Jamie pulled out a notebook, "Okay. I think we've been going about this wrong. All unorganized and just… ah. So here, everyone take a piece of paper and write what you found out today, then pass it to the person whose parents you have and then add notes about your own parents."
Keith and Jenny stared at him, "Okay I have no idea what you just said to us, but Jamie, I'm going to put this gently cause I know your mom's a teacher. This is Christmas break. We're not doing homework."
"But Jen-" he started.
"No." she interrupted, "No homework. We'll figure this out, without write essays."
"How exactly do you plan on going about that?" Jamie asked.
"I'm not sure yet. But I know for damn sure I'm not gonna write it down."
"Uh guys?" Keith asked, they both turned to face him, and he shrugged, "Can't we just tell each other?"
Jamie and Jenny both paused and Jenny added, "Pretend that argument didn't just happen."
"Deal." Jamie said, "You're up buddy."
"Right, so Nathan and Haley were their normal light fluffy coupley makes you sick kind of thing, but it felt fake, like they were only doing it for my dad and my grandma's benefit. Uncle Nathan seriously resents the fact that Aunt Haley makes him go to see Dan."
"Yeah, mom makes him go every year. He absolutely hates it. They sometimes argue for days over it." Jamie said.
"Yeah but at the same time I think he's… grateful that she does it. Grateful that she won't let him give up on his father." Keith finished.
"Brooke is still hopelessly in love with Lucas." Jenny piped up, "I had her tell me the whole high school drama story."
"Oh yeah, that's messy." Keith commented.
"What happened?" Jamie asked.
Jenny and Keith gave him the abridged version, and Jenny continued, "So I asked her why they broke up, and she announced it was time to go home. James?"
"Did you know your grandparents don't know your parents are separated?"
"No way. They didn't tell the grandparents Jagelski?" Jenny asked, "No wonder they had no problem with me going shopping instead of coming with."
"Anyway your grandma kept going on about what a great daughter Peyton is and how lucky she is to have Peyton as a member of the family. Good stuff like that." Jamie said.
Jenny nodded, "Grandma has always been a mom to mom. She lost both of hers when she was young. One at like eight and the other at eighteen. Grandma always makes a fuss over her."
"Well what do you guys think our next moves should be?" Keith asked.
"Well I guess I'm gonna talk to Uncle Luke, tomorrow like I said. See what I can get out of him. Maybe find out what was the cause of the break-up." Jenny shrugged.
"I got a lot of vibes from Aunt Peyton today but basically nothing from Uncle Jake. I guess I should start on him." Jamie added.
"I'm going to talk to Uncle Nathan about Dan and then see if I can swing the conversation to him and Aunt Haley." Keith said.
There was a knock on the door that made all three of them gasp in surprise.
"Come in." Jamie called.
Brooke and Lucas opened the door, "Hey kids, sorry. We know it's late but can we talk to Keith for a bit?"
"Sure." Keith said to his mother, while the other two nodded.
After the door had closed again Jenny turned to Jamie, "If we had notebooks we would have been busted." Jamie rolled his eyes.
"What's up?" Keith asked when they got to Brooke's room, which was across the hall from Luke's.
"We wanted to talk to you about what happened today." Lucas said.
"At the prison." Brooke added, "Nathan and Haley told us about… well about what Dan said when you walked in."
"I'm fine." Keith said clearly not wanting to talk about it.
"Keith." Lucas said, "Don't take that tone with your mother."
"Sorry. Look I'm fine. Can't we just leave it?" he asked.
"Keith, this was a big thing for you. You met your grandfather today in a prison." Brooke said taking his hand, "He thought you looked like-"
"Brooke." Lucas interrupted.
"What?" she asked.
"I don't think Keith wants to talk about that part."
"Keith doesn't want to talk about it? Or Lucas doesn't want to talk about it?" she asked.
"Keith doesn't want to talk about any of it." Keith said standing, "Night mom, dad." He added kissing his mother's cheek, and heading straight for the door.
Brooke sighed, "He's okay right?"
Lucas nodded, "Yeah, he's uh he's fine." The same could not be said for him however and Brooke knew it. But she let him walk out her door without a word anyway.
Peyton made the bed and glanced over her shoulder to Jake trying to get comfortable on the chair, "You know you could take the bed for the night. I don't mind sleeping on the chair tonight."
"I'm fine." Jake said, "Just go to sleep."
Peyton sat down and looked at him, "Is this really what you want?"
Jake knew she wasn't talking about the chair but he refused to answer the other question, "Yeah." He nodded, "The chairs fine."
Peyton nodded refusing to let any tears fall, "Okay, goodnight."
"So Brooke, Peyton, and I are going to the mall tomorrow for some last minute Christmas shopping." Haley said as she and Nathan lay in bed.
He was reading one of his sports magazines, "Oh yeah? Have fun."
Haley nodded, "Yeah. Is there anything you need me to pick up? A last present you might have forgot?"
"Nope. I got everything."
"Okay." Nathan reached over and hit the lights. Haley rolled and faced one side, Nathan rolled to face to other and they both fell soundly asleep.
Brooke could always tell when Tyler was awake. Even if it was three in the morning and he wasn't making a sound, she still knew. Which is why at three in the morning she pulled on her robe and headed for Andrea's room.
"Hey baby boy." She whispered.
"Momma." He said.
"Shh, come one, honey." She said lifting him out of the crib.
"Mom?" Penelope yawned sleepily.
"Go back to sleep, baby girl." Lucas said from the doorway having heard and followed Brooke.
"Hey." She said softly.
"Why's he awake?" Lucas asked as they walked back down the hall.
"Cause he's your son." Brooke laughed.
"What?"
"Lucas you were always awake and doing something at all hours of the night. Usually writing." She said as he held her door open for her, "I'd find you asleep in the oddest places, and I'd have to find a spare blanket to cover you."
Lucas paused at the doorway, "You used to cover me with a blanket?"
"Did you think there was a blanket fairy?" she asked sarcastically.
"No, I- I guess I never really thought about it."
"I know." She nodded, "Okay Tyler it's very late- or early rather- and mommy is very tired so let's get to the route of your insomnia, so I can sleep." She added kissing his cheeks.
"No tired mommy."
"Yes tired Tyler." Lucas said, deciding to shelf the conversation for now.
"Hey Keith, I do believe Christmas has come a few days early for you." Jenny said waking both him and Jamie.
"What?" Keith asked yawning.
"Come on." She said grabbing his arm, she nodded to Jamie too, and she dragged them both down the stairs to Brooke's room, "Now be really quiet." She added as she opened the door.
There on Brooke's bed were Lucas and Brooke both sleeping soundly with Tyler in the middle. Brooke's hand was holding Tyler's left and Luke was holding Tyler's right.
"Go Ty." Keith said closing the door.
"I came to find Aunt Brooke to help make breakfast before Aunt Haley could force sugarless cereal on us when I found them." Jenny said, "You're welcome."
"You know they aren't back together right?" Keith asked as the headed for the kitchen.
"But come on they're in the same bed." Jenny said.
"Yeah, for Tyler. There's not much mom and dad won't do for one of us." Keith said, "Don't get me wrong it's definitely progress, you're just not there yet."
"Christmas Vacation is supposed to be relaxing." Jamie said as Jenny groaned into her hands.
"This was your idea." Keith pointed out.
"I know, I just didn't realize how hard it was gonna be."
"Did you think all we needed to do was hang some mistletoe and they'd all start making out like teenagers?" Jenny asked rhetorically.
The three paused and grinned at one another before high-fiving Jenny.
When Lucas and Brooke finally woke up and exited Brooke's room the kids pretended they didn't know anything. When Tyler piper up, "Mommy and daddy slept in my bed." Later they pretended they didn't hear him. When they started arguing over what Christmas song they were listening to on Tyler's first Christmas Keith called Penelope in to break up the fight.
"We were not fighting." Brooke said.
"Yeah Pen sometimes that how adults talk to each other." Lucas said, "Especially ones with mouths as big as your mother."
Brooke gasped and slapped his shoulder, "Yeah and ones with heads as big as your father."
"What are you two going on about now?" Haley asked walking into the living room, "God, you'd swear you're still married."
Both Brooke and Lucas shut up.
"So when do you want to leave for the mall?" Brooke asked changing the subject.
"I guess before lunch. Luke you guys will be okay with all seven kids?"
"You mean can we handle our children with the mothers around?" he asked Haley, "Yeah I think we'll be fine."
"Okay but make sure Nathan doesn't swear in front of them. And don't give Jamie and Andy junk food."
"Hales, I still have the laminated index card or rules from the first time I babysat Jamie ten years ago."
"Seriously?" Brooke asked.
Lucas nodded and pulled out his wallet, "I figured when they decide it's time to cart Haley away someone has to take care of them. Nathan will be too stricken with grief to do anything but cry, "Haley? Where's Haley?"
"Ha ha." Haley added flatly.
"Say Uncle Jake?" Jamie asked when they were alone that afternoon. Nathan had been recruited for a tea party with Andy, Penelope, and Ellie, and Lucas had to put Tyler down for a nap.
"Yeah kid?"
"How did you and Aunt Peyton get back together all those years ago? I mean I know how Uncle Luke and Peyton broke up prompting Keith's parents to give it another try. But what made you and Aunt Peyton decided to get back together?"
"Oh, jeez." Jake muttered, "Well uh Jamie, I guess Jenny was about six or seven. We had moved back to Tree Hill when I won custody of her. I was walking Jenny home from school she was in first grade at the time and- Jamie are you sure you wouldn't rather play catch or something? I'm really good at catch."
"Uncle Jake."
"Fine," he sighed, "So we were walking home and our route took us right by Peyton's old house -Her dad was selling it and she had come home to I guess say goodbye- well I was concentrating on the road and the cars when Jenny stopped dead in her tracks and said, "It's her." And I asked her whom she was talking about, and she pointed up the driveway and said, "That's the lady from my dreams."
"And what did you say to me?" Jenny asked walking into the kitchen. She already knew, but that didn't mean she didn't want to hear him say it.
Jake smiled at his daughter, "I looked up to where you were pointing and I said, "That's the lady from my dreams too."
Jenny's smile faded as she remembered the situation they were now in, "Then what happened?" Jamie asked.
"He kissed her." Jenny answered emotionless, "No words or anything. He just walked up to her scoped her in his arms and kissed her."
"Well thanks Uncle Jake. Come on Jen." Jamie said dragging her out, "Hey Uncle Luke." He added as Lucas entered the kitchen.
"Hey bud." Lucas looked at Jake who was staring at the sandwich he'd made, "What's going on man?"
"Nothing."
Lucas watched his friend for a minute before asking, "Do you wanna go take pictures of Nathan sipping tea in Andy's costume jewelry and make-up?" Jake looked up and grinned.
"So spill Tutor Girl." Brooke said as the girls looked in their favorite clothing store for old times sake.
"Spill what?" Haley asked.
"What'd you get Nathan this year?" Peyton clarified, then added, "God, remember when we could fit into this stuff?" She held up a tiger striped halter that resembled one she had as a teenager.
"Oh I got him a sweater." Haley shrugged.
Peyton and Brooke stopped and stared at her, "A sweater?" the asked in unison.
"What?" Haley asked, "It's a nice sweater."
"Hales, you don't get your husband a sweater." Brooke said.
"What did you get Lucas?" she asked.
"That doesn't matter. Luke and I aren't married anymore. I actually can get him a sweater." Brooke shrugged, "But I bought him a new laptop."
Peyton and Haley turned to stare, "A laptop?"
"What?"
"You bought your ex-husband a laptop? Brooke those things run like what six hundred dollars?"
"I bought a Mac." She said softly, "What? Look he's the father of my children. Writing is his career. It'd be like if he bought me a really nice sewing machine."
"A sewing machine that costs nine hundred dollars!" Haley said, "Nathan's sweater was like forty. I'm almost afraid to ask what you got Jake, Peyton."
Peyton shrugged, "Not much, just a new guitar."
"Oh god, why did I buy Lucas such an expensive present?" Brooke moaned.
"Why did I buy Nathan such a cheap present?"
"Oh Haley just buy him a new basketball and your problems are solved. The laptop was non-refundable."
"She's right." Peyton shrugged to Haley.
"Okay let's go to the sporting good store."
"Oh!" Brooke clapped her hands together, "Buy him a new hoop."
"What?" Haley asked, "You said basketball."
"Hales, come on. He'd love it."
"Stop trying to make me buy an expensive gift just so yours doesn't look so extravagant."
"Haley, please." Brooke begged, "It'd be a perfect gift for him."
"For Nathan or for Lucas?" Peyton asked.
"I don't know." Brooke admitted, "Both."
"Fine, but only because Nathan could really use a new hoop." Haley admitted.
"We should leave this store." Peyton said glancing around at all the seventeen year old girls staring at the three almost thirty year olds.
Okay please review. I just wrote the last two chapters of this story, so all I gotta do now is fill in the blanks. Wish me luck.
-Em