It found me to hold me, but I don't like it at all.
Won't feed it, won't grow it, it's folded in my stomach.

A rapid knocking on his door woke Lucas up. He fumbled for his alarm clock and checked out the time: 8:23. Who the hell would be at his door this early? "I'm coming," Lucas called out, but the knocking only got louder and more insistent. "Holy shit, I'm coming, I'm…" He trailed off when he saw his best friend, Haley James Scott standing on the other side.

Without a word, Lucas scooped her into his arms and held her tightly. He didn't care why the hell she was home; he was just excited to have her back again.

"Oh my God, Hales… what are you doing here?" He asked, letting her go and ushering her and all of her luggage in.

Haley smiled sadly and shrugged. "It was time to come home. I couldn't do the tour anymore. I needed to come home to my husband."

Lucas smiled and embraced her once more. "That's great, Hales, I'm so happy you decided to come back. So why aren't you with Nathan?"

"Oh I was with him. Wait – Luke, did you know Dan is in the hospital? The dealership caught fire with him in it! You should know – he's your father, too."

Lucas nodded and looked away. "Yeah, I did hear that. I'm just… not ready or sure if I want to go see him."

Haley understood. "But um, yeah, I went with him to the hospital but after that he made it clear that he wasn't very happy to see me. So, tomorrow he's leaving for High Flyer's. And the apartment is still his, and being there by myself brings back too many memories…"

"You don't even have to ask, Hales. You'll stay here."

Haley sighed and closed her eyes. When she opened them back up, tears were pooled there. She rushed over to wrap her arms around him again. "Thank you so much Luke."

"Shh, I know. I know things are hard right now, but everything's going to be okay."

"I really hope you're right," Haley whispered out weakly.

"Well since my mom's gone for the summer, I'm sure you can take her room until she gets back. I know she wouldn't mind."

"Wait, where is Karen? What the hell happened while I was gone?" Haley was now excited, forgetting her sadness for a moment.

"Oh Hales, more than you know. My mom and Andy got pretty serious, and now she's spending the summer with him in New Zealand. I'm really happy for her, Andy is a great guy."

"Wow, good for her, if anyone deserves that, it's Karen," She hesitated and then moved on. "So Deb's running the café then?"

"Yeah, and I'm helping out too. Why?"

"I was hoping to get my job back but Deb is not exactly my number one fan."

Lucas rolled his eyes. "Whatever, I know she has partial ownership, but really it's my mom's café, I say you're back. And we could always use the help – the café is constantly busy, you know."

Haley nodded, grateful. "So, how are you and Brooke?"

"We're broken up. Officially."

Haley sat down on his bed and snickered. "Okay, right."

"What?"

"You two break up all the time. You've been together less than 9 months and you've already managed to break up 3 times. I'm sure this one won't last either."

Lucas shook his head adamantly. "No, it's over for good this time, I think. I broke up with her right before she left for California. I couldn't do it anymore, Hales. You know the jealousy and fighting, it got to be too much."

"So you've finally stopped pretending then?" Haley questioned. She was never a huge fan of Brooke. They had formed a friendship, and she hung out with her and Lucas, or her and Peyton, but she knew Brooke was no good for her best friend. Not to mention the fact that she knew for a fact Luke had never gotten over a certain blonde, broody artist.

Before Lucas could answer her question, another person knocked on his door and stepped through.

"Peyton," Lucas spoke, the happiness evident in his voice.

"Hi Lucas, I just… Haley!"

Haley stepped forward to hug Peyton, excited at seeing her best girl friend, but Peyton stepped back. "What are you doing here?"

Haley frowned at the distance. "I came home. I couldn't stay away from Nathan any longer, and I missed you and Lucas a whole lot."

Peyton wanted to be mad at Haley and hold a grudge at her. She was upset with her for abandoning Nathan and proving her theory right. But she was so happy to see her other best friend back home, she couldn't stay mad forever. She rushed over to hug Haley. "I'm so glad you're home, Hales. But just because you're back doesn't automatically mean I forgive you or that I'm not still mad."

Haley nodded and stood back to look at Peyton. "I totally get that Peyton, and we'll talk about it, and I'll do whatever I can to make it up to you, I swear. But I'm sensing you two need to be alone, so I'll just be in my new room if you need anything," She sang out as she wheeled her luggage to Karen's room.

Peyton nervously wrung her hands together, looking anywhere in his room except into his eyes. "So Haley's your new roomie, huh?"

Lucas stood up to face her. "Yeah, she didn't want to go back to the apartment, she figured it would be too hard. And seeing as her parents sold the house and are traveling the country, she really didn't have any place to go. I'm just so thankful she's back."

"Yeah, well I'm not thrilled with her, but I am glad to have her home."

Lucas sighed and walked closer to her. "I like your new hair. You look beautiful."

Peyton blushed and fingered her short, straight haircut. "Yeah well, Ellie had the whole long haired thing happening, and I don't want to look like her. I mean, if what she was saying is true."

"You haven't talked to your dad yet?"

"Haven't been able to reach him. Really, I'm not sure if I want to find out the truth."

Luke nodded sympathetically then cleared his throat. "So, what did you come over here to talk about?"

Peyton sat down on his bed and motioned for him to come sit with her. "Two nights ago, Luke… are we going to talk about it or are we going to pretend it didn't happen?"

Lucas rubbed his chin and looked over at her. Even though he loved her curly locks, he couldn't deny that she looked so gorgeous with her new hairstyle. "Peyt, I tried talking to you about it yesterday but you practically threw me out the door and avoided all of my calls."

"Yeah, I know. And I'm sorry, I am. I just needed time to process what happened."

"And…?" Lucas prodded.

She stood up abruptly and backed up. "And you know what? I still need more time to think. Lucas, I'm so sorry. We will talk, just not… now." With that, Peyton Sawyer had once again run away from him when things were too intense.

"Peyton!" Lucas called out and ran toward his door. By the time he got there, she was already in her car and driving down the street.

"Okay, I so didn't mean to eavesdrop, but whatever, I did. What the hell happened between you two?" Haley spoke up from his doorway.

Lucas rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. "Got time for a long story?"

After Peyton stepped out of her bathroom, she and Lucas gravitated to her bed without saying a word. The energy in her room was crackling with intensity.

Lucas was the first to lie down and Peyton lay down next to him. They both turned on their sides to face each other. He brought one hand up to stroke her face, and she licked her lips in anticipation, looking down at his.

They both moved in at the same time, wanting so desperately to taste each other. Their lips crashed together, moving roughly. His tongue swept over her bottom lip, asking for more. Her mouth opened, and they explored each other, groaning at the sweet taste they'd almost forgotten. Lucas couldn't believe he'd gone this long without kissing her. He hadn't forgotten how she tasted, but it was somehow ten times better now.

Peyton brought her hands to his shirt and lifted it over his head. After it was off, Peyton couldn't help but admire his toned body and sculpted abs. Lucas forced her to lay back down, and lifted her shirt, dropping kisses around her stomach, making her insides flutter. He trailed his way back up and reached her neck. Peyton let out a loud moan and turned her head to the side to grant him better access. She opened her eyes for a split second, but when she did, she saw the picture of herself and Brooke that she had sitting on her nightstand.

"Brooke." Peyton whispered.

Lucas pulled back confused. Peyton pointed to the picture she was gazing at. "I can't do this to her Lucas. I'm her best friend and this – us – is so off limits."

Lucas rolled off of her and sat on the edge of her bed. "Peyt, I broke it off with her."

"Yeah, and this is what, the 4th time? Lucas, she's still in love with you, and you just broke it off today. We shouldn't be doing this."

Lucas pulled his shirt back on and stood up. "We will be talking about this," he promised. "I'll sleep in your dad's room across the hall for tonight; I still don't want you to be alone."

Peyton nodded and turned her back to him. Even as he walked out her door and across the hall, he could hear her quiet sobs penetrating her room.

Haley picked up the nearest pillow and hit him over the head. "Are you kidding me Lucas Eugene?"

"Oh God, do you have to middle name me?"

"Yes, in fact, I do. Are you kidding me?! You just broke up with Brooke, a.k.a Peyton's BEST friend. What the hell were you thinking?" Haley huffed out, a wild look in her eyes.

Lucas rolled his eyes and stood up to his full height. "Okay, I was thinking that I've had feelings for Peyton Sawyer since the first moment I laid eyes on her, and that I've been in love with her since the first moment we spoke. And I was there in her room, and she was saying things I've wanted to hear since she pushed me away that night… I just wanted to be with her."

Haley's face softened and she put a hand on Lucas's shoulder. "I know that, Luke, I know how much you care about her and how long you've wanted to be with her. But… Brooke is going to kill you guys when she finds out. And you two just broke up that day. Couldn't you wait to make your move?"

"Honestly? No. I've waited long enough."

Haley knew that this was going to blow up in their faces, but she couldn't help but admire her best friend in that second. He was going after what he wanted, and not holding back. She wished she could do that.

"But, she's feeling guilty about Brooke, and she's still getting over Jake, so… I don't know what's happening or how she's feeling. It doesn't help that she won't talk to me about it," Lucas groaned.

"Yeah, well that's Peyton. You know her as well as I do. It's how she deals with things. Give her time; she's probably got a million things running through her mind. She'll open up when she's ready."

"I know you're right." Lucas stood up and forced a smile on his face. "Okay, what do you say we head over to the café and grab some food, roomie?"

"Sounds great." With that, Haley led the way.

-----

Peyton was sitting on her bed, knees pulled up, and sketchpad resting there. Whenever she was feeling particularly sad or angry, new inspiration for drawing came. She was currently working on a picture of her and Lucas staring at each other with the words: It's Always Gonna Be There printed in bold at the top. Her furious scribbling on the page was interrupted by the vibrating of her phone. Brooke flashed across the screen, and she considered ignoring the call, but her guilt got the best of her.

"Hello?"

"Hey buddy! It's the one and only B. Davis coming to you from sunny CA."

Peyton had to smile at that. "Like I don't know your voice. How is it out there?"

"Amazing! I mean, I hardly ever see my parents, as if that's a shock. There's plenty of shopping and beaches and boys."

Her ears perked. "Boys, eh? So, you're not… pining after Lucas?" She tried to make her voice sound as normal as possible.

"Well, I do really miss him. And I'm trying hard not to pick up the phone and call him, but I feel myself giving in. All these boys are just a distraction so far," Brooke sighed miserably. "How's he doing?"

A blush crept up her neck and she felt her words get twisted before they even came out. "I haven't really seen him that much. Dan, he… got caught in a fire at the dealership. So, I think he's dealing with that. And I've been dealing with my own stuff."

"Oh my God, is Dan ok?"

"No one knows. He hasn't woken up yet."

"Wow, maybe I should call Lucas then…"

"Yeah, maybe."

"You sound distant P, you thinking about Jake?"

Peyton felt her eyes rolling unconsciously. "Yep, I'm thinking about Jake."

"I'm sorry girlie. I hate what happened with you guys. I know I'm not there this summer to help you feel better and get you out. But you do – you need to get out and meet new boys and have a good time. Heck, Lucas is the only other one stuck there this summer. You two should hang out – make sure he doesn't hook up with any skanks, and he can make sure you don't get too out of control," Brooke half-joked.

Peyton laughed nervously. "Right Brooke. Sounds like a great plan." She heard yelling at the other end of the line.

"Okay, tonight is a rare night that Mother and Father want me to join them for dinner, so I need to get going," She spit out with contempt.

"Have fun with that!"

"Oh you know it. Well, I'll call you in a couple of days and let you know what happens when I call Lucas. Love you P. Sawyer!"

"Love you..." The dial tone sounded, "too."

Oh crap. Peyton thought. If she didn't feel guilty before, she sure did now.

It's not fair, I found love.
It made me say that.
Get Back you'll never see daylight, If I'm not strong, it just might.

Let me know what you think! Thanks for the positive feedback with the first chapter! I hope this was as good!