Back To The Start (One Tree Hill)

Chapter 2

Brooke's POV

Haley's house

I had barely set foot into Haley's room when she closed the door and already bombarding me with her questions.

"So what did he say? Will he give you private lessons?"

"Sure." I shrugged casually to demonstrate that it really didn't matter to me.

"Cool!"

"Did you think he would reject me?" I asked, frowning.

"No, I didn't. I just thought you might back down."

I looked at her in surprise. She really seemed to believe that I was a coward. But didn't I clearly demonstrate just yesterday that I could overcome my inner laziness? Because honestly, I really didn't feel like taking extra math lessons.

"And when does it start?"

Haley had retreated to her bed with a bag of crisps and I sat next to her. "Tomorrow. I'm supposed to come to his house," I said, reaching into the bag and pulling out some crisps. "Can you come over to my place first and help me?"

"Help? With what?"

I quickly stuffed the crisps in my mouth and chewed quickly to answer her. "To choose the right clothes," I explained, reaching into the bag again.

"The right clothes?"

She looked at me as if I wasn't quite sane.

"You go to a private tutoring and not to a date!"

She was right. But anyway, I somehow felt the need to look nice. Of course for me, not for Julian or even his parents, who would presumably be present as well. "Haley, please!" I looked at her with puppy eyes from that I knew Haley wouldn't refuse me. And indeed it seemed to work again this time.

"Fine. When should I come over?"

Twenty-four hours later, I was a nervous wreck, though there was really no reason for nervousness. I went to a tutoring date and not to a romantic date! Although both felt almost the same at the moment. For the umpteenth time, I tugged at my skirt and blouse, which I had found in the back corner of my closet and usually wore on occasions like birthdays, Christmas, or to church.

"You look great!"

Haley danced around me enthusiastically. And I took the opportunity to check my hairstyle again. "Ponytail or rather loose hair?" I took the hair up and then dropped it again.

"Loose hair."

I dropped my hair back over my shoulder and tugged a few strands over my forehead. "Okay, that will do, I think."

"You don't look like the 'Brooke' I know."

"Is that good or bad?" I asked Haley directly and looked at myself in the mirror again. She was right. I really looked different.

"Good, I think. At least for today."

She was at least honest. I looked at the clock. "Oh shit, I'm really late. We had agreed by 2pm, and now it's almost shortly before it."

"He won't bite your head off, when you're a few minutes late."

From a few minutes to 20, when I finally arrived, sweating and panting, at the Norris' estate. I had no idea what Julian's parents did for a living, but at least they didn't seem to be completely poor. They also lived in the better area of Tree Hill. Another indication of wealth. I went up the stairs and rang the bell. I didn't have to wait long, when the door suddenly opened and a woman with reddish blond hair was standing in front of me. She glared at me with a scrutinizing look.

"Brooke Davis?"

I nodded and suddenly felt a sense of uneasiness. The way Julian's mother was staring at me proved that she apparently knew who I was, or about my reputation.

"Julian is upstairs and already waiting. Go up the stairs and then down the hall to the right. His room is at the very end."

And then she just turned away and left me alone. Tightening my bag in which I'd stowed my math stuff, I made my way upstairs. It was not hard to find Julian's room, and I knocked tentatively. When he opened the door and greeted me with a smile he compensated me for the frosty greeting his mother had given me.

"Come in!"

"I'm... sorry I'm late," I stuttered, entering his room.

"It's okay."

I put my bag down and looked around. Julian's room was so different from the other guys I knew. And I had already been able to inspect a lot of boy's rooms. Instead of trophies won at sports competitions, there were only shelves of books and DVDs in his room. Curious, I went to the shelf with the movies and reached into it. "The Breakfast Club", I read and suddenly had to grin. "This is one of my favorite movies. But even cooler is the soundtrack to it," I confided to him and put the DVD back.

"You really think so? Wait, I have something for you."

He went to another shelf and pulled out a CD, which he then put in his CD player and pressed 'start'.

When the Simple Minds song 'Don't You (Forget About Me)' through the speakers boomed, I couldn't hold myself back. I closed my eyes and let myself carry away by the music. I was a cheerleader. Dancing was my big passion. And there were just songs that made me forget everything around me. Even that I wasn't in my own room and was acting like a fool right now. I stopped abruptly, though the song was not quite finished, and opened my eyes. Julian stared at me with a look I didn't know how to interpret. I quickly went to my bag and took out my math stuff. "We should start now," I mumbled, avoiding his gaze.

"With what do you want to start?"

I was relieved that he hadn't resented my idiotic dance performance and opened my math book. "Maybe you can explain this to me?" I pointed to an equation in the book. No idea how we managed to stay focused for an hour afterwards. But somehow time flew by and when it knocked on the door outside and Julian's mother reminded us that the time was up, I was a bit disappointed. He shook my hand in front of the door and promised that he would call again to make a new appointment. As I slowly walked down the stairs, it occurred to me that it was the first time I had been in a boy's room and had not made out with him or even sex. A real premiere and a reason to repeat it soon. When I turned around and looked back to the house, I saw Julian standing in the doorway. I raised my hand and waved to him and was rewarded again with that smile that always made me nervous. Maybe we could do something else together, which had nothing to do with math, was my last thought, before I climbed on my bike and cycled home.