Brooke glared at the door. Sam's door to be more specific. It was already Wednesday and Sam still had refused to say more than one or two sentences at a time to Brooke and Lucas. But as much as it hurt both parents to see their daughter shrink away from them, it was hurting Sam as well. They were giving up on her, she thought. Of course they would. What would make them want her? She was a mess, a mess that refused to open up to them. Who would want someone that gave them the cold shoulder and acted like they were the worst people? She was half expecting Ms. Thrice to show up at the door telling her it was time to go back. It was a sad thought, but a possibility that she considered to be a soon reality.
She had tried talking to Tamara, but it was useless. She had never been this mad at Sam before. Sam wanted to tell her that she stopped trying to fit into a world she doesn't belong to. She tried telling her that she chose her over them! But it's like she didn't care. Jack told her that Marcus still hadn't talked to her. So Sam assumed Tamara wouldn't talk to her until Marcus did.
Sam sighed as she picked up her bookbag and slung it over her shoulder. She looked down at her tattered converse and made her way out. She was surprised to see both Lucas and Brooke there. Why was Lucas at Brooke's house so early? Sure, he picked her up, but usually he came by at 7:45, it was only seven.
She made no effort to talk to them, instead went towards the fridge and got some juice, brushing past Brooke.
Brooke turned to Lucas and Lucas gave her a short nod. "Samantha, we need to talk to you."
Sam poured her juice, "And I don't need to talk to you. So that solves that issue." She put the orange juice away and was surprised to feel Brooke roughly close the refrigerator right before she got the chance to. "Sit down." Brooke told her, any hint of compassion gone from her voice.
Sam narrowed her eyes, but could tell that Brooke was not going to take no for an answer.
"Well get out of my way and I will." She spit back.
Brooke took a deep breath. Sam had been impossible to deal with, but she wouldn't yell at her, not yet. Brooke got out of her way and she sat on the stool across from Lucas. Brooke took a seat next to him.
Lucas looked at Sam who looked so, so angry, and he couldn't understand why. "Sam, you've been really upset since Friday, and it looks like you've been taking it out on us."
Sam glared at him, then at Brooke, "Wow great work, detective."
Lucas felt his muscles tense. This little girl was really testing his nerves. His little girl. "It doesn't take a detective, Samantha. Any idiot off the street could see that you've been acting like we're nothing to you." He responded pointedly.
Sam's whole body cringed at his words. She didn't think that their words could affect her, but they did. And they made a strong impact. She wanted to run, but her body was glued to the seat. She pulled at her sleeves, and Brooke noticed.
"Sam it's been two months. You realize that? You've been with us for two months."
Sam paused the jerking motion of her sweater sleeve to look up at Brooke. She didn't realize it had already been two months.
Brooke sighed. They weren't getting anywhere.
"Sam, tell us what happened." She could see Sam was about to close up again. She took a hold of Sam's hand, "Or at the very least tell me, why do you keep pushing me away? Why do you keep pushing us away?"
She saw sam's eyes glisten, then felt as she jerked her hands away, "This is who I am. If you don't like it, then LET. ME. GO." It tore at Sam's heart to say those words. Brooke's face contorted into disgust. She looked to Lucas whose expression was similar to hers. They saw Sam get up and forcefully pick up her backpack, "I'll take the bus to fucking school." She carped.
But Lucas grabbed her by the back of her shirt and stood up, "You don't talk to us like that." His voice was austere.
"Yes, master." She mumbled.
He shook her a little, "Watch your tongue, Samantha. And don't you walk away from us. Is that understood?"
Sam no longer cared, "Back off! Don't you get it? I want you to BACK OFF!" Lucas took the bookbag off of Sam, manhandling her in the process, "What the hell are you doing?!" She yelled.
"We're not done. You're not leaving." He said plainly.
Brooke stood up and turned Sam to face her. "We're trying Sam. Do you hear me?"
"No, you left me!" She finally said, "And you were too stupid to care or notice!" She said towards Lucas.
It's like time stopped for all of them. Had Sam really just said that?
"Are we done now?" Sam finally said, trying to get out there as fast as possible.
Brooke looked at Sam, "No we're not. You're right Sam, I left you. Okay? I admit it." Sam looked at her stunned, but still angry. Her hands folded tightly across her chest wanting her stare to gobble up the two adults in front of her.
Brooke narrowed her eyes, "I left you because I thought you were going to be taken care of. But I've apologized so much for it. And I'm done apologizing because clearly you don't seem to think that I'm being genuine with you. I know it'll never be enough, but for my sake, and for your sake you need to forgive me."
Sam's breathing was hard, clearly getting emotional, "I'm not forgiving you Brooke!"
Brooke gave a small nod. She felt Lucas put an arm around her waist. "Sam I don't know if this is what's best for you." She said sadly.
There it was. What Sam was half expecting but completely fearing. She had done it, pushed them away. But her fears translated into hysterics, "You're leaving me?! I knew it! I knew it this whole time!"
Brooke stopped her from running out. She held her shoulders firmly, "No. No, I'm not leaving you. Neither is Lucas. We love you. Understand that Sam? Nothing you do is going to change that. We're not letting you go. But we realize you've never chosen your path. The judge put you in our custody. That was his decision. And we're telling you to decide."
Sam stopped fighting Brooke when she heard her words, "W-what?"
Lucas chimed in, "We're your parents Sam, but these two months have been us trying and you fighting us. We don't want to force you if you don't want to be here."
Sam looked at them confused. She had never been told to decide. Forcing? Fighting? No! She didn't mean to. But they were right, she wasn't trying. But she couldn't anymore! What about Tamara?
Brooke could tell Sam was taking it all in, "Friday, Sam. Tell us by Friday. You can choose to stay with the both of us. Or maybe you just want Lucas. Or maybe you'd rather go back."
Sam was crying now. She looked at them with hurt in her eyes, "You, you're tired of me?"
It hurt Brooke to see her so upset. She wanted to rock her and soothe her, but they needed to do this, "We're not tired of you Sam. What we're tired of is your attitude this week. But besides that, you need to be aware that if you want to stay with us, you have to start trying to let us in. We're here for you. We're never going away now that we've gotten to know you, but you have to meet us halfway."
Sam grabbed her bookbag from the countertop. She didn't say a word, but her distressed face said it all. She slammed the door on her way out. She couldn't believe it, they gave her an ultimatum.
…. … …..
Sam took the public metro bus to school and missed the first two periods because of it. She was sure they would call Brooke, and give her and Lucas more of a reason to think that she didn't want them. She decided that she might as well just skip the whole day. It's not like it mattered anyway. Tamara wasn't talking to her, Brooke and Lucas wanted her, but only if she gave them something she just couldn't give them. Both her worlds were falling apart. She went to the south side park and laid down under the same tree that Marcus had pushed her towards. She felt someone sit next to her.
"What're you doing here Jack?" She said not turning to look at him.
He smiled sympathetically, "You weren't in first, second, or third, so I figured you'd be here or home."
Sam frowned, "I don't have a home anymore."
Jack tapped her shoulder, telling her to sit up. She did so.
"What do you mean you don't have a home?"
"They told me I have to decide if I want to stay with them or not, but that if I do I have to start trying to let them in and stuff, not close them off."
Jack looked at her almost incredulously. Why was that such a difficult choice to make? He couldn't believe Sam even considered that to be a problem. "Sam what the hell? Are you saying you're not gonna choose them?"
Sam shrugged, "Tamara said that-"
Jack stopped her there. That's all he needed to hear, "Tamara?! My God, Sam. Why are you letting her dictate your life?!"
Sam was surprised that he was so uptight about this, "Jack what's your problem?"
"My problem?" He said pointing to himself, "Sam, what's your problem!? You've been wanting this your whole life. Why are you throwing it away because Tamara's mad at you? She'll get over it. This, this is your shot. Stop. Messing. It. Up."
Sam leaned her back onto the tree, "But Tamara's been there for me my whole life."
Jack leaned on the tree and put an arm around Sam, "She's not gonna stop being there for you. If she does, then maybe she wasn't much of a friend anyways."
Sam pulled up, "How could you say that?!"
He shrugged, "Sometimes we have to be honest with ourselves. You need to talk to her Sam."
Sam wasn't dumb. She knew that. "She doesn't want to talk to me."
Jack sighed. Tamara could be such a damn idiot sometimes.
She looked at him, her eyes piercing through him. He had the urge to kiss her, but he didn't. "How is she Jack?"
He pulled at the grass under them, "I think her and Marcus are over for good." So that's why she was being so hard on Sam this time around. No Sam, no marcus. All she had was Jack.
Jack knew that Sam felt guilty, "It's not your fault Sam. You're not leaving her behind. Shit, you and me are still close."
"I wanna try and talk to her today." Sam said.
Jack crossed his legs, "So you're gonna stay with Brooke and Lucas?"
Sam looked down at the grass, "I need to talk to Tamara first."
He sighed, but he would make damn sure that Sam made the right choice. He couldn't let her throw this away.
…. ….. …..
Brooke watched the hustle and bustle of Clothes over Bros. She had opted to go into the store, and not the office. Her mind only went to Sam's face before she stalked off. She didn't know what Sam was going to decide, and it hurt to think that she might lose her...again. Lucas and her had developed solidarity over that week. There was a silent understanding to focus on Sam and not talk about what happened between them, Julian, and Peyton, at least not until things were fixed between them and their daughter.
She saw as Haley walked into the store. It was Tree Hill High's lunch hour, and she knew Brooke needed a friend. Brooke smiled knowingly when she saw her.
"Hey tutor girl." She said softly.
Haley embraced her, "Hi Brooke. How're you holding up?"
Brooke leaned on the counter, "Barely. We gave her the ultimatum. What if, what if she doesn't choose us?"
Haley shook her head, "She will. That girl loves you and Lucas, as much as loves to hide it."
"I just, I feel like I don't know what's going on in her life."
Haley stayed pensive for a moment, "Have you ever thought of transferring her to Tree Hill?"
Brooke almost chuckled, "She'd be miserable Haley. She made it very clear she was staying at Southside. If she chooses us, I don't know how happy she'd be if we tell her that."
Haley rolled her eyes, "And who's the mother in the situation?"
Brooke gave her an annoyed glance, "I am. And yes, Lucas is the father. I know. I know."
Haley laughed, "I'm just saying. Maybe she needs a change of scenery."
Brooke thought about it for a moment. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea after all. Brooke leaned on Haley, "Hales, thank you. I needed a friend today."
Haley kissed Brooke's forehead, "I heard you did."
Brooke looked at her a little interested, "Nate?"
"No...Peyton."
Brooke felt herself get a bit emotional at the mention of her best friend. "She's mad, but she still cares." Haley said quietly.
….. … . …..
It was after school. Sam waited outside with Jack. They were sitting on the railing. Tamara came out and Sam hopped off, "T! T. wait up, please!" Tamara kept walking with another girl, but Sam grabbed her arm. Sam was met with two furious eyes, "Fuck Sam. What do you want?"
"Can we talk...please?" Sam asked almost pleading. Tamara looked at Jack who was giving her the dirtiest stare, "Fine. But hurry, me and Shellie have plans."
Sam looked at the girl next to Tamara. She was in Tamara's grade, and all she knew about her was that she loved to smoke weed on the weekends. Not that that was a big deal in SouthSide high.
"I just, I wanted to let you know that, umm, Brooke and Lucas said I don't have to stay with them. They said I get to choose."
Tamara looked straight at Sam. Her little sister. She could tell that Sam was telling her, "I can go back with you!"..."You won't have to be alone!"
But there was also fear in her eyes, because Sam wanted Brooke. She wanted Lucas. She wanted to sleep in her new bed at Lucas's where Peyton would sometimes slip in next to her. Where Lucas would come in acting like the tickle monster. There was fear of losing the flow of her days with Brooke. Where she'd sometimes sit next to Brooke who was reading papers, and she would just play with the ring on Brooke's finger. Fear of not being able to look over and know that Brooke's bedroom door was open for her should she need it.
Tamara wanted Sam to stay with them. She knew it was the right choice. But she was still mad at Sam. It wasn't her fault. She was just a messed up kid, so she did what she knew best, "Well I don't want you to stay with me." She spit.
She turned around ignoring Sam and Jack. Sam felt Jack grab her hand. "Come on. Let's take you home. Brooke's, right?" He asked quietly.
Sam watched her best friend, her protector, walk away from her. Practically throw her away for a pothead. She squeezed his hand, "Yeah, Brooke's."
…. …. …
Sam didn't want to go home. Mostly, she didn't want to face Brooke and Lucas. Her and Jack had spent most of the evening walking the streets of Southside. He could see she was truly, truly saddened by Tamara's actions. But by 6 pm he convinced Sam that they should go home. "Come on, we can go through your window, and I'll just lay with you." He offered.
She had a frown on her face, "Okay."
He held her close. The door was locked, and Sam could hear Brooke and Lucas outside. Lucas was around this whole week. Not that she knew what they were doing, as she holed herself up in the room the whole week.
"You don't think they're going to try and come in?" He whispered. He felt her breathe in and out, "They think I'm out. My curfew's nine."
He nodded and rubbed her arm, like he always did. "Tamara will come around. Don't let that get in your way."
Oh, Sam understood. She understood that Tamara no longer loved her, at least in Sam's confused mind that was the case. She understood it when she saw how easily Tamara turned around to go with Shelby, after Sam went out of her way to destroy the relationship she had with her parents. It spoke volumes and it hurt like no other pain.
Jack checked his phone, "Shit. Sam I gotta go. Sue's looking for me." Sam sat up.
"Promise you'll talk to them today." He said looking straight at her.
Promise. The word she held so close. She stayed quiet. Jack leaned in, "Don't mess this up for yourself." He said one last time. He then held her cheek. Their eyes locked. Sam blinked once and he felt Jack come closer. She didn't move, and felt the quick peck of a kiss he gave her. "Night Sam." He said as climbed out the window.
She checked the time, it was 7:45. An hour and fifteen minutes until her curfew. She figured she'd just unlock the door and let them figure it out. But scrolling through her facebook newsfeed changed that. It was Tamara with Shellie, and the tag read my one and only best friend, Shel. Thanks for letting me know you'll always be there.
…. …. ….
"Sam should be getting home soon." Brooke said to ease the unusual quiet in her home.
Lucas nodded as he drank some coffee, "Okay, well hopefully she's not as upset as when she left." He could see Brooke was uncomfortable and so was he. They still hadn't talked about what had happened.
"Look Brooke, can we talk about it?" He said ripping the band aid off.
Brooke's eyes flashed to him. She ignored the question for a bit, but spoke a few minutes later. "He won't even answer my calls." She said sadly.
"Brooke, what happened with him?" He said softly. Hoping to God she told him.
Brooke sighed, checking the time, anxious for when Sam got home. "He talked about having kids. I told him I wanted to wait because Sam was still so small and needed so much of our attention."
Lucas agreed. Sam was 14, but in many ways she was behind in certain developmental aspects. They weren't obvious things that any onlooker could pinpoint, but after spending two months with the girl, they knew the painful traces that foster care left on the child.
"Then he brought you up. Apparently he knew about our, well, late nights."
Lucas chuckled a bit, "Hmm, it looks like Sam's been spilling the beans unknowingly. That's how Peyton found out about it."
Brooke rolled her eyes, "Well now I know I can't tell her my secrets." She said jokingly,
"You know Julian and Peyton were...a thing. Before us." He said meeting her eyes.
Brooke's eyes widened, "What?" Peyton forgot to tell her that.
"I don't know much. She just mentioned it to me when we were arguing." Lucas said looking past Brooke, thinking back to their fight.
Brooke could tell he wasn't in the mood to talk about it and honestly, neither was she. Everything in her life seemed to have turned on its head in a matter of a week.
Lucas put his coffee cup down, "I'm sorry. I know you loved him. I shouldn't have brought that up."He hated to admit it, but it was true.
She frowned a bit, "It's fine, really."
"They're good to Sam though. Peyton and Julian. They're so kind to her."
Brooke knew that was the absolute truth, "And you know, at the same time I just, I don't think he was ready for Sam either. I don't know. He loves her, but I didn't want him to resent her because I didn't want to give him children...yet."
Lucas took her hand, and gauged to see if she'd accept his gesture. She did. He led her to the couch, "Try to talk to him. Try to work it out with him. I don't want to be the reason that-"
Brooke put a hand on Lucas's knee, "No. I can't keep loving two people. I have to choose."
Lucas glimmered with hope, but saw how her face was filled with an inch of pain, "What's wrong?" He asked concerned.
She steeled herself, "I choose no one, Luke. Not now. Not with Sam, and the company." Her voice caught and let a single tear fall.
Lucas bit his lip, holding back his own tears. But he understood. It was confusing. Everything happened so fast. She looked at him anxiously, "Please don't make this harder than it has to be Lucas."
He spoke soothing words, "Brooke, I " He stopped himself, but went along anyway a few moments later, "you know that I...love you, right?"
Brooke looked away from him. He gently pushed her cheek so she was facing him, "But I understand."
She gulped a bit, "I don't want to get your hopes up Lucas." She loved him, she did. But there was too much on her mind, too much turmoil in her heart to go into anything serious right now.
He stopped her from continuing, "Brooke." He said putting a hand on her arm, "I'm still your child's father. I'll always be that. Even if I'm nothing else."
Brooke smiled at the statement, that he was. All she had to do was look into Sam's eyes to know that she, in fact, was Lucas's blood.
"Lucas, what did we do? We made a mess of things." She said thinking of her best friend once more.
Lucas spoke honestly, "I think there was always a mess of things. When you left, everything was still unresolved. This was actually us fixing it...maybe."
Brooke felt an arm wrap around her. She leaned on him once more, like they have done so many times before. "You always feel safe." She whispered.
"I'll always be here Brooke. For you and Sam, no matter what happens between us.""
He thought of how they left things in the morning with her, "She'll stay Brooke. You know that, right? We just needed to scare her a little. Put things in perspective for her."
Brooke looked at the clock, "She has an hour to get home. You don't think she's going to run away again, right?"
Her voice was full of nerves. But then turned more serious, "She skipped, today. They called me. I really don't want to ground her, or yell at her for this."
"Let's hope she doesn't run away, and, well, we'll play it by ear." He said sounding unsure, himself.
Brooke leaned further into him, "Lately I've felt so unsure about everything, but I'm sure that I love that little girl. She just moved into my heart in a way no one could. I, I can't let her leave." Brooke admitted. Regardless of what they had told her, she couldn't bear it if Sam didn't want them.
….. ….. …...
While they talked downstairs, Sam felt the pit of her stomach twist and turn. She trusted Tamara, but all of a sudden it's like Tamara hated her. She heard the low drum of the downstairs television on. She opened the door and headed into Brooke's room. Sam could feel the tears prick at her eyes and fall down. First unevenly, but then like streams. She went into Brooke's room and opened her drawer, and low and behold there was her shirt. The gray one with the pocket. Brooke had left it at the top of her others. It was usually hidden at the bottom, but now that Sam was here, she kept all her t shirts up front, for Sam.
Sam grabbed it and threw her shirt off and stripped herself of the pants she was wearing. She was disgusted, angry. She felt stupid. Stupid to have been so cruel to the people that had been so patient with her. Jack was right. But more than anything she was hurt. Her best friend was no longer her best friend. She roughly put on the shirt. Letting it hang loosely at her thighs. Her eyes were blinded by the tears. She made her way down the stairs. She needed Brooke.
It was Brooke that saw her first. She was at the edge of the sofa, closest to the stairs. "Sammy, sweetheart?" Brooke said sitting up. There was Sam, they didn't even know she had come in. She was in nothing but a t shirt. Her t shirt. The one she had so rudely refused only days before. She didn't seem to care that Lucas was in the room, or maybe she hadn't noticed. That's when they both knew Sam's choice. It was them.
Sam couldn't hold it. She saw Brooke and broke down, "Brooke." Her lips started quivering, "Tamara and me aren't best friends anymore!" She sobbed and walked over to Brooke who made a quick move to pull her into her lap. It wasn't hard, Sam was small enough. She felt Sam mold into her, and nuzzle into her chest.
"Oh Sammy." She gushed, rubbing her back soothingly, trying to calm the sobbing girl down.
Lucas looked at Brooke in disbelief. This was the same girl that had completely closed down on them. He slid his way cloer to where his daughter was. Brooke waited for Sam to say something.
"She, she thinks we're too different!" Sam said trying to pull herself even closer to Brooke, if that was possible.
Lucas and Brooke looked up at the same time. They had a strange feeling that this was the cause of all their problems. "Sammy?" He said tentatively.
Sam looked up towards Lucas. her eyes red and watery. Brooke adjusted Sam's shirt, trying to maintain her modesty. She wasn't sure if she cared or not that Lucas was there, but she didn't want her to feel embarrassed after. She felt Sam feeling her hand for her ring, the one she played with. It wasn't there, she had taken the engagement ring off. So Brooke locked her fingers with Sam, which Sam did not fight.
"Is that why you've been so upset?" He asked her.
Sam nodded when Lucas asked the question. Brooke kissed the top of Sam's head, "Tell us what happened Sammy."
Sam took the back of her hand and wiped her nose. She was already wrapped up in Brooke's embrace. Luke was staring straight at her, and she was a crying mess. There was no going back now. "I, I tried stopping Marcus from hitting her." She said quietly falling back into Brooke's chest. But Brooke pulled her up slowly. From hitting her? No, they had to talk about it now.
Brooke took a tissue from the side table and wiped Sam's nose and cheeks. "He hit Tamara, Sam?" Brooke prompted her.
Sam only nodded, "He slapped her hard. Twice. He said he wanted to hang out with her, but it was my fault because I was-"
She stopped herself. She didn't want to say the words.
"You were what, Sammy?" Lucas asked.
She fidgeted, "A privileged bitch." The words pierced through Brooke's veins. 'That asshole.' She thought. Not only was he beating on a young girl, but he was vile with his words too.
Brooke tapped on Sam's knees, "How'd you get these Sam? Did Marcus hurt you too?" She sounded gentle, but she felt her temperature rise. He would pay, if he did any such thing. Sam peeked from where she was hidden in Brooke's bosom and saw that Lucas's face was cross.
"No, he, he just pushed me and I hit a tree and fell down. I was just trying to defend her, honest! And now, now she's mad because I broke them up, and, and because I'm forgetting about her, which I'm trying not to! I, I want to love everyone, but I can't!"
Brooke knew she needed to talk to Tamara. This girl needed someone to be there for her. That poor child was probably mroe confused than Sam, and that was saying a lot.
Lucas put a hand on her knee, "Hey now champ." He said gently, "Love is an infinite thing, you can love everyone as much as you want."
Sam sniffled. She had stopped crying continuously a bit ago. Brooke's ever soothing hand made her feel safe.
"That's not what it feels like." Sam answered honestly.
Brooke gave her another kiss atop her her head, "Well it's the truth. Tamara's just really hurt, but she'll come around." She hoped. "Sammy, sweetie, I know that Tamara's you're family too. You know she's invited here and at Luke's." Brooke said, as much as it pained her to say it. She was furious at Sam's best friend.
Sam hadn't really known that, but it was too late anyways.
"She said she doesn't want me." Sam admitted. Her voice meek and hurt.
Brooke just hugged her tighter. Lucas felt anger and sorrow run through him for his small child.
"She's angry Sam, you'll see she'll come around." Brooke added. Lucas was in awe at Brooke's ability to try and see things from Tamara's side. He certainly couldn't.
"Can Jack come too?" Sam asked them sincerely. He meant the world to her, and hoped that they could accept him too. Luke and Brooke weren't too keen on the boy, but wouldn't judge him without having at least talked to him. "Sure, Sam. All your friends can come over." Lucas assured her. He especially wanted to get to know this Jack character.
Brooke then let go of Sam a bit, "Sweetheart, we have to talk about your attitude...and you skipping school today, again."
Sam really didn't want to do that. She felt a fresh layer of tears fall. She was in trouble, and didn't like it one bit. Brooke and Lucas could see that she was still really upset.
"Can we talk about it tomorrow, please Brooke?" She pleaded. Sam was not in the mood for a lecture. Especially not now that she was so secure in her mother's arms. "I don't wanna be in trouble today."
Brooke thought she sounded so little. She wanted to talk about it now, but figured that the talk would be more useful when Sam wasn't as upset, "We can wait 'til tomorrow." She sighed, rubbing her back once more to keep her from crying again.
Lucas got up and headed into the kitchen. When he came back he had a bowl of popcorn. Sam was only hiccuping, but she had not moved from Brooke's embrace. "How 'bout we all watch a movie." He offered softly.
Sam said nothing, "Sammy?" Brooke asked pulling her out gently, "It might make you feel better?"
Sam looked at both of them, "I, I want to stay with you guys. I'll be good, I promise. And I'll try." She gave in. There was no point in trying to fight the love she felt for them. Lucas put the bowl down and sat down. "I was hoping you'd say that." He said, "My little champ."
Sam broke into a smile, and so did Lucas.
Brooke patted her bottom gently, "You wanna choose the movie?" She asked her. Sam had never had a family movie night. "That'd be awesome." Brooke felt her get off her lap. She realized she needed to change her shirt as it had traces of Sam's crying, so she headed up to do so.
When she came back Sam was fiddling with the dvd player. "What movie are we watching?" Brooke asked.
"The Fairly Odd Parents movie." Sam said popping it in, then moving to the couch.
Brooke looked at her funny. She only had that movie for Jamie, although even he was growing out of it now. "You like that movie?"
Sam shrugged, "I never watched it. I wanted to, but never could." She saw Brooke's questioning stare, "I mean, we don't have to watch it, if you don't want to."
Brooke changed her face in a second, "No, it's perfect. I was just wondering." She knew Sam had missed out on many childhood staples, and wouldn't hold out on her now.
Luke came back from the kitchen holding some soda in his hand. He sat down, leaving Sam in the middle between the two. He saw the movie that was playing and turned to Brooke who just mouthed, "Don't Ask."
And so thirty minutes later, Sam had her head laid on Lucas's lap, as they all watched the buck toothed boy and his two fairy god parents. Sam absentmindedly played with Lucas's large hand. It was so much bigger than hers, and was rough to the touch. She had never felt comfortable in another man's arms, unless you counted Jack. But Luke wasn't just another foster dad. He was tall, strong, but warm.
As they watched he occasionally ran his hand through her hair, and she found it comforting. Brooke sat next to Luke with Sam's lower body on her own lap. Patting her softly whenever she noticed Sam hiccup from her previous sobs.
Luke looked down and could tell Sam was falling asleep. When she finally did he looked over to Brooke, "She fell asleep." He said quietly, "What're we gonna do?"
Brooke sighed, "I'm getting Tamara to come over. They have to work this out."
Lucas was not too happy with that plan, "That Tamara girl has been nothing but trouble for Sam!" He pointed out frustrated, "Why are you allowing her in your home. In my home!"
She rose his eyebrow at him, "Yes, but she's also been Sam's friend through thick and thin. We can't turn her away. Sam's hurt because of it. They need to fix this, have some sort of resolution. And I'd prefer to be here when it happens. I don't want Sam dealing with that alone."
"Fine." He grunted.
He smiled as he looked at her sleeping so peacefully, "I was thinking Brooke, what about Tree Hill High?"
Brooke bit her lip, "Haley said the same thing. But you know she wouldn't want that."
"What if it's what she needs?" He said speaking more sternly. It had been on his mind since he saw the gang fight that first day.
Brooke felt nervous about it though. Totally uprooting an already volatile Sam sounded like a mess waiting to happen. Lucas tried convincing her, "Think about it Brooke. I'll be there. Haley teaches freshmen and sophomore english. We can keep a closer eye on her. And there's no gang fights breaking out every two seconds."
She rolled her eyes, "Did you forget how devious we were in high school. And we went to Tree Hill."
He chuckled, "You were devious. Ms. Queen Bee."
"Hah! Whatever Luke."
"What it's true?"
She looked at Sam and sighed inwardly, "We can bring it up, I suppose. But let's get over this hill first."
He nodded and turned back to the television, "What the hell are we watching?" He said as he saw a talking fly on the screen.
Brooke smiled, "Who knows. But Sam seems to have liked it. And to think I was gonna throw it out since Jamie's not a fan of it anymore."
"Guess Sam has other plans for it." He said trying to understand what was in front of him.
It was a perfect ending to an imperfect couple of days. Luke turned to Brooke and smiled. This was how things were supposed to be, he thought.
Thank you for all the feedback! You guys have been great. What do you think of what's going on with Brooke and Lucas? Do you think Brooke and Lucas reacted properly to Sam? Jack will finally meet them next chapter! And Tamara and Sam will face off :D Please continue to review. I appreciate the critiques and the positive comments as well! Also, check out the photobucket on my profile to see pictures of Sam and Tamara :D! Let me know what you think of how I imagine Sam.