Nathan Scott walked down the streets of Tree Hill, heading towards a decent cup of coffee and his wife. He reached his destination and opened the door to Karen's Café. He saw Haley first, and waved to her sweetly, but didn't approach right away since she was with a customer. Seeing his friend across the café, he walked straight towards her with a smirk on his face. Nonchalantly, he whispered behind her, "Told him yet?"

Peyton turned to Nathan quickly, slightly startled by his sudden appearance and his words. It was like her mind was somewhere else completely, even from the pile of papers in front of her, dealing with the benefit. She was a touch confused at first, as she watched him take a seat in the stool next to her, but then remembered what they had last spoke about. "Shut up," she hissed with a glare.

Taking a step around the café counter, Lucas threw a rag over his shoulder and placed a dirty dish into a bin for washing. He turned around to see that Peyton was now joined by Nathan, but didn't look too happy. He had gotten used to seeing Peyton in a trance these past few days, assuming it was all just stress over the benefit, but he could tell there was a look of anger on her face. "What did my brother do to you now?" Luke asked as he took a few steps closer to her.

"Nothing," Peyton quickly offered, not wanting Lucas to know he was the topic of conversation. It was strange enough that she was having these feelings for him, and keeping it a secret buried so far down, but having other people know as well made it worse. Trying to brush it off her shoulder, Peyton jokingly stated, "He's just being himself."

Lucas smiled as he nodded and refilled Peyton's coffee cup. "I hate that," Lucas played along, letting out a soft chuckle as well.

Furrowing his brow, Nathan stared at the two of them blankly. "You two know that I'm sitting right here, right?" Nate asked, a little offended. He knew they were just trying to get the best of him, but it was still amazing how quickly they'd shut out the rest of the world when they were put together in the same room.

Hitting a few keys on the cash register, Haley sympathized, "Aww." She tried her hardest to hide her smile as put the cash into the register and grabbed a few cents for change. Haley had caught some of their conversation, but mostly the look on Nathan's face gave away what was happening. It was a classic Peyton and Lucas scenario that everyone knew so well. They had this connection that made them a power duo. "Can you three try to play nice?"

All three of the friends raised their hands to Haley, waving her off. They were all just joking around, and they had good times that way. Not to say there wasn't much drama, but everyone had a good enough sense of humor to take the witty banter as a sign of affection. Everyone had their issues, but a good one-liner in Tree Hill made all the difference.

Peyton shifted her weight to turn towards Nathan, giving him an impatient look. She could tell it confused him, and finally blurted, "You need the little lady to fight your battles, huh?"

After returning the change to the customer, Haley came up from behind Nathan. She raised her hand and placed it on his back, rubbing it tenderly, showing her support to Nathan. Looking over at Peyton, Haley questioned jokingly, "You were probably the worst bully on the playground, weren't you?"

Dropping her jaw and playing shocked, Peyton stared at Haley in disbelief. It was hard to keep that pose long before laughing a little, and then straightening herself out again. She took a second to think about that comment, and then exclaimed, "Dude, you went to the same elementary school as us."

Haley shrugged and kept close to her husband. She loved whenever they'd realize things about each other. They knew each other well, and share at lot at heart, but their pasts were separated by different worlds. "Yeah, I went to the library during recess," Haley offered, her voice low.

"And you married Nathan?" Peyton asked in a confused manner. It was hard not to take a stab at the differences between Nathan and Haley. They were complete opposites, but their love was undeniable.

Nathan perked up slightly, as he darted a dirty look over to his blonde friend. "Still sitting here," he remarked, still feeling strange about their conversation.

The others couldn't help but laugh at Nathan. It was so easy to put him in the awkward position. There was so much history between all of them, that just being in the same room with each other should be weird enough. And when they're all friends, and even enemies, it just makes the lines between them more confusing.

Shaking his head at the humor of their encounter, Lucas took his apron off, wrapped the strings around it a few times, and set it on the counter. He announced, "My shift is officially over," in a tired voice. He loved working there, but there were other things on his mind, and other stuff he'd rather do. Glancing at Peyton, he asked, "Want to head over to Tric?"

"Yeah," Peyton replied with a faint smile and nod. She piled up her papers and straightened them out, but as she started to place them into her folder, she caught a glimpse at Nathan and a stupid smirk on his face. She mentally kicked herself for telling him her secret, but she had to deal with it now, and cover up for how anxious reply to Lucas. "I need to make sure some things get set up."

Coming from around the counter, Lucas joined Peyton as she began to stand. They only took one step before Haley called out, "Make sure my dressing room is all white with violet—not purple—orchids." She smiled brightly at the two, and glanced down at her husband with a smile as well. It only took another second before she shot her eyes up to Peyton and added, "And I only like the green M&Ms."

Peyton furrowed her brow as she looked at Haley. She glanced over her friend to see if she was serious, and then offered, "I'll make sure you get a premium stall in the bathroom." Peyton nodded reassuringly, then smirked. She turned to talk away with Lucas, but stopped to say, "I'll even throw in a fun-sized bag of M&Ms."

Nodding slowly with a contemplating look on her face, Haley finally stated, "Perfect," before Peyton and Lucas had left the café.

They made their way down the street, sharing a few awkward smiles along the way. They had regained their friendship, but it wasn't always so easy. Sometimes they'd have a long silence, and Peyton would rather freeze than say something stupid. It was hard to be with him when she felt so strongly for him, and couldn't be sure of any of his feelings. And at the same time, Lucas wasn't sure what to say because of the strange detachment between them. Luke wasn't sure if it was just him, or maybe it was her, but he didn't want to step over whatever boundaries they had. He had thought they mended whatever was between them, but the distance was still clear.

Lucas knew that there was one thing he could say, that wouldn't be stupid, at least not to Peyton. It was something that he knew she had on her mind. He opened the door to Tric and held it open for her as he asked, "So you ready for this thing?"

"I'm ready…" Peyton replied with a nod as she stepped into the club. She looked around and kept walking until she stood on the empty dance floor. She shrugged her shoulders in a skeptical manner and sighed, "I just don't know about anyone else."

Watching his friend, Lucas knew she was worried. She probably wouldn't admit it, but it showed. He knew her well enough to know when her heart was racing. "Maybe," he remarked, pondering if she could be correct. "But that just means they need it even more."

Peyton raised her eyebrow as she thought about Lucas' words. It was true that the people needed it, or else she wouldn't have planned a benefit for depression. At the same time, she doubted herself and how much good she could really do. "But no one will ever forget," Peyton added shyly, staring down at the ground as she thought about that horrific look on Jimmy Edward's face.

Nodding as he stared at Peyton's pale face and distant eyes, Lucas questioned, "Do you still think about that day?"

"All the time," Peyton answered quickly. She took a deep breath as she paused and tried to take her mind off of the event. She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them she redirected her eyes towards Luke. "I think about my leg, Jimmy, Keith." She swallowed hard and inhaled deeply. This stuff was never something she liked to talk about, but if she had to say it to anyone, Lucas was the best to talk to. "Everything changed."

Lucas clenched his jaw and he quickly looked away from Peyton. It was hard looking into those big, green eyes and not be reminded of the school shooting. It was even harder not to admit what the shooting made him feel and realize. "Me too," Lucas confessed. He took a few steps and backed up towards the bar. He sat down on one of the stools and stared up towards the stage. "You think we'll ever get over it?" he asked Peyton, almost wanting he to lie to him.

Joining him at the bar, Peyton sat down facing the opposite direction. "No," she stated softly, not wanting to say it, even if it was the truth. She bit her lip as she looked down at the counter below her. "But hopefully we'll learn from it."

A faint smile found its way to Lucas' face. It was hard for him to smile after talking about all this stuff, but something about Peyton warmed his heart at that very moment. "Since when are you the optimist?" he asked as he turned to her. Whatever was different about her had him puzzled. It made things between them seem not quite right, but at the same time, he still knew she was the best friend he loved. "You're supposed to be the tortured artist here," he added sarcastically.

Returning the smile, Peyton shrugged shyly. She twisted her body slightly to face Lucas better and reminded, "Things change, remember?"

The grin on Lucas' face widened at the thought. He took a deep breath and rethought the idea until he raised an eyebrow. "Even you and me?" Luke questioned, hoping he could subtly get a clue to what was happening between them.

Peyton's jaw dropped slightly, not so sure how to answer. For that matter, Peyton wasn't even sure on how he meant that question to sound. "Lucas, Peyton, or Lucas and Peyton," she asked, hoping it would make a difference to her answer without giving herself away.

Lucas took another moment with a look of thought upon his face. "All of the above," he finally replied, keeping it general enough to get an answer in any range.

Turning her body some more, Peyton looked away from Lucas and stared at the stage the way he had earlier. She could still feel his eyes on her, but she didn't know what to say. It'd be the perfect time to admit her feelings, or to say something as a hint, but she couldn't do it. Those baby blue eyes of his sucked her in like a tidal wave, and she had to stay away from drowning in them. "I have no idea," she blankly remarked as she reminded herself of another pair of baby blues.