Haley James smiled walking down the hall to where her boyfriend's room was. She was at High Flyers summer camp which was for exceptional basketball players and cheerleaders. She had just gotten done practice and promised him that they could go on a walk around town after. He had grown up one town over, the son of a single mother and cafe owner. She was head over heals for this boy which was something that had never happened before for her. She loved him and he loved her. It also didn't hurt that he treated her like royalty and would do anything for her. It didn't worry her that they would be leaving camp in one week because her best friend happened to live in Tree Hill, where Nathan was from, and she knew how close it was. They were both about to enter their senior years and could work something out to see each other one a week at least.
"Knock knock." Haley smiled walking into his room, lightly knocking on the door as she walked in.
"Hey babe." He smiled. He had been lying on his bed tossing his basketball up and down. He got up and moved to kiss her.
"Hi Nate." She smiled leaning into him. "Ready to go?" She questioned as he nodded, tucking his basketball into his side with one arm, he wrapped the other around her.
"Yep."
"So how was basketball practice?" Haley asked with a content sigh as they walked.
"Really good, what about cheerleading?" He said dribbling with one hand as they walked.
"Hard, Brooke is all high-strung because she wants to win best squad at the face off this weekend." All those at high flyers were split up into separate divisions and at the end of the summer there would be a big face off to see which basketball team and cheer squad were the best.
"Well now everything is good." Nathan smiled kissing the crown of her head and she smiled up at him.
Haley James stretched out in her bed at camp that morning. She had yet to open her eyes and except that she had to get up for the day. That was when she felt a large weight jump onto her, her eyes shot open to see a dark haired, blue eyed, man sitting on her.
"You're not Brooke." He said quickly.
"No I'm not. I'm her roommate." Haley said before shutting her eyes and opening them once more in confusion.
"Oh."
"Wow, Hales I didn't picture you as the type for morning sex with a stranger." Brooke said walking in, two coffees in hand.
The man then turned around to show Brooke his face.
"Nathan!?" She questioned placing the coffees down as Nathan moved off of Haley to hug her.
"Brookie" He smirked.
Brooke pulled away. "What was that?"
"I thought she was you. Sorry about that." He said turning to apologize to Haley as she sat up and ran a hand through her long blonde hair with a shrug.
"I'm not blonde, Nate." Brooke laughed.
"I didn't look that close okay. You told me last week that you had a single room so I thought it was you."
"I was supposed to, but they screwed it up, so I have Haley which is actually great."
"How do you two know each other anyway?" Haley asked groggily as Brooke handed her the coffee she brought for her and Haley smiled. Haley knew the one boy accepted from Brooke's high school wasn't named Nathan.
"We met at the junior camp last year." Brooke explained. "Now it was great to see you Nate, but we have to get to practice. So want to meet for dinner?"
"Sure." He smiled as Haley groaned extremely loud at the thought of practice.
"Yeah, she's not a morning person." Brooke laughed before reaching into Haley's draw and throwing her practice clothes at the blonde. "Go get dressed."
"Fine mom." Haley laughed leaving the room. "Nice to meet you Nathan."
"You too Haley."
Nathan jogged quickly down the corridor. He was late and Brooke would have his head. She was a complete control freak, and he loved her for it, unless she was yelling at him. Then that was a different story. He quickly turned the corner before knocking into someone. The both landed flat on their asses.
"I'm so sorry." Nathan said looking up before bursting into laughter, seeing who he ran into. Haley joined him.
"Must we keep meeting like this." She smiled. "I mean if you want to talk to me, you don't have to jump on me or knock me over to do so." Nathan stood up, extending a hand, which she took, to help her up. "Thanks."
"Hey they were both accidents. Beside you know what they say about fate." He smirked.
"What do they say?" She questioned.
He deadpanned. He didn't have a witty response. "Okay, I don't know what they say and I would come up with some pick up line but I'm late and Brooke will kill me if I'm any later."
Haley laughed as Nathan walked down the hall backwards as he spoke. "Believe me, I understand. But Nathan..."
"Yeah?"
"Next time you want to talk to me, could you try not to injure me?" She joked with a chuckle before walking away.
Haley lazily walked along the balance beam in the gym. She had come to workout but had gotten lazy. For some reason they had moved the beam from the padded floor room, used for flips and stunt practice, to the room with all the ellipticals and treadmills. Turning around she walked down it once more before she lost her footing and began to fall off. She closed her eyes in shock, it was only a three foot drop but before she shut her eyes she saw her feet swing up, knowing that wouldn't end well. She could already picture herself breaking her ass on the floor. This was why they were kept in the padded room, she thought. But just as she thought she would hit the ground she felt someone grab her. Opening her eyes she saw the one and only Nathan holding her in his arms bridal style. "So much for me always injuring you." He smirked as she let out a sigh of relief.
He helped her down as she smiled. "Thanks Nathan."
"No problem, a broken ass wouldn't help you cheer." Haley laughed loudly. "Its funny, the rain kept me from running outside so I came in to use a treadmill and save your ass. So seeing as I helped save you, and you know fate brought me here, would you go out on a date with me?" He smirked, looking her in the eyes, knowing she couldn't resist as her cheeks redden and she nodded.
Haley smiled sitting on the quad of the campus where camp was held. She was enjoying the summer sun as she sat outside reading.
"Haley!" She heard someone shout, looking up she saw her best friend Lucas standing twenty feet from her.
"Luke!" She shouted running and jumping into his arms. He had come to see her perform the in two days.
"What is this?" She then heard from behind her. Getting out of Lucas' arms she turned to see her boyfriend "You're friends with him?" Him as in Nathan's half-brother, whom he loathed. Lucas had known that Nathan and Haley were dating but Haley didn't know how to tell Nathan they were friends.
"Nathan let me explain." Haley said quickly knowing she was in a bad place.
"Explain what? As I told you about my jackass of a half-brother and father you just casually hid the fact that you were friends."
"I didn't know how to tell you." She said as her voice broke. "I love you please let me explain."
"When you love someone you don't keep secrets from them." He said as Haley's heart sank seeing the look on his face of pure disgust and betrayal. "You lied to me."
Haley went to speak once more but he walked away before she could.
Tears ran down her cheeks as Lucas pulled her into an embrace. "It's going to be okay Hales." He said, not sure what else to say.
"No it won't. I screw up Lucas. I hurt him so bad, it won't be okay."
Haley walked into practice the next day and up to her squad as they began to practice mounts. She wasn't into it, how could she be? Nathan was avoiding her like the plague and wouldn't let her explain. She shouldn't have lied, but she did have a reason and even if he would never forgive her, she wanted him to know why she did it.
"Five, six, seven, eight." Brooke said as they lifted Haley in the air.
Haley couldn't focus, the only thing on her mind was Nathan. She hurt him so bad and needed to find some way to fix it. She heard Brooke call something out to her but blocked it out. Next thing she knew she lost her footing, locked up her knees, and was falling to the ground, quickly. Except this time she knew Nathan wouldn't be there to catch her.
Lucas laid in Haley's hospital bed as she curled into his side, sleeping with her head on his chest as he slowly ran his hand along her arm. He hated to see his best friend this way, and knowing he was part of the problem made him feel ever worse. He heard her door open and shut before seeing the dark haired, blue haired, tall figure walk in and stand quietly, looking at Lucas and Haley together.
"Haley." Lucas said quietly gently shaking her. "Hales." He repeated, lightly hitting her good arm. "My god you sleep like a dead woman." He groaned as she still didn't wake and Nathan laughed. Knowing when she was this way Lucas knew their was only one way to wake her, he moved his hands to her stomach and began to tickle her as she startled awake.
"Lucas what the hell, stop." She managed to get out as she laughed.
"Someone is here to see you." He said as she looked up at Nathan.
"Hi" She whispered quietly as Nathan repeated the same.
Lucas began to move out from under her and off the bed. "I'll be in the hall Haley Bob, don't do anything stupid or hurt yourself more while I'm gone please."
"What? I'm not going to." She questioned.
"Yes you are, you are the klutziest person I know."
"You are." Nathan said in agreement. That was probably the first thing the Scott brothers ever agreed on.
"I am not!" She protested again, louder this time.
"Haley, you almost drowned in the ball pit at Chuck E Cheese when we were ten." Lucas deadpanned as she groaned.
"Okay, so maybe that one time but I've only broken one other bone and that was your fault."
"We both broke a bone that day and it was your fault."
"Luke." She said looking at him as if he was an idiot. "How was that my fault? You were chasing me down the stairs and fell on me. We both broke a bone and your mom was pissed."
"You stole the remote!" He said quickly defending himself. "Whatever, when I come back I'm signing your cast."
"Are you going to draw a penis on it like you did to Jake that one time and then he walked around with a penis on his cast for six weeks." She said pull ing her casted arm away from him.
"No I won't draw a penis on your cast." He chuckled before kissing the top of her head. "Love you Bob."
"Love you too, Eugene."
"Eugene?" Nathan questioned.
"Don't ask." Lucas said walking out the door throwing a glare at Haley on his way.
"So uh...how are you?" Nathan said quietly, running his sweaty palms against his jeans.
"Okay I guess, I broke my arm, have concussion, and bruised a couple of ribs." She said trying to sit up a little more as she grimaced. Nathan quickly moved to her side, grabbed her lightly and helped her slid to sit up.
"How?"
"We were doing mounts and I was in a regular lift but then went to move me into a straddle and I guess I was uh..preoccupied, and unfocused so my knees locked up and I fell."
"All the way from the top of the mount?" He asked as his eyes grew wide, knowing how high up she usually was as she nodded. "You scared me." He admitted.
"I scared myself. I was so stupid. The most important thing is to pay attention and not lock up your knees, but I was just...so upset about everything I wasn't focused."
"So uh...do you want to talk?"
Haley bit her lip and nodded, quietly looking down as she fiddled with her hands. "I'm so sorry. I never meant to hurt you."
"I know." He whispered. He knew that Haley could never have that intention, she wasn't that type of person. He didn't want to speak to her because he was mad and confused but knew deep down that he would end up forgiving her. He spent the past day and a half alone because he wasn't ready for that, but when he heard she was hurt he needed to be by her side.
"I just...I didn't realize until I thought it was too late to tell you. There are a lot of people with the last name Scott and I never made the connection until you brought up about your half-brother. I didn't even learn your last name until our second date. By that point I thought I was too far in to tell you he was my best friend so I just didn't. Lucas always just referred to you as asshole so your name never really rang a bell. I was hoping to prove to you somehow that he wasn't who you thought he was. I never meant to lie to you."
"Why didn't you just tell me?" He questioned.
"I don't know, I should have but when you first mentioned it and I realized you were the Nathan Scott, son of Karen and Dan, I was so nervous about how each of you would react. What you would think of Lucas being my best friend and what Lucas would think of you being my boyfriend that I didn't say anything. I called Lucas to tell him, and he understood but seeing as you were the one Dan left, I didn't think you would be as willing to talk about it. I thought was too late and I should have said it when I realized but I just didn't know how. I didn't want to screw this...us, up. Because it meant too much for me to lose you." She said holding back tears, but her actions had caused him to lose him in the worst way possible.
"You didn't lose me." Nathan said quietly as her head shot up.
"What do you mean Nathan? I lied to you and you left. I lost the person I cared the most about."
"No you didn't." He said taking a seat on the edge of her bed. "You didn't lose me because I'm still here."
"You can't forgive me for lying to you, it's too much, too big."
"But I do. I love you and I forgive you, Hales." Nathan said as she tilted her head, looking at him.
"Really?" She questioned, more tears rolling down her cheeks now as she tilted her head.
Not answering her, he simply leaned in to kiss her. Pulling away he said "Now move over, you're hogging the bed and I want to be able to hold my girl when she's hurt."
Haley laughed as she slid to one side of the bed and Nathan laid next to her, wrapping his arms around her.
"Thank you." She said quietly as he knew what she meant.
"You're my always. And my forever." He punctuated with a kiss to the top of her head.
"Now I know I shouldn't bring it up right away...but Lucas is my best friend. I've known him since I was in diapers because Deb and my mom grew up together."
"Okay." Nathan said biting his lip a trait he picked up from Haley.
"He's really not a bad guy Nate, he puts up a front but once you break that down he's kind, and smart, and funny. I think you two would get along great."
"Okay, now that might be rushing things." He chuckled, running his hand lightly along her arm as he took in her scent It was good to have her in his arms again.
"He doesn't hate you, just so you know. Dan is actually a huge dick to him and he is jealous that you have Keith as a fatherly figure and he ended up with Dan." Haley explained quietly.
"I will be civil with him because he is your friend, and I will keep my sarcastic comments to a minimum...and then we will see where it goes." He said, compromising, when honestly he would do anything for her.
"That is all I'm asking." She smiled up at him. "But wouldn't it be nice if you came home after summer break with a new girlfriend and a new relationship with your brother."
Nathan smiled down at her, with a slight chuckle. She was always trying to help and fix him, something he loved her for. "I mean...maybe."
The room was quiet for a moment as they each gave the other time to think. Nathan always hated the idea of Lucas...but never actually knew him, so for Haley he would give it a try. Haley didn't want to push Nathan but knew deep down him and Lucas could both benefit from having a relationship with one another.
"You weren't there to save me." Haley said quietly, slightly as a joke, but partly serious.
"I know, but I'm never going to leave your side again. You klutz." He punctuated with a kiss to her lips.
"I'm really not that bad!" She protested.
"Yes you are." Nathan said as the same time as Lucas, who was just walking in. Haley rolled her eyes as Nathan looked up to make eye contact with Lucas. They shared as small smile as Lucas sat next to Haley on the other side.