Chapter 2:

Nathan woke up Monday morning and begrudgingly got ready for school. He hated school, except for basketball. His father hadn't managed to suck out all the fun out of his favorite sport…yet. Anyway, no one likes high school, even if you're popular. And, let's face it, other than basketball, Nathan had no real reason to go to high school. Other than it was the law. He was terrible at all things academic.

Haley was helping him. For all intents and purposes, he tricked her into tutoring him so he could get back at Lucas. However, Haley didn't quite know that. She was too good. So, she put her heart and soul into helping Nathan with his classes, and, he had to admit, he was getting a little better. He thought he might even be crushing on Haley a bit. She was so inspiring. But she was too good. He was damaged. And it wasn't until this past weekend that he realized he might not be alone in that area.

All he could think about was Brooke, now. She had seen something in him, and he had seen something in her.

"Brooke!" Nathan called. She was walking with some of the cheerleaders, including Peyton, who simply rolled her eyes at him.

Brooke pretended to ignore him, but he called her name again. She broke from her pack and stood there waiting for him as he caught up to her.

"Yeah, Nathan?" she asked, a little frustrated/a little embarrassed. She too felt less alone, finally, for once in her life, because of that weekend. But she was too stubborn to admit it.

"Can we talk?" he asked.

"I'm going to be late for class," she responded.

He chuckled a little at that, "Since when do you care about being late for class."

"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked.

"Nothing, I'm sorry. I just. Can we talk about what happened?" he questioned.

"Nothing happened, Nathan. We just talked, and you took me home the next day."

"It was a lot more than "talk"," Nathan responded, using his fingers to air quote.

"What do you want me to say, Nathan?" she asked, frustrated.

"I don't know. I guess. I thought it meant something. But, maybe not to you," Nathan scoffed.

It did mean something to her. She was more open with Nathan than she had been with anybody, including Peyton. Peyton, her best friend, could barely see past her "brainless slut" façade. Peyton, whom she felt, at times, looked at her like she was a joke. Like Lucas did. Like everybody did. Except, now, maybe, Nathan.

"Look, the truth is, I'm not sure what it meant. We had a moment. But what are we supposed to do it about it, Nathan?" she asked.

"Maybe we can have more moments?" he asked.

"What?"

"You know, maybe we can hang out more? Just the two of us."

Brooke thought about it a moment and realized she didn't want to miss this opportunity. There was something about their connection that she couldn't shy away from.

"Okay, give me a ride home after practice." She said, then, walked away before she could take it back.