Chapter Eleven

The Song Remains The Same

Nathan

You know how guys sometimes say it's a turn on when a girl beats you at a game? Like it's some kind of thrill that a girl is in control and thoroughly kicking your ass? Well I disagree. It's a total turn on when the girl is losing every game and thrusting her head in your chest to hide her shame. It's really cute.

Wait a second. Did I just say cute?

"Why did you bring me here Nathan? You should have known I have no hand eye co-ordination!" Haley screams, hiding her head in my chest again as a group of ten-year-olds laugh at the fact she just fell of her motorbike.

"Come on Hales, it's fun!" I tell her, not moving her from my chest which is shaking because I'm laughing so hard. She looks up at me and scowls. Then a smile breaks out and she laughs along with me.

You know, I've got to hand it to my big brother, he bagged a pretty cool girl. I mean, cool for ageek, at least. And I can tell she's melting her resolve. Give me another week or so and she'll be in my bed.

Of course, the fact that she's a virgin might make this a little more difficult, but what the hell right? Nathan Scott never ran away from a challenge, and he's never lost one either.

Haley drags me by the elbow and I see she's pulling us towards the dance machine. Whoa no!

"Hey, something I might actually be good at? I may not be able to ride but I can dance!" Ride? She seems to realise what she's just said and hides her head in her hands. "Oh please tell me I didn't just say that."

I laugh at her and she raises her eyebrows. "How about it? You can bounce a ball but can you dance to a tune?"

"Hey, I don't just bounce a ball alright? And no, no way am I embarrassing myself on that thing."

"Oh, you mean like I didn't just embarrass myself on that motorbike you promised me I would be so good on?" she asks, putting her hands on her hips.

"What can I say? I thought you had the legs to straddle something hard and…"

"Whoa! Stop right there Mr Scott! Come on Nathan, I'll pay for you."

She has these pleading puppy dog eyes and she looks… Oh God, she looks cute. There, I said it.

"Fine," I answer, not completely sure that I'll ever be able to retain my dignity.

"Woo hoo!" she yells throwing her arms up like she's about to hug me and then seemingly changing her mind. It's funny, she's been burying her head in my chest all day but the second it comes to something like a hug, she can't seem to do it. Well, I'd better change that one soon.

We both step onto the dance machine and Haley is about to put the change in but I stop her, pulling two coins out of my back pocket and paying myself. Hey, it's only my Dad's money after all. It's not like he'll miss it.

"Thanks Nathan," Haley says, selecting a dancer. I copy her, ending up with a skinny white dude with bright pink hair and a neon green leotard. I picked him by accident. I look over and see that Haley's chosen a girl with short black hair, an orange mini skirt and a yellow belly top or something. I smirk.

"Is that the inner you?" I ask. She laughs and points at my guy, who is doing a retarded shake or something.

"Is that you?" she asks.

"Doesn't count, was a complete accident," I say deadpan. Haley laughs but doesn't reply as the song starts. Some kind of ravey thing that I've never heard. A blue up arrow appears on the screen and I press up. Nothing happens. I press it again but the little arrow is still making it's way to the top of the screen. "Mine's not working!" I tell Haley.

She looks at me and laughs. Then steps on 'up'. A 'COOL' appears on her screen. A 'BOO' appears on mine. What the hell? I didn't even do anything! I hate this stupid game!

"You step on the arrow when it reaches the line at the top," Haley yells over, stepping on the right arrow and getting a 'GOOD'

Well, I guess that does it because pretty soon, I'm laughing and jumping about like an idiot as all of the arrows seem to come on at once. I must have a natural rhythm or something because I don't completely suck. Haley is practically crying with laughter beside me and winning by about ten thousand points. Trust me, it's only a slight exaggeration.

Finally the song ends with me doing a spin and Haley jumping on two arrows at once. Huh, and I thought Basketball was a workout. The thought of Whitey forcing the basketball team onto a dance machine and shouting "Come on son, don't be a girl! Hit that arrow!" makes me laugh again. I step off the machine and Haley does the same, doubled over laughing.

"That was fun," she says, straightening up and wiping her eyes. "And I found something that you're not great at."

I frown at that. What does she mean something I'm not good at? Like there's only one? Then I get it. To everyone who isn't my dad, I'm a pretty accomplished guy. I can play pretty much every sport I put my hand to. It's a good job she hasn't seen my academic grades. I'm not sure that 'Operation Lay Haley' will work so well if she knows I'm not some kind of genius.

"Hey are you okay? I was only joking, you weren't too bad," Haley says, taking my silence as annoyance or something.

"Too right I wasn't. I reckon if we played again I would totally beat you."

Haley smiles. "Oh really Mr big shot Basketball captain? Is that a challenge?

"I guess it is."


Roll around to Midnight Madness, one of the biggest events of the school year, when every freshman is allowed to stay up past midnight. We kick the season off in style, and the even Brooke has planned is going to kick it off even better than every other time. As it should, seeing as we're seniors and everything.

I was kind of annoyed that Haley never asked me about Brooke's plan. I mean, it sounded pretty obscene the way Brooke was being all secretive about it. I actually thought that she wanted us to have sex for a minute, and for some reason I wasn't completely thrilled with that.

Maybe I'm just not attracted to Brooke.

Yeah, as if. Anyone not attracted to Brooke Davis is clearly gay. The girl is HOTT. I was probably just worried that it would get in the way of 'Operation Lay Haley' or 'Operation Lay Hales' as it's come to be known in my head.

I'm sat in the locker room now, with my team mates milling about getting excited that basketball season is about to start. Lucas is sat down to, and every now and then I catch him glaring at me. Huh, he's quicker than I thought. He can tell I'm after Haley, and he probably knows that I'm not after her personality.

Not that it's a particularly bad one, it's just… well, you know. Whatever, I just want to screw her and then I'll be happy.

I can hear Whitey's voice threw the paper Raven's emblem at the players entrance. "Welcome everyone to Midnight Madness!" Cheering. "Are we ready to kick off the new season with a bang?" Cheering.

And then Brooke's voice. She's already out there now, after the cheerleaders have just performed their dance.

"Hey Tree Hill!" she shouts. All of the guys look kind of confused, and Lucas' head whips around faster than anyone else's. You know, if I was a nicer guy, I might of tried to fix Lucas and Brooke up, but then, Haley's no fun if she's not attached to Lucas.

"I'm Brooke Davis, Captain of the Tree Hill Cheerleaders, and because I'm cuter than Whitey – no offence there Coach Durham sir – I'm calling out the Tree Hill Ravens this year. So, without further ado, would you welcome the Tree Hill Ravens!"

The crowds erupt. "Come on Guys," I order, standing at the Players Entrance while everyone scrambles around behind me. When I'm sure that we're all set, I break through the paper and the sound of the crowd is deafening. It's like one long roar.

This is what I love about basketball, besides the actual game, the glory. The power that you get just by being good at something. By being the best.


"What's going on?" Lucas asks, sitting in the back of the school bus next to Jake with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. It's starting to get annoying. Haley is sat in front of him looking confused.

"Okay, okay," Brooke shouts. The bus is filled with basketball players, cheerleaders and a few other people like that Skills guy who's dating Bevin and Nose or something like that. Something to do with the face anyway.

"Uh, yeah, I need to get home for Jenny," Jake says, freaking me out once again with the fact that he has a child at the age of seventeen.

"All taken care of Jake. Jenny is at my house with my parents who, by the way, find her adorable. Now, you're probably all wondering why you're all crammed into the back of a stolen school bus heading for the beach, right?"

"Oh my God, this bus is stolen?" Haley cries out. I can't help but smile at her. She's actually scandalised, like we haven't done this tons of times before.

"Oh, nobody will miss it," Brooke says, waving it off. "Our first game is on Friday, and because you all want to be lilly fresh for it, that means no drinking tomorrow night. However, that means tonight is free so we…"

"Party!" Tim screams.

"uh huh," Brooke goes on. "Nathan Scott, your team captain has kindly agreed to loan out his beach house for a night of drink, music and general wrongdoing."

The bus cheers, except for a select few.

"uh, so why are we here?" Nose asks.

"because I happen to like you and your fellow civilians. Guess you're just lucky."

"So wait, you're telling me that you've kidnapped us and stolen a school bus just for some wild party? And that was the 'big bang' plan?" Haley asks.

Brooke nods with a huge grin on her face. "Uh huh."

Haley looks like she might punch her, but then her face relaxes and she laughs. "Cool."