of concern. She saw his empty hands and knew something was up.
"Dan's got it so I can't buy the meds…only he can. And the bastard won't unless I live with him. Damn it!" He rubbed his temples, and took a few deep breaths. "Sorry," he muttered.
"It's okay…I understand perfectly. Do you want to go talk to Dan?" Brooke questioned, placing her hand on Lucas' cheek gently. He leaned into her palm, and nodded. "Let's go, then."
He shook his head. "This is something I don't want you there for. I don't want him to find any reason to hurt you in any way. I'm going to drop you off at home."
"Like hell you are! I'm here for you no matter what…I will always be right by your side. Which probably makes me your weakness, right? So that's one reason for him to hurt me. But I have you, so I'm not afraid."
Lucas smiled gratefully at her. Hand-in-hand, they went back to the car, and drove to Dan's. Brooke squeezed Lucas' hand comfortingly and encouragingly when he knocked on his father's door. Dan answered, and smirked when he saw the two standing before him, obviously furious.
"Can I help you, Lucas?"
"You sadistic bastard, why would you keep me from buying my HCM medicine! You know better than anyone what can happen if I can't take it!" Lucas snapped, fire in his eyes. Brooke kept a tight grip on his hand, her own anger radiating from her.
"Oh, you mean you can actually pay for it? I thought that was the whole point of living with me…because you couldn't. Or is mommy's new boyfriend paying for it? What can guarantee that he'll stick around? My brother sure didn't stay around for long."
Lucas pulled his hand from Brooke's and punched Dan in the jaw. Brooke grabbed her boyfriend's arm, and pulled him back to keep him from hitting his father again. "Keith stayed around a hell of a lot longer than you ever did. And I can promise you that I'll be taking this to court if I can't get my medication on my own."
Dan chuckled humorlessly. "Just move back in with me, and it'll all go away."
"Oh, you're funny. Why would I move in with you again? After all of the pain you've caused my mother…my family?"
Without another word, he turned and left. Brooke followed, but not before turning to glare at Dan, who was grinning.
"Lucas, are you okay?" Brooke questioned softly. He only nodded, but she wasn't completely convinced. He was shaking with anger…something that was extremely rare for the mild-tempered young man.
When they got back home, they were both surprised to see Haley standing at the door, tears in her eyes. Brooke glanced between her friend and her boyfriend, and headed inside without a word. She could see that they needed a moment alone.
"Luke…I'm so sorry that I flipped out like that. I mean, I'm upset that you never told me…but I was just afraid of the thought of losing you," Haley murmured, throwing her arms around Lucas' neck. He hugged her back tightly, glad that she had come back to him.
"Hales…I should've told you right away. But I was scared too, you know? I was afraid of being treated differently. But I'm glad that I told you, because I don't have to hide it anymore. You know I love you, right?"
Haley pulled back, and nodded. "Not as much as Brooke, though," she commented.
Lucas grinned. "I love you as much as I love Brooke…just a different kind of love." Haley hugged him again, and then pulled away from him completely.
"I have to go…I just needed to talk to you…I'm going out with Nathan…I love you!" She kissed Lucas on the cheek, and was gone before he could really understand what was going on.
Lucas shook his head, laughing, and headed inside. Brooke stood from the couch, and smiled when she saw his grin. "So I take it that it went well?" Lucas' nod thrilled her, and she squealed. "I'm so happy that we're all okay again."
The door opening startled both of them, and they turned to see Andy and Karen in the doorway, looking happier than Luke and Brooke were.
"Mom?"
"Lucas…we have some good news."
"We're getting married," Andy announced happily. Lucas grinned widely, and Brooke squealed again. Lucas and Brooke hugged them both in congratulations.
"Oh, I just love weddings!" Brooke exclaimed.
"So, when are we going to celebrate!" Lucas questioned, incredibly happy that his mother was engaged to a great man, who was becoming a great father figure and friend to Lucas.
The four of them stood together in giddy happiness, Karen showing off her ring, while they all discussed celebration plans.
