Hey everyone, thank you for your comments last chapter. I hope that you'll continue to review. I'm getting a lot of hits for this story, but not that much feedback. I really like to know what you guys are thinking and if you're enjoying it or not. We're still sort of in the beginning of the plot, but some of the big stuff will be coming up very soon. Anyway, I hope that you're liking it thus far.

Secret No. 9: Change is inevitable. Whether it's for better or worse is totally up to you.

"Broody, open up!" Brooke called as she banged on Lucas' door. It was early the next morning. Her mind had been spinning ever since her mom and Larry broke the news. She, Haley, and Peyton had been up most of the night talking about it. But Brooke wanted Lucas' input. If there was one thing Lucas was an expert on, it was adjusting to the addition of another sibling. Lily was living proof of that.

"Hold on a sec," he yelled back. She heard some shuffling around before he finally opened the door. "Hey, Pretty Girl. What are you doing here so early?"

"I need to talk to you. I got some big news last night. And to be honest, I'm freaking out a little bit right now," she declared before barging past him and into the room. "You will never believe what my mom—" Her words came to a screeching halt when she noticed someone else in his room.

That's definitely not Skills, she thought while eyeing the tall, slender blonde standing in front of her. What the hell?

"Who are you?" Brooke asked in a confused and slightly edgy tone. The blonde shot a look to Lucas before facing her again. "What? Did you forget your name or something?"

"Brooke," Lucas warned.

"No. It's alright. I'm Lindsey," she introduced herself while holding out her hand. Brooke stared at it and folded her arms.

"That's nice. Now why the hell are you in my boyfriend's room this early in the morning?"

"Brooke, Lindsey is in my creative writing class. She just stopped by to drop something off," Lucas explained.

"At nine o'clock in the morning?" Brooke asked skeptically.

Lindsey shrugged. "It's the only free time I had today. My father came to visit me this weekend from New York."

"Well, if you already gave Lucas what he needs, then there's really no reason for you to be here. You wouldn't want to keep your father waiting."

"Brooke! Lindsey, I'm sorry—" Lucas began to apologize.

"Lucas," Brooke snapped.

"It's okay. I'm going to go," Lindsey declared before grabbing her purse. "Luke, just call me if you have any questions about the notes I gave you. And, Brooke, it was nice meeting you."

Yeah, I bet, she thought dryly.

"Bye," Lucas called. He shut the door behind Lindsey and turned to face Brooke. "What the hell was that?"

"I don't know. You tell me," she retorted.

"Brooke, you didn't have to be so rude to Lindsey. She's just a classmate of mine. You don't even know her."

Brooke scoffed. "Well, you seem to know her pretty well. How come you never mentioned her before?"

"She's just an acquaintance. I didn't think it was such a big deal," Lucas stated. "What? Do you actually think I'd go behind your back and cheat on you or something?"

"No…"

"Because it sure sounds like it."

Brooke sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. I'm just a little stressed. I came here needing to talk to you, and I found another woman in your room—"

"But I—"

"I know. It was nothing. It just caught me off guard. I'm sorry," Brooke apologized again. She didn't mean to be so impolite, but her mouth seemed to take on a mind of its own—especially when she saw other women around Lucas. He was always being hit on by skanks, and Brooke couldn't help the jealous streak that would form within her.

Lucas walked towards her and gave her a tender kiss on the lips. "I love you. You're the girl for me, Brooke James. You don't have to worry about anyone taking your place. Okay?"

Brooke nodded. "Okay."

"So, what was it you needed to talk about?" Lucas questioned as he led her over to the bed.

"My mom's pregnant," she stated.

"Oh my God, are you serious?"

"Would I joke about something like this?"

"You don't sound too happy about it."

Brooke sighed. "No, I am. My mother was practically glowing when she and Larry told us the news last night. They both looked really excited. It's just that…"

"It's kind of weird," Lucas filled in.

Brooke nodded. "Yeah. I mean, my mom's not as young as she used to be. Plus, the age difference between the baby and me and my sisters is going to be huge. And what if the baby doesn't like me? What if I don't like the baby? Oh God, what if my mom and my sisters like the baby better than me?! I'll be replaced!" She knew it was a childish and completely ludicrous thought, but she couldn't help it. Everything was changing. She could feel it.

Lucas laughed out loud. "Brooke, relax. You know that will never happen."

"Easy for you to say. You were an only child before Lily came along. I'm the middle one. And you know what they all say about being the middle child. It's always the forgotten one." Peyton was always the oldest sibling and artist. Haley was the youngest and kid genius. Growing up, there were some times that Brooke felt a little left out. It was probably why she was so loud and outgoing as a child. She had to get everyone's attention in some way.

"Cheery, that's total crap," Lucas objected as he placed a hand on her cheek. "There's no way that anyone could forget you. You're drop-dead gorgeous, have a fun personality, and your mom and sisters love you. You're not going to be replaced. And even if in some crazy universe you were, you'd always have me."

"Thanks, Broody," she whispered with a smile. That was one of the things Brooke loved about her boyfriend. He always had a way of silencing her fears and making her feel better. "You're really good at calming me down."

"I'm a writer. Coming up with the right words are kind of my thing."

Brooke laughed. "Yeah, they are." She then leaned in and gave him a sweet kiss.

"So, how far along is your mom?" Lucas questioned once they'd pulled apart.

"Just about two months," Brooke answered. "She thought she was sick because of a cold she couldn't fight off. But then she went to the doctors, they ran some tests, and she found out she was pregnant."

"So she's due in…"

"April."

"Well, you have a while to adjust. I know it's a lot to take in right now, but I promise you're going to be really excited when it's time for the baby to come. The first time I saw Lily and held her in my arms I was hooked."

"I'm sure you're right."

"What about Haley and Peyton? What do they think?"

"Haley is actually pretty thrilled. And Peyton, well, I think she's still in shock like me. But she seems happy about it, too."

"That's great."

"Yeah."

"Speaking of Haley, we should probably head over to your dorm. I've got to drive her back to Duke today, so we only have a little bit more time to spend with her."

"Well," Brooke began as she scooted closer to him, "she's actually with Peyton right now getting a tour of the campus. So, technically, we do have some time to kill."

"Really?"

Brooke nodded. "Yup."

"So what should we do?" Lucas asked as his voice took on a husky tone.

Brooke gave him a flirty smile before bringing her lips to his neck. She heard a low groan escape him as she left a hot trail of open-mouth kisses up his skin. She then passionately claimed his lips in hers while pushing him back on the bed. Brooke straddled him and lifted her shirt off before throwing it to the side. Lucas' eyes darkened when he saw her bra. She knew her red lace one was his favorite. It always drove him crazy.

"I have a few ideas."

"What do you think, Munchkin? Were they any good?" Peyton questioned. She was at Jake's apartment hanging out with him and Jenny that Sunday evening. She'd brought along the demos of the bands that her mother had given her to listen to. They needed to know as soon as possible which bands to book.

"They sucked!"

"Jenny!" Jake scolded.

Peyton put her hand over her mouth to hold back a laugh.

"Sorry, Daddy. I meant they were very bad."

Peyton nodded. "Well, I thought so, too. What do you think, Jake?"

"They're not Tric material," he answered.

"Then they're out," Peyton said as she tossed their CD into the rejection box. She then picked up another CD and placed it into the stereo.

"I like this one," Jenny said after a couple of minutes.

"Yeah, me, too," Jake agreed.

Peyton listened for another minute before nodding her head. "I think she's the one."

"What's the singer's name?" Jake inquired.

Peyton picked up the case and looked at it. "Um…Mia Catalano. Apparently, she's a new, up-and-coming artist."

"She's really good. You should pick her, Mommy," Jenny said.

"I'll probably call her in to do a live audition first. Then I'll decide if she should be booked," Peyton declared. It was one thing to sound good on a recording. Performing in front of actual people was another skill all together.

Jake nodded. "That's a good idea." They listened to a few more bands before finally calling it quits. There were only two more groups that Peyton was considering to hire. "Alright, kiddo, it's time for bed."

"But, Daddy—" Jenny began to protest.

"Nope. You've got a long day ahead of you tomorrow. Now let's go."

"But you didn't ask Peyton yet," Jenny stated.

Peyton looked between the two curiously. "Ask me what?"

"It's no big deal. Jenny and I were just planning on going to the mall on Tuesday. She's dying to go to the toy store. That's all."

"I want you to come," Jenny declared.

"Jenny, Peyton might be busy." Jake then turned to her. "I know that that day is usually kind of rough for you. I don't want you to feel like you have to come with us."

Peyton nodded in understanding. Tuesday was the anniversary of her father's death. It was the one day of the year that Peyton dreaded the most. It had been three years since Jimmy James passed, and she just couldn't forget the images of her father in the hospital or the pain that she'd felt that day. It always hit her with the same intensity.

"Actually, I would like to come with you," Peyton said. "It'd be a nice distraction." Jake had been in the hospital when her father died. He was the one who gave her family the opportunity to say goodbye. He had always been her rock. If she needed to be around anyone that day, it was him.

Jake then ran a hand through her blonde curls before leaning in to kiss her softly. "Then I guess you're coming with us."

Haley ran a hand through her wavy hair and checked her appearance over in the mirror. It was Monday afternoon, and she was back at her dorm. Nathan would be arriving at any minute to work on their next assignment for their class. They'd just gotten it earlier that day, but he had an away game this week and practice. He wouldn't have a lot of time to meet up with her. Haley just hoped that things between them today would be better. She didn't know if she could handle another day of him being cold towards her.

Haley did one final sweep of the room to make sure that it was clean. Carrie's things over the weekend had seemed to end up all over the place. Haley had tried to make it look neat without really touching her stuff too much.

A second later, Haley heard a knock on the door. She straightened out her clothes. She'd decided to wear one of the outfits that Brooke had recommended. Haley had on low-rise jeans and a blue sweater with a built-in, white bustier, and black belt around the waist. It looked sophisticated and showed just the right amount of cleavage. When she was done fixing her outfit, Haley finally answered the door.

"Hey," she greeted as she tried not to stare at him. She always loved it when Nathan wore his blue polo shirt. It had this way of bringing out his eyes and making them even more striking than they already were.

Yeah, that's not going to distract me while we're working, she thought wryly.

"Hey," he replied.

"Come in." Haley then stepped aside. "You can take a seat at my desk over there." Afterward, Haley took Carrie's seat and positioned it across from him at the desk.

Nathan took a few things out of his backpack before pulling out the sheet they had to work on. "Did you get a chance to read this over yet?"

Haley shook her head. "No."

"There are twenty questions. It looks like it's going to take awhile."

"Oh, okay." Fine by me, she mused. "Let's get started then."

The pair went through the questions. It wasn't long before Haley thought Nathan was right. Each query involved a longer answer than usual. She didn't really mind, though. These assignments that they had to do were always so personal. Most of the time, Haley just saw it as a way to either reconnect or catch up with Nathan.

"Alright, next question. Do you feel that you have a higher purpose or calling in life?" Haley asked.

Nathan shrugged. "To actually make it into the NBA and play basketball professionally, I guess. To achieve greatness."

Haley smiled as she wrote the answer down.

"What?" Nathan asked.

Haley looked up confused. "I didn't say anything."

"I know, but you were smiling," he pointed out.

Haley shook her head. "It's nothing. I was just remembering that time during our senior year that I asked you why you played basketball. You gave me all these reasons. You had skills, you enjoyed it, it gave you a sense of accomplishment…but the answer that stuck out at me the most was that you said it felt like you were born to play. I don't know. I guess it just reinforces this question."

"Well, what about you? Do you feel that you have a higher purpose or calling in life?"

Haley nodded. "Yeah. I've always wanted to help people. Whether it's through music or teaching, I just feel like I'm supposed to give others some kind of hope. I don't know if I can even really explain it."

"No, I get it," Nathan said with a small smile. Haley returned the gesture as he wrote her answer down. "So you're still into your music?"

"Is that the next question?" Haley inquired, surprised, as she picked up her sheet and looked at it.

"No, it's my own personal one," he stated. "You're still singing and composing?"

"Um…yeah. I mean, I'm trying. Lately I've kind of been getting stuck," she revealed.

Nathan frowned. "Why?"

"I'm not sure."

"Well, you were always good with words. I'm sure it'll come," he said.

Haley smiled. "Thanks." She didn't know how or when, but somehow she and Nathan had actually started having a genuine conversation. There wasn't any tension or coldness like there usually was with him. In fact, Nathan was being kind of nice.

Haley would be lying if she didn't admit she was a little shocked at the moment. But she wasn't going to complain. Haley wanted Nathan to be able to talk to her again. "Maybe I'll take a break from regular songs for a while and try composing some lullabies."

"Lullabies?" Nathan asked, confused.

"When I went to visit my sisters this weekend, my mom and Larry took us out to dinner. They had some news to tell us," Haley explained. "It turns out my mom is pregnant."

Nathan's eyes widened in astonishment. "No way," he laughed.

"Oh yeah. It's really happening. She's about two months along."

"Wow, that's unbelievable. You're going to have another sibling."

"I know. Brooke, Peyton, and I were so shocked," she told him. "In fact, I think that my sisters are still in shock."

"What about you?"

"I'm actually really excited. I love babies. Besides, my mom is happy. After everything she's been through, she deserves this." Haley thought it was good news at the right time. The anniversary of her father's death was tomorrow, and it was always hard on all of them. At least they had something positive to think about.

"That's really great, Hales," Nathan commented. Haley froze for a second when she heard that. She couldn't remember the last time that Nathan had actually called her Hales. From the slightly stunned look on his face, it seemed that he'd noticed it, too.

Piercing blue met deep brown as their eyes locked. Haley felt a shiver run up her spine at his intense gaze. Unfortunately, it didn't last very long. The moment was interrupted by a loud knocking on the door.

"Sorry. I have to get that," Haley said before getting up to answer the door.

"James, I'm glad you're here."

Haley sighed, annoyed. "Chris, what do you want?"

"It's nice to see that you haven't lost that fire. That's why this is so perfect. The Keller wrote a song for you."

"What?"

"Well, it's more like an exercise for you to improve," Chris stated as he walked past her into the room.

"Hey!" Haley protested. "What did I tell you about—"

"Oh, you have company. What's up, man?" Chris said while holding is hand out to Nathan. "I'm Chris Keller. Haley's RA/vocal coach. And you are?"

"I'm—" Nathan began when Haley interrupted.

"He's leaving."

"Oh, that's probably good. We've got to work on this song," Chris said to Nathan.

"Not him. You," Haley clarified. She then grabbed Chris by the arm and dragged him out the door.

"Hey, watch it. Chris Keller just ironed this shirt," Chris exclaimed.

"Look, Chris, I already told you before that I don't need your help. Now please just go." Ever since he'd barged into her room the last time, he wouldn't leave her alone. It seemed like every time she left or entered her dorm he was conveniently there offering to coach her. Once or twice he even proposed that they work together. At this point, Haley was starting to lose her patience.

"Oh, I get it. It's not a good time. You want some alone time with your boyfriend."

"No, it's not that."

"So he's not your boyfriend."

"Well, yes. I mean, no. Not exactly…"

"So that means you're still available and must have a lot of free time on your hands. Sweet."

Haley groaned in frustration. "Goodbye, Chris!"

"But—" he began when she slammed the door in his face. Haley then leaned up against the door, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath to calm down.

"And I thought my RA was weird," Nathan commented.

Haley laughed before opening her eyes to look at him. "I'm sorry about that," she apologized. "He's just…really annoying and hard to handle."

"It's not your fault. Besides, I thought you handled him pretty well," Nathan smirked. "Yanking him out the door like that was a nice touch."

"Well, I try," Haley joked before returning to her seat. In the process, she accidentally knocked over her notebook and a few papers.

Damn my klutziness, she inwardly groaned. She bent down to pick them up.

"I've got it," Nathan said as he, too, reached for the fallen objects. Their hands collided, and Haley instantly felt a jolt of electricity run through her. She lifted her head to look at him and found him staring back at her. His eyes drifted down, afterward, to her chest. His gaze seemed to focus in on something.

It was then that Haley realized he could probably see down her shirt in the position that she was in. She looked down to survey the damage but noticed his eyes weren't actually looking at her breasts. They were staring at the promise ring hanging from the chain around her neck. It must've slipped out of her shirt when she bent over. Nathan quickly moved his hand away from hers as if it had burned him. He then sat back up and turned his attention to his notebook.

"We should probably finish the rest of these questions," he stated in a distant tone. Haley felt the muscles in her stomach lurch and her eyes water. The fun and ease that they'd had before were gone. Nathan's guard was back up. And the way he was acting towards her now made her feel like she was nothing to him.

After everything was picked up, Nathan started shooting questions at her with his usual icy tone. Haley tried to keep her composure and answer them as quickly as possible. She couldn't handle him being like this today—especially after how well things were going just minutes prior.

"Last question," Nathan announced. "Would you rather have your dream job or your soul mate for the rest of your life?"

Haley cringed inwardly. If she didn't feel the horrible awkwardness and strain before, she felt it now. Some of these questions were literally torture. "Soul mate," she answered. "You?"

"Dream job," he replied stoically while looking her right in the eyes. "At least I know it's something I can always depend on."

Haley glanced away, unable to bear it. It was a low blow. "We're done, so you can go now," she said quietly. She felt like she was going to burst out crying at any second, and there was no way in hell she wanted him to see her like that. Haley didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

Nathan gathered his things and placed them in his backpack. "I'll see you in class," he muttered. A second later, he was out the door. It was only then that Haley finally allowed the tears to fall.