Here's your update guys! I meant to send it out earlier but I got a bit caught up with some neglected school work. Anyways, again thank you all for your support and interest in the story! As always, a few comments to some of your reviews J
Craxygirl54 – Thank you so much for taking that sort of dedicated time to read my updates! I love also that you are fond of Mouth and Lucas' friendship because it's one of my favorites. Whenever I picture Mouth my first image is that goofy grin he gets when he's talking about something he really likes. 3 him.
Curlylizard97 – Brooke is sure she can be that person too ;)
Litalove – So glad to hear! And I think you'll enjoy this next chapter even more.
Dianehermans – Brucas for the win.
Callison – It makes me so happy that you think that! Thank you J
Lilohb – Appreciate the motherly instincts but don't worry, an all-nighter helped me get both an update and a take home test completed!
Texasunniest – I love hearing from you. I always re-read your reviews several times and usually try to give you an update right away! You are definitely right about the Brucas dynamic and that's why I love them so much. Lucas is all of those things and Brooke is his perfect match. (Bummer Mark didn't agree, because I hate the Peyton/Lucas storyline.)
xXalienatedXx – No problem on the quick updates, I hope I can keep the pattern up for you guys! J
inScense09 – Yay!
BpDs89 – That made my day J Thank you!
Thought I would respond to each of your reviews because they really do mean a lot to me. Here's the next chapter, please leave comments and feedback because I love them so much! Thanks again!
Chapter 7 – Sweet Disposition
The two fled the overcrowded club and were greeted with the crisp air as it welcomed them into the open, starry-eyed night. Lucas couldn't help but notice at how appropriate the sky over Tree Hill looked tonight as he walked lightly backwards in the direction of his parked car, not taking his eyes off the bouncing brunette that followed.
Each slammed the heavy metal doors and were met with an encouraging calm silence between them as they held their anticipatory breaths. Lucas exhaled and felt the smallest goosebumps crawl up the back of his neck as he took in the girl fixated on him. There was a twinkle in her eye with pent up mischief and he greeted it with the roar of truck's engine.
She gasped slightly in an excited squeal as Lucas pulled onto the vacant street of his hometown. Forcing himself to keep his eye on the road, only stealing quick glances to his right when he could get away with Lucas went into auto-pilot.
No thinking tonight. No second guessing.
Too afraid to open his mouth and ruin the moment, he flipped the radio on instead. A familiar pop song boomed through his dated speakers and Brooke sat up straighter. Her whole body reacts to the instrumental as she began singing along wholeheartedly. Just watching her put everything she's got into a bee-bop song warms him to the core.
The chorus approaches and Brooke flickers her eyes to him just as she sucks in another sharp air to catch enough breath to belt the words. Lucas can't help but scream out the words with her and she lights up as he joins in. Without breaking the lyrics, she rolls down the manual windows and sings into the wind as it rustle through her hair.
Lucas feels a tightness in his chest in that moment, recognizing that this is the most alive he has felt in ages. It was if Brooke had come into his life and breathed all the air that escaped him back into his lifeless lungs. He was lost in the moment and he didn't panic himself to pull out of it.
He pulls up to the driveway of his Aunt and Uncle's vacant beach house and shuts the car off. Brooke looks expectantly at him, waiting for her next direction. Lucas looks out onto the beach and Brooke follows suit, kinking a brow at him as if to say 'let the games begin'.
With that Lucas leaps out of the car and runs out onto the warm, silky sand giving Brooke no warning. She doesn't need an invitation as she sprints off after him. Lucas keeps an even pace, willing her to catch him. As she runs at him, her hair tangles itself in the gust from the crashing waves. For a moment, he imagines what it would be like to do the same with his hands.
"Lucas!" her raspy voice screams out to him and he loves the way it sounds. He turns behind him to grin back at her as he continues running against the breeze. Brooke's laughter trails him as they get closer to crashing waves and Lucas halts, causing her to nearly collide into him.
Lucas reaches out to steady her before she treads into the water from her momentum. Brooke is still laughing uncontrollably and she is so gorgeous in every way. Lucas kneels over and rests his hands on his knees as he catches he steadies his heartbeat but it's not the run that's got him so breathless. Brooke is also breathing heavy beside him and he turns again to face her.
"We're crazy." Her tone is low, and sultry. Lucas nods his head in agreement, looking out into the water. Just above the sea level, he watches as a single bird travels across their line of sight. It moves slowly and elegantly as it passes by and Lucas can't help but let his mind wander to the idea of this lone gull looking down upon them, as his mother would. He has never been one to believe in the idea of reincarnation but in that moment he finds comfort in the fantasy and allows it to linger.
"I'll be right back." He says to Brooke before jogging up to the steps that lead to the familiar beach house. Lucas searches the fake rock that rested by the back door and pulled out the spare key. He left the door ajar as he quickly made his way to the kitchen, removing a bottle of wine from the large Scott collection. There was no hesitation in this spontaneous act.
It would be the first time he tasted alcohol of anytime since the crash but his spirits were lifted with Brooke in a way that was indescribable. But all the pieces fit to him. The beach house wasn't too far of a walk back to their neighborhood and it felt so good to be so loosened up. Lucas knew that soon he would back to face the tenseness of his father and the nightmares that haunted him but right now he wanted to get lost in this feeling, in case it slipped away from him.
Lucas crossed back across the beach and saw Brooke sitting ahead of him. Her knees were pulled up to her chest as she hugged them close. Her head was cocked slightly to the side and her hair waved carelessly behind her as she stared straight ahead. Lucas paused for a moment, admiring every beautiful part of her.
Finally he cleared his throat and she whipped her head to face him, meeting his eyes eagerly before she noticed the bottle he held proudly in front of him. She bit her bottom lip, suppressing a grin that her deep dimples gave away.
Lucas pulled the cork off dramatically and Brooke bounces in sink with the pop of the bottle. He takes a seat beside her as he puts the bottle to his lips taking a thirsty gulp of the bittersweet taste before passing it to Brooke. Their fingers brush and it sends a shock through his system.
Brooke tips her head back as she takes an equally eager drink. Lucas eyes trail to watch as she licks the sweet liquid off her lips. Their silence is evident but not awkward. He honestly can't believe how calm he feels with her. Her eyes study him, as if she's trying to read his thoughts.
They remain quiet like that for a moment longer as they continue to pass the bottle back and forth. Lucas' head has a light buzz to it and his lips are starting to numb as he welcomes the alcohol's affect with open arms. Finally their trance is broken as her voice seeps through.
"Let's play a game!" she quirks an eyebrow at him playfully and it drives him a little crazy. He instantly feels a little uneasy at her offer but dismisses it.
"What's the game?" Lucas looks a little warily at her as her smile widens.
"I've never." Brooke takes the bottle from his hand and sets it in the sand in front of them. "I'll go first; I've never played a sport." Lucas narrows his eyes at her skeptically.
"Doesn't cheerleading count as a sport?" He challenges but she shrugs defiantly.
"Open for interpretation, but the way I see it we win no matter what the score on the board is. Our purpose is the cheer you on, which we do perfectly fine." Lucas considers arguing this but can see in her eyes that he won't win. Instead he reaches in front of them and takes another swig from their half empty bottle.
Lucas grunts a little and wipes the back of hand slowly across his mouth before setting it back to its spot. "Game on, Brooke Davis. I've never…" he pauses, racking his brain on a way to get her to drink. His eyes light up as he comes across one, "I've never got in a fight with Rachel Gattina."
Brooke's mouth dropped open in surprise before letting out a giggle, "You heard about that?!" Although she feigned embarrassment he could read the underlying smugness in her smile. Lucas nodded with a small smirk.
"Nathan may or may not have mentioned it to me… and the rest of the team." Brooke shakes her head as she brings the bottle back to her lips. "Kudos, by the way." Lucas was always a little put off by Rachel's overbearing cockiness.
"Okay, Broody. I've never carried a girl home with me." Her accusation was endearing though as she gave him a soft, appreciative smile. Lucas took another drink and set it down.
"Do I have to take a drink for each one?" He playfully gave her a crooked smile and she gasped, reaching her arm out to nudge him at the remark.
"Very funny, Luke." She narrowed her eyes and he laughed loudly. The sound of his laughter was starting to sound less foreign to him as it echoed around them. Brooke reached over and shook the bottle, seeing the near empty contents. Lucas takes notes and stands up.
The earth below him wobbles slightly but he steadies himself. Lucas looks down at the brunette and offers his hand out to her. "Let's walk, I want to show you something." Brooke tips her head back to gaze into the pool of sky-blue in his eyes as she slips her small hand into his. Lucas pulls her up gently and her words slur slightly from her tipsy as she agrees.
X
The headed down the streets of tree hill in a giddy daze. Although the night is getting colder, Lucas feels so warm everywhere. It could be from the alcohol or maybe the feeling that shot through him as Brooke linked her arm through his and looked up at him with a twinkle in her hazel eyes. Lucas drowns in them for a moment before raising his head up and lends a lazy smile to the sky.
At first he had been almost nervous to show Brooke where they were headed. But the alcohol numbed that and as they got closer the only feeling he had was sheer excitement.
"We're almost there!" he announces and for a moment Lucas' thinks he feels Brooke snuggle into him. Lucas could see the trail ahead and the excitement took over again. "Come on!" The two quicken their pace as he leads her over to the trail that leads through some trees.
"Is this where you kill me, Broody?" Brooke jokes and Lucas looks wildly back at her with a mischievous expression.
"How did you know, Cheery?" As it rolled off his tongue the nickname felt right. Her eyes brightened at the sound of it and the dimples showed again. Lucas lead the way, pointing out each step and root from his memory to Brooke as she followed closely behind him.
Lucas pushed through the last overhanging branch to reveal a clearing that lead to a large open field. The distant buildings from the town let enough light in for them to make it each other but that was about it. Brooke followed him loyally without question. She was fearless, this brunette and he admired it. Had this been a different night with a different person they would have turned and ran from him by now.
"It's just ahead." Lucas assured her anyways, just in case. It was cooler in the shade of the trees that out skirted the field and he realized that he may be the only one who was warm.
Brooke insisted she wasn't cold but he slung his jacket across her shoulders anyways and she ceased protesting. Lucas spotted what he was looking and pointed ahead of him.
"Bingo," he says softly as they catch sight of a large, thick branched tree with heavy wooden arms stretched out wide. In the center was a marvelous tree house that Lucas hadn't seen in ages.
X
Brooke crawled up the last step of the surprisingly sturdy steps and Lucas lifted her into the adorably crafted hideout. The blonde boy hurried over to metal chest in the corner and began rifling through it. She could hear his low voice as he muttered 'come on' repeatedly as he searched through the contents.
Lucas shot back up triumphantly and turned to face her holding a plastic object in one hand, holding it out to her but she couldn't make it out in the dark. As if reading her thoughts he let out a hushed 'oh!' and with a quick click he illuminated the tree house.
The light of his lantern answered Brooke's impending question, what they were doing here. She studied in awe at the room they were standing in. There were hand drawn maps and basketball posters hung up on the walls. The metal chest was half open and was filled with different trinkets.
Brooke stepped closer as Lucas watched her silently as she took the room in. There was a rug on the floor that was patterned with pirates traveling on boats and searching for treasure. At the center of the back wall there was a tattered paper that clung to a rusted tack.
In big bold letters were the words BLOOD BROTHERS in sloppy, unpracticed handwriting. Her eyes traveled down to the red finger prints that were smeared above printed names of three boys. Lucas Scott, Clay Evans, and Marvin McFadden.
Lucas shifted his weight behind her and she turned back to him, greeted by a pair of blue eyes. She stared into them, seeing the flecks that sprinkled around his iris.
"Clay used to be my neighbor, when we were kids. He lived in your house." Lucas paused as he smiled to himself, "actually he used to have your room. He moved away our Freshman year though." She was sobering more and listened intently as he spoke. His voice was soft and it was missing that undertone of despair.
"Clay's dad helped us build this and it's where we spent almost every day of our summer." Brooke studied the brooding boy and she could feel her heart flutter as she listened to his even tone as he gave her a small piece of his past, something she had been desiring since first connecting with his broken eyes.
"I love it, Lucas." His face was nostalgic and he wordlessly took a seat down onto the rug. Brooke's eyes ran over the soft spikes of his short blonde hair and she wanted so badly to reach out and touch it. Instead she took a seat beside him and their knees bumped sending a shock up her spine. "I do have to ask though, what's up with all the pirates?"
Lucas chuckled softly, running a hand through his hair. "We used to want to be professional treasure hunters." Brooke couldn't help but imagine a younger version of Lucas and Mouth running around like pirates with hand drawn maps.
"Why stop hunting?" Her voice was sleepy and she felt the wave of exhaustion from their night crash over her as she rested her head onto Lucas' shoulder. Before giving into her tired body she thought she heard a whispered 'too many dead ends' but it was too distant to know if it was real.
X
As much as he didn't want to pull away from Brooke as she rested on his shoulder, Lucas knew he had to head home before the sun came up. For awhile he just sat there and soaked in the moment. He never wanted this night to end but the sun was already threatening to show its first signs of arrival. So after another moment of memorizing the scent of vanilla with the hint of coconut that was burning into his senses and feeling the tickle of her silky hair against his neck, he shook the beautiful girl awake.
Brooke opened her eyes sleepily and gave him a lazy smile. "Let's walk home, Cheery. It's almost morning." They stood up and she followed Lucas in a nap-induced haze.
Their neighborhood was close and they cut through a few shortcuts as the treaded up to their shared strip of home. Lucas walked her up to the door because the only social interaction Brooke had been capable of was a dreamy glance at him as he led the way back.
Brooke pulled out her keys and unlocked the red door. She turned back to face him and rested the back of her head on it so she could look up at Lucas. He leaned one arm against the frame and bent down low to her.
"I had fun." Lucas confessed as his eyes squinted slightly at her. Brooke nodded, biting her bottom lip which entranced him.
"Me too." Her voice was soft and husky from the sleep. They were leaning so close now that he could study every curvature of her lips. Her body heat radiated into him and more than anything he wanted to fill the gap between them. But he was sobered now and knew better. The night had been fun but it didn't change his harsh reality.
"Goodnight, Brooke." He gave her one last smile as she watched him stand back up and cut across their lawns to his house. Brooke paused one last time as looked up into the early morning sky and let out an inaudible sigh. What a night.