"Come on, Haley. You've been working all week. I miss you. Let's go out tonight," Peyton pleaded, tugging onto Haley's hand. Haley groaned. It was true, she had worked all week. But it wasn't her fault. Nathan's schedule was hectic and she had to keep up. Everyday, she was bombarded with paperwork and annoying clients. On top of that, she had to follow Nathan everywhere like a little lost puppy. It was exhausting. And attending functions with him was another thing.

flashback:

Haley peered up from her desk to find Nathan looking down at her.

"Yes?" she asked politely.

"We need to go," he said abruptly. She scrunched her forehead, confused.

"Go? Go where?"

"Didn't you get that text message I sent you?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I--My phone broke," she told him.

He sighed, annoyed. "Well, anyway, today's my mom's charity banquet. I need you to go with me."

"Wh-what? Why?" She panicked. She wasn't the type to attend any banquet, or attend them with Nathan Scott.

"Don't be silly. I just need you there because there will be clients there and potential ones as well. This is more of a business matter than anything else, James," he snorted at her reaction.

She scowled softly, embarrassed and frustrated at Nathan's reply. He sure was convincing.

"We don't have all day, James," he pointed out. Haley hated it when he called her by her last name. It made her feel demoted. Like he was so high and mighty that he had the right to call her by her last name. When she first protested, he just laughed it off and said that with a one syllable name, it's easier to remember. What's so hard about Haley? It's not like it was hard to say, even a person with lisp would be able to pronounce it clearly.

"James?" he looked at her once more.

Haley nodded reluctantly. "Alright."

As soon as she arrived, she felt out of place. They had arrived at the Hilton Hotel banquet hall. Her eyes bulged out as she saw the image in front of her. The room was lavishly decorated with wild exotic flowers, ice sculptures, beautifully designed tables that held decorative food, with even live music playing. She looked around and noticed that she felt like she once did when she was working with Peyton at her catering job. Everyone was dressed in Gucci, Prada, names that she could never afford to wear with two months paycheck combined. Here she was still in her work suit (that she borrowed from Peyton) standing in the middle of the room surrounded by beautiful, rich, and powerful people. Her ego just dropped a notch or two. She was brought back to the scene, with a warm feeling in her back. Before she knew it, she was being pushed forward by Nathan's hand. She glanced up at him and realized he had his arm around her. She blushed slightly but tried to back away from him.

"Don't worry. Everything's going to be okay," he whispered down at her. She looked up at him. Was it concern that she saw in his eyes? Did he sense her nervousness? If he did, is this his way of showing that he cared? Oh, her heart started skipping.

"Are you okay?" he asked leaning down towards her. He was so close, she could feel him breathing on her. She was going to have a heart attack right then.

"Brooke!" Nathan lifted his head and walked away. Haley's heart dropped. Brooke was there? This night couldn't get any worse. Brooke hated her, and for some strange reason, she felt compelled to please her, make her like her. It was twisted in the sense that Haley had never felt the need to please anyone. She was always on her own, doing things her way and living life to her own measures. But with Brooke around, she found herself on her best behavior, and trying to ease the tension between them two as much as possible.

She watched as Nathan and Brooke converse and occasionally caught the disgusted look on Brooke's face but smiled in return. Soon Nathan returned and together they greeted the guests that they past by. Haley smiled as much as possible to hide the fact that she hated it there, but to her surprise, she didn't hate it as much as she thought she would. Occasionally, Nathan would look down at her and smile a reassuring smile that made her heart melt or he would place his hand at the back of her guiding her through the room. Her head was spinning from his Jekyll and Hyde personality. What was he doing to her? Overall, her first "business function" went fine. Many more came, and she survived perfectly. But of course, Nathan was always by her side.

"Haley?"

"Haley?"

Haley blinked in confusion.

"Hales, you just totally spaced out on me. What were you thinking about?" Peyton asked raising her eyebrow in suspicion.

"N-nothing," she stammer. "Just deciding whether or not I should go." Haley crossed her arm across her chest and turned away from Peyton.

"Hales, don't play with me. Are you going or do I have to drag you?" Peyton placed her arms on her hips and smirked.

"Oh, alright. Just let me change," Haley said throwing her arms up in defeat.


"So tell me, where are we going again? Remember that I'm not 21 yet." Haley said looking out the car window. She turned around to face Peyton in the cab with her.

"Don't worry. This guy, I just met, Brian, well, he tells me there is this hot club that just opened and told me to meet him there. I'm sure he'll hook us up. Besides, I don't want to go alone, in case he turns out to be a total nut case. I need you to be my emergency excuse," Peyton explained.

Haley rolled her eyes. She knows this routine all too well. It just recently stopped because she was with Jake.

"What happened to Jake?" Haley asked, biting on her lip. Peyton's face fell and she pressed her lips together.

"He broke up with me a couple of days ago," Peyton said, her voice suddenly almost inaudible.

"Oh, Peyton, I'm so sorry," Haley said engulfing her in a hug. "I didn't know."

Peyton chuckled sadly. "It's fine. I'm fine. I mean, his loss, right?"

Haley pulled away from her and nodded in agreement.

"Right. He's a dumb ass for letting you go, Peyt. You deserve much better. Much, much better," Haley consoled her.

Peyton laughed. "Thanks." The car suddenly came to a stop. "Looks like where here."