Hey you all! I tell you, you really know how to make a writer feel loved with all the reviews coming in. Hope you guys like this chapter as much, if not better. I know a lot of my fic so far has been devoted to establishing the initial storyline and building up the characters, but I promise some Nathan and Haley time together after this chapter:) And of course, my fic would not be complete without some of my trademark surprises, would it? Lol!
Constructive criticism, good or bad is always welcomed.
Ch. 9 – Sacrifice
Haley opened her eyes, slowly getting adjusted to the morning sunlight streaming in through her windows. She hadn't slept much, barely a few winks, before night had turned into light. She snuggled closer to her covers, pulling them closer towards her. The little sleep that she had gotten had been anything but peaceful; she had tossed and turned in her sleep, her dreams meaningless and empty.
A knock sounded at her door. She opened an eye, yawning. "Yeah?"
The door creaked open, Lucas' blonde head peeking in. "Morning, sunshine."
Haley smiled wanly, as he walked in, closing the door behind him. He positioned himself at the foot of her bed, cross-legged. "Mornin'," she mumbled.
His features softened. "How're you doing? We were worried."
"And you still probably are."
He smiled, reaching out to put a hand on her knee. "That's what we do, Haley." He paused, looking straight into her eyes. "So are you? Doing okay, I mean."
She shrugged it off, trying not to make it seem like such a big deal, not really wanting Lucas to fret. "I guess."
"Haley James, you do forget that I've known you my whole life?" Lucas raised an eyebrow. He could see right through her easily. "I know you better than this." When she didn't answer, he sighed, and continued. "You're amazing when I need someone to listen, someone for advice, someone to just depend on. Just as a source of strength, you know?" Lucas stopped, searching her eyes for an answer. "But Haley, you're not invincible. You need to let someone do that for you sometimes. Let me."
Haley bit down on her lower lip, not knowing what to say. She felt like she was about to cry all over again, and she hated that. She felt weak, helpless, like she couldn't do anything. "I suppose I should have known. I should have known," she said softly, repeating herself.
"You should have known?" Lucas echoed her. "What are you talking about?"
"I should have known that he would have moved on," she said, her voice getting softer with each syllable. "With-" her breath stuck in her throat, unable to finish her sentence.
"Oh, Haley." Lucas scooted closer to her on the bed, putting an arm around her shoulder. "You deserve better."
Tears started streaming down her face again. "The thing is, Luke, I don't know if I do."
Lucas squeezed her shoulder tightly. "Listen to me, Haley. You are amazing," he leaned down to look in her wet eyes. "And if he can't see that, then that's too bad for him. Because the way I see it, he's the one that doesn't deserve you."
Haley shook her head, shrugging at the same time, not managing to speak. "What do I do, Luke?" she whimpered, breaking down all over again.
Lucas sighed, and held her close as he felt her body shake with sobs, feeling his heart break for his best friend. "You've got to stop doing what's right, and start doing what's right for you," he said softly, his voice stressing the final word.
---
"Hey," Taylor stood at the door, her slim body leaning against the door frame.
Nathan didn't look up. "Where were you last night?"
"It would be nice to be greeted with something else other than that for once."
"It would be nice for my son to have his mother at home for once."
Taylor walked in; stopping right in front of Nathan, hand on her hip. "I needed some time away after what happened last night."
"You mean after you saw Haley?"
She folded her arms across her chest. "What are you gonna do?"
"Why do you care?" He finally looked up, his blue eyes blazing. "You never did before!"
"Because," she started, stuttering a little. "Goddammit, Nathan! Because she obviously still means something to you!"
Nathan stood up, nearly pushing the chair over in the process. He towered over her, an intimidating figure. "She's your sister, Taylor."
"And you're supposed to be my husband," she said, her voice edged with contempt.
He laughed, sarcastically. "No, Taylor," he said slowly, dragging out the syllables, as though talking to a child. "I'm supposed to be your brother-in-law."
"Yeah, who fathered my child!" she shot back, almost immediately.
Nathan threw his hands up in anger. "And who's obviously doing a better job at parenting than you are!"
"Like hell you are! Signing Mike up at a music school where Haley teaches? What are you trying to prove here, Nathan? I'm his mother!"
"I don't know what you're trying to imply," Nathan looked away, his voice dangerously low. "I didn't know she was teaching there, let along living right here in Boston."
"Fine. Then take him out of that music school. I don't want her teaching Mike."
"What the fuck is your problem, Taylor?" Nathan erupted. "Mike is her nephew!"
"Oh, for Christ's sakes, don't give me that bullshit, Nathan!" Taylor shouted back. "You only want him to go there, so that you can see her every fucking week! I will not have that for my son, for you to use him like that!"
"Your son?" he asked incredulously. "Amazing, how that just pops out of your mouth. You come as you please, and leave as you like. What kind of mother does that, Taylor?" he hissed at her. "And to talk about using Mike? Don't pretend like you haven't been, all these years, to get to me. I wasn't born yesterday, Taylor, and I'm not an idiot. You want to play these games, I can play them even better."
"You will not talk to me like that," she raised a finger, pointing at him, her face red with fury.
"I will do as I damn please. And for now, while you're living off my money, and under my roof, you will do as I damn please too," Nathan replied, his voice filled with disdain. "Now, get out of my room."
She glared at him, her arms still folded across her chest. "Fine." She turned around, walking angrily out of the room, slamming the door loudly behind her.
The loud slam resounded around the room, making Nathan's head ring. He pressed his fingers to his temples, feeling something other than hatred and loath. Regret.
---
Her head hurt. Her eyes hurt. Her heart hurt. She hurt all over. Haley sighed, fidgeting. The light of the computer screen seemed to glare at her, making her eyes glaze over with a blur. The numbers on screen seemed to jump out, and rearrange themselves by magic. Just in the morning alone today, she had managed to key in the wrong data five times, misarranged three different appointments, and mentally wandered off plenty of times during her morning lessons. Her mind was a mess, and so was she. She sighed, for what seemed like the umpteenth time that morning. She would see Mike later in the afternoon, for his lesson. And as much as she didn't want to, she knew that she had to continue teaching him. No other teacher had an extra slot available to take in another student for that month. It would be painful, seeing Mike, and possibly seeing Nathan or Taylor around.
"Crazy last night, huh?" Mel sat down in front of Haley's desk, putting down a cup of coffee.
Haley looked up, the glasses which she used for work sliding down her nose. "Thanks Mel," she forced a smile, picking up the hot coffee and sipping slowly at it. "I didn't even realise you were here."
"So," Mel looked at her, her voice neutral. "That was Nathan."
Haley nodded. "Yeah, that was him."
"Do you know the woman with him?" Mel was direct, if not anything else. But her approach was one that Haley was familiar with, and one that she didn't take heart from.
Haley let out a deep breath, one that she didn't even know that she had been holding. She took off her glasses, resting them on her mahogany desk, rubbing her eyes with her other hand. "Yeah, actually I do." Mel's eyes widened, and Haley continued. "She's my sister."
---
Dan stopped the black SUV at a red light, Nathan silent in the passenger seat next to him, and a sleepy Mike strapped in the car seat behind. Like clockwork, the wheels in his scheming mind turned on. He didn't want his son anywhere that girl, that was for sure. He hadn't banked on them meeting one another, at least not this early in his plan. Things had spiralled out of control, a little too fast for his liking. Now he had had to rethink everything. Things were different. He had let his guard down, and now, his son was vulnerable to her. And that meant, that his game would be vulnerable. Dan couldn't have that. He had worked too hard for this.
Nathan shifted in his seat, fiddling around with the knobs on the radio. The silence was suffocating him. He could feel the pressure in the air, muffling him, like Dan was about to spring something on him, and he hated that. He knew the feeling only too well. Nathan pushed an unlabelled CD into the player and pressed play. The first few bars of 'Jailhouse Rock' filled the car.
"Elvis?" Nathan said incredulously, barely trying to hide his grin. "Since when do you listen to Elvis, Dad?"
Dan quickly ejected the CD. "It's one of your mom's crappy ones," he replied smoothly.
Nathan smirked. "If you say so, Dad," he said, turning to look out of the window.
"Hey, we should really look into finding another school for Mike, if he really wants to learn music," Dan said, changing the subject, nonchalantly drumming his fingers on the steering wheel.
Nathan continued looking out of his window. "I don't see why we should."
"Why are you letting him do music anyway, Nathan? That kid should be in basketball camp."
Nathan turned to glare at his father. "He enjoys music. Just like you and I enjoy basketball. So, why can't we let him do what he likes? I'm not going to drive my son away from something he loves at such a young age. God knows, you've already done a good enough job on me already."
Dan let the comment pass. It would not do to provoke Nathan; he needed to be subtle, to gently push him towards what he wanted him to do. "Well, there are other music schools in Boston. Better ones than the one he's going to now."
"Dad, I don't see what's wrong with the current one," Nathan said, his voice sounding low on patience. "Let it drop," he said, turning back to look out of the window.
Dan's grip on the wheel tightened, until his knuckles were almost white; Nathan oblivious of his sudden change in temperament. i She must not get into your life again. I will not let that happen, he thought angrily. I love you, son. One day you will thank me for all of this. /i Then, as soon as the thoughts came, they flashed away. The traffic light turned green, and Dan released the handbrake, while stepping down on the accelerator lightly. Whistling, he drove on, continuing on the journey, like nothing had just happened.
---
"Hey there, buddy," Haley's voice was soft, as she walked into the classroom. "How was your day?"
Mike looked up at her, the sparkle in his eyes dulled. "It was okay."
"Well, it's going to get better, right? Now that you're here." Haley sat down next to him, her heart heavy. He was Nathan's son. She tried to treat him like any other student she taught. But she couldn't. Because not only was he Nathan's son, but he was also Taylor's. "Right?" she asked again, prompting him, when she didn't get an answer.
"Yeah," he finally conceded. "I suppose so."
Haley frowned. He looked troubled. "Is everything all right, Mike?"
Again, he nodded, after a long while. "Haley?" he finally asked. "Can you play me something?"
"Sure, I will," she smiled at him, keeping an open face, while inside, she was worried. i Had Dan done something to him? /i He scrambled off the piano seat, and made his way to the big navy blue couch which sat by the wall. Haley shifted over, and placed her hands on the shiny keys, taking a deep breath. Softly, her deft fingers played a chord, while her feet placed themselves on the big pedals of the piano. She played a soft, lilting lullaby, humming along as she played. As she played, she slowly felt the tension lift from her. Music just did that to her. It comforted her, it calmed her, it understood her.
Finally, she finished, turning around to face Mike. "You like that, Mike?" He didn't answer. Instead, he lay there on the couch, curled up, fast asleep, with a frown evident on his face.
---
Nathan shoved his hands into his pocket. He had been standing out here in the cold for ages, debating, going back and forth in his mind. He knew she was up there, and he wanted more than anything to see her, to talk to her, to hear her voice. But consciously, he knew he couldn't do that. Once he let himself do that, any shred of resolve he had would be gone. And as much as he wanted that to happen, he couldn't, for Mike. He was responsible for his son, and responsible for the people that his son would learn to love, and responsible for anybody who hurt his son. Things had changed over the past years, he had learnt to give and love so much more for Mike. And he didn't resent that fact, not one bit. He had learnt to sacrifice for him. But he wouldn't never have knew how to do all these things, if Haley hadn't come into his life back then. That was then, but things were different now. He couldn't want another person in his own life and in Mike's life. It would confuse a young kid, and possibly hurt him; he already was hurt enough by Taylor not caring. He didn't really show it, but Nathan could tell. He saw the way Mike's face fell when he saw the other children's mothers picking them up from the pre-school, and not his own. The way he clammed up after Taylor would come home and walk right past him without a second glance or a loving word. He felt a strong need to protect Mike, and he would do so, nothing could stop him.
With Haley, he had messed things up. There was no doubt about that. But she had left first. What if she left again? Mike already looked so attached to her, he couldn't take it if she left him. "And neither could you," he said softly, talking to himself.
Finally, he steeled himself, and pushed the doors open to the stairs to the music school.
---
Haley walked out to the hall, feeling a little worried. Mike had looked so tired, that she hadn't wanted to wake him. She would tell Liz to wake him up when someone came to pick him up. She opened her mouth, wanting to call out to her, but there was already a man at her desk. Her breath caught in her throat. Nathan. He looked amazing, as usual. Confident, strong; there was an aura of maturity about him now. Her heart beat faster, her palms sweating. She wanted to turn around, and run back to her office, hiding away from him, but her feet stayed rooted to the ground, defying her thoughts.
"He'll be done in about five minutes," Liz smiled at him warmly. "Do you want to speak to his teacher?"
Nathan shook his head. "No, it's all right. I'll just pay up the fees for this month first." He took out his wallet, and counted out a few bills.
She took the money from him, recounting it and frowned. "Mr. Scott," she said, handing him back three hundred dollar bills. "I think you may have gotten the fee wrong."
He shook his head. "No, I haven't. Mike tells me that his teacher is good, so it's a bonus for her."
Liz frowned. "I'm afraid I can't accept that, Mr. Scott. Perhaps you would like to talk to her personally?"
He shook his head, a little adamantly. "No, that's okay. I'll just-"
Haley stepped out of the shadows, clearing her throat. He turned around, his blue eyes startled when they met hers.
"Actually, I'd like to talk to you, if that's all right," she said softly.
---
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