Author's Note: Hey guys! Here's Chapter 19 of In the Presence of an Angel! It has lots of drama so beware! Well, I won't bore you with excuses about why this is a little late. But I will say that I have decided that I will update this story every other week because I have two stories out and I will update this story one week and The Sweetest Sin the next week and so on. Sorry to make you guys wait so long for chapters, but I think this is the most efficient way to do this. If I get a chapter done early, I'll post it, which I know you all will be just dying to want another chapter as soon as you read this one. Well, without further ado, here's Chapter 19! I hope you like it! As always, please read and review!
Disclaimer: I own nothing. One Tree Hill and its characters are property of the WB. The song 'Sometimes' is owned by Britney Spears, her record company, or whoever.
Rating: PG to PG-13
In the Presence of An Angel
Chapter 19
"Oh! And James steals the ball from Lucas Scott and dribbles up the court towards the basket. This next shot could make or break the game for one team, ladies and gentlemen. If Haley James makes this next shot, she will have beaten Lucas Scott! Quite a feat around this little basketball court, I may tell you, quite a feat! She goes up and… she slam dunks it in, ladies and gentlemen! Wow! This girl's on fire today! Now let's go talk with Miss James and see what she has to say about her performance today," Mouth commentated as he walked over to Haley, who was wiping her forehead with a towel.
Just as Mouth was about to ask her some questions, Haley yelled, "Hey Luke? Isn't that like the third time I've beat you today? You must be losing your touch or maybe I'm just better than you." She grinned as she bragged about her win. Lucas grabbed the ball and shook his head, "No, I'm still a little sore from all the damage you did to me a few days ago." "Sure, you keep telling yourself that Luke," Haley smirked.
"So Haley, any comments on the game just now," Mouth asked as he brought the tape recorder near her face. "Well, it's not really much of a feat anymore. It's actually become quite a habit. I just don't think that Luke has it in him anymore. He's too dispirited by being beaten by a girl so many times," Haley smiled sweetly as she looked back at him. "Lucas, would you like to say anything," he inquired as he moved to the blonde. "No comment," he grumbled as he went to grab his towel and bag.
"Aww, c'mon Luke, stop being such a spoil sport. If you cheer up, I'll buy you an ice cream cone," Haley offered as she wrapped an arm around her friend's shoulders. "Ooh, with M & M's, sprinkles, nuts, and two cherries on top," he asked excitedly like a little kid in a candy shop. "Gee Luke, don't you think you already have enough crushed nuts," Haley asked with a smirk and a snort of laughter as Lucas choked on the water he'd been drinking. He wiped the water from his chin and stared at her for a moment before he grinned devilishly. "Run," he stated simply, "because you are so going to get it." Haley laughed and took off running as she waved goodbye to Mouth, Skills, and Fergie, Lucas hot on her heels.
"So, you and Brooke have gotten pretty close lately," Lucas remarked as he licked his ice cream cone. "Yeah, she's a really great friend," Haley responded with sort of a fake smile, wishing she could tell her best friend about her relationship with Brooke. "Better than me," he asked cockily with a hand to his chest, an unbelieving expression on his face. "Of course not, you're my bestest friend in the whole wide world Lukey," Haley said in a childish voice as she wrapped her arms around his neck. 'She's my best friend and my girlfriend, but you're my best, best friend. I've known you almost my whole life; I can tell you things I can't tell her. I just can't tell you about us…' Haley thought, sadness and guilt creeping in.
"Aww, thanks. I love you too Hales. You're my best friend too," he patted her back. They finished their cones and made their way outside of the ice cream shop. "So, what do you want to do next," he asked, swinging the duffel bag over his shoulder. "I um, I'm kind of tired. You know, from the basketball game. I think I'm gonna go and take a nap…" she saw the sad expression befall his face. "Oh, okay. I'll see you later, Hales," he turned and began to walk away. She reached out and gently grabbed his arm, "Luke please, I would love to hang out with you some more but I'm really tired. I stayed up all night studying for a test I have tomorrow morning. Tell you what, pick a day, any day this week, and I'm yours, okay? We'll go do something fun, but no tattoos and no booze," she grinned. He smiled too, "Okay, bye Hales," he gave her a one-armed hug then jogged off down the street, bouncing his basketball.
Haley sighed; she hated lying to her best friend, but she really wanted to see Brooke; she missed her. Haley walked home and when she entered the house, she heard singing from down the hall; her bedroom. She quietly stood in the doorway as she watched Brooke sing to some upbeat pop song as she danced around the room. Once the song was over, Haley started clapping loudly and Brooke spun around, a hand to her chest, "Oh my god! Haley!" Brooke breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was her girlfriend and slowly walked over to her, embracing her in a hug, whispering in her ear, "Crazy girl, what are you doing to my heart?"
Haley wrapped her arms around Brooke's waist and buried her head in the crook of her neck, breathing in deeply the scent of her hair. Then she lifted her head and pressed her lips firmly yet softly to Brooke's, needing her touch. "I missed you," Haley said as she pulled away. "Hales, you were only gone for two hours, but I missed you too," Brooke replied. "I know, but you're just too irresistible for me to stay away," Haley grinned as she pushed back a strand of hair behind Brooke's ear. "So, how was you game with Luke? Did you win?" "Of course," Haley responded with confidence, "I beat him three times." "Wow, Lucas must be moping around after that kind of defeat," Brooke remarked. "Yeah, but I took him out for ice cream afterwards to cheer him up," Haley replied. "So what do you want to do," Brooke inquired as she plopped down on the bed, reclining back on her elbows. "I have an idea," Haley said, "it involves you, me, that bed, and catching up on some z's because I'm pooped." She collapsed onto the bed beside her girlfriend. "Well, I'm all for it," Brooke smiled as she laid down and moved closer to Haley, stroking her cheek. Haley leaned in and they shared a soft, tender kiss before they both closed their eyes and smiled, happy at being in each other's arms once again.
The next day after school Haley didn't have to work at the café or the hospital so Brooke had decided that they would go to the mall to do some shopping. They had already gone to a few stores and had a couple bags in their hands as they walked further through the mall. "Ooh! Let's go in here," Brooke said excitedly as she made her way into a lingerie store. Haley rolled her eyes as she reluctantly followed after her, but she brightened at the thought of seeing her beautiful girlfriend in a skimpy piece of clothing. "Haley, you should try this on," Brooke remarked as she handed her a hanger. "Brooke…" Haley began, but was cut off. "Please…" Brooke begged. Haley sighed in defeat, "Fine." She went into the dressing rooms to change.
"I'm not coming out," Haley said stubbornly about five minutes later. "C'mon, please Hales," Brooke pleaded with her as she stood outside the dressing room. "No Brooke, I look ridiculous in this thing." "Why don't you let me be the judge of that," Brooke whispered into the crack of the door. "No, I'm not coming out," Haley repeated indignantly. "Then let me come in," Brooke replied. There were a few seconds of silence until Brooke heard the lock click. Haley's face appeared behind the small opening in the door she had made, "Don't laugh okay?" She let Brooke in then closed her eyes, waiting for the reaction she knew was coming. When Brooke didn't say anything for about two minutes, Haley peeked her eyes open. What she saw made her gulp. Brooke was staring at her, mesmerized, drinking in her body. She had that look upon her face; THE look. The one that told Haley she wanted more than to just kiss her and caress the sides of her body, to be with her in THAT way. Haley had thought about going further, but she wasn't ready for that yet. So when this happened, she was nervous and scared.
Brooke's gazed trailed down Haley's body, taking in every inch of her in that near skin-tight leopard print lingerie and her hair up in pig tails. She looked up to Haley's face and saw her with her eyes closed, biting her bottom lip. Brooke placed her hands on Haley's shoulders and smiled when Haley finally opened her eyes, "You look so adorable, you know that? You're also beautiful, sexy, and so incredibly irresistible. It's a good thing we're in public. Oh wait, we're all alone in a dressing room…" She didn't finish the sentence as she had placed her lips on Haley's. Brooke began to kiss down her neck and Haley let out a soft moan, "Brooke…" Finally, Haley came to her senses and gently pushed her away, "We can't, we're in a store." "Okay," Brooke pouted with her lower lip sticking out then asked, "but we'll continue this later, right?" "Absolutely," Haley smiled then gestured towards the door, "now let me get changed." "You're not going to buy it," Brooke inquired with another pout as she motioned to the lingerie Haley was wearing. "Nah, I don't think so. It's really not my style," Haley replied as she looked down at herself. Brooke stuck out her bottom lip again as she turned to leave the dressing room, "Damn." "Hey Brooke," Haley inquired to get her attention. "Yeah," she responded. "I'm getting kind of thirsty. While I get changed, could you go get me an Orange Julius? It's only about two or three stores down. I won't be long, I promise," Haley said. Brooke nodded then left the dressing room.
Haley sighed as she leaned back against the wall, slowly letting out the breath she had been holding. That had been a close one. Haley knew she wasn't ready to be intimate with Brooke, but a part of her wanted to be closer to Brooke and for Brooke to be closer to her. She sank down to the floor as s few tears marred her face. Why is it that when she wanted to get close, she pulled away? She sighed again as she heard a familiar song come over the store speakers. How was it that the perfect song that mirrored your mood or what you were thinking came on at that exact moment? She closed her eyes as she listened to the words, a solitary tear sliding down her cheek.
You tell me you're in love with me
Like you can't take your pretty eyes away from me
It's not that I don't want to stay
But every time you come too close I move away
I wanna believe in everything that you say
'Cause it sounds so good
But if you really want me, move slow
There's things about me you just have to know
Sometimes I run
Sometimes I hide
Sometimes I'm scared of you
But all I really want is to hold you tight
Treat you right
Be with you day and night
Baby all I need is time
I don't wanna be so shy
Every time that I'm alone I wonder why
Hope that you will wait for me
You'll see that you're the only one for me
I wanna believe in everything that you say
'Cause it sounds so good
But if you really want me, move slow
There's things about me you just have to know
Sometimes I run
Sometimes I hide
Sometimes I'm scared of you
But all I really want is to hold you tight
Treat you right
Be with you day and night
Baby all I need is time
Just hang around and you'll see
There's nowhere I'd rather be
If you love me, trust in me
The way that I trust in you
Sometimes I run
Sometimes I hide
Sometimes I'm scared of you
But all I really want is to hold you tight
Treat you right
Be with you day and night
Baby all I need is time
Once the song was over, Haley cleaned up her face, changed back into her clothes, and made her way outside the dressing room. Brooke had not yet returned from Orange Julius. Haley stared at the lingerie on the hanger she held as she bit her bottom lip in uncertainty. Finally she smiled and walked up to the counter and paid for it then slipped the small bag into one of her larger ones. She walked out of the store and headed in the direction Brooke had gone in. They met up a few feet away when Brooke walked out of Bath and Body Works. "Hey," she said as she handed the drink to her, "sorry, I got thirsty too so I drank some." "That's okay," Haley replied as she took the cup. She didn't really mind; she hadn't really wanted the drink anyway, she just asked her to go get it to get Brooke out of the store so she could buy that lingerie. Haley giggled to herself as she imagined the look on Brooke's face when she saw her in it.
They strolled in a companionable silence for a while, sometimes stopping in the stores to browse. Suddenly, for some unexplainable reason, Haley needed to feel Brooke's touch. She longed to take Brooke's hand and hold it in her own. Haley gently brushed her hand against Brooke's but she felt her push it away. "We're in public," she stated in a whisper sort of hiss, and Haley could detect the bitterness in her voice although Haley knew she was trying to hide it. Haley's face fell; Brooke was mad at her for pushing her away in the dressing room. However, this wasn't the only thing that made her sad; she felt rejected. Was it always going to be like this? Hiding their relationship from the public eye? Haley knew she would never be able to keep a secret this big for so long. She wanted to shout from the rooftops of how happy she was, that she had someone who loved her and who she loved back. But obviously Brooke was more worried about her reputation, otherwise Brooke probably would have taken her hand.
"Let's go in here," Brooke said as she walked into an Abercrombie & Fitch store, with Haley reluctant to follow. They looked around for several minutes while Brooke picked out a few shirts to try on. Brooke and Haley had moved on to the pants section when Brooke heard a cheery voice that sickened her. Katrina Combs. "Hey Brooke," Katrina greeted her then saw that she was with Haley and asked snootily, her face scrunching in disgust, "What are you doing here with her?" Brooke began to feel a little nervous, which caused her to stutter a little, "Uh, um, you see…Haley and I are friends and she needed some fashion advice and you know I'm always up for a shopping trip, so we came to the mall, to shop obviously." "Okay, well I'm going to go meet some of the girls from the squad. Do you want to come, Brooke?" Katrina inquired, looking pointedly at Brooke and ignoring Haley. "No thanks. Haley and I still have a few stores to hit. Maybe some other time," Brooke replied as sweetly as she could muster and put on a fake smile. 'God, that girl just makes me want to rip her head off!' Brooke thought to herself. "Yeah, some other time," Katrina responded haughtily as she walked out of the store to find her friends. Once the cheerleader had left, Brooke turned to say something to Haley but found her girlfriend glaring at her with her arms crossed. The glare continued for a few fleeting seconds until she abruptly stormed off. "Haley, wait!" Brooke called out as she tried to race after her, but it was no use; she had already gone.
Brooke wandered aimlessly around town for awhile. Haley had taken the car and Brooke had decided it would be better to walk and clear her head than call a cab. Tears were streaming down her face in torrents, her mascara streaking down her cheeks and they were flushed red. The minute after Haley had left, Brooke had realized her mistake. Brooke had called them friends. Why couldn't she just stick her foot in her mouth and leave it there? Because she always seemed to be saying things wrong lately; like just now. Brooke knew she needed to talk to Haley, to explain, but right now she just needed to have a really good cry. She needed to put on a pair of pajamas, crawl into bed, and hold one of her stuffed animals tight as she let the tears loose.
She trudged back to her large, empty house and sighed as she entered, looking around. It was all so weird, being back here. Brooke hadn't lived in her house for nearly two or three weeks and it seemed a lifetime ago since she'd last visited here. 'Visited. This place isn't even home to me anymore. I don't think it ever was. Haley's house is my home; Haley is my home…' Brooke looked down as more tears fell down her cheeks. "I want to go home…" she whispered, although no one could hear her.
Slowly she climbed the stairs to her bedroom and when she entered, she saw Haley sitting on her desk chair, the angry expression before still showing on her face. "Haley, I-" Before Brooke could finish, Haley lit into her like gasoline on a fire. "Are you that embarrassed to be seen with me? That you won't tell anybody because of your precious reputation and popularity?" Suddenly, Brooke became angry too; not liking Haley's accusatory tone. So, she said the first thing that came to mind, "I don't see you flaunting it about or telling anyone! You haven't even told Lucas yet and he's your best friend!" Haley's expression changed from angry to pissed as she screamed, "He dated you Brooke! How do you think he would react? How he would feel? Peyton's your best friend too and you haven't told her either." "That's different…" Brooke began but Haley cut her off. "How Brooke? How is it different? Just admit it; you're ashamed to be with me. I've had enough of this! I'm out!" Haley gave her one last glare then slammed the bedroom door behind her and Brooke heard the same sound from the front door a few seconds later.
Brooke's eyes prickled with pain as the sobs rose in her throat, threatening to spill out and Brooke knew there would be no way to stop them once she started. Haley had left her. She was no longer her girlfriend. And it was all over with one little argument. Brooke let out a frustrated and sorrowful scream as she thought, 'When did everything get so complicated, so screwed up?' Brooke crumbled onto the bed as she curled up, the tears beginning to fall uninhibitedly down her cheeks. The only thing that ran through her mind was that it was over and Haley was gone.
She lay there for several minutes until her bedspread was nearly soaked with her tears then slowly got up and went to grab a box of Kleenex. Suddenly she felt immense pain flood throughout her chest and she pressed a hand tight to her heart. She leaned over as she placed her other hand on her nightstand to brace herself as she tried hard to inhale deep breaths. Another jolt shot through her and she cried out in anguish as she collapsed to the floor, beginning to feel faint and dizzy. Her eyelids felt heavy and she felt herself going into unconsciousness…
Haley cried as she rushed back over to Brooke's house. She hadn't meant it, breaking up with her. She loved her; she was just upset over the whole Katrina thing and Brooke pushing her hand away when she wanted to hold it. She wanted to tell her friends, everybody, that she was dating Brooke Davis but she was scared of how her friends would react, especially Lucas. Their friendship had been rocky ever since she'd started tutoring Nathan and even though they'd been good with each other the last few weeks, Haley feared that this news would push him over the edge. She didn't want to lose her best friend; she needed him to be there for her, to support her.
She raced up the front steps of Brooke's house, not bothering to knock as she flung open the door and continued on up to her girlfriend's bedroom. Haley threw the door open and gasped as more tears began to fall down her cheeks. Brooke lay on the floor unconscious, her body convulsing and jerking as if she were being shocked with electricity. 'Oh god, she's having seizures!' Haley thought, panic spreading through every fiber of her being. Quickly, she grabbed the phone and dialed 911. A lady's voice came over the speaker, "911 emergency, how can I help you?" "I-I need an ambulance…my-my girlfriend…" Haley cried as she wiped her face, trying to remain calm, achieving anything but. "What is your location ma'am," the lady asked. "4312 Rose Garden…please hurry…my girlfriend…she has a heart condition…I-I think she-she's dying…" Haley managed to get out through a choked sob that escaped her lips.