Broken Record
Summary: My take on Season 7 and the Naley drama regarding Naley + Clayton.
I'm sorry I haven't updated my other stories but I moved into a new apartment and work, so I've been so so busy. Anyways, it's late and I couldn't stop writing this. I may write a follow up but I think it serves it's purpose as a potential one shot! We'll just see.
Enjoy, please review!
. . . .
The door opened and Clayton along with Haley and Nathan came walking in. Nathan and Haley took a seat, their faces neutral and Haley never bothered to remove her dark Chanel shades. The guys were dressed handsomely in suits while Haley opted for a gray pencil skirt that hung to her body and ended just about the knees, matched with a white blouse and blazer.
Clayton remained standing by his client, a dazzling bright smile on his face.
"Thank you for meeting with us."
"Shall we get started then." Renee's lawyer, Mr. Douglas Jenkins said smugly. Apparently, he wasn't into pleasantries.
"I can see why you hired him." Clayton winked over at Renee, who tried not to roll her eyes and then he turned his attention back to her lawyer.
"It's a shame we couldn't settle this without getting the media involved."
"Well, Mr. Scott refused my client's offer. He forced our hand."
"Two hundred thousand dollars to keep this quiet was a bit much."
"We thought that was fair, given what Mr. Scott put my client through."
Clayton smirked.
"So that's why we got this?" Clayton reached into his briefcase and pulled out a 30 page lawsuit filed against Nathan Scott and then tossing it on the table.
"My client is only doing what's best for her and her and Mr. Scott's unborn baby."
"I bet." Clayton kept his smile on.
"Now, I'm sure you and Mr. Scott have better things to do, like his contract negotiations for instance. I hear those can get messy." Mr. Jenkins emphasized.
"What are you proposing?" Clayton asked.
"Well, my client is a reasonable person and there is no need for this matter to be dragged through the court and the press. We've offered a solution." Mr. Jenkins reached into his briefcase and slid some papers towards Nathan.
Clayton picked it up and skimmed through it. "That's a lot of zeros." Clayton commented.
"One million dollars, Nathan gives up his parental right's to his unborn child to my client, and we can end this peacefully and quietly." Mr. Jenkins replied with his own smirk. Renee also gave a small smile directed towards Nathan and Haley. "I'm sure your other child would appreciate it. Think of your family Mr. Scott."
Nathan clenched his fist tighter, wanting nothing more than to knock this guy out but he held back and turned to Clayton.
Clayton nodded. "I think my client is willing to negotiate."
"There is no negotiations. This is our final offer. We have eyewitness testimony, pictures."
"Your so called witnesses were intoxicated and the pictures mean nothing, Mr. Scott takes photos with strangers all the time." Clayton cut him off.
"I ask you to consider this offer."
"And I'm asking for a paternity test."
"According to my client's doctors, a paternity test is not advised and would have to wait until after the child is born. That is our final offer."
"Right." Clay rolled his eyes. It would be several months away, well into next season.
Clayton pulled out his laptop and placed it on the desk.
"And I'm asking you to consider mine." Clayton put up a video. "The hotel was kind enough to save their security footage, we put a little montage together, notice the time stamp." Clayton spoke up. "This is me escorting Mr. Scott out of the party." Clayton forwarded a little bit. "This is us stumbling our way back to Mr. Scott's room ... and me putting Mr. Scott to bed." The tape showed Clayton dragging Nathan into his room and then a couple minutes later, Clayton comes out of the room. "Now this footage goes on for a few hours." Clayton forwarded it even more. "And this is me going back to Mr. Scott's room and checking out the next morning."
Mr. Jenkin's rolled his eyes. "Just because you put Nathan to bed that night does not mean he did not have a chance to engage in sexual activity with my client, resulting in her pregnancy."
"Wait, this is the best part." Clayton pulled up another video. "This is your client walking out of the party right after we left.. and wait for it." The screen showed Renee with another man. "Meet Lewis Crow, one of the bartenders from the party, good guy, built too, dark hair and blue eyes. He's actually quite the ladies man as I'm sure your client would agree." Clayton smirked further as he played clips of them making out in the hallways and then ending up in a janitor's closet. Clayton forwarded the video 20 minutes later which shows a disheveled Renee and Lewis coming out from the closet.
Renee's face dropped as panic set it.
"Now, I also have video of your client leaving the hotel shortly after and hopping in a cab. And luckily for your client, who paid the cab driver with credit card, I have the receipts showing that he took your client home.. and far far away from my client."
Now it was Nathan's turn to smirk.
"And we have video from the party too showing Nathan there, taking pictures and having some drinks with your client but that's it. The only time my client left was to talk to on his cell phone, with his lovely wife." Clay winked over to Haley. "which our cell phone logs can verify." Clayton started to put his things away.
Renee whispered something into her lawyer's ear.
"What is it you want?" Mr. Jenkins asked.
"That's the beauty of it isn't. We're not asking for anything." Clayton smirked. "Well, except what's fair of course." Clayton smirked as he reached for the remote and turned on the television.
"We leaked all the footage to all the major networks." Clayton turned to the news where the same footage they just saw played, where the headlines proclaimed Nathan's innocence.
Clayton then reached into his briefcase and pulled out another stack of papers. "Given the mess you client cause, we're counter suing. Here, is reimbursement for all of Mr. Scott's legal fees related to this matter, as well as income loss on my part because I had to devote my time to this, of course other legal fees, and let's not forget North Carolina's new law about frivolous law suits, I think you have to pay them a fine.. and last but not least, monetary compensation to my client and his wife for damages your client has put mine through."
"Don't worry honey," Clayton winked at Renee. "Mr. and Mrs. Scott have agreed to use that money and donate it to a local women's shelter, where actual single mother's need the help."
Nathan and Haley stood up.
"Now this is our cue to leave and believe me when I say, that is the last time you will ever see us again but you Miss Renee will no doubt be thinking about us for a very long time. We're done with you, you can speak with our lawyer." Clayton threw his business card at them. "He's going to be expecting your call."
And with that, all three left, slamming the door shut behind them.
. . . . .
Clayton drove while Nathan and Haley sat in the back. They were relieved to finally have this behind them but yet there was still tension in the car.
Haley's head was faced towards the window and she hadn't said a single word all morning. Nathan tried to reach for her hand but she pulled away. Nathan gave her a curious look but she never looked back at him. As soon as the car pulled into the house, Haley quickly took off and stormed through the door, removing her shades, her four inch heels reverberating through the quiet house.
Nathan and Clayton got out of the car and noticed Haley's bad mood. Clayton gave Nathan a sympathetic look as both men headed inside.
"Haley?" Nathan called out but she kept walking in front of him.
"Hales, are you okay?" Nathan asked as he kept walking towards her. Haley stopped dead in her tracks and turned around to face Nathan, her eyes blood shot red from crying.
"Okay?" Haley mocked. "You're asking me if I'm okay." She said in a calmer voice. She grabbed a nearby vase and threw it across the room, the pieces smashing all over the wall and floor. "NO, I AM NOT OKAY!" She yelled.
"Hales.." Nathan took a deep breath and cautiously made his way to her.
"Haven't you learned anything these past two years!?!" Haley picked up another vase and threw it on the ground.
"When are you going to realize that what you do affects not only yourself?! When are you going to stop trying to tear down everything we've built?!"
"Hales.. I .. I don't understand." Nathan was taken a back as was Clay. Sure, Haley was upset when this whole thing started but they thought they were putting this behind them, especially after putting Renee in her place.
"You're right, you don't understand anything!" Haley ran her hand through her hair.
"I've been quiet up until now because you said you didn't do it and we needed to kick that gold digger out to the curb but no." Haley shook her head. "Not anymore."
"Hales.."
"I was here Nathan!" Haley cut him off. "I was here taking care of your house, taking care of your son, while you were out there, living YOUR dream Nathan.. your dream!" Haley clenched her fist. "While I was here missing you.. only able to see you on TV or talk to you on the phone, you were out there .. partying, drinking?!" Haley took a deep breath. "And now that you're home, you have to put me through this! When all Jamie wanted to do was for us three to spend time together, I had to send him away with Lucas so he wouldn't be affected by this!"
"Hales, I know.. but it's over now. She's gone from our lives."
"Over, you have got to be kidding me?" Haley mocked. "I thought it was over when Daunte ran me over and nearly killed me and our son." Haley pointed out. "I thought it was over after you went skinny dipping with the nanny and made out with her." Haley's voice started to crack. "I thought it was over when Jamie got kidnapped or when Jamie and I were chased through a corn field." The tears were falling now and Haley was fighting with herself to keep it together, while Nathan fought back his own emotions as his wife threw all his short comings back at him.
Clayton stood there watching the whole thing with bated breath. He knew he should leave. Clayton took a few steps back, wanting to make a quiet exit. This was clearly something between the two of them, or so he thought.
"Clayton, don't you dare fucking move!!" Haley shouted and Clayton stood still like a statue. "Don't think that I don't know your role in all this." She took a step closer to him. "Who threw that party huh? Full of groupies and skanks? I wonder who gave Nathan his first drink that night or his first shot huh, first lap dance?" Haley rolled her eyes.
"Haley, I'm.. I'm sorry." Clayton looked down feeling guilty.
"You're the one sorry?." Haley mocked him. "I'm sorry that I agreed to hire you! When we first met you looked at me in the eye and told me you had nothing but the best interest for Nathan and our family!"
Clay still looked away from her.
"You look at me!" She demanded. "Was the partying and drinking in the best interest for me and my son? Or the stupid perfume commercials where random girls are touching my husband while he's plastered half naked on magazines and commercials!" Haley continued to glare at him.
"If I had my way, you'd be fired by now, but I'll leave that up to your party buddy here." Haley walked in between them and headed back towards the door.
"Haley, wait!" Nathan called out after her.
"No you wait!" Haley whipped around to face Nathan. "I get it Nathan, you had a great game, you wanted to celebrate.. but my God.. this whole thing never should've happened! If you've only learned to watch your own liquor, you would've been sober enough so there'd be no gold digger out there to come after you! Oh wait, I forget, this is the same guy who got drunk and got thrown out a window and then put me and my son through four months of hell."
Haley closed her eyes for a second and then opened it back up, blinking away her tears.
"When're you going to realize that what you do affects all of us?" Haley said more softly and more defeated than ever.
"I know that." Nathan said carefully and walked over to her. "It was one night Hales, nothing happened." Nathan tried to reason.
"Something happened." Haley stepped closer to him. "You may have not slept with her but something happened." She took his hand in hers.
"I gave you my heart." She placed his hand over her heart. "And I gave you my body." She kissed put his knuckles to her face and kissed it. "I gave you my soul and everything in between.. you have me Nathan" She paused and stared into his deep blue eyes. "And if that's not enough, then I'm not enough."
Then she dropped his hand and took a step back.
"You have all of me, Nathan.. I..I have nothing more to give." Her voice cracked as she ran out of the house and into her car, driving off before either Nathan or Clay could do anything about it.