Chapter 43

Nathan clutched Haley's hand tightly in his as they walked through the Tree Hill mall. His eyes were trained on Nick, who was walking next to his mom.

"This is where I had my first job," Nathan said, gesturing over to a pretzel place called 'Hot and Twisted.'

Haley looked at him quickly, then followed his hand over to the place, grinning. "Really?"

"It's true," Deb informed her, laughing. "He was trying to do something on his own."

"Yeah, then I quit and started working in my Uncle Keith's auto body shop with Lucas," Nathan said, squeezing her hand lightly.

"Auto body shop?" Haley gasped, grinning up at him. "You never told me that. About this job, or that one."

"That's because I sucked at both of them," Nathan said, rolling his eyes. "Do you guys want a pretzel?" He asked, looking over at Macey, who was walking one Haley's other side.

"I want one," Macey said, smiling at him. "Can I order it?"

"Sure," Nathan laughed, letting go of Haley's hand. "Hales? Anything?"

"Of course," She hummed, smiling at him.

Nathan took Nick and Macey over to the pretzel shop, leaving her and Deb standing together, watching the three of them.

Haley was mostly watching Nathan. Trying to imagine him dressed as a mechanic.

"He wanted to prove to us that money wouldn't manipulate him in our divorce so he got a job to make his own money," Deb said, sighing softly. "Didn't last long. He worked for Keith for a little bit, then Dan bought out Keith's business and fired Nathan and Lucas."

"What?" Haley said, frowning slightly. "Why would he do that?"

"I think you'll find yourself asking that question a lot after you meet him," Deb said, shaking her head. "Although, I can promise you that if you bring Macey with you, you'll have a soft spot for Dan because he is great with his grand kids. Not that Macey is a grand kid or anything-"

"I know what you mean," Haley laughed when Deb started to back track.

"But she's more than welcome to stay with me tomorrow evening too," Deb said, smiling over at her.

"I think I'll bring her along with me," Haley said, shrugging.

"Makes sense. She'd have to meet him eventually," Deb said, laughing. "He's not as bad as he used to be. But now he just had a turn off button. It's called ignore call."

Haley smiled at her comment, crossing her arms and letting out a sigh.

Haley watched as another man got into line to order, and Nathan's hands both instinctively shot out to rest on Macey and Nick's shoulders, making sure to put himself between the man and the kids.

The guy was most likely harmless. Probably didn't even notice the two children, or Nathan at all. He just wanted to get his pretzel and go.

But the sight warmed her heart. Nathan was protecting them. Just in case.

The three returned a moment later, handing both her and Deb a pretzel.

"I tried to get them to let me make it, but apparently they don't let employees who worked here for two months twelve years ago make pretzels anymore," He joked, winking at her.

"How rude," She said, laughing.

He leaned down and very quickly kissed her, before standing up straight.

He heard Macey open her mouth, cutting her off quickly.

"I know, I know, Macey. We promised," He laughed. "Eat your pretzel, kid."

Haley raised her eyebrows, laughing at the interaction and rolling her eyes. "I can't believe you worked here."

"Why's that?" He asked, glancing over his shoulder at the place again.

"I don't know... The whole time I've known you, you've worn a suit to work. It's hard to imagine you as a sixteen year old kid working in a pretzel place," She said, shrugging.

"He looked so cute too," Deb said, reaching forward and pinching Nathan's cheek.

Nathan swatted at her hand, shaking his head. "Mom, stop."

"When we get back, we really should go through all of our old pictures of the kids," Deb said, laughing. "I think there are things that would surprise you about Nathan still."

"I'm learning a lot of new things about him," Haley informed, winking at Nathan.

"Oh, the stories I can tell. Dan probably has some great ones too," Deb told them, smiling.

"Let's keep walking," Nathan said, gesturing forward.

"Why don't I take the kids to the play palace and you two can shop around for a bit? Then you can come get me when you're done," Deb suggested, running her hand through Nick's dark hair.

"Uh... Sure," Nathan said, shrugging. "If that's what you want to do."

"I'll spend too much money," Deb joked. "You two, go..."

"Alright," Nathan laughed. "I didn't really have anything specific I wanted to buy here... But okay."

Deb gestured for the kids to follow her, leaving the couple standing alone.

"Hot and twisted, hm?" Haley laughed, looking around the food court.

"Hey, if I showed up at a girl's house with a couple pretzels... Things would definitely get hot and twisted," He laughed, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, kissing her head.

"Oh, lord," She groaned, rolling her eyes.

"I looked damn good in my uniform," He informed her, shrugging. "The manager didn't like me that much though. We were okay after a little while but at first... I thought I was going to get fired within a week."

"Why?"

"Well my friends and I had done some stuff to him," He said, sighing softly. "I wasn't great at the job. And one time my dad stopped by and I had just dropped some pretzels on the ground and I gave one of those to him."

"Nathan!" Haley gasped, laughing. "Really?"

"I did," Nathan confirmed, laughing quietly. "It was not smart. I'm surprised I didn't get fired. I think he just saw what an ass my dad was and cut me some slack."

"That's so crazy," She said, leaning into him and letting out a deep breath. "Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know. I wasn't planning on spending that much time here," He hummed, looking around. "I guess we could go look around some toy stores? Shop for Christmas?"

"Sounds good to me. Lead the way, pretzel boy."

"No."

"Boy toy?"

"No."

"Fine. Lead the way, Nathan."

After shopping around in one of the toy stores for a little while, Nathan said that he was going to run to another store really quick.

Haley stayed in the store for a minute, before finding a seat on the bench they agreed to meet. She was scrolling through her phone, when all of the sudden there was another person sitting next to her.

She didn't glance up. She knew right away from the overkill of cologne that it wasn't Nathan.

"All alone?"

She looked up at him, clearing her throat. "No, I'm waiting for someone."

"Me, I hope," He said, grinning at her.

"No, my boyfriend," Haley said, shaking her head quickly.

"Why would he leave a fine woman like you all alone?" He asked her, placing his arm around the back of the bench.

"Do you know how creepy that sounds?" Haley questioned him, scowling slightly.

"Do you know how worth it I'd be?"

Haley let out an unamused laugh, shaking her head.

"He probably left me alone because he knows I can handle myself."

"Feisty. I believe it," The man replied, nodding at her. "What's your name, beautiful?"

"Look, I'm clearly not interested, so can't you just give it a rest? Aren't you a little old to be trying to pick up women at the mall anyways?" Haley asked him, rolling her eyes.

He looked about her age. Spiky black hair. He was good looking. But once he opened his mouth... Nope.

"I'm in town for the holiday. I just happened to be here the same time as you did. I like to thank my friend Fate for that," He said, smirking at her.

"Funny. You don't seem to have any shopping bags with you," She replied, shoving her phone into her purse and standing up. "I think we're done here."

"Woah, woah, woah," The guy stood up as well, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Give me another minute. I can make it up to you."

"I'm not interested," Haley said firmly, letting out a sigh.

He shook his head, "Once you've been with the best, you'll forget about your boyfriend."

Haley glanced over to see Nathan walking towards them. She tilted her head towards him. "There he is. Now, stop bothering me."

The man's face turned into a conceited grin as she pointed towards Nathan.

"Well, well, well," He laughed, crossing his arms over his chest. "If it isn't Nathan Scott."

Tree Hill. Of course.

Nathan looked super mad when he finally reached them, a scowl on his face.

"Beat it, Felix," Nathan said quickly, grabbing onto Haley's arm gently and pulling her over to him.

"Come on, Nate. All fun and games," The man Haley now knew as Felix said, laughing.

"Haley, remember Anna from last night? This is her twin brother," Nathan said, rolling his eyes. "The worse half."

Felix shook his head, "Oh, no. Nathan Scott insulted me. What will I ever do?"

"Watch it, Felix," Nathan said, letting out a sigh. "Grow up."

"Hey, if it ain't broke, don't fix it," Felix said, winking at Haley. "And it definitely isn't broken."

"Gross," Haley said flatly.

"Get outta here, man," Nathan said quickly, stepping forward. "Walk away."

"What? You going to put on a Girl Scout uniform and beat me up?" Felix challenged, standing up straighter.

Haley had a question about that comment, but now wasn't the time.

She was actually worried Nathan was going to fight this guy.

"I'll take a box of grasshopper cookies, and whatever she's selling," Felix said to Nathan, his smirk growing.

"Walk. Away," Nathan said again, clenching his hand into a fist.

"How's Katherine, by the way?" Felix leaned forward and whispered in Nathan's ear. "Send her my love."

"You piece of shit," Nathan said quickly, pushing him lightly.

Felix just laughed.

Haley knew he wasn't going to fight Nathan back. But his laughter seemed to be sending Nathan over the edge.

"Get out of my face before I beat the life out of you," Nathan said, his voice monotone but his eyes were hard.

Haley blinked at his words. There must be so much more to the story. She had no idea who this guy was. Not a clue. She thought he was just some harmless flirt trying to get into her pants.

"I'll see you in my dreams, Haley. Hopefully in real life too," Felix said, smiling at her. Without another word, he turned and walked away. Only glancing over his shoulder to smile at Haley once more.

What a creep.

Nathan's body was so rigid right now. His jaw clenched, hands closed into tight fists.

"Are you okay?" He asked her, turning to her quickly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Haley said, frowning at him. "Are you?"

"I just really, really hate that guy, Haley," Nathan said, finally relaxing his hands to raise to her face, almost as if he was checking her out to make sure she was alright.

"I can tell," She said, clearing her throat. "That's Anna's brother? The sweet, nice Anna that I met last night?"

"Yep. Shortly Lucas and Anna ended things, Anna moved in with some other family and Felix was shipped off to boarding school. I think it was my junior year. Their parents stayed here so I've seen him on occasion but man... I hate him," Nathan said, scowling. "Anna is awesome. Felix sucks. This really isn't the place to dive into it. Let's go get the kids and my mom."

"I think you need to calm down first," Haley said, rubbing his chest soothingly. "You look pissed."

"I am pissed," Nathan said, shaking his head. "That guy is scum and he was talking to you."

"I was just leaving to come find you when you found me. It was okay. We didn't talk for long," She said, guiding him over to the bench and sitting down. "Are you going to be alright? Want to do another lap around the mall?"

"Sorry," He said, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. "That guy just sets me off."

She'd never seen Nathan this angry before. Sure, he'd been annoyed. He'd been upset. But he was steam coming from ears mad.

Haley rested her hand on his back, lightly scratching her nails up and down his back soothingly. "I'm okay, Nathan..."

"I'm glad," He said, glancing over his shoulder at her. "I'll tell you later, okay? Then this will make more sense."

"Sure," She said, leaning forward and kissing his cheek lightly.

He stood up quickly, reaching his hand down to grab hers. He pulled her up to her feet. "I'm fine. Let's just go," He mumbled, sighing quietly.

Haley squeezed his hand, standing on her toes to kiss him softly, brushing her thumb lightly across his knuckles.

"I'm sorry, Hales," Nathan said, looking down at her. "For Felix and for getting so mad. I can usually keep a level head but that guy..."

"I get it, Nathan," Haley said quickly, smiling up at him. "Don't apologize."

He leaned down and kissed her one more time, "Let's get out of here, yeah?"

She nodded, following him towards the child area.

xxxx

Haley stared at a picture of Nathan when he was seventeen years old, sitting on the beach, holding a baby.

He looked so cute. A young Nathan. He was physically fit, but not like he was now. Now he was a man.

"That's his cousin Lily," Deb informed Haley, smiling. "Keith's daughter with his wife Karen. She's what... Thirteen now? I think?"

Haley noticed something in the photo that quickly caused her to turn to Nathan.

"Is that a nipple piercing?" She asked him quickly.

Deb started laughing at her question, looking over at Greg, who was craning his neck to see.

"Yep," Nathan answered, shaking his head. "It was cool. Okay?"

"I never would have pegged you as the type to get a nipple piercing, Nathan," Greg said, laughing.

"I was sixteen," Nathan said, sighing softly. "My girlfriend at the time liked it."

"The girlfriend can confirm," Peyton announced from across the room, where she was sitting on the ground with Sawyer, reading a book.

"So weird," Nathan said, shaking his head. "It would have been better if you didn't say anything, Peyt."

"I agree," Lucas said, leaning against the back of the couch and looking down at the picture. "Lily," He said, smiling. "She was so small."

"Yes, she was," Deb said, tracing her finger over the photo. "Nathan was so young too."

Macey wandered over to the group, looking down at the picture, then up at Nathan. "That's you?"

He nodded at her, smiling slightly. "That's me."

Macey looked between Nathan and the picture a few times, before settling on Nathan. "I like you better now," She hummed, before skipping back over to Nick.

"The eight year old has spoken," Lucas laughed, walking around the couch and sitting by Peyton on the ground.

Haley laughed, looking up at Nathan and shrugging. "I think you were cute."

"Turn the page," He demanded, laughing and resting his head against hers momentarily.

Haley smiled, and flipped to the next page.

It was a picture of Nathan, Deb, and Lucas. It was pretty funny how much her boys towered over her.

"Aw, my boys," Deb said, brushing her finger along the picture.

"Look at you guys," Haley said, smiling brightly. "So cute. You were so cute, Nathan."

"He was a heartbreaker," Deb said, laughing.

"Mom," Nathan groaned, shaking his head. "It's true, I was. But it sounds less cool when my mom says it."

"Will I be a heartbreaker?" Nick asked from where him and Macey were sitting with toys scattered all around them.

"No."

Nathan and Haley answered at the same time, glancing at each other and smiling.

They missed everyone else around the room exchanging a similar look.

"Will I?" Macey asked, looking at Nick.

"Eh... Maybe," Nathan answered, laughing.

"No, Mace. You won't be a heartbreaker," Haley said, nudging Nathan with her elbow.

Macey giggled at the responses, focusing on the toys once again.

"The things I've seen as Nathan's mom..." Deb said, covering her face. "Lucas was always more careful. More quiet."

"Lucas was more careful and quiet because he had no game," Nathan said, smirking slightly.

"I had game. I just used my powers for good," Lucas said, sticking out his tongue.

"Or you were just in love with my girlfriend and wanted to be around when we broke up," Nathan said, shaking his head.

"Oh, you wanna go?" Lucas joked, jumping up to his feet and holding up his fists.

Nathan laughed, standing up as well, pretending to take a shot at Lucas.

"They're laughing, but there was a time when they actually fought over this," Deb said, shaking her head.

"Still fighting you two? Will it ever end?"

A new voice in the room caused the boys to break away from their fake fight.

"Cooper," Nathan said quickly, a grin forming on his face.

"How's it going?" Cooper said, smiling at his younger nephew. "Too loud to hear me come in?"

"It was all Nathan," Lucas defended, holding up his hands.

"Hi Coop," Deb greeted, standing up. She walked over and hugged her younger brother quickly. "This is Greg," She said, gesturing to the man on the couch.

"Hey, Greg," Cooper said, nodding. "Heard an appropriate amount about you," He laughed.

"Cooper," Nathan said, reaching over to grab Haley's hand, pulling her up to her feet. "This is Haley."

"Haley," Coooer said, smiling at her. "It's nice to meet you."

"You too," Haley said, gesturing over to where the kids were. "That's my daughter, Macey."

"Hi Macey!" Cooper waved at her. "Hi Nick!"

"Hi Uncle Cooper," Nick said, grinning at him. "Did you bring a race car today?"

"Not this time, buddy. I'm flying with the family," Cooper laughed, shrugging.

Nick looked around at the toys, before picking up a bright yellow car, holding it out to Macey. "Uncle Cooper has the real version of this one."

"Really?" Macey asked, looking over at Cooper, who nodded.

"I got to drive it with Uncle Lucas," Nick said, nodding quickly.

"That's awesome! I want to do that," Macey said, looking at the car.

"Don't worry, Cooper. Your pregnant wife will bring in the luggage and the kids!"

The front door slammed shut loudly.

A boy who looked about five walked in, dragging a suitcase behind him. Then a boy that was probably close to three, and then finally the woman who spoke entered the room, dragging two suitcases.

"Busted," Cooper laughed, leaning down to kiss his wife but she swerved him. "I told you to leave it."

"Ugh. Just don't talk to me right now, okay?" She said, shoving the suitcase handles at him.

The older kid rushed over to sit by Sawyer, smiling shyly at her.

"This is Rachel," Cooper introduced her to Haley and Greg, clearing his throat. "My ever so pregnant wife."

"They can tell," Rachel grumbled, sitting down on the couch next to Greg quickly, even though she didn't even know his name yet. She stretched out, letting out a deep breath.

"Rough drive?" Deb asked, smiling at her.

"Rough drive," Rachel confirmed, reaching down to take off her shoes but struggling a little. "Cooper! Will you help me?"

Haley wanted to laugh, but she didn't. She remembered being that pregnant. It was awful.

Cooper hurried over, kneeling on the ground and removing her shoes for her. "Babe, this is Greg," He said, nodding at Greg. "Haley, and Macey."

"Hi," Rachel said, sighing. "I'm not usually this terrible but as you can tell..." She gestured to her stomach.

"And that's our son Dylan," He pointed to the five year old. "And our other son Cody. And then we have another son on the way whose name we can't agree upon yet," Cooper laughed, sitting on the couch next to Rachel.

"In full transparency, Haley, I've kissed your boyfriend," Rachel informed her. "I don't remember it, but he sure does. Maybe the best kiss of his life."

"Rachel," Nathan groaned, covering his face. "That's not true, Haley."

Haley let out a laugh. "I hope that you weren't married to his uncle when it happened."

"No. I was a senior and he was a freshman," Rachel said, shaking her head. "I guess I was his first kiss, that's why he remembers it."

"Oh, no, no, no," Nathan denied, scowling. "I remember it because of how weird it was. You kissed me and then you kissed my friend Tim and then you walked away like without a word. And Tim couldn't stop grinning the whole night."

"A senior girl when you were a freshman? Nice work, Nathan," Haley teased him, nudging her elbow into his side.

Cooper laughed, kissing Rachel's head softly. "That's my girl."

"Who would have thought that she'd marry our uncle, right Nate?" Lucas laughed, winking at him.

"I always thought I'd come back and marry Dan after high school," Rachel joked, leaning against Cooper.

"Oh, bad joke, babe," Cooper said, rolling his eyes.

"I thought the Scotts were good looking. Too young for me at the time. But then I saw the Lees," Rachel hummed, winking at Cooper.

"I'm a Scott!" Nick chimed from across the room. "My dad says I won't be a heartbreaker though."

"You, Nicky, are the handsomest Scott of them all," Rachel said, smiling at him. "And you're too sweet to be a heartbreaker."

"I'm sweet," Nick informed Macey, grinning.

Nathan's phone started buzzing in his pocket. He pulled it out quickly, a frown forming on his face. "Excuse me," He said, holding the phone to his ear, exiting the room, the words "This is Nathan," leaving his mouth.

Haley tried to get a glance down at the number before he left, but it was too late.

She sighed, taking a seat on the floor next to Macey, beginning to play with the ends of Macey's hair lightly.

Cooper finally convinced Rachel to scoot down the couch a little bit so that Deb could have her seat back.

He stood up quickly after that, beginning to gather the suitcases. "Debbie? What room?"

"You can take the guest room on the main floor or Lucas' room is available as well. But you'll have to share a bathroom with Nathan and Haley," Deb said, smiling at him.

"Downstairs," Rachel decided for him, letting out a deep breath and rubbing her stomach. The three year old, Cody, toddled over to her, climbing onto the couch next to her and snuggling into her.

Haley missed that phase a little bit. The cuddly one. Macey had always just wanted her mom. Unfortunately, when Macey was that age, her father passed away so all she had was her mom.

"You've probably already explained this a thousand times, but how did you and Nathan meet?" Rachel asked, shifting on the couch.

"Our kids were in the same class," Haley hummed, gesturing to the two kids on the floor next to her.

She pulled Macey's hair behind her shoulders, beginning to braid it back into one braid.

"We're best friends," Nick said, gesturing between him and Macey.

"Glad to hear it, Nicky," Rachel said, smiling at him.

"We went and ate some pretzels from the mall today," Nick told her randomly, smiling. "From where my dad used to work."

"Really? That's so fun," Rachel hummed, nodding.

"Cool invite, Nick," Lucas joked, causing Nick to look over at him in a panic.

"He's teasing, Nick," Haley whispered, winking at him.

"Oh," Nick laughed, watching Haley closely. "What are you doing?"

"She's braiding my hair," Macey informed him, shrugging.

Nick stood up, walking around to get a better look at what Haley was doing.

Haley smiled slightly, slowing down so that Nick could watch.

"That looks cool," Nick said, nodding his head.

Nathan entered the room again a minute later, shoving his phone back into his pocket and sighing softly.

"Everything alright, honey?" Deb asked him, smiling slightly.

"Yeah... Just..." He looked at Deb and mouthed 'Katherine.'

"Is she okay?" Deb asked, frowning.

"She's fine," Nathan said, rubbing his hand down his face. "Haley?"

She looked over at him quickly, tying off Macey's brain.

Nathan tilted his head out of the room. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," Haley said, smacking her hands on her legs and standing. "I'll be right back, Mace," She said softly, walking over to Nathan.

Nathan grabbed onto her hand, leading her out of the room into the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" She asked him, frowning slightly.

"So..." Nathan sighed, leaning against the counter. "Katherine's parents want Nick to come over right now."

"Okay..." She trailed off, nodding for him to continue.

"And I don't like to leave Nick alone with them that much, because her dad is a little rough. At least my dad has a filter around kids. He's a good grandpa. Kat's dad... He's not great," Nathan said, shrugging. "So I'm going to stay with them for a couple hours."

"And you want me to..." She looked at him, expecting an answer.

"If it's not too much trouble, I'd prefer that you stayed here," He said, gripping the edge of the counter. "For your own protection. It will only be for an hour or two."

"It's fine," Haley said quickly. "I don't really care to meet your ex in-laws. I mean, if you want me there, of course I'll be there, but..."

"Yeah," Nathan said, laughing. "If it was just her mom there, things would be fine. But her Dad just likes to yell. Not at Nick, really... Just at everything. I don't know. It's weird. I'm never worried he's going to hurt Nick, I just think he sucks. Worse than my own Dad."

"That's saying something," Haley hummed, resting her hands on Nathan's sides. "Yeah, go ahead and go. I'll just stick around and hang out with Peyton and Lucas. Macey and Sawyer can play together too... There's a bit of an age gap but they've been fine with Nick around. And Cooper's kids. We'll be fine."

"Yeah," Nathan said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I love you, you know that?"

"I've heard it once or twice," She said, winking at him. "I love you too," She assured him, kissing him briefly.

"I'm sure I'll text you and have you make up an emergency to get me out of there," Nathan laughed, kissing her forehead and hugging her to him. "We better go before they get impatient and come over here."

"They would do that?" She asked him, laughing.

"They would," Nathan confirmed, nodding. "It's just a short walk," He said, pushing himself off the counter, taking her hand in his once again, leading her back into the living room.

Haley gave his hand a light squeeze, before returning to her seat on the floor by Macey.

"Nick," Nathan said, grabbing the boy's attention. "Put your coat and shoes on. We're going over to Grandpa Phil and Grandma Alice's house."

Nick looked at Macey, then at Nathan.

"The two of us," Nathan corrected, sighing softly.

"You know what, Nathan," Deb said, standing up slowly. "Why don't you let me go with you?"

Nathan looked slightly surprised at this, raising his eyebrows. "Really?"

"Yeah, they're my friends. I can talk to them and be a buffer," Deb said, looking at Greg. "Want to come?"

"Sure," Greg said, standing up as well. "If that's okay?"

"Uh, sure," Nathan said, shrugging slightly. "It's just going to be quick. You two really don't have to come."

"Trust me, Nathan. It's been a minute since you've seen Phil," Deb said, resting her hand on Nick's shoulder as he started to walk over to Nathan. "The more people, the better."

"Alright," Nathan said, sighing softly. "We'll be back soon, guys."

"See you later," Cooper hummed, waving at the younger Scott brother.

After they rustled around to get shoes and coats on, the four were gone.

"Oof. I would not want to be Nathan right now," Lucas said, shaking his head and sighing softly.

"Why?" Haley asked curiously, looking over at Lucas and frowning.

"They don't like Nathan. At all, really," Peyton said, shaking her head. "They don't like anyone that's under the age of fifty, really. But specifically Nathan."

"Why wouldn't anyone like Nathan?" Macey asked them, a scowl on her face.

Peyton laughed, shaking her head. "Who knows, Macey. They're crazy."

"I like Nathan," Macey said, looking back down at her toys.

"Sawyer," Peyton said, nudging her. "Why don't you and Dylan go try and play with Macey?"

"Okay," Sawyer said excitedly, grabbing onto Dylan's arm and standing up. She took a few steps, settling herself down next to Macey.

Haley stood up slowly, transitioning over to the couch where Cooper and Rachel were sitting.

Peyton and Lucas joined them a moment later.

"He knocked up their pride and joy," Lucas said, shaking his head. "And even though it was almost a decade ago, they haven't let it go. They blame him for everything that Katherine has done since Nick."

"Hasn't Katherine done a ton of good?" Haley asked, frowning.

"Yes," Peyton said, crossing her legs. "But she was supposed to take over her father's company. When she got pregnant, that changed."

"And they blame Nathan," Haley said, shaking her head. "That's not fair."

"Nathan sees it as them not blaming Nick, so he doesn't care. He really doesn't care about their opinions of him," Lucas said, shrugging. "Her dad has gotten bad lately because he's set to retire soon and someone else is going to have to take over his company. Not Katherine."

"They can't seriously blame Nathan, right? Or not see everything that Katherine has done?" Haley said quickly, "Thats not right."

"He's an asshole," Cooper laughed, "Even I know that."

"He didn't even go to their wedding when they got married," Rachel said, shaking her head. "I remember that."

"When they got divorced, he harassed Nathan for weeks about it. He would show up at his house in the middle of the night and yell at him," Lucas said, rolling his eyes. "Hell, I remember him getting mad at my mom and dad when they got divorced because it messed with the friendship they built."

"What a mess," Haley said, sighing. "Poor Katherine."

"Katherine doesn't even bat an eye," Peyton said, rolling her eyes. "They're always okay to Nick though. Probably because he's their only grandchild."

"He's a really good kid though," Rachel pointed out, smiling.

"He's the best kid," Lucas agreed, "Little Nicky."

Haley smiled at this part of the conversation, leaning back against the couch and crossing her legs.

It was so strange. She thought she knew Nathan so well. And she did. But there were big parts of him she was missing out on.

Not that they were things he'd just think to talk about without being asked.

She was sure he wasn't purposely hiding anything from her.

He just had a lot of layers. A lot of family drama.

xxxx

Haley sighed when she finally walked into Nathan's old bedroom.

The clock read 11:30 on it, but it felt a lot later.

She'd stayed up to help prepare for Thanksgiving the following day, and then all the adults had just gotten to talking.

Macey was currently asleep on Nathan's bed, drooling on Nathan's pillow, which was just... Awesome.

She let out a deep breath, sitting down on the end of the bed. She rested her hand on Macey's leg, shaking her lightly. "Mace, you gotta get up," She said, biting her lip.

"Mm... No," Macey whined, tugging her leg away from Haley.

"Come on, Macey. Go sleep in the room with Nicky," She said, standing up again.

"Nicky can sleep in here with me and you can go sleep in there with Nathan," Macey said, stretching out.

Nathan walked in, humming softly.

He raised his eyebrows at the sight, looking between Haley and the eight year old.

'Sorry' Haley mouthed to him, sighing.

"I can go sleep in there with Nick," Nathan whispered to her so that Macey couldn't hear.

"No, that's not how this game is going to be played," Haley said, shaking her head. "Macey, get up, sweetness. Time for bed."

Macey let out a loud sigh, looking over at the couple. "Will you carry me, Nathan?"

"Sure," Nathan said, rubbing his neck and picking her up with ease.

Haley sent him another apologetic look, to which he quickly shook his head.

Nathan headed down the hall, somehow successfully opening up the bedroom door, finding Nick asleep on the top of one of the bunk beds.

Nathan carefully slid Macey into the bottom bunk, smiling at her. "Teeth brushed?"

"Mhm," Macey hummed, nodding at him. "Can't go without my nightly ABCs," She whispered.

"Don't I know it, kid," He laughed, high-fiving her. "Well, good night."

"Good night, Dad," Macey teased, a grin on her face.

Ever since her coach thought he was Macey's father, she'd found a way to jokingly slip that into a conversation anytime it was just the two of them.

He rolled his eyes and laughed, "You are such a weirdo. Good night," He said again, standing up straighter.

"Wait!" Macey said, kicking her blankets off of her, even though she'd already settled. "Tuck me in?"

Nathan laughed, pulling the blankets back over her. "See you in the morning."

Macey smiled contently, nodding at him.

Nathan exited the room, making sure to leave the door open just a crack.

He walked back to his childhood bedroom, pushing the door open.

"You are going to have to learn to say no to her," Haley laughed from inside the bathroom, her toothbrush in her mouth.

"You changed without me?" He gasped, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it in the general vicinity of his suitcase, stepping into the bathroom.

She rolled her eyes, laughing.

Nathan reached over and locked the door that led to Lucas' bedroom, despite the fact that it was empty.

He wrapped his arms around her, nuzzling his nose into the crook of her neck.

"I wasn't even gone that long," He mumbled. "You know it's my favorite part of the day."

"You are strange," She laughed, leaning back into him. "But you're definitely warm."

"That's what I'm good for," He said, grinning into the mirror at her. "And I said no to her plenty of times when she stayed at my house,"

"Oh yeah, I bet," She said, shaking her head and laughing.

He hugged her tightly into his chest, sighing softly. "I think I'm going to go sneak something to eat."

"Oh, no you won't," She said quickly, rinsing off her toothbrush. "Don't you dare. Your mom has been working hard on that."

"Come on," He whined, kissing her neck a few times, before leaning his head against hers. "Risk it."

"No way. If you so much as creek the floor boards and wake up Rachel, she'll kill you," She said, laughing.

"Fair point," He said, releasing her from his arms, stepping up to her side. "You're on my side," He informed her, gesturing to the sink.

"Your side?" She laughed, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah. That's my sink. This is Luke's. You're at my sink," He said, shrugging.

Haley looked between the sinks, laughing and taking a small step to the left to let Nathan up to his sink.

Nathan smiled, kissing her head and grabbing his toothbrush.

After a few minutes, Haley was sitting under the comforter on the bed, while Nathan sat at the end of the bed, now wearing sweatpants, leaving his shirt off, not that she was complaining.

What she was complaining about, was the fact that he was on his laptop, a concentrated look on his face, instead of sitting next to her with the light off.

"Hey," Haley poked him with her foot under the covers. "I never heard how your time with Katherine's parents was."

"Oh, yeah, it was fine," Nathan said, glancing over his shoulder at her. "My mom just kept the conversation going. They were very interested in Greg too. But if my mom hasn't told my dad about him, Kat's dad definitely will."

"Lucas and Peyton filled me in a little bit," Haley said, frowning at him. "I'm really sorry, Nathan."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Nathan said, sighing softly. "I can handle the judgmental comments a couple times a year," He said, shrugging.

"You also promised to fill me in on the guy we met today," She reminded him, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"If I tell you stuff can we fool around a little before we go to sleep?" He asked, looking over his shoulder at her again, closing his laptop.

Haley laughed at his reply, shaking her head. "I don't think so."

"You'll pin me against a bathroom stall but you won't make out with me in the safety of my mom's house?" He asked her, setting the laptop on the ground, scooting up the bed to sit by her.

"Pretty much, yeah," She said, shrugging. "Tell me."

He sighed, leaning back against the headboard. "He's just a bad dude, Hales. Every interaction I've ever had with him has sucked. He's a douchebag and even at the age of thirty, he's the exact same. Hell, he probably goes to college parties still."

"He mentioned Katherine specifically," Haley said, frowning.

Nathan looked angry all over again, he turned his head away from her, staring at the wall and sighing softly.

"There was this school dance our junior year of high school. Katherine and Felix had kind of been seeing each other... I don't know how to describe it. They weren't having sex or anything. She really liked him and I told her my opinion about him then left her alone," He said, shrugging. "I knew there was something weird about it. Hell, everyone that was friends with Kat knew there was something weird going on. But we left them alone, and they went to the dance together. After the dance, Felix had gotten them a hotel room."

Haley did not like the direction this story was taking, paired with Nathan's angry expression.

"And they had sex. Her first time was with that jack ass," He said, rolling his eyes. "I stole the keys to my parent's beach house and threw this huge party. I'm standing with Tim, and all of the sudden he gets this text. He looks down and gets this huge grin on his face..."

"He didn't," Haley said, frowning.

"I can't even remember what Tim said, but he showed me the picture and it was of Katherine. She was asleep, and Felix took pictures of her. Tim didn't even get the text from Felix. He got it from some other guy at school," He squeezed his hands into fists. "I grabbed Tim's phone, deleted the text. And then for some reason, people just started showing me this picture of her. And every time they did, I would make them delete it. I tried to call her probably eighty times that night. But she didn't answer."

"Oh my god, Nathan..." Haley said, covering her face. "Poor Katherine."

"She didn't show up at school on Monday," Nathan said, sighing softly. "So I ditched school and went to her house. Her parents were out of town, thankfully. I just walked in, went to her room and she was just laying in her bed. And you know Katherine, Haley. She's not the type to just lay in her bed."

"No," Haley said, letting out a sigh.

"So I sat down on the end of her bed. And she said to me 'Nathan, I don't need you here to tell me I told you so,' and I just shook my head."

"I feel so terrible. I should have punched that guy where it hurts."

He laughed, nodding. "It still gets worse."

"Worse than having naked pictures of her sent around school? Oh my hell..."

"Eventually she broke down and told me what happened. She said that Felix didn't force her by any means to have sex, but there was pressure. He got a hotel room, and even made it look nice. Once it was over, she fell asleep in his arms but when she woke up, he was gone. And she had about fifty text messages from different people at school. Some were supportive, some were nasty. She called Felix and he didn't answer and she kept trying to get ahold of him for the rest of the weekend but she never could."

"I hate that guy," Haley said, rolling her eyes. "Why would he do that to her?"

"Then later that day, I got a text from Mouth, who Felix had become decent enough friends with. And it was a picture of Felix with another girl," Nathan said, sighing softly. "Of course, I had to tell Kat and she was a mess. She didn't go to school on Tuesday, but her parents would be back on Wednesday. So she went because she didn't want them to find out. It was brutal."

"What did she do about Felix?" Haley asked, frowning.

"Eventually Anna came up to us and apologized over and over again, and then told Katherine he was outside right now," Nathan said, sighing softly.

"So Katherine and I went outside together, because... I couldn't leave her, Hales... She was one of my best friends and something so terrible had happened to her. We went outside, and Katherine kind of yelled his name in an angry way. And she chewed his ass out."

"As she should."

"He just kept laughing. The same way he was doing today. Just laughing. Like everything was just a joke to him. I guess he'd been seeing other girls the whole time he'd been with her. Because he was a man with needs that she wasn't filling. He said you either eat or be eaten, and that he got what he wanted from her, so it didn't matter if she was mad at him," He said, shaking his head. "I hate him so much."

"What an asshole," Haley gasped, rolling her eyes. "Imagine your first time being with a pig like that."

"Katherine clocked him. Right in the nose," Nathan said, a grin on his face as he told her that.

"Good for her," Haley agreed, looking over at Nathan.

"But then he started coming at her," Nathan said, the smile leaving his face. "I can remember it all happening in slow motion. I grabbed Katherine, and pulled her behind me, and by the time he got up to me, he stopped and stared at me. Everyone was watching. Saw that he was about to... I don't know, grab her or push her or something. I remember this so vividly. I said to him, 'Not so tough, anymore, are you?' and he just looked at me, gave me a very light shove, then walked away."

Haley's jaw dropped as Nathan spoke. "What the hell?"

"Yeah. I hate him, Haley. His parents sent him away after that," He said, sighing softly. "Katherine was alright. But it took awhile."

"Of course. She puts herself out there, and this happens... Poor Kat," Haley sighed, shaking her head.

"I wasn't a great guy, Haley. But I never would have done that. You've heard some shit about me this week, and you'll probably hear more. But I never, ever would have done that," He said, shaking his head quickly.

"Nathan, I don't believe any version of you could have done something so terrible. Don't worry,"

He smiled, adjusting himself so that he was under the covers, head on his pillow now. He stared up at the ceiling, sighing softly.

Haley rested her hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze before laying down next to him.

"I'm glad she had you," She said softly.

"She had my back hundreds of times before that and after that," He said, shrugging. "She was one of my best friends. Still is."

"I think that's so great," Haley said, smiling. "It makes things easy for Nick. And for you and her. And for Shawn and me, really."

He looked over, kissing her lightly. "Once we stopped being married there was nothing to fight about."

She laughed at his response, looking back up to the ceiling. "I kind of miss the quiet of just the four of us at one of our houses."

"Me too," He said, smiling slightly. "Maybe we should move in together."

Haley rolled onto her side, propping her head up and looking down at him. "Maybe this is a conversation we should save for another day."

"Good call," He laughed, nodding at her. "Now... Didn't we have a deal?"

"Here's my counter offer. I will lay here and you can do whatever you want to be as long as you let me sleep," She said, falling back onto her back and stretching out.

Nathan laughed again, kissing her cheek. "I accept your counter offer and raise you the opportunity to sleep unbothered as long as you let me jump in the shower with you tomorrow."

"In your mom's house? I don't know, Nathan," She laughed, rolling her eyes. "I don't think I can do it. It's too weird."

"I've done it plenty of times," Nathan said, pulling a face at his own words. "If I had the chance, I think I would go back and not say that a second time. Can we strike that from the record?"

"Done," Haley said, looking over at him. "I will let you shower with me, as long as it's a fast shower. Because who knows when the kids will get up, or when your mom will need help."

He sighed, "Can I go back to your original counter offer?"

She let out a quiet laugh, cuddling up into his side quickly, resting her head against his chest. "I love you."

"I will take that as a no," He said, nodding. "Fair enough. But just know that when we get back to Charlotte..."

"Don't say it," She begged him, laughing.

"I'm taking you on another trip."

"Nathan..."

"A trip to Bonetown."

"And you said it," She groaned, rolling her eyes and smiling at him.

"So what was it, Haley?" He asked, looking down at her.

"Hm?" She replied, her eyes shut down.

"My charm or my wits?"

She managed a small laugh, already lost in the in between sleep and awake world.

Nathan kissed her head lightly, nuzzling his nose against her silky hair.

He could stay like this forever.