Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own characters!
If you would have asked Brooke, even a day ago, if she thought that she and Peyton could ever be civil to each other again, the answer would have been no. Yet here she was, working with Peyton to come up with a routine that worked for the squad, since they were now one member short. Brooke paused momentarily, to try to pinpoint the exact moment she had realized that she was actually enjoying being with Peyton again.
"Mom, we seriously need your help!" Charity had yelled, barging into Brooke's room. Brooke sat up quickly, trying to get her bearings, after being so rudely awakened.
"What's going on?" She yawned, watching Charity pace around the room.
"It's crazy mom. Lila ditched us. Can you believe that little hussy--sorry mom--had the nerve to just up and leave after everything she's done? When I find her sorry little a--"Charity rattled off angrily, stopping in mid-sentence and staring at Brooke sheepishly.
"I take it you're not a fan?" Brooke joked.
"Oh I forgot, you don't know what's going on. I'll just give you the short story version for now. So, you know how I was mad at Lauren at first, well I kinda did some stuff with Lila to hurt Lauren and then when I decided that I was being stupid, Lila threw a fit and started blackmailing me. So then I did something even more stupid and kissed Lauren's boyfriend, which was all Lila's fault, and then the little hussy had the nerve to tell the guy that I liked about it and now he hates me too!" Charity said exhaling loudly.
Brooke raised her eyebrow in curiosity. She wasn't dumb enough to believe that Charity was telling her the whole story but she didn't want to push. It wasn't so long ago that Charity didn't bother to tell her anything, let alone as much as she just had.
"Oh and Lila is, well was, on the squad. So now we can't compete because we're one girl short, unless…" Charity trailed off, smiling slyly. Brooke felt a sinking feeling in her stomach.
"Unless what?" She asked slowly, dreading the answer.
"Unless you and Peyton can help us rework the routine?" Charity asked softly. She had every right to be nervous. She was asking Brooke to work with the woman who was sleeping with Brooke's husband, not to mention her ex-best friend. Brooke fought the instinct to laugh in Charity's face. No way was she going anywhere near Peyton.
"I can't Charity. You have to understand. We have too much history and with everything going on with her and your dad, I just can't okay?" Brooke said, feeling horrible for letting her issues with Peyton come between her and her daughter, but this wasn't just a little disagreement she and Peyton were having, it was war.
"I figured you'd say that. It's just that Peyton volunteered to help but I know how good you are at choreography and I just thought we'd have a better chance if you could give us some pointers." Charity explained dejectedly. Brooke sighed, staring up the ceiling. She knew she was going to regret this.
"Fine, I'll help. Let me get changed. I'll meet you in the gym in twenty minutes. Have Lauren explain what's going on the judges and see if you guys can't go last? That might buy us enough time." Brooke said, quickly getting off the bed and rummaging through her suitcases for something suitable to practice in.
"Thank you so much!" Charity said, kissing her mother on her cheek before bolting out the door. Brooke smiled. She was glad that she had made Charity happy, even if she were making herself miserable.
Except it hadn't been miserable. She and Peyton had gotten right to work, just like old times. It was as if the truce they had enacted so many years ago at the Classic was still in effect. They had bounced ideas off one another, laughing and joking all the while. Eventually they had come up with a routine that wasn't too different from the original and that was still as technically difficult.
Brooke nudged Peyton, smiling, as the girls nailed the routine for the second time in a row. Peyton grinned and they clapped excitedly for the girls.
"And now, from Tree Hill, North Carolina, The Tree Hill Ravens!" The announcer called over the loud speaker. The girls took a collective deep breath before heading out onto the mat.
Brooke squealed and grabbed Peyton's hand, squeezing it nervously. Brooke was more nervous watching then she had ever been performing.
"I can't watch!" Peyton said, closing her eyes.
"You have to, It'll be okay. They're good, they can do this." Brooke said optimistically. She didn't feel very optimistic though. They had only gone through the routine twice.
The music began and to Brooke's surprise the girls did remarkably well. There were a couple minor mistakes, but no falls and no one had gone out of bounds.
"They did it. They really did it!" Peyton said with an abundance of surprise. She and Brooke yelled and cheered loudly for the squad as they exited the mat. All that was left to do was to wait for the results. Now that she and Peyton didn't have a shared goal, the reality of their situation was beginning to settle back in. Peyton eyed Brooke nervously.
"Um, thanks for helping me today. It was really nice to pretend that we were friends again for a little while." Brooke said honestly. Peyton nodded, not meeting her eyes.
Brooke only wished that they really could be friends but there was just some things that couldn't be forgiven.