I'm realllllly sorry this update isn't longer but thanks for all the great reviews! I flove you guys, seriously :)

**

It had been an hour since Brooke and Haley disappeared into Haley's bedroom. Julian remained in his bedroom, laying on his bed with his headphones on.

Letting Ben Folds flow through his ears always made Julian feel better, and at this moment, it was distracting him from his thoughts about what Lucas would think if he found out about Serena, why Nathan insisted on using his house for some party this Friday, and mostly, the dark haired vixen in the next room.

Even with his ipod blaring music into his ears, he still couldn't tone out the burst of giggles that just came from the room next to him. He tried tuning out Haley's voice to get a better listen on Brooke's laugh, but with his headphones on, it was almost impossible.

Julian sighed and yanked the headphones from his ears, then sat up in his bed, wondering what Haley and Brooke were doing. He wasn't sure why he was so fascinated with the vamp, but he could help himself. Just one glance at her, and he was hooked. The way she'd confidentially stood tall in her dark boots, crossing her net covered legs, arms crossed, and perfectly shaped eyebrow rose. Damn it, this gal just scream sexy! And mystery. And just about every other words that's definition was that of intriguing.

He didn't know why this sort of attraction hadn't hit him earlier. Like when he'd see her randomly chatting with Haley by her locker, or maybe even when she sat and sketched away in art class. Where did she even sit in that class, how had he never paid her any attention before?

Another fit of giggles were emitted from Haley's room, and Julian's boredom and mind set on Brooke Davis made Julian rise from his bed and leave his room.

His first initial idea was to march straight into Haley's room and see what they were up to, but then he'd need an excuse.

Do now, think later, Julian chanted to himself.

In the midst of a fit of laughter, without knocking Julian opened Haley's door, and was greeted with a two pairs of eyes, surprised to see him there. Brooke sat on the floor next to the gray couch that Haley was sprawled on. She was flipping through an issue of Nylon Magazine, laughing at whatever it was she was looking at on the page, but her hazel eyes were glued to Julian now that he'd entered the room.

"Hey, I could have been naked, bitch!" Haley complained to Julian with furrowed eyebrows, "ever hear of knocking?"

Julian made a disgusted face at her first comment, "Eww, now there's an awful image."

Haley rolled her eyes and threw a pillow from the couch at Julian's head., which he successfully dodged with his arm.

Haley sighed.

"So really Jules, can we help you with something or are you here to scare away my company?" she asked, motioning towards Brooke.

Brooke, who'd refocused her attention back to her magazine, now looked up at Julian, and gave a silent giggle at Haley's comment.

Julian couldn't help but admire the ruby red shade of her lips…

He folded his arms and replied, "Hales, my presence around any of your company would only make them all come crawling back here for more, not scare them away," Julian joked.

Haley raised her eyebrows indicating that she was more than annoyed with him wasting her girl time, making lame jokes that only he seemed to think were amusing.

Unbeknown to Haley, Brooke was slightly amused by her brothers comments, although she wouldn't let it show.

Julian noticed the look on Haley's face and figured he'd better come up with an excuse for bothering her or he'd get kicked out and he'd spend his night, laying on his bed, wondering what Brooke was up to in the next room. Julian was really having a hard time wondering why he even cared so much, but he just couldn't help himself.

Then, the doorbell rang.

"Oh! That must be the pizza," Haley excitedly exclaimed. It was about time it got here! She had the munchies like crazy! She then rose up from the couch and made her way over to the open door that Julian stood at. She paused at Julian and poked him in the chest.

"I'm gonna go get that, please don't do anything embarrassing while I'm gone," Haley warned Julian, she then shot Brooke a sympathetic look for having to leave her alone with her tyrant of a brother, followed by her descending down stairs to answer the door.

Julian watched as she left and stood at the door for a second, looking back into the bedroom at Brooke, just admiring her features for a minute. He then cautiously took a few steps into bedroom, unsure of whether or not Brooke minded being around him alone, especially since the two were complete strangers.

Brooke, now bored pretending to be engrossed in her magazine, threw it to the side and propped on of her arms onto the couch and nervously glanced around the room, feeling an awkward silence settle in the room the second Haley had left. She didn't mind being stuck in alone in the bedroom with Julian Baker, because it was Julian Baker we were talking about. Popular, lady's man, intelligent, and yummy as hell! It was for those same reasons that Brooke was a bit uncomfortable being in the room alone with him. Popular ladies men were no good. She sure knew that already.

Julian was the first to break the silence. He slowly moved over to the couch and plopped onto it, trying to muster up some of his normal confident attitude that he always had around girls. But it occurred to Julian, that Brooke was different than most girls…

"So uh, you're in my art class, right?" he asked, looking down at Brooke.

"Uh yeah, have been all year," Brooke replied, looking at him while fiddling with her shoelaces. She then grabbed the sketchbook that was to the right of her and the black pen on the ground as well, and decided that sketching away was a good way to distract herself until Haley returned. Brooke wondered why he was attempting small talk with her. She didn't even think he knew who she was, and now here he was, sitting idly, obviously trying to start up a conversation with her. What was this guys deal?

"Right, right," Julian replied, thinking of something else to talk about. What was Brooke interested in anyways? He could mention the latest gossip in school, but she didn't seem interested in that sort of thing…Art, maybe? She seemed like the artsy type, for sure, but what the hell did he know about art?

Julian asked the first question to pop into his head, "Uh, soo…what uh, what do you and Haley have planned tonight?"

Brooke just shrugged her shoulders. "A little of this, a little of that," she replied, keeping her eyes focused on her sketch.

A little of this, a little of that…what does that even mean? Julian thought. Although he had to admit, he liked the mystery vibe she was radiating.

"That's…cool," he replied. Brooke just nodded.

"So…what do you guys have planned for tomorrow?" he asked.

Brooke let out an annoyed sigh. What the hell was up with all the questions?

Julian noticed the annoyance in her sigh.

"Sorry if I'm being annoying," Julian chuckled, "I'm just trying to figure you out," he replied honestly.

Brooke looked up for a moment and peered into his caramel colored eyes. For a moment, Julian thought he was finally getting somewhere with her, that she was actually touched or flattered by his words somehow, but his thoughts were shot to hell once Brooke started talking.

"Trying to figure me out? Is that really the best you can do?" Brooke asked in an amused, snarky tone.

Best I can do? Uhm…what is she implying? Julian asked himself.

"Um, excuse me?" Julian asked, with a slightly confused smile.

"This attempt you're making at small talk or flirting or whatever this is?" Brooke clarified.

Julian was shocked. Did she really think that he was just trying to get in her pants or something? He was genuinely interested in getting to know her, for reasons completely unknown to him, other than the obvious, which was that Brooke was entirely mystifying, in the best way possible.

"Uh, I really don't know what you mean…" Julian began, before getting cut off by Brooke.

"Oh come on, big football stud like yourself, trying to make nice with a girl like me?" Brooke raised her eyebrow and looked right at him, "Please, I know your type, you'd talk to anything with tits pretending to be interested in getting to know them, when all you're really interested in is one thing," Brooke continued, then looked away proceeding to sketch away in her sketchbook.

"You may not know me," Brooke continued, her eyes focused on her sketch yet again, "but I know all about you," Brooke responded.

Or at least guys like you…, Brooke solemnly thought to herself.

No, she wouldn't think about that tonight.

Julian was dumbfounded. No girl had ever rejected his advances, ever! And in this case, he wasn't even making advances! He just wanted to…get to know her? Yeah, for some reason, he felt the utter need to get to know this girl, but she sure wasn't going to make this easy.

A short silence etched the room as the sound of Nick Cave's 'Where The Wild Roses Grow' filled the room and the lyrics filled Julian's confused head.

From the first day I saw her I knew she was the one. As she stared in my eyes and smiled. For her lips were the color of the roses. They grew down the river, all bloody and wild...

Julian had never cared for Haley's creepy music, but this particular song was somehow in that moment…amazing to him. Whether it was because those particular lyrics were played after Julian had had his first sort-of conversation with Brooke or if it was because the song was somehow appealing in a way, or if it was because the lyrics reminded him of the beauty in front of him, he wasn't sure.

Brooke had listened to this song dozens of times, but the fact that it was playing while the school hottie was attempting to talk to her, well, Brooke wasn't sure why, but for some odd reason, it was making the song more special than she thought before. Brooke knew Julian's type, and quite frankly, she didn't feel like being surrounded by him and what he stood for. She knew what guys like Julian were like and what they wanted. Although a nagging voice in Brooke's head was screaming at her that Julian was some thing different, but she'd never admit that.

When he knocked on my door and entered the room, my trembling subsided in his sure embrace. He would be my first man, and with a careful hand. He wiped the tears that ran down my face…

Brooke's eyes were now entirely focused on her sketch but her mind was focused on the boy who sat no more than a few feet away from her.

Julian sat there fiddling with his hands and looking around the room. He wanted to say something, anything to break this silence and somehow make Brooke see that he wasn't any of those things that she described him to be. Well, he was to an extent some of those things that she listed, but that didn't mean there wasn't more to him than that. Because, there was. At least he thought so. At least he hoped so.

Suddenly Haley appeared in the doorway and let out an annoyed sigh when she saw that Julian was still in her room. She loved her brother to death but this was the first weekend in weeks that him and his friends weren't gallivanting about the house causing a ruckus, she wasn't about to let Julian ruin it by harassing and making a move on her guest. How typical.

"Julian, I think you've done enough annoying for tonight," she said, pizza box in her hands.

Although Julian didn't want to leave, he did sort of want to escape the silence that now filled the room, so without any witty comebacks towards Haley, he simply sighed and rose from the couch and made his way towards the door.

As he did this, Brooke watched him from the corner of her eye.

Maybe I was a bit harsh, she thought to herself, Nah…guys like Julian didn't need sympathy.

"What no protest or comeback?" Haley asked Julian on his way out.

"Nope," he simply said walking slowly our the door, seeming to be apathetic. This confused Haley. He never did anything she said without a fight.

Although the Brooke thing was still bugging him, Julian had something else on his mind right now…

As he began walking towards his bedroom, he looked back at Haley, making sure she didn't notice that he was lingering in the hall. He then swiftly turned back around and towards Haley, opened the pizza box and stole a slice from it.

"Hey!" Haley said in protest.

But it was no use, Julian had stolen his slice and ran back to his bedroom in a matter of seconds.

"Asshole," Haley muttered under her breath, slamming the door and returning to her spot on the couch.

"Sorry about leaving you alone with him," Haley stated as she opened the pizza box and the two girls grabbed a slice.

Brooke shoved a bite of pizza in her mouth and replied, "It's fine. I know how to handle myself."

Haley took a bite of pizza and laughed. "Oh, I know you do, Brooke," she stated.

Haley knew her best friend better than anyone, and if these was one thing that she knew about Brooke was that she knew how to stick up for herself. She's seen her do it many times.

"I hope you weren't too harsh on him though," Haley said.

Brooke swallowed her pizza and raised an eyebrow at Haley. "Why, whatever are you talking about?" Brooke asked, with innocence in her voice.

"Oh come on Brooke, I've heard some of the things you say to the assholes who hit on you, you're not exactly the kindest person I know when it comes to letting a guy down, you hit em where it hurts," Haley laughed.

Brooke innocently shrugged her shoulders.

"And I know my brother," Haley continued, "he totally made a move on you didn't he?"

"He may have, but it didn't get him very far," Brooke told her, taking a bite of pizza after she was done with her sentence.

Haley just laughed. "Well, too bad I missed seeing that."

Brooke giggled.

Julian may have not gotten very far with Brooke earlier, but the night was still young.

**