Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill. It belongs to Mark Schwahn and the CW. The dialogues I borrowed from the show belongs to the original writers. I am simply reusing their great lines into my story in the characters they created.

Lucas and Haley walks into the school towards their lockers. They had their opening tradition of the lockbox secret last night. Haley still hasn't been able to write her prediction for the New Year.

"It feels weird how people stare at you. I used to be the one everyone ignored before and now all of a sudden, everyone stare and whisper. It's very creepy." Haley said to Lucas while noticing the people around her.

"Yeah. Well, they are in awe of the celebrity in their…" Haley smacked him in the arm before he finished his sentence.

"So what's your locker number this year?"

Lucas looks at the sheet he's holding in his hand looking for his locker number. "143" he read it out loud.

"Oh. Mine's 141. Looks like this year it's alphabetical. Which means…" Haley's eyes widens in realization as she reached her locker.

Just then, Nathan closed his and looks at the pair standing in front of him. "Maybe you should have used your stage name." He tells her without showing any emotion and walks away. Haley watches his retreating back visibly upset by his remarks while Lucas gives her a comforting one handed hug.

Brooke walks outside the school and sees Haley walking nearby.

"Hey roommate. You left early this morning. I was looking for you. You know, it's the first day. You don't have to be at school on time."

"I'm usually one of those people who likes to come to school. Get all the new stuff and be ready for the New Year."

"Nerd". Brooke calls her jokingly.

"Exactly. This year however for the first time in my academic career, I am falling behind. I'll have to work twice as hard if I want to graduate this year. And with Nathan being angry with me and everybody else staring at me, it is going to be a tough year for me."

"You could always run away and join a rock tour." They turn around surprised when they realized that Peyton has joined them from behind. "Oh wait. You already did that." With that, Peyton gives a wave to Brooke and walks away from the pair.

Haley looks at Peyton while Brooke smiles uncomfortably.

"She's had a rough year. I'll talk to her." With that, Brooke walked fast towards Peyton trying to catch up to her.

Haley follows behind them when she heard a group of girls snickering at her. Their group leader, a redhead whom she had never seen in the school before was not hiding her displeasure at Haley pointing and making air quotes 'Rock Star'. Haley rolls her eyes at them and walks away.

Peyton was walking to her next class outside the school building when she heard someone walk next to her.

"Hey." Nathan said joining her in her walk into the school.

Peyton smiled at him. "What are you doing in this side of the school?"

Nathan smiled sheepishly. "P.E." He said knowing full well she won't believe him.

With an amused look, "By the way of Florida? You're dodging Haley." She said knowingly.

Nathan dropped his pretence and eased up. "Yeah. She keeps wanting to talk and I honestly don't know what to tell her." When Peyton gave him the look asking for explanation, he continued. "She wants me to tell her that we are getting back together but I'm having a hard time letting go of the past."

Peyton nodded at him understanding his predicament.

"Look. Just because she's back doesn't mean everything has to go back to how it was before. You have the right to feel hurt and you should take your time to decide what you want."

Nathan scoffs at that. "Yeah right. Tell that to your boyfriend." Peyton looks at him confused. "Lucas." Nathan clarified with a smile. Peyton smacks his arm but couldn't stop the smile from appearing in her face.

"He's not my boyfriend." She claims. Nathan gives her a knowing look this time and she turns forward embarrassed at being addressed on her feelings.

"I'll talk to him. He can side for his friend but that doesn't mean he's right all the time. And you have me in your corner." She tells him and loops her arm around his.

"Thanks Peyton. Appreciate it." Nathan tells her and they walk hand in hand towards the building.

All of a sudden, they run into the person Nathan was trying to avoid. Haley and Brooke walk right into them from the front. Haley stopped in mid-sentence of whatever she was telling Brooke and looked at the duo surprised.

Before either pair say anything, they heard a shrilling scream.

"Nathan." All four turn around to look at where the screaming call came from when a red headed girl came running in flying speed jumping on Nathan and hugging him by his neck. He held her back trying to balance himself from the assault before he can look at who it was.

"Rachel?" He said surprised when she let him go and landed back on her feet. She was giving him a wide smile while he was getting his thoughts back from the initial shock.

Haley cleared her throat. She looked very upset by the way this girl behaved with her husband. The girl turned to face Haley and that's when Haley recognized the girl as the same one who was making fun of her earlier. She felt even more confused at looked at Nathan who was still looking at this girl called Rachel.

"What are you doing here?" Nathan asked in a surprised voice.

"I go here now. I joined the seniors this year because my parents decided to move here." Rachel explained excitedly.

"Oh. That's good I guess." Nathan tells her unsure as he turned to look at Haley who was still staring at him with the unasked question in her eyes.

"We need to go Nathan. It's getting late for our class." Peyton said while pulling him away from the crowd. Rachel was still looking at Nathan and so was Brooke and Haley. Peyton dragged Nathan by his arm before there's a scene.

After Nathan and Peyton went into the building, Rachel looked at Haley and scoffed. She turned around and walked away dismissing Haley and Brooke as if they don't matter.

"What the hell just happened?" Brooke asked nobody in particular. She was in shock just like Haley was.

"I don't know." Haley replied confused. She really needed to talk to Nathan before it's too late. She doesn't like this Rachel person at all.

Peyton dragged Nathan by his arm not letting him go until they came across an empty room. She pushes him in and closes the door behind her.

"Ok. Now explain to me who the hell that was and why she is hugging you right in front of your wife?" Peyton demanded.

"Relax Peyton. She's just someone I met when I was in High Flyers." Nathan explained casually.

"Oh. She seems really friendly. Is there something I should know?" Peyton asked curiously. She still cannot shake the feeling that there may be something more to the story.

***Flashback***

"Yo Big Time, you're ready for the party yet?" Nathan's team mate Tony Battle asked walking into their dorm.

"Not sure I want to go man. I'm not in the partying mood." Nathan said dejectedly lying in his bed. He had read Haley's letter and it had brought up some of the memories he had tried to bury deep in his mind.

"Come on bro. You can't stay cooped up in here. Live it up. We are the high flyer players. Everyone wants to have a look at us. We are the elite team. So get your ass moving and let's go party." Battle said and held his hand to Nathan. Nathan gave his hand and Battle pulled him up to his feet and they both left their dorm room to the party.

When they reached the party, it was already crowded with co-eds and others. Lot of girls hanging out with the players from the camp and lot of booze flowing around. Nathan moved into the crowd taking a cup offered to him by the guy with the keg. Taking a sip from the cup, he just walked around looking for people he know so he can hang out with. His mind was not in the partying mood but he had to be the wing man for Battle who is becoming a good friend.

"Hey there handsome." Someone spoke from behind and trailed a hand over his back. He turned around to look at a good looking red head standing next to him giving a flirty smile.

"Hi." He said politely. He wasn't looking to meet anyone new. But he didn't want to be rude.

"You're just too cute to be alone here. Shall I keep you company?" The girl offered. Nathan knew what she was offering. He has met girls like her in his past life. A life before he met the girl who changed his world. The same girl who destroyed it when she chose to abandon them.

"No thanks. I'm just here with my friends." Nathan replied and started moving away.

"Oh. Someone who likes to play hard to get huh? I'm up for that. I'm Rachel by the way." The girl introduced herself.

"Nathan. Nice to meet you." He offered his hand to her as his greeting.

"Polite gentleman. It's a pleasant surprise at this day and age." She winks at him and accepts his hand.

"Listen. Before you get the wrong idea, I'm married. I have been for a while now." Nathan told her. He didn't want to give her the wrong idea or impression unintentionally.

"What? How old are you?" She asks him surprised. She wouldn't have guessed that at all. Maybe a girlfriend but definitely not a wife. He looked like someone who's in high school.

"17. I know it's a shocker but I'm not lying to you. It is the truth." Nathan told her convincingly. It's been difficult to make people believe that he is indeed married. Nobody is willing to believe that a kid in high school willingly got married to someone.

"Oh yeah. And why is there no ring in your hand then?" Rachel asked unconvinced. She still believed he's trying to play hard to get. Although the married card is not what people would use in that case.

"It's a long story. One I don't want to get into now. But look." Nathan pulls out his chain and shows her the ring. Rachel looks at the obvious wedding ring in surprise while Nathan puts it back into his shirt hiding it from obvious view.

"I'm sorry but I have to go. It was nice meeting you." Nathan said and walked away towards his team mates. He hoped that was enough to convince the girl.

Rachel stared at the retreating back of Nathan trying to figure out his mystery. He's a high school kid who is married but wears a wedding ring in his chain instead of his finger. Not to mention he's smoking hot but he's not hitting on me and dismissing me. I must know his story.

Rachel walked next to another girl who was flirting with another basketball player in the camp. She tapped her shoulder to get her attention and nodded her head towards Nathan.

"Do you know who he is and what his story is?"

Paula the girl Rachel spoke to turned around to look in the direction Rachel was looking at. She is known as the gossiper in their school and she knows about every player in the camp.

"Oh. That's Nathan. Don't bother. Lot of girls have tried hitting on him and he never responds to any of them. Apparently he's married to some rock star girl from his town. And he's the faithful type." Paula tells Rachel exasperated. She also tried her hand at seducing Nathan only to be rejected. She gave up after realizing it's a futile attempt.

"Is he now? Interesting." Rachel said thinking. Her mind was already planning ways of tricks to seduce Nathan.

***End Flashback***

"So after that party, she understood I was married so whenever we run into each other at parties, we just talk as friends." Nathan finished explaining to Peyton.

"You may see her as just a friend Nathan but trust me when I say, she sees you as something else." Peyton told him. She knew from the way that girl behaved that she doesn't see Nathan as just a friend.

"Whatever her intentions are, after the year I had, I am nowhere in the mood for romance." Nathan told Peyton. Especially with Haley's return, Nathan's emotions are in a roller coaster to even think romantically.

"Just watch your back." Peyton gave him a friendly warning. She had a feeling this girl may be trouble and after the year Nathan had to endure, he doesn't need any more trouble.

"Thanks. I really got to go before Whitey starts jumping on my head for being late." Nathan said and went to the door opening it and leaving towards the gym.

Peyton took her stuff and left the room as well going towards her class.

Nathan walks to the classroom for his detention. He was late when he reached the gym for P.E. and Whitey decided to punish him with detention.

When he reaches the classroom, he sees that it already has another person there.

"What are you doing here?" He asked surprised. Seeing Haley in the detention room is definitely a first. She is usually the smart one and never gets into trouble. Haley turns around to look at him surprised at his presence just like he is.

"She's got detention. Just like you." Whitey answers him.

Haley's face changed when her eyesight moved from Nathan to the door. She saw the now familiar red head standing at the doorway with her own detention slip. Whitey also sees her and takes the slip from her hand.

"Get lost. You're pardoned this time." He tells her and closes the door in her shocked face. Then he turns to the couple and says "Today we're gonna allow talking. I believe you both have some catching up to do."

Nathan shakes his head and takes a seat far from Haley. Haley looks at Whitey who winks at her. She smiles at him with gratitude for creating an atmosphere for both of them. He gives her a nod and leaves the room closing it behind him.

Haley looks at Nathan's back for a while. Nathan sat there unmoving staring at the wall. Time passed by with both of them not changing their positions.

"So…" Haley said hesitantly. Nathan's head tilted a bit but he didn't turn back. "You know this Rachel girl?"

"Yeah." was the short reply from Nathan.

"Is she…" Haley was unsure how to ask the question she's dreading to ask. "Is she someone you're seeing now?" She finally blurted out what's being bothering her since the event outside the school building earlier in the day. It's why she went to coach Whitey asking him to talk to Nathan and find out if he had truly moved on.

"No Haley. Unlike you, I don't cheat on our relationship. I don't go around your back with other girls. I meant what I said when we got married and I still do." Nathan replied back harshly. He is still hurt and angry at Haley's actions and the way she questioned him fuelled his anger more. Haley looked like she's been struck by Nathan even if it's just words.

"I didn't cheat on you." Haley replied back in a softer voice.

"What do you call kissing Chris behind my back?" Nathan asked in a calmer voice but still laced with hurt and anger.

Haley had nothing she could say back to Nathan's question. She knew what she did was wrong and she really regret what she did. It was the worst mistake of her life and she wishes she could take it back. But it hurts her when Nathan throws it in her face.

"I'm sorry." It was all Haley was able to say choking up with emotions. She didn't trust she could say anything more.

They spent the rest of the detention in silence.

Lucas and Haley were walking to the school together the next day. Lucas was being her support against the treatment she was receiving around school.

"So how did detention go yesterday?" Lucas asked. He knew Haley was given detention and he was there when Whitey gave detention to Nathan. So he knew both of them would have had to face each other inside the classroom.

"Just what it was supposed to be. Torture and punishment. I was asking about Rachel and he was lashing out at me about Chris." Haley still hadn't explained what made her kiss Chris to Lucas. She didn't understand it herself and she knew Lucas will definitely not understand it.

"Yeah. He was really hurt by that." Lucas told her. He remembered his conversation with Nathan in the jail when he told him about the kiss.

"I get that." Haley told him cutting the conversation short. She didn't want to hear anymore on how much she hurt Nathan with her stupid actions.

"I'll see you at lunch. Work on your predictions." Lucas reminded her and walked away in another direction.

Haley kept walking forward noticed the same group of girls with their ring leader Rachel sitting on her way. She ignored their laughing directed at her and kept walking.

"Excuse me! Um, can I have your autograph?" Rachel asked her with a fake enthusiasm. Haley knew she was purposely goading her. She stopped walking forward but didn't turn around.

"Bitch." Rachel spat out with venom in her tone.

Haley had had enough of this girl. "You wanna say that to my face?" She asked turning around facing Rachel.

"You shouldn't have come back. Nathan was better off without you. And soon he'll see the better choices he have around here than you." Rachel replied back getting into Haley's face.

"Stay away from my husband you bitch." Haley was really pissed. She yelled at Rachel and pushed her back really hard sending her tumbling back in her feet.

Before it escalated any further, Whitey intervened between both of them.

"Hey, hey, hey, break it up. Break it up now." He ordered both of them. Rachel backed off while he kept holding Haley who was still wanting to go after Rachel.

"Fighting in school grounds. That calls for detention." Whitey tells her.

"But Coach, she started it." Haley argued her point.

"Talking back to a teacher. That's two." Whitey kept adding detentions.

"Whitey, I really appreciate what you're trying to do. But it's not working out. Nathan's not talking to me." Haley told him with disappointment. She understood Whitey is doing it for her own good but without Nathan willing to show any signs of willingness, it is a waste of both their times.

"Calling me Whitey… that's three." Whitey said back.

"Ok, I think two is enough." Haley said depressed at her situation.

"I'll see you in detention." Whitey walked away leaving her to get back to the class. 'I should have just kept walking away instead. Now I have detentions with Nathan who's going to be angry with me for the whole time'. Haley thought to herself while walking to the class.

She got to the detention classroom before Nathan like last time. She threw her bag on the table and flopped into the chair upset with herself. Nathan walked in a few minutes later followed by Whitey who gave the same instructions as last time closing the room behind him leaving them both alone once again.

Nathan opened his backpack taking his books out. If he has to be in detention, he might as well catch up on his homework. He knew why Whitey gave him detention this time and he has no say in the matter other than dealing with it. 'Might as well make the time useful on something'. He thought to himself.

Rumor has been spreading around the school regarding the catfight between Haley and Rachel. Nathan knew Haley does fight with her sister Taylor but this was the first time he heard of her fighting with someone else. It surprised him and he felt a little guilty that he could have been the cause of their fight. He was feeling guilty for lashing out at Haley yesterday during detention. He still was angry at her but after she started crying, he felt bad about it. No matter what, he doesn't like it when Haley cries and he was feeling guilty for being the cause of it. But he couldn't get himself to console her so he stayed rigid as he was not saying anything to her.

This time while working on his homework, he kept stealing glances at Haley. Her posture seems to indicate she's upset and still ticked off. Which if he had to admit to himself was very sexy. After some time looking at her, he thought he should break the ice.

With a chuckle, he asked. "Did you really knock out Rachel's front tooth?"

Haley surprised that he was speaking to her looked at him. "What? Where did you hear that?"

"It's all over school." He grinned at her making her feel comfortable and feel like they used to. This was like the old times before all the mess started.

"Great. Add bully to my resume now." She groans and runs a hand through her hair in frustration. "I don't know why I let her get to me but the way she was speaking made me lash out at her." She tried to explain to him.

"And you say I have a short temper." Nathan chuckles at the memory of her telling him to be calm.

"Yeah. You must have been rubbing off on me." Haley told him with a smile.

"Not sure if it's a good thing or bad." They both chuckle at that feeling the tension erase slightly. Nathan turned back towards the book he was writing. Haley on the other hand wanted to kept talking.

"I'm really sorry for all the way I hurt you Nathan." Haley told him hoping her voice conveyed her sincerity.

"I know you are. But I should get back to this." He lifts the book he was writing to indicate what he's referring to. "I don't have a tutor anymore."

Haley's small sliver of happiness dissipated when Nathan shut down their conversation and she leaned back resuming her previous position.

After going home and running into his father who told him about his intention to have Whitey fired, Nathan walked into Karen's café looking for Lucas. He was still at odds with Lucas for what he did but he knew if anyone wanted to protect Whitey other than himself, it would be Lucas. So it was time to set aside any animosity and look at the common goal.

"Oh hi Nathan. It's been a while." Karen welcomes him upon seeing him enter. Over the last year, she has grown to care for Nathan who was going through the pain of loss of the loved one. She knew exactly how it felt from her own experience.

"Yeah. Sorry I should have come by after I came back from the camp." Nathan apologises to her.

"That's ok. You must have a lot in your plate now." Karen replies kindly. Nathan just nods back as response.

"Have you seen Lucas?" Nathan asked her getting to the point.

"Oh, not for a few hours." Karen told him.

"Ok, thanks." Nathan started to leave but Karen placed her hand on his arm making him pause from turning away. He looked at her questioningly.

"Haley came back." Karen said softly. She knows it's a sensitive topic for Nathan and she needs to handle it carefully without harming it even further.

"Yeah." Nathan said quietly.

"Do you remember that day on the river court? When you told me that you would give anything to have her home?"

"Yeah. You told me to have faith." Nathan responded remembering their conversation. It was when he was hurting and wanting his wife back.

"Well, faith is believing when there's nothing else you can do." Karen told him.

Nathan gives her a soft smile and nods in response.

"She's here now." Karen said looking at his face for any reaction. Seeing nothing, she continued. "What are you going to do about it?"

Nathan looked conflicted with various emotions. He doesn't know what to tell her.

"Haley's here now. The guy she left is not though." He told her shaking his head. With her inquisitive look, he elaborated further. "After the accident, I came to the realization that spending my time waiting for her to come back was making me worse than when she left. I had to let her go in order to move on with my life." Karen nodded in understanding. She had to go through the same realization after Dan Scott left to follow his dreams which didn't include her.

"I shut my emotions down and focused on myself and then she comes back. Now I'm finding it hard to let myself open up. Sometimes it feels like we are both ourselves before she left. But then it hits me that she did indeed leave and that brings back the hurt I don't want to feel. It feels safer not to feel anything at all." Nathan explains to her. It felt good talking to her about it. Karen may be the only person who could understand what he's going through.

"But shutting down your emotions is not a good way to go through your life Nathan. Trust me when I say, that will be a difficult life for you in the end. I shut myself after your father left and except for Lucas, I did not let anyone near my heart. And now it's even more difficult to open up to people because I have gotten used to living without anyone."

Nathan nods in understanding. Karen continued. "I'm not saying to accept her back immediately or pretend like it never happened. But don't close your heart to those who care and love you. Let them in and give into the possibility that things will turn out to the better." She tells him and gives a pat in his arm to comfort him. Nathan gives her a smile and shrugs.

"If you see Lucas, can you tell him that he may want to come to the school board tonight?" Nathan told her. Karen looks at him confused.

"School board?" She questioned.

"Yeah. My dad's trying to get Whitey fired. And we both know he usually gets what he wants." And with that, he gives her a nod and leaves. Karen looks at him thinking what she can do to help Whitey.

After saving Whitey's career and going home, Nathan opened up the box he had sealed with his wedding memories. He looked at some of the items such as the sand in the bottle from the location where they got married and it brought back the memories and emotions he has been trying to suppress. However, hearing Dan suggesting it should be packed away makes him wonder if he was doing the right thing by doing exactly that. Nathan believes that the advice Dan gives him is exactly the opposite of what's right for him and this just confirms it.

He decides to go talk to Haley. They needed to talk eventually and come to a mutual understanding. There was no reason for him to drag it on unnecessarily.

He knocks on their former apartment which is now rented by Brooke and Haley. Haley comes to open the door caught surprised at his presence at the doorstep.

"Hey!" Haley said surprise evident in her voice.

"Nice place." Nathan gives her a smile. "Can I talk to you?"

Haley gives him a shrug like it was not a big deal when inside she's feeling excited at the chance to spend time with Nathan. "Sure. Let's go."

She walks out of the apartment after gathering her jacket and keys. Closed the door and they started walking in silent in the pathway towards the docks. That used to be their favourite spot where their relationship started.

After a long silence, Haley sighs and breaks the silence. "I'm glad it's you that stopped by. Living with Brooke, you never know who's going to come in for a late night booty call." They both chuckled at that. It eased their tensed situation slightly.

Then Nathan felt uncomfortable as he brought up the topic he wanted to talk to her about. "Look, um… I've been doing some thinking about us." Looking at Haley's face for reaction, he continued. "About what we're going to do, and um… I still have the annulment papers but-" Haley turns her head away sadly at where the conversation was going. So Nathan spoke quickly. "-if we get an annulment; that means that our marriage never happened. That'd be a lie. I mean, even after everything that happened, we had a lot of great times together Haley. I don't want to pretend like we didn't."

Haley looks up at him with slight hope. "Neither do I." She says softly. Nathan gave a sigh. He's making things difficult.

"So instead of an annulment, I've looked into a divorce." Nathan told her knowing how much it would hurt her. Even after everything that has happened between them, he doesn't like it when Haley gets hurt and he feels guilty when he's the one who causes it. Unable to stare at her anymore, he turns his eyes away from Haley and look towards the ground. Haley's expression turned to disbelief. She cannot comprehend what she's hearing.

"The state says we have to be separate for a year. It has already been 2 months. So there's another 10 more months to go." He tells her lamely. Haley wasn't hearing what he was telling her. She was still reeling from the shock of his last words.

"What-" Haley cannot form the words to speak. She struggles and manages to speak again. "What are you saying?" She's still trying to get her head around what Nathan's saying and what's happening at that moment. One minute it seemed like they were talking about how to go forward towards the future and then all of a sudden, it is towards separate paths.

"I'm saying that, I…" he is having difficulty now. It is difficult for both of them. "I think we should see what happens between now and then."

Haley steps towards Nathan and gets hold of his hands. "Nathan. I love you." Seeing him turning his eyes away from her, she continues. "I know we can work this out. And a year from now, things will be good for us again." She says with certainty. She believes in it completely. She has to. Her future with Nathan lies in it.

"Maybe. Maybe not. Last year, we thought we had our future together and then look how easily that changed. I don't want us to do anything like that again. So this time apart will be good for us. To know what we want for the future." Nathan told her. He was not only telling that for her sake but for his as well. He is trying to convince himself that it is the right thing to do. With Haley back, he feels like they may go back to their earlier routine and he is not sure it is what he wants yet.

Haley is emotionally numb. She cannot speak and doesn't know what she can say to convince him otherwise. It seems like Nathan had made up his mind. All she can do is hope Nathan changes his mind during that time.

"We can do one thing as we used to do." Nathan spoke after a few minutes. Haley looks up at him. He gives her a small comforting smile and speaks. "I am still in need of a tutor. So if you are up for it, I would like you to be my tutor again like you used to." Haley nodded immediately. It was the sliver of hope she needed and she's going to take it. Nathan gives her a short nod as thanks.

"So the old schedule right here?" Haley nods again. She cannot trust speaking in her current situation. Nathan gives her hand a squeeze with the hand she's still holding onto. Then he releases his hands from her and starts walking towards his mansion. Haley stands right where she is looking at Nathan's retreating back.

Back at her place, Haley writes her yearly prediction. "Nathan and I will be together again." She stares at what she wrote hoping against all hope that this is one prediction that will come true.