Julian's POV
I watched Brooke leaving the house as I suddenly noticed my mother behind me. Even before I turned to her, I knew she had been drinking again. I could smell it.
"What do you think, to bring... this... this slut to our house!"
I tried to stay calm because I knew there was no point arguing with her when she was drunk. "Brooke is not a slut," I said, turning away to leave.
"Julian Andrew Norris, you... you're not turning away from me... when I want to talk to you...!"
Her eyes were glazed, and she already had problems with the articulation. "Please Mom, let me go!" I had no desire to argue with her, and certainly not about Brooke.
"She is bad... bad, Julian! And I don't allow you to see her again!"
"I'm 18, Mom, and not a baby anymore!" I protested. "I know what I'm doing." I barely had finished the sentence when I realized that I just made a big mistake, because her already pale face grew even paler.
"What did she do to you?"
"What?" I thought I had misheard. What did she mean by that?
"I knew I should have forbidden her... to... to go alone to your room."
When I slowly realized what she meant, I could only stare at her in shock. She actually believed that Brooke and I had made out in my room instead of studying! "I've given her math coaching," I explained patiently, although I was seriously wondering why I was justifying myself to her. "No more and no less."
"I heard... music... from your room."
She had her arms on her hips and looked at me reproachfully. And I made the next big mistake when I remembered Brooke dancing around my room with her eyes closed; I smiled.
"That's it. You'll never see this... this girl... again!"
I woke up from my thoughts and shook my head slowly. "We go to the same school. That will be hard to avoid." When she suddenly turned away from me and walked towards the living room, I followed her slowly.
"I'm calling... calling your father. For a change, he... he should take care of you."
As she reached for the phone, I grabbed her wrist. "Don't do that, Mom! Should he find out that you have been drinking again?" To my biggest surprise she suddenly began to laugh hysterically.
"As if your... father would care... what I do. He's only interested in himself... himself and his... his bitches he shares... his bed with."
I closed my eyes in frustration and had to agree with her silently. My father, a famous movie producer, lived thousands of miles away from us in Los Angeles and came only home to fleeting visits. I was not naive. I knew from young age on that he wasn't faithful to my mother during his absence. And he made no secret of his affairs. I remembered the day I first found her drunk when I came home from school. I was just thirteen at the time and totally shocked because I had never seen her in such a state before. But it hadn't been a one-time slip, as I had realized soon afterwards, because she drank regularly from then on and occasionally took pills she supposedly needed for her nerves or for her insomnia. And I just felt helpless and totally overwhelmed because I had no idea how to help her. There was no one to whom I could have confided. So I kept it a secret and tried to cover up what happened almost daily in our house. My mom hadn't been very sociable before, but she hadn't left the house in five years. It was too embarrassing for her that someone could find out that she was drinking. My dad knew about her condition, but either he didn't care or he tried to block it out. In any case, he did nothing to help her. So only I remained. And suddenly I understood why my mom had been so hostile towards Brooke. She was afraid. Afraid to lose me to a girl. Because if she lost me, she would have nothing left in her life to live for. Gently, I took the receiver from her hand and put my arm around her. "Take a rest, Mom. You will feel better after that." When she nodded, I brought her to her room, helping her into bed. I already had the door handle in my hand when she called me back.
"Julian? Promise me... that you... that you won't see this... this girl again..."
I looked at her for a moment before I nodded hesitantly. "I promise," I said softly, knowing at that moment that I lied to my mom for the first time in my life.
Brooke's POV
I was sitting on the bed in my room at home, holding my phone in my hand and trying to conjure it to ring. It was only a few hours ago that I said goodbye to Julian, but I couldn't wait to make the next appointment with him. It wasn't because I was so keen on math, but rather because of the fact that I really enjoyed Julian's presence. He was able to explain well and had a calmness and patience, that even I understood everything. With his help, I would certainly pass the next math test. I was firmly convinced of that. I had been staring at my phone all the time that I flinched as the tune to 'Don't You' sounded. I had changed my ringtone after I got home and put it on Julian's profile. "Hey!"
"Brooke?"
"Um... yes?"
"About our next lesson... I thought we might meet tomorrow after school."
"Okay, and where? At mine or at your place?"
"In the cafeteria."
I nervously began to nibble on my lower lip. So my feeling didn't betray me. His mother didn't want me near her house again. "Okay," I said slowly, feverishly thinking what else to say so he wouldn't just end the conversation. "Thank you for tutoring me. You were a tremendous help." When he laughed, I felt a tingle in my stomach.
"Take care, Brooke. See you tomorrow."
"Julian!"
"What?"
I took a deep breath before telling him what had been in my mind all day. "What are you doing in your spare time?"
"What do you mean?"
"Do you have any hobbies?"
"Define hobbies?"
"What do you do when you come home from school, don't study or don't give any private lessons to various girls," I explained more precisely, waiting eagerly for his answer. For a moment there was only silence. But then I heard him clear his throat.
"Well, if I told you that you're the only and first girl I give private lessons to, would you believe me?"
Why did my stupid heart start beating so fast all of a sudden? The question was completely harmless, and yet I felt this tingling sensation all over my body. I covered the speaker with my hand. "The only and first girl," I whispered audibly only for me. "Yes," I breathed into the speaker. "I would believe you."
"Okay, then... see you tomorrow, Brooke!"
"Julian..." I started, but he had already hung up. I put my cell phone aside, dropped back and closed my eyes. And as I slowly drifted to sleep, the last thing I saw was his face before my mind's eye, dark brown eyes and a smile that could make you forget everything else around you.
Brooke's POV
Tree Hill High School
The next morning, while at school, I was completely lost in my thoughts, so that Haley, who was not only my friend but also my seat neighbor, had to bump me with her elbow so that I could follow our teacher's instructions. I was relieved when the school gong rang signaling that the lessons were over for today. I quickly stuffed my books into my school bag and was about to leave the classroom when Haley held me back.
"You'll tell me right away what's wrong with you, otherwise I won't let you go!"
It sounded almost like a threat, and I sank back onto my chair with a sigh. "Okay, I'll tell you, but promise me you're not going to make stupid comments."
She nodded and sat down next to me. "Tell me!"
"I'm meeting Julian," I confessed, and then saw how amusing she seemed to find it. "And no stupid grin," I added, as her smile widened.
"You have a crush on him."
It was not a question but a simple statement that made me feel compelled to correct it before she got it wrong. "I don't have a crush on him," I set it right, raising an eyebrow to emphasize my words. "I'm taking tutoring lessons from him."
"Oh, you meet him to study. Of course, that's something completely different."
Did I hear any hidden irony in her words? Her stupid grin proved clearly that she didn't believe me. "Haley, I only met him yesterday. Even I don't fall for a boy so quickly."
"You met him the day before yesterday, if I may correct you. And ever since you've been hanging around with him."
"To study, yes." I rolled my eyes annoyed. Sometimes Haley could be really stubborn. As she suddenly turned her head to the door and began to grin again, I followed her gaze.
"Speaking of the devil..."
"Julian!" His sight alone raised my heartbeat. I quickly jumped up and grabbed my things. But Haley was faster. She stood in front of him, smiled and held out her hand to him.
"Hi, I'm Haley, Brooke's best friend."
"Hi, Haley. I'm Julian."
"Yes, I know. I've heard a lot about you."
For this remark I would have liked to kick her in her butt. Couldn't it be more embarrassing! And Julian apparently felt uncomfortable about it too, because he looked abashed on the floor. "Can we go?" I don't know where I took the courage to grab Julian's arm and push him out of the classroom. I paid no attention to Haley. She would have to explain to me later what that remark had been. We reached the cafeteria when he suddenly stopped and looked at me.
"What did you tell the others about me?"
The question struck me as a surprise and at first I didn't know what to answer. "Nothing," I said after a while of silence. "I swear, I didn't say anything about you. Only that we study together."
He nodded and then sat down at one of the free tables and pulled out his schoolbooks. "Then let's start."
The atmosphere between us was strangely strained since the classroom incident, so after a short while I could barely concentrate on what he was explaining to me. It didn't make any sense that way. I jumped up from my chair, shoved my books quickly into my school bag and then took a deep breath. "You're afraid of people gossiping about you, what they might think when they see you with me," I said, noticing my voice quivering slightly.
"That's not true!"
"Yes it is. At least be honest with yourself," I hurled the worlds at him. "Do you think I didn't notice how your mother looked at me?" When he lowered his head, I knew I was right. "Thanks for your help," I said, trying not to show how hurt I was. "But we should just stop this here and now. I don't want to ruin your reputation." I turned away from him and suddenly noticed, to my own horror, tears in my eyes.
"Brooke, wait!"
As he grabbed my arm and slowly turned me to face him, I saw in his eyes the same disappointment that I felt right now.
"I don't care what my mother says. And I don't care what others say. What's important is what we both want."
I closed my eyes and noticed the tears running down my cheeks.
"What do you want, Brooke Davis?"
When he raised his hand and then gently stroked my cheek with his finger to wipe away the tears, tutoring was the last thing on my mind. But I was also aware that I couldn't tell him what I really wanted - to kiss him. So I just tried to think businesslike. "I want you to give me further tutoring," I said in a slightly trembling voice and immediately felt a swarm of butterflies flying through my stomach as he grinned at me satisfied. My God, what had I let myself getting into? Haley was right. I really had a 'crush' on Julian, or to put it better, I had fallen head over heels in love with him.
"Can we go on?"
His question freed me from my emotional chaos and I just nodded. But my joy that we had decided to work together shouldn't last long when Julian's cell phone began to ring. I watched him how he took the call and suddenly became nervous. He hurriedly stuffed his books in his school bag.
"I'm sorry, Brooke, but I have to leave now."
He just ditched me and ran out of the cafeteria. And I just stood there and didn't know how to interpret the situation. Did he use the call as an excuse to get away from me, or had it been his girlfriend who wanted to check on him if he was faithful to her? However, our 'date' had cut short and I packed my stuff and headed home.