A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews. And thanks to my beta: Leeese.

Chapter Five

Bridge Over Troubled Water

"Karen's Café is now officially open for business," Karen announced proudly as she turned the sign from closed to open. Everyone applauded and cheered as Jake started singing his song from the small stage in a corner of the room. Brooke had been surprised when she had found out that he could sing. Yet, she was still discovering a lot from the classmates she had never hung out with before. And she started to find that she was enjoying their company more than she thought that she would.

Brooke just listened to the song as she and Lucas exchanged smiles. She looked around the room at the crowd and was pleased at the turnout. She didn't recognize all of the people. But she spotted quite a few familiar faces. Mouth, Rachel, Skills and Bevin were all there. Haley came, along with her parents. She felt a little jealous that Haley was able to introduce her parents to Keith, Karen and Lily and chat with them. She knew that she wouldn't be able to introduce the Scott family to her mother. She had a feeling that she would disapprove of them.

To Brooke's surprise, she even spotted Mr. Hargrove and the basketball coach Whitey. It was weird seeing her teachers outside of school, but she knew that they were there to just have a good time just like she was.

She wasn't happy when she found out that Peyton came, but she knew that she couldn't do anything about it this time. Karen's Café was open to the public. So Peyton had every right to come into the café. Brooke was relieved that she steered clear of Lucas. Even though she and Lucas were taking it slow, she still didn't want him to date Peyton first.

After the party was over, Haley and Brooke stayed late to help the Scott family clean up the café. However, Keith and Karen protested and told them that they were still guests and they should go home. Brooke and Haley finally agreed. Lucas offered to drive them home since Haley's parents had already left. And Nathan had already taken Lily home.

Brooke gave Karen a wide smile. "Karen, I can't thank you enough for postponing your café opening another day just to make sure I would be able to come," she told her. "It really means a lot to me."

Karen returned the smile. "You're welcome, Brooke. But I should be thanking you. After all, you were the one who made this all possible."

"It was no problem. I was happy to help," Brooke replied.

"We'll definitely stop by for breakfast tomorrow morning," Haley added. "I can't wait to try your homemade meals."

"You two are welcomed here anytime," Karen told them. "Good-bye, girls."

"Bye Karen. Bye Keith," the girls chorused as they followed Lucas out the door and to his car.

Lucas dropped Haley off at her house first before he drove Brooke home. There was an awkward silence before he spoke. "Thank you for helping my mom out. I really appreciate it," he told her. "And I know she does too."

Brooke gave him a smile. "I was only helping a friend out."

Lucas couldn't argue with that. "Now that you did this for my mom, I feel that I owe you a favor," he said. "So name your wish."

Brooke bit her lip nervously. She really did have a wish, but she wasn't sure if he would do it. "Well, I need a date for the Homecoming Dance." She didn't let Lucas even get a word in before she continued. "I understand if you don't want to go. After all, we're just friends. But I thought it would be nice for us to go together."

Lucas gave her a wide smile. "I don't mind if we go together," he replied. "In fact, it sounds like fun."

Brooke looked at him surprised. "Really? You would go with me? Even though we would be going as friends?" she asked him.

Lucas nodded. "Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

Brooke shrugged. "It's nothing," she replied. "Maybe we can get Nathan and Haley to join us. Then it would really be a party." Lucas nodded in agreement. "But I'll have to convince Haley to go first. She doesn't usually like going to dances."

"I'm surprised that she is planning to be a cheerleader," Lucas said.

"Me either. But last year, one of my fellow cheerleaders got sick and I asked Haley to fill in. After a little bit of encouraging, she decided to do it. She loved it so much that she decided to continue this year. And I'm so glad that she will. I really want to win the Sparkle Classic competition this year."

"And when is this competition?" Lucas asked her curious.

"It's not until after basketball season starts. By the way, how is that going for you?" she asked him. "Are you making sure that you're all prepared for basketball tryouts in a few weeks?"

Lucas nodded. "Nathan and I are working on it," he replied. "But it sounds like we are going to have some tough competition."

Brooke couldn't argue with that. "Yeah, basketball is the most popular sport around here." She then gave him a comforting smile. "Don't worry. I'm sure you and Nathan will both make the team. And if you don't, I won't ever speak to you again." Lucas pretended to look hurt. Brooke couldn't help but laugh at him.

Late Saturday afternoon, the Scott twins picked up Brooke and Haley before they went to the Homecoming Dance. Surprisingly, Haley was willing to come with them to the dance. Brooke had a feeling that it was because she had friends to go and hang out with. Especially Nathan. She was glad that they were getting along well.

Even though she and Lucas were only friends, she got jealous every time that someone asked him to dance. Especially when it was Peyton. However, she managed not to keep a fake smile on her face as she watched them dance.

After the dance was over, Nathan drove them home. Brooke thanked him for driving as she climbed out of the car. Lucas followed her since he wanted to walk her up to the door. Neither of them said anything until they reached the front door. They exchanged smiles as Brooke spoke. "Thank you for taking me to the dance tonight."

"You're welcome. And it was no problem. It was really fun," Lucas assured her. "Are you planning to do anything tomorrow night?"

Brooke had to think for a moment. "Actually, I don't have anything planned." She turned to him and gave him a curious look as she looked again. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was thinking that you could help me baby-sit Lily. My parents are going out to dinner and Nathan is going to take care of the café. And that leaves me with Lily. I love her, but she wears me out sometime."

Brooke gave him a smile. "I'd love to," she replied. She didn't want to admit that she had no experience baby-sitting. That was Haley's department, but she was willing to try so she could spend some time with Lucas and Lily.

Lucas smiled in return. "Great. I'll pick you up tomorrow afternoon," he told her before they exchanged good-byes.

Brooke opened the door and went into the house. She then let out a happy sigh as she headed towards the stairs. She then froze when she heard a familiar voice. "Brooke, would you come in here please?" her mother called from the living room.

Brooke turned around and walked into the living room. Her mother glared at her as she did. "Who was that with you on the front porch?" she demanded.

Brooke was surprised at her angry tone. However, she answered her question. "That was just my friend, Lucas Scott."

Victoria turned to her. "You are absolutely forbidden to see that boy ever again," she said in the same angry tone. Brooke was about to protest when her mother continued. "Don't argue with me. Just do it or I will do whatever I have to make sure that you don't. Do you understand me?" Brooke couldn't believe what she was hearing. She just stared at her mother in shock. Her mother looked at her. "Do you understand me?" she repeated.

Brooke finally managed to find her voice. "Yes," she replied. She didn't know why her mother wanted her to stay away from Lucas, but she was going to find out. She wasn't going to let her mother stop her from seeing him.

The next day, she drove over to Haley's house. She had called her shortly after she had arrived back into her bedroom. She had told her about the interesting conversation with her mother before she had asked if she could come over and use her laptop to look up information about the Scott family. Haley had reluctantly agreed.

She parked the car in the driveway before she climbed out of the car. She walked up to the front door and knocked a few times. She wasn't surprised when she heard a dog barking on the other side of the door. She knew it was Hershey, the James's chocolate Labrador. Sure enough, the door opened and Hershey came out, wagging her tail at her.

Brooke smiled as she gave some attention to her before she followed Haley inside the house. They walked into the kitchen, where Lydia was. She gave Brooke a warm smile as they grabbed some snacks from the cupboard. They then headed upstairs to Haley's bedroom. Hershey was right behind them.

"I still can't believe that your mother has forbidden you to see Lucas," Haley told her as she led Brooke over to her desk. "But maybe there's a reasonable explanation for it. Maybe she knows Keith and Karen from somewhere and doesn't get along with them."

Brooke gave her a confused look. "Wouldn't they have mentioned it when I met them?" she asked.

"Maybe they didn't want to judge you before getting to know you," Haley replied. Brooke wasn't convinced. Instead, she turned to the screen and went to the Internet. "Maybe I should do this. After all, you're not the best with a computer." Brooke gave her a look, but let Haley sit at her desk. "Ok, what are we looking for?"

"We're looking for anything about the Scott family," Brooke replied. "Some event that would make them lose their reputation as members of the high society." Haley raised her eyebrows at her. "That's the only reason that I can think of as to why my mother wouldn't want me to see him."

Haley turned back to the screen and waited for the results. She scrolled down the page as she looked at the results. "Well, there isn't much about Keith Scott. But there is a Dan and Deb Scott. They are just as rich as your family. Dan is a businessman while Deb is involved with a lot of charities. And their daughter Alex has gotten in a lot of trouble with the law."

Brooke stopped when she heard the familiar name. "She wouldn't happen to have a sister named Millie, would she?" she asked.

Haley searched just for a second and nodded. She turned to her friend surprised. "Yeah, how did you know that?"

"I met her when I went to that wedding a couple of weeks ago," Brooke replied. "But she didn't tell me her last name." They then saw an article mentioning Dan's twin brother, Keith. "I can't believe that Millie is related to Lucas and Nathan. And so is that flirt, Julian."

"Deb must be the one with the family money," Haley added. "That would explain why Dan is rich and Keith isn't. Of course, I don't think any of that matter to Keith and Karen. They seem like they are happy with their life."

Brooke nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and I know that they wouldn't have it any other way. And neither would I."