Chapter 5:
Karen sat on the floor in the back of the kitchen. She quietly wondered why on earth she had decided to stay at the café and do inventory. She had only been back now for less than a week, and all the commotion with Lucas had really thrown her for a loop. Now that he was fine, or at least recovering, she wanted to get her life back together. Going to the café to get acclimated to the changes seemed like a good idea at the time. After all, Lucas was with Peyton and Brooke in Charlotte for his physical therapy. The girls had offered to take him so that Karen could take a break, and Lucas wouldn't let her say no. They had left earlier today, before the storm. When the storm touched down near Tree Hill, Karen had made the three promise to stay in Charlotte overnight. It didn't seem like the most responsible act to let her 16-year-old son spend the night with two beautiful young women, but that seemed a lot better than another car accident. She winced at the thought.
Karen's attention was drawn away from the inventory sheet when she heard a loud bang against the front door. She stood up, stretching her legs, and gazed around the corner of the counter. Someone was at the door, but she couldn't tell quite who it was. She moved slowly towards the outline, opening the door and rushing the person inside.
He was wet, dripping all over the freshly mopped floor. He was also unexpected. "Dan?" she motioned, completely shocked? What was he doing here?
"Karen, is Nathan here?" he demanded clearly tried and agitated from the stormy weather.
Her confusion grew. "Nathan?" Why would Nathan be here? she wondered. "No, Dan. It's just me."
His face shifted for a moment – a strand of pure anxiety wrapping around him and then disappearing from his resolve. "Dan, what's going on?" she finally mustered, still off kilter from his unexplained presence.
He sighed. "Deb and I were fighting. Nathan ran out and now we can't find him." She was surprised by his frank honesty, but then again, Dan was never one to mince words.
She ran the situation over in her mind. She would be frantic right now if she were either Dan or Deb. "Did you try Haley's number?" she finally said after processing the options. "From what I've seen in the past week, those two are very close."
"I tried that an hour ago, but there was no answer."
"Oh, well, she was probably just getting home from her shift. I sent her home early," she offered.
"We tried his friends. And then Deb thought to call the café because Haley was working, but the phone lines were knocked out by that point."
"So, you decided to go out in gale-force winds on the off chance that he was here." It was a statement. Not an accusation. Not a derogative question. She understood. She would do the same for Lucas in a heartbeat. And no matter how heartless Dan came off to be so often, she knew better. He loved Nathan. That part of the whole messed-up circumstance always made sense to her.
"It's obvious you really care about him, Dan," she put forward, trying to calm some of his paternal nerves. "It's nice to see this side of you."
She smiled warmly towards him as the winds howled outside.
"He's my son," he stated simply. His face clouded over with familiarity. She didn't understand his reaction. But then again, she was used to that.
Karen sat on the floor in the back of the kitchen. She quietly wondered why on earth she had decided to stay at the café and do inventory. She had only been back now for less than a week, and all the commotion with Lucas had really thrown her for a loop. Now that he was fine, or at least recovering, she wanted to get her life back together. Going to the café to get acclimated to the changes seemed like a good idea at the time. After all, Lucas was with Peyton and Brooke in Charlotte for his physical therapy. The girls had offered to take him so that Karen could take a break, and Lucas wouldn't let her say no. They had left earlier today, before the storm. When the storm touched down near Tree Hill, Karen had made the three promise to stay in Charlotte overnight. It didn't seem like the most responsible act to let her 16-year-old son spend the night with two beautiful young women, but that seemed a lot better than another car accident. She winced at the thought.
Karen's attention was drawn away from the inventory sheet when she heard a loud bang against the front door. She stood up, stretching her legs, and gazed around the corner of the counter. Someone was at the door, but she couldn't tell quite who it was. She moved slowly towards the outline, opening the door and rushing the person inside.
He was wet, dripping all over the freshly mopped floor. He was also unexpected. "Dan?" she motioned, completely shocked? What was he doing here?
"Karen, is Nathan here?" he demanded clearly tried and agitated from the stormy weather.
Her confusion grew. "Nathan?" Why would Nathan be here? she wondered. "No, Dan. It's just me."
His face shifted for a moment – a strand of pure anxiety wrapping around him and then disappearing from his resolve. "Dan, what's going on?" she finally mustered, still off kilter from his unexplained presence.
He sighed. "Deb and I were fighting. Nathan ran out and now we can't find him." She was surprised by his frank honesty, but then again, Dan was never one to mince words.
She ran the situation over in her mind. She would be frantic right now if she were either Dan or Deb. "Did you try Haley's number?" she finally said after processing the options. "From what I've seen in the past week, those two are very close."
"I tried that an hour ago, but there was no answer."
"Oh, well, she was probably just getting home from her shift. I sent her home early," she offered.
"We tried his friends. And then Deb thought to call the café because Haley was working, but the phone lines were knocked out by that point."
"So, you decided to go out in gale-force winds on the off chance that he was here." It was a statement. Not an accusation. Not a derogative question. She understood. She would do the same for Lucas in a heartbeat. And no matter how heartless Dan came off to be so often, she knew better. He loved Nathan. That part of the whole messed-up circumstance always made sense to her.
"It's obvious you really care about him, Dan," she put forward, trying to calm some of his paternal nerves. "It's nice to see this side of you."
She smiled warmly towards him as the winds howled outside.
"He's my son," he stated simply. His face clouded over with familiarity. She didn't understand his reaction. But then again, she was used to that.