Part 61

Peyton raced up the stairs to her apartment two at a time barely taking the time to breathe as she pulled her keys from her back pocket and tried her best to unlock the door even though her hands shook badly. Her heart was thundering from all the thoughts that had been going around her head on the ride home. Would Brooke even be there when she got back? Had Victoria taken her back to where ever she was staying? Was she too late? Had Brooke been bundled onto an airplane bound for the other side of the country while Peyton had been sat in that stupid class room?

"Damn it!" Peyton growled as she dropped her keys and bent down to snatch them back up. She swallowed hard as she pressed the key once more to the lock and pushed it in this time. She froze for a moment, terrified of what she'd find behind the door.

She closed her eyes and pressed her hand to the door. "Please be here Brooke." She whispered softly then turned the key and opened the door.

The stillness of the apartment told Peyton everything, but her eyes still searched every inch in sight.

"No."

Peyton felt her legs give out as she stumbled over to hold on to the back of the couch.

She was too late.

"God no." She collapsed to the ground and hugged her knees to her chest not caring that she'd left the front door lying open. She closed her eyes and dropped her head onto her knees as she started to cry.

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Brooke's eyes sparked with a mix of disbelief and outrage as a hand clamped down over her mouth as she was in mid-sentence. She mumbled at the face before her, demanding to be released.

"Shh!" Was the ordered reply.

Brooke was having none of it, with a glare she stared back at those eyes then as hard as she could aimed a kick at the leg closest to her.

"Ow! Fuck!"

Brooke rolled her eyes and passed her attacker. "Oh shut up Nathan." She muttered with a shake of her head.

Nathan looked pleadingly at his wife while his hand rubbed at his shin, only partially grateful Brooke hadn't aimed any higher.

"Seriously Nate, what the hell?" Haley asked wondering what had gotten into her husband.

Nate winced and hobbled a bit as he turned and reached for Brooke again, taking her by the arm this time and not letting go. "Your door's open!" He hissed at her as she spun around looking to inflict more pain his way if the angry set of her face was anything to go by.

"Oh." Brooke shrunk back from her apartment at that, only now seeing that her door was slightly ajar.

Nathan placed his hand on Brooke's shoulder after sharing a worried look with Haley and stepped past the pair. "I'll take a look, you two stay here-better yet, go back to the car." He said sending Haley a look that begged her just to do as he asked.

Brooke felt cold with fear as she stood frozen in place staring at that open door. Psycho Derek couldn't be here, the cops would have warned us right?

She gasped as another thought raced through her mind. "Peyton!"

Nathan didn't have the chance to stop his friend this time as she raced forward into the house. "Damn it!" He chased after her knowing better than to waste time arguing with his wife not to follow them.

As he stepped into the apartment he pulled up short causing Haley to stumble into him. His eyes took in Brooke clutching tightly to Peyton on the floor, he could hear the blonde crying and Brooke's softly spoken mumbles. His face darkened and his heart ached for his friends. "I'll check out the rest of the place." He said, his hands already clenching into fists.

Haley watched her husband stalk away. She was almost tempted to follow him just in case he did find someone but the sound of Peyton in tears had her approaching the pair on the floor in front of her cautiously.

Brooke felt her own tears trail down her face as Peyton tightened her hold on her. "Oh baby, shh, it's okay now, I've got you. I've got you." She whispered pressing her lips to the blonde head tucked under her own.

"Hey," Haley said quietly having managed to kneel down beside Brooke. She touched Brooke's back and rubbed her hand back and forth. "Is she...is..." She couldn't finish the sentence, it was painfully obvious that Peyton wasn't okay. Haley blinked back her own tears as Brooke turned her tear stained face her way. She swallowed then let out a breath, she needed to be strong for her friends right now. "Should we call the cops?" She asked softly. She had wanted to suggest taking Peyton to the hospital but she was unsure of just what had happened to the blonde.

Peyton could hear talking going on around her but she didn't care, all she knew was that Brooke was suddenly back and holding her. Beyond that she didn't care, not even if the apartment was burning down, she had Brooke with her so it'd be okay.

"There's no one here." Nathan announced as he returned to the front of the apartment.

Brooke frowned as Nate hovered beside her. She knew that they were all probably afraid of the same thing but didn't want to be the one to say it out loud. She sighed and tried to calm Peyton down some more. She needed an idea as to what had happened to her girlfriend before she could agree with anyone else's plan on what to do next.

Just then she heard Peyton mumbling to her again. What?

Carefully she eased Peyton away from her even as the blonde resisted and tightened her grip.

"Peyton honey, can you say that again?" Brooke asked wiping tears away with her thumbs as she gently held the blonde's face in her hands.

Peyton blinked more tears and sniffled. "Don't leave me. Please." She repeated, her hands clutching at Brooke desperately. "Don't leave me. Please don't go."

Damn it!

Brooke felt her heart break as she realised what had happened. She pulled Peyton back into her arms and cradled her tightly against her chest. "Oh baby, I'm staying right here, I promise. I'm staying." She whispered placing kiss after kiss onto the blonde head as she felt like kicking herself.

Haley glanced at Nathan but he stood there just as confused as she was.

"Brooke?" Haley said not wanting to interrupt but feeling very much out of the loop.

Brooke couldn't speak for a moment as she looked at Haley with pained eyes. "She thought I'd left." She explained feeling terrible for not thinking this could have happened.

"Victoria." Nathan muttered his eyes clouding over again.

"Yeah." Brooke replied but she was once again focusing on Peyton. "Didn't you get my text honey?" Brooke asked softly.

Peyton shrugged not knowing anything about a text, or even where her cell phone was right now.

She sighed again tucking her head back against Brooke's chest. They weren't in the most comfortable position in the world but she was in Brooke's arms so she could deal with it. It was strange, a few minutes ago she had no idea how she was going to face the rest of her life now she just wanted this moment to never end.

She rubbed at her face to try and clear the last of her tears as her emotions were finally beginning to settle and her brain was catching up to what had happened. Clearly she'd been completely wrong in thinking Brooke had left without so much as saying goodbye to her. And from the sounds of it that wasn't in Brooke's thoughts anyway.

Talk about feeling stupid. How the hell do I explain this one?

Peyton pulled back feeling as composed as she was going to get right now. "What text?" She asked not looking away from Brooke. "Sorry, did I hurt you?" She asked quickly realising she been lying on Brooke's legs.

Brooke sighed at the guilty look crossing her best friends face. She reached over and stroked Peyton's face. "No." She took hold of Peyton's hand and brought it to her lips, earning a reflexive smile from the blonde that warmed her heart. That's what it was all about after all wasn't it?

Meaning something to someone.

My mom could learn a few things from you Peyt, but she's had her chance.

She grinned at Peyton thinking back to earlier. "Haley popped over while Victoria was here, lecturing me on all that was wrong with living here."

Peyton scowled and sniffed again, wiping at her nose with the sleeve of her free arm. "What's wrong with living here?" She asked.

Brooke giggled. "That's what I asked!" She smiled at Peyton until the blonde smiled back. "So Haley turns up," She continued darting a quick look at her pregnant friend only to see her rolling her eyes. "And my mom takes one look at her and I'm not joking, I thought she was going to keel over in shock."

Peyton chuckled at the light in Brooke's eyes as she spoke. It released the last of the tension in her body and she felt like she could finally relax. She knew Victoria wasn't really gone, she wouldn't get that lucky, but she'd try and handle it a bit better than she had coming home to an empty apartment.

"And that was before she saw the wedding ring!" Brooke said with a laugh picturing her mother's wide eyed look once more.

"Yeah, yeah, everyone make fun of the pregnant girl." Haley mutter trying to look offended although she had originally found Mrs Davis reaction insulting she'd later had a giggle at it as well. She sighed then called Nathan over to help her up. With the drama more or less over for the moment she thought it best to get up off the floor while she could.

Peyton watched Nathan struggle with Haley until he got her up then watched the pair move to take a seat. That spurred her into action herself as she stood and offered Brooke a hand up. She smiled at the brunette still feeling unnerved so she didn't let go of her hand but Brooke didn't seem to mind.

Brooke squeezed Peyton's hand then pushed her onto the love seat before easing down on top of her, grinning at Haley and Nate as Peyton's hands came around to hold her in place. Her grin only widened as Peyton buried her head against her neck and breathed in deeply.

She knew the blonde was still upset so she placed a hand over the blonde's and carried on telling her what she'd missed out on with Nathan and Haley adding to her tale with their own snippets.

No one mentioned it when Peyton was the only one that didn't laugh at the funny parts.

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Peyton felt Brooke shifting but she was happy right where she was, breathing in Brooke's scent, and reminding herself with every breath that the brunette was still there. The fear was almost gone but out there somewhere in Tree Hill Brooke's mother was still around. Peyton wasn't naive enough to think she'd seen the last of the older woman, and Peyton was scared as to the real reason she was here.

She would be back, maybe not tonight, but tomorrow for sure they'd see her again.

Peyton knew that, and she knew Brooke knew it too.

Victoria Davis rarely gave up when she was after something.

"She can't have you." Peyton muttered sleepily.

Brooke blinked her eyes open at the sound of the blonde's voice at her ear. "What?" She asked shifting and wincing as her body protested the position it was in. She groaned and turned in Peyton's arms, stretching her legs out over the arm of the seat. "You say something Pey?"

Peyton held Brooke closer to her. She gazed at her as Brooke played with her hair, tucking it out of the way of her face. "She can't have you." She said one more time.

Brooke's lips parted and her eyes flitted over Peyton's face. Her eyes were still a bit red and puffy but there was a clearness to her eyes that calmed Brooke. She'd been really worried about the blonde's state of mind earlier on, Haley had offered to stay over, at least until the morning but Brooke hadn't wanted that, she didn't want Peyton to have to deal with their friends on top of everything else.

So Brooke had said no and thanked them for they're concern and with that they'd left to return to the hospital without them. Brooke had told the couple to give Karen their congratulations on the birth of her daughter and that they'd stop by once she was home to see the new arrival.

"Who can't have me?" Brooke asked not perceptive enough to pick up on Peyton's train of thought given it had been a few hours since the blonde had last spoken.

Peyton's brows drew together she'd thought Brooke had understood. "Victoria." She said still frowning.

Brooke felt her throat constrict at the earnest look she was receiving from the blonde. She threaded her fingers in Peyton's hair as she inched closer. "No, baby, she can't." She said shifting and pressing against the blonde as she captured her lips in a passionate kiss.

Peyton kissed back, trying to dispel the images of coming home to find Brooke gone thinking she'd left her. She nipped at Brooke's lips taking the lead, her hands searching for the skin under Brooke's top, needing to feel her. All of her.

Brooke gasped as Peyton's teeth bit at her neck. That's gonna leave a mark. Strangely it didn't bother Brooke at all in fact, she tightened her own hold on the blonde holding her in place, wanting the mark suddenly. "I'm yours baby, I'm yours."

Peyton's chest was heaving as she pulled away to make sure she hadn't done anything wrong.

But before she could ask Brooke was kissing her and any concern was lost as she responded to her girlfriend and her own need for Brooke.

"All yours." Brooke whispered straddling the blonde and tugging her own top over her head before going in search of those warm wet lips again.

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AN/ Dang how long's it been people!

Freaking scary month I've had. Thank god I don't have to go through that again lol.

Next part will be up...sometime. In the near future...hopefully :D

Thanks for reading!

Love ya all.

What?

That was not said in an attempt to get less hate mail. I do so love you guys! Sheesh, you're all so distrusting.

:P

Later.