Hello! Once again it's been a while…sorry for that, things are just manic.
Here it is though, the next chapter! Thank you so much for reading, I'm constantly overwhelmed by the readers, favs and follows etc. You're all lovely for sticking with it. As ever, I also love hearing what you think.
Hope you enjoy, Lexie.
…
Sawyer woke up on Monday morning feeling even more sour than she usually did about the upcoming week. Further to the events of the weekend playing on her mind, she could hear arguing from downstairs. It was an uncommon sound in her house and it made her stomach turn.
Slipping from her bed, she went straight to her wardrobe, grabbing a pair of sweats she sometimes wore to cheer practise and a hoody. She quickly pulled them on and retied her hair before on pushing her sneakers and leaving the room. She tip-toed down the stairs, intentionally skipping one of the steps, knowing that it groaned loudly whenever stepped on, listening out for any sign she might be caught. She could still hear her Mom and brother talking heatedly in the kitchen and wanted to escape the house as quickly as possible.
She felt bad for leaving without telling anyone, but they'd soon know that she'd gone when they heard her car roar. According to her Dad, the whole street knew when Sawyer went out.
…
"Why didn't you give this to me?" Peyton's never seen Elliot so angry. His jaw clenches, "This is my letter."
Peyton uses her softest voice, "I know that."
"Then why are you hiding it from me?" Elliot demands as a rumble fires from outside telling them that Sawyer's going out.
"Dammit, Sawyer." Peyton sighs and sinks into a seat at the table, shaking her head. "Okay, that letter. Why didn't I give it to you straight away? Honestly, because I thought you'd destroy it."
Elliot, despite his rage, gives her a quizzical look. She would grin and grab his cheeks if the moment were different. He looks just as he did as a toddler discovering something new. The anger behind it is familiar too; as a kid Elliot was always frustrated by something he didn't quite understand.
"I was given a letter once, it was addressed to me and Brooke, from your Dad." Peyton pauses, thinking back to her high school days, "And being the mature sixteen year olds that we were, we set it alight."
"Why was it written to you and Brooke?" Elliot asks, distracted. He leans back against the sink, the light from the window behind him illuminating his hair like a halo of lightning.
Peyton chuckles a little, "How long have you got? It was junior year, Dad had asked me out that fall, I bitingly rejected him, and he dated Brooke for a while. Then he decided to leave town for all of about 5 minutes the following summer and all he left behind was a letter."
"So you burnt it?" Elliot asks for clarification, his face in disbelief.
"Mmm-hmm." Peyton settles her eyes on her son, "And I've regretted it every day since."
Elliot snorts, "You haven't asked Dad what he wrote?"
"Lots of times." Peyton smiles wistfully, "Every time he gives me a different answer, usually dumber than the last."
"Like what?" Elliot pushes.
Peyton shakes her head, "Oh, the usual; says he was telling us that he was really leaving town to join the circus or that he'd been sentenced to jail time."
"So you still don't know what was in the letter?" Elliot questions.
"I think it was probably the same thing that's in this letter," She nudges the envelope with her finger, "I think it probably said sorry."
Elliot picks the envelope up and runs his finger over the cursive handwriting, "I wouldn't have burnt it, just so you know."
Peyton arches her brow, "I forget how much more responsible you are than me at that age."
"Can I have it?" Elliot asks after a pause.
To his surprise, his Mom laughs back at him. She loves that he's still asking permission despite being mad that she hid it in the first place. "Honey, it is your letter. I should have given it to you right away. There isn't a handbook on how to handle this and I'm going to mess up sometimes, so is your Dad, but we're only trying to do the best thing by you, kiddo."
She lifts to her feet and hugs him towards her, pressing a kiss into his messy bed hair.
Elliot watches as she pads out of the room, leaving him alone with the letter. He wants to tear it open and drink in every word immediately, but similarly he's terrified to even touch it, to fraternise almost with the enemy.
…
Sawyer swings her car into a bay at a Starbucks just out of town. Ordinarily she wouldn't come here; her Aunt Haley would take personal offence if she found out, but she's in desperate need of some caffeine without any kind of family interrogations.
She steps into the coffee house and gazes up at the complex menu as she queues behind a line made up mostly of Monday morning commuters. Some of the words describing the drinks are completely alien to her, in fact she never knew there were so many coffees available, she'd be at a loss to decide if she didn't always order the same thing anyway.
On reaching the counter she orders her usual black coffee and then collects a handful of sugars and a stirrer from the stand nearby. She's about to head back out to her car to drive someplace that's probably nowhere really, when a chair is kicked at a table she's passing, offering her up a seat. She expects someone sleazy because that's the way her mind works, but she's dressed like she's just rolled out of bed - which she has - so that theory seems pretty unlikely.
She glances up to meet the rare frown of Logan, who's sat drinking one of the more ridiculous looking coffee concoctions. He inclines his head towards the empty chair, his familiar face warming Sawyer's frostiness a little.
"What are you doing in a Starbucks?" Sawyer asks, dropping into the seat. She guesses he may have already concluded why she's not at Haley's but she can't help from wonder what he's doing here.
He shrugs easily and leans back in his seat, "You know, picking up chicks."
Sawyer snorts and relaxes a little. Although she'd been trying to avoid everyone who knows about the Lindsey nightmare, she thinks that running into Logan may actually be a good thing. He's not like everyone else, he tends to know when to leave her be and always manages to make her laugh.
She shakes her head back at her friend, "Dressed like that I'm guessing your success rate is zero."
Logan feigns a look of complete outrage and looks over his outfit of shorts and t-shirt.
"It's October." Sawyer concludes, "Aren't you lifeguards supposed to be locked away until next summer?"
"Life saving is not just for summer." Logan shakes his head back at her. "I picked up some work at the indoor pool. What can I say? My town needs me."
"God, that's a worrying thought." Sawyer pours a few sugars into her drink and stirring. "But back to my original question, why are you cheating on Haley?"
Logan pulls a face at her choice of words before answering, "She doesn't make Pumpkin Spiced Lattes."
"You are such a hipster." Sawyer smirks back at him, knowing that he'll hate her for it.
He waves his hand back at her, "We can't all be dark and mysterious black coffee worshippers. So, do you wanna talk about it, or keep making fun of me?"
Sawyer sighs, "The second option is very tempting."
"I'm sorry, for what it's worth." Logan offers to her. "I wouldn't wish the situation on anyone. I remember us explaining to Scarlett that I wasn't quite her real brother and the look on her face, it was like heartbreak painted on there,"
Sawyer narrows her eyes back at him, "I forget sometimes, about your Mom and everything."
"I guess that's good," Logan frowns. "It must mean that we give out the impression of being a completely normal family."
"Sorry." Sawyer rushes to say. It's true what she said about Sara, but she didn't mean for it to sound the way that it did. His Mom is important, she gets that. "That was rude. Of course I don't forget about your Mom,"
"It's cool." Logan stresses with an easy smile that tells her that he's telling the truth. "Anyway, this isn't about me. It's about you."
Sawyer blushes a little at that, "No, you're probably a lot more…qualified on the subject anyway."
"Hey, this is completely different to my stuff." Logan leans forward, "This woman, whatever her name is, she gave Elliot away, that's a whole different ball game. Plus, I've always known; Sara's my Mom and Quinn's my stepmom, since day one. I can't imagine how this is; for Elliot, for you."
Sawyer shrugs, looking down, "It's Elliot though isn't it? Not me. Nothing's changed for me, I'm who I always was."
Logan looks back at her, straight in the eye, "Sawy, no offence, but you're not."
Pursing her lips, Sawyer tries to push back some tears, "I don't know what to do, Lo. All I want to do is run away from it. This morning Mom and Elliot were arguing in the kitchen and I just ran off, came here."
"You're allowed to want space." Logan tells her, "This has just happened, right? It's going to take some time to get used to. You can always come hang out with me when you feel like that."
Sawyer manages a smirk, "Why would I want to do that?"
"Ouch." Logan says but he's smiling too. "I'm serious though, you shouldn't do it on your own. If you wanna talk or yell or throw stuff, whatever, don't do it on your own. If you can't talk to your Mom and Dad or Elliot, call me."
"Thanks." Sawyer nods.
"So what were they arguing about this morning?" Elliot asks, wondering if he's pushed her too much already.
Sawyer only shrugs, "No idea. Lindsey, I guess."
"Lindsey." Logan nods in the name. "Have you had chance to talk to your Mom and Dad about this? Properly, I mean."
Sawyer disappears behind her coffee cup momentarily, "No. I don't know what to say anyway,"
"Try me."
"I hate that stupid woman. I don't know why Mom and Dad aren't buying her a ticket to anywhere else in the world. But I guess Mom was adopted too, and she talks about her birth Mom like she was this great gift. I guess I'm scared Lindsey will be that too, to Elliot, some gift that takes him away from us, from me."
Logan nods in her words slowly, "Sawy, you will not lose him."
"But he'll change. Everything will change." Sawyer protests.
"After I told Scarlett about my Mom, about Sara, she was like you; unaccepting, stubborn, angry. And it made me love that little 'mare even more, because her reaction was because she loved me. I mean obviously, who wouldn't love me? I'm awesome. But anyway, you're supposed to hate this Linda woman."
"Lindsey." Sawyer corrects
Elliot waves his hand, "Who cares? We hate her anyway, right?"
Sawyer manages a small laugh.
"Sorry, is this helping at all?" Logan crinkles his nose. "Basically I'm saying things are going to be rubbish for a while, but you and Elliot will work it out. Probably after a few horrible arguments. After them, you can come rant to me."
"Thanks, I think." Sawyer smiles.
"You guys will be okay." Logan assures her, "Because the Sawyer Scott I know won't let it go any other way anyway."
"I should go home." Sawyer announces suddenly.
"Was it something I said?" Logan asks.
Sawyer laughs, "Kind of."
"Are you going to be okay?" He asks, his voice filled with genuine concern.
She bites down on her lower lip, "I will be. Not quite yet, but I will be. Thanks for being here."
"You're welcome." Logan grins his famous smile.
"I'll see you later." Sawyer stands and drains the last of her drink.
Logan nods, "Will do, gotta go save some lives now anyway."
"Tree Hill, forever in your debt." Sawyer calls back, rolling her eyes.
…
Sawyer throws her keys down onto the sideboard in the hall and kicks her shoes off. As she steps into the kitchen, Elliot goes to leave.
She frowns after him, "You're going to school?"
"Basketball practise today." He answers, as though that's all the logic anyone in the world needs.
She almost laughs. Basketball, of course. What could be more important?
"You and Mom were arguing earlier." She mentions lightly.
"Yeah, we're good now though. Honestly." Elliot adjust the shoulder strap of his backpack. "Where did you go so early?"
Sawyer shrugs, "For some air."
"Sorry you woke up to arguing." Elliot tells her, "I don't want it to be like that."
"I'm a big girl, I can handle it." Sawyer brushes it away.
"Nah," Elliot shakes his head, "You're my little sister, always. I am never going to let you forget that."
She grins back at him, thinking that maybe Logan was right; things will change, but she's not losing her dumb brother any time soon.
"Are you gonna come to school?" Elliot asks her, "I think it might be good. You know, a break from here."
"School, a break?" Sawyer throws back. "You are such a nerd."
He smirks, "Thank you for being so lovely to me through all of this."
"You're my big brother, always." She returns as their Mom runs down the stairs.
"Sawyer!" Peyton lifts an eyebrow, "I thought I heard trash cans being runover down the street and figured you must be home."
Elliot laughs as Sawyer pulls a face. Her family are forever making her out to be the worst driver ever which is pretty unfair considering the fact that her Aunt Haley can't even bay park.
"You can't just leave without telling me where you're going." Peyton says, pressing a short kiss to her daughter's nose.
"Sorry." Sawyer offers.
Peyton nods, "Now are you going to school too, like this one and Dad?"
"I guess." Sawyer decides.
"Okay." Peyton nods, then cups her daughter's chin in her hand, "But I want to catch up with you later, Girly. I have some demos at work that I need a good ear for and a root beer float with your name on."
Sawyer nods before frowning, "Is Dad already at school? Did you guys-,"
"He had a meeting. Nothing bad." Peyton is quick to assure her daughter. "He would have cancelled but it was for a student, he didn't want to let them down."
"Come on, Sawy, we'll be late." Elliot pushes, pandering from foot to foot.
"Nerd." Sawyer offers and kisses her Mom goodbye.
"I'm on my cell all day, if you guys need me." Peyton tells them, her gaze lingering a second longer on Elliot, wondering silently whether or not he's read the mysterious letter yet.
…
Peyton clicks her way into her office and sighs into her chair. She throws her head back and closes her eyes, covering her face with her hands. It feels like the end of the week, rather than Monday morning. Her whole body feels completely drained and her mind exhausted with over thinking. She would happily crawl back to bed, if she thought she would actually get any rest at all.
"Hey, how's it going?" Max's voice cuts through her wilting, causing her to drop her hands and peek one eye open. "Haley filled me in a little."
Sitting up properly in her seat, Peyton shakes her head, "Then you'll probably know it's not good."
"Right." Max nods and holds up a hand, "Which is why I came prepared."
Peyton can't help but be distracted from her problems for a moment. It's not often that Max comes prepared for anything. In the past he's forgotten to collect tickets for gigs they were supposed to go to, to buy birthday presents for her kids, and even to show up for work on the right day.
"Prepared?" Peyton echoes, arching her brow.
He looks mildly offended for a moment before his famous smile breaks across across his face, "Peyton, I've practically been your therapist for the last twenty years or so. Did you really think I wouldn't bring music?"
From behind his back he reveals a handful of records, his eyes twinkling knowingly.
Settling himself on the arm of the couch, Max leans forwards on his hands. "Listen, Peyton, I'm not sure I've ever been good with words, or comforting people. I kind of let the music do that part usually, but, I just want to say, I'm here, okay? We've been friends a long time and I know your family is the most important thing to you right now, but don't forget that you need your friends too. So, um, if you need some of that therapy…"
"I do." Peyton smiled easily to Max's awkwardness.
"Or, you know, talk it out, whatever-,"
"Play me a song, Max." Peyton interrupts. He's right, he's not the greatest with words. She doesn't mind though, she didn't enter that record store all those years for words, she went for music.
"Okay, um, I was unsure how you'd be so I brought a selection." Max says, stumbling on his words a little as he skips through the sleeves in his hands.
Intrigued, Peyton can't help from going to stand over his shoulder to view his selections. There's the usuals; The Cure - her favourite remedy for sadness, and The Foo Fighters - his personal favourite. Amongst the sleeves though, she sees something she wasn't expecting. She slips her hand between the records and pulls one free.
Turning towards Max she holds the record up and arches her brow.
"Ah," He shakes his head, "That's for me, not you. Here Comes a Regular by-."
"The Replacements, I know it." Peyton says softly.
"Of course you do." Max smiles, "It was meant to be funny; because you've always been my regular, you know?"
Peyton sets her lips together a moment and then looks back at him with glittering eyes, "Can I listen to this?"
Max looks slightly surprised but sets it on the turntable, "Sure. I mean I spent all night going through my collection to find something perfect for your mood but go for my record."
She smiles gratefully to him, "I know, and I love you for that, but this record is kind of special for me. It was Ellie's favourite."
"I'm just glad to help." Max smiles as he sets the record down on the turntable, "I'll leave you to the music, but if you need me,"
"Thank you, Max." Peyton says, hoping that he picks up on the sincerity in her voice.
He steps out of the room as the opening bars crackle into the room. Peyton takes a deep breath and lets the song wash over her. She wishes more than ever that Ellie was here, to offer her a little advice. She was always good at that.
…
Elliot arrives at the locker room before the rest of the team and chances a look around before searching through his backpack. The letter is weighing him down, yet so far, he hasn't been able to bring himself to open it.
He turns it over now in his hands, the cursive script smiling and taunting him all at once. He runs his fingertips over the ink, wondering whether he should have been as hard as he was on his Mom for hiding it from him. He's sure he's still not ready to read it yet.
"Love letter, Scott?" Griffin appears from nowhere and swipes the envelope from Elliot's hand.
"Hey!" Elliot's on his feet instantly and groping for the letter which instantly piques Griffin's interest. "Griffin, please don't be a dick about this, just give it back."
Griffin laughs, "Why the hell would I give it back? Who's it from? That ugly girl you sit with in Chem?"
Elliot begins to sweat, he doesn't even have time to put Griffin in check for being an asshole. "Lowe, I swear,"
"You swear what, Golden Boy?" Griffin sneers, knowing that Elliot's never been in trouble in his whole life. He doesn't expect for Elliot to do a thing that could risk his reputation.
"Lowe. Give it over." Elliot repeats, reaching towards Griffin's outstretched hand.
Smirking, Griffin begins to tear at the envelope and Elliot feels a flush of rage pass through him. He cannot let Griffin get to that letter before he does.
With that in mind, he launches towards his Vice Captain, barrelling his weight into taking Griffin off of his feet. As he does so, some of the guys step into the room, shocked to see the guys fighting.
"Elliot?" Joe rushes to join his friend and pull him away from Griffin.
Elliot though just about has Griffin in a headlock and isn't letting go, "The letter, Griffin!"
Reluctantly, Griffin releases his grasp on the letter and a bewildered Joe swoops down to pick it up. He holds it firmly in his hand but doesn't inspect it any further.
After a moment longer, Elliot lets Griffin go and rights himself to his feet. He goes to take the letter from Joe but is caught offhand when Griffin scrambles up and delivers a right hook to Elliot's jaw.
"Hey!" Joe cries out at the act of foul play and puts himself between his two team mates.
"What is going on in here?" Lucas Scott stands in the doorway to the locker room, arms folded across his chest and his eyes searching his son's face. "Scott. Lowe. My office. Everyone else get out of here. Practise is cancelled until this team looks like a team."
…
Elliot sits in TRIC later that afternoon with Joe, Lacey and Sawyer who is behind the bar making root beer floats. After the trio waited outside his Dad's office for him, Sawyer dragged them all to the bar so that she could hear the story before meeting their Mom.
"So," Sawyer eyes her brother desperately, "The letter?"
Like a nervous habit, he reaches into his pocket to check that it's still safely encased there. He's so thankful that Joe, being the great best friend that he is, didn't read the letter whilst he was being reprimanded for fighting.
"I haven't read it yet." Elliot tells her evenly and she can tell that he isn't lying.
"I still don't get it." Lacey shakes her head, "I mean, I get it, I guess, but I can't believe it!"
On the drive over, Sawyer had filled her best friend in on some of the details of the weekend. She assumes that Elliot did the same with Joe.
"Us either." Sawyer offers, setting sundae glasses of goodness in front of her four waiting customers.
"But it's happening, or happened, or whatever." Elliot shrugs.
Joe leans forward to take a sip of his drink. "What are you going to do?"
"No idea." Elliot answers.
"You guys are so sad." Lacey notes, her voice sympathetic but laced with something else below it too. "I know what you need."
"Lace, this is not the time for a shopping trip." Sawyer tells her best friend.
Lacey shakes her head, "I don't want to shop! Well, not yet. What you guys need, is a Lacey Prideaux party! Okay, hear me out; you're sad as hell and could do with loosening up, plus half the team saw the Captains fighting. Didn't your Dad say that if you guys don't sort your differences out you guys will be stripped of your titles and the team might not play?"
Elliot sighs, "Yeah, but I don't know about a party. I'm not really feeling it."
"All the more reason to do so." Lacey argues.
Sawyer feels herself smiling a little. Her best friend is a force of nature so there's really no point in arguing about having a party now, but she thinks it may actually be what they need. She wants to feel like a teenager again for a while. And she loves a party.
"With Griffin?" Elliot asks for clarification.
Joe sighs, "The kid's an asshole, El, everyone knows it. Maybe though, if he'd known this letter wasn't some dumb note from a crush, he might not have been such a dick about it. He might have been, who knows, but he was just kidding about. Give him another go, and let the team know that you're a team player. How about it?"
"Fine." Elliot resigns himself.
"Prideaux Party Planner at your service." Lacey grins back at him. "I promise to make it better than that average party Griffin threw."
Elliot rolls his eyes, wondering why his sister of all people, chose this girl as her best friend. She's not much like Sawyer at all, her enthusiasm though is infectious. "Okay, deal. You can sort the whole thing."
"Yes!" Lacey fist bumps the air, her dark eyes glowing with excitement. "I mean obviously this situation is not cool but the party will be, promise."
Elliot laughs a little, "Don't worry about it, make it awesome."
Lacey blushes lightly and bites down on her lip, staring, until Sawyer shoves her playfully and her nose dips into her float.
…
I've had Peyton and Max's exchange written for so long, I'm so glad to finally put that part into the story! But I'm also so excited to sprinkle a little love into the air! The party is around the corner too which is most exciting!
Hope you enjoyed :)