A/N: Hello all! I am so excited to share this new chapter with you! I know I say it every time, but I am blown away at how loved this story is! I cannot believe the attention it has gotten! It makes me feel so good! So thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review! Every single one I get makes my day! It means more than you all know! Once again, thank you for everything you all do, and I hope you enjoy chapter 10!
Chapter 10
It had been a few weeks since the whole Dan and Haley ordeal. Nathan's outburst had sent Dan back home without another word. The immediate disappearance of Dan had Nathan worried as he watched over Haley very carefully. Through this, Haley and Nathan were getting closer and closer as the days went by. Their relationship was still under wraps as Nathan's fear of Dan was prevalent. Even though their main reason was keeping it away from Dan, the couple liked the idea of keeping it quiet. It was less drama and more time for them to just be together without everyone gawking at them.
Lucas and Brooke were getting serious as well. Nathan, Haley, Brooke, and Lucas were spending quite a bit of time together as Lucas and Brooke were the only two people who knew about Nathan and Haley's relationship. Because of this, Nathan and Lucas were bonding as well. They had each other's backs on the court and in life.
It was a Friday night and Nathan and Haley were together in Nathan's dorm room. They were laying down on his bed, just enjoying being in each other's presence. The silence was broken when Nathan said, "I think I'm going to get an apartment."
Haley slowly sat up, so she could look at him as she replied. This was totally random and something that Haley considered hasty. "What?"
Nathan sat up with her and smiled, "I want to get my own apartment instead of being in this dorm room."
"But why?" Haley question. She didn't understand his logic in this whole situation. Why would he give up a perfectly fine room to go pay for something somewhere else?
"Because my dad pays for this. I want to show him I don't need him. If I get my own place, I can prove I'm better off on my own…" He waited a second before adding in, "And I'll have more space for you to come over."
Haley know understood why he wanted it, but she was still concerned he didn't fully comprehend what he was getting himself into. He was going to have to find a job in order to gather the money to pay rent and with basketball, he didn't have time to work. It's not that she didn't trust him, she was just nervous he was getting ahead of himself. "Are you sure this is something you want, Nathan? It's going to be a lot of money and with basketball you don't have time for a job."
The boy nodded. He knew that everything Haley was saying was true and he thought about all that. But, in reality, he knew this was the only way he could be free from his father. There was no other way. "I know, but I've looked at everything and added up all the expenses. I can afford it and more importantly, I want it."
Haley sighed nervously, she was still scared for him, but if it was what he wanted, she would help and support him one hundred percent. "Okay, if this is something you really want than I'll help you move in when you find a place."
"I actually think I already found the perfect place. Do you want to see it?"
"Hell yes!" Haley laughed as she ran for the door.
When they arrived at the place, Haley was in awe. It was perfect for him. It wasn't too big, but it wasn't too small either. "Nathan, it's perfect."
It was a great little place for a college kid. Upon entrance, the kitchen was to the right with a small bar with bar stools. To the left, there was an area prefect for a living room with a sliding door attached. Straight down the hall there was a half bathroom to the left and the bedroom was in the back. Connected to the bedroom was another bathroom.
"Yeah?"
Haley eagerly nodded, "I love it. I can totally see you living here."
"Me too." Nathan replied as he leaned down to kiss her. He watched her skip off to the kitchen and start exploring. She was a little spitfire. She couldn't sit still for more than five minutes.
"So when are you moving in?" Haley asked as she opened the cabinets.
"As soon as I can. I have to put in a down payment, but after that, I'm all in."
Haley clapped her hands as she ran back to him, "I can already see it. You'll have to get a couch and a bed and oooh, we can get-"
"Haley, slow down," Nathan laughed, "I only have so much money and I have to get the place first."
"You know, if you need a little extra cash, I can always be your sugar mama." Haley said as she wiggled her brow.
"I can't ask you to do that."
"You're not asking, I'm offering." Haley challenged back.
"Hales, I appreciate it, I do, but I can't have you help pay for my furniture."
"Nathan, I know how bad you want this, and I told you before that your problems are my problems. Please let me help you," Haley said as she took his hands, "Besides, if I'm going to be coming over, we are going to need a couch."
Nathan chucked as he leaned down and kissed her hard on the lips. When they parted, Nathan smiled, "How did I get so lucky?"
"It helps that you're hot." Haley stated firmly before laughing and walking back to the kitchen.
"Thank you." Nathan said sincerely as he watched her blow a kiss back at him in response. God, he was the luckiest guy in the world.
**Three weeks later.
"Okay, okay," Nathan said laughing as he held a glass of water in his hand, "Hoosiers."
"Yes! Absolutely best sports movie!" Lucas replied throwing his hands up as he agreed with his brother.
"I've never seen it." Haley said after the noise from the two boys died down. Nathan immediately turned his head to look at the girl wrapped up in his arms as he responded, "What?!"
Brooke slowly rose her hand from across the couch cuddled next to Lucas to say, "Me either."
Lucas threw his head back, "You've got to be kidding me!"
"How have both of you not seen Hoosiers? It's only like the best sports movie of all time!" Nathan said as he looked from his girlfriend to her friend.
Haley laughed as she shrugged, "I don't know, it just never happened, I guess."
"We are watching it." Nathan demanded as he pointed his finger at her.
"Fine," Haley said crossing her arms over her chest, "But only if you finally agree to watch The Notebook with me."
"You've never seen The Notebook!" Brooke screamed from across the couch.
"I haven't either." Lucas chimed in.
"Okay, you can't yell at us for not watching some stupid sports movie if you haven't seen only the most romantic movie of all time!" Brooke explained to the two men in their room.
The two brothers just looked at each other and smiled. Brooke was determined to have Lucas watch her favorite movie as she took him by the arm. "Lucas, come on. We are going back to my place and we are watching The Notebook."
Lucas chucked as he stood up saying, "I guess that means I'm leaving."
Haley and Nathan laughed along as they stood up to hug him and give Brooke a hug as well.
"Thanks for having us over, Nate. You have a nice little place here." Lucas grinned.
"Thanks, and anytime. Night guys." Nathan waved to the couple as he watched them walk off.
Haley sighed as Nathan shut the door and wrapped her arms around his torso. Nathan had just finished moving in to his new place and wanted to have Lucas and Brooke over for Pizza and some laughs. The night was short lived as Brooke demanded Lucas watch The Notebook, but it was still fun.
Haley looked around and noticed the empty pizza box on the counter and cups were scattered over the coffee table. Looking up and Nathan, Haley said, "We should clean up."
"Nah, I'll clean up. You can go sit down." Nathan replied with a kiss on her forehead.
"Nathan, I can help you clean up. It's not that big a deal."
"No, my girl needs to sit down. You basically moved me in while I was at practice. The least I can do is clean up a few cups and a pizza box."
"Fine." Haley stated as she took a step towards the couch.
"Oh, but wait!" Nathan called out, causing her to turn around, "There is something I wanted to tell you."
"What's up?" Haley asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"I got a job yesterday."
Haley's face lite up as she eagerly asked, "Where?! Doing what?!"
Nathan laughed at her excitement, "It's nothing big. I'm working on some cars at my uncle Keith's auto shop. Lucas mentioned that I was living here, and he offered me a job."
"Wow, that was really nice of him."
Nathan nodded, "Yeah, he's always been the good one of the siblings between him and my dad. He was the one that helped Karen raise Lucas after my ass of a father abandoned them."
"He seems like a great guy." Haley added.
"He is. I wish we were closer, though." Nathan said as he started thinking about how he didn't really know his uncle Keith. Dan always said he was worthless and not worth his time. Now that he was older, Nathan regretted not getting to know his uncle sooner.
"Maybe this is your chance to form that bond."
"Yeah…" Nathan trailed off as he looked into the eyes of the girl in front of him. She always said the right things to make him feel better. There was never a doubt that she was the best thing that ever happened to him. Coming back to reality, Nathan remembered he said he would clean up.
"Well, I'll start cleaning up."
"Nathan, I can help you." Haley stated once again.
Nathan shook his head and he lead Haley over to the couch, "Not even an option. Now sit down, beautiful."
"Okay." Haley smiled as she sat down on Nathan's couch as she pulled a blanket over her legs. She still couldn't believe she was dating Nathan Scott. She defiantly had her doubts about him, but he turned out to be the best guy in the world. Yes, they had a rough start, but they figured it out. Nathan had made her nothing but happy these past couple months. She honestly felt like the luckiest girl in the world to call him hers.
Nathan looked at Haley as he folded the pizza box up. He couldn't believe he was lucky enough to have Haley James. She was an angel in disguise, the best thing in his life. His performance was better on the court and in the classroom. Dan had finally gotten off his ass and Lucas and he were becoming real brothers. He could only thank Haley for all the good things in his life.
"Is it cold in here or is it just me?" Haley called out as she peeked her head over the couch.
Nathan only laughed in response. How was she cold? "Hales, it's boiling in here. How are you cold?"
"How are you not cold?!" Haley spoke from the couch. She pulled the large blanket over her shoulders are she engulfed herself in it.
"I don't know. Maybe because I'm normal."
Haley glared from her spot and pointed her finger at him saying, "Hey, this isn't my fault. My mom gave me the cold blood gene."
Nathan continued laughing as he finished putting the cups in the dishwasher. "I don't think that is something you get through genes, Hales. And maybe you're cold because you're just sitting there while I'm working."
Haley rolled her eyes as he joked with her. She'll play along. "Oh, I'm sorry I'm sitting on my last butt while you're working your ass off…" She placed tapped her finger on her chin as she said, "Wait a second, didn't I move you in to your apartment."
"Oooh, nice." Nathan laughed as he placed the last cup in the dishwasher. She really was feisty when she wanted to be. One thing he learned about her, was to never get on her bad side or hurt anyone she cares about. Haley James was the most caring person in the world, but the second you mess with her, it's every man for himself.
He heard her giggle from the couch and he made his heart leap. Her laugh was one of the most beautiful sounds in the world. He would make her laugh all day if he could just to hear that sound. He heard her voice again as she said, "Why don't you come over here and warm me up with those big strong arms of those."
Nathan forgot about the rest of the dishes and raced over to his girlfriend in the living room. His girlfriend. Haley James was his girl. He still couldn't believe it was true and every time he thought about it, a smile formed on his face. The minute he reached her, he wrapped his arms around her small form as she snuggled into his chest.
"You know, since Brooke and Lucas are watching The Notebook, maybe we can watch Hoosiers." Nathan suggested.
Haley laughed as she knew he was never going to let this go. She might be able to get out of it tonight, but he was going to make her watch it sooner rather than later, so she decided to save herself the trouble. "Okay. We can do that."
Nathan smiled as he jumped up and went to get the DVD. "Okay, I'll go make some popcorn!" He yelled after placing the movie in the DVD player.
Haley giggled at his excitement over watching this movie. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Then she thought a minute, of course it wasn't. She was going to be cuddled next to Nathan for a couple hours without interruption. This was going to be amazing. She didn't care what they were watching.
Nathan came running back over with a bowl of popcorn and a small package.
"This is for you." Nathan stated as he handed it to her.
Haley squealed when she realized it was a package of cookie dough. "You remembered." Haley said in awe. She couldn't believe he remembered something so small and simple.
"Of course," Nathan stated like it was no big deal, "Why wouldn't I?"
Haley stumbled in shock, "Be-because it's stupid."
"No, it's not." Nathan said as he placed the bowl of popcorn on the coffee table in front of the couch.
"Yes, it is." Haley whispered. She still couldn't believe he remembered something so small, but close to her heart, "I just didn't think you'd remember."
Nathan took her hands and locked her eyes as he spoke, "I want to remember everything about you, Hales. I want to know everything about you, so I can give you little surprises like this. I want to give you gifts all the time so I can show you how much I care for you. And how thankful I am that you are in my life because I definitely don't deserve all the chances I got with you."
Haley felt the tears threatening to spill over as he spoke. He knew just how to open the flood gates and make her fall harder for him. She didn't deserve someone as amazing as him. With words like that, there was no possible response. Instead, she dropped the box of cookie dough, taking his face in her hands and kissed him with every ounce of love she had for him.
Nathan mooned in response as he ran his hands up her body to her face. His tonged ran across Haley's lips, begging for entrance. Haley granted as she opened her mouth and placed her tonged in his. Their lips moved in sync as their hands explored the other's bodies.
Nathan couldn't believe how effective kissing someone could be. He was going insane at the way her hands were running through his hair. Her lips had the taste of sweet candy. They were soft and addicting. He could kiss her perfect lips forever if he were allowed to. When her hand moved down and ran across his stomach, she sent chills down his spin. It was in that moment, that Nathan realized just how attached it was to this woman. She was making him go crazy with a simple make-out session. He didn't know how long he could keep his love under wraps.
Haley's head was fogged as all she could think about was the way Nathan's lips tasted against hers, the way his tonged explored her mouth…Haley was losing all sense of logical thinking as her hormones were taking over. His hands were moving lower and lower as he rested on her thigh getting dangerously close to her ass. Nathan parted from Haley's lips to begin kissing down her neck. The girl tilted her head back in pleasure as his hot wet kisses trialed down her to her collar bone. There was nothing more she wanted to do than rip his shirt off his body. She wanted to run her hands down his hardcore abs and explore a new part of him. As soon as that thought entered her mind, it brought a sudden fear over her. She had never been with someone else before and he certainly had…what if she wasn't enough for him?
When his hands went under her shirt, Haley felt goosebumps arise on her skin by his touch. She knew things were escalating and it scared her. She always thought she would be married before her first time. Even though she cared deeply for Nathan and every time they kissed she felt like she was in another world, the thought of taking it to another level put an insane amount of fear in her head. She knew Nathan had way more experience than she did and the thought of not being able to fulfill him killed her. She just wasn't ready for all this…
As his hands were rising, Haley got more petrified as he whispered, "Nathan…" She tried again a little louder this time, "Nathan…please." When he didn't listen again, Haley pulled away from his touch and cried, "Nathan, stop."
Haley immediately buried her face in her hands from embarrassment as silence filled the room. Nathan was mortified as he realized he went too far. He never meant to take advantage of her in any way. There was just something that came over him in that moment. He hated himself for making her feel like she wasn't comfortable in the situation. "I'm so sorry, Hales."
Haley just shook her head in reply as she tried to get herself under control.
When Nathan didn't hear words, his guilt set in further. "Haley," He whispered as he lightly touched her shoulder. He felt her flinch slightly and it sent a sting through his heart, "I'm sorry that I made you uncomfortable or that I made you feel like I was taking advantage of you. I don't know what happened. I just lost all my senses and way of thinking…I…God, I'm so sorry."
Haley's head continued to shake as she cried, "No, Nathan, it's not you."
Nathan's brow wrinkled as he asked, "What is it then?"
Haley threw her hands down to her sides and sobbed, "It's me. I-I'm not as experienced as you and I'm scared to think about being with you because I know you've had better. I don't know what I'm doing, and I just got scared of what might happen. That…that I might not be good enough for you."
Nathan felt his heart break at the broken woman sitting next to him. She was honestly worried that she wouldn't compare to the other girls he's been with. Those other girls don't have a chance compared to Haley. "Hales, no one else stands a chance against you."
"How do you know that?" Haley fought at him. He couldn't possibly know she was better when they've never been together. That fear had always been in the back of her mind and today it decided to make its entrance to reality.
"I just do." The man argued back.
"How? How can you possibly compare me to the other girls who do this all the time? I'm not like them." Haley cried too embarrassed to look at him.
"I know you're not and I don't want you to be." Nathan quickly stated. He didn't want her to think she had to try hard to please him. She was perfect just the way she was.
"Are you sure? Because…because I think about it a lot." Haley admitted.
Nathan's eyes almost popped out of his head at her confession. Did she really think he was comparing her to his past? "Do you honestly think I'm comparing you to girls in my past?"
Haley heard the disbelief in his voice and it crushed her heart. She never wanted to hurt him, but he needed to know the truth…She was scared. When her body finally allowed her to, she whispered a faint, "Yes."
"Oh, Haley," Nathan sighed as he moved closer to her, "I had a past of girls… a past I'm not proud of, but those other girls were just flings. You and I have something I've never had before: a steady relationship. And that means everything to me. I like you for you. I love it when you facetime me at night in your pajamas and glasses. I love when you text me random things about your day. I love it when you wink at me during games. I don't ever want you to change, Hales."
Haley opened her mouth to say something, but Nathan beat her to it, "And I don't care about sleeping with you, Haley. I know when you're ready it will be incredible and amazing and wonderful because we are built on more than sex. You're everything to me, Hales."
There they were again, the flood gates. Every single damn time, he had the right answer. She hated being so insecure about their relationship, but how could she not? There was so much happening and the way he always made her feel like she was the most important person in the world made this all worthwhile.
Sniffling, Haley looked at him, "I'm sorry, Nathan. I'm sorry I've been so insecure about everything. I just want this to work out because you make me feel things I can't express even if I tried. And it scares me a little bit…but you mean so much to me, Nathan."
Nathan placed his hand on her cheek as he said, "It's okay. I understand why you've had doubts. I would too if I were in your shoes. And I want this to work too. You make me so incredibly happy. I feel things when I'm with you that I've never felt before and each day, they grow stronger. It scares me too, but I wouldn't change it for the world, baby."
Haley's head shot up as the word, 'baby' rang through her head. That was the first time Nathan had called her that and it made her heart flutter. The way that named rolled off his tough gave Haley's goosebumps all over again.
The way Haley was looking at Nathan made him apprehensive. He didn't know what he did or said to receive the stare he was getting, so instead of guessing, he just asked, "What?"
"You…you called me 'baby'. You've never called me that before." Haley said in a voice barely above a whisper.
Nathan's mind started racing. Did she not like that? Was she more of the generic, honey, sweetheart, darling? Shit. What did he do? "I'm sorry. I didn't even realize I did it, it just happened. I won't anymore if it upset you."
"No," Haley said shaking her head as a smile formed on her face, "No, I like it…I like it a lot."
Nathan released a breath of hair in relief as he mirrored her grin and agreed, "Me too."
Haley placed a light kiss on his lips before she snuggled into his chest, "Now, how bout we finally watch this Hoopers movie."
Nathan laughed as he corrected her, "Hoosiers."
"What?" Haley questioned sitting up.
"The movie is called, 'Hoosiers.' You said, 'Hoopers.'"
"You knew what I meant." Haley claimed as she snuggled back into his body.
"Yeah," Nathan whispered as he pressed play and pulled the woman on his lap closer to him. Breathing in her scent, Nathan felt a rush of calmness wash over him. She was taking over his every emotion. His every thought…she was it. Looking down at her, he sudden awareness came flooding over him; he loved her. He was in love with her. He was truly and deeply in love. She was the one for him. She was it. He was in love with Haley James. A wash of fear came over his body, but as soon as it arrived, it faded away as it was replaced with joy. Nathan felt a huge smile form on his face as he kissed the top of Haley's head. He was in love with the most amazing girl in the world.
"Nathan, are you even watching the movie?" Haley said softly after feeling him kiss her head again.
Nathan mumbled a soft, "Mhm." before looking down at her again. He wasn't watching anything but her tonight.