Haley leaned her back against the kitchen counter, curled up in a ball, still crying. She had been sitting there for hours now. The sun had set and the whole apartment was in darkness for she was too drained to get up and switch on the lights. She looked around the apartment, watching the shadows when her eyes fell on a photo frame Nathan had left in the apartment when he moved out.

It was the picture of the two of them on their wedding day. Haley's eyes filled up and she bent her head down and started sobbing again.

"I'm sorry" she cried, her words muffled. She let out a sob. "I'm sorry". Her body started shaking as she once again started crying.

The noise and laughter coming from outside the apartment finally made her stop. The front door opened and Brooke and Lucas came in, laughing and talking very loudly. She squeezed herself against the counter, hoping that they wouldn't notice her. Brooke reached for the light switch and the whole apartment was instantly brightened.

"Do you have any soda?" Lucas asked Brooke, making his way to the fridge.

"Um…I think so. Try the top shelf" Brooke said, walking towards the coat closet to stuff her coat in.

Lucas opened the fridge and grabbed two cans of soda. He turned around and jumped when he saw Haley hiding behind the kitchen counter.

"Haley! Why are you hiding there?" Lucas asked, walking towards her. He noticed her puffy eyes and her tear stained cheeks. "Oh, Hales" he said, softly kneeling on the floor beside her.

"I'm fine" Haley said, wiping her face with the sleeve of her shirt.

"What happened, Hales?" Lucas asked, wrapping his arms around her. Haley leaned her face against his shoulder and started sobbing again.

"Hey, Luke. You hungry?" Brooke asked, walking back to the kitchen. "Haley?"

Haley raised her head and looked at Brooke who was standing over her with concern.

"Aw, Tutor Girl, what happened?" Brooke asked, squatting on the other side of Haley.

Haley took a deep breathe, trying to calm herself. She pulled away from Lucas.

"Nathan brought the…annulment papers" Haley started. She stifled back a sob. "And I signed them". She looked down, not trusting herself to speak anymore.

"Oh, Haley" Brooke sad, giving her a hug.

"I'm fine, Brooke, really but I'm really hungry" Haley said, forcing a laugh.

"I'll go buy us some food" Brooke said, standing up and grabbing her purse. She made her way to the front door and just before she left, she turned to look at Hales. "You going to be okay, Hales?" she asked, concerned.

"I'm fine, thanks Brooke" Haley said, unconvincingly. Brooke looked unsure.

"I'll watch over her, Brooke" Lucas said, putting his arm over Haley's shoulders.

As soon as Brooke left, Lucas asked "You want to talk about it?"

Haley shook her head mutely, staring into space.

"I'm here, okay, Hales" he said, hugging her.

Haley buried her head into Lucas's shoulders and started sobbing again.

"It'll be okay, Haley. It'll be okay" Lucas said, soothingly.

"He's gone, Luke" she cried. "He's gone".

--------------------

"Hey, where's Haley" Brooke asked half an hour later when she returned with plastic bags filled with junk food.

"Oh, hey Brooke" Lucas said, standing up and switching off the television. "She's sleeping".

Lucas helped Brooke carry the plastic bags to the kitchen counter, while looking through them.

"You got 10 cartons of Ben and Jerry's?" Lucas asked, dropping the plastic bags onto the table.

"Well, yeah! Major heartbreak equals major ice-cream. Dude, don't you read Teen Girl?" Brooke asked, carrying the ice-cream to the fridge. She stuffed them disorderly into the fridge then walked back and surveyed her handiwork.

Lucas grinned then said "Anyway, I'm going to go and check on Nathan. See how he's taking this".

"Oh my God! I forgot about him" Brooke said, slapping her hand onto her forehead. "You should go now before he tries to kill himself again".

Lucas chuckled then said goodbye and walked out of the apartment. As he closed the door, he remembered the number of times he had been in that apartment in the past few months trying to console Nathan or at least get him to eat and sleep. He realized that Brooke might not have been kidding when she said 'before he tries to kill himself again'.

------------

Nathan looked down at the water. It looked so peaceful, so calm. He wondered if he would ever feel that way.

"I've been looking for you" Lucas said, walking up to him. Nathan didn't answer. They stood together in silence upon the bridge, the moon shining above them, providing the only source of light.

"I heard about the annulment" Lucas said, breaking the silence.

Nathan still didn't answer. He ignored Lucas and just continued to stare at the water.

"Hey, man. You okay?" Lucas asked, looking at his younger brother with concern.

Nathan looked at Lucas and it was then Lucas noticed the empty look in his brother's eyes. Nathan looked back at the water, then without warning, he leaped up onto the railing.

"What the hell are you doing" Lucas shouted, grabbing onto him so he wouldn't fall.

"Come on, Luke! Try it! Woohoo!" Nathan exclaimed, not even bothering to balance himself.

"Get down, you idiot!" Lucas said, holding onto him. Nathan leaned towards the water and would have fallen if Lucas had pulled him back. Nathan tripped backwards and whacked his head against the floor of the bridge. He exclaimed in pain when his head connected with the floor.

"You okay, man?" Lucas asked, walking towards Nathan and kneeling next to him.

"She's gone, man" Nathan said, not bothering to lift his head up. "She signed it and she's gone".

"Come on, Nate. Get up" Lucas said, holding out his hand to Nathan. Nathan ignored it and lifted up his head. He looked away then back at Lucas.

"She's gone, Luke" he said, helplessly. Then he held his head in his hands and cried.

-----------------------

"Hey, how's Nathan?" Brooke asked when Lucas returned an hour later.

"Not good. I had to take him home. Deb was there so I let her take care of him" Lucas said, sitting down next to Brooke.

"Haley hasn't woken up yet. Should we be worried?" Brooke asked, biting her lip.

Lucas was about to answer when they heard footsteps coming from the bedroom. They looked up and saw Haley walking towards them. Her eyes were puffy and she looked a mess but she had finally stopped crying.

"Hey, you. You okay?" Lucas asked, walking up to her.

"I'm fine. Thanks you guys" she said quietly. She walked over to the couch and sat down next to Brooke. Lucas sat on the coffee table, opposite her.

"Any time, Haley" Brooke said, patting her on the back. Haley didn't say anything for a moment. Then, she said, still looking down "I made a decision".

"About what?" Lucas asked her, surprised.

Haley looked at Brooke then at Lucas. Then she said "I'm going back on tour".