"So Lucas, you'll be on the couch. Brooke will have your room," Karen said to the teens the next day as she lead them into the house. Brooke had been discharged less than an hour before, and was now moving in with Karen and Lucas once again.

"Oh, no, I can sleep on the couch," Brooke protested. "Honestly, I'll be just fine."

"No, Brooke," Lucas said firmly. "You take my room."

"Okay," she said reluctantly. "How about we switch off?"

"No, Brooke," Lucas said with a laugh.

"Fine," she grumbled.

Lucas couldn't help but smile at the way she seemed to be recovering already. Just that morning, she had agreed finally to chemo. The next day, she was going to be meeting with a doctor at the hospital to discuss the plan. Lucas couldn't be happier with the way things were panning out. And although they had yet to discuss the nature of their relationship, he was at least close enough to her now that he didn't feel a need to pressure her.

"Hales and I already set up your stuff," Lucas said, leading the way to his room, where a small purple monkey lay on his bed. Brooke gasped with a smile.

"Monkey!" she squealed, jumping onto the bed and grabbing it in her arms. She held it tightly with a huge, beaming grin. Lucas couldn't help but return the smile.

"Haley found it," he explained. "She said you had mentioned it before."

"This monkey has gotten me through some tough times," Brooke said reminiscently. Her face fell suddenly. "I guess I'm gonna need him now, huh?"

"You'll have more than just a stuffed monkey to get you through this, Brooke."

She looked up at him with a sad smile. "I know. Thanks, Broody."

"Anything for you, Cheery."

"Hey, Luke?" she asked as he turned to leave.

"Yeah?"

"I know you have school tomorrow, but I was wondering if you could come with me to the doctor. I just...I don't want to go alone."

"Of course, Brooke," Lucas said. "Thank you for letting me be here for you, Brooke. I know it isn't easy, but-"

He was cut off by his door swinging open. "So I brought you that CD we were talking about," Peyton Sawyer said excitedly before halting, her mouth slightly open. "Oh."

"Peyton," Brooke said calmly, the smile that had been on her face completely gone now.

"Wow, what the hell happened to you?" Peyton asked, her voice showing no sympathy. "You look like shit."

"Peyton," Lucas warned slowly.

"Sorry. I didn't realize you two were already doing it again," Peyton said harshly. She shook her blonde curls out of her face with a glare at Brooke. "Once a whore, always a whore, right Brookie?"

Brooke stood up and brushed past Peyton wordlessly, calling out to Karen. "Do you need any help with dinner?"

"Look, Peyton," Lucas said after watching the brunette leave. "I don't know what happened between you and Brooke, but you can't just come into my house and act like that toward her."

"Well sorry," Peyton said, her voice full of insincerity. "I didn't realize that you and Brooke were back on. After she dumped you with some bullshit excuse."

"Peyton," Lucas said, his patience beginning to wear thin. "You really don't know what's been going on here."

"And you don't know how much I've needed you the past few days," she said, her eyes beginning to fill with tears. "But you've been completely unreachable."

"I've had other things to deal with, Peyton," Lucas groaned.

"Nothing has ever been more important than us, Luke."

"Us?" Lucas asked in confusion.

"Yes, Lucas," Peyton sighed in exasperation. "Don't you get it yet?"

"Obviously not," Lucas said, running a hand through his hair.

"Brooke saw what everyone else did. That you and I are meant to be together. That's why she broke up with you, Lucas."

"Or because my backstabbing best friend told me she was in love with my boyfriend. Again," Brooke said scathingly from the doorway. Her arms were crossed over her chest defensively as she leaned against the doorframe for physical support.

Lucas spluttered, slowly sitting on the edge of his bed. "Excuse me?" he hissed.

Brooke sighed in exhaustion. "I shouldn't have said that." She placed a hand over her face tiredly.

Peyton looked between the two of them before squaring her shoulders with resolve. "Yeah. I told her that I still love you. That kiss in the library...I meant it, Luke. I meant it when I said I loved you."

"Peyton," Lucas began, before shaking his head. "No. No, this is not happening. You did not come between us again."

"Brooke knew that it was only a matter of time," Peyton said, attempting to defend herself. "Even she knew that your relationship was just a distraction."

"Peyton," Lucas growled.

"I mean, you and I, we have everything in common. And Brooke, Brooke was just the cheer slut who was perfect for a distraction while I was with Jake."

"Peyton," Lucas warned once again.

"Brooke knew, so she stepped aside. For me. For us, Luke! We can be together now," Peyton said excitedly. "Don't you see that?"

"No," Lucas growled. "No, Peyton. You knew how vulnerable Brooke felt about us. You knew how hard it was for her to forgive us both the first time, and you went and did that, knowing full well that the only damn thing Brooke has ever wanted is to make you happy. Because Brooke has always loved you. More than me, more than herself!"

"Luke," Brooke said quietly from the door.

"And you, you just...you knew she would walk away from me. You knew it, because we all know just how selfless Brooke Davis is."

"Luke," Brooke said, louder this time.

"How could you do that, Peyton? I mean, all this time, I thought you were just as loyal to Brooke as she is to you, when it came down to it."

"Lucas!" Brooke shouted as Peyton began to cry, tears streaming down her face as she began to pant in panic. Brooke stood in between the two blondes. "Stop it."

"And now you're defending her, Brooke? After what she did to you? To us?"

"It wasn't all Peyton, Lucas!" Brooke cried out, her eyes also beginning to fill with tears. "Of course, her confession pushed me over the edge. But I'm sick, Luke. And you just lost Keith. You've been a mess. Peyton has too, after the shooting and everything else. She needs you, and you need someone like her, who knows what it's like to lose someone. But you don't need me, not someone who might make you lose yet another person in a matter of months."

"Brooke, what are you talking about?" Peyton whimpered from behind her. "What do you mean, you're sick?"

Brooke sighed and ran her hands through her dark hair. "Peyton, I guess I have something to tell you."

"Obviously," Peyton sniffled.

"I have lymphoma, Peyton. I just got out of the hospital after trying to kill myself," she said monotonously. "And if you'd like my suicide note, there's one addressed to you."

Peyton gasped, a pale hand flying up to her mouth. "Brooke..."

"Don't," Brooke snapped. "I don't need your pity, or your apologies. And I especially don't want you to pick now to decide that our friendship is more important than Lucas."

"If I'd have known-"

"It shouldn't have mattered if you knew or not," Brooke said tearfully. "Now if you'll both excuse me, I need to go."

With that, Brooke flew from the room, the slamming door leaving a disquieting silence between the sparring blondes.

"Luke, I really am sorry," Peyton whispered through her new wave of tears. "I didn't know, I really didn't."

Lucas sat on his bed, his face in his hands once again. "Even without knowing, Peyton, you shouldn't have told her that. You knew she would break up with me, didn't you?"

"Well...yeah, I guess I did."

"And when I came to you, so upset, you told me you had no idea why she would do that. You pretended it was all okay."

"I expected you to want me then," Peyton whimpered.

"What made you think that?" Lucas said, standing. "Please, I need to know. Because I'm sure whatever your reasons are, are the same reasons Brooke felt that way too."

"Because you ran into the school after me. Because you were there for me after Ellie, and you're just always saving me. From all kinds of things, you know? It doesn't matter what you're doing or who you're with. Even Brooke, you'll even leave her if I need you."

Lucas paused in his retaliation. "Oh God," he sighed. "Look, I've got to go find her."

Peyton wiped the tears from her face and adopted a brave smile. "I know. I'm sorry, Lucas. I might never be able to get her to forgive me, but I hope you can eventually."

"Maybe, Peyton," Lucas said unconvincingly. "I think you need to figure out what you really want."

"Yeah, I guess I do. And you do, too."

"I already know what I want, Peyton. And she ran out that door a few minutes ago."

Peyton shrugged sadly. "Then go get her, Luke. What are you waiting for?"

"I guess, I'm just waiting for you to be okay with this."

"I am okay with it. You had a chance to really make your choice, and you are. You know who you want. And yeah, it hurts like hell that it isn't me. But, at least I gave it a shot."

Lucas turned to go after Brooke, but couldn't help turning back to Peyton. "Was it worth it? Was giving it a shot worth losing Brooke?"

Peyton bit her lip and looked at the floor. "No, not even close."

"She'll come around, eventually."

"Eventually," Peyton said. "Now go."

And with that, she watched him go after the brunette girl that they both loved. She smiled a little bit, looking at Brooke's things lying about Lucas's room as if they had always belonged there.

Maybe she had messed up. Maybe things would never be the same. But she could try her hardest to make things okay again.