Wow, I am so sorry that this took so long...I feel terrible. I would blame a few naliens and their commentaries, but I'm going to own up to the wait and confess that it's because I'm lazy. :-( Anyway, thank you all for the awesome reviews...I totally don't deserve all of the nice things you say. With that in mind...here's chapter 26.
P.S. This chapter is dedicated to Ashley because it's her birthday (yay!) and Kirstie because she's sick. (go see a doctor!).
Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill or any of its characters.
Summary: After 4 years, Nathan, Haley, Brooke, Lucas, Peyton, and Tim are heading back to the beach for another summer of fun. Some hold secrets, some have suffered through heartbreaks, and some are their same old selves. They will encounter a few familiar faces and unimaginable surprises as they return to the past in this sequel to "A Summer to Remember."
Return to the Past
Chapter 26
"So then what happened?" Haley asked with a laugh.
"I pushed Tim into the lake." Nathan shrugged with a smile. He and Haley were sitting on the couch together and he was telling her about one of the times he had gone camping with the basketball team back in high school.
"Nathan! That was not nice." Haley scolded playfully.
"Haley, he cut holes in the only pair of pants that I had brought!" Nathan defended himself as she snuggled her face farther into his chest and he absentmindedly started playing with the long locks of honey blonde hair that were cascading down her back.
"That wasn't nice either." Haley assured him. "So, when do you want to drive home to finish the nursery?"
"Uh…" Nathan had not been expecting that question at all and he wasn't sure how to answer it without making her suspicious of the baby shower. Brooke had decided that it would be in about a week and had even rented out a party room of some sort at Haley's favorite restaurant. "Where did that come from?"
"I don't know." She giggled. When you said you pushed Tim into the lake, the baby started kicking and I guess that made me think of it."
"That's my boy." Nathan smiled proudly. "He already knows that Tim is a pain in the ass sometimes."
"Nathan." Haley scolded. "He can hear you."
"Oh yeah, my bad." Nathan laughed as he kissed the top of her head lovingly. "Hales, I need to talk to you about something."
Sensing that what he had to say was serious, she suddenly became a little worried. "Sure, what is it?"
"You know how Chris said something about Nick and Nicki going to visit a Mr. Scott?" Nathan said quietly. He wanted with all his heart to believe that this Mr. Scott was not his father, but something inside of him knew it was true.
"Yeah." Haley watched as his brow furrowed in deep thought. She knew that he thought that this Mr. Scott was probably his father because that's what she thought too. She also knew that thinking that Nick and Nicki could have had any sort of reason to visit Dan in jail was probably making him very concerned.
"Well, I called Kevin from the jail and asked if I could see the visitation records." Nathan started as Haley nodded in approval. Finding out if Nick and Nicki had actually been to see Dan was the first step they needed to take. "Kevin said he had to run a background check on me in order to get me the clearance to see them."
"Ok, well, that shouldn't be a problem." Haley laughed. "It's not like you have a criminal record or anything. Wait, you don't have a criminal record or anything, do you?" She joked.
"No, I don't." Nathan laughed lightly before continuing. "But apparently I had one too many speeding tickets on my record."
"First of all, I told you that speeding all the time was going to get you into trouble some day." She smiled as she reached her hand up to run it along the side of his face. "And second of all, what does that mean? That you can't see the records?"
"Not necessarily." He responded as he looked at her. "I sort of told Kevin he could run a background check on you."
"Oh." She let her hand drop from his face. She didn't mind if Kevin had to run a background check on her, she had nothing to hide, but why was this the first time she heard anything about it?
"I hope that's ok. I mean, I didn't get a chance to ask you because you were at the spa when he called-"
"Wait, that was three days ago." Haley pointed out confusedly. "I don't understand, why didn't you tell me before now?"
"Because, I don't know, because I didn't want to worry you I guess." Nathan confessed sheepishly. She had told him many times that she wanted him to tell her everything, even if he thought it would worry her or scare her. He hadn't told her yet because he was still trying to prepare himself to face the fact that his father was working with Nick and Nicki somehow. Although he wanted to believe otherwise, deep down he knew it was true.
"Nathan-"
"I know, I know, you don't want me to worry about hurting your feelings. But Haley, I didn't want to tell you yet because I'm not even sure how I feel about the whole situation. I mean, what if they did go see him? Would my dad really be involved with something bad?"
"I don't know…" Dan had done some terrible things in the past, but even Haley had a hard time believing that he could somehow be involved with the Chavez's. There was something about them that wasn't right and if Nathan was right and they were some kind of criminals, then she couldn't see Dan actually associating with them.
"He's my dad, Haley. I know he's a bad guy, but he wouldn't actually do anything illegal with them, right?"
"Nathan, Dan's in jail for arson and attempted murder." Haley said softly as he sighed. "I know you don't want to think that he could possibly do something worse than setting that boat on fire, but he is capable of it."
Nathan knew she was right. Dan was capable of just about anything and knowing that scared the shit out of him. Before Dan had gone to jail, Nathan had thought that being an ass was the worst he could possibly get. Then he had set the yacht on fire and Nathan had seen this whole new side to his father that he hadn't known existed, a side that he never wanted to see again. If Dan could be responsible for setting that yacht on fire, what other lengths could he possibly go to achieve his own agendas? It scared him that his own father could be so evil and that's how he knew that if Nick and Nicki had in fact gone to visit Dan that they were up to no good. "I know, and I think that's what scares me the most."
Haley could see that more than anything, Nathan was afraid. He was afraid to find out that his father had done something terrible yet again. She could also see that he was conflicted. It's not every day that your father is an enemy of the state. Dan's imprisonment had put Nathan in a bad position. He hated what his father had done and he hated the man that Dan had become, but he was still his father and that was the reason that Nathan had never been able to shut him out completely. "I understand, and it's ok that you had Kevin run a background check on me."
"Good, I figured you weren't some kind of ex-terrorist or something so you wouldn't mind." Nathan smiled lightly as he kissed her forehead again.
"You never know, maybe I am." Haley said playfully before standing up.
"Haley, where are you going?" Nathan said in slight agitation. He hadn't gotten to hold her in his arms nearly long enough for his liking.
"I'm hungry, are you hungry?" She asked curiously as she opened the freezer and started to look through it.
"We just ate lunch an hour ago." Nathan chuckled.
"Yeah, well, I'm hungry again." Haley shrugged before pulling a package of bagel bites. "You want some?"
"When did you buy bagel bites?" Nathan laughed as he watched her open the box and start to set the small circular sauce and cheese covered bagels onto a cookie sheet. He had helped her unload the groceries a few days ago and had never seen them.
"At the grocery." Haley giggled when she saw his confused look on his face. He had helped her put away the groceries but she had purposely put away the bagel bites herself before he had see because even at 21 he loved them. She had wanted to save them for a rainy day, but she decided that he probably needed some cheering up because of this whole Dan situation. "So I'm guessing you want some?"
"Hell yeah." Nathan laughed as he got up off the couch and walked over to the refrigerator, opening the door to both the freezer and the refrigerator and peering inside.
"What are you doing?" Haley laughed as she turned the oven on and then placed the tray with the bagel bites placed neatly on top of it inside.
"Just looking. You hide all of the good stuff in here and I want to see what else you have stashed away." He joked as she playfully smacked his shoulder before taking a seat in one of the kitchen chairs. "Seriously Hales, there could be airplane tickets to the Bahamas in here and I wouldn't know."
"Sorry, no tickets to the Bahamas." She giggled as she patted the empty space on the table across from her as if to tell him to sit down there. He obediently took a seat before she started talking again. "Tell me what you think about Nick and Nicki."
"What do you mean what do I think? You know what I think." Nathan started as he stared at her curiously. "I think they're both assholes that-"
"Nathan!" Haley scolded as she pointed to her stomach. "You need to learn how to control your tongue before he gets here."
"Shit, I know. Damn it I did it again!" Now he was frustrated by his inability to talk in PG language. Haley only laughed. Every time he said a bad word he ended up saying another one. "I guess I still need a couple months to perfect that skill."
"Yes you do, now, you were saying?" Haley grabbed his hand from across the table and started to absentmindedly trace the outline of his fingers with her own. Ever since she hat met him she had found that when he was this close to her she always wanted to touch him or be in contact with him in some way. At first she had been self conscious about it, but over the years it just became a habit. Every time she was near him, she would hold his hand or wrap her arms around his waist. She really didn't even think about it anymore, it just happened.
"What was I saying?" Nathan questioned confusedly. He had been saying words that their little boy didn't need to hear…
"About Nick and Nicki. You said they were…you know…butt holes." Haley giggled as he nodded in remembrance. "And that's not what I meant anyway. I already knew that you thought that. I meant what do you think they're up to?"
"Honestly? I have no idea." Nathan said as he looked into her warm brown eyes. "I think they're up to something, probably something no good, but I don't know what."
"Do you think it has something to do with drugs? You know, because Nicki is obviously on some. But that wouldn't explain Nick's weird behavior around the baby blanket. Did you get to see the way he looked at it? He was staring at it and smelling it as if it was gold or something, it creeped me out. Oh my God! Maybe he's a child molester or a kidnapper! You don't think he is, do you?" She looked to her husband with wide eyes as her hand instinctively went to rest protectively on her round stomach.
Nathan just stared at her with a smile. He loved it when she rambled. "Hales, I don't think they're child molesters." He assured her. "But Chris said he got the impression that they were looking for something, so if he's telling the truth, then maybe that something has to do with the blanket?"
"Great, how are we supposed to know if Chris was telling the truth?" Haley laughed. It wasn't a secret that Chris stretched the truth to get attention.
"Easy, if we find out that Nick and Nicki had gone to see my Dad, then we know that he really did hear them and that he was telling the truth." Nathan shrugged as Haley looked at him doubtfully.
"Yeah, but, it's not like your Dad is the only Mr. Scott that they could have talked to." Haley pointed out.
Nathan understood what she was saying, but he knew that if Chris was telling the truth, then Nick and Nicki had talked to his dad. It was just one of those things he knew. If they had talked to a Scott at all, it was Dan. He was sure of that. Before he could say anything, the timer went off on the oven and Haley scrambled to take them out before they burned.
"How many do you want?" She asked as she got out two plates and started to place the bagel bites onto them with a spatula.
"Uh, just split them in half and I'll eat whatever you don't." He smirked. Her eyes had always been larger than her stomach; it was just one of those things that made her Haley.
"Well, maybe I'm going to eat all of mine this time. I'm hungry, remember?" She smiled playfully as she brought the plates over and set one in front of Nathan and one in front of her seat. "Besides, I only cooked one pack, so we each only get 4 and a half bagel bites."
Nathan looked down at his plate and laughed when he saw the little cut in half bagel bite. Only his Haley would actually cut the small bagel bite in half because there were an uneven number of them to begin with. She could have taken the whole thing if she wanted it. "Thanks for making them."
"No problem." Haley smiled before taking a bite out of her little bagel. "I had a craving for them anyway."
Nathan laughed as his phone started to vibrate in his pocket. He quickly pulled it out and looked at the caller ID. "It's Kevin." He said as Haley nodded. He opened the phone and put it to his ear. "Hello?"
"Nathan? It's Kevin."
"Hey Kevin." Nathan said lightly as Haley watched him closely for any indication of where the conversation was going.
"Ok, so Haley's record is basically spotless." Kevin assured Nathan who nodded in understanding. Of course her record was spotless, she's Haley. "I was able to convince my buddy to cough up the records…"
"That's great." Nathan said enthusiastically. Now he would hopefully get some answers.
"But…we have an inspection going on here for the next week so you're going to need to drive up here some time after that to see them." Kevin explained.
"You can't just tell me over the phone?" Nathan asked, a little irked that he was going to have to drive all the way up to Charlotte just for this little piece of information.
"Nathan, I'm already doing you a huge favor by letting you see the records." Kevin explained calmly.
"Of course, yeah, sorry. I'll be up next week sometime." Nathan conceded.
"I hate to be pushy, but it would really make my life easier if I knew what day you were coming up so I could have everything in order." Kevin said lightly.
Nathan sighed as he tried to think of the best day to make the trip up to Charlotte. He knew that he didn't want to make Haley come up with him and therefore didn't want to spend the night up there. He also knew that he didn't want Haley here alone while he was in Charlotte, not when Nick and Nicki were here too. Then it hit him, the day of the baby shower would be perfect because Haley wasn't going to be here anyway. "Uh, what about next Thursday?"
"That sounds fine." Kevin agreed. "I'll see you then."
"Ok, thanks Kevin. Bye." Nathan hung up the phone and then looked at Haley whose face demanded an explanation. "I'm going to drive up there next week to look at the records."
"Well, I'm coming too." Haley laughed. Did he think she was just going to stay home while he drove all the way to Charlotte and back? That didn't even make much sense; she would most likely be bored here without him.
"I thought you said that Brooke wanted to take you out to lunch or something?" Nathan asked nervously. There was no way Haley could go with him…Brooke would personally hang him if she wasn't in town for her own baby shower.
"We're supposed to, but I can always reschedule." Haley laughed. It's not like this lunch was set in stone or anything.
"Hales, I really don't want you to drive all the way up there with me. I'll just go up there, find out if Nick and Nicki ever visited my dad, then come back." Nathan shrugged.
"Nathan, that's 8 hours of driving in one day!" Haley protested. "If you're not going to let me go with you, at least stay in a hotel for the night."
"And leave you here with Nick and Nicki? I don't think so." Nathan scoffed at the possibility.
"Tim will be here." Haley reminded him with a laugh. Sometimes he was so protective that it was frustrating.
"Haley, when is Tim ever here at night?" Nathan asked seriously.
"True." She giggled. Summer was a little over halfway over and Tim had slept in the condo for a total of about 5 nights. Sometimes she had to wonder where he was all night. "Then I'll just have Peyton come over again."
"But Peyton's with Jake again. You know how obsessed she gets about spending time with him." Nathan joked.
"Well, fine, then I'll just go to Brooke and Lucas's for the night. I don't want you to have to drive to and from all in the same day." Haley sighed. If he wasn't going to let her go, then she wasn't going to let him come home.
Nathan looked at her for a moment before realizing that she wasn't backing down on this one. If there was one thing he knew about Haley, it was that when she made up her mind about something, there was no changing it. "Ok, fine, but only if you stay at Lucas's and only if you promise to call me after- after you get back from lunch and before you go to bed."
Haley looked at him curiously before agreeing. "Fine, but only if you promise not to let any hookers into your room since I won't be there to fight them off."
Nathan laughed as he took her hand and motioned for her to get out of her seat. When she did, he pulled her onto his lap and playfully bit at her ear. "I wouldn't even dream of it."
"You better not." Haley smiled playfully. "Because then I would have to hurt both you and the skank."
"Now that, I'd like to see." He smiled against her earlobe before kissing down her neck.
"Ok, and when you finish cleaning the windows, the third floor elevator door needs to be wiped down." Whitey told Nick who was standing in front of him in his office.
"Yes sir." Nick said evenly but didn't turn to leave like Whitey had expected him to.
"Do you need something?"
"I was just curious, did you ever do any renovating on the third floor? You know, like remodeling?" Nick asked easily, watching Whitey's face for an answer.
Whitey paused, taken aback by the question. "No, we never did." He answered finally.
"Ok, thanks." Nick smiled before leaving. Perfect. The old man had just confirmed that the necklace was somewhere on the third floor by lying. This was too easy, like taking candy from a baby.
"Nick!" He heard a female voice whisper from behind him somewhere. He turned around to look for the origin of the voice, but decided that he must have been hearing things when he didn't see anyone. "Nick!" He heard it again and looked around for the second time.
"What the hell?" He muttered. Someone was calling his name, he just didn't know who or where they were. "Who are you?"
"I'm your sister you dumbass." The voice replied angrily. "And I'm over here behind this bush." Nick looked over at the bush next to him before laughing. Nicki? Hiding in a bush? This was too good. "Shut the hell up and get over here!" She hissed.
"Alright, alright." He laughed as he walked behind the bush to see a very unhappy looking Nicki. "What do you want?"
"You know what? If you're going to have an attitude, then I'm not going to tell you." Nicki said indignantly as she stuck her nose up in the air. Nick always took her for granted. It was as if he was only nice to her because she was helping him with this job.
"Sorry." Nick said hastily. "Now what is it?"
"You know what Nick? This whole time we've been doing things your way and look where it got us? We've wasted half of the summer! If we had done things my way from the beginning, we would have been done." Nicki huffed.
"Oh please, you don't know that." Nick said angrily. "It's obvious that the old man has the emerald hidden away somewhere and we needed to do things my way to find out where."
"Yeah right, it's not even his necklace. I'm sure Camilla was the one to hide it." Nicki spat back. "And you're an idiot, that's how I know that my way would have worked better."
"Nicki, is there a reason you made me come behind this damn bush? I mean, other than to insult my genius?" Nick asked impatiently.
"Yes there is." Nicki sad firmly.
"Ok, well, what is it?" This whole game was getting old. If Nicki had useful information, she needed to share it. They were a team whether she liked it or not.
"I found out when the best time to inspect condo 10 is." Nicki shrugged, watching as Nick's eyes grew larger. They had been waiting for the best time for over a week now and neither of them could wait until it was finally time to go searching for the priceless Austrian necklace.
"Tell me." Nick commanded eagerly.
"Next week. Thursday I think, but I'll have to make sure that's right." Nicki smiled sinisterly.
"What is next Thursday?" Nick questioned.
"The whole group on the third floor is throwing Haley a baby shower and Nathan is going to be in Charlotte all day. He's even spending the night up there." Nicki smiled.
"Wait, how do you know this?"
"Because I passed by their condo a few minutes a go and heard Nathan say that he's going to stay overnight in Charlotte on Thursday and I already knew that there was a baby shower that day." Nicki explained. "If we want to get into that condo, Thursday is our chance."