Author's Note : Hey everyone, thank you for all the reviews I've been getting on this story. I know the last few chapters were pretty short, so here's a long one for ya. I'm gonna try to make the next few just as long, if not longer. I hope you like this one, it has some Naley in it. Read and Review Please!


Welcome Back Dance

It was a week after they had got home from California and the first day of the new semester. Haley was walking to her locker when someone came up behind her, making her jump. "Morning." Nathan said happily as he caught up to Haley.

Haley looked at Nathan and shook her head. "How can you possibly be so cheerful at this time of day?" She asked as she stopped at her locker.

Nathan shrugged and leaned against the locker beside Haley's. "So, there having this welcome back dance or whatever, and I was wondering if you wanted to go…we could make it a group thing."

Haley looked over at Nathan and laughed. "Right, a group thing, with Brooke and Lucas, who are a couple, and Jake and Peyton, who are also a couple."

Nathan sighed. "Okay, but we would still be going as a group."

Haley raised her brow. "I wasn't planning on going."

Nathan stood up straight with a shocked look on his face. "What?"

"Well, school dances aren't really my thing. You know that."

"There not my thing either, but Lucas and Brooke said I had to go, which means you have to go."

"And why do I have to go?" She asked as she shut her locker and turned to face Nathan.

"Because I'm not going alone."

"Who said you have to go alone?" She asked as they started to walk down the hall. "Why don't you ask one of the girls who you know are just wishing you would ask them."

Nathan sighed. "Because. I don't want to go with any of them. I want to go with you. Plus, Brooke is trying to get any opportunity to take pictures to put in that scrapbook Lucas gave her, which if I remember correctly, you helped make."

They stopped outside of Haley's class. She sighed and looked at Nathan. "I'll think about it." She said before turning and walking into her classroom.

"That's all I'm asking." Nathan said to her then headed towards his own class.

Brooke was arguing with Peyton as Haley walked towards their table at lunch. "P. Sawyer, you can not get out of this. You have to go. Please."

Peyton looked at Brooke exasperated. "Fine, I'll go…but only if Haley goes."

Haley looked up at Peyton as she sat down. "If I go where?"

"To the welcome back dance." Brooke said, turning to look at Haley.

Haley rolled her eyes. "Come on, Brooke. Why don't we all just do something else that night together?"

"Because, it's a chance for all of us to get all dressed up and have some fun. Which makes for great pictures."

"I wouldn't exactly call paying a ton of money for a dress that I am only going to wear one night and be uncomfortable in fun."

Peyton nodded. "I agree."

"Please guys. We can go shopping and find something that you won't be uncomfortable in. And if it's too much, then I'll pay for it."

Haley looked over at Brooke and how desperate she was. "Fine. But you are not paying for my dress."

Brooke clapped her hands together and smiled at Peyton, who rolled her eyes. "Thanks Haley. You were my last hope."

Haley laughed. "Sorry. Plus, Nathan was asking me to go earlier."

Brooke looked at Peyton and smiled. "So your going with Nathan?"

Haley shrugged. "I guess so."

Peyton smiled and looked over Haley's shoulder. "Speaking of the devil and his boys"
Haley turned and looked at Nathan, Lucas, and Jake, who were walking towards them and laughed. "Good one."

Nathan sat beside Haley as Jake and Lucas sat beside their girlfriends. "What's a good one?"

Brooke shook her head. "Nothing. Oh, Haley agreed to go to the dance."

Nathan looked at Haley and grinned. "Really?"

Haley glared at Brooke then nodded. "Yeah, but I was forced into it." She said as she threw a piece of bread at Brooke.

"Hey!" Brooke exclaimed.

Lucas laughed at his friends. "I think it will be fun."

Jake nodded in agreement. "Me too."

Peyton glared playfully at Jake. "Your not helping any."

They all laughed. "Okay, so we're going shopping after school?" Brooke asked Peyton and Haley.

"I can't, I have to work. I close tonight."

"Okay, so what about tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I might be able to get off early. I'll ask Karen tonight."

Brooke smiled at Haley for a moment then turned her attention to Lucas.

A few hours later, Haley walked into Karen's café and smiled weakly at Karen. "Hi." She said shortly before walking back behind the counter to put her things away and grabbed her apron.

Karen smiled at Haley. "Hi, Haley. How was the first day back at school?"

Haley sighed. "It was okay. Karen I have to ask you a question…"

Karen smiled. "It's already been worked out. You can either leave early or come in late tomorrow to go shopping and you have the night off for the dance."

Haley stared at Karen with her mouth open. "How…"

Karen laughed lightly. "Brooke got here before you did. Then Nathan came in and made his speak about the whole thing."

Haley closed her mouth and smiled. "I should of known." She said refilling a customers coffee then turned back to Karen. "What did Nathan say?" She asked curiously.

Karen raised an eyebrow at Haley then smiled warmly. "Just that it was really important to Brooke and if I needed any help, he would come in."

"Really?" Haley said, shocked.

Karen nodded. "Yeah, really." She said, thinking to herself that her son had it really bad for Haley.

The next day went by pretty quickly. As Haley walked through the halls of Tree Hill High with Peyton to meet Brooke out front, she sighed. "Why is it that time moves faster when you're dreading something?" She asked, looking sideways at Peyton.

Peyton laughed. "Oh come on, Haley. You know as well as I do that you're as excited about this as Brooke." Haley threw Peyton a look. "Okay, so maybe not as much as Brooke, but you can't deny that your excited about going with Nathan."

Haley sighed. "Yeah, I mean, I always have a great time with Nathan…and the rest of you. I just don't understand why we can't just do something else." Haley said with a pout.

Peyton laughed and put her arm around Haley. A few minutes later, they were walking up to Brooke outside in the school parking lot. Brooke smiled broadly and waved. "Hey, you two ready to find the perfect dresses for each of us?"

Haley groaned and Peyton laughed. "Let's get this over with, Tigger."

Brooke sighed then got into her car, followed by Haley and Peyton. By the time they got to the mall, Haley was slightly more cheerful. The three friends went into a few different stores before finding one with lots of really beautiful formal dresses.

"Oh, Peyton, this one would look great on you." She said, holding up a black strapless dress.

Peyton turned and looked at the dress for a minute. "Jake has forbidden me from wearing black to this thing."

Brooke smiled. "I knew I like that boy."

Haley and Peyton laughed together. After a few hours of looking and trying on many dresses, each girl had found the one that they liked. As they drove to the café to drop Haley off, they talked excitedly about the dance. Brooke pulled over on the side of the street in front of the café and turned to Haley. "So, I'm going to take your dress to my place, then Friday, we're going to all get ready there, right."

Haley nodded. "Right, I gotta go. Later." She said to both girls then got off and walked into the café.

On Friday, after school all three girls went over to Brooke's house to get ready. Brooke had just got done doing Haley's hair and make up and both her and Peyton were waiting for Haley to come out of the bathroom with her dress on. Brooke walked over to the bathroom door and knocked. "Hales, come on"

Haley was looking at herself in the mirror. "I don't want to go anymore."

Brooke turned and looked at Peyton then banged on the door. "You get out here right now Tutor Girl, or we're breaking down this door."

Haley sighed and turned the lock on the door. Brooke had stepped back to let Haley walk out and when she did, her mouth dropped open. "Damn, you're hot."

Peyton nodded her head in agreement as she looked on at Haley, who had her hair pulled halfway up with her long light brown locks falling down around her neck and her bangs framing her face. She was wearing a sleek white, strapless dress that came down to the middle of her knees and had black trim at the top. "Nathan isn't gonna know what hit him." Peyton finally said with a smile.

Haley smiled back at her two friends. "You sure I look okay?"

Brooke took a deep breath. "Okay? Haley, you look stunning."

Haley took a refreshing breath then smiled. "Okay, your turn." She said looking at Peyton then stepped aside for her to walk into the bathroom.

Haley and Brooke walked back into her room and as Brooke sat down to finish her make up, Haley smiled at Brooke. "Hey, thanks for convincing me to go…"

Brooke laughed. "You mean forcing you?"

Haley laughed. "Yeah…"

A few minutes later, Peyton walked into Brooke's room and smiled. Brooke had saw Peyton walking in through the mirror and turned. "Very hot, P. Sawyer. Red is your color." She said, looking over at Peyton who was wearing a long red dress that tied around her neck and showed off her curves. Peyton's hair was down in loose curls.

Haley smiled and turned to Brooke. "Your turn. And you better hurry, the guys will be here soon."

Brooke jumped up and walked out of her room and into the bathroom. Haley and Peyton waited in Brooke's room, talking about each other's dresses. When Brooke walked back into the room, they both smiled. "You know, I think we might be the hottest girls at the dance." Haley said as she looked at Brooke, also in a strapless dress, but in black. The dress showed off Brooke's curves, but flowed down to her ankles. Her hair was in a low side ponytail, leaving her long black locks, flowing across her neck and over her shoulder.

Brooke did a spin and laughed. All three heads turned when she heard the door bell. "Oh, I don't want to get it."

Peyton looked at Haley, who shook her head, then sighed. "I'll get it." She said then walked downstairs and to the front door. "Hey guys." She said with a smile, moving to let all three guys come in.

Jake smiled and pulled Peyton to him. "You look beautiful." He whispered before kissing her.

Lucas and Nathan smiled. "You look nice." Lucas said and Nathan nodded in agreement. "So, where are our dates? Please tell me their not still getting ready."

Peyton laughed then turned towards the stairs once she saw Brooke walking down to them. "Nope, just making sure we look okay." She said as she stepped off the last step and walked over to Lucas.

"You look gorgeous." Lucas said, putting one arm around her waist.

Brooke smiled. "Thanks, boyfriend. You look pretty good too." She said then kissed him softly. She turned towards the stairs and sighed. "Come on Haley. You look amazing, so let's go!" She yelled up the stairs.

Haley was still upstairs in Brooke's room, looking at herself in the full length mirror. "I'm coming." She called back before taking one last look, a deep breath, then turning towards the door. "Here goes nothing." She whispered to herself before heading to the stairs. She walked down them slowly, watching her friends talking and laughing.

Lucas saw Haley first. He smiled and tapped Nathan's arm then motion towards the stairs. Nathan, along with the others, looked up and watched Haley walking down to them. All five of them had their mouths shaped in a perfect 'O' and all were speechless. Haley smiled weakly when she finally got to her friends, which felt like took forever, noticing that they were all staring at her, not saying anything.

"Wow…" Jake and Lucas finally said in unison. Both their girlfriends and Haley laughed.

"Thanks." She said shyly, blushing slightly.

They all turned to Nathan, who had still not said anything. He was just standing there, staring at Haley. Brooke, who was closed to Nathan, poked him in the ribs and whispered. "Stop drooling and say something."

That seemed to bring him out of his trance as he shook his head and smiled. "You look…" Haley smiled as she looked over at Nathan. "stunningly, beautiful." He finished before walking over to Haley.

Haley smiled. "Thanks, Nate. You clean up nice too." She said, trying to lighten things up and take all the focus off of herself.

Brooke smiled at the two and shook her head. "Okay, now that we know that all the guys can clean up, and all of us girls are as beautiful as ever, why don't we get going. The limo is outside."

Everyone laughed and started outside. Nathan held his hand out to Haley, who took it and let him lead her out to the limo. Once they were all in, they were on their way to the dance. Everyone were talking and laughing like normal, but Brooke…and Lucas, both noticed Nathan kept staring at Haley.

It took Haley a little longer to notice Nathan's eyes on her. She turned and smiled. "Stop staring at me Nathan. I really don't look any different."

Nathan blushed and turned away. "Sorry."

Once they got to the dance, the girls went to find a table and the guys got everyone drinks. They sat around the table, talking and having fun when Lucas leaned over and asked Brooke to dance. She nodded and the two of them got up and walked onto the dance floor, followed soon by Jake and Peyton. Nathan and Haley sat, watching their friends for a little while before Nathan turned to Haley, holding his hand out to her. "Dance with me?" He asked softly. Haley looked from Nathan's eyes to his hand then smiled, putting her hand into his and walking with him out to their friends.

As the night wore on, the two couples had decided to sit down for a little while, but Nathan and Haley had stayed on the dance floor. There was something about the way Nathan held her in his arms as they danced slowly. Nathan looked down at Haley and smiled when she finally met his eyes. "You really do look beautiful Haley." Haley smiled as she continued to stare into Nathan's eyes.

After the party, everyone went to the Scott's beach house for the after party. Haley was standing on the porch, looking out at the water when she felt someone come up behind her. She glanced back and smiled at the form of Lucas. "Hey." She said quietly as he stopped next to Haley.

Lucas smiled softly. "Hey." He said back. The two stood there in silence for a few minutes before Lucas looked over at Haley. "Let's take a walk."

Haley looked over at Lucas and nodded. The walked down the pier and to the sandy beach. Haley took off her shoes before stepping onto the sand and carried them in her hands as they walked along the shore in silence once again. After a short time, when they could barely hear the music and noise from the party, Lucas broke the silence. "Haley, are you okay?"

Haley sighed and sat down on the sand and waited for Lucas to follow suit. When he did, she didn't look at him but looked out at the waves instead. "Luke, I don't know what to do…" She started.

Lucas looked at Haley, concern showing in his eyes. "What's going on?"

Haley took a deep breath and turned to Lucas. "Nathan and I were talking tonight, and…well, he told me how he feels."

Lucas smiled and breath a sigh of relief. "It's about time."

"That's just it. It's our Senior year, and we only have a short time left of that. Next year, he's going to Duke…and I'm going to Stanford. I really do love Nathan, but I don't want to have something great, just to have it taken away in a few months."

Lucas nodded in understanding. "Haley, if you really do feel the same way, and you don't give yourself the chance to be with him, even for a short time, you're going to regret it."

"And what happens if it doesn't work out. He is my best friend, Luke. I can't loose him. I do want to be with him, but I'm scared."

Lucas looked at her confused. "Of what?"

"Of loosing my best friend…and the rest of you. You are his brother, and the rest of you were all friends way before I came into the picture at all."

Lucas turned Haley's face so that she was looking at him. "Haley, no matter what happens between you and Nathan, we are always going to be friends. That's not going to change."

Haley sighed as Lucas wiped away a tear that had escaped her eyes. "I believe you, but I'm not sure if I want to risk it."

Lucas pulled Haley into a tight hug. They sat there for a while before Lucas spoke again. "We should get back. Their going to start worrying that we ran away together."

Haley smiled weakly. "You go ahead. I'm just gonna sit out here for a while longer, then maybe go home."

Lucas nodded and stood up. "It's all going to be okay, Hales." Haley nodded and watched Lucas start to walk away before turning back to the water. "Haley?"

Haley turned and looked at Lucas, who had stopped and turned around. "You have to ask yourself…if Nathan is worth the risk." Haley smiled and nodded then watched as Lucas again turned and headed back to the party.


Author's Note : Okay, what did you think? Let me know!