Brooke lay in bed motionless and wide awake at 3 in the morning.

She hadn't moved in the past 3 hours, just for the fact that every bone in her body ached.

She hadn't slept in two days, for the fact that each noise she heard her eyes would open in an instant and her heart beating like a racehorse.

She hadn't really talked to anybody in 2 days, the last person being Peyton.

She had heard that a boy named Quentin Fields was shot and killed, and that his funeral was tomorrow.

She'd made a promise to herself that she would go to be there for Jamie, and solely Jamie.

If she were there for anyone else, she knew she'd lose it.

Haley and Nathan had each other, though everything. The good times and the bad. Lucas and Peyton newly had one another, although just the thought of it made her stomach turn.

Just 4 years ago everything seemed so much simpler. She had her best friends, and the supposed love of her life at her side.

But now, her best friends had each other. And the love of her life found a different person to love and hold forever.

Brooke sucked in a deep breath, telling herself over and over again she wasn't going to cry. She hadn't cried yet, and she was determined that she would be able to handle this with no tears fallen.

The thought of knowing she had no one to wipe them is what kept them in place.

She couldn't deny the fact that she was lonely. She had never felt this lonely in her entire life. Sure Peyton had suppoedly 'been there' for her, but if she were there for her wouldn't she have waited until at least ONE of the bruises on her body had healed before packing up and leaving?

No one knew about the attack, besides Deb of course. No one had even see Brooke yet besides Deb and Peyton.

And she wanted to keep it that way, if it weren't for her godson that she knew would be having a hard time with this.

But seeing him also broke her heart even a bit more, because she saw Lucas in him every damn day.

His hair, his laugh, his knowledge..and just the thought of Lucas made her long to go up and pull him into a much longed kiss.

But this was Brooke Davis. And she would never do something like that to her best friend.

He was hers now, and she'd have to let that be.

XXX.

Releasing the last strand of her hair out of the curling iron, Brooke froze hearing the doorbell ring.

No one was supposed to come over. She was meeting THEM at the cementary for the burial. She'd just been texting Haley about it last night..the plans couldn't have changed. She hadn't even put any makeup on yet to try and cover her bruises.

Letting out a shaky breath, Brooke slowly made her way to the door, standing a good amount away from it once she reached it.

"Who is it?" She called out, trying to keep a sturdy voice.

"It's Lucas; can I come in?" The familar voice called back.

Brooke shut her eyes, staring down at her feet as she contemplated what she should say to him.

"Um, it's not exactly a good time Luke." She told him, keeping her eyes closed. "Can we talk after the funeral?" She asked praying he'd say yes.

Not hearing an answer though, Brooke let out a sigh, standing nervously awaiting to hear his voice. The silence made her nervous, extreemly nervous.

"Brooke, please.." He finally pleaded, causing her heart to break at his tone. Not too long ago she had been saying these exact same words to him.

Flashback;

A nervous Brooke entered Lucas' room, her mind begging herself to hold back her tears and stay strong for Lucas.

"Luke.." She said softly, seeing her boyfriend sitting on his bed, face in his hands.

Lucas stood up immidiately, not wanting to come off as upset, although it was very clear he was.

It was the day of Keith's funeral, which meant today had to be the official goodbye. And he wasn't sure he could say goodbye to the only father figure he'd ever had.

"Hey, I thought we were meeting at the--the.." He couldn't evem bring himself to say the words. They were too..official.

"I know." Brooke cut him off, knowing exactly where he was headed. "I just thought I'd come see you first..Talk maybe. We haven't really gotten a chance since..you know."

"Do you think maybe we could talk after the funeral?" He asked, not making eye contact with her as he searched around for his tie.

Brooke sighed, looking down at her fidgeting hands. She wished she could just take this pain away from him, but she couldn't. There was nothing she could do to fix this.

"I'm here for you Lucas. And I'm gonna help you get through this, all of this. It's not fair for you to go through it by yourself..and you shouldn't have to." She spoke softly, placing her hands down by her sides and looking up to him, who had finally looked back at her.

"But who's gonan be there for my mom Brooke?" He asked, snapping a bit. But Brooke didn't mind, he was finally revealing a little bit of what was going though his head.

"You are, I am, we all are. We've got to lean on each other Lucas, we just have to.." She said softly.

Lucas nodded his head before closing the gap between him and Brooke. He took her in his arms and buried his head into the crook of her neck, letting himself finally lean on her.

End of Flashback.

Shaking the memory out of her head, Brooke slowly moved to the door. Her hands shaking in the process, she finally managed to unlock the door and open it a crack before moving back a few steps for Lucas to enter.

Seeing the door unlock, Lucas smiled a bit to himself, happy that she was at least letting him in. From what he had heard, no one had really spoken to Brooke recently. Not even Peyton. She had told him that Brooke had fallen down the stairs and was probably just recovering, but he knew Brooke Davis, and falling down the stairs would definately not stop her from getting out of the house.

But the second he saw her, his stomach dropped at the site.

She had bruises outlining her face, a handprint on her arm and neck, this was way to much to have gotten from 'falling down the stairs.'

"Brooke.." He said softly, moving closer to her, causing her to take a few steps back.

"Hey, what's up?" She tried her best to ask in a cheerful voice, hoping he wouldn't take too much notice to her appearance.

"You didn't fall down the stairs..." He stated, ignoring her question. Obviously a lot more was 'up' with her then she was leading on.

Brooke froze at Lucas' comment, not exactly sure how to respond to it. Of course Lucas wouldn't believe her..he wasn't as gullible as Peyton had been.

Sighing, Brooke shrugged her shoulders. "I did actually.." She replied, walking into the kitchen. "From the top to the bottom..You really should have seen it.." She said with a laugh, praying she sounded believeable.

Lucas just stared at her in response, obviously not buying it. "You don't get a handprint around your neck from falling down the stairs." He replied in a deep voice, one that frightened her.

"Luke.." Brooke sighed, turning to look at him. "What is it that you stopped by for? Why are you here?" She asked, raising her eyebrows.

"I wanted to check up on you...it seemed you closed yourself off from everyone the past few days.."

"I've just been busy. I'm going to the funeral today; aren't I?" She snapped, before instantly regretting it. "I'm sorry by the way, for Quentin. I know Jamie talked about him all the time..and that he was a member of your team."

Lucas smiled and nodded at her apoligies. It was just like Brooke to attend a funeral to someone she had never even met just to be there for her friends.

"Well I've got to finish getting ready.." Brooke stated after a few momemnts of silence. "See you there?"

Lucas nodded, still staring at her intently. "Brooke, it's okay to be hurting right now.."

Brooke nodded her head slightly, deciding it was best to just keep her mouth shut.

"I'm here for you ya know.." He added just as she had so many years before. "You shouldn't be going through this by yourself.."

"Lucas, I fell down the stairs. You hero complex seems to be off this time. Guess it only works for one girl, right? Good thing you guys are getting married.." She said, trying her best to sound friendly about it. However seeing Lucxas frown in return made her realize maybe she didn't come off as friendly as she would have liked, or as happy for him as she pretended she was.

"Brooke..just because.."

"Lucas, please don't; okay? I'm fine..I really am. But I'm sure Peyton's waiting for you..and I've got to get ready.."

Lucas sighed in defeat, nodding his head. As he went to give Brooke a hug goodbye, she back away, saying she was still a bit to sore to give any hugs.

SDo with that, he left the house, leaving Brooke there alone.

Howver standing there made her realize, who did she have to lean on now? The first person to show interest in her she just shooed away like a fly.

And that was when the first tear ran down her face. Slowly but surely, it reached the bottom of her cheek. And then a few more, and then they were coming out as a waterfall.

Without hearing the door even open, Brooke felt two pair of arms wrap around her, bringing her into the chest that she'd grown to know so well.

Lucas began stroking Brooke's hair as she let out heartwrenching sobs into his chest. As he felt her knees began to go weak, he quickly scooped her up gently in his arms before leading them over to the couch.

As she layed on top of him, her tears now just slowly falling, she felt a tear on the top of her head, that wasn't her own.

Looking up, Brooke saw the tears of Lucas making their way down his face.

"We've got to lean on each other..Brooke. We just have to.." He said softly before pulling her back into them.

And that was the moment Brooke Davis knew she wasn't alone in this world.

And that was the moment Lucas Scott knew that there was no one that would ever compare to the gorgeous brunette sitting in front of him, and that the person he'd just spilled his heart out to days before didn't quite fit into his arms like Brooke did.