Blind leading the blind
Author's note: Hey guys. I know that I suck for not updating all this time. I really am sorry for not keeping my promise. The past weeks I had to study so much for a big exam. So I really did not want to write under this pressure and stress. You deserve a great chapter and not some lame garbage. I hope that you like this. "Oh"…I almost forgot to point out that this is not an AU story. This is my take on season 5 mixed with some minor spoilers.
P.S. : I hope that you recognized that there exists this button on the bottom left side of the page with "Submit A Review" written all over it…just kidding…I love every review and encourage you all to share your thoughts….
Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill. Sadly the tv-series is belonging to Mark Schwahn. If I did own it then season 5 would definitely have at least one Brooke/Lucas/Jamie scene.
Chapter 3: Tongue Tied
I'm tongue tied
Waiting
Hoping
And praying
So near
Yet so far
Alone
Together
Los Angeles, March 2011
"So what do you think I should wear?" Lucas shouts to his girlfriend.
He is still in his boxers and without the slightest idea of what is an appropriate attire for a movie premiere.
"Luke I don't know. This is your kind of world and not mine. I'm not going to fancy important events." Peyton answers while flipping the pancakes she is cooking in the kitchen.
"Well Peyt, this is a bit important to me. Look, the movie is based on my book. So I have to show up. If I don't, Lindsey will definitely kick my ass." Lucas says in a bemused way shifting from one foot to the other.
Peyton easefully takes the pan off the stove and peeks into the bedroom.
"Okay, you got my attention. How can I help you hun?" she smiles swiftly.
"So do you think I really need to wear a monkey suit?" Lucas says feeling queasy.
Peyton walks up to him and pinches one of his cheeks saying "Oh hun, does somebody have a little bit of a stage fright?"
Lucas rolls his eyes anxiously. "Come on Peyt, don't be silly. What do you suggest I should wear?"
"Whatever you want Luke. Maybe you should wear the tux Lindsey bought for you last week." the blonde haired woman provokingly murmurs.
"Stop it Peyt. I told you there is no need to be jealous of Lindsey. She is my boss and a great friend. There is nothing more going on." Lucas explains trying to reassure his girlfriend.
"Yeah sure. My boss doesn't call me all day and buys me expensive clothes." Peyton states bluntly.
"Please Peyton, spare me the lecture. She bought me the tux because you forgot to do it. But I'm sure you don't remember since you were too caught up with your recording sessions." Lucas exclaims with an annoyed tone in his voice.
"I'm sorry that I have to work. Not everybody can be paid for suffering from a case of writer's block" Peyton shouts furiously.
Lucas tries to stay calm and runs his hand through his hair. He is boiling with rage. This is not the first time Peyton picks up a fight with him over absolute nonsense. Actually the past couple of weeks they were constantly getting on each other's nerves without even trying to resolve some of their issues. Peyton is working too much trying to launch her own record label. He is feeling depressed all the time figuring out what is the cause of his ongoing writer's block.
As the blonde woman starts to talk again Lucas snaps out of his thoughts…
"So you are still mad that I am not going to this movie thing with you?" Peyton asks in disbelief.
Lucas picks up the tuxedo which is spread on the bed. He slowly starts to get dressed.
"It doesn't even matter anymore. Lindsey agreed to be my date for the evening" he responds impassively.
"You know what Lucas. Why don't you spend the night at precious little Lindsey's place!" Peyton scoffs while rushing out of the room.
Lucas just shrugs his shoulders and puts on the bow tie.
The moment he gets out of the car and steps on the red carpet Lucas has this weird and confusing feeling crawling down his spine. He can not really describe it or even tell why he feels this way. It is not the flashing light of the paparazzo's cameras he really hates or the huge amount of attention he is not used to generate. Something bothers him deeply.
Quickly Lucas enters the movie theater brushing off his bemusing thoughts.
After the applause has died down and the lights went on the actors, producers, director and screenplay writer walk up to the stage for a short Q&A.
Lucas sits on his chair behind the large table staring into space. He feels really awkward and intimidated by the press and the couple of hundred people sitting in the audience. Everyone is staring at him anxiously. So to avoid answering any questions he is almost all the time looking down on his hands which are placed on the table.
"I'm Amy Adams from the New York Post. Mr. Scott, can you tell us how involved you were in the process of making this movie?" a short and pretty young looking journalist asks.
Lucas startles a little and lets out a quiet sigh.
This is why Peyton should have been here this evening. He hates it to be the center of attention. Sometimes he even regrets it that he left the Rivercourt to play for the Tree Hill Ravens. Sure he enjoyed the popularity and the fame especially after hitting the last shot for the win of the state championships. But life was so much easier at that time when he was just sitting in his mother's old café drinking hot chocolate with Haley.
Now everybody wanted to know something about his personal life and the characters of the book. Peyton could calm him down now and distract him…
"Well to be quite honest I wasn't really that much involved in the development of the movie. My publisher approached me the minute he sold the rights of the bookAfter this I had one meeting with the director and the screenplay writer. They wanted to know some more details about the characters and the storylines. We talked about all this stuff for a couple of hours and that's it…" he answers in a low, almost inaudible voice.
"Tom Stewart for Entertainment Weekly. Mr. Scott, are you pleased with the outcome of this adaptation of your book?"
Lucas smiles quizzically and says "It is somehow a little bit different than my book. You can't really compare the work of a teenager and a world famous director. At the time I wrote this novel I was 17 years old. I lived in this really tiny town in some kind of a bubble and had a really unrealistic opinion on life. I was naïve and very self centered back thenThe movie gives the audience a diverse and more down-to-earth perspective on my teenage thoughts. This makes me really happy and I think the cast and crew did a great job there."
"Andrew Miller for the Los Angeles Times. Mr. Scott, is there any thing you would like to change about the movie?"
Lucas grabs the bottle placed on the table and pours some water into his glass. He takes a big gulp and furrows his brows.
"You know with a movie you have maybe 90 or if you are lucky 120 minutes to tell a story. There is not enough time to go that much into detail like in a book… " he tries to respond to the question but gets interrupted by a roaring laughter.
It is the first time that he raises his head to actually look at the journalists and the curious crowd waiting for his answer.
He feels a little bit confused about this laughter and scans the crowd with his blue eyes to locate the source of the disturbance.
As he spots the tall blonde girl who is trying to choke down her giggles this weird feeling gets a hold of him again. His body grows stiff in an instant and his hands start to tremble.
He can't believe what his eyes are seeing. He actually has to close them for a second to withstand the cold shiver rushing through his body.
It is not this blonde girl that makes his heart beat faster but the somehow familiar brunette woman sitting next to her who is trying to avert her gaze.
"Mr. Scott, did you understand my question?" the slightly puzzled journalist asks.
Lucas leaves his trail of thoughts but can't really stop staring at the brunette woman his eyes are magically glued to. So he just takes a short glance at the journalist and starts to speak.
"Yeah sure. Well this is a very interesting question. A book can give you so much background information on the character's behavior, their thoughts and feelings. In comparison to a movie you often need to explain a lot to the readers so that they can understand the motivation of the protagonist. Despite the fact that the director and the screenplay writer did cut some storylines I honestly understand why they had to do it." he mutters more to himself than into the microphone.
Now it is the first time that the brunette woman looks straight into his eyes. He holds his breath for a split second and runs his fingers through his hair.
She is as pretty as she was the last time he saw her. Not to exaggerate or to sound corny but she is still the most beautiful girl he has ever seen. You can tell by the shape of her face and the look in her eyes that she matured a lot. It is not like the typical aging process of every other person. She seems to be a lot more mellow, sophisticated and graceful.
As she shoots him this really small and almost invisible smile his knees turn to jelly.
He is amazed and baffled that her appearance has still such an effect on him.
His eyes brighten up and he coughs abruptly.
He hastily reaches out for the glass and takes another big gulp without loosing the sight of her.
"Tony Gibson for the Charlotte Observer. Mr. Scott, can you tell us something about your upcoming novel?"
Lucas smirks and stutters "At the moment I'm not really sure that there is ever going to be another book. You know, I suffer from some major writer's block. It is more than a couple of months ago that I have written something meaningful. I somehow lost my inspiration and the passion to keep on writing."
He looks with so much tension and excitement into the brunette woman's eyes that it is the first time that he really takes a closer look at her. Her eyes would always reflect her true emotions and he was astonished that he was still able to read every single thought of hers.
His heart started to sting and his pulse frantically increased.
He saw the raging sorrow in her eyes and the blank expression meeting his gaze.
She wasn't looking like she is angry, furious or disappointed. She was staring at him with eyes full of sadness and dejection.
He remembered all the previous times in Highschool that she had felt this way. Immediately he knew what induced this kind of pain.
"Ryan Thomas for Cinematical. Mr. Scott, can you please tell us what is your favorite excerpt of the book that the director of the movie did not use for the script?"
Lucas plays nervously with his bow tie and reaches out again for the bottle on the table to pour himself some water into the empty glass. Suddenly he looses grip on the bottle with his sweaty palms. You can hear the disturbing sound of glass shattering in a hundred pieces.
Lucas flinches and looks down to the ground to examine the mess he just caused.
As he raises his head to search the crowd for the familiar brunette's face he was intensely staring at all the time he spots the empty seat next to the blonde girl.
She is gone.
He lets out a noisy sigh and closes his eyes.
His hands are trembling again and with a shaky and weak voice he recites…
"She was fiercely independent. Brooke Davis. Brilliant, and beautiful and brave. In two years she had grown more than anyone I had ever known. Brooke Davis is going to change the world someday. I'm not sure she even knows it."
He opens the door to the bedroom just to sneak a peek at his girlfriend sleeping peacefully with a content smile on her face. He closes the door without making a sound and heads out to the patio. He is feeling restless. As the waves of the ocean hit the shore he starts to write down the numerous thoughts occupying his mind.
Author's note:
Chelsea – I'm so glad that you like the story. Hope that you are not mad at me for updating this late…
Chey – I'd love to see Lucas being drunk on the show. Maybe he would remember who his true love is….and yes, he is definitely in the phase of screwing random girls…Guess what is next???
Toddntan – With season 5 starting 4 years into the future I really would like Lucas to be more edgy and grown up. I hope that you liked this insight into his current state of mind….
Whiters – As I stated above this is my take on season 5 mixed with some minor spoilers…
Photobooth romance – I want to establish this story in a slow way…this chapter gives you the first insight into Lucas's motives…I hope that this is a bit satisfying…
Daniel