Chapter Seventeen: Suddenly Everything Has Changed

Nathan called out for Justine when he walked in the front door, but he was secretly glad when she didn't call back. He didn't feel awake enough to contend with his little sister. He didn't feel awake enough to do anything but fall back into his bed and sleep.

Whitey had finally approached him and requested that he take Lucas' starting line position on the team. Though Lucas was still in the hospital, he'd been lightly warned by the team not to join. And Haley had blown off their date to go hang out with Lucas.

He stopped suddenly when an image of his girlfriend and his rival flashed through his head. He wondered what they'd said to each other in the intimate act. If Haley ever missed Lucas, if she ever compared the two. Then, without warning, Brooke flew into his head-and he wondered if she ever made the same comparison.

Brooke flew right back out of his head when he banged open his door and was greeted with the sight of his girlfriend. His girlfriend lying on his bed. His girlfriend, his Haley, attired only in a bikini comprised entirely of whipped cream.

"You know," he said, folding his arms and taking in the sight of her, "I was in a bad mood a second ago, but suddenly I can't remember why."

XxxxxxX

"Stay here," commanded Haley, sitting cross legged with Nathan as he packed a suitcase for going to visit his grandparents.

"You know I can't," he said.

"Sure you can. What am I supposed to do with a whole weekend without you? Guess I'll have to make my own party," said Haley suggestively.

"Damn, why do you have to make it so hard?"

"That's my job. Wait, where you referring to your leaving?" she asked, her eyes wide and pseudo innocent.

"Well, I was. Hey, I have an idea. Why don't you hang out with Brooke?" suggested Nathan. Haley considered this.

"She hates me. She's pretending she doesn't but seriously, my father's her father, I dated her boyfriend for like a million years and I stole her best friend from her," recited Haley.

"Come on, make an effort," pleaded Nathan.

"Fine. I'll try," said Haley, caving. She fell back onto the bed. Nathan looked between her and his half filled suitcase before falling on top of her and kissing her. Really it wasn't a very hard decision.

XxxxxxX

Brooke looked on anxiously as a nurse performed the checkup that she did every night. It was the only nurse in the hospital that Brooke knew by name-the one that Nathan had been blatantly flirting with when he'd been jealous of Lucas.

"You know, she doesn't look in that often on anybody else. I think she likes you," joked Brooke.

"She's not my type," replied Lucas, laughing.

"How is hot nurse not your type?" pressed Brooke.

"My type has darker hair, bigger dimples. And looks better in a cheerleading uniform," said Lucas. Brooke grinned, leaned down and kissed him lightly. Both longed for more, but Lucas had been warned not to engage in strenuous activity.

"I'll come back," said Haley, as she entered the room. Brooke sprung up.

"Don't bother, visiting hours are just ending," said Brooke, standing up and grabbing her bag.

"Yeah. Sorry, I'll come earlier tomorrow," said Haley stiffly. Brooke kissed Lucas' cheek and Haley waved before the two girls departed the room together.

They walked down the hall in silence. Haley was already regretting her promise to Nathan. Getting along with Brooke Davis was apparently harder than met the eye.

When Brooke didn't suggest a destination, Haley automatically turned her car toward a commonly frequented bar.

"Two bars, please?" said Haley smoothly to the guy behind the counter. He looked both girls up and down before shaking his head.

"You're still in high school," he said, turning away from them. Haley's eyes flashed indignantly and she thought quickly. Brooke gasped as she slid her hand onto her hip.

"Please? My friend and I just can't have any fun without your help," she pleaded. Brooke held back a laugh as she realized what Haley was doing, and placed a hand on her shoulder before moving closer.

"Yeah. You would want to stop our night from being… wild, would you?" asked Brooke. She amazed both of them by letting her hand trail along Haley's arm.

"Just this once," said the bartender, staring at the two girls. He handed them their drinks.

The laughter that had been bubbling up inside of them escaped as soon as he turned his backs as the two laughed hysterically, gasping for breath.

"Have you ever done that before?" asked Brooke.

"No! I didn't think it would work!" replied Haley, clutching the stitch in her side that had come from her laughter.

"He's going to be disappointed when we don't take him back to my place for a threesome," said Brooke, smiling a dimpled smile.

"Do you think the fact that we're sisters would disturb him at all?"

Brooke stared as Haley called her what she'd gone out of her way not to call her for sixteen years.

"No, I don't think it would," she said. Haley stared as Brooke flashed another dimpled smiled.

"You know, Daddy has dimples," said Haley casually. Brooke nodded, slowly processing the information.

"What's he like?" she asked.

"He's kind of an ass. You're lucky not to have him," said Haley simply, taking another sip of her drink.

"Isn't he better than no Dad at all?" asked Brooke.

"I've been thinking about that a lot lately. I might try to get emancipated," said Haley.

"Where would you stay, Nathan's?" asked Brooke.

"I'm serious. God, I could probably stay at my house, it's not like they're ever home," lamented Haley. Brooke stared at her younger sister, inclined to comment that it made the emancipation completely worthless, while all the while an idea was brewing in her head.

XxxxxxX

Haley awoke the next morning on Brooke's living room couch to Brooke's high pitched, blood curdling scream.

"What's wrong?" she asked, after she'd run in to her bedroom. Haley gasped when Brooke spun around and revealed the naked inside of her thigh. Haley looked closer: what had appeared on first inspection to be a small bruise was something else entirely. A small blue "3" tattooed on the smooth expanse of skin.

"Oh," said Haley weakly, clutching the doorknob.

"How the hell did you convince me to do this?" demanded Brooke. Haley pinched the skin on the bridge of her nose as the night came back to her in broken bits of memories.

"We were pretty far gone," she said. She shut her eyes tightly, and suddenly remembered the trade in for convincing Brooke to get the tattoo. She ran to the mirror and spun around.

Haley winced painfully when she saw the "23" emblazoned on her skin. Silently, she swore to herself that she would never drink again.

"He's going to think that I'm in love with him or something," moaned Haley. Brooke raised an eyebrow and thought back to the scene in the hallway with the slutty nurse and Nathan, when he'd made his fervent declaration.

"And you're not?" she asked.

"It's been like a week since we started dating," said Haley, twisting to see the tattoo fully.

"Haley, it's been like two months now," contested Brooke.

"Whatever," said Haley. Her voice was small and timid. Her confusion in her large eyes seemed to take up her whole face.

"I think you're lying," said Brooke softly. Haley raised her eyes to her sister.

"I think I am, too."

XxxxxxX

The tattoo episode somehow seemed to bring them closer. By mid afternoon Haley was still at Brooke's, they'd made no attempt to contact their respective boyfriends and were happily watching "The Notebook", having discovered a mutual love of it.

"I'm having a great time," said Haley suddenly, breaking the silence between them as Noah began to restore the old house.

"Me too," admitted Brooke.

"I wish I didn't have to leave," said Haley. Both girls looked at each other and Brooke's hazel eyes met Haley's brown ones in a sudden moment of realization.

"Maybe you don't have to," said Brooke.