Hey guys, back with another chapter. This chapter has a lot of small moments that hold importance. Remember that I said a lot of this comes from my life and experiences I've actually had. There is one singular character that is the 'me' of this story because I gave the storylines to whoever it fit best but this is all based on true events so if I put in small details it's because they matter. Nothing too dramatic up through this point but we are setting the stage for the start of the craziness. Also, I don't think I mentioned yet that the title is because of the song Sweetheart by Thomas Rhett, he writes a lot of cute songs about his wife that give me Naley vibes and I listen to while I write and I decided to use that one for the title. Okay, I've rambled enough, enjoy! Disclaimer: I don't own OTH.

Haley took a deep breath as she looked into Karen's Café. On a normal day she run through the door without a second thought, without even checking if Lucas was there because she could always talk to Karen or Keith. On a normal day she would be excited to go in, ready to beg to work for Karen even though she wasn't old enough yet. Today wasn't a normal day.

She was worried and apprehensive.

She was upset and standoffish.

She wasn't sure if Lucas was ready to forgive her. She wasn't sure if she was ready to forgive him.

Come on, Haley. You promised Nathan. You don't break promises. She swung the door open and stepped inside. Karen immediately looked up from behind the counter and smiled.

"Haley, good to see you!" Haley smiled, at least Karen wasn't mad at her. How much did Karen know? Just then she saw a stool at the counter swivel and looking back at her with his blue eyes, that Haley couldn't help but think resembled Nathan's, was Lucas.

"Hi Karen, Lucas…can we talk?" Karen looked between the two kids with a sad smile she could tell they both wanted to fix this but they were both scared of how their friendship had changed. Haley's eyes were pleading, waiting for Lucas to respond. He nodded hesitantly.

"Mom, can we go to the roof?" Lucas asked. The roof of Karen's Café was Haley and Lucas' favorite place to hang out and Haley took it as a good sign that she was still invited up there.

"Sure, just be careful. Don't go too close to the edge, you know Haley is a little clumsy." Karen said lightheartedly, making both of the kids genuinely smile as the headed up.

Once it was just the two of them the tension grew. Who was supposed to talk first? What were they going to say? They stayed far apart from each other, arms crossed, making eye contact occasionally when they looked up from the ground.

"So…you and Nathan?" Lucas finally spoke in a shaky and quiet voice.

"Are just friends." Haley quickly stated. "He isn't a bad guy, Luke. I know that you don't trust him but I expect you to trust me. I've earned that much over the years. Nathan isn't the person people make him out to be, he makes himself out to be, it's just an act. I'll admit when I first spoke to him he was rude and closed off but he really opened up to me and he has been a great friend. Lucas, you know that I feel so bad about everything that Dan has put you and your mom through but none of that is Nathan's fault. And I'm sorry that you felt betrayed that I befriended him but it was never to hurt you, your still my best friend. Barely though. Lucas you had no right to talk to me the way that you did." Haley had thought she was over what Lucas had said but when she thought about it and remembered how her best friend had hurt her only for the half brother he hates to cheer her up she felt her anger resurface.

"I know. Haley, I'm sorry. I was so worried about him treating you poorly and so angry that he had gotten to be friends with someone so important to me but I wasn't mad at you, not really, you were just there for me to take it out on. And you're right, I don't trust him but I do trust you. I'd do anything for you, Haley, you know that. I don't want to lose you as a friend, even if that means I have to accept you being friends with Nathan." Lucas sighed. He still wasn't necessarily happy about Nathan but he knew he still needed Haley in his life and he was lucky she was willing to forgive him for lashing out so quickly.

All of Haley's anger dissipated and she ran over and hugged him. Lucas was like another sibling to her and she could never stay mad at him for long. She knew that the good far outweighed the bad in their friendship. "Thank you, Luke. That means so much to me." Haley paused, scared to see Lucas' reaction to her next statement. "You know, I think you Nathan would get along really well if you got to know each other."

"Easy there Haley, I said I'd accept you being his friend."

"I know, I know but you're both important to me and it would just be so much easier if you got along. Plus, the more time I spend with Nathan, the more similarities I see between you two." Lucas sighed. He could tell how much Haley wanted this but he honestly wasn't sure that him and Nathan would be able to work it out.

"I'm not promising friendship or anything, but I will talk to him. I agree that we need to come to some sort of understanding since we have you in common." Haley beamed ear to ear. She couldn't have asked for this to go better, everything was really going to be okay.

…

Dan is such a fucking bully. Nathan doesn't even want to call him dad. He puts so much pressure on this supposedly fun game that Nathan doesn't even enough. He scored 24 points, it isn't his fault the team lost. Screw everyone, the world sucks.

Yes, that awful attitude is the one Nathan had this Thursday morning. Unfortunately for those around him, Nathan has a bit of a temper problem. He doesn't think things through when he is upset, he just reacts. Unfortunately for him, it is quite easy to upset him.

So when that small, nerdy sixth grader bumped into him and knocked all his stuff on the ground when his day was already not off to a good start he didn't stop to think that it wasn't a big deal. "Watch where your going, bitch." He grunted.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it." The boy responded in squeaky voice.

"I'm sure you didn't, loser." Nathan said, rolling his eyes. "Just stay out of my way. In fact, get the hell out of here. " He kicked the kid's dropping book further down the hallway.

"'Hey, leave him alone! He didn't do anything wrong!" The boy's friend exclaimed. Nathan looked the girl up and down. She was naturally pretty but didn't make the impression of knowing how good she looked and showing it like Theresa did.

"Damn, Bill Nye, is this your girlfriend? Not bad, in fact if I didn't already have a hot cheerleader I'd say call me. Hey, if you ever realize you don't belong in the science lab, come hit me up." Nathan smirked. The girl looked back at him in complete disgusted. Haley had arrived in the hallway with Lucas a minute ago and couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Nathan, stop!" She scolded, running over and pulling him away from the two younger kids. "He is so sorry and so am I." She addressed them. They nodded their acceptance and quickly left. She looked back to Nathan who looked like he had just been taken out of a trance. She could tell he wasn't proud she saw that and she was glad. He shouldn't be happy with himself. "Nathan, what got into you? That was so rude, you were suck a jerk."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry." He sighed, running his hands over his face. "It's just not a good day and that kid just happened to be there for me to take it out on and-I'm just sorry. I gotta go, I need to clear my head and calm down before class." Haley nodded, still confused. Sure, he had been rude to her for like 30 seconds when they met but she had gotten to know such a sweet guy and didn't expect him to act like that. He did seem off though, like something was wrong but before she could check on him he was gone.

"Still think he is a nice guy?" Lucas whispered, walking up next to her.

"Everyone has off days, Luke. He made a mistake and he feels bad, that doesn't make him a horrible person." She justified, believing it more as she said it. Lucas put his hands up in surrender, not wanting to start another fight and the two headed to class.

…..

Haley was so excited. Today was her favorite event of math team all year long. It was the statewide math meet where they got to meet college professors and see a college campus and talk to students. This year they were going to UNC Charlotte. It was three and a half hours away from Tree Hill which meant that everyone on the math team had to miss school and they would stay in a hotel and come home tomorrow.

Haley wanted to room with Nathan at the hotel but the rooms were not allowed to be co-ed. Haley was sharing a room with Kaylie, her lab partner in science class, and Nathan was sharing with Connor, who he'd gotten to know because neither of them liked math and were both there because they needed extra practice.

"Hey, buddy," Nathan sat down in the bus seat next to Haley, pulling Haley from her thoughts. Nathan looked at her nervously, hoping she'd forgiven him for yesterday. Excitement was written all over her face and she smiled at him, good sign. "Someone's ready to go."

"Is it that obvious?" Nathan nodded. "Sorry, I just love colleges! I'm so excited to go to college when we are older. We get to meet new people and see new places and pursue our dreams!"

"Hales, don't apologize for being excited." Nathan laughed. Haley apologized all the time, it was like she couldn't even stop the word sorry from coming out of her mouth. "Just don't expect me to mirror that excitement." Haley smiled and nodded before allowing them to fall into a comfortable silence. It was early still and all the kids were tired so the bus remained quiet as the ride began, in fact several of the kids were asleep.

About an hour and a half into the ride Haley was getting bored of sitting listening to her music. She turned to talk to Nathan but realized he was staring at the floor, looking really pale. "Nathan, are you okay?" He gulped hard and nodded gently, not moving his gaze off the ground.

"Y-yeah," He replied, shakily. He felt his stomach roll again and shut his eyes. About 20 minutes ago he'd started to feel really warm and felt a lump in his throat. Then he got a headache and now his stomach was bothering him. It just kept getting worse and he was just hoping it would stop. He didn't want to tell anyone, he just wanted to pretend nothing was wrong and eventually it would go away.

"No, you're not," Haley sighed. "Come on, you can tell me what's wrong."

"I know." Nathan stated. He was annoyed that his walls fell so easily around Haley. He could and would tell her everything. He trusted her though and he felt safe talking to her which wasn't something he could say about everyone. "I'm just not feeling very good." Haley resisted the urge to correct his grammar and tell him he meant 'not feeling well'.

"Oh, okay. Well, how about you switch seats with me and we'll open the window a little. Maybe the fresh air will make you feel better." Nathan finally looked up at Haley but he didn't respond. Haley could tell he didn't really feel up to talking so she just reached up and opened the window slightly before standing up. Nathan took the cue to slide over into her spot and she sat back down in his.

She looked at him again. He was leaning back in the seat, his eyes closed, taking very deep breaths, and looking a little green. "Should I grab the trash can from the front of the bus?" Nathan nodded slowly. She walked up and grabbed it, telling Miss Hart that Nathan wasn't feeling well as she passed her and quickly returned to her friend.

"Nathan, have you ever gotten carsickness before?"

Nathan shook his head. "Why?"

"Well, it's pretty common and we've been on the bus for a while but I don't know why you would randomly start getting it."

"I've never really been in a long car ride, we usually fly anywhere that we go. Maybe I've just never been in a ride long enough?"

"That could be. I have medicine for it with me, actually. It couldn't hurt for you to try it, right?" She reached into her backpack and grabbed a small container. It was a pill, she'd just recently been able to swallow pills so she hoped Nathan would be able to because she wanted him to feel better. "It's a pill, is that okay?"

"Yeah, do you have any water?" Haley nodded and handed him her water bottle in addition to the medicine. He took it graciously and quickly. They sat in silence again, Haley occasionally glancing at Nathan to check on him. Nathan for the most part didn't move except for about 5 minutes after he took the medicine when he grabbed the trash can and held it in his lap. Haley felt terrible, she wasn't sure yet if the medicine would help or not because it hadn't been very long but she wanted to be able to make him instantly feel better.

"Okay," Nathan finally spoke about 10 minutes later. "I think it's working." He put the trash can back on the floor and turned to Haley. "Thanks, Hales. I'm really sorry about that."

"Look who's apologizing for things they don't need to now." Haley smiled. "It's fine, Nathan. I'm glad you're feeling better. Plus, it's good practice for when I become a pediatrician." Haley's face lit up at her last statement. She knew she was only in seventh grade and there was a chance what she wanted to do would change but she didn't think so. She loved helping people, she loved kids, she loved learning-and there certainly was a lot of that required to be a doctor.

"You want to be a pediatrician? That's cool. I bet you have your whole future planned." He joked.

"Oh, I do. I want to go to Duke undergrad because their students are super successful getting into med school and I'll probably just stay there for medical school. Then I'll start working and buy a house and get married and get a dog and then, when we're ready, have kids." Haley beamed. She was so excited about her future.

"That's cool. My dad wants me to go to Duke but I want to go to the University of Maryland and study exercise science. I want to be a trainer or physical therapist but my dad is set on the NBA. Don't get me wrong, I want to be in the NBA, but not for too long because I want to get married someday and there is so much travelling in the NBA so I figured once I retired I would work with athletes." Haley smiled at him. He had so much ambition and potential, if only Dan let him believe it.

"Look who has their future all planned out now," Haley joked. Nathan laughed, he liked to make fun of how much of a planner she was but he thought about the future a lot too. "For the record, I think your plan sounds great. I really hope it works out."

"Thanks, but it's not gonna happen. My dad is in charge. Even if I don't like it, that's the way it is and I don't see that changing." Nathan's radiant smile had faded to a look of regret he was far too young for. The kind of look older people get when they are telling you to take opportunities because they only come once and you can just tell they're talking from experience. Haley was about to respond but Nathan noticed and continued talking. "I'm pretty tired so I'm gonna try to sleep. Thanks for the medicine, Hales, you're a lifesaver."

He instantly laid back and turned away from her. She just stared at him, already drifting off. The more she heard about Dan, the more she worried about Nathan. She wanted to believe that he was a good dad, that even though he pushed Nathan he was looking out for him and would support him no matter what. She wanted so badly to believe it, she just wasn't sure she did. A few minutes later Miss Hart walked over. She looked into the seat to see Nathan curled up, facing the window and Haley looking at him as though he might just break.

"Hey Haley," Miss Hart greeted warmly, getting the young girl's attention. "Is he feeling better?"

"Yeah, it was just a little motion sickness. He said he feels a lot better, just tired." Haley reassured Miss Hart, grabbing the trash can off the ground and handing it to her to return to the front of the bus.

"Good. Alright, I'll leave you two alone, I just wanted to make sure she was okay." Miss Hart turned to return to her seat. She had needed to check on Nathan to make sure she didn't need to contact a parent but since he was asleep she just wanted to give the kid peace.

"Okay isn't the word I'd use." Haley muttered once Miss Hart was out of earshot.

….

Lucas was walking towards the river court when he noticed someone was already there. A kid his age with dark hair was standing at the free throw line, holding a ball but not taking a shot. Huh, since his talk with Haley last week Lucas had been wondering when he would be able to talk to Nathan. Turns out that time is now. "Nathan?" Lucas called out.

Nathan turned and looked at Lucas. "Listen, I know you come here a lot but you don't own the court. I'm just shooting around, okay?"

"Doesn't look like it." Lucas retorted. He could help himself. He knew he should have said he just wanted to talk but something about Nathan just really pushed his buttons. Nathan just scowled. He didn't feel like a fight right now, he was well aware he hadn't taken a shot. He just couldn't bring himself to. "Nathan, I'm not here to argue with you. I just want to talk."

"How did you know I'd be here?" Genuine confusion was clear on Nathan's face. He had only come here a handful of times in his entire life.

"I didn't. I thought I'd have to talk to you at school but this is better." Nathan shrugged, walking over to the picnic table and sat down.

"Okay what do you want to talk about?" Lucas was too lost in his shock of seeing Nathan here to comprehend the question.

"Why didn't you just play with your hoop at home?" Lucas couldn't stop himself from asking.

"None of your goddamn business." Nathan muttered before repeating his question. "What did you want to talk about?" Lucas took a deep breath, reminding himself that Haley had said this jerk was different with her, not as cold and closed off.

"Haley. Listen, man, she really wants us to get along. She thinks we could be friends which I think is pushing it because we hate each other's guts but I'm willing to be tolerant of each other if you are. I swear though if you hurt her you will pay." Lucas' voice was deep and intense at the end and Nathan knew that he was trying to intimidate him. It almost made him laugh. He lived with Dan Scott, he wasn't easy to intimidate.

"I'm not going to hurt her, Lucas. She's a good friend and I don't want to lose that…and I don't hate you. I thought I did. I guess I was just jealous, you don't have to hear him compare us or question I he made the right choice, you don't have to deal with his constant yelling. Plus, your mom is around and seems nice and supportive. I hated that I don't have that. Also, you were kind of an ass to me too so it just escalated."

Lucas struggled to take this all in. Nathan was jealous of him? Never had he expected that. Lucas was the one without a father, he was the one who was abandoned and somehow Nathan wanted his life. Lucas didn't even want to talk about how many time he had thought about what it would be like to be in Nathan's place, he just never thought it went both ways.

"I think maybe Haley was right, we do have some stuff in common." Nathan just nodded. Lucas could tell he didn't know where they were supposed to go from here and the feeling was mutual. "So, um, do you know Brooke Davis?" Lucas tried to transition to a lighter topic.

"Yeah, I've been friends with Brooke since we were like seven, why?"

"Do you think she would like me? Like, you know…"

"Oh, she'd definitely like you. She has an obsession with blondes. I gotta warn you though, Brooke loves flirting and all that but she thinks relationships are a one way track to misery so don't expect to date." Lucas was taken back by Nathan's answer. He had thought of Brooke as someone who was probably a hopeless romantic. It wasn't what he was expecting but he didn't care. He was in middle school, he didn't need a relationship, just hanging out with Brooke would be fine.

Lucas wasn't responding to Nathan. He was just sitting there, thinking, in silence. Nathan shifted uncomfortably. Should he leave? Should he talk? Did they like talk about things now? "Uh…" Nathan cleared his throat loudly. He looked at the basketball still in his hands, it felt so natural that he'd even forgotten it was there. "Do you…wanna play a little?"

Lucas' eyes quickly moved from his intense staring contest with the ground to Nathan to the basketball. "Sure. If you can handle losing."

"Yeah, you wish." Nathan chuckled.

As he expected, Nathan won. He did play with the high schoolers. Lucas impressed him though, once they were in high school the Ravens would be unstoppable.

…

Haley hadn't been able to stop worrying about Nathan since they got home from the math trip Saturday. She knew Nathan was tough and that he had handled his parents for his entire life but she didn't think he should have to put up with it. It was Monday now but there was a superintendent's conference day so they didn't have school. She was sitting in the living room, playing a board game with Quinn when the home phone rang. Haley got up to get it.

"Hello?"

"Hey Hales, it's me. Can you come over?" Nathan.

"Yeah, is everything okay?" He sounded very different. She couldn't explain it, his voice just seemed…empty.

"Everything's fine. I just wanna talk to you."

"Okay, sure. I'll be right over." Haley hung up the phone and walked back to Quinn, who was looking at her curiously.

"Is everything okay?"

"I think so. That was Nathan, he wanted me to come over so he could talk to me. Tell mom I'll be back for dinner." Haley grabbed her jean jacket and slipped on her sneakers while she was talking, leaving so quickly she almost couldn't hear Quinn yell 'bye', her voice laced with amusement.

Haley had the route to Nathan's house memorized despite having only gone there two other times. The Scott family had a lot of money and their house was large and beautiful but Nathan said he preferred her house. He said it was more welcoming. It took her about 15 minutes to walk to Nathan's. The houses got farther apart the closer she got and soon she was looking and the basketball hoop in the Scott's driveway. There were no cars there so she was assuming Nathan was home alone. Haley rings the doorbell. After a minute there is no response. Haley rings it again, standing awkwardly on the porch.

Nathan opened the door hesitantly. He knew what Haley would say as soon as he did. He saw Haley's eyes widen and her mouth open. "I fell off my bike early. I know it looks bad but it honestly doesn't hurt that much." Haley released a breath she didn't know she was holding as she nodded. The last thing she had expected was for Nathan to have a split lip and bruised face.

"Is this why you called me over?" Haley asked as Nathan moved to let her into the house.

"No, there are a few things I wanted to talk about." Nathan guided her towards the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Do you want anything?"

"Water, please." Nathan grabbed two water bottles and tossed one to her. She caught it and he smiled gently. The first few times he had thrown things to her they had fallen on the ground but Haley quickly realized a friendship with Nathan was slowly but surely improving her athleticism. He was in athlete mode at all times, he couldn't turn it off. Haley sat down on a stool at the island.

"So," Nathan leaned against the counter. "I talked to Lucas yesterday. Seems like you two are doing good since he wants to be friendly with me now." Nathan raised his eyebrows. It wasn't until then that Haley realized she had only talked to Lucas about the two of them getting along and not Nathan because…well, Nathan had never made the conversation necessary.

"Yeah, I may have asked him to do that. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, it's just you're both so important to me that I thought it would be easier if you guys talked it out. Plus, you have so much in common, I just know you could be close." Nathan could sense the urgency and panic in Haley's babbling. She always talked a lot but especially if she was uncomfortable or nervous.

"Haley, it's okay. I'm glad you two made up, I wanted you to, remember? Lucas did a good thing. He was better than I expected and I think we'll get along but don't get your hopes up for much more." Nathan spoke with heart wrenching sincerity. She could tell he wanted to make her happy but she could also tell he was still not sold on the idea of spending time with Lucas. Neither of the brothers could be expected to be any other way, there was a lot of history there.

"I appreciate both of you making an effort and I will try to keep my expectations reasonable." Haley stated with a bright smile.

"Yeah, you'll try. But you won't. You wouldn't be Haley if you didn't imagine the absolute best possible outcome." Nathan paused momentarily. He took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself for the next conversation they were going to have. The main reason he called her. Should he ease into it or just come out and say it? "So, uh, I went to a party at Theresa's last night." Really?

"Oh yeah? How was that?"

"It was awesome. Lots of fun. Would have been more for with you though." Nathan rambled awkwardly. Haley laughed.

"Yeah, right. Roy, you know I love hanging out with you, but I don't want to watch you and Theresa make out."

"Hales, it's not like that."

"So you didn't make out with her?"

"Well yeah but…okay, that was not the point!" Nathan wasn't sure if he was purposely stalling or just bad at staying on track.

"This had a point?"

"Hales, she's um…she's jealous of you. She thinks you like me and that we spend too much time together." Nathan hesitantly told her. He was hoping Haley would know what to do, she was smart like that. She handled people well. He didn't.

"Nathan, if you can't hang out with me anymore-"

"No, Haley, I don't want that, okay? I mean, maybe in front of Theresa we could dial it back because I don't want her to feel bad but I'd never just abandon you. I was just thinking maybe you could talk to her…you know, tell her that there is now way you would like me that way and that we are just good friends?" Haley smiled. She didn't want to admit that she truly did think that's where this was going. She was nerdy and awkward and Nathan was popular and fun.

"Oh, okay I could try. I don't know if Theresa will listen, no offense Nathan but the popular kids aren't very nice to me."

"I'm nice to you, aren't I?"

"Yeah, now. But you weren't at first…"

"I know," Nathan looked at the floor, unable to make eye contact with Haley. "I'm really sorry, Haley. I'm working on it."

"I know you are," Haley grabbed Nathan's hand supportively as he looked up at her. "Nathan, it's okay to still be growing from who you were. It takes time and I can tell you want to." She could see guilt plastered on Nathan's face. She knew he felt bad about what happened in the hallway Thursday still. She could also see his confusion at the idea of mistakes being okay and it broke her heart but she knew he appreciated it and that he believed her and that's what matters. "Do you want to have dinner at my house tonight?"

"Yeah, sound good. Thanks Haley." Nathan no longer asked if he was welcome or if her parents would care. Recently he would go to the James' quite often when Dan worked longer and wasn't home for dinner. Lydia and Jimmy liked him and accepted him in as though he was family, it was very clear they liked to have a full house.

….

"Mom, I'm home! And I brought Roy!" Haley exclaimed, closing the front door. Her mother yelled her hello from the kitchen and the two kids followed the sound.

"That's it. Mrs. James, what's Haley's middle name?" Nathan smirked evilly.

"Bob."

"MOM! Why would you tell him? It's so embarrassing!" Haley scolded, horrified that her mother had so easily revealed information she had purposely kept from Nathan.

"Well, I think it's a good middle name. That's why I gave it to you, Haley-bob." Her mom stated, looking slightly defeated. Haley sighed, she hadn't meant to make her mom feel bad about the name she'd chosen.

"I agree. It's a great name, Bobby." Nathan smiled at Haley with fake sweetness and Haley guilt faded. Oh yeah, that's why she didn't want him to know. She opened her mouth to reply but he cut her off. "Oh, no. You don't get to complain. You call me Roy all the time."

"That's your middle name, Nate? I always wondered where she got that from." Quinn questioned, joining them in the kitchen.

"Actually, his middle name is Royal." Haley responded. Quinn raised her eyebrows at the name and Nathan rolled his eyes.

"I hate you."

"Back at you."

Both were being completely sarcastic. What they were feeling is far from hate.

Sorry for any typos, I didnt proofread very well. Let me know what you think!