2004 ― Tree Hill, North Carolina

It was springtime in Tree Hill.

Basketball season was over, and Lucas Scott was now living in North Carolina with his uncle Keith Scott. Haley James married Nathan Scott, and Aurora James felt alone. She knew she wasn't alone, she still had Peyton, because Brooke was gone visiting her parents, but she still felt alone inside. She wasn't mad at Haley, she was overjoyed for her and Nathan. It just stung that their parents got to see them get married and she didn't, especially since Haley is her twin and Nathan has been her best friend for nine years.

"Hey," Aurora said as she let herself into Peyton's bedroom.

"Doesn't anyone ring a doorbell in this town?" She asked. Aurora laughed as she shrugged her shoulders. The reason she and Brooke were always able to get into Peyton's house is because they knew where the spare key was. That was also why Peyton never freaked out whenever they came because she knew it had to be them because they knew about the key.

"Some do, I don't. Let's go," Aurora said. Peyton raised an eyebrow as she looked at her.

"Where are we going?" Peyton asked.

"It is day two of the Aurora and Peyton hoes over bros reunion tour, so move it," Aurora said as she walked out of her room. She waited downstairs for her, but she noticed her friend was taking a while. She walked to the bottom of the stairs and yelled out for her. "Come on, you fake blonde goldilocks. Let's go!"

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

"Aurora, what are you up to?" Peyton asked as the girls were walking down the docks. Her brother, Alex, who attends college at Duke University was meeting them down here. One of his friends owns a yacht and he said Alex could use it while his family was vacationing elsewhere for their break.

"Alex is meeting us down here. His friend said we can use his boat," Aurora said. Peyton raised an eyebrow as she looked around and then she saw him. His golden brown hair looked even more golden in the sun as he approached the girls.

"Ari!" Alex exclaimed. Aurora looked up and smiled at her brother as he approached. Once he did, he reached out and wrapped his sister in his arms. "Hales really got married?" He asked. Aurora nodded and shrugged.

"Yup, she did... anyway, where's the keys?" Aurora asked. Alex laughed as he rolled his eyes and then he turned to Peyton.

"Hey, Peyton. How are you?" Alex asked.

"Good... nice to see you again," Peyton said. Alex smiled as he gestured for the girls to follow him. "Are you sure your friend is okay with us using his boat?" Peyton asked.

"Yeah, he gave me the keys himself," Alex said as he laughed.

"Peyton, look at us and look at this day. We're basically a beer commercial, and as Alex just said, we have permission. It would be wrong for us to not take it. So, let's go," Aurora said as they walked onto the boat. Alex went to the front and put the keys in the ignition. Aurora smiled as the yacht roared to life.

And Alex took them out into the sea.

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

After they were out to sea, Alex put the boat in park. Peyton and Aurora were tanning on the deck, while Alex was taking a nap in one of the bedrooms. He had stayed up late last night, but he had promised Aurora he'd take them out on the boat, so he just wanted to take a nap before he joined them.

"Listen, do you hear that?" Aurora asked. Peyton's face scrunched up in confusion, but Aurora still had her eyes closed.

"Hear what?" Peyton asked.

"The silence, it's nice," Aurora said, making Peyton laugh.

"Yeah... Well, at least it was until you started talking," Peyton teased. Aurora opened her eyes, looked at her friend, and then rolled her eyes before shutting them again and laughing.

"So, what do you want to do after this? Maybe some ice cream, facials, spa day? We can send Alex back home," Aurora said. Peyton sighed and Aurora knew what that sigh meant. The girls opened their eyes, sat up, and faced each other.

"It's okay to miss him, Ari," Peyton said. It was Aurora's turn to sigh. She knew Peyton was talking about Lucas leaving. Aurora was trying not to think about it, but she did miss Lucas, a lot.

"Miss who?" Aurora asked. Peyton laughed as she shook her head.

"You know I'm talking about Lucas," Peyton said. Aurora shook her head as she shrugged.

"I don't miss him... I mean a little bit, but you know what? He's moved, it's whatever. We'll find new boyfriends and that shouldn't be hard. Look at us," Aurora said, making Peyton smile.

"Yeah, his loss. Jake's too," Peyton said and Aurora nodded.

"You wanna know a secret?" Aurora asked.

"Hmm?" Peyton hummed in response.

"I was secretly pulling for you and Jake," Aurora said. Peyton looked surprised for a few reasons. She and Jake were mainly talking when Aurora was avoiding her, so she wouldn't have thought Aurora wanted anything happy to happen to her.

"Even when I was at the top of your Bitch List?" Peyton asked.

"Even then, and you wanna know why?" Aurora asked. Peyton nodded, she was curious as to what the answer was going to be.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because I wasn't into him," Aurora teased. Peyton rolled her eyes but both girls laughed at her joke. Then another boat with all guys on it started to pass them. Aurora noticed how they were staring and she could hear some whistles. "Boys are so easy... We could swim if we had suits," She said and Peyton shook her head.

"When has that ever stopped us?" Peyton asked.

"True... and Alex is asleep, so," Aurora shrugged her shoulders as they stood up. The girls stripped off their clothes and jumped naked into the water. One of Aurora's favorite things about living in North Carolina is that when it's warm outside.

The water heats up pretty quickly too.

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

Once the girls were done skinny dipping, they got back on the boat, dried off, and got redressed. Then they were sitting and talking. Alex had joined them too and Aurora was really happy that her brother was home for his Spring Break. Since Haley got married, she noticed her parents have been packing, so she was thinking they were about to take a trip.

"Are you girls having fun?" Alex asked.

"Hell yeah," They responded together.

"Seriously, thank your friend for us. It was cool of him to let us use his yacht," Aurora said. Alex nodded and Peyton sighed. The weight of Lucas' letter felt like it was burning a hole in her bag and she knew she had to tell Aurora.

"Ari, there's something I need to show you," She said. She reached inside her bag and pulled out the letter. "It was taped to my front door yesterday," She said. Aurora took the letter from her and saw both of their names on it.

"This is from Lucas?" Aurora asked and Peyton nodded.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kept it from you," Peyton said. Aurora shook her head.

"You said you got it yesterday. That's not really keeping it from me. I saw Lucas twice before he left. I don't know why he still felt the need to write a letter," Aurora said as she shook her head, but she was laughing a bit.

"Do you want to read it?" Peyton asked.

"Hey, Alex... can we head back?" Aurora asked. Alex looked at his sister and nodded sympathetically. She gave him the full story of what happened between her and Lucas when he got back from break.

"Yeah, of course," He said as he went to go start the boat. Aurora turned to Peyton.

"We can decide on reading it later."

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

Keith and Lucas Scott heard the news that Dan Scott had a heart attack. They were debating whether or not they should stay where they were or come back to Tree Hill. Lucas didn't care much for his father, but there was a version of Dan that Keith knew before all of this. They were making a pros and cons list.

"Alright, just to recap on the uh... reasons to stay side. We got, Dan's an ass, you were an ass, my new teaching job, we both got a fresh start. Your mother, I laid my heart out, and this apartment has a killer view. What else?" Keith asked.

"Nathan," Lucas said.

"Oh, yeah, that marriage thing must have been tough for you," Keith said as he wrote Nathan down on the 'stay' side. Lucas shook his head.

"No. I meant for reasons to go back," Lucas said. Keith gave him a confused look. "I was wrong about him and Haley. It's kinda weird, but I'm glad for them," He continued and Keith smiled.

"You know, Luke. I'm really proud of you for getting to know Nathan," Keith said and Lucas smiled. Then he thought of his other reason why he wanted to go back, and Keith noticed the change on his face. "What else?"

"Aurora."

"I know you love her. If you think you should go home, then you should, but there are things in Tree Hill that I'm not sure I can face," Keith said. He was referring to the fact that he slept with Deb Scott, and Dan caught them.

"Like what?" Lucas asked.

"Just... something I'm not proud of," Keith said, and then he paused. "Look, I'm going to take a little walk," He said and then walked to the door.

"Keith!" Lucas exclaimed and Keith turned around.

"I'm good. I just, uh... just gotta get a little air," He said as he shut the door behind him, leaving Lucas only to his thoughts.

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

"Ari, I'm sorry I hid the letter from you, but I just didn't want Lucas to come between us again. I know we've only been close for a short while, but it's meant so much to me to have you not hate me anymore," Peyton said as they got off the boat. Aurora nodded.

"I'm serious, it's fine because you're right. Whatever Lucas had to say, he should've said it already, not waited until he was gone. We're good, Peyton," Aurora said.

"Good, now is there somewhere you wanna go?" Peyton asked.

"I think I'm going to head to the cafe, but will you and Alex be good?" Aurora asked.

"Yeah, if Peyton's good with it," Alex said as she shrugged. He re-anchored his friend's yacht and they were all standing on the docks.

Aurora made the short walk from the docks to the cafe. She noticed that the sign was flipped to close, even though it was still during business hours. Karen was inside, so she decided she would try to go inside and see if Karen locked the door or not. She smiled when the door opened and then Karen looked up.

"Hey, Karen, is everything alright? The sign says closed," Aurora said. Karen smiled when she saw the brunette.

"I guess I'm just not into everything today. Have you heard from Lucas or anyone?" She asked.

"No, I spent the better part of the day with Peyton and Alex, why? What's wrong? Is Lucas okay? Did something happen to him or Keith?" Aurora asked. Karen quickly shook her head.

"No, no. Nothing happened, they're okay... it's Dan," Karen said. Aurora raised an eyebrow.

"Is he dead?" She asked. She wasn't trying to make a joke, but she did think it would be a relief for everyone that has ties to him if he was dead. He wouldn't have as much of a hold on their lives anymore.

Especially Lucas and Nathan.

"No, but he had a heart attack," Karen said. Aurora's eyes widened. Maybe she shouldn't have just wished death on him a few seconds ago. The bell went off again as someone else entered the cafe. But neither Karen nor Aurora turned to see who it is. Aurora was still in shock about what Karen just said.

"Closed during the day?" Haley's voice broke her from her trance. Aurora looked up and turned around and Haley's eyes faltered.

"Oh, I guess my heart just wasn't in it today," Karen said and Haley stood awkwardly by the door. "Come on in, Mrs. Scott," She said. Haley smiled as he walked over to Karen and hugged her.

"I'm so sorry. I really wish you both could've been there but it was so sudden," Haley said.

"Apparently not sudden enough since Mom and Dad still made the guest list," Aurora said quietly but Haley still heard it and it made her feel even more guilty than she already did.

"Aurora, I'm sorry, I am," Haley said but Aurora didn't respond. Haley sighed knowing she wouldn't, and then she turned to Karen. "Is Deb here? I figured you must have talked to her," Haley said. Karen shook her head.

"She had to go back to the hospital," Karen said. Aurora only felt slightly bad for Dan. She was hoping the heart attack would be a wake-up call for him, but she doubted that it would.

"She was really upset," Haley said.

"Well, her husband, almost ex-husband did have a heart attack, and he's not doing well," Aurora said.

"I know that, but she was upset with me," Haley said.

"Does that surprise you?" Karen asked.

"A little bit, yes. I could understand if it were Dan, but Deb has always been supportive of my relationship with Nathan," Haley said.

"Haley, look at it from her side. If you had a son, would you want him getting married his junior year of high school before he's even 18?" Aurora asked. Haley fell silent because she knew Aurora was right, but she hadn't been thinking about it from that perspective.

"She's right. Deb was supportive when you were dating," Karen said and Haley sighed.

"Is that how you both feel?" Haley asked.

"Haley, it doesn't matter how we feel," Karen said.

"She's right. You're already married, nothing we feel would change that," Aurora said as she shrugged and Haley sighed. She knew Aurora was really hurt she wasn't there, she and Nathan did feel really guilty about it as well.

"It matters to me," Haley said and Karen sighed.

"Haley... I know that you and Nathan are in love, and you know, I was also in love in high school... but sometimes love fades, and I just hope with all of my heart that it doesn't fade for you," Karen said. Aurora could see her point, but she also knew that Nathan was nothing like his father. He wouldn't make the decision to get married on a whim or take it lightly. This was the real deal, for both of them.

"I told you, Hales, I'm happy for you both and I meant it," Aurora said. Haley nodded. She didn't look too comforted by Karen's words, but she was happy with the reassurance her sister was happy for them.

But overall, she didn't feel any better.

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

Later, Aurora found herself at the beach with Peyton. She called and asked if they could meet there, and by the time Aurora got there, Peyton was already seated by a bonfire. Aurora smiled as she sat down and she noticed Peyton had Lucas' letter in her hands, but it was still unopened.

"So, I've been thinking for a while, and I think I'm gonna be done with boyfriends until college. I've liked Lucas since the 8th grade and look how bad he burned me. I'll just get through high school and see if I fall in love with a cute dance major when I get to college," Aurora said and Peyton smiled.

"You're not the type to give up when you love someone," Peyton said and Aurora shrugged.

"High school relationships are just too hard, we're teenagers, we're immature. I think I need to grow up a little more," Aurora said and Peyton smiled.

"I have also been thinking... I don't want to read this letter, I mean, you can, I just... Whatever it says, I don't want to know," Peyton said. Aurora raised an eyebrow as she looked at her.

"Are you sure?" Aurora asked.

"Yeah, I mean. Whatever is in the letter, it isn't going to change how I feel," Peyton said. Aurora thought that was a good point. It probably wouldn't change how she felt either.

"About Luke?" Aurora asked.

"Yeah, about him. Or you, or me. I don't know. Aren't you tired of measuring yourself by what guys think? I just need to stop chasing boys and focus on myself, as you said earlier, so," Peyton said with a shrug and Aurora smiled.

"I hear you... hoes over bros," Aurora said as she held her fist out.

"Hoes over bros," Peyton said as she knocked her fist against Aurora's and then she threw the letter into the fire. The girls watched as it burned and then Aurora turned to Peyton.

"You know... I just hope it wasn't money he left for us," Aurora teased. Peyton's eyes widened and when she noticed the smile on Aurora's face, she knew she was joking.

The girls fell over in a fit of laughter.

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

Peyton and Aurora stayed on the beach for a few hours after sunset. They talked, laughed, teased, and had fun. For a while, their minds let go of Lucas, Jake, and all the drama that happened during basketball season. They vowed the rest of their junior year was going to be great. Peyton was currently chasing Aurora in the sand around the bonfire because Aurora made a joke.

"Don't fall in, Barbie!" Aurora shouted.

"If you keep this up, I'm going to push you in," Peyton teased. Aurora laughed as they rounded the fire again. The letter was still burning inside of the bonfire, and all of a sudden, Peyton came to a halting stop. She grabbed Aurora before she could fall over. Aurora looked at her blonde friend, confusion in her eyes, wondering why they had stopped. Peyton gestured in front of them and when Aurora turned her head, her eyes widened.

Lucas was approaching them.

Peyton and Aurora turned to each other, communicating with their eyes. Do they say anything? Do they wait for him to speak first? Do they hug him? Do they continue to stand there, communicating with their eyes and looking like idiots? They both laughed when they realized they were thinking the same thing. Then they turned back to Lucas who was still approaching.

The first thing Aurora noticed was that he cut off his hair and now had a buzzcut. Aurora didn't think it looked horrible, but it also wasn't his best look. When Lucas approached, the three of them awkwardly stood there.

No one knew what to say.

⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎⇎

dun, dun, dun, lucas is back. welcome to s2! 
s2 updates may be slow because i need to rewatch s2, i skipped through some episodes last time, so i just need to see what can/will fit and what won't. bear with me.

don't forget to vote/comment. 

xoxo.