A/N Hey guys, back again with another update. Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed, it makes me smile and it just inspires me to keep going. I've only watched OTH sporadically over the years, so if Julian's character is a little OOC I apologize. Also in my story the way he and Peyton met and their story will be all from my own imagination (though I did steal a line from the show, sort of) He's two years older than her, basically about to start his freshman year in college. You'll get to see how they met and how they fell in love in flashbacks in the next couple of chapters

Also one more thing, I don't remember if in the show they actually had a Homecoming Dance or not, and with all that's happened in the story certain events might seem like they're all clustered in together. But they're necessary for the story so here it goes: The Boy Toy Auction will be on "Thursday", the Homecoming Dance will be on "Friday" Night and the Charity Ball will be on Saturday. Anyone confused yet? Whew, sorry. If you guys have any questions or are confused about anything PM and don't forget to pretty, pretty please review. All flashbacks are in italics.

Rolling over onto her side, Brooke muffled a scream into her pillow as the early daylight started pouring into her bedroom window. She didn't know for certain what time it was, but the sunshine rays were most definitely not welcome, and neither was the throbbing headache and bitter taste in her mouth. You'd think that by now she'd be used to waking up like this, god knew this was her almost weekend routine. And though usually, the 'what the hell happened last night?' and 'How much did I drink?' were the first thoughts to pop into her mind, this time it was different. Because okay, maybe she didn't know just how much she'd drank, though if the persistent nausea was any indication...She did know what happened last night, and that thought alone made the vile sit even more heavily in her stomach.

Most of the night was a foggy mess, but that was no surprise, the morning afters usually were. But one thing clearly stood out in her memory and it was her encounter with Nathan. Snuggling into her comforter, she shut her eyes tightly as she felt the tears prickling behind. She had promised herself that she wouldn't allow herself to cry over him anymore. Damn it, she wouldn't. But the stupid tears insisted on setting themselves free, and she would allow them for the last time. Burrowing her face into her pillow, she cried silently, feeling her entire body shaking with the intensity of her emotions.

Hearing a soft knock, she sat straight up, regretting it immediately as her head spun wildly. She fisted her comforter with her hands quickly for balance and was confused for a second. Had her parents come back already? No, they weren't due till tomorrow, so that could only mean the morning staff had come in early today. She wiped the tears furiously away from her face, "Come in Sandy." She called out, hating the way her voice wavered slightly.

The door slid open a crack, and Haley's blonde head peeked through. "You're not Sandy." Brooke snapped, crossing her arms in front of her. "What are you doing here?"

"Good observation." Haley smiled, stepping in fully. "And actually, I gave her the day off."

Brooke's mouth dropped open, "What? You have got to be kidding me! Who do you think you are you..you intruder! How the hell did you even get in? And what gives you the right to give the day off to my staff?"She fumed, "Oh, she is soo getting fired for taking orders from you."

"Sandy's known me since we were kids, and frankly I think I saved her from one." Leaning against the doorframe, Haley crossed her arms and regarded her indignant best friend. "It seems like last night someone had a little bit too much to drink, though that's not a total shocker. But you did go a little overboard, more so than usual and found yourself in a situation where you could've been raped. Had it not been for Jake intervening, then you wouldn't be lying in your warm, comfortable bed right now."

"That still doesn't explain your presence, which is very much unwanted might I add and more than a little irritating."

"Well, somebody had to watch over you last night."

"Fine, duly noted." She huffed. "You can leave now."

"Nope, I'm not. This has gone on long enough and right now more than ever you need me."

"First of all you're making my already horrible hang-over even worse and second of all, I don't need you. I don't need anybody, and especially not a lying back-stabbing-"

"Yeah, you've been pretty colorful with adverbs when it comes to me lately, but look it's been a long night, for the both of us and I'm not leaving until we talk."

"I'm calling the cops on you."

"Oh really?" She tilted her head to the side, amused. "For what?"

"For...for invasion of private property!"

"Stop being so childish Brooke." Haley rolled her eyes. "There's a glass of water and a couple of Advil by your nightstand and I've already ran you a warm bath, complete with your favorite imported EO Serenity French Lavender Bubble Bath. So take these, and go soak up for a little bit and relax. I'll be waiting downstairs with some fresh strawberry French toast and scrambled eggs, and hmm bacon!"

"I still hate you!" She called out, grabbing the Advil and glass of water off the nightstand, glowering even after she'd swallowed them.

"I heard that!"She sing-songed as she made her way downstairs. "And I love you too Brookie!"

"Ugh, bitch." Brooke growled, flopping back down on her bed. Could her day get any worse than having to deal with that hypocritical little Miss Sunshine? And why did she always have to be so...so Haley?


BANG! BANG! BANG!

"Yo, Nate wake the fuck up man! My parents are getting back soon and everyone needs to get the fuck out!"

Groaning, Nathan stirred slightly and rolled around, till he was on his back. Opening his eyes slowly, he immediately regretted it and squeezed them back tight. "What the fuck..." he moaned, grimacing at the horrible taste of Jack Daniels still bitter in his mouth. Forcing his eyes open, he sat up slowly the blankets sliding down his bare torso as he did so.

"Oh shit." He muttered, "Where the fuck are my..."

"Looking for these?"

Snapping his head towards the bathroom, he caught sight of Rachel leaning up against the doorframe, freshly showered and changed. She was smirking and was dangling them in front of her like some sort of price.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" He growled, catching them as she tossed them at him. The entire night came rushing back to him, and it made the already heavy feeling in his stomach even worse. "What the fuck Rach?"

She rolled her eyes, "I should be the one angry here honey." She moved around to grab her bag. "After the 7th shot, you were pretty much gone. I had to finish the job myself if you know what I mean."

He quickly pulled on his boxers and reached for his t-shirt at the foot of the bed, "I told you last night I wasn't sleeping with you again. I should've seen through your bullshit." He clambered for his pants and struggled to pull them on.

"Oh, please Scott." She scoffed, as she made her way towards him. "Last night I was looking for a good time, and y'know once upon a time, you were more than up for it too, till you let feelings and love and all that bullshit mess with your head. You're a big boy, so I didn't force you into anything sweetheart."She clicked her tongue and tilted her head to the side. "Sadly, though you did disappoint in your performance or lack thereof. So really, I'm the wronged party here. But it's okay." She ran her hands up his chest to adjust his shirt over his broad shoulders. "You just owe me one now, baby."

Pressing a brief, but sizzling kiss to his lips, she grabbed her bag and paused at the door. "Oh, and just for the record, last night I wasn't the one who initiated anything."


Slowly, Peyton shifted away from the sunlight streaming in from her window, groaning at the unwanted reminder that it was now indeed morning. She reached out to the other side of the bed, but instead of Julian's solid form, her grasp only brushed the comforter.

Her eyes flew open, and inadvertently she scanned the entire room, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. Not just from the sudden wake, but for the unknown.

Had last night been a dream?

No, it couldn't have been. Looking down at herself, she fingered the Large Black Hard Rock Cafe t-shirt that was mostly worn out, but was one of Julian's favorites.

Hearing the light, but sure sounds of somebody rattling down in the kitchen, she took a deep calming breath and lay back down. She snuggled up to the side where Julian had slept and brought his shirt up to inhale his unique scent it, a small smile gracing her lips, despite herself. Closing her eyes, she let her mind take her back to last night.

Holding on the door frame for support Peyton still found it hard to grasp the fact that he was standing in front of her. She was sure her mind was playing tricks on her, because there was just no way...

"Peyton?" Now her name came out as a question, and a small smile formed at his lips. It looked like she had just seen a ghost.

"Y-yeah." She cleared her throat and shook herself out of her stupor. "I'm sorry. But..what are you doing here Julian?"

He laughed now, and something deep in her stomach clenched, oh how long had it been since she'd heard that? And how much did she realize in that one moment just how much she'd missed it?

"Y'know a guy travels all the way from California, shows up in the middle of the night...a guy might I add you haven't seen in oh, about 2 years and all I get is a what are you doing here?"

"Yeah, well said guy also just up and left without so much as a goodbye and never had the decency to write or call or give any indication he was still alive." She snapped.

He smiled, and shook his head. There was that fire, that snark that he'd missed so much. "If you'll let me in, I can explain."

Looking down at ground, she noticed he had one carry bag with him. She looked back up at him, and damn it there was that smile. It surprised her, how even after 2 years, it could still make her heart flutter. Not trusting herself to speak, she nodded and opened the door for him.

Sighing in relief, he dropped the duffel bag as she closed the door and turned to her. Before she could say or do anything, he had taken a step towards her and in one swift motion gathered her up in his arms, crushing her to his body in a tight hug. "God, I've missed you so much Peyton."

Letting out a slight sound of surprise, she felt her eyes flutter shut as she returned the hug back with equal force. God knew, she'd missed him too.

He was the first one to pull back, and he looked around him, a bit hesitantly. "So.." he began, a little nervously. "Is your Dad around?"

Shaking her head, she looked down briefly. "No he's still out in the Gulf somewhere. He'll be gone for a couple of months"

Leaning forward, he tucked a curl behind her ear tenderly. "I'm sorry Sad Girl." he whispered, knowing how much she hated when he was gone.

Her breath hitching a little at his touch and at the old nickname, she found herself suddenly overwhelmed with a different million emotions. A thousand questions were running through her mind, but her mind and her heart suddenly felt heavy and she took a deep breath. "Listen Julian, it's been a very long night and I'm sure you're tired from you flight so do you think we can just..."

"No problem." He whispered, pulling her in close to drop a quick kiss on her forehead."We can talk tomorrow."


Stepping out of the bathtub, Brooke reached for her favorite pink Chenille robe and slipped it on, stepping into her matching slippers. Letting out a sigh of contentment, she walked over to her vanity mirror. She'd soaked for about an hour, and she felt a million times better, but she would never admit that to Haley, who with a roll of her eyes she knew was still downstairs. So what, if she'd even gone as far as adorning the bathtub with her favorite lavender scented candles as well?

Facing the mirror, she cleared the fog off with one sleeve and stared at her reflection. She didn't look as terrible as she ought to, considering last night's events. She quickly went through the tasks of blow-drying and styling her hair, and applying just enough make-up to look refreshed and alert. As she reached for her favorite Pink berry Lip-gloss, her phone vibrated next to the sink and she picked it up.

Flipping it open, she realized it was a text from Rachel. Not so irreplaceable as you thought huh B? Attached to it, was a picture of a guy's lower right hip bone, and she was about to flip it shut, when something caught her eye.

"Nathan, baby, we have to do something crazy to conm..conve, damn where's Haley when you need her?" Brooke giggled, swaying a little bit as she stumbled out the front door. Taking one last gulp of her favorite champagne Nathan had gotten for them, she giggled again as she tossed it to the side. "Oops all gone."

Nathan laughed, stumbling a bit himself. He took Brooke's hand and led her to the second to last step of the stairs that led them down to the beach. He positioned himself so that she could wrap her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

"Nathan!"She squealed and as he twirled them around, she giggled some more, the alcohol flying over her head. "Stop, stop!"She yelled out. "You're making me dizzy baby!"

"Don't worry, baby I've got you." He then took off running towards the water's edge, her squealing all the way. The alcohol had gotten to him as well, because before he made it, he lost his footing and sent the two of them flying into the surf.

Laughing they both didn't even bother to stand up as they sat there, the small waves crashing over them.

"What were you saying earlier?" He asked, moving so that her back was to him and he reached out playing with the silky, wet strands of her hair.

"Hmm." She tilted her head back, as his hands moved to massage her neck slightly. "I was saying that we should do something fun or crazy to mark this day. To you know, make sure this day is one we'll never forget."

"Oh, I'm sure I'll never forget it." He grinned cheekily, thinking of their previous activities.

Laughing, she grabbed his hands, making them both stand up. "Oh, I'm sure you won't either."

"And besides, I thought I did a pretty good job."

"You did." She leaned in for a quick kiss, as her fingers played with her new silver necklace. He'd gotten them reservations to her favorite Italian restaurant and he'd surprised her with a romantic dessert and set up back at the beach house. "But I just meant something...fun and spontaneous and..."Her face suddenly lit up and she stopped frolicking on the waves. "Oh! I know! We should both get tattoos!"

"Tattoos? Brooke you're insane."

"No, won't it be fun?" She grabbed onto his hands, as she started dancing around, her feet kicking at the waves. "We should totally do it. It'd be sweet. What do you say?"

"I say, you had way too much drink and maybe we should call it a night."

"Oh, c'mon Babe." She waded over to him, and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Don't you love me?"

"Of course I do." He smiled down at her. "But tattoos? Brooke, it's like a curse when a couple gets a tattoo of the other's name."

"I wasn't talking about our names tattooed, but now that you brought it up..."

"Brooke..."

"And anyways that's just a myth."

"I don't know, we'll talk about it tomorrow okay? When we're both sober."

"Tomorrow?" She frowned and shook her head. "No, uh-uh, I was thinking about it today, as in right now."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, well it's not spontaneous or crazy when you go and plan it is it?"

"Brooke, it's like midnight, there's no way any of the tattoo shops downtown is open, and besides we're not even 18 and I for once, don't have my fake with me."

"Oh, I know a guy."

He paused, and his eyes narrowed. "Do I even want to know how you know this guy?"

Her eyes sparkled mischievously. "Probably not."

"I thought you couldn't be under the influence when getting ink done."

"Another myth."

"It scares me how much you know about this."

She swatted his arm, "Oh shut up. So, what you in or what?"

"I'm not getting a heart or something girly with your name on it or anything."

"We can do Chinese calligraphy, it's like the craze now."

"What if we ever break up? I've heard removing tattoos is even more painful than getting them."

"That's not going to happen. And anyways, we're getting Chinese symbols, if anybody ever asks, we'll just lie."

"My dad is going to kill me."

"And we don't have to get our entire names. I can get a simple N and you a B and we'll get them somewhere where no one but the two of us will ever see them."

"In that case there's no way that friend of yours cuz isn't getting anywhere near there with a needle."

"Oh, c'mon baby." she teased. "I promise I'll hold your hand and I'll never tell."

Snapping her phone shut, she let it fall, feeling like she'd just been slapped in the face. She inhaled sharply and gazed at her reflection wordlessly, her mind in utter torment.

She cursed the oncoming angry tears and willed them away. She refused to let this get to her. Nathan was free to do whatever and whoever the hell he wanted now. So he wanted to continue to screw that venereal disease carrying skank? That was his problem. And it did not affect her. At all.

Who was she kidding? Watching her expression crumble in tears in the mirror, she sank down slowly to the tiled floor as this new pain tore a new wound in her already severed heart. Grabbing the nearby tissues she mopped at her face, not caring that her carefully applied make-up was now a dripping soggy tissue mess.

"I love you Brooke. I need you."

Angrily, her hands balled up the tissues littering around her and she threw them in the wastebasket forcefully. How many times was she going to continue to do this to herself? Pathetically cry over him and let him keep continue to mess with her head and continue to break her heart? And how could he profess his undying love and promises to change just the night before and then end up with Rachel at the end of the night? She should've known it was all empty promises and lies on his part. And she did, but that didn't stop it from hurting any less.

Getting up slowly, she looked at her reflection and shook her head, angry at herself for how much of a mess she looked. She was done with Nathan Scott and she had told him so last night, and she had promised herself that she was going to move on, and sitting around crying over him was not the way to do it.

Re-applying her make-up, she stared hard at her reflection once she was done. Her eyes were still a little blood-shot, and no amount of makeup could hide the hurt she felt deep inside. Reaching for her eye-shadow and lip-gloss, she added a couple more touches and flashed her trademark flirty grin to her reflection. On the outside she still looked like the Brooke Davis. Beautiful, popular, captain of the cheer squad, student class president. The one all the girls envied and all the guys wanted. She was practically a legend at Tree Hill High.

And she certainly didn't need Nathan Scott to continue to be that Brooke Davis.

Sure, they'd been a power couple, but she could still rule that damn school with or without him. Hey, if Jennifer Aniston did it, then so could she. In fact, hadn't her star shone brighter without Brad Pitt?

I'm going to smile like nothing's wrong, talk like everything's perfect, and pretend that it's not completely killing me.

And besides, two could play at this game. "You screwed around with my worst enemy. So I say, I can have a little fun screwing around with yours. It's only fair."

She knew she should just be the bigger person and move forward. She'd decided she was done with Nathan Scott, so she should just completely move on. And playing games was just childish and not her, but revenge was so tempting, so why not have a little fun? He'd certainly had no consideration of her feelings, so why should she? And she didn't care anymore that he now knew that pursuing Lucas was sorely to piss him off.

"He's never going to want you."..."He's hung up on Haley."..."They're practically making out in every corner of the school."..."But then, why that let you stop you? Perfect way to get revenge on Haley too huh?"...

Remembering that her ex-best friend was still downstairs, she nibbled on her lip as she stared at her reflection thoughtfully. Was any of it even true? She remembered Lucas telling her the night of the Homecoming Game that he was sort of seeing someone and that he really liked her, and he didn't really seem like the two-timing type. Only one way to find out, go straight to the source itself.


Carefully setting a tray of food next to the nightstand, Julian quietly sat on the edge of the bed and watched as Peyton slept. A smile crossed his lips, and his fingers itched to run them through her golden curls, which seemed to glisten under the sunlight filtering in. But he didn't, in fear of waking her. She looked so peaceful and like an angel, and the smile on his lips deepened. She was more beautiful than what he'd remembered, and just sitting there, watching her sleeping, it was like something was finally awaking in him. That painful ache that had been in his heart, since he'd last seen her, seemed to dull minute by minute, all from the simple act of watching her and the knowledge that for the time being, she was there in front of him. Not in his dreams at night, nor the images he had of her constantly, but she was actually there.

He didn't realize how long he sat there, just taking her in when she began to stir. Opening her eyes, she caught sight of him on the chair and the smell of pancakes and scrambled eggs awoke her senses. Sitting up, she pulled her curls back and looked at him, suddenly feeling vulnerable. "Hey."She mumbled.

"Good morning."He grinned at her, and the way he was staring at her made her feel even more self-conscious than what she already felt. "I uh, cooked you something."

"Thanks." She smiled, taking a sip of the orange juice on the tray. "But I'm not really that hungry to be honest."

"Oh." He cleared his throat and flashed her a quick smile. "That's okay."

She shifted on the bed, realizing that she was still only wearing his shirt and a pair of boy cut shorts and she flushed, realizing it made the whole situation even more awkward.

"Listen Julian, I'm sorry, it was sweet of you to cook me breakfast, but I can't really think about eating anything right now."

"I know. We need to talk."

She blew a puff of hair, and nodded. "Yes, we do."

"I don't know where to start." He admitted.

"How about you start from the beginning?" She suggested, a hint of anger in her tone. "Like for example, what are you doing here? Showing up at my house in the middle of the night after two years? 2 years after instead of spending time with your dad like you said you were here to do while he filmed another movie, you decided it would be more fun to insert your unwanted presence and not so subtle casual run-ins into my life? Annoying me to no end with your stupid lame stories and jokes, and irritating me endlessly with your random movie quotes, which sometimes had nothing to do with the situations at hand?" She took in a shaky breath, hating how quickly she was losing control of her emotions. "And yet, despite all that, maybe in spite of that and many, many things like your beautiful smile and your kind eyes, and the way you never left...even when I revealed my darkest side to you...you managed to find a way into my heart and make what started out as another dreary and lonely summer into the most magical and memorable one of my life."

She didn't want this, she didn't want to fall apart in front of him, but it was like a dam had burst and everything she'd held in for the last two years was finally coming out. All that pain, and confusion and anger and love that she'd locked away, was finally surfacing and he noticed this. Noticed the painful way she was trying to avoid looking at him, for fear that she would come undone.

"Peyton-" His heart ached as he watched her, and edging off the bed, he went to her. Wanting nothing more than to hold her and comfort her, but she allowed it not. She refused to look at him, and she kept her distance.

"No, don't." She looked up at him then, the anger evident in her eyes and in her tone. "I want to know why Julian? Why after everything that we shared, everything that you made me feel, why would you come back, when you just up and left without so much as a good-bye? When you ripped my heart out and selfishly took it with you?"

It tore him apart to see her like this, and to know that he was the one to cause of all that anger and pain at the moment. He hung his head, unable to look her in the eyes without feeling that same pain he'd inflicted on her. "I'm sorry Peyton." His voice came out low, almost below a whisper. "I thought it would be for the best."

Momentarily stunned, she gaped at him incredulously. "You thought it would be for the best?" She managed after finding her voice. She couldn't believe she was hearing this from him. "Do you know how I felt when I realized you were gone Julian? When I found out that your Dad's production had scheduled to wrap up filming a week early? And that you probably knew that and just decided not to tell me? But then, why bother? Why not just up and disappear without so much as a warning or a good-bye? Why not just make it easier on yourself, and just wipe your slate clean and move on from your summer fling right?"

"A summer fling?" He shook his head, "Peyton, that's now how it was and you know it."

"No! That is how it was and you know it Julian!" She cried angrily. "Because let me tell you something, actions sure as hell speak louder than words and you left! Do you know how devastated I was when I realized you were gone and you weren't coming back?" Tears were now making their way down her cheeks, and she swiped at them furiously. "How I felt, when days turned into weeks and then months and I didn't hear from you? A letter, a call anything!"

"I promise you that I didn't know my Dad's production was wrapping up early."

"Even if that was the case, so what? You still could've called or written or something. Anything to let me know that you were still out there, okay, alive. Just anything to let me know that what we shared that summer meant something to you too."

He reached for her, but flinched when she pushed him back angrily. "Peyton, what we shared meant everything to me and leaving you...that was one of the hardest things I ever had to do. But we were so young and we were going to live on two ends of the coast and-"

"Don't give me that bullshit Julian." She spat, cutting him off.

"I'm really sorry that I didn't contact you Peyton." He replied softly. "But you have to believe me when I say that I thought it was the best thing to do, that it was the best thing for you. We were so young...you were only 15 and what we shared that summer was something so utterly perfect and beautiful and untouchable and I wanted to keep it that way for you. I wanted you to be able to look back at it as a beautiful memory. We were so far apart, and I didn't want to hurt you with the issues and false hope that usually comes with long-distance relationships. I wanted you to be able to move on, without feeling guilty had we kept in touch."

"Well I didn't move on!" She pushed away from him and stalked over to one of her drawers and pulled out a couple of notebooks and a box. She picked up one of the notebooks and threw it towards where he was standing by the bed. "You see this? This is what I did with the remainder of my summer after you left." This time she didn't bother to contain her tears as they spilled out angrily. Grabbing another notebook, she threw it at him as well. "And this one, yeah that's how I spent most of my sophomore year, when I realized that you weren't coming back or going to call. Pathetic right?" Opening up the box, she pulled out a sky blue teddy bear, that looked almost as soft as the day he had given it to her. "And do you remember this? Do you remember that night out by the boardwalk, do you want to know how many nights I slept with this? Thinking of you, wondering where you could possibly be, and wondering if you were out there thinking of me too?" Digging through the box, she pulled out a faded oversized Grease T-shirt. "Or how many nights I slept with this on, because it still smelled like you and it made me feel like you were still here with me?" Picking up and old record of Pink Moon by Nick Drake, she sent it flying towards him. "Do you want to know how many afternoons I spent crying while listening to this?" She picked out a handful of photographs and let them flutter to the floor angrily. "And these? I looked at this constantly just so that I would never forget your smile." Crying profusely now, she picked up the box and tossed it at him, the remainder of the items spilling out into the bed. "And you know what? You never should've bothered! You never should've tried so hard to tear down at those walls if all you were going to do was going to shatter my heart the way you did!" Covering her face with her hands, she turned away from him, hating herself for the way she was coming undone in front of him.

Swallowing back his own tears, he moved towards her. He hated the fact that she was hurting the way she was. Hated the fact that he was the cause for those tears. Tugging at her gently, he folded her into his arms. She fought to break free, but he just tightened his grip on her, rocking her back and forth and whispering gently into her soft curls over and over, "I'm so sorry Peyton."


"Really Brooke," Haley dropped the fork in her plate exasperated. "You're really just going to continue to give me the silent treatment?"

Taking a delicate bite of her French toast, Brooke chewed thoughtfully. "Hmm. Well, it's not as good as Sandy's and you overdid it a little with the powdered sugar, but overall, not bad."

"Brooke!"

Rolling her eyes, Brooke took a sip of her orange juice. "I'm not giving you the silent treatment Haley." She responded coldly. "I just don't have anything to say to you."

Haley sighed, and she shook her head. "Brooke, what is it going to take? For us to go back to the way it was? I miss you."

"Things won't ever be the same Haley."

"I know I screwed up okay, and I should've told you about Rachel and Nathan kissing when it happened but I told you why I didn't. I know that doesn't excuse what I did, but you have to know that I only did it because I didn't want to hurt you over what Nathan convinced me at the time was nothing. I swear to you that I didn't know that he slept with her."

"I've already heard this okay?" Brooke responded, an edge to her voice. "You don't have to repeat yourself, but like you said it still doesn't excuse that you didn't tell me. And can you just drop it? The last thing I feel like doing is talking about Nathan and Rachel."

"Fine, then how about we talk about us? Look, no matter how many times you push me away, I'm not going to go anywhere Brooke. I'll always be here for you, whether you want me to or not. I'll always be your friend."

Silently, Brooke concentrated on her food as she let Haley's words fall over her. She hated to admit to her that she missed her too, but her pride and her feelings had been hurt and she wasn't one to give in easy. Haley had been the one person in the world she trusted more than anyone, and she'd let her down and that wasn't something Brooke could easily forget.

"Did you give Nathan the same speech?" She finally looked up and fixed her with an ice cold glare.

Startled, Haley just stared at her. "What?"

Brooke glared at her as she picked up a strawberry, "Are you on Team Brooke or Team Nathan?"

Haley sighed as she pushed away her plate, losing her appetite. "I didn't know there were any teams."

"Yeah, well there are. And Nathan made it that way when he cheated on me." She snapped, "So you better pick a team."

"Brooke, I really don't-"

"Look, you wanted to know what it would take to get back in my good graces? Well, there it is. If you want to be my friend again, then you can't be Nathan's." Brooke pushed away her chair, and stood up. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going out by the pool. Clean up when you're done."


"Oh, lovely just the person I wanted to see." Rachel drawled as she opened her door and caught sight of Felix.

"Cut the sarcasm Red." He retorted, pushing past her into her foyer.

Rolling her eyes, she shut the door and beckoned Felix to follow her out back, where she was currently eating breakfast. "If I'd known you were coming over, I would've had the staff cook for two."

"I'm not hungry." He retorted, flopping into one of the deck chairs.

"Suit yourself." She shrugged, and continued on. "So what's up?" She paused, tilting her head knowingly. "Wait, let me guess...Haley?"

He glared over at her, and ignored the mocking tone in her voice. "I'm feeling restless okay? And more than a little frustrated. I thought if I started playing nice with her, it wouldn't take that long."

"What are you talking about? I saw you talking with her yesterday, and I admit I was surprised I didn't see her run in the other direction right away. You're making progress, baby steps, but progress all the same."

"Little progress is no progress at all."

"Dramatic much?" She rolled her eyes, and took a bite of her toast. "What do you need my help for this time anyway?"

"Yeah, well speaking off little progress or none at all, you still haven't kept up your end of the deal." He snapped, "I told you I needed you to mess with Lucas and what do you do? End up sleeping with Nathan fucking Scott."

"And when did I need to run anything by you?" She scoffed. "Look, I did what you told me to do. I flirted with the guy, on one more than one occasion but I hate to break it to you sweetheart, he only has eyes for Haley. Why don't you just let that little obsession of yours go?"

"Why don't you?" He threw back, referring to her one night stand with Nathan.

"Look, I have my reasons, none of which I have to explain to you, but if it makes you feel any better, I'll let you in on something that might end up working in both of our favors. And neither you or I will really have to do anything to get what we both want."

"Really? Well, do tell." He replied impatiently.

"Brooke."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Yesterday, Nathan in his drunken state said something, which makes perfect sense now that I think about it." She paused to take a breath. "Brooke's still beyond pissed that Nathan cheated on her with me, and this morning I sent her a nice little reminder of that. And the more she sees or hears about me and Nathan, the more she'll be adamant to get back at Nathan with...wait for it...Lucas."

"No way. You really think she would..?"

"Oh, not only do I think she will...but according to Nathan, she's made it perfectly clear that's what she's going to do." She grinned, as she took a sip of her drink. "So, you see my friend, all we really have to do is wait and we'll kill two birds with one stone...or more like four. Brooke will take of everything for us and she doesn't even know it. Because I know this much, if Brooke manages to hook up with Lucas, out of spite, Nathan will never ever forgive her and their lovely story will be done and over with forever."

"And Haley will never forgive her or Lucas." Felix nodded, slowly catching on. "Leaving the door wide open for the both of us."

"Exactly."


"Where the hell have you been all night?" Dan questioned, looking up from the breakfast table as Nathan dragged himself in. "You look like hell."

Nathan flinched, as he took in his Dad's angry face. "Good morning to you too, Dad." He mumbled, attempting to walk past him. He didn't feel like dealing with Dan's wrath, all he wanted to do was go upstairs and sleep off his hang-over and forget the fact that he'd ended up sleeping with Rachel again.

"You're not walking away from this one with a pat in the back, Son." Dan snapped, trailing after him. "I could overlook you getting into a fight the first time with the kid, and walking away with only detention but this? Getting kicked off the game altogether?"

"It was just once Dad." Nathan rolled his eyes, flopping down on the couch, figuring he wasn't going to get out of this one right away. "Don't you think you're overreacting?"

"Sure, today it's one time and then next?" He crossed his arms as he came to stand in front of him. "Missing out on even just one game equals missing out on that perfect season you need to aim for Duke. Do you even care that it might start slipping away? All the work we've put into it, all the plans that we've made and-"

At that, Nathan snapped his head up and he glared at his Dad. "Don't you mean, all the plans you've made and all the work I've done?"

"Fine, why don't you just quit the team now Nathan?" He threw back furiously. "Hell, that'll be a hell of a lot less humiliating than getting kicked off because of all the bullshit you keep on pulling. I'll tell you what; I'll give you a job working at the dealership. You can spend the rest of your life haggling over free floor mats with morons with bad credit. How does that sound? Because that's where you're headed, and that's if I even give you the job!"

"Dan, that's enough." A voice behind them called out and both of them turned to see the blonde walking into the living room. "I think what your father's trying to say is that he just wants a better life for you sweetheart, and he doesn't want to see your hard-earned work go to waste."

"That's what this situation needs Deb, your input." Dan scoffed at his wife before turning towards Nathan. "Yeah, by the way your mother's home."

Deb shook her head as she watched her husband stalk out of the living room. Turning towards her son, who was sulking on the couch, she walked towards him and gave him a big hug. "Now where have you been all night? I thought your father told you I was coming home today, and the first thing I wanted to see when I walked into that door was you, my son."

"Mom please." Nathan groaned, hugging her back quickly before standing up. "Not you too. I don't need this right now. Look, can we do this later? I'm really tired and I-"

"Of course you would be, staying out all night." She reprimanded softly, standing up herself. "But not today Nathan. I've made an appointment at the Formal Touch in Charlotte with Ferdinand."

"What and who?"

"For the fitting of your tuxedo for the Charity Ball next Saturday." She reminded him with a bright smile. "I got an email from Victoria Davis the other day with a picture of Brooke's dress and we've got to make sure her dress matches with your tie and Cumberland."

"Mom, Brooke and I broke up."

His mom paused and stared at him surprised, "Oh, no sweetheart. What happened?"

"I really don't want to talk about it, and I really don't want to go to the stupid fitting. I could care less if Brooke and I match, but if it's that important to you, why don't you go ahead? At this point I just don't care." He walked over towards the stairs, before turning back. "Oh, and by the way. Welcome home Mom."


Brooke had been out by pool, for almost about an hour, before Haley came out to find her. Not acknowledging her presence right away, Brooke sipped on a wine cooler instead and tilted her sunglasses down over her eyes.

Sitting on the deck chair next to her, Haley ran her hand through her hair as she stared at her best friend, not quite sure what to say to her.

"Is there something you want to say to me, or are you just going to sit there all day blocking my sunlight?"

"I thought about what you said Brooke."

"And?"

"And.." She began, letting out a breath. "It's really not fair for you to ask me to pick a team. Not only is it immature, but like I said, it's really just not fair. Not that it really matters anyways, because Nathan's still angry with me."

"So you side with me by default, is that it?" Brooke sat up, pushing back her sunglasses annoyed.

"I'm not siding with either one of you." Haley responded exasperated. "Look, what Nathan did to you was something that is unforgivable, I get that. But I also can't just disregard the fact that I've known him as long as I've known you and both of you have been my friends pretty much all my life." She took a deep breath. "What I'm trying to say Brooke, is that Nathan has nothing to do with you or me or our friendship. If you don't want to forgive him and you want him out of your life, I respect that. But you can't ask me to just erase him from mine."

"Oh, of course." Brooke smirked. "Lying, cheating backstabbers tend to stick together."

"Brooke, c'mon.."

"No, Haley I don't want to hear it, you want to be Nathan's friend, go ahead I don't care. But I told you, you can't be mine."

"I'll always be your friend, I told you that."

"Well, if you really want to be my friend, then you know the rules."

"Rules?" Haley let out an amused chuckle, grabbing a strawberry wine cooler from the ice chest Brooke had by her deck chair. "This is getting a little ridiculous Brooke."

Brooke shot her a glare, "If you're just going to sit there, drinking my wine coolers and laughing at me, or mocking everything I say, then I suggest you leave. You know you're way out right?"

"Okay, okay I'm sorry." Haley snapped off the cap and settled into the deck chair more comfortingly, more than a little amused. "So what else do I need to do to get back in your good graces?"

"Well, for starters you're going to help me get over him. "Brooke began, eyeing her carefully out of the corner of her eye. "Which is why you're going to help me hook up with Lucas Scott."

Haley choked on the drink, and she had a hard time swallowing. "I'm sorry what?"

"You heard me." Brooke smiled smugly. "I need to hook up with Lucas, and you two are friends right?"

"That's..I'm sorry, Brooke, I can't do that?"

"What the matter Haley?" Brooke glanced over at her innocently. "Afraid of getting on Nathan's bad side and hurting his precious feelings by helping me out with his sworn enemy?"

"No..well, that too but Brooke, Lucas and I.."

"Lucas and you what?"

"We're sort of.." Haley fiddled with her drink, unsure of why this was so hard for her. "We're sort of together."

Brooke let out a peal of laughter, "You're kidding right?" When Haley just stared at her, Brooke laughed even harder. "Wow, Haley and here I thought I knew you so well, but talk about bad taste."

Haley squinted at her confused, "What? Wait, but you just said you wanted me to-"

"Oh, you think I actually want you to help me with Lucas because I want him?" She shook her head, and took a drink of her bottle. "I admit the guys' cute, and he's a good kisser, but hello...sooo not my type."

"How would you know that? Brooke did you-"

"Did I kiss your boyfriend? Apparently so, but I didn't know he was your boyfriend Haley. Again, insert the bad taste comment here. Although now that I think about it, you two do go well together." She paused, catching on to the look on her face. "Wait he didn't tell you?"

Haley's face fell, and Brooke actually felt bad for a moment, but she brushed it off quickly. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, he pushed me away and told me there was a girl he liked and that was that."

"When was this?"

"Last night, but look that's not relevant right now and I'm sure you two can sort it out later, but like I said I need you to help me."

"You're asking me to help you hook up with the guy that I like?" Haley stared at her aghast. "What is this Brooke? Pay back for what I did to you? A way to even out the score or something?"

"It is, but not for you and me." Draining her drink, she picked up another bottle as she elaborated. "Nathan really screwed me over Haley, and he did with the person I hate the most and now I just want him to have a taste of his own medicine, see how it feels like."

"Brooke, I don't know..."

"Look, all I want is to rub it in his face, flirt with the guy in front of him a little. That's it, I promise. Then he's all yours."

"Don't you think Lucas will find not only weird, but awkward the fact that you, my best friend is suddenly interested in him?"

"Duh, and that's where you come in, I need you to talk to him and let him in. I'm sure he'll enjoy pissing Nathan off too, so it's a win-win."

"Lucas is not that type of guy."

"Are you going to talk to him or not?"

"I'm not sure about this Brooke, and to be honest, I don't like the idea at all. This could just end up in a huge mess." Haley replied, not giving her a yes or no. "You know, Mahatma Gandhi wrote that an eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind."

"Yeah,"Brooke scoffed, "Like I'm going to listen to the man who referred to himself as Upper House and his gay lover Lower House."

Haley stared at her in surprise for a second, before she burst out laughing and it wasn't long before Brooke joined in.

A/N's So there it is, the latest chapter, sorry it took me so long to update and also on a side note, I'm sorry if Jake wasn't in this chapter, but I promise that he will be in the next one and the kiss with Brooke will be addressed at least in his perspective for now. Also, more on Peyton/Julian. So tell me what you guys think!