Author's Note: I'm sorry that I haven't updated in such a long time. Things have been pretty hectic with school lately, and I've just been getting used to my classes. As always, thank you for the amazing reviews, and I hope that you all enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Nathan turned his sirens off before they got to the convenience store. He parked in the front, on the other side of the parking lot so it would be harder for whoever was inside to see his police car, but he would still be able to see inside the store.

They waited in tense silence for backup. Haley could feel her heart thudding against her chest as she watched what was happening in the convenience store: two masked gunman had the clerk and two costumers sitting in front of the counter. One of them was at the cash register, pulling out a few twenties and a bunch of ones. It seemed like a steep price to pay for little more than one hundred twenty dollars.

Finally, Haley couldn't take it anymore. She turned to Nathan, her eyes wide and her breath coming out in short gasps. She knew it was his job, but she didn't want Nathan going in there. The thought of him being put directly in the path of danger made her stomach clench; she didn't know if she'd be able to handle anything happening to him.

"Nathan," she whispered.

He looked at her, his cobalt eyes dark. He reached towards her with one hand, placing it on her knee. Haley bit her lip before turning towards him, reaching out with both of her hands to cup his face. He closed his eyes then as she brought her face closer to his, resting her forehead against his.

She couldn't very well tell him not to go in there. And she wouldn't feel better until she saw that he was safely out of there.

So Haley did the only thing that she could do: she pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth, lingering for a long moment. When she pulled back, Nathan reached up with his other hand, cupping her cheek.

But then two other cop cars pulled up next to them, and Nathan pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before he got out of the car. Haley turned back in her seat, closing her eyes as she heard the officers kick the door to the store open. She heard yells and cries of fear, but it wasn't until she heard the gunshot that she opened her eyes.

Her hand immediately flew to the door handle, but she stopped herself from opening the car door just in time. If she got out of the car, she knew that Nathan wouldn't be a happy camper—especially if anymore gunshots went off.

All was silent for several long moments. Haley's hand was pressed against the window, her rapid breath fogging up the glass in front of her face before, finally, the door to the store slammed open.

The two officers that had gone in with Nathan came out, leading the two gunmen in handcuffs. The three hostages followed, all of them looking relieved. They were led over to the ambulance and other officers that had arrived on the scene.

Finally, Nathan came out.

Haley let out a laugh of relief, pressing her forehead against the cool glass and closing her eyes. She kept them closed for a long time, forcing herself not to imagine the worst-case scenario. Finally, she opened her eyes again and saw Nathan striding towards the car.

He got in without a word and turned it on, driving away from the store. He turned several times before pulling over in a residential neighborhood and turning the car off again. Haley didn't hesitate to get out of the car and run around to his side, where he was opening the door.

He didn't get much farther than that, given the way that Haley threw herself into his arms

Her arms were wrapped tight around him and her face was buried in his neck. His arms were wrapped securely around her, one of his hands buried in her hair. Haley felt tears burning in her eyes; she had been so scared when Nathan had been in that store, and now she was so relieved that he was okay.

"Nathan, I'm... I'm so glad that you're okay," Haley said. "When I heard that gunshot, I thought that… that…"

"Shh, Hales," Nathan whispered as he rubbed soothing circles over her back. "It's okay. I'm okay. It's all going to be okay."

Haley nodded her head against his neck, breathing in his warm, comforting, familiar scent. They sat like that in a comfortable silence, with Nathan continuing to rub her back and whispering soothing words in her ear.

She wasn't sure how long they sat like that, but Haley suddenly realized that she was sitting on his lap. In his cop car. On the side of the road in a neighborhood. Where anyone could see. She pulled back a little bit, but she couldn't make herself let go of his strong, broad shoulders.

"Is this allowed?" she finally asked.

Nathan's brow furrowed. "What?"

Haley let go of his shoulder briefly to gesture between them and where she was currently sitting before returning her hand to where it had been. "This," she said.

Nathan smirked then. He had known all along exactly what she had been talking about. "You mean, the way you're sitting in my lap?"

She was lucky that he hadn't smirked very often when they first met; otherwise, she really wouldn't have been able to resist him. He was so unbelievably sexy—especially when he turned the charm on.

"Yeah. That," Haley mumbled, feeling her cheeks heat up.

"Well, I'm perfectly okay with this," Nathan said, his large, strong, warm hands spreading across her back. His voice had suddenly taken on a husky quality, and it made Haley's spine tingle. She moved her hands from his shoulders to wrap her arms around his neck.

He pressed her closer to him, one of his hands sliding up into her hair again so he could angle her head towards his. His mouth hovered above hers, his breath hot against her face, and she closed her eyes.

"Nathan," she whispered. Her head was swimming, and they hadn't even kissed yet. She couldn't imagine how he would make her feel at 6:01 A.M. on Friday.

Then it hit her: it wasn't 6:01 A.M. on Friday yet. Technically, they weren't allowed to do whatever it was they were about to do. She probably shouldn't even be sitting in his lap.

"Haley," Nathan breathed. His lips brushed lightly against hers and Haley had to bite back a moan.

She took a deep, shaky breath. "It's not 6:01 A.M. yet," she whispered. She said it so quietly that Nathan almost didn't hear it. But when he did, he slid his hand from her hair and cupped her cheek, rubbing his thumb along her cheekbone.

"I don't care," Nathan said. And before Haley could say anything else, Nathan pulled her lips to his and kissed her.

Haley shut the door behind her and leaned against it, trying to keep the wide, beaming grin off of her face. She bit her lip to hold back a girly squeal. Suddenly, Brooke came crashing out of her and Lucas's bedroom, wearing one of Lucas's shirts.

"HALEY JAMES!" she yelled. "HALEY JAMES, YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE WHAT I HAVE TO TELL YOU—Something happened. What happened? You're smiling. Why are you smiling? What are you smiling about?"

"Brooke, breathe!" Lucas called from their bedroom.

Haley finally gave them her full grin and said, "Nathan kissed me."

"WHAT? OH MY GOD!" Brooke grabbed Haley's hands and proceeded to jump up and down. "OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!"

Haley laughed as Brooke spun her around in a circle. "I think you're more excited about this than I am."

"Yeah right," Brooke said. "You're beaming. You're practically brighter than the sun." She nudged Haley as they sat down on their couch. "Now tell me, how was it?"

"But didn't you have something to tell me?" Haley asked, confused. Brooke had seemed awfully excited when she first gotten into the apartment—and that had been before she had told Brooke about her kiss with Nathan.

Brooke waved her hand dismissively. "That can wait. Now tell me what happened, H. James!"

Even though she had been sitting on his lap, Nathan had managed to pull her even closer, their bodies flush against each other. His tongue ran along her bottom lip and she opened her mouth up, moaning quietly.

Nathan kissed his way down her jaw and to her neck, sucking gently on her pulse point. Haley locked her fingers in his hair, tilting her head back to give him more access. It wasn't long before he made his way back up to her lips, kissing her again.

They made this kiss last as long as they possibly could, until they couldn't breathe. Finally, they broke apart, Nathan resting his forehead against hers, his thumbs rubbing against her cheeks. They sat in a comfortable silence once again before Nathan brushed another soft kiss against her lips.

"You're right," Nathan finally said. "It's not 6:01 A.M. yet. Though I wouldn't mind it," he mumbled.

"Nathan, I don't want to get you in trouble," Haley said quickly. Though she really wouldn't mind it, either.

"Yeah, I know," Nathan said dejectedly. He was actually pouting, and Haley thought it just made him even sexier. She tugged gently on his lower lip with her thumb, and he turned his lips up in a smile at her. "I just had to know what it would be like a little bit. So I could have something to look forward to tomorrow morning."

"Oh, Nathan," Haley said. "I'm glad you kissed me."

Nathan pressed another kiss to her forehead and genuinely smiled at her. "Let me take you home, Hales."

"Aw, Haley!" Brooke said. "That's so romantic! I'm glad that you get to have this." She squeezed Haley's hand. "You deserve to be happy."

"Thanks, Brookie," Haley said, squeezing her friend's hand in return. "So what was it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh," Brooke said with a grin. "Lucas and I got engaged."

"WHAT?"

Brooke laughed at Haley's reaction. Her brown eyes were wide and she gaping at Brooke. She turned towards Brooke and Lucas's bedroom, where her best friend had just appeared. He was grinning as he leant against the doorframe.

"Just in case you wondering, she proposed to me," Lucas said. "Even though I was going to propose to her next week." He pulled a black velvet box out of his pocket, walked over to Brooke, and knelt in front of her. He opened the box, revealing a beautiful diamond ring, and took her hand.

"I know you already asked me, Brooke, but you told me to find you the perfect ring. I already had it, so I'm going to ask you again. I love you, Brooke Davis. You're going to change the world someday, and you don't even know it. You've already changed mine, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Will you marry me?"

Brooke laughed through the tears of joy shining in her eyes. "Of course I will, Broody."

Lucas slid the ring onto her finger before kissing her, and Haley beamed at both of them. For once, everything seemed to be going right.

Author's Note: I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter!