AN: I'm very sorry that it's taken me a few years to update. I guess taking a new job in a new city five months after losing your father isn't a great idea. My job has been very difficult to adapt to and it's been probably the most stressful years of my life. Things seem to be settling down and I am determined to finish this story. Thanks to everyone who has sent replies and asked for updates. And for the guest reply who offered to proof my hand written chapter. I've had a hard time getting back into the habit of writing. I hope this doesn't seem stilted or awkward. I rewrote it several times and decided to just post the darn thing. I've also read the feedback about the story is repetitive and dragging on and I can safely say that in a chapter, things explode. Thanks for taking the time to read and reply. And for sticking with this story. Just out of curiosity, has always been so difficult to edit in spaces into stories? It's been a while since I uploaded. Cyn

A Season in Purgatory

Chapter 79

Lucas leaned back from the table where he was studying, doing his best to ignore the conversation taking place across the room. Part of his "atonement" for his recent bad behavior was putting in more time on homework, even on a Saturday afternoon. He frowned at his calculus book for a moment, trying very hard to ignore the voices of his parents and their wedding consultant.

Yesterday, it had been the interior decorator. Apparently, the new Scott baby required a professionally decorated nursery. Luke had listened to the woman droned on about neutral color schemes that would work for either a boy or a girl. He couldn't even bring himself to wonder if he was getting a little brother or sister. He was so angry about everything that he couldn't even focus on the reality that there was going to be another sibling. Another tie to Dan Scott.

Hearing his name being called out, he jerked his head up and looked over at where his parents and the wedding planner stared at him expectantly. "I'm sorry, did you say something? I was focused on my equation," he lied. No sense in purposely making them think he was ignoring him.

Ms. Stewart, the wedding planner, gave him a patronizing smile. The snarky teenager had been much more difficult than either the bride or the groom. "We just asked if you had considered walking your mother down the aisle," she patiently repeated, as Dan and Karen stared at him in curiosity. Luke could practical feel Dan's assessing eyes boring through him.

"I don't think that's a really good idea," Luke slowly replied, trying to find a diplomatic way out of this situation. Normally, a good fuck you would suffice but Brooke had repeatedly stressed that he needed to appear docile and repentant.

Sensing the tension in the room, Ms. Stewart smiled at him. "Then how about if you were a groomsman?" she helpfully suggested, knowing that Nathan had reluctantly agreed to be the best man.

Karen sensed his growing distance. He'd been so much better lately. They'd been warned by the wilderness counselor that his behavior would probably moderate out after his hospital stay. But the optimistic part of Karen hoped that living with Dan might help lessen her son's anger. Eventually. "You could do a reading during the ceremony," Karen suggested. "One of those famous quotes you love so much." She smiled at him encouragingly, trying to get some spark of her son back.

Lucas stared at the floor as the much too bubbly wedding planner threw out other ideas to get him involved in the wedding of the year. He fought his annoyance, having repeatedly told Dan and Karen he didn't want to participate in the wedding. They'd finally worn Nathan out and he'd agreed to be part of it, but Lucas couldn't imagine standing up for this farce.

He shook his head, realizing that his parents were seriously going ahead with a formal wedding in his mother's current condition. That was the one thing that he and Nathan could be agree on. It was mortifying to have a pregnant mother at his age, but he'd be lucky if she didn't go into labor walking down the aisle. Luke allowed himself to be concerned about his mother's health but then she went and added more stress to her life by having a wedding when she could have just gotten married at town hall. It's like she wanted to push her body to the limit, he thought.

"Lucas," Dan prompted, wondering where his son's mind went on these extended periods of contemplation. More than likely, the boy was planning various ways to kill him. Lucas had been living in his house for over two weeks, and Dan thought they'd had a few moments of sincere interaction. He hoped that in time, Lucas might see that he wasn't the anti-Christ.

Sighing, Lucas looked up from the floor. "It's your wedding and I've agreed to attend. But I don't support this marriage and it's hypocritical to participate."

Ms. Stewart raised a shocked hand to her chest, having heard the rumors about the malcontent son. Karen inhaled deeply at his words, still upset that she couldn't reach her son. Dan just looked angry.

Karen grabbed Dan's hand, seeking support. "We can't force you to be happy or participate," Karen began. She and Dan weren't dragging him down the aisle. "You can sit with your grandparents and watch the ceremony," she decided. All she needed was Luke and Brooke sneaking off during the wedding and getting drunk.

"Oh goody," Luke sullenly replied, thrilled that the prodigal grandparents were returning to invade his life. Dan fought back a smirk. After weeks of pod-Luke, it was nice to see that boy was still alive and fighting.

Ignoring Dan, Lucas watched as the planner lady made a few notes and began packing up. He felt so isolated in this house. It was so very much Dan Scott's home. Dan's larger than life personality seemed to seep out of the very walls. He was attempted to fade out of the room, seeking the solace of his "room" when Dan called after him.

"Son, you didn't have any breakfast," Dan reminded him. He wasn't about to let Luke throw a fit about the wedding and then sneak off to his room to gloat.

Luke paused for a second, scrambling for any excuse to get away from these people. He was profoundly uncomfortable being around Dan and Karen. Especially Karen. Those words, the very thought of not wanting to spend time with his mom saddened him. For most of his life, his mother had been the center of his world. The last six months she'd drifted out of his orbit, being pulled into the black hole that was Dan Scott.

Only he wasn't sure that Dan was evil and his mom was good. Even though he knew the truth about the custody issue, it was hard to cut through the lies his mom had inculcated in him for his entire life.

Dan was being incredibly hospitable to his oldest son. He went out of his way to include Lucas into "family" events. A less cynical Lucas might have been pulled into it. However, he knew that it was all an illusion and his parents planned on getting rid of him after Christmas. Dan and Karen wanted to paint a picture of a happy family when the reality was anything but.

Dan tried to put his arm around Luke and herd him toward the kitchen. "We can make breakfast together," he suggested, motioning Karen to sit down at the kitchen island. It was rare that he and Karen were alone with Lucas and he wanted to try to make the most of these moments. His eyes tightened a bit, realizing that there would be fewer moments with his oldest son if he was out in the wilderness.

Lucas took advantage of Dan's distraction and subtly shrugged Dan's arm off, while struggling to find a way out. "I'm going to eat with Brooke," he protested.

Grabbing some eggs from the refrigerator, Dan gave Karen a knowing smile. "Brooke and Nathan went out for breakfast hours ago, while you were sleeping in." Dan was happy that Brooke and Nathan were starting to spend time together again. They'd always spent so much time together that their lack of togetherness felt weird. Dan felt that if things like basic friendships could get back to normal, then life would be better for all of them. "Come on, start cracking eggs and help your old man out," he cajoled.

Luke's chest constricted for a moment, having dreamed of having this kind of father son moment for years. He wanted to believe in this man, wanted to believe that there could be some kind of future but his heart refused to trump his mind. And his mind knew that it wasn't real. That Dan couldn't be the father that he needed him to be. Maybe there was a part of Luke that was fundamental screwed up and he'd never have healthy relationships. He'd almost driven Brooke away with his drinking.
He glanced over at the liquor cart, wistfully craving a shot of courage to deal with his parents. It was hard giving up such a lovely crutch, but he realized it wasn't a great way to handle his problems. Or least not the best way at the moment.

He stared at Dan's outreached hand, full of eggs. "I don't know how to cook," he glibly replied, suddenly needing to get away from Dan and Karen.

He noticed his mom's narrowed eyes, knowing the lie when she heard it. Lucas had been cooking for years. "Lucas, please try," she softly uttered.

Sighing, he went over to stand by Dan at the stove. He could only pray that Brooke rescued him as soon as possible.

Brooke readjusted her sunglasses and attempted to keep up with Nathan as he moved briskly across the park. After downing a huge pancake breakfast, an antsy Nate had dragged Brooke to the park to burn some calories. Nate was always relentlessly active. Brooke felt sorry for the coordinated challenged Haley. She was in for a shock when she realized just how much activity Nathan required to be a good human being. Antsy Nate was always hard to deal with.

"Nate, I need a break," she called out, before gracefully slumping down on a picnic table. She tried to hide how winded she was winded she was. All the months of drinking and not eating had taken a toll on Brooke's health.

Nathan surreptitiously watched her as he did some lunges to stretch his quads out, glad that he'd gotten his early morning run in since Brooke wasn't in it for a serious workout. "Your conditioning sucks ass," he commented, knowing that in the past, Brooke was good for at least a two mile run.

She considered his words for a moment. "You'd think I'd be in better shape just trying to out run my relatives," she ironically commented.

Feeling uncomfortable with the rapid change in conversation, Nathan stared uneasily at the ground. He never knew how to respond to the rare moments of honesty in Brooke's life. "It might help if you actually ate something once in a while," he suggested. Nate had watched her push her food around on her plate all morning and called that eating. But still, he was happy to see her outside and moving about.

Brooke avoided his worried glance and moved a piece of her auburn hair behind her ear. "I'm eating, " she protested. "Anna and Keith practically do nothing but shove food at me." She'd gotten better with the food since staying with them. Her stomach didn't constantly hurt. But she still found it hard to relax. "I hope to be stronger in the new year," she said, realizing that she'd have to be both physically and mentally stronger for the challenges that lie away.

He dropped down on the bench beside her. "I'm glad we spent some time together," he shyly confessed. He really missed his friendship with Brooke. Haley was a great girlfriend but she didn't fill the void that Brooke's years of friendship covered. Whereas Haley provided support, Brooke challenged him. Brooke knew the worst things about Nathan and she didn't flinch or hide from his darker moments.

"I guess I've been a pretty sucky friend lately," she softly commented, moving her sunglasses off her eyes. She'd been hiding from everything for so long it was hard to find a real emotion.

He shook his head in protest. "You've had a lot going on." The year had been tumultuous for all of them and he couldn't blame Brooke for being as self involved as he was. Their lives had been crazy for the past year.

"I haven't had a chance to ask you how living with Karen has been," she offered, not wanting to bash her boyfriend's mother constantly, even though she knew Karen wouldn't extend her the same courtesy.

"It's actually been okay," he said, glad that someone cared what he thought. "It's nice to have someone around the house taking care of us." Well as much as Karen could take care of anyone right now. Her bouts of morning sickness were ferocious but when she was feeling good, she did a lot of little things that he remembered his mother doing. It felt good to have that maternal feeling in the house again.

Brooke bit back her snarky reply that of course Karen had time to look after Nate and Dan since she was shipping her oldest son off. But Nate didn't know that. And Brooke couldn't clue him in without tipping off their plan. The only thing that mattered was Brooke and Luke's future together.

She smiled at Nathan, focusing on her friend and Karen. "I'm glad it's working out, Nate. I know you were worried about Karen moving in and taking your mom's place."

Nathan thought about all those fears. He still wasn't thrilled with Dan and Karen's actions. Their carelessness had really screwed up their kid's lives. But living with Karen and Dan, he realized how much they loved each other and how happy they were. Nate didn't want to screw up his Dad's life when he had his own life to explore. Nate was eventually going to get a college scholarship to play basketball and would leave town. He didn't see any reason to blow up Dan's love life in the process.

"I think Luke could be happy if he'd just give it a chance," Nate offered. Unlike Karen, Nathan realized that you had to go through Brooke to get to Luke.

Brooke looked up at the sky, not wanting to lie to her best friend. "I'm not sure that's going to happen. There's been too many lies for him to trust Karen and Dan."

Nate's interest was piqued. "What lies?" he asked, genuinely confused. "I mean, they told us about the baby as soon as they figured what they were going to do. I guess they should have been more upfront about their relationship, but that ship has kind of sailed by now."

She looked into his blue eyes and hesitated, realizing that no one had told him about the accident. And no one knew about Karen stopping Dan from seeing Luke when he was younger. She was torn between being totally honest with her friend, who deserved nothing less, and blowing up his world with truths that might not really matter in the end. She didn't like being in this morally ambiguous minefield. "I think Luke feels a bit differently since Karen preached her Dan Hatred for all of Luke's life."

Shrugging, Nate leaned back against the table. "Well, he'll only get something out of it if he puts something into it," he said. Luke wasn't exactly trying to be part of this new family. He sulked about, staying in his room with his nose buried in a book most of the time. "But at least he seems sober these days."

Brooke snorted at that thought. "Please, Karen goes to extremes to get Luke off booze, but I got him to stop drinking by threatening to break up with him."

He considered that information and smiled. "I knew you could straighten him out. Now we just have to get you in a safe place and life will be perfect." Or at least he could hope for a minute that it might be less stressful than it currently was.

Brooke's smile faltered. Her mother was furious, sending her rambling texts about Brooke moving home and how Brooke's actions had ruined her latest vacation. She looked over at her friend. "I'm going to have to face my mother at some point, Nate." she slowly replied. "Living with Anna and Keith isn't forever."

Besides, Brooke had already agreed to fly to Switzerland for the New Year. It was the only way she'd been allowed to spend the rest of the school year with Keith and Anna. Brooke had no doubt that she she'd ski for a day or two before her mother took her passport and dumped at that fancy Swiss school.

She felt fairly smug. She'd found out what nefarious plans their parents had and she'd outplayed them all.

Brooke looked up at Nate and smiled one of her rare genuine smiles. "I think everything is going to work out for all us," she cryptically replied.

Luke looked up in surprise as Brooke plopped down next to him at the breakfast table.

She watched as Dan returned to his seat, after escorting her from the front door. Looking over at Karen, she gave the frowning woman a smile. "Hello, Karen. How are you feeling today?" She tried to emote sincerity as she looked the older woman over. She was a bit pale but other than being in dire need of a good exfoliation, she looked alive enough. Then again, she never thought Deb looked bad until she was at her memorial service.

Karen slowly exhaled and returned Brooke's fake cheer smile. "I'm fine, thank you."

Trying to find a way to break the inevitable tension that always surrounded Brooke and Karen, Dan handed Brooke a plate. "Have something to eat, Brooke." Anna had confided to Dan that Brooke was having eating issues. She wanted everyone to feed the girl whenever possible.

Brooke smiled at Dan and took the offered plate. "Thanks Dan. You're always a good host," she said, without a hint of irony for the woman scowling across the table. Luke fought off a chuckle at watching his mom fight back a terse reply. It was exactly how he felt on a daily basis.

"So what's up for the day," Dan asked, watching as Brooke nibbled on a piece of bacon.

Brooke finished off the bacon and smiled at Dan. "We're going shopping," she revealed, as Luke groaned in protest.

Karen rolled her eyes. "Do you need another new purse?" She never ceased to be amazed at Brooke's never ending wardrobe. The girl never wore the same outfit twice. Karen couldn't imagine what Tree Hill's malls had that would drag the girl out of bed at such an early hour.

Brooke ignored the subtle dig from her boyfriend's mother. Actually, Karen was usually much more caustic. "No new purses. I need to pick up a new ski jacket for winter break," she revealed.

"Where are you going this year?" Dan asked, trying desperately to keep Karen from talking. As long as he'd known Brooke, her parents had jetted off all the world, sending for their daughter when they remembered to think about.

Brooke slipped her hand under the table and grabbed Luke's hand. "Allegedly, Gstaad but I'm sure my mother has some spectacular surprise in store for me." Luke smiled at her, enjoying her double entendres that no one else seem to get. For now, at least.

"That sounds very nice," Karen forced out, wondering how much Brooke's family spent on vacations every year. She wasn't sure that Katherine ever did anything that involved Tree Hill. She was sure that her daughter would repeat her life of endless indulgence.

"Well, who wants a normal Christmas with a tree when you can spend it at some anonymous resort hotel with strangers?" she softly replied. Dan heard the sadness in her comment and felt sorry for a girl who had everything in her life but parental affection.

He reached into his jacket and pulled out his wallet. "Maybe you could find Luke a nice warm coat, too" he suggested, taking out his Amex black card and handing it to her. Brooke smiled as she took the card, realizing that they could do some serious damage with a black card. "Sure," she said. "I'm always up for buying clothes. What does Luke need a coat for?"

Dan sent a subtle glance to Karen and hoped she'd manage to not blow this. "We're thinking about taking a small break over New Years," he revealed, as Luke looked up sharply from where he sat moving his food around his plate.

"Is that a good idea?" Luke calmly asked, wondering if his mother's health could handle a trip. Then again, Luke assumed that this trip was just a pretense to get him off to the wilderness camp.

Dan shifted uneasily in his seat. "We think it would be nice to get away from Tree Hill," he nonchalantly replied. Brooke picked up on the inference. "Of course it would be," she replied. "What kind of climate would this break involve? Are we talking a rain coat, a ski jacket, or a really warm coat for the super cold southern temperatures?"

The older man shifted slightly, hoping he didn't look as guilty as he felt. " I was thinking about going up north to the mountains," he replied. Brooke nodded in feigned interest. "Sure, I'll help him pick out something super nice," she replied, realizing that this was an opportunity to pick up some supplies, all on Dan's dime. "I'll take care of it," she said, suddenly anxious get moving. There were all sorts of things she needed to take care of and time was growing short.

The music in the store blared as Brooke flipped through a rack of coats. She pulled out a NorthFace down coat and held it out toward Luke. "This is perfect. It's long and extremely warm," she noted, as he looked at the bulky garment skeptically.

"I'm not sure," he slowly replied, unsure what exactly they were getting themselves into. "I've not actually ever spent any time where I've needed a coat."

She moved down the aisle, dropping in various thermal shirts and wool socks in the shopping basket. "We have to be unpredictable. But having Dan's credit card certainly helps out the money situation."

Lucas dumped a grey hoodie onto the pile of clothing she was amassing. "I'm kind of shocked at how well you navigate the mega outdoor superstore," he admitted, admiring her shopping skills. Brooke was moving around the store from clothing to camping supplies like she was born for the wilderness.

"I'm an adaptive shopper," she noted, as she looked at various camping items. "You never know where you'll end up sleeping so it's best to be prepared." She found a store employee and stopped him. "Do you sell those sleeping bag liners that reflect body heat?" she asked, gracing him with one of her dimple filled smiles.

The man stuttered at her for a moment before replying. "Yes, we do have them. I'm not usually asked about those," he said, complimenting her outdoor knowledge though she didn't seem like an outdoor kind of girl.

Brooke smiled at him and tugged Luke down the aisle after the clerk. He glanced down at the rapidly filling shopping cart. "Aren't you worried that a huge credit bill might tip Dan off?" he asked as the clerk fussed about showing Brooke different models of sleeping bags and inserts.

Brooke thanked the clerk in dismissal as she picked the most expensive down sleeping bag and liner. "He won't get the bill for another month and I don't think it will be an issue by then" she sweetly replied as she turned and headed for the checkout line. "Just remember to keep filling your Internet history with the search terms we talked about," she cryptically reminded him.

Luke smiled at her deviousness and followed behind. She definitely had this all planned out.

Next up:

A wedding rehearsal dinner

Luke packs up his life

Haley finds something interesting