A/N: Here is another chapter…I'm really happy about this story so far and apparently so do all of you. I hope this chapter is okay. I'm not sure if I really like it or not, but it's here nonetheless. Enjoy please.
Chapter Three: Knowledge
Sam lifts up her shirt carefully letting Aria pull it off of her head. Aria's fingers carefully traced the bruises on Sam's ribcage. Aria's heart was beating fast and she knew it was because she had a small crush on the girl, but right now it wasn't about a crush. It was about her crushes health.
"Nothing feels broken. I think your ribs are just bruised," Aria uses her thumb to faintly trace Sam's injured cheek. Sam winces.
"Sorry. I'll get some ointment for that and you don't have to stand there half naked in front of me."
Sam blushes and quickly pulls on her shirt causing Aria to laugh.
"You're cute."
Sam blushes even more. Aria goes into her bathroom.
-Complications of the Heart-
"Explain to me again; why you think you have to do this?"
Peyton looks away from the passenger window and over to Lucas.
"Because I care about Sam and we just up and left Lucas, Brooke lost her daughter and I wasn't there for her."
Lucas looks in the backseat and sees Sawyer sleeping.
"You came with me Peyton. You didn't have to."
"I'm your wife and you're my husband. We had Sawyer."
"Don't do that! Don't bring our daughter into this."
Peyton huffed at Lucas.
"Sometimes I don't know why I'm married to you."
"Me either," Lucas whispers.
Peyton pulls out her phone and sends a text to Sam.
-Complications of the Heart-
Aria walks into her living room and sees Sam sitting on the couch. Both girls didn't get much sleep after everything that went on the night before.
"Did you sleep any?"
Sam shakes her head.
"Thanks for letting me stay here, but you should probably get to school."
Aria nods her head with a smile.
"I'm assuming you're not coming," at Sam's nod, Aria continues. "Okay then, you can stay here. If you leave don't go home." Sam nods her head. "Help yourself to what I have here. The women that are helping you can as well." Aria kneels down in front of Sam and places a kiss on Sam's forehead.
"I'll have my phone on my all day. Just let me know when you need me and I'll come running."
"Ok."
"Ok."
Aria stands up and places her hands on her hips.
"I'm going to get ready for school."
Sam watches Aria walk into the bathroom. Sam looks at her phone and sends a text back to Peyton.
Bring Brooke 2
Sam sighs harshly and winces at the pull of her ribs. She was really regretting talking to Peyton about all this, but she knew she had to.
-Complications of the Heart-
Brooke walked into her living room after getting dressed for the day. She froze when she spotted a familiar blonde in her living room looking at the pictures on her mantle.
"How'd you get in?" Brooke questions.
Peyton turns around with a small smile.
"I still have a key. You look beautiful."
Brooke crosses her arms over her chest.
"Peyton, we're not in high school anymore. Your words won't work on me anymore."
Peyton raises an eyebrow and slowly walks over to Brooke.
"I think my words do affect you, but for some reason," Peyton leans forward, nose to nose with Brooke. "You won't let it." Brooke closes her eyes and Peyton takes a step back. "That's not the reason I'm here anyway. I'm meeting Sam this morning and she told me she wants you there."
Brooke opens her eyes and nods her head.
"Where are you meeting her?"
"Your old apartment."
Brooke grabs her keys and turns to Peyton.
"Let's go."
-Complications of the Heart-
"Where are Lucas and Sawyer?" Brooke asks as they settle into Brooke's car.
"They're at Nathan's. I don't love him Brooke."
Brooke nods her head and continues driving.
"He's keeping something from me. I think he's sleeping with Lindsey."
"Peyton, you can't judge him. We both hurt him throughout high school."
"It's different when you don't know."
Brooke pulls her car over onto the side of the road and turns to Peyton.
"Peyton, we both cheated on Lucas when we were dating him. With each other might I add?"
"We were in love," Peyton argues.
Brooke gets back on the road.
"That maybe true Peyton, but at some point you loved Lucas too. I mean you married the guy and had his kid."
Brooke and Peyton stay quiet the rest of the ride.
-Complications of the Heart-
Sam opens the front door and is quickly engulfed by hugs from Peyton and Brooke. Sam cries out from pain and Peyton and Brooke let her go.
"Baby, what is going—" Brooke trails off as she sees the hand marks on Sam's neck. Brooke concluded that Peyton had seen the bruises as well because out of the corner of her eye she could see Peyton clutching her fists at her side.
"Who did that to you?"
Sam turns around ashamed at what Brooke and Peyton are seeing.
"Rebecca did," Sam turns around with tears in her eyes. "I couldn't breathe. Then she let me go."
Sam could see tears in Brooke's eyes.
"I shouldn't have let you go. I should've made you stay with me. God, Sam, I'm so sorry."
Sam steps forward and grabs Brooke's hands. Peyton watches from the sidelines.
"It's not your fault Brooke. She put up a front for all of us."
"What are we going to do?" Peyton finally questions. "Do we need to take you to the hospital?"
Sam shakes her head.
"Aria said I was fine."
Brooke raises an eyebrow. She had never heard that name from Sam before.
"Who is Aria?"
"The girl who owns this apartment, she looked over my other bruises and said I would be fine and I trust her."
Brooke and Peyton nod their heads in understanding. If Sam trusted Aria then they were going to as well.
"I think we should sit down and figure out what we are going to do," Peyton says silently giving Brooke a questing look. They were both worried for Sam.
-Complications of the Heart-
"Is Jamie gonna be there daddy?"
Lucas shakes his head.
"Sorry Sawy, Jamie is at school."
Sawyer looks at her father with her bright blue eyes.
"Is he a big boy?"
Lucas smiles and walks through Nathan's front door.
"Yeah, Sawy, he's a big boy. Nathan, where are you?" Lucas calls out as he puts Sawyer on the ground.
"Kitchen!"
Lucas watches as Sawyer scampers off presumably to Jamie's room upstairs. Lucas enters the kitchen and sees Nathan at the table with his books.
"How's it going?" Nathan greets with a smile.
"I'm doing ok, but I need to talk to you. Do you have time?"
Nathan closes his books and pays attention to Lucas.
"What's up?"
"I don't love Peyton."
Nathan looks at Lucas in surprise.
"Says the guy that has all, but pined for Peyton even when I was dating her?"
Lucas shakes his head.
"I don't know Nate, but I'm in love with someone else."
"Who are you in love with?"
"Lindsey."
Nathan sighs and shakes his head. He stands up from the table and walks around the table to his brother.
"Did you cheat on your wife?" Nathan asks as his anger starts to be seen.
"Lindsey's pregnant."
"You're an ass!" Nathan yells before leaving the room.
Lucas sighs and sits down at the table.
"I know," Lucas whispers to the empty room.
-Complications of Heart-
Nathan couldn't believe his brother. He turned into Dan. In high school, Nathan was the ass and now it appears that Lucas was the ass now. Nathan's anger slowly disappeared as he watches his niece playing in his son's room.
"Vroom," Sawyer says as she pushes on of Jamie's cars on the floor. Nathan watched as Sawyer pushed the car across the room and into the wall. "Boom!"
Nathan laughs quietly.
"Aren't little girls supposed to play with dolls?" Nathan asks with a smile.
Sawyer turns her head and squeals happily.
"Uncle Nafan," Sawyer says as she gets up from the floor and runs into her Uncle's arms. "Aren't you talkin' to daddy?"
Nathan sighs and shakes his head.
"Na, I want to talk to you instead."
Sawyer snuggled into Nathan's side.
"About what?"
"Anything," Nathan says as he sits down on Jamie's bed. "How's your mama?"
"She's good. She loves me bunches," Sawyer says with a grin as she gets off of Nathan's lap. Sawyer's grin disappears as she says her next words. "Daddy doesn't."
Nathan frowns. He was worried about this. Sawyer knew something was going on and he was afraid of this.
"Your dad does love you Sawy, but he's dealing with things right now."
"That's what mama says. She says he spends time with Lindsey. I no like her."
"I don't like her," Nathan corrects.
Sawyer giggles.
"I don't like her."
-Complications of the Heart-
Aria knocked on the door with one thing in mind. She wanted answers and she wanted them now. The front door opens and a worn out looking woman answers the door.
"What do you want?"
"Why'd you hurt Sam?"
Rebecca looks at Aria in a cold, dead stare.
"Sam, who?"
Aria shakes her head.
"Don't play dumb, I know what you dead and I guarantee you that you'll pay for it. For every bruise and every horrible word you had ever said to her."
"Go to hell!" Rebecca screams before slamming the door in Aria's face.
Aria turns around and walks off of the steps with a smile on her face. She was going to save Sam. She knew that for sure.