Chapter 2

Part I

"So, are we on Friday night?" asked Brooke as she stopped by Haley's locker.

"Yup! Zach said I could sleep over but I had to go home before lunch."

"You're brother's such a kill joy! Well, I suppose we should be thankful he even allowed you to go." Said Brooke as she looked at her nails which were painted pink. "You think I should dye my hair? I mean, I woke up this morning and it suddenly occurred to me that I needed a new do. What do you think of a blonde Brooke?"

"Seriously, Brooke, if I see one more blondie on campus I'd kill myself."

Brooke giggled, "Well, I guess you're right, they are a little over-populated nowadays. Maybe a red-head then?"

Haley raised an eyebrow at her bestfriend. "No. Brooke, you look fine. Besides, why are you asking me? I'm not really the person to go to for fashion tips."

Brooke sighed. "Well, you ARE my bestfriend, you have to be good for something!"

Haley looked at her and they both laughed.

"You know what, why don't you sit with me at lunch today? Come on, it won't be as bad as you think!" Brooke pleaded with Haley.

"I dunno Brooke. Do you really want to be seen with me on campus?" Haley had a skeptical look on her face.

"Haley James! How dare you try to accuse me of being embarrassed to be seen with you when YOU are the one who avoids me at school?" Brooke said with a raised eyebrow and a hand on her hip.

"I don't avoid you Brooke."

"Yes you do." She said with a pout.

"It's just that I didn't think you wanted to be seen with me, especially not with your cheerleader friends. I mean, look at me, I'm a mess!" Haley said as she pointed at herself.

"Oh, Honey. I've never been ashamed of you! You're my bestest friend, remember? Besides, you don't look too bad..." Brooke said as she bit her lip. "Well, actually, you could use a little trim and some make-up, but other than that, you're fine!" she finished with a bright smile.

"Here we go again." Haley said with a shake of her head.

"What do you mean?" Brooke asked innocently.

"You're giving me that look again."

"What look?"

"The look that says you want to force me into a make-over again."

"You know me too well." Brooke said with a sly grin.

Haley sighed. "Brooke, we've been over this before. I don't need a make-over. Well, maybe I do. But I don't WANT one."

"All I'm saying is that a little make-up can go a long way. You don't have to put tons of it to look good. Not that you don't look good already Honey. Er... You know what I mean."

Haley shook her head and marveled at how different she and Brooke were in terms of everything. From grades to clothes to style, they were exactly opposites. Yet they've been bestfriends since kindergarden.

"Just give it some thought, okay Haley?" Brooke said as they neared the cafeteria door.

Haley nodded, just as she always did when Brooke brought up the make-over topic. They both knew she wasn't going to budge.

"So, you eating with me today?" Brooke asked hopefully.

Haley looked at all the preppy cheerleaders at Brookes table and smiled.

"Maybe some other time Brooke, ok?"

Brooke nodded. They both knew there would never be some other time.

Part II

Haley switched off the tv and yawned. It was raining outside and she had nothing better to do than to watch tv. She was depressed. What's worse is she knew her bestfriend was right. She was avoiding Brooke at campus and she felt guilty about it. She had to call Brooke and apologize, try to explain to her how she felt about all this.

She got up and went to the kitchen to get some milk. She reached for the telephone on the wall and was about to dial Brooke's number when she heard voices on the other line.

Zach's on the phone. I'll call Brooke later, she thought as she was about to put the phone down.

But then she heard her name being mentioned and got curious. She decided to listen in a little on the conversation. She covered the receiver and concentrated.

On the phone:

Zach: Haley? As in MY sister, Haley?

Luke: Yeah, are there any other Haley's around here?

Z: What exactly did you hear Mark say?

L: Well, we were in the locker room and he was bragging about the girls he slept with. I really wasn't listening. Then he mentioned your sister's name.

Z: The bastard put his hands on my sister? I'm gonna kill him!

L: Chill man, relax. I already did. Well, I already punched the guy - before I realized he wasn't saying he slept with Haley.

Z: What do you mean?

L: What I mean is, he was telling all the other guys that he would never touch Haley. That's a good thing right? But then I realized he meant he would never touch Haley because it was too embarrassing to even be seen with her.

Z: He said that about my Haley? The guy's dead Luke, I mean it! Why didn't you call me right away?

L: I told you to chill, didn't I? Don't worry, he won't be coming to school for a week after what I did to him.

Z: Thanks man. God, Mark's a jerk! If he says one more thing about Haley I'm gonna murder him.

L: Not before I do.

Z: I hope she doesn't hear about any of this man. I don't want her to get hurt.

L: I know. But I'm sure she'll just laugh it off if she hears about it. She's a brave girl Zach.

Z: Yeah, she is. But I can't stop thinking all of this is my fault. I mean, we all know Mark hates my guts. So maybe he's using my sister to get back at me.

L: You're probably right man. Listen dude, I'll call you back later, got some stuff to do. Don't worry about your sister too much, alright?

Z: Alright man. Catch you later.

(Dial Tone)

Haley put the phone back in its place and closed her eyes. She counted to ten to calm herself, just as she always does when she's close to tears. Normally, she doesn't get affected by what other people say. Brooke even told her once that she admired Haley's way of not caring about what other people said about her.

But this was different. This wasn't only affecting her, it was affecting Zach too. She was giving that Mark guy another reason to hurt and humiliate her brother. She didn't want Zach to be ashamed of her. She wanted him to be proud of her.

Then there was Lucas. He got into a fight because of her. Because he felt sorry for me, Haley thought. She hated it when people pitied her.

She snatched the phone and dialed Brooke's number with determination.

"Hello."

"Hey Brooke, its me."

"Hey Honey! Still on this Friday, right?"

"Yeah. Um, listen, I need to ask you a favor...."