Best Of Both Worlds (Brooke Davis / OC)

Chapter 2

A/N : End of episode 1.

A couple days later, I'm getting off soccer practice when I see Peyton's name lighting on my phone.

"Hey bitch, still fighting with my best friend?" I joke but she seems really upset.

"Can you pick me up?" She asks. "My car has a problem and Nathan can't come... Brooke is not back yet..."

"And I'm the last option, I get it. Where are you?" I chuckle.

"That's not that way, Tay..." Peyton sighs.

"Tell me where you are, I'll be there. Don't worry."

            Peyton sends me a text message with her location, and I drive to the place. Keith Scott's garage. At least, Lucas was here for getting her out of troubles. I wait for a minute before my car's door opens.

"Had fun with Lucas?" I smirk.

"Shut up." Peyton sits heavily. "Sorry, I'm pissed."

"I bet." I frown. "What happened?"

"Nathan couldn't go out of the gym."

"Oh, sure thing. Sucks to be the superstar, right?" I wiggle my eyebrow.

"You know a lot about it, right, Soccer Playmaker?" Peyton chuckles.

"Kind of. Pressure is not the same as Nathan's, but I get why he is all worked up with basketball."

"Are your parents still pressuring you to go pro earlier than expected?" Peyton asks.

"The days they actually care, yes. Otherwise, I don't hear a lot about them."

"I know..." Peyton sighs. "Did you hear about Nathan and Lucas' one on one?"

"Really? Where and when?" I frown.

"Lucas still has to choose those..." Peyton explains.

"What's the deal?" I except the worst.

"I don't even know."

            Weird...

I drop off Peyton and drive to Karen's Café wishing I could see Haley for a bit. I open the door and look at the almost empty place. I walk to the bar and wait for someone to notice me.

"Oh my god, don't tell me I'm dreaming. Is that Taylor Romy Harrison, the next Soccer Big Thing?" Haley fakes excitement.

"And I suddenly remember why I hate you, Haley." I chuckle and it makes her smile.

"What can I do for you? People could actually start coming here now that you walked through this door." She continues.

"Stop it..." I hide my head in my hands. "I was just wondering if I could stop tutoring people for some time..." I gulp hardly. "I have to focus on soccer and my dad tries to get me to Stanford or UNC, so I have to work harder on my stuff first and ...."

"Stop the rent, T." Haley says with a smile. "Try to think about yourself first, I'll take care of the rest."

"You're a good one, Haley James." I point at her. "They'll be lucky to be tutored by you."

"Sure thing." She chuckles and I make my way home.

            Before going back to my house, I decide to stop by Nathan's since he left six messages on my voicemail. I walk in the house and as always, I make myself noticed.

"Hey sucker!" I yell in the living room.

"Spa room." Nate yells back.

"What's up?" I ask with a smile.

"You suck at answering calls, that's what's up." Nathan glares at me.

"What did you want to tell me? That you're going to fight Lucas tonight? That you forgot to help Peyton once again? Or maybe that you don't know if you should sleep with this other girl you brought back home again?" I fake a smile looking at a cheerleader in the spa room.

"Well..."

"News go fast, Nate." I look at him disappointedly. "Why are you doing this?"

"What part?" He rolls his eyes.

"All of them."

"For the game, I'm doing it for myself, to prove him he can't become a Raven and that I'm better than him. Peyton, I don't know, I'm tired of our thing, plus Lucas made the bet around her. And her..." He looks behind him. "I don't even know her name."

"Wait, did you make a bet on Peyton?" I frown.

"He is obsessed with her, I swear." Nathan tries to defend himself.

"You've got no excuse, Nate." I warn him. "I think I should go; I've been disappointed enough for the night. Try not to make it worse on the pitch."

"Tay, wait." He tries to prevent me from leaving. "Shit..."

            I decide to drive downtown for a while before going to the park. Once I arrive, I see a lot of people are here already. I walk to Peyton looking at the two brothers warming up.

"You came." Peyton smiles.

"Couldn't let you face the truth by yourself." I shrug and sit on the car with her. "How are you handling being a basketball prize?"

"You know about it?" She frowns.

"Yeah... it sucks."

"You said it, Tay." She shrugs.

            During the game, Nathan plays hard and even elbows Lucas in the face. Dirty play. But Lucas keeps playing and manages to tie the game. 14-14.

"Lucas is going to win. I'm out of here." I say and walk to my car.

"Taylor, wait it's not over." Tim tries to hold me back.

"It is Tim. And he had it coming."

I make my way through the crowd and watch Lucas scoring the last point.