Suddenly Everything Has Changed

Summary: A/U After graduating high school, the girls leave Tree Hill in the middle of the night. One of them is running away from something, one is running to something, and one is running to hide something. But what will happen when they decide to return to Tree Hill. Will those they left behind, be able to forgive them? And is it true, when they say True Love Never Dies?

Chapter One: The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most

Haley James walked around a town that had grown slightly distant in her life. She had left Tree Hill, just after graduation with her two best friends Peyton Sawyer and Brooke Davis. Although a part of her would have loved to stayed in Tree Hill, she felt the need, no the want to get away. To break away, and show the world exactly what Haley James was made of. Well that and the fact that she had fallen so much in love with Nathan Scott, and well long story short. She was sick of putting herself out there for him, and having him always screw it up.

She hadn't felt right when she first left, not right at all. She loved Nathan with a passion, he was her husband, the man of her dreams, but she just wasn't sure she was ready to just give up on all her dreams to follow the highly rated basketball star to where ever it was that he would be playing next.

Haley hadn't really been paying much attention to where she was walking, but she suddenly realized that she was standing in front of the waterfront. She stepped down onto the platform, and stood just in front of one of the many scattered picnic tables. A warm smile crossed her face, as she remembered the first time she tutored Nathan.

She ran her small hand across the surface of the table, as she vividly remembered his cocky, but ever so hot grin, as he placed the cracker jack bracelet on her wrist. His words ringing in her ear, the smile slowly faded as she realized that she had lost that. She lost that relationship, that friendship, and she knew her chances of getting it back weren't likely.

Haley sat down on the small picnic table, just wanting to be close to him, whatever that may mean. So she pulled her jacket around her body, as the chilly late October wind started to pick up, and she reminisced on better times. Nathan telling her how much he loved her, they're wedding, laying in bed all day, curled around his body.

She had called him a few times after she had left. The first time, he had hung up immediately. Although he did call her back the next day, apologizing for his pettiness, but explaining how she didn't have the right to call him, after just vanishing in the middle of the night. The next few times were a little more productive, they had talked for close to an hour, until she had tried to apologize for leaving like she did. It usually ended with him hanging up on her, after screaming that he hated her because she gave up on them without fighting.

The first time this had occurred he had called back, apologized, explaining how he didn't mean that he hated her, he just wasn't fond of her at the moment. The second and third time though, he didn't call back, and when she called for a fourth time. He told her that while his heart ached for her, and that he still loved her, and probably always would. That he couldn't see himself with her ever again. That she had broken his trust, when she had broken his heart. He had went on to explain that he hated the man he had become in her absence, and that he planned on changing that. Just before he hung the phone, he asked her that if she still loved him, that she wouldn't call back.

She had respected his request, and had long since stopped trying to contact him. After realizing how her leaving had hurt him so bad, she realized how much of her heart really did belong to him, and how much she was willing to fight to get him back.

Besides Peyton and Brooke, the only other person who knew she was back in town, was Lucas Scott. Nathan's older brother, and her best friend. She had begged him to not tell Nathan, that she needed to do that on her own. She had decided to stay at Lucas's house tonight, and go see Nathan first thing in the morning, but first thing was first. She had to get the courage to look him in the face, and take whatever it was that she was sure he would dish out.

She sat at the table a little while longer, needing to remember every good time they had, had together. Her eyes glanced around the table, when they came in contact with something she was sure wasn't there before she left. She would have remembered that, she was sure. There off to the left hand side of the table, were the initials NS and HJS always and forever. She felt hot tears prick at her eyelids, before slowly falling down her cheeks, he did still love her. She closed her eyes and let the tears fall down, as her mind went just two years earlier.

Beginning of Flashback

Haley sat in the backseat of Brooke's car. It was one in the morning, and they had just left Haley's apartment. The one she had shared with her husband. She clutched her suitcase to her chest. A part of her wasn't ready to go, that part wanted to stay in Tree Hill and really become a family with Nathan. While a slightly larger part just needed to get away, to see the world. She really hoped Nathan would understand, although she knew he wouldn't.

"Hales, are you sure you want this?" Brooke asked, as she glided the car into the airport parking lot.

"Yeah," Haley said, sounding slightly unsure.

"You don't sound too sure," Peyton pointed out, her own reasons for needing to escape Tree Hill, and Lucas Scott.

"I am, I'm just...I'm scared that Nathan won't understand," Haley explained.

"Well, to tell you the truth Haley, if this is what you truly want, then your gonna have to just deal with that. I'm sorry that, that sounds harsh, but you made a choice, a decision, and if you go back, me and Peyton won't be upset with you. We'll understand, it's just, the way you were talking a few days ago, was that you needed a much needed break from Tree Hill and Nathan Scott," Brooke explained.

"I do, I do, I'm sorry, I'm on board," Haley said, with a confused sounding sigh, before jumping out of the car, and following her two friends.

End of Flashback

"Well, well, if it isn't Haley James Scott," a familiar voice called from behind her.

A smile found itself on her lips, as she got up and turned toward the voice.

"Lucas Eugene Scott..." Haley said, before the smile disappeared from her lips. "By the way, it's Haley James.."

Lucas looked at her slightly confused, he had unforunately lost contact with Nathan. He somehow blamed Lucas for Haley leaving, and breaking his heart. Lucas had just assumed that he needed someone to blame, and if it made him feel better to blame him, then by all means it was fine to blame him for it.

"Hales, I know he had said something about thinking about it..." Lucas trailed off.

"Yeah, well I could have been difficult, I didn't have to sign the papers. I just thought that after leaving like I did, I figured I could bare him the fight that I didn't want a divorce," Haley explained.

"How long?" Lucas asked, stunned that his brother would actually divorce a woman that he was still very much in love with...or so Lucas assumed.

"About eight or nine months ago," Haley answered, staring at her feet.

"Well, it's getting pretty chilly out here, what do you say we go back to my place, and have some hot cocoa?" Lucas asked.

"Hot cocoa sounds like heaven," Haley tried to offer a smile, although she knew that Lucas could tell it was half-hearted.