So as promised, I am posting Chapter 8 just minutes after posting Chapter 7.
This chapter is my longest chapter so far I think, and hopefully makes up for Chapter 7 being so short. Hopefully you like how this chapter develops and feel like you get to know the background to the characters a little more, without giving too much away.
I'd love to get to know a few more of you that are reading, I like talking to the few people I do talk to on here but it would be great to talk to a few more of you! Oh, and also Chapter 9 should hopefully be up fairly soon for you all!
Anyways, here's Chapter 8.
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Chapter 8
Lucas held the lengthy list that had been discarded on the dresser, scanning it briefly. "Looks like we're almost done!" He smiled at Haley and offered her the list to check. She scrutinised it closely, double checking what had been done.
"The only things that are left are putting table cloths on the buffet tables in the dining room and cleaning the living room, hallway and downstairs bathroom."
"Well that's me done then, I still need to do some training, I don't get a day off because there's a party you know" Nathan replied. "Plus cleaning's a woman's job, right Luke?"
"Yeah sure is. Might join you for a game of hoops. We've gotta' keep these fine Scott bodies in shape!" Lucas said, joining Nathan in teasing Haley.
Haley looked up from the list and glared at the two. "Well if cleaning's a woman's job then why haven't you already started?"
"Hey!" Lucas protested. "Nathan might be in touch with his feminine side, but I'm not!" He flexed his muscle, as if proving his masculinity. Nathan pushed him playfully.
"Yeah sure you are! I think Haley knows which one of us is the man and who isn't."
Haley could feel her cheeks begin to flush. "I… Er…" she began to stutter, feeling Nathan's gaze burning onto her skin. Damn, he certainly meant it when he said he could do it better.
Nathan smirked and started to speak some more, but was interrupted by Lucas.
"Wow man, too soon!" Lucas shook his head, smiling slightly. "Maybe save those kind of things for when I've actually managed to get my head around the fact there's something going on between the two of you."
Haley smiled, at least he seemed to be warming to the idea of her and Nathan, she thought.
"So if you two are willing to actually help for a bit longer, maybe we could do the cleaning together?" She suggested. "Or if you really want to, we could do one room each?"
"Maybe we should all do the living room" Nathan replied. "After all it's quite big, and it's not fair for one person to have to do it."
Lucas nodded in agreement. "As much as it pains me to say it, Nate is right. If we start in there first, we only have the hallway and downstairs bathroom to do, but the dining room could probably do with a hoover and quick dust too."
Haley looked down at the list once more. "Sounds like a plan. We'll decide who does what after we've finished the living room, but whoever does the dining room will have to do the table cloths too."
The boys nodded, agreed and the three of them set to work; polishing, dusting and hoovering.
About an hour and a half later all four rooms were clean. Nathan was the last one to flop down on the sofa, next to Haley, who had already turned the TV on and settled in her usual spot.
"Least that's finally done!" he spoke, breaking the silence between the three of them.
Haley continued to be engrossed in the TV, watching the remainder of the catch-up episode of her favourite show that she had recorded, completely ignoring Nathan.
Lucas looked across at Nathan. "We've got time to go and shoot the ball around if you fancy it? Everyone else shouldn't be back for another couple of hours."
Nathan looked back at Lucas, who had continued to be engrossed in whatever was on his phone, and then glanced at Haley who sat between the two of them, oblivious to the conversation. "Sure, doesn't look like this one's going to be much company!" He laughed, playfully ruffling her hair as he rose from his seat.
"Hey!" She protested, pulling her eyes away from the screen. "Where are you going?"
"Outside to play ball, you're not much fun when you're watching that." Nathan replied, nodding towards the TV screen.
"Oh, okay.. When this has finished I'll make a start on lunch and I'll give you a shout when it's ready."
"Alright. Luke, you coming?"
Lucas looked up from his phone once again. "Yeah, sorry" he replied, putting his phone in his pocket. "Give me a shout if you need any help with lunch" he said, looking at Haley.
Haley nodded, and returned to watching her programme. Lucas pushed himself out of his seat and the two made their way outside to the basketball hoop Keith had installed on the garage.
Once outside, the two boys began playing a one on one game, not really keeping a check on their scores. Nathan enjoyed it when he could play basketball for fun. As much as he loved playing a pressured game, with time limits and real opponents, he always felt a sense of freedom when he was able to play this way. Plus he got to spend time with his brother, without it leading to one of them sulking because the other had won or any arguments.
"So then.." he began, bouncing the ball a few times, before shooting what would be a three pointer. "What's going on with you, apart from being annoyed with me?"
"Nice shot!" Lucas praised as the ball sailed through the hoop. "Dunno what you mean. I'm not annoyed with you as such…. Well I suppose I am a bit.."
Lucas caught the ball as it bounced against the concrete ground. He continued to dribble the ball as he switched places with Nathan, ready to take his shot.
"You do know what I mean. You've been constantly checking your phone since we've got here, disappearing at least once a day, you seem your usual happy self, but like there's something on your mind." Nathan commented, eyeing his brother as he rose his arms, letting the ball fly towards the hoop.
Nathan held the ball under his arm after catching it as it bounced off the ground. He moved closer towards Lucas and the two of them took a seat on the steps of the side porch.
Lucas kicked at the peeling paint on the bottom step, avoiding Nathan's question.
"Luke.." Nathan's voice became sterner, pressing him to answer.
"I.. eugh… I don't know how to explain it." He began, sighing heavily as he leant forward, his arms propping him up. Could he tell him everything? No, today wasn't the best day to break the news to him, plus he'd tell Haley, who'd tell his mom and Keith, all of which needed to hear it from him and the hassle was just something he wasn't prepared for, not yet anyway.
"I guess I'm just missing her." He spoke softly.
Nathan moved the ball to sit between his feet and leant forward slightly, his arms resting on his legs. He smiled at his younger brother.
"Do you love her Luke?" he questioned.
"You know I do."
"Then why do you seem as if something's bothering you? You're really happy whenever there's any mention of her, you're obviously in love, yet you didn't want her to join you here and now you're complaining you miss her…."
"I know, I guess I just felt like it was too soon to bring her with me, to bring her to the place we've basically grown up in. This breaks always been about family time and I didn't want her to feel out of place or like she was intruding." Lucas looked down once again. He knew he was lying, of course it hadn't been too soon and she certainly wouldn't have felt out of place. He just hoped Nathan wouldn't notice it.
"I guess. But maybe that's what you need, time away from each other, time to really appreciate each other more, not as friends, but as a boyfriend and a girlfriend."
Lucas nodded, but it was obvious to Nathan there was something else bothering him.
"Luke, you would tell me if you still wanted – "
"Don't Nate." He interrupted, shaking his head slightly. "There's too much water under that bridge to go back there. It's taken long enough for us to get back to being friends, I can't risk anything again. Ever."
Nathan carefully watched his brother's expression. The pain and hurt was still clear in his eyes. It was true that he'd had a rocky past relationship to say the least, but they'd loved each other so passionately. The passion however had led to both of them becoming burnt, Lucas only acting out because of his hurt.
"You still have feelings for her don't you?"
Lucas didn't move, but it was clear from the way his eyes flickered down towards the ground once again that he did.
"It's okay if you do. It's okay to have a part of you that still loves and cares for her. But you can't let it get in the way of now and the future."
Lucas nodded once again. "When did you become the wise one?" he asked, giving his brother a half smile.
"You've obviously passed some of your knowledge on to me" Nathan replied, causing both of them to chuckle. A few minutes passed, and the two brothers sat in silence, just watching their surroundings. Behind them they could hear the sound of plates being moved and the opening and closing of the fridge, indicating that Haley was preparing lunch. Nathan decided to break the silence with more questions.
"Does she know that you still have feelings for….?"
"No, and she can't know. It'd hurt her far too much. I need to be the dependable one for her, especially with what's going on with her parents. She can't know Nate, she just can't." Lucas looked at Nathan, his expression pleading with him not to say anything. Nathan looked back at him, taking in the fear and sadness that was deep in his eyes.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to say anything, that's your place to. But I think maybe it's worth having a chat with her about it if you still feel the same way once everything has settled down. It's not fair to keep something like this from her, especially if you don't see a future where you could give her your all."
Lucas agreed, knowing deep down that Nathan was right. It wasn't fair on her, it was fair on himself, and it wasn't fair on anyone caught in the middle. He'd hoped that his feelings would diminish over time, but recently they'd become stronger again and he wasn't sure it was something he could keep suppressing.
The two continued to casually chat as Haley watched them from the window. She smiled, it was always lovely to watch them getting along so well. She turned around and finished preparing lunch. She'd made her speciality, grilled cheese toasties, with extra ingredients for the boys. She plated them up and covered them over, keeping them warm until she'd managed to get them both in. She walked over towards the door and opened it just enough to put the upper half of her body around it.
"Lunch is ready" she said, causing Lucas to jump slightly. Nathan turned to her and smiled.
"Okay, give us a sec." He said, picking up the ball and pulling it under his arm once more. Haley nodded and disappeared back into the kitchen. Nathan stood up and looked down towards his brother, offering him a hand. Lucas gratefully took it and hoisted himself up from the step.
As the two of them entered the kitchen Nathan dropped the ball by the door, keeping it in its usual daytime spot. Lucas had already plopped himself into his seat and Nathan began to take his as Haley brought over two plates of food. She placed the first one down in front of Lucas and the second in-front of Nathan before returning for her own food.
"I see you've made your speciality then!" Lucas said, grinning at Haley as she took her seat.
"Yeah, I figured that maybe we could do with some comfort food before we endure tonight." She replied laughing.
"Definitely!" Nathan exclaimed, before taking a bite from his toastie. "My god this tastes amazing!"
"They always do. What have you got on yours Nate?" Lucas asked, making conversation.
"Same as usual; ham, cheese and a bit of that paprika powder stuff" he replied, taking another large bite. "Wos on ors?" he asked with a mouthful of food.
"I'm guessing you mean 'what's on yours'?" Lucas asked.
"Nate, don't talk with your mouth full." Haley scolded, looking at him disapprovingly.
Nathan finished what food he had in his mouth and turned to Haley. "Wow, already nagging me! You're sounding more like my mom than my girlfriend!" he joked, causing Haley to glare at him and lightly hit him on the arm.
"Let's add abusive to the list too!" He added, pretending to be hurt.
"Shut up and eat your food" Haley shot back, playfully sticking her tongue out at him.
Lucas watched the two as they bickered. They did make quite a cute couple, and it certainly didn't go unnoticed with him that Nathan had called Haley his girlfriend.
"So Luke, what is on yours?" Nathan asked again, returning to the original subject.
"Ham and cheese but I've got pickle and mustard too." Lucas replied, finishing off his first slice.
The three of them continued to eat their lunch and chat for around half an hour, until Lucas brought up the topic of that morning once again.
"Okay, well now it's time to spill. I've given you until now and you did promise to tell me." He looked at Haley and then at Nathan. Once again, Haley had become nervous and began playing with the ends of her hair. She looked at Nathan, who smiled and took her hand in his, squeezing it gently. She returned the smile and then diverted her attention back towards Lucas.
"Do you promise you're not going to freak out and get annoyed?" Haley asked.
"Yeah, as long as you tell me."
"And you won't tell any of the adults, least not until we've had a chance to talk to them?" She continued, beginning to ramble slightly.
"Of course I'm not going to say anything, you know as your best friend I'm required to keep any secrets." He replied, starting to become slightly irritated that she was stalling with her answer, but he knew this was a habit she had when she was nervous.
"Okay, well it all started when..."
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So there it is! So who is Luke dating and who is he still in love with? Hopefully you liked the interaction between Nate and Luke and weren't too annoyed with how I ended it! Haha!
As usual please let me know what you thought by reviewing the chapter! Also if there's anything you'd like to see happen please get in touch by PM'ing me or by leaving a review, it would be lovely to hear from you! :)