Chapter Two:

"Hales?" Ava called as she flew down the stairs and into the large kitchen. "Have you seen my science book? I was studying last night and I don't remember where I—"

"Hi." A woman Ava didn't know greeted her. "I'm sorry. Haley left a little earlier than normal today. She didn't want to wake you. Uhm, I'm Carrie, the new nanny…..by the way."

The new nanny...right. A heads up would've been really, really nice.

"Hi, Carrie. I'm Ava." Ava shook her hand. She recognized her as the woman who had brought Jamie back to the house when he ran out in the street to catch his ball. "Uh, I'm just gonna grab my book and head out."

"Can I make you some breakfast?"

"Uh, no." Ava shoved her science book into her bag, slinging it over her shoulder. "Thanks, but sometimes I just like to grab something on the way..…I'm sorry, I'm rushing out on you like this."

"No, it's okay. I understand." Carrie smiled. "I was a bit of a surprise. I can tell. We'll talk later."

"Alright." Ava wasted no time in getting out of that house. She didn't want to be in there with her a second longer than she needed to be.

She wasn't exactly sure how she felt about Carrie, it was too soon to tell.

But this was very, very odd.

"Is that my breakfast?" Lucas asked as his sister sat down on the bleachers during morning practice with the container of food he specifically brought with him just incase he got hungry.

This kid was always eating his food...and he was always letting her. What was he going to do? It was his baby sister. He was putty in her hands. All she had to do was smile at him and he'd give her the world.

"Sorry." Ava shoved some food in her mouth. "I was hungry."

Lucas had no issue believing her. He brought oatmeal and blueberries for breakfast.

Ava hated oatmeal and she didn't make it a habit of eating blueberries. Their mother tried her best to introduce both foods to her when she was a little kid, but she refused to eat them. Eventually, Karen just gave up and let her eat her beloved Cheerios.

"Whatever, just save me at least half." It didn't look very promising. "Why didn't you eat at home?"

"No time." Ava spoke between bites. "I wanted to spend the extra time I had before homeroom studying just incase I had a pop quiz or something, but I got here a little later than planned and before I knew it, the bell was ringing."

She omitted the minor detail of walking into the kitchen only to find the new nanny in there. But she felt like she was overreacting. It was no big deal anyway. Carrie was a part of their lives now, she might as well get used to her.

"As far as excuses go…..that wasn't bad. Finish it up, I'll buy something from the vending machines."

"Thanks."

"Do not skip breakfast again, Havana." He fixed her with a hard look to let her know that he wasn't kidding.

He didn't want her to get into the habit of neglecting herself just to get a good grade. Her health always and would always come first.

"Got it." Ava shoved another spoonful in her mouth as Haley walked into the gym. She hated it when Lucas spoke to her like that. Ever since Karen moved away, he had gotten a lot more...paternal towards her. She supposed she couldn't really mind, though. He was only like that because he loved her so much.

"Hey, Coach, you got a sec?' Haley addressed Lucas, swiping her thumb across Ava's cheek to remove a bit of oatmeal that was there.

Ava's nose scrunched at being treated like a baby, but she didn't do anything to stop her.

"That depends…..are you here to steal my food or are you gonna be one of those teachers constantly complaining about my players' grades?"

"If your players are failing, you bet I will."

"Fair enough. Grades are the least of this team's worries."

It was true, every single time one of these guys took a shot, they missed. It was actually appalling.

"How's Quentin?" He asked. "Is he still disrupting your class?"

"Actually, no. Quentin hasn't been in class all week, and I think it's because he got kicked off the team."

"You can't save 'em all, Hales." He grimaced when the team missed an easy shot.

"I think your team looks pretty good."

"The J.V. is the team in white. In the blue…..yeah, those are mine. We're a work in progress."

"I'll say."

"Eat your food, Ava." Lucas tutted. "Or I'll make you go out there and run 'till you drop."

Ava's eyes widened and she scooped another spoonful of oatmeal in her mouth, cringing at the taste. She wasn't starving anymore, so she could afford to be picky again. How anyone could have this as their favorite choice for breakfast, she didn't know.

It was so...soggy.

"Awkward. I'm gonna go to class now. I'll see you later. Ava, you have class in ten minutes. Don't be late."

"Mmhmm."

"Haley." Lucas stopped her before she could leave. "How's my little brother doing?"

"He's a work in progress."

Ava finished up the oatmeal and sighed in satisfaction, closing the container to put it in her bag. "Thank you." She kissed her brother on the cheek very sweetly.

"Whatever, next time, I'll let you go hungry." He grumbled, though he didn't mean it. He was going to make sure to bring a little extra food from now on just to be prepared incase this happened again.

"I'll get your container back to you ASAP."

"Hey, hold on a minute." Lucas grabbed her arm before she could bounce away.

"Yeah?"

"What's up with Quentin?" He asked. "Do you know anything?"

"Why would I know anything?" Ava asked in return, trying not to show how flustered she felt. "He walked out of class a week ago and never came back."

"And you two don't talk or anything? No updates?"

"Just little ones." She sighed. "He's too proud to come back. He doesn't want to admit that Haley got the best of him. But it wasn't a power struggle…..he just went too far."

"Thanks. Get to class."

"Okay." She smiled, turning on her heel to exit the gym, but Lucas stopped her once again.

"And Ava?"

"Yes, Bubba?"

"I don't want to hear about you skipping lunch."

"I won't!"

"Q, what are you doing?" Ava met up with the teen on the Rivercourt after school let out. She figured she'd find him here shooting hoops like he usually did.

"Playing basketball."

"You know that's not what I meant. Why haven't you been at school?"

"There's nothing for me there now." He stopped shooting and gave her his full attention, idly twirling the ball around in his hands.

"Talk to Haley, Q. She can help you. She wants to help you."

Q was one of Ava's best friends. She couldn't sit back and watch him throw his life away without saying anything about it. Now whether or not he listened to her was entirely up to him, but at least she tried.

"No, she doesn't." Q shot a perfect three.

Ava stood under the net and caught the ball, preventing him from playing any further. "She does. You know she does. You're just too hard-headed to see it."

"Whatever. Give me my ball." He added. "Please?"

"Why haven't you answered my calls?" She held onto to it to ask.

"I didn't wanna talk." Q shrugged. "I figured you were mad or something."

"I wasn't mad. I just don't want you to settle, you know?"

"I know." Q smiled and held his hand out for the ball.

"Just think about going back, okay?" She passed it back to him, having gotten her answer.

"I'll think about it."

"Good, you're home." Nathan commented as Ava entered the front door.

"Hello to you, too." Ava mumbled, putting her school bag down in the foyer.

She'd had a bit of a long day and Q's little situation was weighing heavily on her mind, so she wasn't really in the mood for a lecture on how she hadn't thrown out the trash or cleaned her room.

"What?"

Nathan was staring at her, completely freaking her out. What had she done now?

"I need your help with something…...and I need to talk to you."

"What do you need?" She blew out a breath, wondering what it was he wanted to talk to her about.

He seemed calm this afternoon, which was a sign he was having one of his good days. Those were far and few between, so she wasn't going to say anything to ruin it.

"Follow me." Nathan led her straight to the kitchen where all types of ingredients from the pantry were out on the counter.

"What? Did the pantry explode?" She deadpanned.

"Funny. No." Nathan crutched over to the fridge and pulled out some ground beef, setting it down next to the ingredients.

"Then what's all this?" She followed.

"Ever since my accident, I haven't been myself." Nathan turned and looked her in the eye. "I've been mean and I've been bitter, and I took it out on everyone else around me. I can't change that, but I can fix it. I wanted to make Haley a nice dinner to make up for how I've been. And I wanted to spend a little time with you while doing it." He spoke sincerely. "I'm sorry, Pidge."

Ava's eyes softened at the beloved nickname he had given her when she just nine years old. He hadn't called her that in what felt like forever, and she hadn't realized just how much she missed hearing it.

And she missed her brother even more.

"It's okay." Usually with Ava, all it took was a genuine apology and all was forgiven. She couldn't really hold grudges even if she tried her hardest. "I forgive you."

"Come here." He pulled her in for a hug and kissed her forehead before they broke away. "I love you, you know that?"

"Yeah, I love you, too." Ava smiled, feeling lighter than she had in months. "What are we making?"

"Spaghetti and meatballs?" He almost cringed.

"That's good." Ava nodded. "It's simple, Haley likes it, and it's something the kid'll eat."

"You do the ground meat and I'll do the pasta?" If Nathan did the meat, the whole family would end up with food poisoning. It was best that he stuck to the simple things.

"Deal. And after…..you need to shave."

"Jamie?" Haley called. "Where'd you go, Jimmy-Jam?" When she didn't get a response, she walked over to the dining room, finding her son and her husband seated at the dining room table in their best clothing. "What is this?"

"It's the beginning." Nathan stood up.

"Of what?"

"Of the way it's gonna be from now on." He led her to the table and pulled out her chair. "I know that it's gonna take a lot more than dinner, but I figured it's a start, right?"

"I've missed you." Haley gazed into his eyes and for the first time in months, she saw the man she had fallen in love with. "So, how was your day?"

"Oh, enough about me. How was your day?"

"Yeah, how was your day, Mama?" Jamie piped up from his seat at the table.

"Oh, my day just got a lot better." Haley stopped herself from tearing up. "Well, I'm starving. Let's eat."

"Let's eat." Nathan agreed. "Well, I can't vouch for any of this, because Jamie made it all."

"Oh no." Haley laughed.

"I just watched."

"It smells delicious."

"I'm only kidding." Nathan laughed, serving his son before grabbing his wife's plate.

"Ava's not eating with us tonight?"

"No. She's home with Luke." Nathan shook his head. "She wanted to give us some time together."

"She didn't have to leave."

"That's what I told her, but you know, teenagers."

"She's definitely not like most teenagers."

"You're right. She made most of this dinner, by the way." Nathan added. "She didn't want me to say anything, but I thought you'd want to know."

"I'll have to call her."

Haley couldn't have been more happy in that moment. Her husband was smiling again, her son was at ease, and they were sitting around the table the same way they would have before the accident.

Things were getting better.

"Daddy, can we play basketball again? Now?" Jamie asked, still reeling from how well the previous night went.

"No, not right now, sweetie." Haley shook her head. "Maybe later."

"Hey!" Ava greeted, rushing in and turning the living room upside down.

"Uh, hey?" Nathan chuckled. "What are you looking for?"

"I had homework due today that I did, like, last week and I can't remember where I left it." Ava responded, never stopping her search, overturning the couch cushions. "That's the problem with living two places at once…...can't keep track of all my crap."

"Hey!" Haley scolded lightly. She didn't need Jamie to pick that up from her. "Where did you leave it last?"

"Do you think that if I knew that, I'd be losing my mind looking for it?" Ava rolled her eyes, running a hand over her face.

If she didn't find her work, she'd get an incomplete. To most people, it wasn't that big of a deal, but Ava didn't want an incomplete. Especially not when she had actually done the work in the first place.

"I wanna play everyday!" Jamie had no concern for his aunt's frazzled state. "He shoots, he scores! Straight to the hole, playas!" He grabbed an orange and slammed it into his oatmeal, spilling it onto the counter.

"Okay." Haley laughed. "I guess we have to stop leaving him with Skills."

"Come on, Champ. There's a bath with your name on it." Carrie lifted Jamie up. "Oh, Ava." She cringed when she saw that Ava's homework had been on the counter next to Jamie the entire time.

"Oh, Ava, what?" Ava furrowed her eyebrows and walked over to her.

"I think I found what you were looking for." Carrie passed the oatmeal stained paper to her.

"Oh no." Ava cringed. "Oh no. Oh no."

"I'm sorry." Jamie pouted, upset that he had ruined her homework, as Carrie carried him away.

"There goes my 4.0…." Ava rambled. "I can't hand this in like this. This is like that, 'my dog ate my homework' scenario. What am I gonna say? My nephew spilled his oatmeal? No one's gonna buy that. My grades will drop, I'll never get into college, and I'll be working at Walmart! All because I couldn't remember to put my stuff away. It all ends here." She threw a hand up. "I might as well dropout now and save myself the headaches. There's no turning back now."

"Alright, Rory Gilmore." Haley shook her head. "Let me see it."

Ava sighed and handed it over. She didn't know why Haley wanted to see it, but if it made her feel better...

"Isn't this for you seventh period class?" Haley looked at it.

"….Yeah."

"Then just go and eat lunch with Luke and rewrite it." She handed it back. "Save your 4.0."

"I mean..…it could work." Well, now she felt stupid. She obviously hadn't thought of that. It was so simple.

"Of course it could work. You ran in here and kicked up such a fuss you couldn't think straight. Stop doing that. Your grades are fine."

Honestly, Haley was growing a little worried about Ava's academic habits. At first, it was cute to see her studying and taking her work seriously, but not so much when she worked herself up to a frenzy when she wasn't 'perfect'.

She'd ask Lucas to keep an eye on her. She was sure he saw it, too, but just incase he didn't, she would bring it to his attention.

This was going to get very unhealthy, very fast if Ava didn't slow down.

"Okay." Ava took a deep breath.. "I feel better now. Sorry."

"Get to school, nerd." Nathan teased.

"I'm not a nerd." Ava huffed. "I just happen to like to learn."

"Nerd!" Nathan called out before she shut the door.

"What did I tell you about sitting in my chair?"

"Don't do it." Ava sheepishly answered her brother, not moving from the seat she was in.

It was her lunch period and she was rewriting her homework that had been ruined that morning.

She could've done it in the library, but that meant that she couldn't bother Lucas while she did her work. Why would she pass up an opportunity like that?

"So then why aren't you moving?"

"Because I'm busy." Ava continued writing, her pen gliding across the sheet of paper she was using.

"Busy doing what?" Lucas crossed his arms. "Not last minute homework I hope?"

Ava just rolled her eyes and kept writing. There goes that brother-father combination thing again.

Sometimes, he and Nathan drove her nuts.

"No." She finally answered. "Well….yes, but no."

"Yes, but no?"

"I already had it done a week ago, lost it, and then found it this morning." Ava explained. "Well…..Carrie found it. After Jamie spilled oatmeal all over it. So now, I'm rewriting it…...Done!"

"Nice." Lucas smiled as she carefully put the homework in a folder and stuffed it in her bag. "Now you can quit bugging me."

"Where's the fun in that? Besides, I haven't eaten yet."

"There's ramen in the drawer." He narrowed his eyes at her admission to skipping meals. Again.

"Sweet!" Ava cheered, finding herself the cup of noodles, pouring water in the bowl, and putting it the the microwave. "Why do you look so grumpy?"

"Because you won't leave my office." That wasn't true. He was grumpy because she wasn't eating like she was supposed to.

His sister had always taken her work seriously, but she had never been this bad. He didn't know where this was coming from, but it needed to stop before it got any worse. She was going to burn herself out at this rate.

"You enjoy my company." Ava winked before taking her noodles out, stirring them with a plastic fork. "Admit it. You get lonely. Especially since Lindsay's not here."

"Eat your food." Lucas rolled his eyes and sat behind his desk.

"You wanted to see me?" Q leaned against the doorframe.

"Close the door."

"I'll get out of you hair." Ava picked up her bag and kissed her brother on the cheek. "I'll see you later…...Hi, Q. Bye, Q"

"Bye, Ava."

"Stay out of trouble." Lucas called to his sister's retreating form.

"Let me guess, huh? You want me back, right?" Q sat down and made himself comfortable as soon as Ava shut the door behind her, putting his feet up on the table.

"Take your feet off my desk." Lucas didn't have enough patience for this.

"Oh man." Q laughed, ignoring him. "I get it. Local boy becomes coach, feels pressure to win big game, needs a star player to make it happen. Yeah, I guess I could help you out."

"Let me tell you how it's gonna go." Lucas' nostrils flared. "I'm the coach. You do what I say, and I do not ask you twice. For instance, there's the matter of your feet on my desk."

Q got the message and put his feet down on the ground where they belong.

"I'm building a team. You play your part and do as I say, or you are gone. Just so we're clear."

"Look." Q just couldn't stop antagonizing those around him. "We both know I'm the best shooting guard in the state, so why don't we just cut the crap, huh? I'm not playing no zone defense. Matter of fact, I might not play no defense at all. And on offense, I need my minutes, so I'm gonna play when I want and I'm gonna sit when I want. And that weak point guard? Find somebody that's gonna feed me the ball, man. You do that, you can stand on the sideline, hold your little clipboard, and watch me work. And when we win, I might even let you take the credit." He stood up to leave. "Oh, you can call me, 'Q', Coach. I like you, man, but, uh, that's how it's gonna go. Just so we're clear."

"How was the party?" Ava asked Lucas once he came home.

Brooke had thrown a grand opening party for her new Clothes Over Bro's store in Tree Hill. Ava was so happy that she was actually deciding to come home for good. She had missed Brooke over the past few years and now that she was older, she was excited to be able to talk to her and confide in her about all kinds of girl stuff.

"It was good. You're supposed to be asleep."

"I'm not tired." Ava shrugged, looking up at the ceiling while she lied on her bed. "Uh, Mama called. She said she misses you and she wanted to talk to you."

"I'll call her tomorrow, thanks."

"Is there a reason you're being so awkward?" Ava questioned. "If you're gonna come in, come in. Don't just stand by the door."

"What's going on with you and Q?" He obliged, sitting down at the foot of the bed.

"Excuse me?" Ava sat up quite abruptly.

"What's going on between you and Q?"

"We're friends, Luke." She laughed nervously. "Why?"

"I don't like the guy and I don't trust him. Especially not around you."

"I can take care of myself."

"No, I know." Lucas assured her. "I just want you to be careful, okay?"

"Okay, but there's nothing to be careful about. He's a really nice guy once you get to know him and like I said, we're just friends."

"Do you always come here to read?" Q caught Ava by surprise.

The fourteen year old was sitting on the bleachers of the Rivercourt, one of her very favorite places to read on a nice day. There was nothing better than sitting in the sun, with the watery breeze threatening to turn her pages if she didn't hold her book carefully enough.

"Sometimes."

"So….." Q hesitated before asking. "How's school?"

"It's fine, you know, classes, homework, cheer, dance some days, repeat." Ava joked. "What'd you and Luke talk about?"

"Nothing really." Q sat down next to her. "He begged me to come back to the team."

"Q."

"He asked me to come back."

"And what did you say?"

"I said yes."

"Q, that's great! I told you they were only trying to help."

"Yeah, yeah." Q smiled and waved her off. "Don't think I'm getting all buddy-buddy with Lucas. I'm only coming back because I love the game."

"Of course not." Ava grinned. "You obviously know exactly what you're doing, I mean you've gotten this far."

"Don't I know it."

"Alright, don't get ahead of yourself." Ava laughed.

"Come on, girl, you know you love it."

Something about the way Q had said that, made butterflies fly around in Ava's stomach. That was a first. She'd never really felt like that around a guy before.

And she had to admit, it was nice.

"Whatever." She scoffed and jumped down. "I have to get going."

"Where are you going?" She was leaving already? He just started talking to her!

"I have to go pick Jamie up from Skills' place."

"When do I get to meet the kid?"

"As soon as you make nice with his parents and his uncle." Ava teased, beginning to walk away, leaving him alone on the bleachers.

"You can't do me like that! You know we'll never get along!"

"I guess you'll never meet him then!"

"Jet, huh?" Ava quirked an eyebrow, walking into Skill's apartment right as Jamie and Skills finished playing a little Guitar Hero.

"I'm turning him onto the classics." Skills told her, a proud smile etched onto his face.

"I wouldn't go that far." Ava plopped down on the couch with a huff.

"Nice work, kid. You're halfway to sleeping in a van and checking into rehab."

"Daddy's in rehab." Jamie answered, forcing Ava to cough to hide her laughter. Kids really were sponges.

"Different kind of rehab." Skills responded quickly.

"What other kind is there?"

"Yeah, Skills." Ava shook her head at the obvious slip up. "What other kind is there?"

"Shut up." Skills grumbled. "You wanna go to the Rivercourt?"

"I literally just came from there." Ava stared blankly. "I came to pick him up, Skills."

"Did you know my Grandpa Dan?" Jamie asked out of the blue.

The question made Ava freeze.

What did he know about Dan?

And why was he asking about him?

"Yeah, I think we'll go to the Rivercourt." Skills sat down next to Ava to tie his shoes. "That's what we'll do."

"Uncle Skills, how come they sent my grandpa away?"

"Uh…..Jamie, I think we should get going."

But Jamie just stared at him with his big blue eyes and he folded.

"He's in prison 'cause he didn't clean his room…..right, Ava?"

Ava hadn't really been paying attention, she was thinking about Dan and Jamie's new fascination with him.

So when Skills called her name, she just agreed. "Yeah, sure. Whatever...I have to go."

"Whoa, what'd that ball ever do to you?" Ava asked Q, who had been making some overly aggressive slam dunks.

"I thought you were hanging out with Jamie." Q lightly dribbled the ball to give her his attention.

"I was." Ava nodded. "But then I decided to take a little walk and I ended up here."

She had been walking around town for hours, but somehow landed herself here. The Rivercourt is where she always ended up whenever she needed to get her mind off of something. It was her safe place of sorts.

"Well, I talked to Mrs. Scott and Lucas."

"Really? Why?"

"Since I walked out of class that day, I'm failing the quarter, which means I can't play." Q explained. "But if I read some stupid book and write some reports on it, I can play."

"What book?"

"Les Miserablés'."

"That's a beautiful book, Q."

"It's a long book...…but I can't play if I don't read it."

"So then read it." Ava answered in a 'duh' tone.

"It's not that simple!"

"Why not? Read the book and then you can play!"

"You know Nathan was here earlier, too." Q dodged the issue.

"What did he want?"

"He wanted to talk to me about reading the book." Q took her over to the bleachers and handed the hardcover copy to her. "He said that if I really loved the game, I'd do anything to be able to play it."

"He's right." Ava flipped through the book, flipping to one of her favorite parts. "You know, if you really want to do this, I could help you out…..we could read the book together and analyze it…..it could be fun."

"Yeah?" Q's eyes lit up at the prospect of spending more time with her.

"I mean, you don't have to say yes…..you don't need my help. Once you start the book and get the feel of it, it isn't that hard to understand…..and—"

"—Yes."

"Yes?" Ava stopped rambling.

"Yes." Q repeated himself.

"Okay…..great."

"What were you thinking about…..before you came here, I mean?"

"Oh…..Jamie just found out some little truths about his grandfather…..well, my father. If you can call him that." Ava rolled her eyes and sat down.

'You've never told me about your father." Q joined her.

"What is there to say, really?" Ava shrugged. "He and my mother got together, she had me, she left, he didn't find out about me until a couple years after, we met when I was nine, we got close, he killed my uncle who was really my father, and went to prison. End of story."

"Wow." Q whistled. "Does Jamie know all of that?"

"Of course not, he's four years old." Ava shook her head, moving some hair from her face. "He just knows that he's in prison for doing something horrible. And honestly, I hope he stays there so he can't ruin anyone else's life— I'm sorry." She shook her head, stopping herself from continuing to ramble.

"What for?"

"Dumping all of that on you. I sound bitter and it has nothing to do with you, so I never should've burdened you with all that."

What was she thinking? Now Q was going to think she was crazy or something. She should've kept her mouth shut.

"Like I said, I like to hear you talk about your family. Good and bad. You don't need to apologize."

Ava sniffled, forcing herself not to cry over something that had happened years ago. "Thank you." She turned and looked Q in the eyes. "For listening, I mean."

"You're welcome." He responded softly, doing the same.

The two teens gazed into each other's eyes for a solid ten seconds. And before Q could comprehend what he was doing or stop himself from doing it, he leaned in close and pressed his lips right up against Ava's.

And she didn't pull away. She just let it happen.

"Oh." Was all she could say when he pulled away.

Wow. She didn't know what to think of it except...Wow.

"I'm sorry, I never should've done that." Q quickly apologized. "That was messed up…..it's just you were feeling down and I don't like seeing you like that, so I kissed you." Rambling seemed to be very contagious. "And not only that, I really like you. And I don't just mean as a friend— I mean I like you. But I understand if you—"

Ava cut him off, by leaning in and pecking his lips. "I like you, too." She smiled. "I like you, like you."

"Well, good." Q had to stop himself from breathing a sigh of relief.

What was wrong with him? He was usually so confident. Now he felt like he was melting like a lit candle.

This Ava Scott was having some kind of effect on him.

And he wasn't going to fight it.

"So, what's going on with your writing, Luke?" Haley asked. "How's it coming?"

She and Nathan had invited Lucas, Lindsay, and Carrie to stay for dinner that night just to catch up. It was always nice to wind down fro the night with good friends and family.

"Good, actually." Lucas smiled. "I'm kind of on a roll lately."

"You've gotta be loving that, Linds." Nathan looked at his brother's editor and girlfriend.

"Yeah, the editor side of me is." She answered. "The girlfriend side of me misses her boyfriend."

"So, how's physical therapy, Nate?" Lucas quickly changed the subject.

"Pretty good, man. I'm sore a lot these days. I spend a lot of time in the pool. I'm trying to get Ava in there to join me."

"Absolutely not." Ava shook her head. "Never gonna happen. I'll leave the swimming to you."

"Yeah, he's been looking really good in there." Carrie added. "His rehab's going great."

It seemed like the only two people who found something wrong with that comment, were Haley and Ava.

It wasn't what she said, it was more about what she meant.

And it was inappropriate.

Ava even sent a questioning look in Haley's direction, but the woman shook her head, not wanting to open that can of worms there.

Now wasn't the time.

"Yeah." Nathan nodded. "Where's your head, Hales?"

"Quentin."

And luckily for Ava, no one noticed how she nearly choked on her drink at the sound of his name.

That kiss on the Rivercourt was still on her mind and just thinking about it made her blush a deep and dark red.

It had been her very first kiss.

And it was perfect.

"I gave him a second chance to kind of turn things around, and I'm not sure if he's gonna take it."

"He will if he wants to play." Lucas quipped smugly, sipping on his drink.

"Well, sometimes you just don't know about people." Lindsay spoke. "I mean, I gave Peyton a second chance and she didn't take it."

The three Scott kids looked at each other in confusion.

How had this conversation swung around to Peyton?

What had Lucas done to make things worse this time?

"Here we go." Ava muttered under her breath, and even though it was quiet, it was loud enough that Nathan heard her.

"Cut it out." He warned, kicking her leg under the table, to which she rolled her eyes.

She was definitely not the problem here, but okay.

"I have to tell you, I felt so horrible about that, and I know Peyton did, too." Haley explained. "Victoria has literally been driving Peyton crazy."

Ava didn't know what they were talking about, but something big must've happened between Lindsay and Peyton. Sometimes, she was glad she was a teenager and not an adult. Being an adult looked really stressful and confusing.

"Thanks, but there's more to it than that. Peyton feels like she had some sort of jurisdiction over Lucas because of their history. I was really hoping it wouldn't be an issue, but clearly it is."

"Lindsay….." Lucas came to Peyton's defense. As usual. "Peyton's got a big heart."

"Yeah, to go along with her big mouth. I know I went to an Ivy League school, but if she keeps it up, she's gonna get her butt kicked."

"Okay!" Haley laughed along with everyone else, though it was more of an uncomfortable laugh. "Easy!"

"Sorry, I didn't mean that. I know she's a friend of yours. I just wanted her to like me."

"We can see that." Ava quipped, getting a dirty look from Lucas to which she sunk down a little in her seat until he looked away.

"Yeah." Carrie nodded. "It sounds like it."

"Enough about me and my problems." Lindsay sighed. "Ava, how's school going?"

"And to think I was going to make it out of this dinner without being the subject of conversation." Ava joked, making them laugh. "It's fine. Keeps me busy."

"Have any favorite classes?"

"No, but I can tell you my least favorite." Ava smirked. "English."

"I thought you loved English class." Lindsay sipped her wine. "Your brother told me it was your absolute favorite subject."

"Oh, it is." Lucas clarified.

"Then what's this about?"

"She's only saying that because I'm her teacher this year." Haley explained so that Lindsay and Carrie could catch onto the little joke. "Apparently having your sister-in-law as your teacher is social suicide."

"Ah." Lindsay nodded in understanding. "I see."

"But she's doing exceptionally well for someone who hates having me around all her friends."

"Keep it up." Nathan ruffled the teen's hair and she preened at the praise.

"Any boyfriends? Or potential boyfriends?"

"No!" Lucas and Nathan shouted in unison like the overprotective brothers that they were.

"That's cute." Carrie smiled.

"Uh, no." Ava mock glared at the two, never intending on talking about Q. The less they knew, the better. "I've never had any."

"Really?" Lindsay questioned. "You're gorgeous." She complimented. "But anyway, you don't need to rush it. It'll happen when it's supposed to happen."

"Not if I can help it." Lucas crossed his arms.

"Lucas." His girlfriend nudged him.

"What?" He asked innocently. "I will not have her dating and kissing some guy! It's not happening. I won't let it."

"He's a little overprotective." Nathan said.

"You don't say?" Carrie quipped.

"You're no better." Haley called her husband out.

"Me? What did I do?"

"You? Mr. 'I'm calling my mother so that she can teach me how to shoot a nine, just in case'?"

"That's for drastic measures." Nathan defended himself. "I'll only have to resort to that if he doesn't get the message the first time."

Ava put her head in her hands and shook her head. Lucas and Nathan were honestly something else.

But she wouldn't have them any other way.

"You guys are so embarrassing." She groaned, making everyone laugh once again, but this time it was at her expense.

"What's so funny?"

Ava uncovered her face and saw Jamie standing in the doorway, clad in his pajamas.

"Uh, I'll tell you what's not funny." Haley scoffed. "The fact that you're down here instead of upstairs sleeping like you're supposed to be."

"I'm not tired."

"I'll get him." Carrie made a move to get up, but Haley stopped her.

"No, I got it. Jamie, bed, now."

"Daddy, can you take me?" Jamie asked in the sweetest little voice that Ava gushed over.

"Jamie?" Nathan backed his wife up. "You need to listen to your mother, okay? Now go on upstairs. We'll be up in a couple seconds to tuck you in."

Jamie huffed and looked at Ava.

"Havana-Rose, don't you dare give in." Haley warned the girl.

"What're you mad at me for? I'm not the one who won't go to bed."

"I know that look."

"What look?"

"The one that says, 'I'm about to give Jamie exactly what he wants'."

"Whatever." Ava rolled her eyes. "Hey, Jamie?"

"Huh?"

"Don't you dare, Ava."

"Relax." Ava raised her right hand under her chin and wiggled her fingers.

Jamie smiled and did the same, turning away and rushing up the stairs to his room.

"What was that?" Lindsay asked.

"I'd like to know, too."

"It's nothing." Ava smirked, looking at Lucas.

He was the only one who understood it.

When they were both younger and their mother had sent them to bed, but they didn't want to go, Keith would wiggle his fingers underneath his chin and they'd go without a fuss.

It was a secret signal between him and them.

It just meant that if they went to bed, he'd be in soon to tuck them in or tell them a story. Anything that was considered quality time.

Ava had decided to keep the tradition alive with Lily and Jamie.

Lucas just winked and smiled back sending her the signal very discreetly. Funnily enough, sometimes he did it with her.

"Well, whatever it was, thanks." Nathan smiled.

"He's so cute." Lindsay smiled.

"He uses it, too." Nathan told her. "Trust me. And Ava has been teaching all sorts of little tricks to get what he wants."

"I definitely have not."

"You have." Lucas threw her under the bus.

"I know they were born on the same day and all, but their ten years apart." Haley marveled. "It's like their twins. There are things that he does that make me think of Ava when she was that age."

"Oh really?" Lindsay loved to hear about Lucas' family.

"Oh yeah." Haley nodded. "They're a lot alike."

"But Miss Ava, was more of a troublemaker than Jamie at this age." Lucas smirked.

"I'll buy it." Ava gave in.

"And now he's scared to death to go to bed, because of Dan."

"But can you blame him? I had nightmares about Dan till I was, what? Nineteen?" He joked.

"Think we should go talk to him?" Haley asked her husband.

"Yeah." Nathan nodded, standing up from his seat at the head of the table.

"Excuse us." She looked at Carrie. "Hey, and you are not allowed to clean at all, okay? Just make Lucas do it."

"Alright." Lucas mock pouted. "C'mon, Little Sister, you can help me."

"Okay."

"Excuse us, ladies."

"You look tired, you should go to bed." Lucas looked at his sister.

They had finished washing and drying the dishes a few minutes before and Ava was dozing off with her chin in the palm of her hands.

"I'm not tired." She said in the same way Jamie had.

"Haley wasn't kidding, huh?" Lindsay chuckled.

"Not at all." Lucas shook his head.

He or Nathan would probably carry her up to her room and tuck her in. But for now, she was fine where she was.

"Oh, I'll get it." Carrie stood up once the doorbell ran as Haley and Nathan rejoined the group.

"Everything alright, guys?" Lucas asked them.

"Oh, poor thing." Haley pouted. "We all have stuff we're afraid of. You know, I'm deathly afraid of clown?" She shared. "No, seriously. It's really sad."

"Very sad." Ava yawned just as Q entered the room.

"Hey, sorry to interrupt." His voice made her eyes snap open, which didn't go unnoticed by Lindsay, who playfully wiggled her eyebrows at her. "I just wanted to say, I've been thinking about it, and I'll do whatever it takes to remain eligible."

That made Ava smile.

This was a pretty big step for him. Coming to his teacher's house and allowing himself to be humble.

"I'm really glad to hear that." Haley was honestly relieved, because she didn't want to have to fail him.

"Alright." Lucas nodded. "Six AM practice, Q."

"Yessir." Q accepted his fate. "I guess I'll leave ya'll to it. I've got a book to start reading."

But before he moved to leave, he looked at Ava and smiled softly at her.

That kiss was on his mind just as it was on hers.

And he couldn't wait to do it again.

"Bye, Q." Ava sipped her drink to hide her rosy cheeks.

"I'll see you."

He certainly would.

A/N: Miss Ava-Rose just had her first kiss! What a milestone! But Lucas and Haley are worried about her. She seems to be overworking herself these days. I wonder what it could be...?