Karen's POV

Nathan was always to me a constant reminder of what I could have had with Dan.

I know, I know, Dan's a jerk. I didn't miss out on much by not sticking out with him. But there was always that part of me that wanted a happy family and since I already had Dan's son I always figured the easiest way to get that was with Dan. Somewhere in the back of my head. Nathan was my reality check. My get-your-feet-back-to-Earth card.

He looked a lot like Dan too. My Lucas takes more after my side of the family and I rarely had a moment when I looked at him and saw Dan. But Nathan... Nathan was young Dan in the flesh.

For the most time I thought Nathan was doomed to repeat Dan's life. He had Dan as a repeat of Royal to bully him into basketball. He had the charm to get anywhere in life way too easily and to fall into the trap of believing that everything is there for the taking. He sure gave the impression that he had fallen in it most of the time.

Nathan also completely avoided me. I only remember a couple of times where our eyes met and he quickly dodged. I always figured he was ashamed of his father's past. I never imposed my presence on the Scotts, or at least not on those Scotts. So I just let him be. And part of me felt sorry for him. He had little chance of getting out of the life that was just placed in front of him.

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Haley was Lucas' best friend. She had been our neighbour for just about as long as I can remember. They played together since they were little children. I had always rooted for her and Lucas to get together but somewhere along the line I realized that they're better off and friends.

When she started working at my cafe, I got to know her better, and I'm sure glad I did. She's funny and down to earth and definitely the kind of person anyone would like around. I liked how she tutored people and enjoyed it. She liked helping people. She was a good person.

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So, then, when in a weird twist of fate, me and Deb become friends and she mentions that Haley is tutoring Nathan, my first reaction is pure shock. Not necessarilly to the tutoring part, but to the fact that Haley hadn't told me about it. She always liked talking about how some of her pupils would get better grades thanx to her. She was proud of that. And Nathan was doing better thanx to her. And yet, she mentioned nothing of it.

Of course, it was the fact that it WAS Nathan. After all, any discussion of Nathan was plain weird. So I dismissed it. When I asked her about it and she blushed I thought nothing of it. She saw it as helping the enemy and was rather ashamed of it.

And then the weird got weirder. The same night I came to the cafe to check on what I needed to buy, since the next day was supply day. To my surprise, Nathan was sitting at the door, knocking. To MY door, the door that linked the world to his father's mistake.

I saw Haley come near the door and not opening it. Simply turning off the lights. And I saw Nathan leave and for the first time in my life I saw a sad look on his face. Not the signature smirk, not his father arrogance, not the confidence that he boosted just about everywhere. Sadness. He turned around and saw me and for the first time he didn't dodge my eyes. Somehow I don't think he registered it was me.

And when the next day he knocked on my cafe's door again I finally realized what was going on. Haley stopped short and seemed to doubt whether or not to go to him. He threw her a pleading look and she looked at me questioningly. I told her to go. And that was the beginning of everything.

I completely hold Haley responsible for Nathan and Lucas becoming what they are today.

Nathan on his own was a good kid and somehow I have a feeling he would have come around eventually. But he was trained to hate Lucas and he did hate Lucas so bad that I don't think anyone else or anything else could have convinced him to give up on that. Lucas also resented Nathan so much for getting the life that he was supposed to have that it truly was a hopeless case.

So Nathan would have been good anyway. And Lucas would have been good anyway. But they never would have become brothers had there not been for Haley.

To me, Nathan and Haley were meant to be. They had to be together. Not only because they look as great together as they do and because they're as in love as they are nor because they truly fit in every sense of the way. Rather because Nathan and Haley led to Nathan and Lucas.