Chapter 36

There's no one in town I know
You gave us some place to go.

"I think something is wrong Brooke" Lucas said as she came out of the bathroom for the third time this morning.

"I'm fine Lucas. The doctor said it was normal"

"I don't know Brooke. I really think we should go to the doctor and get it checked out."

"No I'm fine" she then ran to the bathroom. "alright, will you drive" she shouted through the bathroom door.

I never said thank you for that.
I thought I might get one more chance.

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What would you think of me now,
so lucky, so strong, so proud?

"what's the matter" Peyton asked Jake when she walked into the kitchen.

"nothing, why would you ask"

"you have that 'we need to talk' look"

"great"

"so what's up" she asked sitting down next to him.

"we need to talk"

"knew it" she smiled. He looked at her "sorry, continue" she said

"anyways, as I was saying. We need to talk about college"

"what about college"

"well for starters, where are you planning on going? Are we going to go to the same place? With graduation just around the corner, these topics need to be discussed"

"I know, I guessed I've avoided them as much as I could"

"so where do you want to go"

"well the truth is I don't really want to go to college" she said. She had thought long about it. She never found a school she wanted to go to and she knew she could make a living and be happy without going.

"oh, ok"

"does that upset you"

"no, not at all. I guess it actually makes our decisions a little easier"

"yup it does. See I'm not like those other girls" she smiled "I'm easy" she paused "wait a sec, that didn't come out right"

"it came out just fine" he laughed

"haha" she replied "so what did you have in mind"

"well I actually want to go to NYU" he said

"oh"

"yeah, do you see yourself living in the big apple"

"as long as I'm with you and Jenny, I'll live anywhere." she smiled

I never said thank you for that,
now I'll never have a chance.

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May angels lead you in.
Hear you me my friends.
On sleepless roads the sleepless go.
May angels lead you in.

"well Ms. Davis, I have some bad news" the doctor said

"figured" she sighed

"it seems the chemo is not helping. Your cancer is spreading too quickly."

"what does that mean"

"well" he paused. She knew this was not gonna be good. She grabbed Lucas's hand for strength. "the good news is you can stop taking the chemo. The bad news, is that you don't really have long to live. Your type of cancer is too advanced, and no amount of chemo is going to change that."

She couldn't breathe. How was this happening? Tears began to slide down her face. "how long?" she was afraid to ask

"I don't know. It really depends on your body, whenever it cant take it anymore. That time can range from a few days to a few months."

"a few days" Lucas screamed

"I'm afraid so." the doctor said "I'm so sorry" he got up and left the room leaving them alone. Brooke fell into Lucas' arms. She let her body shake as she cried as hard as she could. A few days. She had a minimum of a few days to live. How was this happening? Lucas tried to comfort her as much as possible, but nothing seemed to work.

So what would you think of me now,
so lucky, so strong, so proud?
I never said thank you for that,
now I'll never have a chance.

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May angels lead you in.
Hear you me my friends.
On sleepless roads the sleepless go.
May angels lead you in.

"these halls seem to get more scarce every day" Haley said as her and Nathan walked down them to their next class.

"I know what you mean. People just don't care anymore, not with graduation in 3 days."

"yeah I know. I cant believe we're actually graduating. It seems like we've waited for this day for so long"

"I know. I'm a little scared"

"you are?" he asked "I'm not, I cant wait to get out of here"

"don't get me wrong, I'm excited too, I'm just a little scared as well"

"gotcha" he smiled "hey guys" he said as Peyton and Jake walked up to them

May angels lead you in.
May angels lead you in.

"hey" Peyton said "has anyone seen Brooke" she asked

"no I haven't" Haley replied "come to think of it, Lucas wasn't in school either"

"I hope everything's okay" Peyton said

"I hope so too" Haley said

"I'm hungry, anyone else want to join" Nathan proposed

"Sounds good to me" Jake replied. They all continued down the hall to the cafeteria.

And if you were with me tonight,
I'd sing to you just one more time.
A song for a heart so big,
god wouldn't let it live.

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May angels lead you in.
Hear you me my friends.
On sleepless roads the sleepless go.
May angels lead you in.

Brooke and Lucas drove home in silence. She had fallen onto him at one point, and continued to rest on his shoulder.

"what am I going to do" Brooke asked between sobs

"you're gong to be Brooke Davis. The strong, sexy, smart girl I know and love." he tried yet again to comfort her.

"thanks Lucas"

"I'm trying"

"I know you are, and that's why I love you so much" she tried to smile

"what do you want to do today" he asked trying to change the subject

"I don't know"

"come on, there has to be something you want to do"

"I want to live a long and happy life but that dream was already flushed down the toilet" she began to cry

"Oh Brooke." he pulled over to the side of the road. "Look at me" he said grabbing her arms and facing her toward him "you are going to be here, with me. The doctor said its all up to your body, which means he doesn't know. You need to fight Brooke and you need to be strong. Because I need you here okay."

She fought back the tears. "okay" she whispered

"now, what do you want to do today"

"I want to go to school and be with my friends" she said

"sounds perfect" he said while driving off toward the school

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May angels lead you in.
Hear you me my friends.
On sleepless roads the sleepless go.
May angels lead you in.

They pulled into the parking lot and saw their friends sitting eating lunch. Brooke began to form tears.

"are you okay" Lucas asked

"I'm fine" she said "this scene is just perfect Luke. I don't want to leave. I don't want to die Luke. Please, don't let me go" she began crying all over again.

"Brooke I will never let you go." he said wrapping his arms around her. After she had calmed down again they finally got out of the car and headed over to their friends. Brooke couldn't hold it in any longer. She ran over to Peyton and Haley and wrapped them in a big hug. She never wanted to leave these people. The friends she had grown to love and depend on. Yeah normally, people would go their separate ways after graduation, but this time it was different. Brooke wasn't sure when she would ever see them again. She wanted to stay in their arms forever. Lucas came over and put his hand on Brooke's arm. She finally pulled out of the hug and wiped away a few stray tears.

"Is everything okay" Peyton asked

"it is now" Brooke smiled. These people had saved her life in so many ways, but now she needed them more than ever.

May angels lead you in.

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song is "hear you me" by Jimmy eat world