I am sooo sorry, it took me so long to update! But I'm back! It wont take me so long to update next time, I promise!

Here is the next chapter! Enjoy . . .

Deb gripped the steering wheel tightly; she didn't know what to expect. Peyton, Brooke, and Haley were all crying in the backseat. Nathan was yelling into his cell-phone, trying to get some answers on Lucas's condition. Things had gotten worse when Nathan had just found out that Lucas was just barely being brought in, and that the situation was looking really bad.

Nathan had closed his cell phone and threw it out the window. The outburst had silenced everyone in the car, shocking them from the sudden outburst. Nathan then rubbed his temples and moaned unhappily. "This is all my fault," he mumbled.

It was Nathan's turn next to be shocked. Deb slammed on the breaks, making everyone sling forward from the sudden halt. "Nathan Scott! This is not your fault, so I suggest that you backtrack your last statement before I make you walk the rest of the way!" Deb blared angrily at the teen.

It was hard to keep his mouth from falling open; Nathan had almost never seen his mother like this before, unless she was speaking with his father. She was almost scary, but that didn't matter right now. He was a mass of emotions that could not be messed with unless the person came equipped with a thirty-foot pole.

Before he knew it, tears were streaming steadily down his face. Everything had just come crashing down on his shoulders, and he felt as if he were drowning.

The irony of his mother's words kept him feeling worse, 'backtrack your last statement'. He wanted to so badly go back in time and take back every nasty word he had told Lucas. His rough exterior of an attitude had been broken through when Lucas had joined the basketball team. He had really become a brother, not just another screwed up relative, and he had ruined it for both of them.

Deb instantly felt like the worst mother in the world when she saw sad tears drip steadily down her son's face. She put her hand and his shoulder and spoke quietly, "Nathan, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that, I know that you're worried . . ."

Nathan interrupted her by saying, "It's not that mom, I just . . ." his words trailed off, as he was at a loss for words. "Let's just get to the hospital," he whispered.

Deb nodded strongly, and pulled back onto the road. This time she couldn't offer the assurance that a mother should, this time she was just as helpless as the day Nathan's first pet had died.

Flashback:

Deb was lying in her bed, cuddling with her husband who was nestled up against her. They had had a long night, she was working hard to find a job and find a full time nana for her four-year-old son. Dan was working hard to pay the bills at his new law-firm, and he wasn't around too much.

Deb was giggling like a schoolgirl when Dan started tickling her stomach. "Dan stop, please . . ." the giggling continued. She had gotten her revenge though when she found Dan's soft spot between his neck, he had stopped immediately and begged her to stop.

Their mischief was brought to a halt when they're bedroom door creaked open to reveal a small dark haired boy in fire-truck pajamas. He was wiping furiously at his eyes, Deb had realized that he was wiping away tears.

She rolled over onto her back, then sat up. "What wrong hunny?" She lifted the small child onto her lap. And watched as he breathed in deeply, getting ready to give her and explanation.

"Mommy, Puffy died! I went to feed him this morning and he was floating upside down. He wasn't moving!" The boy cried openly, pushing his face into his mother's stomach.

Deb was speechless; Nathan had never really understood death and now he had to stare it in the face. "It's okay hunny, it's gonna be okay, I promise."

Dan had done what he always did when there was a problem like this. He had bought Nathan a new goldfish. But Nathan didn't like it as much as he did Puffy.

"Mom, we're here," Nathan told her.

TBC . . .