Always Meant To Be

AN: Charlie is finally in this chapter. He’ll be meeting Joey and Jason in the next chapter.


Always Meant To Be


At twelve thirty, Lucas and Haley woke and redressed in the clothing they had worn out to dinner. They then locked up the house and made the way towards Lucas’s deep blue jeep.

Twenty minutes later they arrived at Jake’s and Brooke’s. Brooke was engaged to be married to Jake. They lived together with Jenny, Jake’s six year-old daughter.

They had been dating since Brooke’s last year of high school. They had been engaged just under a year and were getting married in less then three months.

Brooke kissed Jake and informed him she’d see him later on for breakfast. He nodded and kissed her once more. He then watched as she got into the back of Lucas’s Jeep. He waved until they were out of sight.

He thought, as he closed the door behind him, before going to check on Jenny, then back to bed, of how glad he was to hear Charlie was returning. He had met Joey and her son’s only two days ago. He liked her a lot; she reminded him a lot of Haley.

He already he knew she would be good for Charlie and would be able to keep him in check. Plus the fact they had a four year-old son together, would help in that department as well.

Inside of the jeep, everyone was nervous. They hadn’t seen him in five years. Lucas had only spoken to him, but hadn’t seen him in person. Haley and Brooke hadn’t even had the pleasure of hearing his voice. They only found out things and were able to pass messages onto him, though Lucas.

It was twenty to four in the morning. They were fifteen minutes away from the air port. The closer they got, the more nervous they become, the girls in particular.

Brooke asked, “How much do you think he’s changed?” Lucas shrugged and replied, “I don’t know. All I know is that he is now filthy rich and I do mean filthy rich.”

Haley added, “I imagine he’s going to be a sight more tanned then we are, here in Tree Hill. You said he was living close to the beach in LA.” Lucas nodded.

Five minutes away from the air port, Haley asked, “What do you think his and Joey’s reactions are going to be towards each other. Or better yet, how do you think Charlie is going to act when he discovers he’s got a four year-old son?”

Brooke exclaimed gleefully, “Whoa, I have so got to be around for that confrontation. It would be a serious crime not to be.” Lucas and Haley laughed at her.

Lucas commented, as soon as he stopped laughing, “I don’t know how he’s going to react. I’ve not said anything to Joey. And all I’ve told Charlie is that there is a new woman in town with her two sons’, who will be taking over as the English teacher at the high school.”

He concluded, “And of course she reminds me a lot of Hales and that he would like her. I do know he’s still in love with her. He as good as admitted it over the phone.”

Five minutes later they managed to park at the air port. All three exited the car. Lucas wrapped his arm around Haley’s shoulders, while her arm went around his waist. Brooke walked in front of them.

Lucas, Haley and Brooke waited in the main lounge area. Ten minutes later at least eighty people came forward and headed for their bags. Five minutes later, the large crowd cleared, so only twenty people at the most were left collecting their bags.

Lucas scanned the few remaining people near the bags collection area. He didn’t have to look for long, as Charlie spotted them first. He smirked at them and made his way to wards them.

Haley and Brooke were stunned. Lucas eyed his brother in disbelief. He muttered, “At least people won’t have any trouble telling us a part anymore.”

It was true, they wouldn’t. Charlie’s skin was a shade darker then Lucas’s. His hair was slightly spiky and a dark brown, similar to Haley’s. Plus his clothing looked expensive and was evidently designer.

Charlie chuckled, which snapped the girls out of their stupors. He just managed to lower his bags to the floor, before he had his arms full of both Haley and Brooke.

Lucas chuckled, as he saw his brother’s eyes widen. He sniggered; when his brother sent him a look that screamed help me. After a few minutes of Lucas sniggering and Charlie glowering at him, Haley and Brooke pulled away.

Lucas and Charlie exchanged a manly hug. Charlie then took in everyone at a distance. He eyed Brooke and smirked, “Brooke Davis, looking real fine as usual.” Brooke smirked at him.

She commented, “Your not looking so bad yourself.” She added, “It’s a good thing you came home when you did. Now I don’t have to send you an invitation to my wedding, your already here.”

Charlie smiled at her and asked, “Married? So whose the lucky guy who is getting you to settle down?” Brooke held up her left hand, for Charlie to see her engagement ring. She told him, “I’m marrying Jake. We started dating not long after you left for Boston.”

Charlie nodded his approval. Brooke was wearing a golden band with a trio of medium sized white, solitaire cut diamonds mounted in the centre. He grinned, “Ah so you plan on becoming, Mrs. Jagielski?”

Brooke returned the grin and replied, “Yes. In three months time, so now you can be one of Jake’s groom’s men. He mentioned it tonight when I told him you were returning home.”

Charlie nodded, before turning towards his brother and Haley and asked, “So, what’s with the suit and the dress?” Lucas replied, “These are our clothes from last nights date. We didn’t have time to change after we woke.”

Charlie smirked deviously, as he drawled, “So, sweet lil Hales stayed the night. Aww bless my cotton socks, lil Hales is all grown up.” He pretended to wipe away a tear from his eye.

He added, “Your both looking great. Finally your with the right brother, Hales.” He winked at Haley as he told her this. He also added, “I kind of made Nathan pay for what he and Peyton did to you and Luke.”

Lucas asked, “What did you do?” Charlie’s smile turned wicked, as he picked up his bags and said, “Let’s go home shall we? I’m exhausted; I never could sleep on planes surrounded by strangers.”

He deadpanned, causing Brooke and Haley to snort, while Lucas smirked at him. “I don’t trust someone not to try and molester or murder me in my sleep.”

Lucas led them to his jeep and helped Charlie place his two suit cases and his back pack in the trunk. He said to his brother, “Quit avoiding the question. What did you do to Nathan?”

Charlie and Brooke got in the back of the jeep, while Lucas and Haley got in the front. Once Lucas had pulled out of the car park and was heading towards the highway, he demanded sternly, “Charlie. Come on, what did you do?”

Charlie sighed before replying, “I may have found out that our dearest baby brother is now playing for the Lakers. I may also know at least four of the players and the coach.”

He continued, as he reached into his pocket of his black leather jacket and pulled out a packet of chewing gum. “Gum anyone?” They all shook their heads. Charlie shrugged and muttered, “Oh well, more for me then.”

He shoved a stick of gum in his mouth, before continuing, when he saw his brother shoot him a less then friendly look. “I may have told those players and that coach I may know, that Nathan was a womanizer and a player.”

He smirked, as he went on, “And that they should watch their wives around Nathan, as age and whether they were married or not were of no object to him.”

He continued on, when he started to see the others eyes widen slightly. “I also may have involved Peyton, by telling them that she and Nathan didn’t believe in monogamy, that their relationship was an open arrangement.”

He went on after a brief pause, when he could feel Brooke starting to shake with silent laughter next to him. “I may or may not have mentioned that she used to be a unisex escort.”

He trailed off, when the others started laughing out a loud. He went on, “I finally may or may not have mentioned that Nathan and Peyton were regular visitors to nudist beaches and holidays. And that they were trying to recruit more fellow nudists.”

That did it; Lucas had to pull up on the side of the highway, out of the way of the traffic. He and the others started cackling. He sat back in his seat and crossed his arms in satisfaction. He asked innocently, “Are you sure you guys don’t want a stick of gum?”

This only set the others off laughing even harder, until they were practically howling and had tears streaming down their faces. Brooke asked between bouts of laughter, “Seriously did you really tell those people all of that?”

Charlie nodded. Lucas looked up and asked, “Seriously?” Charlie nodded again and said, with a straight face, there was no hint of laughter in his face, “As serious as a heart attack.”

He added his whole expression and body language turning icy. “I wasn’t go to tolerate him and that ex skank of a girl friend of mine, hurting my brother and my sister.”

He continued on, as the others instantly sobered up, realising he really had done it and wasn’t laughing anymore. “I wish I had stopped that wedding. Even if Hales hadn’t forgiven me, at least she wouldn’t have been hurt and had to have found him fucking her supposed friend.”

He added, his tone getting colder, “You, Hales should have married Lucas. Fuck Nathan and Peyton. Peyton wasn’t worth it. I swear it was her life’s mission to fuck all three Scott brothers.”

Brooke said, “I’ve screwed all three of you Scott brothers, so that makes me no better then her.” Charlie and Lucas, Haley included, all shook their heads, no.

Charlie said, “You never ended up really hurting either one of us brothers. Sure we were sorry to lose you, but you never broke us. And you never destroyed somebody’s marriage, like Peyton did Hales and Nathan’s.”

Haley added, “You never screwed my supposedly loving and faithful husband behind my back like she did.” Lucas concluded, “When I was with you, I wasn’t cheating on anyone. I cheated on you, sadly.”

Charlie held his hands up and said “So, do you finally see that there is a huge difference between you and Peyton?” She nodded, before saying, “You guys I only think in the beginning, that she went to Nathan, because Jake chose me over her.” Haley nodded in agreement, as Lucas restarted the engine. He then drove on into the early moving traffic, back home.