Nathan and Haley walked through the halls of the all too familiar hospital. Not wasting any time, they walked straight up to the receptionist office and saw a pretty, young brunette sitting behind the desk. "Hi." Nathan said causing the girl to look up.
"Hi." She greeted with a smile looking directly at him. She ran her eyes up and down his body before settling back on his face. "What can I do for you?" She purred. Haley wanted to gag. What the hell was wrong with this girl? This is a hospital not some sleezy bar. "WE are looking for Mitch Reynolds." Haley piped in just before Nathan could answer. The girl cut her eyes over to Haley in annoyance. However, she quickly looked down to her paperwork when she noticed the fire in Haley's eyes. "Umm, he, umm...he's in room 292." She stammered out looking at Haley while avoiding shifting her eyes anywhere other than her.
"Thank you." Haley replied curtly. She grabbed Nathan's hand and pulled him away with her. They arrived in the room shortly later. Mitch was laying in bed sleeping in a hospital gown. His blanket was securely wrapped around his waist. He had bruises all down his arm and a huge gash covered with gauze on his forehead. "Oh my gosh. He looks terrible." Haley commented.
"Yeah, he does." Nathan agreed. Just then, the door to the room opened as a doctor walked in. "Hi. I'm Doctor Jones. Tina told me the two you were inquiring about Mitch Reynolds. Are you Nathan?" He asked.
"Yes, I am." Nathan greeted shaking the doctor's hand. "This is my wife, Haley." He introduced as she and the doctor shook hands. "Nice to meet you." They both greeted.
"You were listed as his emergency contact person. I'm new to town and didn't know who else to call." Doctor Jones stated.
"Oh, it's okay. Mitch works for us. He doesn't have any family that lives anywhere near here. So, what happened?" Nathan asked.
"Well, we're still trying to figure that out. The breaks went out in his car. The cops are still investigating what happened. I haven't heard the full report yet, but the cops seem to think that his breaks were tampered with. They don't believe it's an accident, but they're still investigating. And I will inform you once I receive any further information." Doctor Jones said as Nathan and Haley nodded in understanding. "Now, in terms of his recovery. He's doing really well. He has a couple broken ribs and some major internal bruising as well as external. He has some cuts and a nice sized gash on his forehead. But he is going to be fine. He just needs to stay in bed and let himself heal. He should be back to normal, I'd say in a couple of months. He was pretty lucky." The doctor finished.
"That's such good news." Haley spoke.
"He's been out for awhile now. I wouldn't be surprised if he woke up soon. Are you guys sticking around for awhile?" He asked.
"Yes. I want to stay until he at least wakes up so I can talk to him." Nathan answered.
"Okay. Well, I've got to check on some of my other patients. Some nurses will be in to check on him every so often. If I find out any further information concerning the accident, I'll be sure to inform you." Doctor Jones stated.
"Thank you, doctor." Nathan said.
"You're welcome. It was nice meeting you. I'll see you both later." The doctor said before leaving the room. Haley turned to Nathan and saw him inching closer towards the hospital bed. She was right behind him. She sidled up to his side and interlaced their hands together while rubbing her her left hand soothingly up and down his arm. "I'm sorry, Nathan. I know you and Mitch were good friends." She said sympathetically.
"It's okay. He's going to be fine. You heard the doctor." Nathan said. The two pulled up a couple of chairs up next to the bed and sat down. "I really hate hospitals. I've lost count of how many times I've been in them in the past five years." He said.
"I know. I'm sorry. I hate them, too." She said.
"Who could have done this? Who would want to do this to Mitch? I don't understand what is wrong with people." He said.
"The world is full of some messed up people. We just have to keep the faith that the police will find the person who did this. But like the doctor said and you said, Mitch is going to be fine. We should just focus on that right now." She said while resting her head on his shoulder. He moved his hand down and planted it between her thigh and knee and gave it a gentle squeeze. "How are you feeling?" He asked turning his head and kissing her softly on the forehead.
"I'm fine." She mumbled.
"You sound tired. Maybe you should go home and get some sleep." He suggested.
"No, I'm fine. I want to stay here with you. It's just been a long day." She said.
"Okay. We'll stay until he wakes up and just a few minutes after that. How does that sound?" He said.
"Sounds good." She said groggily.
Minutes passed and Mitch was still out. Nathan looked over and noticed Haley with her head still resting on his shoulder. Her eyes were closed. "Haley, you still awake?" Nathan whispered.
"Mmm hmm." She mumbled.
"You're such a little liar." He laughed causing her to let out a strangled laugh as well. "It's late. Maybe we should just go home and come back tomorrow." He suggested.
"No, I'm really okay. We should stay here until he wakes up. Actually, I was thinking about something. Have you talked to Mitch or Rachel about why they were together?" She asked.
"No. I haven't thought about it honestly. With everything that's been going on between us, I haven't even seen or talked to either of them for a few days. I'm sorry." He said.
"No, don't be sorry. I'm just so confused as to why they would be together. It doesn't make any sense. Maybe it's nothing. Maybe I'm just looking for anything to use against Rachel. My mind just goes into overdrive whenever I talk about or see Rachel." She said.
"Well, you have your reasons for doing so. We'll talk to Mitch about it when he wakes up. If it's nothing, we move on. We have nothing to worry about. If it's something, we'll...I don't know what we'll do. We'll just have to wait and see what he has to say. But right now, you don't need to worry about it. You shouldn't stress yourself out over this. It's not good for you or the baby." He said.
"You're right." She said. They sat in silence for a couple more seconds before they noticed Mitch beginning to stir around slightly in the bed. Nathan moved forward. Mitch opened his eyes and glanced around confused before making eye contact with Nathan. "Nathan?" He called out groggily.
"Hey, Mitch. How are you feeling?" Nathan asked.
"Like I got smashed by a car." Mitch semi-joked.
"Well, you did, kind of." Nathan said as they both let out small laughs. "Do you remember what happened?" He asked.
"I was driving, and I tried to break for an upcoming turn and nothing happened. I began to panic as I pushed on the breaks even harder. I tried to avoid the cement wall by swiftly turning. That's the last I remember. I'm assuming that's when I passed out and woke up here." Mitch answered.
"Well, the police are investigating and trying to figure out what happened. Hopefully, we'll have some answers soon." Nathan said.
"Hey, Haley." Mitch greeted noticing her sitting in the chair next to Nathan.
"Hey, Mitch. How are you feeling?" She asked.
"Oh, not good, but okay." He answered. "What about you? You look kind of tired." He commented.
"I'm fine." She said.
"Well, I appreciate you guys coming. But, Nathan, I think you should take your wife home and get her into bed." Mitch said.
"I actually agree with you on that one." Nathan responded.
"Guys, I'm fine." Haley laughed.
"Yeah, yeah. Let's go." Nathan said standing up and pulling her along with him. "I'll be by tomorrow." He directed towards Mitch.
"Alright. Thanks for coming by you guys. Haley, you go home and get some sleep." Mitch said.
"Haha. Bye, Mitch." Haley said.
"See you later, man." Nathan said as he and Haley walking out of the hospital room.
Nathan and Haley arrived home about fifteen minutes later. They were both exhaursted and headed straight up the stairs to get into bed. Haley headed towards her bedroom but stopped at the door realizing Nathan had stopped following her. She turned around and saw him heading into the guest bedroom. "What are you doing?" She asked causing him to stop abruptly.
"What do you mean?" He asked confused.
"Why are you going in there?" She asked.
"I just thought that..." He began.
"We talked about this ealier today. I thought you were going to move back into the master bedroom with me." She stated.
"Yeah, I just didn't know if you meant tonight." He said.
"I did. Come on, let's go to bed." She said stretching her hand out in front of her. Nathan smiled at her before inching his way towards her. They walked into the bedroom, quickly changed in some pajamas, and climbed into the bed. Haley layed on her side as Nathan snuggled into her from behind. He wrapped his arm protectively around her as they both quickly fell into a deep slumber.
The next morning, Haley woke up to the sunlight beaming into the room. She stretched her bod slightly before rolling over onto her back and noticed Nathan sleeping soundly. He was shirtless with his back flat on the bed. She turned so she was resting on her right side and scooted closer to him. She layed there for a few minutes doing nothing but observing his sleeping form. She leaned forward slightly and placed a soft kiss on his bare chest. She felt him stirr slightly. She began planting more forceful kisses along his chest dragging them upward until reaching his neck. She found his pulse point, ran her tongue along the skin, and began vehemently sucking on the spot. She smiled against his skin when she heard a moan escape from his mouth. She repeated the same action a couple more times before feeling his hand run through her hair. He latched onto her neck and gently pulled her upward capturing her lips to his in a sizzling kiss. He reached down and found the hem of her tank top and quickly discarded it from her body.
He flipped them over so she was laying flat on her back with him hovering over her. Their kisses intensified as his hands roamed up and down the length of her body. He moved his right hand up and forcefully grabbed her breast. "Ouch." He heard the word fall from her mouth and the hitch in her breath and immediately pulled back in concern. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry. I didn't..."
"No, you're fine. You didn't do anything wrong. My breasts are just a little sore right now." She reassured with a slight blush to her face as they shared a small smile. "Maybe you could just stay away from them." She said.
"I'll work on that." He smirked down at her before resuming their kiss. He tore his lips from hers and descended them down to her neck where he lavished her. He moved slower down her body. He was careful as he moved passed her breasts. Not being able to resist them completely, he leaned forwards and placed soft kisses on each one before attaching his lips to her flesh right underneath. He placed hot, open-mouthed kisses along her skin.
Haley was losing all of her self-control second by second. She could hardly control her breathing as she felt the soft, wet feel of his tongue all over her body. Nobody has ever made her feel the way Nathan could. He made her feel alive. He made her feel every sensation imaginable. She felt them soaring through her body. She raked her fingers through his hair. She felt vibrations against her skin as he let out a moan.
Nathan felt her fingers running through his hair and moaned at the feelings. He pulled back slightly and hooked his fingers into the sides of her panties before pulling them down her legs. He quickly moved back down and kissed her hard. She gripped his face within her hands as their tongues battled one another. She wrapped her legs tightly around his waist settling her feet right at his tailbone. Not even a second later, she unclipped her feet and bent her legs further up. She found the hem of his boxers and pushed them down his body with her feet. He kicked the boxers away from him. He took hoold of his hard erection and placed it right outside of her entrance. He looked down to her as they shared a smile which was full of lust and desire. He gently pushed the tip of his cock inside of her before stopping himself from going any further. He smirked as she let out a quiet whimper.
"God, Nathan, are you trying to kill me?" She breathed out.
"That is my evil plan." He declared laughing. "What's wrong, baby?" She asked enjoying watching her squirm underneath him.
"Please, Nathan. I want you. I need you. Please." She pleaded as she leaned forward and attached her lips to his neck. She forcefully attacked the exposed skin. Nathan snapped his eyes shut. He felt himself grow increasingly harder. As much as he wanted to play around with Haley a bit longer, his own body and desire for her overpowered. Without a second thought, he pushed himself the rest of the way inside of her sighing at the feeling of finally having them joined. He knew Haley was relieved herself as she let out a loud moan. He continued moving in and out of her at a slow, leisurely pace. "Are you okay? Are you comfortable?" He asked making sure she was okay.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just go faster." She commanded huskily.
"As you wish." He smirked uping the pace of his thrusts to which Haley immediately responded. She gripped his shoulder while digging her nails hard into his skin. "How's that?" He asked.
"That...oh, god, that's good." She moaned. "Nathan." His name fell from her lips a second later.
"Yeah." He groaned.
"Kiss me." She demanded. He was only too happy to oblige and assulted her lips in a tantalizing manner. Minutes passed as their moans grew louder and their breathing became more rapid. Their bodies, slick with sweat, began to convulse as their orgasms hit hard. They screamed out each other's names as they came down off of their high. Nathan placed his wet forehead against her shoulder trying to catch his breath. He felt Haley's fingers running through his damp hair. He placed a shaky kiss on her shoulder before rolling onto his back. He intertwined their hands together as they layed side by side next to each other. Haley stretched down and pulled the blanket up and around her body. The two layed there in complete silence until Nathan heard her breathing even out. He turned his head and saw she had fallen asleep. He smiled as he watched her. He leaned over and kissed her softly on her cheek careful not to wake her up before climbing out of the bed. He threw on his boxers and some sweatpants before heading out of the bedroom and down the stairs.
He went straight to the front door and walked outside. He grabbed the newspaper that was sitting on the doorstep before turning back inside. He walked into the kitched and pulled out some cereal, milk, a bowl, and a spoon. He thought about making some breakfast for Haley but decided against it. He wanted her to get some rest. He knew she had to be exhausted. He smirked at that thought before chuckling and pouring the milk and cereal into a bowl. He sat down, opened up the newspaper, and began reading and eating.
"Time to wake." He whispered against Haley's ear. She shivered and snuggled further under the covers. "Wake up, Hales." He said again.
"No." She mumbled tiredly.
"Wake up." He repeated.
"Go away, Nathan." She grumbled. Nathan laughed at her stubbornness. He grabbed hold of the covers and gently eased them off her body slightly. She groaned as the cold air hit her naked form. "Nathan." She whined.
"Haley." He mock-whined.
"Why do I have to get up?" She countered.
"Because I said so. Get up, take a shower, and let's go over to the cafe for some lunch." He said.
"Is is really lunchtime?" She asked with her eyes still closed.
"Yes, it is. It's close to two o'clock actually." He answered.
"I hate you." She declared finally opening her eyes to look at him.
"And I love you." He chuckled. "Now, go take a shower. I know you're hungry." He said.
"I am kind of hungry." She agreed and moved to sit up with help from Nathan. He handed her a robe as she placed it on her body before climbing out of the bed. He smacked her playfully on her ass. "Hey." She laughed turning to him slightly. He held up his hands in defense. She shook her head at him before disappearing into the bathroom shutting the door behind her. He laughed as he made his way back down the stairs.
Ten minutes later, Nathan had just finished cleaning up around the house when he heard the doorbell ring. He wondered briefly who that could be before realizing it was probably his mom. He walked to the front door and swung the door open. His happy face turned quickly to one of a scowl as he saw who was on the other side. "What are you doing here, Rachel?" He asked exasperated. She didn't answer him right away. He watched as her eyes were glued to his chest as she licked her lips. "Well, it looks like I'm just in time." She smirked up at him finally looking at his eyes. He quivered and sent her a disgusted look. He looked around and spotted a sweatshirt hanging in the open closet in the foyer. He grabbed it and quickly threw it onto his body. "What are you doing here?" He asked again feeling better now that he was covered up.
"Well, you've been ignoring all of my calls. I've missed you. The baby misses you." She said rubbing her slightly protruded stomach for effect. His eyes traveled down to her stomach and stared at it for a moment. Rachel smiled as she watched his face. He was starting to get attached to the baby. She knew it was just a matter of time before he began to get attached to her once again. They had a past together, and she knew he would fall in love with her all over again once she placed this baby into his arms. It was just what she needed to get what she wanted.
Nathan eyed her stomach and for the first time, he actually allowed himself to feel something for the baby. Knowing that Haley was there for him and going to support him, he felt better. And after her words the previous day about wanting to seek full custody, he realized that he could have it all. He could have Haley and their two children, and he could have this child. As much as he hated the situation, he was starting to accept it. And he knew he owed it all to Haley. His eyes traveled back up to Rachel's eyes. He had to fight back the laugh that was threatening to fall from his lips. He knew what she was thinking, and she was dead wrong. "So, what do you want, Rachel?" He asked. He rolled his eyes as she pushed passed him lightly and made her way further into the house. "Sure, come on in." He bit out sarcastically while shutting the door before following her. She stopped right at the foot of the stairs and turned to face him. "Well, I have a doctor's appointment this afternoon-at two forty-five, actually. I was hoping you would like to come with me." She said.
"I, umm, I..." Nathan stammered out. On one hand, he did want to go. Not to be there for Rachel, but to be there for his baby. But on the other hand, he didn't want to upset Haley. How would she feel if he announced he was going to go to a doctor's appointment with Rachel? And even if she was completely okay with it, he would want her there with him. He couldn't do this without her. But he didn't think it would be fair to ask her to do such a thing. She may be accepting the situation now. And she may be supporting him and standing by him now. But asking her to come and see physical and medical evidence of his infidelity is ridiculous. He wasn't about to inflict that kind of pain onto her. "Rachel, I don't..."
"He'll be there." A voice sounded causing them both to turn their heads in the direction of the stairs. Haley was standing about four steps away from them. She walked further down the steps and Nathan reached out his hand to her to help her off of the final step. Rachel rolled her eyes at the sight and about threw up right then and there. "He'll be there." Haley repeated as Rachel let a huge smile envade her face.
"Haley, are you..." Nathan began but was interrupted.
"Nathan, it's okay. It's your baby. You should be there." Haley reassured before turning her attention back to Rachel. "You said two forty-five, right?" She asked the red-head.
"Yeah. Two forty-five. Thanks, Haley." Rachel said ecstatic but shocked a little at the same time.
"Okay. Well, I guess we'll see you then." Haley said and inwardly smirked at the confusion that played across Rachel's face.
"I'm sorry, what?" Rachel asked. Nathan turned his attention towards his wife confused as well.
"Well, WE-Nathan and I-will see you at two forty-five." Haley said.
"You don't actually think you're going to come to MY doctor's appointment, do you?" Rachel scoffed.
"Oh, I don't think, I know. You see, Rachel, you may be having Nathan's baby, but he's still my husband. We're still together despite what you think. We have a family already. Us, Lexie, and our unborn son are still a family. And this..." Haley began pointing to Rachel's stomach. "...is not going to tear it apart. It's a minor setback, but that's all." She finished looking into Rachel's shocked eyes.
"You are not coming to my doctor's appointment." Rachel declared again angrily.
"Do you want Nathan there?" Haley asked. Rachel looked briefly at Nathan and couldn't read the expression on his face before turning back to Haley and nodded her head. "Okay, then, here's the deal. If Nathan goes, I go. Or he doesn't go at all. Which do you prefer?" Haley asked.
"Nathan, don't you have anything to say about this?" Rachel implored.
"You heard my wife." He finally voiced. Rachel dropped her mouth open in shock as Haley tried to contain the smirk that was threatening to fall on her lips.
"Fine." Rachel relented angrily.
"Okay, then. Well, it's about two fifteen. You better go. Nathan and I have to finish getting dressed." Haley said as she and Nathan escorted Rachel towards the door. "We'll see you in a little bit." Haley said as Rachel walked outside. Rachel turned around and glared at Haley. "Goodbye, Rachel." Haley said as Rachel turned away in a huff while Haley slammed the door shut. She started laughing before turning around to collide with Nathan. "What?" She asked looking up to him innocently.
"I love you, you know that." He said before capturing her lips in a sensual kiss. "Are you sure about this, Haley?" He asked once they broke apart. "I don't want you to do anything you're uncomfortable with. I don't want to put you in that kind of position." He said.
"You're not. I want to go. Yes, it's uncomfortable, and I don't know how I'll feel when we actually get there. But I'm going. I want to do this and be there for you for this. And I know you want to be there, too." She said.
"Not because of Rachel." He added quickly.
"I know, Nathan." She chuckled softly. "I know it's just about the baby. So, go get dressed. I'm going to grab something to eat since we won't be going to the cafe anytime soon." She continued.
"I'm sorry. You must be starving." He laughed.
"I am. I'll just have a quick snack, and we can head over to the cafe after the appointment, okay." She suggested as he quickly agreed. He rushed upstairs to get dressed.
Twenty minutes later, Nathan, Haley, and Rachel all found themselves sitting in a hospital room waiting for the doctor to come in. To say it was awkward would be an understatement. You could cut the tension in that room with a knife. It was quiet with neither one of them speaking a word. Nathan was sitting on a chair with Haley planted firmly in his lap while Rachel was sitting on the bed. Rachel kept her eyes focused on a poster hanging on the wall. She was doing everything to avoid the death glares Haley kept sending her way. She had to admit to herself that she was kind of frightened of Haley at the moment. She never realized how much fight the girl had in her. Even before when Haley called the cops on her, she wasn't like this. All Rachel wanted in this moment was for Nathan to comfort her.
Nathan felt like he was stuck in some soap opera. Here he was, his six month pregnant wife sitting in his lap while his seven month pregnant ex-girlfriend was sitting off to the side. How did he get himself into this position? He wanted to crawl under a rock right now and die. He hated being here. He subconsciously wrapped his arms around Haley tighter pressing her further into him for comfort.
Haley was still trying to decide if coming here was the right choice or not. Her mind was going into overdrive. She kept going back and forth on whether or not she should just grab her purse and rush out the door. She wanted to be supportive of Nathan, but she hated being here with Rachel. She couldn't help it. Everytime she saw the girl, she was reminded of her husband's cheating. She believed him when he said he doesn't remember what happened and would never intentionally cheat on her. But all of that doesn't erase the fact that he did or else they wouldn't be here right now. She couldn't help but throw daggers at Rachel everytime she looked her way. In fact, she has been doing nothing but staring the girl down since they got settled in the room. She hated to admit it, but making Rachel uncomfortable was actually comforting her right now. And feeling Nathan's arms tighten around her, comforted her as well.
They all breathed a sigh of relief once the door clicked open and Dr. Bryan came walking in. He wasn't sure if he read his chart right when it was handed to him. He saw the three names that were written on the chart and grew completely and utterly confused. At first, he thought he was imagining the third name, but then realized he doesn't have an appointment set up with Haley until the end of this month. He thought for sure someone had just made a mistake and written down the wrong names. He looked up from his chart and sure enough, there sat Nathan, Haley, and some red-head he's never met. "Hello, Nathan and Haley." He greeted and knew that the sound of his voice indicated his confusion.
"Hi, Doctor Bryan." Haley greeted warmly. Nathan just nodded feeling completely ashamed in that moment.
"Hi, you must be Rachel Gatina?" Dr. Bryan asked turning his attention to the girl sitting on the bed. She said nothing but nodded her head. "Okay, well, I'm Dr. Bryan, it's nice to meet you. I have your chart here which was faxed over from Presbyterian Healthcare in Charlotte, North Carolina. Your last checkup went smoothly, and you seem to be progressing very nicely. So, how about we just get started?" He suggested as the three of them nodded. "Is the father going to be joining us today?" He asked somewhat hesitantly.
"That would be me." Nathan finally spoke up as Haley stood up from his lap allowing Nathan to stand up from the chair. Dr. Bryan looked momentarily shocked. He shifted his eyes back and forth from Nathan to Rachel then back to Nathan before finally settling his eyes on Haley who was standing next to Nathan. He felt complete sympathy for her when he noticed the small tears in her eyes. He watched as she tried to discreetly brush them away. He watched as Nathan reached out and enclosed her hand within his. Dr. Bryan snapped out of his trance and tried to refocus his attention to Rachel. "Okay, I'm just going to take your blood pressure and all that fun stuff." He said.
After a few minutes, he announed that everything seemed to be okay and normal. "Okay, go ahead and lie back. We'll just do an ultrasound and make sure everything appears normal from that end, too." He said as Rachel nodded and leaned back against the bed. Nathan and Haley moved closer to the bed so they could see the screen better. Seconds later, the baby appeared on the screen. Haley sucked in a breath feeling herself losing control. She could feel the tears that were threatening to fall. It was then that she felt Nathan squeeze her hand. She smiled knowing he knew what she was feeling and was trying his best to comfort her. She took a deep breath and felt her uneasiness slowly seep out of her body. She gave him a gentle squeeze letting him know she was okay as well as silently thanking him. Doctor Bryan ran through some things and showed them some things before ending the ultrasound. He was uncomfortable enough himself and couldn't imagine how the three of them must be feeling. He wanted to end this appointment as quickly and painlessly as he could. "So, do you have any questions for me? Any of you?" He asked. They all shook their heads as he breathed a silent sigh of relief.
"Dr. Bryan." Nathan spoke up.
"Yes?" He answered.
"Given the situation, we would really appreciate if you kept this between us for now. We don't exactly want the whole world knowing about what's going on." Nathan said gently.
"I understand. Patient confidentiality is extremely important to me. I would never betray any of your trust that way. You have my word." Dr. Bryan responded.
"Thank you." Nathan said quietly in appreciation.
"So, Rachel, how are you feeling?" The doctor asked.
"Extremely awkward at the moment." She stated.
"You should have thought about that before you slept with my husband." Haley bit out speaking for the first time since the doctor walked into the room. Haley didn't mean to say that. She honestly didn't, but she couldn't stop the words from pouring out of her mouth. Rachel cut her eyes towards her as Nathan planted his eyes firmly to the ground. It was then that Dr. Bryan let out a strangled laugh. Rachel looked abruptly towards him with venom in her eyes. "Sorry." He choked out. "I had something in my throat." He lied lamely. "Anyway, you are all set. Go ahead and go out to the front desk and schedule another appointment for next month." He recovered.
"Okay. Thanks." Rachel shot out somewhat snottily before jumping off of the bed and heading towards the door with Nathan and Haley following behind. "Haley, could I talk to you for a moment?" Dr. Bryan asked causing Nathan and Haley to stop and turn back around.
"Yeah, of course." Haley answered. She looked to Nathan who looked unsure as to whether to leave or not.
"I'll just be a minute. I promise." Dr. Bryan announced.
"I'll be right out." Haley said urging Nathan to go ahead and go. He looked at her one final time before walking out of the room. Haley turned back around. "What's up?" She asked.
"How are you holding up?" Dr. Bryan asked.
"Why? What are you, my shrink now?" Haley tried to joke.
"No." He laughed. "But you are my patient. I don't know the specifics of what's going on nor do I want to. I just want to make sure you're taking care of yourself. I don't want you to be getting yourself all worked up like the last time. I don't want you to stress yourself out. And I don't want you putting yourself in any kind of position that could cause harm to you or the baby, okay?" He said.
"I know. I'm not. Thank you, Doctor Bryan." Haley said. He gave her a quick hug before escorting her out to the front desk where Nathan was waiting. He smiled sweetly at her and gave Nathan a slight nod before walking once again in the opposite direction.
"Are you okay?" Nathan asked once Haley reached him.
"Yeah, he just wanted to make sure I was taking care of myself." She informed him as he nodded in understanding. "So, where's Rachel?" She asked.
"She left. She wanted to stick around, but I told her she should leave." He said.
"Good. Well, I'm starving. Let's go to the cafe, okay." She suggested.
"Sounds good to me. Let's go." He agreed ushering her out of the hospital to his SUV.
Nathan and Haley were cuddled together on the couch in the family room discussing his baby with Rachel as well as their own baby. Nathan was planning on visiting Mitch in the hospital in a couple hours, and right now, just wanted to spend some alone time with his wife. He was worried things might become strained once again after the doctor's appointment. He knew it was hard on Haley, and he knew she was trying to be brave and brush it off. But that's what he was afraid of. He was afraid she would bottle it up and then begin distancing herself from Nathan once again. However, once they returned home and settled onto the couch, they talked everything out. They explained what they were feeling and once again vowed to stick by one another through it all.
"Nathan! Haley!" Deb's voice called walking into the family room with Lexie holding her hand walking next to her. She spotted when she noticed the two cuddled on the couch. "Mommy! Daddy!" Lexie exclaimed rushing over to them. Nathan bent down and swooped the little girl into his arms. "Hey, sweetie. Did you have fun with Grandma?" He asked as Haley moved closer into his side so she could give her daughter a kiss.
"Yeah!" Lexie exclaimed excitedly. Nathan and Haley found themselves loving this stage of Lexie's life. She was beginning to talk more and more. She still only knew the basics like 'yeah' or 'yes' or 'no' and was starting to learn everyone's names. But she was beginning to comprehend new words day by day and couldn't wait for her to learn even more.
"Was she okay?" Nathan asked his mom.
"She was wonderful. A perfect little angel." Deb answered.
"Well, of course. She is my daughter afterall." Haley joked as they all laughed. Deb took a seat on the chair next to the couch and simply watched the touching scene in front of her. Before long, Nathan, Haley, and Deb found themselves in a nice discussion about a vacation their two families took together once when Nathan and Haley were much younger. Several minutes passed by and they noticed Lexie had fallen asleep. "I'll go put her to bed. I have to get ready to go anyway." Nathan said standing up.
"Where are you going?" Deb inquired curiously.
"Oh, Mitch, one of our accountants..."
"Yes, I know Mitch." Deb interrupted somewhat heatedly causing both Nathan and Haley to look at her with the same look of confusion displayed across their faces.
"Okay, well, he was in a car accident last night. I'm going to go check on him at the hospital." Nathan continued brushing his mom's comment aside.
"Nathan, there's actually something that I need to discuss with the two of you before you go." Deb announced.
"What's going on, mom?" Nathan asked.
"Maybe you should take Lexie upstairs first." She suggested.
"Okay, I'll be right back." Nathan said carefully carrying Lexie up the stairs. A few minutes later, he came back down the stairs and found his mom and Haley still sitting in the family room in their same spots. Haley looked confused as his mom looked nervous. "So, what's going on?" He asked sitting next to Haley.
"I have something to tell you and show you. Now, before you get mad, I just want you to know that we did this to help you guys." Deb began.
"Mad about what? And who's we?" Nathan asked nervously.
"Brooke and me. We both thought something was off with the night Rachel got pregnant, and..."
"God, mom, what did you guys do?" Nathan groaned. He felt Haley stiffen up beside him and inwardly cursed his mother.
"No, listen to me, Nathan. I know you guys don't want to hear this. And I don't know what's going on between the two of you right now either. I don't know whether or not your are together. And I don't want to cause an even bigger strain on your marriage right now, but this is one thing you guys are going to want to hear and watch. It's important, and we wouldn't have got involved if we didn't truly feel that something was wrong." Deb said.
"Okay. What is it?" Haley asked calm and collected but nervous as hell at the same time.
"Nathan, you weren't lying about being drunk that night. Haley, he really did only have two beers that night." Deb confirmed.
"How do you know that, mom?" Nathan asked.
"Come with me into the living room. I think it's better if I just let you guys see this for yourselves." Deb said standing up and walking out of the family room down the hall to the living room. Nathan and Haley were quick to follow. They took a seat on the couch as Deb inserted a dvd into dvd player while flicking the television on before turning back to her son and daughter-in-law. "Okay, this is the security surveilance from those days you were in Charlotte. I had the footage of just you condensed down to this dvd."
"I don't want to see this again." Haley cried.
"No, Haley, this doesn't show what happened inside the hotel room. This only shows the footage outside of the rooms. I wouldn't do that to you, sweetie." Deb jumped in quickly. Before saying anything more, she pushed play and took a seat on the loveseat next to the couch.
Minutes went by as all of the different footage of Nathan played on the screen. Nobody spoke a word as they watched in complete shock. Deb watched Nathan and Haley and the many emotions that flickered across their faces. She hated showing this to them, but she wanted the truth to finally come out. She wanted to prove once and for all what a lying bitch Rachel was. The screen went blank as Nathan and Haley continued staring at the television neither muttering a word.
"Are you guys okay?" Deb asked cautiously.
"I, umm, I..." Haley stammered out still in complete shock.
"I have to go talk to Mitch." Nathan declared standing up abruptly.
"Nathan, wait." Haley said standing up as well. "Deb, could you stay here and watch Lexie for awhile?" She asked.
"What do you think you're doing?" Nathan asked turning around to face her.
"I'm coming with you." She declared.
"No, you're not." He countered.
"Yes, I am." She argued.
"Haley, please!" He yelled causing her to jump back slightly. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell. It's just, you can't come, Haley. You don't need to get yourself all worked up." He said in a calmer tone.
"I'm already worked up, Nathan. I want to go with you." She said.
"Haley, please. Just stay here. I need to go get some answers from Mitch, and I don't want to worry about you at the same time. Please." He pleaded.
"Okay." She relented quietly.
"Thank you. Mom, would you stay here until I get back?" He asked.
"Nathan, I don't need a babysitter." Haley shot out.
"Mom?" Nathan said dismissing Haley's protest.
"Of course, honey." Deb answered quickly.
"Thanks. I'll be back." Nathan said kissing Haley quickly on the cheek before rushing out the door. Haley watched him walk out the door. She didn't stop staring in the direction of the front door until she heard Nathan's SUV peeling out of the driveway. She inched her way back to the couch and slowly sat down on the cushion and stared in the direction of the television. Deb moved herself over to the couch sitting next to Haley. She reached out and grabbed Haley's hand. "Are you okay, sweetie?" She asked.
"I'm fine." Haley answered quietly. "I'm going to go check on Lexie." She said standing up and walking out of the room leaving Deb sitting there alone on the couch.
Okay, there you guys go. It's a longer chapter, but I started writing and couldn't stop. I was actually going to add the Nathan/Mitch confrontation in this chapter, but decided to wait until the next which should be within a couple of days. So, anyway, let me know what you guys think. And until the next time!