Hi everyone, and thanks again for the reviews! Yep, Lucas is an ass! Anyway, I'm going to try and show a bit more of Peyton's feelings in the next couple of chapters…not that I care how she feels, but I figured it might make the story a bit less biased! For this chapter I want to give special thanks to B.Daviswho suggested a Lucas/Rachel scene way back in her review for Chapter Three…thanks for the idea and I hope you like it! And to the rest of you…enjoy!
Chapter Seven
"Knock knock." Hearing Nathan's voice at the door, Brooke shot upright in bed, quickly brushing the tears from her eyes. "I come bearing coffee," the younger Scott brother announced, entering the room and moving over towards the bed, kicking the door shut behind him.
Brooke smiled gratefully, taking the steaming mug from Nathan's hands and taking a sip. "Thanks," she mumbled quietly, moving over slightly to allow Nathan to climb onto the bed next to her.
"So, do you want me to kick his ass?" Nathan asked.
Brooke laughed. "Whose?" she asked.
Nathan shrugged. "I dunno," he confessed. "Lucas's, Chase's, that guy from the beach's…"
"So basically you just want to kick someone's ass?" Brooke teased and Nathan chuckled in response.
"Well yeah," he admitted, pausing for a second before continuing. "Look, Haley told me about what you said yesterday, and I just wanted to let you know I'm here for you, 'kay?"
The brunette nodded, another tear springing to her eye as Nathan's words registered. For a second, silence hung in the air between them. "I slept with him," Brooke finally blurted out.
"With Luke?" Nathan's voice was shocked, and Brooke couldn't help but giggle.
"No, with Ryan," she told him, elaborating further when she noted the confused look on her friend's face, "the guy from the beach."
"Oh," Nathan nodded, unsure of what to say next.
"I was drunk, and I just wanted to forget, y'know?" Brooke continued, and he nodded again, letting her explain. "And Rachel said the best way to get over someone was to sleep with someone else, and…" she trailed off uncertainly, staring intently at her coffee mug as though it held the answer to some unasked question.
"And did it work?" Nathan asked gently. Once again there was silence, but this time it was broken by the ragged breathing of the girl beside him as she tried desperately to contain her tears.
"I'm a whore," she whispered finally, her voice breaking on the last word, and Nathan's heart went out to her.
"Brooke, that's not true," he tried, but stopped as she raised her eyes to meet his, the tears held back for now as she stared at him calmly.
"Yes it is," she stated matter-of-factly. "I slept with someone I only met yesterday and who I'm never gonna see again. That makes me a whore Nate."
Nathan sighed. "You're not a whore Brooke," he told her again, "you were just trying to stop hurting for a bit."
Brooke smiled sadly. "Doesn't matter," she whispered, "no matter how I excuse it, that's still what I am. It's why Chase broke up with me, it's why Felix used me for 'benefits'" she made air-quotes around the last word as she spoke and Nathan couldn't help but smile, "and," she continued fiercely, "it's why Lucas chose Peyton. Guys don't want girls who give it away Nate, they want a Haley or a Peyton, not a Rachel or a Brooke."
Nathan sighed again. "My brother's an ass," he announced contemplatively.
The girl giggled slightly, looking at him in confusion. "True," she conceded, "but I don't think that's the point tutor-dad."
Nathan rolled his eyes at the nickname, before continuing with his argument. "I thought he would fight for you," he told Brooke who nodded slightly, knowing immediately what he meant, "and when he didn't I thought he must really love Peyton, but he doesn't." Brooke looked at him, the uncertainty clear in her eyes, and Nathan continued. "He doesn't, Brooke. The way he looks at her, it's like the way he looks at Haley, like he wants to protect her. But you, you he looks at like you're some kind of goddess."
Brooke shook her head, refusing to believe Nathan's words. "He loves Peyton," she stated. "And even if he didn't, it wouldn't matter Nate. Because she loves him."
Nathan nodded, understanding Brooke's logic. Sighing again, he slipped an arm round the fragile girl and drew her to him. She relaxed against him, drawing comfort from his warm body, and for a moment there was silence as the two contemplated the events of recent days. "You know," Nathan paused for a second, a wicked grin on his face, "Rachel said she brought her video camera…"
"Eww!" Brooke squealed in outrage, pushing Nathan away from her before dissolving into helpless giggles. "Nathan, that's disgusting!"
Nathan laughed, and clambered off the bed. "Made you laugh though," he shrugged, moving towards the door.
Brooke nodded, still chuckling. "Thanks Nate," she told him seriously, and he smiled in return.
"You sure you don't need me to kick anyone's ass?" the boy asked, only half-joking.
"Nah," the brunette grinned. "And if I did, I think I'd go to your wife first. From what Rachel tells me Hales has got one hell of a bitch slap!"
"Good to know," Nathan smirked, before pulling the bedroom door open and stepping out into the hall. "I'll see you later Brooke," he added, giving her one last smile and shutting the door behind him.
"Later boy toy," Brooke called from her place on the bed, collapsing back onto her pillow, a genuine smile finally on her face.
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"Ugh," Rachel muttered, storming into the living room and grabbing a mug of coffee out of Lucas's hand, draining the contents in one gulp.
"Good morning to you too Rachel," the boy commented dryly, reaching over and pouring himself another mug of the steamy liquid. "Heavy night?"
Rachel glared at Lucas in response. "Just didn't sleep well," she growled.
Lucas kinked his eyebrows. "Travis kept you up all night did he?" he queried sarcastically.
"Actually, no," the redhead responded sharply, once again removing the coffee from his grip and taking a sip, "Brooke did."
"Brooke?" the boy frowned quizzically, as Rachel rolled her eyes.
"Yes, Brooke," she told him, "you know her, brown hair, green eyes, decent figure if you like fat chicks…"
"Haha, I know who Brooke is," Lucas groaned at her sarcasm. "What I meant is, why did she keep you up all night?"
Rachel snorted. "You really are clueless aren't you?" she asked rhetorically. Seeing that the boy's expression remained blank she exhaled exasperatedly and continued. "Okay, I'll spell it out for you. You and Peyton have incredibly noisy sex that, quite frankly, would have upset anyone who had to listen to it, whilst your ex-girlfriend is in the next room…see where I'm going with this?"
"Okay, so maybe we were a bit noisy," Lucas admitted, "but I still don't get why that meant you and Brooke were both up all night? It's not as though Brooke cares that we're sleeping together, hell, she was screwing that dick from the beach last night!"
Rachel shook her head, disbelief clouding her expression. "Here," she told him, pulling her phone out of her pocket and, after pressing a few keys, tossing it to him.
Lucas squinted at the screen, uncertain of what he was supposed to be seeing. "I don't get it," he conceded at last, as Rachel groaned in exasperation again.
"It's not the best picture," she acknowledged, taking the phone back from him, "but just for the sake of argument, trust me on this one: it's a picture of you and Brooke asleep together the other night."
"Why do you have a photo of us?" Lucas asked suspiciously, still unclear as to where the girl's argument was going.
The redhead shrugged. "I was considering showing it to Peyton," she admitted honestly, letting out a small chuckle at the look of horror that crossed Lucas's face, "but relax," she told him, "I'm not going to."
"So why are you showing me then?" the boy asked, still thoroughly confused.
"Because, Lucas, I've spent a lot of nights sharing a room with Brooke in the last few months, and since the two of you broke up she barely sleeps. Every night I wake up and she's either crying or just staring into space, it's kind of freaky." Shaking her head, Rachel carried on, desperately trying to instil some understanding into the boy sat opposite her. "But that night, when I looked in and saw you with her, she was sleeping properly, hell, she was even snoring."
Lucas nodded slowly. "She does look tired," he murmured, and Rachel almost laughed at his lack of comprehension.
Instead, she just rolled her eyes yet again. "Well last night was worse than most," she told him brutally. "And so, to answer your question of why I'm stealing your coffee, it's because it's entirely your fault I'm not getting any sleep, okay?"
"Well what do you expect me to do Rachel?" Lucas questioned wearily. "Sleep with Brooke every night?" Rachel raised an eyebrow in response and he groaned. "Just stop whatever it is that you're thinking," he cautioned, "I'm with Peyton now, and I can't imagine she'd be too impressed with whatever plan you're concocting."
"Yeah, well, I don't think Brooke liked it when Peyton was plotting to steal her boyfriend either," Rachel muttered darkly, throwing her hands up in frustration. "Okay, okay," she mumbled off Lucas's look, "I'm sorry. But I just don't get it, y'know?"
Once again Lucas's expression was blank. "Get what?" he asked.
"Get you," the redhead responded irritably. Lucas looked at her quizzically, clearly not comprehending, so she continued. "When we went on our boy draft 'date', you kept telling me that Brooke was 'the one'. Hell, you even made that stupid destiny shot, and now…what happened Luke?" Rachel questioned, almost sadly. "When did that destiny change?"
There was silence for a moment as the two stared at one another, one knowing full well that the destiny in question hadn't altered, but aware that the other had yet to realise this. "I don't know," Lucas finally whispered weakly.
Rachel sighed, getting to her feet. "Yeah, well, figure it out," she told him sternly before exiting the room, taking his coffee with her. Collapsing back onto the sofa, Lucas sighed, rubbing his face in confusion, overwhelmingly lost.
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"I think it's time for a game of 'I Never'," Rachel's voice broke through the comfortable silence that enveloped the group as they once again sat in the hot tub, drinks in hand. Six pairs of eyes turned to stare at her, expressions ranging from doubt to disbelief. "What?" she protested. "It's either that or Truth or Dare…although that could be fun too," the girl paused to contemplate the idea, sending a wicked glance in Brooke's direction as she did so.
'Fine,' Brooke answered quickly, reading the look on her friend's face and realising that Truth or Dare was not a game she wanted to get involved in, "I'll play 'I Never'," she conceded unwillingly.
Rachel smiled in satisfaction. "Good answer Davis," she approved, "now, anyone else?"
"I'll play," Mouth shrugged, a wry grin on his face. "It's not a bad game to play when you've only had sex once," he pointed out, "I can just laugh at the rest of you."
The group laughed, as Nathan looked at his wife, who nodded her head in response. "Hales and I are in," he announced.
"Excellent," Rachel clapped her hands, before fixing her gaze on Peyton and Lucas. "Peyton? Lucas? Are you in?" she questioned as the two looked at one another uncertainly. "Come on," she wheedled, "I doubt Blondie-locks has got much to hide, and as for you Luke," she paused, smirking, "well, Brooke's already playing, so all your sexcapades will be revealed anyway."
"Fine, I'll play," Peyton muttered, slightly resentful of Rachel's remark.
Lucas sighed, realising he didn't have much of a choice now. "Me too, I guess," he agreed, a note of apprehension in his voice.
"Good," Rachel nodded, "but," she continued, never taking her eyes off Lucas, "try not to make anyone cry today, okay Lukey-boy?" Seeing his sarcastic nod she smiled and carried on, anxious to begin the game. "Okay, me first. I never…slept with Nathan Scott," she giggled slightly at the death stares she received from Haley and Brooke as the two and Peyton picked up their glasses and drank.
"My turn," Haley announced, putting her glass down and fixing her gaze on Rachel. "I never…got rejected by Nathan Scott."
The group burst into laughter as the redhead scowled and picked up her drink. "Nice one Hales," Peyton chuckled, reaching forward to give her friend a high-five, "and I think I'll build on that theme. I never…got rejected by Lucas Scott."
Rachel glared as her friends' laughter increased. "Aww, poor little Rachel, are you sure you want to play this game?" Brooke teased, giggling helplessly.
The redhead grinned, finishing her drink and turning to the brunette. "Oh I think I do Brookie," she told her friend, "you see, I have all the ammunition I need to get you very drunk indeed. Now, where to start?" she pretended to consider her options as Brooke twisted her hair around her fingers nervously, wondering where Rachel was going to begin. "Okay," the girl commenced finally, flicking her gaze between Brooke and Lucas, "I never…had sex in Karen's Café."
Lucas blushed as he and Brooke picked up their drinks and took a gulp, determinedly avoiding the other's eyes as they did so. "That's so gross," Nathan laughed, "I'm never eating there again," he continued as Brooke stuck out her tongue at him. "Anyway, my turn," the younger Scott brother announced, suddenly remembering a few interesting things his brother had told him and wanting to join in the fun. "I never…had sex on the Rivercourt, in broad daylight might I add."
"Oh my God, Brooke!" Haley squealed in disgust, turning to her friend, "what if someone saw you?"
Brooke shrugged, blushing slightly as she remembered the occasion, and the overwhelming lust that had prevented them from any coherent thought. "We didn't really think about that at the time," she muttered, downing the remains of her drink.
"Nice work Nathan," Rachel applauded, smiling inwardly as she noted the look of discomfort on Peyton's face. "Okay, I never…had sex in the boys locker room," she announced triumphantly, bursting into laughter at the glare she received from Brooke as once again she and Lucas were the only ones to raise their glasses.
"It was empty at the time," Lucas tried, in an attempt to defend himself, but the others only laughed harder.
"Thank God," Nathan chuckled, "can you imagine the look on Whitey's face if he'd walked in and seen that?"
"Eww!" Brooke groaned in protest, "I do not want to think about Whitey seeing me naked!"
"Okay," Haley giggled, "I'll change the subject. I never…had sex in the restrooms at Tric."
This time Peyton joined Lucas and Brooke in taking a drink. "Ooh, run out of new ideas did we Luke?" Rachel teased, somewhat surprised that the blonde girl had been so adventurous, but the boy just shrugged, looking at his girlfriend in confusion.
"It wasn't with Lucas," Peyton admitted, and an unaccountable wave of relief sent a grin back onto Brooke's face.
"Jake?" she guessed, and the blonde smiled guiltily in admission. "Nice work P. Sawyer," Brooke laughed as her friend grinned, accepting the congratulations.
"Uh, hello, boyfriend right here?" Lucas protested, only half-joking.
"Right, because you've never once had to admit to doing anything with any of your ex-girlfriends?" Peyton pointed out, a flash of annoyance in her eyes as she spoke, unable to fully hide the jealousy that had been building as more and more details of Lucas and Brooke's sexual history had been revealed. "Or are you going to tell me that you and Brooke have just had sex in a lot of the same places with different people?"
"Calm down Pey, he was only joking," Haley intervened, glaring at Lucas as she spoke.
"Yeah, I was, I'm sorry babe," Lucas agreed quickly, bending his head to give Peyton a quick peck on the lips.
"Fine," she muttered, leaning into her boyfriend as he slipped an arm around her, but not able to fully shake the disconcerting realisation that Lucas appeared to view her in a decidedly less sexual way than he had Brooke.
"My turn now," Brooke interrupted Peyton's thoughts, "and seeing as Mouth appears to be falling asleep over there," she teased, giggling at her friend who sat upright in shock, "I never…had sex with a clean teen."
The rest of the group broke out in catcalls and whistles as Mouth downed his drink. "Hold on," Nathan broke in, confused, "wasn't Chase a clean teen?"
Brooke nodded. "Yup," she answered smugly.
"So why aren't you drinking?" Lucas interjected.
The brunette smirked. "Because I didn't sleep with him," she told him, "and you don't have to look so surprised," she carried on, seeing him raise an eyebrow, "I was a clean teen too, remember?"
Rachel snorted. "Yeah, well, so was I," she pointed out, "and I'm hardly the Virgin Mary am I?"
Brooke put on a serious face and spoke piously. "No my child, you are not," she conceded, "however, your immoral ways did not rub off on me, for I remain as pure as the driven snow."
The group laughed in disbelief at Brooke's comment. "Alright, oh virtuous one," Rachel countered, "I never…had sex on the hood of a car."
The brunette rolled her eyes as she and Lucas took another drink, but nearly spat it back out again as Haley and Nathan raised their glasses as well. "Tutor-girl!" Brooke exclaimed, as Lucas groaned.
"I really did not need to know that," he complained, as his best friend glared at him in mock-anger.
"Yeah, well, I didn't need to walk in on you and Brooke having sex countless times," she countered. "And trust me, the sight of your best friend having sex is far worse than any mental pictures you might have."
"Okay, just curious, but did you two ever do anything apart from have sex?" Mouth questioned, as Brooke and Lucas blushed.
"What can I say," the girl shrugged, grinning at her friend, "I'm a very sexual person. And Broody here," she smirked, the alcohol loosening her tongue, "he just can't resist me." For a split-second the group held their breath, and then Brooke realised what she had said. "I mean, he couldn't resist me," she backtracked hastily, "obviously he can now, otherwise we'd be having sex right here…" she trailed off. "I'm gonna shut up now," she decided, as the others stared at her, Lucas looking embarrassed, Peyton uncomfortable, whilst the others tried to hold back their laughter.
"Good idea," Lucas agreed eagerly, the images Brooke conjured up with her words almost too much to bear. Hell, he thought, glancing up at his former girlfriend who was biting her lip nervously, she was right when she used the present tense. I can't resist her. Sighing, he rubbed his eyes, trying to erase the pictures in his mind.
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"That was so not my idea!" Brooke protested hotly as the game continued almost two hours later. 'He made me do it,' she gestured towards Lucas who was flushed slightly with a combination of embarrassment and the excessive amounts of alcohol that he and his former girlfriend had been forced to consume as part of the game.
"Brooke in leather…whips, handcuffs…nice work man!" Mouth chuckled, high-fiving his friend.
"Didn't know you were into the dominatrix thing," Nathan grinned, shaking his head at his brother as the blond boy's blushes deepened.
"Yeah, and I didn't want to know," Haley groaned, trying to block the disturbing images from her mind.
Rachel smirked wickedly. "Maybe you'll have to get yourself a whip Blondie," she suggested, fixing her eyes on Peyton who glared back in response.
"And maybe you'll have to shut your plastic mouth before I drown you," she spat acerbically.
"Ooh," the redhead mocked, holding her hands up in fake terror. "Calm down, "she told the other girl, a flash of evil in her eyes, "it's not my fault Lucas's fantasies are all about Brooke."
"Peyton!" Lucas shouted, grabbing his girlfriend's waist and pulling her back as she attempted to launch herself at Rachel. "It was just a joke babe," he told her more quietly. "Wasn't it Rachel?" he added, looking to her for confirmation.
"Yeah, no need to be so touchy," the girl opined, a fake smile on her face.
"Rachel," Brooke warned, glaring at her friend.
"Fine," the redhead rolled her eyes and turned back to Peyton. "I'm sorry Peyton," she said sweetly. "Now can we get back to the game?" she questioned.
"Uh-huh," Mouth broke in, "I want more details about this first. What did you guys actually do?" he questioned, grinning as Brooke blushed an even deeper scarlet.
"Mouth!" she exclaimed in horror, "you can't ask that!"
"I wasn't asking you," he told the brunette, laughing, "I was asking Luke."
"Uh…" Lucas squirmed uncomfortably in his seat, trying to hide his growing erection as he remembered that night, Brooke standing above him in a leather cat suit as he lay handcuffed to the bed. Catching her glance at him, he let out an inaudible sigh as she bit her lip, remembering how she had done the same thing repeatedly to keep herself from laughing as she acted out the role. "You guys don't really want to hear about this do you?" he asked in desperation.
"Yes!" Rachel, Mouth and Nathan chorused, as Haley groaned and put her hands over her ears, whilst Peyton scowled angrily.
Brooke giggled at the look of discomfort on her former boyfriend's face as he struggled to phrase an answer to Mouth's question. "There's not much to tell," she shrugged, accepting Lucas's grateful smile as she interjected. "Luke was naked, I had my wicked way with him. Same as every other night really, except I was wearing leather and carrying a whip."
Nathan chuckled. "So we know who was the dominant one in that relationship don't we bro?" he teased his brother.
"Hey," Lucas protested, as the others giggled, before throwing his hands up in admission. "Okay, well maybe, but you try resisting Brooke when she wants something. I was powerless."
"Hold on a second," Brooke exclaimed, "this makes me sound like some kind of sex-crazed whore!" She fixed her gaze on Lucas, eyes darkening as memories flitted across her mind, and he gulped. "I seem to remember many occasions when you were the one who couldn't keep your hands off me," she reminded him.
Lucas shrugged, laughing, his eyes never leaving Brooke's. "You can't blame me for that," he told her, the hint of flirtation in his tone obvious to Haley who glanced worriedly at Peyton, who was watching the proceedings with a venomous scowl on her face. "I mean," he continued as she bit her lip, a faint blush tingeing her cheeks, "have you seen how hot you are? I had no chance."
For a split second there was total silence. And then with a loud splashing noise, Peyton pulled herself to her feet. "I'm going to bed," she muttered, glaring angrily at her boyfriend.
"Pey…" Lucas sighed, realising he had gone too far. "I was just joking," he tried feebly.
The blonde girl laughed humourlessly. "Maybe so," she told him, "but that doesn't explain the rest of tonight's revelations does it?" Seeing the six confused faces staring up at her she continued, the alcohol preventing her from feeling any embarrassment as she explained further, eyes flashing as she stared at Lucas. "All night, all I've heard is a catalogue of all the times you screwed my best friend, but me, I have to practically beg you to come near me."
"It didn't sound like that last night," Rachel interrupted darkly, succeeding in hiding the grin that had threatened to form following Peyton's words.
Peyton snorted, glancing disparagingly at the redhead. "That's because he was drunk," she stated simply.
"Peyton…" Lucas attempted again but she dismissed him with a wave of her arm, tears filling her eyes as she continued to direct her words to Rachel.
"We've had sex three times," she announced bluntly, ignoring the five pairs of eyebrows that rose in unison as Lucas covered his face with his hands, "and two of those were after you had been drinking," the girl continued, tears finally spilling over and her voice quivering as she turned back to the older Scott brother. "And it's not as though I can blame it on a low sex drive, because clearly you didn't have that problem when you were with Brooke did you?" Lucas remained silent, knowing that he couldn't possibly answer that question correctly, but Peyton persisted. "Did you?" she asked again, her voice rising in volume.
"No," Lucas whispered, staring at his hands, not daring to look up for fear of seeing either the hurt in Peyton's eyes or the confusion in Brooke's.
Peyton nodded slowly. "Guess that means it's just me you don't want then," she murmured sadly, before turning and heading back inside.