Tree Hill, 7:00 AM, Monday
Nathan and Brooke sat on the couch with their little sisters, Maegan and Reyna, listening attentively to their mother who was going over all four children's schedule for the week. Deb was what most people would call a "Super Mom". She had 4 well-behaved, beautiful children who were kind, thoughtful and caring to everyone in their community. She managed all of their schedules, including hers and Dan's, while maintaining a flawless outward appearance. Deb took great pride in being a mother. She was there for her children, no matter what. On a typical Friday, you could see her working in the office at her husband's car dealership, then at Reyna's karate class. After that she would dart over to one of Maegan's horse riding tournaments, then take in a basketball game to cheer on Brooke and Nathan.
This particular morning, she was trying out a new charting system. "OK, Nate, I am going to drop Maegan and Reyna off at school this morning. Since you have seventh period open, will you pick them up and take them to gymnastics before practice?"
Nathan nodded. "Sure, Mom." He turned to the girls. "I'll meet you out front at 2:00. Don't be late or I won't be able to take you, OK?" Both girls nodded and Deb went over a few more highlights on her chart, then everyone went into the kitchen for breakfast. Once breakfast was over, everyone left the house for their individual destinations.
As Brooke climbed into the passenger seat of Nathan's black Mustang Shelby convertible, she sighed. "You know I love Mom to death. But I have to say that it would be so nice to go one day without every moment being planned out."
Nathan nodded. "I know what you mean, Brooke," he said while backing out of the driveway. As he threw the car into first great, he smiled over at her. "But who are we to complain?" They both laughed, then tore off towards school.
New York, Same Time
"Damn it, Haley! I don't know how much more of this I can take!" Haley rolled her eyes while her mother yelled. This was nothing she hadn't heard before.
She heard the kitchen door slam and her father walked into the room, fuming. He had just thrown out her latest tryst after catching them in bed together. "Why are you doing this, Haley?" he asked. "What is the point of making yourself look like a whore?!?!"
Haley stood up at this. "How DARE you call me that? You have no idea what I go through everyday. I wake up and I'm disappointed that I'm still alive! Getting drunk keeps me from feeling like that!"
"Well, if you would just let us in, maybe we could help!" cried Karen, trying the reach out to her daughter.
Haley shook her head. She really didn't want to upset her parents. But they just didn't get it. She rolled her eyes. "You guys just wouldn't understand, OK? I'm going to my room." She walked down the hall and slammed her bedroom door.
After taking a few moments to calm down, she walked into her brother's room through the bathroom they shared. Lucas was just lighting up the pipe that he and two of his friends, Junk and Frankie, were smoking.
Haley sat in Junk's lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. "Hey, Haley Jae. You in trouble again, baby girl?"
"Of course, Junk? That what I do best, isn't it?" Haley replied angrily.
"You know that ain't true, Jae," said Frankie as he took a hit and passed it to Junk. "And you also know us boys got your back."
"Yeah. I know," said haley. She waited while Junk toked up, then took the pipe and lighter from him. "Let me get a hit before we leave." She lit the weed and drew in a long breath before passing the pipe to Lucas.
"Where are we going?" asked Frankie.
Haley rolled her eyes. "Lucas and I have to go to school today. They called and said we were 'accumulating too many absences'." She made finger quotes around what "they" had said.
Junk and Frankie laughed. They had both already graduated high school. "All right," said Junk. "Well, we'll drop you two off at school, then Frankie and I are gonna drive up to Greenwich Village to pick up some bomb-ass weed. Then we'll come back and pick your lame asses up."
Lucas nodded and spoke for the first time that morning. "Sounds good to me."
They all got up and Haley and Lucas got dressed, then they all left.
As they were pulling into the parking lot of Mountain Vista High School, Frankie's cell phone rang. Junk pulled into a parking space and everybody listened as he answered the phone. "Hello?" He paused for a minute. "What? Are you fucking kidding me?" There was another pause as he listened again. "All right, man, we're on our way. Don't worry, we'll get those sons of bitches." He closed the phone. "Jae, get out of the car and go to school, OK?"
Haley nodded with tears in her eyes. "You guys will be OK, right?"
Lucas pulled her into a quick hug. "Of course we will. We always are. And we will be back in time to pick you up after school, OK?
"OK. I love you guys." She got out of the car and watched as three of the most important guys in her life screeched away, not knowing if any of them would come back. Haley absolutely hated that Lucas was part of a gang known as the ADVs. But it made him happy, so who was she to complain?
Author's Note: OK, there's the first chapter. What do you think? This was to show a little bit of the differences between the characters, and so will the next chapter. Then we'll get into the real DRAMA. Someone asked why I made the characters so different from the characters we know and love. There are a lot of hidden secrets in both families that will come out as we go further into the story. These secrets have shaped how Brooke, Nathan, Haley and Lucas act and once they come out, putting an end to them could make things better. Or it could make them a lot worse. Keep reading and find out!
