I do not own One Tree Hill or its characters.

I also wanted to say a huge thank you for all the people who reviewed to the story so far. You all really inspire me to keep writing, and I am so glad that you all like where I am going with this. Hopefully I will not disappoint. I also want to dedicate this chapter to Sam. She has been waiting for this impatiently, I might add, and this is for her. Thanks girl, I'm not sure if there would be a story without you, you're the best. Okay, enough of my rambling, on with the story.

Chapter 7- Right Where I Need to Be

"And so I ended up starting school at SCHS and I've got a pretty good life here now," answered Brooke as she sat with Haley on the deck of her family's house. The two girls had caught up a little the previous night, and were currently perched outside, sipping drinks, and having a much needed heart-to-heart.

Do you miss Tree Hill at all Brooke, or is your new life just that fabulous?" Teased Haley, a bit of sarcasm lacing her voice.

"You know, Tutorgirl, I could ask you the same question… But seriously, yeah, I do miss Tree Hill, but I don't really know how to go back, or if I even want to. Everything in Tree Hill got so messy, it's easy to live here and only worry about what I'll wear to the next party." Brooke replied, a sad smile crossing her face.

"What if I just get hurt even more by going back?" She barely whispered as she looked up and saw the same question reflected in Haley's eyes as well. Truth was neither girl knew what the Scott brothers would do if they returned, and simply not knowing their reaction was far easier than seeing the hurt and rejection on the faces of the men they loved.

When Haley looked back at Brooke, all she could see was understanding in the other girl's eyes. Both girls had made mistakes, and neither knew exactly how to go about fixing them, but they both locked eyes and just knew what the other one felt. And it was comforting to know that someone else simply understood, without judgment or accusations.

So what about you Haley? I thought that you would have gone back by now."

"I did go back." Haley whispered. "For a night. Turns out that the night I returned, was the day before Nathan left for High Flyers. I apologized, but he said he couldn't trust me and we left things sort of unfinished. I came back on tour for the summer, and when he never responded to some letters I sent him over the summer, I just decided to stay."

"Do you still love him?"

"Of course I do Brooke, I never stopped, but it's just too hard right now. We're both different people than we were when we got married, and I don't want to know that we might not be destined to be together." Haley answered, a familiar wetness stinging the back of her eyes. But she wouldn't let the tears fall. She had made her decision, and now she had to stick to it.

"Enough about me. You told me how Lucas felt about you, but Brooke, you never told me exactly how you felt about him."

Brooke hesitated, wondering just how much she should tell Haley about her lingering feelings for Lucas. Figuring that if anyone would understand, it would be the gril sitting across from her, she decided to answer with the truth.

"I love him. But, sometimes love just isn't enough."

Haley, just nodded, she knew exactly what Brooke was talking about.

The girls had decided that they had enough serious talk for the day, and what they needed to mend their broken hearts was some retail therapy. The girls were immediately back to their old ways, and an outsider never would have been able to tell that the two friends had just recently reunited from a 4 month absence. And it felt good for both of them to just have someone that they could just have fun with.

"I love shoes! Thank God I have a huge closet," Brooke chuckled as she led Haley around the mall, practically weighing them both down with the amount of things Brooke just had to have.

"Brooke, I think you need a whole different room for all the things you have bought. I mean who really needs to buy five pairs of shoes in one day" Haley laughed, as she followed her friend into another boutique, watching as Brooke picked out yet another pair of shoes.

The ringing of Haley's cell phone momentarily distracted the girls from their shopping adventure, as Haley stopped to fish it out of her rather large purse. The moment she saw the name on the display screen, her face went pale. 'Why would they be calling her now, it had been months.'

"Haley…. Haley….are you going to answer that?" Brooke chided, but realized that there was something wrong as she looked at Haley who had turned white, and was clutching the phone so hard, that Brooke thought she would smash it.

Haley just looked at Brooke and showed her the phone screen.

Nathan

"Well, are you going to talk to him?" Brooke asked, pretty much already knowing the answer.

"I can't"

Surprisingly, Brooke didn't push, and Haley was thankful that her usually meddlesome friend had seemed to take a more mellow approach. But, as soon as the phone chirped with the new message signal, Brooke snatched it out of Haley's hand and proceeded to check Haley's new message before Haley even realized what had happened.

Just because Haley didn't want to talk to Nathan, it didn't mean Brooke didn't want to hear what he had to say. Even though she couldn't face her own life, it was easy to meddle in Haley's.

"Brooke!" Haley shouted, not at all surprised by the brunette's actions.

"Tutorgirl, if you didn't want me to listen, you should have changed your security code. I mean your wedding date, how predictable," she smiled triumphantly as she punched in the code, and began to listen to exactly what Nathan had to say.

A million thoughts raced through Haley's head as she watched Brooke listen to the message. Secretly she was glad that Brooke grabbed the phone. Haley didn't know if she could actually bring herself to listen to it. At least this way she could judge Brooke's reaction before she found out why Nathan would all of a sudden be calling her after months of silence. But judging by the look on Brooke's face, the message wasn't good. Not good at all.

By the time Brooke hung up the phone, she had a steady stream of tears running down her face, and she was shaking. Haley didn't even want to know what was in that message, because whatever it was appeared to be something big.

"It…it's…its Lucas" she sobbed, barely able to get any sound out of her mouth. "He…he collapsed at a basketball game….he…has….HCM." She choked, and Haley's arms were around her in a matter of seconds.

"He's in a coma, and they're not really sure when he's going to wake up. He had… a... a heart attack." She cried, not caring at all that they were standing in the middle of a crowded boutique.

Haley was sobbing now too, scared for the best friend she had left, wondering why he kept such a secret from everyone, and wondering what they were going to do now. She couldn't loose him, not like this, and judging from the shocked brunette's reaction, neither could Brooke.

"Damn it, Peyton" Brooke screamed as she one again unsuccessfully tried to reach her curly-headed best friend on her cell phone. Chucking the phone across the room, she put her head in her hands and once again was assaulted by tears that she had only been able to keep at bay for a few minutes. She had to find out something about Lucas. It had been two hours since the dreaded phone call, and she and Haley hadn't been able to reach anyone since. It was driving her crazy. She felt like her heart was going to thump right out of her chest, and her mind was a mass of jumble and confusion. There was only one coherent thought that made it through the jumble and that was 'Go home.'

Making her way down the stairs to find Haley, she made her decision. All the fear she had about going back was ebbed by the fact that Lucas was clinging to life, and finally everything made sense. Tree Hill was her home, and she couldn't run away forever. She was going back, because all the things that she was afraid of didn't seem as important when she was faced with the possibility of losing him. Luke's accident had been the catalyst that she needed to get over her fear of seeing him, and the only thing she feared more than seeing him, was not getting the chance to. She couldn't even start to imagine what would happen if he didn't wake up. And if he didn't, it would be more than just his heart that would be damaged. Hers would be too.

She walked into the room preparing to tell Haley what she had decided and try and persuade her to come back too, when she heard her friend on the phone. Careful not to disturb Haley, she leaned on the door and listened intently to what her friend was saying.

"Yes, I do think this is the right decision for me."

"No. I'm not going to regret this. There is a family matter that I need to take care of, and I know where I need to be…. I have the rest of my life to be successful, but right now I'm needed back at home, and that's not something I can turn my back on."

Brooke, smiled, it looked like she wasn't the only one who had finally figured out where they needed to be. It just sucked that it took something so drastic to get them both to go home.

"Thank you, and yes, this is more important than being a singer. I have to be there for those that I love."

"Brooke, how long have you been standing there?" Haley asked as she whirled around and practically trampled over her friend.

"Long enough to know that you made the right decision. It looks like I'm not the only one on the first plane back to North Carolina."

"Yeah" she sighed. "I just wish we weren't going back under these circumstances. I…I just want him to be okay." And with that, both girls broke down again, and sobbed in each other's arms. They both had so much regret, and so many things they wished they didn't have to face back in Tree Hill, but they knew they needed to go home. They had both been avoiding it long enough and both were terrified for the boy who had a very different but equally special place in their hearts.

The only thing that gave them the courage to face the past, and face the tough times ahead was the fact that they were doing it together. And that was all the push that they needed to finally return to Tree Hill.

Six hours on a plane with nothing to do, and Brooke was already starting to drive herself crazy. Haley had been asleep for the better part of the plane ride, and left her with nothing else to do than think about exactly what she was going back to. Lucas was in a coma, she wasn't sure about her relationship with Peyton, and her parents didn't know that she had hopped a plane and headed cross country. These things kept replaying over and over in her mind, bombarding her thoughts with memories and questions. She was certainly turning out to be more of a Broody than a Cheery over the last few hours.

Broody, her Lucas.

She couldn't even imagine how horrible this was for him, and she hoped above anything else that he would just be okay. It seemed that all of her thoughts once again centered on Lucas Scott, but this time she wasn't trying to forget about him. Now, in fact, the only thing she wanted to do was hold him in her arms and never let go. It was kind of ironic that all of the memories she had so desperately tried to avoid over the past few months were the only thing that was giving her comfort as she desperately tried to make it back to the boy whom she had left behind.

Second only to his health being in jeopardy, the thing that scared her most in the world was the fact that he could hate her. 'What if he hated her?' She had finally faced her fears, but what if she had missed her chance. No, she and Lucas were meant for each other, it wouldn't hurt this much if they weren't.

It had taken her months, and the only other soul she had told was Haley, but there was no more denying that she was head over heals, madly in love with Lucas. And this time, she was going to push past her fears and fight for the man she loved. Maybe this time love would be enough. Going back to Tree Hill was the first step, and it saddened her that it took something as serious as this too make her realize that she couldn't live without her heart anymore. She had to go back to Lucas plain and simple because he had her heart. He was her heart.

She could admit they had both made their fair share of mistakes, her biggest one being the fact that she ran away from him, but she was afraid to let herself fall for him again. But now she was ready to correct those mistakes, and she could admit now that she had fallen already, hard. Right now, the only thing she could focus on was making sure that he was going to be okay, and then she would be there for him whatever he needed. He had been her rock for the better part of last year, now it was her turn to be his.

They were finally here, ready to face Tree Hill, ready to face what they left behind, and ready to find out how Lucas was doing. Brooke and Haley just looked at each other, the fear and uncertainty reflected in both of their eyes. This was something they both needed to do, but it was the one thing they dreaded most. Squeezing her hand reassuringly, Brooke led Haley into Tree Hill General Hospital.

"Its, now or never" Brooke said, as the girls walked arm in arm to face their past.

The girls got to the waiting room, and found it surprisingly quiet; just a few people camped out in chairs waiting for news of their loved ones. They didn't see either Nathan or Peyton, and figured the two must have gone home. After all it was six in the morning. But sitting alone in a chair, the two girls found the one person that they knew would never leave until she knew that Lucas was going to be okay.

"Karen" Brooke whispered, hoping the woman who had become her mother over the past year wouldn't turn around and laugh in her face.

"Brooke?" Karen replied, looking up to see the girl that had some to mean so much to both her and her son. She knew if anyone could make this situation a little more bearable it would be the young brunette in front of her. But Karen gasped when she recognized the girl standing right next to Brooke. Haley James was back in Tree Hill, and that was shocking to say the least.

"My girls" she cried, pulling them both into a tight hug. "Thank God, you're back. We missed you so much, and it's so good to have you home," she said, wiping a couple tears from both of the girls' faces. She had wondered if either girl had found out about Lucas's condition, and secretly hoped that they would come back, but she never expected both Brooke Davis and Haley James-Scott to show up arm in arm. She was glad to have them home though, they were probably the only two people in the world that could genuinely make Lucas feel better. And that was all the hope she needed.

Nathan and Peyton walked back into the waiting room, feeling a little better about today. They had gone to the cafeteria to get some coffee, and stretch their legs, hoping that there would be some change in Lucas's condition. Nathan hadn't told Peyton that he had called Haley, but he wondered if anyone had called Brooke. Even though they had both run away, Nathan hoped that they would at least care that their friend was in the hospital. Even though Nathan wasn't quite sure why Haley hadn't answered or even called back. He guessed she was probably too busy being a rock star to care about her old life.

They saw a commotion in the corner of the waiting room as they approached with coffee for Karen. They quickly realized that she was hugging some people, and wondered who else had come to check on Lucas. Peyton immediately recognized the familiar brown hair of her best friend, and then recognized the girl beside her. Brooke Davis was back, and somehow she had brought Haley James home with her.

"Brooke, Haley" Peyton cried, as she rushed to greet her best friends. Right now it didn't matter that they left, or that they hadn't called. All that mattered right now to Peyton was that they were here. They had come home when they were needed most. She was just confused as to how they came home together, but that could be figured out later. All she knew was that she was no longer alone, and now, neither was Lucas. Tree Hill's heart and soul had returned, and Peyton finally had hope that it would all be okay.

She knew that there were a lot of things that had to be worked out between the three of them and everyone else, but they had made the first step, and that counted for a lot. She knew that everything was not back to normal. Hell, she didn't even know if either one planned on staying, but she knew they were here, and she was going to try her hardest to make sure that they both stayed in Tree Hill, right where they belonged.

"I missed you P. Sawyer," Brooke whispered into her hair as the three girls continued to embrace in the emergency room. And in that moment, Peyton knew that somehow it would all be okay.

Nathan, however, could not seem to move from his spot at the waiting room entrance. She was back. He didn't even know how the hell he felt about that. He was just pissed a few seconds earlier because she didn't call, but now he was pissed that she was here. Well, that wasn't completely true. Part of him missed her like hell, but the stubborn part, was pissed that she had just showed up. Their eyes locked across the room, and Nathan just ignored the look of regret and love that mingled together in her eyes. He couldn't deal with this now.

But, just looking at her, he couldn't deny that he still loved her, but she had turned her back on their marriage, and that was so hard to get over. He was also hurt. Yeah, she was back, but it wasn't because of him. She was back for his brother, and he couldn't help but feel jealous that she had come back for Lucas. He knew that was horrible, but he couldn't help it. His wife was back, but it wasn't to fight for him or their marriage, instead it was to help his brother in his time of need. And it just hurt Nathan that he wasn't reason enough for her return.

With one last look at her, he just walked right out of the waiting room. He just walked away. He figured that she had done it, and maybe she would recognize the gesture.

The title of this chapter was Gary Allan's 'Right Where I Need to Be'

I am going out of town for the next couple of days, so it might be almost a week before another update. But don't worry, a six hour plane ride by myself across country will give me plenty of opportunity to write. So expect a really long chapter next time.

Have a great holiday everyone.