Okay, my usual rant, I have to keep it short, since I don't have much to rant about (which means you need to review more, I cut ficcys that don't get the reviews that they should, beuase that means nobodys reading them)
Um, Haley's walk away, well yea, it depends on how you look at it. She seeks advice. And she knows where to get it. I also felt that, I dunno, it seemed Nathan to want a big house, since he grew up in one and then in New York lived in a pretty nice house, but everyone knows Haley isn't like that. Haley is Haley.
Um, I was also debating this topic with myself when I wrote this chapter and read it over, I didn't include it because I mentally vetoed it, it didn't seem to fit the timeline, but maybe in the future, I dunno. Well it was that Haley would be pregnant, but then I vetoed it, so yea, just letting you in my head for a minute. I feel there's enough going on to throw that in. They've got a lot to work out as it is, and that won't help.
Another thing I vetoed was Nathan coming after her, but then, maybe not becuase he has Nate, and it'd be kind of hard.
Also you can really see the resemblance between Nathan and Nate in this chapter, it's quite funny, Deb mistakes a picture of Nate for a picture of Nathan when he was younger.
Another thing I would like to include in an upcoming chapter is Nate's cousin's sort of meeting at once. Nate in the middle, I mean Matt and Luke are both Nate's cousins, his age, but they're not related. So it will be pretty interesting.
One last thing: Should Haley go back to being the brown-eyed brunette next door from the blue-eyed blonde from the the city? Just wanting you're thoughts, I love reading your feedback and it tells me if I need to pick up the slack, explain some things, add something, if I'm doing something right, all that good stuff.
Now on with the chapter.

Chapter 18- Trust, Faith, and Hope

Haley wandered around thinking until she reached the hotel. Her bag was there, still packed. She looked at it, then the door. She took out her cell.

"Nathan, it's me," she said when she heard him answer it.

"Where are you, I'm worried."

"Yea, I'm fine, or I will be, I just need some time to think. I would really appreciate it if you would watch Nate for the weekend and I'll see you in New York," Haley hung up.

Nathan closed his phone and looked at Nate. Nate looked a bit lost. "Dude, you okay."

"When's mommy coming back?"

"You're staying with me this weekend."

"Is that what mommy said?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

"Okay, what do you want to do?"

"I dunno."

"How about a little one on one."

"I dunno."

Nathan shook his head. This wasn't going to be easy.

Haley picked up her bag after calling to make the arrangements. She was leaving Florida to think things out. She was going to Tree Hill. She hadn't been there in five years, and she knew some people there missed her.

"Dude, are you hungry, do you want to go watch TV, what?" Nathan was getting annoyed with this kid.

"I dunno, whatever you want to do."

"Is this how your mother raised you?"

"Her and school, do as your told."

"Well I don't see your school or your mom anywhere here, do you?"

"No."

"Okay then."

"But…"

"Dude, don't go there."

Haley got off the plane and smelled the fresh air. It wasn't like New York, or the couple hours of Florida. She got a cab that took her to Karen's Café. She hadn't planned it very well. She looked out the window of the familiar sites of Tree Hill. None of which had her eyes grazed upon in over five long years. Seeing everything only made her miss it more. She got out of the cab and paid the driver and walked into the café. It was just how she remembered it as she took a seat at the counter, drinking it all in.

Karen soon came out, having heard the bells on the door. She walked over to her, "What can I get for you?" Apparently news didn't reach Tree Hill. It was like the forgotten town. Why was that not a shock to her.

"Um, I'll just have a glass of water," Haley said quietly, in her high pitched voice. Singing had done its toll on her voice, and she realized that now, it was much higher and feminine. Karen filled a glass with water and sat in down in front of her with a straw.

"That it?"

"Um, yea, no wait, I don't know."

"Okay, well when you make up your mind I'll be right here."

"You don't remember me, do you?"

"I'm sorry, no, I don't."

"Would me telling you my name help?"

"Maybe, but I don't recall you're face or you're voice, usually I'm good with these kinds of things."

"I'm Haley, Haley James."

Karen's eyes grew big. "Haley!"

"Yes."

"But you left, you left Nathan with that rock star and music."

"Yes I did and for another reason," she took out her wallet.

"Water's free, in case you didn't remember."

"Yea," she opened her wallet and took out a picture of Nate and placed it on the counter. "I would have come back, I planned on it, until I found out about him. Then I couldn't, I couldn't face everyone with him, I was faced with a choice, the hardest one of my young life, him or my husband, and it was hard but I chose him, and having him now, having what I have, I know I made the right choice."

Karen looked at the picture, she could have sworn that she was looking at a picture of Nathan when he was little. She called to Deb, who surprisingly still worked there and showed her the picture.

"I don't remember ever having that picture of Nathan taken," Deb said, "Where did you find it?"

"That's not Nathan, that's my son."

"OMG," Deb said covering her mouth, Karen was pretty shocked too.

"He's five, he's the light of my life, the reason I never came back."

"Where is he, I want to meet him," Karen said.

"He's in Florida-"

"You live in Florida," Deb questioned.

"No, I live in New York with my son, and Taylor, Chris, and more recently Quinn and Viv and even more recently, Viv's kids. As I was saying, my son is in Florida with my fiancé."

"You're engaged," Deb said shocked, "OMG how will I tell Nathan, he's had that secret crush on you since you left, since he signed those divorce papers, oh that day he got them, I remember that…"

The phone was ringing. Nathan was cursing at it for ringing so early. Given it was that he was hung over and it made his head pound, it was still early. He also didn't pick it up in time and had to hear their answering machine message. "Mr. Scott, this is your lawyer, Mr. Grinshel. I have been served with your divorce papers and read them over. They seem pretty fair, what she is asking. Call me back and we can arrange the date-" the machine cut off.

Nathan cursed some more. It was over, it was really over. He deleted the message and their answering machine message, but soon wished he hadn't. Now he couldn't hear her sweet voice at all. He sat back down on the bed and cried. He let it all out. She was gone, it was over.

Nathan cried until Luke knocked on the door looking for him. Everyday he'd become more of a big brother. He'd do little things so Nathan would forget, but seeing the way he answered the door, he knew something was wrong.

"What happened man?"

"Its over."

"What's over?"
"Me and Haley, man, its over."

"Says who?"

"Her lawyer, she filed for a divorce."

"Oh, man, I'm sorry."

"I guess I just wasn't meant to be happy."

"Dude, it's not your fault, you were young."

"And everyone was rooting against us."

"I was rooting for you man."

"Thanks, my lawyer want me to call him back to set a date to come sign the papers. He said what she's asking is fair. I don't care what she's asking, she can have it. I've always wanted to give her everything she wanted. She can have it. She can have it all."

"Man, you need to get outside, get some air."

"Yea, air." He said as Deb walked up. She had picked the wrong day. Luke had just started to make him feel better, and Deb came and put them back in square one. It was a hard day, week, and month…

"Um, I think Nathan knows I'm engaged."

"What, how, why?" Karen and Deb started asking.

"Well, I started singing at the Knicks games. Nate absolutely loves the Knicks and when the opportunity came, I jumped. I didn't know Nathan was on the team, and slowly we got together, mostly him chasing after me and then we took it public, and he got transferred to Miami and didn't want to lose me so he asked me to come with him in the form of being his wife, and I said yes. I loved him, and I love him, I think, I don't know anymore. We've both changed, he's all big on the basketball fame and the money and unrealistic size houses, I'm not, I live in a small three bedroom apartment with my three sisters, my sisters boyfriend, and my other sister's three kids, plus me and Nate, yea, Nathan Scott Jr., three bedrooms. Its cozy and I love it being cozy, everyone close together, its nice. I've always lived with a lot of people in a small house and it was nice. I don't care about the money, all the money I've made on singing I've put away for college for Nate, and I'm very fortunate that he gets private school for free, since I teach at the girls equivalent of the school, so he gets a good education and I get money to pay bills and still have something for the future. And I came here running away, I needed to think if I'm still in love with him, can I love who he is now, can he love who I am now, the sad thing is, this was so spur of the moment and I didn't plan anything, and I don't even have a place to stay."

"Oh, you can stay with me," Karen offered.

"Yea, you can stay with Karen," Deb said smiling.

"Really?"

"Yea, sure."

"Thanks Karen, you're the best," Haley smiled, a true happy smile.

Okay, first thing, review your butts off before this is the next ficcy in my ficcy graveyard. Secondly, be sure to answer my question and third, do you like the flashback?

Well, Austyn's out, if you're to lazy to review on here, you can always email me your review at LHSSpartainyahoo. com