Hayley walked through the front door of her brand-new apartment in Tree Hill. She had purchased a small upstairs apartment with the remaining money her parents had lent her. After graduating Stanford, money has been tight. She was still on the hunt for a job but seeing that Tree Hill was a small town she didn't have much options. Not wanting to be alone for the night she decided to drive over to see Brooke since Peyton and Lucas were on their honeymoon.

Hayley walked through Brookes front door to see Julian and Nathan having a beer and watching the Bobcats play. Nathan instantly rose to his feet to greet her.

"Hey Hayley, it's nice to see you again." Nathan said to her with a smile.

"Hey Nathan." Hayley said with a nervous smile. Something about him still gave Hayley goosebumps. They had exchanged numbers at the wedding, but Hayley was busy looking for a job that she couldn't find the time to call.

"Hey Tutor Girl." Brooke said entering the room and giving Julian a light peck on the lips.

"We were just about to throw some food on the grill if you want to join us." Nathan said to Hayley hoping she would accept his invitation.

"I would love to." Hayley said grinning back at him.

"Good because I need help cooking." Brooke said pulling Hayley into the kitchen.

"You are so crushing out on him!" Brooke said with a grin to Hayley

"Am not!" Hayley replied lightly hitting Brooke on the shoulder

"Please, you have been drooling over him non-stop since the wedding, you so like him" Brooke said realizing that Hayley was giving in.

"I wouldn't even know where to make a move though!" Hayley replied finally accepting defeat.

"Leave that to me." Brooke said smirking.

"So, what do you think about Hayley?" Julian said to Nathan while taking another sip of his beer.

"She's gorgeous" Nathan said grinning. "We had such great chemistry at the wedding, but when she never called I got worried that it was just me who felt the connection."

"No, I'm sure she was just busy, Brooke told me she has been swamped looking for a job." Julian replied.

"I hope that's the case." Nathan replied standing up to help set the table.

Julian stepped into the dining room pulling out a chair for himself to sit in next to Nathan. Brooke stepped in front of him pinching his arm lightly.

"Ouch!" Julian whimpered as he moved away from the chair.

"Julian dear, why don't you come sit on this side next to me." Brooke said in an innocent tone.

Hayley sent Brooke a grateful look, and took a seat next to Nathan.

"So, Nathan, how's basketball?" Julian asked.

"Well ever since I blew out my knee at Duke I haven't played that much." Nathan replied.

Nathan dislocated his knee in the final game of his senior year at Duke, when he went up for a layup and landed hard on the floor. Now, a year after graduating, he has been to therapy a few times, but hasn't had the motivation to go.

"Wow, that must've been really hard for you to let it go." Hayley said to Nathan in a sorrow tone.

"Yeah it was, but I realized that there are more important things in life than basketball, so I'm focusing on those things now." Nathan replied to Hayley with a slight smile.

Hayley smiled back at him studying his piercing blue eyes and dreaming about what it would be like to kiss his soft lips. Suddenly she was brought back to reality by the sound of Brookes phone ringing.

"Sorry guys." Brooke said standing up to take the call.

Hayley turned back to her food as Julian and Nathan began chatting about the game.

"Julian, your dad just had a heart attack." Brooke said rushing back into the dining room.

Julian stood up with a concerned look on his face.

"You guys go ahead, I will clean up the dishes." Hayley said to Brooke in a concerned tone.

"Thank you." Brooke said while taking Julian's hand and rushing out the door leaving Hayley and Nathan alone.

Hayley stood up picking up her plate.

"Wow. I hope Julian's dad is okay." She said as she walked into the kitchen.

"Yeah me too, he is a strong guy, I'm sure he will get through it." Nathan said to her in a reassuring voice.

Nathan brushed past Hayley as he put on of the plates in the dishwasher sending chills through her body.

"So, now that you are taking time away from basketball, what are you thinking about doing?" Hayley asked lightheartedly to Nathan.

"I've been thinking about coaching." Nathan responded. "I'm not ready to leave basketball all together yet, and I love kids, so I thought it would be fun."

"That sounds perfect for you Nathan!" Hayley responded to him.

"What about you? I heard you were on the job search." Nathan said to her as he picked up a cup from the table.

"Well I majored in Finance, but I also got a degree in teaching, so I was thinking about looking for a teacher position." Hayley replied.

"That's awesome Hales." Nathan said while smiling at her.

Hearing him call her Hales made her instantly blush and send butterflies through her body.

"I was thinking, I could pop in a movie if that's cool with you?" Nathan said to her.

"That sounds perfect." Hayley said grinning.

Nathan put in Chucky 2 and grabbed a blanket heading towards the couch.

"Really! A scary movie?" Hayley said while laughing.

"Chucky 2 is a classic!" Nathan said returning a laugh.

Hayley curled up in the blanket as the movie came on, when suddenly Chucky entered the scene. Hayley jumped, laying her head-on Nathans shoulder for protection. Nathan laughed and put his arm around her. Hayley's arm tingled at the touch of him.

Once the movie finished Hayley was clinging on to Nathan so hard he had trouble breathing.

"It's okay, it's over now Hales."

"Next time, I pick the movie!" Hayley said still shaken up.

"Oh, so there will be a next time?" Nathan replied while smiling.

"Definitely." Hayley responded with a smile.

Suddenly Nathan leaned in close to her face to where Hayley could feel his hot breath on her neck. Hayley's heart was beating out of her chest wanting to close the gap between them. Nathan searched her brown eyes as if he was looking for permission to kiss her. Flattered by his kindness, she leaned in and closed the gap between them. The kiss was soft and passionate. Their lips covering each other's gently. Nathan wrapped his arms around her waist and Hayley placed her hands lightly on his face. Nathan's tongue begged for entrance inside her mouth and Hayley gladded accepted. Their tongues played with each other as a soft moan escaped Hayley's lips. When air became an issue they reluctantly pulled away and stared into each other's eyes.

"Wow." Was all that both of them could say.

Thank you for reading chapter 2! I enjoyed making this one a lot! Thank you for reading and stayed tuned for more and of course, R&R!