Author's Note: It's been a while. I know. Just dropping in with a quick update. Thanks for the reviews. Keep them up. Enjoy.

---OTH---

"Can you believe this?"

It was the second day of school and Brooke, Haley and Peyton where all seated around their usual lunch table in the cafeteria, glad to see that none of the juniors had been stupid enough to try and take what was theirs. They all had their plates full of not so delicious café food and a can of pop each, the normal lunch for any teenager. Their eyes wandered to the doorway, waiting for the boys to make their way through at any moment. Whitey had called a meeting for anyone trying out for the basketball team this year, so the boys were going to be a little late.

"I know," Peyton agreed, nervously chewing on a fry. "What are the odds that all of us have the same lunch?" Yesterday hadn't been pretty at lunchtime, and she didn't imagine that today was going to be any different. They had all made a packed that nothing was going to be weird between them, that they were going to be grown ups about the whole thing.

"Yeah, well, you can thank Principle Turner for that," Haley commented, feeling a little uneasy at the situation, but not as bitter or nervous as Peyton seemed to be.

"Why on earth would he think that it's a good idea for all the seniors and juniors to have the same lunch?" Brooke questioned. As much as she denied it, things weren't as great between her and Lucas as she made it seem. Yes, they had parted on very good terms and agreed not to see other people while they were on their break, but it still hurt that they weren't together in the same sense.

"I don't know," Haley answered, pushing her plastic fork through the gravy-covered fries in front of her. She knew it wasn't the healthiest thing she could be having, but it looked like the only eatable thing being served today. "I guess they didn't want anymore freshmen getting beat up by the seniors."

"Makes sense," Peyton mused, bitterly. On one hand, she hated that she'd have to sit at the same table with Jake for forty minutes, but on the other, she was glad that she'd be able to keep an eye on him this way. "If you think about it."

"It's just a shame that our feelings must take a backseat to the greater good of mankind." Haley and Peyton stopped playing with their food to look at Brooke like she was crazy. "Fine, I guess I can suffer through forty minutes of Scott drama if it saves some poor freshman from getting his ass kicked."

"How kind of you," Haley muttered. She stabbed an unlucky French fry with her fork before sighing and dropping it. She propped her chin on her hand to look at Brooke. "What are you so suffering from, anyway? I thought you and Lucas were cool with each other."

"We are," Brooke immediately answered. She never did tell them that it was his idea to take a break, and that she had only agreed to save face. She didn't want to stop dating him, she loved him, but apparently she was at the top of her priority list. "It's just, I don't know." She paused and tried again. "It's just…"

"Hard," Peyton and Haley filled in at the same time. Brooke looked at them in amusement for a moment before nodding. They shared smiles and went back to eating their lunches.

"Hey, guys," Lacy called out as she made her way over to their table. She had planned on waiting for Tim, but the lunch line was starting to get too big and she was afraid that she looked like a loser standing up there all alone. The three best friends all glanced up, happy to have something to distract them from their thoughts of ex-boyfriends.

"Lacy, what's up?" Brooke asked, a little to loudly and a little too excitedly. She caught the looks the others were giving her, but she chose to ignore them. Instead, she slid over on her side of the bench, which was across from Haley and Peyton, so their blonde friend could sit down.

"Nothing," she answered, smiling gratefully at Brooke. She was glad that they were being so nice to her. As horrible as it sounded, she had to admit that she was a little worried that they may ditch her when school started because she was only a junior and the 'new kid'. "I got tired of waiting for Tim."

"Oh," Haley nodded, hoping she didn't sound to lame. "Whitey's meeting is done already?" Peyton and Brooke were too interested in the answer themselves to bother teasing Haley about how interested she sounded. She was, after all, supposed to be okay with her and Nathan being just friends.

"I guess," she shrugged, sliding onto the bench beside Brooke and placing her food on the table. "Grandpa's always been known to get straight to the point with things, I wouldn't imagine that basketball is much different."

"That is so weird," Haley mused, pointing her fork at the blonde across from her after she ate another fry. She took a moment to swallow her food before continuing. "I can't picture Whitey being a Grandpa, you know? He'll always be that hard ass cutie that'll ride those boys till the days he dies."

"I don't know," Peyton disagreed, remembering how good Whitey had been with her back when she was having trouble dealing with her mother's death. "He can be a softie when he wants to be." Brooke raised an eyebrow at her friend, but didn't say anything. "Yeah, me and Whitey are having a little affair on the side. Sorry, I know how hot you think he is."

"You're a regular laugh riot, Sawyer," Brooke answered back in a dry voice, not finding Peyton's attempt at a joke very humorous. There are just some things that you should never joke about, and sleeping with Whitey was one of those things.

"I try."

"Could we not talk about my Grandfather like that?" Lacy asked, making a disgusted face that matched the one that Haley and Brooke were making. "It's more than a little disturbing."

"I second that," Haley agreed, glaring pointedly at the curly headed blonde that was still laughing at the looks on their faces. Brooke raised her hand, indicating that she agreed. She probably would have vocalized her opinion, she always did, but her mouth was currently full of Haley's fries.

"You guys are no fun," Peyton complained, still laughing at her friends. Suddenly, she stopped laughing as she spotted the guys walking their way, lunch trays in hand. Nathan, Lucas and Jake all looked a little miserable at the idea of having to spend the next half hour with the women they hurt. Tim and Skills seemed to be in high spirits as they approached the table.

"Ladies," Skills greeted them, immediately slipping into the empty spot on the other side of Haley. He dropped his bag on the floor and kicked in under the table with the rest of the bags. He put his tray down and squished against Haley so Lucas and Nathan could fit on the end.

"Hey guys," Haley said weakly, glad that Nathan was on her side of the table. That way she didn't have to look at him. Even though she had told him that they could be friends, and told herself over and over that she could be around him, she just wasn't ready yet. "What did Whitey want?"

"Just wanted to let us know that he's going to start practices soon," Skills answered before any of the other guys could, not that they were in any rush to say anything. Jake was busy scanning the café, looking for Nicki so he could talk to her again. Lucas was trying to get a glance at Brooke from across the table and Nathan was finding his food very fascinating. Finally, of course, Tim and Lacy were too completely wrapped up in each other to notice the question.

"Oh, you're trying out this year?" Brooke asked, hoping to make conversation.

"Yeah."

"He finally realized that he was too good for the Rivercourt," Lucas answered, making sure to look Brooke directly in the face. They did manage to lock eyes for a moment before she tore her gaze away. Lucas frowned, but didn't say anything. He cleared his throat. "So, when are you guys starting cheerleading?"

"I think the tryouts are on Friday," Peyton answered unsurely, glancing back and forth between Lucas and Brooke. "Right, Brooke?" The brunette's head snapped up at her name and she looked at Peyton.

"What?"

"Cheerleading," Peyton clarified, giving her a pointed look. "Tryouts are on Friday, right?" Brooke's eyes widened at the words and she nodded her head, feeling incredibly stupid for not being able to pay attention.

"Yeah, yeah," she answered quickly. She glanced at the rest of the table, making sure that she caught Luke's eyes for a moment. "I can't wait to see those freshmen shake their asses. Always good for a laugh."

"That's mean," Haley pointed out, not even looking up from her food. If she had been paying attention, she would have realized that her actions were mirroring Nathan's at the moment. Brooke raised an eyebrow at the comment and stared Haley down.

"Are you trying out this year, Hales?" she asked. She had been bugging her best friend since they first starting hanging out to join the team, but Haley never changed her mind. If the prospect of checking out her hot boyfriend get sweaty playing basketball wasn't enough to get her on the team, then spending extra time with that same ex-boyfriend wasn't going to do the job either.

"What was my answer at the beginning of summer?"

"No."

"And what was my answer at the beginning of soccer season last year?"

"No."

"And the beginning of basketball season?"

"No."

"And the time you asked before that?"

"No."

"And the time before that?"

"No."

"And the time before…"

"Her answer's no," Nathan cut in with a sharp tone, getting annoyed at where this conversation was going. He always kind of liked it that Haley was never a cheerleader, like it somehow made her even sexier. All the girls that he had dated had all been on the cheerleading team; he wanted something different. Plus, if she joined the team now, he didn't think he'd be able to handle practicing when she was just a few feet away in a mini skirt, dancing around every other afternoon.

"Thanks," Haley muttered, sending him a quick glance and smile before returning to her food. Brooke sent Nathan a death glare that could kill even Dan Scott. The rest of the table knew better than to say anything and remained silent. Knowing that Brooke was glaring at him, Nathan finally looked up.

"What?"

"Do not even start with…" Brooke trailed off when she spotted another person making their way over to their table. Suddenly, telling Nathan off was the least of her worries.

"Tigger?" Haley asked, surprised that her friend would just stop like that. She saw that everyone was staring at someone, and turned to look at who was coming over. It took her a moment to place the face, but when she did, her stomach dropped. Nicki. "Oh."

"That's just great," Peyton muttered under her breath, narrowing her eyes at the little ho bag as she continued to walk over to them, completely oblivious to the death stares she was receiving from almost half the table.

"Hello," was the first thing that Nicki said when she finally got to the table. She ignored everyone else and focused all of her attention on Nathan. "Hey, sweetie. Do you mind if I sit here?" Nathan looked at her like a dear caught in headlights. He wasn't aware that they were still going out. The last thing he wanted was for Haley to feel uncomfortable.

"Oh, um," he stuttered, quickly looking around the table. It seemed to be unanimous that nobody wanted Nicki there, which the exception Lacy maybe. His eyes lingered on Haley for a moment and he noticed that she looked pretty upset. There was a part of him that would like nothing more that to make her feel half the pain that she caused him when she said no to his proposal, but his good sense won out. "Sorry, Nicki. I don't think that there's enough room…"

"You can take my spot," Haley spoke up. Everyone's eyes shot to her, surprised at what she said. Brooke and Peyton looked at her like she had gone crazy and Nathan looked over at her, feeling guilty.

"Hales, come on, you don't have to…"

"It's okay," she assured him. She placed a quick kiss Skills' baldhead as she stood up and grabbed her bag from under the table. "I have a Guidance appointment in a few minutes anyway." She swung her bag over her shoulder and pushed her tray over so it was in front of Tim.

"Hales," Brooke and Peyton tried, but stopped when she shook her head. She shrugged her shoulders at them, telling them not to worry about her.

"See you guys later." With one little wave and a small smile, Haley quickly shuffled off towards the doors. She could feel all of her friends' eyes on her and she tried her best to ignore them.

---OTH---

"Ms. Ward?" Haley called, knocking softly on the open door. She already knew the older woman was in there because she could see her seated at her desk, but she thought it would be polite to make her presence known.

"Yes?" she asked, spinning around in her chair to face the door. A smile graced her face when she saw one of her favorite students standing there. "Haley, come on in." Haley smiled at her and shut the door as she entered the homely office. She loved it in there because it had such a warm feeling to it. She had spent more than enough time in there over the last three years to feel at home in there.

"Thanks." Haley dropped her bag to the floor and plopped down in the chair on the other side of her desk. She waited patiently for Ms. Ward to finish doing whatever she was doing, before they could talk.

"I'll be with you in a moment," she told Haley in a nice tone. Haley loved Ms. Ward; she was definitely her favorite person on the staff at Tree Hill High. She was a pretty young blonde woman, maybe around 26 or so. At first Haley was a little intimidated by her beauty, but it didn't take her long to get comfortable around her.

"It's no problem," Haley assured her, not really in the mood to get to class in any kind of hurry anyway. After a few more minutes, Ms. Ward printed out her document and spun around in her chair to face Haley.

"I'm all yours," she informed her. Before Haley had a chance to tell her what she was here for, Ms. Ward interrupted her. "Oh, and what was with the whole Ms. Ward thing at the door a moment ago? Didn't I tell you to call me Susan?"

"Right, sorry," Haley answered, nodding her head. It felt weird to be calling a teacher by their first name, but she tried to look passed it. She was always taught that it was polite to call elders by their last names. The only adults she could think of that she was on a first name basis with were Karen and Keith, and Deb to an extent.

"So, what can I do for you?"

"I wanted to start looking at different colleges," Haley answered, digging through her bag to find a pen and paper to write with. Once she successfully found her blue pen and now crumpled piece of paper, she motioned for Susan to continue.

"Isn't it a bit soon to start that stuff?" Susan asked, a little surprised. She figured that Haley would want to talk about something that had happen to her over the summer, or something about her parents, like she usually did. "I mean, it's only the second day back, Hales. You gotta give me a little time to get my stuff in order."

"I know," she nodded. "But I've been thinking lately, that I wanted to maybe start looking at schools that have early admissions, you know? I'm just so sick of this town and this school."

"Whoa," Susan laughed, a little taken aback by Haley's attitude this year. Last year she seemed to be so excited about senior year, even sad about leaving the town she had grown up in. "Talk about major attitude adjustment. What happened over the summer to get you so bummed?"

"Where do I start?" Haley asked rhetorically. Normally, she would never just tell anyone this, but she knew she could trust Susan and she always felt better about things after talking to her about them.

"Wherever you want." Susan could tell that something major happened because Haley wasn't her usually perky self.

"Well," Haley breathed. "You know Nathan, my boyfriend, well ex-boyfriend?"

"Aw, you guys broke up?" Susan asked, her voice full of sympathy. It may be a little unprofessional, but she really adored Haley and Nathan together. She was one of the only people that actually thought they'd make it. She also knew how much Haley loved him. This defiantly explained why Haley was so down. "What happened, sweetie?"

"He cheated on me with some bar slut," Haley began. "Who, turns out isn't a slut, but just a really nice girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. To make an incredibly long story short, she's pregnant with his kid, but they aren't even together, she's married to Nathan's best friend Tim, who is also my good friend."

"Wow," was all Susan could say. She shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around everything that Haley just said. She didn't think that kind of stuff really happened in real life. Well, in Tree Hill anyway. She looked at Haley for confirmation and she nodded. "Anything else?"

"There is, but it's not really important," Haley told her, even though she knew it was a sarcastic question. "I'm friends with Brooke and Peyton again, and I'm sure that Nathan will get bored of Nicki soon." She looked down at her lap, trying to think of anything else that went wrong in her life over the summer. Her eyes light up. "Oh yeah, and I die."

"I don't even want to know." Haley gave her a lopsided grin and nodded her head, letting her know that she was probably making the best choice. Deciding that it was best to get back on track, Susan straightened up. "So, which colleges were you looking at?"

"Any good one, really," Haley answered. "As long as it excepts early admissions, and is far away from Tree Hill, then I'll be good." Susan nodded and turned back to her computer.

"Let me just pull up your record," she suggested, more just talking out loud than actually talking to Haley. "Haley James, Haley James, Haley … oh, there you are." Haley watched as she clicked on her name and her entire school record popped up. She made a face when she saw last years school picture on the top of the page. She couldn't wait to get a new one this year.

"God, I hate that picture," she mused, continuing to make the face. Susan glanced at her and laughed.

"Nah, I think you look adorable," she assured her. Haley rolled her eyes, knowing she was probably just saying that cause she had to. "Okay, here we go. Let's take a look at your transcript." Haley leaned forward on the desk so she could see the computer screen as well.

"Does everything look okay?" she asked, after Susan didn't say anything. She didn't answer right away, instead click on a few things and scrolled through a page or two.

"Everything looks good," she answered without turning around. "All your grades are amazing, at the moment you're at the top of all your classes, you have a lot of community service hours with the tutoring. All good things to have when applying to colleges."

"But?" Susan sighed and turned to her, knowing she wasn't going to like what she had to say.

"You really need an extra curricular activity," she answered. Haley's eyes widened and she shook her head. "I know, it's not your thing, but that's one of the first things that colleges look at. Grades are important, but without any school activities, there's a good chance they won't look at you, especially for early admissions."

"But I don't do team sports," Haley argued. She knew this whole avoid gym and anything remotely associated with gym like the plague was going to come back to bite her in the ass. "I'm amazingly uncoordinated. I almost drown in the balls at Chucky Cheese. I swear."

"I'm just warning you."

"Doesn't tutoring count?"

"It definitely beefs up the transcript, but it will only take you so far," Susan explained. "I know that it's the last thing you want to hear, but if I were you, I'd drop the tutoring and find some kind of after school activity that's active, but doesn't involve a ball of any kind."

Haley grumbled under her breath and folded her arms over her chest. This sucked.

---OTH---

Haley handed her admit slip to the teacher as she entered fourth period late and shuffled over to her desk beside Brooke. She dropped her bag on the floor before she reached her desk and kicked it the rest of the way over. Brooke watched Haley with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey," Brooke greeted her friend in confusion. "What's up?" Haley grunted in response and dropped into the chair attached to her desk. Once she was seated, she leaned forward and buried her head in her arms. After a moment she tilted her head to the side slightly so Brooke would be able to hear her.

"When do cheerleading tryouts start again?"

---OTH---

All done for now. Tell me what you think. Peace.