A/N: Wow, guy, I really appreciate all the nice things that were said about last chapter. I didn't feel that great about it so all the positive reviews really brightened my day. Oh, and did everyone see the Naley FF yesterday (eh, they grouped them together, but still)? It was amazing. But Naley is amazing, so there you have it (gee, am I gushing?). And yey for me on predicting Nathan's long hair correctly in this story.
Haley made it through Friday and was happy not to have to return to the Athletic Building all day. That night, she watched movies with Lucas.
She felt like she wasn't making any headway toward getting back home and the truth was, she wasn't. But she was out of ideas. Talking to Nathan hadn't panned out at all and she couldn't see how telling Luke would help any either. She was tired of asking questions because she honestly no longer cared about how or why anything in this world was the way it was. She thought about just hiding in Lucas' and her apartment until one morning, she hopefully woke up in her own house.
The scary thing was she was starting to wonder if she'd ever get back home.
Saturday morning found Haley and Lucas sitting on the floor of their common room with books spread out all around them. Haley had a paper due on Tuesday and Lucas was comparing two books next to her for a paper he had due on Monday.
Haley had found the pictures saved on her laptop and lost interest in her paper. She was flicking through them curiously, mostly seeing familiar faces. She spotted one labeled Tracey and was appalled that Nathan had gotten her confused with Haley. They looked nothing alike! She also saw a picture of Lamont hugging her after a Duke football game. He is such a sweetie, she thought to herself.
Her cell phone began ringing and she looked over at it curiously. Much to her distaste, Chris Keller was singing to her. She rolled her eyes, took a mental note to change that later, and flipped open the phone.
"Hello?"
"Is this Haley?"
"Yeah," she replied curiously.
"This is Peyton Sawyer. You know-"
"Yeah, yeah," Haley cut her off. "I know."
"Well, look, I was just driving around and I remembered you said I should come see your apartment and I was just wondering if I could…" Peyton trailed off, sounding a little unsure.
"Oh, definitely," Haley replied. "Right now's a great time. I'd love for you to come."
"Ok."
Haley gave Peyton directions to their place and when Peyton said she thought she had it, Haley hung up the phone.
"Who was that?" Lucas asked curiously, looking up from one of his books.
Haley grinned mischievously. "You'll see."
A few minutes later, a knock on the door reached Haley's ears. She bounded up from the floor to open it. She pulled back to reveal Peyton Sawyer, looking very unsure with her hair once again heavily flat-ironed.
"Hey, Peyton."
She looked over toward Lucas, who was looking at the odd pairing aghast. Haley stood back to allow Peyton to walk into the room then shut the door behind her. Peyton tossed her bag on the closest armchair as she walked into the apartment. "Lucas, you know Peyton, right?" she asked, walking in behind her.
Lucas looked highly confused, but nodded. "Yeah, I'm Lucas Scott."
"How could I not know that?" Peyton responded with a wry smiled, shaking his hand. "I remember that time you helped me with my car."
"Oh, yeah," Lucas said, jumping up from his circle of books. "It was no big deal."
Peyton shrugged. "I never said it was."
"Do you want to see the apartment?" Haley asked, trying to save Lucas from embarrassment.
"Sure." Haley showed Peyton around their place as Lucas insisted that he would make the three of them some lunch. One thing Haley did love about this new Lucas was that he seemed to have an affinity for cooking. She supposed he had developed that sometime in this world when he hadn't been making a mess of his love life like he had in her world.
The last room Haley showed Peyton was hers. Peyton sat down on the bed after she had seen everything, sighing. "This is all really nice, Haley."
"Thanks," Haley replied. "So, why were you just driving around earlier?"
Peyton rolled her eyes. "I had to get out of the apartment. Brooke's driving me crazy. Nathan and I had it out after his game last night. You know the deal."
Haley smiled. "Yeah. I just didn't think you'd need a break this soon when I offered." Both girls laughed. "If you don't mind me asking, what did you and Nathan fight about?" Haley knew it was really none of her business but she just couldn't keep the question down in her throat as she had intended.
Peyton shrugged. "Mostly just his inability to be a real boyfriend. I don't know how much you know about Nathan." Haley made a face, trying to convey that she didn't know much about him. "Well, he basically does whatever he wants and apologizes for it later. And I always fall for it."
"What do you mean?"
"It's just one of those things where I keep meaning to end it for good but I never can. A small part of me believes maybe he really does care about me. He'll say and do things every now and then that make me think maybe he could be a good person, you know?"
Haley didn't respond. She knew she shouldn't have asked the question. She felt a surge of jealousy rush through her at just the thought of Nathan doing sweet things for Peyton.
Peyton studied Haley and continued to ramble. "Honestly, breaking up is second nature for us. And I know he does things he shouldn't for just the ten minutes we're sometimes broken up and it's stupid. It's stupid for me to stay in this relationship. But, he's just—" Peyton shook her head. "I mean, besides Brooke, he's all I've got. And when Brooke was in California for our senior year, I was miserable. I don't know how to live without Nathan." Peyton looked up at Haley with a deep sadness in her eyes.
"Peyton, I--"
Before Haley could finish her thought, the door opened. Lucas poked his head in. "Sorry to interrupt. Lunch is ready."
Peyton grinned up at Lucas and the three made their way back into the kitchen. Haley felt deeply shaken by Peyton's admission of how much she had relied on Nathan. It reminded her of how much she relied on Nathan, though she didn't think she'd ever been quite as dependent on him as Peyton was now.
Lucas had made roast beef sandwiches and they all sat around, eating and talking about their classes. It was easy to see that Peyton fit in with the two of them perfectly. Haley felt an odd sense of nostalgia as she sat joking with two of her very good friends (at least, they were very good friends where she was from).
"Hang on, my phone is ringing," Peyton said, interrupting Lucas mid-sentence and grinning. She took out her phone and looked at the front screen, rolling her eyes. "It's Brooke. Give me a minute," she told the others, as she flipped it open. "Hey. Yeah. I told you I was going to go visit some friends." She looked up from her phone and made a face at Lucas and Haley. "Ok. I'll get the chips. Yes, I'll be there shortly. Calm down! Yes. Bye." She laughed and hung up the phone. "We're having a party tonight at the apartment. Or rather, Brooke's having a party. She needs me for reinforcements," Peyton said, mock-dramatically. "So, I guess I need to go. Thanks for inviting me, Haley."
"No problem," Haley said, taking a sip of her water.
"Lunch was great," Peyton said toward Lucas, going to pick her bag off up the chair she had dropped it on. "And it was a big deal."
Lucas grinned, looking embarrassed. "No problem. We'll do it again some time."
"Yeah." Peyton was headed toward the door, but before she had turned the knob, she turned back to looked at Haley and Lucas, seated at their breakfast bar. "Look, do you two want to come to our party tonight?" She rolled her eyes. "Brooke's party."
Lucas turned to look at Haley, unsure.
Haley knew she didn't want to go. There was little doubt in her mind that Nathan Scott would be there and personally, she wanted to stay as far away from him as possible.
"We'll think about it," Haley said, easily reading the look of hope that had spread across Lucas' face.
"Please come," Peyton said. "I'll leave you with directions. I think it would be much more tolerable if you two were there."
Haley smiled half-heartedly.
How much more of this was she going to have to put up with before she could return home?
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Haley applied a little more eyeliner as she surveyed her reflection critically.
A college party. She had barely gone to those when she was in college. An infant son didn't leave much time for partying in her college years.
Don't think about Jamie or you'll ruin your eye makeup, she scolded herself.
Who are you trying to impress anyway? herself responded.
Nathan will be there, said a cocky voice in the back of her head.
"Shut up!" she said, turning away from the mirror. "He is an asshole. A very handsome asshole that you would be in love with if he were anything like he's supposed to be."
She went toward the door, slipping on a pair of flats on her way. She really didn't want to go to this party. She was mainly doing it for Peyton. And of course, Lucas. And because she couldn't think of anything better to do with her life.
Walking back to the den, she saw Lucas had put on a nice buttoned-down shirt and his trademark flip-flops. He was once again sitting on the ground, surrounded by books on all sides. That was his usual state these days. She liked the whole all-literature all-the-time thing he had going on.
He didn't notice her so she followed on a whim and went to sit down in his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he looked up, smiling.aHal
"What do you weigh? Nine pounds?"
"Lucas, I missed this," Haley said truthfully.
"Missed what?" he asked, looking confused.
"We haven't been like this for a long time."
"Hales," he said, as she studied him, "We've always been like this."
"Yeah." She bit her lip. She had made sacrifices when she had committed herself to Nathan and one of them had been losing some of the closeness she had once had with Lucas. In this alternate universe, it was still Haley and Lucas no matter what. Nothing came between them here. She did love that. She loved being with her best friend.
"You ready?" he asked, as she scooted off his lap.
"I guess," she sighed as he reached down a hand to help her up. "Ready as I'll ever be."
"We don't have to go," Lucas told her as he took his keys off the counter.
"We should though. Peyton asked us."
"Yeah. I always try to do what my evil half-brother's girlfriend asks of me."
Haley laughed as she followed Lucas out of their apartment. "We'll forgive her judge of character."
Haley and Lucas rode in Luke's car to where Peyton and Brooke's apartment was located in Durham. They lived on a bottom floor apartment and the party looked to be in full swing when they arrived. So many cars were there, they had to park on the other side of the building and walk the rest of the way to their apartment.
They could barely make their way into the door as so many people were crowded around. Haley immediately spotted Brooke standing next to the door with a drink in hand and looking fierce as usual.
"Hi, welcome to my party," she said as they walked into the door. "And you are…Lucas Scott," she finished, answering her own question. "Well, well, well…"
"Brooke," Lucas said, nodding his head in her direction.
"Who invited you?" Brooke asked, completely missing Haley. "Not that I'm complaining." She grinned seductively at Lucas.
"Peyton invited me and Haley," he said, gesturing toward his friend.
"Oh. Haley was it?" she asked, looking toward Haley, who nodded. "Well, the alcohol is over there," she said, pointing in the direction of the kitchen. "I hate when she invites guys and their girlfriends," she went on very audibly.
"No, just friends," Haley corrected quickly.
"Oh!" Brooke said, lighting back up. "Well, in the case, Lucas, I have to show you something." She took Lucas by the arm and forcibly pulled him away; he threw a helpless look back at Haley who just laughed.
Without Lucas though, she was lost. She looked around a little desperately and saw no one she knew. She walked through crowds of people, parting the way and looking for Peyton.
"Haley!" She turned around and was engulfed by a pair of arms. She had to tilt her head all the way back to look into the face of a very tall boy.
"Marcus," she said, relieved to know someone.
"Imagine seeing you at a party. You crazy kid."
Haley laughed. "I know this isn't my usual scene. But I know the girl throwing the party."
"Brooke Davis?"
"No. Her roommate."
"Nate's girlfriend," Marcus said, nodding wisely. "Peyton. She's hot as hell but she's got an attitude for sure."
"She datesNathan," another guy, who looked like he could be a basketball player, too, said over Marcus' shoulder. "Can you blame her? Are you a tutor?" he asked Haley, changing gears at the speed of light.
"Hey, back off," Marcus said, putting a protective arm around Haley and blocking the guy's attempt with his hand. "This is my tutor."
"Damn, girl. You're the hottest tutor I've ever seen," the basketball player said. "What do you tutor? I need to change my classes."
"What do we have here?"
Marcus' hand tightened around Haley's shoulder as they both recognized the voice that was coming up behind them.
Haley turned to see Nathan, holding up a red cup to his lips. "Hottest tutor in the school, hmm?" he asked, taking a sip from his cup.
Marcus sighed. "Nate, leave her alone. You know you my boy, but if you mess with Haley again, I'm gonna lay you out."
Nathan forced a laugh, eyeing his arm around Haley's shoulder. "You're awfully found of your little Tutor girl, aren't you?" He raised an eyebrow.
Haley felt confused at the look on his face and the tone of his voice. She recognized it instantly, but it couldn't be…
"Are you jealous?" Haley asked, stepping out of Marcus' grip and towards Nathan.
"A little high on yourself, aren't you?" Nathan responded easily.
"I don't know, man, you look pretty jealous," the other basketball player responded, guffawing.
"Shut up, Chad," Nathan said, rolling his eyes and walking away.
"He's just mad you're the hottest tutor in the university and you're interested in me," Chad said, winking. "Come on, Marcus, I need a refill." He and Marcus said goodbye and left Haley alone once again, feeling all the more uneasy at the event that had just occurred. Nathan seemed to unnerve her more every time she saw him. And it was so hard not to see the glimpses of the boy she had fallen in love with. And at times, it pained her to think, he reminded her so much of Jamie.
She knew it was horrible timing, but all the sudden she thought she was going to break down in the middle of the party. Surrounded by all these people she would probably never know, she felt an urge to start bawling.
She fought to get out of the crowd, trying to find a room where she could sit down by herself. She found a hallway off to the right and easily found Peyton's room. It was a dark navy blue and covered in band posters. It was exactly like her room in Tree Hill had been, except decidedly darker. The room was empty and she knew Peyton wouldn't mind so she walked in and sat on her bed. And she just let it out.
She felt the hot tears sliding down her face and she knew she was crying for everything. She was crying for how much the new Nathan detested her, how she knew even when she got back home, her relationship with Nathan might be over, and most importantly, she was crying for her little boy. It had been almost a week since she had seen him and she was miserable.
When she began to feel cried out, she wiped away at her eyes. She now had a pounding headache. She reached to the side table, and opened up the drawer, looking for an Aspirin to dim the pain in her head. She almost threw up when she looked down in the drawer.
It was full of condoms.
She slammed it closed and the tears welled back up in her eyes. How could she be jealous of Nathan and Peyton's relationship? She hated the thought of them together and it was driving her crazy to think of all the times they had been together. She had known they were together, but the thought that they were having sex on a regular basis hit her like a ton of bricks. She wanted to be dead. She didn't think she could have possibly hit a lower low.
She heard a body slam into the wall outside of the room and looked up quickly. There was a slurping noise coming from outside and she heard a frustrated groan. "Nathan, you're drunk, get off of me," came Peyton's voice from outside the door. Haley's blood boiled; Nathan wanted to bring her in here and put some of those condoms to good use.
"Come on, baby," his voice returned. "It's been almost a week. I missed you."
"Is that why you hooked up with Carmen Grande while you were in Chapel Hill last weekend? You missed me so much."
Haley heard his fist hit the wall and gasped. She never recalled him being that violent. "Nothing happened."
"I heard you two were hanging all over each other. And you just put a hole in the wall, you jackass!"
"We didn't hook up though!"
"It's all the same, Nathan! It shows a total lack of respect for me."
"Whatever, Peyton. You can call me when you've decided to get over yourself and stop being such a bitch. You've got it made and all you do is complain twenty-four seven."
"You think because you sometimes do nice things for me, you can control me? That's not how it works!"
"Yeah, I don't see you complaining about that five-hundred dollar necklace I bought you, which you're wearing by the way!" he yelled louder and Haley figured Peyton was walking away, especially when she didn't respond to his proclamation.
Haley was startled when she heard a large figure slamming through the door.
There, framed in the doorway was a figure that had been the reason she had just been crying silently to herself. They stared at each other for a few minutes and it struck Haley as odd at the number of times she had sat on a bed, waiting for him, and here he was again. But unlike those times, he did not look happy to see her.
"You again!"
"Me," she replied, her voice still weak from crying.
He sighed and went to sit on the bed next to her. "Whatever." He chugged the last of his drink and let it fall out of his hands, onto the floor. He turned to look at her. "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing you would understand."
"Oh, yeah. I forgot. You're not supposed to be here."
"You can quit torturing me now," Haley said, monotone.
Nathan turned and looked at her. She shifted under his gaze but did not give him the pleasure of hearing her ask for him to leave her alone. He looked away.
"Why'd you tell me anyway?" he asked. Haley tried to comprehend what he had just asked. If he had been trying to shock the hell out of her, it worked.
Haley shrugged. "Habit, I guess. I tell you everything." She glanced over at him, seeing his expression hadn't changed. "We don't have secrets. When I have a problem, I go to you. So I had a problem and I went to you. It was natural. It was stupid."
"Keep in mind, I still don't believe you," Nathan replied after she finished.
"Break my heart, why don't you?" Haley said sarcastically.
"Fine, I'm not your Prince Charming. I'm sorry. I'm a jerk. Is that what you wanted to hear?"
"Doesn't do me any good, does it? I'm not at home now, am I?"
Nathan shook his head. "Then I guess I can't help you."
Haley finally turned to look at him. "No, I guess you can't! Because God knows help from you would be too much to ask!"
She turned away from him and they sat in silence for a few moments. Finally, she heard Nathan sigh. "So, what's wrong with you?" he repeated.
"I miss someone. Someone I love a lot."
"Me?" he asked, catching her gaze.
"Don't flatter yourself."
"Then who?"
She looked up at him and he could just make out a tear caught on her eyelash. "You don't deserve to know," she spoke, disdain dripping off her every word.
She thought she saw something; a little bit of hurt behind his eyes. But it was quickly gone and replaced with nothingness. The nothingness she was very used to seeing. "Don't look at me like that," she whispered.
"Like what?!" he asked, throwing his hands in the air, fed up.
"Like you don't care. All I want to believe is that you do care. You have to care!"
"Haley, look…" He surprised even himself as he put his arm around her, trying to comfort her. Her glassy eyes stared at him, unshed tears glistening there. He was hit with an insane urge to comfort her. One he could never follow through on. She looked so sad, so pathetic right now. And she was so small.
All these thoughts ran through his mind in an instant as their eyes both caught sight of his hand on her arm and she had jumped up from the bed, towering angrily over him. "Don't you dare touch me!"
"What?" he asked, drawing back his arm.
"This isn't a game. Don't ever touch me again. You are not my Nathan. Don't come near me."
"Wha-?" And with that she walked to the door and slammed it angrily, leaving a perplexed Nathan sitting on the bed.
He got up. He might as well drink until he didn't remember his moment of weakness tomorrow.
A/N: So, longest chapter yet and I think we can all sense that there is some serious tension between old Haley and new Nathan. DRAMA! I actually intended for their conversation to be a bit longer at the end, but Haley just didn't seem to want to stay in that room. Darn her! Anyway, I suffered a bit of a disappointment yesterday so it would be really fantastic if y'all could put in some nice reviews. Or bad, depending on what you thought of the chapter. Just reviews in general would be phenomenal.
Oh and a huge thanks to whoever recommended my story on a OTH board somewhere. You have no idea how much that flatters me.
