Love, Lies, and Loss
Disclaimer: I own no rights to One Tree Hill or any of its characters.
A/N: Just to kill the suspense, this will be a Brucas fic. I am more of a Leyton girl myself, but I had this idea and I just had to go with it.
Three Years Later
"Hello," Brooke answered the phone, "Haley! I haven't talked to you in ages! What's up? …. What happened? …. An accident?"
There was a long pause on the other end of the phone. When the silence was finally broken, Brooke heard news that could have killed her on the spot.
"What?" Brooke screamed, "How could that be? Oh my god Haley. I don't know what to say," Brooke sat down and began to cry, "I can't believe it. How could this have happened? Everything was perfect, for everyone, why this? Why now?"
Another long pause was on the other end of the phone. And then the sound of tears.
"Haley, I know you have a lot to deal with right now. Why don't you give me a call when you know all of the arrangements…. Of course I will be there. Goodbye," Brooke hung up the phone and could not believe what she had just heard. She pulled her legs to her chest, put her head on her knees, and cried.
This can't be, Brooke thought to herself. We never fixed things and I left. So many things I left unresolved. If I hadn't left, things would be different. This wouldn't have happened, and I would still have my best friend.
When Brad came home from work, three hours later, Brooke was in the same position as she was after the phone call.
"Honey?" Brad approached an obviously upset Brooke. He kneeled next to her and pulled her head up, "What's wrong? What happened?"
She hugged her husband, "I love you," and she cried.
"Okay. You are scaring me. What is going on?"
"I have to go to Tree Hill."
"Tree Hill? For what?"
"A funeral."
"Who's funeral Brooke?"
"Peyton's," she burst into tears at the sound coming out of her mouth.
"Your old best friend Peyton?"
"That's the only Peyton I know."
"Oh honey," Brad squeezed Brooke, "I'm so sorry. It'll be okay."
"It'll never be okay with us. I cut her out of my life. She was my best friend since we were kids and I cut her out of my life."
"It's all in the past sweetie. I'm sure she knew you loved her."
"How? I haven't spoken a word to her in five years. How was she supposed to know that I never forgot about her?"
"She knew. Let's get you up. I'll make you a bubble bath," Brad hoisted Brooke up and carried her to the bedroom. He laid her on the bed and began drawing the water for her bath.
"Brad," Brooke said as she entered the bathroom.
"Are you feeling better?" He questioned her.
"Not really, but it wouldn't be good for Tegan to see me like this. I need to hold it together for him. Will you go to the funeral with me?"
"Oh, honey. I'm going to Denver all week for our annual lawyer's convention. You knew that, I told you about it a month ago."
"Can't you skip it?"
"I can't. It's one of the most important meetings all year. I wish I could, but there is no way I can get out of it."
"I can't do this on my own."
"You aren't alone. I won't be there, but I'm still with you and you'll have Tegan."
"Oh gosh," Brooke drew in a long breath, "I forgot about that for a minute."
"Forgot about what?"
"That Tegan would be coming with me. Brad there is something I have to tell you."
"What is it?"
"I know that we agreed it was better not to discuss Tegan's real father, and I never told you this, but he's in Tree Hill."
"What? I thought you got pregnant after you moved here."
"No. I was four months pregnant when I got here. I'm sorry I lied to you. I just didn't want you to know the truth."
"When we met you told me you had moved here five months earlier and had gotten pregnant just after that."
"I lied."
"Brooke? How could you do that? You never thought to tell me the truth? Ever?" Brad questioned her with a hurting sound in his voice.
"Brad, I'm sorry. I guess after a while I didn't think about the truth and just believed my own story."
"So, who's his biological father? Not his REAL father, his biological one?"
"His name is Lucas. He married Peyton three years ago."
"You're ex-best friend's husband huh?"
"Well, technically we were together first. I never told you the real reason why Peyton and I quit being friends either. It was because of him. I was with Lucas and Peyton loved him. I knew she did and it hurt me so much that I cut her out of my life."
"So, you loved him?"
"No, I loved the idea of him and me. I did love him, but not like I love you. I knew that they belonged together and it killed me that they belonged together more than Lucas and I did. So, I finally gave in. I found out I was pregnant and I let him go to her. I didn't want him to be a part of mine and Tegan's lives when I knew that I wasn't the one that he wanted to be with. I couldn't do that to him, or myself. So I left."
"Does he know?"
"Of course not. Why do you think I left? If I would have stayed any longer I think it would have been a little obvious. The only person that knew was Haley and she is still the only one that knows. That's why I'm worried about how things are going to go once Tegan and I get to Tree Hill."
"I can't believe you kept this from me all this time. This entire time I thought you didn't know the father and now I find out that he was your old high school sweetheart."
"Brad, none of this makes a difference anymore. This is our life, right now, and my past and Tegan's biological father make no difference in it."
"Of course they do Brooke," Brad walked out of the bathroom down the stairs.
A few minutes later, Brooke heard the door slam and she once again broke down in tears. Her hurting grew more and more potent and this was only the beginning.
Brooke awoke the next morning to her four and a half year old son jumping on her bed.
"Mommy! Wake up!" The child screamed.
"I'm awake. I'm awake. Enough with the yelling please," Brooke tackled Tegan on the bed and tickled him almost to the point of peed pants.
The two trotted downstairs to the smell of eggs and sausage. They took their seats at the table and waited for their meal.
"Nora?" Brooke called her maid.
"Yes?" Nora replied.
"Has Brad been home this morning?"
"No, ma'am. Not that I've seen. I heard him go out last night. It seemed like he was a bit upset. I heard the door slam. Did something happen last night?"
"We just had a little fight. Everything will be fine. Tegan and I have to take a little trip this week."
"A trip! Yay!" Tegan yelled once again.
"Quieter, please!" Brooke told her son.
"Where are we going mommy?"
"To a town called Tree Hill. It's where you mommy grew up."
"Are there other kids there?"
"I imagine by this time there are plenty."
"Good, I hate going on trips with no other kids," Tegan became bored with the conversation and started munching on his breakfast.
"Are you going to be all right by yourself?" Brooke asked Nora, "Brad is going to be gone for the week as well."
"Oh, I'll be fine. To tell you the truth, it will be sort of nice having the house to myself. Maybe I will actually get to finish a book with out all of the noise."
"Oh Nora, we aren't that loud."
"If you say so ma'am," Nora finished up the meal and started cleaning up the kitchen.
It was only eleven in the morning when Brooke got the second most upsetting phone call of her life. It was Haley once again, informing her that the funeral services would be held in two days. They decided that Brooke and Tegan would leave the next morning and stay with Haley and Nathan for their visit.
Brooke packed and pondered for the rest of the day.
How am I going to pull this off? Someone is going to know. He looks just like Luke, it's so obvious. What am I thinking? They can't find out. I have to hide this. I've hidden it this long. Wait? I've been away for this long. I haven't had to face any of them in five years. It's been so easy, up until now. Now everything is messed up. My husband can't even look at my face anymore. I've told him so many lies. I don't blame him. I hate being lied to. What if Lucas does find out? How would he feel knowing that I've kept this from him for so long? He's already going through so much. I have to hide this. Just one day, that's all. I just have to get through one day without anyone finding out and that's it. Everything will be okay again.
A/N: Now, you all know the reason she goes back! I am actually a Leyton kinda girl, it's sad that I killed off Peyton huh?
