So he knew.

Nathan was bench pressing in his weight room the following morning, trying to sweat all of his anger out.

He knew all along and never told me. Was I the only fucking person who didn't know we were related?!

Clearly it isn't working out so well.

Nathan is absolutely furious about the fact that Lucas already knew they were brothers and didn't say a goddamn thing to him. Lucas responded to Whitey when he called out "Scott?", so he has to know something! Not only that, but Whitey even asked him to join the team! Even if they don't talk, he still could've said something. Everybody's gonna know they're brothers at this point, which is the last thing Nathan wants. For being a popular jock, Nathan really hates being in the spotlight.

Screw this, man.

Still furiously lifting away, Nathan doesn't even hear Dan enter the room.

"What are you slinging?" Dan asks, making his presence known. Fantastic, now Dan's here to make things even worse. Perfect.

"Bout 160," Nathan answers, trying to ignore Dan as much as possible.

"Gimme that," Dan says, snatching the bar from Nathan and adding more weight to it. Sighing, Nathan starts lifting again.

"So did you hear - "

"That Whitey asked your son to join the team?" Nathan finishes for him. "Yeah, I know."

"Don't call him that," Dan spits, spotting Nathan from behind.

"He still exists dad, even if he doesn't have our last name," Nathan breathes, struggling to lift the bar. How much weight did his dad add to this thing? Christ.

"He actually does. His mother calls him a Roe just to spite me, but I guess if she called him a Scott it would just be wishful thinking on her part." Dan informs him. No wonder Lucas answered Whitey yesterday. "We were young and made a mistake."

"You definitely made a mistake, all right," Nathan says. Noticing Dan was getting angry, he says "Look, it's just kind of screwed up, all right? People are talking about it."

Realizing Nathan was struggling, Dan grabs the bar from him and asks him to move. Nathan gets up and begins to spot his dad.

"Regardless, you have to take him down. Make sure he knows how much hell he'll be in for if he joins the team," Dan says, effortlessly lifting the weights Nathan was struggling with, probably just to show him up.

"I'm not afraid of him, dad," Nathan tells him. This guy definitely doesn't scare him, he's just an annoyance that Nathan really doesn't need right now.

"Well, you should be," Dan tells him. "We've worked too hard for somebody to come in and screw everything up now. He'll be stealing shots from you, disrupting the offense; just a lot things we don't need." A lot of things Nathan doesn't need, or a lot of things Dan doesn't need? Nathan just wishes that his dad would leave him alone to play the game how he wants. Although, he does have a point. Having this kid on the team will just make his life even more complicated, which is the last thing he wants.

Later that day before practice, Tim brought up Lucas again. "So your dad finally admitted he had a bastard spawn, huh?" Can Tim just shut the hell up for once in his life?

"They say he actually has game, so maybe we can use him," another of Nathan's teammates says, shutting his locker.

"Please, I could get us to the championship with three blind guys and a cripple, which is practically all I have left with you guys," Nathan says, smirking and pulling his jersey over his head. "We don't need him."

"Well whatever," Tim says. "So, what are we doing after practice?"

Standing in front of his locker, Nathan thinks about the conversation he had with his dad earlier that morning. He has to make sure this kid doesn't screw things up for him. Dan will be on his ass even more if he allows Lucas to join the team.

Shutting his locker, he replies. "Let's go to the park."

—

Finally, some peace and quiet away from all of the madness.

Lucas was alone at the Rivercourt, shooting hoops to help clear his mind. There was far too much craziness in his life right now. Despite telling Whitey no yesterday, he was strongly considering rethinking his decision about joining the Ravens. Skills basically told him that he wouldn't play ball with Lucas anymore unless he joined, because Skills didn't want to be "shooting to be his excuse." While it initially pissed him off, Skills had a point. Lucas is far too talented to just be playing casual ball in the park, and he knows it, but there's one obstacle blocking his path from joining: Nathan.

As soon as that name crosses his mind, he sees a familiar black truck pulling up to the Rivercourt: Nathan's truck. Lucas can feel his heart rate increasing by the second, but keeps shooting as if nothing's wrong. What's Nathan doing here?

"Nice shot," Nathan says after Lucas sinks the ball from the 3-point line. Lucas wanted to say thanks, but Nathan continued. "Think you can do that when you're double teamed, down by two, and in a packed house full of people telling you you suck?" Nathan was trying to bait him, his blue eyes flecked with anger. Clearly he's found out that Whitey asked him to be on the team.

"What do you want?" Lucas asks.

"What do I want? What do you want, man? Other than my girlfriend and my spot on the lineup?" Nathan asks.

What the hell is he talking about? His girlfriend? Lucas has never even talked to Peyton (plus, you're the one I like, moron), nor does he want Nathan's spot. Where is he pulling this crap from?

"Your girlfriend?"

"Peyton was telling me about how you were checking her out the other night."

"She almost hit me with her car!" Lucas yells, his anger increasing.

"Too bad she didn't," Nathan says coldly. Lucas wants to break down so badly right now. The guy he's liked since forever (hell, his own brother) is talking to him like he's nothing more than a piece of trash. "Look man, I don't want you, the guys don't want you, and my girlfriend sure as hell doesn't want you (this idiot)."

Lucas's desire to join the Ravens is increasing tenfold. Who the hell is Nathan to talk to him like this? Whether Lucas likes him or not, he's going to show this asshole up.

"Tell you what," Lucas begins. "One on one, me and you, right here, tomorrow at midnight."

"Fine. If I win, you crawl back into your little hole and stay out of my life."

"And if I win, I get to join the team," Lucas says.

"Deal. Try not to chicken out," Nathan says, turning and walking away.

"But one more thing," Lucas says, causing Nathan to turn back around. Lucas is determined to fuck Nathan's world up any way he knows how. At this point, he wants Nathan to hate him. It would make things so much easier if Nathan hates him. Hell, maybe it would make this horrible crush go away.

"I also get Peyton."

—-