Okay, here's my sixth installment of Summer Time. I apologize in the delay of getting this chapter up. I am extremely picky when it comes to my writing, and the length of my chapters are usually more than a couple chapters combined. Anyways, this chapter is very Lucas and Haley oriented with some Nathan. Just remember that everyone is apart of this story, regardless if it's gonna be mainly centered around Lucas, Brooke, and Nathan. I worked hard on this chapter, so I hope you all enjoy it. I promise next chapter will be all Nathan and Brooke. I swear on my life. In the meantime, sit back and enjoy. Lastly, I would like to thank all my reviewers. You have no idea how much a review means to mean, and I wouldn't go forward with this story without your guys' input. Anyways, as always, read and review and I will try to whip another chapter out soon. Thanks guys. You all are really lovely .
"Here you go, sir. I've got some pancakes, eggs sunny side up, some bacon, and a side of toast." She smiled at the older gentleman sitting in the corner of Karen's Café as she struggled to balance three plates. The man smiled at her with his kind eyes as she stared down at the breakfast fit for three. The man heartily stared at the stack of pancakes on the table. Haley smiled to herself.
"Is there anything else I can get you?" The elder man reluctantly looked up from his steaming meal at Haley as though deep in thought. She could see the man's forehead creases as he pondered.
"No, thank you." The man reached out and grabbed Haley's hand as she slid a napkin onto the table. Startled, she looked up at him and then back at her hand covered beneath his in bewilderment. His shaking hand squeezed her hand tenderly. He let go as Haley looked back at him. The man smiled, revealing two rows of impeccably white and even teeth, instantly reminding Haley of those old Colgate commercials she used to watch emphatically as a little girl. Haley smiled back at him and nodded as she turned around and made her way towards the bar to see if any more orders had been placed. She noted that there were no more slips of paper hanging from the overhead and the fact that there were only four people in the café, Lucas, a young couple, and of course, the old man.
Since Karen left for cooking school in Italy during the whole summer, Deb had offered to run the café for her. Given that Deb had few other workers on the staff, she immediately hired a jobless Haley, and Lucas helped out as well. Initially, Haley had been reluctant to work for Deb, but she came to discover she had no other choice. Despite applying for jobs elsewhere throughout Tree Hill, she never received any feedback. So, Karen's Café it was. Not only had Haley desperately needed the money, but she also needed a place to stay. As fate would have it, she was best friends with the owner of the café's son, Lucas. Her buddy had offered her a place to stay until she got on her own two feet. Haley looked over at one of the tables near the café's entrance and spotted Lucas scribbling furiously away on a piece of paper. She looked back at the old man and laughed to herself as she noticed nearly half his breakfast had been consumed. That is one famished appetite, she thought to herself. Okay, break time; not that there was anything to take a break from. Haley glimpsed over at her friendagain and smiled. Curiously, she approached Lucas' hovering backside and peepef over hisbroad shoulders to determine his piece of such frustration. She cleared her throat and read her findings allowed.
"Dear Brooke, It's only been a few weeks since you left, and…." Lucas nearly jumped out of his seat as the sound of Haley's voice rang in his ear. He looked up at his friend from his position in his seat in sheer annoyance. Haley raised her eyebrows and grinned back at him.
"Hello, this is kind of private." Lucas crumpled the letter up inannouyance as Haley sat down in the vacant seat across from him,
"So private that you're writing it in such a public place?" she teased. Lucas looked as if he were tempted to say something, but paused. Finally, he spoke, but not to the extent Haley was hoping for.
"Good point," he muttered.
"Lucas Eugene Scott, I can't believe you are pining over someone when you could be doing something so much worthwhile, like working, for example," Haley replied. Lucas' ears perked at the sound of her reciting his full name and cowered in his chair. Only his mother was allowed to call him by his full name when she was irate, but Haley usually included his middle name just to provoke him. What kind of a middle name was Eugene anyways, he pondered. It was a name Lucas generally associated with geeks. Lucas suddenly pictured himself wearing a pair of large-framed wire glasses and a pocket protector tucked tightly beneath his shirt pocket. It was your classic Revenge of the Nerds movie scene. What was his mother thinking when she named him? It was lucky for her no one at school knew his middle name. On the other hand, his first few years at Tree Hill High, Lucas had successfully cemented himself as a nerd on his very own, regardless of his middle name. Although, he did like to think of himself as more of an outsider. After the insistence of Coach Whitey, Lucas joined Tree Hill High's varsity team, and Lucas quickly became popular through his reputation as a Raven. His popular status astounded even him when he started dating Brooke Davis, the most popular female at Tree Hill High and he could imagine high school history. It's funny how one becomes popular just by association, he thought to himself. Typically, Lucas would gratify Haley's jest with provocation, but today he would attempt to ignore it by throwing humor back in her face.
"Well, I figured you handle it. Deb should be back soon if you're at all worried about the line that is…" Lucas looked behind Haley's figure, "suddenly forming outside the door." Haley jerked her head around in alertness and realized Lucas was teasing her.
"Lucas!" Haley swatted her friend playfully and chuckled. He laughed and looked at her.
"Just give me a heads up if you need any help," he finished. Haley looked down at the crumpled stationary in his hand and switched her gaze to Lucas' face. Lucas was staring absentmindedly out the window at the sleepy, little town. She noticed a certain sadness in Lucas' blue eyes as she continued to search his face for an answer. Realizing Haley's intense stare was directed towards himself, Lucas uneasily shifted his attention back to her.
"What?" he exclaimed as he wrinkled his forehead. Haley shrugged her shoulders.
"Nothing, it's just…" Haley stammered as if she had no ability to form coherent words. She knew what she wanted to say, yet somehow knew addressing the issue would put a damper on Lucas' day, let alone the summer. The sensitive subject was really quite the sore spot for her friend. On the other hand, I might as well till him, Haley told herself. Lucas was evidently in a down spiral. How could one further piece of information plague his already negative thoughts? Yeah, I need to tell him, she reassured herself.
"Look, Lucas, I'm worried about you." She paused as she tried to think of her words. Lucas looked at her with a confused expression. "Okay, here's what I want to say." She smacked the table and continued, "And you can't get mad or yell at me for bringing this up," she warned.
"Haley, what is it?" he sighed.
"I know that you care for Brooke…and you miss her. But you need to stop pining over her, Lucas. It's not going to get you anywhere." Haley looked at Lucas defensively as she awaited his reaction. Lucas sighed again and stared at her indignantly. The unfinished letter lay crumpled in his fist and shrunk to a greater degree as his fist curled in tension.
"I am not pining over Brooke," he insisted and diverted his eyes from Haley's scrupulous stare, suddenly finding the granite table top incredibly fascinating to gape at. Haley laughed at herself when she observed Lucas' temper tantrum. His infantile behavior was reminiscent of a fit induced child whimpering over being force-fed split pea soup rather than a tasty spoonful of sweet apple sauce. However, given her friend's emotional state, Haley decided to broach the subject cautiously to avoid ongoing fits, and her voice immediately softened.
"Seriously, Luke, you should be out shooting hoops at the river court with Skills and the gang or doing something productive with you time, instead of wasting valuable stationary over some girl who might not even come back for the school year." Lucas immediately looked up from his view of the table and into Haley's concerned eyes with accusation. Oops, maybe I shouldn't have mentioned the possibility of Brooke not returning, Haley reminded herself.
"She's coming back, alright. She wouldn't just leave without telling me. She's not like you." Lucas cold, blue eyes glazed with ice as he stared intently at her. Haley flinched atthe harsh words directed towards her. Her vision of Lucas blurred due the onslaught of tears that threatened to spill down her olive complexion.
"I deserve that." Haley managed to sputter as she fought the urge to cry, albeit unsuccessfully. Soon, she felt the sting of hot tears as her overwhelmed tear ducts succumbed to the pressure. Lucas' face softened at the sight of Haley's tearstained face.
"I didn't mean that, Hales." Lucas apologized and placed his chapped hand over her smooth one, which sat helplessly upon the cold surface of the table. Haley looked up at Lucas' assuring gaze and looked back down at the tile-covered floor. Instinctively, Lucas grabbed a napkin with flowers imprinted on it and gingerly wiped Haley's tear streaked cheeks as she quickly looked up at Lucas in surprise. She gently grabbed the napkin that Lucas had brushed her face with and took his unoccupied hand in her own. A welcoming smile sat upon her pursed lips.
"Lucas, you shouldn't be apologizing because what you said about me leaving is true. I did leave without telling you, Nathan, and pretty much everyone." She crinkled her forehead in thought. "Come to think of it, the only I did tell was Taylor," she realized this and sniffled. Lucas' formerly cold stare had emerged into an amused expression. Taylor James. She was Haley's older, wilder sister, and pretty much a disgrace to the James clan. You kinda had to figure that one of Mr. and Mrs. James' daughters would come out all wrong when there were five of them all together. Most likely that person had to be Taylor.
"Wait a minute, you told your sister, who is crazy by the way, before you even told me?"
"Hey, don't flatter her. She was just there and convenient to talk to. Truth is, I probably would have told anyone who was there. Taylor was just the luck of the draw, I guess."
"But Taylor?" Lucas gasped.
""Yeah, I know; pretty pathetic, huh? Although, it's pretty much inevitable to avoid Taylor's prying. She gets that from my dad." Haley looked at her friend with a serious expression on her face. "But Lucas, I want you to know how terrible I feel about not telling you about my abrupt exit. I would take it back if I could." She looked at Lucas with regret filled eyes. "Actually, I would do so many things differently if I could." Lucas nodded in agreement. Haley patted his hand and released it from his grasp.
"I know what you mean," he added. Haley's eyes shifted around the café looking nowhere in particular, and she pondered what if. She looked back at Lucas, who seemed to be sharing a similar state of mind.
"Lucas, do you have any regrets?" Lucas looked at her and stated the obvious.
"Of course, Hales. We all have our regrets." He looked lost in thought for a moment and then spoke. "Why, what's yours?" he implored. He had asked a question he already knew the answer to, but was eager to hear Haley's response, just as he was certain that she was eager to tell him.
"I have a lot of regrets. You know, for most people it's difficult to narrow down a lot of regrets because they all hold the same repercussions. But for me, it's incredibly easy. For me, leaving Nathan is my biggest regret." Lucas listened, and Haley continued. "I mean, I wish Icould go back to that moment when I was sitting in our bedroom thinking my thoughts and seeking answers to all the questions that I had but couldn't answer. Did Nathan love me anymore? Did Nathan ever love me? Would he forgive me for kissing Chris? If I could go back to that time, I would convince myself to face the consequences of my actions. If I had never been so selfish, then Nathan and I would still be together." Haley looked on the verge of tears. "But instead, I ran away because I was scared of facing Nathan, and because I was curious as to what was behind that door. And I discovered something, Lucas."
"And what is that?" he asked.
"I discovered that all the fame and money wasn't worth it; losing the love of my life wasn't worth it. I didn't run away from Nathan. I ran away from myself. And before I knew it, I came back here expecting Nathan to welcome me with open arms, like some kind of fairy tale. It may have begun like a fairy tale, but it certainly didn't end like one. I came back to a different person who just seemed so cold and distant, and rightfully so. And I lost him. Lucas, I've lost him forever." Haley's eyes succumbed to tears again and she found herself in Lucas's consoling arms. Lucas patted her ruffled hair as she choked on her own sobs. A few moments passed as Haley's cries subsided and her grip around Lucas' shoulders lessened as sheinhaled deeplyand reluctantly parted from Lucas' grasp. Her tearstained face was covered in streaks of her foundation, and puddles of mascara surrounded her brown eyes, giving her the appearance of a raccoon.
"I'm sorry," she apologized in embarrassment. Lucas handed her a wad of napkins, which she hurriedly pressed to her smeared face.
"What do you have to be sorry for, Hales? It's perfectly natural to cry." Haley stopped wiping her face with the napkins and grinned to Lucas' shock.
"Actually, I'm apologizing for that." She pointed to Lucas' short-sleeved, gray t-shirt, and he looked down at the direction of her gesture. His shirt was covered with streaks of Haley's tan-tinted makeup and tracks of black, ivory mascara. Lucas half-smiled and cocked his head in Haley's direction. Hoping to avoid further tears from Haley's overwhelmed eyes, Lucas smiled at the mess she left on his cotton shirt. "I'm so sorry, Lucas. I'll buy you a new shirt, because trust me, that makeup will not wash out." Haley raised her hand as if she were in a classroom yearning for her teacher's attention. It was a familiar sight due to the fact that her hand was always the first raised in class; that is, she knew all the answers. "This is from experience." Lucas shrugged.
"It's not a big deal. I think these things are like three bucks at Target anyways." Lucas brushed it off as Haley sighed in relief. "Besides my mom did say that I needed a little color in my wardrobe," he joked. Haley laughed and Lucas interjected. "What is this stuff anyhow?" He examined his stained shirt in curiosity. "You said you can't even wash this out. Is this stuff toxic?" Lucas raised one eyebrow in wonder.
"Well, it does wash out eventually," she answered.
"Eventually?" Lucas looked at Haley.
"Yeah, but by the tenth time I run my clothes through the washer, they have already shrunk by then. Unfortunately, I have to throw them away. You wouldn't believe how much money I've wasted on clothes," she paused, "ormakeup for that matter."
"And you actually put this crap on your face?"
"Yeah, I know. But pain is beauty, right?"
"God, you are beginning to sound like Brooke's clone," Lucas added. Haley awkwardly returned her attention back to her face by rubbing a napkin against it at the mere subject of Brooke. Lucas frowned in thought and finally spoke. "Speaking of regrets, I have one," he offered. Haley looked at Lucas with sudden interest.
"Oh, yeah, what's that?"
"My biggest regret was the whole incident last year with Brooke and Peyton. I had the girl of my dreams and lost her because I cheated on her with her best friend, of all people." Lucas rolled his eyes. "I still have difficulty in ascertaining why I did that. Last year seems like such a blur because I try to block it out all the time. All I can remember is that it all started with my unhealthy obsession over Peyton."
"Yeah, I remember you used to talk about Peyton all the time." Lucas nodded at Haley's remark.
"For years she did not even know I existed. I felt like Ducky."
"Ducky?" Haley asked.
"Yeah, you know the nerd who was obsessed with Molly Ringwald in Pretty in Pink?" Haley thought about it for a moment and a light of recognition went through her eyes.
"Oh, yeah, I love that movie."
"Then all of a sudden Peyton started talking o me, you know, after years of silence, she finally reached out to me. I became even more fanatical. Then along came Brooke when I least expected, and she caught me completely off guard. She was so unlike anyone I had ever met before: spontaneous, caring, and amazing. She challenged me in ways I never knew existed." Lucas' eyes twinkled as he spoke of Brooke. "Here I was stuck in the middle of two incredible girls. Each was special in her ways, and I did the unthinkable. I took advantage of the both of them, and in the end, I hurt two people I really cared about." Haley smiled sadly.
"You made a mistake, Lucas. These things happen." She pointed to herself. "Talk about mistakes. I have mastered the art of making mistakes. In fact, look up the word mistake in Webster's dictionary, and you will find a picture of me next to it. That's guaranteed."
"Look up the word dumb ass, and you'll find a picture of me next to it," joked Lucas. Haley giggled.
"Actually, you really wouldn't. Dumb ass is two words and cannot be located in any dictionary in the world."
"And how do you know that?"
"Because I have tried to look it up myself, but no luck whatsoever." She sighed, clearly disappointed. Lucas smiled. Good old Haley. "You know, you and I have a lot more in common than just being best friends," she added.
"What, the fact that we're both," Lucas air quoted, "dumb asses?" She laughed at his referral to the two words that they had discussed moments earlier.
"Well, that and we both don't realize what we got 'til it's gone."
"Isn't that a song by Air Supply?" he asked sarcastically. Haley smacked Lucas' leg lightheartedly and scowled at him. "No," she air quoted, "dumb ass. You know what I'm talking about; me and Nathan, you and Brooke." Lucas' face grew serious.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. If only I then felt the way I feel about Brooke now. Things would be so different. But I never gave myself a chance to because I was infatuated with Peyton. At that particular point in my life, I really thought I was in love with her. Now I know I was wrong because the way I feel about Brooke is completely different than the way I feel about Peyton. Peyton and I have been friends for a long time, and it's been established I no longer have any romantic intentions towards her and vice versa. As for Brooke, I can't explain it. I love that girl. It's the first time I have ever felt like this about anyone before. I just feel it, regardless if she's physically near me or away from, me, which explains this crummy letter." On cue, Lucas picked up the crumpled piece of paper off the ground and set it on the table. Haley watched him with interest, and a thought crossed her mind.
"Well, at least you've you a shot with her when she comes back. It's not like you guys are married. There are no legal documents keeping you two apart." She rolled her eyes at the thought of Nathan's petition for annulment, which she had hesitantly signed. That was how she knew the marriage was over between her and Nathan. It was like the marriage had never occurred. That's what an annulment was, like an edit in her life. She and Nathan had made a mistake, andso this gigantic eraser removed their past and set them both on the correct path. It wasn't like a divorce at all. At least with a divorce, her past would remain intact, but an annulment was so very different. She had no choice but to sign the papers. It was either not sign them and have Nathan despise her rest of her natural born life, or sign them and have a grateful Nathan despise her the rest of her natural born life. Well, at least he would be grateful, Haley thought sadly to herself. By the time Nathan would return to Tree Hill for the new school year, all remnants of his history with Haley would be erased; Naley no longer. The only time they would see each other would be in the school halls as each would glance awkwardly at one another as if they were strangers. Both would immediately bolt to class at the sound of the school bell ringing, careful to avoid any kind of eye contact. This would become routine, and the estranged couple would no longer acknowledge one another. Their only ties to each other would be the close circle of friends they had managed to acquire as a couple, but Haley had no doubt that that would change on account of their final separation. Lucas glanced at Haley and noticed no sign of these negative thoughts for he was so focused on is own predicament.
"When she comes back; that's if she comes back," Lucas pouted. Haley saw the disappointment upon his face and wanted to comfort him, yet didn't know how to.
"Lucas, I didn't mean what I said earlier. I am sure she will come back." Lucas looked at her with doubt.
"Why would she want to come back to this place?" Lucas threw his arm up and gestured toward the window, which displayed the picturesque setting of the desolate streets of his hometown. "Why come back to Tree Hill, when she can stay in the city of angels?" Lucas asked, referring to Los Angeles. A thought suddenly occurred to Haley as she listened to Lucas's cry fest.
"Wait a minute. Did Broke leave some of her clothes at your house?" Lucas' face brightened.
"As a matter of fact, she did." Haley nodded with satisfaction at this announcement.
"Well, then if clothes don't convince Brooke to come home, I don't know what else would. Maybe a certain fair-haired boy who is fond of her, perhaps," she suggested. Lucas laughed.
"Thanks, Hales. I can always count on you to cheer me up."
"No problem, best friend." Haley looked over at the counter and sighed as she realized that work had to be done. "I've got to get back to work." She glanced behind her at the nonexistent line waiting at the door. "A customer could walk through that door any second now." Lucas nodded before Haley continued. "But before I leave, you have to promise me one thing."
"Sure, anything."
"I'll stop pining over Nathan if you stop pining over Brooke."
"For the last time, I am not pining over Brooke," Lucas exclaimed from his seat. Haley stood and swiftly snatched the crumpled letter from the table. Taken aback, Lucas jumped out of his chair and started to pursue his thief.
"Oh, really?" Haley yelled as she scurried behind the counter with the letter clutched in her hand, giggling in delight.
"Hey, give that back!" Lucas chased Halley all the way to his mother's storeroom, located in the back of the café. Haley squealed as Lucas pursued her from behind and sought the supply closet as her only escape and hastily locked the door behind her. "Haley!" Lucas banged on the door in frustration and threw his hands up in the air in surrender. He heaved a sigh and leaned his back against the outside of the closet door.
"You can't stay in there forever, Haley!" he yelled.
"Admit that you are pining after Brooke and I will unlock the door. Otherwise, I am perfectly comfortable in this confined space reading you chicken scratches of a letter," she said sweetly. Lucas groaned.
"No," he responded persistently.
"Fine," Haley remarked as she smoothed out Lucas' letters and began to read in her own version of Lucas Scott's voice. "Dear Brooke, it's only been a few weeks…"
"Okay, I admit it," said Lucas reluctantly.
"Admit what?" Haley urged. Lucas sighed in irritation.
"I admit that I have been pining over Brooke."
"And?" He sighed again and leaned his head against the supply closet in aggravation.
"And I promise I will stop pining over her." At that moment, Lucas heard the key unlock the bolt as Haley slowly swung the door open. There she stood wearing a big smile on her face.
"Good," she replied. Lucas held out his hand as Haley peered down at his opened palm. Disappointed, she placed the wrinkled sheet in his hand. He smiled at Haley's expression. "Now, that that's solved, you wanna help me in the kitchen?" she asked hopefully. Lucas' smile that adorned his face before immediately fell as he impulsively took a few steps backward toward the comfort of the café door. He looked at her nervously.
"Actually, I was thinking I would go and shoot some hoops at the river court." He smiled in spite of himself. "You know, to help me keep my mind off of a certain someone. Isn't that what you suggested to me earlier?" Haley looked at Lucas suspiciously, aware that he was using their deal to his advantage just to avoid work. She shook her head and laughed at Lucas' hopeful expression. If getting Lucas' brooding butt out of her hair for a couple of hours meant a little extra work, than she would gladly oblige. She would have no more depression in her midst. After all Lucas misery had caused her public outburst of emotion earlier.
"Get out of here." She pushed Lucas' lanky figure towards the door and he winked at her as he exited. Haley sighed in relief as she approached the old man in the corner. His plates were already stripped of food as she retrieved them from his table. She was surprised that he hadn't inhaled the plates themselves, what with his massive appetite. The man paid no attention to Haley as he was engrossed in the latest edition of the New York Times. Haley smiled as she placed the plates in the steel stink and shrieked as she felt the hot water nearly scald her hands when she rubbed the plate's surface with the soft sponge. She exhaled. I wonder what Nathan, is doing, she thought to herself.
It was another day of basketball practice as Nathan ran across the foul line in exhaustion. He grabbed his knees and gasped for any hint of breath to fill his tired lungs. The gymnasium of Arthur Hall was gigantic with its assortment of steel bleachers located on both sides of the court and the freshly-polished wood floor. Six basketball hoops hung from the ceiling as they were each attached to two bars connected to the roof that would automatically go up and down like an elevator at the push of the a button. It was an automated gym,
"Scott, keep your head above your heart!" Nathan looked up at Coach Dwyer, the assistant coach to the High Fliers. He was an aged player whose expanded waist line accounted for his early retirement. Now in his early fifties, Dwyer was attempting to relieve his dreams through the barrage of fresh-youth basketball newcomers. "Don't want to see my star player eating wood." Nathan nodded and turned around as he noticed all of his teammates finally cross the line obviously all out of breath. His friend Mike crossed the line last as he wheezed. Nathan warned him not to eat that tub of ice cream the night before, but Mike had argued that one spoonful of mint chocolate chip, his favorite, was not enough. Mike had managed to eat an entire gallon of ice cream on his own with no other takers.
It was another set of liners Dwyer inflicted upon his players. Dwyer approached the group mumbling to himself. "And Scott beats you all again," he addressed the team with a disappointed look in his eyes. Dwyer looked over at Mike, who was grasping the wall in support, as all his players gathered around their coach. "Rodman, get over here," he barked. Mike looked at Dwyer wearily and stumbled to the circle of teammates. "What the hell was with you today, Rodman. My grandmother could play better basketball than you." he paused and Nathan could almost see a smile form on the gruff man's face. "And she's dead." Everyone laughed as Dwyer raised his eyebrows in Mike's direction.
"Sorry, coach, I think I ate a bit too much last night," Mike replied. Dwyer rolled his eyes.
"Rodman, you know better."
"Sorry coach, it won't happen again."
"It sure as hell better not." Dwyer chewed his lip as Nathan smiled in Mike's direction. "You think it's funny, Scott?" Nathan grew nervous as he looked innocently at his coach and shook his head.
"No, coach," he replied apprehensively. Dwyer cleared his throat and looked as if he were about to say something. He was a man of few words.
"You're all pathetic. Get out of my face," he said waving towards the locker room. Without another word, the players headed to the locker room. Mike walked along side Nathan.
"Man, dawg, that is the last time I will ever eat that much ice cream." Nathan laughed and patted Mike's back as he walked over to his locker. Next week, Mike would be eating another gallon of chocolate chip cookie dough. He just knew it.
As Nathan dug through his locker for a towel, chatter filled the walls of the locker room, and he listened halfheartedly as he wiped his brow of sweat and stripped off hisblack jersey. It was the standard locker room talk; why was Dwyer such an asshole? Good question, Nathan thought to himself. He just was. No ifs ands or buts about it. Truth is, he never gave it much thought. Somehow, Nathan found himself liking the decrepit, old man; harsh remarks and all. Why, you ask; because Dwyer straight and to the point. He didn't dawdle, unlike coaches he had worked with in the past. Nathan admired that in him. Nathan's thoughts were interrupted as he heard the familiar yet distant ring of his cell phone, which vibrated against the lining in his nylon gym bag. Nathan unzipped his bag and pulled the phone out of the pocket. He smiled in recognition as her name popped up on the window of his Nokia phone. He flipped the phone open and put it to his ear in anticipation.
"Hello, Brooke."
Next: Nathan and Brooke spend a little quality time together….
