Electric Green

Electric Green

Chapter 1: Unbreakable

Haley James had always been popular. However if you were to ask anyone about Haley James now, they would scrunch their eyes and frown.

"Oh yeah. Wasn't she the old prom queen who tried to commit suicide? Does she even go to this school anymore?" Some people say that she was confined to a mental institution, and left over a year ago. People used to talk about the incident. They refer to it as the princess' fall from grace. One day, Tree Hill's legendary prom queen disappeared from everyone's radar, including the people she knew best.

Although Haley knew Nathan, The popular crowd never really interacted with the popular athletes. The two cliques just never connected. At Tree Hill High School, basketball was its own world. There never seemed a way to penetrate it.

Summer was always Haley's favorite time of year. She didn't have to deal with the drama of school. She didn't have to pretend she was invisible. She didn't have to pretend to be someone she wasn't. She didn't have to do anything. It was easier to hide in the summer. She spent a lot of time on her front porch, watching people, and thinking about her life. It was the beginning of August, and the weather was great. The sun warmed her skin, but the wind usually cooled her off. As it was, she spent most of her evenings on the porch. She had completely removed herself from other people's lives, and the consequence of those actions was that she now didn't have anybody to spend time with. She unconsciously ran her fingers over her right wrist. She looked down at the white bandage. She wondered how noticeable it was.

The past few nights, she noticed Nathan Scott walking down her street. She thought this a curious act; mainly because he lived at the other end of town... the really pristine gated section. He had walked by her house for the past five nights. She wasn't sure that he noticed her, but she had definitely noticed him. She noticed that he didn't smile. She noticed that his head hung low, burdened by something enormous and heavy. She wanted to say something, but if they weren't friends before, when she actually existed, there was no way she could speak to him now. This particular August evening he walked by in the same fashion. His eyes were cast towards the ground and he was oblivious to everything around him.

"Hey watch out!" Haley shouted as she jumped up from her stoop. Nathan perked his head up just in time to be sideswiped by a bicyclist.

"Shit!" He muttered loudly as the kid sped away, frightened of what might happen if he were to stay. Haley paused. She could see that his leg was bleeding a bit. She thought she should go over, but she couldn't tell if he actually needed anyone's help.

"Umm, are you alright?" Nathan glanced in her direction and then scowled.

"Well, if you're asking whether or not paramedics are necessary, the answer is no, but I see blood, so I'm going to go with the 'I've been better' statement. How does that sound?"

Haley looked at him and frowned. She muttered something about going inside to get some bandages and antiseptic. Nathan just sat there nursing his leg while muttering under his breath.

Haley returned a minute later holding a brown bottle in one hand, and white gauze type bandages in the other. She approached him hesitantly. Kneeling beside him, she opened the hydrogen peroxide.

"This might sting a bit," she whispered softly.

"I'm not a baby," he snarled at her, sucking in his breath when she poured the cool liquid on his wound. "For someone who stares at me every night, you think you could have warned me a bit sooner."

"I don't stare at people," she replied in a calm voice, ignoring his tone. "However, since we're on the topic, is there any reason you skulk by my house every night?"

"I dunno, is there a reason you like cutting?" He answered with a question, looking at her wrist. Haley quickly withdrew her arm and capped the bottle.

"You should be fine," she whispered, trying to hold back the tears. Turning around, she walked up the stairs and slammed her front door. Nathan picked himself up, and realizing his behavior, he shook his head disgusted with himself. Maybe I'll apologize tomorrow, he thought.

The next evening Nathan walked slowly by Haley's house, hoping she would be sitting outside. He frowned ever so slightly when he discovered that she was not sitting there. He surveyed the porch again, when the front door opened.

"Stalk much?" Haley asked defensively. She was wearing a dark long sleeved hoodie to hide her arms and wrists.

"What, got the chills from your crack addiction?" he snapped pointedly at the fact that she was wearing a thick sweater in this 90 degree heat wave. As soon as he said it, he regretted it. He knew she was embarrassed from last night. Just as he was about to retract his previous statement and apologize, this girl spoke up.

"You know what Nathan Scott? Screw you!" She didn't care. She let her heated tears pour down her face. She wiped them away with her sleeve.

Nathan was taken aback. "Wait? You know me?"

Haley looked at him incredulously. She just shook her head and went back inside.

The next night, Haley was not on the porch. Nathan always looked for her, wanting desperately to apologize, but she no longer sat outside. About a week later, Nathan decided to knock on her door. He needed to apologize, but even more than that, he wanted to know who this mysterious girl was. He hesitated before knocking, staring intently at her front door. Taking a deep breath, he knocked twice. On the second knock, the door flung open.

"Hi. It's me. Nathan, I mean. I just wanted to apol," Once again he was staring at the front door. He wondered if he should knock again. What the hell, she already hates me. He knocked again, and waited. When he was ready to give up and leave, the door finally opened. He found himself staring deep into a pair of extremely soulful eyes. He was also staring at someone who was stunningly beautiful. Her raven black hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. Although her eyes had dark rings, and she looked exhausted, she was gorgeous. "Please don't shut the door again. I just wanted to apol," she shooed him onto the porch, and shut the door behind her. She sat on the front step and motioned for him to do the same. "Like I was saying, I really wanted to apologize. There was no excuse for me behavior the other day. I am a jackass. If it means anything, I am trying to change." He looked at Haley, hoping for some sign that she forgave him. They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a minute that seemed to be an hour, before she turned to face him. Their eyes met and locked. She started into his eyes, while he gazed back into hers. She stood and pulled her ponytail tighter, and turned to go back into her house. "Wait! Do you forgive me?"

Haley looked back and said, "You didn't come here for my forgiveness." She turned back and went into the house.

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