Chapter Twelve: Late Night Alert
"Uncle Nathan! You're supposed to let me win!" Michael whined as him and Nathan sat on the floor at Nathan's house playing Play Station.
"Alrite, that's enough for tonight don't you think?" Nathan laughed. He got up and switched off the tv and pulled Michael into his lap on the couch. Michael had missed hanging out with Nathan, and begged his mom to stay at Nathan's house for the night. Of course, Nathan agreed, so now here they were, sitting down on the couch as Michael tried to force his eyes to stay open for as long as possible.
"Uncle Nathan?" Michael asked, he sighed and leaned against Nathan's chest as he almost fell asleep. Nathan was falling asleep too.
"Mm hmm." Nathan responded as he closed his eyes and his body threatened to fall asleep.
"Why'd you leave Aunt Haley?" He whispered. Nathan's eyes shot open and he stared down at Michael. He didn't want Michael to have seen that side of him, he didn't want Michael to think it was okay to just leave, and most of all, he didn't want Michael, who had always looked up to him, look up and see someone who left his family to strive on their own.
"How'd you know about that buddy?" Nathan asked him as he dared to look down and search his small face to see how he felt about the whole situation.
"I heard mommy and aunt Haley talking, and I used to hear her crying when she stayed at my house." Michael whispered, he leaned into Nathan's chest, completely comfortable with the conversation. This made Nathan a little more comfortable too as he saw this as the perfect opportunity to let Michael know that running isn't the answer. "She cried a lot." Michael continued. This cut Nathan deeply, being reminded of all the pain he had caused Haley. And still he knew that even though Haley agreed that it wasn't over, and that they could work on it, they weren't completely back together, so the reminders of what he did were long but over.
"Michael, what I did was wrong. You know, running from something doesn't make it disappear, not that I wanted it to disappear. Im just saying, if you try to leave something to make the pressure of it go away, it won't work, it's still where you left it and you need to face it to get through it. I don't know exactly why I left, I was scared I guess." Nathan answered him as he sighed.
Michael popped up and looked at him in shock. His jaw fell open as he stared at Nathan. "You were scared?" Michael asked him.
"Um yea..." Nathan said, wondering why this would cause him to be so shocked.
"But, I didn't think you were scared of anything." Michael gasped.
"Everyone's afraid of something, Mikey." Nathan smiled at him, happy that Michael had seen him in such a light.
"Not you. You're my Uncle Nathan. You're strong and tough and not afraid of anything." Michael objected as if he could change Nathan's mind. "Not even the monsters in my room or planes or spiders." Michael kept trying to convince him.
"Well, I was scared once." Nathan nodded.
"Of what?" Michael asked him.
"Of being a dad I guess... I don't know." Nathan said, he smiled at Michael's habit to ask too many questions.
Michael grinned at him and said, "You're a good dad to me." He automatically blushed and put his head down. Nathan's smile grew as he heard Michael say this. "I know you're not my dad, but..."
"It's okay Mikey. I get it. You didn't have a dad. And I've been more than happy to step in." Nathan said as he scuffled his hair and pulled him in again.
"Natalie's really lucky." Michael whispered as he begun to fall asleep again.
"So is Lucas." Nathan smiled down at him. Within seconds both of them fell asleep.
Brooke was woke up that night by the sound of a small knock on her door. Lucas and Erica had stayed there all night, Erica sleeping in Michael's room and Lucas in the guestroom as not to confuse her anymore for one month. "Brooke?" Erica whispered as she creaked the door opened and peaked in.
"Erica?" Brooke asked as she lifted her head slightly and looked at her. She smiled as Erica stood there in her small nightdress, dragging her old worn out bunny on the floor. She tip toed next to Brooke's bed and smiled cutely. "What is it sweety?" Brooke asked her.
"I didn't mean to wake you up. But I was thinking, and..." Erica began to think as she smiled brightly and tossed from side to side.
"And?" Brooke smiled as she moved in to make room for Erica to climb in next to her.
"Well, my daddy is by himself. And you're by yourself. And I just thought that... it's okay if you like him." Erica whispered to her.
Brooke laughed out loud, then quietly as not to let Lucas hear them. "Well thank you. Im glad I have your approval." Brooke smiled as she wrapped her arms around Erica.
"How come you couldn't have been my mom?" Erica whispered sadly as she thought of how much it actually hurt her that her mother left.
"I don't know sweety. If I were, I don't think you'd be as great as you are now." Brooke smiled down at her. "But you know. If I could have my time back, When you and Michael were born, I would have gone back to you and your father, and I would have tried my best to be the mother you didn't have." Brooke whispered admittedly. It was the first time she ever said that out loud and for a split second she wasn't sure if she was talking to Erica, or to herself.
"Well, Im only five you know." Erica smiled at her.
"I know." Brooke said laughing, she wasn't quite sure what Erica was trying to say.
"Well, I still need a mom. Maybe you can be her now?" Erica said, eyes wide with hope. Brooke wasn't sure how to respond. She wasn't expected Erica to actually ask her to be her mother, and sometimes she wondered if she was good enough to be a mother to Mikey alone, let alone Michael and Erica. And sometimes she questioned her abilities as a mother in general. But as she looked down at Erica who still looked at her, drowning in hope, her soft blond curls surrounding her tiny face perfectly, She knew that a real family was all that her and Michael ever wanted, and this was the family she knew they both wanted, even if Michael didn't see it yet. It was the best thing for both of them.
"I'd love to." Brooke whispered, she kissed the top of Erica's head as the little girl fell asleep in Brooke's arms.
Nathan and Michael were still asleep on the couch, when Nathan was woke up by the telephone ringing. He laid there listening to it, moaning as if to ask the person to go away. Realizing that Michael could be woken from his sleep Nathan slowly shifted his body up and went to answer the phone. On his way he glanced over at the clock on the stove. 1:36 am. Great, Nathan thought. Who the hell could it be?
"Mmm Hmm..." Nathan moaned as he placed the phone to hiss ear and flopped into chair in the kitchen.
"What took you so long!" The voice shouted at him.
"Haley?" Nathan responded, waking up suddenly at the sound of her voice shaking on the other line. "What's going on?" Haley's voice broke into sobs as she tried to calm herself to explain. But she couldn't.
"Im at the hospital Nathan." She cried. Nathan jumped up as he grabbed his jacket, then realized Michael was on the couch in the living room.
"What's going on Haley? Are you okay? Are you hurt?" He panicked. His hands shook on the phone as he leaned in against the wall, painfully listening to Haley's sobs on the other end.
"Im Fine!" Haley snapped. Nathan's eyes shot open at her anger. Did he do something? Again? He began to panic again but was reassured when he heard her take a deep breath and calm down a little. "Im sorry." She whispered. "Im fine. It's not me." She continued.
"What? Who?" Nathan asked dumbly. Then it hit him. "Oh God, Natalie." He gasped.Haley didn't speak, just continued to cry. "I'll drop Mikey off and I'll be right there Hales." he said. Haley still didn't respond, then Nathan whispered. "I love you."
"I love you too." She whispered back. Then she heard the line go dead and was sure he would run through the hospital doors at any second.
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