-1Well all, I'm back with a new story. This story has been a long time work in progress that I have debated about posting. I am going to update this story and AFY as much as possible during my break from school. This is very different from anything I've written, so I'm a little nervous about it. Let me know what you think! Thanks to everyone who has encouraged me about this fic! I love you all!

Just a few little notes that will help clear things up! Nathan and Lucas are half brothers but Deb took off just after Nathan was born and Karen was still in love with Dan at the time, so they eventually made things work. Thus, the boys were raised together. Also, Haley is a year younger than the boys which you should be able to pick out soon but I didn't want anyone to be really confused. I really wanted to put this back story in there somewhere but it didn't fit in the chapters and it will become important as we go along.

Rating: 4 to be safe. Any chapters that are higher will be marked individually.

Disclaimer: All characters are property of Mark Schwahn and Warner Bros. Television. No copyright infringement is intended.

The Dark Side of the Sun

Chapter 1-The Wrong Band

The sun glittered off her honey blonde hair as she stood alone in the middle of the lavishly furnished living room. The tears poured silently down her cheeks as she looked at the picture that sat on the mantle above the fireplace. The picture that represented how everything in life should have been; it was her constant reminder of everything her life would never be.

She glanced down at the gold ring that sat on her left finger. It was a 2 carat round diamond in the center with a one carat diamond on either side. It was elegant enough to be Haley but more than enough to let to any man around know that she was taken.

The light bounced off of the diamonds and shattered around the room. It was ironic, she thought, that's exactly how she felt inside. She was broken and had been for a while. If you were to pass her on the street you might be envious of the girl that appeared to have everything. But the simple fact was that she was broken and the worst part was even those who knew her best had no idea how she felt.

She was Haley James. She was a successful record label executive who got to work with her best friend's on a daily basis. She was engaged to a wonderful and caring man who knew her backwards and forwards. Yes, from all appearances she had the life that most women dreamed about. But for her instead of feeling liberated in the face of all she had, she felt like a prisoner in her own life.

The chiming of the clock on her left broke her out of her reverie and reminded her that she was still living and that life came with responsibilities that included her fiancé coming home at almost the same time everyday he went into the office. Haley walked briskly into the kitchen in order to have time to wash her face. Today was not a day she wanted to deal with him realizing something was wrong with her because today she might just tell him and that would be disastrous for all involved. She dipped her hands into the cool water that flowed from the faucet and let herself believe for a moment that everything would be alright. She let herself believe that the water she was splashing on her face was cleansing her soul and erasing the part of her past that kept her from feeling fulfilled in her life.

She suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist as her fiancé came to stand behind her. He rested his chin against her shoulder and he drew her back to his chest. She sighed as she relaxed back into him. It was moments like these that she knew she was making the right decision. He would never hurt her, he would make sure that she felt cherished and loved every single day of her life. And that was going to be enough for her, it had to be.

"How was work?" she asked softly, breaking the comfortable silence that hung in the air between them.

He tightened his arms around her before answering. "It was alright. I spent most of the day missing you and wishing I had just worked from home today."

Haley laughed. "You had to go into the office today, you had that really important meeting. You know the one with your publisher, how did that go?"

"Oh that little thing?" he teased her, knowing that she was too naturally curious for her own good. "I guess it went alright, they want to reproduce the copy of the last book in another language and publish the next one as soon as the editors are done with it."

Haley's eyes lit up in excitement as she let out a squeal and turned around in his arms to face him. Just because she wasn't truly happy in life didn't mean that she didn't want him to be successful. He had always been there for her and she in turn was going to do anything to support him. She glanced into his glacier blue eyes. They were soft and kind but they didn't have the shimmer that the other set of blue eyes she had so adoringly stared into did. She leaned up and pressed a soft kiss onto his lips.

"I'm so happy for you Luke. You deserve it. I know how hard you have worked to make this book exactly what you dreamed it would be. I am so proud of you." Haley said, beaming up at him as she stood there with his arms still wrapped around her.

Lucas tightened his grip on her waist, once again thinking of just how lucky he was, he had the love of his life and his best friend who were all wrapped up into the same person. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think this would happen to him, he had loved her for so long and now she finally loved him back.

His fingers began to trace light circles across her back in a soothing manner. Haley let out a sigh and leaned her body into his chest. She breathed in his familiar sent and took comfort in the safeness that she felt in his arms. She shook her head as she felt the tears spring to her eyes, she didn't deserve him, she really didn't and that is why she was determined to do anything she had to in order to make their relationship work.

Lucas let Haley remain in his arms for a few more moments before pulling her away so he could look into her eyes. He used his thumb to wipe away the solitary tear that had traced its way down her cheek. His brow furrowed and the concern was evident in his bright blue eyes.

"What's wrong Hales?"

"I, umm, it's nothing. You know I'm just stressed out with this new account at work and the girls are coming over to plan the engagement party and the wedding and you know how Brooke is with these types of things, she just loves them and I don't want to fight with her about things and now I'm rambling. Sorry."

Lucas let out a throaty chuckle and placed a kiss on Haley's forehead. "Hales, Brooke isn't a monster. She loves weddings but she is going to listen to you because this is your day and she's well aware of that."

"I know. It's just she's going to ask me so many questions about what I want and I'm not sure what I want because I'm not sure what you want. You see how this gets all screwed up?"

"Are you really telling me that you, Haley James, don't know how you want your wedding to be? Haley, you made me play wedding with you when you were like 7, so I have a hard time believing that you don't know exactly what you want your wedding day to be like." Lucas gave her a smirk trying to get her to calm down and think about how amazing it was that they were getting married.

"But this isn't my wedding day, it's our wedding day and you, Lucas Scott, aren't being very helpful." Haley huffed as she looked at his still smirking face.

Lucas quickly closed the small gap between them, pulling her flush against his body. There had been years when he had longed to do this but couldn't and now that he could, he promised himself he wouldn't waste a minute of it. He ducked his head and down brushed his lips softly against hers. Haley stood motionless, her brain whirling like a tornado that was just touching down. This was all wrong, she knew it and yet there was no going back. Lucas pulled his head back to stare at her quizzically.

"Are you sure you're alright Hales?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I just really should run upstairs and grab all the wedding stuff, Brooke would have a cow if I didn't have it all ready when she got here." Haley put her hands against Lucas' chest, pushing herself away from him, desperately hoping that the space between them would give her a second to get her head back on straight. Lucas dropped his hands from her waist and watched as Haley fled up the stairs and turned the corner towards their bedroom.

Haley checked behind her to make sure he hadn't followed her up the stairs as she entered the room. She quietly clicked the lock before walking over to her closet and wrenching it open as quickly as she could. Her hands sought out the box almost as if they were moving of their own free will. They knew exactly what she wanted, what she needed. She felt the smooth edges of the box and grasped her fingers around the edges tightly. As the box moved easily out of its hiding spot, she felt her heart clench, she knew she needed to do this, it was the only way to put it all behind her.

Clutching the box closely to her she moved over to the bed placing both herself and the box in the center. She swiped at the tears that were already falling down her cheeks before pulling off the lid. Inside lay one single book, the book that held her every hope and dream. Opening the front cover she allowed herself to think one last time about all those dreams that would never come true.

4 Years Earlier

Haley stood in the middle of her bedroom surrounded by wedding magazines that had been categorized by those that she thought would be most useful in the planning process. Her older sister Quinn was getting married and Haley as the maid of honor had the duty of planning the wedding. Normally, the maid of honor was just around to help out with the planning but when Quinn had mentioned getting married at City Hall, Haley had taken it upon herself to make sure her sister had a dream wedding.

Haley located the first magazine and began to read the articles. She was a person who believed that research was the best way to make sure that anything was done properly. She started making a list of all the things that would need to be done and was so engrossed in what she doing that she nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt hands on her shoulders. She heard the familiar throaty chuckle that belonged to her boyfriend and took a deep breath.

"You scared me." She said leaning her head back into him as he peered over her shoulder to look at what she had been working on.

"Really? I would have never guessed." Haley could hear the smirk in his voice without even looking up at his face. He glanced down at the magazine she had before her and then surveyed the rest of the room taking note of all the wedding stuff. "Hales, I know this may be a stupid question, but isn't the bride supposed to plan the wedding?"

"Yes, the bride is supposed to plan but since the bride doesn't want to plan, I have to plan because I refuse to be the maid of honor-slash-sister who let her sister get married at City Hall, when she could have had a really nice wedding with just a little bit of work."

"Ok, Hales you need to breathe."
"You don't understand, this has to be perfect. It's her only wedding."

"It will be perfect, everything you do is perfect. But since I know you are going to freak out, I tell you what, I'll help you plan it. What are you working on right now?"
"Really? You want to help me plan my sisters wedding? What do you want out of it?" she asked him in a suspicious tone, her eyes narrowed as she turned around to look at him.
"I just want to spend time with my girlfriend. Now what are you working on?"

Haley stood up from the chair grabbed his hand and pulled him over to her bed. They situated themselves at the top, his arms tightly around her and the magazine resting on her legs. She sighed contently as she flipped open the book.

"I'm looking for a dress that would be Quinn's style. I was thinking that one." she said pointing to the almost regal looking dress on the page before her. The dress was so immaculate that whoever wore it was sure to feel like the most beautiful woman in the world for that day.

"She can't wear that dress." he stated simply before flipping the page.

"Why not? She would look great in that dress and I think she would really like and her fiance is rich, it's not like she wouldn't have the money to buy it. So why, can't she get it? Give me one good reason why she can't."

"She can't wear that one because that is the dress you should wear on our wedding day."

Haley stopped breathing and shook her head. Surely she hadn't heard him right. Even being in this relationship was a big step for him there was no way he could be thinking about marriage. Their friends and family didn't even know about them yet, this couldn't be possible.

"Nathan, that's not funny. A wedding isn't some joke that you can use as a punchline…" Haley felt his lips smash into hers, swallowing the rant that she felt coming on. His lips moved easily across hers coaxing her to respond. Before she knew it he was laying on top her of her and she had one hand splayed across his back while the other was tangled in his dark brown hair. The pair finally broke apart, both gasping for breath. Haley opened her mouth to speak only to be cut off by his finger pressed against her lips.

"I wasn't joking Haley. You should wear that dress on our wedding day."

Haley's eyes welled with tears as she thought about her future. Recently she had allowed herself to dream about being with Nathan for the rest of her life, him being some big NBA star and her writing and producing music. They would have a small family, maybe two or three children, and most of all they would be ridiculously happy. It wouldn't be perfect, nothing ever is, but at the end of the day they would still love each other and that would be all that mattered.

"Alright, I won't let Quinn wear that dress. It really is gorgeous. Do you think it would be bad luck if I wore it on our wedding day? I mean, you've already seen it and the groom isn't supposed to see the dress before the wedding day. Or is it just seeing the bride in the dress before the wedding day?"

"Hales, you are kind of freaking out. And I to answer your question, I think it will ok if you wore that dress. Besides, we could overcome any bad luck."

Haley sighed as she snuggled closer to him. They sat in silence for a few moments, each of them just breathing in the other.

"Nathan, how long have you been thinking about us getting married?"

"Ever since I convinced you that it would be a good idea for us to date. I just knew somehow that you were the person that I couldn't live without. I mean sure I have Luke and my parents but with you, you made my world complete."

"When did you get so cheesy mister? I love it that you think about all that stuff, it really makes me feel safe. So, do you have the wedding all planned out or do I get to help?"

"Nah, I think I'll let you help out a little bit. How about you pick out our first dance song?"

Haley laughed at Nathan's comment and began to think about the song that would be perfect for their wedding.

"Well, I know one that I would be good but I'm not sure that you will like it."

"Hales, I'll love anything you pick out," Nathan said placing a soft kiss on the top of her head.

"Ok, it's called Because of You, and…"

"The Kelly Clarkson song?" Nathan asked with a bewildered look on his face. Haley's face lit up as laughter began to spill from her mouth.

"No, it's a song that Roger Hammerstein wrote for a movie and then Tony Bennett recorded it, it's so beautiful." Haley quickly scrambled up from the bed and went to her desk to search through her cd's.

"Aha! I knew I had a recording of it," Haley said as she put the cd in the player. The soft music began to flood from through the room.

Because of You

Because of You

There's A Song In My Heart

Because of You

My Romance Had It's Start

Nathan instantly recognized why Haley had chosen the song as the lyrics began to wash over him. He locked eyes with Haley and gave her a reassuring smile to let her know that it was perfect. Nathan slowly pushed himself up from the bed and walked over to Haley, placing his hands on her waist and delivering a slow, emotion filled kiss on her lips.

"Haley James, may I have this dance?" he asked her after they parted, a small smirk playing on his lips.

"Why yes, Nathan Scott, I believe you may." Haley replied with a smirk of her own before placing her hand in Nathan's now outstretched one.

Nathan maneuvered them into the center of the room and wrapped his arms around her waist as she flung her arms around his neck, both of them basking in the presence of the other and this new found security in their future.

Because of You

The Sun Will Shine

The Moon and Stars Will Say You're Mine

Forever and Never to Part

"I love you, Haley. I promise you that one day I will give you the wedding you have always dreamed of and if I get to spend the rest of my life making you happy, then I will feel fulfilled. I don't need to play in the NBA, all I need is you."

"I love you too, Nathan. Nathan, you have to know that I love you for who you are, basketball included. I don't think I would forgive myself if it was somehow my fault that you didn't make it into the NBA. Whatever happens, we'll make it work together, ok?"

"Together?" Nathan asked moving his mouth once again within a breath of hers.

"Together" Haley said in affirmation as she closed the final centimeters between.

I Only Live For Your Love and Your Kiss

It's Paradise To Be Near You Like This

Because of You

My Life Is Now Worthwhile

And I Can Smile

Because of You

Present

Haley ran her hands over the now worn pages which contained a cd and a page out of wedding magazine that contained the dress of her dreams. Haley did have her wedding planned out but it was a wedding to another man, a man who was never coming back, one that she certainly couldn't use now.

A knock on the door startled her out of her thoughts. Haley scrambled to put the book back in the box that had held it for all of these years. She pushed the back into its hiding spot and shut the closet quickly. She rushed over to the door, unlocking it to find Lucas standing on the other side.

"Brooke and Peyton are downstairs and judging from the fact that Brooke brought poster boards, I would say she is ready to get started with the planning."

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry I came in here to find that stuff and I actually fell asleep for a few minutes. You have my promise that I won't leave you alone with her again during the planning process , ok?"

"Ok, as long as we seal it with a kiss." Lucas said with a crooked smile as he leaned against the doorway.

"I think I can handle that." Haley said as she moved closer to Lucas.

Lucas took the initiative and placed a hand behind her head pulling her mouth as close to his as he could possibly get. It was times like these that he felt like he was going to lose her, that he had pushed her one step too far.

Haley allowed herself to get lost in the kiss, she allowed herself to block out the rest of the world and the nagging little voice in the back of her head that told her no matter how many times she told herself this was what she wanted, it would never be right.

"Haley James, soon to be Scott, you better get your butt down here or I'm going to plan everything without you!" Brooke's voice shouted from the bottom of the stairs interrupting the moment between Lucas and Haley. Both of burst out laughing at Brooke's antics.

"Are you going to be alright up here? I will try to see if she will just settle for planning the engagement party tonight. I'm not sure that she knows that everything doesn't have to be decided tonight."

"Sure, I'm just going to watch some ball. Maybe call my mom. Just come up and get me when they are gone."

"Alright, you don't party too hard." Haley said with a teasing smile.

"Hales, I love you." he said as she started to bound down the stairs.

Haley flashed him a brilliant smile. "Love you too Luke."

Lucas walked into the bedroom closing the door behind him. He turned to survey the room, noticing that the closet door wasn't quite shut. He pulled it back a little in order to get it all the way closed. When he pulled it back, he noticed the edge of blue box that he hadn't noticed before. He had a feeling that he knew exactly what was in that box and he had no desire to know for sure. So, instead of pulling it out as a part of him longed to do, he shoved the box further back on the shelf and closed the closet door. He leaned against the door and placed his head in his hands, they had made it this far, they had to be able to make it the rest of the way. Once they were married things would be back to normal, they just had to get to that point.

Because of You

There's A Song In My Heart

Because of You

My Romance Had It's Start

Because of You

The Sun Will Shine

The Moon and Stars Will Say You're Mine

Forever and Never to Part