Tree Hill, 2003
Peyton and Emma were in Peyton's room on a video call with Larry Sawyer.
"Hi, Dad." The girls spoke together.
"Hello, sweethearts." The girls approached Peyton's computer.
"What's with the Unabomber look?" Peyton asked.
"I like it, Dad." Emma did not agree and stuck out her tongue at her sister.
"I was going for the George Clooney look." Larry said.
Larry explained to the girls that when he's working, he lets his beard and hair grow, and when he's ready to go home, he trims it. The girls were chatting with Larry as he said hello to Ethan, Lucas, and Brooke and joked that none of them had learned how to use the doorbell. Emma and Peyton had decided to do a surprise for Larry's return and asked their friends for help. The girls said goodbye to Larry before Brooke could tell Larry and ruin the surprise.
Emma and Peyton led their friends to Larry's car. It was covered with a tarp. When the girls removed it, Lucas and Ethan were fascinated by the car. The girls explained their idea to their friends and hoped that Lucas and Ethan would be able to make the car work as the girls left the car shiny and new.
Lucas and Ethan looked around for what might be wrong.
"Well, it's not the battery." Said Ethan.
"Probably the starter then." Luke's guess.
Peyton had gone out to check on a couple of things, and when she came back, Peyton's happy face had changed.
"Emm's, I'm worried about dad." Peyton hugged her sister who asked her to explain. Ethan, Lucas, and Brooke followed the girls into Peyton's room.
"I just did an online check, and now they say it's a category three hurricane." Peyton said.
"Shit!" Emma grumbled and Ethan grabbed the hand of the girl.
"Peyton, did you check his webcam?" Ethan asked. Peyton nodded and explained that it was off.
Emma and Peyton's minds were going to a dark place, full of misery and negative thoughts, even though they tried to imagine that Larry was safe, it was as if their minds immediately thought that nothing good could happen, and that everything was going so well that it was obvious that something would go wrong. Emma went to hug her sister while Brooke; Luke and Ethan tried to reassure the sisters that nothing had happened and that they should think positively.
[.....]
When evening came, Peyton had received a phone call. As soon as she heard what it was, she went to see Emma, who was standing next to Brooke, watching Ethan and Luke work on the car.
"Emm's." Peyton called out and everyone looked in the girl's direction.
"News, sis?" Emma asked, but as soon as she saw Peyton's eyes watering, she knew it couldn't be good.
"Our father's transport is missing, Emma." Emma ran a hand through her hair, pushing it out of her face, and Peyton continued. "There were three men in it. And they recovered a body." Ethan hugged Emma while the girl could only imagine that this was a nightmare.
"What did they say?" Lucas asked Peyton.
"We have to go and see if it's him." Peyton explained as he watched his sister hold back tears in Ethan's arms.
Emma and Peyton ran into the house to grab some things, Lucas and Ethan confirming that the girls shouldn't call their grandmother, which the girls denied, saying that it would only stress the poor woman out.
"By the way, it's not going to be our dad, right Peyton?" Emma said and looked at Peyton.
"No, it's not going to be him, Emm's." Emma ran her hand through the girl's hair.
Lucas and Ethan didn't want to let the girls go alone, so Brooke said she would stay at the Sawyer sisters' house waiting for a phone call, Lucas, Ethan and the sisters would go together in Peyton's car.
[....]
Keith was at a birthday dinner for Dan, where his parents were present. Keith even invited Coach Whitey, because he thought it would be funny. Whereas Ethan had screwed him over, because he had spent the whole day at the Sawyer sisters' house with Luke helping with an old car. And Keith wouldn't want to put the boy through all that torture either. When Keith's cell phone rang, he asked for a moment.
"Hey, Ethan. Everything okay, son?" Keith asked and listened intently as Ethan explained that there had been a problem, and he and Luke were going to support Peyton and Emma. They had found a body, and they needed the girls to go and recognize it. Keith volunteered to go, but Ethan said that if they needed any more support, he would call their father right away.
"Okay, be careful." Keith said.
When Keith returned to the table, his father Royal looked at him.
"And why isn't my grandson here celebrating his uncle's birthday?" Royal asked Keith, and Keith really wanted to answer, 'which one?'
As if Dan was nice to Ethan, Keith protected his sons whenever he could from any interaction with Dan.
"Ethan's supporting a friend." Keith said, and Nathan raised his head.
"Emma?" Keith nodded.
Keith didn't know that Emma and Nathan were best friends, Nathan decided to keep quiet and before he could question his grandfather any further Royal went to ask how Ethan's game was going, how many points he was scoring per game, the same thing he was asking about him. Nathan slid his cell phone out of his pocket, texting Emma if everything was okay.
[....]
Lucas was driving Peyton's car, while Peyton sat in the passenger seat, and Emma and Ethan sat in the back seats.
Emma had heard Luke's voice saying something to Peyton, but it was as if they were very distant voices. Emma felt Ethan's hand holding hers and caressing it. But Emma was focused on the street, Emma felt as if she wasn't even there.
Emma felt the car stop, and even heard someone talking outside, and then Luke started driving again. Ethan caught Emma's eye a few times, until the girl looked at him.
"Emm's, the bridge is closed because of the storm. It won't open until tomorrow, so we'll be on the bridge first thing tomorrow. Luke's going to find us a place to spend the night." Ethan explained and Emma just nodded.
The girl didn't know if she was going to make it through the night without knowing if her father was alive or not. Emma felt her chest tighten, and as if her whole body was heavy and aching. The headache, the bad thoughts that didn't give peace. Peyton gave her sister a hand to get out of the car, and asked if she wanted to sleep with her, or Ethan.
Emma didn't respond at all; she didn't even seem to hear.
"Peyton, stay with Luke and I'll stay with Emma for the night in the next room." Ethan explained calmly.
Peyton accepted, the girl wasn't even calming down, she wouldn't be much support for her sister now.
When Ethan and Emma entered the room, Emma lay down on the bed and stared at the ceiling.
"Talk to me, Pompoms." Ethan sat next to the girl, placing her head in his lap as he smoothed her hair.
"It's like this isn't real. It can't be." Emma spoke softly.
"It won't be him, Emm's." Ethan muttered.
"But what if it is? What am I going to do? I can't bear having to be away from him for months, how am I going to live knowing that I'll never see him again? I no longer have my mother; I don't want to lose him. it too, Ethan." Emma told him.
Ethan felt his heart tighten; he hated seeing Emma like this. As if she was losing all hope. Emma grabbed one of Ethan's hands and squeezed.
"I'm here, Emm's." And Ethan wouldn't leave, not if the girl wanted him around.
Emma wouldn't be able to sleep, and her mind needed to rest.
"Ethan, I won't be able to sleep." Emma whispered, and Ethan understood.
"Just wait a moment." Ethan said and then left the body, it didn't take long, and the boy returned with snacks and sweets. Emma looked at him confused and Ethan handed the things to Emma.
"Okay, let's share embarrassing stories from our childhoods." Ethan sat next to the girl on the bed, who opened a bag of Doritos to listen to Ethan's story.
The two teenagers spent the night like this, it was the only way Ethan found to make the girl not think too much about the situation and not keep thinking about the worst. Ethan just hoped it wasn't Larry's body, Emma and Peyton weren't ready to lose him. But what child is really prepared to lose their parents? Having the feeling that they are eternal, and at some point, the universe shows them that they are not.
By five in the morning, Ethan and Emma hadn't slept. But Emma had her head resting on Ethan's chest, while he talked about how much he missed Karen, who was taking cooking classes in Italy, Ethan spoke with so much pride about the woman, which Emma found adorable.
Lucas and Peyton had asked them to leave, and the tension had returned. Ethan didn't let go of Emma's hand.
Peyton and Emma entered the morgue together, leaving the boys outside. Emma held Peyton's hand tightly, afraid that her sister would also disappear. When they discovered the body, Emma and Peyton shook their heads.
"Not our father." Peyton spoke, and Emma hugged her sister so tightly that Peyton laughed saying that the girl was going to crush her. The girls ran out of the place and told the boys that it wasn't Larry.
Lucas had called to inform Brooke that it was not Larry's body, and Brooke said that they had called the girls' house saying that they had found Larry, and he was fine. Emma and Peyton hugged each other, and then hugged the boys. Relieved that the nightmare was over.
Inside the car, on the way back, Peyton noticed that he was without his bracelet. They returned to the place where they had spent the night, and Lucas went to the room where he spent the night with Peyton to help her search.
While Ethan and Emma were alone, they decided to get out of the car to have a quick smoke while Peyton and Luke didn't return.
"Ethan." Emma caught the attention of the boy next to her, who had just finished smoking the cigarette they were sharing.
"Thanks." Emma said hugging the boy, and then looked at him. "I feel like I'm always thanking you, whether you're listening to me vent or helping me through a crisis." Emma told.
"I don't mind, I'm happy to help, Pompoms." Ethan hugged the girl and kissed the top of her head.
Finally, Lucas and Peyton had emerged, and they looked weird with each other.
"Did you find the bracelet, sis?" Emma questioned as she pulled on her seat belt, and Peyton said yes.
When the girls finally got home, Brooke ran over to hug Emma and Peyton.