By Ragdoll
A blazing "Home of the Ravens" banner graces the coliseum-like entranceway to Tree Hill High. The sign outside the front of the school reads, "Support the Ravens!!!" Three exclamation points means that Tree Hill gets just as excited about basketball as we all do about Jake. Peyton walks down the hallway toward Lucas, leaving a trail of sawdust behind her. Okay, I'm getting kind of sick of the annoying and awkward continuity. Remember last week when Peyton came up to Lucas and gave him a hug to thank him for helping her after Skanky Colin spiked her drink? Yeah, well, I assumed that must have been the Monday following the Saturday-night party. Right, so less than three days have passed essentially from the time Peyton rejected Lucas and that entire episode. But now, Peyton saunters up to Lucas asking, "How's your punching hand?" So are we to assume it's the Monday again? Or is it later in the week? Or is it really the Monday again? Or does it really matter? Luke smiles, "It's a lot better than the other guy's face." Well, come on now; Skanky Colin wasn't even bleeding, dude. Luke asks, "How about you, how are you feeling?" He leans on the locker and concentrates on Peyton's face. CMM takes this "acting" stuff very seriously. Peyton replies, "Like an idiot. Look, Luke, you're cool with us just being friends, right?" She stumbles around her words for a minute: "I mean, we are friends, right?" Saint Luke has polished his halo and checked his ego at the door: "We are. I'm cool with it, I mean, besides I wasn't ready for all that Peyton Sawyer girlfriend drama, anyway, you know." And he's over it that easily? He gets rejected by the girl of his dreams, the girl he's been pining for the last few months, after placing his hand on her freaking heart and telling her that he wants it all with her -- and within two days, he's cool with it. Well, Saint Luke seems to be one fickle pickle. Anyway, he leaves Peyton behind with a very telling, "Say hi to Brooke for me, okay?" And then he walks away, as chipper as a rooster cock-a-doodle-doodling in the morning. Peyton takes a deep breath, and sawdust blows out on the exhalation. "Whew!" she thinks. "That's my quotient of emotions for the day! So glad that's over," and then she too walks away.
Nathan sees Haley in front of him in the hallway, so he calls out to her, runs up to meet her, grabs her hand, and then pulls her into a classroom. She sort of lands in a corner of the doorway and they make out for a bit. Only Haley starts giggling and being all girly and stuff, telling Nathan they can't do that right there just now. Nathan smiles and says, "We just did!" Haley covers her mouth with her hand and giggles. Again. Nathan continues, "All right. I'll kiss you later." Aw, they're making out in front of a Bill of Rights poster. Wouldn't the forefathers be proud. The country has come to this -- a couple of kids using the history classroom to toy with their raging adolescent hormones. It's Thanksgiving, WB-style. Anyway. Haley glows. Then she runs her hands through her hair and makes her way to class.