Brooke frantically looked through her bag to find the scrap piece of paper with the number that the radio producer had given her. "Yes!" She thought as she found it crumpled at the bottom of her bag. She happily dialed the number, waiting eagerly to hear Sam's voice come through.
" 'Sup." Said a gruff and unSam like voice.

Brooke sat up, "Excuse me, who are you?"

"Who are you lady? You called me."

Brooke was unsure what to say, but she suddenly became nervous for her daughter's affairs, "Is this Sam's number?"

She heard a loud crash, "Yo Marcus, cut it out. I'm on the phone! Sorry can you repeat that?"

Brooke tried her best not to try and jump in the phone, "I said is this Sam's phone?"
The boy coughed, "Oh nah. This is my phone, but she borrows it."

"Well can you tell me your name?"

He put himself on the defensive, "What's it to you?"

Brooke gritted her teeth, "I'm her mother."

Jack alsmost dropped the phone, "Whoah. You're Brooke Davis? That's awesome, dude. Congrats on being rich and stuff."

"Your name, kid!" Brooke replied getting impatient.

"Sorry, it's Jack." He said nonchalantly. I'm Sam's friend."

Brooke played with her necklace in order to ease her nerves, "Is she with you?"

"Nope. Shouldn't you know where she is? She's kinda your daughter."

"Bye Jack." She said unhappily and ended the call.

She then dialed her house phone, hoping Sam would pick up since she had already dialed Lucas and he said she wasn't with him, but it only went to voicemail, "Hey Sam, it's Brooke. Just checking in to see if you were home. I'm about to board the plane. I should be there in two hours. See you soon." She was about to say 'Love You.' but stopped herself, not sure how Sam would take it. Instead she ended up sounding like a fumbling mess, "I, uhh, I'll see you."

She tried to relax on the plane. 'She should be home!' She thought. But it's not like she had ever told her that explicitly. Would she really be out? She then laughed at herself, realizing it was only 5:00. It's not like she was out and about at 3 in the morning. She put her headphones in and closed her eyes.

… ….. …

Sam saw the phone ringing and recognized the number as the one that Brooke wrote down for her. She didn't answer. She couldn't. Sam was positive that if she did her voice would crack with emotion. Why did Brooke lie? Did she not want her? Tamara had a point this was forced on Brooke and Lucas, she couldn't blame them, but at least now she knew where she stood with Brooke. It was just a matter of time before she'd have to pick up her suitcase and leave once more.

She was in the dining room looking at her homework, but not acutally doing it when Brooke came in. Sam looked at the time, and it was just as Brooke promised, 7pm. That made Sam feel a little better. Although a very simple thing, it was comforting. She tried her best to not explode on Brooke.

"Sam?" Brooke asked still not seeing her. She walked over and saw her headphones in. She sat down across the table and waved one of her hands until Sam looked up. She took her headphones out, "Hey." Sam said simply.

Brooke already felt a tension between them, "How long have you been here?"

Sam put her pencil down, "Like 4."

"I called you." She tried to act nonchalant, but Sam could tell she was upset that she didn't pick up the phone.

"I know."

Brooke rose her eyebrow, "You know?"

Sam nodded, "Yep. I just didn't feel like picking it up." She went back to "doing" her homework. Sam wanted to anger Brooke. She wanted to hear the words on the radio be said straight to her.

Brooke was tired from her long day and all the flying. She had deliberately made sure to come back on the same day in order to be with Sam. She could've stayed the night. The ungratefulness was killing her. Brooke bit back the words she was thinking, "What if something was wrong Samantha? What if it was an emergency?"

Sam rolled her eyes, "Well it wasn't. And if it was you probably would've called like twenty times, and besides I heard your message, I knew it wasn't a big deal. You were just checking in, right?"

It had only been three or four days, but it was like the teenager had already aged her twenty years. She pinched the bridge of her nose then looked into Sam's eyes, "Next time, just pick up the phone Sam." Her tone was terse. She got up to put her things in her room, but Sam gave her a smug look, "And if I don't?"

Brooke's eyes narrowed. She was not about to play mind games with a fourteen year old. "Samantha, are you trying to get yourself intro trouble?" Brooke's voice was teetering between calmness and anger.

Julian came through the door. "I brought food!" He said happily. When he walked into the dining room he noticed the stand off, "Whoah, what happened here?"

Sam picked up her stuff, then glared at Brooke, "Nothing. I'm gonna go."

"But I brought sausage lover's pizza."

Sam turned to him, "I hate pizza." She said angrily.

She walked upstairs and Brooke heard the door slam. Brooke's jaw almost dropped at Sam's sudden change. "What happened?" Julian asked her. "It's like she's practically begging me to kill her." Brooke said with her knuckles to the table. Julian brought her into a hug, "Maybe she had a bad day. Did you ask her?"

Brooke wanted to kick herself as that was highly likely, but it didn't mean Sam had the green light to disrespect her. But before she could think about it further Sam rushed down the steps, heading out the door. "Where are you going?" Brooke asked walking quickly towards her. "Out." Sam grunted, "What the fuck is it to you?"

Brooke got a hold of her arm, "What is WRONG with you?!" She asked appalled.

Sam pulled her arm out Brooke's grip, "Why does it matter to you?"

"Sam, what? What did I do?" She was depserate to know what was wrong with Sam, "Are you mad that I left to New York for the day?" It was the only thing Brooke could think of. Sam's eyes narrowed, "Go to hell!"

Brooke not caring any longer about maintaining calm grabbed Sam's arm and dragged her to the couch, "Sit your little butt down!" Sam sat down reluctantly folding her arms across her chest. "You will not talk to me like that." Brooke said gravely, "You will respect me, Julian, Lucas. Every single adult that comes your way." She bent down so her eyes met Sam's, "You are living in my house Samantha. Now, you mean a lot to me, but I'm not gonna stand here and let you cuss your little heart out at me. You don't do that here!"

Sam's folded arms undid themselves. Her heart was pounding with anger. Brooke was surprised to see so much anger in a girl Sam's size. "Yeah well maybe you should follow your own advice!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh come on Brooke, What you said on the radio today?! What about that!?" Sam's voice cracked as she knew would happen. Her glistening eyes were now rolling tears that hit her blushing cheeks.

Brooke's eyes widened, "Sam, sweetie, that didn't mean anything. I promise."

That only made it worse, "Don't promise me anything!" She said hysterically, "You denied my existence! You said it, I heard you!"
Brooke's eyes searched Sam's face, watching every intense emotion. She felt her words hit her hard. She now understood Sam's anger.

"Sam I-I didn't mean that. It was business." She pulled at the words for them to come out, but her excuse was lame, and she knew it.

Sam felt disgusted, "Business?! Are you kidding me?! You can't say that to a person Brooke! I'm not your fashion line. I'm YOUR DAUGHTER!"

"Sam, please listen to me. I didn't mean it like that!"

"God, you're all the same! All of you!" She stood up pushing past Brooke, "You don't care about me! You just care about your stupid business."
Brooke watched as her daughter broke down because of something she caused. It seemed like the root of all of Sam's problems stemmed from Brooke. "See ya whenever Brooke." Her voice dripped with offense.

She watched her grab her stuff, "Sam where are you going?!"

You can't have two lives Brooke! You can't be fashion designer by day and mom by night, that's not how it works!"

Brooke tried to pull her in for a hug but Sam shrunk away from her, "Don't touch me!" Sam said as she walked to towards the door.

Julian gently walked towards the living area. He put a soothing arm around Brooke. "I screwed up." She said still looking at the door, "She's right. I did a horrible thing." He kissed her forehead, "She'll be back." He whispered.

…. …. …. …

Lucas heard his doorbell go off without stopping. He walked towards the door, "I'm coming, calm down!" He opened the door, surprised to see Sam. her eyes were red. He knew she must've been crying. "Sam? Sam, are you okay?" He asked as he opened the door prompting her to come in.

"I hate Brooke." She said, "Can I stay with you?"

Lucas looked at the not yet done room. "I ordered a bed for you, it hasn't come yet."

"I can sleep on your couch. I don't care. I just don't want to go back with Brooke."

He sighed, "You'll sleep in my bed. I'll take the couch. But first, you have to tell me what happened."
Sam shook her head, "I don't want to."

He grabbed her backpack, "You don't want to what?"

"Talk about it." She said finishing her thought, "Is Peyton here?" She asked realizing she might be imposing. He shook his head, "No, no. I was just about to go shoot some hoops at the park."

She took a deep breath, "Oh okay."

"You want some water?" He didn't wait for her answer and brought her a cup to drink. He thought about how to handle the situaiton, and thought it best to let Sam tell him without forcing it, "If you're up for it, we can go shoot hoops together."

She almost choked on her water, "I don't do sports."

He laughed, "Well good thing we don't do sports, we play them."

She rolled her eyes. Sam was glad he wasn't pushing her to talk about what happened, she still had to process it herself. "Well I'm gonna put my shoes on. I'll be back."

Sam put the cup in the washer then put a pair of converse on.

Once in his room Lucas called Brooke. "Hello." Her voice was tired and sad.
"Brooke, Sam's with me."

"Lucas bring her back here. I need to talk to her!" She said in a commanding yet desperate tone.
"Brooke, she's upset. I'll keep her for the night, okay?"

Brooke felt like her time was running out. She felt like if she didn't talk to Sam now, she'd lose her chance forever, "I'm going over there."

Lucas put a stop to it, "Brooke can you not think about yourself, and realize that our daughter is hurting?" He reprimanded her, "Just let her calm down."

"Lucas we meet with the social worker tomorrow!"

"And she'll be calm tomorrow, alright? Don't do anything stupid Brooke."

"I already did, that's the thing!"

When she explained what had happened, Lucas took a deep breath, "Damn it Brooke, I told you this would happen."

"I'm trying Luke! I wish my job was as simple as yours. Your personal life doesn't affect you, you're just a gym teacher!"
Lucas felt his blood boil, "A gym teacher? Do you think you're above me?"

"Oh for God sakes, now who's being selfish? That's not what I meant!"

Lucas rolled his eyes, "Whatever Brooke. Do not come. We won't be here."
"Where are you gonna be?!" Brooke said, "It's late, she has school tomorrow!"

"Bye Brooke." Lucas said and clicked.

Sam sat on the couch, waiting for Luke, "Ready to go?" He asked her. She nodded, "Yeah."

Lucas couldn't help but laugh at Sam's poor attempt at shooting the ball, "Am I that bad?"

"No, no. Here let me help you, come here champ." She went towards the center where he was. She'd never been given a nickname, and hearing it come so naturally from Lucas's mouth made her feel at ease.

"Okay, find your center of gravity, and then make sure you bend your knees, like this." She followed his lead. "Alright now follow through is important too. So when you shoot the ball, holding it like this, with both hands make sure your hands are still hanging in the air after you let go."

He shot the ball and it whooshed into the hoop. "See. Easy!" He said with a smile. She tried it and after three attempts the whoosh came. "Whoo!" Luke said, "Beautiful sound isn't it?"

Sam smiled. It was a beautiful sound. It was perfect. The ball fit perfectly into the net, and for a moment all of her movements came together to allow the ball to fall easily through the hoop. "Nothing but net." She replied pensively. he looked at her quizzically, "How 'bout a small game?" She looked at him, "You'll totally pound me."

He picked up the ball, "I promise I won't." Soon they were playing a playful game and Sam managed to distract Lucas and shoot the ball into the net. She heard the familiar whoosh again, "I did it!" She said excitedly towards Luke.

"You did it!" Lucas said elated and feeling pride emanate. He picked her up in excitement and ran around the court holding her in his arms, "And the game goes to Samantha Walker!" He mimicked the noises of a crowd, "And the crowd goes wild!" Sam laughed forgetting momentarily about the day's events. He put her down and put an arm on his waist, "Next WNBA star right here."

Sam picked up the ball, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, now."

Lucas checked his watch, "It's 10 kid. Let's go back. We need to get you to bed."

As they walked back, Lucas noticed her mood change. She was subdued. "Tired?" He said looking at her. She shrugged debating whether to tell him. "Just, kinda down I guess."

"Wanna talk about it?" He prompted her. "Not really." She said starting to dribble the ball, then catching it in her hands again.

When they went in the house, Lucas saw Peyton on the couch. She was wearing something special, or barely wearing anything for Luke, not expecting Sam to have been with him. His eyes bulged, and so did Sam's "Holy Hell." Sam blurted out loud. Peyton jumped and grabbed a blanket covering herself, "Oh my God, Sam!" She looked to Lucas, "Babe, I, I didn't know."

Sam feeling uncomfortable looked down, "Uhm, no, it's fine. My fault. I wasn't supposed to be here."

Lucas knew he and her were bonding tonight, and hated that it came to an end in such a manner, "Sam, dont' say that. It's not your fault."

She started to walk away, "I'm...gonna go shower. I'll sleep on the couch Lucas, so you and Peyton can...you know what, yeah I'm just gonna go shower."

Peyton felt thoroughly embarrassed.

"Peyton what were you thinking?!"
"How was I supposed to know that Sam was with you?"

Lucas rubbed his neck, "I don't know, but you didn't think to check?"

"I said sorry Luke. What else can I do?"

He sat down, "Babe, she, she was realy upset, and it was just a nice night between the both of us."

Peyton realized he was basically saying that she was intruding. "Luke, I didn't know. I'm sorry. Next time I'll call."

He turned to look at her, "You look beautiful though." She laughed, "Can you just hand me my clothes, so I can change?"

Once she was in her clothes, Lucas handed her a cup of coffee, "You should probably apologize." He suggested. She put her head in her hands, "I'm a horrible person. She probably thinks I'm some sort of porn star."

Lucas bit his lip. Peyton could tell he was thinking about something, "What, what's wrong?"

"It's just, Peyton, I think it's best if maybe we take a break from our you know overnights and stuff, at least until Sam gets settled into a routine between Brooke and I."

Peyton looked a bit offended, although she tried to hide it, "Sam's a big girl Lucas."

He put his cup of coffee down, "She's only 14 Peyton, she needs stability."

"You don't think we're stable?" She asked a little too loud for his taste, "No that's not what I said. Maybe if once she's settled and you and I, are still holding together without the sex, then, then I'll be more confident in us."

Peyton pushed her coffee cup and stood up, "You think the reason that we're still together is because of the great sex?!"

Lucas looked to the bedroom, "Peyton lower your voice!" He whispered.

She rolled her eyes, "You're wrong Lucas. You know what we have is stronger than that."

"Well if it is, then we'll still work out without the intimacy. Just do this for me...for Sam."

She grabbed her purse, "Fine Lucas. We won't have sex. This is ridiculous!"

Lucas knew it sounded crazy, "But he felt that their intimacy was the reason they had stayed together. He wanted so badly to be wrong."

"Peyton!" He said as she was about to leave, "Bye Luke!" She replied. He took a deep breath and exhaled, allowing himself to relax as he finished his coffee. He walked to his room and noticed the empty bed. He walked back out, "Sam?" He asked. She then saw her on the couch asleep, "When'd you get there?" He said aloud. He then tried to shake her gently awake, but she was out like a rock. He slowly picked her up and took her into his bedroom, carefully placing her into bed. He covered her up. "Night champ." He whispered giving her a kiss on the top of her forehead. Lucas couldn't help but watch her sleep. He then forced himself to leave, turning out the lights and closing the door.

As he laid down on the couch with the tv on a low hum he felt sleep being to envelop him, but his phone's vibration frightened him awake. He saw the caller ID. It was Brooke.
"Brooke, what? She's asleep, don't bother trying to talk to her."

"Open the door Luke, I'm at your door."

He checked the time it was midnight. "Brooke are you crazy?" He whispered frustrated into the phone. "Just do it Luke, come on." He looked at his closed bedroom door where Sam was, then sighed. He went over and opened the front door, "She's already asleep Brooke. I don't know what you expected coming here at midnight."

He let her in and she sat down on his couch, "I just dropped Julian off at the airport. And I, I-" Lucas instinctively knew that Brooke was about to break down, "Come here Brooke." He said wrapping her into a hug, "We'll figure it out."
"I'm the worst mother." She said once in his embrace. He rubbed her arm and kissed her forehead, "No, no you're not. We can fix this. She just needs time, and you, you need to be honest, with everyone."

Brooke felt safe in his arms. It was just like high school all over again. She got out of his arms quickly. He then locked eyes with her, "You're her mom. I'm her dad. She's our daughter. We're a family." He said with conviction. He kept looking into her, and she didn't move either. Lucas leaned in, "You look...beautiful." he added.

"I'm horrendous." Brooke said in hopes to break their trance. He got closer, "No, you're not. You're beautiful."

He leaned all the way in and kissed her. For a moment they forgot where they were. "Wow, I missed this." He said. "Mhm." Brooke said as he pushed her onto the couch playing with her shirt's buttons. But their passion stopped when they heard Sam cough. Brooke pushed him off, "This was a bad idea." She said standing up, "We, I mean I, gotta go. This never happened." She said flustered. Lucas rubbed the lipstick of his lips, "Brooke wait! I'm sorry." He said fumbling in the dark, trying to get to her. She opened the door, "Be ready tomorrow at 5:30. Remember. She said, with that she closed the door running into her car. Lucas sat back down. What had they just done? Was this why he was so reluctant to marry Peyton?

"Shit." He said as he laid down to go to sleep.

… ….. ….

The next day Lucas drove Sam to Southside High again, luckily this time around there were no fights he had to witness. "Alright Sam be home by 5:15 alright?' Sam nodded, "Fine, okay." She said.

Sam checked her watch, she figured she had time to hang out with her friends for a while. She was with Tamara and Jack in Marcus's apartment. She was laying next to Jack who was playing with her hair. "I gotta go guys. My interview is soon."

Tamara rolled her eyes and looked away. Sam sighed, "What Tamara. Just say it, if you have something to say." She sat up on the bed. Jack glared at Tamara for ruining their moment.

Tamara turned back, "You're still going to that stupid interview after what Brooke did to you?"

Sam swallowed the lump in her throat, "I-I'm planning on asking for Lucas to have sole custody." She said in her defense.

Tamara laughed, "Hah! Yeah, right Sam. You know a part of you still forgives Brooke. She threw you away when you were a baby, blew you off on national radio, but you still go crawling back!"

"T, she's still-"
"Still what Sam?, huh? Your precious mommy?"

"That's not what I said Tamara!"

"T, shut up." Jack said, "You're such a buzzkill." He added.

She started stuffing her clothes into a bag, "God, Sam why are you so protective of her! Some woman you barely know!"

Sam got closer, realizing what Tamara was doing, "What, what're you doing?" She asked. "First class ticket to Clydsville, Sam. I'm not going to California either, but unlike you, I don't have anything to fall back on."

Sam put her hands on Tamara's suitcase, "Stop T! Stop blaming this on me."

Tamara looked straight at Sam, "Enjoy it, alright. Your new life. Not everyone gets that chance."

Sam knew she said it both to be spiteful, but at the same time as genuine advice. "T, come on, we'll still see each other at school!"

Tamara nodded, "Yeah, school."
"Nothing'll change. I promise."
Tamara knew better, "Fine Sam. Nothing will change. Sure."

Sam forced her into a hug, and Tamara eventually took it. Jack looked at the time, "Sam you should go now. You're gonna be late."

Sam saw the sadness in Tamara's eyes, "No, I think I'll hang out with T. Besides it's Thrice, she knows me. I'll just do it another time."

Jack got up from the bed, "I gotta go home. Good luck with your ass kicking Sam."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

He put his jacket on, "You're missing the most important interview for your parents. It might not be a big deal to you, but it is to them. You think you're gonna get off scotch free?"

Sam hugged Tamara's arm, "Well I guess that means I should make it worthwhile then."

Jack rolled his eyes, "Whatever dude. By the way Brooke keeps calling my cell. I haven't picked up, but I'm going to the next time she does."

"Jack, come on!" Sam pleaded.

"Bye!" He said as he walked out. Sam suddenly felt nervous but pushed it past her.

… … ….

5:15 came and Sam was nowhere to be found. Brooke and Julian looked at each other nervously. "We need to get her a phone." Brooke said absentmindedly. Lucas nodded, "Yeah." Lucas turned to Brooke, "So are we not gonna talk about-"
"NO." She said definitively., "We both have our own partners. It was a mistake. I was emotional. You were, you were horny."

"I was not." He said offended.

"OH, yes you were!"

"You think too highly of yourself! Just because you're Brooke Davis."
Brooke whipped her hair back, "Here we go! You love to throw that in my face!"
Their bickering came to a stop when they heard a knock at the door, "Damn it, we're screwed." Lucas said aloud.

Brooke opened the door, "Hi Ms. Thice."

"It's Ms. Thrice." Said the no nonsense woman. Brooke's fake smile cracked, "Oh, right, right. I'm sorry."

"Where's Samantha?" She asked them both.

Lucas got closer and shook her hand, "Uhh, yeah about that, she, she seems to not be here, now."

The social worker looked at them confused, "Where is she?" She asked questioning them.

Brooke scratched her eyebrow, "We're not sure. She told us she'd be coming."

She wrote something down. "Wait, what, what're you writing?" Brooke said trying to get a glimpse, "Ms. Davis, please." She admonished.

All three of them took a seat. "I can interview Samantha at a later time. I know she can be...difficult. But the fact that you two don't know where she is right now is very disconcerting."

Brooke nodded, "We know and we're completely sorry."

Ms. Thrice looked over Sam's case, "The judge granting custody to two people who aren't together is unusual. This tells me there really was no other option, or that the judge saw something in you two." She looked at them from the rim of her glasses, "Do not let the judge down. You two are the parents, you need to be aware of where she is. She's still a child, remember that."
Brooke nodded, "We understand."

"I hope you do. Sam is not an adult, although she tries to act tough, she needs love and attention, and rules. She needs rules, and she needs to know her limits, because she'll push the envelope."

Lucas looked to Brooke, "We'll provide all that. We promise." Brooke nodded, "We will."

Lucas looked a little confused. "Is there something wrong, Mr. Scott?"

He played with his hands, "I'm just a little confused. Sam was so nervous about this interview. She told us it'd be hard. She even made me buy all these air fresheners."
Ms Thrice softened a little, "Yes, Sam is a very cautious one. I'll tell you that much. The fact that she cared so much, tells me how much she wants this to work out."

Brooke spoke up, "Then why isn't she here?"

"Well she's also a teenager Ms. Davis. If she's angry with either of you, she'll probably jeopardize her chances instinctively."

Brooke sunk into the chair.

"And she also has competing interests I'm sure." Ms. Thrice added.

"What, what does that mean?" Lucas said intrigued.

"She's very close to two foster kids. Tamara and Jack."

Brooke sat back up at Jack's name. "Who knows what those two are telling her. They care deeply about her, but sometimes foster children see their friends as their family as well. She must feel torn right now."

Brooke thought of Sam, feeling her heart go out for her small, sassy, and stubborn daughter. She was determined to make things right.

After the interview Brooke leaned on Lucas, "That was so long." She said. He laughed, "But it's over now, so thank God for that."

She stood up straight, "She just needs to talk to Sam. But I need to talk to her before Ms. Thrice does. And I think I know where she is."

Lucas looked at her, "What? Where?"

"I found this address in Sam's stuff. I'm just gonna take a chance and go."

Lucas grabbed his keys, "Let me go with you."

Brooke couldn't have Luke there, not only was she beginning to feel attracted to him once more, but she knew this was between her and Brooke, "I gotta do this one on my own Luke."

He grabbed her by the shoulders, "You'll be okay?"

"I'll be fine."

He gave her a kiss on the top of her head, "Let me know how it goes. We need to set some serious rules anyways."

"Don't worry that'll come."

Hope y'all like it! Let me know what you think! And if you have any suggestions, let me know! Thank you for your input, continue to review!