Chapter Twenty-Eight: Look into my Eyes

Haley James was officially bored.

She knew she couldn't spend one more afternoon tanning at the club. Or shopping with Ryan at the mall, or at Brooke's (which had recently become Brooke and Lucas'), looking at the sonogram. She knew she didn't want to intrude on whatever it was that went on between Davis and Ryan, and Jake had taken off to visit relatives in the aftermath of whatever had happened between him and Peyton.

Haley wondered what exactly had happened between Peyton and Jake. If it had happened anytime before July, she would have known all about it within ten seconds of its happening. Now she knew nothing, and Peyton was barely talking to them. What reason on Earth did Peyton have to freeze out her best friends?

Glancing out the window at the day that was fading into yet another empty night, Haley knew that there was only one thing to be done.

Brooke Davis looked surprised to find her best friend on her stoop, asking for her car. Brooke was rapidly slipping away from her roots, preparing to move away with her boyfriend, whom she was having sex with around the clock.

"Where do you need to go? It's Wednesday night. Nothing's going on. If it was, I'd be there," said Brooke.

"Brooke, please…" said Haley feebly.

"Where?" she demanded again.

"The hotel, all right?" she mumbled. Brooke clapped her hands excitedly.

"Okay, that is just awesome. Take my car. Nice back seat it's got, you know, for…" Haley cut Brooke off.

"Good. Because I've waited a while, and I'm so freaking…" Haley cut herself off as Lucas walked in. "Hungry. Damn, how long has it been since I had a Big Mac?"

Lucas raised an eyebrow as she took Brooke's keys and ran off.

"That might just have been the worst cover story ever," he said thoughtfully, watching the blonde drive off. Brooke turned to him and grinned.

"Nathan Scott is getting some tonight," she said excitedly, leaping into his arms.

Haley took a deep, calming breath as she pulled into the hotel's parking lot. Running a hand through her long hair, she knew it was finally Time.

As she rode up to the room in the elevator, she remembered the time they'd almost made out in it. Then she remembered the time they'd almost made out in LA, and the time they'd almost made out on his bed. She began to understand why Brooke was growing so impatient with her. With them. Were they really about to become a them?

Ryan opened the door after Haley knocked. Haley stared dumbly at her for a second as Nathan came up behind her.

"Ryan. Hey. Do you think you could, um…" Haley tried to think of a reasonable way to ask Ryan to leave.

"Ry, get out," said Nathan. She smiled and left quickly. Haley leaned against the door after it closed.

Haley stared at him for a moment. He tried to keep his face emotionless, but found himself unable to.

"I swear to God, if you say anything remotely misogynistic right now…" she began. He interrupted her.

"I'm kind of hungry. Want to go someplace?" he asked, fishing his keys out of the ashtray by the door.

"Sure," she said, smiling up at him.

The car was less personal than the hotel room, but more intense. Every time Nathan reached over to change gears, she felt the heat of his hand brush up against her thigh.

"Nathan, we need to talk," she said abruptly, upon realizing that he wasn't about to say anything.

"Okay," he said in confusion.

"You did a nice thing for me, with Chris. It was kind of harsh, according to some, but it was a nice thing for you to do. And I know you didn't sleep with Davis, but even if you did it doesn't really concern me. And I know you've been trying to get me to forgive you for a while now, but right now all that I can ask is that you forgive me," said Haley. Nathan looked at her in amazement.

"I don't know what to say," he said honestly. She laughed.

"Something along the lines of "let's give it another shot" would be appropriate right now," she suggested.

"I live on the other side of the country…" he began.

"Yeah, but you're here right now," said Haley gently.

"But…"

"Come on, are you going to make me beg?" she asked. He looked suggestively at her.

"If that's what you're in to," he said.

"What did I say about suggestive comments?" she asked.

"If you didn't like my comments you wouldn't be here, Haley," he said.

"Shut up. I don't like them. And I'll never admit to liking them. Admitting to liking you was hard enough," she said teasingly.

As Nathan smiled again, he desperately wished them back to his hotel room. What he'd to her if he had the chance… Damnit. Lost in the moment, he didn't comprehend when everything suddenly went black.

Haley didn't put the facts together when she heard the gunshot. Naively, she assumed it to be a backfiring car. What else could it be? For God's sakes, it was Tree Hill.

"Nathan?" she said in amazement, when the glass shattered and he put his fingers to the wound on his chest. "Oh my God, Nathan."

"Call an ambulance," he said, his voice aleady fading.

Haley grabbed her phone out of her purse and quickly dialed. Traffic around them stopped.

"Why would someone shoot at you?" she asked desperately. He didn't appear to hear her. Haley reached for him, but pulled away when her hand was covered in his blood.

She was somewhat relieved when everything went black for her as well.

"Gunshot wound. Male, approximately 25." Haley indistinctly heard someone speak, but she could for the life of her remember why.

"What about the girl?" came another, more urgent voice.

"Doesn't appear to be harmed in any way. She was unconscious when we got there, but looks to be easily awoken. Look, she's coming to already," said the first voice. Haley sat straight up as soon as she'd oriented herself: she was in Tree Hill General Hospital. Gunshots. Cars. Nathan.

"Where's Nathan? Is he going to be okay?" she demanded, attempting to climb off the bed she was being wheeled in.

"Calm down," said a nurse, attempting to push her down.

"No, I'm fine. I didn't get shot. Where is he?" she demanded.

"In surgery. Are you a relation?" asked the first Doctor.

"No. Not exactly. He's Nathan Scott. His brother's around. I can call him if you let me down," she said. The nurse almost cracked a smile.

"We'd like to give you a look over, but if you could give us his brother's number we could call him," said another nurse.

"Okay. Is Nathan going to be alright?" she asked. The nurses looked blank. Haley frowned, realizing that they didn't see Nathan as her Nathan, an actual person.

They only saw his gunshot wound.

"Oh my God Haley, are you alright?" asked Brooke, running in with Lucas at her heels.

"I'm fine. They just won't let me get up and they won't tell me about Nathan and they don't believe that nothing is wrong and they made me talk to these scary officers," said Haley tearfully. Brooke leaned down to kiss her cheek and they hugged.

"Nate's still in surgery. They don't know anything yet. And they're conducting a criminal investigation," said Lucas.

"They're all worried because I fainted. For God's sake, Nathan got shot. Is Ryan around?" asked Haley.

"She's under eighteen. They wouldn't let her," said Brooke.

Haley looked up hopefully when the door opened again. But it wasn't Nathan Scott, or Ryan Scott. It wasn't even a Doctor.

"So, you are, in fact, still alive," said Haley critically, as Peyton walked in.

"Sorry about that. Are you okay?" she asked anxiously.

"I'm fine. You know too bad your phone got cut off. Oh no wait…" said Haley.

"Look, I'm sorry. How's Nathan?" she asked.

"I have no idea. No one tells me anything around here," complained Haley.

"So obviously we need something to distract you from being a high maintenance bitch. Let's talk about what you were doing in Nathan's car!" said Brooke excitedly.

"We were kind of interrupted," she said in annoyance. Brooke fell silent, comprehending.

"Oh."