Epilogue

If someone had told Lucas this time last year that he would be settling down and getting married, he wouldn't have believed them. It wasn't that he wouldn't have wanted to, but it just wouldn't have seemed possible at the time. He'd been traveling the nation on his second book tour and he couldn't have even remembered the last time he went on a date, let alone been serious about a girl, so it would have been crazy to even think about the possibility of him getting married.

And yet he was getting married and it soon he would have the most beautiful, amazing wife he could have ever asked for. Brooke Davis was his dream come true. She was the girl he'd searched the world for and he couldn't wait to call her his wife.

Something else Lucas would have never expected a year earlier was that he'd be a dad within the year. And, much to his amazement, he was. Kate was more than he could have ever asked for. He could never get over how lucky he was to be a part of her life, to get to call her his daughter. The best part was that she really was his daughter now, not just by their word, but legally. With both Brooke and Kate's enthusiastic permission, he'd adopted her only two weeks ago. Kate Davis was officially Kate Scott and in less than an hour her mother would be a Scott too. That thought made had him grinning like a fool.

"How are you holding up? Are you nervous?" Nathan asked, coming up from behind Lucas. They were in one of the small side rooms in the church, waiting for the wedding to start.

"Nope," Lucas said, smiling as he secured his tie.

"Not even a little bit?"

"I should be, shouldn't I? But I'm not... Actually, I've never been less nervous in my life. I just want the wedding to start so I can finally call Brooke my wife."

"Finally?" Nathan said with a laugh. "Don't be so dramatic, bro. You've been engaged for like six months and known each other just a little longer than that."

"I know, but it feels like I've been waiting my whole life for this moment."

Nathan's face softened as he patted Lucas on the back. "I know. I was just teasing you. You really deserve this, you know? You've been alone for so long, but now you've got Brooke and Kate taking care of you and that's more than reassuring for all of your family...We just want you to be happy."

"Thanks, Nate," Lucas said as he pulled his brother into a brief hug. They didn't share a lot of serious moments like this, but when they did, it always meant so much to him. "That really means lot coming from you."

"Yeah, yeah, just don't expect me to be so nice in my best man speech."

Lucas laughed. "Oh, of course not."

"Actually," Jake said, appearing behind them, "I've read Nathan's speech and I'd be surprised if it didn't garner a few tears from the ladies."

Nathan sent Jake a glare. "I wasn't aware that I gave you permission to read my speech."

"You didn't," Jake said with a grin and then he held out a piece of paper. "You left it in the bathroom."

Nathan snatched it from him, muttering a few incoherent words under his breath.

"Do you write best when you're on the toilet or something?" Lucas asked, earning a playful punch from his brother.

"Shut up..."

They were interrupted as Haley poked her head into the room. "Hey, guys. You're all looking handsome." She winked at Nathan. "Especially you, hot stuff."

"Well, obviously," Nathan said with a smirk.

She just laughed, placing a kiss on her husband's cheek, and then made her way over to Lucas. His best friend was looking at him with proud eyes and it was obvious that she was more than thrilled that he'd found the happiness he'd been searching so long for.

"It's your big day, buddy."

He smiled softly down at her. "Crazy, huh?"

"A little...So, are you glad you decided to come home?"

"It was the best decision I've ever made."

"Yeah, I think so too..." Her eyes fell to his tie and she frowned. "Luke, your tie is all crooked. You can't get married like this..." He just watched in amusement as Haley straightened it out. "And now, thanks to good old me, it's perfect."

"Crazy girl," Lucas said, laughing at Haley's attempt to always have things exactly in order. But he loved her for it. Out of all his friends, Haley had been in his life the longest and she was the one who knew him best. She was his sister in all senses of the word, but, most of all, she was his best friend.

"I love you, Hales," he said, looking down at her seriously.

"Oh, I love you too, Luke," she said, tears now in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around him in tight hug.

"How does Lucas have the power to make girls so freaking emotional?"

Lucas chuckled, playfully rolling his eyes at his brother as he pulled away from his sister-in-law.

Haley, however, glared at her husband. "Nathan Scott, moment killer."

"Sorry," Nathan said, shrugging. "You know I mean well."

Haley smiled, wrapping an arm around Nathan's waist. "That's okay. I think I can forgive you."

"Hi, Daddy."

Lucas turned around instinctively at the sound of Kate's voice. He'd never get used to how amazing it felt to hear her call him that. His daughter was standing at the door, looking angelic in her flower girl dress as she stared up at him with the dimpled smile that reminded him so much of her mother.

"There's my girl. You look incredibly beautiful today, you know that? You're gonna take everyone's breath away when you walk down that aisle."

Kate beamed up at him and he bent down so that he was eye level at her. "Thanks and you look very handsome, Daddy."

"Why thank you," he said with a chuckle. "So, how's your mom doing?"

"She's good. She told me to come in here and tell you that she loves you."

"She did, did she? Well, you tell her I love her too and that I can't wait until she's my wife."

"Okay..."

He grinned, pulling Kate into a hug. He felt like he'd been doing a lot of hugging today and he was sure there were many more to come.

"Love you, kid," he said as he stood up and she ran back to the door.

"Love you, too!" she called back and then she was gone. Haley sent Lucas one last smile before following her.

"It's just about time," Jake said, pointing towards the clock.

Nathan turned to him seriously. "You ready for this?"

His smile widened. "I haven't been more ready for anything in my life."

888

A permanent smile was etched on her lips as she smoothed down her beautiful white wedding gown. She'd dreamed of this day over and over and now it was finally happening. She was getting married. It was almost insane to her. It seemed like for as long as she could remember she was always the bridesmaid, but never the bride. But that wasn't the case now.

She wasn't just marrying any guy, either; she was marrying Lucas Scott, the man of her dreams, the one person who she'd ever loved like this, her other half. That in itself was the best aspect of this day. In her mind, it didn't matter if they had the big, elegant wedding that they were having today or instead decided to do something simple, all that mattered was that she was going to be his wife and he was going to be her husband.

She heard sniffling behind her and turned around to see Peyton holding back tears as she stared at Brooke.

"Hey," Brooke said, walking over to her best friend and wrapping an arm around her, "it's the bride's job to cry at the wedding, remember?"

Peyton smiled through her tears. "Yeah, but didn't I tell you that I couldn't wait to cry on your wedding day?"

Brooke felt tears coming to her own eyes. She knew she'd be doing a lot of crying today, but they'd all be happy tears.

"And you didn't have to wait twenties years, did you?" Peyton added.

She chuckled softly, remembering their conversation before Peyton's wedding. "No, I guess not."

"I told you you'd be getting married much sooner than you thought and I was right."

"I still can't believe it, even right here, sitting in my own wedding dress... Time goes by so fast."

"I know... and before you know it, you and Lucas will be following in mine and Jake's footsteps once again," Peyton said, motioning to her slightly rounded belly. She was nearly five months pregnant with her and Jake's first child and Brooke had never seen her more happy.

"I'm not sure about that," Brooke said, chuckling. "I think we're gonna wait a year or two before we give Kate a little brother or sister. We've got to enjoy our life as newlyweds, first."

"Uh huh, I give you less than a year. Actually, since Lucas can't keep his hands off you, I'm gonna give you six months tops before he knocks you up."

"Funny, Peyton," Brooke said, playfully glaring at her best friend.

Peyton shrugged, sending her a teasing smile, but then she turned serious.

"You're getting married, Brooke."

Her lips formed into an automatic smile. "I know."

"Really, Brooke, after everything you've been through, you deserve this happy ending more than anyone."

"Thank you," Brooke murmured as she hugged her best friend.

A second later, Haley and Kate both entered the room and she and Peyton pulled apart. Kate ran right to her and Brooke scooped her up into her arms, kissing her cheek.

"Daddy says he loves you too," Kate whispered into her ear. "And he says he can't wait for you to be his wife."

Brooke felt herself melt at her daughter's words. She couldn't wait to be his wife either.

"Are you ready?"

She glanced over in surprise at Karen, who'd just entered the room.

"Is it already time?"

Karen nodded, smiling sweetly at her. "Yes, we've got to get into the hall."

Her heart beat quickened, excitement raging in her body. She set Kate down and looked over at Karen and the others.

"Let's do this."

They all made their way into the church foyer. The chapel doors were opened, but she stayed hidden. She sent Kate an encouraging smile as her daughter began her walk down the aisle and, one by one, Karen, Haley, and Peyton began to disappear. Then it was her turn.

Taking a deep breath, she took a step out from behind the door. The guests all stood up as they caught sight of her, but the only thing she noticed as she began her walk was his face. Then their eyes met and there was no where else she could look. It was as if he was the only person in the room. The smile on his face grew with each step she took and her own smile was bigger than ever.

And then, when she reached the end of the aisle and he reached out for her hand, she felt the tears coming again, but she didn't care, because this was without a doubt one of the best moments of her life. Her hand fell into his, fitting perfectly as always, and his lips fell to her knuckles, kissing them softly.

"You look so beautiful," he murmured, taking her other hand as well.

She just sent him a watery smile as the minister called them forward. Their eyes never left each other the whole ceremony and, as they promised themselves to one another for the rest of their lives and then sealed that promise with a kiss, she knew without a single doubt that there was no one else in this world for her. They were simply made for each other.

888

They were on the dance floor now, swaying gently to the music as he held her in her arms. It was their first dance as husband and wife and it was one of those perfect moments in life that he never wanted to end. Her head and hands rested on his chest, his arms wrapped loosely around her as his lips grazed her cheek.

She tipped her head to look up at him, their gazes latching. And then his lips met hers and it was the best feeling to know that he'd be able to kiss her like this for the rest of his life. When she pulled away, she moved her head back to his chest, a peaceful smile on her face. He smiled too, content to simply hold her in his arms.

As they danced, his gaze fell over to Jake and Peyton, who danced together only a few feet away. Jake caught his gaze and sent him a grin before focusing on his wife again. Lucas wasn't sure where he'd be right now if it weren't for Jake and Peyton. If Jake had never met Peyton, then chances were he'd have never met Brooke and that thought just didn't sit well with him. He liked to believe that, had Peyton and Jake not met in New York, they'd all have found each other eventually, but it really was pointless wondering what could have been, when their reality was so much better.

Next to Jake and Peyton was Mouth and the one person he'd never have imagined they'd have invited to their wedding— Rachel. Although Rachel had gone back to New York after the trouble she'd caused, she and Mouth had remained close and, after a few months, they became a couple. It was a surprise to Brooke, who never knew Mouth and Rachel's history in high school, but not to him. Mouth and Rachel had always been close and Mouth had been the only one to stay in contact with her after they graduated, so their relationship was nothing new to Lucas. He was more than happy for them, too. Mouth had a way of making Rachel a better person, while at the same time loving her for who she really was, and that was the type of guy Rachel needed. What pleased Lucas the most was that Rachel was genuinely happy with Mouth. She was in no way settling and, as she herself had told Lucas, she'd never been happier.

Of course, since Rachel was spending a lot of time in Tree Hill to be with Mouth, the relationship between Rachel and Brooke had been slightly awkward at first. Somehow, though— and Lucas still wasn't quite sure how it happened— they managed to become friends. He wasn't complaining, because the less drama between them all, the better.

His gaze then moved to land on Kate, who was over at one of the tables with Jenny and Lily. The three girls teased an overwhelmed looking Jamie.

"I hope for Jamie's sake that Peyton and Jake are having a boy," Brooke said and he noticed that she was observing the kids too.

He just laughed. "Me too... poor kid is surrounded by girls."

A light smile was on her lips as she sighed contentedly. "I keep thinking of our first dance. It was right here, a little over nine months ago."

"And now here we are, dancing at our own wedding."

"It's crazy how much can change over such little amount of time."

"It definitely is amazing." He looked at her, their eyes meeting. "I honestly don't know how I lived without you. I can't even bear the idea of being without you now."

"Thankfully, you don't have to." Her hand cupped his cheek. "I'm here now and I'm never going to leave you. Not for anything."

He smiled softly down at her, placing a sweet kiss on her lips before resting his forehead against hers.

"I love you, Mrs. Scott."

Her gazed latched onto his, a big smile taking over her face at his words, and then she said then one thing that he would never tire of hearing, "I love you too, husband."

A/N: This is the end! It's kind of crazy that it's over, but I feel like it's time. This chapter was a lot of fun to write, so I hope you thought it was fun to read too. And I hope that it wasn't too cheesy either, although I know it probably was. Oh and if anyone can find that Scrubs reference in there, then I will love you forever (Scrubs = the best show ever...it's just the truth :D)!

I will be posting that oneshot I mentioned within the next few weeks. I'm working on it in my spare time, but so far I have to say that I love it. Then again I've only written less than a third of it, so who knows how the rest will turn out... But be sure to look out for it. It's gonna be a fun read, I promise! And if you haven't already, check out my other story, The Point of No Return. This is the story that I'm gonna be focusing on now that this is over. I don't really have any other story planned as of now.

Thanks so much to every single person for reading! In times like these, we need our Brucas fix and that's really why I write. I hope it can give all of us Brucasers some hope, even though the show has given us none. And to my loyal reviewers: you all are amazing! This story would be nowhere without you, there's no doubt about that. So thanks, guys!