Ch. 9
In a moment of exhaustion that he bitterly regretted, Julian left Brooke to sleep and cool off. He returned to his hotel for the first time since he had walked into Brooke's office almost two weeks earlier. Millie had been wonderful enough to retrieve clothing and bathroom essentials for him while he stayed at the hospital with Brooke. He looked at the tidy, luxurious bed and practically drooled with fatigue. Maybe a night away will do us both good, Julian thought as he slowly undressed almost as if he was in physical pain.
Stripped to his boxer briefs, Julian sighed as he slipped into the soft, satiny sheets and closed his eyes. His body relished the cool sheets and soft enveloping mattress as his body shifted to get more comfortable. Despite the amazing feeling of his back on an actual bed, Julian was disappointed. He wanted to be in her bed, with her. He didn't anticipate coming back to his hotel room and spending this night alone, after so many by her side and in the company of her friends. He bitterly threw the covers off of his body and jumped out of bed and began pacing. Fuck! This is how she freaking reacts after I spend every waking G-d damn minute by her side?! I thought she, we, had moved past her insecurities!
Hurt, confused, and just overwhelmed by everything that had happened since he decided to walk back into Brooke Davis's life, Julian Baker couldn't hold back the frustrated angry tears. He kicked his underwear to the side and entered the shower. He barely moved when the cold water hit his face and ran down his naked body. He placed his hands on the shower wall, feeling the water run down his back and legs. The water gushed over his head and he marveled at the water pressure with a dry chuckle because he knew if it weren't for his many showers in the hospital he wouldn't even notice something as insignificant as water pressure. His mind wandered over the recent events as Julian continued to simply stand under the beating water. He adjusted the shower head to a stronger pulsating flow and thought of Brooke as the water grew almost unbearably hot.
Julian finally left the steamy security of his bathroom to be shocked by the cool air conditioned bedroom of his suite. Clad only in a towel with water clinging to his chest and legs, Julian furiously shook his head sending a spray of water droplets across the room. He sat on the corner of his bed and turned the television on without thinking. He was immediately greeted with stories about Brooke's release from the hospital. He watched the news story that chronicled her accident and time in the hospital. He bitterly laughed at the shaky, shoddy camera work and was pleased they were unable to get any footage of Brooke leaving the hospital. However, it was short lived as there was a perfect video of Brooke's entrance into her apartment building. He watched himself wheel her into the building and was surprised at the animosity and loathing that was etched onto his face as he looked directly into this particular camera for a fleeting moment before he was inside the lobby doors.
Julian reached for the remote when he stopped at another sight that made him freeze in rejection. He listened intently as the voice gave an update of the quick departure of Julian Baker and the speculation about his hasty dismissal from Brooke Davis's life. The television was filled with the video showing him storming from the front entrance of Brooke's building and quickly hailing a taxi, disappearing down the street. The tabloids were already rumoring the demise of his short-lived relationship with Brooke. He disgustedly threw the remote at the television after turning it off.
Knowing he would never be able to sleep, Julian got dressed and left the hotel. He knew that if there was any hope for him and Brooke, there was one thing he needed, only one person to see. He decided to walk the dozen or so blocks to her building, hoping the evening air would revitalize and heal him. Knocking on Brooke's door, Julian nervously shifted his weight from foot to foot. He waited patiently for a couple of minutes before knocking again. It had only been a few hours since he had left and he assumed that Haley and Millie would still be inside. However, he was surprised to see a young boy, he could only assume was Jamie, answer the door.
Jamie looked up at Julian with a suspicious stare. "Are you a reporter?" He finally asked. Julian smiled and shook his head at Jamie, impressed but not surprised that he was already protective of Brooke at such a young age.
"You must be Jamie. I'm Julian, a friend of Brooke's and your parents. Is your mom inside?" Julian suddenly felt like a young kid asking for permission to play with the young Scott.
Jamie nodded his head and opened the door wider for Julian to enter. "Come on in, we're playing Rock Band. But you have to be quiet. Aunt Brooke is sleeping." Julian gratefully entered the apartment and followed Jamie towards the living room. He was glad and surprised to see Nathan and Haley joyfully playing the video game.
Nathan warmly approached Julian with an outstretched arm to give him a bro hug. He smiled up at Julian and was genuinely glad to see him. He looked over at Haley as he exchanged pleasantries with her husband and assumed she had talked to Brooke by the guilty expression on her face and how she avoided making eye contact with him. He quietly asked Haley, "How is she?"
Haley deeply sighed and asked Nathan and Jamie to excuse her while she talked to Julian in the other room. Julian followed Haley to the spare room she and Nathan were using. She paced across the room anxiously, unsure how to approach Julian and the awkward situation with Brooke. She finally blurted out, "Brooke's coming to Tree Hill with us."
If Haley James Scott had slapped Julian, he would've been less stunned and in less pain than when he head the dreaded words, "Brooke's coming to Tree Hill with us." Julian had suspected that it would only be a matter of time before Brooke would be convinced to leave New York, but he didn't think it would happen quite so suddenly. He looked at Haley with narrowed eyes and said resentfully, "Well, you sure didn't waste much time. You've had her alone for a couple of hours when she's at her most vulnerable and you convince her to run away to Tree Hill!"
Haley sighed, she knew Julian and Brooke were both hurting and in truth she hadn't even discussed this with Brooke. However, she had a sinking suspicion that Brooke's old habits of pushing people away was at the root of Julian's sadness and anger. Before she could explain her true motivations, a protective voice warned Julian from the door. "Julian I like you man, but don't make assumptions and accusations towards my wife." Nathan was standing in the doorway of the bedroom with his arms crossed over his chest looking towards Haley and ready to defend their decision.
"Truthfully, we haven't even discussed it with Brooke yet. But we have discussed it, all of us back in Tree Hill. She needs to be with her friends, people who care about her and are in a position to take care of her. She needs to get away from this media zoo. She doesn't need to hide away in this apartment and have to dodge photographers every time she leaves the house. She needs to regain her privacy." Haley stood between the two men who were warily watching one another, trying to rationalize with Julian.
Julian was suddenly pissed on Brooke's behalf, even though he knew this was the right decision and what was truly in Brooke's best interest. "What she needs? How do any of you know what she needs? You haven't even asked her! What are you going to do take her against her will?" Julian despised himself for raising his voice to two of Brooke's closest friends and knew he was on dangerous ground. It was confirmed when he felt a sharp kick in the shin from Jamie Scott.
"Nobody talks to my mama that way! You tricked me, you said you were their friends, but you're not!" Jamie shouted at Julian as he drew his leg back, ready to kick again. Nathan ran to Jamie, grinning broadly, "That's my boy, you got your mama's back!" He scooped Jamie into his arms and looked over at Julian and Haley who were both lightly chuckling at Jamie's heroics. "Better watch out Julian or Jamie's going to kick your ass. I mean butt." Nathan hastily corrected over Haley's objections to his language and walked Jamie out of the room.
"Haley, he's right. I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I just don't want to lose her, but I'm afraid she's already gone. It doesn't matter if she's here or Tree Hill." Julian dejectedly sat down on the bed, his shoulders slumped over into a curve, his hands hanging off of his knees.
Haley sighed and sat next to Julian. "Julian, I don't know what is going through Brooke's mind right now. She's always tried to handle things on her own and she hates to be a burden to others. My best guess, she's trying to save you from having to look after her." Haley shrugged her shoulders. "I think you know Tree Hill is the best place for her right now though. We miss her, too. We can look after her and you can always come to visit."
Julian gave a half laugh as he tried to think how that would actually work and nodded his head despite the millions voices screaming no inside his head. He looked at her with the wounded eyes of a rejected suitor and thanked her for looking after his Brooke. He was thankful that Brooke was letting someone in to help her, he just wished it was him.
Numerous arrangements needed to be made in the days after she agreed to come home with Nathan and Haley. Millie was going to come to Tree Hill with her to continue assisting her and to be able to carry on communications between Brooke and the company. Brooke was able to be treated by her plastic surgeon to prevent scarring before leaving for Tree Hill. Fortunately, it was a relatively minor procedure that required little down time and she was able to see a colleague in Charlotte for follow up care. Nathan had already arranged for Brooke to work with his former personal physical therapist for her recovery. It seemed that all the details were working themselves out except for one conspicuous exception. Julian.
Brooke had not seen or spoken to Julian in the week since she had asked him to leave. Everyday without communicating with him was a little easier, but she couldn't help the disappointment she felt that he didn't at least try to fight for her. She knew that he knew she was returning to Tree Hill. Haley told her about his visit that night, and she wondered why he didn't come back to say good bye. She had probably picked the phone up and almost dialed his number a hundred times over the past few days, but she couldn't bring herself to hit send. His silence and distance were the confirmation Brooke needed to know she did the right thing in pushing him away.
The flight to Tree Hill was departing in a few hours, leaving Brooke very little time to contemplate the actions or inactions of Julian Baker. She distracted herself with last minute packing that she could actually manage, and playing with Jamie. She made sure to have her in-flight essentials and had Jamie help her through her checklist.
"i-pod?"
"Check!"
"Brookie cookies?"
"Disgusting and check!"
"Crayons?"
"Check!"
The checklist was interrupted as her cell phone began to vibrate. Brooke's heart nearly stopped as she silently prayed it was Julian. Damn! "Hey, Millie! Are you ready to see the one and only Tree Hill?" Millie was a little frazzled about leaving the city, but excited to see the town Brooke was raised and still thought of as home. After a few reassuring words, Brooke was able to promise Millie she would see her in a few minutes and they wouldn't be late.
The airport was not as stressful as everyone feared. Airport security did an excellent job of media control to prevent the paparazzi from being too intrusive and Brooke was able to board the plane's first class after all the other passengers were on board to avoid any uncomfortable moments with strangers. She smiled as Jamie pulled out her i-pod and began to sing along to one of the songs. Nathan was already absorbed into the newest Sports Illustrated, and Millie was busy sending out last minute emails. She sighed as she opened the latest copy of Vogue and began reading the comments on a competitor's new line. She reflexively tensed as the engines of the plane began to roar to life and she gripped the arm rests and closed her eyes.
The captain's voice came over the loud speaker and began making the customary announcements and she wished she could snatch her i-pod from Jamie at least for the beginning of the flight. She continued to close her eyes when she felt a hand close over her fingers still gripped to the arm rest. Startled her eyes jerked open to stare into a familiar pair of brown eyes.
"Tigger, you ok? Do you need anything?" Haley's concern for Brooke made her smile gratefully. "No, tutor mom, thanks, but I just hate the first part of flights." Brooke wrinkled her nose and took a deep breath. Haley nodded in understanding and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
Brooke closed her eyes again, concentrating on her breathing and trying to forget Julian. She had to forget how safe she felt with him and how much she missed his grin. She had driven him away and he was probably with his leading lady by now. She gripped her hands even harder on the arm rests as she felt the plane begin to move swiftly down the runway, moments from lift off.
Once again she felt a hand close over her fingers. Suspecting Haley's reassurance, Brooke's eyes remained closed until she heard a low voice near her ear. "Loosen your grip Brooke Davis. You're going to break a nail."
I must be dreaming. Brooke was afraid to look, she didn't want to open her eyes to realize she was wrong and he wasn't sitting next to her. Feeling the wheels of the airplane lift off the ground, Brooke kept her eyes closed and swallowed hard turning her face in the direction of the voice. As her head turned she felt the prickly stubble on her cheek of a face she knew well. Her cheeks flushed from the heat his touch inspired and she opened her eyes to see Julian staring intently at her. Brooke blinked several times and opened her mouth, speechless. Finally she was able to form words and sputtered, "Julian? But how? Why? What are you doing here?" Before Julian had an opportunity to respond to her numerous questions, Brooke answered herself "You can't be here! You have a movie… you have to go!"
Julian chuckled at Brooke's conclusion and rolled his eyes, leaning back in his seat Julian said in a droll tone, "Yeah, Brooke I'll get right on that. I always pack a parachute in my carryon."
Brooke hit his shoulder and hissed, "Not what I meant!" His laughing response made her heart beat faster in a combination of arousal and angry frustration. She took a breath and began more calmly, "Julian, I told you. I can't ask you to sacrifice your career, your movie to play nurse."
Julian chuckled at Brooke's comment and looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Brooke Davis you don't have to and didn't ask me to do anything. I am exactly where I want to be, next to you." He lightly nudged her shoulder with his. Brooke's body seemed to contract and tense with Julian's light nudging and she caught herself breathing in deeply intoxicated by his cologne.
"But Julian… this is too fast, and you'll resent me, and the movie!" The pitch of her voice went higher the more feeble excuses Brooke threw at Julian. However, he was ignoring her and rummaging in the pocket of his messenger bag, busily looking for something.
Triumphantly, Julian held up the missing objects for Brooke to see. "Ta-dah! Look Brooke, "Julian sighed heavily. She saw a small package and what looked like a movie script. "Brooke your mouth says go, but your body and your heart want me to stay right here with you. So until your mouth catches up with the rest of you I've invested in these." Grinning, he held the bright orange ear plugs up for Brooke's inspection before placing one in each ear. His voice became obnoxiously louder after securing the ear plugs and other passengers turned to look at both of them. Julian leaned over and gave her a loud smacking kiss on the lips and turned his attention towards a script he had pulled from his bag. "So Brooke, you just keep complaining and coming up with excuses, but I'm staying right here until you're all on the same page. Talk all you want, Baby, I can't read lips."