A/N Hey guys I am soo sorry for the very late update. Wow, I can't believe it's been more than a month! I hope you guys haven't given up on this story because I certainly haven't, trust me there is waaay more to come! I had a lot going on but I'm very glad to be back, and I'm glad I finally got a chance to post this chapter up. I have to admit it was an extremely challenging chapter (the hardest one for me so far) and it's a very looong chapter, but hopefully you guys won't mind ;). Please review! And hope you guys like it.

Nathan was not particularly in a celebratory mood. In fact, his spirits were pretty low and the last thing he felt like doing was hanging with his teammates drinking back shots at that night's party.

It was bad enough that he knew he hadn't played his best and that a certain blonde nemesis had scored the winning shot. But his Dad bad reminded him of that fact not only once, but twice when he'd caught up with him in the school's parking lot.

And to top it off, all he'd heard the entire evening was how well Lucas had played and that thanks to his last shot they were still undefeated.

Of course his friends knew better than to sing Lucas's praises. But that didn't stop everyone else from doing so. He didn't know what was worse…hearing everyone else comment on it or knowing his friends were deftly trying to avoid bringing up the game as if afraid to piss him off, though he knew they were pretty stoked from winning.

He looked up as he heard the slight commotion coming from the front door and scowled as he watched two familiar blondes walking in. His scowl only deepened upon witnessing several guys high-five Lucas and pat him on the back in obvious show of congratulatory praise.

How freaking sweet, he thought sourly catching Haley's bright smile as she walked side by side with the tall basketball player. She was obviously enthused by the warm welcome the other boy was receiving and was smiling happily and talking animatedly. Every part the perfect and proud girlfriend, he thought rolling his eyes to himself in disgust.

He was interrupted from his thoughts at the smooching sounds coming his left."Hey Nate!" Tim quipped loudly as the two blondes walked their way, "What do Haley and a vacuum have in common?"

Nathan turned around and smirked, knowing where Tim was going with this."They're both good at picking up trash."

"Hey, Haley I hear taking on charity cases looks really good on college applications." Tyler joined in laughing. "And apparently you're filling out yours a little early."

"Even if it is a lost cause." Nathan smirked, turning his attention to the petite blonde. "What's the matter Haley? Not going to stand up for the little punk this time? And here I thought that was your specialty." he crossed his arms and stared at her coldly.

She stared back at him, for the first time unsure of how to respond. Ignoring the challenge in his blue eyes, she turned to Lucas noticing his tense stand and the clenching of his fists. She grabbed his hand, not giving him a chance to respond. Without bothering to dignify them with a response, she simply strode past them, unwilling to let their crude comments faze her.

"Yeah, Haley. Nice move!" Tim hollered, "I'm sure you'll get extra points with your little boyfriend for that one. Hey, he might even give you his flea collar!" he turned to the guys, "Like a promise ring, get it? Only it's a flea collar because he's a dog…." he grinned, looking utterly proud of himself as the rest of the guys laughed and high-fived him.

Nathan ignored them, glaring after Lucas and Haley as they dissapeared out of sight hand in hand. She hadn't even responded to their comments, he thought slightly put off by her reaction. She'd just ignored them and walked away, like she could care less what they thought. Like it wasn't even important and she didn't care what they thought. No. Like she didn't care what he thought.

He still couldn't believe Haley had chosen Lucas's side in all of this. Why did she even care so much? She'd known the punk what, like 2 weeks? Whereas, she's known him practically all of her life. But she'd quickly disregarded that fact just to come to the defense of the bastard. He knew the reason, though she hadn't admitted it that day to him. But he'd seen it written on her face. Clearly. And apparently, what she felt for that punk, was definetely more important to her than the lifetime she'd known him.

Whatever. Screw them.

It was Friday, and there was no way in hell, he was going to let that ruin his weekend.


"What the hell is their problem?" Lucas asked irately, turning to Haley as they neared the kitchen.

"Oh, you mean besides displaying their typical asinine behavior?" she rolled her eyes, "I wouldn't heed their immature comments."

"No." he shook his head, "I meant with you. Sure, they were taking jabs at me…but strangely they were directed at you. I've never seen them intentionally try to cut you up like that. Especially Nathan." He peered at her curiously, "What's going on with you two?"

She walked over to the keg, avoiding his gaze, "What do you mean?"

"Well, I guess I've kind of noticed umm..tension between the two of you lately."

"Well that's just Nathan for you." she replied lightly, handing him a full cup of beer. "He's got these incredible mood swings between games. Sometimes you're on his good side and sometimes you're not. It's nothing." She shrugged trying to downplay the situation.

"Right. But like I said, I've never seen you at the receiving end of one of his tirades."

"Well maybe I'm not his favorite person right now." She finally admitted. "I mean aside from you." She smiled at him playfully.

"Of course." He smiled back, staring at her thoughtfully. "Is that it? Is that what they really think?"

"What?"

"That I'm uh…" he cleared his throat, "Your boyfriend? Is that why they're being jerks?"

Your boyfriend. Feeling a slight blush creep up her cheeks, she took a sip from her drink to cover the slight uneasiness. "Umm…could be. I don't know. But then again, do they really need a reason? " she grinned ,"Maybe they're just threatened with your new star status, y'know because apparently you're the uh bomb now."

"The bomb huh?" he shrugged, "I guess I have been told once or twice how amazing I am."

She laughed, "You're not going to let it get to your head are you?"

"Who me? Nah." He grinned, waving it off, "Besides I think one arrogant Scott in this town is more than enough."

"Yeah…" she giggled, "Hey, I know I said it earlier…but tonight was your night Lucas. You played good, like really good and…." she paused, reaching over to squeeze his hand lightly, "I'm really happy for you. Because I knew you could do it and it was just a matter of time before you believed it too. You're an amazing player Lucas Scott."

"Thanks Haley." He replied softly, thinking of how perfectly her hand seemed to mold into his, "It really means a lot."

She cleared her throat suddenly realizing how close they were standing. "How about a toast?" she suggested raising her cup in the air. "To an amazing game. And to what I'm sure will be an amazing season for you #3."

"To new beginnings." He agreed, raising his cup to meet hers. He took a sip, smiling as he realized he meant that in more ways than one.


Brooke walked around the beach house aimlessly, sipping her drink and feeling more than just a little bored. She'd been playing their now ritual drinking game with the cheerleaders and some of the guys, but had quickly gotten bored. Despite being ticked off with her boyfriend, she realized it really was no fun without him around.

Deciding she needed something a little stronger she made her way through the crowded living room and into the deserted kitchen. She opened the cupboard above the sink, pushing several cans of food out of the way before coming across what she'd been looking for. Jackpot! So much for your secret stash Deb, she thought gleefully as she stood on her tip toes and reached for the brand new bottle of Smirnoff Cranberry Vodka.

Satisfied, she twisted off the top and eagerly poured the clear liquid into her cup. Setting the bottle aside, she brought it up to her lips and swiftly emptied it in one big gulp.

Wiping her hand across her lips, she closed her eyes momentarily and braced her hands on the counter waiting for the familiar dizziness to pass.

Once it did she reached for the bottle again, uncapping it and rapidly filling her cup up to the brim.

"Whoa, slow down." Nathan came up behind her and took the cup from her hands. He shook his head, eyeing the now half-empty bottle, "What are you doing? Ever heard of alcohol poisoning?"

"Ever heard of backing the hell off?" she snapped, pushing him away and reaching across the counter for the bottle.

"Brooke…what the hell?" he demanded, swiftly moving the bottle behind him and out of her grasp. "You may be pissed off at me but I'm not going to let you drink yourself half to death."

"Oh, please,and I'm the drama queen?" She scoffed, "Don't flatter yourself. I could care less."

"Oh, really?" he raised an eyebrow, "Because you only hit the bottle when you're really upset or angry about something."

"Okay, you know what? You're right." She responded hotly, "It is about you. Because honestly? Being your girlfriend and having to put up with your shit is reason enough to want to suck up every last drop of alcohol in the entire fucking planet!"

Despite the sting and anger her words caused him, he chose to ignore it knowing they'd never get anywhere if he fought back. He exhaled and took a step towards her, "Brooke, I'm sorry okay? I know I was an ass to you earlier but-"

"Hold on….the great Nathan Scott is apologizing?" she pushed him away, bringing her hand up to her chest in mock astonishment, "And they said this day would never come. I mean it has to be the Apocalypse or something if you're apologizing for being a jackass right?"

"Whatever Brooke." He snapped, slamming the cup back in front of her, "Screw you."

"Screw me. Yeah, well maybe you should." She shot back, picking the drink up, "Might help relieve your fucking male PMS."

"Male PMS?" he turned around, shooting her a look of disbelief. "Are you kidding me?" he shook his head, "You don't even get it do you?"

"Get what? That you're self-centered son of a bitch who thinks the entire world revolves him and whatever stupid little problems are plaguing him this week? So you only scored 15 points, so what? Get the Fuck over it! You still played your best!"

"That's just it." he muttered through gritted teeth, "I didn't."

"What are you talking about?" she asked exasperated, "I saw you out there okay? You did a pretty damn good job so I don't understand why the hell you're so upset!"

"Well maybe not everyone saw the game the same way you did!" He shot back bitterly.

"Not everyone…what?" she stared at him confused and he looked away. After a couple of seconds she exhaled deeply, her anger deflating rapidly. "Nathan…" she began, her tone a lot softer, "Did your…is this about Dan? Did he say something to you?" she shook her head, "Of course he did. Dan Scott wouldn't be happy if you averaged 50 points a game." She retorted, answering her own question. She walked over to stand in front of him, placing both hands on his shoulders, "Don't let it bother you Baby. Screw whatever he said to you okay? You played an awesome game, regardless of how many points you scored or not. And all that matters is that you know that." When he didn't say anything, she frowned, "You don't think you did." She stated.

He exhaled and shrugged, still refusing to look at her. She bit her lip, reaching out to cup his face, "Nathan…" she said gently, "If this is about Lucas-"

"It's not." he denied in a sharp tone.

"It is." She nodded, knowingly, "So the guy scored the winning shot, so what? Let him have it. How many times have youcarried the team to victory after victory? How many times have you been the region's MVP? You bust your ass out there and you never play less than your absolute best. Look at me." she demanded softly, turning his face towards her, "You're still the star of this team, and one good night from him is not going to change that okay?" she paused frowning, "Look your Dad's an ass. And his expectations are absurd and ridiculous. But you're and amazing player. And I hate him for making you believe otherwise. You're the one who told me yesterday that I didn't need my parents. That I was doing fine on my own. And now I'm telling you the exact same thing." she smiled, "Remember? We've got each other."

"Yeah.." he finally smiled back, feeling the familiar rush of affection for her, "Always."

"C'mere." She muttered, reaching out to grab a handful of his shirt and pulling him so that he was mere inches away from her. She linked her hands behind his neck and brought her lips to his in a deep, passionate kiss that left them both breathless.

"What was that for?" he smirked slightly after he pulled away from her, trying to catch his breath.

"That Baby was my way of saying I'm sorry ….and this" she whispered pulling him by the collar into another searing kiss…"Is to show you just how amazing I think you really are."

"Hmm." He murmured, wrapping his arms around her waist, that familiar twinkle coming back into his blue eyes, "Want me to show you how amazing I think you are?" he whispered, pushing her backwards so that her back was up against the counter. His foul mood had instantly been turned around, and it wall all thanks to the beautiful girl staring back at him adoringly. She knew exactly what to say and do to make him feel better...always pushing her own anger at him to the side to accomplish that. "I love you." he said softly looking into her eyes deeply, realizing at that moment just how much.

"I love you too..." she giggled, "Now, how about you show me how much?" she giggled, bringing her arms up to his neck and pressing the full length of her body against his, eliciting a groan. "Nathan, I've never…" She leaned in and whispered in his ear, eyeing the fairly sized 2-door wooden pantry on the other end of the kitchen.

"Really?" he whispered in almost awe, pulling back to look at her to see if she was serious.

"Uh-huh." She nodded, rewarding him with that dimpled smile that always made his heart beat faster, "So what do you say Superstar? Are you up for it?"

"Hell yeah." He growled, picking her up in one swift motion and carrying them both across the empty kitchen.


It was a little past midnight when Nathan stumbled out the front door and into the front porch. Leaning over the railing he closed his eyes as his stomach lurched violently, instantly punishing him for the large amounts of alcohol he'd consumed in a little over an hour. After a few seconds he straightened up and rubbed his hand across his mouth, extremely glad that the party was raging on full force inside and had not spilled outside like normally. He'd been slinging back shot after shot with the guys in an ongoing contest and although he'd never admit it to anyone...it had been way more than he could handle.

"Great." a sarcastic voice called out behind him, "The perfect picture of teenage stupidity mixed in with too much booze on full display in front of me."

He looked up, surprised to realize that he wasn't alone. Peyton was sitting on the porch swing, rolling her eyes and shaking her head at what she had just witnessed.

"Well, hey there Ms. President." he grinned, turning around to face her, ignoring her snide comment,"Where have you been hiding all night? I was beginning to think you didn't show up."

She raised an eyebrow, turning to face him as he stumbled over and plopped down next to her, "Looking for me?"

He shrugged, giving her a side-long look, "What if I was?"

"Uh-huh." she took a sip of her drink, "And what brings you out here? I mean, asides from the fact that you obviously can't handle your alcohol."

He shook his head and smirked, "Y'know, I'm beginning to think you're a little anti-social Sawyer. And maybe just a little strange. Here you are out by yourself at a raging party while the rest of the-"

"90210 Barbie wannabe squad is getting plastered and sloppily hooking up with the first random body?"she suggested wryly, cutting him off, "Sorry, but I'd rather be a little strange than just one of the sheep."

He couldn't help but chuckle, despite the fact that she'd just directly mocked the entire cheerleading squad. "So, then why do you do it?"

"What?"

He shrugged, "Cheerleading. Why do you do it? Because you obviously don't fit the mold, now do you?"

"Why do you?"

He grinned smugly, "What are you talking about? I don't do cheerleading...the captain yes, but that's another story."

"Ugh. Spare the details. "She rolled her eyes, "You know what I meant."

He leaned back, resting his arm on the wooden rung, "Well because I'm good at it." he responded simply.

"Oh, and I'm not?"

He smirked, "Oh, nobody can deny that you're certainly a crowd pleaser."

She shot him a dirty look and he shrugged innocently, "It doesn't really seem like your thing. Not to mention the fact that you scorn the whole deal half the time and look like you'd rather be doing something else entirely."

"Well at least you're not completely oblivious." she replied wryly, "But I have my reasons."

"Like Lucas?" he asked knowingly.

"Not that it's any of your business." she exhaled, "But my mom was a cheerleader at Tree Hill High." she admitted.

"Huh." he said after a moment, looking at her thoughtfully, "I guess we may be more alike than I thought."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well maybe I know where you're coming from. Look don't get me wrong, I love the game and everything. I really do. And I'm good at it, y'know? But sometimes..." he paused, staring at the ocean in front of them, not really knowing why he was suddenly being so open about this, with her of all people. "I've always dreamed about making it to the NBA. That has always been my ultimate goal but..."

"But what?"

He exhaled, "But somewhere along the line...it got twisted into his dream. His goal. Does that make sense? It's like..it stopped being about me. And it became about him. Him and his failed dreams. Sometimes I feel like his living his basketball career through me." he turned his blue eyes to her, "Is that what cheerleading's become for you?"

She stared at him, slightly taken aback by his admission. "I-" she shook her head, swallowing against the sudden lump in her throat, "That's-that's not why I'm doing it. It's just the exact opposite actually." she replied softly, staring down into her cup.

It suddenly dawned on him that despite their several conversations throughout the past week, he still knew practically next to nothing about her. He knew the basics, like the fact that her Dad was gone most of the time and that she had grown up with Lucas and spent most of her time at his house. But it now occurred to him that she had never directly mentioned her mother. And he'd never asked her about her. Catching the sudden sadness reflected in her green eyes, he realized that in many aspects she was still very much a mystery.

"Your Dad's an ass."she remarked suddenly, in a desperate attempt to get off the subject of her mom.

"Of course." he scoffed, automatically rolling his eyes "The whole illegitimate son deal-"

She shook her head, "I meant with you."

He looked up, unable to hide the surprise in his blue eyes. "Uhh.." he cleared his throat, unsure of how to respond. "Well, yeah he can be a real hard ass sometimes." he began, a bit hesitantly. "But like I said, basketball is the most important thing to him. He likes to push me, make sure I always stay on top of my game-"

"Yeah, well he has a fucked up way of doing that." she raised an eyebrow,"Tell me, is he always that hard on you?"

He shrugged, feeling a bit uncomfortable at her sudden curiosity, "You know everyone always thinks Lucas got the screwed up end of the deal." he paused, shifting so that he was looking at her, "Sometimes...I guess sometimes it feels like the other way around."

"I don't think Lucas has ever thought of it that way."

"Neither have you." he pointed out.

"Maybe not." she agreed, biting her lip and turning to look at him, "But it's a lot easier to see something one way when you're on the outside looking in."

He sat there for a couple of moments, sifting through his own thoughts. On the one hand, he couldn't believe he was talking to her about his Dad and their issues. It wasn't just the fact that it was Peyton, but more simply the fact that he was talking about it to anyone. He wasn't someone that so easily opened up about this kind of thing. Sure, he and Brooke talked about it sometimes. But that was partly due to the fact that he was always trying to justify why he was such a jerk or trying to apologize for pissing his her off and using that as leverage. It sounded screwed up, but sometimes that was the case.

And it made him feel peculiar to be talking to Peyton of all people about it. It was funny, but she had always just been 'that emo girl' that hung out with his hated half-brother. The moody, curly blonde that seemed to have a permanent scowl on her pretty face. But this past week she had become just...Peyton. The girl who was not afraid to tell him exactly what she thought. The girl who so very easily spoke through her art and who's automatic sarcasm was used a way to protect herself from anyone getting too close.

"So anyways.." he began, abruptly changing the subject the only way he knew how, "Lucas must have been pretty upset that you were totally checking me out in front of him."

Her mouth dropped open slightly and she turned to glare at him, "What? I was not!"

He laughed, "Don't deny it. But who can blame you really?" he shifted so that he was leaning over her slightly. His hand reached out to push one of her curls behind her ear, "It's okay." he muttered, "I don't mind being obsessed over by hot blondes."

A faint blush tinged her cheeks and she swatted his hand away, "Stop hitting on me." she demanded.

Nathan smirked and he pulled back, "Why? I think you like it."

She glared at him, "Go work your charm somewhere else Scott, because I think you're seriously delusional."

"I think you're the one who's delusional." he teased, "Just admit it, Sawyer. You're hot for me."

"You're ridiculous." she scoffed.

"Uh-huh. Ridiculously Hot."

"Completely Infuriating."

"Infuriatingly sexy."

"You're completely misguided if you think this is charming." she scoffed.

"Trust me, there's nothing misguided about my charm."

She rolled her eyes and let out a breath of air, "You're asinine you know that?"

"See, right there. You complimented my ass. Ass is fine." he joked, "Geez, Sawyer I have a girlfriend y'know. Restrain yourself."

She attempted to glare at him, but found that she couldn't as her face broke into a small smile.

"Ah…" he nudged her teasingly, "So you do have a sense of humor."

"Of course I have a sense of humor." she retorted, "See, arrogant brain less jocks thinking every girl wants them? Absolutely hilarious."

"You keep telling yourself that Sawyer." he laughed, "And maybe one day you'll believe it too."


"I need you to go after Lucas."

Rachel nearly spit out her drink and she burst out laughing, "Oh my god." she gasped out, "I think I've had way too much to drink, because I could swear you just told me to go after Lucas."

Felix rolled his eyes, "You think I'm kidding? I want you to pretend to like him."

She stopped laughing and stared at him, realizing he was being serious, "What?" she crinkled her nose, "Ew. Are you insane? On second thought, maybe you need to stop hitting the bottle."

"Rachel! Be serious and just hear me out." he snapped.

"Geez, what's your problem?"

"You see that?" he demanded, pointing across the room, "That's my problem right there. And you're going to help me end it before it even really begins."

She turned around and watched as Haley and Lucas smiled sickeningly sweet at each other, looking as if they were having their own private conversation with their eyes. "Gross." she muttered, shuddering. She turned back to Felix, watching his face darken with annoyance, "Whoa." she laughed, "I didn't think you'd feel so threatened by that."

"I'm not." he replied shortly, "But the entire evening, he hasn't left her side. Not for one single second."

"Well, it doesn't look like she really minds."she replied, shooting him an infuriating smile.

"Whatever." he glowered, "She'll change her mind soon enough when she realizes that he's really just like every other guy. After only one thing."

"Really?" she stared at Lucas intently, watching as he stared adoringly at the other girl, seemingly hanging on to her every word, "Yeah, I don't think so. He's after one thing, that's for sure. But I can almost guarantee you it's not what you're thinking."

"I don't care if it's true or not." he rolled his eyes, "I just want her to think that. And that's where you come in, my dear easy friend. Get him tangled in your web, y'know work your uh attributes on him."

"You're forgetting something, my dear, delusional friend." she shot back, "But you see that guy over there?" she pointed to the other side of the room, where Nathan was engaged in another drinking contest. "Yeah, him. He'sthe one I want. You don't think I'm so stupid as to suddenly go after his much less hotter brother do you? I have a reputation to keep up y'know."

"Exactly. Nobody would think twice about it. It's not the first time you've changed your mind so suddenly."

"Ha-Ha. You're not helping your cause here Tagaro." she glared at him, "Look, girls like me just don't go out with losers like him okay? I couldn't go through with it."

"Oh, but you will." he assured her, digging in the pocket of his jeans, realizing he was going to have to pull out all the stops. He pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open, scrolling down to an image. "Because I have something that could very much change your mind." he handed her the phone and she stared down at it, her eyes widening.

"Felix, you idiot!" she almost screeched, looking back up at him furiously, "I could kill you for this y'know!"

"But you won't." he smirked, snatching the phone back, "Because now you need me. Like I need you. So what do you say dear partner?"

She stared back at him, realizing that in a way he was blackmailing her. He knew exactly how to corner her. She turned her gaze to the blonde basketball player across the room, studying him critically. It was going to take everything in her to do this. Sure, he wasn't too bad to look at. Some would even say he was in fact gorgeous. But there was more to it than just looks. Like status. Both socially and economically. And that boy certainly did not have either. But she liked a challenge. And this, she realized watching as Lucas tenderly brushed the hair out of Haley's eyes, was definitely going to be one. Hard, but not impossible, because despite all his deep, sensitive philosophical crap...Lucas was simply just another guy. And if anyone knew how to get what she wanted when it came to guys, it was her. Besides, watching Haley squirm was always of great pleasure for her.

"Fine." she finally conceded, turning back to him, "But first, there's something I need you to do for me. I need you to listen very carefully..."


"Hey, Brooke." Rachel started conversationally, smiling sweetly as she strolled up to her, "I absolutely love your dress. It's so chic."

"I know right?" she responded, flipping her hair over her shoulder "Too bad they don't have it in your size."

"Of course not." she returned, without missing a beat, "Designer stores don't usually carry extra smalls. But it's a good thing you can custom order them on line now a days right? You can order them in pretty much any size." she looked her up and down critically, smirking"Even large." Glancing quickly over her shoulder, she saw as Felix bounded down the stairs. He catched her glance and grinned, throwing her the thumbs up sign. Rachel grinned back and took this as her chance to put their plan into action.

"Now, if you'll excuse me..." she gave the brunette an infuriating smile, attempting to walk past her, but 'accidentally' loosing her footing, the full cup of beer flying out of her hands. Brooke shrieked as the foamy liquid splattered all over her and went down the front of her dress.

"Oh my god." Rachel gasped, "Brooke, I am sooo sorry!" she reached for a couple of napkins that were lying on the near counter, "Here let me help you."

"You bitch!"she yelled, swatting her hands away, "You did that on purpose!"

"What?" Rachel blinked at her innocently, "Brooke, it was an accident. I tripped."

She gritted her teeth, seething in anger. She let out an angry shriek and the next thing she knew, she was pushing all her weight on top of the redhead.

"Whoa, whoa Brooke!" Tyler rushed over, upon seeing the scene unfold. In one swift moment he picked Brooke up, "Girl kick back! This ain't no boxing match!"

"It will be as soon as you let me go!" she struggled furiously against his grasp, her eyes trained on Rachel who was obviously holding back her amusement.

"Brooke c'mon, it was an accident." Tyler said in an effort to calm the her down.

"An accident?" she screeched, "Are you insane? That was no fucking accident!"

"Okay, fine whatever. Look, just chill okay?" he rolled his eyes, "It's no big deal. Just go upstairs and change into something else."

"Not a big deal? Do you have any idea how much this cost? And how hard it was to find? You are such a guy. Completely clueless. Get off me!" she screeched all in one breath. She pushed past Tyler and went right up to the redhead. "I'll get you back for this slut." she hissed, "You're stupid if you think I'm going to leave it at this. It's not over."

Giving her one last menacing glare, she stomped past them making her way furiously across the living room.

You're damn right it's not over Davis. In fact, I'd say it's just about to begin. Phase 1...successfully complete. Rachel smiled in self satisfaction, watching as the brunette stormed up the stairs. The bomb is about to go off, and you my dear Brooke...are too stupid to even hear it ticking away.


"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul."

"Hmm." Lucas squinted thoughtfully, "William Henley. Invictus, 1875."

Haley exhaled, "Okay." she picked up her drink and took a long drink, "Umm, let's see...okay once in kindergarten, I broke down into hysterics and didn't stop crying until I totally puked all over the teacher."

He started chuckling and she hit him on the arm playfully as they walked along the shore, "Hey! It was the first day." she replied, slightly defensive. "I had serious abandonment issues. Totally embarrassing, I know. And to this day Jake still won't let me forget it."

"Jake?"

"Yup, front and center witness. Anyways, your turn."

"Okay...umm.., 'Mine honour is my life; both grow in one; take honour from me and my life is done.' "

"William Shakespeare." she replied easily with a grin, "Richard II, 1595."

"Damn." he brought the cup up to his lips and took a long swig, searching his mind for something to share. He and Haley had come up with this game, their own twist to Trivial Pursuit. One would recite a famous quote and the other had to guess the philosopher behind the quote, including the name of the piece and the year it was written. If they got it correct, the other one would take a drink and share something personal, like an embarrassing experience or a secret desire etc. It was an interesting way, to get to know each other even better.

"Okay, well staying on topic, sort of." he began, "Junior High, eight grade to be exact. I landed a date with Jessica Vallee to the Homecoming dance. She was your typical 'It' girl, cheerleader, most popular girl in school, y'know the deal. Anyways, I was incredibly nervous and jittery the entire day. It wasn't everyday that I had a date with the prettiest girl at THJH, I was a mess." he admitted, shaking his head at the memory. "As the day went on, I became more and more nervous and in an attempt to kill those nerves I stupidly drank oh I don't know about 6-7 cans of coke right before the dance." he paused, "We met at the front entrance and as I was trying to pin the corsage on her dress, my hands shaking and still nervous as hell, well let's just say that I ended up pinning more than the corsage on her dress that night."

"Lucas!" she clapped her hand to her mouth, unable to keep from giggling,"Oh my god, that's awful!"

"Yeah, tell me about it. The entire year I was known as Pucas."

Her giggles turned into hysterics and he attempted to glare at her, but unable to as a smile broke out on his lips and he found himself laughing along with her.

"Oh gosh." she catched her breath, wiping her eyes. "Your story totally beat mine, dude. Okay, okay my turn." she pondered for a second and then turned to him with a sly smile. "And you get bonus points if you get this one."

"I didn't know we were keeping a score here Haley." he grinned teasingly, his blue eyes sparkling, "What's these bonus points you talk about?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself there buddy." she pointed a finger at him playfully, "Get it right first and then we'll see.."she paused for effect, " 'I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go. Things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right. You believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.' "

"Huh?"

"Oh, c'mon I'm going easy on you with this one."

He rubbed the back of his neck, utterly confused "I just don't...is it a trick question or something?"

She laughed, "Nope. Give up?"

"I want to say yes, but then I think about what these so called bonus points could be and I-"

"Lucas! C'mon you've got..." she checked her wristwatch, "30 seconds."

"Oh, so now you're timing me?" he chuckled.

"10...9...8.."

"Okay, I'll take a shot in the dark here...Helen Keller?"

"Helen Keller? Dude...seriously."

He laughed, "What? So I don't know it, sue me. Besides Helen Keller, she was like the picture of optimism in her days."

"Uh...no. Not even close." she nudged him jokingly, "You are seriously clueless. It's Marilyn Monroe...how can you not know that?"

"Oh, yeah sure." he nodded, "Because y'know, my favorite past time is indulging in the great philosophical works of America's favorite blonde bombshell."

"Oh god." she giggled, "Please don't ever let Brooke hear you say that. She'll think you're being dead serious."

He smiled, "Brooke?"

"Yeah, she has like this complete strange obsession with what she refers to as, 'the greatest woman who ever lived.' She has all kinds of memorabilia and stuff. And she just swears by her. It borders on creepy actually." she giggled, "And the sad thing is...I'm not kidding."

He chuckled, "Y'know sometimes I look at you and Brooke and I can't help but wonder how exactly the two of you are best friends. I mean, you're so different."

"Yeah, sometimes I wonder that too." she joked, "No, but that's what's so wonderful about us y'know? We're so different, but yet we click. It's like that old saying, 'Opposites attract'? That's us. And sure, sometimes we disagree and even fight, but through it all we're always there for each other. No matter what." she smiled fondly, "Brooke's amazing really. She has her flaws like everyone else but if there's one thing that's important to her is the people she loves. And she will do absolutely anything for them. I really don't know what my life would be without her. It'd be a lot duller, that's for sure." she turned to him, "When you've known someone basically your entire life..you're intertwined forever y'know? They stay with you, always."

"I know what you mean." He smiled, "Peyton has been like the one constant thing in my life. I know that no matter where I go, or what happens she'll always be there. I can always count on her to tell me exactly what I need to hear, make me laugh when I really need it, or give me a kick in the ass when I really need it y'know?"

She nodded, "You guys go way back huh?"

"Oh, waaay back." he chuckled, "What about you and Brooke?"

"Actually, it hasn't always been just me and Brooke." she replied, "I've known Jake longer actually. My parents and his, well they go way back into their college years. So, pretty much we've known each other since birth. My parents are his godparents."

"Really?"

"Yeah, most people don't know that. He was an only child, I was the youngest so naturally we bonded and for a long time it was always just me and him. Until first grade." she shook her head and smiled as she reminisced, "Then a little prissy 6-year old Brooke Davis came along." she laughed, "She took one look at me and said, 'Your mommy must not love you very much if she made you wear that ugly shirt.'"

Lucas started laughing, "Seriously?"

"Yeah." she shook her head, "She was horrible, but Jake immediately took a liking to her and would always invite her to play with us."

"And I'm guessing that just went overly well with you right?" he teased.

"Jake was my only friend." she shrugged, "I had to put up with her."

"So, the three musketeers huh?"

"Make it four. Little Nathan Scott came along later that year. He already knew Brooke, their parents ran in the same circle. Well, he and Jake hit it off right away, I think Jake was just glad for some male companionship. And after that for a really long time, it was just the four of us. Always sticking together. We were pretty much inseparable."

He looked up surprised, "Really? Jake and Nathan?"

"Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Sure, doesn't seem like it now right?" she paused, staring thoughtfully ahead of her. "I don't really know when it all changed. Maybe the summer before Freshman year...we all just drifted. Nathan's Dad really started pushing him when it came to basketball around this time. Suddenly, it was all basketball drills and around the second week, he shipped him off to some basketball camp. And Jake..well he started seeing that awful girl Nikki. She was the worst, a total manipulator when it came to his time. We never saw him the entire summer. So that just left me and Brooke. We were already best friends, but I think that summer just really strenghtened our bond even more."

He took a sip of his drink, "How did the whole Brooke and Nathan thing happen?"

"Brooke and Nathan? Y'know one day he's hooking up with my sister." she laughed at the look on his face, "Yeah, I know. Anyways, one day he's hooking up with my sister and the next he and Brooke are totally all over each other. Everyone thinks it came out of nowhere, but I didn't think so. They're so similar, it was inevitable. And it was always there between them. Even as kids, there was always an underlying tone with Nathan and Brooke. I think it was especially more noticeable during middle school. She was always trying to seek his attention, and vice versa. During his and Jake's basketball games, she always cheered for him just a little bit louder." she shook her head, "And for some reason, nothing ever looked good enough when it came to just hanging out with 'the guys.'" she smiled, "Anyways, as y'know the rest is history and here we are now."

"Okay, well now that I've got the 411 on the Fab Four..." he teased, to which she rolled her eyes, "Back to the game James, it's my turn."

"I think not! You lost, mister. So, fess up!"

"I didn't lose. You cheated."

"I did not!"

"Yes, you did!" he laughed, "The theme was famous philosophers not-"

"Okay, okay, so I deviated from the subject matter a little bit, so what?" she interrupted, rolling her eyes, "You still lost."

"Fine." he conceded, shaking his head, "I've learned throughout my lifetime, never to argue with a woman. You will always lose no matter what. So I'll give."

She grinned, "That's what I like to hear Scott."

He chuckled, "Okay, so a huge confession you want?" she looked at him expectantly and he exhaled, "Okay, here's one for you." he paused, "My first-kiss-was-with-Peyton." he said quickly.

She nearly choked on her drink and her eyes widened, "I thought you said that you and her..only..what?"

He winced, "Yeah. Look, I promised her I would never tell anyone and it wasn't a big deal, really. It's just, well..we were 13. And extremely curious, hormones were at their peak and-"

"Say no more. I get it."

"It wasn't a big deal." he exhaled, not knowing why he felt the need to explain, "And it was a one time thing. We both realized that."

"Hey, it happens. You know someone your entire life and well, you have those moments of curiosity." she paused, "I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a couple of those myself."

He suddenly stopped and stared at her, eyes squinting, "Did you? Have moments of curiosity? With Jake or..." he cleared his throat, "Or Nathan?"

She stared at him like he was crazy, "Uh..neither. No, that's just... Ew. No. I've known them forever. I just meant in general."

"Oh, okay." he said, feeling something like relief at that. It would just be too screwed up for him if the girl he liked had ever had any romantic thoughts for his half-brother, past or not. He didn't know how he would feel about that.

"Okay, last round. Your turn."

"Oh. Right." he rubbed the back of his neck and stared thoughtfully at her, "Okay, well seeing as how we completely deviated from the theme..." he began teasingly, "Here goes...

I do believe it's true
That there are roads left in both of our shoes
If the silence takes you
Then I hope it takes me too
So brown eyes I hold you near
Cause you're the only song I want to hear
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere

"Well, at least I know it's a song." she pursed her lips together, "Can I at least get a clue?"

"Nope."

"I don't know it." she admitted, taking a long sip of her drink, "I'm throwing the towel in."

"Wow, that was easy." he teased, "I didn't even have to time you."

"Ha-Ha." she shoved him playfully, "What's the song?"

"Soul meets Body, Death Cab for Cutie." she gave him a look and he shrugged, "Peyton's into all these Indie bands. I listen."

"Any reason for that, uh particular song?" she questioned lightly.

He shrugged, staring at her out of the corner of his eye, "I guess you could say it sorta reminds me of someone."

"Oh, well uh seeing as how I lost..." she took a long sip of her drink and stared ahead of her thoughtfully. She was quiet for several minutes, "I've never been in love." she admitted softly.

He cleared his throat, "Never?"

"I've-I've thought about it, y'know? Is it everything you read about in books, see in the movies?" she turned to glance at him, "How does it feel? How do you even know? " she shook her head, "Y'know, I asked Brooke about it once and she told me you just know. You don't question it and you can't explain it, but it's just there." she laughed softly, "That just sounds complicated."

"As corny as it's going to sound, love is never complicated." he smiled, "When you're with the right person, you'll be able to just feel it."

"How?"

He cleared his throat and looked away, slightly uncomfortable, "You just will." he responded simply, "They're always on your mind. Your heart beats faster, your pulse accelerates when they're near. Any simple contact can leave you almost breathless and their smile can light up your entire day." he paused, staring out at the water, "Y'know you can hear any song or read any poem and you will always find a line that makes you think about this person. It's about wanting to be a better person, feeling like you can do anything and be anyone, just as long as they're with you." he turned to look back at her, his gaze intense, "It's this overwhelming feeling when you look at them...that there is order and meaning to this world and that there is nowhere in the world you'd rather be." he finished softly.

She looked back at him, mesmerized by his words, "You sound like you know from experience." her voice was very soft, "Have you ever been in love Lucas?"

"Yeah." he smiled, staring deeply into her eyes, "I guess you could say I have."

And she was left to wonder why that thought and the way he was gazing at her left her completely breathless


Brooke stormed up the stairs and into Nathan's room in a huff. She was absolutely furious. How dare that stupid bitch Rachel do this to her?

"Accident, my ass!" she seethed, stomping over to the the dresser on the other side of the room. Opening the first drawer, she rummaged through the items looking for a clean shirt. She dug through the clothes and let out a sound of frustration upon not finding anything. She yanked out the second drawer angrily. "I know I left my Jax Couture sundress here last time! Where is it?" she threw shirt after shirt over her shoulder but still no dress.

What she came across next left her utterly confused. She picked up the very familiar, but yet very out of place piece of clothing. It was her cheerleader's uniform, only it wasn't hers, she realized, staring at the stitched in gold letters on the back of the skirt. R.G.

"What? Why is Rachel's..." she swallowed hard and looked back down at the skirt, praying she was making a mistake. But no. The gold letters, stared back at her, clear as water. When she'd first became captain, she'd had everyone's outfits personally tailored, with their initals stitched in to avoid any confusion. It was Rachel's uniform. What was it doing here?

A feeling of dread began to settle heavily in the bottom of her stomach as she let it drop to the floor. With shaking hands she opened the next drawer, only finding more items that she knew didn't belong to her. Intimate items. Her head spinning, she kept rummaging through the drawer, as if desperately digging for any type of explanation.

What she found next left her completely paralyzed.

Her heart stopped beating and slammed into her chest as she shakily picked up the 8x10 frame sized blown up picture and the phone besides it.

"I need it to replenish my resources after tonight."

"Okay, Ew. So didn't need to know that. After all, who knows where your resources have been tonight."

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"No." she whispered, shaking her head furiously, "It can't be."

How could he do this to me? Feeling the tears sting behind her eyes, she leaned her entire weight against the dresser as it suddenly became very hard to breathe.

The unbearable heaviness in her chest was suddenly replaced with rage and disbelief and without thinking twice she grabbed the items and flew downstairs.


"Hey, there handsome."

Lucas swiveled around and looked over surprised at Rachel. The redhead was walking towards him. "Uh..hey."

She went to stand next to him and leaned her elbows on the rails, grinning up at him flirtatiously "What are you doing out here all by yourself cutie?"

"I was actually waiting for-" he cleared his throat and pulled back slightly as she leaned towards him. "Haley."

"Tutor girl?" she raised an eyebrow, "You two have certainly been friendly lately haven't you?"

"Yeah, you could say that."

"But she's not your girlfriend or anything right?" she asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him and taking another step towards him.

"Uh, no." he coughed, pulling away even more as the strong scent of her perfume infiltrated his senses

"Well, that's good."

He squinted at her, "For who?"

She rolled her eyes playfully, "For me, silly. Duh."

"Uh, okay." he looked at her strangely, all the meanwhile looking over her shoulder nervously for any signs of Haley.

"Oh, Lucas." she giggled, not taking the hint and cornering him until his back was flat against one of the posts. "You are soo cute when you're nervous." she fiddled with the collar of his shirt, one of her hands snaking behind his neck, "I'm not making you nervous am I?" she teased, grinning in satisfaction as she watched him take a deep breath.

"You are so hot." she murmured seductively not giving him a chance to respond and wrapping her other arm around his neck securely, "And you were totally on fire tonight. You rocked." Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a slight movement and she took this as her sign. Time to go in for the kill.

"A performance like that totally deserves a kiss." she whispered huskily, swiftly bringing his head down to hers and crashing her lips against his.

Haley slid open the glass door to the back porch and the two cups in her hands almost fell from her hands as she stared in shock at the sight in front of her.

She must have gasped or made a sound, because in the next instance Lucas roughly pushed Rachel away and glanced up at her, completely shell-shocked, "Haley."

Rachel however rolled her eyes, "Geez, Haley. Way to ruin a moment."

He stepped away from the redhead and wiped his mouth nervously, "I can-"

"Kiss." Rachel interjected, winking at him, "Yeah, you can kiss all right. Wow, is all I have to say." she turned to Haley, who looked completely dumbfounded, "Now, I have it on pretty good authority what brother is the better kisser. Hmm, I wonder who the better lover is.." she laughed at the angry look on the blonde's face. Taking one of the cups from the blonde, she turned to Lucas and held the cup in the air, "Here's to finding out gorgeous." she blew him a kiss,"See ya, #3. Don't be a stranger."

"Bitch." Haley muttered under her breath, watching as the redhead made her way back into the house. Turning her eyes back to Lucas, she sent him a tight smile, handing him the other cup, "Well..can't leave you alone for even a second, before the skanks start marching in huh Scott?" she said, attempting to keep the slight bitterness out of her voice.

"Haley...that was. I did not initiate that. You have to believe me."

"Hey, it's cool." she shook her head, trying to brush it off. "You don't have to explain. Besides it's Rachel, we all know how friendly she likes to be with the basketball players."

"Right." he took a sip of his drink, noticing the slight frown on her face "You're not mad are you?"

"Hmm? Oh, no." she shook her head vehemently. "Of course not." she responed quickly, turning away from him and staring out at the ocean a couple of miles in front of them. She let out a long breath, trying desperately not to think about the tightness in her chest at having witnessed Rachel all over Lucas.

"Oh. Okay." he responded, furrowing his brow, "What did she mean by that?" he inquired.

"What?"

"About knowing what brother was-"

She cut him off, "Look Rachel's just a bitch and she likes to try and stir things up. Don't listen to her."

"Okay, if you say so." he shrugged, not totally convinced that was it but not really wanting to push the subject any more. It was obviously a sore subject between them and something Haley obviously didn't want to delve into.

She exhaled, "So, anyways...how was it?" she smiled teasingly, pushing the prior feelings of slight discomfort away.

"Umm.." he squinted thoughtfully, "Have you ever sucked on a jelly fish with too much lipstick?"

She started laughing, "Oh, my god shut up! You're making that up."

"Maybe." he agreed, laughing with her, "But it was almost just as bad."


Nathan laughed as he watched Tyler and Vegas try to shakily hold up Tim up by the legs upside down. He cheered along with everyone else as he successfully guzzled from the beer bong.

"Nathan!"

He turned around and blinked in surprise as Brooke strode over to him, her face a mask of devastation. He frowned, "Brooke? Babe, what's wr-"

He was sharply cut off as her hand connected with his cheek, the sound breaking through the loud noise around them.

"Brooke, what the hell?" he demanded, his hand flying out to rub his cheek immediately.

"That's what I want to know you son of a bitch!" she screamed, immediately catching everyone's attention. "What. The. Hell." she shoved a phone and picture in his hands, "How could you do this to me Nathan?" she yelled tearfully, "And with HER?"

He stared down at the picture and he froze, his breath instantly locking in his chest. A heavy feeling of dread began to slowly sink in his stomach and he stared at her, "Where-" his voice came out strangled and he cleared his throat, "Where did you get these?"

"Are you seriously asking me that right now?" she screeched, barely noticing that somebody had turned the music off and everyone was slowly gathering around them. "I found them in your fucking room. Upstairs! Where obviously your little tryst with that whore has been going on for god knows how long!" her hand reached out once more to hit him hard across the chest, "How long Nathan? Tell me! How long have you been fucking that bitch behind my back?"

He grabbed her arms, to stop her flailing movements, "Brooke! Listen to me! I haven't-"

"You haven't what?" she shook him off angrily, "You haven't been cheating on me? Are you going to deny it to me? Say you didn't do it?" she laughed harshly, "Boy, there's a fucking classic guy move! Deny, till the end right? Even when all the fucking evidence is stacked right up against you!"

"What evidence? What are you talking about?" he hollered back, no longer caring himself that they were being heard by the entire junior class. He held up the picture, "Is this it? It didn't mean anything okay! It was just one fucking kiss, not a-"

"Are you kidding me?" she screeched, "Why don't you go upstairs and see everything your preciousl little lover left behind! But, I bet you didn't think I'd find any of it right? You thought you could keep playing me for the poor stupid, naive girlfriend right?" she wiped her eyes angrily, "Well, your game is through Scott! And now I never want to-"

"Hey guys. What's going on?"

Brooke swiveled around, her anger completely going over the edge as she saw the redhead, smiling at them innocently. "You have some fucking nerve." she hissed, between gritted teeth. She strode right up to her, and without giving her a chance to react she landed a clean, straight punch in her face, sending the redhead flying backwards from the force of the blow.

"Ow." Rachel slowly got up, her hand covering her nose. "Nice blow, Brooke." she winced, turning to Nathan she smirked, "So the secret's finally out huh?" she turned back to Brooke, "Aw, sweetie and it took you this long to finally figure it out?"

"Rachel, shut the fuck up!" he spat angrily, glaring at her forcefully. Turning to Brooke, he reached for her hand frantically, "She's lying." he pleaded. "Brooke, please let me explain, there's nothing going on between me and Rachel. I-"

"Just stop! I don't want to hear it!" she shook him off angrily, "And I never want to see you again, you lying cheating bastard. We're over!"

She pushed through the crowd angrily, wanting to get as far away as possible. But not before, turning back and landing another clean punch across the redhead.


"Brooke!" Nathan called, running after her as she stormed angrily out the front door, "Brooke, wait!" he ran down the front steps and reached out, reaching for her hand. "Baby, please! Just let me explain."he pleaded urgently.

She jerked away from his grasp, whirling around to face him, her eyes hard and unforgiving and he flinched, "Explain what?" she spat out, "That you slept with her? That you kissed her?" she shook her head furiously, her eyes strangely cold. "What's there to explain? You cheated on me Nathan. And nothing you say or do is going to change that."

He hung his head, knowing she was right, but unable to let it go. He couldn't. "Brooke..." his voice cracked and he took a deep breath, trying to fill his lungs with air. "It was a mistake. A momentary, fleeting and extremely stupid mistake."

Her heart constricted painfully and she swallowed through the lump in her throat. "Well, the biggest mistake I ever made was ever loving you. Believing in you. Trusting you." her voice came out strangled and she blinked back tears, "But you know what? I'll never do it again."

"You don't mean that." he shook his head, his voice thick with emotion. "Brooke, I'm sorry. It meant nothing, you have to believe me."

"That's where you're wrong Nathan!" she yelled back tearfully. "Because it meant everything to me. It meant enough to end our relationship." she bit her lip, fighting back the tears. "I hope that bitch made it worth it for you, because I will never ever forgive you for this!"

She turned on her heel and he ran up to catch up with her, swiveling her around, "Brooke, please." he pleaded, desperately searching her eyes, "This can't be it. We can't be over like this."

She closed her eyes tightly, unable to stop the tears from leaking out. "Let me go." she whispered, her voice hollow. "Please." he did as she asked and she wiped her eyes, tiredly. "Nathan.." she took a deep shaky breath, looking at the ocean in front of them. "You said to me, on this exact same beach. Just a couple of days ago..'It's going to be you and me forever." she pressed her lips together to keep them from trembling as the tears continued to flow freely down her cheeks. ""And I believed you. I really did." she choked out. "But your forever means absolutely nothing now."

He looked away, unable to stand the tears in her eyes. Especially knowing he was the reason they were there in the first place. "Brooke.." he whispered hoarsely, "I'm sorry."

She let out a bitter laugh, wiping the tears away angrily. "Your sorry is not worth anything to me anymore." her hand reached up to rip out the silver necklace that hung elegantly on her neck. "You see this?" she grabbed his hand and balled it up in his fist. "It's broken." she whispered, "Just like we are. Forever."

"Brooke..."his voice came out just above a whisper and he shook his head, his heart clenching in his chest as he watched her walk away, but unable to stop her. His mind reeling, he stared down at the necklace in his hand. The one he'd given her on their one-year anniversary. Through a thin veil of tears, he stared at the inscription on the tiny silver heart. B+N Forever.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the two familiar forms of Haley and Lucas, walking towards the house, smiling and laughing completely unaware of everything that had just transpired moments ago. Something about that, made something inside of him snap and he was suddenly overcome with anger towards the blonde girl he'd always considered a best friend.

"You must be real fucking happy Haley." he called out angrily. "Thanks for screwing me over, friend."

The two blondes stopped and stared at him. "What?" Haley stared at him confused, walking tentatively towards him. "Nathan..are you..what's going on?"

"What's going on?" he laughed harshly, "I can't believe you. We had a fucking deal Haley. I left your little boyfriend alone, you wouldn't tell Brooke about Rachel." he shook his head angrily, "I kept up my end of the deal, but apparently you couldn't resist. Of course." he spat angrily, "Saint Haley always has to do the right thing. She had to find out from you!"

Her mouth dropped open and she started at him at a total loss, "Nathan, I didn't-"

"Wait, what?"

They both turned around and Brooke stared at them, looking even more crestfallen than before, if possible. "Haley, you knew about this?"

"No! Brooke, I don't..what's going on?" she looked between them, trying to comprehend the situation.

"Show's over Haley." Nathan sneered, "She knows about Rachel okay? So drop the act. I know you're the one who told her."

"Nathan!" she shouted, "I didn't tell her!"

"No, you didn't tell me!" Brooke cut them off angrily. "That's what you two were arguing about that day at the beach house isn't it?"she stared at them in disbelief as it all started clicking together in her mind. "And that's why you.." she looked at Nathan, "Suddenly left him alone." she pointed at Lucas. "And why you two..." she turned back to Haley and Nathan, "Have been anything but civil this past week." she backed away from them slowly, shaking her head, "I can't believe the two of you would ever stoop so low as to-" her voice broke and she bit her lip and turned on her heel, unable to take anymore.

"Brooke!" Haley ran after her and stopped her "It wasn't like that..I-"

"I can't believe you kept something like this from me Haley!" she cut her off angrily. "Did my feelings mean absoulutely nothing to you? Did you even consider them when you made that fucked up deal with Nathan?" she held up her hand, "You know what? Don't even bother. You're just as bad as he is." she gave her an icy stare, "I can't believe I called you my best friend Haley James."

"Brooke!" Haley watched dejectedly as the brunette ran past her, not heeding her calls.

Lucas caught up with her and he placed an arm on her shoulder, "Haley..."

She turned to face him, her face stunned. "I-I can't..I mean..what..." she shook her head and burst into tears. She buried her face in Lucas's shoulder, suddenly comprehending for the fist time how badly she'd screwed up.


Blinded by tears, Brooke ran towards the back of the house. She pressed her back against the wall, leaning against it for support. She sank down on the sand painfully, burying her face in her hands and taking long deep breaths to fill her cold, icy lungs.

"I sorta kinda like you Brooke Davis. You're pretty much always on my mind."

"You're not jealous are you?"

"Of course not! You're my.."

"Your what?"

"You're testing me aren't you?"

"Brooke Davis do you want to be my girlfriend?"

"You're mine now."

"Look, I've been with a lot of girls okay? But I've never been with them the way I'm with you."

"It's scary. The way that I feel about you."

"You're going to make it big one day Superstar. You'll be the biggest star the Laker's have ever seen, and I'll be by your side. Cheering you on. Always."

"That's a promise."

"I missed you."

"Let's never fight again."

"You are so beautiful and you're all mine."

"You got a tattoo?"

"We're in it together."

"Are you two insane?"

"I had this dream last night..."

"You wish."

"Brooke Davis Scott..Damn, that does sound good."

"Was that really your first time?"

"I love you."

"I can't believe this."

"Get out."

"I'm sorry."

"I don't know about the future. 2, 5, 10 years from now I don't know. All I see is you."

"I'll always, always love you."

"You and Me...together...forever."

She shook her head, screaming out in frustration as she furiously tried to block out the hundred of sweet memories that seemed to flood her mind. She dissolved into tears, the huge sobs racking her body.

She couldn't take this. She hated him. She hated them. How could they do this to her?

They were the two people she trusted the most in the entire world and they'd both betrayed her in the worst possible way.

She had to get out of there.

Her entire body felt heavy with sadness as she struggled to get up. Her heart felt like it was dying, and there wasn't enough air to fill her lungs, as pain and anger beat as one in her chest.

But only one thing mattered now. And that was getting as far away from there and them as possible.


"Whoa! Hey watch where you're-" Peyton started as she slammed straight into someone. She paused, "Brooke?" she called out, watching the heartbroken cheer captain rush past her.

"Leave me the hell alone!" she yelled back tearfully, jumping into the powder blue Volkswagen.

Peyton stared after her, as she revved up the engine and peeled out of the driveway. She was utterly at a loss. Never had she seen the girl so upset.

She briefly wondered what could've possibly happened to get the usually cheerful brunette so upset.

Something was very wrong.


Haley pulled out of Lucas's comforting hold, "Lucas..." she wiped her eyes, "I need to find Brooke. I need to talk to her and explain-"

"Haley.." he cut her off, gently brushing her hair away from her eyes, "She's upset right now and I really don't think-"

"That's exactly why." she replied frantically, "You don't understand, Brooke has this terrible habit of drowning her sorrow in alcohol when she's really upset and I couldn't..what if something happens to her? Please, Lucas." she begged tearfully. "I need to find her and you're the only one who can help me right now."

"Okay." he nodded, immediately understanding the frantic situation. "Let's go."

He put his arm around her to steady her and led her towards the back to Peyton's car. He would just call his best friend later and explain the situation to her. He was sure she would understand.


Peyton had taken one step inside the beach house and almost immediately knew something was off. The entire atmosphere was almost somber. The party was still going on strong obviously, but there was a sort of thickness in the air, and there were several little groups, just huddled together and whispering to each other. It was as if something huge had just went on and now everyone just sat around in shock absorbing the aftermath.

Figures.

She had been hanging out by the beach the entire evening, preferring her solace to the huge crowd so she had obviously missed something huge.

As she walked outside and down the driveway, she quickly spotted Nathan slumped down in his black-top convertible, drinking heavily from a small flask. She shook her head and walked over to him, leaning over the passenger's side."You really don't learn do you?" she commented, in her usual sarcastic tone, "I thought we'd established earlier that you can't handle your alcohol Scott."

He didn't even turn to look at her, taking a long swig of the flask, "Screw off Sawyer." he muttered.

She straightened up, a bit surprised. "Well, excuse me for-"

He twisted in his seat to look at her and she was suddenly taken aback by his blood-shot eyes. "Look, I'm not in the fucking mood for our little banter routine as you can see." he snapped, "So just leave me the hell alone."

She rolled her eyes, "Fine. Be an ass. I don't even care."she retorted, "But just so you know? I ran into your girlfriend a little while ago and she sped out of here in her VW terribly upset." she crossed her arms, "But judging from your attitude, I wouldn't be surprised if you had everything to do with it!"

"Wait." he sighed, feeling thoroughly defeated, "I'm sorry, okay?"

She walked over to him slowly, her voice a lot softer. "What happened?"

He slumped even further down in his seat, "I screwed up." he whispered hoarsely, his voice thick with unshed tears. He turned to look at her and she was suddenly struck by the sadness inflicted in his blue eyes.

She stared at him quizzically, "What are you talking about? What'd you do?"

He emptied the contents of the flask and sent it flying out the other window, crashing into the floor. "I have to find her." he muttered suddenly, sitting up straight and fishing out the keys from his pocket.

"Are you insane?" she stared at him incredulously as he tried to start the engine. "Nathan! Stop." she leaned across him quickly and snatched the keys from his grasp.

He glared up at her, "Look, I don't need you on my ass right now okay? Just give me the damn keys."

She glared back at him, "How much did you have to drink?" she demanded.

"It doesn't matter." he said irately. "Sawyer, I'm not kidding. Give me back the fucking keys!"

"And neither am I." she shot back. "Are you a complete idiot or what? Oh, wait. I forgot who I was asking. You can't drive!"

"Says who?"

"Says me, dumb ass. The last thing you need to do right now is get yourself into an accident and-"

"Don't tell me you're worried about me?" he scoffed.

She rolled her eyes, "No. More like the hundred of innocents pedestrians you could possibly kill with your stupidity." she opened the driver's seat."Move." she demanded.

"What are you doing?"

"Look, I'll go with you if you really want to go look for Brooke. But, what kind of a person would I be if I let a drunk idiot drive? And what if you stupidly got into an accident? Sure, you'd probably be doing us all a favor but as much as I dislike you, I don't think I could live with that hanging over my conscious."

"Ouch." he muttered. "Are you always this brutally honest?"

She smirked, "Yeah, pretty much." she pushed him over, "C'mon. I'll even let you listen to that crap you call music."

"It's my car." he pointed out.

"Right. But I'm driving."

"Aren't you the one that's always telling me that solitude is really under-appreciated?" he growled as he scooted over to the passenger side, "Well guess what? That sounds really great right about now."

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah it's a beautiful thing." she glanced over at him as she started the car, "But something tells me that right now...you're not really in the conditions to be alone."


"She's not here." Haley realized, looking around the eerily quiet bridge across from the River front. "I don't know where else to go." she admitted as they began the walk back to the car. They'd already tried her house, the bar across town, which she knew Brooke had access to because of her fake ID. They'd even tried the school. But there was no sign of her best friend anywhere.

"Haley..." Lucas began hesitantly, not knowing if it was the right moment to inquire on something that had been plaguing his thoughts since that huge blow up at Nathan's house.

"Yeah?" she turned to him, her face tear-stained.

He shoved his hands in his jeans and shrugged, "Nothing." he replied quietly, deciding against it. "Sorry. Forget it."

She wiped the tears from her eyes and took a deep shaky breath, "What is it?"

He shifted nervously, debating with himself for a moment if he should in fact go through with it, considering everything that had just happened. "What was Nathan talking about?" he asked tentatively.

"What are-" a look of realization crossed her face and she began to shake her head, "Lucas..please don't."

"Why did he accuse you of blackmailing him and telling Brooke? And what does any of that have to do with me?" he persisted quietly, despite her protest.

"I-I can't do this right now."

He exhaled,"Haley..I'm just trying to understand."

"Lucas.." she pleaded softly, "I-" she took a deep breath, "Please don't be upset with me, but I blackmailed Nathan into leaving you alone and I wouldn't show Brooke the picture, only..." her eyes teared up again, "Only I didn't tell Brooke anything and now-"

"Wait, what?"

"It wasn't me who told her about the picture," she insisted, "But apparently there was more to it than that and I didn't know. I swear, but now she thinks-"

"Haley, whoa hold on." he cut her off, "Backtrack for a second, you blackmailed Nathan into leaving me alone? Why?"

She stopped walking and stared at him confused, "Why what?"

"Why would you do that for me?"

"Because I- because.." she stared up at him, a shiver running down her spine at the tender way he was looking at her, "Because it was wrong Lucas and-" she stopped, unsure of what to say and feeling utterly confused, "And you told me he wasn't going to leave you alone and-"

"Haley..."

"And even I knew he would never back off." she sniffled, "And then the whole Rachel thing happened and he swore it was a mistake-"

"Haley.." he tried again, moving so he was standing directly in front of her.

She shook her head, "And I had the picture and I promised I wasn't going to show it to Brooke if he-"

He gave up trying to get her to stop rambling as he suddenly moved towards her, taking her face in his hands gently and pressing a soft kiss to her lips.

She stared up at him completely shocked, after they'd parted., "Lucas..what..." she took a deep breath, trying desperately to control the rapid beating of her heart.

He didn't answer her, just simply smiled and gently brushed a strand of hair away from her cheek, letting his fingers linger and reveling in the softness of her skin. His breathing was haggard and his heart was beating uncontrollably in his chest.

She shivered at his touch and her heart rate sped up as he closed the distance between them again. She closed her eyes and she could feel his entire body tremble as he pulled her even closer and bent down to gently brush his lips over hers for the second time that night.


Jake closed the door to the nursery quietly. He stepped out into the hall, momentarily leaning against the door tiredly. It had taken him almost an entire hour to get Jenny to finally settle down. She'd been fussy and restless the entire evening and he'd had no luck in comforting her.

After feeding her and cradling her and singing soothing tunes to her, he'd finally accomplished to put her to sleep.

He was exhausted.

He loved his baby girl to death, but sometimes taking care of her was enough to completely wipe him out. Still, he'd never trade her for anything in the world. She was a blessing in every way.

He made his way downstairs and settled on one of the couches, reaching for the remote control looking forward to a quiet evening of college basketball games. His parents were out of town for the weekend, so he had the entire house to himself.

He surfed the channels and had just settled on a good game when the doorbell rang. He sighed, disappointed and contemplated whether or not to get up, figuring he could easily just let whoever it was think that nobody was home. A few more annoying rings later, and curiosity getting the best of him, he slowly made his way to the front door, wondering who in the world it could be this late at night.

"Brooke?" he frowned and his voice was filled with confusion as he stared at the brunette slumped down on the front steps, a half-empty bottle of Jose Cuervo next to her.

She looked up and he was momentarily taken aback at the crestfallen and tear-stained look on her face. "Jake..." she whispered brokenly. She scrambled to her feet, sending the tequila bottle flying and shattering on the ground as she flung herself in his arms and burst into tears.