Chapter 21: Where'd You Go?
Where'd you go? She said "Some days I feel like shit, I miss you so, You know the place where you used to live, I miss you so, I want you to know it's a little fucked up, Where'd you go?
I miss you so,
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone.
Some days I wanna quit, and just be normal for a bit,"
I don't understand why you have to always be gone,
I get along but the trips always feel so long,
And, I find myself trying to stay by the phone,
'Cause your voice always helps me to not feel so alone,
But I feel like an idiot, workin' my day around the call,
But when I pick up I don't have much to say,
So, I want you to know it's a little fucked up,
That I'm stuck here waitin', at times debatin',
Tellin' you that I've had it with you and your career,
Me and the rest of the family here singing "Where'd you go?"
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone.
Where'd you go?
I miss you so,
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone,
Please come back home...
Used to barbecue up burgers and ribs,
Used to have a little party every Halloween with candy by the pile,
But now, you only stop by every once and a while,
Shit, I find myself just fillin' my time,
With anything to keep the thought of you from my mind,
I'm doin' fine, I plan to keep it that way,
You can call me if you find that you have something to say,
And I'll tell you, I want you to know it's a little fucked up,
That I'm stuck here waitin', at times debatin',
Tellin' you that I've had it with you and your career,Me and the rest of the family here singing "Where'd you go?"
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone.
Where'd you go?
I miss you so,
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone,
Please come back home...
That I'm stuck here waitin', no longer debatin',
Tired of sittin' and hatin' and makin' these excuses,
For why you're not around, and feeling so useless,
It seems one thing has been true all along,
You don't really know what you've got 'til it's gone,
I guess I've had it with you and your career,
When you come back I won't be here and you can sing it...
I miss you so,
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone.
Where'd you go?
I miss you so,
Seems like it's been forever,
That you've been gone,
Please come back home...
Please come back home...
Please come back home...
Please come back home...
Please come back home...
The third week of his longest trip, without him. She was sitting in the home they shared staring out the window, with every time a car passed, her heart jumped, praying it was him, that he had changed his mind and that he'd be coming home. But he wasn't, she needed to accept that. It wasn't like he'd be gone forever, just a few more weeks, then the next time longer, and longer, until it felt like coming home was a job, interfering with his life out there. Haley walked around the empty house, listening to the sound of her feet against the cold lonely hardwood floor as it creaked and moaned beneath her. The sink in the bathroom needed to be fixed, and there was a leak in the basement. Nathan would fix it when he came home, just as he said he would every other time, but he wouldn't actually be home long enough to do it.
She slipped into their bed. There were times when it felt so crammed to them, but they never complained with having to be so close to one another. But now as she smoothed her hand across the space in front of her, it seemed to stretch on for miles.
The hotel Nathan was now staying in was supposed to be luxurious, with big chandeliers and huge bedrooms. What's the point of such a big place if you can't share it with anyone? Nathan snapped to himself. What's so luxurious about this? To him, it felt dull, damp and lifeless. He stared out the window at the bright city lights that he told Haley he loved. Not so much anymore. His home back in Tree Hill, with the leaking ceiling and creaky floors, and Haley, now that was luxurious. He walked around the room that felt like it was going to close in on him.
The bed was cold and empty, way too empty, so he slept on the couch, every night. Or at least he tried, it was only when he pictured himself back home, with Haley next to him that he actually slept. Four more weeks, he told himself, Then I'll be home, but for how long this time? Two weeks? One?
This is ridiculous! He thought as he sat up on the couch and dropped his head into his hands. On the floor by his feet he saw the whole reason this was happening, the main thing keeping him from his fiancé at home, a small round orange ball. It shot anger up through his spine as he kicked it harshly to the other side of the room where it hit a speaker and sent a picture of him and Haley crashing to the floor, just like he had caused one to do at his home not long ago. He stool up and walked over to the picture where it laid on the floor, there was a difference this time, it didn't smash, or crack at all, the two people in the picture still stared at each other smiling uncontrollably, and this made him smile.
Nathan nodded to himself and walked over to his dresser letting all of his clothes fly out into an open suitcase on the table.
"Hey baby..." Brooke whispered as she stood in the nursery of her home, picking up her crying daughter. She smoothed her finger across Keira's face and smiled as she kissed her forehead. Lucas walked behind them and rapped his arms around Brooke's waist as he placed a bottle in Keira's mouth from over Brooke's shoulder.
Lucas kissed the side of Brooke's face as they both watch their daughter drink her milk.
"She's just like you..." Lucas gasped as he kept his eye on her.
"You think so?" Brooke asked, smiling.
"Yea, I do." Lucas chuckled, kissed Brooke's cheek again. "The doctor called, he thinks that from your test results, in about a week, you should be good to get out around again."
Brooke let out a sigh of relief but continued to smile at Keira. "I know how much you hated Bed rest, and you want to go shopping." Lucas laughed.
"Actually, Im just really enjoying being here, relaxing, with you and Keira..." Brooke smiled as she turned her head to look at Lucas.
Lucas's eyes lit up. "So you don't want to go shopping anymore?" He asked hopefully.
"Nice try..." Brooke laughed.
"Are you sure?" Haley whispered into the phone. The response on the other line shocked her as she let the phone fall out of her hand and onto the floor. For a little while she just sat there on her bed still trying to comprehend what she had just heard.
She stood up and walked over to her window where she watched the dark lonely night get darker and lonelier. She wrapped her arms around herself and took a deep breath. This is big. She thought. Not able to show a reaction to it, too shocked and confused. How is this possible? She asked herself.
Nathan needed to know. This was really big and would change everything for them, and she wasn't sure how. She swallowed nervously as she numbly walked over to her closet and grabbed an old dusty suitcase that hasn't moved in a really long time. She dropped it open on her bed and threw a few small articles of clothing inside. Her hands shook as she zipped it shut and strolled down the stairs.
Just as her fingers were ready to grasp the door knob, she felt it turn beneath her palm. She pull her arm back and watched as the door slowly broke open. Nathan bursted in through breathlessly, panting.
She stared at him in shock, the one time she hadn't wish a car was him, it was. He saw her and wrapped his arms around her, breathing in her every aspect, the smell or her hair, the softness of her body against his, her whole surprised figure.
As he stepped back, he noticed how both of their suitcases seemed to collide, both falling open on the floor.
"Going somewhere?" He asked confusedly as he stepped back and glanced at the mess of clothing intertwined on the floor.
"To see you actually..." She smiled, letting out a long breath. "What are you doing here?"
"I realized it wasn't worth..."He whispered as he pulled her into his arms again.
"What wasn't? Worth what?" She whispered back, this time holding him tighter so he wouldn't step away again.
"Basketball, its not worth losing you over, and it's not the future I want." He whispered as he smoothed her air with the palm of his hand and kissed her temple. Nathan lifted Haley into his arms and kissed her lips desperately.
"Im so sorry." He shook his head as he placed his forehead against her's and cupped her face into his hands.
"For what?" She smiled, knowing the answer, but wanting hear it from him.
"For this, and for everything. I was so stupid to think I had some kind of a future in basketball." He rolled his eyes at himself.
"You do..." She said, wondering how someone with his talent could think otherwise.
"But like I said, it's not the future I want. The future I want is with you..." He whispered, once more, kissing her intensely.
"Is there room for one more in that future?" Haley whispered as the reality finally hit her now that Nathan was next to her, smiling.
Nathan's eyes shot open as he leaned back to stare at her. "You mean?" He was so confused. She wasn't pregnant, he knew that. "You mean you want to adopt right?" He nodded, trying to put it all together and let go of his hope for his won child.
Haley smiled and shook her head as she placed Nathan's hand in her's and down on her belly. "We don't need to adopt."
"This is..." Nathan smiled and couldn't get his grip together. He wrapped his arms around Haley and swung her around in the air. "This is just..." He didn't know what to say, he just placed Haley back on the floor. "Oh God, I can't do that anymore, I don't want to hurt..."
He was stopped in the middle of his sentence as he got down on his knees and shielded Haley's stomach with his hands. "I don't want to hurt our baby." He whispered.
"You could never hurt him.. Or her..." Haley smiled.
"Im not going to... I promise." Nathan said, still amazed as he touched Haley's stomach.
"And Im not going to hurt you anymore either. I promise..." He stood back onto his feet and kissed Haley's forehead as he pulled her into him again. "No more basketball.. I swear."
Haley loved the sound of it, but wasn't sure if Nathan did, and she definitely didn't want him to give up the one thing she thought he loved. "Nathan, you don't have to do that. We can make it work, and if you want to play basketball, it's okay. I don't want you to give up your dream." She smiled hesitantly.
"Im not..." He smiled down at her. "Don't you get it..." He began to smirk, "This is my dream..."
There it was! review please!