Chapter Two

Haley was so confused. She didn't understand what was going on. There were a whole bunch of thoughts swirling around in her head. The pain coursing through her body when she moved, the voices she was hearing. She couldn't exactly place them all. It'd been so long since she'd heard anyone's voices from Tree Hill. She recognized Lucas' or at least she thought she did. But she could feel Nathan before he touched her. It had been a long time since she'd seen him, but she had memorized his smell. The smell was somewhat different and that was to be expected after all this time, but it was still undeniably Nathan. "Nathan, are you still there?" she whispered. Her voice came out in a hoarse whisper that she barely recognized as her own voice. She heard footsteps approaching her. Then a hand holding her left hand.

"It's me, Hales," he said. She smiled a little. Then, she opened her eyes slowly. Big mistake. The lights were so bright, she forced them shut again.

"The lights are hurting my eyes," she said. Nathan breathed heavily. She opened her eyes again as some lights were turned off in her room.

"Better?" he asked. Haley smiled at him thankfully. She looked around in confusion.

"Where am I? Why are you here? What's going on?" she asked. Nathan looked down and then back up at her.

"What's the last thing you remember?" he asked.

"Uh. I remember getting in my car to drive to Karen and Keith's wedding on Thursday. I wasn't sure how happy everyone would be to see me, but Karen begged me to come," Haley said.

"It's Friday today. On your way here, you stopped at an intersection," Nathan started. Haley looked at him.

"So?" she asked.

"When the light turned green for you, you crossed through the intersection, but you were struck by a car that ran a red light," he continued as if he hadn't heard her.

"What are you trying to tell me?" Haley asked.

"The driver was drunk, Haley. He hit you," Nathan finished.

"But I'm ok, right?" Haley asked. Nathan sighed.

"You sustained very serious head trauma and internal bleeding. They said your spinal cord was injured too," Nathan said.

"But I'm ok now," Haley said. It was a statement not a question. He shook his head.

"I don't know. They're running tests and the doctor will be on his way to talk to you," Nathan said. Haley was about to say something, but it was as if he was reading her mind. He said, "I'll stay with you. I promise." Haley took his hand in hers and brought it up to her face.

She kissed it softly as she mumbled, "Thank you." Nathan's grip on her hand tightened. He leaned down. He cupped her cheek and kissed her forehead.

"Just get some sleep, ok? I'll be here when you wake up. I won't leave you," he said.

"You mean like I left you?" Haley muttered. He squeezed her hand again.

"That doesn't matter right now. We'll talk about that later," he said.

"What about Keith and Karen's wedding?" she asked. Nathan reminded her that it was on Sunday and that it was Friday.

"We'll worry about it then. Besides, Haley, you're my wife. I belong at your side," he said. Haley was too tired and weak to argue. She closed her eyes and the noises of the hospital were drowned out as she succumbed to sleep.

FOUR HOURS LATER

Nathan sat by Haley's bed in a chair now. She was awake again and they were waiting for the doctor to come and talk to them. Nathan had put aside all the mixed feelings towards his marriage. He would be there for Haley in her time of need. He didn't care what she did or didn't do right now. No one deserved to be alone at a time like this. He knew that she wasn't really alone. Her parents were here and Taylor was on her way. Lucas and Brooke were in the waiting room now. He had told them that Haley was awake and aware. Peyton and Jake had come a few minutes ago and were also in the waiting room again. Peyton had had tears streaming down her face as she ignored the nurse telling her that she couldn't go see Haley. Nathan had assured her that Haley was alive and told her that she was even talking. He felt bad for Peyton. Her mother had died in a car crash and it was because she had ran a red light. No, Haley had not run a red light, she'd been hit by a drunk driver who'd ran a red light, but it was still a car accident and Nathan couldn't imagine the terror Peyton had felt when she heard about Haley. "But Haley's ok, right? She's not going to die. Just tell me that much, Nathan. Please. I need to know," she had said to him as he came into the waiting room to give them an update. The door to Haley's room opening had brought him out of his thoughts.

"Haley, I'm Dr. Rasgrotra. I was the doctor who treated you. This is Dr. Lockhart. She operated on you," he said. Haley nodded slightly. Dr. Lockhart stepped forward.

"I managed to stop the bleeding, thankfully. So no need to worry about that," she said.

"So, then I'm ok?" Haley asked. They looked at each other. Dr. Rasgrotra grabbed a hammer-like object. He smacked Haley's leg with it.

"Can you feel that?" he asked. Haley's face was a mask of confusion.

"Feel what?" she asked. Nathan gasped. Haley pulled herself up with a great deal of effort. The doctor hit her right knee again. "Oh, my God," Haley said. "I didn't feel that. Why didn't I feel that!" she exclaimed. Nathan's arm was around her back instantly. Dr. Rasgrotra hit her left ankle. Haley nodded, signaling that she could feel it. He hit all the way up and down her left leg and Haley nodded every time. He hit her right leg again. Haley shook her head. He hit all the way up and down her leg and Haley couldn't feel it at all. She kept shaking her leg.

"What is going on? What does this mean?" Nathan asked, sensing how worried and scared Haley was. The doctors looked at each other knowingly.

"Why can I feel my left leg but not my right one?" Haley asked.

"It seems that there's been some damage to your spinal cord. Somehow it's only affected your right leg," Dr. Rasgrotra said in a matter of fact kind of tone.

"So, I've lost the ability to use my right leg forever?" Haley asked slowly.

"How is that possible?" Nathan asked at the same time. Dr. Rasgrotra shook his head.

"We're still waiting for test results, but the loss of feeling and mobility in your right leg is a possibility, yes," he said.

"And what is another possibility?" Haley asked.

"Well, it could be just the swelling and when the swelling in your spinal cord goes down, you could regain the use of your leg. Another possibility is that you could also lose your left leg too. We'll start you on antibiotics and a type of steroids to help bring down the swelling," Dr. Lockhart explained. Nathan's head jerked up at the mention of steroids. He remembered his own encounter where he had collapsed during a game after taking steroids.

As if sensing his worry, the doctor said, "We prescribe this type of steroids all the time. It won't harm her. You don't have any children that are in need of breastfeeding, right?" Haley looked at him in confusion.

"We don't have any children," she said. Nathan smiled at her use of pronoun. She had said "we" not "I".

"We'll be back to check on you later," the doctors said instantaneously.