Lucas had just defended Brooke and above all, he had just openly opposed his wife in front of everyone. Beside himself, he had gone into the garden to get some air. Brooke, she had returned to the kitchen. From where she was, she saw Lucas walking on the grass, he seemed agitated. She wanted to join him and tell him everything she had on her heart ... That she understood how difficult the situation was and that she understood that he was managing it as best he could ... That she even admired him for putting his daughter above all else despite the pain she felt. That she was ready to wait for him as long as it took ... That she was even willing to help him. That Peyton had surely cheated on him and that she had seen and heard several things that tended to prove it.
GOVERNESS : We will be able to bring them to the table, dinner is ready!
Julie's cheerful voice barely managed to pull Brooke out of her reverie and silent reflections.
GOVERNESS : Felix, you have the salad... Brooke, the roast potatoes and I'll take care of the meat!
Brooke nodded absently as she realized Lucas had disappeared from her field of vision. Felix and Julie left the room. And as she put on the gloves to take the large Pyrex dish, Lucas came in through the back door. Head down, he inhaled as he straightened up to realize Brooke's presence in front of him. Brooke's breathing suddenly became more difficult, her throat tightened and dried out and her heart pounded. Lucas continued to approach, stopping when the central island imposed itself between them again. Like at Felix's, this block seemed immense and hindering for Brooke... But something was different... Tonight, she felt that it was like a barrier, a guardrail preventing them from melting into each other's arms.
LUCAS : Are you okay, Brooke?
BROOKE : And you?
Lucas' heart sank too to see that she could still worry about him after what he had put her through.
LUCAS : It'll be okay. But you should wear an dress of your creation tomorrow night... You're extremely talented and this is the perfect opportunity to get noticed... Don't miss this opportunity! And above all, you don't have to obey Peyton... Okay?
Just before answering, he followed Brooke's eyes as they glanced furtively towards the door.
BROOKE : I'll think about it... Thanks, Lucas.
LUCAS : Don't thank me, I don't deserve it... On the other hand, I would really like to talk, you and me...
BROOKE : I agree, but it might be more than complicated tonight...
LUCAS : If the opportunity doesn't arise before, can I join you later, in your room?
BROOKE : To talk, only...
LUCAS : I promise, Brooke. I have so much to tell you..
Brooke could swear that her eyes were filled with tears that refused to flow. The emotion was palpable.
LUCAS : Now I'll have to go back...
BROOKE : I'm following you... I have to bring this...
LUCAS : Let me take this, I'll take care of it!
His gaze was warm, affectionate, and Brooke's heart fell apart again just looking at him. She needed to have this talk with him for the emotional roller coaster to finally stop. Because she wouldn't last much longer in this house if her hopes proved futile again. Because she was in love like she'd never been before, and Lucas seemed to finally be taking things in stride.
Later that night...
SAWYER : Higher, Brooke!
BROOKE : If I do that, you might touch the branches of the tree and hurt yourself, sweetie!
SAWYER : Yes, I might fly away into the stars... The stars don't hurt, do they?
BROOKE : I don't think so, sweetie... But we're not going to try to see... It's time to go to bed, anyway!
As Sawyer enjoyed his last few seconds of fun before going to join the arms of Morpheus, Nathan walked towards them... Two beers in his hand.
SAWYER : Uncle Nathan! Have you seen how high I'm going!?
NATHAN : Indeed, sweetie! Hold on tight, especially!
Nathan then turned his attention back to Brooke and drew her attention to the beers he was holding in his hand. Embarrassed by this intimate moment between them while her thoughts were entirely focused on Lucas...
BROOKE : I have my hands a little full here...
NATHAN : You're really going to take me for a big idiot who insists but believe it or not... I want to spend some time with you as much as I want to escape this tense and suffocating atmosphere!
BROOKE : Is it as bad as it seems?
NATHAN : To summarize the situation, Lucas hardly says a word and it seems like he's everywhere except with us... As for the others... It seems like no one dares to address the heart of the problem even though everyone knows it...
BROOKE : Are you talking about Lindsay?
NATHAN : Partly, yes. This girl is crazy and I know Lucas would never do something like that! But despite that, I fear that their relationship won't hold up... Lucas seems really at the end of his rope.
BROOKE : Your presence is surely a great support to him...
NATHAN : I don't think so, no! His parents seem determined to put pressure on him... Besides, I have the impression that the more they insist, the more he drinks... But I'm going to talk to him... He's my friend first and foremost, I refuse to see him in this state!
BROOKE : Speaking of the wolf...
SAWYER : Dad!
Lucas approached, his gait not quite steady or assured... He forced himself to smile for his daughter.
LUCAS : That looks great, sweetie! But I think it's time to go to sleep now...
BROOKE : I was going to go, Lucas... Unless you want to do it?
SAWYER : I want all three of you! Dad, Uncle Nathan and you!
Brooke smiled at Sawyer but waited for the two men to answer while slowly stopping the swing in its motion.
NATHAN : That's a great idea, honey! Isn't it, Lucas?
LUCAS : Anything my princess wants... Let's go!
Lucas tried to keep up appearances, but he was a little too tipsy for Brooke's taste.
BROOKE : I'm going to put him to sleep now... You can come down, gentlemen.
Nathan and Lucas finally left the room after a last kiss on Sawyer's forehead, Brooke lay down next to her. Inevitably excited by her evening and the requests around her, she decided to cuddle her. Her nails gently grazed the soft and tender skin of her back ... Sawyer relaxed more and more. To perfect her letting go and help her fall asleep, Brooke started a lullaby. Quickly, Sawyer fell asleep deeply and Brooke stayed a few minutes to enjoy this moment. She looked at the hair spread out and her little face whose cheek was crushed on the mattress. Her little mouth half-open and her shoulders rising to the rhythm of her breathing ... She too, she would like to one day feel the love that a parent felt for their child. Sawyer had already entered her heart so quickly to cling to it permanently and she was not even her daughter. A bit of nostalgia took hold of Brooke when she saw Lucas' features through Sawyer... But also Peyton's. Brooke finally left the room to go back downstairs... She realized she had left her cell phone outside.
Arriving at the stairs that went down to the garden, she heard Lucas's hoarse voice. She froze when she realized that he was in the middle of a conversation with Nathan behind the enormous hydrangea.
LUCAS : She's not made for me and I knew it. I made the biggest mistake of my life, Nath...
Brooke's heart skipped several beats... He was talking about her, that was for sure!
NATHAN : You can still work things out between you, right?
And there it was inevitably Peyton... It wasn't possible, Brooke didn't want to believe it.
LUCAS : I hope so... Because this relationship was doomed from the start, damn it! And like an idiot, I thought I could handle it! But she has this power over me...
A silence fell... Brooke refused to leave the place.
NATHAN : Do you love her, Lucas!?
LUCAS : Yes... It would be so much simpler if that wasn't the case...
Of course he still loved her, he loved his life with her, his life with his daughter... Everything he had built!
NATHAN : Then you have to stop all this! Definitely! You can't let her hope for nothing...
Let her hope... That was exactly what he had done in the kitchen a few hours ago.
LUCAS : It took a while but tonight's party convinced me... It's clear in my head now!
Brooke couldn't believe it... All it took was one party and a few reprimands for him to question everything! But who was this man!? A cowardly and immature man who listens to what others tell him to do!
LUCAS : I'll tell him... I'll talk to him tonight... When you're all gone. That's the plan.
BROOKE'S THOUGHT : Oh no, I won't give you the chance to humiliate me even more, Lucas Scott! The idiot that I am was hoping for something else as a conversation when I agreed for you to come and find me tonight... What did I think, after all!? I'm just his fucking mistress... Oh no, I forgot! I'm not even his mistress anymore, either!
Sobs clogged Brooke's throat and eyelids. The courage to face him was sorely lacking.
BROOKE'S THOUGHT : He deserves me to make a scene and for everyone to know what kind of man he is! Exactly the same kind of man as his bitch of a wife! Self-centered, heartless, and manipulative! He still loves her and just wanted to rub salt in the wound... It's over, it has to stop... Too bad for Sawyer, I'll miss her like crazy but I have to do it!
She had to do it... She had to leave this house right away! Get far away, far away from Lucas before she went under. Brooke ran back upstairs to put some things in her bag and without telling anyone, she left the house. Even Felix didn't notice her escape. She ran to the metal gate, tears blurring her vision. That night, she collapsed in her mother's arms who avoided asking her the awkward questions. Like with Sawyer in her bed, it was her mother who rocked her until she fell asleep before leaving her... That same night, everyone thought she had gone to bed without saying goodbye...
As expected, Lucas quietly went up to Brooke's room when he saw the coast clear and clear. But when he opened the door, he discovered an empty and unmade bed... The open and almost empty wardrobe... His eyes were drawn to a piece of paper lying on the comforter...
BROOKE'S WORD : I resign.