The Roads Not Taken Chapter 2: Brathan: Because of you, an one tree hill fanfic

I will not make the same mistakes that you did
I will not let myself
Cause my heart so much misery
I will not break the way you did,
You fell so hard
I've learned the hard way
To never let it get that far

xxxx

In her mind she knew that it was wrong. Peyton was her best friend and she knew the pain that having your best friend cheat on you with your boyfriend brought. After all, Peyton and Lucas had done the same thing to her. Sure, this had happened way before Brooke and Peyton's lives had even collided with Lucas's but that still didn't make it right. It didn't change the fact that she slept with her best friend's boyfriend.

As she watched the flashback before her, she could barely keep her eyes open.

"Keith…" She turned to her mentor and sent him a small smile. "I don't really feel like watching this… I know what happened and I don't feel like reliving it."

Keith nodded and in the blink of an eye she found herself standing in Nathan's bedroom, glaring at him ominously.

"I don't see what the big deal is Brooke!" Brooke groaned as she remembered this night. I was something that she chose to push into the back of her mind. She was a different person then and the person that she was today would never even dream of doing what she was going to do pretty soon.

"We slept together Nathan," she growled in retaliation. "How is that not a big deal? You are dating my best friend!"

"Correction, I was dating your best friend. We broke up, remember?" he grinned as he pulled her closer. "And now we can be together. You know I've always had feelings for you Brooke."

"You guys always break up Nathan," Brooke pointed out as she looked him hard in the eyes. "I can't do this to her. It will destroy her."

"How about we do a friends with benefits relationship?" he suggested with a twinkle in his eye. "It could be our little secret."

"And what if Peyton wants you back?" Brooke crossed her arms over her chest and scowled at the brunette. "I don't want to be just the rebound girl."

"You were never the rebound girl Brooke," he smiled, talking a step towards her.

She buried her head in her hands as she watched the scene before her play out. She knew what was going to happen next. They started hooking up occasionally. A few times a week usually. Peyton and Nathan got back together a few months later but that still didn't stop them. She wasn't ready to give up hours of meaningless sex with Nathan because it made her feel like she was actually wanted, even though he was toying with her emotions. She found herself starting to have real feelings towards the Scott boy that had been one of her dearest friends since she could remember.

"Shall we see what happens next?" Keith smiled, breaking the brunette from her thoughts. She simply nodded and braced herself for what was to come.

Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you
I am afraid

xxxx

"I can't do this anymore!" she shouted as she stormed into his room, her brunette locks flying behind her.

"What do you mean you can't do this anymore?" Nathan asked as he got up and walked over to her. "I thought this was working for us?"

"It might work for you but not for me. I wanted to be loved or at least feel like somebody had real feelings for me and now you fuck me when Peyton isn't around. I'm sick of being the girl that's just there, ready to put out."

"Brooke, you know that I have feelings for you," Nathan insisted as he stared at his friend. "I'll break up with Peyton if you want."

"No," she shook her head, brunette locks falling into her face. "I can't do it anymore Nathan. From now on, we are just friends and without the benefits part. We are going to pretend that this never happened. Got it?"

"I can't let it go Brooke," Nathan smiled as he cupped her cheek in his hand and leaned in to give her a soft kiss. "Peyton isn't for me but maybe you are."

"Let's face it Nathan, you only want sex from me. And the sex is great, don't get me wrong but I need more. And I don't think I'm going to get it from you."

"Come on Brooke, please just stay," he pleaded as he reached for her hand. "We can make it work."

"I don't think so Nathan. I need a boy who is going to be more committed to me. And I need a boy who I have an emotional connection to, not just a physical one."

"Brooke…"

"Goodbye Nathan," she whispered as she leaned forward and placed a light kiss on his trembling lips.

"Don't go."

"I have to," she whispered before walking out the door.

"Do you want to see what would have happened if you hadn't left?" Keith asked with a slight smile. Brooke takes in a deep breath and nods. She's always been curious what might have happened if she'd given Nathan a shot. "This would have been your future with Nathan…"

I lose my way
And it's not too long before you point it out
I cannot cry
Because I know that's weakness in your eyes
I'm forced to fake
A smile, a laugh every day of my life
My heart can't possibly break
When it wasn't even whole to start with

xxxx

"God, why do you have to be such an asshole!" she screamed as she slammed her fist into his chest.

"Brooke, I'm trying here…"

"Bullshit you're trying Nathan," she hissed coldly, anger brewing in her hazel eyes. "Going out and getting drunk is not trying!"

"This is a part of my life that is always going to be there," he answered stoically. "I can't change it. It is who I am. You knew that before you agreed to marry me."

"I only agreed to marry you because you got me knocked up at 17 you asshole!" she growled as she ran a hand tiredly over her temple. "I could have had a great life Nathan if I had listened to my initial instincts and left that night. I could have gone to New York and built a fashion empire with my mother but she's disowned me now and I will never get that chance again. You got your dreams Nathan. You get to play in the NBA while I bus tables at a local café and look after our 5 year old daughter!"

"Well that's great Brooke but I warned you. I am not cut out to be a father. Look at my own father for crying out loud!"

"And look at my parents Nathan," she shook her head violently. "That doesn't change the fact that I love Logan more than life itself and I would do anything for her."

"I love my daughter too," he insisted as he glanced at a family photo on the wall. "I just don't know how to be a father because I never had one."

"You learn from your mistakes and use them as incentive to be what your father was not," she answered for him. "If you can't pull your head out of your ass, this is never going to work."

"I have a daughter," Brooke whispered as she looked at Keith expectantly. "I thought I couldn't have children."

"That was a different time Brooke," he reminded her as he put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Do you want to see more?"

"Yeah," she nodded curiously. She was really intrigued by this and she wanted to know what might happen next.

xxxx

"I want a divorce."

"Excuse me?" he turned to her, his blue eyes raging with anger.

"You heard me Nathan. I can't keep living my life like this. I have been miserable for the past ten years and I want out!"

"I'm not letting go Brooke," he hissed as he ran a hand through his brunette locks. "I won't let go of my family. If I give you a divorce, I will never get to see Logan. I won't let you take her away from me."

"Why do you care?" she spat angrily. "You are never even home. You're usually out getting drunk with teammates or fucking blonde bimbos in OUR bed!"

"Why can't we keep our life the way it is?" he asked as he looked down at his hands momentarily. "I like our open relationship and I like being able to experiment with other people. I thought you did to?"

"Well I don't Nathan!" she screamed, her face burning with rage. "I am not the same 17 year old girl that you knocked up in High School. That girl would have been all for this arrangement but I want a real family. I want a family with a man that I love and a man that reciprocates that love back. You know what your problem is Nathan? You never grew up!"

"I'm not giving you the divorce Brooke," he shook his head deviously. "You are going to pay for making my life miserable in the last few years. You have convinced our daughter that I am a horrible person and she hates me."

"You are a horrible person," she spat out pointedly. "Why do you insist on being like Dan? He refused to give your mother a divorce and look how she ended up. Do you want me to end up like that and do you want to be Dan? Because at this rate, history is going to be repeating itself pretty damn quick! Any other girls you might have knocked up in High School?"

"Fuck you Brooke!" he growled before sending her a malicious glare and slamming the door shut.

She felt a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach as she watched the 20-something year old version of herself sink down on the floor behind the door and drown herself in a mass of tears.

"If I had stayed that night, I would have ended up being my mother," she mumbled as she felt a tear start to slip from her eye.

"But you didn't stay and you never became your mother," Keith smiled as he put his arm around her shoulders. "It's a good thing that you followed your heart or else this would have been your future."

"Would you like to see your next fate?" Keith asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah," she smiled and she had a feeling that she knew who would be next. And of all the relationships she's ever been in, the next one was the one that she always wondered about. He was always the one that got away, the one that she imagined her future with the most.

AN: I know that this was short but it was hard to do because they weren't cannon on the show. It helps that I just love Brathan. Next one is Brucas and I am a HUGE Brucas fan so I will have something really good in store. The song used is 'Because of you' by Kelly Clarkson. Don't be shy to click the review button and leave your thoughts behind.