This time she was the one calling instead of being called, which felt weird since she hadn't dialed a phone in a couple weeks.

"Hello?"

"Hales? What the fuck is going on?" Probably not the most tactful way to open a conversation, but Brooke was tired of playing games.

"Brooke!? I tried calling, did you get my voicemail?" Haley sounded reassured, like she'd been waiting for Brooke to come rescue her or something.

"No, I'm sorry, I haven't had a chance. I get a phone call from some no-name chick who I could have sworn was with Lucas, and then Rachel and you AND Lucas call, and I've just hung up-"

"Wait, Lucas CALLED you?!"

"I guess so! My cell phone had a missed call from him, but like I said, I haven't checked voicemails yet. It could have been that girl."

"No way. Lucas doesn't ever let anyone near his cell phone. Besides, that girl's been grating on everyone's last nerve, and if I found out she'd called you from his phone…well I'd, I don't know. But I'd do something!" Haley sounded really frustrated, and now Brooke really was beginning to worry.

"Hales? What's going on? Rachel refused to say anything to me, and that excuse for a woman kept dodging questions. Said you'd threatened her into contacting me?"

"Brookie, please. I need you to come home. Things have gone to hell in a hand basket on a one-way express ticket, and I can't do this without you. I've tried, lord knows I've tried for months now to leave you out of this, but I jut can't anymore. James is sick, Nathan's depressed that his brother is slowly fading away, and I can't keep fighting for everyone else when I've got to fight just to stay awake right now." Haley's voice sounded so tired and worn out, there wasn't a way Brooke could have said no, even if she'd been the cold hearted bitch everyone in sophomore year had accused her of being.

"Come on Hales, give yourself some credit. You're stronger than you think. Can you at least tell me what's going on?"

"It's not something said over the phone. Come to Tree Hill, spend some time with me and Nathan and James, and I'll catch you up. If after I've filled you in, you decide you don't or can't help, then you're free to head back, and I promise we won't drag you back into this again."

"Oh Hales…what's my broody boy gotten himself into?" Brooke sighed. Knowing full well she couldn't do less for him than she'd already done for the rest of her friends, she agreed to come for a visit. She told Haley she'd be driving into town, and to expect her in a day or so.

TWO DAYS LATER

Brooke pulled up into the drive way of Haley and Nathan's house, and sat idly for a moment. She'd lost count of the number of times she'd flipped a bitch and tried to go back to New York only to turn right back around and determinedly plow on. She was NOT a scaredy cat. Or at least that's what she kept telling herself.

The door suddenly crashed open and a two foot tall blur came flying out the door.

"Auntie Brooke! Auntie Brooke! Momma said you'd be coming, but it took you soooo long!" James, her godson, was jumping up and down on the driveway outside her car door, impatiently waiting for her to climb out of the car.

"Easy Jamie-boy! I missed you too! I'm sorry I took so long, but I wanted to make sure I had enough room to bring along some neat stuff for you and your parents." Brooke stood up, catching the jumping boy as he launched himself at her as she climbed out of the car. It felt so good to have his little arms around her neck. She felt ashamed for the time gap since her last visit, and a pang of something else she didn't want to name. Shying away from pain she didn't need to ask for, she hugged James back and put him down on the driveway.

"Brookie!" Haley came running out much like her son, and engulfed Brooke in a gigantic hug.

"Hey Hales! Ease up will ya? I'd like to breath sometime this century!" In truth though, Brooke was hugging Haley as tight as she was hugging Brooke, and it felt so good to be loved and wanted. For a minute Brooke thought she'd cry, but she gathered herself together.

"Oh Brooke! I thought you'd never get here! I'm so glad you've come, you can help me make sense of this whole mess and do some serious house cleaning. You'd be appalled to learn of the things going on since we graduated high school! At least we had class!" Haley sounded like she was near tears, and sensing the tension and strain in her friend's slight frame, she gently disengaged herself from the bear hug, and grabbing James' hand, led Haley inside.

"Nathan! Brooke's here! Can you help her with her bags?" Haley shouted down the hallway of the immense house, and Nathan immediately popped up from a doorway about a third the way down.

"Brooke!? Awesome! 'Bout damn time you showed your face! Sure, I'll grab her bags, where's she staying?" Nathan came jogging down the hallway and enveloped Brooke in a warm brotherly hug. Even though there was a lot of water under that bridge, they seemed to have survived the monsoon season.

"She'll be in the room across from James, that way we're all in the same half of the house. Sometimes this big ole spooky house scares me" she said in a whisper.

"Seriously? Aww Hales you should have told me about that! I would have closed off the other portion of the house or something!" Nathan walked up to his petite wife and kissed her on the cheek.

"Come on guys, no kissy faces in the hallway!" Brooke made to gag, trying her hardest not to laugh. She hadn't felt this light or stress-free since she couldn't remember when. She made a mental note to come back home more often. Just because she could see Nathan and Haley didn't mean she had to deal with all the rest of Tree Hill's residents.

Grinning, Haley led Brooke into the kitchen and away from the half of the house that spooked her so bad. Brooke sat down on a bench in the gigantic kitchen, and reveled at how comfortable she felt.

"Hales, you've done so well making this truly a home. I can't even begin to tell you how good it feels to be here." Brooke sighed, and rested her chin in the palm of her hand.

Haley busied herself with preparing a snack. She had slowly learned that a good visit always included food of some sort with a fruity drink. Whether or not it was spiked depended solely on the guest and time of day, along with the severity of the visit.

Nathan came strutting into the kitchen with James on his shoulders, laughing at something he'd said to his son. Brooke smiled at the two of them, relishing the sense of family she had here that she hadn't been able to have anywhere else.

Once Haley finished the snacks, they gathered in the living room, and Brooke settled down to the heart of the matter.

"Alright, so spill. My curiosity is peaked, I need to know, and I'd really just as soon have the wool pulled from over my eyes than remain in the dark over the whole thing." Brooke got straight to the point, her old sense of common sense resurfacing.

"Brooke, can we wait just a little bit? I want to catch up with you before you turn against us all."

"Nathan, you don't know that I'd turn against you! That's not a fair thing to say!" Brooke was momentarily hurt, trying to fend off the extreme sense of forboding that just wouldn't go away.

Haley glared at her not-so-bright husband and sat down across from Brooke so she could look her in the eye. She fidgeted with the napkin in her hand, and tried hard to find the right way to start this difficult conversation.

Just as Haley started to speak, the doorbell rang. James came running from down the hallway to answer the door. "I've got it!" he yelled as he ran.

"Oh no you don't Mini-Me! You know you're not supposed to open the front door!" Nathan sprinted after his athletic son, making it to the entranceway before James.

"Aww dad! You're no fun! I just wanted to say hi!" James whined as he was removed from the door handle. Nathan grinned at him, and turned to open the door.

"Lucas!" Nathan was stunned. Lucas never ventured from the doom and gloom of his house nowadays.