A.N Ok guys still having to post updates from an internet cafe so will try once again to keep my author's note short. I in no way believe that this chapter is up to standard but I have been playing around with it for days and cannot seem to get it right so I apologise for it and hopefully I can make it up to you with the next chapter. That being said I would still love to hear what you think. Can't help but notice that reviews have dropped off a bit lately so am hoping to get a few more this chapter. On that note doodlebah if you're still out there reading I would love to hear from you same with heather dawn and jacqueline22393. Where are you guys I haven't heard from you in ages?

Chapter Thirty-two

Pulling into the car park Haley looked in the rear view mirror and studied her complexion. She looked terrible and she knew it. Her face was bereft of colour partially due to the regular bout of illness that greeted her every day when she woke up but also the melancholy that had had her in its grip ever since she had last spoken to Nathan. She had made a conscious effort lately to make the best of her situation but the happiness she showed was more often than not forced. Apart from the feeling of the tiny baby growing inside of her, the only thing that genuinely brought any good feelings to her life at the moment was her job.

Although her time at Tree Hill High had been less than a success she had persevered with her desire to be a teacher and was now feeling much more comfortable in the role. Her students actually seemed to be responding positively to her methods and looking back at all the mistakes she had made during her time at Tree Hill High she could now only wonder what on earth she had been thinking. She had made a decision to look upon that now as only a learning experience.

Getting out of her car she walked into the building responding to greetings from teachers and students alike before briskly continuing to the teachers lounge. As she entered Cathy one of the Maths teachers looked up.

"Hey Haley how's the morning sickness today?"

Haley smiled wanly "same as yesterday and the past few months for that matter," she said despairingly.

"Oh you poor thing," Cathy said "guess it won't be long and you'll be needing a whole new wardrobe."

"Yeah," Haley said ruefully "maybe I'll get you to come shopping with me."

"Sure I'd love to," Cathy answered enthusiastically "just name the day."

"Well we'll have to make it soon I'm definitely going to need a whole new wardrobe if I'm going to survive a Vermont winter. I'll see how I'm feeling on Saturday but if you're up for it I think that maybe we should head over to Brattleboro and make a day of it."

"Sounds good," Cathy agreed "now I've got to run I have so much prep to do for today's class but I'll talk to you later."

Haley laughed as the other woman ran out of the room. She and Cathy had hit it off almost from day one when Haley had been lost trying to find her way to her first class. Cathy had helped her and invited her out for a drink that night and since then the two had been quite close. Cathy had been married young and divorced and had an understanding of just how hard it had been for Haley to leave Nathan behind. She knew very few of the details of what had happened but had sensed that there was quite a story behind Haley's relationship with the mysterious Nathan.

Haley gathered what she needed for her first period class and headed off determined to bury herself in her work and not give Nathan another thought.

By the time fifth period rolled around she was glad to be escaping for the day. She had arranged to have the rest of the afternoon off to attend her four month check up at her GP's and she anxiously drove towards his office. Her emotions as these appointments approached were always mixed in some respects she looked forward to hearing the latest progress on the child growing inside of her but there was always a certain amount of trepidation mixed in with it. Memories of her experience with Schapelle would never truly be gone and it was difficult not to expect the worst.

Driving past the surgery she groaned in frustration as she realised there were no spaces in the tiny parking lot adjoining the building. She drove a little further down the road and eventually found a spot that would require herto walk less than five minutes back. Quickly pulling into the spot she hurried up the road to attend her appointment.

When she walked out forty-five minutes later the smile on her face was plain for all to see. The appointment had gone well and they had even done a sonogram at the nearby hospital and she now had her very first photo of her baby. Pulling it out of her purse to look at it for what must have been the twentieth time since the doctor had given it to her she was too absorbed in the image in front of her to hear the familiar male voice calling her name.

It was only as a hand clamped down on her shoulder that she turned startled to find herself face to face with Josh. Shocked for a moment she simply gaped at him speechless unable to think let alone speak. Finally breaking her shocked gaze away from his face she noticed the young man who had hurried up to them and now stood beside Josh sliding his hand into Josh's free one.

"What do you want Josh?" she said harshly. "Please don't tell me you've come to ask me to marry you again. I assume you received the ring when I had it couriered back to you I think that should give you a pretty good indication of what my answer would be to that."

"Haley," he started to speak but paused as he took note of the picture in her hand before shooting his gaze to her slightly protruding stomach. "Oh my God you're, you're…"

"Yes Josh," Haley said without any noticeable altering of her tone "I'm pregnant. Not that it's any of your business. Now if you'll excuse me I have some marking to do." She rushed away trying hard to fight back the tears that gathered in her eyes. Although she no longer had any feelings for Josh he was nevertheless a part of her past and seeing him again so suddenly caused a lot of other memories to flood back as Nathan's face filled her mind.

"Haley please," Josh said coming after her once again. "Please can't we just talk? You have no idea how sorry I am for everything that happened between the two of us if there was any way I could go back and change it I wouldn't hesitate for a second. I guess I would just really like us to see if there is some tiny part of that friendship leftthat we had before everything got so messed up."

Haley looked at him aghast hardly able to comprehend the words that were spewing forth from his mouth. Seeing that she was still not going to speak Josh decided to give it one more try.

"Haley you're not the only one who was lied to," her head jerked up in shock at his proclamation. "I was lying to myself too for the longest time. I couldn't admit to myself who I really was or who I wanted to be with."

Haley looked into his eyes and could see that he was speaking the truth. It would be completely unfair of her to hold it against him when she had lied to him also. She should never have got engaged to him when she had never truly stopped loving Nathan. Looking back at it now she couldn't help but wonder if perhaps sub consciously she had somehow known the truth about Josh. Maybe that was why she had been with him because he had not posed a threat to her and could never have taken even the smallest part of her heart.

Looking up at him she nodded slightly. "Ok," she said quietly "let's start again. Why don't you and your new friend," she said for the first time looking closely at the other man "come to my house for dinner tonight?"

It was Josh's turn to be flabbergasted as he looked at Haley in disbelief. "Are you serious Haley?" Noticing her small nod of assent he continued. "That would be wonderful."

Pulling a piece of paper from her bag she scrawled a few lines onto it. "Here's my address," she said handing him the piece of paper "why don't the two of you come by at about seven."

"Sounds wonderful Haley. Would you like us to bring anything?"

"Just yourselves," Haley said before turning and walking towards her car.

When she arrived home she busied herself preparing for her dinner guests. She didn't want to dwell too much on her past but was hoping that this dinner would be a way of resolving at least some of what had happened during the past few months. Obviously Josh could not give her any closure on her situation with Nathan but he could help her close the Chicago Chapter of her life. Plus if truth be told she had seen a genuine sorrow in Josh when he had spoken to her that nightand it had been apparent that he was being honest with her when he had spoken today.

Putting a casserole in the oven she went upstairs to shower and change. When she was ready she finished her dinner preparations and awaited her guests' arrival. She was not totally sure what she should expect from the night but she very much doubted that it would be in any way boring.

Glancing at her watch she saw that they were due in less than five minutes and quickly hurried to complete her last minute preparations. Hearing the doorbell she put down the plate she had been holding and walked to the door to answer. Opening it up she was confronted with the sight of Josh planting a quick kiss on the lips of the young man who was standing with him. It was the same person who had been with him earlier and Haley's suspicions that this was Josh's boyfriend were now confirmed. Clearing her throat to get their attention she watched as Josh blushed slightly.

"Haley I didn't mean for you to see that." He apologised quickly.

Haley had to work to hide the grimace of distaste on her face from him. Personally she didn't have a problem with gay people but the fact of the matter was that up until a few months ago this was the man she had planned to spend the rest of her life with and raise children with. Seeing him kissing another man was hardly a reassuring statement about her own attractions. Shaking her head she did her best to banish the thought from her mind but as it had on many occasions since that fateful night in Chicago that insidious thought refused to be dismissed. When she really thought about it she would always try to convince herself that she was simply being ridiculous but nevertheless when she was lying alone in her bed at night she would wonder how a man that had professed himself to be in love with her could have then turned around and admitted that he actually had feelings for other men. When she was at her lowest points over the past months she would even consider the possibility that perhaps it was because of her that he had turned gay. She knew it was ridiculous but still it refused to be dismissed outright.

Her mind was a confusing jumble of emotions most obviously related to Nathan but Josh was there too causing her self doubts and reproach.

"Haley are you ok?" Josh asked.

Looking at him blankly for a moment she quickly recomposed herself. "Of course Josh I'm fine. Why don't you both come in? Dinner is almost ready."

Following her into the house the two men hovered nervously near the door to the living room.

"Haley are you sure you're ok about us being here?" Josh asked once again.

"I said I was didn't I. Now please stop with the ridiculous questions and sit down. Can I get you a drink Josh?" After he answered she turned expectantly to his companion before realising that they still had not been properly introduced. "Hi," she said "well as I assume you've been told I'm Haley, Josh's ex fiancée." The men fidgeted nervously at Haley's words but Haley continued on heedless or perhaps uncaring of their discomfort. "And exactly who would you be?" she asked not altogether politely.

"Uh my name is Kelvin. It's nice to meet you." He stammered nervously.

Haley glanced at him briefly before turning away. "So Kelvin would you like a drink?" she asked over her shoulder not bothering to look back at him.

"I'll have whatever Josh is having thanks." He told her.

After she had got their drinks she came back into the room. "Well why don't we sit down and eat. I think we have a lot of talking to do."

As they ate Josh explained to her his position on things at the moment. "To be honest with you Haley it was not only you that I was lying to, for the longest time I was lying to myself and denying who I truly was even to myself. I am so sorry that you had to get caught up in this. I honestly believe however that I wasn't lying to you because everything I told you was the truth as far as I was concerned at that time."

Haley looked at him closely her conflicted emotions reflected plainly on her face. She didn't know whether to believe him and even if she did believe him did it matter? The fact of the matter was that he had kept a huge part of who he was from her and yet he had professed to want to marry her and spend his life with her. The only thing she was sure of was that she was confused and somehow she had hoped that by simply talking to Josh some of that confusion may be lifted.

As she stared at him though she couldn't deny the honesty that was blazing out of his eyes there was no doubt that at the very least he believed what he was telling her. Reaching a snap decision she smiled at him. "Ok Josh I believe you." It was either a case of forgiving him or being caught up in this for the rest of her life. Forgive and forget as they say. That was the only logical course of action.

He was clearly stunned that he would not need to make any further attempt at convincing her. "Haley you know if there was ever anything you wanted to talk about I would still totally be here for you. I mean it's obvious that things between us were never meant to be romantically but I still consider you to be a close friend and I hope you feel the same way about me."

As she absorbed his words it was as if a giant weight was lifted from her shoulders. Finally here was someone that she knew well enough that she could talk to them freely but that was not somehow involved in the whole saga that was her relationship with Nathan. She had considered talking to Cathy about her situation but she could never quite find the right words to begin the conversation. How do you tell someone that you're only just getting to know that you were engaged at the age of seventeen and raped by his best friend and subsequently became pregnant? That was without even going into the whole running away, still birth and engagement to another man. There were so many things that Josh didn't know about her past but perhaps he was the perfect person to discuss it all with. Maybe he could offer the perspective that she so desperately needed.

After all she now knew all of his deepest secrets and despite the fact that she had forgiven him it was highly unlikely that she would ever see him again after tonight. "Josh you've shared the truth with me tonight and now if you don't mind I would like to do the same. There is something that I need to talk about but it has to stay strictly between us." As she said this she looked up at Kelvin making it clear that he was included in the vow of secrecy she was enforcing on Josh. "I don't necessarily need or want an opinion on what I'm about to tell you but I need to tell somebody or I'm going to explode."

Seeing the slight nod of assent from the two men she told them everything that had happened right from when Nathan had first asked her out up until the present day. When she had finished Josh sank back into his chair his face crinkled in disbelief. He took a moment to absorb everything that he had just been told. "Haley that explains so much, now I understand why you were so unsettled when we got engaged and why you could never bring yourself to wear my ring. You never stopped loving him did you? Even now you're still in love with him."

Haley could feel tears gathering in the corners of her eyes as she silently nodded her head, unable to deny the facts of what he said.

"So why are you here? Why don't you go back to Tree Hill and fight for him? You can't just give up on someone that you love so much especially when there is a baby involved." Kelvin burst in suddenly.

Haley turned to him in shock. "I don't really think that that's any of your concern." Looking at Josh she could see that he too was ready to start giving his thoughts on the situation. As she looked at the two men she immediately began to regret telling them. She shouldn't have told anyone. This was something that no matter how unhappy it was making her she simply had to deal with on her own.

Standing up abruptly she turned to the two men. "Um look I'm really tired I think perhaps it's time for the two of you to go. I'm glad we got this chance to talk Josh and I hope the two of you have a wonderful life together." As she spoke she ushered them towards the door. Opening it up she quickly turned to the closet pulling their coats from it. "Enjoy the rest of your stay in Vermont," she told them.

She almost had them out the door when Josh paused and turned back to her. "I know you don't want any advice Haley but I am going to say one thing. Forget about everything that you and Nathan have been through and think of the baby. That baby growing inside of you deserves to know its daddy and no matter what he may have done Nathan should not be denied a chance to know his other child. He missed out the first time do not make him miss out again." Leaning in he kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Thanks for dinner Haley and do me a favour think about what I said." He turned to Kelvin grasping his hand in his own. "I'll see you around Haley." He said and walked to the car.

The drive back to their hotel was completed in relative silence and when they arrived Kelvin watched in surprise as Josh immediately pulled his laptop from its case hooking up to the internet. "What are you doing?" he asked inquisitively.

"Setting right some wrongs," Josh responded cryptically. Entering the search engine he typed in the key words and for the next few minutes scrolled through the volumes of information that filled his screen. Finally looking up triumphantly, "Kelvin honey hand me my phone. I have a call I need to make."

Taking the cell phone in his hand he punched in a number displayed on the screen. He waited for the masculine voice at the other end and when it answered he launched into speech.

"Mr Scott?" he asked uncertainly.

"Yes" came the response.

"I'm calling to tell you that you're going to be a father."

Spoilers:- The repercussions of Josh's phone call. An accident. A very pissed off Brooke.