Chapter Thirty-Five: The Way We Were

Haley spun around in front of Nathan as she came out of her bathroom in the fourth outfit of the morning.

"It's good. I liked the one before it better though," he said.

"You would. But what about my hair? It's being all misbehavish. And what are her interests, anyway?" asked Haley nervously. Nathan reached out and took Haley's hand to pull her towards him. She smiled as he pulled her onto his lap.

"Currently, her interest is you. She just wants to get to know you, Hales. And I'd like it if you got to know her as well. Relax," he instructed her calmly.

"I suck with parents. Chris' parents were never around. And when they were they really didn't pay much attention to me, so I really don't have much practice with them," she said.

"You'll do great. She'll love you," said Nathan encouragingly.

"She didn't seem to. She seems so suspicious of Brooke and me," said Haley doubtfully.

"If you look at my record, you've got to imagine she'd be suspicious. Now go brush your hair, or you'll be late," he said. She smiled and got up, and he lightly smacked her behind.

Karen Scott looked up as the bell on the door of the small café they were meeting at jingled. Haley James walked in dressed in a white skirt and a denim jacket, looking apprehensive yet poised.

"Haley, it's nice to see you again. Please, sit," she said, as Haley hovered nervously by a chair.

"Thank you, you too. Will you and Leigh and Mr. Scott be in town much longer?" she asked.

"No, Keith has to be in New York the day after tomorrow. But we're having the boys back there for a week soon," said Karen.

"That's nice. And I guess Ryan's going back soon?" asked Haley.

"Yes, for her senior year. She tells me you two have become friends?"

"Yeah, we have. You know, I have to ask," said Haley desperately.

"What's wrong?"

"Is Keith Nathan and Lucas' father? Nate never explained to me so I guess it's a sensitive issue, but…" Haley trailed off, wondering if she'd crossed any lines.

"Ah. How much time do you have?" asked Karen jokingly. Haley smiled in relief.

"All the time in the world."

Karen paused again before beginning.

"I guess it began in 1980. I was a twenty year old pregnant drop out. I was going to have a baby with a man I thought I was in love with. A man named Dan Scott," said Karen, pausing for dramatic affect. Haley ran the name through her mind.

"It was doubtful that he would for a while, but eventually we got married before the baby was born. His father Royal stuck him into a subsidiary of the company that would eventually go to the elder son, whom I'd never met. We got a nice apartment in Manhattan, and all was well for a while. Until the baby was born."

"Nathan," said Haley matter-of-factly. Karen nodded.

"Nathan. Dan was a nice guy before he had a chance to corrupt his children. Never would I have dreamed he'd do what he did. Abuse our son physically and mentally. Use his talents for his own gain. Suck up everything Nathan thought was worth living before he was old enough to understand why. For some reason I thought Lucas would change everything. That his father would love a new child enough to break through the shell of him that I didn't understand. Or that a father would be to busy with two sons to torment either one. But Dan didn't change at all. He didn't even attempt to fit Lucas into his life. Lucas, in his opinion, was purely my responsibility," explained Karen.

Haley nodded slowly, trying to absorb the wealth of information she'd just received.

"I guess by this point it was about 1984, and I was a mother of two and no longer in love with Dan. that Royal died. And for the first time since my marriage, Keith came back to town to take over the business." At this point Karen's face, which had been somber, morphed into a slight smile. "Keith immediately saw how Dan treated our sons. Hoping to make him jealous enough to re-enter their lives, Keith started fathering them as best he could. It didn't work, really. Lucas has always seen Keith as his father. After about a year of this, I'd had enough. I was in love with Keith. He was in love with me, in love with our boys. After a lot of arguments, a lot of needling, Dan agreed to divorce."

"When was the last time you saw him?" asked Haley in surprise.

"1986. February 17th, 1986. The day he died."

Haley, who had been viewing the story as a miraculous one of finding love where you expect it least, was surprised. She'd imagined Dan and Karen divorcing and Dan disappearing off to never bother them again. This was much more complicated.

"It was a genetic heart problem that they didn't spot fast enough. He had a massive heart attack and died very suddenly. Suddenly instead of being a divorce, I was forced to be a grieving widow. Everyone in Manhattan who mattered knew that our marriage wasn't real, but I had to mourn anyway. It was hard, especially on Nathan. Keith and I had been planning to go to Europe together under the façade of a business trip to get married, but instead he had to go alone. He was gone for a year. When he came back, he hadn't fallen out of love with me like I'd thought. He wanted to get married. He said he was thinking of permanently relocating to start a new branch of the business, and he would only reconsider if I'd reconsider him, give him another chance. I agreed, of course. We eloped a few weeks later." Karen smiled.

"That's great," said Haley.

"It really was. Just a year or so later I decided I wanted our family to be a whole family, not two halves, so I got pregnant with Ryan. She immediately formed a bond with Nathan, who was always a bit of the odd man out. She brought us together. I got pregnant again a little over a year later, and we had Leigh. Then I guess we lived happily ever after," said Karen.

"That's amazing. It's like a book, or something. I don't think my parents were nearly that interesting," said Haley. Karen laughed and folded her napkin over her knee as the food arrived.

"Maybe not. But I have a strong feeling that you will be."

An hour and a half later, exhausted yet fulfilled, Haley made her way back to the hotel. Nathan was lying on his side in the bed, watching the TV in the corner. He turned it off as he saw her, and she went to lie on the bed by him, facing him.

"How was it?" he asked. She leaned forward and kissed him gently, a kiss that she broke away from as passion began to fuel it.

"It was great. I learned a lot," she said.

"Oh, yeah?" asked Nathan, laughing.

"Yes. I think it's incredible, how perfectly you've turned out after such a dysfunctional childhood," said Haley sincerely. Nathan looked up, his cobalt eyes staring into hers.

"Baby, that's not how I was raised. All that I owe to you," he said, moving into another kiss, this one that she didn't break away from.