So, here it is. After almost two months, I have finally managed to get out of my funk and produce what I hope it a decent chapter. There is only one more and the prologue left and they are both nearly finished, so there hopefully won't be a two month wait, I hope you all are still here, and I thank each and every one of you for being so patient.

This is for Cathy and Amanda because they are my loves and I wouldn't know what to do without them.

On with the chapter….

Chapter 21 - Please Don't Let It Be

The ride to the airport was pretty much silent. The sounds of Jimmy Eat World blasted through the stereo of the black convertible and the two girls inside were both lost in thought. Peyton sat staring ahead at the road in front of her, one hand lightly interlaced with Brooke's as the other girl held on for support and gazed out at the scenery before them. This was how they worked; connected without words, just waiting for the chance for one of them to need the other, ready and willing for that time to come.

Brooke continued to stare out of the window, the past few weeks playing like a picture in her mind. She had sat in this exact same car when she came home from California, watching the trees pass as she made her way back into Tree Hill. Now she was watching as they flitted by in the other direction, and it seemed like another lifetime. If she had left a part of her heart in the small town before, she was leaving all of the shattered pieces there this time around.

She was still reeling from the events of the past couple of days, and from her latest fall out with Lucas Scott.

It seemed that they were best at breaking each other's hearts.

She thought of the moment when she first got back, the pure terror that she felt when she thought she might lose him; now looking back, what she felt then did not hold a candle to the pain she felt now. She felt hollow, almost like she was watching the world around her and not really living in it.

Part of her was furious with Lucas for throwing her leaving back up in her face over and over. It seemed that every time he was close to letting her back in that he would pull out that tired excuse of her leaving him, and he would push her away. It was almost funny how things worked sometimes. Usually it was her that was full of the excuses. Months ago he was the one that was fighting for her to let him back into her heart, and now that she had, she was the one fighting for the place in his.

The familiar sounds of Augustana's "Boston" floated from her cell phone, but she made no attempt to answer.

"You just going to let the phone ring?"

"I plan on it. Lucas made it clear that there was nothing more to say in hospital, and I don't think that I am strong enough to hear his apologies and explanations today." Brooke's tone left no room for comment.

Peyton let her eyes wander from the road in front of them as the airport came into view. "Maybe you should talk to him."

"I tired that Peyton," Brooke almost pleaded. "I poured out my heart to him and he still told me that we were through. I can't talk to him right now or I'll just break down, and I will not cry anymore tears over Lucas."

Peyton watched the hurt etched one Brooke's face as she grabbed her hand once again. She knew that Brooke was leaving to try and outrun her problems, but she hoped that with just a little break, she would be back and ready to fight for what she loved or whom she loved in this case. "Just don't stay gone too long B. Davis, you know that you belong in Tree Hill whether you're with Lucas or not."

"More like not. I think we're finally done."

Peyton just eyed her friend suspiciously but kept her mouth shut. She knew firsthand that whatever Lucas and Brooke had, it wasn't that easy to erase and it certainly wasn't over.

Without another word, she pulled the car up to the curb and got out to help Brooke once again with her luggage. Once the bags were out of the car, she reached over and pulled the brunette into her arms. " What is that saying you once used 'People who are meant to be together always find their way in the end.' Peyton said thoughtfully as she recited the same words Brooke once spoke to Lucas.

She reached over and squeezed the brunette's hand, whispering, "Maybe you and Lucas just haven't reached your end yet."

Brooke's brown eyes sparkled with unshed tears as she pulled away from her friends embrace ad turned to walk through the glass doors. "And maybe we were never meant to find our way in the first place."

Lucas threw down the cell phone in frustration as it went to her voicemail. He was currently breaking every speed limit imaginable in order to get to the airport in time to catch her. He didn't even want to think of the possibility of not making it on time, but he would fly to California if he had to in order to tell her that he loved her.

Dialing another familiar number, he decided that maybe talking to Peyton would be a better idea. Maybe she would at least answer his phone call.

"You are the world's biggest dumb ass" came the scathing voice on the other end/ There was no hello, no perfunctory greeting, just the tongue lashing of one Peyton Sawyer coming from the phone.

"I know, that seems to be the general consensus today. Look, is Brooke there? I need to talk to her."

"I just dropped her off at the airport, but even if she was here I wouldn't…"

"Shit. How long ago?" Lucas muttered as he glanced at his watch nervously.

"About five minutes. But, I don't think it…."

"How long until her plane leaves?" There was no way Lucas was going to give up now, and he wasn't going to let a couple obstacles get in his way.

"Lucas why are you asking me all of these questions?" Peyton asked, a little bit confused.

"Because I need to talk to her, I have to tell her…"

"I don't care what you have to tell her," Peyton fussed as she cut Lucas off before he could mutter a complete sentence. "I doubt words are going to be good enough this time. You know Brooke well enough to know that. You need a grand gesture." Peyton knew she was being mean, but Lucas had to know how much he had hurt Brooke, and from the looks of it, no one else was going to tell him.

"Like showing up at the airport and begging her not to leave?" Lucas said with almost a hint of hope in his voice.

"Yes, exactly like that." she paused. "Wait, is that why you are calling?"

"I wanted her to be the first to hear it, but I guess I have to tell you if I have any chance of getting to her in time. I love her, I want to be with her and I'm an idiot. And right now I am breaking every law imaginable so that she doesn't walk out of my life and Tree Hill for good. Now please tell me what gate she is at, and how to get to her."

"Gate 6D, she leaves in an hour." Peyton finally answered.

"Thank you Peyton, I promise I won't screw this up, and I promise you that I will never hurt her again." Lucas meant those words with every bone in his body.

"Just go get her Lucas, and I'm not the one you need to be telling this to. Anyone with eyes can tell you love her, but you two are the only ones that can't figure it out."

"I will this time."

"You better. Now hurry., you're going to need a while to convince her."

"I know. Thanks Peyt, you're a good friend." Lucas threw the phone back in the seat and stepped down even harder on the gas pedal. He had one chance to get Brooke back, and he knew that if he didn't get the chance to change her mind before she got on that plane, then all hope was lost. And saying goodbye to Brooke wasn't something he was willing to do ever again.

---

People watching had been one of Brooke's favorite pass times since she was a little girl. She would always watch the people milling about and make up scenarios for where they were going, who they were meeting, and why they were rushing on with their lives. It provided her the distraction to forget about everything going on in her own life and just lose herself in someone else's.

She took a spot at the airport Starbucks and slipped on her Ipod. She frowned as the first song came on, cursing herself for ever getting interested in the music Lucas listened to. Now it seemed that every moody, broody song he had downloaded for her was asking her to think of him. Not that she didn't think of him constantly anyway, but still listening to his music was just begging her heart to break a little more. Setting the Ipod to a random play-list she and Haley made, she sighed as she began watching the people passing her by, waiting for the moment that she left North Carolina.

---

Lucas threw the car into park at the airport terminal and ignored the protests of the airport security guards. He didn't care if he got a ticket or his car got towed, all he cared about was getting to Brooke in time.

Racing inside, he stopped short when he saw all of the people rushing about. He saw the direction that he assumed Brooke had gone in, but he wasn't sure exactly how to find her. Spotting the Customer Service desk, he got the idea in his mind that he was going to pull off something out of a movie. He just hoped that they would let him page the brunette, because if not, he had no idea how to find her.

"Excuse me, miss, is there any way that I can page someone?" Lucas asked sweetly as he walked over to the lady at the desk.

"Is it an emergency?" she asked dryly as she punched keys on the computer in front of her, not really paying attention to Lucas or his problem.

"Yes. No, I don't know. I really need to get in touch with someone in this airport." Lucas answered exasperated.

"You don't know if you have an emergency?" she asked sarcastically.

"Look, there's this girl, and I really have to talk to her before she boards her plane." Lucas pleaded with the woman.

The clerk looked at him scathingly, she had too much to do to play relay for some kid and his message. "Well, that's what cell phones are for, not the intercom at the airport."

"Please Miss," he tried one last time. "You see I love this girl, and I made a complete jackass out of myself with her. Now I have broken every speeding limit in the world just to tell her I that she's the one and that she can't leave. Now will you please at least give me that chance."

The clerk's eyes softened at the kid in front of her, and she could see the desperation and love in his eyes, sighing, she grabbed the black courtesy phone in front of her. "What's her name, son?"

"Brooke Davis. Thank you so much."

The lady tried to hide her smile as she hit the call button on the phone. "Brooke Davis will you please come to the customer service desk. There is someone here to see you. Brooke Davis, please come to the customer service desk."

Lucas sighed in relief, hopefully now he would get his chance to tell Brooke how badly he screwed up. All he had to do was wait, and find the exact right thing to say to her.

--------

Brooke sighed as she tossed her Vogue magazine into her carry on. She had been sitting here trying to distract herself for the last 25 minutes, and there was nothing she could do to erase Lucas' face from her mind. She watched countless number of people pass by, she had made up interesting stories for quite a few of them, but every time she saw a blonde haired boy, a little scenario played in her head. Because in her mind, every blonde haired boy was rushing to tell a gorgeous brunette girl that he was in love with her. She smiled sarcastically at her own nativity, reality was never quite as good as the fantasy in your mind.

Looking down at the Ipod menu, she realized that even the music wasn't distraction enough. Even the random songs that she and Haley had picked out late one night were reminding her of him. Picking a new song, she heard a faint noise coming from the airport speakers, but ignored it, and glanced down at her watch. Noticing that it was almost time to head over to the gate to begin boarding, she started to pack up her bags and get her stuff collected.

She glanced down at her cell phone and saw that she still only had the one missed call from Lucas earlier. Part of her wanted to open the phone and call him back, at least hear what he had to say, but the other part of her was determined to move on and quit wanting to be with him. Ignoring the part of her that wanted to call him back, she grabbed her bags and walked toward her gate, completely missing the announcement that Lucas was in the airport ready and willing to fight for her.

-------

"Son, I don't think she's coming." The clerk at the desk said sympathetically after watching the young man pace back and forth in front of the terminal for about ten minutes.

Lucas just looked at her broken-hearted and said, "I guess not. Thanks anyway."

The older lady just looked at him and finally smiled. "Don't give up just yet honey, maybe you'll find a way to get your girl after all."

He managed to crack a small smile, " I hope so."

He stood for just a moment as the people continued to file past him, none of them being Brooke, He had been so sure that he would find her, he had practiced every line in the book, and now it was all a waste. Either he had been too late, or she hadn't wanted to even hear what he had to say. Either way, he still wanted to hold onto the slight shred of hope that maybe, just maybe, all was not lost. He glanced at the main flight schedule, and found out that Brooke's plane had not begun boarding yet. He knew it was desperate, and he had just a slim chance of finding her, but he wasn't going to leave until he knew he had tried everything possible.

After about fifteen minutes of watching every person that was headed toward get 6D, he knew that it was over. He had missed his chance and let his own stubborn pride and fear chase her away. Head hung down low, he nearly missed the brunette beauty that was struggling with her cell phone. It was only the unique ringing of Jimmy Eat World that caused him to look up, and when he did the site that greeted him stopped him dead in his tracks.

-----

"Hey Peyton," Brooke said with as much fake enthusiasm as she could muster while she struggled to hold her phone and the various other items she was toting through the airport.

"Hey B. Davis, how's the airport?" Peyton was trying to be nonchalant about Lucas, and she knew that if the brunette he seen him or wanted to talk about it, she would. Peyton just hoped that Lucas had found Brooke and that they had at least gotten the chance to talk.

"It's an airport Peyton, I'm heading over to the gate now. You know that the wait takes forever. What's up?"

Peyton silently cursed, somehow Lucas hadn't found her yet, or he had chickened out, and she had no idea what to do. "Umm… nothing much. I was just calling to check on you, see if anything interesting had happened."

Brooke rolled her eyes at Peyton even though she knew the blonde couldn't see her. "Peyton, why are you acting weird? What interesting thing could have possibly happened at the…"

The words died in Brooke's throat though as she saw the site before her. She blinked over and over again just to make sure he was real before she choked out. "Peyton, I… I gotta go."

"Hey Pretty Girl."

"Lucas, what.. What are you doing here?" She knew that she looked ridiculous with her mouth hanging open and her eyes wide, but she was afraid that he would disappear if she looked away. She wasn't quite sure if she really wanted him to be here or if she wanted to listen to what he had to say, but the fact that he was here said a lot.

"I needed to see you before you left Brooke, I had to…."

"Lucas, save your apologies, we weren't meant to be, it happens." She mentally cursed herself as the words left her mouth, knowing she didn't mean a single one, but she wasn't going to let herself get her hopes up again just so he could dash them with one word.

"I can't Brooke. I need to tell you something, and it can't wait and I can't let you get on that plane without hearing this."

"Lucas there is nothing you can say…"

"I love you."

She just stood there in shock as he spoke. She had hoped and prayed for days that he would utter those words to her, but after yesterday, she steeled herself to the fact that it was just never going to happen. Now he was here and he was saying them, but for some reason her mind wouldn't let her heart believe that it was true.

"I know that I'm an idiot and I'm waiting till your leaving to tell you again, but I don't want you to go, not without me apologizing, not without you hearing how sorry I am that I hurt you. I know why you ran, I know why you were scared, and I never should have held that against you. I meant what I said when I told you I would never let you go again and I just need to know if you can forgive me?" He grabbed her hand as he spoke, needing to feel her touch, needing to feel her warmth.

Flight 323 to San Francisco, please begin boarding.

"They're calling for me to board," she said tearfully as she went to pull her hand from his reluctantly. Just because he was here didn't change the fact that she was leaving in a matter of minutes. It didn't change the fact that he had said everything she wanted to hear and that he had once again done it right when it was too late.

"Brooke, please don't go." he pleaded. I know I've made mistakes, I know I've hurt you and I'm sorry. I was scared, and I was afraid to let you in. My heart… It's never going to be the same, and I didn't want you to be with me because I was sick, and I didn't want you to leave me because I wasn't well."

Almost involuntarily, her hand reached out until her palm was flat against his heart. She could feel it beat, and she could almost understand where he was coming from, but she wasn't sure if she could trust this, if she could trust her own heart when it was in his hands.

"I wouldn't have left you because of your heart." she said almost a little hurt.

"I know that now. I know I was looking for an excuse, and it was my own insecurities. Brooke I don't want to spend another day without you, I meant it when I said I loved you, I always have Pretty Girl, and I just need to know if you could love me back?"

Flight 323 to San Francisco, this is your final boarding call.

Lucas stood still for what seemed like eternity waiting for her to say something, do something, but it was almost as if his words had frozen her in place. Finally she broke out into a huge grin, her dimpled smile melting away any of his insecurities. It was in that moment that he knew he was going to spend everyday for the rest of his life just waiting for her to smile his way.

Launching herself into his arms, she paused just inches away from his face, stopping right before their lips met. "I guess there will be other flights," and then she kissed him.

It was sweet and passionate, and to them, they were the only two people in the world at that moment. She was in his arms and every fiber of her being was in that kiss. She could feel it from her head to her toes, and most of all, she could feel it in her heart. Everything else just seemed to melt away, and it wasn't until they heard the faint sound of clapping in the background that either of them realized that they were still in a crowded airport full of people.

Breaking apart reluctantly, they both smiled sheepishly at the crowd of onlookers that they had acquired.

"Who would have ever thought that quiet Lucas Scott would ever make a spectacle like that?" she grinned as he reached over and grabbed her carry-on, holding onto it with one hand and her with the other.

"Anything for you." he smiled as he recited a familiar phrase.

"So I can't believe you were really going back to California for good Brooke, I never meant to hurt you that bad. I'm so sorry." Lucas was confused for a moment as the Brooke stopped in her tracks and began to chuckle softly

I wasn't leaving forever Lucas, only for two weeks. Did you really think you were going to scare me away for good?" The look in his eyes told her that he thought precisely that.

"I just thought…"

"You thought it was like last time?" she asked, knowing that this was something that they needed to clear up. "I guess that even though you said we were over, I could really never get you out of my mind. And I could never leave Tree Hill again, not for good."

"You mean I broke every speed limit, risked getting my car towed and had you paged to tell you how I felt, and you were coming back the whole time?"

She inwardly smiled at the thought of how much trouble he has gone to just for her. "Yes."

He chuckled, "You're lucky I love you, because you are so not worth the trouble," he teased as they walked to the main terminal of the airport and to Lucas' hopefully awaiting vehicle.

"Yes, I am. Now, shut up and take me home… boyfriend."

"Gladly." he said as he wrapped his arm just a little tighter around her and they walked in silence out the door.

"Oh and Lucas… I love you too."