"Your mom?" Lucas asked, as it felt like his chest was hit by a ton of bricks.
"Yeah, I was wondering why she hadn't come by…" Peyton said.
Lucas knew he had to handle this gingerly. It was going to be hard, no matter who you had to tell, that their mother was dead. Especially since this person was a pregnant, hormonal person. And let's not forget that this person has suddenly forgotten some of the most important moments in her life.
"Peyt, honey, your mother died, when you were eight." Lucas was going to ad, 'don't you remember?' but he figured that was pretty stupid, because she wouldn't be asking if she knew.
"Oh." Peyton simply said, and it killed Lucas to see the hurt and pain wash over her. "Wh-what happened?"
"She ran a red light, because she was late picking you up from cheerleading practice, and she was hit head on. She died instantly." After that, Lucas felt he really didn't need share any more information.
And Peyton had never been so glad that they could share information without saying anything, and as Lucas locked eyes with Peyton, he immediately knew what she needed. He sprung up out of his chair and held onto her, as she collapsed into his arms and broke down. They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, as Lucas comforted Peyton while she grieved the death of her mother, again.
"Why don't I remember?" Peyton asked, as she looked up at Lucas.
"I don't know babe. They told me while you were unconscious that there was a chance when you woke up that you could have a case of amnesia, but once you woke up and knew everybody, they dismissed the thought. But, I mean, something could be wrong now, since you forgot our anniversary, and now your mother… I'll go tell the doctor." Lucas said, as he got up to go to the door.
"Wait! Luke, come here" Peyton wailed, as she reached out for him.
"Okay… are you sure you're alright blondie?" Lucas asked, as Peyton pulled him in for a hug.
"Yeah," Peyton answered, too quickly. "Maybe, I don't know, sorta, not really, no."
"C'mere. What's bothering you?"
"I'm afraid that if you leave when you come back I won't remember you" Peyton said, quickly, all in one breathe.
"Aww, Peyton, honey, you won't forget me, I promise."
"And how do you know that?"
"Cause, I'm right here," Lucas said, as he placed his hand over her heart, "with you, forever. Got it?"
"Yeah, I'm sure, I'm sorry" Peyton apologized, as she closed her eyes, and willed the tears not to fall.
"Hey hey now, don't you apologize for anything!" Lucas said, as they both shared a smile, and Lucas placed a kiss on top of her head. "Stay here, I'll be RIGHT back"
"Alright" Peyton said, in her deep southern drawl, as Lucas shot her a wink from the doorway.
--------------
"Honeeeeeyyyyy! I'm HOOOOOOMEEEE!" Nathan shouted through the doorway.
"In here!" Haley called out from their laundry room.
"Whoa, I need to come home more often if you do laundry like this all the time!" Nathan stated, as he eyed his wife up and down, as she was wearing a blue bikini that he distinctly remembers buying when they were in St. Lucia, for their anniversary last year.
"Easy fella, your 6 year old son and babysitter's just in the other room, thank you very much." Haley said, as she noticed Nathan's eyes. She figured this wouldn't lead anywhere good unless she changed the subject, so that's what she did. "Have you talked to Lucas today?"
"No, I haven't. I had practice this morning, took a shower, and came here. Why, is something wrong?"
"No, I was just asking. I think she's actually supposed to come home tomorrow. I know Lucas is so ready for her to be home, and I know she'll be ready to get out of there." Haley said, as she jumped up on the counter.
"Well that's good."
"Hello?" Haley said, as she picked up the phone, "Oh, hey Brooke! Oh, um, yeah, tonight! Oh, no, of course I didn't forget, no, no, that sounds fine. Okay, yeah, I'll see you at seven." Haley said, as Nathan chuckled to himself.
"WHAT?" Haley said, as she glared at him.
"Nothing… it's just, did Haley James Scott forget a dinner appointment tonight?" Nathan said, as he snaked his arms around her waist.
"Wellllllll…." Haley drawled out, "we're meeting Brooke and Julian for dinner at 7, apparently."
"Ahhh. Well I'm going to go for a run, then shower and go see Peyton. I haven't seen her in a few days and, do you just want to meet me there?"
"Yeah babe that sounds fine. I've got to go talk to the caterers, and get the stuff for the party later on."
"What party?"
"Oh, Lucas is planning just a small thing at his house the day Peyton comes home. Just something for us, Brooke and Julian, and Karen"
"Ohhhh okay. Well I better run, see you later babe." Nathan said, as he walked out the door.
----------
"So what seems to be the problem here Miss Sawyer?" the doctor asked, as he picked up her medical chart.
"I can't remember stuff." Peyton bluntly replied.
"Well, she just can't remember, specific, important things" Lucas clarified.
"Like what?" the doctor said, after making notes in her chart.
"Well, she forgot our 7th year anniversary of when we first met, and she's always, always remembered that. And, she also forgot that her mother was dead." Lucas answered, after Peyton gave him a look saying she couldn't admit that she forgot those important moments in her life.
"Hey boyfriend!" Peyton answered her phone very cheerfully.
"Heyyyy! How are you?" Lucas replied.
"Lonely, but happy that my wonderful boyfriend will be in here 8 days to celebrate our anniversary! So what's up? How did your meeting go?"
"Well, that's what I'm calling about…" Lucas said, not having the heart to finish the sentence.
"Luke, what's wrong? Did they cancel the tour or something?" Peyton asked worriedly.
"No, no, it's, it's most definitely still on. In fact, they added a few more spots, so I have to leave earlier."
"Oh Luke! That's great! Where else are you going?"
"Well, they actually made it an international tour. But since it's my first book, we're just hitting England."
"Oh Lucas! That's great! I'm so proud of you baby! But you aren't acting as excited as I am…" Peyton stated, noticing that Lucas wasn't as excited as he normally, or should have been.
"Well, you know how I said they moved it up? Well, I leave in 4 days. And I'll be gone for the 18th. I'm so sorry Peyton, I really am."
"Oh, I see. It's fine, I understand. But England Luke! Wow! That's amazing!"
"You know what else is amazing?" Lucas asked, in complete bewilderment.
"What?"
"You are. I just throw on you, that I'm going to have to miss our week long private vacation. Miss our anniversary and you're taking it all in stride." Lucas said, with complete adoration in his voice.
"Awh, that's sweet Luke! But, I do happen to know that you'll be making it up to me, riiiiight?" Peyton asked in the tone of voice she knew drove him crazy.
"Oh you better believe it."
"I see. And is that all you forgot?"
"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHAT I FORGOT?!" Peyton nearly screamed.
"Ahh, that's true. Let me just ask you a few questions, okay?" the doctor asked, after realizing what a stupid question he asked.
"What's the date?"
"Thursday the 23rd, 2008."
"And what state are we in?"
"North Carolina."
"And who is the president of the United States?"
"George Bush"
"And where are you?"
"The hospital…"
"Okay. Well it sounds like to me, from the extent of your injury, and how you haven't had any mind problems until now, and your memory is so selective, that it could possibly be something in your head pressing against your brain, reducing the blood flow, thus why you can't remember certain things. We'll need to get an MRI done stat to see what's going on." The doctor said, as Peyton's breathe caught in her throat, and Lucas instinctively reached for her hand.
"Wait. MRI? Aren't those harmful to the baby?" Lucas asked
"Well, they are, but since we have the new MRI machine where you can simply put the magnet over the body part you need, and since it's just her head, we'll be able to cover the rest of her body with protection, and it'll be fine. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go order the MRI."
"Okay, thank you doctor." Lucas said for Peyton, as she began sobbing into his arms.
"Shhh, it's going to be okay Peyton. They'll find what's going on and we'll be able to fix it." Lucas said, trying to convince Peyton and himself.
"I, I just thought that maybe I'd have a concussion or something, not something in my head! And now," Peyton's voice trailed off, as she began to sob again.
"I know baby, I know. But just think about it. Who else is better at going through hard stuff than us? We've gone through two mothers, fake brother, real brother, school shooting, I mean, it's like it was bound to happen!"
"That's true.." Peyton said, with a smile.
"There's that smile I love so much." Lucas said, as he tapped her nose with his index finger. "I'm going to call Brooke."
"No! Don't tell her!" Peyton exclaimed.
"Why not? I know she'd want to be here with you…"
"I know, but she finally believes that I'm going to be okay, and she's so happy about our wedding and hers, and I just don't want to put a burden to that." Peyton said, as she recalled Brooke's visits to the hospital, all excited about their 'double weddings', as Brooke called it.
"Okay, okay. How about I just stay here with you instead?" Lucas asked, even though he already knew the answer.
"I think we'd like that." Peyton said, smiling at the thought of her baby.
---------
"JULIAN!" Brooke hollered out, for the 5th time that morning.
"Yes dear?!" Julian called back.
"Have you seen the little utensil thingy that has a bunch of wires around it that you use to mix stuff together?" Brooke called out from the kitchen. She was trying to make him a secret dessert, since he surprised her last night with Gerber daisy's for no particular reason, but she was failing miserably.
"The what?" Julian asked as he walked into the kitchen.
"You know, you beat eggs with it, and theirs like 10 wires all bent around and you fluff stuff with it."
"The whisk? And don't you mean you what stuff with it?" Julian asked, as he pulled the whisk from the drawer.
"Fluff. You know, put air in it and make it all fluffyful!" Brooke exclaimed, as she started beating the eggs with her new found utensil.
"Alright… have you heard from Peyton or Lucas today?" Julian asked, as he sat down on the counter and sipped his coffee.
"No, I haven't. Usually she calls me by now. Hmm. I'll have to call her after I get through cooking you…" Brooke said, as she stopped to flick some flour onto Julian, "breakfast!"
"Brooke. Penelope. Davis. I know you did not just do that." Julian asked, as he eyed the flower that was now covering his bare torso.
"Oh yes I did!" Brooke said, and as she saw the look on his face, she began to run around the kitchen.
"Oh, you can run but you can't hide!" Julian hollered out, as he chased after her.
"Wait, wait! Let me answer the phone!" Brooke squeals, as Julian catches up with her, and begins tickling her; all while the phone is ringing.
"Hello?!"
"Hey Brooke! Have you by any chance heard from Lucas or Peyton today?" Haley asked; glad to have gotten Brooke on the phone.
"No, no I haven't heard from them." Brooke said.
"That's weird... Usually Lucas calls me after the doctor stops by for his morning rounds…"
"Yeah it is weird; Peyton usually calls me by now too... I'm sure their just busy…"
"BROOKE!" Haley screeched.
"No not THAT Kind of busy, just, yeah."
"Well, Nathan was going to go for a run then stop by, so maybe he'll figure out what's going on."
"Oh! I wish Julian would do that!" Brooke said dreamily.
"What? Stop by and see Lucas and Peyton?" Haley asked, confused.
"No, go running. He's fit and everything, but ahhh! There's just something about a sweaty man. Like, when I was over at your house dropping Jamie off, Nathan came in from running, and he was shirtless and he was sweaty and dang girl!"
"BROOKE! He's my HUSBAND!" Haley squealed out.
"I know, but he's still hot… oh, don't worry Julian, I think your hot too!" Brooke added, after Julian mocked pain from across the room.
"Oh well. I tried calling Nathan to see if he had gotten there yet, but he didn't answer. But he doesn't answer usually if he's running, so yeah. I gotta go run out and order the cake for the party, so I'll see you tonight? And oh! Call me if you hear anything!"
"Alllllright, sounds good to me. And yeah, I'll most definitely you know if I hear anything. Okay, see you tonight! Byee!"
"Haley?" Julian asked, after Brooke hung up the phone.
"Yeah, she hasn't heard from Leyton today, and wanted to know if I had." Brooke said, as she walked over to Julian.
"Leyton?" Julian asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, Leyton. Lucas plus Peyton equals Leyton!" Brooke exclaimed happily.
"Alright, crazy girl."
----------
Meanwhile, going on at the hospital…
"Alright Miss Sawyer, MRI is ready for you" one of 2 male nurses said, as they walked in the room. "If you're ready, we'll go ahead and wheel you on down"
"Okay. You're coming aren't you?" Peyton asked Lucas.
"Can I?" Lucas asked the nurse.
"Yeah, there's a waiting room outside the scan room, so you can wait there."
"Hey, could you give us a minute right quick?" Peyton asked the guys.
"Uhm, yeah, sure. Just, make it quick cause their waiting for you down stairs." The other guy said, as they walked out the door.
"Peyt? Are you okay?" Lucas asked, as he got up and walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed.
"I'm scared Luke, I really am." Peyton said, and bit her lip, trying to keep the tears from falling down.
"Hey hey, it's okay, it really is. I promise. I'll be here, no matter what, okay? And remember that I love ya, blondie." Lucas said, as a few tears fell from Peyton's eyes.
"You good now?" Lucas asked, as he wiped away her tears.
Peyton nodded in response.
"Alright!" Lucas called out, for the 2 men to come back in.
"Let's go figure out what's going on in that head of yours" Lucas said, as he grabbed Peyton's hand, as they pushed her down the isle.
---------
"Uhm ,excuse me." Nathan asked one of the nurses, as he stepped out of Peyton's room.
"Yes?" the nurse replied.
"Do you happen to know where Peyton Sawyer is? This is her room, and she's not in here, and I know she hasn't been discharged..."
"Okay, let me just check her file." After glancing at her chart, the nurse spoke again.
"Looks like she was sent down to MRI for an MRI at 4:00pm, about 30 minutes ago." The nurse said, looking back up at Nathan.
"Oh. Is there a waiting room down there or something where people could wait for her or something?" Nathan asked.
"Yeah, there is. 5th floor, to the right. You'll see a sign for MRI waiting room." the nurse said.
"Thanks so much!" Nathan called out, after sprinting to the elevator.
As Nathan rounded the corner on the 5th floor, he saw the room. He also saw Lucas, sitting in a chair, with his head in his hands.
"Hey bro, what's up?" Nathan asked, concerned.
"I don't even know man." Lucas said. You could hear the sadness in his voice.
"Umm, okay, first off, Uhm, what are we doing here?"
"Long story…" Lucas said, as he shrugged his shoulders.
"I've got lots of time..." Nathan said, suggestively.
"Well, it started yesterday. Peyton didn't remember our first anniversary, you know, out by the lake."
"When her car broke down?" Nathan asked.
"Yeah. She also forgot the very first things we ever said, which really surprised me. Then, she completely dropped the bomb on me by asking where her mom was, and why she hadn't come by."
"Oh, wow!"
"Yeah, I know. Imagine telling a hormonal Haley that her mom was dead? It about broke my heart."
"I can see why… but I still don't get it. Why are we here?" Nathan asked, still not understanding why Peyton was getting an MRI done.
"Well, we told the doctor what happened, and he thought that something might be in her head, so he wanted to see what was going on."
"Like a tumor?"
"Yeah, something like that... so. Here we are."
Nathan was about to say something, but the doctor walking in stopped him.
"Mr. Scott?"
Both Lucas and Nathan replied.
"Yes?"
The doctor just looked on in confusion. "Er, Lucas Scott?"
"That's me, how's Peyton? Is she okay? How'd it go? What's wrong with her? Did you find something?" Lucas began shooting out the questions.
"Easy there. Peyton's fine. It went just perfectly, as we suspected. We're still not sure what's going on, and we won't be able to get a solid read from the test until tomorrow. She's being sent back up to her room now."
"Oh okay, thank you so much doctor." Lucas replied.
"No problem."
"Look, you can come up and see Peyton if you'd like..."
"Oh no, I'm fine. We're having dinner with Brooke and Julian tonight so I better get back anyway. Give Peyton my love though,"
"Oh, I will. Oh, and don't' mention this to Brooke. You can tell Haley, but Peyton doesn't want Brooke to know... she doesn't want to make Brooke sad again." Lucas said, as he stood up from his chair.
"Alright, you got it. Call me if there's anything we can do, I mean it."
"I know bro, thanks for sitting here with me for the past what, half hour?"
"Oh you got it. See ya later!"
"Bye" Lucas called out, as he stepped into the elevator.
-----
"Hey babe" Lucas said, as he walked into the room.
"LUKEY!" Peyton exclaimed, as she held her arms open for him to come hug her."I missed you!"
"I missed you too babe" Lucas said, as he chuckled.
"Do they know what's wrong with me?" Peyton asked, her voice becoming serious.
"No, they said that they'll know by tomorrow though."
"Oh, okay. Will you just lie here with me?"
"I sure will. But is little Peyton here hungry?"
"No, little Lucas isn't."
They were constantly bickering back and forth between the two sexes, but they both knew that it was all in fun and games.
---------
The next day
"Miss Sawyer, Mr. Scott, I'm glad to see you're both here." The doctor said, as he walked in.
"Yes, I'm here pretty much all the time..." Peyton said.
"Do you have the results of her MRI?" Lucas asked the doctor
"Yes, yes I do. And the results are very clear. As you can see right here, Miss Sawyer, that it is very clear that you have a brain tumor that's pushing onto the back of your brain, hence the sporadic memory loss. The good thing is, we should be able to do surgery and remove it, but I'll let the brain surgeon come in and talk to you about that."
And with that, Peyton completely fell into Lucas' arms, sobbing, and clinging to the one thing in her life that mattered most; him.
A/N; so, I suck. I know. I went to Canada for a mission trip, and I tried to get this done before I left, but didn't. Then just, life had OTHER plans for instead of writing, so I'm so sorry that it has taken this long. Quick shout out to SMC-27, my 50th reviewer! Thanks girl! And, the more reviews I get the faster I write.. muahaha. Please review!