CHAPTER 35

The time had come, yet again.

Lucas and Peyton sat in the taxi on the way to the airport, hands clasped and feeling like their world was crumbling once again. It was Monday and Lucas knew he'd be in trouble when he got back to Tree Hill having promised he'd only be the weekend but it was worth it. He'd meant what he'd said Friday night. He had missed a day of school and Peyton was missing one too, to come with him to the airport. But neither could bring themselves to actually care, it was only one day and it was nothing compared to the weight slowly descending upon them every mile the taxi drove closer to its destination. Peyton felt like she'd perfected the art of saying goodbye now, if only it didn't hurt so much. They mostly sat in silence sending each other small smiles and looks at random moments. But as they pulled up outside both of them let out a breath and gave the other one last look before opening their doors.

Lucas gave the driver some notes before getting out, swinging his duffel bag over his shoulder and meeting Peyton the other side intertwining their hands before they walked into the airport together. When Lucas asked for one ticket Peyton contemplated telling him to get two, but she couldn't go to Tree Hill. She had nowhere to live, her dad would be furious and she hadn't even contemplated enrolling at Tree Hill high school plus she didn't have the money. He waited with her until the last moment; they talked about mindless drivel to keep their minds occupied. But when they called his flight he closed his eyes.

'That's my cue.' He said softly and turned to look at her before standing up.

Peyton stood up too to face him, her eyes filled with tears and he sighed, 'Don't' He said and cupped her cheek resting their foreheads together and closing his eyes.

A minute later he muttered, 'I want you to be happy.'

'I am.' She assured him with a whisper but he shook his head and opened his eyes.

'I want you to be happy without me…' He said and her eyes snapped open.

'What do you mean?' She asked, fearful to actually know the answer.

'Promise me you'll find happiness, even with Jake… he really cares for you.' Lucas said and even though he was saying the words his voice was shaky and his eyes filled with tears.

'You don't mean that.' Peyton said shaking her head fervently, a few tears leaking out.

'You deserve to be happy Peyton… and he…' Lucas said.

'No…' Peyton said but Lucas cut her off,

'I have to go.' He said abruptly and Peyton couldn't quite comprehend what was happening,

'We'll find our way back Luke.' Peyton promised but Lucas again shook his head,

'We can't do this anymore Peyt, I'm sorry. Just… please, let yourself be happy. He loves you Peyton.'

'I love you.' Peyton said desperately, what was Lucas doing?

Lucas closed his eyes and it seemed like he was contemplating something, his jaw was set and his face hard. He opened his eyes again and found her green ones. Hesitantly he pressed his lips to hers. She knew it was a goodbye kiss and couldn't bear it and so pulled his shirt closer to her. It was tender and seemed to contradict everything Lucas had just said but when he pulled away his eyes were determined and he struggled with whether to say the three words that would show Peyton he didn't want her to be with Jake, that he actually didn't mean half of the things he'd just said. In the end he realised that if this was the last time he saw her he wanted her to know,

'I love you.' He whispered so quietly that Peyton only just heard it. She gave him a watery smile, 'But…' She pressed a finger to his lips to stop him and shook her head. She wasn't going to be happy with someone that wasn't him. He looked at her with defiance and she shook her head again, he closed his eyes once more and she pressed her forehead against his. Seconds later he pulled abruptly away and without another comment he gave her one last look before walking away, not even glancing back at her. She could almost feel her heart breaking, had they just broken up? They'd survived three weeks without each other surely they could do more, the realisation hit her like a truck and she felt her knees buckle, he wasn't planning on coming back to LA and she wasn't moving to Tree Hill.

It really was over.

As he sat down in the plane's seat Lucas Scott realised he hated himself. His fists were clenched on the plane's arm rest, his whole body tense as he steeled himself, trying to make sure he didn't ask the hostess' to just let him off the plane straight away before they took off. Then they were moving and building up speed, Lucas didn't relax, he couldn't. What had he just done? He'd broken up with someone who he knew he was going to love forever and had told her to be with someone else; he pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes, seeing spots. He hadn't explained it all that well, he knew. Lucas' throat constricted, almost painfully, he loved her. He was in love with her…and yet he left Peyton in LA to go home and broke both their hearts in the process.

Someone tapped his shoulder and he clenched his jaw before taking his hands away from his eyes and resting them on the arm rests, a hostess looked at him with worry,

'Are you all right sir?' She asked.

'I'm… fine. I'm fine.' He mumbled and she nodded.

'Would you like some water?' She asked and he nodded.

She came back moments later and he took the bottle off her thankfully, he unscrewed the cap and let the liquid slide down his throat. It cooled him, but he still felt like he could taste her. The memory of her lips pressing against his urgently as they fell through her apartment door bombarded his brain, the sweetness of her over plagued his senses and he suddenly felt sick. What had he done?! He'd left the only person he'd given his whole heart to. He took another gulp of water in an attempt to calm down and closed his eyes, leaning back against his head rest.

This was completely screwed up and he had no idea how to fix it.

Peyton sat numbly in the taxi tears streaming down her face; she didn't even bother to brush them away. It took her a couple of minutes to register that they were outside her apartment before she gave the driver his fare and climbed out. It took her longer than it should have, her limbs didn't seem to be working properly.

She fumbled with the key before opening the door closing it behind her and resting her throbbing head against it, she slid down it slowly and decided that all she was going to do today was sob. Apparently fate had other ideas,

'Peyt?'

She looked up quickly, 'Dad?' She said, astonished. Larry was standing in front of her looking concerned.

'Honey, what's wrong?'

Peyton attempted a smile and shook her head, but it didn't fool Larry. The smile came out like a grimace after all; he sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She couldn't help but remember the few times he'd done this after her mother had died. This throughout no fault of her own spurred on the tears again and soon enough she found herself sobbing onto her father's shoulder as he wrapped his arms tighter around her.

'Where've you been? Is it Jake?' Larry's voice was suddenly sharp, 'Because if it is then I have no trouble in-'

Peyton let out a weak sarcastic chuckle, 'It's not. It's…' She took a deep breath and his name came out in nothing more than a whisper, 'Lucas.'

Larry sighed, 'I thought you were moving past this…'

'He showed up on Friday.' Peyton interrupted, dismissing the comment completely.

'Oh.' Larry replied, surprised. 'Is he still here?'

'No, we just went…to the airport.' Peyton closed her eyes tightly.

'Oh honey, did you talk?'

Un-bidding to her mind Friday night leapt into Peyton's memory, they did very little talking that night and she wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to hold herself together.

'Yeah we did.'

'Well…' Larry prompted as Peyton didn't seem to be elaborating.

'I think it's…over.' She couldn't quite believe the words she was saying, they felt foreign coming out of her mouth. If only they weren't true…

Larry didn't need to see his daughter's face to know that she was broken, her head was still on his shoulder but her body shook slightly as she said the words and he didn't have a clue of what to do next.

Lucas let out a deep breath as he got out of the cab, he was back. Tree Hill smelt like home but the hole in his heart told otherwise, he picked up his bag and walked up the drive way opening the door to the house and dropping his bag unceremoniously on the kitchen floor before collapsing into a chair. He sighed again and as tears pricked his eyes, threatening to over flow he placed his head in his hands, resting his elbows on the table. The light clicked on and he knew it was his mother, but he didn't bother to raise his head until he felt his mother's arms rest around him as she sat down next to him. He raised his head and looked into his mother's concerned face and knew from her look of worry that he looked awful. He didn't care, he felt even worse.

'I think it's... over.' Lucas said his voice cracking.

'Oh Luke.' Karen whispered and in half a second, he'd wrapped his arms tightly around her and all she could do was sit there holding her boy as his tears soaked her shirt.

The scolding she'd planned to give him died as she'd seen him sitting at the table, she couldn't punish her boy when he was so obviously…broken.

Larry took a quick look at Peyton's sleeping form sprawled across his lap as someone tried to open the very door they were leaning against. Larry manoeuvred them away from it quickly and Jake poked his head around it, concern flitting across his features,

'What's happened?' Jake asked.

'Why are you here Jake?' Larry asked quietly.

'Peyton's being dodging me all weekend; she hasn't answered her phone or opened the apartment door when I've come round. I was worried.'

Larry rolled his eyes thinking of Lucas and Peyton being in this very apartment for the whole weekend, 'Figures.'

'What do you mean?' Jake asked, confused.

'It doesn't matter… just, come here.'

Jake walked forwards and sat down on Peyton's other side, Larry turned Peyton around carefully so that her head lolled against Jake's shoulder instead. He looked up at Larry in surprise,

'Please Jake, just… fix my girl.' He pleaded and Jake nodded dumbfounded before Larry stood up and walked down the hall of the apartment, raking a hand through his hair as he went. Jake looked down at Peyton's face and sighed, she didn't look good.

He carefully put an arm around her shoulders and brushed a curl tenderly off her face sighing. What could he do but wait?

Lucas woke up suddenly, his head throbbed and his eyes were sore but he was back in his own bed. He sat up and swung his legs around to the side getting up and plodding out, stopping as he heard people talking,

'… he came back late last night.' He heard Karen say, then voices that sounded like Brooke, Nathan and Haley.

'Was he all right?' Haley asked.

'I'd say he was pretty happy at seeing P again, it was killing him when she left.' Brooke's voice drifted down the hallway.

'He wasn't…good.'

'Why, did he tell you what happened?' It was Nathan's voice this time.

'He just said- that they'd… decided to call it quits.'

'They broke up!' Brooke exclaimed.

'It's hardly logical- a long distance relationship.' Haley said glumly.

'But why did it take them three days to break up, he left on Friday?' Nathan asked.

'They were probably enjoying the break-up sex too much.' Brooke countered making Nathan chuckle and Haley sigh.

'Seriously Brooke, why?' Karen groaned.

'Sorry, I figured this conversation needed a little bit of light humour…'

Lucas saw in his mind's eye Karen's disapproving expression as Haley sighed again. Deciding he'd heard enough Lucas shut his bedroom door behind him more loudly than he would usually have done, to show them that he was coming into the kitchen. Sure enough the room he was about to walk into fell silent. Lucas walked in and headed straight towards the coffee machine, turning it on and pulling a mug out of the cupboard, not saying a word to the four sets of eyes he could feel on his back. It took him exactly three minutes to have his coffee ready and no one spoke in that time, taking a deep breath and picking up his mug he turned around to see all four of them sitting at the kitchen table.

'You look like hell.' Nathan said and Haley shot him a warning look.

'Gee thanks.' Lucas muttered, his voice was somewhat hoarse and scratchy.

'You sound like hell too.'

'Nathan.' Haley said warningly again as Lucas' jaw clenched.

Everyone lapsed into silence, before the sound of the phone made them all jump. Karen practically ran into the hall and picked it up; there was silence for a minute before Karen said,

'I know Larry. Yes, Lucas is here, no he can't come to the phone right now…'

The three sitting at the table fixed their eyes on Lucas and he closed his tightly, half of him was glad that Larry had called. Now he knew that Peyton had someone that could look after her properly, of course she had Jake too. He glowered at the thought but put it out of his mind as his mother spoke again,

'Look, Larry, they're-… yes. I know.'

Haley stole a quick glance at Lucas wholooked like a mess. It seems Peyton was the same; she sighed and looked at Nathan who was listening intently to Karen's conversation. Brooke looked down at the table; she'd been through her fair share of abandonment and felt like, somehow, she was letting down Peyton.

'I'm sorry Larry, I really don't know what we can do about it-'

Karen stopped and Lucas closed his eyes tightly. She started again a few seconds later however, 'Yeah. I'll talk to you later… I hope she's all right.'

They all heard the phone being put down before Karen walked back into the kitchen and sat down. She really didn't know where to put herself. Part of her wanted to tell Lucas to get over it, they were high school… it was high school 'love' not true love and then part of her knew that it ran deeper than that.

She didn't know which one to listen to.

'Is Peyton all right Karen?' Nathan asked quietly, Karen considered. Nathan was protective over Peyton and she couldn't really understand why. Either way she knew that either Scott boy would willingly get in a fight over her. She shook her head a fraction of a second pleading with him not to say anything else but unfortunately Lucas, who'd also been waiting for an answer, saw. He stood up with so much force that it knocked the chair backwards and made everyone jump and he was out the door, basketball in hand in less than thirty seconds.

'Is she okay?' Nathan asked again seconds later and his tone of voice demanded some sort of answer.

Karen sighed and hesitated.

'Karen, just tell us.' Nathan said and both Haley and Brooke nodded fervently this time.

'She's only said two words in the past twenty four hours…' Karen said and seeing that this wasn't enough for the teenagers in front of her she added, 'It's over.' Brooke sniffled slightly and Haley wrapped an arm around her shoulder. 'He can't get anything else out of her… but she's okay…she's coping.' Karen added hopefully.

Nathan snorted with sarcasm, 'Yeah sure sounds like it.' He pulled open the back door and Karen stood up quickly,

'Where are you going?'

'To knock some sense into my brother.' Nathan grumbled practically slamming the door behind him only to hear Karen say warningly, 'Nathan!'

Haley stood up as Karen rushed to the door, 'He doesn't mean literally, he won't do anything. They'll be fine.'

'They need to talk.' Brooke added. 'You know, as guys.'

Karen nodded and slowly joined them back at the table to wait until the two boys came back.

Nathan walked quickly, fuming. He couldn't believe his idiot brother. He had to knock some sense into him, Peyton was hurting and he wasn't going to stand by and watch it happen. Except that he wasn't watching it happen, he wasn't there to help…he was hundreds of miles away with no means to comfort. He slowed his pace slightly, he wasn't as mad at Lucas as he'd thought.

He was mad at the situation, he wanted to help his brother and one of his best friends get their act together but he had no idea how. As he neared the river court he looked up and watched Lucas shooting, one…two…three shots towards the net. None of them went in, he sighed as the fourth bounced off the back board. Lucas grabbed the basketball in temper and swung it as hard as he could away from him into the river. He was breathing hard, hands on hips, when Nathan reached him.

'Luke.' Nathan said and his voice sounded softer than he'd originally intended it to be. Lucas turned around and his demeanour seemed slumped.

'What did I do Nate?' He asked in an uneven voice.

'You fell in love.' Nathan shrugged.

'And I let her go.' Lucas added, Nathan bristled slightly as he realised that Lucas had been the one to end things between him and Peyton but then sighed. It was obviously not what he'd wanted; he was trying to take the high road as usual, instead of dragging them deeper. Typical Lucas.

Lucas looked at his brother in surprise; he had been expecting Nathan to get angry at that comment, even to hit him. Perhaps he even wanted to be hit, he deserved it. Nathan sighed again at the look on Lucas' face.

'You'll work it out.' He said decidedly, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder.

'I don't see how…' Lucas stopped at the thought, how was everything going to work out?

He wasn't moving to LA, Peyton wasn't moving to Tree Hill.

'If it's meant to be, it'll just… happen.' Nathan said confidently.

The smallest bit of hope ignited like a small fire inside of Lucas. Maybe, somehow…inexplicably things would change. Maybe something life altering was just around the corner, ready to bring him and Peyton back together.

However much that thought comforted him he couldn't stop small contradicting thought enter his mind, and however much he loved Peyton Sawyer he couldn't help but wonder what would happen if they weren't meant to be?

Okay sooooo there's going to be two-three chapters left! And i don't know where the time has gone but it's been a long time since i've updated.... even after the 1 1/2 weeks i told you about :| I'm very sorry, all i can say is that things are hectic right now.... hopefully it'll die down soon.

I didn't fall of a mountain though, which is a good thing...well i like to think so :P Your comments about that made me laugh....

I haven't talked about OTH in a while, 620- Peyton's car crash, it was glossed over completerly apart from Brooke&Peyton scenes... 621- Loved it! Flashbacks and ending scenes were great! 622- Loved it again! I am loving Brooke&Peyton and Haley&Peyton! 623- I cannot wait for! But have a busy week so i may have to watch it later on in the week!!! I hope LP get what they deserve, a beautiful wedding :D I am craving a Nathan/Peyton scene though, surely he'll be worried that she might die!!! Everyone else has seen her! Anywayssss...

I'm sorry again and i probably don't deserve any feedback but still... it would be good to have any you'd like to give me :D!