Thank you for the support everybody. Loved reading the reviews. And wow! 41 followers. From the bottom of my heart, thank you :)

In regards to the guest reviewer who wants more Naley and less "Pucas", I hope this chapter is good enough. I know it's been pretty Leyton heavy lately, but I'm trying my best to find a balance between the two couples. Believe it or not, but when I was first writing this story I thought I wouldn't be as inspired to write the Leyton scenes, but here we are.

Anyways, sorry for the short ramble, here's the chapter, enjoy. And let me know what you think in a review :) x

"You're doing really well Damien," Haley complimented as she was grading his work. It's been almost two months now that she's been tutoring him and to her surprise, he was actually paying attention and applying what she's taught him into his work.

"Well, it helps that I have you as a tutor. I'm kind of shocked I haven't failed." Haley looked up at his last comment perplexed. "You'd think having a hot tutor would distract me," he grinned. Haley rolled her eyes. He may be trying in his academics, but he hadn't changed much. His advances have lessened though, she has to admit.

Her phone went off just as she finished grading the last problem. "Here, why don't you retry this one while I answer my phone." He nodded and watched her get up from her seat and cross the room. He figured it was Nathan after seeing her smile that smile.

"Hey, is everything okay?" she asked half-whispered. She didn't want to interrupt any of the other tutors and their lessons.

"Hi. And yeah, why wouldn't it be?"

"Well, you're calling me during my tutoring session. And don't say you forgot because you've known all year when I tutor." She knew she caught him when he sighed.

"You're right. Something is wrong."

She immediately thought of all the possibilities. What happened? Was he hurt? "What is it?" she asked worriedly.

"You're not here."

Haley let out a breath of relief. "My God, Nathan. I thought you were hurt or something."

"I am hurting!" he argued.

"Really?" she asked disbelieving.

"Well, my heart is." Haley rolled her eyes. "If you roll your eyes that far back they'll get stuck." She instantly smiled; he knew her so well.

"What is it, Nathan? I have to get back to Damien." She heard him groan at the mention of Damien. He still didn't like him.

"I wanted to ask you to if you're free tomorrow."

Haley knitted her eyebrows together. "Tomorrow's a Tuesday, Nathan. And don't you have a game Wednesday?"

"Yeah, but Duke's playing in UNC here in Charlotte and you know how I love going to their games. I thought you could come down for the game. Lucas is coming anyways so I figure you could join him."

"Nathan, Lucas is going in the morning," she reminded him.

"Yeah, so?"

"So... I have school."

"Come on, baby. It's just one day. Besides, haven't you heard of Senior Ditch Day? You could make it a whole thing. Invite Brooke and Peyton."

Haley sighed. "I don't know."

"Please. I haven't seen you in almost two weeks, Hales." She heard the desperation in his plead. She missed him too.

She closed her eyes shut. "Fine," she relented. "But I'm hanging up now before I change my mind."

Nathan laughed. "Thank you, Hales. I love you."

"You're lucky I love you too or else I wouldn't have just agreed. Now I have to go."

They said their goodbyes and Haley hung up. She ran a hand through her hair as she re-approached Damien. She couldn't believe she was ditching school tomorrow.

"Brooke, what's wrong? I thought you love road trips. Especially if you have to skip school for it," Peyton asked as they drove over to Lucas's. After Haley had called the two of them the night before with the unexpected news, they both agreed, justifying they need a break from school.

Brooke puffed in the passenger seat. "Of course I am. It just occurred to me though that once we get there our little vacation will turn into a couples retreat with me as the third wheel!" She paused as she tilted her head to the side. "Or the fifth wheel in this case. Anyways," she dismissed, "I've never felt bad about single before until now." She sent her best friend a pout.

"Well you were the one who said you weren't interested in serious relationships after things between you and Felix went bad sophomore year."

"Ugh, don't remind me. He was definitely not Brooke-worthy." Felix was Brooke's last serious relationship. They weren't in love or anything, they did only spend four months together, but Brooke did waste a full semester with him and only him. He had broken their discussion of monogamy and when Brooke found out, she was devastated. Mostly, though, because she never thought she'd be cheated on. Now she looks back at that experience with distaste yet indifference. She's moved on, not necessarily forgiven, definitely not forgotten, but for sure disregarded.

Peyton gave her a sympathetic smile and tried to cheer her up. "I know Brooke. But look at it this way: you'll be going single to a basketball game where you happen to know a professional player who probably knows a bunch of single Brooke-worthy guys."

Brooke cocked her head in intrigue. "I guess you're right." She turned her head back to her best friend with a big smile. "Okay. Now are we almost at Broody's? Because the faster we get there, the faster we get to the game and get to meet future Mr. Davis."

Peyton laughed.

"This is hot shot's other apartment?" Brooke asked amazed. It was located in a tall glass-like building, and it didn't look anywhere near affordable for a common blue collar worker. Still, it was classic, modest and not at all pretentious or gaudy; Brooke figured Haley had some influence on the buy.

Haley and Lucas nodded. They had agreed to meet Nathan there before heading to grab something for lunch, they were after all starving after their long trip. "He was going to buy a bigger place, but since it's just him I convinced him to get this smaller apartment. It's got a great view though." They were currently in the elevator waiting to reach Nathan's floor.

After hearing the elevator ding and seeing it's doors open, the gang stepped out. There was a small hallway between the elevator and two other doors. "Nathan only has one neighbor?" Peyton asked.

"Yup." Lucas nodded before heading to the right door and knocking.

Haley saw the wheels turn in Brooke's head and decided to stop her before she spoke up. "His neighbor is an elderly woman who loves to bake and occasionally sends Nathan some treats."

"Damn," Brooke muttered. She was hoping for a hot, famous and rich, bachelor, the rich and famous part being optional as long as he was hot and single.

Nathan opened the door and his aggravated look didn't go unnoticed. "Hey."

Haley was about to ask what was wrong when she heard someone from behind Nathan speak.

"Nathan we're not done talking about this." It was Clay, his agent, and he didn't look too happy either.

Instead of responding, Nathan bent down to give Haley a warm kiss and hug her. "Hey." She smiled in return.

After greeting his brother, Lucas turned to Clay. "Hey, man." They side-hugged. "Everything okay?" The tension between his brother and Clay was obvious.

Nathan sighed with folded arms while Clay ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "For now," Clay finally responded. His eyes turned to the petite girl next to his client, "Haley, nice to see you." His tone was polite and friendly; but Haley, having known him longer than anyone in the room, knew the underlying tone. That tone gave away what Clay and Nathan were previously arguing about: the engagement.

Haley gulped. "You too Clay." She mustered a smile.

"So since no one's going to introduce us, I might as well," Brooke stepped forward. "Hi, Brooke Davis. And this is my best friend Peyton Sawyer, who by the way, unlike me who is single, isn't and is actually dating your blond friend over there. Did I mention I'm single?"

The group chuckled at Brooke's greeting. She can always ease any tension.

"Clay Evans. I'm Nathan's agent. And I'm married." He took that chance to lift his wedding-banded hand.

Brooke nodded in understanding before jokingly asking, "Happily?"

Clay chuckled at the girl's antics. "Very much so. Unless Haley knows something I don't."

Brooke turned with a perplexed look to her friend.

"He's married to my older sister Quinn," Haley explained. "That's actually how he met Nathan."

"This is it. No turning back now," Haley told Nathan. They were currently outside her family home's door, the only thing blocking them from Haley's visiting family.

Nathan laughed at her anxiousness. "Shouldn't I be the one more nervous than you?" They've been dating for over a year now, safe to say they've expressed their feelings of love by this time. He's met her parents before, obviously since he's been caught sneaking out several times. But since Haley's the youngest and all her siblings left years ago and scattered around the country, he's now meeting them. Or at least one of them, Quinn and her husband Clay.

"Right. You're totally right. I mean it's not like it's a big deal." Nathan nodded in agreement. "She's just my closest sister and the only person besides you and Lucas I trust and consider my best friend." Nathan stopped nodding after her last statement. Haley had officially freaked him out. If Quinn was as important to Haley as she says then it means he needs to gain her approval. "Just remember: be yourself." Haley reassured him after seeing his downcast face.

He smiled in gratitude and leaned down for a quick kiss. She surprised him, however, when she wrapped her arms around him and began to deepen the kiss. He was planning on stopping them, he really was, but the door swinging open did it before he could. The pair immediately parted.

And there standing at the doorframe was a man. A little older than them. Early to mid-twenties. He may have had a serious expression on but there was a teasing gleam in his eyes. "Baby James. I see you've been corrupted."

Nathan felt worried for a moment until he saw Haley roll her eyes and lightly punch the young man in the stomach. "Shut up, Clay."

The man let out a soft grunt at the hit, but then grinned. He held out his hand. "Hi, you must be Nathan. I'm Clay, Quinn's husband."

Nathan took his hand and introduced himself. They walked further into the foyer and Haley excused herself to help her mom and sister in the kitchen.

Nathan felt awkward standing there with his girlfriend's brother in law. "Where's Mr. James?" he finally asked after feeling observed for far too long under Clay's stare.

"Lydia sent him out on a run. Something about 'not enough liquor,'" he mocked her. Nathan laughed. That did sound like Haley's mom. "I was in the living room watching the game before I went to go check up on you guys outside."

Nathan's ears perked. "Basketball?"

Clay chuckled and motioned for Nathan to follow him to the couch. "Yeah. Lydia mentioned you play. You any good?" The TV was muted and the two men were now sitting.

Nathan smirked. "I'm better than good," he bragged.

Clay laughed. "Yeah, well if you're as good as you say you are maybe I'll represent you one day."

Nathan knitted his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

This time Clay smirked. "I'm a sports agent."

"Huh. Who knew Tutor Girl was the one behind your fame," Brooke told Nathan.

Haley and Nathan shook their head in disregard at Brooke's comment while Clay mouthed 'tutor girl?' to Lucas. Lucas made a hand gesture telling Clay to ignore it.

"Well as much as I'd love to stay and chat, I've got work to do. Nathan, promise me we'll talk before you go and do anything?"

Much to his dismay, Nathan promised. "Yeah, I promise."

Clay let out a breath of relief and said his goodbye.

"What was that about?" Lucas asked. He was actually surprised that Haley hadn't asked before, she's usually one for confrontations.

"Just typical Clay."

"That wasn't typical Clay, Nathan. That was-"

"Nothing. It was nothing," Nathan insisted.

Lucas turned to Haley for assistance. The look she was sending him told him to let it go. So he did, for now.

"So... Is anyone else starving?" Brooke asked.

They decided to go out to a local diner Nathan recommended. He said it was no Karen's Cafe, but it's the best low-key restaurant in the city. After all, he didn't want to grab any unwanted attention from the media.

They were currently seated, waiting for their order and had struck up a conversation. Peyton, Lucas and Brooke were debating on what they could do after lunch while Nathan and Haley spoke.

"How's school going? I know its been a while since news of us broke but I'm curious if its died down," Nathan asked Haley.

"It's going well. I mean I still get the occasional stare and glare but for the most part people leave me alone." The first few days were the toughest on Haley. Every time she walked through the hallway she'd feel countless eyes on her. It was definitely an adjustment, but thanks to Peyton and Brooke she's dealt with it.

"That's good. How about Damien? Or Rachel?"

"Well obviously I can't escape Damien since he's my student, but he's been behaving surprisingly well. He keeps most of his comments to himself. And believe it or not he's doing better in class."

"Good. I guess my chat with him before I left worked."

She stared at him hard; studying his expression to see if he's telling the truth. "You didn't?"

Nathan smirked. "I guess you'll never know."

Haley rolled her eyes playfully; knowing Nathan he probably did contact Damien. She took a sip of her drink.

"Hey, you didn't finish answering my question." She looked up at him. "What about Rachel?"

Haley let out an irritated sigh. "She's relentless I'll tell give her that." Nathan sent her a concerned look. "She doesn't bad mouth me or anything. I mean sure, I've heard the occasional rumor about us being spread and it's obvious she's the instigator. But more than anything she's gone back to her old ways: knocking down my books, trying to trip me, etc."

Nathan shook his head in anger and Haley touched his hand before he caused a scene. "Hey, it's not a big deal Nathan. If anything it just shows that she's treating me how she normally would. Which is better than the rest of the student body. If I hear one more person telling me they're your biggest fan and if I could get them an autograph or introduction I swear I could have a hernia."

Nathan calmed down and let out a small laugh. "I guess you're right."

"Tutor Girl's always right hot shot. I thought you knew that by now." Nathan and Haley shared a look before turning their heads to a leaned in Brooke. "What?" she asked. "Blonde 1 and 2 are boring me."

"Seriously? How is this better than shopping?"

After eating lunch, the group had made a decision on how to spend their remaining time until the game.

"Oh come on Brooke! It'll be fun. You love carnivals."

"Peyton, I love the idea of a carnival. At least for a date. Not when I'm the fifth wheel. Remember? We had this conversation in the car P. Sawyer."

"Well we're all here now. Might as well enjoy it," suggested Peyton as she walked hand in hand with Lucas to the ticket booth.

Brooke huffed.

"Come on Brooke. It won't be that bad," Haley consulted.

"Easy for you to say," Brooke replied while gesturing to Haley and Nathan's intertwined hands.

Just then, a comical laugh grabbed their attention. The owner of the laugh was making balloon animals and hats for children while wearing its iconic big shoes, red nose, and colorful pattern.

"On second thought," Haley was about to turn when Brooke stopped her.

"If I have to suffer through this, then so do you." She hooked herself onto the frightened Haley and walked towards the ticket booth, leaving a confused and alone Nathan behind.

"Hey!" he called out before running to join them.

"You didn't?" Peyton asked shocked. The group were in the car on their way to the game and Nathan was telling the girls some of his past stories.

"I swear I did."

"Who steals a school bus and gets away with it?" added Brooke.

"Apparently Nathan," spoke Lucas. "We're here."

"Wow, this place is huge!" Brooke said. The others nodded.

Peyton and Lucas were seated, waiting for Haley and Brooke to come back with snacks and Nathan who was talking to some of his friends who are playing tonight.

"Wow, and I thought my school had team spirit," Peyton quipped as she observed the mass amount of people spread over the hundreds of seats. Some were covered in face paint, others were all decked out in sport attire, Nathan being one of them with a Duke cap. But Peyton noticed Lucas wasn't wearing anything. "Why aren't you all dressed up?"

Lucas turned to her, his arm still across her shoulders. "It's not my thing."

"Well what about a jersey shirt or a hat like Nathan?"

Lucas sighed and leaned closer to her. "We're on Blue Devil's territory."

Peyton raised an eyebrow. "So?"

"So, I'm loyal. I'm a strict Tar Heel fan." Peyton had forgotten that he mentioned going to UNC for two years. He had left after getting his book published.

"Right," Peyton replied.

She was going to say something else when Lucas began moving. He was taking his phone out of his pocket. She realized it was vibrating due to someone calling. She saw him silence it.

"Luke, that's like the sixth time today you've ignored a call. If I was Brooke I'd think you're having an affair or something."

Lucas laughed off her joke. "No, it's just my editor."

Peyton's smile faltered a bit. Haley had let it slip a few weeks ago that Lucas's last relationship was with his editor. She had only asked Lucas once before and he had confirmed it, but offered nothing more. "Lindsey right?"

Lucas nodded. He noticed her change in demeanor. "Yeah, she's just been on me about sending her the prospectus to my new book."

"You sure that's it?" she mumbled to herself. Despite her soft voice and the loud chatter surrounding them, Lucas heard. He didn't think this was the ideal place to hold this conversation, but he knew it was time.

He turned to Peyton and her turn to face him. "Peyton, Lindsey and I are just colleagues, okay? There's absolutely no lingering feelings between us. I've moved on with you and she's moved on with some other guy."

"Really?" she asked vulnerably.

Lucas nodded. "Really," he reassured her.

"It's just," she sighed. "I know this is probably really high school of me to be feeling jealous, but I just never thought exes could really work together."

"Well they can. At least we can, because our break up was mutual and if I'm being honest, inevitable." Peyton sent him a look that gave him permission to continue. "Look, I should've probably told you this that night we 'officially' became a couple but I tend to put things off." Peyton nodded in agreement.

"Anyways, me and Lindsey's relationship began the summer after my sophomore year. We got close during the meetings and her editing my first novel. She joined me on my book tour and we got even closer. But after it was finished she had to move back to New York, where her publishing company is located. She and I decided to continue our relationship long distantly but after a couple months we started to drift apart. We ended it just a few weeks before I met you." He held onto her hands and looked into her eyes. "Peyton I promise you, Lindsey is not a threat to us. And the only reason I agreed to keep working with her was because I trust her judgement on my writing. That's all."

"That's all?" she asked timidly.

"That's all," he confirmed.

She nodded then kissed him.

"I guess if you're being honest, I should probably tell you about my last serious relationship too."

He nodded to her to continue.

She was about to speak when the crowd's cheering became louder than ever and fans were standing up. The game was about to start. In addition, Haley and Brooke, and Nathan returned to their seats.

"How about we talk about this later?" Lucas suggested in her ear. Peyton nodded, though she doesn't know when she'll get the nerve to bring it up again.