Hey all!

This week was the first week back of the Spring semester for me. And I have a pretty light load so I should be able to update more than I did last semester. And I know that I said that I would update more during vacation but it just didn't work out that way, I guess. And hopefully that won't happen for this semester because I really want to get this story done so I can get onto others. And by others I mean the ones that are already on here as well as some ideas that I have been writing down over the years that I have been on here. Or maybe I will just start working on another one simultaneously with this one.

I know some of you might be disappointed because in the last chapter Haley and Nathan did not meet but I promise you that this is the chapter. You will just have to see how it plays out though, because I am not gonna give anything away. And I actually love how this chapter turned out. I am excited to have you all read it and tell me what you think.

OMG! 8600 words! Surprisingly, this chapter was going to be a lot longer. I had the whole day planned out for this chapter. It was going to be like 5,000 more words than it was but I knew that I could make it better if I just took out all of the details. I thought that the story might go a little faster if I didn't add so much detail to it. Although I love detail. But too much can kill a story and make it too long. Which I do not want to do to this one.

Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Still...


Haley woke up on early Saturday morning with a little bit of a wine hangover. After her blind date had unceremoniously canceled on her she had taken a cab back home, and since Jamie was at Karen's for the night she had broken out a bottle of wine that Karen had bought over as a welcome to the neighborhood gift when she had first moved there. She was a lightweight and after a few glasses, she could feel the effects of the alcohol on her brain and body. After her last glass she almost took out her cell phone and called Lucas to rip him a new one that his friend never showed for their date. But after much debating back and forth she finally decided that it could wait for the next day. She didn't want to wake him up at this ungodly hour. Then she thought that he might still be up with his girlfriend, the oh-so-famous Brooke Davis. And she had to have another glass to get that image and thought out of her mind.

Once she had sobered up a bit she realized that she had drunk the whole bottle and should really sleep it off. So she did just that. Still dressed in her date outfit she fell asleep on the couch with a blanket from her room thrown over her body.

That morning she wasn't expecting Luke to drop off Jamie until midday. So she decided that she would take a little something for her headache and go back to sleep. But before she could she went to change into the pajamas that she was supposed to put on before she went to bed. She wanted to be comfortable this time around.

Three and a half hours later she woke up refreshed and ready to start the day. She got up and got dressed in a pair of black comfy sweats and a pink tank top. When she looked in the mirror in the bathroom she realized her hair had gone wildly out of control because she had curled her hair the night before. So she put it up in a ponytail to get it out of the way.

Every once in a while when she had the place to herself she would get up and clean. By the end of the day the apartment would be spotless. Plus tonight she did not have to make dinner because she was going over to Karen's. She was surprised when she had been invited to their weekly family dinner night. She knew they would always get together on Saturdays but this was the very first one where she had been invited. It felt good to be considered part of a family. And not just any family: it was Karen and Lucas'. And they were the best sort of people out there.


"You what?" Lucas almost yelled into the phone.

"Geez, Luke. You don't have to yell." Nathan had decided to call Lucas to explain about last night. He should really be calling Haley but he didn't have her number because Lucas had not thought to give it to him. He was now regretting calling his cousin after he had worked out for the day.

He had gone for his usual run that morning and gotten back to take a shower. He took his usual five minute shower and then got dressed for the day. He had then picked up the phone and dialed his cousin's number.

"Haley is a nice girl. You didn't even show up to explain."

Nathan hung his head even though Luke couldn't actually see him. He felt the guilt wash over him from missing a date with the "alleged nice girl, Haley James". "Yeah." He said quietly to his cousin.

Lucas recognizing his cousin's guilty voice let up with the yelling and thought of something to cheer him up. "Oh. It's alright, Nate. I am sure Haley will understand. She is pretty understanding."

"Well, that's great. Hopefully I won't ever have to actually meet her face to face. I feel guilty enough already as it is." Nathan commented.

Lucas decided to not tell his cousin that the young mother and her son would be at dinner tonight. His own form of payback for the woman that he considered to be like a sister, more than friend. After all they had been best friends. Plus Haley had been his first kiss and he hers. Being curious kids they had decided to try it out for themselves. And of course, they hadn't liked it all that much. And they had simply forgotten about the incident and stayed friends.

"Maybe I shouldn't come tonight. I told your mom about the date and all as well. She is gonna be pissed at me for standing up this Haley. And I'll feel guilty, and then no one will have a good time. And I will ruin the night for everyone." Nathan's thought turned into a slippery slope.

"Oh, you have to come, Nate. You already told mom that you were coming and you can't back out now that she knows. Plus I don't think it'll be that bad." Lucas snickers knowing that it possibly could be that bad. Haley could get pissed at Nate for standing her up and then she would surely get mad at him for not telling her that her supposed date was going to be at this dinner tonight as well. Then if things went really bad, Nate would get mad at him as well because of the same reasoning.

But Luke did not want to think about that right now. All he had to do was get both Nathan and Haley under the same roof at the same time and he truly believed that everything would be just fine, better than fine even. Everything would be great. Nathan and Haley would surely hit it off.


"Hales. I'm here." Lucas called out after opening the door.

"We're in the back." Haley shouted back as she finished tying Jamie's Tennis shoes. But Jamie would have none of that. He raced out of the room to greet his favorite uncle.

"How you doin' bud?" Haley heard Lucas ask her son. She took her time walking from the back room to the entry way where the boys were.

"Great. I took a bath."

"Oh wow. Nice job J-Luke. High-five."

"Momma helped me."

"Oh really? That's cool." He said to Jamie, and then turned to Haley, "You guys all ready?"

"Yeah. Oh! I almost forgot..." Haley trailed off. She went over to the DVD player and took out the Happy Feet DVD to take back to Karen. Lily would probably want it back anyways.

"Yeah. It's not like Lily has tons of other movies that she could watch." Lucas jokes with his best friend.

"Now I'm ready." Haley huffed out.

"Okay then." Lucas said as he made his way out the door leaving Haley to lock up behind him.

Five minutes later and a car ride full of laughter and music, Lucas pulled up to the light yellow colored house with white trim around the windows and doors. The stairs and porch were a dark green color to match the door. And lining the porch every six foot or so was a pillar with the bottom half made of stone and the top made of four white belly columns.

Opening the blue front door framed with long decorative windows you can see down a hallway into the kitchen. To your right there is a modest living room with red walls and to the left you can see carpeted stairs leading up to the second floor with a coat closet under the stairs as well as two hooks on the wall. The first floor is all hardwood while the second floor is carpeted.

In the living room there are two furnished couches; one a tan color and the other a brown, a small coffee table, and a medium sized TV in the corner on top of a media center. A few feet to the left of the TV against the wall is a small oil stove. There is a wide window on the adjacent wall as well as straight across. On the floor under the couches is a square plush rug.

Walking down the hallway, the first door on the left is the master bedroom. Karen had decorated the room with the same colors as the living room. Her walls were tan while her furnishings were dark brown or espresso. Her bedspread was red. To the right of the door as you entered was a vanity, where Karen tended to keep all of her make-up, jewelry and perfume. In front of the bed that was against the wall was a hope chest on an oval shaped oriental rug that she had received from her mother. Now Karen was in the long process of filling it for her daughter. It was an oak color with a green pattern on the top. It seemed to match the red and brown in the room. To the left of the bed was a little alcove with a nice arm chair in the corner for reading. On both sides of the bed were mahogany bedside tables. Next to the table on the right side was an armoire. On the adjacent wall was a medium-sized dresser. Next to the vanity was a tall dresser.

There was a door next to the medium-sized dresser that led to the bathroom, that also had a door leading to the hallway. Going into the bathroom, on the right side was the sink. To the left was a large bathtub and shower combo with a small oval rug on the ground directly in front of it. The bathroom had light blue walls and a white tile floor. Standing between the toilet and the door to the hallway was a half-wall.

Exiting the bathroom to the hallway, you would see almost directly across from you another door. This door led to another bedroom on the ground floor. This room had always been Lucas' room. Even though, he did not really live there anymore it still stayed the same as it had when he had been in high school. It had dark blue walls and furnishings the color of the hardwood floor that they stood on. Standing to the left of the door was a large dresser that stood about four and half feet tall. And a few feet on the opposite side of it there was a closet. To the right of the door was a desk. There was a large King bed situated between two windows. There were also two bedside tables on each side of the bed. On the wall behind the bed was a map of the United States made up of old license plates. There was another door on the adjacent wall, opposite the closet. This door led outside to the front porch, that way Lucas could come in whilst not waking up anybody in the house. Facing the door, to the right was a long bookcase.

But the best thing about this room wasn't the personal escape door but the wall mural. Taking up the wall behind the desk and most of the wall behind the bookcase was a painting of an old asphalt court that everyone around Tree Hill referred to as the river court. It was called this because it was located in a park next to a river.

Leaving the room the way that you came and turning right you would reach the kitchen and dining area. There was a round dining table to the left that the sides came down to make the table smaller. It also had a leaf that went right into the middle to make the table bigger if need be.

The kitchen was to the right and it was a fairly small kitchen but it was just the right size for Karen. The Kitchen had a green and blue colored theme with grey marble counter-tops. There was a medium-sized refrigerator with a freezer drawer on the bottom. A few feet to the right of that was the stove/oven combo. On the wall perpendicular to this was the sink which was next to the dishwasher. On both sides of the sink there was a small window that let in light.

On the other side of the refrigerator was the back door that you could see from the front door. Next to the door was a bench to sit on while you removed your shoes or put them on. On the wall adjacent was a large window that let most of the light into the room. And then next to the window was a door that led into the small yard area, with a little porch area, that was surrounded by a white picket fence. Then behind the house was the one car garage which was the same color as the house itself.

Next you go back to the stairs to make your way to the second floor. Off of the stairs landing right away you see a door on the left hand side wall. It is the upstairs bathroom. Walking in, you see the walk-in shower, which is smaller than it looks. To the left of the shower is a bathtub. And across from the bathtub is the sink and mirror. In between the sink and bathtub is the toilet. The walls in this bathroom were half periwinkle and white paneled. The theme in this bathroom was soft and pastel.

There was a door directly across the open space from the bathroom. Going over to it and opening it, you would be in a little girl's room, all pink and purples. This would be Lily's room. Against the same wall as the door there was a large white frame day bed with a pink, purple and white bedspread. There were two large windows on the wall next to the bed to let in light. On the wall opposite the windows was a large closet. And inside the closet you would find a large dresser that was painted lavender. Looking to the wall opposite the bed, you would think that it would end there but the ceiling fell at an angle to meet the floor. There was a small attic window. This area was the play area.

Haley walked into the house holding Jamie's hand. She had gone for comfort that night. She was wearing a white scoop neck tank top with a small keyhole on the chest. She paired the shirt with a grey pair of yoga capris and her off-white runners. She wore a grey cardigan that tied in the middle over the shirt and let her hair fall in loose waves around her shoulders.

Jamie was wearing a pair of blue jeans with a red t-shirt and his grey tennis shoes. Over the outfit he had on a light grey sweater that was a little too big for him, but it had been a gift from Lucas so he has treasured it like no other.

"Mom we're here." Luke called back into the house as he walked in the door behind Haley and Jamie. He helped Jamie out of his sweatshirt and hung it up on a hook. To Haley he said, "Would you like me to take yours?"

"Sure. Thanks Luke." He hung her cardigan up next to Jamie's. Then Karen, wearing a red and white checkered apron over her clothes, came walking down the hallway. "Hey, guys. Glad you could make it." She said as she hugged Haley first.

"Thank you for inviting us."

"No problem, Haley." She said then turned towards the stairs to call up them, "Lily. Jamie is here."

They all heard the sound of footsteps as the little girl raced to the stairs and down them. Karen turned to Jamie, "Hey munchkin."

"Hi Mrs. Scott."

"Jamie, sweetie you can call me, Karen. Or Aunt Karen if you like that better." The older woman said as she sat on her knees so that she was eye level with the young boy.

"Okay Aunt Karen." He said as he was engulfed into a bone crushing hug by the older woman.

"Mom, let Jamie go." Lily whined as she stomped down the stairs.

The two broke apart just as Lucas said, "Sorry to interrupt but I have to go pick up Brooke."

"Okay Luke. Be careful."

"Got it mom." He replied opening the front door to go back out to his Mustang.

The two kids raced up to Lily's room after swapping a few words.

Once the two women were alone, Haley asked, "Do you need any help Karen?"

"Nonsense, Haley. You are a guest tonight." Karen said setting an arm around Haley's shoulder and walking towards the kitchen with her. They made their way into the kitchen and sat down at the round table.

The two struck up a conversation until Karen had to get up to put the finishing touches on the meal for the night. "Are you sure you don't need any help?"

Karen sighed because she could really use the help now but she did not want to be rude, having a guest help. But it was Haley and Haley lived to serve. "Alright. You can help. But I would put an apron on, you don't want to get anything on your clothes."

"Okay." And just as Haley was about to ask where the aprons were Karen pointed to an extra one hanging on the wall by a tall book case. Haley went to grab it. She slipped it over her head and tied it around her slim waist. "What are we having anyway?"

"Grilled Pork Chops with sautéed potatoes and spinach."

"Oh wow! That sounds great. So what can I do? Put me to work."

After a second of hesitation and thought Karen replied, "You can sauté the potatoes for me, while I finish up with the mushrooms and tomatoes."

Haley grabs the stir stick to keep the potatoes and onions from burning in the pan while Karen checked the mushrooms and tomatoes that were in the casserole dish with the pork.

A couple of minutes later, the two heard a car pull into the driveway next to the kitchen. "Luke's here."

"Oh goodie! I get to meet Brooke finally." Haley yelped as a car door slammed outside.

"She is a sweetheart, that Brooke Davis." Karen chimes in. "I think that you two will get along great."

The door leading into the kitchen directly at the back of the house opened and two people clambered inside. The first was a gorgeous brunette. She had these to-die-for hazel eyes and a dimpled smile. She was a couple of inches taller than Haley but that might have been because of the black heels that she was wearing. She had on a light-weight black jacket but after she had taken a minute to take it off Haley could see her outfit. With the heels was a pair of black shorts and a sleeveless white Brooke Davis baby-doll with a sweetheart neckline that buttoned up the front and had a sateen belt that showed off her bust.

Brooke's straightened brunette hair fell an inch past her shoulders, and her side bangs fell to her ears.

After handing Lucas her coat to hang up, she turned towards Haley. "Haley this is my girlfriend Brooke Davis. Brooke, this is..."

As they were making introductions the front door bell started ringing. "Oh, that must be Nate. I'll go get it." Karen said walking passed the group of three and down the hallway towards the front door.

'Brooke Davis was a force to be reckoned with.' That was the first thought that came to Haley's mind as she was tugged into a bone crushing hug by the beautiful brunette woman in front of her.

"It is so nice to finally meet you." The dimpled brunette commented as the two pulled away from each other. The two looked at Lucas then, as if to ask why they hadn't met sooner.

Haley could vaguely hear Karen greet the newcomer at the front door as Brooke started to ask her questions a mile a minute about everything in her life, from her childhood to Jamie to her love life.

She laughed a bit at Brooke's bubbly personality and instantly knew that they would be great friends if she could just get a word in edgewise. She noticed that they were the only two left in the kitchen. Lucas must have gone to hang up their coats. She turned towards the front room to see if anyone could come and help her in any way. She gasped quite loudly as she recognized the man standing in front of the closed door.

He had the bluest eyes that she had ever seen. She instantly knew that it was the guy from the beach last Saturday. He was dressed nicer tonight but it was him alright. He was actually quite handsome dressed in a silvery grey button-up. The long sleeves had been rolled up to the elbow to show off his lower arms. With it he was wearing a pair of dark jeans and some brown leather dress shoes.

Lucas and the blue-eye stranger greeted each other like old friends. After hugging Lucas the dark haired man turned towards the kitchen and suddenly stopped when he spotted her standing there. He stood there for a minute with a confused look on his face.

Haley was pulled back into her conversation with Brooke when she heard Brooke let out a little laugh as she glanced Haley's way and saw her watching her boyfriend and his cousin. "Do you know Nathan, Haley?"

"No, actually I don't. I have seen him before though."

"Oh, you watch basketball?"

Haley looked at her new friend quizzically, "No, I don't watch basketball. I saw him at the beach the other day."

"Did someone say beach?" The question came from Jamie. Apparently, the two kids had been called down to wash up for dinner. And Jamie was standing right behind his mom when she had said the word beach.

"Is that Jamie?" Brooke asked of the boy who had just raced into the bathroom to wash his hands.

"Yes. That is my son. Hey Jamie come here." Haley turned her head to call down the hall. In that moment she caught the eye of the blue-eyed man at the end of the hall who started walking towards her.

Just then Jamie came running out of the bathroom and runs right into someone's leg.

"Hey buddy." Nathan says to the speechless little boy who is looking up at him with awestruck uncertainty: like what he is really seeing isn't really there.

Haley, seeing her son in distress, comes to his rescue. "You've got to be more careful, Jame. What do you say bud?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Mr. Scott sir." Jamie shyly backs towards his mother to hide behind her.

Nathan laughs at the formality of it all. He doesn't have to wonder if the little boy recognizes him. 'He must be a fan.' Nathan thinks to himself before squatting down to the boys level and saying, "you can call me Nathan. What is your name?"

"I'm sorry. He is not usually this shy around people. His is probably just a little starstruck." Haley apologizes to the gorgeous man in front of her. She goes on, answering the question posed to her son a moment ago, while ruffling his hair. "This is Jamie."

"Hi Jamie." Nathan greets the boy standing up to his full height and walking to stand right in front of the mother and son duo. He squats down once more to the boys level. Haley meanwhile pushes his back so that he is standing in front of her to greet the basketball star.

"I don't think Nathan is going to hurt you Jamie."

"Yeah, Jamie, I don't bite. Well only sometimes. But I promise that I won't bite you."

Jamie finally acquiesced with a smile. "Hi, Mr. Nathan."

"It's just Nathan or Nate, if that works better for you." He glances up into the deep and warm brown eyes of the little boy's mother. "And who might this be?"

"This is my mommy." The adults standing close by all laughed at that one. Karen passes them to get to the kitchen to take out the food.

"Yes. I am his mommy. Haley." She says still smiling, reaching out her hand to shake his once he stood up.

"It's very nice to meet you Haley." Nathan shakes her offered hand

"Dinner is ready, everyone." Karen calls out. They all make their way to the table as Karen moves the casserole dish to the middle of the table asking Lucas to grab the potatoes from the stove. There were two large potholders on the table for each hot dish. In the middle of the table there was a bowl of homemade rolls and a butter dish next to the bowl with a knife.

At each table setting there was a different colored place-mat. On each mat was a white china plate. It seemed as if Karen had gone all out for the dinner tonight, even going as far as to get her nice china out. There were forks, knives and spoons as well as a glass of water. And at all but two place settings there was a wine glass.

Before sitting down at the head of the table, Karen made her way to the fridge to take out a bottle of chilled Martin Codax Albarino. Everyone took a seat with Karen at the head of the table. Lucas was on her left with Lily on her right. Brooke was next to Lucas with Nathan sitting next to her. Haley sat next to Jamie, who was next to Lily. Haley and Nathan ended up sitting next to each other.

Nathan had his suspicions that it was all Lucas's doing. The young woman sitting next to him just happened to be the woman that he had broken his date with the night before. He was glad for the second chance to get to know her.

"Let's eat." Karen said bringing him back to the dinner at hand. "Dig in everybody."


Haley was just about finished with her meal. She could hear the sound of forks scraping against plates and conversations going on around her. Lucas was talking across the table to Lily and Jamie who were seated next to each other. Karen joined into their conversation as well. Brooke and Nathan were talking about the Brooke's new fall line which Haley caught the tail end of.

"It should be just fabulous."

"That's great Brooke. I am so happy for you. I remember that you wanted to be a designer when you had just moved here. I'm glad that you achieved your dream."

"Well, thank you Nathan." There was a second of silence so Haley decided to jump into the conversation. She hoped Brooke wouldn't mind.

"So, Nathan. My son tells me you're a famous basketball player."

"Nathan Royal Scott number 23. Just finished his fourth season with the Charlotte Bobcats as their shooting guard. He averages twenty-five points a game with five rebounds." Jamie spouts out Nathan's stats before Nathan can answer Haley's question.

"Wow. Jamie that was pretty great." Lucas compliments while the adults chuckle at the little boy.

"You sure do know a lot about me. But do you know what draft pick I was coming out of college?" By now the other end of the table had gone quiet as well to listen.

"Ninth."

"What college did I att...?"

"Duke." Jamie answered before Nathan had even finished asking the question.

"Okay enough of the twenty-one questions." Brooke argued. "So Haley? Luke tells me that you lived here for a while growing up."

"Yes, I did. I think I was four."

"Hey, momma. That's my age."

"Yeah. It sure is buddy."

"So, why did you move away?"

"Oh, you know. My dad was in the military so that kind of means we moved around a ton."

"I remember you telling me Hales that you had already moved three times before moving here, to Tree Hill."

"Wow." Brooke was amazed. She had never heard of someone moving around so much.

"So where did you move after you left here." Brooke asked. It was basically just Haley and Brooke talking now with everyone else listening.

"Virginia, I think." Haley contemplates her answer and then nods. "Yeah. Virginia and we stayed there for two years. And Chicago was after that."

"I used to go visit her when she lived in Virginia Beach." Lucas added on.

"So, that's where you went all the time." Nathan retorted. He remembered when his family had just moved back into their house across the street from Lucas', that every few weeks Lucas would leave for the weekend on a mysterious trip.

"Yeah. Those were some fun times we had back there."

"And then it was Chicago for a year. Did you know that I didn't find another friend quite like you?"

The adults all gave her pitying looks. "Until, California, that is." Haley had mixed emotions about the last place that she called home. She had been happy there for a while. She had the best time in high school. She was popular and pretty and smart, so she was really going places. Then of course came her emotional downfall, when she had moved in with Damien and her parents had cut off all contact with her. She hated them for what they had done to her, their only child. Not only that, but Jamie has not once met them. She looked down at Jamie with sadness in her eyes.

Nathan watched as Haley's smile turned slowly into a slight frown. She was looking down at her son with a bit of sadness in her eyes. And he could tell that she was struggling to keep it together. He decided to change the subject and ask if Lucas was done with the book that he was writing.

As cousins they knew certain things about the other. Nathan knew, for one, that Lucas had been writing a book. He had started it in high school and was anxious to finish it.

Haley was grateful for the change of subject. And as soon as Jamie looked up into her eyes she smiled a teary smile at him. He immediately smiled back at her. She leaned over and kissed him on the head and rearranged the hair where she had placed her lips. She glanced to her right where Nathan was sitting, and he was gently smiling at her. She sent him a smile back as a thank you.

Jamie was the first to finish the food on his plate. He asked to be excused which was by Haley asking him what he should say to Karen.

"Thank you Ms. Karen, I mean Aunt Karen, for dinner."

And at that time Lily announced that she was finished and proudly left the table without asking her mother for permission. "You are welcome Jamie." Karen loudly thanked the small boy so that hopefully her own daughter would get the message.

After the two youngsters strutted off she jokingly pronounced, "Well, I am glad that someone has manners."

Haley laughed at that. Which to that, Karen asked, "How do you do it, Haley? Jamie always has such nice manners."

"Oh, that's all him."

"I doubt it. You must put a ton of time into teaching that little boy. Because he is just so polite. I wish that Lily was that way."

"She is." Haley began. "At least to me she is."

Karen started to get up to clear away some of the plates. Haley jumped up to help her. She stacked Jamie's plate on top of hers and turned towards Nathan to take his. "Its okay, Haley. I'll get it." Nathan said jumping up as well, quickly grabbing the two stacked plates from her and taking them over to the sink, where Karen was rinsing off some dirty plates and putting them into the dishwasher.

With nothing to do and at Brooke's bidding, she sat back down and took her wine glass in her hand.

Nathan was back at her side and picked up the bottle of wine. There was enough for a top off. Haley silently held out her glass to take the rest. "Unless anyone else wants it."

"No, you go ahead Hales." Lucas agreed. With Brooke nodding along with him.

Nathan poured the rest into her glass. With the added addition it was barely half full.

Just then, Jamie came waddling into the room holding his elbow. He had tears running down his cheek. Haley turned towards him as he entered the room, "What's wrong, bud?"

"I scwaped my elbow." He sniffled.

"I'll get him, Hales." Lucas said, as he got up and walked towards the bathroom. "Come on, Jame."

Nathan, Brooke and Haley were left at the table. Karen was still running water over some of the dishes before she put them in the dishwasher. Haley glanced at Nathan and then Brooke. She gave the dimpled beauty across from her a smile. There was a moment of silence as they group of three tried to come up with something to talk about. Haley was the first to speak but not to them. "Karen, do you need any help?"

"Oh, it's okay. I got this. I'm almost done anyways. You sit and chat with Nathan." Karen said knowing about their date the night before. Hopefully the two would really hit it off, if they would just start talking.


Lucas came back to the table with Jamie who was fresh faced and bright eyed. He had a spider man band-aid on his elbow as well.

"Thank you Luke." Haley said to Lucas and then looked at Jamie. "Just be more careful next time bud."

"Okay."

Just then Lily came down the stairs hollering Jamie's name at the top of her lungs. And at the same time, Lucas called out to the group, "game time!"

"Game time? What game are we playing?!" Jamie asked ignoring the calling of his name. The six year old girl came around the corner and Jamie said to her, "Lily were gonna play a game."

"What game would you like to play, Jamie?" Brooke responded with a question of her own directed at the little boy

While that was going on, Nathan got up from his place at the table and moved towards the front hallway. Lucas noticed and asked him, "Nate, where you off to in such a hurry, man?"

"I should get going."

"Come on man, stay for a game or two."

Lily walked up to Nathan. "Yeah, Natey stay." Is what she said giving him her best puppy dog eyes. "Please!"

Nathan could never stand it when his much younger cousin gave him her puppy dog eyes. He also didn't mind her calling him Natey, but she was the only one that would be able to get away with it. "Okay fine. But only for you Lilypad."

Two hours later...

After the group had played a few rounds of twister with Haley winning one against Karen, Lucas and Brooke, Lucas and Nathan both winning one against each other and Lily winning against Jamie and Haley, they sat down on the ground for a rousing game of Monopoly. Both Lily and Jamie picked Nathan to be on their team. Leaving Brooke to be on Lucas' team, and Haley and Karen on their own.

"Jamie, you don't want to be on a team with your own mother? Really?" Haley asked her son once he let it be known that he wanted to be on Nathan's team.

"He knows that we are totally gonna win. Don't-cha buddy?"

"Hel- Heck yes." Jamie hollered. "And plus mom, I know how competitive you can get."

Nathan did not mind the two kids being on his team. And it turned out pretty great, seeing as how team Scott, that's what they were calling it, was the team to beat.

Haley knew that she could get a little competitive. She called it her greatest flaw, but that made the game even better. The competition was fierce. And by the end it was just her and Nathan playing, the kids having fallen asleep an hour or so into the game. They were both laying on the couch on their sides with their heads in the middle, sharing a pillow, a blanket each thrown over them.

Karen had been the first to go bankrupt, having to throw in the towel after playing for nearly an hour. Haley had been expecting more from the owner of two successful businesses. Then Lucas and Brooke's team also went down the drain as well.

Nathan and Haley were neck and neck by the end and neither one was giving up.

Haley looked at the clock on the wall and gasped at the time. It was nearly 11:30. But she really wanted to win the game.

"I can see now what the boy was talking about earlier. You just don't like to give up, do ya?"

"Nope. But you can give up whenever you want to." Haley smiled devilishly at the man sitting across from her.

"Oh you wish." Nathan murmured just enough so that she could hear.

And the game went on for a couple more minutes until Karen came back from the kitchen and asked if Lucas or Nathan would mind carrying Lily up to her bed. Lucas, who was sitting with Brooke next to him on the other couch that was unoccupied immediately got up to pick up his little sister. He disappeared with her up the stairs leading to her room. Karen went up after him.

Haley looked at the time once again and she thought that she should really be getting home so that Jamie could sleep in their bed. She frowned once she realized that she would have to quit to leave. She was not a quitter. And she didn't want to give Nathan the satisfaction of winning. But after seeing Brooke yawn as well, she knew it was time, win or lose. Besides, Lucas was her ride home and Brooke's as well and she knew that he would want to get her home as soon as possible. Because even though, Lucas had a room here at his mom's he really had lived with his girlfriend at the house that she had bought a few years ago.

"Okay, Nathan. I think you win." Haley said as she started to get up from her spot of the floor.

"Maybe, we'll call it a tie." He commented. "Or we can pick this game up some other time."

"You want to pause it?" Haley clarified, sitting down on the couch next to Brooke.

"Yeah sure, why not?"

"Okay. We'll pause it." Haley agreed then whispered under her breath. "It's your funeral."

Brooke giggled, having been the only one to actually hear what Haley had said.

Nathan raised an eyebrow quizzically at the two ladies giggling on the couch like school girls, wondering what was so funny when Lucas came back down the stairs.

"I think it's time for us to leave too." Lucas announced. "Brooke, I've got to take Haley and Jamie home and then I'll be back for you."

"Okay, broody. I'll be right here."

"Wait. Broody?" Haley asked.

"Yah. It's my nickname for him."

"What? Why?"

"You should've seen him in high school. Always with this broodish look on his face."

While Brooke explained the nickname, Nathan talked to Luke. "Why don't you take Brooke and I'll go ahead and give Haley and Jamie a ride home?"

Luke thought for a moment. He knew it would work.

"It just makes more sense that you take Brooke because you live with her and I can drop Haley off on my way to the beach house."

"Yeah, Brooke's house is in the opposite direction. It does make more sense. I'm sure Haley and Jamie won't mind either." Luke turned towards the girls to deliver the news, but Nathan wasn't done.

"And Luke? Haley is way too good for me."

"How could you know that after only meeting her once?"

"I just do. So don't try anything."

"What? I don't know what you mean."

"I mean that." Nathan said sternly. "You got it?"

After a second of silence, "Yeah. Alright." Lucas agreed but he wasn't happy about it.

Brooke interrupted them. "What are you guys talkin' about over there?"

"Oh nothing." "Rides." Both Lucas and Nathan said at the same time.

"Uh-huh." Brooke glared suspiciously at the two of them. While Haley got up from her spot on the couch to fetch Jamie.

"I'll get him." Nathan offered to Haley, walking over to the couch where Jamie was sound asleep.

Lucas went out the door first to switch over the car seat from his mustang to Nathan's black Range Rover.

Haley and Brooke got their coats on, said their 'goodbyes' and 'thank yous' to Karen, and followed the guys out. Karen had turned on the front porch light so that they would be able to see where they were going. Haley walked out arm in arm with Brooke, while Lucas was strapping in the car seat into Nathan's back seat.

After Lucas was done, he turned towards Haley. "Is it alright with you if Nathan takes you guys home? He volunteered and he is going that way."

Haley watched as the dark-haired man gently laid her son into his car seat and strapped him in. "Yeah, that's fine with me." She nodded.

"Well, I guess this is where we will say goodbye for now." Brooke said to Haley. "Hey, are you free for lunch on Monday? My treat?"

"Sure Brooke. That would be great." The young mother answered truthfully. It would be great to have some girl time with the fashion designer.

"And hey maybe we'll plan a girl's night one of these day." Brooke added on as the two hugged.

"You ready to go Brooke?" Lucas asked breaking the two out of their hug.

"Yes Broody. Let's go." Brooke breathed out, huskily.

"Bye Hales." Luke gave his best friend a side hug then walked over to his car opening the passenger door for Brooke. When Haley turned back around to face Nathan, he was holding open the side door for her to jump in.

"How very chivalrous of you, Mr. Scott." She said as she stepped on the railing and hopped onto the seat. Nathan shut the door once she was in and walked around the front to driver's side. He had already started his car with a remote starter when he had carried out Jamie to the car a few minutes earlier.

He waited for Lucas to pull out and turn towards Brooke's house until he pulled out of his spot in front of the Roe house. What he didn't see as Lucas pulled away was the big smile spreading across his cousin's face.


Haley gave Nathan directions as they made their way to her apartment building.

Ten minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of her complex. She told him what building was hers and he parked right in front of the stairs that led up to the higher levels. He could tell that there were at least four apartments on each level of each of the three apartment buildings and each building had four levels. So by his quick calculations there were at least twelve apartments in each block with a total of thirty-six on a whole. Haley said that she was on the third floor as Nathan opened his door to get out and accompany her up to her apartment.

He could tell that Haley, being as small as she was, would not be able to carry Jamie up three flights of stairs. So as she slowly got out, he made his way around the car to get Jamie.

Haley waited for Nathan to have a secure hold on her son before she set out for the stairs. Once they had reached the third floor of her building, Haley was grateful for having Nathan there with her. Before proceeding down the hall to her apartment door she asked if he was alright. She noticed his breathing had speeded up a bit.

"Oh, I'm fine. Don't worry about me Haley. Good exercise, ya know?" Was Nathan's reply.

"Okay then. Whatever you say." Haley smiled at the dark-haired man holding her son. She turned to the left and made her way to the front of the building. She walked down the hallway to the last door. Once she put her key into the key hole and unlocked it she told Nathan where the bedroom was. He proceeded down the short hallway and laid the little boy in the bed. Once he stood up and looked around the room to get a feel for where Haley and Jamie lived he left the room. He kind of felt like he was snooping on them, on her and he didn't want her to feel like he had been, so he quickly left the room and joined the young mother in the living room. She had taken off her shoes, sat on the couch and was massaging her feet, forgetting that he was still there.

He stood against the kitchen island waiting for her to notice that he was still there. She looked up a minute later. "Oh, I'm sorry Nathan."

"It's no problem Haley."

She sent him a small smile and got up from her spot on the couch. She walked until she was standing in front of him. "Thank you. Thank you for the ride... and for carrying my son all the way up here."

"Again. It's no problem."

She turned away from the handsome man in front of her to walk over to the door. "Well, it's getting late. I should probably go to bed if I am going to be ready for work tomorrow." She thought that mentioning work would be a safe way to get the dark-haired man out of the apartment so that she could go to bed.

"Okay. I can see when I am not wanted anymore." He joked with her. Seeing the incredulous look on her face was priceless but he knew that he should probably get home as well. "I'm just kidding. But yeah, it is pretty late."

As he walked passed her out the front door, she thanked him again. "And thank you again."

He turned to face her once he was out the door. "You don't need to thank me for everything. You know that right?"

"Yeah I know. But it's nice to know that there are guys out there like you." Haley leaned up to give the dark haired man a kiss on the cheek. "Good night, Nathan."

Haley immediately shut the door and turned on her heel to lean up against it. 'What the hell did I just do? I don't even know him and I just kissed him? What kind of person does that?'

Nathan stood on the other side of the door for a good solid minute holding a hand to the spot where her lips had just brushed his cheek. After a minute the light above him shut off and he knew that she had turned in for the night. He walked away still thinking about what an idiot he had been to break the date with the woman who had just kissed him.


Thank you again for all the reviews everyone. And for all of you who continue to follow me or any of my stories. It sure does mean a ton to me.

How did you like it? You guys know the drill. Leave your comments in a review. Feedback is always helpful. Questions? Ridicule? Those are also helpful. Just let me know how I am doin'. I would just love to hear your thoughts. And please! Please! Please! I need ideas for future chapters. What would you like to see happen? Just let me know in a review! Also if you see any mistakes in grammar or spelling or anything please tell me. I edited this last night right before I posted it at around 12:50.

I know the first two parts were short but I hope the dinner made up for the other parts. And for all of you that hated how long it took for Nathan and Haley to finally meet I hope you were happy about their fated meeting. I knew this was how I wanted them to meet from the very beginning. I just didn't know how many chapters it was going to be before they actually met.

And if I were to work on another story at the same time as this one which one would you want it to be? Just let me know as always in a review...

So once again, your reviews are always welcome. So please leave one!