AN: Thanks so much for the wondeful reviews: abonana, LiZ457OTH.daddy'sgurl.06AngelLuvachelle2911Nathanlvr Miessa, and mistydm!

Chapter 24

Haley and Nathan spent the rest of the week trying to avoid Jared. It was hard, but they eventually just learned to tune him out and Jared would end up leaving them alone at that moment and then come to ambush them later on that day. He would harass Nathan, saying that he took the check so now he had to break up with Haley, for her own good, he said. And he would harass Haley saying how great it would be if she moved back in with her folks. But Haley and Nathan knew it was all just manipulation and they didn't fall for it for a second.

They were forming a plan. A plan to finally let everyone know what Jared was up to. Everyone as in Haley's parents, Jared's parents, even the police if it had to get that far. Haley didn't want to cause trouble. But she had been over the issue a million times in her head and she knew that if she didn't do anything now, Jared might never stop. And Haley and Nathan were in a too good place right now, to let it be ruined by Jared. Haley wouldn't let that happen.

Haley and Nathan would still let Jared get to them sometimes, or at least they would pretend that he did. They didn't want it to seem obvious that they were thinking up a plan, so they would throw some insults to Jared when he would attack them. Nathan might glare at him from time to time. Haley might look sad at something he would say and then call him a jerk. But really they couldn't care less what he said or did, because they knew that it would all be over soon.

"You're being awfully quiet, Haley," Peyton noticed one after-noon at school, when her and Brooke and Haley were grouped in the bathroom talking about random things. Haley had been in her own thoughts as Peyton and Brooke debated which of their boyfriends was hotter or something like that. And both Brooke and Peyton had noticed.

"Hun?" Haley asked stupidly as she was brought back to reality. "Oh, yeah, sorry. I was just wondering how I did on that quiz."

"What quiz?" Brooke asked, who had been in all Haley's classes since that morning and didn't recall any quiz.

"You know... that quiz... the one... in that class..." Haley said already loosing her train of thought and going back to thinking about her plan. Brooke and Peyton didn't seem to mind, they were already back in their conversation.

"Oh! I got one. Basketball! Lucas is so better at basketball than Jake!" Brooke said with an expression of victory on her face, she seemed very pleased with her discovery.

"Yeah, well that's just because..." Peyton paused, "... Jake has Jenny. AND his music! Oh, you can so not beat that! Jake plays guitar and he sings! HA!" Peyton said happy with herself. Brooke and Peyton both stuck their tongues out at each other before the bell rang. Haley jumped at the noise, not expecting it.

"Haley, is everything ok?" Brooke asked before they left to go to class.

"Yeah, just kind of out-of-it today, that's all."

---

Thursday was the day. They had it all planed. Considering the fact that Jared had stopped by after Haley's tutoring sessions every day that week, Haley and Nathan had it all planed for after Haley's tutoring session that day. They planed to meet that day after school, before Haley's tutoring session in the girl's bathroom to get ready.

The day passed by as slow as possible. And it didn't help that Haley and Nathan barely had any classes together. Haley could barely concentrate all day, she was so nervous. She was going over the plan over and over again for the hundredth time, looking for some way that it might not work. It was kind of a stretch, it was very possible that it would backfire, or just not work as they planed.

Nathan, however, was not concentrating on the possible flaws in the plan, he was only thinking about the positive. How after this, he could just relax and not have to worry about Haley being taken away from him.

Finally the school day ended and Nathan and Haley met in one of the girl's bathrooms. They went to the one that was the furthest away, that way they were sure that no-one would walk in on them.

"Whoa, you guys have mirrors in here?" Was the first thing Nathan said when he entered. Haley gave him a look.

"Please," Haley said, "Like you have to worry about your looks."

"Yeah, you're right," Nathan said smirking. Haley pushed him playfully and he just grabbed her by the waist and pulled her closer so he could kiss her.

After kissing for a minute, Haley pulled away. "Nathan I have tutoring, we need to get to business." She said.

"Right," Nathan said and hard as it was, he pulled himself away from Haley and took a step back. "Are you all set?"

"Yeah. You?" Haley asked. Nathan nodded. They went over the plan and then said good-bye and Haley went off to the tutoring center and Nathan off to wait in his car.

---

Haley sat down at her usual tutoring table in the center and waited. She had finished her tutoring schedule with the last guy she tutored, after Nathan, yesterday and was expecting a new student today. She looked around and noticed that no one else was there. That wasn't unusual considering that none of the other tutors tutored half as much as Haley did. Haley would go there everyday and sometimes, like today, she would be the only one there.

Soon after Haley was relieved to hear the tutoring center door open and then close.

"Hey, you must be-" Haley started to say as she turned around and found Jared in front of her. She panicked, he wasn't suppose to come until after her tutoring session. "Jared." She said.

"Yup." Jared said with a grin as he sat down opposite Haley. Haley didn't even do anything, she didn't know what to do, so she just sat there. "So listen, I know you're suppose to be the tutor and all, but how 'bout I do the teaching this time."

"There's nothing you can teach me, Jared," Haley said gaining her courage back on the outside. But on the inside she was screaming. This was not part of the plan. Nathan was expecting him to come later, he won't know what's going on.

"Oh, I think there is," Jared said. Haley just stared at him. He continued, "See, I paid Nathan to break up with you." Haley still just stared at him, she didn't want to act surprised because she was scared that he wouldn't buy it, and she didn't want to tell him that she knew, so she just stared and he kept talking. "All I did was feed him some storied about him ruining your life and that was all it took for him to take the two grant I offered him to dump you."

Haley nodded, "I think I see where you're going with this," she said.

"You see? He doesn't care about you, he cares about himself. He wanted you with him just so that he could get some action, but when he's offered probably more money than he's ever seen in his life, he picks that over you." Jared said.

"I see what you're doing, you're trying to manipulate me." Haley said.

"No," Jared said simply, but Haley pretending like she didn't hear him and just continued.

"You have this whole plan, this whole string of lies set up to make me to move back in with my parents so you can get your way and me and Nathan would break up." Haley said. "Well, I've got news for you, you're not the only one with a plan." Haley said rambling. She was making this up off the top of her head, she didn't really know what to say but this seemed to be working.

"I'm going to stop you," Haley said, "I'm going to stop all this madness so that you will leave me and Nathan alone."

Jared let out a laugh that could have shattered glass it was so menacing. "Don't you get it?" Jared said as if Haley were stupid. "You and Nathan are never going to be left alone as long as you're together," He said, making Haley uneasy. Was he right? Would their plan work? Was it even working now that it was ruined by Jared showing up an hour earlier. "I don't care what it takes. Hell, this is fun for me. I will bribe, black-mail, beat-up, whatever it takes, because let's face it, I have the power to do all that. And I will get my way." He said with a sly grin.

He was really starting to scare the hell out of Haley. This guy was psychotic, and this plan really needed to work just as they planed for him to leave them finally alone.

"Not if I can stop you," Haley said with a forceful tone, yet her voice wasn't loud at all. And she was now looking at the ground, she couldn't stand looking at that manipulative face. Haley jumped when she heard the door to the tutoring center open. She quickly turned around and let out a breath with relief when she saw Nathan there.

"Oh, look who it is..." Jared said.

Haley snickered at him and said, "Have a nice live, Jared. Because so help me, you will be out of ours for good." Nathan put a protective arm around her waist and glared at Jared.

"Yeah? What're you going to do?" Jared asked still smirking.

"It's already done," Haley said lifting up her shirt. Jared's grin grew wider and then disappeared when he saw the wires taped to her stomach.

"What?" Jared yelled, "You were wired?" Nathan and Haley remained silent as both Haley's and Jared's parents appeared behind them.

"Jared," Said his father, strictly. "You better come with us," He said firmly. Jared still looked dumb-founded, looking from Haley's parents, to his own, to Nathan and to Haley, waiting for someone to yell out that he's been Punk'd or something. No one said anything though, so Jared walked out of the room and followed his parents out of the school. Haley's parents looked still very surprised. Haley's mother was looking rather pale and she looked over at Nathan and Haley hugging and she slowly walked away, followed by Haley's father. They hadn't even said one word to her.

---

"Hales, you were great in there," Nathan said as they walked back to his car.

"Thanks, I was so scared when he came early. Hey, wait, how did you know he was there?" She asked.

"Well," Nathan said, "I was getting bored waiting in my car so I figured that I'd listen in on your tutoring session, just to hear your voice." Haley blushed, and Nathan continued, "Anyway, I turned the thing on just in time to hear Jared's voice saying that I didn't care about you. And I remember thinking 'What a sick, demented boy that is. Because I care about Haley more than anyone in the world and how dare he say that I don't.'" Nathan finished making Haley blush even more.

"I feel so... free, as stupid as it sounds, it's true. I mean, we don't have to worry about him anymore. There's nothing standing in the middle of our love anymore." Haley said smiling. She was very proud at herself for what happened in there in the tutoring center. She could have broken down and given up on the plan just because he got there earlier than planed, but it all worked out in the end, just as they planed.

"Nothing could or ever will stand in the middle of our love. I love you, Hales, and I always will," He said and he gazed into her eyes and Haley's heart melted.

"I love you, too Nathan." She said and leaned up just as he leaned down and their lips met in a passionate, love-filled kiss.

---

AN: OK, guys, I hope you liked it! So what happens next with Jared and with Haley's parents and with Naley (of course), review and find out! Thanks!