Tree Hill
(based on season 2)
Emma, Peyton and Brooke were at the fair. Peyton had explained that Chris Keller, 'the arrogant guy who can sing from the CD store' had handed over a list of demands, if not met, he wouldn't play. Peyton ended up dragging the two girls to help her.
Peyton took a melon in her hands and looked at the other two teenagers.
"Does this melon look overly ripe to you guys?" Peyton asked.
"I have no idea, sis." Emma said, picking up the melon to look at it.
"Sorry, not my area of expertise." Brooke said.
The girls put the melon aside, and Peyton went back to looking at the fruit while the three girls walked.
Brooke then said that she didn't really understand what was going on between her and Felix, but it was a friends-with-benefits situation, with no feelings involved. However, Brooke felt that the boy was too clingy with her. Brooke then turned away from the subject of Felix and looked at Peyton.
"And why are we looking for overly ripe fruit again?" Brooke asked.
"Chris. Basically, I have to get him everything on this list or he won't perfom." Peyton explained.
Brooke looked at the Sawyer sisters, as if she had had an incredible idea.
"Wait, he makes you a list and you have to do everything on it to get what you want?" Brooke asked.
"Pretty much, yeah." Emma answered for Peyton.
"Interesting." Brooke said.
Emma looked at her friend, who had a huge smile on her face. Emma hooked an arm in Brooke's.
"You're going to make a list for Felix, aren't you?" Emma muttered.
Brooke didn't say a word, but she giggled and that answered the girl's question.
[....]
Ethan was entering Karen's café when he saw a guy a bit older than him with a huge box coming towards him. Ethan held the door so the guy wouldn't had any trouble entering the café.
"Thanks, man." The guy said.
Ethan just nodded and walked into Karen's café, where he saw his father in a suit. Ethan laughed every time he saw his father in a suit, thinking that he didn't look like the man he had seen for over a decade.
Ethan frowned when he heard the man for whom he held the door show T-shirts with the logo of Karen's new nightclub, saying that he had made a T-shirt for "Little Lucas". Keith also had the same expression.
Karen introduced Keith and Ethan to the man, Andy. Apparently, Andy is Karen's new boyfriend.
Ethan was happy that Karen and her father were having new relationships and appeared to be happy, it was just a little hard to know that his childhood dream of Karen and Keith as a couple and his parents wasn't going to become a reality.
Ethan noticed that his father had said something, patted him on the shoulder and left. Ethan ran after his father.
"Dad." Ethan reached for Keith.
"Hey, kid. Everything okay?" Keith asked.
"Yeah, it's...." Ethan looked at his father. "You and your new girlfriend are going to the Tric opening, right?" Ethan asked.
"Yes, we will." Keith smiled at his son. "She's a bit nervous about meeting you too, Ethan." Keith recounted.
"You can tell her to stay calm, I won't freak out." Ethan joked. "Emma's going to sing, she's going to be the first performance. Can you guys get there early?" Ethan asked.
"Of course. No problem, son." Ketih told and said goodbye to his son.
Ethan returned to Karen's café, the boy went to get a coffee and while he was waiting Andy struck up a conversation with the boy. Karen had commented to Andy that she had Ethan as a son, and that the boy had her as a mother figure, Ethan was important to her. So Andy tried to get close to the boy, wanting to create a good relationship, or even a bond.
Andy asked about Emma, Tric's first attraction. With a smile on his face, Ethan showered his girlfriend with praise for Andy. And even commented that Emma was going to sing a song of her own, and that he didn't know what it was yet, but he was sure it would be wonderful. Karen listened to some parts of the conversation, and smiled not only at what a sweet boyfriend Ethan was, but Karen smiled seeing that Ethan was allowing Andy to try to get along with him, without judgment. Karen hoped that Andy and Lucas would get along like this.
[....]
Emma was at the Tric, Haley looked like she was about to have a syncope at any moment, Peyton was anxious and checking that everything was all right and Karen was pacing back and forth.
"Okay, we got the DJ downstairs. The bar is stocked." Karen said jotting something down on her clipboard, then looked at Peyton. "Wristbands?"
"They are down front with Junk right now." Peyton said.
"That's it. It's out of our hands." Karen said.
"Oh no, you forgot something." Lucas said, causing all four women to widen their eyes.
"What?" Peyton asked.
"To take a deep breath." Lucas joked.
Emma took a deep breath and went to Luke's side.
"Hey, did you see Ethan?" Emma asked.
"Not yet. But he'll be here soon, Emma." Lucas said to the girl.
Lucas showed the girls that there was a huge line to get into the Tric, and Emma smiled at Peyton and whispered.
"Didn't I say you'd be amazing, P. Sawyer?" Emma joked.
Peyton smiled and held her sister's shoulders.
"I'm sure you'll be the star of the night, rockstar." Peyton joked.
The Tric filled up with people, and Emma looked for Ethan, until she finally found him with Keith and a woman, who she assumed was Keith's new girlfriend. Ethan was smiling as he talked to Keith and the mysterious woman. Emma didn't want to interrupt, but she saw Keith waving to the girl and calling her over.
"Emm's." Ethan looked at his girlfriend and hugged her. "Jules, this is my girlfriend Emma. Pompons, meet Jules, my dad's girlfriend. Ethan explained. "I never thought I'd see the day." Ethan said.
"What's that, Ethan?" Keith asked.
"Introducing your girlfriend to mine. I thought I'd get married and you'd stay single." Ethan joked with his father, making Jules laugh.
"Hey, be nice." Keith said pretending to be serious.
Jules spoke to Emma and told her that she couldn't wait to see her on stage as Ethan kept praising the girl.
Emma and Ethan stayed away from Keith and Jules for a while to let them enjoy the evening.
"So, do you have a verdict on Jules yet?" Emma asked Ethan.
"She's making my dad smile and making him happy." Ethan said. "I hope she doesn't hurt him." Ethan said shrugging.
"I also met Karen's new boyfriend." Ethan said and then leaned against the counter, pulling his girlfriend close. "Andy." Ethan said.
"Is he nice?" Emma asked.
"It seems to be." Ethan said.
Ethan leaned in to give his girlfriend a kiss but was interrupted by Peyton.
"Emm's, are you ready?" Peyton asked.
"Yes, Captain." Emma said.
"Okay, let's go."
Emma went to give Ethan a quick kiss, but before she could disengage herself from the boy, Ethan whispered in her ear.
"You look wonderful, Pompons. And I know that when you get up on that stage, you'll look even more amazing."
Emma went after Peyton, unable to contain her smile at Ethan's words.
"Hey, what's going on, Tree Hill?" Emma heard Peyton's voice on stage. "I'd like to welcome you guys to the opening night of Tric. It's a night we like to call 'House of Freaks'. You guys ready? Okay. With you guys, my amazing sister, Emma Sawyer."
Emma went on stage, taking deep breaths and inhaling. Emma had given the DJ a CD with the instrumental of her song. Emma wasn't afraid of the stage, but she was afraid of rejection. It was the first time Emma had sung a song of her own in front of so many people.
"Hi, guys. I hope you enjoy it." Emma said almost quietly, but found Ethan, Brooke and Peyton's faces next to each other, with her boyfriend, best friend and sister smiling. Emma took a deep breath.
Emma heard the DJ start the instrumental of his song.
'I'm a puppet on a string
Tracy Island, time-traveling
Diamond cutter-shaped heartaches
That come to find you four in some velvet morning
Years too late, he's a silver lining
Lone ranger riding through an open space
In my mind, when he's not right there beside me'
Jules heard Emma's voice echoing through the Tric, to her right was Keith, to her left was Ethan and two other girls.
"Oh my God, she's a rockstar. You weren't exaggerating, Ethan." Jules said, smiling.
Ethan couldn't take his eyes off Emma, he heard Jules' voice talking to him, and all he could manage was a 'yeah'. Brooke and Peyton were next to him.
'I go crazy, 'cause here isn't where I wanna be
And satisfaction feels like a distant memory
And I can't help myself, all I
Wanna hear him say is: Are you mine?
Well, are you mine?
Are you mine?
Are you mine? Alright'
Brooke and Peyton surround Ethan, and the girls whisper to Ethan.
"Looks like someone won a song." Peyton said.
'I guess what I'm trying to say is I need the deep end
Keep imagining meeting, wished away entire lifetimes
Unfair we're not somewhere misbehaving for days
Great escape, lost track of time and space
He's a silver lining, climbing on my desire'
Brooke and Peyton were jumping up and down, with Brooke pointing and shouting to anyone who would listen that the one on stage was her best friend.
With every word Emma sang, the girl became more confident on stage.
'And I go crazy, 'cause here isn't where I wanna be
And satisfaction feels like a distant memoryAnd I can't help myself, all IWanna hear him say is: Are you mine?Well, are you mine? (Are you mine tomorrow?)Are you mine? (Or just mine tonight?)Are you mine? (Are you mine, mine?)'
When Emma finally looked at Ethan again, Emma hoped that the song was clearly obvious to the boy.
' And the thrill of the chase moves in mysterious ways
So in case I'm mistaken, IJust wanna hear you say: You got me, babyAre you mine?'
Ethan continued to listen to Emma, without stopping smiling.
"I am." Ethan muttered, but the three women around him heard.
Keith reached out to pat his son on the shoulder, smiling at how happy the boy was.
When Emma finished singing, the people didn't boo her. Emma thanked her and ran off to meet Ethan, but was hugged by Peyton and Brooke, who were happy that the girl was finally getting to perform her own songs. Peyton had seen the lyrics before, but hadn't seen how the instrumental or the vocals were.
"You were amazing up there, Emm's." Brooke and Peyton complimented the girl.
Brooke noticed that Emma was still looking for Ethan so as not to let him out of her sight, and left her free to go to the boy. And Peyton went up to the stage to announce Chris Keller.
Ethan hugged his girlfriend tightly, running his hand through her hair as he smiled.
"So, what did you think?" Emma asked, pulling away a little from the boy's embrace.
Ethan hadn't stopped smiling.
"You got me baby. I'm yours, but, are you mine too?" Ethan asked, looking into Emma's eyes.
Ethan didn't know if it was an impression or if he actually saw Emma's pupils dilate, her smile widen.
"All yours." Emma whispered.
Ethan held his girlfriend's face and kissed her. Ethan knew that it might be too PDA in public, but who could judge him for wanting to kiss his girlfriend with all the passion he had for the girl? The blonde had just sung something to him, how could he not be like that?
The two teenagers separated when they noticed that Haley had taken the stage. Emma frowned uncomprehendingly, wasn't that Chris Keller before?
"I don't...." Emma said looking at the stage.
"I guess we were in our bubble again and forgot about the world, rockstar." Ethan said laughing.
Haley was singing, and Emma loved how soothing Haley's voice was. Haley's soft voice reminded her of a mother singing a lullaby.
When Haley had finished singing, Emma had met up with Nathan before going over to Brooke.
"Hey, rockstar. Are you forgetting me already?" Nathan teased the girl.
"Never, silly." Emma hugged Nathan.
"You were amazing up there." Nathan complimented the girl.
"Your wife was wonderful too." Emma said and then looked at the boy. "You were right to send that MP3 to Peyton. Haley is too talented to be hidden away." Nathan smiled at Emma's words and left her to go to Brooke.
Emma sat down next to Brooke, who was at the counter where Brooke Davis had somehow gotten alcohol. Brooke no longer seemed as excited as before.
"Are you okay, Brooke?" Emma asked, brushing a lock of the girl's hair out of her face.
"Yeah. Boys are idiots." Brooke said.
"Some." Emma agreed. "Felix?" Emma questioned.
"Something like that." Brooke said quietly.
Emma got up from her chair and hugged Brooke, the blonde girl kissed the top of Brooke's head.
"I'm here, B. Davis."
Emma watched as a fight broke out, Luke and Felix rolling around on the floor. Ethan was pulling Felix and Andy was holding Luke. Keith telling Felix to leave.
Emma was close to her boyfriend.
"What was that?" Emma asked, checking that the boy hadn't hurt himself.
"Luke is seeing Anna, Felix's sister." Ethan said. "I don't think he liked it very much." Ethan shrugged.
[....]
Tric was getting emptier and emptier. Emma, Haley, Ethan and Nathan were talking together. When Chris Keller approached the four teenagers.
"You did well there." Chris Keller said looking at Emma.
"Well?" Emma asked as she raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "With all the modesty I have in me, Keller. I was incredible, Sir. I'm too good to play." Emma told the boy, Peyton had told her what the boy did.
"Huh." Chris Keller looked at Emma and handed her his card. "You should come by the studio, maybe you can show me some more of your music to record a demo."
In every interaction Emma had ever had with Chris Keller, the boy had always been arrogant. Emma didn't know why he would offer anything like that. But she kept the card in her purse.
"I've got to go." Emma gave Ethan a quick kiss. "Haley, don't forget, Thud magazine wants to do an interview with us." Emma said goodbye.
Chris Keller then spoke to Haley, saying that he had a project that Haley could fit into. It didn't take long for Haley to go after Emma so that she could interview her for Thud Magazine.
Chris Keller looked at the two boys.
"Do you guys realize how many guys wanted to have sex with your girls tonight?" The boy said smiling before leaving.
Ethan took a deep breath and looked at Nathan.
"Everything okay?" Ethan asked, seeing Nathan still frowning.
"Yeah, I don't trust that guy." Nathan said about Chris Keller.
[....]
Ethan and Nathan had already left. It was already two in the morning when the girls had finished everything, Haley and Emma were over the moon. The girls were leaving, Peyton was going to give Haley a lift considering the time.
"I just gotta clear out some stragglers." Peyton said.
When Peyton opened the door, there was the producer that Peyton had met, where he offered her cocaine, and three other men and two women snorting cocaine.
Haley's eyes widened, and Emma felt anger bubbling up inside her.
The producer, Ricky, was telling the people in the room that everything was fine, because Peyton had already sniffed him. Emma and Haley looked at Peyton.
Emma couldn't understand what was going through a grown man's head that it was okay to offer drugs to minors. Emma wanted to strangle Ricky. Peyton managed to dismiss the staff.
During Haley's ride to her apartment, the girl didn't say anything about the situation and said goodbye to the girls.
As Peyton drove toward their house, Peyton spoke.
"It was just that once, Emma. I didn't use it anymore."
"I believe you, Peyton." Emma said. "But I don't think it's a good idea to have that Ricky around, or for you to be around cocaine." Emma said.
When the girls got home, Peyton was walking around hugging her sister.
"You should talk to Karen about this." Emma muttered and Peyton nodded.
"Okay, enough about that. Did I mention that you were amazing?" Peyton said, changing the subject.
"Yes, but you can say again." Emma joked.
Before going to sleep, Emma crawled under the covers of her sister's bed and hugged her.
"I only want your best, sis." Emma whispered.
"I know." Peyton whispered back.
AN: Yes, it's R U Mine by the Arctic Monkeys. I'm not talented enough to create songs. So in this incredible world of fanfiction of OTH, there are no Arctic Monkeys, but instead there is Emma Violet Sawyer.