As the weeks flew by, the bonds that they had started to reform were still growing, thankfully to all involved. All of the worries and all of the emotions had let themselves play out at various points throughout the last two months since Peyton and Lucas had returned, and it seemed like they were getting back to something akin to normalcy.

At least that is what they thought.

"Where are you going?" Brooke asks her best friend as she gets up again from the couch while they are watching a movie.

"I'm just going to the bathroom, don't worry about it." Peyton calls over her shoulder, making her way slowly to the bathroom.

She was tired. More so than usual, but she wasn't going to let anybody know that, not with everything that had started happening that week. And to set things straight, she didn't really have to go to the bathroom, she just needed a minute to herself. It was all becoming too much for her to handle... the upcoming birth of their baby girl, Jamie's cancer not beating the odds, she and Brooke growing back into those friends that they used to be, and this week, Lucas on a book tour. The hardest though, the one that was taking the most out of her was Jamie... a little boy whose spirit had not wavered once.

–

Two weeks ago

–

They were all sitting down in the living room at Nathan and Haley's, after a nice meal, as they had started doing when they had come back. But there was something about this night that didn't feel right, not to anyone, and as they caught Nathan and Haley share a quick glance at each other, they each took a breath.

"So, we've got to talk to you guys about something." Haley starts, and Nathan takes her hands in his, "We got the latest results from the doctors, and... he... he isn't getting any better."

She took another breath as she described what was wrong, and surprisingly held the tears at bay, but with her final statement, that shook all of them, two tears slid down her cheeks, "We're done fighting... he can't do it anymore."

Brooke was the first to break the silence, as she usually was, "There's got to be someone else that can take him on. I'll call around.. see if there is a program somewhere else."

"Brooke, we love you for that, but we can't do it anymore, and neither can he." Nathan says, squeezing his wife's hands and looking over to see how she's taking the sharing of this news.

"It's just time for him, and all that we can do is keep him comfortable and love him."

"What can we do?" Lucas asks after Haley's comment.

"Just what you have been. Having you guys back, and it being the five of us again has meant the world to us, and the world to Jamie. We're going to get through this, I know we will. It's just... It's going to be hard."

–

Present Day

–

As Peyton sat in the bathroom, she went through that night in her head, recalling just how strong her friend had been. She couldn't have done it, she was sure, and it seemed like every day that went by it was getting harder and harder to see what was happening to her family.

When she stood to walk back into the living room, she found her breath shallow, as if she had been running, but forced herself to stay calm.

Then she felt the first clench of her abdomen and had to grab onto the wall for support, causing a loud band to resound through the hallway and into the living room.

"Peyton?" Brooke calls out, hearing the sound and turning to see Peyton leaning against the wall, and then rushing over to her side.

"Call 911."

She nods, running to the kitchen to get the phone and dialing as fast as she can.

When the ambulance gets there, Brooke is forced to try and explain the urgency of the situation, "She's due in three weeks, but she has a heart condition. She said that she was having trouble breathing. Her doctor is... something with an M. Shoot!! She's been going to Tree Hill General"

"Miss Davis, we have your friend, and we are monitoring her and the baby."

"No, you don't under-"

"All you need to do is follow us down to the hospital and call Mrs. Scott's husband... she's going to be just fine."

Frustrated, Brooke whips out her cell phone just as the ambulance is pulling away from the house.

"Lucas."

"What's wrong?"

"It's Peyton, I think that she's in labor. She was having a hard time breathing, and then she said that she was having contractions."

"Did you call an ambulance?!" he screams into the phone, trying to stay calm, but only being able to picture his wife on a hospital bed.

"I did, and they just got her on her way to the hospital. I'm following behind them right now, so I need you to get here."

"I'm at the airport in Chicago... I'll see if I can get a flight out. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Hurry, Luke."

"Brooke... I know that we..."

"Lucas, no matter how much the two of you missed while you were gone, that woman never stopped being my best friend, and you never stopped being my friend. I'm there... you just get here safely and as fast as you can."

"Thank you."

He hung up the phone, and looked around him, the world suddenly turning into slow motion as he searched for the ticket counter.

One hour.

He had to wait an hour before getting on a plane, and silently cursed his editor for making him do a book tour. Peyton had insisted that she was going to be fine. She had been feeling pretty good for the past week, so he said that he would just go to a few of the major market cities before coming home.

Now he was sitting in the airport, forced to watch as people threw their arms around one another in greeting, and remembering the last time that he was all nerves in the airport.

–

While they were away

–

He was the only one who was going to know where they were, and it was only because Peyton rarely got a chance to see her father on dry land, and he wasn't in contact with anyone that they knew, so she sent him letters frequently. And finally, one day, he sent a letter back saying that he was flying into Charlotte, and he wanted to see her, asking if she would drive the four hours to come pick him up.

They shared a bit of nervous laughter over that request, wondering what exactly Larry Sawyer was going to say when he found out where they were and all the details that no one knew about.

It isn't every day that you come to see your daughter and find out that she's married and is five months pregnant. Nope, that was going to be interesting.

What was perhaps more interesting, just adding to the situation was the fact that Peyton was unable to come to the airport the day he arrived, meaning Lucas had to go pick up his father-in-law, who didn't know that he had a son-in-law.

The shocker was the smile on his face when he saw his beloved 'Rake Boy'. "Don't tell me that my daughter sent you all the way out here to get me."

"That she did, but don't worry about it Mr. Sawyer."

"Rake Boy, the least I could do is let you call me Larry."

"All right, Larry, why don't we get your bags."

They moved to get the bags and were walking out to the car when Larry asked Lucas if Peyton was waiting in the car.

"Not exactly. She really couldn't make it, but she'll be at home when we get there."

He didn't know what to make of that statement, him using the word home as if it was his as well. Then he was even more curious when Lucas pulled out of the airport going the opposite way of Tree Hill.

"Lucas..." he starts to ask.

"We'll explain in a minute." he says, not even turning to the man in the seat next to him, who had just caught a glimpse of the silver band that adorned Lucas' left hand.

"I have a feeling you've got a lot to explain."

Something about the tone of his voice made Lucas feel like we was sixteen again, trying to save Peyton for her non-existent robber, just to find her dad in the kitchen. They weren't sixteen, and they were far from those teenagers who had been sneaking kisses away from their friends. Or… well, maybe they weren't very far from that, but they were certainly not in a position that would bring shame to either name. They were married and they were having a baby. It's just that no one knew about it.

When they pulled up to the apartment complex, he only got more nervous, pointing Larry in the direction of their apartment and telling him that Peyton was waiting upstairs.

"Just tell me something before I walk up those stairs Lucas…"

He turns finally to meet the eyes of the older man, "yes sir?"

"Is she happy?"

"Yes."

So, with a nod he walks out into the brisk Charlotte air and up to the apartment obviously shared by his daughter and the boy he knows that she's always been in love with.

When Lucas came in after grabbing the bags, he found Peyton and her father sitting opposite each other across the coffee table in their small living room. It was silent. Like, so silent that all you could hear was their breathing, and Lucas didn't want to break that silence. Instead, he opted to sit down next to his wife of not even a year without saying a word.

"So…" Larry says, sitting back in his chair and watching the two of them through squinted eyes.

"Oh, come on dad… that's how you're going to start this? So?"

"Well, you didn't let me finish Peyton… how am I supposed to say anything? You never once mentioned that you were living in Charlotte. You also didn't mention that you and rake boy got married, and I'm pretty sure that I missed that conversation where you told me that I was going to be a grandfather."

"I'm sorry?" she says, letting it come out as a question more than a statement.

To her surprise, he just goes into a line of questioning, asking when they got married, when the baby was due, what they were doing in Charlotte, and all the questions that they were sure they would have gotten if they ran into anyone from home.

"Well, I'm glad that the two of you finally came to your senses, then."

"You're kidding me." Peyton says, eyebrow raised.

"What do you expect?"

"I don't know, some huge speech about us leaving and not telling anybody about all of this. Maybe a dash of you telling us that we rushed things or that you're too young to be a grandfather."

"Well… now that you mention that last part…" he says with a smile on his face.

"Daddy…"

"Peyton, you're happy. And I am sure that you and Lucas have very good reasons for everything that you have done. You've both been kind of backwards in everything that you have done, so this doesn't surprise me one bit."

"Really?"

He was being honest, and that surprised them, but then Lucas thought to the secret that he had kept from his daughter for so many years and realized that he understood the reasons behind keeping some things to themselves.

--

Present Day

--

"Peyton, I need you to breathe for me." The nurse says as Peyton starts to panic a little bit more.

"I am, I just can't catch a good breath."

"We're going to get some oxygen in here and that's going to help, but for right now, you need to try to calm down."

"Come on, Peyton, I'm here, and Lucas is going to be here in just a little bit. You're going to be okay."

"I need him here, Brooke. I can't do this without him."

"You won't have to, he'll get here." She says, taking her friend's hand as someone comes in with oxygen and more tubes and needles.

"Mrs. Scott, the doctor is on his way in, so just hold tight for a little bit and we'll decide what we need to do."

"Okay." She says, nodding at the nurse and then turning to Brooke with tears in her eyes.

"Hey hey, there is none of that right now. I told you that Luke was going to be here. You aren't the softy in this relationship Peyton Sawyer, so don't start this on me now."

"Scott…"

"See! There's the Peyton I know, correcting me like always."

She laughs, squeezing Brooke's hand as she feels another small contraction. The nurse had told her that she was in active labor, but wasn't dilated nearly enough to worry about anything. To be honest though, that was all that she was doing was worrying. It just sank in when the doctor walked in to talk to her.

"Peyton, how are we doing."

"I'm still having a hard time catching my breath and I feel like the contractions are happening faster."

"Okay, I'm going to review the monitor here, and then we need to talk about what has to happen, okay?"

They wait as he checks the tape, frowning as the look on his face changes.

"What's wrong."

"Nothing is wrong, Peyton. The baby is fine."

"But…" she says, in hopes that he'll finish the sentence.

"I want to get our cardiologist in here so we can talk about our options. We need you hooked up to a monitor right away."

"What's happening?"

"You may not be dilating quickly enough, but your labor is progressing very very quickly, which is why we need the monitors in here. I know that we have talked about everything, but you are going to have to make some very quick decisions here, Peyton."

"It's always the baby… you know that right?"

"The baby is healthy, Peyton, I don't see anything…"

"It's ALWAYS the baby. She comes first…"

The doctor nods before exiting the room.

"Peyton, what--" Brooke starts, confused by the exchange between her friend and the doctor.

"No matter what happens Brooke, you make sure that they take care of the baby first." She says, turning to the brunette with a fire in her eyes that hadn't been there since she and Lucas had returned.

She doesn't answer, but instead puts her hand in her friend's, determined to be there.

That's when she got the other call… a call that she never expected.

--

Okay, so this was another short little happy update. I'm hoping that you enjoyed it. We shall see how it ends my friends. What am I going to do? Am I going to be evil? Are you going to end up hating me. Am I going to make you cry? You will find out soon enough…