A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews. And thanks to my beta: Leeese.
Chapter Thirteen
Soon, Nathan and Haley arrived at the house. Haley was relieved to see that her mother's car was the only one in the driveway. She wasn't in the mood to hang out with all of her siblings. If she could choose, she would just have Quinn at the house.
Nathan couldn't help but notice how decorated the front of the house was with Christmas lights on the roof and a blown up Santa and reindeer on the front lawn. Nathan couldn't help smiling at those lawn decorations. "That's cute."
"My parents love decorating the house for the holidays," Haley told him. They headed up to the porch when Haley suddenly stopped him. "My parents don't know about my arrest. So I would appreciate it if you don't say anything about it." Nathan nodded understandingly. "And I know you are a dog person. And that's good since my parents are crazy about dogs too, especially golden retrievers. So don't be surprised when we're ambushed by them when we get into the house, ok?"
"How many dogs are you talking about?" Nathan asked. Haley didn't answer as she stepped onto the porch. Nathan followed her as they started to hear a lot of barking on the other side of the door. Haley rang the doorbell and they patiently waited for someone to answer it.
Lydia then came to the door and greeted them. She gestured them to come in as she tried to keep the three golden retrievers away, one of which was a puppy. She embraced her daughter in a hug as Quinn tried to calm the dogs down. Like Jewel, they were hostile to the stranger at first. The female dog and the puppy soon warmed up to him. However, the male dog was still a little wary of him.
Haley then introduced Nathan to the dogs. "That's Sadie. She's Jewel's sister," she told him as he petted one of the dogs. The puppy was running around with excitement. "The one with all of the energy is Simba."
"Like from the movie The Lion King?" Nathan asked her as he played with the puppy. Haley nodded. "I can see why. He definitely wants to be king of the house." He then looked at the last dog. "So who is this one?"
"That is Hercules," Quinn replied. "You have to be careful of him. He's very protective of the family."
Lydia gave him a comforting smile. "Don't worry about him." She then changed the subject. "Do you mind if the grand tour is after we sit down and eat?" she asked Nathan. Haley couldn't help but notice that her mother seemed livelier now that she knew her husband was doing better.
Nathan shook his head. "No, I don't mind."
"Then follow me to the dining room. Lunch is ready to be served." She led her guests into the room. "I hope you like turkey sandwiches." She then turned to her youngest daughter for a moment. "I also made your favorite meal."
Haley gave her a grateful smile. "Mom, you didn't have to do that," she said as they sat down at the table. Nathan gave her a confused look. "I just love macaroni and cheese. It's Food of the Gods."
"I'll keep that in mind," Nathan replied as he sat down across from her. They then started eating their lunch. "This turkey sandwich is delicious, Mrs. James."
Lydia gave him a smile. "I'm glad you like it. And I have cookies for dessert. So you can take some home for your brother. He likes cookies, right?" she asked. Nathan nodded. "Good. It's settled then. You're taking some cookies home."
"Is everything ok with you and Lucas now?" Quinn asked. "Haley told me that you two were having a few problems." She hoped that she wasn't being too nosy by asking, but she was curious.
Nathan nodded again. "Yeah, we had a nice talk about it. And I realized that I shouldn't be the parent all of the time. Lucas needs a brother too."
"Well, it's certainly more fun being a friend than a parent," Lydia replied. "But the best part is when you're a grandparent. Then your job is just to relax and spoil your grandchildren like crazy." She then looked from one daughter to another. "By the way, there is no rush on that. I know you two aren't even close to taking that trip down the aisle." She then turned to Haley and added, "Especially you, Haley Bob."
Nathan turned to his friend, confused. "Your middle name is Bob?"
Haley turned red. "Yeah, I was named after their stubborn cat. And that's all I want to say about that." She then turned to her mother. "So does Taylor know about Dad?" she asked. "I didn't see her at the hospital."
Her mother nodded. "Yes, but you know how your sister hates hospitals. So I told her that she didn't have to go if she didn't want to." Haley just rolled her eyes. She wasn't surprised that her mom would allow Taylor to stay home. She always seemed to get away with more things than any of the other siblings. "And I promised her that I would keep her updated about your father."
Quinn knew that it was best to change the subject. "So what's been going on in Tree Hill lately?" she asked her sister. "I haven't heard from you since last week."
"I've been sick all week so Nathan took over my classes," Haley replied. "This was the first day I've felt good enough to get out of bed."
"You should have said something," Lydia said. "I could have come and taken care of you."
Haley gave her mother a grateful smile. "Thanks, Mom, but I didn't want to be a burden. Besides, Nathan stopped by every day to check in on me."
Lydia gave Nathan a wide smile. "Thank you for looking after my daughter. That was very kind of you."
Nathan smiled proudly. "Well, it would have been Lucas, but I didn't want him to get sick during finals week. I wanted him to concentrate so he could get good grades. After all, he is going to need them to be able to get into Duke University."
Haley turned to him surprised. "Lucas wants to go to Duke?"
Nathan frowned. "Didn't I tell you?" he asked. He then realized why he wasn't able to tell her. "That's right. He just told me this morning. He wants to figure out what he wants to do before he goes off and gets married."
"Good for him," Lydia replied as Nathan and Haley turned to her. "He's too young to get married." Her daughters both shot her a look. "Your father and I were living in a different generation than you two. It was ok for us to get married at eighteen."
Quinn tried not to smile as she spoke. "I thought you did it just to annoy your parents."
Lydia laughed. "Well, we did that too. But my point is that you shouldn't marry until you believe that you're ready for that longtime commitment."
Nathan sighed. "I've tried telling Lucas that many times. I'm just glad that he has finally gotten the message before it was too late."
After lunch, Haley started to give Nathan the tour of her decorated house when he noticed the piano in the corner of the living room. He had noticed it before when he had first walked in, but he hadn't had a chance to really look at it until now. Haley looked at the old piano proudly. "I know it's not a grand piano, but it serves its purpose."
"Do you play?" Nathan asked. "Or do you only sing?"
"Actually, I can do both," Haley replied. "I took piano lessons when I was little."
"I would love to hear you play a song," Nathan replied. Haley pretended not to hear him. "Come on. We're here at the piano. You might as well prove to me that you can do two things at once."
Haley sighed. She finally gave in. "Alright. I'll play one song," she replied as she sat down on the piano bench. "Any requests?" she asked him as she gave him the Christmas carol song book. Nathan quickly skimmed through the book before he chose 'Silent Night'. Haley agreed and started playing the song.
Nathan just watched her fondly as she sung the words. He could tell that she was really into it. He gently clapped when she was done with the song. "That was even better than the 'Twelve Days of Christmas'."
Haley turned red at his words. "Thank you," she replied. There was an awkward silence before her mother and sister came into the room. She was quiet as her mother started bragging to Nathan about her. She then knew that it would be a long afternoon. However, she noticed Nathan smiling at her and she couldn't help but smile back.
"Haley, could I speak to you in the kitchen for a moment?" Quinn asked. Haley nodded, a little concerned. She followed her sister into the kitchen. "Did you know that you blushed when Nathan gave you a compliment?"
Haley gave her a look. "I was not blushing." She tried to think of the right excuse. "I was embarrassed about my singing." Quinn wasn't convinced. Haley quickly changed the subject to Julian. She told her about the conversation that she had with him earlier. She shook her head in disbelief. "Can you believe that he came all this way to ask me if I would take him back? I'm still trying to get over him."
Quinn just gave her a smile. "It looks like you're already over him."
Haley knew that her sister was teasing her. However, she was being serious. "I know you said that I should get back in the dating game, but it won't be with Nathan. It can't be with him. We're neighbors, not to mention coworkers. It wouldn't be right. And we are both dealing with some issues right now. He is still trying to deal with Lucas's rebellion phrase. And he and his wife just got separated." Quinn gave her a confused look. "Yeah, Nathan found out that Rachel was lying to him and kicked her out of the house."
Quinn sighed. "Boy, that's not going to be easy for their child to deal with that."
Haley didn't speak for a moment. She knew better than to tell her too much of Nathan's personal business. She decided to keep her mouth shut for now. She had been causing too much damage with it lately. She went back into the living room. Quinn was right behind her.
Haley went over to Nathan and her mother, who was still telling stories about her. She hated to interrupt her, but she felt that it was necessary. "Mom, it's been fun, but I think Nathan and I should get back to Tree Hill."
Lydia nodded understandingly. "Let me go and gather your cookies." She then quickly left the room and headed back to the kitchen.
Quinn knew that this was the perfect opportunity to take pictures. "I'll go and get my camera," she added. Haley sighed, knowing that it was going to be several minutes before they could leave.
Once they were finally let go, Nathan said his good-byes before he waited for Haley. He knew that she would take a little longer. She embraced her sister in a tight hug before going over to her mother. Lydia gave her a wide smile. "I'm sure this will give you an excuse to visit us more often."
Haley nodded. "I'll do my best." She then embraced her mother in a tight hug before following Nathan to the car. She slid in the passenger's seat as Nathan started the car. "Do you mind if we stop by and see my dad one last time?" she asked him as she buckled her seatbelt. Nathan nodded in agreement.
Lucas was sitting down in a chair at the food court. He had had a long afternoon of Christmas shopping and was ready to head home. He had wanted to look for gifts earlier, but he had been so busy with finals that he didn't have time for anything else. He was actually glad that he had focused on finals. It made him forget about his troubles with Lindsey. He had decided to wait until after the holidays to tell Lindsey about his decision. He had a feeling that she wouldn't take it well. And he didn't want to ruin the holidays for her.
He looked in his bags to make sure that he didn't forget anybody besides Haley and his niece or nephew. He knew that they would be harder to search for. Even though Ms. James was his teacher, he didn't care. He wanted to get her a gift. After all, she was his friend.
After checking his bags, he got up from his chair and headed towards the nearest exit. He was about to leave when he decided to try one more store to look for Ms. James's present. However, he didn't want to drag the bags that he already had with him. So he decided to go back to the car and put the bags in the trunk before going back to the store.
A few minutes later, Lucas was in the store. He wandered around as he looked at the Christmas items on the shelves. He then noticed Brooke doing the same thing. He was surprised to see her. He hadn't seen her much outside of school. He went to greet her. However, she backed away from him and disappeared into another aisle. He frowned, wondering why she had done that. He then figured it was because she was afraid that he was going to ask questions about Haley's arrest.
He decided to let Brooke go and kept looking for the perfect gift. He then smiled to himself as he spotted a few Christmas angels. He looked at the angels for a few moments before he chose one that he thought she would like. He then went to the checkout counter and waited his turn.
Just as he was about to walk to the cashier, he heard a commotion behind him. He turned around and saw a store employee chasing Brooke out of the store. Lucas quickly excused himself and hurried past the annoyed employee. "I'll get her," he promised before he hurried to catch up with her.
Lucas knew that he had to be fast. There were a lot of people around and he knew that he could easily lose her in the crowd. He kept an eye on her and watched to see where she went. He saw that she slowed down in her running once she saw that the employee wasn't following her anymore. Lucas then realized that she didn't know that he was. He knew that he could use this to his advantage. He followed her to the restrooms and then waited patiently for her to come back out.
It seemed like hours, but Brooke finally emerged from the bathroom. She didn't even notice Lucas until he spoke. "You know, this is the second time you ran away from me in one day."
"I didn't even know you were following me," Brooke replied before she started to walk away from him. However, Lucas was able to catch up with her. "Why are you following me anyway?"
"Because I told the store clerk that I was going to return whatever you shoplifted from that store," Lucas replied, hoping Brooke would stop and give him back the stolen item.
His hopes were dashed when Brooke continued walking. "What a good Samaritan you are," she muttered. She then turned back for a moment as she spoke to him. "And I would have thought you would love doing this type of stuff. I hear you do it all the time."
Lucas knew she had a point. "To be fair, I hear rumors about you doing the same thing. I guess you just proved that those rumors are true. I was hoping that it wasn't because I would then know that the rumors about Ms. James aren't true."
Brooke froze in place before she angrily turned to him. "That is none of your business."
"I know it's not, but I don't want Ms. James to take the fall for something that she didn't do," Lucas replied. Before Brooke could respond, he spoke up again. "And I don't think you do either. You're just too afraid to speak up."
Brooke was quiet for a moment. She then handled Lucas the stolen item before she disappeared into the crowd. Lucas let out a heavy sigh. He was hoping that he would be able to get her to open up. However, she was still just as quiet and secretive as she has been. He wanted to follow her again, but he knew that he should get back to the store.
After returning the item to a store clerk, he bought the angel for Haley. He then decided to head back home. As he drove home, he couldn't help but think about Brooke. He felt guilty for not knowing her better, but it wasn't his fault. They weren't in the same circle of friends. He wanted to know more about her though. He had a strange feeling that she needed help.
When he arrived home, he was surprised to see Lindsey standing on the front porch. He frowned, wondering what she was doing there. He parked the car in the driveway as Lindsey walked over to him. He turned off the engine and climbed out of the car. "Was I supposed to meet you somewhere?" he asked her.
Lindsey shook her head. "No, I wanted to see you. I'm sorry I didn't call first, but I thought you were going to stay home and watch Ms. James's dog."
Lucas gave her a smile. "It's ok. I was, but I then decided to go Christmas shopping." Lindsey looked at him interested. Lucas knew what she wanted, but he wasn't going to spoil the surprise. "And I'm not going to tell you what I got you. You're just going to have to wait and find out when we exchange gifts."
"Do you want to do it here or Colorado?" Lindsey asked him. Lucas gave her a confused look. His girlfriend couldn't contain her excitement any longer. "I convinced my mom to bring you along for our winter vacation. Isn't that great?" she asked. Lucas was quiet for a moment. She noticed the disappointed look on his face. "You don't want to go, do you?"
Lucas sighed. "I would love to go, but Nathan really needs me right now. He is dealing with some issues with Rachel. And I want to make sure he knows that he has some support from his family."
Lindsey decided to keep trying. "I think he knows that already. Is this what it will be like when we get married? I'll be forced to go to your side of the family every holiday?"
Lucas stopped her right there. "We need to talk about that." Lindsey looked at him curious. "I don't think it's a good idea that we get married right after high school." He held his breath as he waited for the fireworks.
Lindsey raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Are you serious? I thought you couldn't wait to get out of your brother's house and start our life together. Now you're telling me that you don't want to get emancipated or marry me?"
"I never said either one," Lucas quickly reminded her. "I just said that I don't want to marry right out of high school. I want to go to college and see what I want to do with my life." Lindsey scoffed at him. "Why do you want to get married so badly anyway? What's the rush? Why can't you wait until after college?"
"Because that's too long for me," Lindsey replied. "A lot can change in four years including our relationship."
Lucas knew that was true. "That doesn't mean that it won't work out." Lindsey didn't answer. "Look, maybe we need some time apart to think about things. We'll exchange presents before you leave. And then we'll talk about this again when you get back from your trip."
Lindsey was still quiet. She then finally agreed. They embraced in a tight hug before they said their good-byes. Lucas hated to admit it, but he had a feeling that the break wouldn't help their relationship; it would end it. However, he was going to remain positive as much as he could. He pushed the thought of breaking up out of his mind as he opened the trunk and pulled out the bags. He had some wrapping to do.
