AN: Hey! So I had this idea floating around in my head for a bit so I finally decided to sit down and write it. I know everything seems to happen in a flash, but I've got most of the story planned out and it fits well into the outline. This is a bit AU. Brooke and Lucas never dated, Nathan and Haley never dated either.

Thanks for reading and please tell me what you think!

--

Brooke Davis sighed dramatically as she rounded the corner to her locker. After a long week of cheerleading and boring classes, it was finally Friday and she was looking forward to the party one of the girl's on her squad was throwing. She was nearly at her locker when she felt someone bump into her, scoffing loudly when she saw the tiny blonde girl scrambling to her knees to gather all her books.

Haley James: The senior class' resident nerd. She was a small girl, barely over five feet, who kept her nose buried in books all day long. Most of the time she kept to herself and Brooke sometimes felt sorry for her when she saw her sitting all alone at lunchtime. Everyone knew her parents had left her alone with her sister so they could travel around the US in their newly purchased RV. The cheerleader could relate a little too well, her own parents being absent for most of the year.

"God, Tutor Girl," Brooke hissed, feeling horrible when Haley stood back up on her feet, an apology ready to come out of her mouth any second. "Where's the fire?"

"I, I'm so sorry, Brooke," Haley apologized, trying to block out the laughing coming from the other students who witnessed it. Brooke rolled her eyes and sent a glare to them all, letting them know there wasn't going to be any public bitching now. "My sister doesn't like to wait around for me when I get out of school and I'm already late."

"Don't worry about it," the perky cheerleader laughed, bending down to pick up the book Haley seemed to forget about. She studied the novel carefully, making a weird face as she placed the book back in Haley's hands. "Please stop laughing at me? What are you reading this for?"

"Oh, um, I don't know. I guess I can relate to it," Haley whispered, hiding the book under her math book and trying her best to not to blush. "But I should go, like I said, my sister doesn't like to wait. I, I'm sorry for knocking into you, Brooke."

Brooke felt like such a bitch for purposely trying to make this poor girl's life a living hell. Haley was nice to everyone, no matter how crappy they'd treat her. Most of the time it was Haley apologizing for whatever Brooke yelled at her for that day. Brooke gave the blonde a small smile and couldn't help but notice how naturally gorgeous she was. She had no makeup on and her long blonde hair fell perfectly in place everyday.

"Hey, stop apologizing," Brooke told her lightly, squeezing Haley's arm gently when she apologized for her constant apologizing. "It's totally my fault. I've just been looking forward to this weekend and I couldn't wait to get out of this hellhole."

"Yeah, I know how you feel," Haley agreed softly, shaking her head in total agreement. She hated going to school because of the humiliation she was going to face and couldn't understand why the most popular girl in school would hate school. "I really, really have to go so have a nice weekend, Brooke. I'll see you-"

"Get Down!"

Several screams filled the halls when they saw the unpopular kid holding a gun towards a big group of them standing a few feet away from him. Brooke immediately sunk to the floor, pulling Haley down with her when she seemed to be frozen in place. Jimmy spun around, pointing the gun when people started to panic and refused to stay still.

"No one moves," Jimmy instructed forcefully, locking eyes with Haley. The two had been friends up until their freshmen year of high school. He had gotten extremely weird and Haley had just told him that her parents didn't want her hanging around him anymore. He took it harder than she did and turned into Mr. Dark and Depressive and this was going to be his payback. "Don't even think about leaving."

"It'll be okay," Brooke whispered to the trembling blonde beside her. It was going to be her job to protect Haley and she was going to do everything in her power to make sure they both got out alive. She looked around at the other ten or eleven students and sighed when they seemed to be in the same boat as the small girl next to her. "We'll be okay."

"No we won't be," Haley whimpered, not believing a word Brooke's shaky voice was saying. She gulped loudly and watched as Jimmy stepped away from them, muttering to himself and pacing around in a circle. "I don't want to die."

"We're not going to die," Brooke hissed in a low voice, trying her best not to crack under the pressure. She kept a careful eye on the teen gunman and slammed her head back on the wall when he stalked off, threatening to shoot if any of them moved. "Oh my god, oh my god, this is not happening, this is not happening."

Brooke began to curse loudly when she thought about how she turned down Peyton's offer to leave school a period early. Sure, she would have loved to go home an hour early, but she had a study with the cute tutor next to her and she wouldn't have missed it for the world. On the outside she appeared to enjoy making fun of Haley and constantly bringing her down. But on the inside she hated herself for doing it and she had to hold herself back from taking the girl in her arms and never letting her go.

"Fuck," Nathan Scott cursed from across the hall, chucking his backpack across the room. His best friend, Tim Smith, shared the same reaction and both were talking loudly about the "nerd." "Who the fuck does he think he is? I'll fucking shoot him."

"Nathan, shut up," Lucas hissed, shutting his brother up with a sharp punch to the shoulder. He looked at Brooke and shared a sad smile, watching as she did her best to calm Haley down. Lucas didn't know much about Haley like the rest of the school. His mom loved her dearly and she would spend a lot of time with her at the café. "We just, someone just needs to talk him out of it."

"Then go ahead," Tim said, gesturing to Jimmy when he came back into sight. "You better fucking get us out of this or I'll kill you, Lucas." The blonde placed his head in his large hands and began to quickly compile a speech in his head. "Hurry up!"

"Shut up, Smith!" Jimmy commanded, inching closer to the three star basketball players. Every inch of his body trembled as he got closer and closer, the gun in his hand shaking back and forth with his hand. "Don't say another word."

"I don't know how much I can take of this," Haley admitted truthfully, her breathing becoming heavier and heavier each time she caught the back of Jimmy's head. Without even thinking, Brooke wrapped her arms around Haley's shoulders and pulled her close, shutting her eyes tight when Haley began to sob in her chest. "I want to go home."

"I know, I know," Brooke cried softly, ruffling Haley's hair lightly. She did her best to muffle the now audible sobs and held her tighter when Haley began to shake. "We'll get out of here, I promise."

"You can't hold us in here forever," Nathan yelled, locking eyes with the geek he used to torment everyday of his life. Ever since 4th grade, Nathan insisted on making Jimmy Edward's life a living hell and showed no signs of stopping when they reached high school. "Dude, you're fucking crazy."

"Jim, come on…" Lucas began, trying to reason with his former friend. They had drifted apart when he joined the basketball team and he was regretting it even more now. "You don't want to shoot anyone, do you?"

"Don't talk to me," Jimmy snapped, running his free hand through his sweaty hair. He could hear the small sobbing coming from his former friend and turned around in a huff, his breathing heavier than Haley's. "Shut up!"

"Stop this!" Brooke yelled back, Haley feeling the tears on the back of her neck. "Just let us go and, please, please just let us go. You don't want to do this, do you?"

"Like you care what I do." Brooke shook her head in protest and felt her knees go numb from all of Haley's weight shifted on top of her. Jimmy felt his blood boil as she continued to hold Haley and try her best to comfort her. "Stop acting like a saint, Brooke Davis. You don't even care about poor, pathetic Tutor Girl."

As soon as Haley heard her name, she held onto Brooke tighter and sobbed harder and harder when she could hear the footsteps coming closer. The brunette tightened her grip on Haley and did her best to try and prove Jimmy wrong.

"Like anyone would care if little Tutor Girl would die," Jimmy taunted, moving closer and closer to the two girls. He bent down to get eye level with Brooke and stared deep into her hazel eyes. "Just let me shoot her and put everyone out of their misery."

"No!" Brooke and Haley screamed, each holding onto each other until they could feel their arms no more. Jimmy just laughed evilly and tried to ignore Lucas' protests. "You're not shooting her. If you want to shoot someone, shoot me," Brooke squeaked, closing her eyes when Haley sat up in an instant

"Jimmy, please stop this," Haley pleaded, wiping her teary eyes with the back of her sleeve. Her books were scattered all around her. She winced when he grabbed her math book and threw it against the wall, the bang making everyone jump. "Let everyone else go and, and you can just take me."

"Haley, don't be ridiculous," Brooke stated in disbelief, eyeing the chubby kid carefully. She had to applaud Haley for being so brave but there was no way in hell she was going to leave her alone in this situation. "I'm not leaving you."

"No, no one is leaving," Jimmy stated clearly, getting back to his feet and slowly moving away from the cheerleader and tutor. "You all just stay where you are and when I get back; when I get back we are going to, just stay where you are!"

Everyone couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when he disappeared down the hall, slamming the door shut when he went outside. Brooke looked over at Haley and rubbed her hand up and down her back, trying to calm her down before Jimmy snapped and did something he'd seriously regret. She watched the three boys stand up to their feet, stealing glances down the hall to make sure Jimmy was still out of sight.

"Where are you guys going?" Brooke asked frantically, her eyes following them as they walked past her. "Have you lost your minds? He said not to go anywhere!"

"Shut up, Brooke!" Nathan yelled, letting out a grunt when the other kids in the hallway jumped in fear. Haley whimpered quietly and tried her best to regain her composure. But no matter how hard she tried, she kept breaking down in tears. "You too, Haley! If you two would just shut your god damn mouths…"

"How is this our fault?" Brooke yelled back, getting ready to pick a fight with the Raven's star basketball player. She got to her feet and did her best to measure up with Nathan. "Maybe if you weren't such a dick none of this would be happening!"

"Oh, so this is my fault now?" Nathan roared, glancing down at the sobbing girl huddled in the corner. "You're a bitch to that one over there every day. I'm surprised she's not the one coming to school with a god damn gun!"

"Shut up," Haley whispered, standing to her feet and stepping beside Brooke. There was no way she was going to let Nathan talk down to Brooke like that. Sure, she had hated Brooke when she poked fun at her, but at least the cheerleader would apologize the next day for her actions. "Fighting isn't going to solve anything."

"Whatever," Nathan mumbled, motioning for his two friends to follow his lead. "We're getting out of here. Enjoy your little stay in hell." Brooke let out a frustrated groan and sat back down, Haley following suite like a little puppy dog. They watched with wide-eyes as the boys became out of sight, running back down the hell mere seconds later when the doors were pushed open with force. "Fuck!"

"I said don't move!" Jimmy roared, cocking his gun straight at the three guys. Brooke felt her heart skip a beat when Haley grabbed her hand in fear and kept her gaze fixated on the gunman. "What part of don't move don't you understand?"

"Brooke, will you promise me something?" Brooke nodded her head and felt sick to her stomach when Haley slowly stood up to her feet. "Please, please tell my sister that I love her and thank her for everything that she's done for me?"

"No, Haley, don't," Brooke cried, putting two and two together and finally realizing what Haley was going to do. She was going to sacrifice her own life to save everyone else's. This just made Brooke like her even more and she wasn't going to let Haley do this, no way in hell. "Come on, don't be ridiculous. Sit back down right now."

Haley locked eyes with Brooke and swallowed past her fears. She had never seen Brooke so caring about her and couldn't stop the new tears from falling down her face. Haley closed her eyes and couldn't help but replay the memory that happened when she was only seven. The last time Brooke actually cared for her.

"Haley?" Brooke questioned softly, releasing her grip from her mother's hand and making her way over to the little girl sitting alone on the swings. It was just about to get dark and Brooke knew the rule about going out after dark. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Haley sniffled, swinging herself back and forth while glancing down at her untied shoe laces. Brooke sat down on the swing next to her and started to swing herself when Haley remained quiet. "Brookie, I'm scared."

"Why are you scared, Hales?" Brooke asked her friend, giving her a toothless smile when Haley finally looked up at her. "Where's your mommy?"

Haley shrugged her shoulders and took her small hand off the chain for a split second to wipe away the tears forming in her eyes. She had become pretty good friends with the brunette girl ever since she moved down the street from her.

"I don't know," Haley whispered, "my sister was supposed to be watching me but then she told me I was being a pain in the butt so, so I ran away from home."

"But you're not a pain!" Brooke told her, her eyes widening when she thought of Haley's mean big sister probably at home, unaware that she was missing. "Haley, don't listen to your sister! I bet she's just jealous because she's not as cool as you."

"Thanks for trying to cheer me up," Haley sighed, giving her friend the best smile she could muster. "I don't think my family likes me very well, that's all."

"Aw, don't say that, Haley," Brooke frowned, jumping off the swing and grabbing the chains to make Haley stop swinging. She stared down at her with a smile and gently tugged at her messy pigtails. "If it makes you feel better, I like you. I mean, you're my first friend in Tree Hill! That makes you cool just because of that."

"I don't know. My sisters never let me hang out with them!" Haley cried, wiping her eyes again when she thought about how mean her sisters were and how they never let the little girl hang out with them. "Do you think they don't like me?"

"I bet that's not true," Brooke pointed out matter-of-factly, leaning forward and placing a quick kiss on Haley's forehead. "I'm pretty sure your sisters are worried sick about you! I mean, come on, you're the most adorable little sister ever. They're probably crying and crying because they can't find you."

"Do you think?" Haley asked, her eyes brightening up a bit when she thought of the scenario. Brooke nodded her head frantically and poked her in the stomach, smiling from ear to ear when Haley finally giggled. "Thanks, Brookie. I'm really glad you moved here."

"So am I," Brooke beamed, gathering all her strength and lifting Haley off the swing, holding her tight in her arms. She gave her a bone crushing hug before setting her back down on her feet. "My mommy will watch us if you wanna play a bit more."

"Sure!" Haley squealed, grabbing Brooke's hand and leading her over to the big slide. She was always afraid of it and made Taylor go down it with her each time they came to the park to play. She let Brooke lead the way and began to chicken out when they reached the top of the slide. "Um, I, I don't think I want to go down, Brookie."

"Aw, Haley!" Brooke cried in disbelief, peering down at her smaller friend. Haley shook her head and began back away, gasping when Brooke pulled her back. "Come on! Live a little and stop being such a baby!" Haley's face fell into a frown and Brooke immediately apologized when the words left her mouth. "You can sit on my lap, how does that sound?"

"Good," Haley agreed, sitting down first and smiling when Brooke sat behind her, grabbing her waist and pulling her close to her. "Promise not to let go?"

"Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye," Brooke recited, making a small X over her heart with her index finger. She scooted closer to the slide and kept a firm grip on Haley's waist, ready to slide any second. "Okay, Haley, ready?"

"Ready," Haley stated, snuggling back into Brooke and taking a deep breath when they began to slide down. Both girls squealed in delight and Brooke laughed harder when they reached the end, both falling flat on their backs on the soft mat below. "That was so much fun, Brookie! Thanks for going down with me."

"No problem," Brooke grinned, making a face when Haley's body was still lying on top of hers. "But, Haley, you kind of have to get off of me so I can get up!"

"But, Brookie, look at the stars," Haley gasped in amazement, pointing up to the night sky with her right hand.

"Your big head is in my way, silly."

"Sorry," Haley giggled, squirming down Brooke's body and resting the back of her head on her chest. Brooke thanked her and gazed up at the stars and smiled widely. "Aren't they so pretty, Brookie?"

"They are," Brooke agreed, stroking Haley's hair gently when she moved around and got comfortable. "I'm really glad I moved here, Haley."

"So am I," Haley sighed, feeling so overwhelmed by the millions of stars in the sky. They laid in silence and just stared at the stars, each making a wish when they both thought they saw a shooting star. "Did you make a wish, Brookie?"

"I did," Brooke nodded, wrapping her arms around Haley's chest and giving her a tight squeeze. Mrs. Davis smiled to herself as she watched her daughter interact with her new friend. They were so worried that Brooke wasn't going to fit in but were so glad when Jimmy and Lydia James showed up at their door with a plate of brownies and their youngest daughter at their side. "I wished that we'd be friends forever!"

"Me too!" Haley yelled in disbelief, a huge smile forming on her face. She had finally found a friend and couldn't wait to play dress up, shares clothes and have sleepovers on Friday nights. "Really? Are you just fibbing?"

"Really!" Brooke defended, not being able to help herself and moving her hands down to Haley's exposed stomach. "You don't believe me?" She asked in mock hurt, letting her fingers dance around Haley's stomach before launching into a full on tickle fest.

"I believe you, Brookie!" Haley squealed in between laughs, squirming all around before rolling off Brooke and onto her side. "Friends forever?"

"Friends forever," Brooke repeated, interlocking her pinky with Haley's when she rolled back over to look at her. The two shared a toothless smile and rolled onto their backs again to watch the stars.

Just days later, seven year old Brooke Davis abandoned her first friend in Tree Hill for Peyton Sawyer, never looking back or showing no remorse for her decision.

"Come on, Haley, please sit back down?" Brooke pleaded, patting the cold floor next to her. She was going to panic any second if Haley didn't move and was seconds away from pulling her back down and holding her tight. "Thank you, thank you," she whispered, holding Haley close to her when she finally sat back down.

She never knew why she left Haley like that back when she was a kid. Haley was so nice to her while Peyton was broody and sarcastic, even for a seven year old. Brooke could remember the devastated look on Haley's little face when she told her she didn't want to be friends anymore. Brooke never imagined herself picking on Haley once they got to high school. During their short friendship, she did her best to protect Haley from all the bullies they went to school with.

"This will all be okay," Brooke whispered, the tears finally winning over and sliding down her face. She knew Haley was at breaking point and she was trying to keep calm, for fear that Haley would just lose it and get herself hurt. "It'll all be okay."

"No, no, no!" Haley yelled, sitting back up and looking Brooke straight in the eye. Lucky for them, Jimmy seemed too focused on the boys to notice Haley in a hysterical mess. Her breathing became heavier like before and Brooke did her best to calm her down before things got messy. "I'm leaving, I'm leaving!"

"Haley, get back here!" Brooke yelled in a hushed whisper, grabbing the back of Haley's shirt when she began to crawl away from her. After much struggle, Brooke managed to get Haley secure in her lap, keeping a tight grip on her chest. It probably wasn't the best position for Haley to be in. Her tiny baby doll t-shirt rode up a great deal when Brooke pulled her back, exposing her well-toned stomach. Brooke had to snap herself out of it when she began to stare at it, quickly draping her other arm around it to cover most of it up for the time being. "Please, just stay right here. Everything will be okay."

"I'm so scared," Haley finally admitted, slamming her eyes shut when the tears began to fall again. She was slowly losing her sanity and she was just praying Brooke would never let her go. "Please don't let me go, Brooke, please don't let me go."

"I won't," Brooke told her confidently, squeezing her tighter, making a face when she saw Haley's face wince at the extra pressure on her stomach. She slowly loosened it and brought her chin down to rest it securely on Haley's shoulder. "I got you."

"Thank you," Haley whispered gratefully, resting the back of her head on Brooke's chest and kept on telling herself Brooke was going to protect her and that everything was going to be okay. "Why, why is this happening to us?" Brooke sighed and shook her head when Haley looked up at her for the answer.

"I don't know, Hales, I don't know," Brooke told her in a shaky voice. She couldn't remember the last time she called Haley that. It was usually Tutor Girl and sometimes she'd surprise herself and actually call her Haley. "But, but, it's all going to be okay because we're going to get out of her alive."

"We better," Haley replied in a shy voice, trying to think of other things to get her mind off the hostage situation. "Taylor's going to be so pissed off once I get out of here." Brooke couldn't help but laugh at her and gently ruffled her hair.

"I'm sure she'll understand," Brooke said, deciding to play along with Haley's little game. It seemed to be calming the both of them down and she just hoped they could both keep up with it. "If not, I'll be the witness and explain to her what happened."

"Deal," Haley said with a quiet laugh, snuggling further into Brooke's arms and letting the fresh scent of Brooke's perfume overtake her. "She might kick your ass though so I'd be careful, okay?"

"Thanks for the heads up," Brooke whispered, the smile on her face quickly disappearing when she saw Jimmy's shoes. She slowly lifted her head up and came face to face with the gun that was pointing straight at the two of them. "What, no, please, don't do this!"

"One of you," Jimmy began, coughing loudly when his voice cracked. "One of you has to die, right now. So, I've decided, and Brooke, you need to let Haley go and walk out of here right now." Haley's eyes widened as did Brooke's both girls sharing the look of shock on their faces. "Now!"

"Don't do this, please don't do this," Brooke pleaded, holding Haley tighter as an indication she wasn't going to let her go. She promised her they were going to walk out of here alive and that's what they were going to do. "Come on, you don't want to do this."

Jimmy tried to block out the cries coming from his ex-friend. He placed his hands on his head and did his best to wash away all the fun times they had together. Haley stuck by him no matter what and he never forgave her for abandoning him that day. He shut his eyes kept thinking about how hurt he was when she left with a half ass reason. She left him alone, abandoned him, and acted like she never knew him.

The thoughts were overpowering his brain and the next thing he knew, his eyes shot open and he aimed the gun straight at Haley. She left him. He suffered. She was going to pay.

In the blink of an eye, the gun went off and everyone screamed as soon as they saw Haley fall out of Brooke's arms and onto the floor in a pool of blood.

--

I hope you liked it. Please tell me what you think. I promise there willbe Baley goodness to come.