Sorry if this seems to be a bit rushed. Just wanted to get this out before Haley actually does tell Nathan so that it doesn't colour my thinking. Written between episodes 404 and 405. Read, Review and enjoy!

Disclaimer – One Tree Hill and related stuff belongs to Mark Schwahn and The CW. I just own the plot of this fic.

Elsewhere

Looking back, at sunsets on the Eastside,

We lost track, of the time

Dreams aren't what they used to be

Some things slide by so carelessly

Smile like you mean it,

Smile like you mean it…

- The Killers, "Smile Like You Mean It"

There was a sliver of light peeking through from under the bedroom door. He knew she was still sitting outside in the kitchen, all alone. They really should be talking this through together, but he could hardly think straight. He couldn't bring himself to go out there just yet. Couldn't bring himself to look at her face, at her belly. There was of course no visible bump yet, but he knew it was there. He had been lying on their bed, unable to sleep.

"Wha…what?"

"I said I'm pregnant Nathan. You're going to be a dad."

"But that's not possible, it can't be."

"Things like this happen, birth control is never a hundred percent effective."

"I…but that's just it…this can't be happening…especially not now…this is really bad timing." He knew he should stop; comfort her or something. But he still had his whole life ahead of him. Hell, so did she. He shook his head.

"I just need some time to myself for a moment," he turned towards the bedroom.

"Nathan-" he held his hand up, "Hales, please." He cupped her cheek and gently brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. He smiled weakly, "just a little while."

She nodded slightly and turned away before tears fell from her eyes.

He counted the minutes as they inched by. 15 minutes. 30 minutes. 60 minutes. And still he didn't emerge. He was still Nathan Scott after all; and he could still be unkind. Being with Haley had dulled and softened his not-so-pleasing characteristics, but they would never fully vanish. It was what made him. He didn't want to hurt her, he just couldn't help it. So much for "just a little while." He sighed and rolled over onto his side, casting his gaze to the empty space next to their dresser. In his mind's eye, an image flashed across his vision. An image in which there was a crib next to that very dresser. He blinked. The image vanished. And that was when the fear hit him. Wave after wave of terror washing over him like ice cold water. Oh god. He was too young. Too inexperienced. Too full already of enough problems to last him a lifetime. Throw in a baby…and, well, it was chaos. His baby. His and Haley's baby. Their baby. The idea was so completely foreign, it staggered him.

There were so many emotional ties that came with this. So many things that could derail his whole life. He knew abortion was out of the question. Haley certainly would not hear any of it, and the idea didn't sit well with him either. Yep, they were definitely having this kid. The room was beginning to get stiflingly hot. Beads of sweat were forming on his forehead, and he could feel a headache coming on. He sat up and pulled his shirt off. He decided that it wasn't such a good idea. Now that there was nothing to support him, his head started to spin – the dizziness overwhelming him and making it hard to breath. Standing up quickly, he strode over as best he could towards the bathroom. Once inside, he slumped against the sink and threw up. Again and again. He straightened up and wiped his mouth. The person staring back at him in the mirror was a complete stranger; so deathly white that his electric blue eyes stood out like a beacon and looked incongruous against his skin. He ducked and splashed his face with cold water, gasping at the contact.

He walked slowly back to the bed, still breathless, and sank down on the edge. There were fresh worries going through his mind now. He had just been accepted to Duke. They were short on money. But the biggest worry of all was not these petty little things. It was the pull of fatherhood. The face of his own father kept swimming through the foggy haze that was his mind. He'd sworn to himself that, come the time, he would never be like Dan, never drive his child to almost insanity. He just didn't fathom that the time would come so soon. And just because he made an inner promise didn't mean that he could keep it. What if it just came naturally, like basketball? He did inherit the Scott gene after all. Those things tended to be nasty.

And what about family and friends? How would they react? He cringed when he remembered how people had treated Brooke when they heard the rumours. He didn't want that for Haley. He winced at that thought. How could he not have noticed the signs?

"So have you heard? About Brooke?" Haley looked uncomfortable.

"Nathan, I…I don't think this is the place-"

"You knew about it didn't you?" he shook his head slightly, "Do you remember that fight we had about birth control?"

"Yeah, how could I forget it."

"Brooke and Lucas both heard that entire thing. I mean, you'd think after something like that, then they'd use two condoms." He didn't wait for her to reply, "and how could she just not tell him?"

Haley looked incredulous "because she's scared to death!"

"Yeah, she should be. I mean, how do you just tell a guy that his life is over?"

A stab of guilt pressed at his chest. He had unknowingly worsened the situation for Haley. How did this happen? Just earlier he had remarked about how Lucas and Brooke should have known better. He laughed without any real humour…how ironic. He looked at his watch. 120 minutes. Steeling his will, he forced himself to his feet and walked out the door and down the hallway, careful not to walk too fast, or risk collapsing.

He saw her bent over the island in the middle of the kitchen. Her shoulders were shaking with sobs and he wondered if she'd been crying all night. At the sound of his footsteps on the kitchen tiles, Haley turned around. Her mascara was running, leaving shadowy tracks around her eyes and down her cheeks. She looked uncertain as to how he would react.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. He stepped forward and she moved desperately into his embrace.

"It's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault," his lips curled upward in the tiniest of smiles, "we're having a baby Hales. There's nothing wrong with what's going on, it's something special, and we should be thrilled."

She was crying again, but his wife was looking beautiful even with her smudged mascara. "You're going to be a great mum Hales."

"Don't worry Nathan, you're nothing like Dan. I know you're going to be a wonderful father…or at the very least, a dilf," she giggled, relieved at his understanding. He looked down at her, and then finally at her tummy. He reached out to lift up her singlet and rest his hand there, fingers stretched out, letting his heat warm her soft skin. It was cold in the kitchen at this time of night, and he was already feeling protective. Her hand came down over his, and they stood there for longer than he could later recall. Haley too, focussed her gaze at their interlocked hands, and then…

"I love the time and in between
The calm inside me
In the space where I can breathe
I believe there is a
Distance I have wandered
To touch upon the years of
Reaching out and reaching in
Holding out holding in

I believe
This is heaven to no one else but me
And I'll defend it as long as I can be
Left here to linger in silence
If I choose to
Would you try to understand

I know this love is passing time
Passing through like liquid
I am drunk in my desire...
But I love the way you smile at me
I love the way your hands reach out and hold me near...
I believe...

I believe
This is heaven to no one else but me
And I'll defend it as long as
I can be left here to linger in silence
If I choose to
Would you try to understand

Oh the quiet child awaits the day when she can break free
The mould that clings like desperation
Mother can't you see I've got
To live my life the way I feel is right for me
Might not be right for you but it's right for me...
I believe...

I believe
This is heaven to no one else but me
And I'll defend it as long as
I can be left here to linger in silence
If I choose to
Would you try to understand it

I would like to linger here in silence
If I choose to
Would you understand it
Would you try to understand..."

Nathan stayed quiet while she sang to their child. Their child. The concept didn't seem foreign at all anymore.

There were so many things that had to be sorted out, so many decisions to be made; college, income. He knew the hard times would present themselves in the very near future. But right now, at this very point in time, he was going to be a father; and he was surprised to find that he didn't mind in the slightest.

The End

I betcha everything I have right here, right now, that this is going to be dog poo compared to how the writers make it happen, but I just wanted to get my thoughts down. I hope it was at least satisfactory. Drop me a note with your thoughts and check out my other fics. Take care guys.

xoxo, Shevy