Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill

Note: I was amazed by all the reviews! Thank you so much! Oh, and I was reading the first chapter, and I accidentally typed "Haley Scott" when I meant to type "Haley James." Sorry for the mix-up! Nathan and Lucas both have the last name Scott, you will see how that plays out later… ;o)

XXXX

Haley couldn't stop smiling as the cold night air whipped across her face. She stood, looking up at her new apartment, amazed. It was only a few blocks from Times Square and even though she had yet to see the inside, judging from the outside, she knew it was going to be spectacular.

"This is it." She said aloud to herself. "I am finally here, out of Tree Hill. This is my chance to experience everything good about-ahh!" Haley shrieked suddenly as she felt her back get drenched with water. She turned around to see what had happened and another huge burst of water came straight into her face.

"Are you crazy!" Haley yelled after the cab that was speeding away.

She looked down at the new jeans and shirt she had spent the last of her money on the day before and wanted to cry.

"You have got to be kidding me!" She whispered to herself as she began to shiver from the dirty, freezing cold water that was soaking through her clothes.

She quickly ran up the steps and fumbled through the potted plants on the side of the apartment building. SWAP had reported to her that Brooke had hidden a key in one of them. Haley quickly surveyed the twenty or so pots that lined the doorway and once again repeated, "You have got to be kidding me!"

By the time she found the key, after going through ten plants, her teeth were chattering and she couldn't feel her hands.

She quickly made her way up the stairs, almost slipping from the water dripping off her jeans.

She fumbled with the key before finally making it into the dark apartment. She locked the door behind her, and then found the light switch.

"Wow." She said despite her aggravation. The apartment was amazing. It was double the size of her own, and everything seemed to be in perfect place. It looked like the apartments on E! News.

All the furniture was modern, everything in black and white. The only color she saw was when she entered Brooke's room. The colors in her room turned into midnight blue and gold. Over Brooke's midnight blue bed was a gold mosquito net that hung over her queen-sized bed.

Haley felt like she was a princess. Judging by the warmth this room made her feel, she figured that the living room was just for show. In the corner of the large room, there were stacks of fashion magazines and a mannequin that had fabric scattered around the floor surrounding it. Haley remembered that one of Brooke's hobbies was fashion.

On the wall opposite of the bathroom there was a huge bookshelf filled with tons of books. "Lucas would die," she thought as she dropped her suitcase on the floor.

She felt another chill go through her body and she remembered that she needed a shower badly.

The bathroom was just as spectacular as Brooke's room. It was also tiled in midnight blue. White candles were laid out randomly through the whole bathroom. There was also a huge shower/bathtub calling Haley's name.

Pulling off her wet clothes and dumping them in the washer she had seen in a tiny room near the kitchen, Haley then jumped into the hot shower.

As the warm water heated her skin, Haley felt her optimism come back. "So what if I got a little wet? That could have happened to anyone. Tomorrow will be much better."

She took her time washing her hair with the shampoo she found in the shower. She knew it was expensive because it was written in what Haley guessed was French and smelt like an actual rose bush. It had to be imported. They didn't sell this stuff at Target.

Finally, after a relaxing thirty minutes in the shower, Haley stepped out and wrapped a towel around her. As she did this, she felt her stomach rumble.

Remembering that she hadn't eaten since lunch, she fixed her towel around her so it would stay up itself and walked into the kitchen.

Opening the fridge, she was disappointed to only find beer.

"Does this girl not eat?" She said aloud before her eye caught sight of a note taped to the counter.

Haley,

Sorry my fridge is empty. I usually clear out my fridge when I leave town. Plus, I didn't know what you like to eat. But the number to my favorite Chinese restaurant along with some other take out places is on the fridge. They are all open 24 hours. Oh, and there is a small grocery store down the street and I have a credit there. Feel free to get whatever you want.

B. Davis

Haley smiled; it was nice of Brooke to do that for her. First thing tomorrow she would stock up with food, but tonight, she was craving some Chinese. Luckily for her, New York City didn't have the same hours as Tree Hill. Delivery in Tree Hill stopped at 10:30 and it was already 11:00.

After placing her order, Haley decided she would have a beer. She never drank, but what the heck? She was in New York City, had an apartment to herself, what was one beer going to hurt?"

As she began looking through the drawers for an opener, she heard the door behind her open.

Her heart began beating out of control as a million possibilities began spinning through her mind. She had heard stories about girls who lived alone in New York…She grabbed a knife in the drawer and spun around to meet her fate.

As she spun around, she came face to face with the person who had broken into the apartment. She was surprised to find a very attractive guy, about her age, standing before her with a smirk on his face.

"Hi Haley." He laughed and walked past her to grab the fridge where he casually grabbed a beer for himself.

"Who the hell are you!" She yelled, while clutching at her towel, making sure it didn't fall down.

"I'll tell you if you put down the fork." Haley looked down to her hand, where in fact, she was holding a fork. She must have accidentally grabbed it instead of the knife.

Feeling her cheeks heat up with embarrassment, she set the fork down and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Okay, who are you." She stated again, still on edge.

"Nathan Scott. Your roommate." He grinned like a devil as her jaw dropped open.

"Brooke didn't say that she had a roommate. Plus, there is only one bedroom." She whispered, scared to hear his response. "What, Scott?" She thought to herself before he answered. That was a little freaky…but Haley brushed it off, deciding it was just a coincidence.

"Oh, I don't think that's ever been a problem for us. Are you okay? You seem a little…startled." He said again, still smiling.

"Am I okay?" She gasped, turning her gaze into a glare. "No! I am not okay! Some guy just walked in on me in a new city, while I'm in a towel, saying that he is my roommate for the next two weeks in a one-bedroom apartment! No! I am not okay!" She yelled at him and he took a step back.

This was insane! How could Brooke not tell her that she had a roommate!

"Calm down!" Nathan mumbled, seeing this girl wasn't in the mood for jokes.

"I'm not really your roommate. I live next door. I just stopped by to say hello."

Haley's mouth dropped open even more as she glared at him.

"How did you get in? I locked the door?" She questioned, taking another step away from him.

"I have a key." He shrugged, as if it were logical.

"Are you her boyfriend or something?" She questioned again.

At this Nathan laughed, "No way. Brooke's hot, but we are strictly friends with benefits."

Haley couldn't stop herself from making a disgusted face, "Friends with Benefits?"

"Well," he laughed again, "maybe just neighbors with benefits."

Haley shook her head, not believing the situation she was in. "Well, while I'm staying here, I would like that key back."

Nathan gave her a shocked look, "Excuse me." What was this girl's deal? No one ever turned Nathan away.

"You heard me, Mr. I don't know how to knock, I want the key back."

He mumbled something to himself before placing the key in Haley's hand.

She smiled triumphantly and gave him a look as if to say, "You can go now."

"Okay," He held up the hand that wasn't holding his beer, "I'll go. I was just stopping by to see if you were okay."

"I'm fine." Haley responded quickly, opening the door for him.

Just like that, Nathan's smirk returned, "A little high on yourself aren't you? Going around telling everyone you are fine."

Haley shook her head, ignoring him. "Bye."

"See you later Haley." He winked before she could shut the door.

An hour later, as Haley sat eating her sesame chicken, she couldn't stop thinking about Nathan.

She couldn't deny that he was very attractive, but that's not what she kept thinking about. His attitude towards her was something she had never experienced. His blatant flirting and his wink before she shut the door – she wasn't used to that kind of attention.

She didn't like him, she decided, as she placed her leftovers in the fridge. He was arrogant and slimy, not qualities she was looking for. Not that she was looking…

Looking at the clock, she decided it wasn't too late to try Lucas. He was probably up waiting for her call anyway, worried about her.

She picked up her cell, surprised that there weren't any missed calls from him, and pressed down on three, his speed dial number.

It rang only twice before going to voicemail. "That's weird," Haley thought before re-dialing. It was as if he had declined her call.

Finally, on the sixth ring, he answered, "Hello?"

"Hey!" Haley said, happy to hear his voice, "Are you okay? You sound a little breathless."

"Ugh, yeah…I'm fine. How are you?" He stammered, causing Haley to wonder what he was doing.

"Lucas!" She whispered harshly, "Are you with Peyton?" That would be bad, Haley knew. He and Peyton had dated through their Junior and Senior year in high school. They broke up before college, on pretty good terms, but every once in a while they would relapse and spend the night together. Haley knew it wasn't good for either one of them to keep up that behavior, especially when they both knew they weren't meant for each other.

"No!" He almost yelled, "I'm definitely not."

Haley rolled her eyes, deciding to ignore his weird behavior. "So, you met Brooke?"

"Yes, I met her…She is a little bitchy, kind of controlling…but very hot." Haley could swear as he said this he heard a slap and a giggle in the background.

"Ugh Luke! I don't need to hear about how hot she is please!" she continued, "But just make sure she doesn't feel uncomfortable there okay?"

She could almost hear the smirk in his voice, "Yeah, definitely. I will make sure she is very comfortable." He stated, making Haley raise her eyebrows, even though he couldn't see her.

"So how is the Big Apple?" He asked, his voice slowly becoming more controlled.

"It's…" Haley didn't want Lucas to worry about her, so telling him about her being drenched with water and her encounter with Nathan was out of the question, "amazing." She finished, happy with her choice of words.

"That's great Hales! But hey, I'm kind of tired so I'll call you tomorrow?" He added quickly, and again, Haley could swear she heard a giggle.

"Alright, tomorrow." She said, giving up. Actually, she was pretty tired herself. After hanging up, Haley threw on her favorite cotton pajamas and crawled into bed.

As she closed her eyes, she decided that tomorrow was going to be much better. It had to be.

XXXX

Haley woke up to the sun shining brightly through her window. "This is a good sign!" She thought to herself as she sat up in bed. Taking a look at her phone, she saw three missed calls from Lucas. Smiling, she knew that he was calling to apologize for the night before.

After brushing her teeth, she unpacked her clothes into the drawers that Brooke has graciously left for her. She decided on wearing her jeans from the night before, which had been washed, and a brown sweater. She threw on a knitted poncho that her mother had made for her and decided to call Lucas after she picked up some groceries.

As she stepped out into the hall, she almost covered her boot in pancakes. Lying on the ground right in front of her door was a plate of pancakes and a note.

Sorry for upsetting you last night. Forgive me? Dinner at 9:00? Don't say you have plans! I know you don't! Nathan."

Haley couldn't help but smile, even though his statement of "I know you don't" upset her a little. She guessed that there was no harm in going out to dinner with the guy. As long as she made it clear that they were friends – no benefits- everything would go smoothly.

Finally, Haley stepped out onto the streets of New York – ready for anything. Brooke had said that there was a grocery store a couple of blocks away, but she hadn't said which way.

"Um, excuse me-" Haley attempted to ask a woman passing by, but as soon as Haley started speaking, the woman sped up and totally ignored her.

Shocked, Haley tried again to ask a boy, who looked to be about sixteen, "Do you know where the nearest grocery store is?" She smiled, hoping to look friendly.

"Yeah, up my ass." He grumbled while continuing on his way.

Haley's mouth dropped again, "Well, okay then!" She thought to herself, "I will just have to find it myself."

That, however, was unnecessary.

"Haley." A voice called from behind her and she jumped about ten feet.

"Seriously, can you stop doing that?" She called out to Nathan, who was standing on the stairs behind her, with her hand resting over her heart.

"Sorry." He smirked, clearly not remorseful.

"Nice, um," He gestured to her poncho, a huge smile spreading across his face."

"Poncho." She finished, a blush spreading across her face.

"Yeah, okay." He remarked sarcastically, making the cause of the redness of her cheeks to turn from embarrassment to anger.

"What are you? The fashion police?" She glared, trying her best to look intimidating.

Nathan shrugged, still smiling and walked a few steps down so he was on the street.

"Where are you headed?" He asked, ignoring her attempt at anger.

"I'm trying to find the grocery store, but no one will help me." She admitted reluctantly.

"The one where Brooke always goes? I can walk you there." He started walking down the street, a signal for Haley to follow.

Haley only took a couple seconds to take off after him. She needed to know where the grocery store was, and this could be her only shot. But to avoid having to talk to Nathan any longer, she pulled out her cell and called Lucas.

"Please answer," she thought to herself as Nathan gave her a sideways glance.

"Hales!" She had never been so happy to hear Lucas' voice.

"Hey Lucas, sorry I missed you calls this morning, I didn't even hear my phone ring."

"That's okay. I was just calling to apologize for the short conversation last night." Haley smiled, classic Lucas. He hated upsetting people and was always quick to apologize.

"That's okay." She copied his words. "So, are you going to tell me the truth about you being with Peyton last night?"

He immediately objected, "I swear, I was not with Peyton last night! You can even call her! I was just, um, busy…" He let the sentence open-ended, an obvious sign that he was hiding something. But with Nathan listening to her every word, she didn't want to get into it.

"So how is New York today?" Lucas said after a moment's silence.

"It's great!" Haley smiled, actually believing her words. As she walked down the streets, people were everywhere, busy with their interesting lives, the weather was perfect, and things were looking up. Well, except for the fact that Nathan was walking beside her.

"Lucas?" Haley heard a girl say in the background. "Do you know where my shirt is?"

"LUCAS SCOTT!" Haley yelled, ignoring that fact that Nathan looked at her questionably.

Lucas didn't say anything for a second and then he finally spoke, but not to Haley, "Yeah, I think it's in under the bed."

Then silence. Haley knew that Lucas wasn't going to say anything until she did, so she spoke up.

"Not with Peyton huh?"

"I'm not…that was um…Brooke." He mumbled and Haley almost dropped the phone.

"Brooke as in Brooke Davis! The girl I SWAPed with?" Haley was now yelling loudly, not caring that Nathan's interest had peaked.

Lucas was silent, and Haley knew that he was probably holding the phone a few inches away from his ear.

"She is there ONE night and you have already slept with her? Lucas! You don't do things like that! What were you thinking?" Haley continued on, not caring if he was listening or not; she needed to vent.

"Actually, Haley, this is Brooke."

Oh.

"Oh, um…" Haley was momentarily taken off guard.

However, Brooke apparently was totally fine with the whole situation.

"SWAP said trade everything, so I just thought that meant guys too…" Haley wanted to throw up in her mouth as Brooke tried to sound innocent.

"Lucas is not my guy. Therefore there is no switching of guys!" As Haley said this, she caught a glance of Nathan, who was leading her into a small store, and his face was practically glowing.

"Well, if he isn't your guy, then it's okay if we-"

"Don't finish that sentence. Let me talk to Lucas." Haley cut Brooke off, but Brooke only giggled and called out Lucas' name.

"Are you mad?" Lucas sounded genuinely worried, and Haley had to calm herself down. She really had no right to be mad at him. It was his, um, body…throwing the thoughts out of her head, she sighed.

"No, I'm not mad. Just be careful okay?"

"Yeah." He said, although his tone sounded as if he were being anything but careful.

"Okay, well I have to get groceries. I will call you later?" She mumbled and hung up after they said a quick goodbye. In one day everything had turned upside down. She always planned things, but nothing was going according to plan.

Nathan was patiently waiting with a shopping cart. He was leaning against the wall of the store, and Haley couldn't get the thought that he looked just like a model out of his head.

"Ready?" He asked, not knowing that the question held more significance for her.

Haley took a long, deep breath and nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm ready."