Hey everyone, I'm soo sorry that it took me so long to update. I have been incredibly busy w/everything. So, now I'm back and I'm gonna try to write some more, hopefully it won't be too terrible. Thanks soo much to my constant reviewers, it means so much to me that you guys like my story. Well here is the next chapter (finally) and now it is definitely AU b/c there is NO way that Nathan and Haley are married (shudders at the thought). Enjoy!
Ch 12. The Truth Comes Out
The following week was unusually tense and quiet. Everyone had heard about Lucas and Haley's fallout and no one was sure how to act around them. Lucas and Haley were both more or less avoiding each other, and they constantly made excuses about missing lunch with everyone, as they both refused to risk the possibility of running into one another. Haley was "too busy" at the tutoring center, or at the library studying for an upcoming test. Lucas, on the other hand, was always in the autitorium practicing basketball, or going off campus to visit Skills and the rest of the gang. Needless to say, they were doing everything in their power to stay away from each other. Of course, the cafe was a different story; it was impossible to completely avoid each other, but they still tried. Haley would always find some excuse to go in the back when Lucas was around, and she even switched shifts with Jake so that she was working when Lucas was off playing basketball with Mouth, Skills, and everyone. Karen noticed the change in atmosphere at the cafe, but she knew better than to ask Haley, and everytime she brought it up with Lucas, he would just give her that look and mutter "I don't wanna talk about it." Everyone was walking on eggshells around the two of them, afraid of saying the wrong thing and making the situation even worse.
By the tenth day of this awkwardness, Alex was pretty fed up with the two of them. She had never considered herself a tactful person and she didn't plan on starting now. "This is getting to be ridiculous." Alex said with a frustrated sigh as she sat outside on the picinic table with everyone, sans Lucas and Haley, of course.
"Yea, I completely agree. I mean I thought they were still aquaintances or something, or at least able to stand the sight of one another." Peyton answered back. The others murmured in agreement as they continued to eat their lunches.
"God, do you think that we could possibly spend ONE lunch without discussing the whole Dawson/Joey drama...Oh I'm sorry, I meant Lucas and Haley." Brooke said flippantly, causing everyone to laugh and Alex to roll her eyes.
"Ok, I get the picture; changing the subject now. So... did you guys see the new Brad Pitt movie?" All at once Peyton and Brooke started gushing about the "godliness" of Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom while the guys rolled their eyes and talked about the bloody action scenes and awesome effects. The whole Lucas/Haley situation was thrown to the wayside, at least for now.
Before Alex knew it, lunch had come and gone and she was in her last class. Only five minutes til the bell. God, this day has flown by. She glanced down at her notebook and realized that she had spent the entire class period drawing geometric shapes instead of taking down notes for the upcoming History test. Oh well, I doubt I will do well either way. She continued with her doodling and was very relieved when she heard the bell. Everyone grabbed their books and fled out the door; "don't forget that this exam covers 1/4th of your grade." Mrs. Willis called out over the dim of students. She looked over at Alex who was the last one to leave and gave her a small smile. Alex smiled back sympathetically and said, "I'm sure they heard you." she walked out the door and headed toward her locker. she was debating whether to go straight home or go by the gym and talk to Lucas, the latter won out, and Alex turned on her heel and headed toward her destination. She waved to some of the guys that passed her, and when she reached the gym, she was disappointed to see that no one was there. Next, she went outside of the locker room. She was waiting ouside for a few minutes before she saw Jake walk out, his hair still damp from the shower. He looked surprised to see her there. "Hey Alex, what's up?"
"Hi Jake. Look, is Lucas in there?" she asked motioning to the locker room.
"Yea, he's in the back, off in his own world. You want me to go get him?" She nodded and Jake said, "ok, be right back." Sighing, she contemplated how on Earth she was going to address the situation with Lucas about him and Haley. She looked up when she heard voices and saw Lucas and Jake talking and walking out of the locker room. "Here he is Alex." He clasped hands (in a man handshake) with Lucas. "Sorry about practice, don't worry, it takes time to get gack in the swing of things. See ya guys later." and with that, Jake walked away, most likely heading back to his house. Alex and Lucas looked at each other a little uncomfortably; they hadn't really spent any time together since before Lucas and Haley's blowout. Alex, get a grip, she commanded herself silently. This is just Lucas, you can talk to him. You guys are still friends. She ran her fingers through her light brown hair and then stuck her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. Maybe if I act like everything's normal, than it will be, she thought rationally. And for them, acting normal meant bantering. Well, here goes nothing.
"Hey, didn't anyone tell you that when the bell rings, that means class is over and you can go?" Alex asked teasingly.
"No, really? I thought it meant that the cookies are ready." Lucas replied automatically. He tried to give his trademark grin, but it came out more like a wan smile. Alex immediately noticed this and decided that she had given Haley plenty of time to talk to him, so now she was going to take matters into her own hands. "Hey, Luke? Can we talk?"
"I thought that's what we are doing," He looked up and saw Alex's bright green eyes dancing with amusment and he couldn't help but wish that he was staring into another pair of eyes- a pair of soft brown ones to be exact...
Alex rolled he eyes at him, "very funny, smart ass. I'm trying to be serious here."
"All right, all right, I'm sorry." Lucas said putting up his hands in a mock surrender. "I'm raising the white flag."
"Good." Lucas and Alex walked toward their lockers and when they reached them, Lucas leaned against his locker and asked. "So, what's up?" Alex continued to put her books in her backpack and answered. "Well, I was just, umm... I was wondering how you and Haley are doing?" she said in a rushed voice and slammed her locker shut.
Lucas looked down at her in surprise but didn't say anything. "It's just that I know you guys are... well things are obviously awkward between you two and I guess that I was just going to suggest to you that maybe you could be the bigger person and talk to her. Because I know for a fact that you miss her and she misses you and this whole thing is, is RIDICULOUS. Just tell her you love her and fix things. Lucas raised his eyebrow at her. He hadn't gotten everything she had said, as she had rambled the entire monologue in one breath.
"You really have that babbling thing down to an art don't you?" He asked jokingly and completely avoided answering her question.
"Luke..." Alex said threateningly.
"What?" He sighed, look Lex, I appreciate the concern and everything, but it's unnecessary. Yes, things are a little awkward between Haley and me right now, but it's only because we don't know how to act. Haley and I have been best friends for nearly ten years, and it's sort of hard to just... stop that."
"BEST FRIENDS?! Alex nearly screamed. Oh my god, how dense ARE you?" She really startled Lucas who's mouth dropped open in shock. "You aren't friends, Luke." she said somewhat more calmly. "No one drags this drama on for THIS long for JUST friends. When are you going to stick your head out of the sand and fess up to the truth?"
"And which is what?" He asked, not sure that he really wanted to hear her answer.
She looked at him exasperatedly before replying. "You two have been hiding under the security blanket of best friends for so long that you refuse to see what's been staring you in the face all along- that you're both completely, hopelessly in love with each other." She was staring right into his eyes as she said this and was easily able to discern the range of emotions that went through him-confusion, shock, even a bit of anger, denial, and finally... a spark of happiness at the thought of Haley being in love with him. Alex gave him a "chesire cat" like grin. Gotcha Luke, and now the truth comes out.
Author's Note:
Sorry if that sucked, I'm trying to get back into the groove of writing but I'm not sure if I did yet. Anyway, not too much action in this chapter, but it sets up the next one so please bear with me. Up next, Haley and Nathan talk as well as Lucas and Alex. And possibly Lucas and Haley?? Please keep reviewing, it means so much to me.
Ch 12. The Truth Comes Out
The following week was unusually tense and quiet. Everyone had heard about Lucas and Haley's fallout and no one was sure how to act around them. Lucas and Haley were both more or less avoiding each other, and they constantly made excuses about missing lunch with everyone, as they both refused to risk the possibility of running into one another. Haley was "too busy" at the tutoring center, or at the library studying for an upcoming test. Lucas, on the other hand, was always in the autitorium practicing basketball, or going off campus to visit Skills and the rest of the gang. Needless to say, they were doing everything in their power to stay away from each other. Of course, the cafe was a different story; it was impossible to completely avoid each other, but they still tried. Haley would always find some excuse to go in the back when Lucas was around, and she even switched shifts with Jake so that she was working when Lucas was off playing basketball with Mouth, Skills, and everyone. Karen noticed the change in atmosphere at the cafe, but she knew better than to ask Haley, and everytime she brought it up with Lucas, he would just give her that look and mutter "I don't wanna talk about it." Everyone was walking on eggshells around the two of them, afraid of saying the wrong thing and making the situation even worse.
By the tenth day of this awkwardness, Alex was pretty fed up with the two of them. She had never considered herself a tactful person and she didn't plan on starting now. "This is getting to be ridiculous." Alex said with a frustrated sigh as she sat outside on the picinic table with everyone, sans Lucas and Haley, of course.
"Yea, I completely agree. I mean I thought they were still aquaintances or something, or at least able to stand the sight of one another." Peyton answered back. The others murmured in agreement as they continued to eat their lunches.
"God, do you think that we could possibly spend ONE lunch without discussing the whole Dawson/Joey drama...Oh I'm sorry, I meant Lucas and Haley." Brooke said flippantly, causing everyone to laugh and Alex to roll her eyes.
"Ok, I get the picture; changing the subject now. So... did you guys see the new Brad Pitt movie?" All at once Peyton and Brooke started gushing about the "godliness" of Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom while the guys rolled their eyes and talked about the bloody action scenes and awesome effects. The whole Lucas/Haley situation was thrown to the wayside, at least for now.
Before Alex knew it, lunch had come and gone and she was in her last class. Only five minutes til the bell. God, this day has flown by. She glanced down at her notebook and realized that she had spent the entire class period drawing geometric shapes instead of taking down notes for the upcoming History test. Oh well, I doubt I will do well either way. She continued with her doodling and was very relieved when she heard the bell. Everyone grabbed their books and fled out the door; "don't forget that this exam covers 1/4th of your grade." Mrs. Willis called out over the dim of students. She looked over at Alex who was the last one to leave and gave her a small smile. Alex smiled back sympathetically and said, "I'm sure they heard you." she walked out the door and headed toward her locker. she was debating whether to go straight home or go by the gym and talk to Lucas, the latter won out, and Alex turned on her heel and headed toward her destination. She waved to some of the guys that passed her, and when she reached the gym, she was disappointed to see that no one was there. Next, she went outside of the locker room. She was waiting ouside for a few minutes before she saw Jake walk out, his hair still damp from the shower. He looked surprised to see her there. "Hey Alex, what's up?"
"Hi Jake. Look, is Lucas in there?" she asked motioning to the locker room.
"Yea, he's in the back, off in his own world. You want me to go get him?" She nodded and Jake said, "ok, be right back." Sighing, she contemplated how on Earth she was going to address the situation with Lucas about him and Haley. She looked up when she heard voices and saw Lucas and Jake talking and walking out of the locker room. "Here he is Alex." He clasped hands (in a man handshake) with Lucas. "Sorry about practice, don't worry, it takes time to get gack in the swing of things. See ya guys later." and with that, Jake walked away, most likely heading back to his house. Alex and Lucas looked at each other a little uncomfortably; they hadn't really spent any time together since before Lucas and Haley's blowout. Alex, get a grip, she commanded herself silently. This is just Lucas, you can talk to him. You guys are still friends. She ran her fingers through her light brown hair and then stuck her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. Maybe if I act like everything's normal, than it will be, she thought rationally. And for them, acting normal meant bantering. Well, here goes nothing.
"Hey, didn't anyone tell you that when the bell rings, that means class is over and you can go?" Alex asked teasingly.
"No, really? I thought it meant that the cookies are ready." Lucas replied automatically. He tried to give his trademark grin, but it came out more like a wan smile. Alex immediately noticed this and decided that she had given Haley plenty of time to talk to him, so now she was going to take matters into her own hands. "Hey, Luke? Can we talk?"
"I thought that's what we are doing," He looked up and saw Alex's bright green eyes dancing with amusment and he couldn't help but wish that he was staring into another pair of eyes- a pair of soft brown ones to be exact...
Alex rolled he eyes at him, "very funny, smart ass. I'm trying to be serious here."
"All right, all right, I'm sorry." Lucas said putting up his hands in a mock surrender. "I'm raising the white flag."
"Good." Lucas and Alex walked toward their lockers and when they reached them, Lucas leaned against his locker and asked. "So, what's up?" Alex continued to put her books in her backpack and answered. "Well, I was just, umm... I was wondering how you and Haley are doing?" she said in a rushed voice and slammed her locker shut.
Lucas looked down at her in surprise but didn't say anything. "It's just that I know you guys are... well things are obviously awkward between you two and I guess that I was just going to suggest to you that maybe you could be the bigger person and talk to her. Because I know for a fact that you miss her and she misses you and this whole thing is, is RIDICULOUS. Just tell her you love her and fix things. Lucas raised his eyebrow at her. He hadn't gotten everything she had said, as she had rambled the entire monologue in one breath.
"You really have that babbling thing down to an art don't you?" He asked jokingly and completely avoided answering her question.
"Luke..." Alex said threateningly.
"What?" He sighed, look Lex, I appreciate the concern and everything, but it's unnecessary. Yes, things are a little awkward between Haley and me right now, but it's only because we don't know how to act. Haley and I have been best friends for nearly ten years, and it's sort of hard to just... stop that."
"BEST FRIENDS?! Alex nearly screamed. Oh my god, how dense ARE you?" She really startled Lucas who's mouth dropped open in shock. "You aren't friends, Luke." she said somewhat more calmly. "No one drags this drama on for THIS long for JUST friends. When are you going to stick your head out of the sand and fess up to the truth?"
"And which is what?" He asked, not sure that he really wanted to hear her answer.
She looked at him exasperatedly before replying. "You two have been hiding under the security blanket of best friends for so long that you refuse to see what's been staring you in the face all along- that you're both completely, hopelessly in love with each other." She was staring right into his eyes as she said this and was easily able to discern the range of emotions that went through him-confusion, shock, even a bit of anger, denial, and finally... a spark of happiness at the thought of Haley being in love with him. Alex gave him a "chesire cat" like grin. Gotcha Luke, and now the truth comes out.
Author's Note:
Sorry if that sucked, I'm trying to get back into the groove of writing but I'm not sure if I did yet. Anyway, not too much action in this chapter, but it sets up the next one so please bear with me. Up next, Haley and Nathan talk as well as Lucas and Alex. And possibly Lucas and Haley?? Please keep reviewing, it means so much to me.