A/N: I'm back (wasn't really gone for long but I have updated both stories and written a oneshot).

A shout out to imalexis23 for being the 50th reviewer. I'm giving a shout out to the 56th reviewer (you know who you are even if nobody else does). Just to let you know that Melissa will be making herself known in the coming chapters. Everything, including the dynamics will start to be revealed slowly and to those that like the Brathan friendship, there will be more of that coming soon.

Have a good read and I hope you enjoy.

All We Are

Afternoon classes rolled by with the usual amount of gossip. Gigi had done the rounds, filling in those that weren't invited or were too wasted to remember the party at the weekend. Hook ups, break ups and general embarrassing moments were announced with pictures as evidence. There were a few people that wished they hadn't gone to school as the sniggers, whispers and looks plagued them throughout the day.

The one thing that had shocked everyone the most was that Nathan Scott name wasn't mentioned. Usually his latest conquest would be named for all to see and add to the array of names that came before. In fact no one apart from Brooke, Haley and Peyton noticed that he disappeared during the night. The lack of information made people think that he had finally ran out of girls to hook up with, though there were still a couple to chase after.

It was coming to the end of the final class when Nathan's phone vibrated in his pocket. He slowly pulled it out guessing before hand who the sender was. He looked at the screen and it said 'meet 7 usual spot' Nathan sighed, debating whether or not to answer. He had practice after school, it wasn't going to last long, as Whitey wanted to go over some tactics. He didn't want to answer, as he didn't want to go.

Nathan was getting a little tired of this arrangement he had. It wasn't the sex because that was great and it wasn't even the sneaking around as it had made it dangerous and a turn on. The problem he had was that it seemed to be getting more serious than he had expected. The circumstances that had lead to the start were becoming less clear and everything started to seem complicated and less fun. Part of the reason he used to enjoy was for escapism. He felt like he wasn't Dan Scott's son and the basketball star. He felt like he was just Nathan Scott but that was no longer the case. It was now another thing that he needed to escape from. A decision would have to be made and soon. He had come to the realisation that he wanted it to end and the sooner the better. He just needed to get through the first game of the season and deal with everything else after.

The internal debate didn't last as long, regarding answering the text message, as he thought it would. He closed his phone as made his way to the gym as the final bell sounded. He walked through the halls, meeting with his teammates on the way, as he discreetly passed the female, waiting for his response, in the halls.

Once all the players were there, Whitey informed them that Jake wouldn't be attending this practice session due to a family emergency. All the guys looked at each other for answers but there was nothing that any of them could give.

Jake was at the hospital for the second hour. His first reaction, when he was given the note, was Jenny, but his neighbour was safely looking her after. Instead he was sitting at the bedside of his father. He had collapsed with a suspected heart attack. He had chest pain and instantly thought the worst when he dropped to the floor. Luckily there were people around who had instantly called the paramedics. The doctor told Jake and his mother that Mr Jagielski had angina. He was told to take it easy with his blood pressure and to lower his cholesterol level.

Jake knew that Mr Jagielski wouldn't be happy as it meant taking along amount of time off work, which he never did. He was always one of those people that would work no matter what. If he had a limb falling off he would have still gone to work. He would have to stay in hospital for observation before being able to leave and he wasn't allowed to return to work for a while yet.

Jake drove home alone as his mother wanted to stay at the hospital. Jake tried to talk her into going home and returning in the morning when the both of them could have some proper rest, but she didn't want to listen. She didn't want to leave his side until he woke up. Jake had picked Jenny up from the neighbour. He filled her in on everything and she offered to help out as much as she could, offering to look after Jenny if needed. He was holding Jenny in his arms. Just watching her would bring a smile to his face. He laid her down and brushed some hair out of her face while she was drifting off to sleep. It was a good hour before he left her room.

His cell phone started to ring and he was puzzled who it could be as he didn't recognize the number that appeared on the screen. "Hello" he answered tentatively.

"Hey Jake, it's Haley. Lucas gave me your number. I wanted to make sure you were ok."

Jake could hear the worry in Haley's voice. He found it surprising and yet he was appreciative. "I'm fine. Thanks for asking. I had to rush to the hospital."

Jake's lack of a full explanation made Haley more concerned to what was going on. "Is everything ok, is it Jenny?"

"No, she's fine." Jake sighed. "It was my father; he collapsed. They say he's got angina and has to take it easy for a while."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Haley responded.

Jake didn't want to go into anything and just wanted to crash in front of the television. "I'm gonna have to go but thanks for calling, bye." Jake ended the call thinking over the day's events. He was happy that the news wasn't as bad as it could be. Before he had a chance to put the television on, an idea came to him that just might make things a lot easier. He sat at his computer and surfed the internet, looking to see if his plan was feasible.

Brooke and Peyton were sitting watching The Breakfast club. Brooke had brought this film up as it was on the same lines as their project and she thought it could help them. They had nearly finished it and just needed to work on the summary. The film was a welcome break from their project and the drama that came from the both of them.

Brooke had brought out some of the food and soft drinks left over from the party. For most of the movie, there had been silence, Brooke would steal quick glances at the blonde to see if she was enjoying the film. She then decided to break the silence. "I can't believe you haven't seen this film before. It's one of the best teen films ever." Brooke declared.

"Whatever. You know you're so Claire apart from the innocence." Peyton looked at Brooke's reaction and smiled.

Brooke wasn't impressed with the little dig. "Well what does that make you?"

Peyton threw some chips in Brooke's face. Brooke looked at her and huffed. She then picked up the entire bag and threw it over Peyton's head. She laughed but not for long as Peyton picked up a bottle of water and splashed Brooke with some.

"You just had to take it to the next level didn't you." Brooke stated, wiping some of the water off her with any part of her clothing that was dry. She was contemplating her next move while trying not to make it so obvious.

Before Brooke had the chance to pick anything from the table, Peyton pounced on top of her and started to tickle her. This was Brooke's weakness as she was extremely ticklish. She was trying her best to wiggle out from under Peyton but found it hard not to stop giggling in the meantime. "Peyton stop."

Peyton kept up with her tickling, concentrating on the sides above her waist. "You see, I've thought about it and no."

"Please." Brooke was still wiggling and kicking out, anything to get Peyton to stop. Her eyes were watering from the pure laughter she was feeling. Her hands were trying to pry Peyton's off. "You know what to do to make me stop." Peyton responded to Brooke's pleading.

Brooke didn't need to think about her choice, she knew instantly what she needed to do before the tickling would end. "Ok, I give up."

"Say it and I'll stop." Peyton knew that Brooke wouldn't be able to hold out much longer and continued the torture.

"Peyton Sawyer is the best and I pale in comparison." Though Brooke wanted the tickling to end, she couldn't help the underlying feeling that was coming over her. Having Peyton in such close proximity gave her goosebumps.

Peyton stopped tickling but was still hovering over Brooke. Brooke was feeling very warm and felt like she was blushing. She pulled some hair out of Peyton's face and slowly pulled herself up, moving closer to Peyton face. Before she knew it, her lips found the blonde's. It didn't last long before Peyton pulled away. "I should go." Peyton grabbed her coat and bolted out the door, leaving Brooke holding her head in her hands.