Hey! I'm not gonna bother to apologize for the wait anymore because it would be kind of ridiculous now. I mean procrastination is pathological for me.
Anyway I really appreciated your reviews, I know you probably thought more than once that I gave up but your kind words always make me go back to this story.
With this chapter I wanted to try something bold, I know some of you won't like it, but I just didn't want to take the easy road so there it is. It's Nathan's POV, next chapter will be Haley's POV
Good reading guys! Hope you won't hate me too much!


"Haley please!" Nathan begged, his voice trembling, taking her hands in his. "Just… just think about it, okay?"

Nathan knew that it was a lot to ask and that it was pretty selfish in the first place to even ask but having a baby with Haley felt like a clean slate and when she told him, for a few seconds, he had hope for this fucked up world, maybe it would be okay, maybe there was salvation, so he asked anyway.

"Don't do this." Haley pleaded with him shaking her head.

"I'll take care of the baby, I'll stay at home, I'll do everything. I promise you it's gonna be great." Nathan tried to reason with her. "Please. Think about it." He begged again.

Haley looked in his eyes and saw how much he wanted this and she wish she could give him that, because she loved him more than anything, but for now she just couldn't. She wish she was this girl who had her shit together, but she was exhausted and she couldn't take care of herself for nine months. She couldn't eat properly and healthily four times per day, she couldn't curse a child with someone like her as a mother, she couldn't bring a human being on this planet with her state of mind, it was too fucking hard.

"I'm sorry but right now I can't even think about it. I can't have this baby. I won't do it."

That was it. He wanted to find the right words to convince her but nothing came to his mind not that it would have change anything. Her decision seemed final.

"I'm sorry for being this way."

"Believe me or not, I think you're perfect just the way you are." Nathan smiled sadly, tears streaming down his face.

"But your life would be simpler if I wasn't in it. God! I wish we had met 6 years ago. You would have loved me at 18 and most importantly I would have let you." Haley said overwhelmed with nostalgia, thinking about simpler times. She was now crying too.

"It's okay." Nathan whispered taking her face in his hand, his forehead against hers.

"Is it though?" Haley sighed.

"I don't need another kid, I'm happy with you and Gracie. You two are all what I need." He said but looking into her eyes he knew that it was pointless. He was loosing her.

"You deserve better. In fact you deserve everything."

"Don't leave me." Nathan muttered closing his eyes, it just hurt to look at her.

"I love you more than anything. I'm just sorry I can't love you better."

"Don't be. You came into our lives and brighten everything. I was afraid to put myself out there again but I fell in love with you Haley, completely. I couldn't repress it or filter it. You taught me that a fearless life without love wasn't worth living and our time together felt like a beautiful dream."

Haley kissed him and he could taste her salty tears mixed up with her cherry lip balm. He didn't want it to end but she broke the kiss.

"One day." Haley promised before she left.

He looked at her walking away barely realizing that they were over. "One day." He whispered to himself. Maybe life will surprise him in a good way this time.


She would have been 4 months pregnant by now. Nathan thought to himself. It often crossed his mind, how it would have been.

The last time he had seen Haley was 3 months ago, he had insisted to be with her during the procedure. He missed her but it was too painful for both of them to see each other. He texted her from time to time though. It was nice to get some news, to know that she was okay.

She had told him that she was seeing a shrink, that it was really helping and that she was slowly starting to eat properly again.

He was happy for her, he just wanted her to be okay even if it meant that they wouldn't be together.

Nathan was at work and the mayor assistant had just left. He had seen him three times this month. He couldn't stop thinking about Haley so he took his phone and wrote her a text.

Beautiful

May 29, 12:32 pm
Gee u guys so desperate!
Why is it so hard for ur boss
to understand that i dont do
politics. Anyway its been a while
how u doing?

May 29, 12:33 pm
he likes you can you blame him?
i'm fine i even kinda enjoy my
fruit salad earlier :)

May 29, 12:33 pm
thats gr8! maybe u could
come at the penthouse i'll do
mac&cheese

May 29, 12:34 pm
Work is crazy right now
besides mac&cheese seems
like a big step for now. Tell
Gracie I miss her xoxo

Nathan sighed and grabbed his jacket. He was already late to lunch with his daughter.

"Hey Nate, here's Gracie's photoshoot." Peyton gave him the portfolio.

"I can't believe I agreed to this. Damn you Brooke!" Nathan mumbled before he took the portfolio.

"Look at her smile, she seems to enjoy it." Peyton pointed out.

"Of course mini Brooke would enjoy it." Nathan rolled his eyes then went through the portfolio for Vogue kids. "My baby girl is beautiful."

"She is. I think you should trust your sister, I know Brooke can be pushy, but she loves Gracie, she has her best interest at heart and she knew that this would make her happy because they're a lot alike."

"I know that but I don't have to like it." Nathan said stubbornly. "Anyway Gracie is waiting for me. See you later."

"Hey Nate!" Peyton stopped him. "You and Haley, you'll work it out. Look at Jake and I. We're happy now."

"Maybe. I sure hope so. But if not, I have a daughter that I love more than anything, a supportive little sister and wonderful friends. I have a family so I'll be okay eventually. I need to be okay, I can't go back to be miserable, I have to be the father my daughter think I am." Nathan told Peyton.

"Well, I'm there and I love you so whenever you need just call me okay?" Peyton said as her hand was squeezing his shoulder reassuringly.


Of course Nathan was glad for his sister but it hurt a little. He wanted to be there for Brooke just like she was there for him but it was hard. Although he was currently helping Lucas to paint the babies' room, he felt sad, he couldn't help thinking about Haley. He tried to stay in a good mood, especially since his sister asked him to really try with Lucas and he was really trying, he even started to genuinely like the guy, but right now his heart just wasn't into it.

"What's the matter with you? You're out of it." Lucas asked Nathan after he grew tired of his silence.

"Nothing. I'm trying to concentrate. If I mess that up your wife's gonna kill me." Nathan said as he was painting the wall with the pantone color of the year "Marsala", a pretty burgundy. It wasn't a lie, there was a good chance that Brooke would actually kill them if it weren't perfect.

"Right, she's a little scary nowadays."

"You mean scarier than usual." Nathan pointed out.

"I love her more than anything but this gotta stop!" Lucas complained.

"And by stop you mean that you can't wait for the babies to be here?" Nathan asked turning to him as he stopped painting.

"I'm sure everything will go back to normal."

"Yeah right." Nathan said laughing.

"What is it now?"

"You poor bastard. You have no clue, do you?" Nathan asked rhetorically. "You're about to be the father of two mini Brooke. You're in so much trouble man. I actually feel sorry for you." He mocked him.

Brooke and Lucas had learnt that they were expecting two baby girls. Haley's mother turned out to be wrong after all. In fact, Lucas was relieved, he was pretty good with girls, he had been with Lily and he was with Gracie. But he wasn't so sure anymore. He loved his wife, she was the love of his life, but two more Brooke seemed overwhelming. He just hoped that they won't be as hard to please as their mother.


Nathan only saw her when Brooke went into labor. She arrived ten minutes after him. Her frame was fuller, it was very subtle but he noticed nonetheless. Her cheeks were a healthy rosy shade of pink and she had cut her hair in a short bob.

She gave him a soft smile and he embraced her, he just couldn't resist.

"Hey." Haley said in a whisper.

"You look…" Nathan trailed off pointing at her with his finger. "You look very nice." He told her clearing his voice.

"Yeah. Yeah I think you're right." Haley agreed with a genuine smile.

"Confidence suits you."

And that was it, then everyone arrived. It didn't hurt as much as he had thought to see her. He was glad to see that she was doing okay, that she was healing somehow.


Lucas came into the waiting room and informed them that they had two beautiful baby girls.

Nathan and Haley came first into Brooke's room. Lucas was sat on the bed by her side and each one of them had a baby in their arms.

"Nate." Brooke greeted her brother her voice strangled with emotion.

"Who's this little one?" Nathan asked as he took one of the babies in his arms.

"Here's my sweet Sylvia and that cute one over there is Simone." Brooke answered.

"As Sylvia Plath and Simone de Beauvoir?" Haley asked Lucas.

"I believe that a name has a great influence on you." Lucas replied.

"I don't think so. They're gonna be designers, fashion is in their DNA!" Brooke exclaimed.

"I don't care as long as they're happy." Lucas said looking at little Simone in his arms.

"Me neither." Brooke said looking at Sylvia adoringly before she added quickly. "Pretty sure they're gonna be fashion designers though."

Brooke and Lucas' bickering was too much for Nathan. It reminded him what he could have had with Haley and what he had lost with Victoire. He needed to go outside for a while.


"It's hard. I mean you want to be happy for them but it's hard." Haley said as she sat next to Nathan on the bench outside the hospital.

"It's okay."

"Are you mad at me?"

Nathan took a few seconds to reply. "That day, I was gonna propose to you, you know?"

"What?" Haley exclaimed incredulously.

"I was!" Nathan affirmed. "I had just had this conversation with Brooke and I looked at you dancing with my daughter and I remember thinking… I love that girl so fucking much. I never want to be away from her." He confessed wholeheartedly.

"Nathan…" Haley was at lost of words.

"Maybe in another life, right?" Nathan said laughing cynically.

"Don't be too quick to give up on me." Haley whispered. "I mean if you still love me." She said before she kissed him on his cheek and left.


I hope you're not too mad at me. Now I said a few chapters earlier that I loved happy endings but that doesn't mean that I like corny stuff. I'm sorry for this bump on the road, I don't like when it's too easy. Please forgive me and pretty please give me your thoughts, I can't finish this if I don't have your feedbacks. Thanks ;)