I don't own One Tree Hill and Supernatural.

First of all, I'm very sorry that it took me so long to post this chapter. I had too much on my slate these past few months – thesis, minor and major projects, and all – so I had little time to finish this chapter and post it online. Second of all, thanks for the reviews and for adding this to your favourite/alert lists.

27: You Get What You Give

"What's wrong?" the brunette asked, already concerned when she saw the look on her husband's face.

Dean put his phone back on his jacket. "Game night's cancelled. Um, there's something wrong with-with Preston, a friend of mine. I gotta go."

"As in...now?" Brooke asked, subconsciously placing her hand on top of her belly as she followed Dean to their room.

Dean silently took a deep breath. "Yeah, he's in some sort of trouble. Can you call Nathan for me?"

"Of course," Brooke said as she followed her husband out of the kitchen. "Where are you going? When will you be back home?"

Back home... Those two words rang in Dean's head over and over. He could tell by Brooke's questions and by the look on her face that she was buying his lie. She believes him. She trusts him. Dean knew what might happen if Brooke finds out about his lies, though there was something about the redhead's tone of voice that bothered him. Besides, Savannah was only a couple hours away, so it wouldn't take him long. He checked his watch; it was only two in the afternoon.

"I'll be back by dinner," he told his pregnant wife. "Would you be okay alone in here?"

Brooke nodded. "I might as well invite Mouth and Skills so the food you bought won't be wasted."

Dean smiled at the brunette and motioned for her to come closer to him. The moment she was only a step away, he grabbed her and wrapped her in a tight hug, hoping that everything would turn out okay. He planted a soft kiss on her cheek and then released her. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

Brooke smiled, showing off her dimples, and nodded. "You too."

ooooo

Dean gripped the wheel tighter as he drove through the streets, fast enough so no one – if ever – would notice him. He had reached Savannah just a few minutes ago, and now he was looking for the motel Rachel had told him to come to. After half an hour of searching, he found the motel and parked his car by the motel office. He dreaded the idea of going inside and asking the receptionist where Rachel Gatina was; the receptionist might recognize him and that was the last thing he wanted. Much to his relief, there was no one in the office, and the man behind the counter – probably the owner – was old enough to be Dean's grandfather.

"What can I do for you, kid?" the old man asked.

Dean cleared his throat. "Did a redhead happen to check in here?"

"Ah, yes. She's been awfully quiet today. Last night there was loud music coming from her room, I had to come and make her stop the music," the old man said. "And the night before that, she kept on calling me, complaining about everything in her room. Anyway, she's at room 3."

"Thanks," Dean said and gave the old man a curt nod before walking out of the motel office.

He quickly walked towards the room and knocked. "Rachel."

No answer.

"Rachel," Dean said as he knocked again, this time with more force. When she didn't answer, he knocked again, until he almost banged on the door. He finally gave up and grabbed his wallet from his jacket pocket. There was a pin he kept in there just in case, and he used it to open the door. The scene that welcomed him sort of shocked Dean. There were beer bottles on the coffee table and on the floor, the room reeked of smoke, and there were small packets of white powder-y stuff on the table as well.

"What the hell..."

And then his eyes landed on the bed. In it was Rachel, hidden beneath the tangled sheets, her red hair the only proof that it was her. Dean quickly removed the sheets and frowned. Rachel looked like she hadn't eaten for days; her face was pale and there were dark circles around her eyes. Dean shook her, but there was no response. He quickly checked her pulse and let out a sigh of relief when he felt a pulse.

ooooo

Haley James Scott hummed happily as she cradled Jamie Scott, her newborn baby. For the past few days, everything seemed perfect. Nathan surprised her by being attentive to her and their baby's needs, waking up at night to take care of the baby when Haley was too tired to get up. The baby instantly fit into their schedule, Jamie being their top priority. Aside from her family bliss, there was Brooke and Dean. The two seemed like they were meant to be together; everything seemed to be working well for them. Haley was surprised when Nathan told her that Dean was buying Keith's garage to support his future family with Brooke.

Haley was also surprised when Brooke told her that Peyton visited to apologize. She felt like a huge burden was taken off of her chest, somewhat thankful that Peyton finally showed up and asked for Brooke's forgiveness. And earlier this day, Lucas called Haley to tell her that Peyton asked for his forgiveness as well, so Haley knew that it would only be a matter of time before Peyton shows up in her front door.

A knock on their front door pulled her out of her thoughts. Haley suspected that it was Peyton, and just as she expected, Peyton was standing on her porch with a lopsided smile on her face.

"Hey," the blond murmured.

Haley let out a small smile. "Peyton, come in."

Peyton's eyes were glued to the bundle of joy in Haley's arms. "That's your son, I presume?"

Haley smiled. "Yeah, James Lucas Scott."

"You named him after Luke?"

"Of course; Luke's Nathan's brother and my best friend. Go figure." Haley smirked as she cradled her son in her arms, amused at how peaceful the little boy looked as he slept. "Anyway, I heard you've been going around, making amends."

Peyton squared her shoulders and shrugged. "Yeah, and now it's your turn."

Haley chuckled. "Save it, Peyt. I know you're sorry, I get it. You don't have to spill your heart out or whatever."

"Did I ever tell you that you're such a great friend?" Peyton said, smiling from cheek to cheek as she looked at Haley with gratitude in her eyes. Of all their friends, Haley was the wisest, so Peyton didn't find it hard to believe that Haley didn't need any explanation.

ooooo

The room was deafeningly silent. The man inside it kept on pacing from one end to another. He never thought that this was the scene waiting for him. He also knew that one wrong move might cause his downfall. The thing that scared him the most was the fact that he had been lying to his wife more than he had expected to. He told her that his friend was in trouble. He left her alone in their house. She called him and he told her that he would be back before midnight.

Lie, lie, lie.

So he started to think of a reason why he kept lying for the redhead, who was passed out on the bed. He didn't need to think hard; the only reason he could come up with was that he was like the redhead before he met his wife. He was worthless, good for nothing. So he wanted to help the redhead, just like what his wife did to him.

"Dean...?"

The man stopped pacing and quickly turned to look at the bed at the center of the room. "Rachel."

"What're you doing here?" she croaked as she sat up, rubbing her forehead.

Dean scoffed. "You called me. And then I found you passed out, high as hell. Jesus, what were you thinking?"

Rachel looked down on her knees. "That's how I cope. You got a problem with that?"

Dean muttered something about 'dragging himself to Savannah' in response. He shook his head and pulled out his wallet from his jacket. "I bought some stuff you'll need – Anvil, food – they're all in the fridge." He then pulled out a couple of dollar bills from his wallet and placed it on the coffee table. "I have to go, Brooke's waiting for me."

Just when Dean was about to grab the door knob, Rachel jumped out of the bed and called his name.

"Please," she murmured, "I don't have anyone right now. I'm lonely, I'm a mess."

"You're a mess because you turned yourself into a mess. I can't believe I went here," Dean said, shaking his head.

"Why did you come here, then?" Rachel asked, folding her arms across her chest.

"I'm trying to help. Now that you're up and about, I'm outta here."

"Okay, no more messing around." Rachel took a deep breath and looked intently at Dean's eyes. "Please, Dean, I need someone to talk to. You and I are alike in some ways, so I know you'd understand me. Just a couple hours is all I'm asking."

Though he should have turned Rachel down, Dean cursed under his breath and agreed to listen to Rachel. He knew it was wrong and he was 95% sure that he would regret it later.

ooooo

Brooke began to feel worried. Dean left their house around 3 in the afternoon. It was already 12 midnight. He said it wouldn't take him long, that he'll be back soon, and yet he wasn't back home. The brunette tried calling him around 7pm, but she was transferred to voice mail. She tried again at around 9pm; this time, her husband answered. There was something awkward about the way he spoke, but Brooke assumed that it was because of his friend's problem. He then promised her that he will be back before midnight. So now here she was, standing by their window, waiting to see the familiar Impala appear and park in front of her house.

She waited and waited and waited, but the Impala never came.

At around 3 in the morning, she was still wide awake, waiting for her husband to come back. All her neighbors were asleep now, and her house was the only one that still has lights on. She heaved a sigh and dragged herself to the kitchen to make coffee. As she waited for the coffee to get done, a sudden thought came into her mind. She quickly grabbed their kitchen phone and dialled Castiel's number.

By the fifth ring, Brooke thought of cancelling the call. Just when she was about to press the End button, Castiel answered.

"Hello?" his voice was still thick with sleep.

Brooke sighed. "Cas? I'm sorry for calling you at this hour."

"It's okay, Brooke. You're always welcome to call anytime. Is something wrong?"

"Dean left this afternoon, and he's still not home. He said there was something wrong with his friend, Preston. I was thinking, since you and Dean have the same group of friends..."

There was a short pause before Castiel spoke. "I don't know any Preston. Maybe he's one of Dean's drinking buddies or something."

Brooke suddenly felt like she was going to cry.

"Brooke? Are you... Do you want me to come over?"

The brunette took a deep breath and tried to fight back a sob. "No, I'm okay. If Dean calls you, can you...?"

"Of course, I'll tell you. Are you sure you don't want me to come over?"

"Yeah, you've done so much already. Thanks, Cas," Brooke managed to say. She rummaged her mind for something else to do. She thought of calling Sam, but she was quite sure that Sam wouldn't know any Preston either. "And I'm sorry for waking you up."

Castiel chuckled. "It's fine, Brooke. Take care of yourself, 'kay?"

"I will," Brooke replied and then hung up.

Brooke let out an exasperated sigh as she slumped on the kitchen floor. Dean had never done this before, and she was afraid that he might be going back to his old ways. She knew it was bad of her to think of her husband that way, but there was a small part of her that knew her husband might really be doing something she wouldn't want him to do.

The baby inside her womb kicked and Brooke chuckled to herself. "I know, Baby Girl," she murmured, gently rubbing her belly, "I shouldn't jump to conclusions, I know. But your daddy's..."

Another kick. Brooke laughed. It was like her baby was defending her father or something. The brunette found it comforting. "Your dad better have a good explanation for this."

It was then when Brooke thought of calling Dean once again. She dialled his number and hoped that he would pick up this time. To her relief, the call was picked up on the seventh ring. But the relief she felt was washed away by a pang of hurt when she heard the voice of the person who answered the call: a woman.

Brooke knew that voice very well.

ooooo

Rachel Gatina couldn't wipe the smirk off of her face. The very short conversation she had with Brooke a few minutes ago still played over and over again in her head.

"Hello?" Rachel said as she answered the call, a smirk already plastered on her face. She saw Brooke's name flashing on the screen of Dean's cell phone. Fortunately for her, Dean was passed out on the couch, so she could do anything she wanted.

"De-" Brooke wasn't able to finish her sentence. There was a long pause before she spoke again, and this time, her voice sounded hurt. "Rachel?"

"Yeah?"

"Wh-what're you doing...Where's Dean? What're you doing there?"

The smirk on Rachel's face grew wider. "Oh, Dean's sleeping. Do you want me to-"

Brooke dropped the call before Rachel could finish her sentence.

Rachel shook her head as she chuckled. Brooke sounded oh-so-hurt. The redhead knew that trouble would ensue some time later. She somehow guessed that Dean's weakness was his wild past, and she was lucky that her 'I know you'd understand me' thing worked on him. Her whole plan was working quite well.

Dean woke up with a slight headache. The last thing he remembered was talking to Rachel, drinking beer. He knew how to control himself while drinking to avoid being drunk – and he never passed out before – so he knew that something was odd. He sat up and realized that he was still in the motel with Rachel, who was sitting by the end of the bed with a smirk on her face.

"How was your sleep?" she asked. "Brooke called."

Dean frowned and jumped out of the couch. "Did you answer it?"

"Of course. It's rude not to answer a phone call," Rachel quipped.

"Bitch," Dean muttered. He wanted to hit Rachel, but he knew it wouldn't do him any good. He grabbed his phone from the table beside the bed and stormed out of the motel, thinking of how stupid he was. Brooke must be mad as hell now, for all he knows.

ooooo

The last time Lucas Scott was woken up at 3 in the morning was the day Haley gave birth to her first son. Of course, Lucas was extremely happy about the news; he even got happier when the new parents told him that they'll name their son after him. So now, as Lucas sat up on his bed, wondering who could be knocking on his front door at three in the morning, he began to wonder if it would be another good news.

Lucas got out of his bed and jogged down the stairs. Just as he reached the first floor, there came another knock, louder this time. "I'm coming," Lucas hollered. He quickly jogged towards the front door and looked out the glass window beside the door. The moment he saw the brunette standing in front of his door, he quickly unlocked it and opened it for the girl.

"Brooke? What're you doing here?" Lucas sounded overly concerned. Brooke's puffy eyes only made him upset. "What happened?"

Brooke's lips quivered as she answered, "Dean went out. He's still not home."

Lucas let out a sigh of disbelief as he walked towards Brooke and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Let's get you inside," he murmured as he ushered Brooke inside his house and into the living room.

Brooke fought back her tears – which was hard to do, especially with her hormones – as she sat down on Lucas' sofa. "I'm sorry for disturbing you like this."

Lucas sat beside the brunette and sighed. "Don't be sorry, it's okay. You know I promised you that I'll be here for you anytime. Tell me what's wrong."

Before she could stop herself, Brooke cried. "Dean's with Rachel. He told me he was going to his friend. But when I called, Rachel answered. I don't know what to do, Luke. I feel like I'm being burned alive."

"Sshh," Lucas murmured as he wrapped his arms around Brooke and let her cry into his arms. "Don't cry, Cheery." He himself didn't know what to do. He wanted to hurt Dean. He wanted to tell Dean how stupid he was. Most importantly, he wanted to show Brooke that whatever happens, he will be there for her.

ooooo

Dean got back to Tree Hill a few hours later, hoping that his wife was waiting for him with her famous dimpled smile on her face. But Dean knew very well that that won't happen; she heard Rachel's voice, and Dean knew that she must be really angry right now. He drove as fast as possible through the neighbourhood and parked effortlessly in front of their house. The weird feeling in his gut only got worse when he got inside the house. Everything seemed to be quiet.

Too quiet.

There was something wrong. Brooke should be waiting for him. She should be yelling at him right now. He knew his wife, but then again, he had never seen her become angry or livid before. What scared him more was the fact that he might have hurt her big time.

Dean ran upstairs to find all rooms empty, but Brooke's stuff was still there, so that means she didn't leave him. The next thing that came to his mind was go over to Nathan and Haley's house, so he did.

"Dean," Nathan greeted as he opened the door. "What's up?"

Dean let out a reluctant smile. "Is Brooke there?"

"No. Why? What's wrong?" Nathan's brows furrowed.

"Nothing, just a small problem." Dean squared his shoulders and managed to grin. "Anyway, thanks. I'll see you sometime soon."

The next place he went to was Skills and Mouth's apartment. Brooke told him that she might invite them over so she would have some company, so she might be in their place. But there was this small voice in the back of Dean's head that told him exactly where Brooke was, but Dean didn't want to think that she was in her ex-boyfriend's house. Much to his dismay, Skills said Brooke never went to their place. So Dean had no other choice left but to visit Lucas Scott.

Dean knocked three times before the door was answered. He could already tell that Lucas knew something. The lanky blond in front of him looked smug (in some way) and sort of disappointed. "Where's Brooke? Don't bother lying, 'cause I know she's there."

Lucas scoffed. "She's not in the mood to talk to you."

"I don't care, Lucas. I need to talk to Brooke to clear things with her. There's a mis-"

"A misunderstanding?" Lucas shook his head. "You're writing this off as a misunderstanding, Dean?"

Dean was really close to snapping, but he knew it wouldn't do him any good. He managed to keep his fists and temper in control as he looked at Lucas. Boy did he look like he has some power over Dean, and Dean hated that look. "Brooke! Babe, I know you're there! I need to talk to you."

"What the hell?" Lucas exclaimed. "Back off! Do you have any idea how hurt Brooke is right now?"

Dean's jaws tightened. "You're the one who needs to back off! Who do you think you are to meddle in my relationship with Brooke?"

"Luke..."

Brooke's soft raspy voice broke the tension between Dean and Lucas. Both men instantly turned around to see Brooke standing by the front door, her eyes tear-filled. Despite her fragile appearance, both Dean and Lucas could see a sign of strength in her eyes; she was trying to be strong for herself and her baby.

"Brooke..." Lucas murmured.

Brooke let out a small smile as she walked over to Lucas and patted his shoulder. "It's okay, Luke. You and I both know that I have to talk to Dean at some point." She didn't want to bother Lucas more.

If this wasn't a serious situation, Dean would be smirking at Lucas right now. He fought back the smirk and looked at Brooke intently. He had never seen Brooke so fragile before. "Thanks, Babe," he said.

Brooke just glared at Dean and scoffed in response. She turned her attention back to Lucas and gave him another smile. "Thanks for everything, Broody."

Lucas nodded and smiled reluctantly; he still didn't want to let Brooke go him with Dean. "I'm always here for you, Brooke."

Brooke nodded and gave Lucas a peck on his cheek and then walked over to Dean's Impala. The two of them were silent for the rest of the three-minute drive back to their house. As soon as Dean parked the Impala on their driveway, Brooke didn't wait for him to turn the engine off; she left the car in a hurry and quickly walked inside their house. Dean quickly shut the car engine off and followed Brooke into the house.

"I know you're mad, but please let me explain," he said before Brooke could utter a word.

Brooke wiped the tears from her eyes. "What, you're gonna tell me that Rachel just happened to be with your friend Preston? Do you even have a friend named Preston?"

"Babe, I'm sorry, okay?" Dean reached for her hand, but Brooke backed away. "Rachel called me. She said she was in trouble."

The hurt Brooke felt doubled. Dean just admitted that he lied to her. She tried to think of a reason why he would lie to her about Rachel, but she couldn't come up with anything. "Why did you lie?"

"Because..." Dean looked deep into Brooke's eyes.

Brooke's eyes gave away all the fear she felt as she stared at her husband and waited for an answer.

"Have I ever cheated on you, Brooke? Since the day I fell for you, did I look at other women? Did I?"

Brooke looks at Dean with fear in her eyes. "No. But there's always a first, Dean."

Well, there you have it. Tell me what you think of the chapter. :)