Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill or its characters. Such a shame.
"Dad, you're going to hurt your back," Haley James laughed from the backseat as her dad tried to lift her mom's suitcase into the back of their Explorer.
"Haley-Bop, I have muscles of steel," Jimmy James told his daughter. She rolled her eyes, and then busted out laughing when the suitcase and Jake's guitar fell out. Even after two back surgeries, her dad was still stubborn about what he could and couldn't do. It was easy to see where she got it from.
"Jake will kill you if you break that, Jimmy!" Their mother, Lydia, called from the front seat. She was shaking her head at her husband who refused to let age slow him down.
"Alright, Hulk Hogan, move aside before you cause any more damage," her twin brother, Jake, said coming up behind him and throwing the suitcase and guitar into the car with ease.
"Show off," their dad grumbled before going around and getting into the driver's side while Jake slid into the back next to Haley.
She and Jake were twins, not visible through looks but very much in personality. They had once had the same shade of chocolate brown hair, but Haley had recently died her locks to a soft honey blonde. Each of them had their dad's big brown eyes, unfortunately. She had always envied her mom's blue shade. Not to mention, Jake stood above six feet, towering over her and her parents. She was never sure where he inherited his height because her father only stood at a measly five foot eight. She and her mom were midgets compared to both of them. Haley always told Jake that they weren't twins because he was a good six feet tall, definitely not inherited from their father who only stood at five foot eight nor their mother who was only five foot three. From a distance, it was hard to tell they were related, but those who knew them definitely agreed that they were similar in personality; awkward, quiet, shy, nerdy, and musically gifted. Both also had a knack for school, Haley being the Valedictorian of their senior class while Jake, maddeningly enough, was Salutatorian. It was still a sore subject for him but she liked to point out that it was his tendency to procrastinate that ruined his chances. While she was one to spend weekends doing homework, he'd wait until the class before it was due to complete it.
"You all got everything, right?" Lydia asked as they pulled out of their driveway.
"Wait!" Haley yelled before being thrown into the seat in front of her. That's going to bruise,she thought as she rubbed the spot where the seat belt restrained her. The James family all looked at each other before they all realized the same thing.
"Greta!" they all said.
Five minutes later, their chocolate lab, Greta, was wagging her tail in the back as they were on the road again. Jake had his iPod in and turned up so loud that Haley could hear the music blaring from it. No wonder he's deaf, she thought to herself. She smiled when she looked to the front and saw her parents holding hands over the console. It amazed her that after all these years they still acted as though they were teenagers in love. Sometimes it was annoying, mostly when they would get all mushy in front of her, but other times it was cute and she couldn't help but hope the one day she would have the same thing that they had. She put her own ear buds in and turned her iPod on, playing one of her favorite songs by Wilco. Closing her eyes, she smiled at the thought of returning to her favorite place in the world. Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina had been her home away from home since she was thirteen. Originally, her parents had bought the beach house for them live at, claiming they wanted change. They were set to move right before Haley and Jake started high school, but decided against it saying Tree Hill would always be home. Instead, they decided to use it for summer vacations. Her dad worked from home and her mom had summers off with the kids, so it worked out perfectly. Her family shared the beach with a few other residents, their section of the beach private to just the home owners.
The ride was only an hour and a half, but it seemed like days. She was especially anxious to arrive this year. This was the last summer she had before college. She would be attending Stanford in the fall while Jake went on to North Carolina. Being separated from him was going to be hard, but she liked to push that out of her mind. This summer she would be sure to spend as much time with her family and friends as possible and make it one she would never forget.
She pulled out her flip phone and texted her best friend, Brooke Davis to see if she was there. She and Brooke had only become friends in the last couple of years. She had always thought Brooke was a skanky cheerleader, but sophomore year they had been paired up for a science project and somehow became friends. When Haley had told her friend about her summer plans, Brooke had immediately called her parents and convinced them to rent a place on the same lot as them. Her parents were absent, but loaded, and somehow Brooke ended up with her own small villa a few doors down. While Brooke was definitely her polar opposite, it worked for them. Her phone beeped.
"Yep, just pulled into the driveway. Can't wait to see you Tutor Girl," her friend replied. Haley shut her phone and shifted anxiously in her seat. She was excited to see her friend even though they had just seen each other last week. At the end of the summer, Brooke would be going to North Carolina with Lucas and studying fashion design. She knew Brooke wanted to spend as much time together as possible Peyton Sawyer, their other best friend, had already left for California. She had joined them on their previous summers together but this summer had managed to get an internship with Sire Records. So now the three amigos were down to two. She knew Jake was pretty sad about her leaving too, considering they had gotten awful close their senior year. He didn't say much about it, though. He just pretended like it was nothing.
Finally, her dad took the final turn on to their street and she and Jake grinned at each other all while Greta whined in the back, which soon turned into a full-fledged bark once they had pulled into the gravel driveway. Their petite house sat just as they left it last year. Her dad was first out of the car.
"Okay, okay!" he yelled was yelling as he walked around to the back and unlatched it, "Go you crazy mutt!"
Jake and Haley laughed as Greta shot out of the car straight into the water, nearly knocking over their father in the process. He shook his head and turned back to the infinite amount of luggage lodged in the car.
"You know," he said dramatically when he turned back to the kids, "My backs kind of hurting. Lydia, can you help me into the house?"
Her mom grinned at their father before masking it with a sarcastic look of concern, "Why, Jimmy, I'd love too. You kids can take care of unloading, right?"
"Sure," they both grumbled getting out, and beginning to gather their things. They would definitely have to make multiple trips.
"So, do you think anything's changed?" Jake asked they took their first load into the house.
"No," she replied, "Nothing ever changes here."
They continued their journey back and forth to the car, finally grabbing the last cooler and shutting the back. They parted ways to their respective rooms. Haley rolled her giant suitcase down the hallway. The house was small, only one floor, but it definitely had enough room for them. She and Jake were able to have separate rooms, connected by a bathroom while their parents had the master bedroom and bathroom. The floors were a vintage oak wood and the walls were painted in bright colors, courtesy of her mom. Despite the house only being used during the summer, her mom had done her best to make it look homey. Stumbling into her room, she felt calm at the familiarity. Her light blue walls were offset by the big bay window that faced the ocean. Her white dresser and vanity completed the beach look in her opinion. She sat down on her double bed and felt the soft fabric of the quilt her grandma had made her before she died a few years back. Home. This was definitely home.
Not bothering to unpack any of her things yet, she walked out onto the porch where her brother was already admiring the ocean.
"Never gets old, does it?" he murmured. She shook her head and joined him in admiration.
"I wonder if that Eagle's nest is still there," she mused, remembering the discovery she made last summer, "You remember; the one in the Scott's old maple tree in the back?"
"Probably not," he said, "I mean, there were some hardcore storms out here over the spring."
"That's a shame," she said before glancing at the house on her right, "You think the queen bee is here, yet?"
Jake simply shrugged before staring at the water again. The occupant of next door was still a sore subject for him. Just then, Greta flew past them, nothing but a brown flash.
"No, Greta!" Haley yelled at the soaking wet Labrador. Not moments later they heard something hit the ground and her father let out a string of curse words.
Before they could begin dragging the bags into the house, they heard thumping behind
Jake shook his head and chuckled, "Maybe we should have just left her at home."
Haley laughed as well, "Let's get down to the center."
They made their way inside and saw Greta spread out on the floor with their dad rubbing her stomach and cooing. He was such a sucker for that dog. All she had to do was give him her little eyes and he was goo.
"We're gonna head down to The Docks," Jake rolled his eyes, "Call if you need anything."
They bid farewell to their parents and hopped into the SUV to drive the few miles to The Dock's. Thank goodness their parents liked to walk everywhere. She and Jake frequently took the Explorer during the summer. It was way too hot to walk for miles.
The Dock's was a country club meets community center. It wasn't fancy by any means, but it was huge, used by all beach goers in this end of town. There was an indoor section and an outdoor section mixed with the retail section. The indoor section contained the ballroom and banquet room, the food court, and the different activity rooms for the day camp that was run. Outside is where most people liked to hang out. There were tables spread along the deck that looked out at the ocean, and there was a longer deck that put you right over the ocean. On the backside, there was a basketball court, a tennis court, picnic tables, and grills for anyone who wanted to have a barbeque. There was also sand volleyball. Lastly, the furthest side is where the boats were docked. Not many people owned a boat, but a fair amount. By the boat docks was the super store which served as a gas station and supply store. This is where equipment could be bought and ordered for any type of boat; sail boats, canoes, and motor boats included. The Dock's was definitely the place to be if you weren't on the beach.
They pulled into the parking lot and immediately made their way to the outdoor section.
"How'd I know everyone would be here?" Jake said as they approached the basketball court.
"Because they're always here," Haley teased. It was true. This entire beach filled with things to do, but their friends were always at the basketball court. It made no sense to her, but she wasn't really ever into basketball.
"Charge!" they heard someone yell from the court.
"Ten bucks says that's Lucas," Jake chuckled recognizing the voice and argument.
"No way!" they heard another voice, "You're feet weren't even planted!"
"And that would be Nathan," Haley laughed.
Sure enough, the two Scott brothers were engaged in battle with the rest of the group watching and laughing at the two. No one attempted to break up the fight, knowing it would be settled in no time and wishing to continue this entertainment for as long as possible.
Lucas and Nathan Scott were half-brothers, Lucas older by three months. The Scott family tree was incredibly complicated, but the basics were this; Dan got Lucas' mom Karen pregnant at the end of high school, he then went on to college to get Nathan's mom, Deb, pregnant as well. He left Karen and married Deb. The end…sort of. Fights between Lucas and Nathan were not uncommon, as that's all they did for the longest time. The two loathed each other through most of high school, only settling their differences their junior year when Lucas joined the Ravens basketball team, of which Nathan was the star player. Haley wasn't sure of all the finer details since the two Scott brothers were two years older than her and this all occurred her freshman year of high school. She had known Nathan for a while; his parents were one of the original houses on this part of the beach so they had been friends since she and Jake started coming down here, although he was better friends with Jake than her. His cocky jock attitude irked her nerves much of the time and the other part, well he didn't take too much notice of her. She was younger and they had nothing in common. The only time they hung around was when he and Jake were running around and Jake drug her along. Curse her brother for being popular. As for Lucas, well she definitely had more in common with him. They got on really well and she actually considered the other Scott to be one of her good friends. Nathan had started bringing him to the beach house after they became closer their junior year. Dan and Deb Scott hadn't been seen around these parts since, so the beach house pretty much belonged to those two.
"You can have it," Nathan finally conceded with a smirk, "You're still going to lose."
Haley and Jake parted ways, Jake going onto the court while Haley spotted Brooke exactly where she knew she'd be.
"How'd I know you all would be here," she joked plopping down next to her..
"Tutor Girl!" Brooke squealed excitedly hugging her friend as though they hadn't seen each other in weeks, "You know I'll always be where Lucas is."
"That doesn't sound stalkerish at all," she joked.
"No, stalking is Rach-hoe's thing," Brooke pointed out, "I simply like to position myself anywhere Lucas is so he can take notice of me."
"Brooke, it's Lucas," Haley said, "He's oblivious so there is really no point to being all creepy."
"Sad, but true," she sighed, "I just wish he'd make a move already. I mean, you can only flirt with each other so long. Plus, I'm officially a college student so he can't blame it on the age. Besides, you're one to talk, how long have you been pining after the other half of the Scott brothers?"
"I have not been pining," Haley gasped, "And I don't know what you're talking about."
"That's what you do, Haley, you pine. You're a piner," she stated knowingly.
Haley huffed turning her attention to the court. Okay, so maybe he didn't get on her nerves too much and she may have had a small crush on him, only since they first met when she was thirteen. That was then, though. She has come to realize that although Nathan may be good looking, he was definitely not her type. She wasn't his type either; she doesn't have large breasts, a killer tan, and bleach blonde hair. Nathan definitely had a type and it was any hot girl he could slip between the sheets. He was the star player of the Duke Blue-Devils after all and she, well, she was just little ol' Haley James. She watched as the group of boys huddled together on the court, her eyes on the handsome Raved-haired boy. Definitely over him…right?
"Well if ain't Jake James," Skillz Taylor said from the court as Jake approached them. Skillz was a local resident and one of the first people he met his first summer. They'd been friends ever since discovering their mutual love for old school hip hop.
"What's up fellas?" Jake smiled as he made his round of high fives to the group of guys.
"It's about time you got here, we just got our asses handed to us," Skillz said, "Lucas over here is too busy drooling over B. Davis."
"I am not drooling!" Lucas claimed innocently as a small blush rose on his cheeks. He might have been checking her out, but who could blame him? The girl was beautiful.
"Dude, you totally are," Nathan said joining the circle with the basketball tucked under his arm.
"Speaking of hot girls, where's your sister at?" Damien West chimed in.
"Watch it, West," Jake warned. Damien West was not someone he chose to associate himself with, but unfortunately he vacationed here as well and lived basketball just like the rest of them. It was kind of inevitable, but he wouldn't let him talk about his sister in any way, especially not sexually.
"Yeah, where is Haley?" Lucas asked. Although she was younger than him, the two had become pretty good friends since he first began coming down to the beach with Nathan. They both had a love for classic literature, music, and had mutual weirdness. He considered her to be like his little sister.
"She's over there with Brooke and Peyton," he pointed to the bleachers where the petite blonde sat with her friend, laughing at something Brooke was saying.
"Damn," Skillz said, "Things sure have changed."
"What do you mean?" Jake asked confused looking at the look many of the guys had on their faces.
"He means if you're sister wasn't hot last year, she sure is now," Damien answered, whistling at what he saw.
"That's Haley?" Lucas asked. In no way did he find Haley attractive, but even he had to admit she looked different. Her hair was no longer straight and brown, but long blonde waves that cascaded down her back. She also seemed to have a confident glow about her, no doubt due to the prospect of going to her dream school. He looked over at his brother and chuckled at his look of absolute astonishment and awe.
"Now who's drooling?" he said low enough so only Nathan heard him.
Nathan snapped his attention away from the girl on the bleachers and to his brother, "I don't drool."
"Whatever you say, little brother," Lucas laughed and shook his head.
The guys mumbled amongst themselves about the new Haley James, but Jake's ears were burning and he felt quite nauseous. For goodness sake, it was his sister.
"Okay!" Jake yelled finally, "Can we play basketball and stop talking about my sister?"
The other's turned back to the game, much to Jake's pleasure, but one pair of cobalt eyes still watched the bleachers, unable to look away.
"This line is never going to come untangled!" Rachel Gatina complained, throwing her long red hair over her shoulder, exposing her bare sun-kissed skin, "Seriously, who stored these sails last year?"
"I believe it was you," Nathan told her as he undid the knots in his line with ease, "You swore you knew how to do it."
"Oh yeah, but I got bored with it and then just threw them in the shed," she laughed. She had only agreed to do it because Nathan was supposed to help her, but she ended up by herself and she just threw them in the shed without bothering to untangle them neatly.
Nathan continued to work on his lines, trying to ignore the person working with him. He definitely regretted telling her she could help when she asked, but she had caught him when he was heading over here from the basketball court. The girl was smoking hot, he'd give her that, and yeah, normally he would be trying to get her into his bed, but Rachel Gatina was one girl he would be happy not to hook up with. He'd known since his first summer here a while ago, and the two were friends for a while. She went to high school down in the southern part of the state, but now she went to college at Duke with him. She was a little more bearable there considering she spent most of her time hooking up with the entire football team, baseball team, and basketball team. Here, though, she seemed to not get the hint that he didn't want to partake in any special activities with her.
"Right," he said and walked over to help her, "Here's the loose end, all you have to do is work it through, one loop at a time."
He handed her the line and turned back to what he was doing. She huffed as she began doing as told. They worked in silence until they finally finished.
"You want to go for a sail on my dad's boat?" Rachel asked as they began storing the sails once more.
Nathan considered it for a moment, but despite wanting to get out on the water, he thought better of being alone with the seductress much longer. He shook his head.
"Nah," he said, "I've gotta head back to the house."
Rachel sighed in frustration at his reluctance to spend time with her. She had been trying with Nathan since they were younger, but he just wouldn't go for it. Perhaps it's because she was bigger when she was younger but she was hot now. She had made it her mission to get Nathan Scott in her bed and she would do whatever it took to succeed.
"Okay, well thanks for helping," he said as he shut the doors to the shed and locked it. After gathering their things, they made their way down the beach in silence. Rachel continued to try a start conversations about school and other small talk, but he would just nod and reply shortly. As she talked he couldn't help but think of the girl back on the basketball court. There was no way that was the same quiet girl he had known. Haley had changed in the last year and changed drastically. He had never found her to be unattractive but never found her to be anything extraordinary either. But the Haley he saw on the court was anything but ordinary; she was beautiful. As soon as he thought it, he mentally slapped himself. He never called girls beautiful but no other word came to mind when he thought of her long blonde hair, perfect smile, and petite little figure. He guessed preparing for college had done wonders for her. Man, Jake would kill him if he knew he was thinking of his sister this way. Damien West was enough to deal with, he didn't need one of his best friends thinking it as well. Don't think about her, he told himself, she's like your annoying little sister.
As he continued to convince himself to not see Haley that way, Rachel called out to someone next to him and as if God himself had planned it, straight ahead was the girl that was clouding his head at the moment and again, she looked absolutely stunning. She was standing at the edge of the water with a ball in her hand, no doubt for Greta who was already half-way out. Her jean shorts accentuated her small but toned legs while a white tank-top covered over her bathing suit top. Her hair was being pushed back from her face as a small breeze blew past them. He sucked in a breath and fidgeted with his hands uncomfortably. Was he…nervous?
"Haley," Rachel greeted as they finally approached her, "Wow, you're acne has really cleared up."
"Rachel," she smiled back, "Afraid I can't say the same for your STDs."
Rachel scowled at the younger girl as Nathan snorted loudly at her dig. Feisty, he thought, I like it. Man, he needed to take it easy. He tried to disguise his laugh as a cough when Rachel glared at him but he was unsuccessful. Rachel huffed and made her way to her porch.
"I see you're no longer shy about your feelings for her," Nathan said once Rachel had disappeared.
Haley laughed, "I'm afraid there is no remaining neutral any more, especially not with her being Brooke's arch nemesis."
It was true, Brook and Rachel has been enemies ever since Brooke had begun coming down. Both were queen bees, so it was not surprising that they butted heads.
Nathan nodded in understanding and the two watched as Greta sprinted back and forth into the ocean, enjoying every wave that crashed against her small body.
"I should probably get back to the house," Nathan finally said, "The guys are going out to Tric later so I need to get ready."
Haley nodded at him, "Have fun. I'm sure Jake will be sneaking in with you?"
He smiled mischievously, "Worried about your brother, James?"
She scoffed, "I just don't want a repeat of last summer whenever you brought him back completely hammered and I had to tell mom and dad he got food poisoning when in reality he was puking tequila all night."
Nathan laughed at the memory of getting the younger guy drunk for the first time, "No, I think he knows his limits now."
She rolled her eyes, "Watch out for him, Scott or I might just kick your ass."
He pretended to look scared of her threat, "I'm scared."
She punched his arm and he laughed at the small little tap. As they continued their banter he realized two things; one, this was the most they've talked in a long time and two, they were flirting. He was flirting with Haley James.
He cleared his throat, "You could always come out if you want. I'm sure Brooke and Peyton are going."
She shook her head, "Unfortunately I wasn't gifted with looking older like you all. I still get ID'ed to get into R rated movies."
He chuckled, "You could definitely get in."
"Why's that?"
"Because," he looked at her, "You look good, James."
Without waiting for a reply, he made his way to his house leaving behind a blushing and smiling blonde. This summer was going to be interesting.
Authors Note:
Hello! So, instead of posting the second chapter, I've decided to rewrite the first one and change a few things. As you can tell, this is AU but I am keeping the characters as close to canon as possible because I just love them all the way they are! After reading over my drafts of the chapters, I realized how vague I was and how confusing the backgrounds of each character was so I tried to give you some of that here. I hope you all enjoy the new and improved first chapter and thanks for responding to this story so positively! Chapter 2 will finally be released this weekend and it will then pick up from there! Love you guys!
