Haley knocked softly on the front door. Just as she suspected there was no answer. Pressing the bell a few times didn't bring much better results. Biting the inside of her lip and pondering her next move, Haley reached inside her bag for her phone. She hit a button on her speed dial and the caller picked up on the second ring.
"Hales, how did it go?"
"Not good", she sighed. "I'm actually still outside. No answer to my knocking or the doorbell. I don't know what else to do, Buddy."
Lucas sighed for a minute as he thought of their next plan. The details had been sketchy but their tight knit little group had learned that Jake and Jenny had moved out of Peyton's home. It was as abrupt and as much of a shock to everyone. No one knew for sure but it was apparent it had something to do with Nikki and custody. In any event, the move had happened and it had happened quickly. No one had heard from Jake since and Peyton had slipped into a deep funk.
"Hales, try turning the knob. See if it's open."
"What?"
"Just try it. I remember before Jake and Jenny moved in, Peyton used to never lock the front door."
Haley shrugged and with minimal effort, it creaked open.
"It's unlocked. You were right, Luke. Now what?"
"Go in and find her."
"What? Oh no. Lucas, I can't do that. It's not right. It's like an invasion of privacy or something. Plus, even if she is here, Peyton is going to be seriously pissed if I just go barging up to her room…"
"Well, what else are we gonna do, Hales? I mean, really. It's an impossible situation. She won't answer the phone or the door and no one has seen her in days. And when we did see her, it looked pretty bad. I'm just worried. I know she's really hurting about all this. We can't just leave her alone. We're her friends."
"I know…"
"Just check on her, Haley. Please. And as soon as practice lets out, I'll drop by, too. It's just that I'm afraid to leave her alone. Sometimes…sometimes, Peyton just doesn't think…"
"Oh God. Luke, you don't think she would do anything stupid, do you?"
"Depends on how you classify stupid", he sighed.
"Okay, okay. I'm going up. I'll call you later, okay?"
"Okay. Thanks, Hales."
"No problem and tell Nate I love him."
Haley shut the door behind her as she entered the house and called out to her friend. There was no answer and the house was eerily silent. The closer Haley came to Peyton's bedroom, the more she could hear sound. There was a light on and that gave her some comfort but the music seeping from beneath the closed door brought chills to Haley's flesh.
When Peyton was in one of her depressed and mopey moods, she usually would play hard, dark rock music. It was just sort of her way. "Loser rock" as Nathan so elegantly and callously liked to put it. However it wasn't rock music emitting from the CD player. It was classical. Haley would recognize the piece anywhere. It was Hector Berlioz's "Symphony Fantstique". The music was dark and haunting, the kind appropriate for a horror flick right before the killer/monster comes in and offs the virgin.
Just perfect, Haley thought, rolling her eyes at the sheer irony.
She took a deep breath. Haley knew what she had to do. Her friend was in a dark place. It would be up to the rest of the gang to be there for her.
"Peyton", Haley called out softly as knocked on the door and entered.
On the center of the bed was the blonde. Her mass of unruly curls had been pulled up in a haphazard mess of a bun that rested on top of her head. A white tank top exposed the tanned small of her back while red sweatpants rode low. Her rear was to the door and it was obvious she was engrossed in one of her drawings. Probably the "freaky" ones as Brooke liked to call them.
"Pey, it's me. It's Hales. Um, I was in the neighborhood so I decided to drop by."
"Okay", she said in a monotone voice, not bothering to look up or turn around.
"Uh, I knocked and I rang the bell…"
"I know."
"Oh. I…I guess you didn't feel much like answering it."
"Not really."
"So I guess you don't feel much like company right now."
"Bingo."
Haley took a deep breath. It was certainly going well, she thought sarcastically.
"Listen, I know you're upset and you probably want to be alone now but…"
"I do actually."
"But…" Haley continued, carefully ignoring the request. "Your friends are really worried about you, Pey. I don't know everything that happened but I can see that you're hurting right now. If you just need some space and time, then that's cool. I can respect that but if you need anything at all, even to just talk…then I'm here."
"I know."
Haley sighed. If she stayed, on it would just be a night of attitude and short answers. It was no use. Peyton couldn't be reached because she didn't want to be reached.
"Okay. Well, um…I guess I'll leave you alone then. Sorry to bug you but if you need anything, and I mean that, Peyton. If you need anything at all, don't hesitate to call me, alright?"
Haley took a deep breath as she walked away…
"Haley…
"Yeah, Pey?" she asked, turning around hopefully.
For the first time, Peyton faced her. Her face was pale and her eyes dead as soap. The only hints of emotion were the red rims and heavy bags that loomed underneath them.
"Remember that time we partied at Wrightsville Beach last year? The girls' night out with you, me, Brooke and Anna."
"Yeah", Haley nodded, taking a seat on the bed.
"We got pretty wasted and we were talking about love and stuff. And you talked about your feelings for Nathan. Do you remember that?"
"Yeah…", sure she replied softly.
"Remember what you said about Nathan?"
"I…I don't know. I just talked about how much I love him."
"You talked about forever and lifelong commitments. You talked about being lucky to have found 'the one' so early in your life. You talked about unconditional love and that you always wanted to be with him."
"Yeah."
"You still mean it?"
"I do", Haley answered honestly.
Peyton laughed bitterly.
"It won't happen. It never happens, Hales. I'm sorry to be the one to have to tell you but you need a good dose of reality. That way, if you're prepared, then it won't hurt as much later when it happens."
"Peyton…"
"I'm serious. People always leave. There are no fairytales in this life. There are no castles or Prince Charmings. You have a short time to be happy and then just like that, it's all over."
"Not all the time", Haley added quietly. "Pey, it doesn't always have to be like that."
"Really? Then what way is it? God, you're so freaking naïve. You can still sit there and believe that the world is made of sugar plums and if anything bad happens, Nathan will come rescue you on his white horse."
"I don't believe that. I just believe in love. I believe in Nathan. I believe in people."
"Well you shouldn't", the blonde spat. "It's pointless. You know why, Haley? Because people always leave."
"Not always."
"My mom left me."
"She died. It was an accident, Peyton. You were just a little kid. You couldn't help it and she couldn't help it."
"My dad left me."
"I know he went out and worked on his boat a lot and stuff. But he did it for you and so you could have a better life. He's your father Peyton and he will always be there for you no matter what."
"Now Jake and Jenny are gone", her voice trailed off.
"For a little while, not forever, Peyton."
"It doesn't matter", she scoffed. "I suppose it's for the best anyway."
"You know what? Even though for whatever reason or another, those people left you, Pey, they all have one thing in common. Know that that is? They all love you very, very much."
Peyton looked at Haley briefly before turning away. She was determined not to break down and if she did, she would be damned if she let anyone else see that weakness. Her vulnerabilities had been on display for far too long anyway. She had opened up and let people in. Once more, it had cost her big time. Once more, her heart had been broken.
"Look, I appreciate you stopping by and all, okay? And I'm so sorry everybody is worried. Just go back and tell Luke and Nate and Brooke and everybody else that I'm going to be fine."
"I will", Haley said, kicking off her shoes.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm off work so you can imagine I don't want to see even a glimpse of the Café and Lucas and Nathan are at a late practice. My parents' place is a madhouse and Brooke won't let me get any studying done without trying to give me a makeover. You know how it is. I guess you're not the only one who could use a little peace and quiet. Mind if I hang out here for a bit? I just want to get some extra reading done for this super hard exam I have coming up."
"Promise you'll be quiet?"
Peyton sighed. She knew full well what Haley was doing…
"As a mouse. You won't even know I'm here."
"Okay. Whatever."
…And she loved her for it.
The two friends sat in silence only interrupted by the repeated audio of the creepy music. Haley was engrossed in her book so much so that she hadn't noticed that Peyton had fallen asleep. It was late and she was tired herself. Putting on her shoes and gathering her things, she covered the blonde with a blanket. Removing the paper and drawing pencils Peyton had been using, she glanced down for the first time at exactly what Peyton had been working on. It was a shadowy piece of a traffic light in one corner, a boat riding off in a distance in another corner, and finally a young man holding a bag and a baby. Haley knew each figure represented Peyton's mother, father and finally Jake and Jenny. On top, the words "People Always Leave" had been etched.
Haley sighed. Turning off the CD player, she placed the drawing and utensils on the drawer. After leaving a quick phone message for Nathan and Lucas, she kicked off her own shoes, and crawled in bed beside Peyton. The blonde was in a fitful, restless slumber, snoring softly every few minutes.
"Not everybody leaves", Haley whispered in the darkness. "Good night."
