It was three weeks later when they were all forced to sit in a small court room with a judge facing Vivian and Michael and their ass of a lawyer about Jamie. Since it was a smaller domestic issue, no jury was present, but they were able to bring people with them, so Karen and Brooke came, along with Jamie's doctor to support the Scott side of things.

The lawyers got to talk first, representing each side before the judge. They then introduced each of the people in the room, Brooke being a character witness for Peyton and Karen being a character witness for Lucas, but also being someone that the young boy was familiar with.

The judge chose to hear from the doctor first, and let the lawyers present just a few questions for him to answer.

"Doctor, you started seeing Jamie just a few weeks after his parents passed away?"

"Yes, I believe it wasn't that long after their passing."

"And why was Jamie brought to your attention?"

"Mr. and Mrs. Scott had an incident in which Jamie awoke from a nightmare calling out for his parents. He then went about sharing with them a little of what he remembered from the accident and then pushed them away because they weren't his parents."

"Is that normal?"

"Very. When I met Jamie he wouldn't talk about his parents, but with Mr. and Mrs. Scott constantly telling stories about them, something Jamie liked, and providing a safe environment for them, we got him through it. I only see Jamie once a month now."

"Good. And you have heard that the marriage of Lucas Scott and Peyton Sawyer has come into question as being a marriage of convenience. In your opinion, from your dealings with them, what are your thoughts?"

The doctor took a moment before answering, and Lucas and Peyton took a moment to share a look between each other, not knowing what the man was going to say. "Jamie loves Lucas and Peyton, and he knows and understands a great deal about their relationship. He actually likens them a lot to his own parents, telling me that it comforts him to see them stealing kisses in the kitchen or sharing looks across the room. Their relationship makes him feel safe. And they have made every effort to involve him in it, as well."

"What do you mean by that?"

"They don't do anything without consulting Jamie, and even went so far as to have him be the only witness to their wedding because of their commitment to each other and to the idea of a family."

A confused look crossed Brooke Davis' features, but was quickly replaced with a smile when she realized what that meant. Karen had said once after they had met and started spending some time together and then got engaged that she would be surprised if they could even wait to get married. Now she is betting that they didn't really make that actual wedding date.

That ended the line of questioning from Lucas and Peyton's lawyer to Jamie's doctor, and after clearly seeing that the doctor was on the Scott's side, the other lawyer let him step away.

It went on like this for a few hours, bringing up various people to speak on people's behalf, talking the person up as much as they could, but the judge, while attentive was clearly waiting to hear from the parents to be more than anything.

"Peyton Scott, can you answer some questions for us?" Judge Collins asks, turning in her chair to face Peyton square on, reading her face.

"I would like to begin if I could--" the Alexanders' lawyer started, but stopped when the Judge raised her hand.

"If I may, since I am the one making this decision, I would like to question the next few people." She says, looking around the room and noting the nods from both lawyers before focusing her attention on Peyton.

"Mrs. Scott, when did you meet Jamie Scott?"

"umm... I met him about two months or so after Lucas and I started dating. His mother and I, along with Lucas' sister had spent a day shopping when we went to meet Lucas' family, and ended our day with a family dinner at his mother's house."

"Who was at that dinner?"

"Lucas and I, his mother and her boyfriend, Andy, Haley, Nate, Jamie, and Lucas' sister, Lily." she says, visualizing the table in her head as she spoke.

"And you had just spent the day with Haley Scott, Jamie's mother?"

"Yes, we had met that morning, and Lucas kind of threw us together in hopes that we would get along. Haley saw it as an interview opportunity for her best friend's girlfriend."

The judge smirks at that, completely understanding the idea herself, "Okay, and I assume that you two kept in touch with the family after you went back to live in New York."

"Always... We went on a vacation a few months later, they helped us move into our apartment together, and Haley and I were working on her new album. We had become good friends."

"And what about Jamie?"

"Jamie was Jamie. He's a great kid and we clicked instantly, which I was grateful for. He was so attached to Lucas though, so I think that is what got me my 'in' with him."

"So were you surprised to find out that the two of you were given guardianship of the boy?"

"No. I had expected Jamie to end up with Lucas. The surprise was that Haley and Nathan had put me on the documentation as well, listing me as a Scott."

"And you weren't at the time?"

"We weren't even engaged yet, but Lucas had already told Haley that he was going to ask me, and his mother... so I assume that Haley figured that it would only be a matter of time."

"Now how long have you and Lucas been married?"

She took a deep breath before answering this statement, knowing that it would get a reaction out of her best friend especially. "Nearly nine months."

The lawyer from the other side's outburst overshadowed Brooke's gasp though, as he shouted, "No... they've only been married two months. March twenty seventh of this year."

Judge Collins looked confused for a moment before Peyton clarified the answer she gave, "We got married six months before our actual wedding."

The eyebrows in the room rose a bit at the statement, and the judge had to inquire why.

"Months before the wedding, while we were planning it actually, Jamie had a bit of a breakdown. He was starting to come through with things and with all the wedding planning, we thought that he didn't like the idea of Lucas and I getting married. Lucas was coaching one night and I sat down with Jamie when he was getting into bed and we talked it out. He was worried that we were going to forget him and that we were going to have a baby and leave him..." she stopped for a moment to collect herself before talking again. "The night of the accident, they had been celebrating finding out that Haley was pregnant again. We talked about things, and then I admit that I left that room and I broke down. The thought of everything that they had coming at them and then it all got taken away. I think Lucas found me sobbing in the bathroom that night, and it just came out. Why wait? So we got married a few days later and Jamie was sworn to secrecy. It was the 'family' secret we said, and we're pretty sure that the only person he told was doctor V, so it really is important to him that we shared that."

The judge nodded, turning to face Jamie's other aunt, seemingly done with Peyton for the moment, "And Mrs. Alexander, tell me about Jamie."

"He's such a bright boy, just like his mother, and we have been trying to get to know him better and try to help him through this, but were pushed away by Lucas and Peyton."

"What do you know about your nephew? What does he like to do?"

"He likes to play basketball like his father, and recently he's been into swimming since they got him into a few different leagues. He's good in school, has some good friends that he talks about all the time. His parents would be proud of how he has been dealing with everything. I only wish that I could spend more time with him."

"Okay, and tell me about your relationship with your sister and her husband."

"I didn't know Nathan very well, but Haley and I were very close to each other. All the James girls were close, which you had to be in such a big family."

The judge laughs, nodding her head, "I came from a big family too, so I understand that. What about you two? Do you plan on having other children as well?"

Her eyes glaze over a bit at the mention of other children, but the Judge snaps her out of it by calling her name, "Oh, ummm, I can't actually. I found out not too long ago that I am not able to conceive."

"I see, and I'm sorry for that Mrs. Alexander."

"Thank you." she says, looking down again for a moment, and then looking up to see the Judge focused on Lucas now.

"Lucas, what about the two of you? Are you considering more children?"

"We have talked about it, yes, and decided to wait a bit before trying to have a baby. Peyton wants to make sure that we are settled where we are and we want to make sure that Jamie is okay with the idea of it. We know that he was excited to be a big brother when he found out about Haley, so it could bring up some more insecurities that we need to be prepared for."

"Describe your nephew for me." she says, the request bringing a smile to Lucas' eyes.

"He is the epitome of his mother and father. He has Haley's heart, so kind and loyal, but his spirit is all Nathan's. For a kid his age he is most sensitive to everything, very aware of situations and people's feelings, which is a combination from both of his parents. His smarts come from his mother again, but his athletic obsessions are definitely inherited from his father. He and my sister were born just a day apart from each other, so they both hold a special spot in my heart."

"I'll ask you the same as your wife... were you surprised about the guardianship of your nephew?"

"No. In fact, part of me had been nervous when the lawyer got to that part. I didn't know who else would have taken him, but I was nervous that it wasn't me. And contrary to my wife's reaction, I wasn't at all surprised that Haley would put mine and Peyton's name down. She knew that I was planning on asking Peyton to marry me in the next few months, and Haley has always been the most efficient of people. She probably figured that she might as well do it now rather than change it later"

"Okay," she says, with a nod of finality before turning to the last "parent" in question, Vivian's husband, Michael. "Mr. Alexander, what are your thoughts on this situation."

"Jamie is a good boy, and I did enjoy spending time with my brother in law and sister in law when we could. I think that they were bringing him up to be a great kid, and I'm sure that he is still on that right path. No matter what, I want him to be with family."

The way he said the final statement made the judge realize that was all she was going to get from the man before her, and turning to Lucas and Peyton, she asks, "Is Jamie here today?"

Peyton turns to Karen, who had left Jamie with Andy and Lily outside, "yes, I believe that they are still here." she says after confirming.

"Can you bring him in here please?" she asks sweetly.

Peyton and Lucas both hesitate for a moment before standing up slowly.

It is Peyton of course that turns to the Judge before walking out to get the young boy, "I don't want him to be forced to pick a name. He shouldn't have to testify to any of this."

"He'll be fine, Peyton" Vivian says from her spot, probably more curious to see what the boy would say after spending more time with them while all of this was going on.

"Judge Collins..." Peyton starts after glaring at Vivian from the door.

"I understand your concern Mrs. Scott, but I want to talk to him. You don't have to hear or see anything. He won't be asked to pick anything. In fact, I might not even mention a name. I just want to see who this little boy is, and get to know him."

Satisfied with that answer, they took a short break and went to find where Andy had taken the kids, and then Lucas took a minute to explain to Jamie what was going on before they walked back into the room.

"Jamie Scott?" Judge Collins asks, almost like she was sizing the boy up.

"James Lucas Scott, mam. Are you Judge Collins?"

"Yes, I am. How did you know that?"

"Uncle Lucas said that you wanted to talk to me."

"He did?"

"And he said that I could tell you anything I wanted and I had to answer all your questions."

"Well, that seems good, should we go do that?"

He nods before stealing a quick look back at the adults in the room, namely two adults in the room, which is something that the judge noticed.

When they got into the other room, Jamie took a minute to look around before settling in the chair that the judge pulled out for him.

"So, Jamie, do you understand what all of this is about?"

"Kind of. They keep trying to explain it to me, but it's kind of hard to understand."

"Yeah, it's a lot, but you don't have to worry about anything, okay? We're here to make sure that you are okay."

He nods, scooting down in the chair a bit more.

"So, can you tell me what you did this week?"

"We just finished school, so I went and spent some time with my Aunt Vivian and my Uncle Mike. We went to the museum and we went to the pool a couple times."

"That sounds like a lot of fun, do you like the pool?"

"Oh yeah... I love it so much that I once jumped into the pool with all of my clothes on."

"You did!? Why did you do that?" she asks, laughing at the boys enthusiasm as he shares the story of the last night they had spent at the Naley house.

"What else did you do this week?"

"After I got back from their house, I got to hang out with Uncle Lucas at the rivercourt with the guys and play basketball like him and my dad used to do. I even got to go with Aunt Peyton to her record label and listen to a bunch of CDs of bands that want to be on Aunt Peyton's record label. It was awesome, and there was this one band that was waaay weird and me and Aunt Peyton listened to them like a million times because they sounded like they were robots."

"Sounds really weird.... do you do stuff like that all the time?"

"Yeah, and I'm helping Aunt Peyton produce Momma's album too. She said that even though she's gone, that her music should live on for everyone. I like that."

"That's pretty smart of her to say."

"Yeah, Aunt Peyton and Uncle Lucas are pretty smart."

"What about your Aunt Vivian and your Uncle Mike?"

"They're smart too, but Aunt Vivian doesn't like me to talk about Momma anymore. I think it makes her sad."

"Well, what happened to your mom and dad is very sad."

"I know, but I like talking about them, and I like it when Grandma Karen and Uncle Lucas and Aunt Peyton tell me stories about them. Sometimes before I go to bed, I tell Momma and Daddy stories that I think they would like to hear about things that we did that day. Uncle Lucas says that they are looking down on me, so I can talk to them whenever I need to, just like he does to Great Uncle Keith and Peyton does to her mom."

"What stories have you told them about?"

"You can't tell this to them, but I told Momma and Daddy about Aunt Peyton and Uncle Lucas' secret wedding. Now that they're married, I can talk about it, except for to Brooke, cause they say she'll get mad about it. But I told them about it because they would think it was funny."

"I think it's pretty cool, actually. They really wanted to be married, and that's okay, right?"

"Yeah, they are always lovey dovey and silly. They're like Momma and Daddy, cause when they fight, they hug afterwards and if they yell at each other, they're still smiling a lot. Momma and Daddy used to do that too, so it makes me laugh."

"Well, I'm glad, Jamie, that's really good!" she says, standing up from her chair.

"Are we done talking?"

"We are for now, is that okay?"

"Yeah..."

"You don't sound so sure about that Mr. Scott."

"What is going to happen now?"

"Well, I'm going to send you back outside and I'm going to talk to your Uncles and Aunts alone for a few minutes."

"Then can I go home?"

"Sure... where is home?" she asks, casually asking the question.

"I live in Tree Hill with Uncle Lucas and Aunt Peyton in our new house."

"Do you like the new house?"

"Yeah... we're going to make the basement into a video game room for me an office for Uncle Lucas and a painting studio for Aunt Peyton! And, my new room has a cool, creepy closet, so that's pretty sweet."

She ruffled the boy's hair before gesturing him through the door.

As she sat, everyone in the room held their breath for a moment, waiting for her verdict, which came shortly after she asked everyone except for Lucas, Peyton, Vivian, Michael, and their lawyers to leave the room.

"That is a smart, sweet little boy there, and while I do appreciate both sides of the story, it is clear the choice that is to be made. Before I tell you my final decision, does anyone want to make any closing statements?"

She looked around the room, her eyes meeting those of all the people sitting around her at the moment, noticing how Lucas had grabbed Peyton's hand and how Vivian seemed to relax into her chair as if she knew that she had won. In the eyes, she saw many emotions, ranging from flat out fear and sadness to uncaring and fierceness, which made the choice even easier. No one moved to make a statement after the opportunity was offered.

"All right then, I will tell you a little bit about what I see happening here. Jamie is a very young boy who has been very well cared for since his parent's passing. He has come quite a long way, and I don't want anything to get in the way of that progress. When I pulled him into that room, I chose to ask him about his week, just to tell me about the things that he did. He talked about going to the museum and the pool with you." she says, gesturing towards Michael and Vivian, "and then he talked about going to play basketball on a rivercourt and going to your job with you." she says, now gesturing to Peyton and Lucas.

Smiles came to both parties faces as she mentioned the conversation, allowing themselves to revisit the moments that he had been speaking of.

"However, without mentioning any names, it was clear that his home is with Mr. and Mrs. Scott. His fonder memories since his parents' death involve the two of you, and when he speaks of you, he lights up. You are really what a guardian is supposed to be to that boy. When his parents chose you, they chose you knowing that the two of you would be the most like them in their absence, so I do not go against that choice. So, I hereby grant sole legal custody of James Lucas Scott to Peyton and Lucas Scott."

Vivian makes a move to stand, but her motion is met by her husband reaching out to steady her shoulder and force her to stay down.

"Now, with that said, I still think that it is important for Jamie to have all of his family in his life, so I do recommend that the Scott's allow visits from the Alexanders, but am not granting any such arrangement by law. I trust that you will make the best of judgements for this child."

"He's ours" Lucas says after the judge leaves the room, turning to Peyton with a smile that reached his eyes.

"That he is."

"So, what are you thinking?" he asks her.

"I'm thinking that you and I have come a long way from that night Lucas Scott."

"The beginning?"

She just nods, smiling and pulling him close to her.

"Who knew?"

She laughs at the comment, dragging him with her outside to a waiting family, who, upon hearing the news were beside themselves with happiness at the outcome.

He was right though. Who knew that a relationship that began one night after an innocent conversation with a stranger could lead them here? Again... it wasn't love at first sight, but it was definitely something.

–

Okay... the END!!!

But don't freak out on me okay? Because I can't see this version of Lucas and Peyton ending like this, so I'm going to start a new fic, which I already have part of written in my head. It is going to be written as a through the years kind of fic, not filling in all the details necessarily and jumping around a few years here and there... so be on the look out for the sequel to "It Began One Night" entitled "...And it Lasted Through the Years."

Read and Review... let me know anything you want in the sequel!!!