4 Years Later
"Hello" Nathan spoke quickly into the phone. He was supposed to meet Luke at Rivercourt five minutes ago.
"Hey…you in a rush?"
"Hey Peyton…kind of so I'll have to play catch up later…hold on" He took the receiver away from his mouth. "Haley…" he called out.
"Is that Peyton…" the petite brunette quickly appeared from the kitchen and grabbed the phone from her husband's hands. "Aren't you supposed to go play ball with Luke?"
"Yeah and I'm going" he leaned down and gave her a quick peck on the lips before grabbing his ball and rushing out the door. Haley laughed before sitting down on the couch.
"Hey you…your right on time." Haley smirked…for the past four years Peyton had called her every Sunday night between 6 and 7. They never missed a call.
"As always. How's life…" Peyton asked as she too settled into a comfortable position on her bed.
"Umm…pretty good. I don't know how much I can tell you…nothing major's happened in my life and you refuse to let me tell you anything about Tree Hill." She was almost whining.
"Tree Hill is in my past and it's staying there. I don't wanna know anything about that place…we go through this every time I call Hales."
"You just don't wanna know anything about the people…more specifically…"
"Yeah well I now know that he's living in Tree Hill considering Nathan just left to go play ball with him." The blonde sighed deeply as she played with the thick blonde hair sprawled across her lap.
"Can I tell you something else…just one thing Peyton and then I'll never mention Lucas again." Haley pleaded.
"No…I don't wanna know anything about him…it would kind of ruin my whole trying to forget him thing"
"But you're never gunna forget him and you know it" Haley as right…four years and she could remember every detail. She still remembered what he smelt like that day in front on the café when she told the biggest lie of her life. Or maybe that was the second biggest…the first was more of an omission and it was sleeping with it's head on her lap right now. Its name was Alex…Scott.
"But I can pretend to…any way how is work" Peyton was desperate to change the subject, any more talk about Lucas and she might let it slip that he had anther child…one he didn't know about…one nobody in Tree Hill knew about.
"Fine…were we really that rude in high school." Haley questioned as she rolled her brown eyes. She was an English teacher at the high school and she could swear the kids had no respect.
"We probably were and our teachers probably asked the same question." Both girls laughed knowing it was true.
"How's your job…or jobs." Haley shook her head wondering how Peyton found the time to work at the diner and edit a Magazine.
"Well the diner is fun and as usual really relaxing at night." Peyton laughed at the irony. The diner used to be extremely stressful when she started working there…but when she started working for the magazine it got a little easier to be at the diner. When she became the editor the diner was just something to take her mind off the day.
"And the magazine…" Haley inquired.
"Well considering I just wrapped up the last deadline…its should be calm for a day or two and then the work well pick right back up. I'm telling you I don't know what I would do if I worked for one of those weekly papers…getting things done in a month is hard enough." Haley laughed.
"I don't know how you do it…you must crash as soon as you get home…"
'No. I pick up my three year old from day care and then I bathe and feed my her and then I crash' that would have been the truth but instead she lied. "Yeah pretty much…I'm just lucky that I can do my work at home sometimes. I do the editing at home during the week and I don't have waitressing on the weekends so the times pretty balanced." She was glad she stopped working at the diner on weekends because it gave her more time with Alex, which she needed and enjoyed.
"Well that true. I still wouldn't survive." They both laughed. "Anyways…how is Amy doing?" Haley asked. Peyton had told her about Amy and from what she knew she liked the girl.
"She's good…she should be getting home anytime now actually." As soon as she spoke the front door slammed shut causing the small girl to shift in her sleep.
"No she's already home. Hi Haley…Nathan." Amy said as she made her way down the hall.
"Was that her" Haley asked with a small giggle.
"Yeah…who else would it be. She says hi to you and Nate." The blonde informed the other girl.
"Tell her hi for me." Haley glanced at the clock and cursed under her breath. "Listen Peyt I gotta go meet someone somewhere and I can't tell you cause it has to do with Tree Hill." The blonde laughed.
"Alright…I'll talk to you in a week Hales." When the words left her mouth the phone was gone from her hand and she looked up to find Amy over her shoulder.
"Hi Haley…hope everything's well…" Amy sat on the edge of the bed and pressed the phone into her shoulder as she put her hair up into a high ponytail.
"Hey Aims…everything good here…what about wherever you are…does Peyton have any secrets other then where you two live" Haley joked.
"Everything's good here" Amy glanced down as the sleeping blonde curled up by her mother's legs and gave a crooked smile. "Nope no secrets at all…unless she's keeping them from me too." The brunettes both laughed as Peyton rolled her eyes.
"Okay I gotta go…so I'll talk to you two next week. Bye" Haley said quickly.
"Bye Haley." The two other girls responded in unison before Amy clicked the phone off. "Are you ever going to tell them…anything." Amy inquired as she glanced up at a guilty Peyton.
"I don't know…eventually just not now." She ran a hand through her curls.
"What's the harm in telling Haley that you don't work the diner anymore." The brunette raised her thin brow and waited.
"There wouldn't be any harm…but the diner and the magazine are my story and I'm sticking to them…it also stops her and Nate from asking what I do in my free time…they don't think I have any."
"I still think you should tell them…and I also think you should allow them to let the people in Tree Hill know that you're alive." Amy stood form the bed and walked to the bedroom door.
"Yeah and I should also tell Lucas about his daughter…there are a lot of things I should do, doesn't mean I'm gunna do them." Peyton retorted. "you still tell that boyfriend of your that he's an ass."
"Yeah I know…there are a lot things I should do…doesn't mean I'm gunna do them." They both laughed "Goodnight Peyton"
"Night Aims" she waited until she heard Amy's door close until she reached into her side draw and pulled out the small bottle of pills. She placed two in her mouth and finished the glass of water on her desk before settling down into the bed for another night of forced sleep.
I hope my smile
can distract you
I hope my fists
can fight for two
So it never has to show
And you'll never know
I hope my love
can blind you
I hope my arms
can bind you
So you'll never have to see
What we've grown to be
One may think
we're alright
But we need pills
to sleep at night
We need lies
to make it through the day
We're not ok
One may think
we're doing fine
But if I had to lay it on the line
We're losing ground
with every passing day
We're not ok
But that's one thing
I would never
One thing I would never
That's one thing
I would never say to you
The song was Pills by the Perishers.