❀⚘

"Have you seen this?" Darla dumped her backpack and gym bag on the table in the kitchen. Nathan waved a newspaper in her face, his sister swatting it away with a scowl. She ignored him as she headed for the fridge. "'Who would've thought that Dan's skills would be inherited by his two sons- Lucas and Nathan.'" He tossed it on the counter in front of Dan, Deb moving to read over his shoulder. "That's great Dad. We're all one big happy family now." Darla scoffed at his remark.

"Watch it," Dan warned him.

"Dan the boy exists, he's on the team. It's not exactly headline news," Deb laughed off his sour mood. Darla smiled slightly at her words, pleased that at least someone in her family had common courtesy.

"Apparently it is," he tossed the newspaper onto the counter.

"Well, imagine how Lucas and Karen feel about it." Deb suggested.

"Invite them over for breakfast and we can all talk about it," Dan rolled his eyes.

"If you guys are gonna argue, I'm out," Nathan backed away. Darla shoved her water bottle in her gym bag, grabbing her stuff together so she could leave.

"No ones arguing. Eat your breakfast," Deb offered Nathan the plate of pancakes.

"No it's cool, I'll get something at school, you know, with my brother," He grinned and left the kitchen.

"Thanks Mom," Darla snatched a pancake off the plate as she walked by.

"Need a ride?" Nathan twirled his keys on his finger as he waited for her by the front door. Darla didn't look at him as she passed him by. "Lee, talk to me. I said I was sorry."

"Maybe if you actually meant it, I'd forgive you," she whirled around to glare at him.

"I do mean it!" He threw his hands up. He closed the front door behind him, hoping his parents wouldn't hear. "Why don't you believe me?"

"Because I don't trust you anymore." She spat. "Believing you means trusting you and I don't."

"What can I do?" He sighed frustratedly.

"Maybe stop being a giant ass to everyone in your life before you end up losing everyone who even kind of cares about you." She was mad at herself for talking to him. She wanted to stay mad, he'd hurt her. Throwing Dan in her face ruined her every time and Nathan knew that. She threw his own shit at him so it was only fair for him to say something and she respected that, she just couldn't justify why he said what he said. His halfass apology pissed her off, Isaac even more.

"Want the ride?"

"No, I'm good." She unlocked her car and threw her bags in the backseat. "Got something to do." The siblings nodded each other before driving their separate ways.

❀⚘

She parked behind the curly blonde's car, noting Peyton wasn't in it. She shut off her car, slipping her sweater on as she locked it behind her. She gathered her thoughts before walking over to her friend. She was careful to step around the headstones, not wanting to chance angering the spirit of someone she stepped on. "Hey, P," her voice was soft, she didn't want to startle the blonde.

Peyton looked up, tears pooling in her eyes at the sight of the younger girl. "You came," after Brooke didn't mention anything she figured nobody else remembered the significance of that particular week for her.

"I'll always come for you P, that's what sisters are for." During the two years that Peyton dated Nathan, the blonde became a staple in Darla's life. Through Peyton she met Brooke and the duo introduced Darla into their life as if she'd always been there. "You're smoking now?" The brunette quirked an eyebrow as she poked at the open pack with a lighter shoved in it.

"After dumping Nathan I figured I had room for a new bad habit in my life."

"Well if you still want the headache, I have another brother," Darla joked. Peyton gave her a small smile, grateful for her trying to cheer her up. "I know how hard it still is for you P." Darla reached for her hand, offering her a small smile. "I can only imagine what you're feeling."

"It doesn't get easier," Peyton sniffled. "Everybody said it would and it never does."

"Everyone grieves differently but you're allowed to at your own pace." Darla knew advice wasn't what Peyton wanted, she just wanted someone who'd listen and that's what she did. They sat for a couple hours on the bench in the cemetery sharing sappy stories and sharing a small pack of tissues, neither of them caring that they missed an entire day of school.

❀⚘

Isaac listened as Jay rambled, his best friend telling stories of his latest sexcapades of that week. He hunched over the hood of a truck in Keith's garage, grease stains adoring his clothes. "Shelley's cute but she's no Haley James," that caught his attention.

"Dude," Isaac grumbled, throwing his rag at the boy. "That's my sister."

"Yeah well, D's practically mine and I had to hear about your little trysts with her," Jay retorted, gagging dramatically. "Besides, you know Hales would never go for me."

"You haven't even tried," Isaac rolled his eyes. It was a conversation they'd had one too many times before. Jay like Haley, Haley secretly liked Jay, yet neither one of them would do anything about it. Why? He had no fucking clue. "Why don't you actually ask her out this time? And not to a group date either."

"You think she'd say yes?"

"Never gonna know unless you actually fucking ask," Isaac rolled his eyes.

"Oh, like you were so confident to tell Darla how you fucking felt," Jay scoffed. "You've been pining over her since fifth grade and were fucking juniors now dude."

"It's different," Isaac defended himself pathetically. "Aren't you the one who nagged me to grow a pair of balls and tell B? Time to take your own advice buddy." Isaac was enjoying his best friend's inner torment. "Look man, just shoot your shot. No harm, no foul."

"You're so useless with this type of shit, where's B when I need her?"

"She's at practice. The Fathers versus Sons game is tonight."

"I almost forgot about that," Jay smacked his gums. "I don't know why Whitey didn't cancel this one. All the Scott men on one court playing against each other? That's the recipe for a shitshow."

"I'm only going for B. If shit goes down, I promised to drag her out." Isaac was annoyed with the drama that surrounded the family. It would never make him think of or look at Darla differently, but he couldn't help but wish her family was at least a little more private with their fights. Especially for her sake. "All the shit Dan and Nathan are causing is fucking with her mentally, I'm fixing to beat their asses myself."

"I'll be right there with you," Jay grinned wickedly. He felt like the middle Scott child was due for an ass whooping. For Darla, he had let the kidnapping shit go but after hearing how Nathan treated her at the party, he was itching to jam his fist into the boy's face. "Pretty sure Luke would join in."

"Three against two doesn't sound fair," the boys turned at the sound of Keith's voice. His lighthearted tone held an edge to it that said he agreed with them. "Y'all know Darla wouldn't want you two duking it out with her Dad and brother. Even if it's the right thing to do." He winked at them slyly. 

"Keith, you ever think about changing your last name?" Jay chuckled.

"Darla asked me that same question," he snorted. "Keeping it hasn't been so bad for me. Plus my Mom might kill me if I tried. Besides, Darla won't always be a Scott." Isaac blushed at the insinuation, the man had been hinting at marriage for the two teens since he found out they were dating. He didn't approve of teen marriages but he knew that after high school, the young couple was headed in that direction. 

"Darla James does have a nice ring to it," Jay teased the bulky boy beside him. Isaac hunched back under the hood, trying to hide from their teasing glances. 

"But only after graduation," Keith narrowed his eyes at the boy's back. 

"I bet her senior year, they'll be engaged," Jay laughed. "Though with how long it took him to finally make a move on her, she'll be thirty when she finally gets a ring."

"We barely started dating, we've got time before that conversation happens."

"Oh, please, you think her and Brooke haven't already planned your wedding down to the minute detail? She's a ateenage girl in love, that's what they do."

Isaac's eyes went wide. "Should I mention it?"

"Not until you're ready," Keith advised him. "Plus you know she won't say anything until you do."

"Did you really think she hasn't thought about marrying you?" Jay was losing it as he realized just how far ahead Darla Scott had planned out her future with the boy beside him. "She probably has baby names picked out too." 

His last sentence had his mind whirling. Isaac couldn't picture a wedding like she probably did but he could definitely imagine her pregnant with his baby. He felt his cock stir at the image he was conjuring. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind, coughing slightly as he felt his cheeks redden. 

"You kinky fucker," Jay mumbled, a sly smirk on his face. He kept his voice low so Keith wouldn't hear, glancing at the older man as he left them alone. "I knew you had a size kink but a breeding kink is wild."

"Shut the fuck up," Isaac glared at him.

"Not a chance," Jay guffawed. "I'm going to have so much fun with this."

"If you tell anyone about this, I'll spill how you practically begged Amy Owens to stick her finger--"

"Okay, okay! I get it," Jay shushed him, his eyes darting around hastily to see if anybody mightve overheard them. 

"Kinkshame me and I'll kinkshame you," Isaac grinned, wiping his hands on a rag. 

"You're both seventeen, you shouldn't have kinks." They both blanched as Keith walked by them, reading a clipboard as he piped in his opinion. The two male teens shared a panicked look before laughter erupted from them once he walked away again. 

❀⚘

Darla sat beside Brooke on the gym floor, her legs outstretched as she reached for her toes. She heard Brooke's rambling in her ears but her focus was on her two brothers as they jogged around the gym. The Fathers versus Sons game was going to be an intense one, it was every year, but this year four Scotts would be on the court and with her Dad's bruised ego over Lucas, she just knew he was going to play dirty against his sons. Dark purple half circles sat under her eyes, her eyelids slightly puffy and red from a restless night. She'd begged her Mom to talk with her Dad, to reason him into not being his usual self for one night but her words fell upon deaf ears. Dan Scott's ego needed validation and he could only get it by proving to his sons that he was so much better than they were. Not that either of them actually gave a shit. 

"Darla, you're not even listening to me," Brooke's raspy voice whined. 

"Sorry, Brooke," Darla smiled sheepishly. "Just have a lot going on right now."

"Well chin up, tonight will be over before you know it." Darla wished she had the girl's optimism. "Come on, it's time to get ready. I have an eye cream that'll so help with your puffiness." Darla let Brooke drag her to the locker room and pamper her as she sat silently on the wooden bench. "You know," Brooke's soft raspy voice broke Darla out of her mind, "if I could adopt you, I totally would."

Darla smiled thoughtfully at the older brunette. "I love you, B. Davis."

"Right back at you, D. Scott." Brooke beamed at her. 

❀⚘

The crowd was rolling in. Her brunette curls bounced around freely as Darla tumbled through the air. The commotion that swirled around her echoed the noise in her head. The brunette teenager had four relatives on that court, four men that not so conveniently hated each other. She tried to keep her mind off of the drama and instead on the choreography in her head and the rush of movements surrounding her. 

"Peyton is so on my shit list for ditching the game," Brooke gritted through her teeth, her wide smile never faltering. 

"She had a good reason for not coming, B," Darla assured her. "Just let it go."

"Fine," Brooke's hair bounced around her shoulders as she dramatically turned away. Darla released a small breath, the tension flooding back into her body as she looked towards the stands. Her eyes darted to where he was sitting. His eyes were already focused on her. His cap hung over his eyes as his bulging arms crossed over his chest. He sat with her Mom, his presence relaxing her. 

"--and to make things more interesting, we're calling this next one game point!" The announcer's words had the whole gym on their feet as they watched the two teams hustle for the point. "Father and son face off as Dan Scott holds the ball and tries to move around Nathan to make that final shot." Darla didn't take her eyes off of the male Scott duo. Lucas watched the scene carefully, his uncle Keith beside him, the two sharing a look. The other Scotts in the room stood silently as Nathan moved away from Dan, allowing his Dad to take that shot, securing his win. 

"Weird game," Isaac stuck his hands in his pockets as he towered beside Darla. 

"At least its finally over," Darla grumbled. She spun and shoved her face into Isaac's chest, breathing in his scent as she tried to calm her nerves. His posture softened as he held her to him. He carefully removed the bow from her hair and pulled off the elastic that held half of her hair up in place. His thick fingers weaved through her thick strands, soothingly rubbing her scalp. 

"Are you ready to head out?" He felt her nod before she picked her head up. "Go get your stuff and meet me outside." Darla meandered off with a quick peck to his cheek. Karen sidled up beside Isaac, a fond smile on her face as she observed her favorite teen couple. 

"How's she doing?"

Isaac's head snapped in surprise as he hadn't heard the older woman approach him. He smiled softly at her, pulling her into a side hug. "She's doing better. How about you? How's it feel having her Mom around again?" Isaac knew all the drama that surrounded his girlfriend's family, even the origin stories crucial for the lore. 

Karen stammered slightly, unprepared for the teen boy beside her to know much of anything besides the current drama. "Its fine, I'm fine." She ignored the look he gave her, instead glancing over to Deb Scott. She watched the equally heighted blonde woman chat with one of the mothers of the players across the gym. "We haven't really bumped into each other and unless there's something basketball related, we never will."

"Are you avoiding her?" Isaac found himself asking, cursing himself as Darla's nosy nature finally rubbed onto him. 

"No, maybe, not really." Karen offered. "I guess I'm just trying to save myself from any more drama." 

"You're son's a Scott and the love of my life is a Scott. You and I will forever be having drama." Karen's heart melted as she heard the words nonchalantly leave the boy's mouth. She had once believed those same words as a teenage girl herself but she heard the finality in Isaac's tone. He was a young man who meant his words and she was relieved Darla wouldn't have to travel the road of heartbreak that she had to. "The shit we do for love," the boy chuckled to himself. 

"Cheers to that," Karen agreed, mumbling.