Haley got out of Jake's car when he pulled into her driveway. She was shocked when Nathan got out too. Haley looked at him in confusion. "They're going to drop Brooke, Lucas and Tim off first, then come back for me. I live on this side of town," he explained. Haley nodded.
"You can come in if you want," she said leading the way across the lawn and unlocked the front door. She opened it and took her shoes off in the front hall. She walked up the stairs and down the hall and turned to the right. They were in the kitchen now. "I'm hungry," she said.
"We just ate," he said laughing at her.
"I meant for good food," she said, grabbing an apple.
"Fries are good," he said.
"You know that I meant food that's actually good for you," she said. "Want one?" she asked. He nodded. She tossed him one.
"Thanks," he said as he bit into the Granny Smith apple.
"Did you have fun?" he asked as they sat down at the table. Haley took another bite out of her apple and then swallowed.
"I guess," she said. He raised his eyebrows.
"You guess?" he asked.
"Well, the eating part was fun. But I don't think I'll be shopping with Brooke again anytime soon," she said. Nathan laughed as he nodded in understanding. "She's still that bad?" he asked.
"How do you know how bad she is? You guys were nowhere to be found," she said.
"When Peyton and I dated, she and Brooke dragged me shopping with them," he explained. Haley laughed. "So, why do you like the eating part best?" he asked. Haley bit her lip.
"Because you were there," she admitted. Nathan felt as if he were dreaming. He was almost certain that his ears were playing tricks on him.
"Did I hear you right?" he asked. Haley nodded. He exhaled deeply. What the heck was he going to say to that? She had basically just admitted that she had feelings for him. Or did she? He could never really tell with Haley. One thing that usually meant something could mean something totally different with her. "Why?" he asked. Haley smiled.
"You're not that daft, are you?" she asked, smiling.
"I've been wrong about this sort of thing before, Haley. I need you to tell me exactly what you mean," he said. He hadn't really ever been wrong before. He just wanted to hear her say the words he was almost convinced she was going to say.
"I should think that it's quite obvious, Nathan. I like you in every sense of the word," she said.
"The romantic sense?" he asked.
"Especially that sense," Haley confirmed. He smiled at her.
"Interesting," he said more to himself. Haley frowned. Her face clouded with confusion.
"That's all you have to say?" she asked. She was getting angry. He really liked her when she was angry. The way her eyes narrowed and her voice got a dangerous edge to it was so attractive he was surprised she didn't have very much experience in dating. He smiled.
"You're cute when you're angry," he said. At first, she seemed annoyed, but then the full meaning of his words dawned on her and she smiled widely. It was a genuine smile and they were his favourite. He took her hand from across the table. She entwined their fingers and closed their hands together.
"So, now that we both know how we feel, what do we do about it?" Haley asked. Nathan looked at her suggestively. Haley glared at him and he smiled.
"I think we should go on a date and then take it from there," he said as he pulled her off the chair and led her out of the house.
"I don't have a car and neither do you," she said.
"Yes, I do," he said.
"But you don't have it here," she pointed out.
"Then, I'll wait for Jake and Peyton to come back and drop me off and then I'll come back and get you. It will give you some time to get ready," he said. Haley looked at herself.
"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" she asked with a puzzled look on her face. He smiled as he sighed with relief.
"I knew I liked you for a reason," he said. Haley still looked confused. "There's nothing wrong with what you're wearing," he said.
"Then, why would I change?" she asked. He laughed again. She was so unlike the other girls he'd dated and he loved it.
TWENTY MINUTES LATER
Nathan pulled in front of Haley's driveway and honked the horn. Two minutes later, the front door opened and Haley was still wearing the same clothes that she was. The only thing different was her hair. She'd pulled it into a classy ponytail. She opened the front passenger seat and smiled as she dropped her purse on the front dash. "Is it ok if I put that there?" she asked. He nodded.
"Why wouldn't it be?" he asked.
"Some people might find it presumptuous to just toss my purse there," she said.
"Well, not me," he said, shaking his head. Then she pulled her seatbelt on.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"Charlotte," he replied. Haley looked at him in shock.
"Um, Nathan, that's two hours away," she said.
"I know a good restaurant there. My dad took us there once," he said.
"It's not a fancy restaurant, is it?" she asked.
"I guess," he said.
"Then, turn the car around and pick somewhere else," she said. He pulled over as he looked at her in confusion.
"What's wrong?" he asked. Haley smiled.
"Have you taken other girls there?" she asked. He stopped to think.
"A few, yes," he said.
"And you feel that you have to take a girl to a fancy restaurant?" Haley asked.
"Most girls expect it from me," he explained. Haley smiled.
"Nathan, I hate to point out the obvious, but I'm not like 'most girls'. You don't need to take me to a fancy restaurant to impress me. Just being you is enough for me," she said.
"In that case, how about Karen's Café?" he asked. Haley's smile widened.
"Now, we're talking. Good food is a good way to win me over too and I happen to be an expert on the food served at the café. It's the best," she said. He laughed. He couldn't believe it'd taken him this long to ask Haley out. He liked how she acted like herself all the time. Other girls that he'd take out would be too willing to please or total snobs once they were actually out. He didn't like it one bit and that was usually what made him not ask them out again. From the way the date had been going so far, he'd ask Haley out again, and they hadn't even gotten to the café yet. He parked on the road near the café and got out of the car. Before she could, Nathan raced around to her side and opened Haley's door for her. She looked at him and smiled. "And they say chivalry is dead," she joked.
"Just common courtesy," he said, folding her arm in his as they walked into the café. To his amazement, Lucas and Brooke were there. His mother was there as well, but that didn't really surprise him since she worked there. He ignored the looks of astonishment on the teenage customers' faces and took Haley over to the corner booth where they'd had their first tutoring session and sat down.
"Do you feel like we have an audience?" she asked, gesturing to the people around them. Nathan shrugged.
"Since when do you care what people think about you?" he asked. Haley laughed as she took their menus and started to leave. "Where are you going?" he asked.
"Its kind of ridiculous to wait here, isn't it? I work here. I can go back there and grab what we want," she said. Nathan started to shake his head, but Haley ignored him and got up. A few minutes later, she returned with food. "I hope you like this because I'm not getting up again now that I have my food," she said. He laughed.
"It's fine," he said. It was roast beef and fries along with gravy. They started eating in silence for a while. About ten minutes later, a girl walked up to them, or rather, to Nathan and smiled at him.
"Hi, Nathan," she said and leaned on the table, blocking his view of Haley. He was at a loss of words. He had no idea who she was.
"Hi," he said carefully.
"It's me, silly. Amber," she said.
"It's nice to meet you, Amber," he said. She smiled appreciatively.
"We've met before. You took me out a few months ago. Remember?" she asked. He shook his head. "Well, it was a while ago. I can't blame you. Anyways, I was hoping you might want to go catch a movie tonight," she said.
"We're on a date, which you're kind of intruding on," he said. Amber looked at him in shock.
"You are on a date with Haley James?" she asked. He nodded.
"Did you lose a bet or something?" Amber asked.
"Excuse me?" he asked.
"Or is this some sort of pity thing?" Amber asked. He looked at Haley. She looked furious.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Haley demanded.
"Oh, come on, Haley. Every one knows that you've never been on a date before and Nathan here obviously feels some sort of obligation since you've been tutoring him," Amber said, looking at her. Haley looked at her in disbelief. "You don't really expect me to believe that this is a real date, do you? There's just no way," Amber said.
"And why's that?" Haley asked.
"Because you're you and he is Nathan Scott. You're a nerd and he's hot," Amber said.
"Well, it is a real date. One that I'd like to get back to. So, please leave," Nathan interrupted. Amber stalked away in annoyance. Haley was looking at her empty plate. "Haley, are you ok?" he asked. Haley looked at him and smirked.
"I'm sorry. I don't usually let people like her get to me," she said.
"Well, she was out of line," he said. Haley shook her head.
"Was she?" she asked. Nathan looked at her in shock.
"What?" he asked. Haley shrugged.
"Well, part of what she said was true. We are totally different," Haley said.
"And?" Nathan asked.
"And we don't really have that much in common, do we? We come from different worlds. You're used to girls who dress like supermodels or whatever, who are experienced in dating and who just give it away at the drop of a hat. You live the high life. I don't," she said. He nodded.
"I understand what you mean. I really do. Its part of the reason I was so hesitant to admit that I actually liked you for a long time. But now I think that it's our differences that make us so perfect for each other," he said.
"What?" Haley asked.
"Haley, I like that you're different. I like that you have your own life and you don't dress like a 'supermodel'. You dress like you and you act like you. You're an original and that is really more attractive than all the supermodels in the world," he said. Haley smiled widely. She leaned over the table and so did he and they kissed.