Disclaimer: Don't own One Tree Hill or the song Happiness by The Fray.

A/N: Here we go – chapter seven! It's extra long (for me) so I hope you all enjoy. Thank you for the nice reviews, please keep them up! They definitely help motivate me to keep on writing, even when the words aren't coming easily. Love.

Happiness is just outside my window

I thought it'd crash, blowing eighty miles an hour

But happiness is a little more like knocking

On your door, you just let it in

Happiness feels a lot like sorrow

Let it be, you can't make it come or go

But you are gone, not for good but for now

And gone for now, feels a lot like gone for good

Haley sat in the empty apartment, melancholy strumming her guitar and singing to herself. Whenever things got hard, music was the only thing that made sense. Music was Haley's form of therapy; the only way she knew how to heal. And right now, her life seemed to be spinning out of control while she was just there – standing still. Forced to watch everything she believed in, fall apart in front of her.

And then, there was this abject feeling of disappointment. She was no stranger to feeling disappointed – it kind of came hand in hand with the lax attitude her parents held towards her upbringing. There was the string of forgotten birthdays, Christmas presents and just an overall indifference they had towards anything she did. Haley remembered reading a quote once in school that had stopped her in her tracks: The opposite of love isn't hate – it's indifference. Once upon a time, all she had wanted was for her parents to take notice of her – to feel proud. But that dream had died; after awhile, Haley learned to only strive to make her self proud. It was easier that way.

But then, Lucas, Karen and Keith came into Haley's life and she became part of their makeshift family. For once in her life, Haley felt as if she belonged. And for once, someone actually took notice of her and made her feel worthy.

Lucas was like the brother Haley never had. Sure, they fought constantly, yet through it all, they had an unconditional bond with each other – an unconditional love and acceptance, no matter what. It after all had always been just them against the world.

And of course, there was Karen and Keith – two adults that Haley respected more than anyone else. One day in school, Haley's grade four teacher had asked everyone to write down who they aspired to be like when they grew up. Haley wrote down Karen's name, while the rest of the girls jotted down names like Posh Spice and Baby Spice.

Karen always had a certain grace and poise about her that Haley admired; even if she wasn't able to vocalize those traits at that age. And there was no doubt about it that Karen was tough – she wasn't just a survivor, she was a warrior. She met her battles head on and never quit. Then, there was the compassion and kindness that Karen gave to each and every person she met; whether they deserved it or not.

As the years passed, Haley began to see the different sides to each story and she realized that her world wasn't just black and white; it also came in shades of grey. She noticed the way that Keith stared at Karen when he thought that no one was looking. And she wondered why Karen tried to pretend that they were merely friends when there were clearly feelings harbored between both people.

Haley also began to realize that there were different sides to people she once assumed to be one-dimensional. People like Nathan, Brooke and Peyton - the pretty and popular of Tree Hill who before, never deigned to notice that Lucas and Haley even existed. It was easy to just write them off as being superficial and shallow but the truth is that Haley never bothered to see past that one dimension image that they presented – just like they never bothered to get to know her.

But change irrevocably came after Lucas joined the basketball team and Haley began to tutor Nathan. Suddenly, they were thrust into a whole new world. And while Haley first found a friend in Peyton, it was Brooke who picked her back up off the ground when she returned from tour to find that her world had fallen into pieces. With that one offer of being roommates, Haley's friendship and loyalty towards Brooke was sealed.

And now, all that Haley felt was a sadness and disappointment in Lucas. Disappointment over him making the same mistake – in giving Peyton an excuse to hope.

She was also disappointed in Peyton, who went against her word. She had known how hard it was for Brooke to trust Lucas; to give him another chance. She had seen the cat and mouse game that they had played for the better part of a year. Peyton had witnessed the scene of utter devastation that had occurred after Brooke had slept with Chris Keller. Peyton had all the chances in the world to go for Lucas, yet she didn't. Instead, she had pushed Brooke to him, promising that they were only friends. That was the thing with her; she might want Lucas today but what about tomorrow. Tomorrow she might set her heart on another whim – on another boy.

And then, there was Nathan. After the accident, he had surrounded himself with an impenetrable emotional distance. It was a distance that Haley couldn't seem to bridge; no matter how hard she tried. Now, everything had changed again – even if Nathan wasn't yet aware of it. It wasn't just them; they were now responsible for bringing another life into this world. And that thought managed to scare Haley more than anything.

But yet, she sat there quietly strumming her guitar, waiting for Nathan to return to her.

*

Lucas quietly opened the door of Nathan and Haley's apartment to see Haley sitting with her back facing the door, in mid song.

Happiness is a firecracker sitting on my headboard

Happiness was never mine to hold

Careful child, light the fuse and get away

'Cause happiness throws a shower of sparks

Despite their argument that day, Lucas couldn't help but smile as he listened to his best friend sing. He'd missed it and that thought shocked him briefly, he hadn't realized how little Haley sang since she'd returned home from her tour.

Happiness damn near destroys you

It breaks your faith to pieces on the floor

So you tell yourself, that's enough for now

But happiness has a violent roar

Happiness, it's like the old man told me

Look for it, and you'll never find it at all

But let it go, live your life and leave it

Then one day, you wake up and she'll be home

She'll be home

As Haley concluded her song, Lucas broke out into applause and chuckled as Haley startled.

"Lucas Eugene Scott! Don't scare me like that again" Haley gasped as she held her hand to her chest to calm her breathing. "Jeez, I nearly had a heart attack"

"Sorry Hales"

"For that – or for today?"

"Maybe a bit of both"

Haley laughed and then sighed. "I'm sorry also. I shouldn't have come down so hard on you, but hey, it could have been worse."

"How so?"

"You could be Peyton. I kind of freaked out at her…" Haley trailed off sheepishly while Lucas narrowed his eyes.

"Freaked out as in got mad at her?"

"-and maybe slapped her?"

Lucas sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "What am I going to do with you?"

Haley laughed and settled back into her chair. "Oh, Rachel called me earlier to let me know that she's throwing a surprise birthday for Brooke tomorrow night, after the basketball game"

Lucas couldn't help but frown at this. "Do you think she's ready to have a party thrown for her? The accident was only two weeks ago and she hasn't even returned to school yet. She hasn't even talked to hardly anyone, yet."

"Every person heals in different ways, Luke. Don't take it personally." Haley offered and then frowned as she processed her own advice.

"I would ask how Nathan's doing but the look on your face is giving it all away. Is it that bad?"

Haley nodded slowly. "I'm hoping that getting back into basketball will make him feel better because I don't know what else to do for him. He's not letting me in or communicating how he feels, at all."

Lucas walked over to his best friend and brought her into a hug. "It'll be alright, Hales. Nathan will come around – he'll be okay."

"I hope so" Haley whispered silently.

*

Brooke walked along the moonlit streets of Tree Hill, uncertain of where she was even going. All she knew was that she needed to get out of that house before she screamed. It seemed suffocating, for some reason. But then again, so did everything lately.

As she walked along, she mused on how everything looked the same. Nothing had changed, except for her. It was only her world which had altered past the point of recognition, leaving her feeling void of any emotion. There was only an aching emptiness which seemed to press against her.

And that was the point of it all – this emptiness. As terrified as she'd felt over having a baby, this was worse. And then there was a guilt that swallowed her whole; almost as if she'd wished this upon herself for being scared.

It was hard for Brooke to not take it as a sign; the baby that Lucas and her had conceived had died. The baby was gone. Maybe her relationship with Lucas was next. That is, if he hadn't already gone running off with Peyton.

Brooke suddenly stopped as she realized where her footsteps had ended up – on the river court. She glanced around and realized that she wasn't alone. Nathan was there also, lying on the pavement of the court with his eyes closed.

Hesitantly, Brooke walked over and settled herself besides him and he opened his eyes.

"Hey Nate" Brooke whispered hoarsely.

"Brooke. Hey, how are you feeling?"

Brooke shot him a look and he grimaced in response. That was the thing with Nathan and Brooke; often they didn't need to communicate with words. They simply just knew what the other was thinking.

Wordlessly, the two laid on the court and just stared out into the North Carolina night sky. They laid there and let the rest of the world move onwards as they sat still.

That was, until Brooke opened her mouth and said in a whisper so quiet that only Nathan could have possibly hear, "I was pregnant when that car crashed into mine."

And then she fell apart, while Nathan could only wrap his arms around her and comfort her while he attempted to make sense out of this discovery.

*

Peyton sat down on her bed and stared at the blank notepad lying in front of her. For once in her life, she didn't know what to draw. She didn't know what to even think. All she could see was the look of disappointment in Haley's eyes and the feel of Haley's hand connecting with her face. And all she could hear were Haley's words resonating in her head, accompanied by some of Brooke's choicer words to her as well.

"You wished for Jake. After you wished for Pete and then Lucas"

"Don't you dare twist my words around to make yourself feel like you are not a backstabbing two faced bitch, Peyton, because you are and you know it"

"A true friend – let alone, best friend – would never dream, let alone act upon kissing their best friends boyfriend, Peyton. Open your eyes."

Peyton stood back up and paced around. It was in moments like these that she wished she had her mom still with her. She'd like to believe that her mom would know what to say to make everything okay again.

But then again, it wasn't like when you were a child and all wounds could be healed with a kiss and a band-aid.

Now, kisses could tear everything apart and band-aids weren't going to heal anything.

*

What did you all think of this chapter? Next up is going to be Brooke's surprise party…with some surprise visitors from some characters pasts while some secrets come out.