A/N: I spoil you, I really do, but I am such a review whore. Reviews are awesome. Thank you all – keep doing what you're doing, they make my day.

In answer to those of you who asked: Lucas proposed when they were twenty-two, but he and Brooke did not get married until they were twenty-three. Miranda was born the next year, when they were twenty-four, so she's five. All that info will be important later on, so it's good for you to know.

Also, sorry to those of you who were confused when Lucas told Brooke to quiet "her" daughter last chapter. Miranda is biologically Lucas and Brooke's child, it's just one of those figure-of-speech things, a way of pawning off responsibility or blame – ie. when my sister does something annoying/irresponsible/generally silly, my mother will tell me to talk to "my sister" about it and I tell her to talk to "her daughter"…either way, we're making the other one responsible for my sister's actions. Does that make sense? I hope so; it's a joke thing. Anyway. I'm so sorry about these lengthy A/Ns. Read on, and please do review.

Sostenuto: an Italian term, a direction to performers to play smoothly without any abrupt changes in key or tempo

The morning after Jenny and Peyton's arrival back in Tree Hill, Nathan woke up and checked on his slumbering two-year-old before he meandered downstairs. Haley and Jenny were sitting on the stools at the island in their kitchen, blankets draped over their shoulders, giggling about horrible wannabe musicians and eating cold leftover pizza. He couldn't help but smile as he witnessed the easy conversation between the two of them. If Jenny was anything like Peyton – and she clearly was – then she wouldn't be the easiest person to connect with. Leave it to Haley to tear down her walls with a few well-placed jokes and her inherent kindness and motherly attitude.

"Morning, baby," Haley greeted him when she spotted him standing there, watching them. "Leftover pineapple-and-mushroom?" she offered, pushing the box toward him.

He resisted gagging. "As, um…appetizing as that sounds…I think I'll go with something a little more traditional, like, say…cereal."

"Playing it safe, I see," Haley said teasingly.

Nathan smiled back. "Good morning, Jenny," he said to the fourteen-year-old, who'd been quiet since he'd entered the little bubble she and Haley had created around them.

"Good morning," she replied, her tone friendly but guarded.

Yeah, Peyton through and through. Nathan shook some cereal into a bowl and reached into the fridge for the milk. "What do you crazy musicians have planned for today?"

"Studio time," Haley said excitedly. "It's like a test run…kind of like sight-reading. Shows me what I've got to work with," she added, quirking her eyebrows at Jenny. "It'll give you a taste of the biz."

Nathan chuckled. "My wife, the rock star."

"Realistically…is this going to be really hard?" Jenny asked.

"I expect you to work, Jenny, but none of it's meant to be torture. You love music, right?"

"Of course."

"So it's not going to be hard. I mean, I had Chris Keller when I was starting out. You have me, and I'm so much better."

"I still can't believe that he convinced The Wreckers that you should go on tour with them!" Jenny cried, her eyes bright. In every one of her movements, Nathan found himself searching for Jake-like characteristics. He had yet to find anything.

He left the girls alone to continue their music talk, walking into the living room with his cereal. Noah and Nick were settled on the couch with unbreakable cups filled with orange juice, contentedly absorbed in their summer-morning cartoons. A baby monitor, which would alert them when Sebastian woke up, sat nearby. Jamie was sitting alone in a chair, looking at the TV but not really watching it.

Nathan took a seat next to the twins, tickling them carefully so as to avoid any orange juice spillage. He then turned to his eleven-year-old, whose eyes kept wandering to the kitchen. "Sup, J. Luke?" he asked curiously.

"Huh? Oh…nothing. Just…TV."

"Uh-huh," Nathan agreed sceptically. He, too, pretended to watch the television. When Jamie's gaze strayed again, he followed it with his own eyes.

Right to Jenny, sitting there on a stool and nibbling on a mushroom in her pink-and-white polka dot boxer shorts and a pink tee. Her long blonde curls cascaded down her back in a mess of tangles, and her cheeks were a happy pale pink. Ah. She was cute, that was for sure, and for Nathan's eleven-year-old son, she must have been a downright…fantasy, as disturbing as it was to put his kid and that word in the same sentence. Older. Beautiful. Spirited. He shook his head and held in a smirk. Like father, like son.

"What's so funny?" Noah asked, studying his father's face.

Nathan smiled at him indulgently and leaned down close to whisper his discovery to his son. "Jamie's got a crush."


Chris sat next to Haley behind the glass wall in the recording studio. She had reluctantly pulled his blazer on to ward off the chill of the air conditioning, and was currently steadily alternating between two facial expressions: encouraging and annoyed.

Over the years, he and Haley had reached a point in their relationship that the rest of the world would have labelled "friendship", though they never referred to each other as friends. He'd also made peace with Nathan, but there would always be the smallest bit of animosity left over from his little…whatever it was…with Haley.

"Whenever you're ready, honey," Haley told Jenny calmly, shooting her a bright smile.

The moment Jenny looked back down at the sheet music in front of her, Haley whacked his arm.

"Ow! God! What is it with you and Nathan and abusing the Keller? Is this some sort of ki-"

"I swear to god, Chris," Haley interrupted him, "if the next word out of your mouth is kinky, I may have to kill you."

He held us his hands in surrender.

"You're making her nervous," she told him, her annoyed frown in place. "The poor kid doesn't need Chris Keller staring her down the first time she's ever been in a studio."

He smiled calmly in return. "Haley, her mother has a successful label. Jenny has some studio experience, I'm sure of it. I just want to know what she's made of."

"You're still making her nervous," she shot back weakly, knowing that he was right.

He grinned. "Chris Keller, triumphant as always."

"Shut up," Haley said with an affectionate laugh that warmed his heart a little.

He shifted in his chair, watching as Jenny tuned her guitar, her expression serious and intent. Jake's daughter. "So…what's the deal with Peyton?"

Haley's eyebrows shot high up. "Excuse me?"

Chris rolled his eyes. "I mean, with Jake. Her name was the only one on Jenny's admission forms. She adopted her years ago."

She looked at him like he was the world's biggest idiot. "Chris, I know you're a little, shall we say…self-absorbed, and I know that your relationship with Peyton, if you can even call it that, consisted basically of you annoying her – which doesn't surprise me in the least, by the way. But even you must know that Peyton Sawyer has about three hundred more walls put up around her than the average person. I can't just blurt out questions like, hey, dude, what's the deal with Jake? She'd bolt, and I am not going to lose her again," Haley said with impeccable ferocity and love.

"Okay, okay…fair enough, Hales. I'm just saying…he can't be around anymore. It wouldn't make any sense."

"I don't know what happened, okay?" she shot back irritably.

"Haley…" he tried, confused by the sudden sadness in her demeanour.

"I'm scared, okay?" she said testily, tears clouding her eyes. She wiped them away hastily with the sleeve of his blazer, not wanting Jenny to catch her crying. "I'm so scared that Jake died because I know what it would do to Peyton, and to Jenny. And if not…I'm just scared of the explanation. So…I'm waiting. I'm giving it time…giving her time. Peyton will come around eventually." She sighed heavily and blinked a few times, smiling at Jenny through the glass when the fourteen-year-old caught her eye. "Why do you even care anyway; you want to hook up with her or something?" she asked laughingly.

He stayed silent, wincing in preparation of what he knew was to come.

Haley spun in her chair to face him, mouth opening and closing as she searched for words. "Are you serious, you absolute moron?" she demanded incredulously. "No! No, no, no!"

He frowned at the intensity of her discouragement. "What, you control her life now? Last I checked you hadn't heard from Peyton in twelve years, just like the rest of us."

"Don't go there, Chris," she ordered him harshly.

"What?" he whined with a pout he knew was sure to annoy her. "She's hot."

"She's not yours for the taking," Haley all but growled. "You can't just pick her as your conquest, Chris – she can't deal with that."

"Again, I ask: how to you know? Twelve years, Haley James."

"God," she muttered and corrected, "Haley James Scott. Chris, please, I'm asking you this as…well, as me, whatever that means: do not do this to her."

He scowled. It was a little hurtful that she doubted him so much. "I'm not going to force her into anything, Hales. God, what do you think of me?" He reflected on his words momentarily. "Okay, so maybe I don't want to know."

"Chris…" she said softly. "Be serious with me – you like her?"

He shrugged, self-conscious under Haley's seen-everything, gentle stare. "At this point, I don't know her any better than you do. She's beautiful, she likes music, and as far as I can tell, she's alone."

"But you…you can't be looking for a relationship. That's not the Chris Keller I know."

He didn't say anything. He could change, but he knew that that wasn't the most convincing argument, and that Haley probably wouldn't believe him. He just looked at her, his gaze steady.

"Look, Chris, Peyton's romantic life is kind of…"

"Epic? Tragic?" he supplied.

"I don't want her to get hurt again," Haley said, looking at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I'm ready!" Jenny called, her voice shaking the slightest bit.

Haley beamed at her and pressed down on the button that allowed Jenny to hear her speak. "Great, sweetie – just do your best. Go to it."

Jenny strummed a single chord on her guitar, her gaze intent on the music in front of her, and then began to sing.

Something rare happened: Chris Keller got goose bumps. She had an incredible voice, and clear talent, he could see it in the assuredness of her fingers pressing lightly on the guitar strings. Next to him, Haley shivered and whispered, "That's beautiful. God…that's Jake's kid, for sure. Just listen to her," she said, looking at him with her eyes wide in amazement.

"Yeah," he muttered in agreement, struck speechless for once in his life by the soft, melodious sound of Jenny's voice. It was in ways like Haley's, but he could hear the undertones of Jake Jagielski's voice loud and clear.

"Listen, Chris," Haley murmured softly, still absorbed in Jenny's singing. "I want to protect Peyton's heart. I've always worried about her. But…" she sighed again. "I don't want you to get hurt, either."


"Can you believe that? What a bitch," Brooke fumed.

"Yes, total bitch," Lucas agreed calmly as she ranted about a snobby woman she'd met that day.

Brooke pouted at him, pointing an accusing finger in his face. "You're humouring me."

He could tell that she wasn't really angry. "Maybe just a little," he confessed with an endearing grin.

She smiled back. "You're so lucky with your work, Luke. You sit in the quiet and comfort of your own home, and you never have to deal with evil skanks," she fumed. "I love my clothes, but I really hate the industry sometimes."

"I don't think that there's anyone out there who really adores working in fashion," he soothed her. They were standing in the parking lot outside Tree Hill's most prestigious and expensive elementary school. Miranda went there during the school year, but they'd also signed her up for a summer dance class program that took place in the school's dance studio. Lucas, who had grown up with much less money than Brooke had, could still hardly believe that the school even had a dance studio.

"I guess not," Brooke sighed. She flipped her wrist up to consult the time on her diamond-encrusted watch. "They're late getting out. How are you feeling today, baby, tired?"

He gave her a look; she was acting strangely. "I'm fine." In truth, he'd done nothing but stare at the TV all day. It was sad but true – he just couldn't seem to write, and staring at his stupid computer did nothing but frustrate him. He didn't mind cooking for his girls; at that point, he felt it was the least he could do, considering his complete lack of writing progress meant a complete lack of money.

Brooke leaned into him with a secretive smile. "How about we drop Mira off with Haley and you take your wife out to dinner?" She quirked her eyebrows, awaiting his agreement.

He smiled. "Or you could just let me cook for you, Pretty Girl. I really don't mind."

She frowned. "Are you going to make me help? Because I'm spent."

Lucas chuckled, aware that she was working her ass off. "No, you and Mira can play dress-up or something, and we'll open a bottle of wine with dinner. It'll be relaxing, I promise you."

She pretended to consider. "That does sound pretty good…as long as we can have dessert."

"Of course. What're you thinking of having?"

She smirked, leaning up to whisper in his ear, "You."

Lucas smirked back at her. "I thought you were tired."

"Only for some things," she teased, smirk still in place. "So what do you think?"

"I think that can be arranged."

"Yeah?" she grinned.

"Yeah."

"Mommy! Daddy!" Their little girl's voice interrupted them as she came barrelling toward them in her black leotard and white tutu, her feet jammed into bright orange flip-flops that caused her to trip a little as she ran to them. Her ballet shoes dangling from her little fingers.

Brooke winced at her daughter's choice of footwear. "I guess she picked up your fashion sense," she grouched playfully.

Lucas shot her a playfully insulted look right back before bending to easily scoop his daughter up. "Hey, princess. How was your class?"

"Really good, Daddy!" she exclaimed, and started babbling enthusiastically about pliés and tendus and pirouettes.

He met his wife's eyes over their daughter's head. Brooke stood next to them, her hand resting lightly on Miranda's back. Lucas could easily read her thoughts: they had it all. A power couple, successful and just a little bit famous – they both adored their work, though it aggravated them at times. They had a gorgeous, huge house, caring family, great friends, and a perfect five-year-old girl.

He couldn't help but agree. Even though he couldn't write at the moment, all in all he felt lucky and content. He nodded encouragingly and excitedly as Miranda giggled and rambled on, ending her lengthy speech with the declaration: "I'm hungry."

"Lucky for you, Daddy's gonna cook for us," Brooke told her, leaning in rub her nose lightly against her daughter's.

When they pulled apart, Lucas leaned in for an impulsive kiss, one that was passionate while still publicly acceptable. Brooke pulled away from him with an eager smile playing her glossy lips. "Let's go home," she said, her eyes glinting as she undressed him in her mind, and Lucas shook his head, scolding her, with a pointed look at their child. She laughed and hooked her arm through his, leaning her head happily against his shoulder as they made their way across the street to their car.

Lucas knew that Brooke's life had come together as perfectly as she could have ever wanted, and he loved being the one that had given her all she could dream of. Now he could only wonder about himself, and what was keeping him from moving on to his next success, his pursuit of his next happiness.


Haley ran a brush through her hair, which fell to her shoulders in soft waves. She didn't know who she was trying to impress. Peyton was not a judgemental guest – she wouldn't critique Haley's appearance and hostess skills like her in-laws would. Still, Haley felt like she needed to get dressed up, at least a little. She studied her reflection in the mirror critically. She looked good: pretty and sophisticated in a calm, understated way. She toyed with the necklace she wore nervously.

Chris' earlier confession of his interest in Peyton made her uneasy, and even more anxious to know more of all the information she'd been kept from in the last twelve years of Peyton's life. Their talk of Peyton's romantic history had brought Haley back to the only other boy, other than Jake, who'd been truly significant in Peyton's life: Lucas. She wondered whether she should have informed Lucas and Brooke – whom Nathan had long ago teasingly dubbed the 'Second Scotts' – about the arrival of Peyton in town. The thought alone made her nauseously nervous, the infamous old love triangle rearing its ugly head again. Haley had no desire to delve back into all that drama, not after so long. Jenny's singing earlier in the day had reinforced how easily Haley completely adored Jake's daughter, and how much she didn't want to lose either of the blondes that had just waltzed back into Tree Hill.

Four feet away, Nathan was engaged in battle with his tie. "Hales, remind me why I'm wearing this again?" He was acting nonchalantly, but he couldn't fool her. Nathan had been wearing ties often since he was a kid – the fact that he was struggling with the one currently around his neck gave away his own nervousness.

"So you look nice. You wear ties all the time, Nathan; what's the big deal?" She strode over to him and batted his hands away, expertly tying it for him.

"That's it: there is no big deal. It's just Peyton, Hales," he sighed.

"I know," she replied defensively. "It's just…we haven't seen her in so long."

Nathan sighed again, struggling to loosen his tie. "Haley, you look hot, you always do, but I don't think all this formality is going to make her especially comfortable."

Haley re-tightened his tie with more force than necessary, a bit aggressively, even. "So, what, you put on your old uniform and I'll dig out that stupid poncho and we'll hope that Peyton shows up in her cheerleading skirt?" she scoffed. "The last time we saw her we were seventeen. We don't know her anymore," she added in a quieter voice, quickly pressing a hand to her mouth to hold back the sobs that threatened to escape. She didn't want to scare her kids, and she didn't want to mess up her mascara, either.

"I know a lot has changed. It's been a long time," her husband agreed kindly. "But, Haley…fundamentally, we're still the same people. And so is Peyton."

Haley took a deep breath, still trying hard not to cry. "I love your optimism, baby…" she told Nathan, tiredly but lovingly, "but I don't believe it."


Haley was obviously nervous. She'd given Jamie the usual before-guests-arrive lecture, dressed Nick and Noah in matching outfits, and even dressed the baby up.

Nathan loved his wife with all his heart, but there were moment when he really didn't understand her. Haley was trying to make a good impression on a girl they already knew; to Nathan it seemed ridiculous and unnecessary. It was Peyton, the girl he'd dated for two years and the girl who'd become one of his closest and most understanding friends.

People changed. He was well aware of that fact. He himself was living proof. And it had been so long, twelve years, that of course, Peyton had changed. But Nathan had so much history with her, in so many various forms, that he was convinced that, underneath the baggage she'd acquired over the last twelve years, she'd still be the same Peyton.

Haley dashed out of the room to check on dinner yet again. "Boys! Jenny! It's seven o'clock, get downstairs, please!"

"Hey, J. Luke," Nathan greeted his firstborn in the hall. Jamie shot him a grin in reply. "How're you doing, bud?"

"What's the deal with Mom?" he asked, glancing not-so-subtly in the direction of Jenny's room. Poor crushed-out, distracted kid. "Why's she so stressed?"

"Well…"

"Who's coming over, anyway?" Jamie asked, fully dedicating himself to their conversation when it became clear that Jenny was not about to walk out into the hall.

"An old friend of ours," Nathan told him.

"A friend? Then why is Mom acting like the president is coming over?"

Nathan messed his son's hair up and smiled wryly at him. "It's a long story, kiddo, one that even your mom and I don't know all of yet."

Haley was inspecting the twins' hands for dirt when Nathan and Jamie arrived downstairs. Nathan resisted rolling his eyes. "Hales, she's not going to judge us by our children's hands."

His wife shot him a glare, but Jenny entered the room at that moment, saving him from a snappish lecture.

"Wow," Jenny said uneasily. "You all look…fancy." She glanced down nervously at her own attire.

She was decked out in the same clothes she'd been wearing all day: a denim miniskirt and a pale blue t-shirt emblazoned with Peyton's label's logo over a black long-sleeved shirt. "You're fine," Nathan assured her, "it's just your mom." He realized in that to an outside, they must have looked like the stereotypical family, with Jenny playing the role of the rebellious teenage daughter who'd refused to dress up.

There was a soft, tentative knock at the door. Haley gasped. "She's here!" she cried in a near-horrified whisper.

Shaking his head, Nathan took it upon himself to answer the door. He swung it open and casually leaned against it, saying, "Hey, Sawyer."

She looked so familiar that he actually felt relieved. Yes, she looked tired and a little desolate, but not horribly so. Rather than looking bitter due to the hell life had decided to put her through, Peyton looked…softer, somhow, in brown knit pants and a thin, white long-sleeved tee. Her shirt had a scoop-neck that made the delicate bones at her neck look more pronounced. In the strangest way, she looked grief-stricken though she was nearly glowing, radiating a sense of happiness that could only come from finding one's place and purpose.

"Hey, Nate," she responded with a grateful smile. There was a beat, and then she flung her arms around him, holding him tightly.

Nathan returned the hug with just as much force and love. Her voice, sweet and muffled in his ear, said, "I missed you."

As he pulled away, he said, "Yeah, Peyton, I missed you, too. Don't disappear like that again, okay?"

The look she gave him was all nervousness and heartbreak. "I won't," she whispered in reply as Haley approached them. Automatically, Peyton reached out to wrap her arms around the shorter woman, but released her quickly. "Listen, guys," her soft voice said hastily. "I know that you don't know a lot, and I know that you want to. I'm sorry. I know I owe you, I do, but…no Jake talk, okay? Jenny can't handle it."

It was obvious that Peyton couldn't handle it, either, and the sadness in her intense gaze frightened Nathan. It was clear from his wife's following question that it scared her, too: "Peyton. Can you just…tell us what happened?" Haley's voice shook.

Oh, God. Jake died. What other explanation could there possibly be? Nathan could actually feel the sympathy seeping into his facial expression.

"Jake is no longer involved in our lives, okay?" Peyton snapped.

Nathan frowned, even more confused about the whole situation. Jake loved Jenny and Peyton with all his heart, it'd been so obvious. He was Peyton's second saviour. What could possibly have motivated him to part with the most important girls in his life, particularly because everyone, most of all those who loved her, hated to prove Peyton's people always leave theory right? Nathan couldn't even comprehend it.

"Okay…" Haley murmured, struggling not to ask more. "Well, um…"

Jenny saved her with, "Hi, Mom," and a slightly dejected but nonetheless loving hug.

Nathan watched their interaction with undisguised interest. Jenny was much more comfortable with Peyton than with the Scott clan, and understandably so, Peyton was her mom. As the two blondes embraced, Nathan could practically hear his wife's thoughts. Haley was thinking about all of Jenny's birthdays, her achievements, her friendships, her elementary-school graduation. She was thinking about all the important moments in Jenny's life that they'd missed…and all of the important moments in Peyton's life that they'd missed as well.

"So, Sawyer," he said as he cleared his throat. "Meet the fam," he said, gesturing to his kids, who stood patiently behind them, and instantly winced. Meet the fam? Had he actually just said that?

Peyton's single arched eyebrow asked the same question, but she simply slung an arm around Jenny and waited to be introduced.

"This is Jamie, he's eleven," Nathan began, placing his hand on his son's shoulder.

"Dad," Jamie whined while trying to maintain his cool for Jenny's sake.

"Right, sorry, meet J. Luke," Nathan re-introduced his son with a parent-to-parent knowing glance. He was surprised to see that Peyton's eyes, instead of lighting up with amusement, seemed to grow sadder still. He cleared his throat again. "The twins are six…Nick, Noah, come over here and say hi to your Aunt Peyton."

She seemed happy that Nathan wanted his kids to call her 'aunt', and gave the twins a dazzling smile, releasing her daughter and resting her hands on her knees as she bent down to be eye level with the little boys. "Hey, guys," she said jovially.

"Hi," they murmured shyly in unison.

"You're so handsome," Peyton told them with the kind of grin meant to pull them out of their shells. Nathan, however, caught a catch in her voice, and a glance at Haley confirmed that she'd noticed it too. Tentatively, he reached out to touch her shoulder. She started, surprised at the physical contact, but just threw him a small smile as she straightened up.

"And this is our last one. My baby boy," Haley cooed to the toddler she now held in her arms. Sebastian peered curiously at Peyton.

Peyton looked at Sebastian like he was the most adorable thing she'd ever seen, breathing, "Oh." She didn't say another word, just asked Haley the question with her eyes as she reached out for him.

Haley nodded and held him out to her. Peyton cradled him in her arms, keeping him close as she looked at his little face in wonderment. That brought yet another question to Nathan's mind: Why had Peyton never had children of her own?

Haley didn't even bother trying to pry her two-year-old away; Peyton was more than obviously smitten with the little boy. She looked at Nathan, and they exchanged their third confused glance of the evening – it would surely not be their last. After a moment of awkward silence in which Peyton kept her attention on the youngest Scott child, Haley cleared her throat and spoke up. "C'mon, let's eat!" she said cheerfully, ushering them all toward the dining table.

A/N: Reviews make me :) … not to mention that they make me want to update much more quickly.