A/N: Okay, so this is something new. A one-shot. Christmas themed! This is a prompt from kaya17tj! Hope you like it!
A Tree Hill Christmas Carol
"You think there's nothing wrong with this, Nathan! Are you fricking KIDDING me right now?" Haley screamed. This had to have been the fifth fight they'd had in two days. It only seemed to be getting worse. Haley was feeling more like Nathan's friend than his girlfriend. If this was happening now, with them just living together, what if they were married? Was this how Haley wanted to spend her life; feeling second best to everything in Nathan's eyes?
He closed the lid of his laptop and turned to Haley. "There's nothing going on, Hales! Nothing! These girls, they're just friends!" He yelled back.
"Friends! Cheerleader friends that wanna... jump your bones!" She said, frustrated. Nathan rolled his eyes. "Oh go ahead! Roll your eyes at me, Nathan.. I know what's going on. These little wall posts they send you aren't just friendly! They're overly-friendly and you know it! If you don't, then you're BLIND!" she huffed.
Nathan leaned his head back. "Oh my God, Haley. I swear..." He stood up and started to walk out their apartment door. "I have to go to practice. Please chill out, we'll talk about this when I get back."
"Sure Nathan. Whatever." Haley picked up her phone to call Brooke. She needed someone to vent to right about now.
And with that, he was gone. Nathan and Haley were at the last part of the first semester of their Junior year of college at Duke. It was almost time for Christmas break. They'd lived in an apartment off campus for the last year. Nathan was somewhat opposed to living together at first but he was sure he had loved Haley since the first time she talked to him their Senior year of high school. Shortly after they met, Nathan asked her on a date.
He hadn't ever been good at the whole dating thing. In fact, he'd only had one other girlfriend, Peyton. He admitted that he had treated her like shit. They were both pretty toxic to each other, but Nathan couldn't deny that the sex was amazing. He had cheated on Peyton more times than he could count. He always thought he just couldn't help it, he was a ladies man and that was what he WAS good at. After he and Peyton had split, Nathan went from girl to girl, never getting serious. Then Haley came along and there was no way that he couldn't get serious with her.
She was everything he'd ever wanted in a girlfriend. She was kind, sweet, loving. She was cute and funny and she always kept him on his toes. She was perfect in every way. So when moving in together came up, Nathan hesitated but gave in rather quickly. Her beautiful smile and sexy little body made it hard for Nathan to resist her. Not to mention, those gorgeous brown eyes. Yeah, Nathan had it bad for Haley James.
At the beginning of their Junior year, Haley's grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. It had progressed so quickly that there was nothing they could do. The doctors didn't give her much time to live so Haley made the trek back home once a month to spend the weekend with her. As a general rule, Nathan went with Haley. But for the last few months Nathan's claimed to be busy each time Haley went. She would pack both their bags and when he would get home from practice, he'd never fail to say that he had something to do this weekend that couldn't wait til he got home. So she made the long drive alone and enjoyed her weekend. But she missed Nathan every time. And they both felt the growing distance.
Nathan was halfway through practice when it hit him that he was definitely being an insensitive, inattentive asshole. He loved Haley more than anything in the world and he'd do anything he could for her. He decided that he'd blow off the game this weekend and just go with Haley back home to Tree Hill to see her grandmother. He knew that it was important to her and he wanted to show her that he cared, that he wasn't just her friend. He wanted to be the great boyfriend that she used to have before he let basketball and flirty cheerleaders consume him. He would go back home as soon as practice was over and apologize. He'd quickly pack his bag and offer to drive. Yep, that's what he was going to do.
Meanwhile, back at the apartment, Haley had been shoving things into her bag as quickly as she could.
"And then! THEN! I got on facebook to update my status, right? Frickin Cheryl Steele commented on his status!" She paused as she listened to Brooke's reaction. "YES! CHERYL! The stupid bitch said, 'awwh, poor Natey, I'll come rub it for you!'" she seethed. "Oh my God, Brooke, I could just die! Do you know what he said in response to that?" she asked. Without waiting for a reply she said, "'Sounds ah-mazing, Cher!' I mean, really? Are we serious?" she yelled. Brooke replied asking if she had confronted Nathan yet. "Of course I did! And his thing is, 'It's NOTHING!' and I 'shouldn't worry about it!' Hah! I KNOW what he was like in high school! I KNOW that he hasn't been the same for the last few months! I KNOW that..." she began to cry, "he's treating me like I'm just his friend... and I don't know what to do..." At this point, she was sobbing.
She sunk to the floor with shirts gripped in her hands. This was killing her. She just needed to get away. Catching her breath and between sniffles she said, "No, no... I'm okay.. I'm just going to finish getting my stuff packed... No, Brooke, I'll be fine... You have a test Monday, you need to worry about that... I will... I'll call you when I get on the road... I love you too, Brooke... Thanks for letting me vent... Alright... Bye."
Stuffing the last of her clothes in her bag, a picture of her and Nathan by their bed caught her eye. She slowly shook her head as she thought of how the couple in the picture looked so much happier than what she and Nathan were at the moment and that felt like it was tearing her heart out. She loved him no matter what, but she just wasn't happy and she wasn't sure she could be again. She needed this weekend away. It would be best for her. She turned the picture down to lay on it's face and zipped up her duffel bag. She slung it over her shoulder, walked to the front door and as she placed a hand on the doorknob, she gave the apartment one more look over. She wasn't quite sure if she'd return to a happy place or a broken one. Right now, she just wanted to go home. And then she was gone.
Nathan ran from the gym to his car after practice was over. He wanted to get to Haley as soon as he could. Afraid she had already left him, he sped around the curves and down the road. He barely had the car in park before he opened his door. Clambering up the stairs, he breathlessly reached the door knob.
"Haley!"
No answer.
"Hales! I'm sorry!" he yelled.
Still no answer.
He had completely and utterly screwed up. He had been terrible to her. He took her for granted and treated her like just another girl. And now she was gone. He walked into the bedroom to make sure she wasn't just taking a shower.
"Haley!"
But again, no answer. She had really up and left him. As he was walking out of their room, he noticed the picture of the two of them that was on their nightstand was laying face down. He sat on the bed as he picked it up. The couple in this picture were happy. Nathan barely recognized them. He missed the days when he and Haley were that happy. As he laid down on the bed, his eyelids became heavy. He was conflicted with feelings of guilt for pushing Haley away and feelings of resentment that she wouldn't stay and fix this. He fell asleep thinking about her.
"Nathan... wake the hell up. We have a lot to do." Peyton said. "This is so not the time to sleep. Come on now. Up!" She ripped the blanket from the bed.
Nathan stirred. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. What the hell was going on here?
"There he is. Come on, HotShot, let's get a move on. Lots to see, lots to do. Can't waste our time!" Peyton said.
"Peyt? What the hell?" he asked.
"No time for questions since you chose to sleep in. Let's go." she said as she grabbed his hand.
Before Nathan knew what was going on, he was walking down the stairs at his parent's house. The stair railing was covered in greenery and white lights. He could see the Christmas tree in the living room and hear his mom talking to someone. He wasn't sure who she was talking to until he heard...
"Your father's going to be home soon and your grandparents are coming over for dinner tonight. Can we please agree that everything can stay on an even keel tonight? Please. No arguing with your father." Deb said.
"Fine mom, but Peyton's coming. We have a test tomorrow in anatomy and we need to study after dinner." High school Nathan said with a smirk.
"I'm sure you do, son." she replied.
Peyton laughed. "Oooh you were such a naughty boy back then. Course, it probably would have been better if you weren't 'studying anatomy' with have the cheer squad over the course of the next two weeks after this." she laughed again.
"I get it, I was a dick. What I don't get is how and why am I here? This was one of the worst Christmases of my life. I don't want to relive this. I finally got it out of my head." Nathan said as he rubbed his temple with his forefinger.
Peyton smiled as she place a hand on his shoulder, "The how is a mystery. The why... because you're an ass and you need to appreciate how great you have it right now." she stated, matter-of-factly.
"Yeah, okay, right. I have it great. My girlfriend left without saying bye, I don't know that she's coming back and I don't know that I can fix it. Sounds wonderful to me." he said, sarcastically.
Suddenly, they were in the dining room, standing in the corner, watching as Dan's parents, Dan, Deb, and high school Peyton and Nathan eat dinner. They were discussing basketball, of course. But they were arguing. High school Peyton sat back and tried not to laugh at the absurdity of it all while high school Nathan sat with his head in his hands. Royal Scott, Nathan's grandfather continued to yell about Nathan's college choices.
"It's my damn Sophomore year and you people are trying to tell me what college to go to! Right now, I don't give two shits where I go or IF I go! Drop it!" High school Nathan yelled over everyone.
"Nathan Royal Scott!" Deb yelled. "That kind of language is entirely unnecessary! And it won't be tolerated!"
High school Nathan rolled his eyes as his curly headed girlfriend placed a hand on his thigh. "I'm done, mom. Good night Grandma, good night grandpa. I have to study for a test. Come on, Peyt." he said as he grabbed Peyton's hand and stood up.
Before he knew it, Nathan and Peyton were in high school Nathan's bedroom, watching as the younger versions of themselves "studied" anatomy. Nathan turned his head. "I don't wanna see this, I have a girlfriend." he said.
"That you don't appreciate. Just like you didn't appreciate me." Peyton said.
Nathan raised a finger and pointed it in her face. "Look, I was a kid. I didn't know what I was doing. I just did what I thought was right and my dad backed me the whole time. I was an idiot. I'm sorry, Peyton."
She tilted her head. "It's all good." she pointed toward the two of them. "Do you remember what happened next?" she asked.
Just then, Dan burst into Nathan's bedroom. "It's Christmas, Nathan. Spend it with your family. You're little harlot will be here tomorrow, your grandparents won't." he said and quickly turned to leave.
"UUUGGGGGHHHHH!" high school Nathan yelled as he threw the closest thing to him at the wall. "I HATE Christmas. I hate Dan. I hate this shit hole of a town!"
High school Peyton looked frightened. "Nate.. calm down.. you're freaking me out." she said as she tucked her knees to her chest.
"Get out."
"Wha-.. what?"
"Get. Out."
"Nate, I-..."
"Peyton, I said get the fuck out!" he screamed.
She grabbed her jacket and walked to the door. "Nathan, if I leave now, we're done. Over. I can't take this back and forth with you anymore."
"Out."
"Fuck you, Nathan Scott. Merry fucking Christmas." she said through tears as she slammed the door.
College Nathan was in awe. He knew he was an ass but damn, that was harsh. He watched as his high school self tore apart his room, angry and alone. He remembered why he hated Christmas before Haley came along. Every year it was the same thing; grandparents visit, family arguments, spending the night alone in his room feeling like shit.
"It didn't change until you were with Haley." Peyton said.
And there they were, Senior year of high school, Christmas with the James'. Everyone was happy. High school Nathan and Haley were trimming the tree with strings of cranberries while Jimmy and Lydia James were setting the table. Haley's sisters, Quinn and Taylor were talking with their grandmother by the fireplace. Nathan looked on as everyone was talking and laughing. This was what a family Christmas was supposed to be like. He'd never known what it was like to have a family that cared. He was glad that Haley had that. He could remember his high school self being even more glad to know that he was included in that family now. Yep, he loved Haley even then.
"Christmas was so different with them. It was nice. It wasn't hell to be with family. I love Haley's family. I miss them." Nathan said to Peyton.
She smiled, "So why don't you go see them, Nate?"
"Basketball, tests... everything's had me busy."
"Yeah, cuz that's believable. You sure it doesn't have anything to do with Cheryl?"
"Steele? Really? I love Haley!"
"Okay, Nathan. Remember that. For now, you're time with me is up. Don't take her for granted, Nate. She might not be there one day..."
And just like that, he was back in bed at the apartment... Covered with his blanket and sleepy. He rubbed his eyes and looked around. No Peyton, no Haley, nobody. Or at least, that's what he thought. He heard a noise in the kitchen and got up to see what was going on. Nathan peeked around the corner and saw someone with shoulder-length brown hair standing at the fridge. He recognized the girls curvy frame.
"Brooke?" he asked.
She screamed. "Oh my God, Nathan! Scare a girl to death!"
Nathan laughed. "My bad. Man, I just had the strangest dream." He sat down at the bar as he watched Brooke pour herself something to drink and stand in front of him. "Have you talked to Haley?"
"Oh I've seen her."
Something about this seemed fishy to Nathan. It was like Brooke had some information that she wasn't sharing with Nathan. "So, you've talked to her... and you know how big of a jerk she thinks I am." he said as he lowered his head.
"HotShot, you were an ass. But that's not really the reason I'm here. Do you realize what day it is?" she said.
"Umm, Thursday...?" he hesitated. "Oh my God, it's the day before Christmas Eve!"
Nathan jumped up from the barstool and turned to head to his room. "I gotta pack! I gotta catch Haley!"
"Already done!" Brooke said as she grabbed his wrist. Suddenly, they were in the backseat of Haley's car. She was crying. What was that music she was listening to? Ugh. Sappy love songs. Haley's favorite and Nathan's worst nightmare. Was she really torturing herself like this? Over Facebook? It really wasn't that big of a deal! He was starting to get angry that she was trying to control him like this. He couldn't say what he wanted to on Facebook... really... it was harmless... flirting... Oh he was an ass.
"Singing along with the radio... crying... hey, she never called me to let me know that she was on her way home. Bitch." Brooke said.
"Haley! I need to talk to you! I need to tell you I'm sorry! Hales!" Nathan yelled at her. But she couldn't hear him. To her she was alone in the car.
"It's kinda pointless to yell, all your doing is hurting my ears. She can't hear you, Nate. In fact..." she paused.
Haley pulled into the driveway of her grandmother's home. She wiped her eyes and checked her face in the mirror. They would know she had been crying and Taylor, she was sure, would be the one to point it out. She was home for Christmas break but didn't feel very much in the Christmas spirit. This would be a week that she wouldn't enjoy. Her grandmother was sick exams had stressed her to the max and now she was spending Christmas alone. Nathan always came home with her. But not this year.
Nathan was getting tired of this time jumping thing as he realized he was in the kitchen watching Quinn and Haley talk.
"He's mad at me for something he did to himself." she said through teary eyes. "We've been so stressed with finals and everything else, it's like we just let our relationship die..."
"Hales, your relationship's not dead. You just have to work it out. You have to talk. Everything's going to be fine. Stop that crying. Taylor's going to have a field day with you." Quinn said, half smiling.
Haley sniffled. "I know. I tried talking to him."
"Talking or yelling? Cuz you tend to get a little high strung when you're upset about something."
Haley bit her lip. "Okay, so I yelled. But really, Quinn, look at his facebook! He was openly flirting with this girl, this... this cheerleader! And he thinks it's okay.. he's been my boyfriend since senior year and I can't see it ending. Not like this. He's not the same person he used to be..." she rambled.
Quinn ran her finger through Haley's hair as she pulled her into a hug. "Shhh, Hales... it's okay."
Haley sobbed into her sister's shoulder. "I just feel like it's over and there's nothing I can do. I don't even wanna spend Christmas here. Not without him. Quinn, what am I gunna do if this really is it? I feel like we're just friends.. like I don't mean anything to him anymore..It hurts so much..."
Quinn rocked back and forth, shushing her distraught sister. It seemed like it was never going to end and Nathan couldn't stand to watch anymore. "Can we please move on? I'll take a time jump if it'll take me to a better moment than this one... please, Brooke..."
She rolled her eyes. "You did it to yourself, Nate... but, as you wish.."
Then they were in the living room. Haley's family all around the tree, talking and laughing. Even Haley was laughing. Her dad, Jimmy, was telling a story about a fight Taylor and Quinn had gotten into when they were younger. Quinn had opened the wrong present on Christmas morning and Taylor took back what was her's. They all joked and laughed some more and Nathan smiled. "She looks like she's enjoying herself." he said, dejected.
"Maybe she is. Or maybe it's just that she's trying her hardest to put on a happy face for her family. She looked pretty broken a couple hours ago." Brooke paused and grabbed Nathan's wrist. Suddenly, it was night. They were in Haley's bedroom and it was dark. All that could be heard was Haley softly sobbing. Between sobbing she managed to get out, "Why, Nathan... Why? God, I just... I want you here... it just hurts too much... please Nathan... I love you..."
Nathan closed his eyes as tears threatened to fall. "Take me home."
"But there's more to see, Nate.. You're not through here yet."
"Yes I am. I know what I did. I'm an asshole. I can't see her like this." he said.
"At least you got that through your thick skull. Alright, I'll take you home. But don't think that your journey's over. I'm pretty sure somebody's back home waiting for you." she said.
And just like that, they were back at his and Haley's apartment. Except Brooke was gone. "Haley?" he called out. Brooke had said someone would be waiting for him. But Haley wasn't there. So who could she have been talking about? Nathan was a wreck. He felt that there was no way to fix what happened with him and Haley. She seemed to have given up. He wanted to give up too.
"Nope. Not Haley..." a guy said. "Try again"
Nathan recognized the voice he heard but he was sure he was dreaming this time. None of this could really be happening. And definitely not again. First Peyton had shown him one of the darkest Christmases of his past. Then Brooke took him to Haley's house and he had to see what he had done to her. Now there was some random dude in his apartment that was sure to tell him just how awful he was. Well, guess it's time to get it over with.
"Who's there?" he asked the voice.
"I told you to try again. That means you guess again, dipshit."
"Luke? Is that you?" he asked.
Lucas stepped out of the shadows and into the lamp-lit living room. "Good guess. I was starting to worry that you didn't recognize your own brother's voice."
Nathan half ass laughed. "So you're the next one, huh? What do I have to see now?"
"Wow. Perceptive, are we?" Lucas said, snidely. "I like what's coming up next, little brother. You won't." Lucas clapped a hand on Nathan's shoulder and they were in Tree Hill again. This time they were at Lucas' house. Nathan saw the Christmas tree in the living room trimmed with pretty blue lights and homemade ornaments. He saw a calendar on the fridge with Christmas circled in bright red. But he noticed that the year was wrong. It was a year in the future.
"You're kidding, right? This is some kind of sick joke." Nathan said.
Lucas shifted his body. "Nope... Ahhh... " He was ready to sit back and enjoy the ride.
"Luke! Come on! Stop it! We have to finish wrapping this stuff before your mom gets home! She can't see what we got her!" Haley said.
"I know, I know, baby, but I just can't keep my hands off you! We haven't been alone in a week and I've missed my girl." Lucas said, smirking.
Nathan's ears were on fire. He'd never been so mad in his life. His own brother! "What the hell, man!" he said as he shoved his brother, causing Lucas to lose his footing. "Were you just ready to fuckin' move in on her as soon as I was out of the picture? I trusted you!"
"Nate, you treated her like shit! You made her feel like she was nothing to you! She was my friend! Do you know what it's like to watch someone you care about go through something like that?" Lucas fired back. "Chill the hell out, man. You'll see what happened here in a little while."
They continued to watch the interaction between Lucas and Haley and it was making Nathan sick to his stomach. Within minutes, the situation altered and Karen, Lucas' mom, was home. They were sitting in the living room discussing how much things had changed since last Christmas. Lucas was building up a fire in the fireplace.
"How did you two end up getting together, Haley? I don't think I've ever really heard the story." Karen said.
"Well, I guess it started when I came home for Christmas last year." Haley looked off into the distance as though she had to reach hard for her memories of Nathan. "Nathan and I had been going downhill for months and I finally had enough. I left without saying goodbye and he never called. Not a text, not a call, nothing. I knew it was over then. I was upset, I'll admit it. And while I was home on break, I decided to get in touch with old friends." she smiled as she remembered meeting up with Lucas. She told the story of their meeting at the river court and how she knew something was different about the time she was spending with Lucas. "After I went back to school, I moved out of mine and Nathan's apartment and moved into the dorms. Lucas helped me get everything situated while Nathan was out. We talked for hours after everything was moved. He ended up staying the night. When he left to come back home to Tree Hill, I missed him. We started talking every single day and kept getting closer and closer."
Lucas came over and put an arm around Haley. "She couldn't resist me, Mom. That's all it was. It was my charm and my hotness!" Lucas laughed.
Haley rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, baby, that was it."
Nathan cringed when he heard Haley use the term "baby" in reference to Lucas. His blood boiled. But he kept listening. He wanted to know when they got together.
"We spent the semester driving back and forth to see each other on the weekends and when I moved home for the summer, Lucas finally admitted that he had been in love with me since high school." Haley said, looking to Lucas to finish the story.
"Since sophomore year, baby. I just never thought that you'd think of me that way. We were such good friends then and I guess I was a masochist. By the time I had worked up the courage to ask you out, Nathan had beaten me to it. We might be brothers, but I never knew he had such a thing for you. He never talked about it. I always thought he never wanted to settle down. That was how he acted at least." Lucas said.
Nathan had to agree. He hadn't expected to settle down either. He was, of course, the ladies man. But Haley was different. She was everything he wanted. She changed him. And now he was having to stand here and listen to Lucas talk about how much he loved her. It was genuine. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that everything he had ever done with or said to Haley wasn't true. Lucas was the best possible boyfriend Haley could ask for. What had happened here?
Lucas continued, finishing the story."So anyway, Summer time came and I asked Haley to be my girlfriend. I took her down to the river court and we had a picnic. We watched the sunset and talked for what seemed like hours. Night came and we watched the stars. I wanted to spend every night like that with her. She's amazing and she's more than I could ever ask for." Lucas crawled on his knees to the Christmas tree and grabbed a small box from underneath.
Nathan became rigid. "Oh hell no. Lucas Scott, she is MY girlfriend!"
"She's not your girlfriend anymore, Nate. She's mine. You lost her when you decided that everything else was more important than her. I saw just how special she is. You used to see that and somewhere down the line, you lost sight of what an amazing person she truly is. She deserves someone to love her, Nathan. She deserves someone to treat her like royalty. You took her for granted and she found someone who appreciated her." Lucas said. "I'm not sorry for what's about to happen."
Nathan didn't know if he could stand for this. He wanted to scream, to cry, to take back everything that had happened. He wanted to fix it all. This couldn't happen. He wouldn't let this happen. There was no way.
Lucas turned back to Haley, box in hand and said, "Haley James, I've loved you for the longest time and I plan to love you until the day I die..." Haley's eyes started to well with tears. Karen's did as well, only she let them flow. Lucas continued, "Will you do me the great honor of being your hus-..."
"NNNNOOOOOO!" Nathan screamed as he jumped up out of bed. He breathlessly ran to the kitchen and looked at the calendar. Okay, it was the right year. "Peyton?" he cried out. No answer. "Brooke?" he yelled. Nothing. "Lucas!" Nobody was there. He was alone. Haley...
He grabbed his keys off the counter and ran out the door. When he hit the interstate, he began trying to call Haley. Voicemail. He called again. Voicemail again. Ugh! Okay, her phone's off... just get there! Nathan's 2 ½ hour drive to Tree Hill seemed like it took years. He pulled up in front of the house and just as quickly as he threw the car in park, he was out the door and running for the house. He knocked furiously on the front door. "Please... please please please..." he begged. The door opened suddenly and there she was. His everything. Standing right in front of him. "Haley..."
"Nathan... what are you doing here? Don't you have a game?" she said, shocked. She couldn't believe he came! She was sure it was over. "Why didn't you call?"
"I did! I called over and over and it kept going to your voicemail..."
She pulled her phone from her pocket. It was dead. "Shit. I didn't even know it was dead. I'm sorry, Nate. Come inside."
He walked over the threshold and pulled Haley into a tight hug. "Hales, baby, I'm so sorry!" He pulled her away, but only enough for him to be able to look her in the eyes. "I was so stupid and insensitive. I was a total jerk. I never meant to make you feel like you didn't mean anything to me. The truth is, you mean everything to me. You're my life, baby, my world. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me and I've been taking you for granted. Nobody in the entire world means more to me than you do. You're all I need. Please, please forgive me. I'm so sorry. I'll never treat you like that again."
By now, Haley was crying. "Oh Nathan."
"I love you, Haley. I've loved you all this time and I'll love you until the day I die."
"I love you, Nathan. Always and forever." she said.
Nathan squeezed Haley one more time then pulled her back again. He dropped to one knee and took Haley's hand in his.
"Haley James, I love you more than anything in this world. I never want to live my life without you. Nothing would be right in the world. I promise, I know.." he played with her beautiful fingers. "I don't have a ring... but I want to spend the rest of my life with you... Would you do me the great honor of becoming my wife?" he asked.
Haley shrieked. Through the flood of tears, she screamed, "Yes Nathan! Yes! Yes Yes Yes!" This brought the entire family into the foyer. Lydia, Haley's mom, immediately knew what was going on and began to cry as well. Haley was truly happy. This had turned out to be the best Christmas ever.
"Merry Christmas, Hales."
"Merry Christmas, Nathan."
Nathan hugged her tightly and something caught his eye. It was Lucas, again. There was no way that this was a dream, this was real. He must have been the only one that could see Lucas. He was beginning to think he was going crazy when Lucas spoke, "You did good, Nate. You did good. Treat her right. I'll be seein' ya." And just as quickly as he had appeared, he was gone.