A/N Hey guys! No, I didn't forget about this story and I'm sorry for updating so late but I was suffering from writer's block honestly. But I hope the long chapter will make up for the wait. A few things from this chapter… I know the history teacher was a bit dramatic but honestly…did we all not have one of those in high school? Lol. The game scenes are all from the show and I know it must seem strange to have 2 games within 3 chapters but I deemed it necessary for upcoming scenes, anyways normally I don't like to skip ahead of myself but I'll give you some spoilers…Many things are coming to a head next chapter and I've already got it pretty much mapped out so hopefully it won't take me as long to post it up, but let me know what you guys think!
Haley cursed softly as she rummaged through her locker early the next morning. She'd already looked twice, but it wasn't there. Her missing notebook was still…missing. Slightly panicked, she tried to rack her mind as to where else she could've possibly left it. She wanted to kick herself for being so careless as to bring it to school. I mean if she didn't want anyone to ever see it, then why bring it to school with hundreds of nosy teenagers, any of which could've easily grabbed it right?
"Mr. Tagaro, I can't say I'm surprised."
She paused in her desperate search and peeked out from behind her locker door, catching sight of Mr. Kneipher stepping out of his classroom. The history teacher was regarding the boy in front of him with a slightly disapproving frown marring his features.
She quickly averted her gaze and went back to her business, trying to ignore the conversation a couple of feet away.
"This is the third test you've failed ." the older man's voice droned on, floating over to her. "On top of that you are not turning in your assignments as expected, you're goofing off in class, that is when you decide to grace us with your presence and I just don't know how to get through to you young man." he took off his reading glasses and sighed, "I've given you several options, one of which we discussed yesterday afternoon. Perhaps tutoring is the right step to correct you're already flailing path, young man."
Felix looked up and took note of the blonde hiding behind her locker door. A sly smile crossed his lips and he shrugged, turning back to the older man, with a convincing pained look on his face, "I'm sorry but that doesn't seem to be a very possible option right now."
"Well, then I believe it's about time we had a little discussion with your parents. Maybe they can think of a better alternative for you, because lord knows I tried." he crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head, "You need to get it together young man. You cannot start the year in such a manner. You young kids don't ever understand the importance of diligence. You keep with this attitude and you will have a very hard time catching up next year. Do you understand what that could possibly mean for you? You don't correct this path of academic failure you've taken upon embarking and I can guarantee you will not graduate with your class next year. " he shook his head sadly, "Let it be known that I've pointed out, but there's just no hope for your generation."
The older man took his leave and Felix had to hold back a laugh at the older man's antics. He walked over slowly towards Haley's locker, "You heard the man. " he shot her a tight smile when she looked his way, "No hope. But hey, that's okay…we all don't have to graduate right?"
He was gone before she could muster a response and she closed her eyes and leaned into her locker dejectedly, something resembling guilt washing over her.
"Do we really have to go to school?" Nathan grumbled sleepily as he swiftly maneuvered his black top convertible through the streets of Tree Hill.
"Nathan.." Brooke reproached lightly, "We can't just skip out the entire day. I don't think that'd go overly well with Whitey and you don't want to miss your chance to shine in this week's game do you?" she teased.
"Well, no." he admitted. Truthfully, he knew his coach was serious about benching players if they skipped class. And he'd never do anything intentionally to harm his chances of playing. But an entire day alone with his girlfriend was extremely tempting."Babe, I know what you're saying, but I still don't see why we have to go. We can bail for a couple of hours and Whitey would never know."
"Why does this sound strangely familiar?" she mused, shaking her head in amusement, "You'd really risk getting caught by Whitey and possibly sitting out this week's game?"
"Hey, I'd risk anything just to be with you." he replied sweetly.
Her lips curled into a smile and she leaned across the seat to kiss him quickly on the lips, "Such a charmer.." she teased, her eyes sparkling, "But that will get you 5 today, Superstar."
He chuckled, remembering her little point system she had set up when they had first started dating. At the beginning, and unbeknownst to him Brooke had started rating him on any details he had with her. Or anytime he would say or do something sweet she would secretly give him points. Like, every time he carried her books without her asking or waited for her at her locker, she would reward him 2 points. Calling to wish her a good night or bringing her favorite Starbucks frappucino in the morning and he would receive 3. Any sweet comment or doing and it was 5 automatic points. Of course all these secret points would add up and he'd get his rewards. 5 points would reward him a kiss, 20 points equaled a full on hot and steamy make out session, 30 points....a little bit more than that...and one time he'd managed to gain 50 in the course of 2 weeks and it had earned him his first true sexy sleepover at her house. Of course, he'd knew nothing of it, and it had gone on for the first couple of months until Haley one day accidentally mentioned it. Nathan had been impressed to say the least and began using it to his advantage, going out of his way to make sure he got as many points as quickly as possible. Brooke eventually caught on that he knew and had ended it. But it had been fun and they'd both equally relished in her little game.
He entwined his hand through hers and brought it up to his lips for a kiss, "Have I told you how radiant you look this morning?" he sent her a side long grin, "Really, Babe. The sun just pales in comparison."
She giggled, "I know what you're trying to do, but you can't charm your way into this one Superstar." she ran her hand across his shoulders, "Although, it does give you an extra 5." she whispered, brushing her lips across his cheek, "But...I still can't." she said ruefully, settling back on her side, "I've got that meeting with Student Council today."
"Already planning your next take over?" he teased.
"Next? Please, everyone knows I already rule Tree Hill High." she grinned, "No, but seriously, we've got to assign comittees for the upcoming Homecoming Dance, which by the way is following the away game at Bear Creek."
"You hate planning." he pointed out.
"I know." she sighed dramatically, "It's one of the downsides that comes with the power."
He laughed, "Hey, I don't know if I mentioned it you, but I heard Tyler telling the guys that he and Rachel are running for the title this year."
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about them. Everyone knows we are so taking the title this year, again." she giggled, "Although I can't wait to see the stupid look on Rachel's face when I beat her out once again."
He rolled his eyes and shook his head, completely disinterested. He'd never cared about any of that stuff, but he knew how important it was to Brooke, which was the only reason he ever went along with it in the first place.
"Yeah, I don't know why she even bothers." he agreed, "Everyone's voting for you anyways."
"Of course." She cooed, flashing him a smile, "Besides, I always get what I want one way or another."
"Don't I know it." he laughed, "Well, Homecoming or not, you'll always be my Queen." He stated sweetly, supplying her with his most charming smile.
"Nice work Superstar." she replied impressed, "That one just earned gave you the full 20." she reached out a hand to feather his hair with her fingers, "Now, it's too bad this car is still moving, because I am more than willing to let you cash in." she winked up at him, smiling coyly.
He took a deep breath and looked down at the speedometer, calculating in his head the fastest route to school. Because there was no way he was going to let that one pass.
"Hey, Haley what's wrong?" Lucas asked cautiously, noticing the blonde girl by her locker looking slightly perturbed.
She looked up slightly startled, "Oh, hey. Nothing's wrong, I'm just a little tired that's all." she looked back into her locker and sighed, "Actually, something is wrong. I can't find my journal." she grabbed her Biology book and shut her locker, turning back to him, "It sucks. It's not meant for anyone else to see, and with my luck it could be anywhere in the school, in the hands of some nosy slime."
He laughed, "Well, I don't know about some slime...but-"he reached into his backback and pulled out the thick worn black book and handed it to her.
She breathed a sigh of relief, "Oh, thank god." she hugged it to her chest tightly."Wait, where did you find this?"
"You left it in the tutor center yesterday." he explained, "By the time I saw it, you were gone."
"Oh." she paused, looking up at him through narrowed eyes, "You didn't read it did you?"
"I-" he paused and shook his head, "No."
Her eyes softened and she smiled sincerely. "Thank you."
"Yeah, uh-"he cleared his throat, "You're welcome." he smiled back as they both began walking towards her first class.
"So..." he began, breaking their comfortable silence, "I'm sure you gathered as much, but I've decided I'm not going to let Nathan and the guys intimidate me out of doing what I love."
"Good." she smiled, "I was really glad to see you show up yesterday."
"Yeah, y'know..." he laughed, "It's kind of funny, but there must be something in the air or something."
"What do you mean?"
"Just that Nathan and the guys seemed kind of..mellow, to put it mildly." he shrugged, "It was a peaceful and incident-free drill."
"Well, maybe they decided to turn over a new leaf."she suggested, a trace of a smile in her voice.
"Or maybe they ran out of ideas to screw me over...for now."
She laughed, "Pessimistic much? I wouldn't worry about them Luke."
He smiled at her, liking the way she shortened his name, "You're right. I'm doing this for me, because it's what I love to do." he paused, "You know a really smart person once told me to always remember who I am and what I can accomplish. "
"A really smart person huh?" she teased, her eyes twinkling as she remembered one of their very first conversations.
"Besides, sometimes the biggest battles are the ones you fight withing your own right?"
She froze, the smile dying on her lips, "What did you just say?"
He stopped, looking at her puzzled before realization dawned on him. Damn. "Haley, wait I didn't-"
"You didn't what?" she looked at him, her eyes piercing, "You didn't read my journal?"
"No, I-"
"How could you?" she shot him an incredulous look, "You had no business snooping through my things like that!"
"Haley, let me-"
"Stop!" she fumed, "I can't believe you stood in front of me and lied to me when I clearly asked you if you read it. This is unbelivable. Y'know I thought you were an honest guy with principles and morals. But clearly I was wrong. Because someone with morals doesn't read other peoples personal thoughts and emotions." she took a deep breath, tears brimming behind her eyes, "Y'know what? Next time you see me, don't talk to me."
"Haley, wait!" he exhaled sharply, watching dejectedly as she strode angrily down the halls. Oh boy. He'd majorly screwed up.
Haley frowned and tapped her pen against her Chemistry book, staring down hard at the material in front of her. The teacher's voice droned on in the background, his words sounding as if they coming from very far away.
She had no clue what about, anyways. It's not like she was paying attention, she'd been working on the same question for the last 10 minutes.
"Hey." Jake whispered, poking her discreetly on her right side, "What's wrong?"
She looked up slightly startled, "What?"
His eyes darted to the front and noticed the teacher going over the material with another student. He scooted his stool closer to hers, leaning towards her."I asked you what's wrong?"
"If I tell you I'm just tired, would you believe me?"
He gave her a look, "What do you think?"
She gave him a small smile, "Yeah, I didn't think so." she sighed and dropped her pen on her book, "Do you-"she paused, fidgeting in her seat, "Do you believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt?"
He shrugged, "Depends on what you're giving them the benefit of."
"Well..."she began, "Let's just say someone who in your eyes, happens to be..." she paused, searching for the right word,"Well, not a very nice person, someone who's done many underhanded things, and is just an all around-"
"Jerk." he supplied for her.
"Right." she nodded, "Well, this jerk..happens to come to you in hopes of receiving your aid in matters in which you excel, and they well....don't."
He smiled, "So basically, an undeserving prick came to you for tutoring."
She exhaled, "Yeah, and I refused to do it. I mean...I think I was justified in doing it, because like I said this guy's done some pretty assy things, particularly to me." she bit her lip, "But, I-well I don't know, maybe I was wrong."
"Look, I know you Hales. And you have this amazing sensibility and ability to help others. You always end up doing what you believe is right in the end." he paused, "Want to know what I think? I think that if you really thought you'd done the right thing, you wouldn't be sitting here second guessing your actions." he shrugged, "And who knows? Maybe this person really does need your help."
Her eyes fluttered down and she sighed, thinking over his words. Maybe things weren't as complicated as she was setting them out to be.
"Well, well, if it isn't the president to my new fan club." Nathan teased, spotting the curly blonde sitting alone in the same spot from yesterday.
She groaned, not bothering to look up as he sat across from her, "This isn't going to become a habit of yours is it?"
"I don't know, do you want it to be?"
"Y'know, solitude is really under appreciated nowadays."She began, lifting her head to look at him, "Don't you have a class to go to? Or am I going to be forced to deal with your less than charming presence the rest of the period?"
He laughed, "I think you're suffering from self-denial, Curly. Because I know, you enjoy our quality time more than you let on."
She rolled her eyes, ignoring his comment, "What are you doing out here? I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but don't you have to mantain a minimal grade point average in order to participate in athletic activities? How do you expect to do that if you keep bailing on your education?"
"Don't you talk like a normal person?" he asked her amused.
"Oh, I'm sorry." she brought a hand to her chest in a mock apology, "I'll keep it simple for you...you cut class, you fall behind. You fall behind, you fail. You fail, you don't play. Now you don't want that do you?" she retorted, unable to keep the sarcasm out of her voice.
He grinned, "Why, Sawyer, I didn't know you cared?"
She glared at him, "Are you going to answer my question or not?"
"Which one?" he asked innocently, for the mere purpose of annoying her.
She shook her head and exhaled, "Why aren't you in class?"
"So, you do care." he teased, earning him another glare. He laughed and shrugged, "Eh. I've got Calc. but Carter's cool. Doesn't really ride me much. Y'know I give him the whole, practice-is-killing-me deal and he lets me slide. He's a huge fan, that old man. Never misses a game."
"And of course, you wouldn't give up a free pass." she replied wryly.
"Hey, it's all part of the status quo." he boasted, "Give and take, baby. I give them the pride that is this basketball team and I take all the star treatment I deserve."
She shook her head and said nothing, slightly amazed by his arrogance. She turned her attention back to the sketch in front of her. Maybe if she pretended he was not there, he wouldn't be.
He drummed his fingers on the table, looking around them bored,"Hey, what do you say we make like a hippy and blow this joint?"
She looked up from her sketch, "Excuse me?"
He rolled his eyes, "Yeah y'know...take off."
"With you?"
"With me?" he smiled innocently.
She exhaled, exasperated, "Yes. With you."
He grinned, "I knew you'd say yes, but damn Sawyer I got to admit that was fast."
She glared at him realizing he had set her up for that one, "I really don't like you."
"Oh, but I think you do." he sing-songed teasingly, "So, then are you game?"
"How can I possibly refuse?" she replied dryly, "Oh, I know." she smiled at him cutely, "How about no."
He smirked, "Very cute."
She gave him her own smirk, "I thought so."
"I promise I'll be a good boy."
"I don't think you know the meaning of the word." she retorted.
"C'mon.." he cajoled, ignoring her previous statement, "You know you want to." he grinned, "Listen, if you're afraid you won't be able to resist those urges when you're alone with me, then-"
She glared at him, cutting him off, "The only urges I have around you are not very pleasant ones. In fact, I'd say they're almost violent."
"Violent huh?" he teased her, "Hey, if that's your deal I can get down with that."
She groaned and hit him on the shoulder, "Seriously, could you be any more obnoxious?"
"You really weren't kidding about those violent urges were you?" he rubbed his shoulder, "Y'know there are better ways to deal with your uh...agression problems."
"Oh, I can think of several ways, actually." she smiled at him sweetly, "One particularly comes to mind. Me in a car at full speed..you in the middle of the street. End of story."
"Uh-huh." he nodded, "Why don't we test that theory? Because I really don't think you would dare."
"Try me."
"Maybe some other time Sawyer." he winked at her suggestively, "Right now, I'd really just like a double cheeseburger." he stood up, extending his hand out to her.
She ignored it, "I'm not hungry."
"Fine, then you could just watch me eat."
"Or I could just not watch you at all."
"Do you have a sarcastic remark for everything?" he shook his head, "Sawyer, we've already wasted half the period talking about it. Just go with me. You know you're going to cave in the end."
"Nope."
"C'mon, you know you want to." he repeated, supplying her with his heart-stopping grin. "I might even let you drive." he added, as an incentive.
"You'd really take a chance on letting a complete stranger touch Daddy's car?" she asked teasingly.
He rolled his eyes, "I'll have you know, it's mine. My 16th birthday gift." he shrugged, "And hey, if that's what it takes, then sure why not?"
She paused, contemplating her options. She shrugged and stood up, gathering her things, "Oh, why not?"
Nathan pulled out his keys from his pocket as he and Peyton approached his car. He paused, dangling them teasingly in front of her, "You're not planning on testing any theories from earlier right now are you?"
She tilted her head to look at him, "Well, I guess you'll just have to take your chances now won't you?"
"Hmm." he grinned smugly, crossing his arms in front of him, "Decisions, decisions."
She rolled her eyes and took a step forward, snapping the keys away from him, "C'mon, Scott. I'll leave that for another time. There's no way I'm giving up the chance to drive this baby." she added, patting the trunk of the car. She threw her stuff in the back, hesitating but a second before jumping in the front seat. "Well?" she turned to look back at him, "Are you just going to stand there looking pretty or are we taking off?"
He smirked, walking over to the passenger side of the car, "Aren't you the one who came up with a million different ways to say no just a few moments ago?" he couldn't help but throw that back to her, "And now you're rushing me to get out of here?"
"Whatever." she replied, placing the key in the ignition and bringing the engine to life.
She looked back at him incredulously as a tune began to flow through the speakers, "Seriously? Coolio?"
"What?" he replied defensively, "Gangsta's paradise is a classic."
"A classic piece of crap." she scoffed, backing out carefully out of the parking lot. "Not only is it soo 1990's but it's an absurd depiction of the "gangsta" life."
"It's just a song, Sawyer." he laughed, "The beat is pretty clean. That's why I like it."
She shot him a look of disbelief, "Just a song? Are you kidding me? There's no such thing as just a song." she shook her head, "Have you ever heard the expression, 'When words fail, music speaks?' That's what every good song should represent. Words. Emotions. And that crap right here that you're listening to is not any of that."
He held up his hands, "Okay, okay. Damn, don't bite my head off or anything." he chuckled, shuffling through his CD case, "Sorry to dissapoint you Curly, but that crap is all I have in here." he smirked, "I forgot you were an emo kid or something like that. What is it you listen to now? Surfboard something?"
"Dashboard Confessional." she corrected him. "God, you jocks are all alike."
"Hey, watch it." he warned playfully, shuffling through the tracks.
"Music is more than just music..." she continued, "A song is always more than just lyrics and beats. A song can change your life. Help you through dark moments, make you reflect...define you, y'know?"
"So tell me Sawyer.." he began teasingly, "What's your song?"
She shrugged, turning to him with a faint smile, "I don't know. I guess I'm still trying to find mine." she replied softly.
He was about to answer when he noticed her pull in to the local burger joint.
"Hi, yeah can I order a double cheeseburger with the works and a large strawberry milkshake?" She paused as she looked back at him "Actually make it 2 of each one!"
"What?" she asked upon catching his curious stare, "One's for me."
"You said you weren't hungry." he pointed out.
"I'm not. " she replied, "That's why I didn't order fries."
"Of course." He nodded, "That makes perfect sense."
"Now who's the one being sarcastic?"
He shrugged, "You must be rubbing off on me." he pulled out a twenty and handed it to the lady at the window in exchange for the food. Peyton swiftly pulled into one of the empty parking spaces and unbuckled he seat belt, digging in the carry out bags. They were quiet for several minutes as they ate.
"So, let me ask you, how did you and Dawson meet?"
She rolled her eyes, at his insitence to call Lucas Dawson, "Why do you want to know?"
He shrugged, "Just curious."
She took a sip of her milkshake, staring thoughtfully ahead of her, "We've known each other forever. Best friends all our lives."
"Ah.." he teased, "So I was right. You two totally have that Joey/Dawson vibe going on."
"We do not." she rebuked.
"You do so." he turned to her, his eyes sparkling with laughter, "You guys probably sleep on the same bed and everything. 'Platonically' of course."
She turned away from him, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks, "Shut up."
He laughed, "You just totally admitted it."
"I did not."
"Yes you did. That adorable blush just admitted your guilt." he shook his head impressed,"Wow, I didn't think the punk had it in him."
She exhaled, thoroughly annoyed, "Look me and Lucas are just friends. 100%, innocently, purely best friends. And the fact that I...well, my Dad's gone most of the time and I really hate sleeping alone and I-I don't even know why I'm sitting here explaining myself to you."
"Because you like me. No matter how much you like to deny it." he grinned, his eyes sparkling.
She rolled her eyes and opened the driver's seat pushing the seat back and quickly gathering her stuff silently.
His brow furrowed in confusion, "Where you going?" when she didn't answer him, he opened his door and stepped out, walking over to her as she tried to walk past him. He grabbed her wrist to stop her. "Hey, wait." she stopped and looked at him, "I'm sorry, if I said anything to piss you off okay?" she didn't say anything, just stood there glaring at him. He exhaled, "Okay, well at least let me take you back to school, yeah?"
She rolled her eyes but nodded silently, finally conceding and he let out a sigh of relief, taking her book bag from her and walking back to the car. He hopped in the driver's seat, setting her book bag in between the two seats.
He fingered the large sketchbook, a loose slit of paper tumbling out. He picked it up and stared at it as she sat down in the passenger seat, slamming the door behind her.
At this moment there are 6,470,818,671 people in the world. Some are running scared. Some are coming home. Some tell lies to make it through the day; others are just now facing the truth. Some are evil men at war with good, and some are good struggling with evil. Six billion people in the world, six billion souls. And sometimes...all you need is one.
"Wow." he whistled, reading the caption across the paper. Beneath the letters, there several faceless figures with one smack in the middle. A tall girl with curly hair. "That's pretty deep Sawyer." he gazed at her, "Which one are you?"
She took the sketchbook from him and closed it with a huff, "Look, you don't know me okay? So stop making comments like-like the one from earlier and stop looking at my stuff. You don't know what you're talking about."
"Hey, I'm just making a simple observation."
"Well, don't." she let out a breath and stared out the window, her pretty green eyes narrowed.
He gazed at her for a couple of seconds, "Why do you like to be sad?" he wanted to know.
She turned back to face him, slightly confused, "What?"
He shrugged, "Well, it just seems that you like to be sad. I guess I just want to know why?"
She bit her lip, staring at him, wondering why he would ask her something like that. Normally, she would have reacted in defense, like she had moments ago. But there was something about his question that just threw her completely off guard.
"Because that way you know what to expect from life." she finally replied,"And when somebody hurts you or dissapoints..well you don't feel it as much." he turned to look at her and she shrugged, "Sometimes being sad is a hell of a lot easier than being happy."
"How's your nose?" Rachel giggled as she set her lunch tray across from Felix early that lunch period.
"What do you want?"he asked, irritated.
"Oh, are we in a bad mood today?" she rolled her eyes, reaching for her Diet Coke and popping it open, "Chill, Dude. I'm just teasing you."
"Well, why don't you stick a straw in your Diet and just suck it?" he suggested, his eyes narrowed.
"Somebody's obviously suffering from Didn't-get-some-last-night-syndrome!" she retorted, shaking her head, "I'm guessing things with the tutor aren't going so well?"
"They aren't going at all." he admitted, "But, whatever. It's just a matter of time. She's already giving in, I can tell."
"Right. And after the way you handled her on Saturday, yeah, the tutor definitely wants you." she rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her drink.
He shrugged, "That was the old Felix. She has yet to know the sweet, repented, nice-guy Felix."
"Oh, please. You didn't just say that with a straight face."
"Look, obviously being my usual charming, irresistible self didn't work.." he continued, ignoring her gagging motions, "So, I decided I'm going to turn over a new leaf. You know, become one of the good guys. I have to get in her good graces, get her to trust me somehow..."
"Okay, genius and how are you going to do that? Because she pretty much runs in the other direction when you're within a 5 foot radius of her."
He smirked, "Well, let's just say I've gotten myself in a situation in where she just can't say no."
"Okay, what do you have up your sleeve?"
He reached for his folder and opened it, swiftly pulling out several pieces of paper. He pushed them towards the redhead and she picked them up, glancing curiously at them, "Okay..so you failed a couple History and English tests...not surprising really, but what does...."she paused, as realization dawned on her, "Oohhh...I see." she nodded at him impressed, "Nice."
He grinned, "She can't possibly refuse to help out a fellow peer now can she? I mean, it is what she signed up for. It would be morally wrong on her part to turn away a student in need of her...uh services." He failed to mention that she already had refused. She didn't need to know that.
She looked down in amusement at the several sheets of paper, "Dude, you're pathetic. How did you manage to fail 6 tests in the first couple of weeks of school?"
He shrugged innocently, "It's easy to when you don't try."
Her mouth fell open slightly, "You're failing on purpose?" she raised an eyebrow, "That's a little desperate don't you think? Even for you."
"Ever hear the phrase 'Desperate times calls for desperate measures?"
She laughed, "All this for the Tutor? I mean, do you really want her that bad?"
"No." he scoffed, "This isn't about the bet anymore." he shook his head, "Look, she totally humiliated me last Saturday, in front of everyone. I mean where the hell does she get off? I'm just really sick of her I'm-better-than-you demeanor and her whole sweet and innocent act." he paused, a hint of anger in his eyes, "I'm going to make her fall. And hard. And once I get what I want out of her, I'll be done with her. Humiliate her and drop her like she never meant anything.....and that my dear Rachel, is what they call the sweetest revenge of all."
"Whoa..." Peyton said as she strolled in to Karen's cafe later that afternoon. She noticed her best friend slumped over the counter, playing listlessly with the salt shaker."You look like your mom just told you you have a brother you didn't know about or something."
He glared at her, "Ha. Funny."
"Uh...joke." she smiled, settling in to the stool next to his, "What's wrong?"
He sighed, "Haley's pissed at me."
"Huh. That was fast." she replied amused, reaching across the counter for a muffin.
"Peyton." he shook his head exasperated, "I'm serious."
"So am I."
He groaned and dropped his head on his hands, "You're not helping."
"I'm sorry." she said honestly, "Now, tell me, what did you do to get sweet, all around nice girl Haley upset with you?"
"Well..I-" he winced, "I read her journal."
"You what?" she exclaimed, dropping her muffin on the counter.
"Well, not the entire thing!" he countered defensively.
"Lucas.."she reproached, "It doesn't matter if you read even just one sentence. That's....it's personal and most importantly private." she shook her head, "She has every right to be upset with you. Gosh, I'd be pissed if you ever submitted my sketches to Thud or something."
"I know it was wrong okay?" he exhaled, "But, well some of that stuff...it was beautiful you know?"
"Well, beautiful or not, it was still never in your place to read any of it."
"I know." he conceded morosely, "Peyton...she told me next time I saw her, not to talk to her."
She sighed and rubbed his shoulder comfortingly, "I'm sorry, I know that sucks. But you have to understand where she's coming from. Invasion of privacy of any kind is not an easy thing to forgive. I mean think of how you would feel. Talk to her okay? You're a good guy with good intentions and I'm sure deep down she knows that."
"Y'know..." he began, his eyes lighting up just a bit, "You're not so bad at this whole best friend thing."
"Well, that's what I'm here for. To point out when you've royally screwed up and help you out in my own way." she gave him a playful shove, "You just better not screw up too often."
Haley entered the tutor center, early Friday morning. She'd finished her work a little early and had gotten special permission from her History teacher to leave . Of course he'd conceded, she was after all Haley James, student extraordinaire. It's not like she was going to go about campus to goof off. No, she was off to another sholastic mission, as expected.
She walked over to the filing cabinets, searching for the Algebra lesson for that day's tutor session.
She retrieved it and sat at one of the long tables, looking over it briefly. She couldn't believe it was the end of the week already. Another Friday, another tutoring session, another game...and of course another party. God, when did her life become such a routine?
She paused halfway through the lesson plan in front of her, her mind wandering to the previous days. She'd managed unceremoniously, to avoid both Lucas and Felix the entire week. Lucas had tried to approach her several times. Apparently he hadn't gotten the hint when she told him not to speak to her. She frowned to herself, at the thought of him reading her poetry or lyrics. Her innermost thoughts and feelings. Yes, she was still very much irked, but more than that... dissapointed.
As for Felix, well it wasn't so much that she was avoiding him. She just couldn't stand being in his presence for too long, though she had come to a mental agreement regarding his situation.
She gathered her books, placing the Algebra lesson neatly in her folder. She stood up and glanced casually out the window and noticed two familiar figures out by the quad. She walked over to the window, clearly making out the forms of Nathan and Peyton sitting on a secluded table over by the far corner of the school grounds.
Haley's brow furrowed... Nathan and Peyton?
The curly blonde was lazily running a thick pencil over what Haley assumed was a sketchbook. She was shaking her head as the basketball player sat across from her, grinning and obviously teasing her.
Haley peered at them throught the window curiously, wondering what was going on. I mean, sure it looked innocent enough but still...she wasn't aware the two even talked to each other, much less hanged out. Alone, together...when they both clearly should've been in class.
Well, at least she knew Nathan was supposed to be. But he usually ditched his third period class, knowing the teacher always let him get off without incident. She also knew that more than once he'd get Brooke to skip with him and he'd even tried to get her to skip with him before. But this was a new development, apparently he'd found another way to spend his lazy hour.
She sighed and turned away from the window, gathering her stuff and slipping out the door. It most likely was all too innocent. There was no rule that said that a boy and girl couldn't hang out together without there being something brewing. She was just surprised that was all. Sure, he was a basketball player and she was on the squad, but given the circumstances and their respective counterparts...well it just seemed complicated for some reason.
She brifely wondered how Brooke and Lucas would react, or if there was even anything to react to.
Nathan adjusted the pillow behind his back, watching as his girlfriend sat in front of her vanity mirror primping before that night's game.
"Hey, Babe?" he said, picking up the remote to the stereo, "We've got exactly one hour before we have to get going."
She narrowed her eyes at him through the mirror as she brushed her hair,"Are you implying that it's going to take me that long to finish getting ready?"
"From experience, yeah. Besides, I don't know why you even bother really."
She swiveled around to face him, her mouth dropping open in disbelief, "Nathan!"
"What?" he turned innocent eyes on her, "I just don't see how all that gooey and powdery stuff you mess with could possibly make you look even more beautiful than you already do."
Her eyes softened and her lips curled into a smile, "Babe.." she said fondly, "It's called eye shadow and foundation."
"Whatever, you still don't need it." he insisted, pushing a few buttons on the remote and falling back into the plush comforter as Jay-Z flowed through the speakers. He looked around the room a little restless, wishing Brooke would stop obsessing over her make up and join him on the bed.
He picked up a foreign item among the many plush animals that scattered on his girlfriend's bed and smirked, "Still playing with Barbies, Babe?"
She looked up and shrugged, picking up a small bottle of blue shadow, "What? I love Barbie." she flashed him her adorable half-smile, "That Bitch has everything."
"You stole that from a key chain." he accused, laughing. "Y'know for being a a fiery brunette, you sure do have a strange obsession with the blonde bombshells.." he commented, picking up a framed picture off her nightstand, "Barbie, Marylin Monroe..Britney Spears.."
"Hey those bitches totally rock." she replied defensively, brushing the blue powder over her eyelids. She paused as she watched him playing with the frame, tossing it up in the air and catching it, "Babe, put that down!" she warned, "I swear if you break it...."
He rolled his eyes, but set it back down on the nightstand anyways, "Relax, Babe. It's not like you don't have plenty of them anyways, speaking of..." he pointed to the 3-foot carved image of the late actress by the foot of the vanity, "Where did that come from?"
She glanced down at it momentarily, "That is just one of the many gifts Victoria brought back from her little trip to California last week."
"How typical." he scoffed, "My mom does the exact same thing. She dissapears for weeks at a time and thinks she can make up for completely abanding her only child, by bringing me back bullshit presents even if-"He paused, noting the sudden crestfallen look on her face, "Hey..you okay?"
She looked up and gave him a small smile, "Yeah, yeah. Everything's good. I just-" she pursed her lips together, "They never call, y'know? And they just show up with expensive gifts and think that makes up for leaving their teenage daughter to take care of herself for weeks at a time."
"Brooke..." he sat up "C'mere." he said softly.
She stood up and walked over to him, leaning her head against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist, "It's okay." he whispered against her hair. "Look, who needs them right? I think we've both done a pretty good job of taking care of ourselves. Of taking care of each other. So what if they don't call or come home often? We don't need them right?"
She exhaled, feeling the faint build up of tears behind her eyes, "I know." she whispered, "But, just once I wished they would at least pretend to care. Just sometimes, alone in this big empty house...I can't help but feel alone, y'know?"
"Hey," he protested lightly, cupping her chin gently and bringing her hazel eyes to meet his blue ones, "You're not alone okay? You've got Haley..and you've got me. You'll always have me." he brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, leaning down to brush her lips lightly with his.
"Hmmm," she leaned into his kiss, her hand reaching out to caress his cheek. She pulled back a little, sighing happily. "I love you." she whispered staring adoringly into his eyes.
"I love you too." he smiled down at her softly, leaning his body into hers just a little bit more. "I'll always, always love you Brooke Davis."
"Okay, I'm going to make this quick." Haley began as she spotted Felix by the bleachers right before the game, "I'm going to tutor you, but there's going to be a few ground rules. One, you never ever speak to me unless it's concerning the subject matter. And that applies not only during our sessions but just generally period. Two, you are never to be late and the sessions will be when and where I schedule them." She paused, "And three, if you so much as make any insinuation or hit on me or try to pull anything in any way…I'm ending it. No questions asked. Got it?"
"You're really going to help me?" he asked a smug grin crossing his face, completely ignoring everything she just said.
She sighed, "Look my instincts are telling me you're full of crap and that after all the stunts you've pulled, the last thing you deserve is my help. But yes, I'm going to do it. Not because I really want to, but because it's the right thing to do. So I'll see you tomorrow, by the river front. At 7:00. Sharp."
"Wait, tomorrow? But tomorrow's Saturday." He protested.
"Right. So you better not get too drunk tonight, or better yet. Why don't' you just stay home altogether? I doubt anyone will miss you at Nathan's."
"But-"
"Look." She interrupted, "I've already wasted enough time with you today. Don't make me waste anymore, okay? It's 7:00 tomorrow or nothing. You decide."
Felix grinned smugly as he saw her walk away. She gave in. And so fast. Well done. He mentally patted himself on the back. He settled himself on the bleachers, completely satisfied with himself. He noticed both Scott brothers glaring at him from where they stood on the court and he just smirked at them, laughing as their annoyance only grew.
"Haley!" Lucas jogged over to the sidelines, intercepting the petite blonde as she walked by."Hey, I need to talk to you."
She looked at him, her pretty brown eyes guarded, "Why?, I'vesaid all I needed to say to you."
He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Look, I understand why you would still be upset with me. You're right. I shouldn't have read your journal. And I'm sorry. I really am, but that day in the tutor center…I was in a really dark place. With basketball, Dan,Nathan…just everything…and then I read some of your lyrics and it gave me light. It gave me hope. And-"
"Look that's great for you and all…." she interrupted him, "but you just don't get it do you? You read a part of me that's sacred. That's private." She rubbed her elbows with her hands and looked back at him, "And you had no right doing that. Do you have any idea what that means to me?" she shook her head and looked to the ground, "They may be nothing and not mean anything but it's a-"
"That's where your wrong Haley." He rebuked softly, cutting her off, "Because they mean something to me. And if it's that important to you..then it's not nothing. It's everything…and to the ones that care about you, that means the world."
She looked up in surprise, an unrecognizable emotion sweeping through her at his words. She exhaled and wrapped her arms around herself, smiling as she watched him jog back onto the court.
The game started promptly on time and despite the team's best efforts they trailed behind by 2 points the entire game.
Whitey ran his hand over his face in frustration, looking nervously at the ticking time on the dashboard. He signaled to the referee, "Time out!"
The boys in black and blue huddled around the coach as he went over with them what exactly he wanted to see.
"Okay, we've got exactly…" he glanced up at the clock, "18 seconds left on the clock. We need a basket to tie or a 3 pointer to win. But I don't want a tie. You guys are giving me the win." He stated firmly looking at each one of his players in succession, "You guys are going to go back out there and run black for Nathan."
He turned to his star player, "If they double you, fight through them and take your shot when we have five seconds left. All-right, let's go! Raven's on three."
"One, two, three, Ravens!"
They all jogged back onto the court and just a couple of seconds went by before Jake intercepted the ball from the defense and inbounded it over to Tim. Tim dribbled it and found Nathan open sending the ball his way.
Nathan caught the ball smoothly and found himself double teamed. He did a quick turn and shot up in the air, flicking his wrists gracefully, the ball hitting the heel of the rim. Jake ran past the defense and caught the rebound. He turned to his left and saw that Lucas was wide open behind the 3-point line. He bounced the ball over to him and the blonde caught it. He looked up and took a deep breath before flicking the ball up into the air. He held his breath, ignoring the buzzer sounding off and watched as the ball flew over to the net.
It sank nicely in and the entire gym erupted into cheers and applause.
"Unbelievable!" the announcer boomed over the speakers, "Lucas Scott with the 3-pointer at the buzzer, and the Tree Hill Ravens are still undefeated! And I tell you what, if you're going to play the Ravens this season, you better take note, there is a new Scott in town!"
Jake ran over to him and pulled him into a quick man hug, "Yeah! That's what I'm talking about Luke!"
Lucas grinned back and looked up towards the cheerleaders as the whole team, minus the younger Scott, swarmed around him. Peyton was beaming and her pom poms were shaking excitedly in the air. His eyes caught hers and he raised his fist in the air in victory, smiling as she mouthed, "You rock!"
She turned to the other girls, grinning and lead them into a chant chorusing her best friend's name.
Lucas walked out of the boys' locker rooms after a quick shower and headed back to the gym. He pushed through the double doors and glanced around, his eyes searching the room for his mom and uncle.
"Hey man! Nice game!" a guy he didn't recognize patted him on the back as he walked by.
He couldn't help but grin, "Thanks." His grin only grew wider when he spotted his uncle and his mom walking towards him. Both with equally huge grins on their face.
Keith held up his hand for a high-five, "That was an awesome game, Luke." He remarked proudly, "You rock!"
"Thanks, Uncle Keith." He turned to his mom and leaned down to hug her small frame.
"Y'know…" Keith started as the three made their way towards the exit, "For a kid that was about to quit…that was something to see."
"No it wasn't." he rebuked, shaking his head, "I picked up fouls too early, and I was slow getting back into it."
His uncle laughed, "Luke, go with it okay? You did great."
"You were awesome out there." His mom agreed with a radiant smile on her face.
He laughed, "Thanks guys. I'll see you guys in a bit. I'm going to wait for Peyton." He gave them a small wave as they exited the double doors.
Keith turned to Karen as they walked down the school halls, "You know…you did pretty good, too."
Karen pressed a hand over her heart and smiled, "I can breathe now."
"Nathan!" Brooke pushed through the crowd that still lingered and flung her arms around his neck, "How's my star basketball player?" her eyes twinkled as she leaned in for a kiss.
He shrugged her off, slightly irritated by her characteristic perky demeanor.
She seemed not to notice as she tucked her arm through his and leaned into him, "You played an awesome game tonight Babe. 15 points!"
"Are you kidding me?" he replied irritated, "I played terrible. You know how many games I've scored twice that?"
"What are you talking about? You looked great from where I stood."
"And that's why you're a cheerleader." He mocked, "You don't know anything about basketball."
She peered up at him surprised, "Ohh. Okay. I know what this is about." She said knowingly, "You're upset because of how well Lucas played tonight."
"Yeah, right." He scoffed, "So he scored 12 points, 3 of which gave us the win. So what? It's not like he's the next Bryant or anything."
She sighed, "Then why are you upset?"
"I'm not upset." He replied more harshly than he intended to.
She ignored his tone and hooked her arms around his waist, "I don't believe you." she smiled up at him coyly, " But what do you say we get out of here and head over to the beach house before your party and…."she leaned forward to place a small kiss on his mouth, "I'll make it all better Baby."
"Why is that always your solution to everything?" he pulled away from her, "Damn it Brooke. Not everything has to be about sex."
She pulled back to look at him in disbelief, looking hurt for a second. "Whatever." She said curtly, shrugging it off. "Suit yourself. I'll see you later."
She disentangled herself from him and pivoted on her heel, striding off in the opposite direction.
"Brooke…" he called out, in a half-hearted attempt. She didn't turn around and he slumped down in the bleachers, not really finding it in himself to care. Truth, be told, he had better things to worry about. Like his father walking towards him angrily.
"15 points?" Dan crossed his arms over his chest, "Way to go under your point average on your second game son. What the hell was with you tonight?" he demanded.
"What?" he replied defensively looking up at his father from where he sat, "It was 15 points with 8 assists. It was a damn good game." Sure, he wasn't all too happy with his performance tonight, but he'd never admit that to his father.
"For who?" he retorted, "You or your brother?"
Nathan recoiled, "So the punk got the winning shot? So freaking what?" he rolled his eyes and stood up, "I swear everyone's acting like he's Bryant or something. Anyone could've made that shot. He got lucky."
"Lucky or not, you should've been the one making that shot." He shook his head as his son frowned at the floor, "You don't even see it do you? It's not about him taking that winning shot. Although this is where your downfall starts. Tonight it's the winning shot…next time he takes all your shots, scores more points than you..and then you know what happens? Whitey gives him your spot and you don't even care do you?" he paused for effect, "I thought this was your team. But apparently you're letting that slip away too."
Lucas glanced momentarily at his watch as he looked around the almost deserted gym. His mom and Keith had just left and had promised him and Peyton a nice dinner waiting for them back at the café, in celebration of his performance tonight. But Peyton had yet to come out of the girl's locker rooms. His stomach grumbled hungrily and he glanced once more at his watch, willing her to hurry up.
"Hey." A soft voice called out behind him and he swiveled around in surprise.
"Haley…" he breathed, his heart pounding in his chest, "Wha-" he cleared his throat, "What are you still doing here?"
"I wanted to talk to you." she bit her lip, "I've been sort of avoiding you."
"Yeah…" he nodded slowly, "You sort of have. Not that I blame you. I deserved it. I-I shouldn't have snooped through your journal like that."
"Yeah, you shouldn't have." She agreed softly. She stared at him, her eyes holding his, "Lucas…did you mean it?"
"What?"
"What you said earlier…did you mean it?"
He looked over at her, her eyes were drawn to him and there was hidden emotion in them. He smiled, "Every word of it."
She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, catching him completely off guard. "Thank you." she whispered in his ear.
He exhaled in pleasant surprise and tentaviley wrapped his own arms around her slender waist, "For what?"
She smiled against him, "For making me believe in my music again." she pulled back slightly and brushed a soft kiss on his cheek, letting her lips linger on his skin for a second. She stepped out of his embrace and smiled, "I'll see you at Nathan's?"
He nodded, trying to find his voice after her small gesture.
"By the way…" she turned around and grinned, "Awesome game tonight Luke."
He couldn't help but grin back and he stood rooted to the same spot, his hand reaching out to touch the spot where her lips had just pressed moments ago. He exhaled deeply and turned around to find his best friend smirking at him.
"So you make the winning shot and suddenly they're all over you." she teased. "Look at you All-Star."
He blushed slightly and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, "I told you. All she had to do was see my killer jump shot. Remember?" He grinned, remembering their conversation a while back.
"You have the goofiest grin on your face." She shook her head amused, "It's disgusting."
He pretended to glower at her, "Shut up."
She laughed, "So was that the icing on the cake on this wonderful night? You were awesome Luke. 12 points, 5 assists and…" she paused dramatically, "The winning shot." She threw her arms around him, "Ohhh.I'm so happy for you."
He laughed as he hugged her back, "It's all up hill from here, Peyt." He agreed happily.
She wrapped her arms around him tighter, pleased that things were finally going his way. He seemed much lighter and just happy. That in turn, always made her feel more joyous.
The happy smile on her face faltered slightly as she caught a sight of something somewhat unsettling. Across the gym, a couple of feet away, she could clearly see Dan and Nathan engaged in an obvious heated discussion. Well, more like Dan really. The younger Scott was just standing there, glaring at the floor.
She pulled out of Lucas's arms slowly and watched as the older man stormed off, leaving the raven-haired boy to slump down in defeat on the bleachers.
There was but a fraction of a second before he looked up as if feeling her gaze. She found herself taking a deep breath, totally thrown off guard by the sudden vulnerability she could see reflected in his blue eyes.
She felt sympathy pulling at her heartstrings and was surprised by the sudden urge to go and talk to him. See if he was okay or something. She wouldn't though. So she just shot him a small smile.
He smiled back at her hesitantly, wondering why she was looking at him that way. He tried to read the expression in her eyes, but just as suddenly as she had turned to him, she turned away facing his blonde nemesis in front of her. Frowning slightly, he stood up and threw his sports bag over his shoulder, sauntering towards the exit.
"What was that?"
"What?" Peyton blinked up at Lucas, catching the annoyed glint in his blue eyes.
"You looked over and you smiled at him. Him." He stressed, "Why?"
"Lucas…" she shook her head, "It was nothing. Look, I barely even know him."
"Barely?" he asked incredulous, "Peyton please tell me that's not some sort of euphuism that you're getting to know him at all."
"Okay, so maybe we've talked a couple of times." She admitted hesitantly, "Well, more like he's annoyed me several times but-"
"Annoyed you? Sure doesn't look like it judging from that smile." He mumbled.
"Lucas…" she pressed her lips together and shook her head. "Don't you think you're reading just a little too much into it? So I've talked to him a couple of times, so what? That doesn't mean anything."
He looked back at her, not quite believing her, "You say that now." He shook his head and exhaled, "Great. That's the last thing I need. My best friend crushing after my jerk of a brother." He muttered.
She glanced back at Nathan's retreating form, "Trust me." she shook her head and laughed, "I am not crushing after your brother."