THE RED DOOR
By Linkie
Disclaimer: Still don't and probably will never own anything of the great TV show One Tree Hill… I'd like to own Brucas though, so I could have my way with them…
The Title and the song used is Waited by Our Lady Peace, I have all their CDs and they're for me, one of the best Canadian bands, even if their last one is unlike the others.
A/N: Sorry for the delay... Kinda had problem with Internet being down... Thanks everybody for your reviews, they're greatly appreciated! So this chapter is filled with Brucas but I'm not forgetting the other characters…
Okay story background: Set during season 2: Brooke's father lost their money and has to sell the house of Tree Hill. Brooke doesn't want to join them to California so she goes to live at Peyton's. Lucas Roe and Nathan Scott are still brothers but they don't know each other. Nathan knows that his father had another child before him but doesn't even know that it was with Karen. Karen came back numerous times to Tree Hill alone so Dan concluded she had lost their child. Lucas, a very pregnant Karen and Andy leave LA to go to live in Tree Hill. Karen told Andy about the fact she wanted him to know who his father was. Brooke is friends with Peyton, Nathan, Haley, Mouth, and recently with Rachel.
Chapter 4: Waited
Hit the ground
Weighed down again
You walked out
But I'm sure you're my friend
It must have been good
This can't be for good
Everyone's oh
Is everyone ok
Lucas Roe didn't like the hospitals at all… It wasn't the aseptic smell, or the atmosphere that was reigning in there that was the most bothering. It was just that it wasn't usually a bringer of good news. The last time he had been in a hospital, he had learned he wouldn't be able to play basketball anymore because of his HCM. Basketball had been a big part of his life, he was good at it and he knew it made his mother even prouder that she already was. He entered the small waiting room and scanned it, then spotted Brooke Davis, sitting on a chair, flipping the pages of a magazine. He took a breath and stepped more into the room.
"Hey Brooke." He said simply, keeping his hand in his pockets. She looked up at the sound of his voice and tiny smiled, getting up. He walked to her and stopped a few meters away from her. They looked into each other eyes, without saying anything, and then finally, Lucas let out another small breath. Both were tense, and the other's presence wasn't smoothing things over.
"Hey…" She only said in a husky voice and he wrapped his arms around her, finally letting go. He didn't want to break down in front of her, and he could tell she thought it was unexpected too. He didn't even know what had happened to his mother, except from what Brooke had told him on the phone.
"Thanks for calling me." He said as they pulled away. Brooke smiled dazedly, due to the after effects of the hug. Being in his arms felt good, almost too good for someone she had just met a few days ago.
"It's okay." Of course it was. It was logical she had to call him. Karen was his mother after all. They both sat down on the chairs facing the door and Brooke put her magazine back on the small table. Lucas followed her hands and saw it was Cosmopolitan. He couldn't help but smile to himself and looked back at the brunette.
"So, do you know what's wrong with her?" He questioned and she shook her head. How would she know? She had been put in that room right after she had been there and when she had asked some nurse; this one had told her she didn't know anything about the 'case', rather rudely.
"No, they wouldn't tell me since I'm not related to her. I don't even know what they're doing with her right now. They just put me here and told me to wait and contact family." She explained worriedly, and Lucas rubbed her arm softly, to calm her. She knew she wasn't suppose to flip, especially since Lucas was the one who needed comfort, but she just couldn't help herself… Seeing Karen, so vulnerable and not being able to do something had been hard… Why couldn't she save anyone?
"I called Andy before going. He should be on his way." Lucas broke her thoughts and she nodded mid-absently.
"Okay." She said, looking down at her knees. She crossed her legs together and began taping her foot against the floor, nervously.
"You can…leave if you want?" He asked, thinking she already had done a lot for someone she didn't know a thing about. She shook her head softly. She wouldn't be able to sleep if she left anyway…
"No, I'd rather stay here and keep you company if you don't mind?" She bit her bottom lip, afraid he might think she was asking something inappropriate, but he just smiled at her, accepting her request.
"I don't mind at all. Thanks, really." He said again, and she sent him a small smile that warmed his heart up a little. At least, he wouldn't be alone.
"It's natural. So…uh, maybe I should call Peyton and tell her where I am?" She replied and he acquiesced softly. She got up and took her cell out of her purse and put it on her chair. "I'm leaving you my purse, be careful, there are all my things in it."
"Of course."
"Thanks. I'll be quick. Uh, do you need something to eat or to drink? I could take something on the way back." She said and sounded like she was going somewhere far away when really, the corridor where they could make calls was just beside.
"No, I'm fine, just a little tired." He admitted and she nodded softly, looking at him with concern. So, he did look tired. Probably the stress or something…The poor boy might be shaken up by the events. It was his mother who was there, after all.
"I know what it's like." She yawned and he chuckled a bit, watching her leave the empty room. It was actually the first time he saw an ER waiting room, all empty. In L.A., things were quite different than in Tree Hill… but as much as he hated to admit it, he didn't get repulsed at the remark.
"You sure should." He kinda whispered behind her back and met her eyes as she turned to close the door, waving at him.
"Okay…well, I'm coming back." She announced in a whisper and headed to the corridor quietly.
I waited
Oh I , Oh I waited
Oh I, Oh I,
Oh I must be too dumb to be proud
Cause I waited, waited
"Mouth? What are you doing here?" Peyton asked him as soon as Nathan had closed the door behind him. She had told him to leave when she had seen who had interrupted them. She couldn't let things get envenomed any more. And she knew Mouth would keep it a secret if she asked him, rather than if Nathan was the one to do so.
"Well, I was just passing by and I decided you could use some company since Brooke's car wasn't parked in front of the house. I guess that was a bad idea, right?" He replied with a great anger present in his voice. She understood his reaction, but needed to clear things up. Besides, it wasn't his business what she was doing in her life. Of course, they belonged to the same group of friends but that was all.
"Mouth, this isn't what you think it is." She started but perfectly knew she hadn't begun well by lying to him. Besides, she was sure he wouldn't even believe her version.
"Cut the crap Peyton, I overheard you two talking and though I'm sure you kinda aren't totally responsible, I can tell Nathan Scott is a jerk for doing this to a great girl like Haley."
"Mouth! You have no right to say that! You don't know how he's feeling right now!" Peyton exclaimed and Mouth snorted, now mad at her. How could she think that Nathan wasn't guilty?
"And like you do! Are you even thinking of Haley right now? She's gonna be crushed when she'll learn about it!"
"You wouldn't tell her, would you?"
"I don't know Peyton. But why should I not? She keeps wishing he's gonna come back to her, you know? It isn't fair to let her believe things are gonna be better for her." Peyton opened her mouth to retort about how it wasn't his business but was cut off by her cell ringing. She took it and looked at the caller Id, it was Brooke.
"Hey P. Sawyer, it's me." Brooke's voice said in the phone and Peyton couldn't help but smile as she heard her bestfriend's voice.
"Where are you B.?"
"I'm at the hospital, with Lucas." Brooke admitted slowly and Peyton's concern grew bigger. Why was she doing with the guy? And why were they at the hospital? She hoped there wasn't something wrong with one of their friends or something…
"Why what happened? Are you alright? Is he okay?" She asked anxiously and heard Brooke's sighing in the phone.
"He's fine. It's his mother, she's pregnant and she kinda had some nervous break or something."
"That's very nice of you, to keep him company. Getting closer, are we?" She teased her and Brooke let out a small giggle. Haley had apparently told her about her secret crush…
"Right. Look, I'll call you later, okay?" Brooke quietly replied and Peyton chuckled a little at her tone.
"Sure, so you could fill me in with the dirty details."
"Pey!" Brooke interjected, mocking indignation and they both exploded with laugher.
"What? C'mon, don't tell me he didn't even talk to you?"
"Of course, we talked…look, I better go see how he's doing now."
"Okay, don't do too many touchy things, you are still in a hospital."
"Really funny P."
"Bye."
"Bye." Peyton hung up as soon as there wasn't tonality anymore and put her cell on the kitchen table, before taking it back as she heard a melody, which told her she had a message.
"So I guess it was the infamous Brooke Davis? Where is she?" Mouth asked sitting on the counter while she was checking her other messages.
"With her new toy boy." She said a little upset. Not at the fact Brooke had found a new love interest, but because Mouth always needed to know everything.
"Who?" Mouth asked again, not aware that Brooke had a new guy in her life. How come he didn't know about it?
"Lucas, the guy we met at lunch today."
"Already with him? She doesn't waste her time." He muttered the second sentence, and Peyton choose to act like she hadn't heard his comment.
"Listen Mouth, we can't tell Haley. She's one of my bestfriends and Nathan loves her. He's just confused… Besides, nothing happened."
"I won't tell her." He said quickly and Peyton couldn't help but hug him tightly, breathing out in relief.
"Thanks. You're really a great friend." She whispered as they pulled back a little. Mouth rested his hands on her hips and met her eyes again. She was so beautiful, but didn't even realize it. Nathan didn't deserve her…heck, Nathan didn't deserve Haley either!
"But you have to promise me something."
"What?" She asked with a small apprehension and Mouth titled his head to the side.
"Avoid talking and hanging out with Nathan."
Woke to sounds
Prayed you were there
Fell back down
But I'm sure you still care
It must have been good
This can't be for good
Everything's oh
Is everything ok
"So any news? Hi." Brooke said shyly, noticing Lucas had been joined by the one who might be his step-father.
"Nope. Brooke, this is Andy. Brooke is in school with me." Lucas introduced them to each other and Brooke smiled a little, nodding her head.
"Hi Brooke. Nice to meet you." Andy said kindly with a smile. Brooke smiled back a little, revealing her dimples to Lucas, who thought she looked totally cute and innocent.
"Nice to meet you too…so sorry it has to be in these circumstances." She said with sympathy and quietly sat down next to Lucas. The three began talking about nothing special and soon Brooke fell asleep on her chair, her head leaned against Lucas' shoulder, and this one didn't seem to mind at all. A middle aged nurse followed by a much older doctor entered the room, and they both stood up, looking at the sheet the nurse had between her hands.
"Is there someone related to Karen Har-grove here?" Andy immediately got on his feet, soon followed by Lucas who woke Brooke up before, so he wouldn't hurt her by pulling away abruptly.
"She's my wife and his mother." Andy declared and the doctor smiled a little at them, in an attempt to reassure them Karen was fine.
"Okay, well,I'm going to reassure you at once,she's fine."
"What happened?"
"Well, don't worry, nothing too big, though thank god she wasn't alone. Apparently, she just had a nervous breakdown. Do you know what might have caused all of this?"
"Maybe the fact we just moved in…and today she was the opening her Café, so maybe she was a little more stressed out?" Andy asked and the doctor nodded, thinking it was good enough reasons to be stressed out.
"Well, she had to rest a maximum, so no standing up all day, or doing too many things. You should think of finding someone to take care of the Café while she's ending her pregnancy."
"Okay…can she go back home tonight?" Lucas asked at his turn and the doctor shook his head 'no'. Lucas sighed a little, running a hand through his hair in frustration. He didn't like the idea of his mother being alone here, all night, while they were at home.
"No, we'd prefer if she stayed tonight, just on observation. But you can always sign an offset sheet if you really want her home. Of course, that'd be against my advice." Andy nodded understanding. It was fine, he would stay at the hospital by his wife's side tonight, in that case.
"We can go see her now?" Lucas asked again and the doctor exchanged a glance with the nurse, who nodded.
"Yes, but don't say too long. I'd say five minutes each maximum."
"Okay. Lucas, do you want to go first?" Andy asked his step-son who shrugged, not really caring about it…on second thoughts, he'd prefer going after him.
"No, you can if you want."
"Thanks."
I waited
Oh I , Oh I waited
Oh I, Oh I,
Oh I must be too dumb to be proud
Cause I waited, waited
Oh I , waited, waited here
Oh I
"Hey honey…" Andy whispered, entering the room with a bunch of flowers in his hands. He put them on the table in the corner of the room and smiled reassuringly at his wife. She seemed rather fine, which was a good thing. "How are you going?"
"Fine, a little overwhelmed." She admitted and Andy sat at the edge of the bed, and took his wife's hand in his, intertwining their fingers.
"What happened? Why did you stress out? Did something happen at the Café? Is there a customer who did something to you?" He asked quickly but she just shook her head, not knowing where to begin.
"No…it's just…" She trailed off and looked up into his eyes, feeling anxious.
"Tell me baby. We promised to be honest with each other."
"I saw them." She stated, hoping he would understand what she meant.
"Who?"
"Dan and Deb. They came to the Café to see me together." She muttered and Andy's eyes grew big. How come all of this was happening so fast? Could Dan be aware of something concerning Lucas?
"Well, it was kinda expected, wasn't it?" He asked gently and Karen closed her eyes, as she felt a new wave of tears threatening her already puffy eyes.
"I just didn't think I would see him that soon! I'm not ready for this" She broke down and he closed the small gap between them and embraced her tightly, rubbing her back with his hands. He pulled back a little, so he could see her face.
"Look Karen, if it's really that painful, we can go back to California or anywhere else you want? I'm sure Lucas would be more than happy to leave Tree Hill." He proposed gently but she shook her head bitterly. She would have liked to be able to accept his sweet suggestion but she couldn't do that to Lucas. He had to know who his dad was, even if he never asked about him anymore.
"No, I made a promise to myself, Andy. He needs to know."
Oh I must have been bored and
And I'm down and I
Must have been bored...
Waited
Oh I , Oh I waited
Oh I, Oh I,
Oh I must be too dumb to be proud
Cause I waited, waited here
"So, she's okay?" Brooke asked him again and he nodded, chuckling a little. She had asked him the question 5 times at least and she still had doubts. She was a funny one, this girl…
"She's fine Brooke. You don't know what could have been wrong with her? What were you doing when it happened?" Lucas asked her and she shrugged, trying to replay the events in her head, though nothing she remembered could have been a shock.
"Nothing really. We were talking about cheerleading in the kitchen…and she collapsed just after getting up." She explained quickly and he nodded. He didn't even know his mother knew something about cheerleading. Why was she keeping so many secret things from him?
"I guess it was scary." He said and she acquiesced with a small smile. At least, she was okay now…
"Yeah…I'm glad she's alright. You don't know how scared I was when I had to call 911 after she collapsed. She couldn't even talk anymore." She replied and he smiled a little at her, following her eyes as she glanced at the door. She had to leave now that she knew about her new boss' condition…
"Yeah, me too. Do you need a ride back? I mean, since you left your car parked in front of the Café, I guess you don't have any way to go to Peyton's?" He asked her nicely and she nodded a little, happy he had proposed. She wouldn't have liked to have been forced to take a cab or something. And she wanted to spend some more time with him too, okay, she had to admit it.
"Uh yeah. Thanks. I'll take my car back with Pey tomorrow after school that way." She smiled genuinely and he smiled back, again. He didn't know why, but the girl was always bringing a smile to his lips. She was stunning.
"Okay, I'll be right back. I just need to tell my mom and Andy that I'm leaving with you." He announced and she acquiesced again, a little smile on her face. At first, she had thought the boy was a cold-hearted bastard but now…she could tell he was a very sweet boy. The tough guy image was just to preserve himself from being hurt, she supposed.
They both took the elevator soon after Lucas had visited his mother and walked outside quietly, their shoulders rubbing against each other every once in a while. They were walking closely, but still kept a security distance, like they were afraid of the other. The ride to Peyton's home was particularly quiet, each one was lost in his own thoughts, and plus, there was the radio switched on, so it didn't help conversation either. Finally, Brooke told him they were arrived to destination, so he pulled off. She unbuckled her belt and turned to him, with a small smile playing on her lips.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome." He only said, meeting her eyes, though he couldn't have seen the glint in them, since it was dark outside.
"So, I guess I'll see you at school tomorrow?"
"Sure. Night Brooke." Brooke turned before opening the door, and leaned over slowly, afraid she might go too far.
"Night." She whispered in a sweet voice she didn't even recognize coming from her. A platonic kiss on the cheek was all Lucas got. But considering it was his third encounter with her, it was already something that might count for later…
Oh I waited, waited here
Oh I waited, waited here
Oh I waited, waited here
Oh I
In Next Chapter:
"Where were you?" Haley turned into the bed and placed a hand on his strong chest, breathing softly. She had told him she didn't want to rush the things with him, but couldn't let him stay outside.
"I was just…hanging out with Mouth…and Peyton." He lied, closing his eyes so he wouldn't see her scrutinizing him. Thank God Mouth had come after all.
"Brooke Penelope Davis, I know you, so stop lying."
"Peyton Elisabeth Sawyer, I never lied to you. We just …talked."
"That's all? You guys spent hours together and all you did was talking? Right."
Please R&R! The more reviews I get, the sooner the next chapter will be updated!