Lucas's face suddenly broke into a wide grin and Peyton already knew the result. She ran the last few steps, jumping into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He caught her, his hands on her hips as he tried to keep steady. "They're publishing my book," he told her, just for clarification, and because he really liked saying the words. He didn't get another word out, though, before Peyton's lips crashed down on his.
A few moments later, he slowly lowered her to the ground and she stood on her own two feet. Peyton looked up at him, a big grin on her face. She was amazed at how much had changed in five years. "That's amazing Lucas, it really is. I told you that it was good," she said, kissing him again. "We have to go home and get ready for tonight, but we will celebrate later," she continued in a seductive voice to make up for the fact that she broke away a second time.
Lucas grumbled under his breath, but the smile on his face took away from the effect he had wanted. He waited as she shut down her laptop, putting it away, and did everything else she had to do to leave her office for the night. When she was finished she met Lucas at the door, taking his hand and intertwining their fingers as the left the building, making sure the door was locked. "How was your day?" he asked, as they walked to his car. To save on gas, Lucas just dropped her off at the office every morning when he went to work, and he'd pick her when practice was over.
Peyton bit her lip, trying to think of the proper reply, but thankfully, they reached the car then, and she didn't have to answer right away. She couldn't tell him the thing that immediately came to mind when she thought about all that had happened since he had dropped her off that morning, because she wasn't ready for that yet, but she could tell him something else that had happened. "Mia started her new tour, and my label signed a new band today," she said once they were both in the car and settled, but her mind went over the memory that she couldn't share with him yet.
FLASHBACK
Peyton Rachel and Haley were holed up in the bathroom at the office of Peyton's label. Peyton also had Brooke on the phone with her, because she couldn't make it through the next few moments without all three of her best friends, and Brooke was getting things ready for later. Peyton was pacing, biting her lip and she kept running a hand through her unruly curly hair. Haley had her hands resting on her now large stomach, and Rachel was fiddling with her wedding ring, a habit she had started in the two months since she had gotten married.
The three of them heard the wail of a baby over the phone. Rachel's head jerked up and she looked at the phone, which was laying on the counter on speaker. "I though Jake was taking baby Rachel to work with him today? If I had known you had her I would be at the shop with you," she said, sounding a little irritated, but they all knew she was faking it. Brooke hadn't actually named her daughter Rachel, but her middle name was Rachel, to show how much the redhead and brunette had matured over the years, and Rachel preferred to call her baby Rachel, instead of Elizabeth, which was the first name.
The two really had become good friends, and Rachel now modeled for Brooke's clothing line, when she wasn't too busy with her interior decorating business. Brooke was opening up her third store, in Tree Hill. She already had one in L.A. and one in New York, but when she had gotten married, and then pregnant with Elizabeth, she had decided to move back home, and open up a store, but she had only started renovating the place recently, because she had wanted to wait until after the baby was born, and Rachel's wedding had been not too long after that.
Brooke scoffed on her end of the line, though not loudly, because she was still trying to get her four month old to quiet down. "Don't blame me, blame Peyton. It was her label that sent my husband to that important meeting, where he wasn't allowed to bring baby girl," she huffed, but her voice softened at the last two words, and they heard the wails slow and stop.
Peyton had continued pacing, ignoring the talking and checking her watch every few seconds. These were the most tense moments of her life, and she had been in this situation once before. She wasn't as scared this time, though. Now she was just wondering if this would cause Lucas to finally propose to her. She had never thought she'd be one to welcome marriage, but all their friends were married and she was kind of wondering if he was ever going to ask her to marry him. She hadn't been ready for a future the last time she had been in this situation. Now she was completely ready, and she wanted everything. She just wasn't sure if he wanted it anymore, and that was what scared her.
With a sigh, Peyton checked the time once more, and she saw that it was finally time. She stopped in her tracks, looking over to the counter, where the stick that could change her life rested on the counter. Haley noticed and she walked over to Peyton, looping her arm through the blonde's. Rachel saw the movement and she silently made her way to Peyton's other side. Both of them squuezed Peyton's hand lightly, letting her know they were there as the three made their way to the counter, none of them saying a word.
When they made it, Peyton dropped their hands, reaching out to pick up the pregnancy test with two hands, and lifting it up so the three of them could see the result. There was complete silence for a long moment, then Peyton dropped it, letting out a swear word. "Oh, my gosh," she said and her emotions were such a jumbled mess, she couldn't tell what she was feeling, or what she wanted to be feeling.
Brooke, over the phone, couldn't see what the result was, of course. "Hey, guys, don't leave me hanging. Are there going to be two baby Scotts on the way, or what?" she asked, referring to the fact that Haley was currently pregnant with a Scott and Peyton could be pregnant with a Scott, though they would both be from different fathers, of course. Brooke was agitated that she couldn't be there with her three best friends, and she was agitated with the slow construction workers, and that seeped into her voice a bit, but no one noticed.
Haley was now standing in front of Peyton, helping her to breath deeply as she swallowed the news, so Rachel was the one who had to answer. "I'm going to be a godmother," Rachel answered that way, and both of them squealed in excitement for a moment before they began playfully arguing about who Peyton would ask to be godmother.
Peyton was able to calm herself enough to decipher the emotion she was feeling the most. She broke into a wide grin, pulling Haley into a hug, and then the two of them pulled Rachel in as well, making it a group hug. Over the phone, when Brooke realized what they were doing, she demanded that she get a group hug when they were all together tonight. Then the smile slipped off of Peyton's face as quickly as it had arrived. "How am I going to tell Lucas?" she spoke, allowing the fear to take over.
END FLASHBACK
Brooke had had to get off the phone shortly after that, allowing Rachel and Haley to take over. The three women had deliberated for about another half hour before Haley had to leave so she could get back to the High School before lunch was over. She was a teacher there, and even though Lucas was a teacher-as well as the coach-there as well and they often saw each other at school, she had promised Peyton she wouldn't tell him before leaving. Soon after Haley left, Rachel had to leave as well, saying she wanted to go visit the baby.
Now, here she was, and she didn't know how to give him the news. She decided that, in light of the party tonight, she'd wait to tell him. She didn't want to get a bad reaction, and have it ruin everything they were celebrating. There was definately a lot to celebrate. The success of Peyton's label, including her two favorite artists, Jake Jagelski and Haley James Scott. Haley didn't tour like Jake did, but she had a few albums out, and she performed when Peyton asked her to. Haley loved to sing, but it was just a side thing. She preferred teaching, and staying home with her three year old daughter, Jackie, and the one on the way. They hadn't learned the sex of the baby yet, even though she was eight months along, but they wanted to wait and be surprised.
Also, the friends were celebrating Brooke's success. She had a major clothing line, and a magazine and basically a whole fashion empire. It still surprised Brooke sometimes, when she was out with her friends, or just buying groceries, and someone was wearing clothes from her line, or someone came up to her, and asked for her autograph. She was used to it happening to Jake, but it was something different entirely when it happened to her.
Rachel was also beginning to be known, though on a slightly smaller scale. She had decorated the homes of almost everyone in Tree Hill, and she had also done a lot of homes in the surrounding areas. It had really surprised her though, when one of the artists signed onto Peyton's label had come to her, asking her to decorate their home. That had been almost a year ago, and since then, her business had really seemed to pick up, as Peyton referred every artist on her label to Rachel. Her husband, Mouth, had also started mentioning her on TV. He was a sportscaster at the local news station. Since then, Rachel really had more work than she knew what to do with.
Lucas noticed how quiet Peyton was being, but didn't push it. The past five years had been good overall, but that didn't mean there hadn't been bad days. There had been fights, and days when Peyton wouldn't talk to him, and days when he just couldn't open his mouth without saying the wrong thing. He knew that when she was quiet she was thinking, and it was best not to interrupt her. He knew she'd liven up when they got to the party, so he decided not to push it, for now. Besides, he had plenty to think about as well.
Peyton noticed how quiet he was being, but decided against asking him about it, because she wasn't ready to have a heart-to-heart right then, or she might just spill the news without meaning to. When they made it back to their place, Peyton headed for the bathroom, so she could take a shower. When she came out a little while later, a towel wrapped around her and her hair dripping, she headed for the bedroom, straight towards her closet as she tried to pick out something to wear. She was moving clothes around, not paying attention to anything else, when she felt arms snake around her waist, and lips on her neck.
For a moment, Peyton let herself get lost in Lucas's kisses. Then she spotted the clock. She grabbed her towel, which he had been trying to subtly remove, and tightened it once more, pushing him away. "I've got to get dressed. We've got to go. We're going to be late," she said, kissing him one more time before pushing him away, turning back to her closet, and grabbing the dress she had chosen. She let the towel go, and then pulled on the dress, asking Lucas to zip it up before she moved to look at it in the mirror.
The dress had spaghetti straps, and was a black silky material, which hugged her torso in all the right ways, while the A-line skirt flowed down to her knees. It was covered in green stars of all sizes, which matched her eyes. It was made for her personally, by Brooke, and she looked gorgeous in it. After checking herself in the mirror, she blow dryed her hair, pulling half of it up, but leaving a few stray curls to frame her face. She did her make-up quickly, putting on some concealer, eyeliner, mascara and some lip gloss. As she walked to her closet to pick out her shoes, she noticed Lucas staring at her.
She picked up her black wedges and walked back to the bed, sitting down next to Lucas so she could put on her shoes. He was wearing a pair of nice black pants, and a blue button up shirt, that brought out his eyes. His hair was getting long and a bit shaggy, and he kept saying he was going to get it cut, but Peyton liked his hair long, so she kept making him put it off. She had been about to ask him what he was staring at as she turned to look at him, but she was caught up in his deep blue eyes, and her mind went blank for a moment.
After a moment, Peyton was finally able to collect her thoughts. "Why are you staring at me like that?" she asked, watching as he stood up, standing in front of her and pulling her to her feet before kissing her. She pulled away, sitting down again and putting on her shoes before standing back up. He had raised an eyebrow at her in question. She pulled him in for another kiss before answering. "Now we're the same height," she explained, grabbing her purse off of the bed, and her leather jacket off the chair she had thrown it on as they left the house.
They were the last ones to arrive at Tric, the only night club in Tree Hill. They had rented it out for the night, so only their friends were inside. As soon as they were inside, Brooke came rushing at her, hugging her tightly. She noticed Lucas staring at them, so she pulled Peyton off to the side to talk. "Oh, P. Saywer, this is so awesome. You have to have a boy, so my daughter and your son can get married when they grow up," she gushed, smiling widely as Rachel and Haley walked over.
Haley heard the comment and looked over at Brooke, an eyebrow raised. "I thought you said your daughter was going to marry my son?" her voice was amused as she questioned Brooke, who just shrugged it off. Brooke mumbled something about not being able to count on Haley to have a son. Haley just ignored her, turning to Peyton instead. "Have you told him yet, girly?" she asked, following Peyton's gaze across the room. She was staring at Lucas, of course.
Peyton shook herself out of her reverie and realized that all three of her friends were staring at her. Rachel repeated Haley's question, but they all knew the answer before Peyton even spoke. "Not yet," she said, looking down at her feet. "I guess I'm just worried, that it'll make him feel like he has to ask me to marry him. If he's not ready, I don't want to force him into anything, you know? I'll tell him soon, though," she added quickly. She knew she couldn't put it off too long, because she had already decided to keep it, of course, but she would rather not tell him just yet.
The other three listened to her explanation, then burst into laughter. Peyton shot them annoyed looks, waiting for them to start laughing, and crossed her arms in front of her chest, giving them a death glare. "Sorry, Peyt, but, do you hear yourself? Do you honestly believe Lucas would feel forced into marrying you? This is the guy who proposed while we were still seniors. You're the only one to blame for the fact that you aren't married yet," Rachel finally managed to say when she stopped laughing.
Peyton thought it over, realizing that Rachel did have a point. She didn't have a chance to respond, though, because Jake, Nathan, Mouth and Lucas were all headed over. The group stood together, chatting for a minute, until a certain song came on, and Peyton dragged Lucas out to the dance floor. "Who knew Peyton Sawyer was a Celine Dion fan," Lucas joked, as he pulled Peyton into his arms. Peyton didn't respond, as she listened to the lyrics to the song.
For all those times you stood by me For all the truth that you made me see For all the joy you brought to my life For all the wrong that you made right For every dream you made come true For all the love I found in you I'll be forever thankful baby You're the one who held me up Never let me fall You're the one who saw me through through it all
You were my strength when I was weak You were my voice when I couldn't speak You were my eyes when I couldn't see You saw the best there was in me Lifted me up when I couldn't reach You gave me faith cause you believed I'm everything I am Because you loved me
You gave me wings and made me fly You touched my hand I could touch the sky I lost my faith, you gave it back to me You said no star was out of reach You stood by me and I stood tall I had your love I had it all I'm grateful for each day you gave me Maybe I don't know that much But I know this much is true I was blessed because I was loved by you
You were my strength when I was weak You were my voice when I couldn't speak You were my eyes when I couldn't see You saw the best there was in me Lifted me up when I couldn't reach You gave me faith cause you believed I'm everything I am Because you loved me
You were always there for me The tender wind that carried me A light in the dark shining your love into my life You've been my inspiration Through the lies you were the truth My world is a better place because of you
You were my strength when I was weak You were my voice when I couldn't speak You were my eyes when I couldn't see You saw the best there was in me Lifted me up when I couldn't reach You gave me faith cause you believed I'm everything I am Because you loved me
You were my strength when I was weak You were my voice when I couldn't speak You were my eyes when I couldn't see You saw the best there was in me Lifted me up when I couldn't reach You gave me faith cause you believed I'm everything I am Because you loved me
I'm everything I am Because you loved me
When the song was over, Peyton looked up at Lucas. "It's the truth, you know. You're my everything, and I honestly wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you. It hasn't always been easy, there have definately been some hard times, but we made it, together. I love you, Lucas Scott," she felt the need to tell him that, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a kiss.
When they broke away, Lucas held her close, knowing that he wanted to be with her forever. "I love you too, Peyton Sawyer, and I'm never going to stop. You're right, we've gone through some rough times, and I know there will be some hard times in the future, but there's no one I'd rather live my life with," he paused, lost in thought for a moment, as he stared at her. "Marry me," he finally added.
Peyton's eyes widened as she heard those last two words. "Who told you?" she asked, and Lucas just looked at her, a little confused. "Who told you I'm pregnant?" she clarified, and she watched as his eyes widened, knowing that she had just spilled her own secret. She smiled sheepishly up at him. "Uh, surprise," she bit her lip, waiting for his reaction. "I just found out today," she defended herself, as his mouth opened. She had known that he was going to ask when she had found out.
Lucas stayed silent for a moment, contemplating. He looked at her, expectantly, but, for once, Peyton wasn't sure what he was expecting. "Well, are you going to marry me, or not?" he asked, still waiting for a reply. She kinked her eyebrow at him. "Okay, I know that proposal wasn't exactly the most romantic thing ever, but I meant it, Peyton. I want to marry you, and spend the rest of my life with you. You're it for me, Peyton, and having our dreams come true, together, I realize that I have one dream that hasn't come true yet, and that's being married to you. So what do you say, Peyton, will you marry me?" he asked, watching her face as he spoke to gauge her reaction.
Peyton nodded, grinning happily before throwing herself into Lucas's arms, kissing him passionately. "Yes, I'll marry you. Of course I'll marry you," she said when they broke the kiss, as if he needed any clarification about her answer. Lucas reached down, taking the simple diamond ring that they had dubbed a promise ring five years ago, and putting it back onto the third finger of her left hand, where it belonged. Then he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "I'm going to love you forever, Lucas Scott," she declared, looking down at the ring, and then looking up again, green eyes meeting blue.
A/N: Okay, I thought that was a good place to end it. I don't really have any more ideas for this fic, and I think they've gone through enough drama. I do have ideas for other fics, though, which I'll be happy to start, though I think I'm going to focus on the other two I have going right now, before I start something new. Tell me what you think of the ending. Oh, and the song in this chapter was 'Because You Loved Me," by Celine Dion. I'm sad this is over, but it was time. Thanks to everyone who read it and reviewed it. I've gotten more reviews for this fic than for any other fic to date, so thanks for that.
Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill or 'Because You Loved Me,' by Celine Dion. Actually, I don't own anything, but y'all know that by now, right?