Chapter 3

The front door of Lucas and Peytons house was wide open so Nathan just wandered right in knowing that he didn't need to knock here.

"Luuuke? Anybody here?" he called peering into the lounge and seeing some suitcases but not finding any one.

Continuing through the house and finding no one he was puzzled as to why the door would be wide open if, like it seemed, nobody was home. He headed down the hall toward the kitchen when suddenly out of nowhere a little shape came hurtling at him.

"Uncle Nathan", the hurtling shape shrieked as Nathan grunted from the impact of his youngest nephew Larry jumping onto his shoulders. Larry, who was named after his maternal grandfather, was the spitting image of his mother, from the springy hair to the tiny frame with her green eyes to top it off.

He hoisted the small boy onto his back. Piggy backing his nephew and chattering to him in 4 year old banter he found his sister-in-law on the deck sketching while keeping an eye on her 6 year old daughter Penny playing in the sandpit. Unlike her brother, Penny, who was named for her godmother Brooke, looked more like the Scott side of the family and while she still possessed her mothers curly hair, it was dark brown and her eyes startlingly blue.

Letting his nephew down he smiled and watched him run over to play with his sister in the sandbox.

"Hey Peyt"

"Hi" she said turning to Nathan who had settled into a deckchair. "What's up?"

"Nothing really, just looking for Luke. He around?"

"Nope he's at his moms."

He nodded. "Oh Yeah, What's with the suitcases in the lounge?" he asked curiously.

"Brooke didn't call you? Ephraim's back."

Nathan grinned, thinking about the boy that he had helped his friend Brooke raise. When Haley left, Nathan couldn't handle Olivia on his own, so her godmother Brooke had moved in with them to help out. Ephraim was 4 when Brooke adopted him and he came to live with them. Even though Brooke and Nathan were never together the four made a bond pretty much like that of an average family. Ephraim and Ollie grew up like brother and sister, but also like best friends.

When Brooke moved out 6 years later to move in with her boyfriend Chase, they didn't see Ephraim as much then and they saw him even less when he and his mom moved to New York with his new step dad. They had kept in contact though.

Even though Ephraim and Nathan couldn't be more different, he had missed the boy, and was thrilled to hear he was back.

"Yeah he showed up last night and crashed on the couch. Brooke rang this morning and explained everything, said she wants him to stay in Tree Hill for school." Peyton told him.

"So he's staying for good? Where's he staying? "

"Well I figured he'd want to move back in with you. He can stay here if you want though."

"You don't mind if he doesn't stay?" Peyton was his godmother and even though Nathan was his godfather, he thought she should get to make the decision.

"Nate, Between having 3 young kids to look after and running Tric, as much as I want to I don't exactly have the time to be looking after a another kid. Especially if its a teenager."

Nathan chuckled, "True, I've got to call Ollie. She's gonna be so excited."

Peyton watched as Nathan pulled out his phone to call his daughter with a genuinely excited smile on his face. She knew things had been hard for him over the past 15 years and she was proud of what her once arrogant jerk high school boyfriend had become. Smiling to her self she sent a motherly glance over to her kids who were still content in the sandbox and then went back to her sketching.

Ephraim was looking at her like she was insane. Currently she was excitedly shrieking into her phone and jumping up and down like a madman. When the excited noises finally came to an end Ollie snapped her phone shut and turned to face him.

"What?" she said noticing his expression, he looked like he was trying not to laugh.

Ephraim smirked amusedly, "Nothing. Who was that?"

She took a seat next to him on the river court bleachers, "That was dad".

"And?" He prompted, knowing that there was more.

"He said that if you wanted to, since you're staying for school and everything. And you used to live with us so your old rooms still there. Well, he said that if you wanted too, you could move back." The words had come out in a quick blur, with words stumbling over each other as she rushed to get them out .

Not completely sure he had even heard her correctly he asked, "Your dad says I can move in?"

"Yeah." She looked at him hopefully. "Will you?"

"Hmm," he mocked pretending to think about it for a long while noticing her get more and more impatient. "I think I just might."

Then he went back to looking at her like she was insane, because once again she was excitedly jumping up and down like a mad man.

"You ready for this Haley?"

Haley glanced up to the person who had just spoken, her make up artist Nina, the closest person she'd had to a friend in the last 15 years. Unless you counted Chris of course, and Haley really didn't.

"Yeah Nina. I'm fine with the singing, I'm just kind of nervous I'm telling the world I'm leaving."

"Well, I think that if you really want and believe in something enough then it usually turns out right."

"I really do want this."

"Then you'll be just fine." The make up artist said while applying the finishing touches to Haley's face.

The two women heard a knock on the door to the dressing room. "Haley James on in 5." said a voice from the other side.

"It's time" Haley sighed as she got up and left the changing room flashing a nervous look to Nina, receiving a reassuring one in return before she exited to make her way on stage. To say she was nervous was one thing but even through the nerves she knew that she was making the right decision. She just wished it hadn't taken her so many years to figure it out.

After spending about ten minutes calming Ollie down, the two teenagers were finally on their way to Peyton and Luke's to meet Nathan.

"So why'd you decide to come back?" Ollie asked figuring this was a good time to ask, considering there was no way for him to avoid her questions.

"I dunno, its just feels like home I guess. I mean Mom and Chase are great but I just missed it here, plus mom wanted me to go to her old school. Now, I've got a question for you." He grinned with a thoughtful look on his face, "Do you still play?

"What kind of questions that? What do you mean do I play? Like Basketball?"

"No." He groaned. "I know that no Scott would ever fully stop playing basketball. That'd be like a sign of the apocalypse or something. I mean do you still play the guitar and sing?

"Ohh, yeah, I guess, not as much as i used to though" she nodded and raised her eyebrows, " Rai, Is that seriously the only question of the last 5 years that you could come up with?"

"No, I did actually have a reason behind it," he said slyly not giving much away.

"Oh really and what would that be?" Ollie asked sarcastically, thinking that he was just trying to make up an excuse, she was surprised when he continued.

"Well, last night I was talking to Peyton and she said that she had a surprise star performer set up for Tric, but the lead singer of the opening band got Laryngitis or something and they bailed. And well I was thinking we could play in the opening for her."

"Ephraim, the last time we played together was in the garage when we were like 10. It's a little different."

"Yeah I know but we both kept up with playing and we have some time to practice. Before you say no can I at least tell you who were opening for? Peyt said we can't tell anyone though because it's one of those surprise performances celebrities do for small town benefits or something."

Curiosity getting the better of her Ollie agreed, "OK tell me."

"OK. We, if you agree, will be opening for, Haley James!"

Not having any idea what she was really getting herself in for Olivia Scott excitedly said two words, "I'm in."