Chapter 10 Key to Sanity

Two weeks after she had first fallen ill, Haley returned to classes. Nathan had spoken to her advisor, who had in turn contacted her professors and provided them with a medical excuse. In truth, Lucas, Peyton, and Nathan had finished most of the assignments that were sent home for her because she had spent most of her time sleeping. As she walked to her freshman honors philosophy seminar, Haley attempted to remember what it was Peyton had read to her the night before. It had something to do with Kant and metaphysics but Haley had no idea what the concepts were. Since she was in the middle of panicking, she didn't notice the wall until she walked into it and landed on the ground. Just as one of her fellow classmates offered her a hand, Peyton came walking out of the ladies room and saw her getting up off the floor.

"Haley, what are you doing here?"

"Going to class," Haley replied irritably; she didn't appreciate her friend's tone.

"Okay," Peyton replied, backing away from the subject. "I'm headed to Art History. Want to meet up for lunch after?"

"I have a lot of work to catch up on—"

"You have to eat."

"Okay," Haley finally agreed. Lucas had walked up to them in the mean time and casually put his arm around Peyton.

"What's up?"

"Not Haley," Peyton said with an amused grin.

"Very funny. Mock the girl who's been sick for weeks."

"Come on Hales, we're gonna be late—" The three friends split up and went their separate ways. After about ten minutes, Haley wished she had stayed home again; her head felt as though it was liable to split in half. Lucas leaned over and asked if she was okay, to which she replied with a nod. There was nothing he could do about her head deciding to revolt. Toward the end of the period, their professor announced that the next test was going to be replaced with a group project and presentation. There were moans and groans from every direction but Haley found herself happy with the idea; she and Lucas always worked well together. It wasn't until the teacher announced that he would be picking the groups that she too joined in the despair. She watched as Lucas got paired up with a stuck-up redhead named Lisa. The girl simply rubbed her the wrong way.

"Hey," Lucas said uneasily to his new partner.

"Hi Lucas."

"You must be Lisa."

"Yeah. You're in my Calc class."

"Really?" He hadn't noticed. Then again, he tried to zone out as much as possible in that class; math simply was not his thing.

"Of course, silly. It's an honors class too. When do you want to work on the project?"

"Well, uh—I think I have practice most afternoons. This Saturday it's cancelled. How's that for you?"

"That's great. We need a computer, so the library won't work. And the computer labs are always so noisy—"

"We could work at my apartment."

"Really? Your girlfriend wouldn't mine?"

"I don't have one," Lucas said suspiciously.

"Oh, I thought you were dating that blond you're always with—"

"Who? Peyton? No, she's an old friend. Eleven on Saturday then?"

"It's a date," she said with a little too much excitement.

"She's a little too eager to do this project," Haley observed dryly. She had spent all of two seconds with her partner, exchanging email addresses and phone numbers.

"She's a little weird," Lucas agreed. He picked up his bag and looked down at the now-pale brunette. "Hey, you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine." He looked at her with an expression of disbelief and she sighed. "All right, I have a headache! Are you happy now?"

"Not at all," Lucas replied coolly. "My best friend has a headache. What are you doing now?"

"Meeting Peyton. Right outside these doors," she added when she saw him looking at her with a worried expression. "If you walk with me for two seconds, you two can even do the changing of the guards. That way," she said in a sarcastic whisper, "I won't be alone for even a second."

"We're just worried Hales."

"I know, but I'm just tired—"

"I'll walk back to the apartment with you. You should sleep if—" Peyton had heard the last statement and was immediately concerned.

"Tired of being fawned over!" Haley finished dramatically. "Sorry," she said right away. "You guys are incredibly wonderful. And I know that I have you to thank for being okay now. But I am okay now. I'm a big girl. Really. I'm fine." Lucas kissed her forehead and backed away, holding his hands up to signal that he'd surrendered; Haley was on her own.

"I'm not eating lunch by myself just because you're yelling," Peyton said pointedly. Haley smiled wyly and followed the blond to a nearby deli, where they ate their lunches and talked about their chaotic lives.

The deli was fairly quiet after the initial rush, everyone having gone outside to enjoy the warm weather for as long as possible. Peyton watched out the window as a boy ran by, his ruffled blondish hair and long strides strangely reminiscent of a certain roommate. Haley must have noticed as well because the topic of conversation quickly veered to their mutual friend.

"So, what's going on with you and Lucas?"

"Nothing," Peyton answered quickly, causing Haley to take on an expression of suspicion. Was she really supposed to believe such an answer? She had known for years that Peyton and Lucas were simply a couple that was destined to be; they understood one another like no one else ever would.

"Are you sure? You guys seem awfully close lately."

"No more than normal roommates," Peyton insisted. She picked up her sandwich and took a bite, avoiding Haley's probing stare while a momentary silence fell over them.

"It wouldn't be a bad thing—"

"Haley, Lucas and I had our chance – and we missed it. It's not going to happen."

"Okay," Haley said, backing off quickly. "Don't get upset. I just think that you two would be good for one another. And besides, it would be really nice not to have to worry about you guys anymore."

"You act like we're the only single people left in the world. It's perfectly normal to be 18 and unattached."

"I know. I just want everyone to be as happy as I am."

"You know that sounds really corny?"

"Yeah, I know," Haley said with a good-natured smile. They finished their lunch and made it to their next classes with general peace and ease.

The title of this chapter comes from the following quote:

A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world. Lois Wyse