"That's not what…." She started to protest.

"I know, I know. Just hear me out," Dan waited for her approval then he started again. "She was working with younger kids, and one day after camp, we got together at a local bar." His voice started to fade and he wouldn't look her in the eye. "She was beautiful, she had your soft features, and her face, god, and you even have her eyes. We were ordering beers as she talked about her family back home, and then before I knew it… we were, drunk. We went back to her hotel room, and… well, you can guess what happened." Dan took a break and saw that she was listening, she wasn't crying but the tears were forming, just like they had been for the past hour.

"That morning I woke up and I remembered Nathan and Deb. I left without saying goodbye, or a note, I just disappeared." He shook his head in shame, he wasn't that same guy, or least not right now. "Weeks passed. It was about 2 months when I saw her again. She was in Karen's Café talking with Haley and Lucas like she'd known them forever. They were only eight, so when she walked out of Karen's and got in her car, I wanted to know what she was doing there, so I followed her."

"When she pulled into the car dealership I knew she was there to see me. When she walked into my office, she was smiling, but as soon as she sat down she looked me in the eye and said something I never thought I'd hear again." Dan looked at her and Ashlyn had tears rolling down her cheeks. This was going to be the hard part. "She told me she was pregnant with my child, when I started to protest, she stood and headed for the door, I told her I wouldn't give her anything, and she should terminate the baby." Ashlyn gasped as he said that.

"But she turned around and said 'I didn't come here to ask you for anything, I just thought you'd like to know that I am giving it up for adoption.' That was the last I ever saw of her for three more months."

Dan looked at Ashlyn for help but she turned her head in embarrassment.

"When she was five months I went to go and see her. I went to change her mind about giving you up, she said she was sorry but she wouldn't be around enough to take care of you, and she didn't trust me. She had already picked out your new mother, and that's who you grew up with, your adoptive mother, Meredith James."

Ashlyn was in shock, "How. Do . you, fit into this?" She asked very slowly.

"I tracked down Meredith and we made a deal, she was financially set, for good. The deal was that someday we'd tell you about me and about your birth mom, and maybe we could meet and become friends. When you were five months old, I got a call at work from Meredith, she was pissed, she started yelling at me about Nathan and Lucas…."

Flashback:

Dan was going over the new car models that had just came in the dealership. He was even thinking about giving the newest car to Nathan as a birthday gift. He was deep in thought when his secretary paged him through the phone.

"Dan- there's a Meredith James on line 1. She says it's urgent." Anna's voice ripped him away from the his old thoughts and he immediately pick up the phone.

"I thought I told you never to call me here." He hissed through the receiver.

"You're Dan Scott," She said upset. "You're THE Dan Scott! I can't believe I made a deal with you!"

"Whoa, what the hell are you talking about?" He said getting angry.

"You are the man that left Karen! I can't believe this, you had another repeat with Ashlyn's mom! You are a no good evil man !" She yelled.

Dan gripped the phone tighter and through clenched teeth he said, "You don't know anything about Karen or Lucas. That was my choice and someday…"

"The deal is off!" Meredith declared. "I met Karen along time ago at a training for local business. We caught up over coffee… and I asked about you." She took an inward sigh, "I can't believe you didn't tell you wife! You are such a snake…"

"You can't call this deal off…" Dan declared.

"You're right, I can't." Dan could hear a baby's whine in the back. "But I have to. Sorry, Dan, you have messed up to many times. I can't let you ruin my daughter's life."

"I won't!"

"You will, you don't mean to Dan, but you screw everyone over… and I won't let you do that to her, I just won't."

"No! We can figure this out. I just want the best for her!" He was starting to slip.

"If you really want her to have the best," Meredith said. "You'll go home and tell Nathan and Deb about her. You'll tell Karen you're sorry and let Lucas live a good life. Maybe when you change your ways, just maybe, you can be a part of her life. Until then, goodbye."

"Don't do this…"Dan begged. "I don't think she is a mistake, not anymore."

"But you did." Meredith reminded him bitterly. "It killed her, you know?"

"Who?" Dan asked.

"Rose. Her birth mother, yeah, it killed her giving her up." Meredith told him, making him feel like a little tiny stone in the ocean. "Rose looked me in the eye and told me to love her like no one has ever loved her, and she told me that you were a monster. When I met you, I thought she was lying, then I talked to Karen…"

"I've changed!"

"But you're past hasn't." That was the last words Dan Scott ever heard from Meredith James in her short life.

That night he went home and it didn't even faze him that he had just lost another child. He would always be the same Dan, cold and heartless.

End of Flashback

Ashlyn ran her fingers across the wheels on her wheelchair. She followed the outline back and forth she just couldn't take it all in. Her vision was blurry from all the crying that she had been doing, when Dan was done with his story, she looked over at him, her voice was hoarse.

"I need Lucas."

Dan looked at her shocked and a little hurt. "Huh? Er… I tell you the truth and all you can say is, you need Lucas?" His anger was back.

She only could let her tears drain from her eyes. "You just told me that my whole life was a lie!" She started shouting. "I want the only person I can trust, right now!"

"You don't believe me?!"

"I never…"

"Here!" He slammed down another piece of paper in front of her face, it was the adoption papers.

She shook her head as she read the name of her birth mother. Her whole life was a lie, and now it all made sense. Her birth mother was out there walking around living some life, while she sat there in shook. It felt like the walls were closing in and she couldn't do anything about it, she was like a fish in a fish bowl. She felt helpless, like there was nothing she could do.

"So," Ashlyn mumbled. "I really was adopted."

Lucas nodded. He had came in five minutes ago after Ashlyn screamed and kicked Dan out. She was out of her wheel chair curled against Lucas on the couch and Dan was standing in the corner watching them.

Lucas stroked her hair and she sat against his chest still in shock. He kissed her forehead, "Don't think about that, not now."

"You would have like her."

Lucas' eyes shot over to Dan, "Shut up. If you came to screw up our lives anymore, you did, so just go now."

"Luc, there's more."

"More what, sweetie?"

"People with guns…"

"Is that true?" Lucas said shifting ready to get up. "I heard you, but please tell me its not true."

Dan shut the door with a loud slam, "Just had to ruin the fun, didn't you?" Dan walked close to the couch where Lucas was shielding Ashlyn. "I was trying to be nice."

"You only wanted revenge," Lucas hissed. "I don't know who you are anymore."

Dan smiled, "Ya, me neither."

Jack perched himself up so he was sitting straight up facing Nathan. "You believe in heaven Nate?"

Nathan looked up from picking his nails and shrugged, "Yeah, I guess. Why?"

"I'm just thinking," Jack said. "Have you ever wondered what it would be like to go to heaven?" Nathan just glared at him, "Okay, well what else do you want me to do? We're locked in a stairwell. I am gonna die, so I just want to know what you think about heaven!"

Nathan stood up, "First, you're not gonna die. I won't let you die, not here at least, okay?"

"You really don't get it do you? I was dying even before I met you," Jack said smiling. "But thanks for the reassurance."

Nathan looked down, "Its gonna be beautiful, with a pond, lots of flowers, and the air will be clean. It won't be anything like this," Nathan wiped away the dust on the floor. "Ashlyn would always be afraid that she was gonna die. She used to paint this picture, roses, waterfalls, angels, God, and she'd place herself on the edge, she'd just sit and watch. She knows everything about her heaven."

"Her Heaven?"

"That's why we are getting out of here, because she already has a place to go and its back home, not to heaven."

Colors pass in front of their faces like the wind on a high strung day. Their hands are glued together, best friends, soothing words have been exchanged excessively through their long journey.

"We're stopping," Brooke pointed out as the group came to a halt. "Why are we stopping?" She stood on her toes and tried to look over the crowd but saw nothing.

"See anything?" Haley asked intrigued.

Brooke shook her head, "Nothing." She took Sawyer of her shoulder, she kissed his forehead, "I'm going up there. Watch him, okay? I'll be right back."

Haley took the infant and cradled him against her shoulder, "Brooke maybe… just wait." She looked at her best friend, "Please?"

"Hales, I'll be back in like five minutes. I'll get them moving again and then I'll come back." Brooke smiled sweetly showing off her big dimples, "You worry to much."

Haley rolled her eyes, "Yeah, I mean everyday a hospital gets held up with a gunman."

"So, can I go?" Brooke asked in an annoyed tone.

Haley groaned, "Yeah, just go." Haley looked at her sweaty palm that was now empty for Brooke was disappearing into the crowd. "Be careful," she mumbled to herself knowing Brooke was to far gone to even hear her.

"We're on the main floor aren't we?" Jack asked from his sitting position.

"Yeah," Nathan mumbled. "I just can't get this stupid door open. God, why would you lock the stairwell?" He once again hit his fist on the door and cursed loudly. "Damn!"

"Nathan, you're safe, that's probably what your sister wants."

Nathan shook his head, "I know, but it's supposed to be me keeping her safe. It isn't supposed to be me hoping she's okay, I am just supposed to know, it's my job, and more importantly is my duty. I should be with her right now! Not here… I was never supposed to even be here, at this hospital, in this stairwell, in this town, none of this would have ever happened if I just would have kept my promise."

"Nathan… you're too hard on yourself."

"That's how it should be!"

Lucas was face to face with Dan. So close their noses were almost touching, so close they were breathing each other's air.

"You're a devil."

"Lucas, there is no need to be bitter."

Lucas chuckled, "How dare you! How dare you come in here and tell her the truth, not after all this, how dare you do this! What the hell is wrong with you, huh? You can't go around screwing with people! This is going to end, its going to end today! You have to stop this bullshit!"

Dan shoved Lucas back a bit. "Oh yeah? Just what are you gonna do about it? Huh?"

"I won't fight fire with fire."

"Lucas…"

"I won't be a coward for the rest of my life, I am gonna take you down today!"

"Lucas…"

"I won't let you push around my family again."

"Lucas!" Lucas quickly turned around to see a very pale Ashlyn sitting on the couch clutching her chest and crying in pain. "Lucas, it hurts." A new set of tears were rolling down her cheeks, "Luc? God, Luc, everything seems so faarrrr……"

Lucas grabbed her wrist checking for her pulse and found out very quickly that it wasn't even as half as strong as it should be. He grabbed her limp neck and held it up as he constantly tried to talk to her, "Baby, can you hear me?"

Her eyes nearly fluttered, "Luc?"

"That's right sweetie, its me Luc. I need you to hold on tight okay? Just keep breathing." Lucas looked to Dan, who was standing there in awe, "We have to get her outside, to a doctor!" Dan was about to hesitate. "Please," He begged. "I don't care if you hate me or Nathan. I don't care if you are disappointed in me, or my life, I don't care! I don't care that my mom chose Keith over you, I just don't care, but the one thing I do care about…her, Ashlyn and you at least owe me this, You've taken everything else. I know what people say but Dan, I know you have a heart somewhere, so search deep and find it because I know that the man that wanted her to be apart of his life… he wouldn't let her die, not when she's come this far, with or without him."

The embarrassment on Dan's face was mixed with guilt and slowly like a snake in water he stepped aside and opened the door. Lucas picked up her body, held her tight against her chest and turned for the door. Dan stepped in front of him with a shameless look on his face, "Let me go first."

It had been a long time since Haley had seen Brooke. She heard shouts coming from the front of the crowd and she slowly made her way up to the front. "Excuse me. Please move." She squeezed her tiny body through the complicated maze of a million people. She came to a sudden halt when a man stopped her.

"Listen lady, don't go up there," He warned her in a soft tone.

"I have to," Haley said. "My best friend is somewhere up there…" She was cut of by the sudden crying of Sawyer. "Shhhh…" She cooed softly. God, out of all times this kid starts to cry. Ugh not once in his life does he make a noise and now he starts. Haley bounced him up and down and tried to get him to stop, but he kept going like he knew, it was almost as if he knew that something terribly wrong was about to happen. And then it did.

The sound so loud that it came piercing through the air louder than all of the screams and shouts. The sound that rang, the sound that stopped the baby's cries, and it was the sound of the gun taking someone's life.

"Brooke!" Haley screamed at the tops of her lungs. She ran to the sound panicking and praying that it wasn't her. "Brooke!"

There is a pool of her own blood laid the lifeless body of Brooke Scott. Her eyes were rolled back and she laid motionless as Haley dropped to the floor and cried for her best friend.

"Brooke, c'mon Brooke, don't do this… Brooke!" She screamed as her own white shirt filled with blood, Brooke's blood. "Brooooke," She sobbed against her shoulder. She cradled Brooke head in her lap and sobbed. "Brooke… just open your eyes, please, don't go. I need you."

Woke up and wished that I was dead

With an aching in my head

I lay motionless in bed

I thought of you and where you'd gone

and let the world spin madly on

Everything that I said I'd do

Like make the world brand new

And take the time for you

I just got lost and slept right through the dawn

And the world spins madly on

I let the day go by

I always say goodbye

I watch the stars from my window sill

The whole world is moving and I'm standing still

Woke up and wished that I was dead

With an aching in my head

I lay motionless in bed

The night is here and the day is gone

And the world spins madly on

I thought of you and where you'd gone

And the world spins madly on.