Chapter Ten
"I don't know if I'm really up for a party Brooke," Haley sighs as she lays back against her bed in the guest bedroom at Brooke's.
"You're making it sound like I'm wanting to throw a huge party and invite the entire school," Brooke rolls her eyes. "I'm talking about a movie night with Peyton and Jenny, small intimate, just friends..."
"That's the part that I'm worried about," Haley retorts sitting up in her bed, it had been a week since Lucas and Brooke's conversation. One hell of a week, the next day Tim had blurted out right in front of Haley that Nathan had gone home with a gorgeous blonde. Even Tim, in all of his idiocy, had seen the error in his mistake and had hurried down the hall before Brooke's glare had obliterated him and she had drug Haley off to explain that nothing had happened between Nathan and "Blondie". Haley of course had brushed it off, saying that it didn't matter to her what Nathan did.
"Okay, okay," Brooke holds her hands up, "I promise this isn't some scheme to get you and Nathan back together. Nathan won't even be in Tree Hill, Lucas is taking him to Chapel Hill for the night, and now it's not one of those split you two up to talk some sense into you things. I promise no funny business. The guys are going to a basketball game and we're going to have a girls night, no hidden agenda."
"And Peyton and Lucas agreed to this?" Haley asks arching an eyebrow.
Brooke sighs, "of course. Lucas suggested that we don't push you two in the same direction anymore and Peyton pretty much agrees with Lucas."
"So it's just you and your quest?" Haley asks lightly.
"No," Brooke sighs heavily this time, "I guess I no longer have a quest. I just want my friends to be happy, Tutor-Girl, is that to much to ask?"
"Of course not," Haley shakes her head, "it's just...you can't force it on people. And besides you and Lucas are happy and Jake and Peyton are happy, can't that be enough?"
"No, Jake and Peyton aren't completely happy they have Niki hanging over their heads and I want all of us to be happy. Like the old days."
"First of all," Haley states, "you talk about the old days like it's been years. It's been months and we've never all been happy at the same time. Ever. It's a nice thought but I don't think you're going to get your happily ever after forever."
"Oooh, feeling a bit pessimistic are we?" Brooke questions.
"You woke me up at eight on a Saturday," Haley mutters flopping back onto her bed, "don't you sleep."
"Not anymore," Brooke responds, "I've moved past sleep, I no longer need it. This is the new and improved Brooke."
"What happened to the old new and improved Brooke?" Haley questions with a teasing tone in her voice.
"She meddled to much," Brooke waves the question off, "this new and improved Brooke is so non-meddlesome."
"For now," Haley smirks.
"Geez, you're mean when woken up, so I guess I just won't bother to tell you that I was going to take us to Karen's for breakfast?" Brooke taunts.
"Urgh!" Haley pulls a pillow over her head, "and I'm the mean one. Fine I'll be up to leave, just give me a couple more minutes of sleep."
"You have thirty minutes until I am pulling out of the driveway," Brooke states as she hits Haley with an extra pillow, "if you aren't riding shotgun I'm going to be dining alone and I hate eating alone."
"I'll be up, just go away now."
"Going, going," Brooke responds heading to the door a smile across her features, Haley had seemed so Haley like that she couldn't help but hold onto the hope that maybe things were getting better.
"See getting up wasn't so hard," Brooke states as they reach Karen's, "besides you get great food in the process. My treat and everything."
"It better be since you drug me out of bed." Haley does smile despite her negative sounding tone.
"Did anyone ever tell you that you're a pain in the ass?" Brooke asks as she quickly pulls into the only open parking space open several stores down from Karen's.
"No," Haley shakes her head as she unbuckles her seatbelt and then pushes open the door, "but I know you're pretty acquainted with the phrase."
"Your pain in the ass ass is about to be paying for her own coffee and danish if you don't lay off," Brooke laughs as Haley pushes open the door to Karen's café.
"Good morning," Karen is behind the counter when the pass through the entrance way, "you girls are up early."
"Blame it on Brooke," Haley responds walking toward the counter.
Karen smiles before stating, "it's good to see you smile again Haley, and just for that breakfast is on the house."
"Really? If I'd known that I would have gone back to bed for another two hours and let the new-new and improved Brooke drag someone else out of bed." Haley retorts, she naturally doesn't mention that her smile is forced or that she's only smiling so that everyone will get off her back. She doesn't think she handle another intervention and if smiling brightly and going through the motions of who she used to be will get everyone off her back then she's more then willing to do that. Besides with Brooke acting as normally as she has this morning Haley's finding it easier then she thought to act just like Haley. Not Haley James-Scott. Not Haley the girl who was raped. Or Haley who's not even a senior in high school and getting divorced. She's just Haley.
"Are you planning on complaining all morning?" Brooke asks.
Haley shakes her head, "only until I've had some coffee ingested into my system and the maybe I'll even be more willing to do this girls night that you forced upon me first thing this morning."
"Then bring on the..." Brooke trails as the bell above the door jingles behind them and they both turn to see Nathan and Lucas walking into the café.
"Oh my God," any pseudo-cheerfulness that Haley had been feeling deflates the moment everything sinks in. "I can't believe this."
"Tutor-girl..." Brooke begins.
"Save it Brooke," Haley brushes her off, "I should have known that you didn't mean anything you said." With this she turns her attention on Lucas, "I can't believe you're backing her up on this, just leave us alone."
"There is no us, remember Haley?" Nathan snaps.
"Right," Haley nods, her hands shaking cause her to shove them in her pockets, "thanks for reminding me Nathan. Leave me the hell alone." With her words Haley storms out of the café
"Brooke just go away," Haley's voice is harsh from the other side of the guest bedroom door when Brooke gets back to her house half an hour later.
"No I will not go away," Brooke states as she pushes open the bedroom door. "Before you bite my head off I didn't know they were going to be there..."
"Right." Haley snorts.
"Whatever, believe me or not. But stop acting like a brat Haley."
"Excuse me?" Haley stares shocked at Brooke, she can hardly remember a time in the resent past that Brooke hadn't called her anything that started with "tutor" and in a tone that wasn't overly cheerful or teasing.
"I understand that you are going through a hard time. What Chris did to you is horrible and I wouldn't wish that on anyone but you're the one making the choice not to get help. There's not more we can do but I'm sick and tired of babying you, you've made your choice. You were raped. You're not getting help even though everyone who loves you thinks you should. You're divorcing your husband, the guy who loves you more then anything else in the world. But you've made your choice not to talk to someone, anyone, about it and I'm sick of going out of my way to be nice to you." Brooke turns on her heel at these words and is halfway down the hall before she turns back and sticks her head in the doorframe, "you're welcome to stay here for another week or so but then you need to get off your pity party ass and find your own place to live." With a sigh Brooke adds, "I love you Tutor-girl, but I just can't let you do this anymore...you need a serious dose of tough love."
"What are you doing?" Peyton sticks her head through Haley's open door as she furiously shoves clothing into her duffel bag. "Are we going on a trip? Cause I wouldn't midn hitting Brooke's aunt's beach house again."
"No," Haley shakes her head, "I'm going to stay with my brother, Braxton for awhile."
"What? Things not working out here living with Brooke, I've got to say I don't blame you Brooke can be kind of hard to live with..." Peyton states with a smile.
"Yeah well, we got in a fight," Haley states dropping onto the bed, "she said something's..."
Peyton frowns, "what did she say?"
"Nothing that wasn't true." Haley shrugs, "I need to get my life put back together."
"So you're going to go stay at your brothers," Peyton shrugs, "maybe being around family right now is what you need. And just give Brooke some time, she'll have cooled down by Monday when you see her in school."
"Actually, that's the thing," Haley bites her lower lip. "I have no family in Tree Hill, Braxton is a doctor in Atlanta. I called him he said I'm more then welcome to come stay with his family for as long as I need."
"So you're running away?" Peyton demands.
"I'm not running away," Haley snaps, "I'm doing what you thought was a good idea a few minutes ago. Surrounding myself with my family, my brother, my sister-in-law, and my niece."
"I said that was a good idea when I thought your brother lived in Tree Hill not two states away. Moving out of the state is what I would call running away..."
"Whatever Peyton, I'm taking control of my life and I'm choosing to move to Atlanta. You guys let Lucas moved to Charleston without saying anything can't you do the same to me?"
"No," Peyton shakes her head, "it's a different situation we didn't care about what Lucas did last year, we were mad at him."
"So you have to have everyone hate you for it to be okay to leave?" Haley asks, "well I'm sure Nathan will back me up in the move then."
"Nathan doesn't hate you Haley he..."
Peyton is cut off by Brooke hurrying into the bedroom, "Karen just called, there was an accident."