Chapter 7
Haley sat on Nathan's couch with Jamie while he watched a TV show, glancing at her phone and letting out a small sigh. Nathan was running late, and about an hour ago he had called her and said that he would be there soon, and told them just to go inside. But he still wasn't there. And it didn't help that the sky was being filled with dark clouds. It had yet to rain or anything, but it was supposed to get a little crazy, so it would give her a little peace of mind if Nathan was home. And as soon as he got home, she could go home herself, and have the quiet night she planned. She loved having Jamie around, but lately he'd been bombarding her with extra questions, despite the fact that Nathan claimed he talked to him about it. She just needed a night to breathe.
Jamie looked up at his mother, pointing at the TV. "Are you watching?"
"Yes, sweetie." Haley laughed, rubbing Jamie's back for a second.
After a minute of silence, Jamie turned to her. "Are you going to marry Jesse?"
She blinked quickly, looking down at him. "Jamie, I'm far from marrying anyone." She said softly, brushing her fingers through his hair.
"Maybe you can marry Daddy." He said, shrugging slightly and looking back at the TV.
She let out a deep sigh, kissing Jamie's head. "I love you, baby." She said, shaking her head.
"Why aren't you married to him?" He questioned her for the millionth time, frowning.
She looked down at him again, hugging him into her side. "Because getting married wasn't the right thing to do."
"Grandma told me stories about when you guys were in high school. Why don't you tell me stories?" He asked her, sighing softly.
"I don't know. I tell you stories about Uncle Lucas." She said, shrugging slightly.
Jamie let out a deep sigh, leaning back against the couch and looking up at the TV.
She looked down at her son, grabbing the TV remote and turning down the volume. "What do you want to know, Jamie?"
"I want to know how you became friends." Jamie said simply, shrugging and looking at her with a big grin on his face.
Haley turned to him, crossing her legs on the couch and facing her son. "Well, your dad... He was a little different than he is now. He didn't like Lucas very much. Lucas didn't like him, and I didn't like him. When we first met, he was, um... Dating Aunt Peyton."
Jamie looked up at her with wide eyes, "He dated Aunt Peyton?" He asked, blinking at her.
"Yeah." She laughed, smiling at her son. "Anyways, your dad is very smart, Jamie. But he wasn't the best when it came to school. So he needed a lot of help, and when I ended up being assigned to be his tutor. I was pretty upset because I didn't like him very much. At first I said no, but eventually he wore me down and I agreed. I told him that he had to leave Lucas alone though."
"What happened after that?" Jamie asked her, smiling at her.
"Well, he was late on the very first day." Haley laughed, shaking her head. "He brought some coffee and food, and he gave me this silly little bracelet and said the phrase 'Don't say I never gave you anything.' And I was mad at him, and pretty much told him that I wasn't going to do this if he pulled stuff like this I wasn't going to help him anymore. And that I didn't care that he was Nathan Scott, basketball superstar. I was only here to tutor him." She said, shrugging. "And it took some time, but he didn't bug Luke as much, and he really started to open up to me and tell me things about himself. And we just became friends, and eventually him and Lucas did too."
Jamie smiled, nodding at her. "I like when you tell me stories better. Grandma doesn't know as much as you." He said, shrugging slightly.
"Grandma likes to make up a lot too." Haley said, shaking her head. She knew that her mother missed Nathan dearly, and a lot of times when she dropped by she would go check in on her nearly son-in-law to make sure he was doing alright. Haley had spoken to her mother many times about being careful with the things she says around Jamie, but it never seemed to help.
"Does Daddy have a girlfriend?" Jamie questioned her, glancing over at the TV.
Haley let out a deep breath, studying her son's face for a moment. She inwardly rolled her eyes, honestly hating the answer to that question. It wasn't because Nathan had a girlfriend, or whatever she was. But she just couldn't stand the fact that it was Carrie. Thankfully, since Jamie asked this question, odds were he hadn't ran into her yet. She met Jamie's eyes again, smiling slightly. "I think that's a question you better ask him instead." She said softly, flattening out his hair. "Come cuddle with me before he gets here." She hummed, turning to face the TV again and pulling Jamie into her side, hugging him close.
After a few minutes, Nathan walked into his house, tossing his keys on the kitchen counter. "Hey, sorry it took so long. It was supposed to be a short trip there and back but I ran into some drama." He said, letting out a deep breath.
Jamie ran over to him, hugging him tightly. "Hey!" He yelled, smiling brightly.
Nathan scooped him up, hugging him close. "You saw me yesterday, Jamie." He laughed, smiling at him.
"I know, but I missed you." Jamie said simply, attempting to wink at him.
Nathan laughed, setting him down on the ground, ruffling his hair a bit. "I like being missed."
Haley stood up, letting out a small sigh. "Hi Nathan." She said, nodding at him.
"Hales." He responded, clearing his throat and smiling at her.
"Hey! Let's go outside. Please, please, please? Before it starts raining? Please?" Jamie begged him, tugging on his arm softly.
"Sure thing, Jame. I just need to talk to your mom real quick." Nathan said, nodding slowly, looking out side. It was getting dark. "Stay where we can see you." He added, smiling slightly at him.
Jamie nodded, waving at his parents and rushing outside.
Haley raised her eyebrows at Nathan, crossing her arms. "What do we need to talk about?"
Nathan looked at her, shoving his hands into his pockets. "How was your day first?"
"It was fine. What is it, Nathan? I need to get going." She said, nodding at him.
He sighed softly, "I didn't want to just jump into this, Haley. So... Tell me about your day."
"I played with a five year old all day. How was your day?" She gave in, sighing softly.
"I have to work with my ex-girlfriend for the Rainstorm Body Spray stuff, and that's never fun. And she was being especially unprofessional today. So we'll see what happens. And I wanted nothing more than to come home and spend time with my son. Which is my transition to my next idea. I wanted to come home to my son, but I realized that he was a plane ride away." Nathan began, letting out a deep breath.
Haley raised her eyebrows, leaning against the arm of the couch, nodding at him expectantly.
"I think that maybe you and Jamie should move to Charlotte." He said simply, shrugging. "I've been thinking about it a lot lately."
She frowned, thinking about his words for a second, letting out a small sigh. "I don't think so, Nathan."
"Haley, why not?" He said, rubbing the back of his head.
She stood up straight, taking a step towards him. "Well, my job is here, Nathan."
"Yeah, but my job is in Charlotte." He retaliated, sighing softly.
"Yes, but you're gone for most of the year, Nathan. Jamie is with me most of the time, so shouldn't I get to live where I'm comfortable?" She questioned him, scowling.
He crossed his arms, shaking his head. "The reason he's with you most of the time is because I can't fly all the way to Tree Hill every day! I'd see him way more if you lived closer. Plus he'd get to go to more games."
"All his friends are here. All my friends are here." She argued, shaking her head.
"He'd make new friends, and so would you. Come on, Haley. I'm missing everything. I missed his first words, and his first steps. I don't like to miss things. He's starting kindergarten soon and I want to be apart of that." He said, stepping closer to her, resting his hand on her shoulder.
"I gave up my dream school to follow you to Duke, Nathan. Why should I keep postponing what I want so that you can have what you want?" She asked him, rolling her eyes and shoving his hand off, glancing out glass door, seeing Jamie bouncing his rubber basketball.
"I didn't ask you to do that, Haley! I would've gone with you in a heartbeat, but that doesn't even matter right now. But I'm asking you to do this. It might be hard, but I miss Jamie so much, and it would make the summers easier too. I could come home to my son instead of coming home to an empty house and then flying back to Tree Hill a week later." He said, letting out a deep breath.
"Nathan, you'd still get home from games super late, and he'd be at my house more than yours anyways. You come to Tree Hill on all of your days off, so you still see him as much as you would." She pointed out, rolling her eyes.
"Haley, you're not being fair! It's not fair that he gets to stay in Tree Hill with you all year." He argued with her, sighing loudly.
"We agreed on this, Nathan!" Haley frowned at him, poking his chest. "We agreed this would be best for him. He's surrounded by people that care about him here, but in Charlotte he would be alone."
"He would have me. And you." Nathan snapped to her, shaking his head. "He would have plenty of other people that care about him too."
"This is our home, Nathan! It's my home, it's your home. It's his home. I want my son to grow up here." Haley replied, narrowing her eyes at him.
"He's our son! I should get to make decisions too." He growled out.
"Yeah, well you can go-" Haley stopped when she looked outside again, "Where's Jamie?" She asked, frowning at stepping forward.
Nathan followed her gaze, his eyes widening as he ran outside, Haley hot on his heels. There Jamie was, floating face down in the pool. He felt his heart pound in his chest, jumping in the pool quickly and grabbing his son, unable to hear anything but Haley's sobs and the thump of his own heart. He quickly set Jamie on the concrete next to the pool, watching Haley scoop up their son and slap his face a couple of times. Nathan climbed up next to her, watching the scene play out in front of him.
After a few seconds, Jamie coughed up water, and Haley felt herself fall apart. Nothing seemed important to her at that moment. Not the fight her and Nathan were just having, not going home and relaxing, nothing but the small child in her arms. She could feel her heart pound, and more tears flow as Jamie started to cry, hugging her tightly.
Nathan stared down at Jamie with a terrified expression, unable to speak or move. He let out a deep breath, coming to his senses and wrapping his arms tightly around the two people in front of him, pulling Haley and Jamie into his chest, closing his eyes tightly, his eyes filling with tears as he listened to them both sob. If Haley had not noticed Jamie, this could've ended very badly. He didn't even want to think about the pain he would've felt. These two people in his arms, they were the most important people in his life. He cared about them both so much. Nothing was more important than their family. He let out a deep breath, kissing the top of Haley's head and rubbing Jamie's back softly.
They sat there for a few minutes, clinging to each other as though their lives depended on it, until it started to rain. It was a light rainfall at first, barely noticeable. But once it got heavier, Nathan stood up, helping Haley to her feet, who was still clutching Jamie to her, shaking slightly. He kissed her head once more, resting her hand on his back and guiding her inside.
Haley let out a deep breath, gripping Jamie's t-shirt tightly, biting down on her lip, looking at Nathan. "Should we take him to the hospital?" She whispered, bursting into another round of sobs.
Nathan shook his head slowly, unable to respond to her. He let out a deep breath, swallowing loudly and wrapping his arms around his family once again, Jamie sandwiched in between the two of them.
Again, it took them a few moments to move from this position, all three of them shivering. Not from being cold though, but from the fear of what could've happened.
Nathan finally spoke, in a hushed voice. "Take him upstairs and change him into pajamas." He said softly, nodding at her, brushing his hand over Jamie's head. He kissed the top of Jamie's head softly, letting out a deep breath. "I'm going to change too."
Haley nodded slowly, looking up at Nathan for a second, before looking down at their son, turning and heading up the stairs.
Nathan followed after her, watching her walk into Jamie's room, before heading into his own room, breathing heavily. He changed quickly, setting a pair of sweats and a t-shirt on the bed for Haley, just in case she wanted to change. He pressed his face into his hands, squeezing his eyes shut. He should've been watching their son better. This was his and Haley's most prized possession, and they just let him go outside on his own. What the hell was he thinking? He could feel his heart breaking at the memory of his son crying, as well as the look on Haley's face when he pulled him out of the water. If he hadn't decided that now was the perfect time to speak to Haley, he would've been outside with his son. This would not have happened. He could feel himself beginning to hyperventilate, his chest feeling as though it was constricting, and his head was spinning.
He sat there for a few minutes, his head down, feeling overwhelmed by anger at himself, sorrow for his son and for Haley, pain for what could've happened. A gentle knock on his door brought him out of his thoughts. He stood up quickly, pulling it open slowly. He looked down at Haley, who was holding Jamie close to her, his head rested on her shoulder. He looked pretty big in her arms, but Nathan knew she didn't care.
"Hey." Haley said to him, kissing Jamie's head softly.
"Hey. I uh, I thought maybe you'd want to change clothes." He said, gesturing to her. "I have some, and they'll be way too big but it's better than wearing wet clothes. I can take him."
She bit her lip, hugging Jamie tighter to her and sniffling. "I'm fine." She said softly, letting out a deep breath.
Nathan looked at her, before disappearing into his room again. He reappeared holding up a pair of gray sweats and a black, long sleeve Duke shirt. It was one of the shirts that she had claimed as her own when they were in high school. He always kept it, but never wore it again. "He'll be fine, Hales. I promise. I've got him." He assured her quietly.
Haley looked at him for a second, looking at the clothes in his hand. She nodded slowly, shifting Jamie from her arms to Nathan's. "I'll be just a minute, okay?" She said softly to her son, kissing his head. After hesitating for a moment, she nodded again, taking the clothes for Nathan and walking into the bathroom.
Nathan held Jamie close to him, looking down at his son. "Hey buddy. Why don't we go watch a movie?" He suggested, rubbing his back softly. "Mom will be down super quick."
Jamie nodded against his neck, hugging Nathan tightly, gripping his shirt collar.
Nathan let out a deep breath, walking down the stairs slowly, sitting down on the couch, turning Jamie so he was facing the TV. "You're alright, buddy. I'm here." He said softly, rubbing his back. "I'm here, and I'll protect you." He assured his son, pulling his head back to rest on his shoulder. "How does Cars sound, huh? You like Cars."
Jamie nodded at him, his bottom lip quivering slightly.
Nathan couldn't stand to watch Jamie cry anymore. He was about to lose his control on his own body and let the flood gates loose if his son let out another tear. "Hey, hey. You're okay, Jame." He said, hugging him tightly. "Do you want to go see everything that I bought yesterday? I bought all your favorite things." He said quickly, scooping Jamie up and walking into the kitchen. "Look, I bought chocolate ice cream." He said quickly. "Not Rocky Road. Chocolate, just for you." He informed him, opening the freezer. The fact that he son had yet to say a single word scared the hell out of him. But he knew that this was his time to be strong for Jamie and for Haley. "I bought chicken nuggets too. The ones that are dinosaur shaped." He said, pointing them out to Jamie.
Jamie rested his head on Nathan's shoulder, looking at the things he pointed out.
Nathan let out a deep breath, pulling open the fridge. "Look, I bought some Mountain Dew. But you can't tell Mom about that one, okay? That one is our secret." He chuckled to his son, his voice shaking a little bit. "I bought some fruit roll ups, and a lot of fruit snacks. Everything you like."
After a second, Jamie looked up at him. "What else did you buy?" He asked him softly.
Nathan smiled down at his son, "I bought some Oreos, and some Captain Crunch. Pudding. Everything that I thought you would like. Do you want anything right now?"
Jamie nodded, pointing at the Oreos and letting out a deep breath.
Nathan smiled slightly, quickly opening the cupboard and grabbing them off the shelf. "Good choice." He said, walking back into the living room and setting Jamie down on the couch, sitting next to him, setting the cookies on the coffee table, opening them and handing him a few.
Haley came down a short while later, sitting down next to Jamie on the couch, kissing the top of his head and letting out a deep breath.
Jamie leaned into her, his lip quivering again, a fresh batch of tears building in his eyes.
Nathan stood up quickly, shaking his head. He picked up the remote, turning on the movie Cars. "Jamie, watch the movie." He said softly, sitting back down. "Please." He said, wrapping his arm around Jamie, resting his hand on Haley's arm gently.
Haley looked over at Nathan, letting out a deep breath and nodding at him slowly, biting her lip. She was terrified. She was so scared at the thought of losing her baby, she wasn't sure if she'd ever feel peace again. But for some reason, Nathan's hand on her arm helped. The fact that he was probably freaking out inside, but remained strong, helped. His presence was helping her. The way that he was acting with Jamie, was helping her. She looked down at Jamie, who was watching the movie, cuddled up into her side. "I love you, Jamie." She whispered, nuzzling her nose into his hair.
"I love you too." Jamie said quietly, closing his eyes for a second, before blinking them open and looking at the TV again.
Eventually, Jamie did fall asleep. It was nearing eleven when he did. Both Nathan and Haley sat there silently while he slept, watching him, occasionally making eye contact with one another.
Nathan spoke first, standing up slowly. "I think I'm going to out him in my bed tonight." He said softly, nodding at Haley. "Maybe you should stay the night. The storm is getting bad, I'm sure. And it's late."
Haley nodded at him, letting out a deep breath. "Okay." She said softly, rubbing Jamie's shoulder.
He gently picked up Jamie, letting out a deep breath and walking up the stairs slowly, Haley trailing along behind him. He set the sleeping boy down in his bed slowly, smoothing out his hair and studying his face for a second.
Haley leaned over, kissing Jamie's forehead, letting out a deep sigh. She turned to face Nathan a second later, looking up at him and biting her lip.
Nathan took a very brief moment to admire how she looked in his clothes, before he met her gaze. Within seconds, he had pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly to his chest.
Haley lost it again when Nathan hugged her, wrapping her arms tightly around him, letting herself fall apart and sob into his neck.
He rubbed her back softly, shaking his head. "He's safe, Haley." He said softly to her. "He's alright."
"I know, but what if..." She began, gripping his shirt tightly.
"Shh, stop it." He assured her, tilting her chin up an pressing a delicate kiss to her forehead.
She closed her eyes, letting out a deep breath. "We need to stop this, Nathan. I know it was my idea, but we need to stop the arguing, and the bitterness."
Nathan nodded at her, letting out a deep sigh. "I know." He responded, hugging her tightly to him. He rested his chin on top of her head, looking over at Jamie.
"Thank you for being the strong one tonight." She said to him, rubbing his back lightly.
"Of course." He whispered, smiling slightly. "You guys are my family, Haley. We may be a little screwed up, but you're still the two most important people in my life. I'd do anything to protect you guys. Never doubt that."
She nodded at him, letting out a deep breath. "I don't, Nathan. I never would."
"Stay in here tonight, Hales. I think Jamie would like to wake up to you. I'll sleep on the floor, or take the couch. Whatever." He said quietly, nodding over at Jamie.
Haley turned from him for a moment, before grabbing onto his hand, interlocking their fingers for a brief second. "We could both stay in here. I'm sure he'd like his Dad there as well." She suggested quietly, looking up at him.
Nathan met her gaze once more, letting out a slightly shaky breath. "Yeah, alright." He said quietly, nodding at her. "Let me just go lock all the doors and make sure the lights are turned off. I have a new toothbrush and stuff underneath my bathroom sink." He said, before rushing out of the room.
When he returned, Haley was already laying in bed next to Jamie. She was laying on her side, facing their son, gently brushing her fingers through the hair on top of his head.
Nathan got ready for bed, walking out of his bathroom and looking at the two people on the bed. This was not the best idea, he was sure of it. But it's what they both needed, and maybe Jamie too. Each other.
He climbed into bed next to Jamie, looking over at Haley and letting out a deep breath. "Just like you to give me the side closest to the door." He said, smirking slightly.
She rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "Hey, you're the big, strong basketball player." She reminded him, shrugging slightly.
"Fair point." He responded, laying back against the bed, staring up at the ceiling. He looked over every once and awhile to see if Haley was still awake, and she was. Honestly, he wasn't sure how he was supposed to sleep after coming that close to losing their son. But it would happen eventually.
Haley did fall asleep after a little while, her arm gently draped over Jamie. When she did, Nathan turned on his side and looked at the two people in front of him, letting out a deep breath. They were asleep, and alive. He could feel himself relax a little but, a small smile on his fact. After a few minutes of listening to their steady breathing, sleep found him.
