Thanks for all the great replies. This chapter is kinda short and a little bland to me, but the next few chapters will be better, I promise. It's almost over. It sucks for me because I love writing this so much, but I think I have another OTH fic in my head. Thanks for everything though and thanks for still reading and still supporting this fic.
The Wrong Kind of Wrong
Nathan knocked on the door of the quiet place then looked over at Lucas. They were so anxious that they could feel their hearts thudding within them. A middle-aged woman, probably no older than fifty answered the door. She had her blonde and gray streaked hair pulled back into a neat bun and removed her glasses when she opened the door. She wore a long floral dress and scuffed flats.
"Hello." She said politely. "Looking for a room today?"
"Actually, no." Lucas spoke up timidly. "Our uh, friend," he gritted the word, "told us he was staying here."
"Oh, I'm sorry hun, but I'm not so good with names." She apologized.
"Well if we described him, could you…?" Nathan asked eagerly.
"Maybe." She crossed her arms and smiled up at him expectantly.
"He's like, my height." Nathan stuttered, motioning to himself.
"Blondish hair." Lucas added, waving his hand around his hair for emphasis.
"Yeah, he's skinny. A singer." Nathan continued hopefully.
Suddenly, her face lit in recognition. "Oh, the guitar player?" She said insightfully.
"Yeah." Nathan said impatiently, nodding.
"He left this morning." She said regretfully. "But he did say he would be close by."
"Do you know what name he used to sign in, by any chance?" Lucas asked hesitantly and then smiled nervously when she gave him a quizzical gaze. "Sometimes he uses his nickname and other times, his real name." He falsely explained. "He's an upcoming star and you know how some fans are." He attempted to persuade.
She seemed to buy it because she laughed knowingly. "Of course, let me check." She waved her hand at them. "Please. Come in." She offered kindly.
They followed her in and Nathan closed the door behind them. "We really appreciate this, Miss." He thanked her sincerely. She had no idea how much he appreciated this.
"It's no bother, really." She said, picking a clipboard up from a desk in what looked to be her office. She slipped her discarded glasses back on. "I talked with him for a while. Your friend." She stated without looking up, licking her thumb to flip through the pages on the clipboard. "He told me a little bit about himself. Said he was getting married soon to some girl. Her name was Haley." She giggled at herself. "Now I remember that name because it's the same name as my daughter's."
Nathan frowned hard and met Lucas' eyes. "Yeah, that was him." He spoke evenly, containing the rage boiling in his insides.
"Here we go." She said, tapping the paper. "Christopher James?" She asked, quirking a brow at the two.
Nathan wanted to spit in disgust. He'd used Haley's last name and told this woman that he was going to marry her?! What a nutcase! "Yeah, that's him." Nathan nodded. "Thanks." He couldn't muster a fake smile or a gesture of thanks, he could only walk away.
"Thanks for your help, Miss." Lucas presented the manners, rushing out after his brother. "Hey, Nate. You alright?"
"Yeah, I just…" He glowered and turned to face Lucas, his hands rising to rest in his hair. "He's out there. Right now. And he's sick, man! Why would he tell her that he's marrying my wife?! What kinda sick bastard…" He fumed, craving to punch a hole through the glass of his car.
"Nate, you gotta calm down, man." Lucas urged, going to his brother's side and placing a hand on his shoulder.
"No." He said tightly, turning to him. "I gotta find him. I gotta get him."
"We will, little brother. I promise." Lucas reassured, but inside, he was having second thoughts about Nathan's reaction when he did come into contact with Chris. Would he beat him and not stop? Would he lose his mind and kill him? "Look, let's go."
Reluctantly, Nathan let out a breath of air. "Alright man."
"Uh, Tutor Girl? I think we're lost." Brooke said hesitantly, leaning forward to see the street sign that she was passing.
Haley sighed and dropped the map that they'd picked up from a rundown gas station in her lap. "I can't believe I let you talk me into this."
"Call Jake's cell." She suggested ignoring Haley's disdain. "He knows his way around here, doesn't he?" She asked hopefully.
Haley patted the pockets of her tight light blue jeans and then rolled her eyes. "I left my cell phone."
"Mine is in my purse." She motioned to the back seat, mainly focused on finding their destination.
Haley unhooked her seat belt and leaned over to the back seat to get her purse. She pulled out Brooke's phone and a few condoms fell out. Haley snorted. "I see you come prepared."
Brooke smiled proudly. "Always."
Haley flipped the phone open and filed through the names until she came to Jake's. She dialed the number and was instantly greeted with his voicemail. "His phone is either off or dead." She tried Peyton but there was no answer. "Or they're doing it." She concluded tiredly, closing the phone.
"Finally." Brooke muttered.
"What are we gonna do, Brooke? We're lost in a place we don't even know." She said in a panicked whisper.
"Calm down. We'll be fine." She promised. "We'll ask this guy right here." She said, pulling next to a shaggy looking guy walking down the street. They stopped next to him and Brooke rolled down her window. "Hey, excuse me guy."
He turned to look at her. "Yeah?"
"Hi. My friend and I are lost. Do you know where Coolidge Lane is?" She asked sweetly.
"Brooke, who cares about Coolidge Lane," Haley hissed, "let's go home."
"No." Brooke said, looking towards Haley. "We got this far."
Defeated, Haley dropped her head back. "I hate you."
Smiling again, Brooke looked back to the guy. "Do you?"
"Yeah, it's right up the street right here." He said surely, pointing a direction, they had never been. "Turn left at this light and then make a right at the third light after that."
"Thank you." Brooke drove off smiling. "See? We're close anyway. Might as well drive by and see what our S.O.'s are up to." She grinned, containing her eagerness. "I wonder what sweet little thing Lucas is doing for me now." She said thoughtfully, tilting her head in deliberation.
"Whatever, I just want to go home." Haley put her tattered white tennis on the dashboard and crossed her arms over her chest, sighing.
"Hello." Peyton chimed happily, answering Haley's cell.
"Hey Peyton, is Haley around?" Nathan asked casually.
"Actually, no. She and Brooke left a while ago." She informed easily.
"Where?" His concern was piqued. Chris was close. Chris was a sick nutcase. And Haley was nowhere safe. She was open to harm.
"You know Brooke. She gets bored and has to have a partner in crime." She covered slickly. "And since Haley obviously forgot her phone, you should call Brooke's. She'd never forget her phone."
Nathan nodded distractedly. "Alright, thanks." He hung up. "They left." He said to Lucas without even looking at him.
"Who?" Lucas questioned as he drove.
"Brooke and Hales." He sighed and looked over at Lucas. "This isn't good."
"Call Brooke's cell phone." Lucas demanded.
Nathan was already on it.
"A B&B?!" Brooke shrieked in disbelief. "We followed them to a B&B?! What do they want with a B&B?!" She let out a snort of disbelief and dropped her hands from the wheel onto her lap. "What the…"
"Maybe they have an old friend here or something." Haley justified, also a little bewildered that they had been so intent on coming to the old rundown B&B.
"Luke and Nate with mutual friends? Okay, have you forgotten that not long ago, they were mortal enemies?" She reminded, looking towards her but not at her.
Haley sighed in defeat. "I don't know. Let's just go home. I have a bad feeling about this."
"Now you tell me." Brooke muttered, making a U-turn.
"It's not like that would've stopped you from coming." Haley informed a little annoyed, closing her blue knit sweater more around her body.
Brooke seemed to think about it. "Maybe you're right." She reached for her drink on the console and sighed when she picked the bottle up and it was empty. "I need a drink."
Haley rolled her eyes and dropped her head to the side. "Do you know that you're the most annoying person in the world right now?"
"Haley, nothing's going to happen, okay?" She guaranteed, knowing that the girl was stressing because she had a bad feeling. "Chris isn't here. He's somewhere near Tree Hill being his pathetic little self."
"Uh, we're not that far from Tree Hill." Haley informed in a hesitant mutter, obviously admitting that that was a part of her fear.
"Tell that to the one who was driving." Brooke snorted with a smirk. "It took forever to get here."
"You just bore easily." Haley countered, bringing her legs up to rest her head on her knees.
"Maybe I do. But he's not here, Haley. You're okay." She said in a low, serious voice, smiling reassuringly at her friend. "Nothing's gonna happen to you." She pushed a piece of her hair behind her ear.
She heaved a sigh and wiped a hand over her messy hair. Brooke had brought her to her senses. She was being irrational, afraid to live her life because Chris was still on the loose. As if Brooke's words had wiped that away, she felt a little better knowing that maybe her friend was right. "Okay. I'm just paranoid." She admitted slowly. "But I also want to go home and wait for Nathan so I can spend time with him."
"Me and you, both." She smiled, then grimaced when she realized what came out of her mouth. "Well, not with Nathan, with Lucas. But you get it." Her cell phone rang and she looked towards it on the dashboard. "Will you answer?"
Haley grabbed it and looked at the caller ID. A flush of panic wiped over her. "Brooke, it's Nathan. What do I say?"
"Say we're…uh…just…" She found it hard to think at the moment. "Say…we're…looking for a Starbucks or something."
"Brooke, that sucks." She hissed hurriedly at her before answering. "Hello." She spoke amiably, a big smile gracing her face.
"Hey. Where are you?" He asked quickly.
"Uh, we're…just…" She looked around the car, hoping to find something to say. "Shopping!" She decided after spotting an old price tag that fell out of Brooke's purse earlier.
"Shopping?" He repeated doubtfully.
"Yeah, you know Brooke. She's obsessed." She laughed nervously, ignoring Brooke's glare. "But there's not really anything we really like."
"Everyone here dresses old." Brooke commented seriously, looking for a store to get a drink. She spotted what was probably supposed to be a grocery store and narrowed her eyes in thought. "Hey, tell them we'll pick up dinner on our way back."
Haley looked over at Brooke, a little surprised. "That's not a bad idea."
"No. I want you guys to go back." Nathan said in more fear than order.
"We'll be done in like, ten minutes." Haley defended hesitantly. "It's okay, Nate. I'm okay." She assured seriously.
He let out a breath, obviously resigning. "Where are you guys?"
Haley laughed a little, more in spite of her and Brooke. "If I could honestly tell you, I would." She said glancing out the window and watching as the dry dirt and dead grass passed them by. "Nathan, it'll be okay. He's not here."
Her words made him frown. If she only knew, he thought to himself. "Hales…"
The phone beeped, signaling that the battery was low. Haley groaned. "This battery is dying."
"What?" Nathan groaned too, wiping at his face. "Just, be careful. And be quick, alright?"
"Okay." She promised sweetly. "Love you."
"I love you too." He waited until she hung up and sighed, looking to Lucas. "I have a bad feeling about this."
"What?" Lucas queried, worried also.
"They're shopping or something, and Brooke's phone just died." He sighed heavily and slumped back in his seat.
"Where are they?" Lucas too was worried.
"They don't know." He looked at Lucas, concern etched all over his face. "Should I tell her Chris is somewhere out here?"
Lucas took a deep breath, looking over to Nathan. "If it'll keep her safe. Anything to do that, right?"
"You can actually cook?" Haley half joked, throwing a package of noodles in the small basket that Brooke was holding on her arm.
"A little." She shrugged noncommittally, inspecting a can of something she'd never seen. "But that's why you'll be cooking."
Haley rolled her eyes at her. "Who says I can cook?"
"Uh, an unknown amount of experience at Karen's Café." She spoke matter-of-factly. "Besides, you cook for Nathan and he's still alive and healthy. In that case, I trust you." Her half smirk was teasing.
Haley chuckled and shook her head as they continued down the aisle. "So, did you score with Lucas? And please, no details. I totally don't ever want to picture him naked. You either, for that matter."
"Get your mind out of the gutter, horny girl. If I had any details, I wouldn't share them with you anyway." She gave her a side look. "I don't kiss and tell."
"Ha! Since when?" Haley twirled to stand before Brooke. "Since your involuntary abstinence?"
"Very funny, Tutor Girl. You-" Her words were cut short when from a distance she thought she saw someone. Someone that she really didn't need to be seeing right now. Or maybe her mind was playing games on her. Maybe Haley had made her crazy or something. Because that couldn't…no, it wasn't him.
"Brooke," Haley glanced behind herself, in the direction Brooke's gaze had seemed drawn to, "are you alright?"
Her mouth opened and closed. "Yeah, I just…" Frowning uncertainly, she shook her head. "Nothing." She forced a smile at her friend. "We're done, right? Let's go."
"Okay." Haley said, unsure of why her friend was acting so weird.
"They've been gone for a long time." Lucas was sitting on the couch, obviously worried.
"Brooke probably found some cool clothing store or something." Peyton suggested, intent on covering for her friends. "Or Haley probably killed her, either one."
"Yeah, but there's other circumstances here." Nathan spoke from behind the couch where he was pacing back and fourth.
"Like what?" She said, half amused, half curious. She looked to Jake who was next to her to see if he had any clue and he looked as clueless as she did.
Nathan and Lucas shared a brotherly look before Lucas sighed. "We've been looking for Chris on our own and with a little help, we kinda found him."
Peyton's eyes lit up with surprise. "Oh. Wow." An airy breath of unexpected relief left her mouth.
"That's great." Jake spoke, sitting up. "Where is he?"
Lucas frowned a little, his eyes full of sorrow. "He's…he's right around here somewhere. He checked out of some B&B in Ambridge just this morning."
Peyton's breath seemed to stop. "That wouldn't by any chance be anywhere near Coolidge Lane, would it?"
Nathan stopped pacing and looked at her in confusion. "How'd you know that?"
Peyton sighed heavily and dropped her face in her hands. "Oh, no." She murmured, sounding on the verge of tears.
"What?" Lucas sat forward in his seat. "What's wrong?"
"That's where they went." Jake spoke up sadly when he saw Peyton struggling to find the words.
"What?!" Nathan panicked. What if Chris was watching them? What if he saw them by coincident?
"They, they weren't shopping." Peyton admitted regretfully. "Brooke overheard you saying the address and she remembered it and… they went to see what you guys were up to." Tears clouded her eyes. "Brooke thought you were getting her a gift or something." She smiled slightly, hopefully trying to redeem Brooke.
Nathan ran a frustrated hand through his hair, grunting. "Hales, no." He called Brooke's cell phone but it went straight to voicemail.
It was dead.
His jaw clenched in determination. "I have a bad feeling about this, Luke. I'm going to go look for them."
"Come on." He stood up, not in any mood to disagree.
"I think we take that street back." Haley pointed to a street that seemed vaguely familiar.
"We just came from that street." Brooke reminded tiredly.
"Then try that one." Haley motioned to another one.
Brooke wordlessly turned down that street, a small smile growing on his face. "I think this is it, Hales."
"Hopefully." Haley grabbed Brooke's phone and pressed a few lifeless buttons. "Don't you have a car charger?"
"Yeah, in my car. Not this oversized rental." She chuckled, shaking her head. "I can't think straight when I'm not getting any." She simply justified with a small shrug.
"You're nuts." She threw the dead electronic on the dashboard and crossed her arms over her chest. "Remind me never to let you talk me into going anywhere with you again."
"Shut up, we had fun being lost." She concluded smirking. She clicked her blinker and looked in the rearview mirror, noticing the black little car that had been on her ass for a while now. She narrowed her eyes at the vehicle. "Is this guy ever going to get off my ass?" She wondered mainly to herself, cutting to the next lane. She frowned when the car behind her did the same thing. "What the hell?"
Haley looked behind them, noticing that the car was tailing them rather closely. "Honk the horn."
Brooke did so, honking twice with a look of irritation on her face. The car honked back twice and Brooke frowned. "What a jerk!" She pulled over to let him pass, but he just pulled over with her. She put the car in park but didn't turn it off. Hauling half her body out the window, she looked back at the car. "Hey! Are you going or not?!"
The door opened slowly, but no one got out. Haley and Brooke glanced at each other. "What's he doing?" Haley asked lowly, looking back to the car.
"Being an ass, obviously." She answered with contempt as she stared back at the car.
And then, their hearts stopped simultaneously as Chris Keller leaned out and waved a hand at them, a boyish grin on his face.
Brooke gasped and Haley's scream was caught in her throat. "Brooke, go!" She was finally able to yell as Brooke threw the car in drive and sped off. The sound of screeching tires behind them sent them in a frightened frenzy.