"Hey Brooke, I have to go to Jayden's tomorrow night to work on our science group project. I'm sorry but I'll be out late," Sam called Brooke and informed her as the girl made her way to the strip club.
"No problem, honey. I'll just take Jamie with me tomorrow," Brooke said in an attempt to sound nonchalant.
"He hates going there," Sam stated the obvious. Jamie was taken care of by random girls in no clothing with dangerous men outside. Of course, he didn't like it.
"Yeah, but school comes first," Brooke concluded.
"Maybe you can call Lucas to watch him," Sam suggested.
"No, I'll take him with me," Brooke put her foot down.
"But Brooke," Sam argued.
"Sam, no," she said, meaning to end the topic. She was not going to budge.
"Okay," she replied, knowing that nothing was going to get Brooke to change her mind.
The next day, Brooke informed Jamie that he was going to go with her that night. Jamie groaned but nodded his head when Brooke explained that Samantha had a school project due. "Either Celeste and Solaris will be there with you when they are not due on stage! You like them, right? They play kung fu ninjas with you in the back."
"I guess," Jamie sighed.
"I'm sorry little buddy but Sam has schoolwork. Hey, if you behave well, I'll get you chocolate pie from the diner," she bribed her kid.
"Okay!" Jamie screamed with glee.
Brooke got ready for work that night after feeding Jamie, she picked up the little boy in her arms and they two went to the club. The whole way there, she clutched him tightly.
"Little Penny! Hi!" Celeste greeted him while she was sticking on some fake eyelashes.
That was one thing in Brooke's favour. She never took that long to glam up. She was sexy. She was real and she owned it.
"Celeste, Solaris, will you keep an eye on him? You'll get my cut as always," Brooke said as she went to her chair. She placed her bags down and Jamie propped himself up on her chair.
"Works!" The two agreed with her. She smiled and made sure that Jamie had everything. Then she pulled off her clothes until only her underwear remained, not that they were worthy of being called underwear, given how sexy and skimpy they were, barely covering the required, and her top would be off soon anyway. She moved a brush through her hair, touched up her makeup and was ready to step out.
"Now remember, don't come out. If you need me, ask Celeste or Solaris and they will call me. I will come to see you from time to time. Your books and crayons are in this bag and Mommy is right outside that door okay? She is right here. So there is no reason to get scared. Alright?" she reminded him.
"Yeah, mama!" Jamie said, already busy looking through a picture book Brooke had set him up with. She covered him in a blanket so that he was cosy and kissed his head.
"Be good, okay? You don't want Mommy to get in trouble right?" she asked him.
"No, I'll be good," Jamie promised.
"That's my perfect angel," She kissed him several times on his cheek, making him fuss and giggle. Then she opened the door and stepped out to begin work.
Brooke did her sets on the stage. She gave plenty of lap dances. One guy was particularly into licking her boobs and literally slobbering all over them. She went to the back to clean up the disgusting saliva that the man had left. Luckily she always had wet wipes on her for Jamie.
She knew it was not ideal, Jamie seeing her this way, but she couldn't help the matter. He knew that this was mom's work and mom's work is top secret and he could never ever tell a soul about it or mom would be in big trouble. He understood the gravitas. He didn't want his mom to be taken away from him. He kept quiet and he was unfazed by the nudity thanks to his innocence.
"Why are you still awake Jamie? You should've been asleep two hours ago!" Brooke said while cleaning her breasts with wipes and tissues. "Celeste? Why is he awake?"
Celeste just giggled and raised her hands in the air in response to Brooke's question.
Brooke sighed. She knew that they weren't exactly great sitters. Besides Sam, nobody around her was. Mrs. Garcia was bedridden of sorts and the girls at the club weren't exactly smart or skilled. Unfortunately, they were all she had for support. Her thoughts went to Lucas. He was there too, but she quickly shoved those thoughts away.
She had to take care of Jamie first. Once she had cleaned herself up of the gross man's saliva, she got on her chair, put on her sweatshirt and looked at Jamie.
"Come on, hop up. Time for bed," she instructed in her 'I mean business' tone.
Jamie jumped into her lap and snuggled in her chest. Brooke stroked his head and patted his back gently, humming the tune for Halo as she rocked to sleep. Haley had been on her mind since Lucas had emerged. She wondered how she would react once she learnt about Jamie.
Jamie was fidgety in her arms, but Brooke was patient. She was always patient with her kids. She allowed him to toss as he got comfortable on her chest. She held him close and his head was resting comfortably in the crook of her neck. Eventually, Jamie closed his eyes and his breathing evened out. Brooke continued to hum and stroke his back for a little longer until she was sure that he was fast asleep. Then she moved him, putting a pillow underneath his head and tucking him securely in the blanket.
"Celeste, he was fine out here right?" Brooke asked the girl.
"Oh yeah! Totally," she answered with a giggle.
Brooke narrowed her eyes at her but couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. Maybe she had a little something to drink. "Call me if there is any trouble," she instructed. Then she pulled off her shirt again and went out to continue her lap dances.
The night was long. She had 3 blowjobs and as much as that sucked, she was going home with good money. Lucas' words kept ringing in her ears that she could stop and he would help. Yet, she did what she had to do.
When she got home, Sam was asleep. The night light was on and she was snuggled in her bed. It was cute, Sam always said that the nightlight was to help Jamie sleep but it was for her too. She was afraid of so many things. She had too many triggers and it would take her a lifetime to work through everything.
Brooke put the sleeping boy in his bed and changed him. Once she had him comfortable under the thick comforter, she proceeded to shower and get rid of all the touches and scents and stories of the club. She brushed her teeth, rinsed it with some mouthwash although she always used a condom and then allowed the boiling hot water to soothe her. She put on her sweats and was asleep before her head had fully touched the couch.
"Morning sleepy bugs," she called out to the kids to wake them and get them ready for school. "Come on, time for school!"
"Hey, how come you're not in your waitress uniform?" Sam asked her when she saw Brooke in jeans and a T-shirt.
"Tina needed to switch shifts with me. So I'm taking my day off today which means, you get me after school. What do you kiddos wanna do?" she asked with a smile.
"I have a test coming up, so I'm gonna be at the library until dinner time," Sam informed her. She wanted to keep her grades up so that she could get a scholarship to NYU.
"Can we go to the library too, mama?" Jamie asked.
"Okay! Whatever you want sweetheart," she smiled.
"Can we call dad?" he asked with an infectious pleading smile on his face.
"Umm… can we have a mom and Jamie day pleaseeeee? I miss you," she asked making a very loud sad face.
"Okay," Jamie sighed.
"You really want him to come, don't you?" she asked, reading his face.
"Nah, let's do Mom and Jamie day. I didn't get to see him yesterday and I kinda missed him, that's all," Jamie answered.
Brooke's heart dropped. She really couldn't keep him away from his dad anymore. He needed his father. They dropped Sam to her school first and then continued walking to Jamie's.
"Mom, Celeste and Solaris were acting very funny yesterday," Jamie giggled. "They had powder with them that instead of applying it on their face, they put it up their nose. I told them that they are supposed to apply the power on the nose not in the nose, but they didn't say anything and did it again. I think they must be very tired or sleepy. Was it safe to do that? You always stop me from playing with your makeup because it is unsafe in case something goes in my mouth."
"Yes Jamie, that was very very unsafe and wrong," she said, the colour draining from her face. She clasped his hands so hard her knuckles turned white and she tried to hold her tears back. This was not the kind of life she wanted for her son. She wanted him to have better, to be surrounded by friends and family.
Brooke began hyperventilating. Those girls had been in charge of Jamie. She was insane. She was exposing him to so much! Nudity? Stripping? Alcohol? Drugs!? Prostitution!? No no no. This wasn't right. This wasn't the way.
Brooke stared at her son with a broken heart. What was wrong with her? How was what she was doing okay? She felt all her resolve break in front of her.
'Take your son back home. He deserves a good life. I can't give him that,' she texted Lucas. It pained her to imagine parting with her sweet boy. But what other choice did she have? Lucas would be a good dad, no, a great dad. He had had Keith in his life. He had learnt from the best! She knew just how great he was. Brooke couldn't hold her tears at bay. The thought of having to give up the biggest piece of her heart broke her.
"Mom, why are you crying?" Jamie asked worriedly.
"Oh, it's nothing, my love," Brooke responded with a sniffle.
"Bye Mama!" Jamie said, letting go of her hand and walking inside the school while Brooke stared at him, watching him go.
She walked back to her apartment like a zombie. She knew what the right thing to do was. The best thing she could do for Jamie was to let him go and live the best life in Tree Hill with his dad. She did not even realise when she reached the apartment. Brooke sat on the couch and brought her knees to her chest. Enveloping her feet with her arms, she gently rocked herself back and forth as her head rested on her knees.
She did not know how long she had sat there in that way. Suddenly, she heard a loud knock on her door. She wiped her tears away, expecting Mrs. Garcia to have a list ready for Brooke to purchase groceries.
She was shocked to find Lucas there instead.
"Brooke?!" he screamed incredulously as he held up his phone to indicate the text he was referring to.
"Oh, okay! We are doing this now!? Great! Let me get him packed up. It shouldn't take too long. He doesn't have many things," she seethed, mocking herself.
"Brooke! What does this mean?" Lucas asked her, trying to understand where her head was at.
"I'm so scared, Lucas. I'm constantly scared that I'm gonna mess it up. That he will get sick and I won't be able to afford him the care he deserves or the cold apartment will give him hypothermia or pneumonia or the shady neighbourhood will have him… him!" Brooke burst out into the most nerve-wracking sobs! "My job is surrounded by shitty shifty guys and alcohol and drugs. He should not be around that. It's not normal for him to see women parading in nothing. I want the best for him and you are the best for that boy."
I, uh, I am not going to separate you two," Lucas said, meaning his words.
I am not leaving you here to live this way."
"I don't want your money or your handout. I don't want anything from you. Jamie deserves better. He deserves a good life and I know you can give that to him. You can give him a life surrounded by friends and family and safety," Brooke explained her thoughts.
"And you don't deserve that?" Lucas asked angrily. "What? Do you deserve this?"
Brooke could not answer him.
Lucas chuckled with a hint of negativity, "What did this place do to my Brooke? The girl was afraid of nobody!"
"I was always afraid. I just did a good job of pretending," Brooke answered honestly.
"Stop pretending now and let me help you then," Lucas said straightforwardly.
"Luke, just promise that you will get him here to see me, often, and that he will know I am his mom, not Peyton," Brooke begged.
"Peyton?" Lucas asked, scrunching his nose. "Where did Peyton come from in this conversation?"
"Come on. We know that the two of you will get back together. We have done this dance before. I refuse to do it for what, the fifth time? You always run back to save precious Peyton and don't worry, she will have a crisis soon enough for you to have to carry her out of. Then you can make her wear Keith's ring to Karen. But do get it resized. It will slip out of her bony fingers," Brooke answered with a hint of exhaustion and jealousy.
"Brooke!" Lucas yelled incredulously.
"No, don't Brooke me! Okay, that sounds wrong but you know what I mean. You always saved Peyton, even when I needed you. Even when I was going through hell and high water, she always came first. Look I know… she has two dead moms and her dad was away. But were mine there? Were they any better alive? Yet, boohoo Peyton got attacked by psycho Derek. Well, so did I! Peyton got shot in the leg and I wasn't there. I was. The bullet was aimed at me, Lucas. The glass door changed the angle and it lodged in Peyton's foot. It could've been me. And you know what! Sometimes I wish it would've been me because then maybe just maybe you would save me for once! Then I realised that it wouldn't matter if it was me. Peyton always comes first. I am tired of being in the footnotes of your love story, Luke. Because I gave you my heart. I gave you my everything and more and it didn't matter. I cannot be the dumb animal who goes to bang its head against the wall over and over again. I need to let go of the wall." she answered truthfully for once.
"There is no Peyton and I," he argued.
"Lucas, you just proposed to her and got your feelings stomped on. Feelings for someone don't just turn off that quickly. Trust me I know it. I have been on the receiving end of the stomping quite a few times! Don't worry, I know my best friend. She will get to her senses soon enough and regret not saying yes and come crawling back to you. You can make your move again," Brooke sighed.
"Brooke, how badly did I hurt you?" he asked. He thought that they were friends after the split.
"What is it about me, Lucas? What is it that I do that makes people want to cut me out of their lives like I'm a gangrene-infested wound? My dad called me fat and my mom called me ugly. They left me with the help until I was profitable. Then oh, I have a family again but I stupidly get myself pregnant by a boy who is in love with my best friend and they kick me to the curb. You leave me for Peyton and Peyton leaves me for you… over and over and over again! And I still try because I just crave that love so much," Brooke's voice was nothing but a whisper by the end. "But I got Jamie and I figured well, he can't leave me. But this can't be his life. It shouldn't be Sam's either. You can give him a better life."
"Brooke, you have the means to switch your life path. You have talent. So what if they swindled you out of your company and clothes. They cannot take your talent. And I have seen first hand just how talented you are," Lucas reminded her. "Take some help. Let us support you. You have been with all of us through our worst times. When Haley returned from tour, every single one of us gave her shit for it. You gave her a house. When Peyton did coke, you helped her get clean. When I was struggling with Uncle Keith's death, you were my support."
"Yeah, but you wanted Peyton. And you broke up with me to suck face with her, remember!" she seethed. Brooke was still a child underneath the surface. She had acted as an adult her whole life but her insecurities were high.
"Yeah, I was an idiot. But what I mean is, you have been taking care of all of us when we were at our lowest. When we made mistakes. This isn't even a mistake you made. You did what you could. Come back to Tree Hill. Let us, your real family help you," Lucas struck her in a way he knew would get to her.
"But Sam! I cannot leave her here. The houses she has been in, the stories, Lucas! I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. She has been beaten black and blue, hazed with fire, old men with paedophilic instincts…. I cannot express it more, just how bad it is!" she cried, her face horror-stricken as she recollected those incidents. Her hands moved as if she was creating those imaginary scenes in her head.
"You really think I would leave her?" he asked her incredulously. Didn't she know him? Did she really think that little of him? "Brooke, you have the biggest heart. We have always known that. You took her in and gave her a normal life. But I care for her too and you should have figured that out by now! She will be there with you… with us," he promised.
"Lucas, stop that," she said in an attempt to shut him up.
"Stop what?" he asked, not knowing what he was doing wrong.
"Stop being nice. It is getting my hopes up. And I have been there before. I have been the stupid girl who gave my heart to you and you broke it and ripped it and stomped on it. This is not helping me in any way. I know how great you are, so I am trusting you with Jamie. I am literally trusting you to take him with you to Tree Hill. You're right. New York is not home. Tree Hill is. Tree Hill is where family is and the kids deserve to get everything," she cried. "Just take my baby and forget about me. Promise me that you will do right by him. He deserves to have a dad and aunts and uncles and toys and safety, parents with jobs to be proud of… not disgusted by."
"Brooke, you did the best you could to give him the best you could. You will be the one to give him all those things. You just need a moment to shift gears. Every car revs in the beginning before hitting that sweet speed. Give yourself a chance to rev," he said, feeling sad for the broken, torn, conflicted girl stuck in an impossible situation.
"If I take a moment to rev, everything falls apart. How do I make rent and pay for food and their schooling and school supplies and clothes. You're telling me to start Clothes over Bro's again, how? Where do I remove costs for materials? Where do I remove the time to stitch? If I stop, three people's lives get uprooted completely. I cannot do that," she explained.
"I am here! I can support you until you land on your feet. That's the whole point. You can take the help," he said, narrowing his eyes at her as if he was stating what two plus two was.
"Okay, so I start a business on a whim!?" she asked like Lucas was the dumb one.
"You did it once," he reminded her.
"Okay fine. Let's assume you're right about that. But it still doesn't change a lot. I am a waitress for all shareable purposes. A 21 year old waitress with a three year old son that I am a single parent to. Which person in their mind is going to grant me custody of a 15 year old girl? If we want to talk about you, you are a single man with only a 6 year age gap. Please tell me that I don't need to explain how terrible that sounds," she folded her arms at her chest and rolled her eyes.
"How did Mike and Norma get custody of so many children?" Lucas asked. They were terrible people but still they counted as fit foster parents. How did that make sense? How was it okay that children were beaten and hurt and raped and they still got custody of so many more.
"For starters they are a couple. These agencies prefer two parent households so that there is support even if one slacks. They expect the men to be satisfied sexually by their wives so they won't come after the children, which is never the case but the system loves to turn and look away from what is glaring at them," she sighed.
"So, what I'm hearing is that we can do it together?" Lucas asked slowly as the wheels in his head went on overdrive.
"What?" Brooke asked, not following Lucas' stream of thoughts at all.
"What if we were together? Would the social worker give us Sam's custody?" He explained himself. "I have multiple lines of income. I get a regular salary from coaching with benefits. I got the advance of my book deal which is a pretty decent sum. And Nathan and I share all the profits Tric makes too since neither of our moms want it. We have a house and family close by for support. You are the ideal mom and if we are together, I don't look like a paedophile. What if we were together?" he asked.
"But, we are not together! What are you even suggesting? Lucas, you proposed to Peyton. I- I am not so confused," she stuttered.
"We could tell the social worker that we are engaged," he said , staring straight into her liquid green eyes. He put his hand in his pocket and brought out a ring box. "We have the ring."
Brooke stood there completely shocked and dumbfounded. All the breath left her body as her eyes narrowed on the blue velvet box that she knew held the prettiest ring she had ever seen. Her knees felt weak and it took her a moment to jerk herself out of the feeling and remind herself that that wasn't real. It was all a hoax, just like her relationship with Lucas had always been.
"Lucas, this is insane. All of this. I - no, this is impossible," she shut down the idea, looking everywhere but at Lucas who held the box out to her.
"What's so impossible? You want a better life for Sam and Jamie, don't you? This is the way. We tell the social worker that we are engaged and we want Sam to be a part of our family and New York is not the place we envision raising our family so we want to go back home. It's that simple," he said, sure about the plan he had devised.
"What if she says no? Why are you even carrying this ring around with you? Did you plan this?" she asked.
"No, I was going to give you this ring to sell and move to a better apartment, or maybe quit your job. I figured that my mom and Keith would much rather have that for their grandchild than me giving it to a girl I don't even have. I have a son who is very real and alive. That is why I have the ring on me but now that I think of it, the ring seems to be much more useful. And for if they reject us to be Sam's parents, you simply continue with Sam the way you do now and we keep fighting for her," he said it like it was a fool proof plan.
"What? Why would you do this for us? You didn't even know Sam until a few days ago. I still get Jamie but.." she asked, not used to any help. Brooke had always done it alone. Nathan and Haley were wrapped up in each other's marital problems and Peyton and Lucas were busy being dark, emo and misunderstood together and hence each other's support system. Brooke had to figure it out all alone and she never let it show.
"I know you and I know your heart, Brooke Davis. I know how much you love Sam and I love your big heart. So I want to do this," he said, looking at her with piercing eyes.
Brooke's eyes closed as electric jolts shot up and down her spine. Her walls were melting fast and she was struggling to hold them up. "What will we tell the social worker? That I kept you from your son and illegally housed Sam until you saw me at a strip club and demanded custody? Then you saw just how bad my circumstances were and you had the money so we got engaged?" she laughed as she realised how flawed the plan actually was.
"No. We fudge some of the details," he smiled at her.
"Lie!?" she screamed.
"Come on. You've been pretending to be Norma for a while. Pretend to be in love with me," Lucas tried to joke but Brooke just rolled her eyes.
"That makes me wanna retch," she answered, pretending to hurl.
"Hey, you liked me once upon a time," Lucas reminded her. "I can never forget you in my car trying to reel me in with your leopard print bra.
Brooke rolled her eyes but mentally, her mind was saying something else. 'Oh, I more than liked you, Lucas Scott. You were the one guy I was willing to lose it all for. But you smashed my heart,' she thought to herself.
"A long long time ago," Brooke answered him instead, unable to say that she didn't love him, because she really did.
"We have to try this. Please," Lucas begged.
"Lucas…Where will we live? What will I do out there? I used up my savings for Jamie's birthday present to tickets to Albany and back. I don't want to tap into their college collections to make the move to Tree Hill. Besides, this is all moving so fast. I'm struggling to wrap my head around it," she said, pressing her temples to subside her incoming migraine.
"We'll figure it out. Let's do this one step at a time. Let's first get ourselves Sam's custody. Then we figure out how to move you back home. Then you can give yourself some time to heal and figure out the next steps in your life. Take a breath and go from there," he answered. If that was Brooke's issue, it meant that he had already convinced her to go ahead with his plan. He could manage the rest easily.
"Lucas, Peyton?" she asked him with a scared voice.
"What?" he asked, not understanding.
"This is Peyton's ring. Rings are special. You cannot just give me a ring meant for her. You literally wanted to marry Peyton one week ago. I get that this is fake but… I can't do this to Peyton. I can say to myself over and over again that the two of you broke up for good and decided to go your separate ways for college but we slept together hours after your break up and made a baby and that haunts me. I hate what we did. Not conceiving Jamie, but cheating on Peyton. Now I'm wearing her ring! It's too much! It's not okay. I still care about her, alot. She is my best friend and I love her," she said, looking at the box and shaking her head no.
"Peyton said no. She made herself clear," Lucas answered coldly, the pain of the rejection still etched on his face.
"You know she is going to come back. She always did in high school," Brooke said.
"We aren't in high school." Lucas yelled back.
Brooke just rolled her eyes. "I really think you two will work it out and be together."
"I did too. I wrote a book about it and flew to LA with a ring. But she doesn't want to and I have to move on," Lucas said, needing to forget about Peyton as he felt his heart grow heavy.
"You don't move on with me," Brooke said, guarding her heart from this boy who was just so damn… Lucas. He was a weakness and she didn't like that. Her resolves with him were too weak and lowkey, she was grateful that it was he who was the father of her baby. She loved having a mini Lucas. If she could not have him, at least she got a part of him to have and cherish forever.
Lucas gave a short but firm nod as he pressed his lips together. "Okay fine. But, this is pretend till the adoption goes through. Then we can break up and nobody can take Sam away from you. This is only until then."
"What do we tell your mom and our friends in Tree Hill?" she asked, thinking about it from every angle. "We can't lie to them and tell them that we are together but then they will have to lie to the State as well while we foster Sam until the adoption goes through."
"You can decide on that. We can tell them whatever you want to say. Let's first convince the social worker to give us Sam and get you back to Tree Hill, adjust the kids. Then we can deal with the rest. So what do you say Brooke Penelope Davis, will you make me the happiest man on earth by pretending to want to marry me?" he asked, getting down on one knee. Then, he pulled the ring out of the box and held it in front of her.
Brooke contemplated for a moment, stunned to see him get down. She really loved the ring. She was afraid that if she accepted it, she would not be able to return it.
"It's to give Jamie and Sam and you the life you all deserve," Lucas coaxed.
"I hate having to take help. It always comes at an ugly cost," she repeated her deepest insecurity.
"I know. But this isn't help. This is still all you. I'm being selfish and want my child close to me. I'm helping myself. Please Brooke, help me. I want him in my life. Please help me," he played with her psyche.
Brooke could never say no to Lucas for anything. Especially since she had Jamie. All she saw in him was Lucas' personality and that made her love the guy even more. That made her offer her hand to Lucas and he slipped the ring on. It fit perfectly.
