Holy crap! I did not just have two updates in one night. LOL So, I was planning on ending this story with one more chapter, well, this chapter, but it looks like it's going to have two more. So YAY for that. LOL I hope I don't go soft on you guys, though. This is one of my favorite ones that I have written, so I hope I don't screw it up! Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Enjoy!
Oh, it's a little shorter than usual, but what do you expect when it's the second update in one night! HA HA
Alabama is beautiful, Brooke decides. The beach is full of white sand, off the Gulf of Mexico, which to her, is nothing like the dirty sand covering the beaches she's used to. Her toes curl into the sand as a swift breeze lifts her hair off her shoulders. She's spent all day at the beach, and she should get going home. She just can't seem to force herself up. Never mind the fact that a seven month pregnant belly is never very easy to lift.
She heaves a sigh, and pushes herself up from the sand. As she straightens, she rubs her back, trying to get it to cooperate. After a moment, she bends over and starts to collect her things. It's only a small basket that she carries, since it's hard enough carrying a human being in your stomach. She smiles at the thought. In only a few more months she would be a mother, and her baby would be here. And she can't wait.
So far, pregnancy has been great for Brooke. Every month she goes for her check up right on time. At five months, she got to see her baby for the second time, well, the first time she doesn't count because the baby looked nothing like a baby then. The sonographer had asked if she wanted to know the sex of her baby, but she requested not to. She wants it to be a surprise. At seven months, she got to see her baby again, and her doctor told her everything was going great, and her baby was perfect. So is Brooke. Perfect. Her life is turning out just how she wants it to. Unfortunately, it has to be without the friends she once pictured. She has made new friends, though. A couple of her neighbors were woman who were also pregnant, and once a week they got together to have lunch. And the old couple have become very find of her, the older lady bringing her sweets all the time.
Her feet dig into the sand as she makes her way back up to the walk. She always walks to the beach. At least three times a week, and it's only about a fifteen minute walk from her house. Once she gets to the sidewalk, she slips her flip-flops on, and carries on her way. Sometimes, in her walks alone, she misses her old life and friends. But then she remembers all of the bad times, and she quickly dismisses her feelings. Lucas creeps into her brain a lot, but she tries even harder not to think about him.
Her eyes scan the coast, watching as the waves crash against the sand. She has no regrets about moving away from Tree Hill and to Alabama. She watches as people pass by her, and playful children jump into the gulf water. She can't help but picture her son or daughter one day doing the same. She sighs happily, and trudges along, knowing she looks like a duck waddling. A smile is permanently fixed onto her face these days.
She has to rest her feet for a moment, so she sits on a bench facing the coast. Crowds of people are still on the beach, laughing, playing, all in their summer wear, having fun. She swears she sees Lucas amongst the crowd, looking at her. It's only an illusion. Sometimes she sees him a lot. Sometimes, not so much. Sometimes she misses him more than she'll ever admit. Deep down she knows she's made the right decision. She's happy now. Happier than she has ever imagined. She sees Lucas down on the beach, his hair buzzed off, khaki cargo shorts, and a white t-shirt and flip-flops. She swears he's looking at her, a smile on his face. But she shakes her head, and tells herself it's not real. It never is real. By now, he's probably made up with Peyton, and married for all she knows. And she tells herself she doesn't care, but it's a lie every time.
After a few moments, she's up again, walking along towards her house. She waves at her neighbors when she reaches her neighborhood. They've asked about the father of her child, and she just tells them her baby doesn't need a father, because she's going to be enough. The old lady that loves her doesn't understand that, though, and is always trying to hook her up with her grandson. Which would be fine, except her grandson is sixteen and still in high school. Still, she smiles amusedly at the old lady, and politely thanks her for thinking of her.
"Brooke! Brooke!" The old lady flags her down from her front yard. Brooke's feet are tired, but even through her pregnant state, she knows it's easier for her to walk towards Laura, than it is for Laura to walk to her.
"Hi Laura," Brooke smiles at her. "Doing some more gardening?"
"Oh yes," the old lady smiles. "I've baked you some cookie, I'll have George bring them by later. I see you have enough in your hands already." Her thick southern accent is apparent through her words. "Also, my grandson is coming by tomorrow to mow the lawn, you might want to come and meet him."
"I'll try to clear my schedule, Laura," Brooke chuckles. "And thanks for the cookies, but you really don't have to. You've already made me fat enough!"
"Nonsense!" Laura waves her off. "You were nothin' but skin an' bones when you moved here. If anything, I've filled you out some."
Brooke laughs. "What would I do without you, Laura?"
"Starve," the old lady smiles. "That dress you made me for is gorgeous, Brooke, and it fits perfectly. Thank you."
"No prob, Laura," Brooke smiles. "It's the least I could do since you've practically kept me fed these last six months. But, I have to get going, though. My feet are killing me and this basket isn't getting any lighter."
"Okay, Brooke, George'll be by later."
"Thanks again, Laura."
Brooke waves at the old lady as she walks away towards her home. She sets her basket down right away as she enters, and then plops down onto her couch to rest her feet. Her hands find her swollen belly and she rubs on it.
"You're going to be a big baby," she chuckles. "At least you better be, I hope I didn't gain all this weight to have only a six pound baby."
In response, the baby turns in her stomach, causing a wave to ripple across her stomach. Brooke smiles in response. She loves when her baby moves. She feels something weird in her stomach, almost like a pop, and then her stomach starts to severely cramp.
"Ahhh.." she whimpers, leaning forward, grabbing onto her round belly. Her stomach hardens and the pain worsens. "Oh my god," she whimpers. "Oww…" The pain worsens to the point that Brooke starts to cry. But when she feels liquid seeping between her legs, she knows there is really something wrong. And for a moment, she wonders if karma is coming back to get her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lucas watches as Brooke walks along the sidewalk. Well, more like waddles along the sidewalk. She has no idea he watches her, and he figures it's the only way she'll let him be in her life. So he keeps his distance, and watches her, just to make sure she's okay and protected. Sometimes he thinks she sees him, because her eyes catches his, but then they drift away, and there's no hint of suspicious written on her face. As though maybe she thinks he's not real.
Her eyes catches his today, and he smiles up at her, shoving his hands into his pockets. He figures someday she'll figure out he's real, and be ready to talk to him, but until that day comes, he'll keep his distance. Because he doesn't deserve to barge into her life while she's so happy. And she is very happy. He can tell by the permanent smile and the light in her eyes, which he can see even though he's never in close range with her.
Pregnancy looks good on her. She looks as though she's shoved a basketball under her shirt. When he thinks that it's his baby growing in her belly, he gets tingles. She is growing a part of him in her, and he can't to see the small child, even though he may never be able to meet him or her.
He's miserable just watching her, but he'll take his misery just so she can be happy. It's what she deserves after so long of being cast aside by all of her good friends, and even her family. And she's made a lot of friends in Alabama; friends that seem to be genuinely interested in her.
He hasn't really communicated with anyone from Tree Hill since he left. Every once in awhile he'll call Nathan and Haley to see how Jamie is doing. He has learned that Haley is pregnant with their second child, and he really is happy for them. But, he can't be a part of that life when where he really needs to be is protecting Brooke and his child, even if she's oblivious to it. He has also learned that Peyton moved back to L.A., taking her label with her. Supposedly, she's doing well, but that could just be what Haley tells him. He's not sure, and he doesn't really care, either. He's also learned that Skills is dating Deb, which is very creepy to him.
He keeps his distance behind Brooke as she enters her neighborhood, and watches as she walks to her elderly neighbor, Laura. She waves good-bye to her neighbor, and goes into her house. Lucas slowly walks along the sidewalk, stopping in front of Laura's house.
"How is she today?" Lucas asks.
"Lucas," Laura looks up, pleasantly surprised. "She's doing good. How are you doing, young man?"
"Good," he smiles with a nod.
"You look thirsty, do you want some lemonade?" She asks.
"No thanks," Lucas shakes his head. "I'm good."
"She's lucky, you know." Laura speaks up. Lucas looks at her questioningly. "To have you protecting her. She's very lucky."
"I wouldn't say lucky," Lucas shakes his head. "She deserves this, Laura. I've screwed up a lot with her."
"One of these days she's going to find out about you," Laura points out. "I can only try to push my grandson on her for so long before she figures out he's really sixteen and in high school."
Lucas chuckles. "She'll figure it out once she's ready to," he nods.
"She looked a little pale today, Lucas, you might want to check in on her."
"Thanks, Laura," Lucas smiles. "You know, thank you for looking out for her and feeding her so much. She has never really been much of a cook."
"She's doing better," Laura smiles. "I've been giving her some recipes. She hasn't screwed one up in quite a while."
Lucas chuckles. "Well, I better go check on her."
"You're a good man, Lucas. One day she'll forgive you."
Lucas nods his head. "Thanks, Laura."
There's a smile on his face as he walks towards Brooke's house. It was weird how he met Laura. Although, he had to expect Brooke's neighbors to get suspicious when they saw him peeking into her windows, but Laura had popped up right behind him, spraying him with a hose. He had fallen to the ground, and tried to shield himself from the water, but she was relentless. It wasn't until he shouted that he was the father of Brooke's baby that she stopped. Then he explained his whole situation to her, and ever since she's been helping him out. Letting him know how Brooke's days were, and how her doctor appointments went. He is glad he has at least one person on his side, even if he's not exactly sure why the old lady had decided to help him.
He creeps around Brooke's house, peeking into the windows, until he sees her sitting on the couch. At first he thinks she's only napping, but when he sees a trail of blood running down her smooth legs, he panics. He has vowed he would always stay back in the shadows and watch her, but he can't let something happen to her or the baby. So, he sprints around the house to her door.
"Call 911, Laura!" He shouts as he makes his way to the door.
He tries to open her front door, but it's lock, so he shoves his shoulder into her door continuously until he manages to force it open. He sprints to her side. "Brooke!" He shouts, hoping to arouse her, but she doesn't respond. He rubs the side of her face. "Brooke! Brooke! Wake up, baby. Come on." He looks down her body, at her swollen belly, to her legs where there's blood. "Shit, come on, Brooke. Come on, wake up, baby!" He tries to shake her. He puts his fingers to her neck to find a pulse, and he does. "Brooke! Come on! Wake up!"
She's not responding at all, and he's scared shitless. He hopes Laura has called 911. He puts his arms under her limp form and picks her up. He carries her towards the front door where he hears the loud sirens. "I don't know what's wrong!" He shouts to Laura, who looks panic stricken. The ambulance pulls up in front of her house, and the paramedics bring a stretcher up, and Lucas lays Brooke down.
"I'm coming!" Lucas shouts after the paramedics, and they much assume he's with Brooke because they don't object.
The paramedics are working on Brooke and saying things Lucas doesn't really understand, but he knows he's worried as hell. He's promised himself he'd protect Brooke, and he will never forgive himself if something horrible happens while he was doing it. All he did was talk to Laura for a few moments. How could something like this happen?
Before he knows it, they're pulling up to the hospital and he's being pushed around until he's waiting in the waiting room. He can't sit, so he paces back forth across the room, waiting for some kind of news. Any kind of news. Every time a doctor walks up, he braces himself for the inevitable, and every time the doctor either walks past or talks to someone else.
It's three hours, and twenty-five minutes later before the doctor comes to talk to him. "You're here for Brooke Davis?"
"Yes," Lucas nods his head. "Is she okay? Is the baby okay?"
"They're stabilized," the doctor nods. "It seems as though some of the placenta has detached itself, which caused the bleeding, and pain. She's also dehydrated, my guess is from being in the sun all day, which ultimately between that and the blood loss, made her pass out. She and the baby will be fine, but she is going to have to be on bed rest. That means being in bed a lot. This is a very serious matter, and we need her to take it seriously. She's going to need a lot of help."
"Is she awake?" Lucas asks, tentatively.
The doctor shakes his head. "She woke up for a little while, but she's asleep again. We'll keep her here until she's rehydrated, but then we'll let her go home, but on strict bed rest. We need to keep that baby in her for as long as possible. At twenty-nine weeks the chances of survival are good, but they're even better the further along she gets. She needs to understand this. You can go in and see her now, but let her rest as much as possible."
"Is she sleeping?" Lucas asks again, just to reaffirm she wasn't awake.
The doctor nods. "Do you have any questions, Lucas?"
"Why did the placenta detach? Or whatever."
"We don't really know why it does. It's something that doesn't happen very often, but can be very serious if it's not watched very carefully."
"Okay," Lucas nods.
Lucas takes in a deep breath as the doctor walks off. He's scared now. Brooke doesn't know he's here, and if he walks into her room while she's awake, she's just going to get stressed out. He has to help her, though. She has no one here that can take total care of her. He has to let her know that he's here for her. He's just afraid of what it's going to do to her and the baby.
He stands in her doorway, and watches as her chest rises and falls as she sleeps. She's so peaceful. He doesn't want to ruin it. So he stays in the doorway, afraid to go all the way in, but also afraid to walk away. She moves a little in her sleep, and Lucas' breath catches in his throat and his heart stops. When she settles back down, he starts to breathe again.
"Are you the father?" A soft voice asks from behind him.
He turns around and nods towards the nurse who's asked him. "Yeah, I am."
"She's going to need your help," she tells him. "But, don't worry, you'll be able to do it."
"I hope so," Lucas sighs.
When he turns back around, Brooke's eyes are open and she's staring directly at him. This time he's sure he has stopped breathing, and his heart has stopped. She doesn't blink or anything as she stares at him, as though she's trying to figure out of he's real or not. He nervously lets out a chuckle.
"Uh, hi," he gives a small wave.
"Am I dead?" She asks.
"No," Lucas shakes his head. "You're not dead, and please don't freak out. You can't stress about anything right now, because of the baby."
"What are you doing here, Lucas?" She asks, her voice flat and unamused.
"I um, I've been here for a while," he answers her.
"You've been at the hospital for a while?"
"No, I've been here for a while," he explains. "I-I saw you. In your house. I had Laura call 911."
"You know Laura?"
"She tells me about you."
"Why are you here, Lucas?" She asks again.
"I had to make sure you were okay."
"And you didn't think you should leave once you found out that I was?"
"I couldn't," he shrugs. "I couldn't leave you again. So, I stayed. And I've been watching you for about four months now. I know it sounds creepy, but I had to be here for you, even if you didn't know it. I had to protect you."
"Lucas," she shakes her head. "I asked you not to come. I begged you not to come."
"I know," Lucas nods his head. "I know. I just-I couldn't. I couldn't be in Tree Hill without you. I couldn't just-I had no reason to be there anymore. And it's a good thing, because you're going to need me now."
"I don't need you, Lucas," she shakes her head.
"You do," he insists. "You have to be on strict bed rest, and I have to take care of you."
"I'm fine," she states, firmly.
"You're not fine," he shakes his head. "The doctor said something about the placenta coming undone, or something, and that it's serious, and you need someone to help you out a lot, because you need to be on strict bed rest."
"Everything will be fine, Lucas. You can go."
"I'm not leaving," he shakes his head. "I'm not leaving you, or the baby. Our baby." She looks up at him through squinted eyes. "I know you don't want me in your life, and I get it. I get why. But, I can't let something happen to you, or our baby, because even though you don't want me in his or her life, that baby is still my flesh and blood."
"You'll just raise my stress level," Brooke tells him. "Just like you are doing now."
"I'm sorry," he whispers. "I can't leave when you need me."
"I don't need you. Just go home, Lucas."
"I don't have a home," he says. "You are my home, Brooke. Even if you don't know it, you are."
Brooke sighs and closes her eyes. She was so surprised to see Lucas standing in her doorway, but also somewhat relieved. Because ever since they told her she was going to have to be on bed rest, she wasn't sure how she could manage it. And even though she's acting as if she doesn't want him there, she knows she needs him now. Damn Lucas Scott for always being some freaking Knight in Shining armor.