Hey guys!!

Okay, so it seems that I am not good at making stories fairly long. I don't know if this is a bad thing or not, but whatever. This is not the last chapter, but I guess it could be considered close. Who knows?

I have a couple ideas for another story, not that I know if I'll write any of them. Anyways, thank you for your reviews. I'm sure you think I say it a lot, but I feel you can't say it enough. Reviews are the only thing that keeps me going.

:]

Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill.

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Aunt Brooke and Uncle Julian were over for dinner. Jamie was partly listening, but only partly. Julian and his dad were talking sports, while Aunt Brooke and his mom were talking about her store. Brody and Julia were playing with Jamie's video games. Jamie was bored. He had gotten a text from Lilly an hour earlier, saying how she was at the beach. He wasn't sure why she sent that to him, but it didn't faze him. Jamie stood up and walked to the kitchen to get a drink. After pouring himself a coke, he was checking his phone when Aunt brooke walked in.

"Hey godson." She said, smiling at him.

"Hey, Aunt Brooke."

"Hey, have you talked to Lilly, lately? I haven't seen her around."

Jamie nodded, telling her about Lilly at the river court and about Lilly's bruise on her cheek.

"Lilly said she just fell down the stairs. But, the weird thing is," Jamie stopped, looking down.

"What, Jamie?"

"The bruise looked like a handprint."

"A handprint? How is it shaped like a handprint if she…" Brooke's mouth dropped open. "Oh my god. You remember when you were five, and I 'fell down the stairs'"

"Yeah, you had bruises all over."

"I didn't fall down the stairs, Jamie. I was attacked. My store was being robbed, and I was there."

And that's when Jamie figured it out. He wasn't sure how he had missed this, but he had. "Aunt Brooke, you remember what I told you about Carter, Lilly's boyfriend?"

______

Lilly was in so much pain. She felt like she couldn't breathe. Everything was dark. She didn't know what was going on. She couldn't remember anything. She tried to open her eyes, but the light was blinding them.

"Just breathe, Lilly, You'll be okay. Just breathe."

"What?"

She saw his face. A face she never thought she'd ever see. Her father's.

"It's okay. It's gonna be okay, Just breathe."

Everything was white, his face right there in front of her eyes. She couldn't see anything else and in a second, his face was gone and she was staring at a grey ceiling. Groaning, she opened them more. Where was she? She tried to sit up, but pain shot up through her from her stomach, so she lay back down.

"Lilly?"

She heard a voice. She couldn't turn her head but when a figure leaned over her, she saw that it was Aunt Peyton. "Aunt Peyton? What's going on?" She mumbled. "Where am I? Why can't I move?"

Peyton started tearing up. "Oh, Lilly." She said in that concerned, motherly voice of hers. "It's gonna be okay. Carter is gone. He can't hurt you anymore. I promise."

Everything came back to her, then. The screaming, the hitting, the pain. Realization hit her like a bus. Oh, god. What had happened? The last thing she remembered was Carter's foot going into her chest. She groaned. "Where am I?"

"You're at the hospital, Lil. Jamie and Brooke, figured it out, and called us. It was about an hour after you sent that text to Jamie. When they found you, you were unconscious and bleeding a lot. Carter was just sitting there drinking a beer." She spat the last part out bitterly. "Here." She reached behind Lilly's bed and hit some kind of button that Lilly couldn't see and the bed started moving up, so Lilly could see more clearly.

"Oh." Lilly said. "Where is everyone? What happened to Carter?"

"Well, Karen and Lucas are getting a cup of coffee. Haley and Nathan will be here in awhile. They had to go home and regroup with all the kids."

"What about Jamie?"

Peyton sighed, looking down at her hands. "He hasn't come yet. I think he's afraid of what he'll see."

"And Carter?"

Peyton laughed bitterly. "That bastard is in jail, Lil. With a broken nose, two broken ribs, a broken arm, two black eyes and a thousand bruises." Peyton continued when Lilly gave her a weird look. "Your brother and your Uncle Nathan had a little fun with him while they waited for the police."

Lilly smiled, not sure of what else to say.

"Lilly?" Peyton whispered. "Can I ask you a question?"

Lilly knew what question she was going to ask, but nodded anyways.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

She shrugged, looking away. "I don't know. I was so far in, I…I didn't know what to do. I was so afraid of what he might do if he learned I told somebody, I just…"

Peyton nodded, kissing Lilly's forehead. "I'm going to get Karen and Lucas and the doctor. Okay?"

Peyton disappeared and Lilly was left alone. Lilly relaxed a little, letting out a breath she didn't realized she had been holding. Relief washed over her, and she smiled. Everything was going to be okay.

"Lilly?" She heard her mother's frantic voice after a moment alone.

Lilly smiled, sheepishly, somewhat surprised at how much her mother was crying. "Hi, Mom."

Karen rushed over, and wrapped her arms around Lilly, apologizing whenever she hit a bruise. "Oh, Lilly, I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Mom."

"I should've noticed something. All those long sleeve shirts, I should've noticed…" Karen said, pulling back. She studied her daughter, and Lilly smiled at her.

"It's okay."

"You're right. Because it's over now. Nothing will happen again." Karen smiled and stepped back. "Now, Lucas wants to talk to you. I'll be back to check on you again, okay?"

She left, and Lucas took her spot. For a moment, Lilly felt embarrassed. She felt weird with him seeing her like this, all bruised and in a hospital. She looked down at herself, feeling very weird for feeling weird. Lilly wasn't sure what he was going to say, or do, but when he wrapped his arms around her in a protective hug, she just leaned into him and closed her eyes, letting herself feel protected.

"I'm so sorry, Lil." He said, pulling back.

Lilly noticed his scratched up hands when he did and laughed slightly to herself. "It's not your fault. I…I just got in too far over my head, and I didn't know how to get out."

He nodded. "You won't have to worry about that bastard anymore. He's in jail. We won't let him hurt you again."

___

The doctor came in next, informing Karen and Lucas and her of everything. Lilly had two broken ribs, a sprained wrist, bruises all over that made it difficult for her to move. She had stitches on her forehead, and on her leg. Lilly learned that she had been sleeping for a day and half now, thanks to stress. Dr. Giordano told her she could leave after they ran a couple tests, and she would be fine.

After the doctor came, everyone came and told her how sorry they were. Truth be told, she could've shot them for saying they were sorry. The phrase was overrated, and Lilly was tired of it. It wasn't their fault, and Lilly felt terrible for making them feel that way. As it was, she rarely got a minute alone. Somebody was always with her. Brooke had yelled at her for not telling somebody, but had also cried and given her a hug, Nathan and Haley came in with food that Aunt Haley had cooked and Nathan told her about how much he had done to Carter. The only person that didn't come see her, was Jamie.

That scared her. They had always been able to go to each other, well they used to. She was disappointed in him, no doubt. She knew he would be mad at her for not telling him, but she thought he would have come through, and helped her. She needed him. She needed her best friend.

Lilly went home a couple hours later. Lucas and Karen wouldn't leave her alone, asking her what she needed, trying to make her comfortable with all the pillows. The doctor had told her to take it very easy for the first couple of days, telling her to try not to move as much. Lilly, being as independent as she is, did not like this very much.

"Okay," Karen said after Lilly was all settled in the couch with the TV remote in her hand. "Lucas is gonna stay with you while I go to the bookstore real quick and run some errands. Then, when he goes to his practice and I go to my dentist appointment, Brooke is gonna come over. Then I should be home. Okay?"

Lilly nodded. Part of her wanted to tell her mom she did not need a babysitter, but the bigger part of her didn't want to be left alone. Karen left and Lucas came back from the kitchen with two cokes, sitting next to her and handing her one.

"So," Lucas started, "What movie are we watching?"

Lilly looked at the ones laying in front of her. She smiled, picking up her favorite. Lucas groaned.

"No, I am not watching Aladdin." He replied, picking up Remember The Titans. "What about this one?"

Lilly shook her head. "No. I've seen that too many times. Come on, I'm the injured one!"

He whined a little, but gave in eventually and put in her favorite movie. They spent the entire time bickering about how good the movie was. She insisted it was classic, he said it was old and girlie.

They were in the middle of 'A Whole New World' when Lilly realized she was actually having fun. With her brother. Her previous enemy. She wondered when this had happened. She wasn't used to the feeling.

___

Brooke came over after Lucas, carrying make-up, candy-chocolate of course, more chick flicks, and a nail kit. Lucas mumbled something about picking someone better to babysit as he walked out.

"Okay, princess, which movie first?" Brooke asked.

"Baby Mama."

"Oh, good one." Brooke put the movie in the DVD player, and went back to doing Lilly's nails. "You know, at least you get out of school for a couple of days and you get all pampered and everything."

"Yeah," Lilly looked down. "When You and Jamie…uh found out, what did Jamie say? Did he say he was mad at me?"

"I was too busy worrying about you when he said something to notice, to be honest. He didn't say he was mad at you, but, I don't know. After we called Lucas and jumped in the car with Nathan and Haley while Julian stayed with the kids, he didn't say much. Nobody did. Lucas and Peyton arrived at the beach the same time that we did and Nathan and Luke took off sprinting." She chuckled. "You should've seen them, Lil. We all saw you lying there with all that blood and Lucas and Nate took one look at Carter and beat the shit out of him. Jamie wanted to do something, but Haley held him back as I called the police and Peyton tried to see if you were still alive. We couldn't tell. There was so much blood, and you were unconscious. It scared us."

"I wanted to tell somebody. I just…didn't know how."

"When did he first hit you? If you don't mind me asking."

"The night I found out about Dad dying. I went to his apartment, and I heard all this yelling and things being thrown. When I asked him about it, he freaked out. We kind of got into an argument and he backhanded me. I was in so much shock, I just thought it wouldn't happen again. And then it did. And I didn't know what to do."

Brooke sighed. "The next time I tell you to find a boyfriend, I'm going to pick him out myself."

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Finally! A happy chapter! :] Jamie and Lilly will talk in the next chapter, plus more Lucas/Lilly reunion fluff, and more Brooke as I have become aware that everyone loves Brooke and Lilly. Plus, I'm gonna throw in some Peyton and Lilly time, too. I think both Brooke and Peyton can help Lilly 'cause they were attacked, too. Anywho, Ideas are always welcome and I love reviews!