It was Christmas Day in the Sawyer, James-Scott, Davis household and Haley had planned the most magical feast on the face of the world, well the face of Tree Hill. Everyone they knew were coming. Parents, friends, boyfriends, everyone! Anyone could be at their highest today, but one wasn't.
Haley was miserable. Yeah, she did a great job, a FANASTIC job. But she knew something was missing. Lucas, still hadn't talked to her. And Nathan, well Nathan thought she was invisible. She was upset and bitter that everyone had worked things out in the last month. Lucas and Brooke got past the 'mix up'. Keith was back and he and Karen were moving steadily forward. Peyton and Lucas' friendship grew stronger. Everyone was happy, everyone except Haley.
She, however, didn't know she was alone. As she thought everyone was happy, three other people were miserable too. Lucas, missed his best friend. Since the whole, Brooke - cheating thing, he realized how hurt Nathan must of been when Haley walked out. He resented her for that. But, he had overreacted. He took his anger for Brooke out on Haley, and he knew that was wrong.
Peyton missed Jake. She really needed him. She was happy that her father was home, but it wasn't the same as having Jake there…she really loved him…and still does.
Nathan. Nathan was at his lowest today. Since the day he and Haley got married, he had planned to have the most romantic Christmas ever. He had planned to ask Haley to renew their wedding vows, and to give her the wedding she never had. A part of him wanted to forget about everything and ask her, heck he still carried the ring with him everywhere he went. But he was still hurt and angry that she had left. And plus, his pride was once again standing in the way.
As everyone arrived, the house got louder and fuller. But Haley couldn't help but feeling alone. She finally escaped into her bathroom. She couldn't help it, she was a wreck, she hated herself. She grabbed her razor. She looked into the mirror and looked at her reflection. "I HATE YOU!" she screamed. She didn't care who listened now. She punched the mirror, glass cutting through her hand.
"I deserve this! I deserve this!" she shrieked, falling to her knees, clutching her razor in one hand, she was going to get the pain she thought she deserved. She brought the razor to her wrist.
"Haley!" Lucas yelled, running through the bathroom door. He picked her petit body up and held her close.
"Get away! I don't deserve you! You hate me! Just say it!" Haley shrieked hieratically. She tried to punch and kick him to get free, but he wouldn't let her. She needed him.
"I don't hate you Hales, I will never hate you." Lucas said softly, crying with her, as she still struggled to get away from him. "I will never, ever hate you."
Peyton, Brooke and Nathan came running up the stairs and into the bathroom. Peyton and Brooke suddenly started bawling after seeing the scene that laid ahead of them. They knew that Haley needed them right now, and went to her, trying to calm her down as she still wept and cried, "I don't deserve you, you hate me." Nathan just stood here, in the door way. He couldn't help but feeling that he should help her, he wanted to take away all of her pain, but he couldn't. He just stood there, staring at his wife in pain.
"I don't blame Nathan for hating me, I'm a terrible person. He should NEVER take me back. He should hate me forever." Haley wept.
I don't hate you Hales, I don't even dislike you. Nathan thought. He saw her glance up and finally see him standing there. She somehow found the courage to look into his eyes, and whisper, "I'm sorry."
He looked at her again, pain in his eyes. He couldn't see her like this, he couldn't bare it. He ran out of the house…
Haley started to feel dizzy, her head was spinning, she started shaking, she couldn't breathe…
He got into his car and drove. He kept trying to convince himself that she deserved this. She deserved it, for leaving him, leaving him broken hearted, leaving him wondering each night what he had done wrong, what she wanted form him, what he could do to make it better, to make their marriage work…
Her eyes slowly closed, black was all she saw now. She heard voices, she heard a siren. She heard Lucas crying, saying he wouldn't let her go. She felt weak, then, she didn't feel anything at all…
"Nathan…" Lucas murmured into his cell phone. He sounded weak and distressed.
" What now man?" Nathan replied angrily. Now that he thought about the past, it made him angry that he thought of forgetting the past and giving Haley another chance.
"I'm at the hospital. She might not make it."
Nathan stopped his car. He dropped his cell phone. He looked into the blue sky…could it be true? Haley finally forced herself into a hospital? His heart was racing. Look Hales, he thought, you still make my heart race. He made a U-turn with his car and drove well above the speed limit towards the hospital. He didn't care though. He had to get to Haley, to fight for her, he made a vow to her, to always protect her, and he was going to stick to his word.
He ran through the entrance, knocking down everything that was in his way. He needed to get to his wife. He spotted a stretched carrying Haley down a hall into a room. He sprinted towards her, he loved her too much to let her go.
"When he got to her, he grabbed her hand. "Is she going to be okay? What's wrong with her?" he bombarded the nurse with questions.
"Stay out there, we need to have doctors look at her." the nurse said sternly, pushing Haley away from him. Lucas came rushing to him, as Nathan struggled to get through the crowd of doctors gathering around Haley. Lucas led him out of the room, where they both fell apart.
"I can't lose her Luke." Nathan choked up, "Not now. I can't love without her."
Lucas stepped away from Nathan, he looked him right in the eye and said, "You realize this now man? As she's fighting for her life? You want her now? Where was this when she came back? Where was this when you first heard about her problem? You wanna her back now?" Lucas yelled, he couldn't help it. "She's in there because of you! She was on anti-depressants because of you! You did this to her!"
Nathan painfully looked at Lucas, he was right. He put his own wife into the hospital. It was his fault, he was the one that didn't deserve to have her…
"This is your fault!" Lucas yelled, pointing to Haley's room "If she dies, it's your fault."
Die? Was it that awful? She was willing to give up her like if she wasn't with him? This seemed so surreal to Nathan, he couldn't help but thinking this was a really bad dream. He looked into Haley's room, and saw doctors sticking needles into her, tears fell from his eyes, Lucas was right, he did this… And now, he couldn't do anything about it.
Lucas finally lost it and lunged at Nathan. Nathan didn't even try to stop him. He deserved it. After a few more punches, Brooke and Peyton walked down the hall, and saw what was happening. They pulled Lucas off Nathan, as he was still muttering, "It's all his fault."
Peyton looked at him and said, "It's all of our faults, we should of realized that this holiday was pushing Haley off the edge." She broke down and started bawling…she couldn't help it. She was going to lose somebody else…
Several hours later, a doctor finally stepped out of Haley's room. Peyton looked at Brooke, and stood up. Nathan was crying again, terrified of this doctor and what he was about to say.
"We thought we lost her , but she pulled through. She's stable but unconscious. It's all up to her now…She could wake up, but then again, she might not."
The doctor looked at their pained faces and said gently, "You can go see her now."
Peyton and Brooke ran into the room and rushed to Haley's bedside. Lucas looked at Nathan, sorrow in his eyes, and Nathan nodded, for that moment, they understood each other for the first time in a long time. Lucas stepped towards Haley, kissed her forehead and led Peyton and Brooke out of the room.
Nathan stood at the door for a couple of minutes, taking in the scene before him. Haley, laying in that bed, looking small and fragile. He grabbed a char and pulled it beside her bed.
He began to sob, and held her hands, "Haley, I'm so sorry. Please forgive me. I didn't want this to happened. Come on Hales, come back to me, I need you . I want you." He got a velvet box from his jacket. He opened it, took the ring and placed it on her finger. "I've been carrying this around with since a month after we got married. You were watching In Style Weddings and even thought you said we had the perfect wedding, I knew that you wanted one of those big fancy ones. So, I guess I'm asking you to marry me again Haley. Come on, when you wake up, take me back, and we'll have us again. We can have it all. We can be happy again. And I promise you, I will always love you and always protect. I will never let you go…Always and "
"…forever." Haley finished weakly. She looked at Nathan. He had a big, goofy smile on his face, and tears were streaming down it. "And, my answer is yes"
Nathan looked at her, he couldn't believe it. He leaned down and kissed her gently. Not wanting to hurt her, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean for this to happen"
"Sh, I'm sorry." Haley smiled. "I love you so much"
"I love you too," Nathan smiled, "Always and forever."
The End.