AN: I've literally only just finished this chapter, so that's why I didn't have a chance to reply to reviews or send previews. I'm sorry! But I've just not had much time this week. I have exams next week and I've been studying. I'll try my best to update on time again next week, but I can't promise.
So to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, I'll send replies now! But I guess there's no point in sending previews if you're reading this now anyway. And I can't send you a preview of the next one because it's not been written:P
Chat - Gavin DeGraw? Well I hope you had fun!:) Thanks so much for reviewing. I'm so glad that you loved the chapter. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Thanks again!
Cuteyfruity -I'm glad you liked it! Thanks so much for reviewing, honey.
Anyway, I hope you like this one and please let me know what you think!:-)
Chapter Twenty One.
Nathan stepped into the house, sighing in relief when he realised that no one else was in her home. He then remembered that Lucas was still looking after the café while Karen and Keith were away and that Brooke was still on her date with Julian. He wasn't being strange, he just didn't want to answer some questions from the two as to why he was there, that's all.
Though now he gets to have alone time with Haley, which is awesome.
''So what's brought this on?'' she asked as she followed him into her kitchen.
''I wanted to make sure you were okay,''
She raised an eyebrow, a spring of hurt in her tone, ''This isn't a pity thing, right?''
''Of course not. I love spending time with you.''
Haley smiled widely. He was really one of the sweetest guys she had ever met in all of her life. He always seemed to put her feelings in front of her own, even though she didn't deserve it. It warmed her heart barely thinking about how much of a great guy he was, at least with her, anyway.
She hopped onto the counter, her legs swinging off the edge. ''So, what ice cream did you get?''
''I stopped by the store on the way here, and I just kinda grabbed a bunch of them out of the freezer they had.'' He started taking the cartons from the bag, one by one, reading the flavours as he did so, ''Chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, mint, raspberry ripple and... cookie dough.'' Nathan smiled at her. ''You're totally not keeping these by the way; anything you don't eat is coming home with me.''
''That seems fair,'' she giggled. ''I guess we'll just have to eat it all tonight then,''
''Sounds like a plan,'' he chuckled admiringly. ''Do you wanna order something? Or can I? I haven't eaten anything since lunch. Lunch!''
She opened a draw that was to the side of her, not moving from her spot at the counter. She picked up the leaflets and her eyes scanned across the food they sold. ''Neither have I. How about... pizza?''
''Sure,''
''Hey, can I look at the movies you brought?'' Haley asked, picking up the bag anyway.
Nathan laughed. ''I just grabbed a bunch of them from the rack and shoved them in my bag, they may suck.'' He began placing the cartons of ice cream in the freezer as she looked through the DVD covers.
She shouldn't have really been surprised by the variety of genres of the movies he had brought, considering the four best friends had such district, different interests and personalities. There were chick flicks, horror movies, sci-fi, sports and action. She knew her obvious choice, but she wasn't the one who owned the DVD's or had surprised the other with this lovely night in.
''They're not all mine,'' he explained sheepishly. ''Everyone brought a load of their own when they moved in.''
''I can tell,'' she remarked with a smile.
''I didn't get any of Damien's, they're all sport ones or horror movies, I didn't think you'd be interested in those.''
''You were right,'' Haley giggled. ''I can't stand anything scary.''
''Fine, we're watching two Final Destination movies now.'' Nathan stated smugly, crossing his arms over his chest at her annoyed expression. ''Lucas and Brooke are fighting, they're not gonna come and pick you up and I'm your ride. I guess you're just stuck with the jork.''
''I hate you,'' she huffed, her cheeks pink.
''No, you don't.''
Nathan smiled privately to himself, I figured.
Haley lifted up a cover, showing it to him with her eyebrow raised in amusement, ''Doctor Who, Series One?''
''It's Julian's, but he's kinda got me hooked.''
''I've never saw it,'' she stated. ''I think Jake likes it, though.'' Her smile widened. ''You wanna watch it, don't you?''
He shrugged coyly, a hint of sheepishness in his expression.
''Okay, you call for pizza, I'll set it up.'' She hopped off the counter and walked into the living room, returning seconds later with the phone in her hand. It all felt so natural. Him, standing in her kitchen ordering pizza. Her, popping in a movie for them to watch together. It seemed right.
And she loved that feeling.
He wiped the grease of his hands with a napkin, placing the pizza box on the coffee table as the closing credits rolled down the screen. Nathan glanced at her, with her legs tucked underneath her as she munched on her slice of pizza. ''Okay, so what are we watching now?''
Haley looked up at him, frowning in mild confusion. ''We aren't watching the next episode?''
''I figured you didn't want to, to be honest.''
She gaped at him. ''Did you not just see what happened? I need to know what happens next! Do you think we can watch the whole season in one night?''
''Series,'' he corrected. ''And I don't think we have another eleven hours,'' Nathan mocked with a chuckle. ''I'm glad you like it so much,'' he commented, mild teasing in his tone.
''It's sweet. I like the blonde girl,'' Haley said. ''So can we watch the next one?''
Nathan grabbed the remote and returned to the main menu, selecting the next episode.
She jumped to her feet. ''Oh, wait a second.'' Haley hurried into the kitchen, a tub of ice cream in her hands when she returned, with two spoons with her. ''We can't let all that ice cream go to waste.'' She handed a spoon to him with one of those smiles that made his stomach flip in excitement.
He placed a spoonful of ice cream in his mouth, the inside of his cheeks numbing at the cold. He paused the DVD as the episode began. ''Wait, before we start. I wanna ask you something.''
Haley eyed him sceptically. ''Okay...''
''You don't have to answer or anything, but what was Clay like when you went to see him? Was he... okay? He wasn't angry like yesterday, was he?''
She blushed slightly, placing the tub on the coffee table. ''He was a little upset. He'd been drinking, a little. I think he started after he called,'' Her voice went quieter and her eyes grew sad. ''He started asking again, why we broke up, he brought up you too. So I just grabbed my stuff and said sorry, and I gave him my key for the beach house. He got really pissed then, so I left. But I think I heard him break something once I shut the door.''
Without thinking, Nathan placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, his blues shining in concern. He felt his blood begin to boil, ''He didn't do anything to you, did he?''
''No! No, Clay wouldn't do that,'' she quickly exclaimed. ''He just... I don't like people shouting at me when they've been drinking. It scares me, a little.''
Nathan knew why.
Haley didn't look angry by his order, she looked... relieved. ''I- It's my mom. She got drunk, again. And, uh, she threw a bottle on the wall and there's glass everywhere and a huge stain on the wall.'' her voice got higher as more tears filled her eyes. ''I try and get her to stop, but she won't and I can't do this anymore, Nathan. She's just so awful when she drinks, she says some horrible things.''
(At least he thinks he does, if he even begins to understand these dreams).
''Was Lucas there with you?''
''I told him to wait outside; I wanted to handle it by myself.'' Her voice began to shake, overcome with emotion from the memory of earlier at her ex-boyfriends beach house. ''It just really hit me, when I walked out there, that we had broken up, and how much I've hurt him. And how much us drifting apart has hurt me, because, you know. He's not Clay any more, not my Clay.''
''What do you mean?''
She blinked rapidly. ''I mean, when I looked into his eyes, I couldn't see him any more. And I realised that I haven't really been able to in a long, long time. It just sucks that it's taken me so long to figure this all out.
''I've wasted his time, my time, and I'm still wasting yours. It's not fair... I'm sorry, Nathan. I wish I could just know what I want, but I don't, not yet, it's too soon.''
''It's okay, I get it. Really, I get it.'' He rubbed her arm gently. ''And I told you. I'm going to be here for as long as it takes.''
''What about basketball?''
''Well, I'll have to leave then, obviously. But that's not for a while. But even if it takes even longer than that, I'll still be here until you've made your decision, promise.''
Haley smiled, wiping her eyes. She looked at him in slight disbelief, ''You don't even know if we'd work out. What if we got together and it didn't work?''
Nathan shrugged his shoulders with a grin. ''I think we should try, whenever you're ready. Because I can't bear spending the rest of my life with what if's.Because what if it does work out, Hales?''
''I know you're right. And I am trying to figure all this out. I'm just so confused, and my feelings are just a huge mess right now. I'm so-''
''No. No more apologies, okay?''
She huffed teasingly. ''Fine, no more apologies.''
''I told you. I'll still be here, friend or something more, whatever you want. Take all the time you need.''
''Okay,'' Her lips tugged up to form a smile. ''Thank you,'' she whispered before leaning her head against his shoulder, snuggling into him. She couldn't help it. His chest was warm and she just seemed to fit against him, like a puzzle peace, as cliché as that sounded. But whenever she was with Nathan, everything seemed to feel right, yet so confusing at the same time. Right now, it was the former.
He placed a tiny kiss on her forehead, making her feel all tingly from head to toe.
Nathan grabbed the remote and pressed play, and the opening title sequence appeared on the screen.
Over an hour and a half later, they had reached episode four and it was getting late into the evening. Nathan felt his eyes begin to droop, but then he heard a soft snore from his shoulder. He chuckled quietly, reaching behind him and grabbing the blanket (being careful not to wake her up), he placed it over her gently, so she wouldn't get cold.
Not long after that, he drifted off to sleep.
Brooke tip toed into the house, closing the front door behind her as softly as she could. She didn't want to wake Haley, she already felt bad enough that she had left her alone the day after her break up. She hadn't meant to stay out so late, but then something big happened. Julian Baker finally asked her to be his girlfriend. And it was perfect.
But instead of having sex with him, like she wanted to do in that situation, they just talked, all night, about their life and childhood and dreams. She saw this huge said to him that she hadn't before, and so did he with her. It was becoming clear to her how different Julian was, how different their relationship would be compared to her others, and how much that excited her.
She walked into the living room quietly, surprised to see most of the electrical items still switched on. She then noticed the two figures asleep on the couch, causing her to grin widely when she realised who it was. She suddenly didn't regret staying out all night.
Haley's head was lay on his lap, while Nathan's head was leaning backwards, his arm around her over the blanket.
She whipped out her phone and snapped a quick picture, sending it to her boyfriend accompanied with a, LOOK AT THEM! AREN'T THEY ADORABLE? X
Brooke glanced at her wrist. As much as she wanted to bask in the cuteness, Haley would kill her if she didn't wake her up for work soon. So she shook her best friends shoulder gently before doing the same to Nathan. ''Haley, Nathan, wake up.'' she said in a hushed tone, not to make them jump. ''Hales, you're gonna be late for work.''
Haley's eyes opened at the sound, her head feeling weird. She sat up, realising that her head had actually been resting slightly above Nathan's knees. She yawned, her cheeks darkening. ''Oh, oh!'' She shook Nathan's shoulder. ''Nathan, Nathan, wake up.''
Nathan leaned his head forward after opening his eyes, groaning at the ache in his neck, he knew that he shouldn't have slept like that. He then noticed Brooke stood over them, arms crossed over her chest and a smirk playing on her lips like she'd caught them being naughty. It felt strange, waking up without a dream to ponder over. He hadn't dreamt again last night, because he had Haley, just like the other time at the wedding, he didn't need a dream when he had her right next to him.
He yawned, stretching his arms. ''Morning Brooke,''
The fashion designer laughed. ''What are you doing here?'' she questioned suggestively, sneaking a glance to her blushing best friend sat next to him.
''Movie night,''
''We fell asleep,'' Haley chipped in, sending her a pleading look to not ask any more questions. It seemed awkward, because she knew that Brooke wanted her and Nathan to be more, despite the short time since the break up (heck, Brooke wanted them together when Haley was still dating Clay) and she didn't like that Nathan was there when her best friend was so happy about them spending time together.
Brooke winked. ''If that's your story,'' she giggled. ''Anyway, like I said, you're going to be late to work if you don't hurry up.''
''Yeah, I should go.'' Nathan stood up, groaning under his breath at his aching muscles.
''What about your DVD's?''
''Keep them; you wanted to finish it, didn't you?''
She could feel her cheeks getting hotter by the second. ''I kinda wanted to finish it with you.''
His eyebrow's rose in surprise, his heart rate increasing. ''Oh, uh, okay. Well, I'll leave them here anyway and you can call me when you're free, and if I'm free too.''
Haley nodded shyly, feeling like a nervous school girl with her crush.
(So he's my crush now?)
''Yeah,'' she finally said. ''I'll... call you.''
Nathan slipped on his sneakers, grabbing his jacket from the arm chair and flashing them a grin before he left.
And she found that she could barely breathe. Had Nathan always been so... handsome? Even with the dishevelled hair and creased clothing.
Oh, who was she kidding? Of course he had.
Nathan knocked on the front door before stuffing his hands back in his pockets. He bounced awkwardly on the spot, not really knowing what to do with himself. It was time for his meeting with Clay, and he had no idea how tense it would be, or what was going to happen. He really hoped that he wasn't going to get another punch in the face especially.
The door opened and Clay looked at him sheepishly, his eyes landing on the bruise. ''I'm sorry, man. I shouldn't have hit you... it was unprofessional of me.''
''I deserved it,'' Nathan insisted with a shake of the head, walking inside the house when his agent (or ex-agent now, he wasn't really sure) opened the door a little wider. ''And I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have said anything, I shouldn't even feel anything for her. But I do, and I'm sorry.''
The honey haired man cracked a tiny smile, nodding his head. ''We should talk about our contract...''
''It was so sweet,'' Brooke gushed, a bright smile on her lips as she told her story to her best friends as they ate lunch at the café. ''I made a comment about his hair and he started tickling me. And I begged him to stop because my sides were hurting from laughing so hard. Then he stopped and he just kinda... stared at me, then he asked me to be his girlfriend.'' she declared. ''It doesn't seem so adorable when I say it, but it was.''
''We're happy for you, Brooke,'' Peyton said, rubbing her tiny stomach.
Haley took a sip of her coffee before nodding. ''Yeah, we really are. You guys are so cute together.'' She looked at Peyton weirdly as the curly blonde brought the cheeseburger up to her mouth. ''What are you doing? You hate cheese.''
The record label owner shook her head proudly. ''Nope,'' she popped on the 'p'. ''Not anymore. Since I got pregnant, I've been craving it. That and pickles, too. But I keep throwing it back up again with all the morning sickness, which sucks.''
''It'll be worth it, though.'' Brooke reminded her.
''I know,'' She turned to Haley. ''So, how was the wedding?''
After the events of the last two days, the wedding has slipped out of her mind, it seemed like it was about a month ago. But the thought of her father made anger burn in her veins; she had never hated someone so much. ''Not so great... my dad showed up.''
The fashion designer was shocked. She knew about the break up, but she had yet to learn of the reasons why, and she hadn't heard any of the gossip so far until now. ''Oh my God, are you okay?''
''Yeah,'' she nodded with a small smile. ''Nathan got rid of him. It's kind of a long story, not one that I really want to repeat.'' His words still burned into her mind, I've been keeping tabs on you. It made her feel sick. She definitely didn't want to say them again out loud.
''Well, we're here for you if you need us.'' Peyton stated, patting her shoulder sympathetically.
Haley wasn't going to tell them about Nathan's confession just yet. Yes, they were her friends and she loves them dearly, but it was very complicated. She didn't want Brooke's opinion just yet; it would make it even more awkward when they were all in the same room together. Plus, they weren't her feelings to talk about. She wouldn't betray Nathan like that, it wasn't fair.
Besides, they didn't even know what happened with Clay yet.
...She would just have to leave that Nathan parts out of that whole story, that's all.
''I'm glad you showed up,'' Nathan remarked as Lucas approached him at the river court. He had called, asking if he wanted to play a game of basketball so they could have a chance to talk, because he didn't want his feelings for Haley to ruin his relationship with Lucas, not at all.
''You're... you're my brother,'' Lucas said, snatching the ball from his hands when he reached him. ''Of course I was going to show up.''
He grinned as the blonde began to dribble the ball across the court, shouting back, ''Are we playing or not?''
Nathan ran down the court, and the two began to play.
After a couple of games, they eventually stopped keeping score and played for fun until they were so tired that they could barely breathe and were soaking in their own sweat. It was pretty hot out, considering it was summer, which only made it worse. But the two didn't stop smiling much; they were having too much fun.
Lucas headed towards the bench to grab his water bottle. Once he took a sip, he looked over to the raven haired man. ''So, you like Haley, huh?''
''Yeah, I do. And I'm really sorry for not telling you. I didn't want you to be mad, I know I'd be if you liked... say, Rachel without telling me.''
He rubbed his neck awkwardly. ''Yeah, I mean... me liking Rachel? That'd be weird,'' The red haired girl invaded his mind for a moment, forcing him to smile involuntarily. ''Any way, how did this happen any way? How long have you liked her?''
Nathan wasn't going to mention the dreams, he hadn't told anyone about those. He didn't want to seem insane, especially to his... brother, half brother, whatever they decided to call each other. But he hadn't even told Julian about the dreams, or Damien or Rachel because this is the kind of thing that happens in movies, not in real life. He isn't going to be considered as crazy to someone who he's trying to build a friendship with.
''As soon as I got in to town, if I'm being honest.'' he admitted. ''Every time I'm with her, my feelings get stronger and at the wedding I realised that I couldn't hide from it any more. So I told her. Because I want to be with her, I really do, it might not work and who knows? We might be completely wrong for each other. But I wanna be there, you know? I want her to be there with me, you know, for the good stuff. And the bad.''
Lucas' eyes widened slightly, he had no idea that Nathan was so serious about his best friend. Yet it was also comforting to know, at least the NBA star seemed to have no intentions for hurting his best friend. ''I-''
His phone started to ring so he grabbed it from the bench and brought it to his ear. ''Hey Keith. You're back? Oh, yeah, I'm just with Nathan but I can- no? Okay...'' He listened to what his adoptive father had to say down the phone. ''Um, yeah, sure. I'll ask him. I'll be back soon, bye.''
''Keith's back?'' Nathan asked, picking up on what he'd heard.
''Yeah, and he wants us to go to dinner.''
''That sounds good. Your mom's a really good cook,'' A thought occurred to him. ''Did you tell them about the HCM test?''
Lucas shook his head with a frown. ''No, why?'' Realisation dawned on him. Keith was Dan's brother, who had died from the disease, which his Keith didn't know about. He may never have been tested for HCM. Heck, he may even have it. ''Oh.''
''You have to tell him,''
''Me?'' the blonde exclaimed. ''Dan was your father, too! More so than me, actually.''
''But Keith is yours.''
''It'll hurt him. But he should know.''
Nathan sat on the bench, burying his face in his hands. ''Then we'll both tell him, together.''