Often associated with fire and blood, red is a color that is often associated with intensity, energy, power, determination, strength, passion, love and d e s i r e.



In Japanese culture, it is the color of the hero, and in Russia, the color of beauty.
Images that are romantic, sexual or erotic in nature often include vibrant reds- red lips, red nails, red clothing.
Even the bars identifying NC-17 movies are red. Like the blood running through our bodies, red is the color of life force, the color of determination and will to survive. It’s a lively color, bright and vibrant and bold. The warmest color in existence, there’s a reason for phrases like “red hot.”
It provokes intense, quick reactions, grabbing the attention of all around.

Red is the color of our hearts, of love and desire. It’s shades of reds- crimson, magenta, pink- that represent the holiday of love, Saint Valentine’s Day. It’s the color of kisses and erotica, romance and passion. It’s the color of heat and attraction, the color that rises to one’s cheeks when aroused.
Red is the color used to draw attention to something, to force a quick decision and to illicit a reaction, to push someone out of their comfort zone. It’s the color of opportunity, of chance, of life and love. A fitting color for Brooke and Lucas, don’t you think?

As Lucas pulls his car up to Brooke’s house, the first thing we see, before the car even comes into view, is her front door.
The crimson stands out against the white around it, light illuminating the door while the rest of the house fades into the background, a focal point.
The uncomfortable silence in the car as they pull up is overwhelming, and even as the car pulls to a stop in front of the house, the red door is still visible in the background, a beacon of hope in a depressing moment. When Lucas tells Brooke not to go, it’s like he’s unable to keep it in- the prospect of losing Brooke is too much for him to handle.

There’s nothing she can say in that moment, nothing either of them can say, to fully measure the loss both would feel if Brooke were to move, if they were torn apart right as they finally become friends again. Brooke’s “I really liked being the girl behind the red door” is so much deeper than it first appears-it isn’t really about the door, but it’s about Brooke, her life in Tree Hill.

The red door signifies her unique position in the town, and her position behind the door is something no one can ever fill, especially not in Lucas’ eyes. The girl behind the red door represents so much to both of them in that moment- it encompasses everything about the girl Lucas fell in love with´, from her quirky smile to the way she looks at him, to the way she feels in his arms and the way they can have full conversations without ever opening their mouths. The red door, in that moment, is Brooke- it’s the personification of everything Lucas has come to love about her, faults and all.

As their eyes meet, there’s nothing left to say for either of them- the prospect of losing the girl behind that door is too much for either to handle. Brooke seems aware that if she leaves Tree Hill, she’ll lose that girl as well, that she won’t be the same person if the things that make her who she is- mainly Lucas- are gone.

Both are h e a r t b r o k e n and teary eyed, unable to find the words they both need to say.

It’s almost impossible for Lucas to think of just one thing he’ll miss about Brooke. It’s hard to explain to her how he’ll miss everything- he’ll miss the way she laughs when she shouldn’t, the way she glances at him out of the corner of her eyes, the way she’s hesitant to let anyone in, even her insecurities. She’s his Brooke, and there’s nothing about her he could imagine not loving. It’s fitting, really, that he doesn’t have to answer until they’ve stopped on the porch outside his room, and you can see the door painted red in the background. When he says “I’ll miss the girl behind the red door,” there’s no doubting the significance of the moment.

The way their eyes c o n n e c t, the way he remembered what she said word for word, and of course the effort it took to paint the door red and move all of Brooke’s things into his room without her knowing, it’s clear he loves her. And for a split second, she can see it, she knows it, but then they’re back in the moment, and her surprise at everything he’s done for her in that moment leaves her breathless . It’s a gesture even greater than any love- he’s letting her fully into his life, his world, his home, his room, his family. And when he tells her that he wasn’t ready to lose her, there’s no doubting the truth behind his words.

The emotions that flicker between them are deep and varied, but overall, it’s clear in their eyes that they’re so in love, that it goes deeper than the youthful, sexual love others their age display, that they’d do anything for one another and they both know it.

No words can fit the j o y and commitment they’ve just made to one another without even realizing how serious it is, and as they hug, it’s clear by Brooke’s “I wasn’t ready to be lost” that she’s talking about far more than moving away from home- her life is with Lucas, and she’d be lost on a thousand different levels if they were torn apart.