Title: Sleeping Beauty

Name: Joy

Email: Julianna@ziplip.com

Rating: PG 13

A/N: I think I have all the formatting issues solved so go back and read Chapter 4. It should be fixed.

5.

Haley began to wake from a wonderful dream where Lucas and she were sharing a sweet kiss, only to realize they actually were. Lucas was brushing his lips over hers gently as she opened her eyes. "You really are Sleeping Beauty," he whispered huskily.

"Woken with a kiss," she murmured back.

"Yeah."

Lucas had woken from their nap holding Haley protectively to him and for a while he just stared. He began to map her face with his eyes. As he concentrated on her lips he unconsciously leaned into them until they pressed together. Haley began to wake slowly under his attention. Instead of pretending it never happened Lucas kept up the light pressure.

The teenagers stared at each other for a long time. Lucas started to get nervous because he could tell Haley was nervous. He leaned away from her a bit, dislodging her stance. "Did... Did you not want me to do that?" Lucas asked quietly.

"Nonoonononono... I was just surprised," Haley answered.

Lucas sat up completely, "But not a good surprise obviously." He began to lean away from Haley who was sitting up as well.

When he started to slip on his shoes Haley panicked, "You're leaving!?"

He slid one foot home and shrugged, "Might be best to give you some space...I don't want to ruin our friendship. You mean too much to me...and if we aren't on the same page then I need a little time to..."

Haley caught his face between her hands and made Lucas look at her. "We are on the same page...I'm just reading slower than you, okay?" He looked at her confusedly. She sighed dropping her hands, "I don't think you understand what it would mean if this didn't work out...if we couldn't be best friends anymore? I've got a lot more to lose than you do Luke."

Lucas's eyes lit with fire as his anger got to him; "Like hell you do!" He stood before her and paced stopping occasionally before saying, "You're it Haley. You are everything that matters to me in this world. I have Mom, Keith, basketball and you. That's it. Right now I would be willing to give up basketball if you could assure me that I would always have you." Lucas began to pace again before stopping directly in front of Haley, "I don't have a lot Hales. I know that. I can't give you the things Nathan could. I can't take you to fancy restaurants... and don't interrupt...I know that doesn't matter to you...but...it matters to me."

Lucas dry washed his face and looked at his best friend, "I would trade a hundred Peyton's completely in love with me, and ten thousand Brook's in my backseat naked if I got you. I know how precious you are...but I don't want to start down this road at all if you are going to bail on me like Peyton did. I did feel the pain of it, sure...but you doing that to me would destroy me...We are so much more than the stupid drama we have been living in since they took over our lives...and I need to know if you want this or not."

Haley stood up and wrapped her arms around his neck as he naturally wrapped his arms about her waist, "I'm not bailing on you. I'm not...its just..." She pulled away and looked at Lucas, one hand at the nape of his neck, one hand laid flat over his heart, "I got kissed by my best friend just waking up from a nap. Not all faculties were there yet. If I had known you were going to freak out like this over a moment's hesitation I would have just..." Haley leaned in and kissed him. She felt his heart speed up and pound beneath her fingers. She drew back and smiled at the tiny smile appearing on Luke's lips. She leaned their foreheads together, "We want the same thing...I just need you to slow up a beat, okay?"

Lucas looked shamefaced, "Yeah."

"Alright then." Haley slid her arm back up around Lucas's neck and held him close. She stood on tiptoes to fit her head on his shoulder.

After long moments of silence it suddenly occurred to Lucas what a colossal insecure mass he had just become. He had just accused Haley of being like Peyton. He berate himself in his own mind over his stupidity, of not seeing that the insane jealousy and hurt he felt over Haley tutoring Nathan as an indicator that his relationship with Haley had gone way beyond the friendship mark. And then it was as simply as what he had said to Nathan earlier that evening...you have to be some kind of idiot not to fall in love with this girl.

Lucas wrapped his arms tighter about Haley's waist as he buried his face in her shoulder. "e uv ew Hawee," he mumbled against her skin.

Haley blinked rapidly processing the murmured declaration that still tingled against her throat. She pulled her head up and attempted to go flat footed again so she could look at Lucas, but he only held her tighter burying his face all the more.

"Lucas?" she said quietly rubbing his shoulders with her hands. "Lucas, look at me." He just continued to hide his face and shook his head no. "Lucas...Honey...look at me...please."

"Honey?" he asked loosening his grip but still avoiding eye contact.

"Got your attention, didn't it." Haley couldn't see his features in the dark but she just looked straight up in his face even though she could sense he was not looking at her. "What are you afraid of? That I don't love you back? You know that's not true." His gaze fell on her upturned wide-eyed gaze despite the fact she could not see his features clearly. She knew he was now looking at her. "Do you need to hear the words?" She was waiting for an answer. He had to admit he needed this to her. She needed to know they were really having this conversation...with all its ramifications.

"Yes...I need to hear you say it," he admitted.

Haley pushed herself up and kissed Lucas gently then met his eyes. "I love you." She stared deeply in his blue pools. "Now mine was more honest than yours...I faced you. You mumbled it and hid."

Lucas didn't know what to say to that.

Haley stepped away from him for a minute and turned put on some music. "Dance with me?" she whispered and wrapped her arms around his neck. When he just stood there, she dropped her arms and drew each of his hands to her lower back.

It struck Lucas how very sensual her movements were...slow and rhythmic. Her hands slid up each of his arms and met behind his head again. She swayed her hips under his hands and he knew...he knew what he had always known...they fit. Peyton was an attractive distraction and Brooke was a temptress...but Haley was it. Haley was everything.

Lucas just gazed at her unblinking, unspeaking, for a long time trying to put all of his thoughts together. At that moment he understood why his mother would have believed she and Dan could have had a future together, because at this moment he believed that he and Haley could. No one meets their soul mate at 10, right? What a line...good movie. Sweet Home Alabama... But they didn't fight. They never had...never would.

Haley's eyes found Lucas's with a complete honesty he marveled at. "I love you Haley," he said with no hesitation. "I love you so much...I'm sorry it took me so long to get here."

One of her hands stayed at the back of his neck scratching the hairs at the nape while the other came to hold his cheek. "I'm sorry I tried to date the wrong Scott brother. It won't happen again," she stated before laying her head on his chest and continuing to dance.

Tbc

Warning: Next chapter is when the angst part kicks in big time. So be prepared. I have had people in the past get very snippy with me over my abrupt angst twists...Nothing gory of anything just a bit jacked. This is my first non-Science Fiction series I am writing for so it's not as harsh as some others I've done.

I long ago realized that when I try to rewrite a chapter so something bad doesn't happen and it just keeps popping up, the incident is supposed to be there. I would blame it on my muse but I don't know how a non- Sci-Fi crowd would take that.

REVIEW PLEASE!