Back To The Start (One Tree Hill)

Chapter 19

Julian's POV

The phone call came in the middle of the night. I had given the bed to Brooke and Justin because the kid had nightmares and preferred to sleep with his 'Aunt Brooke' and I was tossing and turning on the couch, unable to find a comfortable position. When the phone rang, I got up quickly, answering the call.

"Julian Baker."

"Julian, this is Haley."

"Haley?" I exclaimed in surprise, then looked at the clock; it was after midnight. Not the right time to make a friendly phone call. "Did something happen?" I asked alarmed.

"Haven't you watched the news yet?"

I shook my head. "Brooke and I were busy. We have Justin here overnight because Chelsea had to fly to L.A. for personal reasons," I told her.

"That's why I'm calling..."

The hesitation in her voice irritated me. "Why are you calling?" I asked. I heard how she cleared her throat before she finally spoke again.

"The Cessna, with which she and her friend were on the way, crashed in a forest near Los Angeles."

"What are you saying?" I stammered as I felt my mouth going dry. "How is she? Is she hurt?" Silence again. "Haley, are you still there?"

"She's dead, Julian. They... they reported about it in the news hours ago. I wanted to call earlier, but I was out all day. I thought you already knew. I just called to hear how Brooke is doing. I know that she and Chelsea have been friends."

"Dead?" I echoed, stunned, without really understanding the meaning.

"I'm so sorry that you have to find out this way."

"W-what happened?" I stammered.

"They probably had some technical issues. The Cessna came down in a forest and burst. The parts were scattered everywhere. Chelsea and the pilot died on the crash site."

I slumped back onto the couch, clutching the receiver tighter.

"Julian, please tell Brooke that I'll come by tomorrow. If she needs my help, I'm here for her."

"She's sleeping," I stammered.

"Let her sleep. Don't tell her what happened until tomorrow."

"Justin is with her," I added in a low voice.

"That's so horrible! The poor little boy! You have to tell him gently that his mom won't come back. Does he have relatives?"

"I have no idea." I ran a shaky hand through my hair. "Brooke told me that Justin's dad had left her before the baby was born. And apparently, Chelsea's parents don't know that they have a grandson."

"Then the authorities will put him in an orphanage. Julian, you can't allow that! He should stay with you and Brooke!"

Haley was right. Even if I wasn't sure what to do next, I knew one thing: I would never allow that they put Justin in an orphanage! "Thanks for letting me know," I said quietly. "I'll take care of everything tomorrow morning. Bye, Haley!" After we had finished the phone call, I went over to the bedroom and looked down at Brooke and Justin, who were sleeping peacefully and had no idea that their life would be changed forever. I would tell them tomorrow, I decided and went back to my couch, curling up in my blanket. It didn't take long until I drifted into a restless sleep.

Brooke's POV

"Mommy is dead?"

Only with difficulty I could hold back tears when Justin stared at me with that blank, forlorn expression. He probably didn't even understand what that meant. I looked up at Julian and gave him a desperate look.

"Your mommy won't come back," he said calmly. "She's in heaven now."

I looked at him gratefully. Somehow I hadn't thought of the simplest explanation. However, I wasn't sure if a 4-year-old already understood the meaning of "being in heaven". I saw how Julian followed Justin's gaze as he looked up.

"Up there?" Justin pointed to the ceiling.

"Yes, but much higher up, above the house, in the clouds," Julian explained patiently. "She's an angel now."

I turned away from them that they wouldn't see me crying. I still couldn't grasp that Chelsea was dead and wouldn't come back. And the fate of her son was now in our hands.

"Can I go play now?"

I turned to Justin and wiped the tears from my face. "Yes," I said in a brittle voice. "Just go play." When he disappeared to the next room, I ran into the bathroom and let my tears run freely. Julian followed me and pulled me into his arms.

"I know how you feel right now, but pull yourself together in front of the boy," he said, kissing my forehead. "We have to be strong. He only has us now."

"If we really want to adopt him, then we need his father's permission," I said in a low voice.

Julian nodded. "I called my dad earlier. He even remembered the cameraman. His name was Tom Markham."

"Do you know where he lives?"

"No, but we can find out. 5 years ago he lived in L.A."

"Then let's fly to L.A.," I said with determination in my voice.

"Not so quick, Brooke," Julian slowed down. "We have to think about where Justin can stay in the meantime. We can't take him with us. We don't even know if Markham still lives there."

"I'll ask Haley," I spontaneously came up with the idea. "Jamie and Justin are the same age. Then he would have a playmate."

Julian nodded. "Yes, not a bad idea. I'll call my father to take care of the business. We have to stop filming anyway, until we find a new 'Brooke'."

"Maybe I can help out," I suggested, looking at him expectantly.

"You're not an actress, Brooke," Julian said, frowning doubtfully.

"I could at least try. Please, Julian! Chelsea would want you to finish the movie."

"Fine," he said, sighing. "But I have to ask our director and my father first what they think about that."

I took a washcloth and wiped the tears from my face. "Okay, then I'm going to call Haley and if she agrees, then I'll pack up some things. After that I will book two seats for us on the plane to L.A."

"You're really in a hurry," Julian said thoughtfully. "What if we don't find this Tom Markham or he has no interest in helping us?" He pointed out.

"He will help us even if I have to force him," I said determined. "Would you like to take some video footage of Justin?" I changed the subject, because an idea had crossed my mind.

"Yeah, sure." Julian looked at me, frowning. "What do you want with that?"

"Chelsea told me that Justin's dad has never met his son. I think we should change that." I followed Julian and saw him taking his camera.

"All right," he said, forcing a smile. "Then let's do a movie."