Disclaimer: I don't own OTH or any of its characters. I am just borrowing them

A/N Sorry for the late update. I have been sick with some virus thing and it is kicking my butt.

Thanks to everyone for all of the reviews.

While Peyton and Brooke were having a heart to heart talk, Jake and Lucas walked down the hallway towards the living room where everyone else was sitting and talking. When they entered the room, everyone got quiet and looked towards Lucas. Lucas stopped and looked around. He felt like a deer caught in headlights.

"What?" Lucas asked

"Nothing" Karen said quickly. She looked at Nathan and Haley, as if to say 'This is not the time nor the place'

Lucas knew that they were all dying to ask him questions. He had been bracing himself for them since the moment that he walked through his mom's front door. It was only a matter of time before it would all come out anyways. They were family and they deserved to know what he had been through and what he had done.

"Brooke and Peyton talking?" Haley asked breaking the silence that surrounded them

"Yea. Peyton wants to meet Jason" Jake answered

"I just finished feeding him a bottle. He looks about ready to fall asleep" Karen said

"It has been a long day for him, for all of us" Lucas replied, "I am going to take him in to see Peyton before he gets fussy"

Karen handed her grandson to her son and watched as Lucas walked carefully towards the master bedroom talking to the baby along the way.

'I always knew he would be a good father' She said to herself as she smiled.

When Lucas got the door, he knocked and quickly placed his hand back under his son to support him.

"Come in" Brooke voice came from inside

Lucas opened the door and looked towards the bed where his wife and friend were talking

" I have someone to meet Aunt Peyton"

"Come here. I want to see him," Peyton said as Lucas closed the door and walked toward the bed. He handed Jason to his wife and Brooke turned herself so that Peyton could see Jason perfectly.

"He is so cute. He has Lucas's eyes and hair color. Brooke, he has your smile and those dimples."

"Most people can't decide who he looks like"

Peyton looked at her two friends and then looked at their son and back at them "Both of you" She said simply "He has features of both of you."

"Do you want to hold him?" Brooke asked Peyton.

"I don't know" Peyton replied. She was scared. Scared that she was going to drop this innocent little baby. Her arms were so weak and frail.

"Don't be scared. Look at the smile that he is giving you. He wants Aunt Peyton to hold him" Lucas jumped in

"Ok" Peyton said as she took a deep breathe, "Lucas, can you help me sit up more?"

"Sure" Lucas replied as he went around to her side of the bed and helped her move into a better sitting position

"Ready?" Brooke asked once Peyton was situated

Peyton shook her head and Brooke placed Jason into her arms and instantly he started cooing and smiling up at Peyton. Peyton could not help, but smile back.

"I remember when Danielle was this little. I didn't want her to ever grow up," Peyton said as she continues to smile at Jason.

"Peyton, when…when did they…." Brooke stammered

"When did they find out about the cancer?" Peyton asked for her

"Yea" Brooke said sheepishly

"The doctor told me that she had found some strange cells during my pre-natal exam and that they were doing an emergency C-Section to get Danielle out. They ran some tests and found out that the strange cell were stage 3 Cancer. We tried chemo and radiation, but neither one of them worked. I went to the doctor last month and I was told that I only had about 2 months max left to live. That is when I asked Andy to find you. I told him that I didn't want just Lucas or just Brooke, but I wanted both of you to come home"

"Peyton I am so sorry that we were not here before now. We should have come home sooner. When Lucas told me that we needed to go home. I told him I wasn't going, but then he told me you were dying and all I could think about was getting home faster. I feel so guilty for leaving without even a good bye before. I feel like I have wasted all these years on other things when I could have been right here at home with my family and friends. I needed to be here and I wasn't. I am so sorry, Peyt." When Brooke finished, there was a river running down her face. She had been holding all that guilt inside and it all came out at one time.

"Brooke" Peyton said. She waited until Brooke looked at her before she continued, "Don't feel guilty. If you had been here this horrible disease still would probably be here. You did not cause me to have cancer. You left without a goodbye and it was a mistake, but Brooke. We all make mistakes. I don't know why you left that night, but I am not mad at you for leaving. I just wanted you to be happy. I thought that maybe you would be happier away from Tree Hill."

"That is just it, I was not happy at all away from Tree Hill, not for many years. I wanted so bad to come back here, but I was scared. Scared of what, I don't know. Scared of maybe rejection because I had just left so suddenly in the middle of the night. I was scared that you were going to hate me or that Karen was going to disown me like my parents did. As time went on it got easier just to not think about Tree Hill and then a ghost from my past walked into my life"

"Lucas?" Peyton asked

"Yea"

"I know you want to hear what happened to me, but I think everyone should hear this. Do you mind if I go get everyone else, so that I can tell you all together?" Lucas asked

"I think that is the best idea," Brooke said

"Yea" Peyton added

"Ok, Do either of you need anything?"

"Peyton is he getting too heavy?" Brooke asked

"No, he is just fine"

"No, I don't think we need anything broody"

"Ok" Lucas replied as he walked towards the door and opened it. "Be right back" then closed the door and walked down the hallway.

"Why is he so nervous?" Peyton asked Brooke once Lucas had closed the door.

"He didn't have it easy after he left here and I think he may think that it is going to change the way people look at him. He was very hesitant to tell me about it, what part I didn't stumble upon anyway"

"Is it that bad?"

"Not something that he is very proud of. That is for sure"

When Lucas walked into the living room, he found everyone watching the latest news broadcast. He stood in the doorway looking at everyone. His mom and Andy were sitting on the couch with a sleeping jenny lying across them. She had her head in Karen's lap as Karen quietly ran her fingers through her hair. Jake was in the rocking chair with Danielle. She had a pacifier in her mouth and she looked so peaceful. Haley was laying on the loveseat with her feet hanging over the side. Nathan sat on the floor in front of the loveseat with his legs outstretched in front of him and his head leaning again Haley's. It took a few minutes before Haley realized that he was standing there.

"Luke"

"I need everyone to come into the bedroom. We need to talk"

With that everyone got up from their places and started towards the bedroom. Lucas followed behind ashamed of what he was about to tell his family about his past. A past after Tree Hill and a past he wanted to forget.