I'm back! Hope you didn't miss me too much! It's been a while, so I have a lot in bold today…
1) I'm updating this now because I finally finished my other story (yay!), so I should also have a new chapter of Brooke's story up soon.
2) Hope everyone had a great Christmas or Hanukkah or whatever everyone celebrates; even if you didn't celebrate anything, hope you had a great time over the holidays.
3) I cannot believe I only just found out Chad and Sophia split up! Absolutely none of my friends told me until the holidays when my cousin told me. What is going on there? Does anyone know why they split?
4) I finally got hold of the Gavin DeGraw album and I love it, love it, love it! I love the song Just Friends so much and I just read LilAngel413's songfic Just Friends while I was listening to it. (Thank you LilAngel for making me so determined to find the album!)
5) I am so confused! I saw the new film version of Narnia at Christmas and I seriously cannot decide who is actually the best looking guy in existence – CMM or William Moseley! Your help on this matter would be greatly appreciated!
6) The second series finished! OMG, I cannot believe all the things that happened in the finale and I cannot wait for the third series to be aired over here. And is it just me being ignorant, or did none of the characters have a birthday in the whole of junior year?
7) And thanks to jeytonlover for describing this as 'good Jeyton'. I aim to please!
Ok, finally, here's the actual chapter…
The doorbell rang and Brooke put Jamie in his cot to go and answer it. Peyton was standing on the doorstep, her eyes slightly red, carrying a bag from the chemist on the same road as Karen's Café.
"Hi Peyton! Come in, I just made some coffee."
"Oh, is Ross in?" Peyton hesitated.
'"No, he's out buying supplies for his best friend's bachelor party. Why am I dreading that again?" Brooke joked, but Peyton barely smiled. "Come on, what's up?" Brooke closed the door and sat down on the sofa.
"So I was flicking back through my diary, to work out how long Jake and I had been going out-"
"Two months. All you had to do was ask me, hun."
"Anyway, and I realised that I haven't had a period in nearly three months. And a couple of weeks ago I started getting sick in the mornings, and my breasts have been growing just a little bit, which normally I wouldn't consider a bad thing, but…" Peyton reached into the bag, pulled out a small rectangular box and held it up.
"Oh Peyton…" Brooke reached over and hugged her best friend.
"So I was wondering, since you've done it, like twice before, if I could just find out here?"
"Sure. Just go to the bathroom on the left of the hall and I'll get you something to drink."
A couple of minutes later, Peyton came back into the living room and Brooke handed her a mug of coffee.
"The longest two minutes of my like, right?" Peyton sighed. "What did Lucas say when you told him you were pregnant?"
"Well, actually I told him I thought I was pregnant, and he took me to the drugstore to buy a test. He was very mature and calm about it all, which must have been pretty hard for him." Peyton tilted her head, inquiring. "Well, considering I was being kinda harsh on him, because 'first he cheated on me and then got me knocked up', as I think I so charmingly put it." Brooke took a sip of her coffee. "How do you think Jake will take it, if it's positive?"
"I honestly don't know. I guess he did it all before too, with Nicki and Jenny. But I don't even know what I'd do. Keep it, give it up, have an abortion, those are my three options. I mean, I'm falling for Jake, I seriously am. But I only moved from Atlanta a little over three months ago; and Lucas has left, you and Haley had babies, the whole thing with Jake and Carla and chlamydia and now this? It's all too much to cope with."
"Well, if we're sharing secrets, I should probably tell you mine." Brooke shifted in her seat. "I was at the paediatrician's a couple of days ago, for Jamie's two month check-up. They say it's too early to know for definite, and they have to check again when he's a few months older, but… but he might be deaf. Permanently. They say he might not ever hear."
"Oh… have you told Ross yet?" Peyton placed her hand on Brooke's knee.
"No, and don't say anything to him. I don't want him to get worried about a false alarm." Brooke wiped her face and smiled at Peyton. "I'm sorry Peyt, I'm tearing up and it's you who has the problem. Do you think it'll be ready yet?"
Peyton got up from the sofa and headed towards the bathroom. When she got back, holding the test, her face was tear-streaked and her lip was quivering.
"It's positive."
A/n: Just for the record, the test is not a fluke. Peyton is pregnant, but will she keep it? I haven't even decided myself yet, and if she does, I seriously cannot decide whether she should have a boy or a girl, and I have no names either. Tell you what, we'll have a vote on all matters regarding Peyton's pregnancy. Answers on a postcard please (I suppose in a review would do…) -TF