A/N: I'll keep it short so that you can get into the story. Thanks for all the reviews, I love reading them. This is the longest chapter yet (which fulfils my promise of making up for the last chapter), I hope you like it ;)
Chapter Nine
Haley picked up one of the many tops she had on her bed and put it on. Observing her reflection in the mirror, Haley decided that she preferred this top to the last one she had worn, but thought its off-shoulder sleeves were too dressy for the occasion. After all, she didn't want to look as though she'd tried too hard. It was just a relaxed movie night with her friends. And with Nathan.
Sighing, she discarded it and tugged her white vest back over her head. Before she could choose another top to wear with her jeans Haley heard her son call from the living room. She quickly put her purple cardigan over the vest, tying it up as she walked out of her room. "Yes, honey? Do you want me to tuck you in?" she asked Michael, who was standing right outside her door.
He nodded. "Annie's waiting in the room."
Haley was about to take him to bed, but was interrupted by the sound of her front door opening. She looked up and saw Jake and Peyton entering. "Hi!"
"Hey. We thought you might be in the room, so we just used the key you gave us," Jake explained.
"Hi Uncle Jake! Hi Peyton."
"Hi!" Peyton walked further inside the house and picked the little boy up. "How's my number one guy?"
"Hey! I thought I was your number one guy!" Jake frowned as he moved to stand next to Peyton.
"No, baby," she shook her head, "you're second."
Jake faked sorrow, and Michael made a face at him as if to say 'Ha!' and leaned into Peyton's embrace, before proceeding to tell her about his latest drawings.
Jake noticed the amused look Haley was giving them, and walked up to his little sister, handing her the bag in his hands. "We brought ice cream," he said softly so that Michael couldn't hear.
"Thanks." She left them to put the ice cream in the freezer, but when she returned from the kitchen Haley found another person in her apartment. "Nathan!"
"Hey. I'm not late, am I?" he asked, moving away from the front door that Jake had just opened for him.
"No, the marathon hasn't started yet," Haley replied, while thinking that he was too early and now she couldn't change and look pretty (interspersed with thoughts about how the dark blue of the long sleeved t-shirt he was wearing underneath his open brown shirt brought out the light blue of his eyes).
"Mummy, can you tuck me in now?"
"Yeah!" Haley suddenly remembered that there were other people in the room. "Let's go," she said taking Michael's hand. This time she was interrupted by the entrance of her daughter.
"Mummy, Mummy! Guess what I saw! Oh – hi everybody!" Peyton, Jake and Nathan all said hello to Annie, who then returned to her previous state of excitement. "Guess what I saw outside the window?"
"What did you see, honey?" Haley prayed that the couple in the house opposite the kids' bedroom window had remembered to shut their curtains.
"There was a shooting star!"
"Did you make a wish?" Peyton asked, to which Annie replied by nodding vigorously.
"Aw, that won't make a wish come true," Michael stated.
"How would you know?" Annie said to her brother. "Do you know everything?"
"Yes."
Jake and Nathan laughed as Haley set about telling Michael that he certainly did not know everything, and if Annie wanted to wish on shooting stars, he should let her. Annie and Michael then said goodnight to everyone, and Haley took them to their bedroom.
At first an awkward silence spread over the three left in the living room since they had only met each other a few times. Peyton broke it by talking to Nathan. "So how've you been?"
"Good. And you guys?"
"Good," Peyton nodded. "Actually, we're going to Charleston tomorrow."
"Oh, really? Going to meet your in-laws, huh?" Nathan joked.
"Future in-laws," Peyton corrected him with a smile. "And, I've actually met them before, but, yeah."
"That didn't actually work out so well for my brother."
"Oh, why not?"
"It turned out Brooke's Dad bought a car from my Dad's company a couple years ago, but after he bought it he found out the car was actually worth less than what he'd paid. Lucas wasn't even working for my Dad then, but Mr. Davis was still pretty harsh."
"Oh my god!" Peyton laughed. "I hope things weren't so bad with her Mum."
"Oh no, Brooke's Mum liked him. Apparently a little too much."
Peyton burst into fits of giggles, stopping only when she noticed Jake just standing there and looking at them. She poked him in the side to get him to start talking.
"So..." Jake began. "Have you ever been engaged?" Peyton poked him again. "I meant, have you ever been to Charleston?"
"Uh, no and no." Nathan smiled lightly. "My Uncle Keith went to Charleston once; he said it's a really nice place."
"It is. You should go sometime." Peyton decided it was better that Jake didn't talk. If he didn't say anything it was possible Nathan wouldn't notice the looks Jake was sending his way. "So what are you doing this weekend?"
"Well, tomorrow night there's this benefit dinner being given by the foundation that my Mum works for, so I'm going for that."
"Oh, that sounds nice." Haley had just finished putting the kids to sleep, and caught the last of the conversation.
"Since my Dad's gonna be there I have to disagree."
Haley smiled. "Hey, it's nearly time for the marathon to start, so why don't you guys put the TV on and get settled while Peyton and I grab some food from the kitchen."
Peyton knew that if Haley had been in the room earlier she would not have proposed to leave Nathan alone with Jake, but now she couldn't change the arrangement, so she went with Haley into the kitchen.
As Haley was pouring popcorn into a bowl she turned to her friend. "How do you think I look? And I mean honestly."
"You look great."
"You didn't even look at me!"
"Actually Haley I've been in your apartment a while now so I know what you look like. And you always look super hot anyways so I wouldn't even have to look."
Haley rolled her eyes. She felt better at Peyton's comment but she still wasn't completely satisfied. "I just feel really nervous," she admitted.
"And you thought having me and Jake around on your first-slash-second date with Nathan, depending which way you see it, would make you less nervous?"
"Yes – maybe – I don't know. I just…he was walking out the café yesterday and I didn't want him to go just yet and I remembered that we were having movie night and then –"
"Hales!"
"Sorry."
"It's okay," Peyton said, placing her hand on Haley's back comfortingly. "Haley, you just need to relax."
"Yeah, relax." Haley nodded.
"Don't worry; everything's going to be fine. Just as long as we get out of here now and don't leave Nathan alone with Jake any more."
………
As Haley and Peyton left the living room, Nathan unconsciously watched Haley's retreating figure. His gaze was at first focused on her soft hair, before falling to the small expanse of creamy skin visible between her top and jeans. He then found his line of vision falling slightly below the waistband of her jeans, until he remembered with a sharp shock that Jake was in the room with him. His head suddenly shot up and looked straight at the wall in front of him until the girls were completely out of the room. He turned to look at Jake. When he was received with what could only be described as a 'death glare', Nathan decided it was best not to make eye contact with Jake. At all. "So…shall we sit down?"
"Oh, I think we'd better."
That sounded ominous.
Nathan moved towards the couch and sat down on the left edge of the large four-seater, switching the TV on. Haley and Peyton re-entered the living room carrying bowls of food. "Ooh, we're just in time," Peyton commented. "Thanks," she added when Jake took the bowl out of her hands, before she went to the couch. Haley and Jake walked up behind her, and moved further inside once she had sat down on the right side. Although Haley was in front of Jake, he managed to maneuver them so that he could move to the left of her, and sat down next to Nathan. The only place left for Haley to sit was in between Peyton and Jake, so she did just that. Peyton pushed her head back into the couch and looked over at her fiancé with a glare that could rival the ones he had given Nathan. However, Jake just smiled at her, and then leaned back to watch the movie.
……………
As the end credits for 'The Sixth Sense' began to roll Peyton turned her head to her left to look at her companions. No one had said a word during the movie and they were all still quite silent. Deciding to be the one to break the silence – again – Peyton said, "So shall we refill some of these?"
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Haley piped up and started picking them up from the coffee table.
"I'll help." Nathan stood up and took two of the bowls into his hand.
As Peyton, Haley and Nathan all left the couch, Jake decided he should get up too, especially because he didn't know where Nathan would be sitting for the next three films. He walked behind them, but as they made their way to the kitchen, Jake noticed that the door of Annie and Michael's room was slightly ajar. "Haley, you left the kids door open."
Haley was about to reply, but she didn't have to. "Annie freaks out if she wakes up in the night and there's no light," Nathan explained.
At that moment Peyton knew that Nathan was perfect for Haley. She also saw that Jake's stern expression had noticeably softened, but the moment she caught his eye and gave him an 'I told you so' look, he looked back at her, as if unfazed.
Once Haley and Nathan were safely in the kitchen, Peyton took her future husband by the arm and led him back towards the television so they could not be heard.
"Peyton, you're hurting my arm!"
"That's not the only thing that's gonna be hurting, if you keep this up," Peyton said sternly.
Jake's eyes glinted mischievously. "Are you talking dirty with me? Ow!" he added, when he received she hit his arm. "Come on baby, I was joking."
"Jake Jaigelski, I know what you are trying to do."
"I'm not trying to do anything."
Peyton rolled her eyes. "You do realize that you could scare Nathan away."
"And what's so wrong with that? He's not good enough for Haley."
"Why? Because he's wealthy? Because he has a good job? Because he's totally hot?"
"Just because he's rich and has a job – you think he's hot?"
"Yeah."
Jake pointed to himself. "Hello, fiancé here."
"So, it's not like I don't notice. And don't tell me that you don't either, 'cause you were totally checking out the girl at the supermarket yesterday," she told him. "Don't try to deny it," Peyton added, when Jake opened his mouth to protest.
"But that doesn't mean anything. I don't go after other girls. I love you and I come home to you everyday."
"And I'm not going after Nathan – well, not for me. But you may not still be coming home to me if this continues. At least, not to the bedroom." She raised her eyebrows so that Jake caught her drift, and then went back to the kitchen.
………
Haley placed the bowls she was carrying on the kitchen worktop and turned around to see that the only person behind her was Nathan. "I thought Peyton was coming," she said.
Nathan glanced over his shoulder, before replying, "I think she and Jake went back to the living room."
"Oh." Haley took a deep breath. This meant she was alone with Nathan. Well, not alone in the way she wanted to be (except that the very thought gave her goosebumps and the urge to throw up simultaneously), but as alone as seemed possible.
"Shall I put some more popcorn in here?" Nathan asked, gesturing to an empty bowl.
Haley merely nodded.
He had to turn away from her to get the bag of popcorn, and Haley had to will herself not to check out the nice fit of his jeans. Deciding to get a drink, Haley went to reach for a glass on the upper shelves, before remembering that she couldn't reach up there. She looked around for the stool she usually kept for this purpose, but she had put it in her room earlier because guests were coming. While debating whether or not to go get the stool or just not have the drink, Haley heard him call, "Do you need some help?"
"I just need to get a glass," Haley replied without looking at him. Nathan came up behind her and easily took the glass from the shelf. God, he had nice arms. Shaking her head, Haley spun around to take the glass and found him towering over her. She had never realized how tall he really was before. She had to tilt her head all the way up to meet his ocean blue eyes. Haley tried to say, "Thanks," but the words seemed to come out as a whisper.
"You're welcome." He put the glass into her hand and she shivered slightly at the contact with his hand.
Haley's grip around the glass tightened and she felt herself wondering at what might happen, especially since neither he nor she had moved away. However, any further developments were halted by the entrance of Peyton and, not much later, a slightly disgruntled Jake.
Not many words passed between the four of them as they sorted out the food, providing Nathan with ample opportunity to steal glances at Haley. When they got back to the living room the opening credits for 'Unbreakable' had already begun. Nathan went to his earlier seat, but was surprised when Jake sat down farthest from him. He noticed this caused Peyton to smile, and she sat down next to Jake, snuggling up to him. Which meant…
Haley tentatively moved in between the sofa and coffee table and sat down next to Nathan, in the sense that she was the closest person to him, rather than her being really next to him. Nathan sighed, looking at her, knowing it was a good thing he had already seen this movie, since he was unlikely to be able to concentrate on it now. He rested his head back trying to relax, and on reflex his right arm moved up to drape itself on the couch. Unfortunately, as he did this, his head moved and locked eyes with Jake. Sighing again, Nathan brought his arm back down and folded it across his chest. It was going to be a long night.
……………
Peyton smiled as she looked over her shoulder at Haley and Nathan. In the break between the last two movies they had conversed slightly, and Haley had been progressively been sitting closer to Nathan (mostly due to the fact that Peyton had been kicking Haley in his direction). However, Peyton knew things could not go any further as long as she and Jake were there. She leaned back into Jake's warm body and let out a long breath.
"You ok?" he asked, concerned.
She smiled at the opening he'd just given her. "Actually, I am a little tired. And, since we have to get up early tomorrow to go to Charleston, I was thinking maybe we should go home."
"Go home?" Haley inquired. "There's just one movie left."
"I know," Peyton said, turning round to her friend, "But I'm really sleepy and I don't think I'll get any rest on the trip."
Jake looked like he wanted to stay on, but knew better than to say anything. As a result, in just a few minutes, Jake and Peyton had said goodbye, promised to call Haley when they arrived in Charleston tomorrow, and left her alone with Nathan.
Nathan smiled lightly at Haley. After she had gotten up to show Jake and Peyton out, she had returned to the couch, but sat at a considerable distance away from him. At least, in comparison to the way her hair had fallen on his shoulder previously. The scent of her hair was now ingrained in his memory, but he had no idea what happened in the last half an hour of 'Signs'. "So…is this last movie good?"
"You've never seen 'The Village' before?"
He shook his head. "No."
"Well, some people say that 'The Sixth Sense' is his masterpiece and that all the movies went downhill from there, but I actually really liked 'The Village'."
"I remember Katie telling me that she liked it too. But I think that had something to do with the guy in it. The one with the bird name."
Haley laughed. "Joaquin Phoenix? He's a little old for Katie. But, yeah, he is kinda cute."
"You like him?" Nathan inwardly frowned. He had to compete with movie stars now?
"What can I say? I have a thing for tall, handsome guys with dark hair," she grinned.
Nathan's eyes shot up at this. Desperately struggling not to show his nervousness, he moved a little closer to Haley. "I'm pretty tall. And I have dark hair."
"I know." Whoa. She was definitely moving closer to him too.
Taking a deep breath he continued, "And I have been called handsome by many."
Haley felt like a teenager again at the butterflies that were mounting in her stomach from the closeness of his face. She did her best to keep her nerves in check. "Well, you certainly think a lot of yourself."
He smirked. "Why argue with perfection?"
Haley couldn't suppress a giggle. Oh, he was perfect all right. She began to run her hand over the soft material of the sofa to relax, but this had the complete opposite effect on her when her hand came into contact with his knee. A voice in the back of her mind shouted at the hand to return to the safety of her own side of the couch, but it stubbornly refused to comply. Nathan was no better; he made no attempt to move his knee. In fact, he was moving his face closer to hers.
"Haley…" His voice was a few notches lower and she could feel his breath on her face. Oh god.
Haley felt incapable of speech, so she just kept looking at him, without breaking his gaze.
Nathan was unsure of what he wanted to say, and was having even more difficulty remembering now that her face was so close, their noses were almost touching. He opened his mouth, and heard himself say, "Is this a date?" What? That wasn't what he wanted to say.
"A date?" Haley squeaked. "Um…well, I – it was just movies and food – and we weren't even sitting next to each other first – although that was kind of Jake's fault – and since Jake and Peyton were here ifitwasadatethenitwouldbeadoubledateand –" Haley stopped when she realized Nathan was grinning. "You're laughing at me," she said sadly, crossing her arms over her chest and moving away from him.
"No," he replied immediately. "No, I'm not laughing at you, I…I think it's cute."
"My babbling?" she looked up with a slightly amused, slightly happy smile.
"Yeah. And just you in general."
"Oh." She took a deep breath and asked, "Did you want it to be a date?"
"Yes." And then he kissed her, gently brushing his lips against hers. But, before Haley could respond he had stopped and moved back to his side of the couch.
Heartbeat racing, Haley wiped her hands on the sides of her jeans and adjusted her position so that she was kneeling on the couch, and facing Nathan. "I wanted it to be a date too," she breathed. She cupped his face in her hands, forcing his blue eyes to meet her brown ones, and leaned over to kiss him.
The kiss was gentle at first, but grew more passionate as they became more comfortable. Nathan's hand came up to tangle in her thick hair and he deepened the kiss, only drawing back when the need for oxygen became an issue. He rested his forehead against hers and saw her eyes were sparkling. Hearing the noise emitting from the television, Nathan asked "I thought you wanted to watch the movie?"
She smiled. "I've seen it before. Remember?"
Smirking, he kissed her again, and his free hand snaked around her waist to draw her closer to him. Without breaking the kiss, they both moved so that now her legs were on either side of his. Nathan leaned them both back into the side of the couch and Haley put her arms around his neck, so now her entire body was touching him.
All sense of time was lost as they continued kissing and Haley was unaware of anything aside from Nathan and they way he was making her feel. However, she was brought back to reality when she heard a loud noise somewhere in the apartment that had not come from the TV. She tore herself away from Nathan just in time to see two small figures standing in the doorway of the smaller bedroom. The moment they realized that their mother had seen them, Annie and Michael ran back inside their room, giggling.
Haley blushed harder than she ever had in her life. Her children had caught her straddling a man on their couch! And not just any man, Nathan! She looked back at him and could tell that he had seen them too. He was smiling, but clearly very embarrassed.
"Oh my God."
"Well…" Nathan was at a loss for words to lighten the situation. "At least now we now how to tell them about us."
Haley laughed and rested her head on Nathan's shoulder. A second later, she realized what he had just said and her head shot back up. "What?"
"I said, 'now we know how to tell them about us'. Why?"
Haley just grinned. She kissed him, but kept it short and sweet so that she wouldn't lose herself in the kiss again. "Well, let's go tell them now, boyfriend." Nathan was slightly confused by her sudden excitement, but followed her to the children's room. Suddenly, she repeated, "Oh my God," and turned back round.
"What is it?"
Haley gestured to the front tie of her cardigan, which had come undone during while they were making out. "I almost went into their room like this." She tugged at it urgently, all her embarrassment flooding back. "So…" she said to Nathan when she was done, "how do I look?"
Taking in her slightly mussed up hair and swollen lips he grinned. "Very sexy."
She brought a hand to her face as she felt it turn red. "I'm about to have a somewhat serious talk with my children, I'm not supposed to look sexy."
Nathan wrapped his hands around her waist, and drew her towards him. "Then I'm afraid you have a very serious problem because you always look sexy."
Haley looked at him with a serious expression, although she was privately thrilled by what he had just said. "Why don't we just get this over with?"
"Whatever you say." Nathan smirked and kissed her nose. He took her hand in his and led her to the children's room. After knocking on the door, he pushed it open further.
Annie and Michael were in their beds, with their eyes closed, but it was obvious that neither was asleep. Haley walked in front and said, "I know you're awake."
In unison, they both opened their eyes and grinned.
Unable to hold back a smile, Haley began, "In regards to what you saw…" Haley broke off when she remembered at one point Nathan had been kissing her neck, and she wondered just how much they had seen. "Um…"
"Are you dating?" questioned Michael.
"Yes," Nathan replied.
Haley wasn't sure what she expected her children's reactions to be, but she definitely wasn't prepared for what she received.
"Finally," Annie said, causing Nathan to chuckle.
Then Michael began to sing. "Mummy and Nath-an sitting in a tree, K-I-"
"Michael!" Haley exclaimed.
"What?" he asked innocently.
"Just go back to sleep." Haley didn't know what else to say. "The both of you."
They sing-songed their goodnights to Haley and Nathan and closed their eyes, but Haley was sure she could hear Michael resuming the song quietly after they had left the room.
"So…" Nathan looked down at Haley. "Do you want to watch the rest of the movie?"
Haley giggled. Wrapping her arms around him, she sighed. "I don't think so."
"Do you want me to go?"
She looked up at him, and was glad to see that he didn't appear upset. "That might be best." When he nodded, she added, "But you could come by for breakfast tomorrow?"
Nathan grinned. "I will. But you might have to come by and wake me up. And once I get you in my bedroom I think breakfast might get delayed," he winked. Haley rolled her eyes at him. He held her hand as they walked to her front door, and she opened it for him. He went into the corridor and whispered, "Goodnight."
"Goodnight." He moved closer to her and began to lean down, making Haley think he was about to kiss her. She closed her eyes in anticipation, but was surprised when she felt him lift up her hand and press a soft kiss into her palm. Haley opened her eyes and saw Nathan smirking at her, before he walked into his apartment and closed the door behind him.