A/N: Hey! So this is the next to last chapter! I can't believe it! I got so excited by all the reviews for the last chapter, I decided to put All Bets Are Off on hold until this story is finished. The last chapter will probably be up next week, and then I'll be back to working on All Bets Are Off.
Thank you to everyone for reviewing the last chapter. They made me so happy! I was going to reply to everyone's reviews, but I didn't get time. I know I mentioned to you guys that I got laid off from my job, but it's not like I have all the time in the world now. My daughter is turning two tomorrow, and she's at home with me now that I'm off work. So I am a full time stay at home mom!
Big thanks to Morgan for all your help! Love ya girly!
Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill or its characters!
Five Years Later:
BPOV
"So, Brooke, it's been a while since we last spoke. How are things going?" Dr. Reed asked me after taking our seats in her office. It's been a year since I've been here, yet I still feel as comfortable as I used to.
"As good as can be I suppose. Nathan doesn't know I'm here," I admitted shyly.
"Why not?"
"I didn't want him to know. We've been doing so well lately. You know it's been five years today that Molly died."
"I thought about that this morning. Is that why you scheduled this appointment?" she questioned. I don't know why I was so nervous. It's not like Dr. Reed is a stranger to me anymore. She's been there for me and Nathan so much since Molly Erin died. She was even a guest at our wedding four years ago. Oh, yeah, did I mention I said yes to Nate when he proposed? We decided to have a yearlong engagement, getting married in this incredible ballroom in Durham. It was my dream wedding that I knew I would have one day. Tim was the best man and Peyton was my matron of honor. That's right; Tim and Peyton got married while they were in LA, surprising us all. Luke was Nate's second groomsmen and Haley was my second bridesmaid. It was a pretty small affair. Dan gave me away. Whitey, Karen, Mason (of course!), Bevin, Mouth, Skills, Fergie, Junk, and a few new college friends we had made were there. My parents paid for the whole thing but were unable to get a flight out of the Caribbean due to some kind of tropical storm down there. Anyway, back to today's topic!
"Actually, no, that's not why I'm here. I visited Molly's grave earlier today with Nathan but told him I had a few errands to run. I, um, I'm a little nervous about this. I'm pregnant again." I told her quietly, almost too scared to say it out loud. I thought for a moment that I would have to write it down.
"That's a good thing isn't it Brooke?"
"I'm not too sure. I mean, after Molly died, my doctor said it would be very difficult to get pregnant if I ever could. But then when the boys came along, they acted like it was a miracle. I mean, for it to be supposedly difficult to get pregnant, and then have triplets, everyone was pretty amazed!" I laughed, still shocked at the birth of my boys.
"Plus, it was a pretty high risk pregnancy. I was going to be high risk no matter what because of what happened with Molly. But since there were three, I was on bed rest for weeks! You even made house calls!"
Dr. Reed laughed at that, remembering those times she came to my house to see me when I was on bed rest with the boys.
"I remember that. And the birth was pretty hard on you too wasn't it?"
"Yeah, incredibly hard. They were born like nine weeks early, in the hospital for over a month before we could take them home."
"And how are the boys doing now? It's been so long since I've seen them!" Dr. Reed said, a frequent guest at our get togethers.
"They're doing great! Almost four!"
"And they're healthy right?"
"Oh, God yes! Healthy as can be!" I smiled at the thought of my boys, with hair like their father's and eyes to die for. Of course, they did inherit the Davis charm and wit!
"Then why do you seem so scared to be pregnant again?"
"I have no idea, to be honest! After Molly died, I was terrified I would get pregnant again. And then when the boys came, and they were so sick when they were born, I didn't know if they were going to make it. I guess I'm just scared that this baby won't make it either, like Molly," I whispered, tears coming to my eyes.
"Brooke, you have three amazing boys at home, and an incredibly supportive husband that loves you. Take a few deep breaths, go home, and tell your boys they're gonna be big brothers. Everything will be fine. Remember what we always say, just take it one day at a time!" Dr. Reed told me, ending our session.
NPOV
"Nathan? You here?" I heard my dad shout from the front door.
"In the bathroom!" I yelled back, getting splashed by water yet again.
"Grandpa!" one of the boys screamed as my dad walked into the bathroom.
"My boys! What is going on in here?" he laughed, seeing the water and soap all over the bathroom walls and floor, and me.
"We were attempting bath time. Brooke is so much better at this than me!" I said, earning another splash from the boys.
"Okay, here, you take one and get him dried off and dressed. I'll watch the other two!" he offered. My dad has become the greatest grandpa I could have asked for for my kids. Especially since we had such a bad relationship growing up.
"Dominic, Gavin, Kaden, stop splashing your father! Okay, Dom, you go with Daddy. Kaden, Gavin, and I will join you in a few minutes in the play room! Maybe we can talk Daddy into some videogames!" my dad said, a smirk on his face.
"Why, so I can get beat by the four of you again?" I joked, wrapping Dominic up in a big bath towel and carrying him upstairs to his room.
Brooke and I left for Duke five years ago, starting our freshman year of college and planning the wedding. Our sophomore year, we got married in Durham. Our junior year, right after we found out Brooke was pregnant, I blew my knee out at the state playoffs. I tried to do rehab and come back our senior year but it didn't happen. Looking back now, I'm glad it didn't. I had more time to spend with Brooke and the boys. After graduation, we moved back to Tree Hill. Lucas and I coach the Ravens together. Haley is an English teacher. Brooke works part time at my dad's dealership and spends the other half at home with the boys. She had plans to open her own clothing boutique, but life with the boys got too busy. We're planning on saving up to open it in a few years, once the boys start school. Peyton opened her own record label, Red Bedroom Records, here in Tree Hill. Tim works there too. He is, surprisingly, a really good businessman. He handles the business side of the record label and Peyton handles the music side of it.
When we moved back to Tree Hill, Brooke's parents surprised us with a house, in the same neighborhood as my dad, a few streets over. It's a five bedroom so the boys could have their own rooms and a play room.
"Daddy! Look, I'm naked!" I heard Gavin shout from the hallway.
"Gavin, get back here!" my dad shouted after him. I just laughed and shook my head. Gavin always ended up running around the house naked every once in a while.
"Okay Dom, you're good to go. Head on over to the play room, I'm gonna check on Gavin and Grandpa!" I told him, turning for the door only to see Kaden standing in the doorway, still wrapped in a towel.
"What's wrong K?" Dominic asked. Dominic is the oldest of the three, by a minute, Gavin the middle, and Kaden the youngest. Kaden is also the smallest, so the other two always seem to be his protectors wherever we go.
"I'm cold," he whimpered.
"Come on K, let's go find you something to wear that Mommy will approve of!" Dominic said, taking Kaden by the hand and leading him to his room. I just chuckled, seeing Brooke's influence on the boys. I quickly cleaned up Dominic's room before heading down the hall to see my dad and Gavin setting up the WII in the play room. I checked in on the other two in Kaden's room, seeing Dominic help Kaden get dressed in a pair of khaki cargo shorts and a red polo.
"Mommy says she likes it when we wear outfits like this. She says we look like Daddy when he was our age!" Dominic told Kaden, taking him by the hand and walking to the play room together.
"Hello my husband," I jumped when I felt Brooke wrap her arms around my waist from behind. I turned in her arms as she watched the boys from over my shoulder.
"They look just like you when we were that age!" she giggled, making me laugh at her words.
"Where have you been?" I asked her, kissing her lips lightly.
"I went to see Dr. Reed."
"Today? I thought you were running errands!" I said, surprised Brooke lied to me. I wasn't really mad or anything, just kind of shocked.
"Yeah, I needed someone to talk to before I came home to talk to you. And Haley and Luke are in Charlotte with Mason, Emma, and Gracie. Peyton and Tim are over at her dad's place with Jackson, Tristan, Avery, and Sadie. So I went to see Dr. Reed about it," she rambled on.
"Brooke, what are you talking about?"
"I'm pregnant," she blurted our quickly.
"I'm sorry, what?" I muttered, not hearing the boys run out of the play room.
"Mommy!" Dominic and Gavin yelled, hugging her legs.
"What's pregnant mean?" Kaden asked from behind me. I spun around to see him standing behind me clutching onto my dad's hand.
"Maybe you two should take this question. I'm gonna head home. Come by tomorrow and we'll celebrate!" Dan said, kissing Brookes on the cheek, "Congratulations Brookie!"
"Mommy! You didn't answer Kaden's question!" Gavin shouted, tugging on the bottom of her sundress. She knelt down to his level, waving Kaden towards her. She waited until all three boys were in front of her, wrapped her arms around all three of them, and hugged them tight before answering.
"Pregnant means there is a baby in Mommy's tummy!" she whispered to them.
"In there?" Dominic asked, pointing to her stomach.
"Yep! There's a tiny baby growing in there. And in eight months, you three are going to be big brothers!" she cheered. I just stood there watching them, in awe of my family. After Molly died, I wasn't sure if we would ever get here. It took a long time.
Nine Months Later:
Brooke and I decided not to find out the sex of the baby, wanting it to be a surprise. Haley hated that, saying no nursery should be yellow and green. Brooke and I just laughed at her. Thankfully, her pregnancy wasn't such a high risk one like with the boys. They didn't even put her on bed rest. However, Dr. Thomas did decide to take the baby via c-section, wanting to avoid any complications of a vaginal birth. But we were graced by a beautiful little girl we chose to name Ava Erin, in honor of Molly Erin, her big sister up in heaven.
The boys are now four years old and loving being big brothers. Kaden has even seemed to come out of his shell a little bit. Dominic is still the protector of all his siblings, making sure all three of them are okay at all times and helping out when needed. Gavin is still his crazy self, still running around naked, which makes us all laugh. Kaden is still shy, but not as bad as he used to be before Ava was born. Haley and Lucas were chosen to be Ava's godparents since Peyton and Tim are the boys' godparents. They couldn't be happier for Brooke and me. And the Ravens won another state championship!
Lying here in bed, Ava in her bassinet next to me, Kaden and Gavin wedged between me and Brooke, Brooke squished on the edge of her side of the bed, and Dominic at the end of the bed, all asleep, I couldn't believe my life. I don't know if I've ever been happier. I mean, sure, it was nice when Brooke and I had the bed to ourselves and we didn't hear kids screaming all the time. But I don't think I could give up this life if anyone asked me to. Trying to relax, I thought about the upcoming years. When the boys are seniors in high school, Ava will be a freshman. Mason will already be away at college. The twins, Jackson and Tristan, will be seniors with the boys, as will Emma. Gracie and Avery will be juniors. And Sadie will be a sophomore. Everyone in our little group of friends will have high school aged children, Lucas and Haley having one in college.
Good God, I'm starting to feel old!
A/N: So? Like it? Hate it? Press that little button and let me know! Thanks!
