Hey guys I'm so happy that you all are still enjoying my story. And for all who think Rachel will be taking the cheer squad from Haley I just want to inform you that Rachel will not be joining the cheerleading squad. In my story it's not something she's into. So, don't worry about that. Okay well there will be a lot of Rachel/Haley interaction in this one so I hope you enjoy it. And please don't forget to leave a review!
emmalee05: I hadn't originally thought about bringing him back, but you gave me a good idea. So now he might be making another appearance. But i'm still not sure.
NaLeYBaBiixo: Don't worry. Whatever I have happen in the story, in the end it will be Naley as a couple.
mary-023: You don't have to worry about her going out wth Lucas or Jake. But eventually I will have her and Nathan date. That's when all the drama between Haley and Nathan really begins.
NaleyBop: I know it's frustrating trying to understand why as best friends they can't see what they really feel for eachother but that's why I titled the story 'Living In Denial' The two of them are in denial about not only their feelings but also the possibility of the other feeling the same. It's the fact that they won't let themselves believe that the other could possibly be feeling the same way. And if you want to hard enough you can hide feelings from your friends no matter how close you are. It's all about how you cover up your little slips and that's what Nathan and Haley do. When they finally stop being in denial, all the obvious things that everyone around them notices will finally be clear to them. And to jog your memory they have been sleeping together for 2 months.
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In the car Haley felt like she was drowning in a sea of tension. So to put herself as ease she popped in a cd. Within a second the guitar intro of Sum 41's "Pieces" began to fill the car. Haley began singing along to the words when Rachel turned to look at her and scoffed.
"You actually like to listen to this crap?" She asked laughing.
"I'm sorry?" Haley asked clearly peeved at her nerve.
"Sum 41? That's like one of the lamest bands out there."
"I happen to like them. We don't have to have the same taste."
"Well since I'm in the car you should at least have the decency to put something that's good. Let's see what we have here." She said as she started going through Haley's cd case from under the seat.
"Excuse me but what are you doing?"
"Trying to find good music. Let's just hope you have some." She found a cd she liked. "Wow. I actually found one." She took out the Sum 41 cd and put in Fall Out Boy's latest album.
"This is more like it. You can save your thanks for later." Rachel grinned smugly.
Haley looked at her fully incensed and turned off the music. "Okay, I've tried to be polite and courteous with you despite your rude behavior, but you are starting to push me too far. This is my car and I decide what I want to listen to. I'm doing you a favor by helping you out so the least you could do is be respectful of me and my things."
"I didn't ask for your help. I was forced to take it. Either I have you tutor me or I say goodbye to my weekly allowance of $500 and no car. I may have to deal with you until the end of this semester, but it doesn't mean I have to be nice."
"You really don't know who you're dealing with." Haley warned.
"Ooh, should I be scared? I'm not scared of some prissy, goody two shoes, tutor."
"I may be a tutor, but I'm far from being prissy or a goody two shoes. I'm not as innocent as I seem. So think twice before you start messing with me."
"Like I said before, I'm not scared. Here's how it's gonna go down. I'll let you tutor me and I'll let you show me around, but other than that I don't want to have to deal with you."
"You think I want to deal with you? If I didn't respect Ms. Harris as much as I do I wouldn't have agreed to tutor you. So, you really don't have to worry about that."
They finally reached the school. Haley parked the car in her spot and they both got out of the car.
"Lead the way, tutor." Rachel made sure to emphasize the word tutor in a condescending tone.
Haley glared at her as they made there way onto the courtyard. As they walked Bevin and Kelly ran up to Haley.
"Oh my god Haley there you are!" Bevin said frantic. "Tell Kelly that dyeing her hair blonde before Friday's game would be a bad idea."
"Kelly, you want to be blonde?"
"Yeah. I want to try something new."
"Kelly, I don't want to sound mean but with your complexion dyeing your hair blonde is not a good idea. Maybe blonde highlights are a better idea." Haley told her as sweetly as she could.
"You think?" Kelly asked unsure.
"Uh huh. And you know Brooke would not hesitate to tease the hell out of you if you did go through with it and it looked horrible. I also really want to protect you from that and it's best for the squad if you didn't do it. If after the season ends you still want to then we can't stop you."
"Maybe I'll just try the highlights then. Thanks, Haley. You are the best captain ever." Kelly gave Haley a quick hug then walked away.
Bevin let out a huge sigh of relief. "Thanks for that, Hales. I almost choked when she told me what she wanted to do."
"No problem."
"Who's this?" Bevin gestured to Rachel.
"I'm Rachel. I'm new here. My family just moved here from California. San Diego to be exact." Rachel introduced herself before Haley could say anything.
"That's so cool. You lucked out hanging out with Haley. Stick with her and you'll know all the cool people in no time and get invited to the hottest parties."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Haley's like the most popular girl in school." Bevin informed her like it was vital information that she had to know.
"Okay, Bevin that's enough. We have to get going."
"Sorry. I'll see you in homeroom then."
"Oh, I won't be there. I have to go to the office with Rachel to get her locker assignment and her class schedule."
"Okay, so then I'll see you in 3rd period."
"Yep. Oh, and when you see some of the girls tell them practice begins 20 minutes earlier. I already asked Coach Whitey to excuse us for the last 20 minutes of class last period because I have to be at work at 4:00 p.m."
"Okay see ya. Really cool meeting you Rachel." Bevin then walked away.
"So, should I be groveling at your feet since you are the most popular girl in school?" Rachel asked sarcastically as they began walking toward the office.
"You can cut the sarcasm"
"And I find it as no surprise that you are the cheerleading captain."
"What?"
"I mean you do look like a typical cheerleader. And you know what they say about cheerleaders. If you weren't a tutor I'd also say you look like an airhead too."
"For your information not all cheerleaders fit the stereotype you seem to be hinting at. Especially me." Haley defended.
"I'm sure you don't." Rachel said bitingly.
They finally made it to the main office where they got Rachel's locker assignment and her class schedule. Haley looked over the schedule and much to her dismay they were in pretty much every class together except for P.E. and lunch.
"Well, it seems Ms. Harris made sure to put us in almost all the same classes. Probably thinking it would be easier to help you that way."
They began walking through the halls which was empty since everyone was in homeroom. They went to Rachel's new locker.
"Here's your locker. Put whatever you need to put in there and I'll show you your homeroom, then we can get to our first class."
Rachel opened her locker and put some notebooks, folders, and extra pens away. When she closed the locker she walked over to Haley whose locker was only a few feet away down the hall.
"I'm ready to go. Are you?"
"I'm always ready."
They walked down the hall towards Rachel's homeroom, which luckily for Haley wasn't too far from there first class.
"So your homeroom is here. Room 219. You have to make sure to be on time. Mr. Thompson is really strict about tardiness. If you're late, he automatically gives you a detention. It doesn't matter if you're new or not. Probably should've let you learn the hard way though."
"Well, aren't you kind. I guess we should just get to our first class then, huh?"
"Yeah."
They walked to their Trigonometry class. As they reached the classroom the bell had rung for first period. Haley looked around to see if she could catch a glimpse of Nathan. She couldn't see him so she decided to just go in the class instead with Rachel.
"Mr. Marks this is new student Rachel Gatina. She's joining our class." Haley introduced Rachel to the Trig teacher before taking her assigned seat in the middle of the classroom.
"Well, Miss Gatina I am glad to hear you will be joining us. Well, umm the students got to choose their assigned seating but unfortunately I'm going to have to assign you to one myself. Let me check and see which one is available." Mr. Marks pulled out his seating chart as students filled the room.
"Ah! Here we go. We have one vacancy three seats behind Haley. Here's a copy of the class syllabus and you can take your seat." Mr. Marks handed her the syllabus and Rachel walked to her seat pausing to give a dirty look to Haley and then sat down. As she got herself settled she looked up to see one of the hottest guys she had ever seen. She was taken away by the blueness of his eyes and the way he carried himself so confidently. She also admired his strong build, which she was sure was even more amazing if he were to be naked. She sat hoping that maybe he would sit somewhere near her, but was disappointed when he took a seat next to her tutor Haley. She saw him lean over to whisper something in Haley's ear, which Haley followed with a smack to his shoulder. She could hear some of their conversation and decided to listen in.
"Nathan that was not funny."
"I'm seriously gonna have to consider filing a domestic abuse report if you keep hitting me."
"Well, you deserved it. So, Lucas said you left for school early this morning. What was that about? You are the last person to ever want to be at school early."
"I know but I had to talk to Whitey about something." Nathan shrugged his shoulders.
"Anything serious?" Nathan shook his head no. "So you're still coming tonight?"
Nathan smirked mischievously.
"To see the movie Nathan! God! Get your mind out of the gutter. Brooke and the rest of our friends will be there for crying out loud!" Haley exclaimed as quietly as she could without drawing attention from the teacher.
"I know. I just like getting a rise out of you. Yeah, I'll be there. You know hanging in your home theatre is my favorite place to be. I'm bringing the beer too."
"Please not that foreign stuff you brought last time. It tasted like crap."
"We were watching a foreign movie. I thought I'd make it a theme. But no. I'm bringing our favorite brand."
"Good. And I hope you told Luke I don't want him showing up with a skank for you. It's one thing to have to rescue you from parties but it's a pain in the ass having to do it in my own home. At least at parties they can find another victim to attach their claws onto. But I can't get them away from you at home without being a bitch and kicking them out."
"That's why we have Brooke."
"Nathan! That's my sister!" Nathan just laughed much to Haley's consternation.
"Okay class please take out last night's assignment. Each of you should be prepared to answer one of the problems." Mr. Marks began the class.
As the class did as they were told Rachel just kept thinking of the boy next to Haley. So his name's Nathan. Good name. And judging by the way she said that she didn't want to have to chase away another girl for him, I take it they're not dating. Boy is he hot! He just made living in this dumpy little town bearable. Plan of attack: Figure out what he likes and use it as an in. Don't want to make the mistake of introducing myself without being prepared. He is so gonna be mine, Rachel continued with these random thoughts.
"That includes you too Mr. Scott." Mr. Marks looked sharply at Nathan.
"Don't worry Mr. M. I come prepared." Nathan responded as he got his assignment out.
"Good. Let's do this by row. Henry you are up first." Mr. Marks pointed as a student as they began the class.
By lunch Haley had enough of Rachel. The red head couldn't stop her snarky comments when they walked to the classes they had together. Haley noticed that Rachel seemed to really enjoy annoying her. She was right, today was a frustrating day and she couldn't wait until it ended. It was a huge blessing when Rachel mentioned her father would be picking her up. All she had were two more classes with her and then the day was done. For now Haley was happy to enjoy a Rachel free lunch with her friends. Haley noticed her friends and sat at the table next to Nathan.
"Well, you actually get to join us for lunch to day." Peyton commented.
"I know and I'm grateful. That new girl is really pissing me off." Haley griped as she took a bite of her sandwich.
"What new girl?" Nathan questioned.
Haley looked at him in disbelief. "You know the new red head in our, Trig, English, and History classes."
"We have a new girl in those classes?" He then shrugged. "Guess I didn't notice. Is she at least hot?"
"Why would you ask me something like that?"
"I'm a guy. I wanna know these things." Nathan answered her.
Jake laughed at his friend. "She can't be that hot if you didn't even notice her in three of your classes."
"I met her this morning before school and she looked pretty hot to me." Lucas said giving his opinion.
"Excuse me, but did you just say another girl was hot in front of me? Because I know my boyfriend wouldn't be stupid enough to do that." Brooke glared at Lucas.
Lucas got nervous. "Of course not, babe. No one is as hot as you." He gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek.
"Thank you. And I didn't think she was hot at all. She looked like a $2 hooker to me." The girls burst into laughter at the table.
"Not only that but she is so rude. She had the nerve to criticize my taste in music and then proceeded to take out the cd I had just put in and put another one of mine in my car. I wanted to smack her so badly."
"She didn't." Peyton said.
"Yeah she did. Then she was like 'you can save the thanks for later.' And then smiled at me all smug. I'm stressed out just being in her presence. I started out by doing the right thing by being nice to her despite her attitude thinking maybe she was just nervous being the new girl and it was a defense mechanism, but then she outright told me she didn't like me and enjoys bugging me. So, the nice tutor is gone and with her I'm gonna be extra bitchy. It's a good thing it's only for a few weeks."
"We'll be praying for you, Hales" Jake told her than got back to eating.
Haley leaned in to whisper in Nathan's ear. "Just thought I'd warn you I'm gonna need to relieve a lot of stress the next few weeks. So be prepared at all times. You'll never know when and where I might need it."
As she moved back Nathan just smirked at her. "Oh, I'll be prepared and then some."
Haley giggled as the other friends in the group scrunched up their faces in disgust.
"I think I'm going to barf. Can't you guys save the sex talk for when you're alone and we're not subjected to it?" Peyton complained.
"You don't even know what we actually said." Haley told her friend.
"Please. With the way Nathan is smirking and the way he answered you about whatever you whispered in his ear, it doesn't take a genius to know what you're talking about."
"Okay how about a subject change." Jake suggested. "What are everyone's plans for Thanksgiving on Thursday?"
"Babe, you know I'm gonna spend it with my dad this year. It's the first time in two years that he will physically be in town instead of speakerphone at your house. So he wants to have a special father, daughter Thanksgiving." Peyton informed.
"Yeah, my aunt Midge is coming in from Minnesota with her family to spend it with us. I'm gonna miss having you there."
"I'll call you and maybe my dad and I will drop by later in the day."
"And like every holiday and every year the Scotts and the James' will be spending it together. You'd think with all the time our parents hang out together they'd get sick of each other." Lucas said chuckling.
"I know. But you have to admit it's always fun. Especially when Mr. Scott and our dad get semi drunk and can't stop laughing at the end of the night reminiscing about their college days. And our moms just making fun of them. There's always a fun moment. Well, except last year when your grandfather was at Christmas Eve dinner." Brooke explained.
"Yeah, about that babe." Lucas hesitated for a moment and looked at Nathan and Haley before he continued on.
"What?"
"My grandpa is coming for Thanksgiving."
"No! Please tell me you're kidding." Brooke pleaded.
"I wish I was. But look I promise if he says anything like he did last time, you and I will be out of there." Lucas tried to calm her.
"I really can't stand your grandfather."
"Brooke don't worry. You know that Mr. Scott will not let Royal get out of line again. And if he does, like Luke said we'll leave." Haley comforted her sister.
"Thanks. But I'm still dreading it."
Before they knew it the bell rang signaling the end of lunch. They all went their separate ways to finish the last of their classes for the rest of the day. For Haley the rest of the day went as smoothly as it could considering her two classes with Rachel. Her squad aced the routine during practice and she was able to get to work on time. Although Haley's family was very wealthy, Haley loved the responsibility of having a job and earning her own money. Haley had the pleasure of working at Karen's Café. Karen was the wife of Nathan and Lucas' uncle Keith, Dan Scott's brother. When Haley expressed a need to work Karen offered her a waitressing position at the café, which she gladly accepted. That was over a year ago and Haley still loved every second she worked there. Brooke never understood why Haley wanted to work. She figured they were rich , why should they. Haley just ignored her sister's whines about working and went to work. At 6:15 p.m. it had been a particularly slow day so far which allowed Haley to get her homework done. Haley was just finishing up some work when a customer came to the counter.
"Welcome to Karen's Café. What can I get for you?" Haley asked politely to the older gentleman.
"Just a black coffee, please." The man told her.
"That'll be $1.25. I'll be right back with it." Haley went and poured the coffee and covered it with a lid, then looked for a stirrer.
"Uh, Karen we need more stirrers out here" Haley yelled to Karen who was in the back.
"I'll be right there with more!" Karen yelled back. She then appeared with a box and gave them to Haley. Haley gave the man his coffee and took the money ringing it up in the register. She then gave the man his change.
"Thank you and come again." The man then left.
"Well, tonight has been particularly slow." Karen said as she organized receipts by the register.
"You're telling me. I was actually able to finish all of my homework. Not that I'm complaining but I prefer it to be pretty busy. Makes me feel like I'm putting in a lot of work into earning my paycheck instead of just sitting around and doing homework which I could just do at home."
Karen just laughed. "Haley, I think you are the first teen I've met that actually wants to deal with a throng of pushy customers. You should rub some of that work ethic off on my nephews. All they do when they come to help out is complain about having to serve so many people."
"Karen, I'm a hard worker not a miracle worker." The two laughed.
"Well, since the café looks like a deserted town why don't you take off early. I can handle the rest. I still have Roy to help out and hey I could call Keith and force him to help too."
"Are you sure? I have no problem finishing off my shift."
"Nonsense. I know you have movie night planned. Go. I'll be fine. It's not like you're leaving me short staffed on a busy night. So don't feel guilty about it."
Before Haley could answer the bell over the door chimed as a customer came in. And to Haley's chagrin it was Rachel. It would seem more of a reason to leave early but Haley couldn't help but decide to stay and deal with the annoying red-haired girl.
"That's okay Karen."
"Haley as your boss, I'm telling you to go."
"How about this? I'll deal with this last customer and then I'll go. Deal?"
"Deal. Make it quick." Karen nodded and then went to the back.
Haley turned towards Rachel who had seated herself at the counter and was reading through the menu while on her cell phone. Haley walked over to her with a tight smile on her face.
"Welcome to Karen's Café. What can I get for you?" Haley said in a forced friendly tone.
Rachel looked up at Haley then hung up her phone. "Well for starters, another waitress."
"You're out of luck. I'm the only one willing to deal with you. What can I get for you?"
"Three veggie burgers, with a large side of curly fries to go. And make it quick. My mother is waiting in the car and we're in a hurry."
Haley glared at the girl, took down the order and then handed it to Karen who started preparing the food.
"Your total is $9.56."
Rachel handed her a ten dollar bill. "Keep the change. Looks like you need it."
Haley took the money and rang up the order. She got the change and slammed it on the counter in front of Rachel.
"Your change is .44 cents."
"Well, that was rude. I said you could keep the change."
"I don't need it." Haley responded irately.
"Do you treat all your customers this way? I may have to speak with your manager."
"Haley, orders up!" Karen called from the back.
Haley grabbed the food placed it in a take out bag and handed it to Rachel.
"Thank you and come again."
"After service like this I might have to reconsider that. Let's just hope the food is not as crappy as the service."
"Listen it's one thing to insult me, but don't youdare insult Karen and her food. She's done nothing to you. And maybe you'd have better, kinder service if you didn't act like such a condescending bitch. Newsflash you are not better than me. And frankly I don't understand what your problem with me is considering we only met yesterday and you've been rude from the first second you saw me. I'm not going to try to be your friend but I'm also not going to deal with your crap either. I will tutor you like I tutor everyone else will the sole purpose of actually helping you but other than that I'm not going to pretend to be nice. Got it?"
"Interesting speech, but I have to go. And I'm glad that we understand each other. See you for tutoring. Don't be late. I hate tardy people." With that Rachel got up and left leaving Haley even more furious than before.
"Karen, I'm gonna leave now! I'll see you tomorrow!" Karen waved goodbye as Haley grabbed her things and walked out to her car. As she started the car she pulled out her cell phone and called the one person she needed the most at the moment.
"Hello?"
"How soon can you be at my house?" Haley asked rushed.
"Haley? What's wrong?"
"Nathan, I don't have time for questions. How soon can you be there? I got out of work early and I'm almost there."
"Ten minutes."
"Good. I'm in need of some stress relief."
"I thought you said we couldn't tonight. You know since everyone will be there."
"They're not coming until 8:00. We have plenty of time. Now hurry up and get over here. Just come up to my room. I'll be waiting."
"I'll see you." Nathan hung up the phone.
Haley reached her house and pulled up to her house. She got out and ran up to her room and got into the shower. Today was one of the most stressful days of her life. Little did she know compared to what was to come it was a breeze.