The One That Got Away

Chapter Two

It was Julian's first day away. He had prepared for his wife and their boys enough dinners to heat up until he comes back. With Lucas suddenly appearing out of the blue, Julian's lasagna would have to wait one more day. Haley invited Brooke and the boys over for dinner. She couldn't say no, no matter how much she wanted to.

Haley insisted. It's been five years. They had to catch up. Brooke wanted nothing more than answers to the millions of questions she has for Lucas Scott, but she was scared of what answers she'll get.

"Where's Peyton?" Nathan asked for her.

"She's closing some deal with a client." Lucas answered.

Haley had asked him the same question earlier at the cafe. He just said she was busy.

"Well, you better tell her to march right over here once she's done." Haley said in between bites. "We miss her. We miss all of you!" she exclaimed, "It really wouldn't hurt for you to call, you know."

Lucas sat across the table from Brooke. She hadn't said a word to him aside from "Hey." She had no words. The girl who could talk nonstop for 24 hours straight had no words.

She just stared at Lucas, his same sandy blonde hair. He ruffled it as he replied to Haley's comment. "Yeah," he said, "Sorry about that.*

He had barely touched his food. Brooke looked down at her own plate. She had barely touched hers as well.

"You should tell Julian to call her up." Nathan suddenly said to Brooke. Brooke snapped out of the trance she was in. "He's in LA too, right? Working on some project."

"Yeah," Brooke responded, barely looking up to meet eyes with Nathan, "I will when I check up on him later."

Brooke darted her attention right back on her still full plate. She picked on the peas beside her meatloaf.

"How old are your boys?" Lucas threw at the table.

Brooke looked around, wondering who it was he was talking to. It took her a while before realizing it was her he was asking.

"Oh," she said, "They're turning 1 in two weeks."

"Oh." Lucas replied. He took a sip from his glass of water immediately afterwards.

It was an awkward exchange. Not their first of the day. While Haley was fawning over Sawyer, Brooke went on to clean up the tray of cookies Haley had dropped on the floor. Lucas bent down to help her. They shuffled around for the pastries. In between it all, their hands touched, and Lucas held on to it for a while. He stared at it for a while, and then he brushed his fingers against her golden wedding ring. Their eyes met for a brief moment, and then he pulled away. He picked up the last few pieces of cookies he saw laying around, then left. He made up some excuse about leaving something in the car. They haven't made eye contact since.

It was hard to continue avoiding each other when the time came for Haley to clean the dishes and Nathan to put Lydia to bed. Sawyer was up in Jamie's room, checking out the new remote control car he just got. Lucas was sitting on the couch across Brooke as she wiped the drool off of Davis' face.

"So..." he said, "Julian?"

She sighed, "Yeah, Julian."

They never had this conversation. He had already left by the time there was something to talk about.

"He's a lucky guy." he said, "I hope he knows that."

"He does." Brooke replied defensively. Lucas didn't say much, but his words stung. The way he forced a smile stung. Where was he when she got married? When she was having doubts about getting engaged?

"You have beautiful boys." he continued to say, "Just a girl away from living the dream, am I right?"

The dream. Two boys. One girl. A big white house with a red door. Her own fashion company. His own publishing house. That dream has long been dead.

Brooke smiled as she looked at the life she had now. She had sold Clothes Over Bros, but she was klnow co-owner of Karen's Cafe. She was told she would never have kids, but now she had two beautiful boys. She thought that Lucas Scott was the one, the one she'd give everything up for. But now, she has Julian, who gave up everything for her.

Brooke looked at Lucas. There was still a faint smile on his face. In his eyes, she saw her friend. The friend she missed dearly.

Lucas turned away, stared out at the distance. Brooke watched as he did so, as his eyebrows furrowed and his nose crinkled ever so slightly. It was his Lucas-Scott-thinking face. She wanted to know what it was in his head. She hadn't had access to it in years.

"Hey Broody!" she called out.

Luke was shaken by what Brooke had said, "What?"

"I missed you."