The music coming from the deejay booth blared as soon as Bevin entered the club. TRIC had been the usual and hottest nightspot for Tree Hill's underage. Owned and operated by Karen Roe and Deb Scott, it was a hip and happening joint with killer food and music, a safe and fun social setting for teenagers to party. The routine for Friday and Saturday nights had been pretty much the same since the club had opened their junior year. But after the recent events, Bevin was just as content sitting home watching TV. She was over doing the same old things with the same old people. Besides, it would require a shower and hair and make up and a sexy outfit. The last thing Bevin Maskey wanted was to feel sexy. She'd had more than her fair share and was due for a break.

She had gotten away with it the first two weeks. At first she had feigned illness. By the second weekend she had been truthful and flat out refused to go. By week number three, her girls would hear no more excuses. After a barrage of threatening phone calls, she had finally picked herself up off the couch. She combed her hair and applied mascara and lips gloss, donning a simple pair of DKNY shoes and jeans and a black top with a decent neckline. Then she trudged over to the club, praying the night would end quickly as she saw Rachel, Brooke, Teresa and Ashley waving from a nearby table.

"Well, well, the dead has arisen," Rachel quipped.

"What?" Bevin frowned.

"My bad, kiddo. That one was way over your head. Anyway, have a seat and a Coke, I can even spike it for you. You'll feel better."

Bevin seriously doubted it.

"So what's going on?" she yawned.

"No yawning at this hour," Ashley grinned, playfully slapping her. "The night is way young and there are some serious hotties in here."

"Whatever," Bevin rolled her eyes.

"What do you mean whatever? Look to your left over there in the blue shirt. He is so checking you out, girlie."

"Huh?"

Ashley rolled her eyes.

"Your other left, Bev."

"Oh. Oh yeah. He's alright, I guess."

"Alright? Just alright? Hel-lo, are you blind? He is freaking gorgeous. Do something sexy like flip your hair or wink at him."

"No thanks."

"Right. You want subtle. Cosmo says a great trick is to look at them, make eye contact, then quickly look away. It's the hot new way to flirt this year."

"I don't know, Ash."

"Just leave her alone," Brooke prodded. "If she says she doesn't want to, then she doesn't want to. Just drop it."

"But Bevin has been so sad lately. And scoring with a cute guy is the greatest picker upper."

"Leave it alone, Ashley," Brooke warned in a fiercer tone.

"Thanks," Bevin mouthed with a smile, grateful for the backup.

All she wanted was a quiet night. If she couldn't have it at home, the least she could do was have some sort of peace and a flirt free night at TRIC. For a while, at least, it appeared it would be that way. The girls sat together at their table, chatting and giggling, having fun as they sipped soda and occasionally made their way out to the dance floor. Brooke was having actual fun for a change until her eyes darted towards the entrance and she saw him. He was there with a friend and it shouldn't have come as a shock. It was just as much his hangout spot as it was hers, probably more, considering his mother owned half the place. Looking away, she played with her bottle of water. It wasn't that big of a deal but she had wanted one night, just one.

"Take a left, check it out," Teresa couldn't wait to announce. "There's Lucas Scott and his cute friend, Skills Taylor."

"Say it a little louder, Teresa," Brooke rolled her eyes. "Don't think they heard you over there in Germany."

"What?"

"It's cool. Lucas is here all the time and it's not a big deal."

"I know but that new Jay Z song is playing and it's hot. Why don't we get on the floor and you show Lucas what he's missing?"

Brooke looked over at Lucas and Skills, leaned against the wall, engrossed in their own private conversation as they bopped their heads to the beat of the music.

"Hell yeah," Rachel raised her eyebrows. "I'm all for the angry dance off."

"Whatever guys," Brooke stood firm. "I'm fine right here."

She watched as Teresa, Ashley and Rachel sauntered out in the middle of everyone, staking their post as their sexy bodies moved with the music.

"You sure you don't want to go out there?" Bevin asked after a few minutes.

Brooke shook her head.

"Nah."

"Okay…and um, you sure that doesn't have anything to do with Lucas showing up?"

Brooke looked right at her.

"No. Why would it? Like I said, he's here all the time. Everybody knows that."

"I know, it's just…well, I kind of get how you feel after we talked the other day. I believe you're over the whole Lucas thing but it's gonna take time before things stop being weird. I get that too but not tonight. I didn't even want to come out and you guys basically dragged me. Know what? I'm glad. Because I'm with my girls and we're having fun. Don't let some supposed awkward moment ruin things. I mean, who cares. This is our night, right?"

Brooke looked around, secretly wishing she had listened to Rachel and actually gone with something a tad stronger than mineral water but what the heck? Bevin was right.

"Let's go," she grinned, grabbing her friend's hand as they made their way over to the others.

The deejay continued with hit song after hit song and the girls, the center of TRIC's attention, were having a blast. All eyes were upon them and they couldn't have cared less. Bevin was having the time of her life. She had noticed a growing crowd forming around them, some of them guys with their mouths practically watering. But it was all in good fun, or at least it was supposed to be. What she hadn't noticed, was an oddly familiar face.

"What's up, Bev?"

She stopped in her tracks when she heard the voice and turned around. It was her old friend, Evan Williams, and he'd had one hell of a nerve showing up.

"You remembered my name this time. I guess should be honored."

He grinned sheepishly.

"About that little misunderstanding…it was my bad."

"Damn right it was but whatever. It's over and done with now."

She turned her back on him, starting to dance again but Evan would not be so easily rebuffed.

"Hey…"

She looked him up and down.

"Get your hands off me."

He immediately recoiled, putting both hands up with a smirk.

"Sorry. Didn't know that was off limits all of a sudden."

"For you it is."

Evan shook his head.

"Are you still mad about what happened at my house that night?"

"Are you kidding me?" Bevin put her hands on her hips.

"What's going on over here?" Rachel joined them. "Everything alright?"

"Everything is just fine," Bevin glared at Evan. "I was just leaving."

She pushed her way through all the dancers back to the table. The playful girls' night out had been ruined and all she wanted was to get the hell out of there.

"What's going on with you?" Evan followed her.

"Don't talk to me."

"What's your problem?"

"You have the nerve to ask that with a straight face? Evan, you're my problem."

"Look, I'm sorry, okay? What do I have to say or do to make this right? I messed up and I admit it. It was a shitty thing to do and I feel bad that you got hurt but I want to make it up to you. Look, Bevin, I promise it won't happen again. I don't know what I have to do to make you believe me but I'll do whatever it takes. Could we, I don't know, could we just get out of here? You know, go somewhere private and talk…"

A smile came to Bevin's lips. And they thought she was the village idiot. First he had used her, totally played and humiliated her, now he was crawling back with puppy dog eyes and a million and one tired apologies. Just like that she was supposed to throw her arms around him and be grateful that he had come back to use her some more.

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Bevin…"

"You know something? I'm not as dumb as you think I am. I mean, how naïve and gullible do you have to be to fall for that crap…again? Just leave me alone, Evan."

She pushed past him but he grabbed her arm.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

His voice had turned sinister and his eyes dark. A wave of panic rushed through Bevin. She looked around nervously for her girlfriends but none of them were in sight. She could only see their backs as they were still front and center dancing away.

"Let go of me, Evan."

"I don't think so. Not until you talk to me."

"I don't want to talk to you."

"I think you do."

"I don't think she does," said a third voice.

They looked up, feeling a presence looming over them. Standing near, arms folded, dead serious look on his face, was Skills Taylor.

"We were just talking, man," Evan tried to explain.

"Looks to me like she was done," Skills stated the obvious, not wavering.

Evan looked around and smirked.

"Look, homey, me and my girl are trying to have a private discussion. Why don't you take a hike?"

Evan grabbed Bevin's arm roughly again in an attempt to drag her out. Skills stepped between them, physically separating the two, careful not to hurt Bevin in the process.

"Homey, it appears to me, she don't want to talk to your ass."

"Why can't you take a hint?"

"Looks like you're the one that can't take a hint," Skills said before turning to Bevin. "Shorty, you got anything else to say to this clown?"

Bevin, fighting back tears, looked down at her wrist, red with the imprint of Evan's fingerprints.

"No," she answered emphatically.

"There you have it. So it looks to me like your best bet is to head back on over to Cove City, dawg."

"Or what?"

A red faced Evan looked around. People were starting to come over and stare. After all, he had a reputation to protect. He couldn't let himself be punked by some River Court rat.

"Don't get crazy up in here," Skills warned with a chuckle.

"What's going on?" Brooke marched over, the other girls right behind her.

"It's okay," Bevin tried to assure them.

"Everything cool?" Lucas asked, as he too had come over to check out the brewing commotion.

"Oh it's cool alright," Skills answered casually.

Evan looked his rival up and down before glaring over at Bevin.

"So it's like this now? You're gonna dis me for one of the brothers?"

"That's enough," an angry Lucas interjected. "I think it's time you and your friends got out of here, Evan."

"It's cool," Evan smirked, slowly backing away but stopping to run a finger from Bevin's lips to her breasts. "You can have her anyway, everyone else already has. It was only a matter of time before she made it to the hood."

A gasp went throughout the club, including a humiliated and stunned Bevin. She wanted to yell at him, slap his face but there was no time. It happened so quickly as Skills made a Matrix like lunge forward, one balled up fist crashing mightily into Evan's jaw, making a disgusting swishing gurgle on impact as his body went airborne before landing flat on his back. His friends rushed to his sides, angrily looking at the person who had just knocked their buddy out. They didn't have to look far. Skills, with Lucas hot on his heels, was right in their faces.

"Y'alls asses want some?"

"Hey, it's cool, dude," the smarter one spoke up. "We were just leaving."

They bent down to drag a bleeding and groggy Evan from the floor.

"Good. Apologize then."

Embarrassed and rubbing his face, Evan glanced meekly upwards.

"Sorry," he mumbled to Skills.

"Not to me. I don't care nothing about your weak ass apologies. You tell her you're sorry," he pointed to Bevin.

"Sorry, Bevin," he muttered as they were walking out.

"And don't bring your sorry selves back up in here until you learn how to respect females!" Skills yelled out.

"Is everything okay?" Deb Scott, Nathan's mother and co proprietor concernedly walked over.

"It's fine," Lucas assured her before yelling out to the crowd of patrons. "Show's over! It's cool! Nothing more to see here, go back to having a good time!"

"What an asshole that Evan guy was," Rachel shook her head.

"Bevin, what the hell happened?" Brooke asked her, examining her wrist.

"It's fine. Evan was just being stupid."

Catching her breath, she watched as Lucas and Skills walked away.

"Are you okay?"

She looked and made brief eye contact with the brave young man who had saved her.

"I am now."