A/N: Hi, guys! Did you miss me? I know this is the longest I've taken between updates and I'm sorry about that but I wanted this chapter to be perfect for you guys and I really really think you're going to like it. SusanXG beta'd this one for me and I hope y'all will agree she did a fantastic job. Thanks so much, Sus!


Haley and Lucas walked side-by-side back towards his house from another hour spent on the Rivercourt, laughing at the story Lucas was telling about Christmas.

"So, long story short, Keith's turkey got trashed and Coach Durham ended up bringing one for Christmas dinner."

"I can't believe Whitey had Christmas dinner with you."

"Yeah, he and Keith are like in love…, but Mom doesn't like him much."

"Why?"

Lucas shrugged, sticking his hands in the front pocket of his sweatshirt. "You know Mom hardly likes anything involving basketball."

"Oh yeah," Haley agreed. "I forgot."

They walked in silence for a few moments allowing Haley to become lost in her own thoughts. She had felt like someone was following them since they had left the Rivercourt, but she chalked it up to paranoia. Since the night before, she had imagined Nathan would drive up unannounced at any time and profess…something. What it would be, she had no idea. He had truly unnerved her last night when he started questioning why she didn't love him.

What a stupid question! Has he met himself? He's been nothing but a jackass since the first word he spoke to me. I wonder what Nathan would think about this.

Then she realized…that was the stupid question. What would Nathan think about Nathan? She was truly losing her mind.

She had to know his motives for acting the way he did. Was it that unlikely that he was trying to trick her into sleeping with him?

He's sure as hell cocky enough to try it. And he wants you-that's what he said.

But she wasn't sure if that's what he had meant. And she had no complete assurance unless she talked to him—something she didn't want to do. Perhaps she could chalk it all up to him having one too many drinks.

Well, he wasn't that drunk. Not like she had seen him before. Besides, what were they always saying about drinking? It brings out the truth.

So, what are you saying, Haley? You think Nathan Scott is falling for you?

She couldn't believe that. And even if he was, why would it matter?

"Do you feel like we're being followed?"

Lucas' voice cut through her thoughts, confirming her suspicions, and she quickly turned to look around. She didn't need to search for the source for long because an instantly recognizable car was pulling up behind them- a car that belonged to a certain blonde friend of theirs.

Peyton pulled her car up right next to Haley and Lucas, stopping in a marked parking space and smiling up at them innocently.

"Got a minute, friends?" she called.

Haley and Lucas exchanged perplexed looks and walked up to Peyton's car.

"Have you been following us?" Haley immediately asked.

"I just didn't want to catch you at a weird time," Peyton said, averting her eyes carefully. "Anyway, what are you guys doing tonight?"

Haley and Lucas' eyes briefly met again.

"Nothing."

"Ok, so I'm going to make a really odd request but you guys have to do it because I need you."

"What?" Haley asked, attuned to Peyton's uneasiness.

"So, Nathan's having a party tonight at his beach house, and before either of you say anything…I know you both hate Nathan and that's fine because this isn't about him, this is about me." Peyton paused dramatically to catch her breath, giving them both a chance to speak, though neither did.

"I have to go to the party because I can't let Nathan think this break up is bothering me. I know he thinks I can't go on without him and it's bullshit, so I have to prove he's wrong. I would go with Brooke but her, Rachel, and Bevin have taken some rich girl shopping spree to Charlotte. I need you two to be my backups. Please say yes." Peyton stopped speaking to catch her breath and looked between the two of them.

"You want us to go to Nathan's beach house?" Lucas asked.

"You just have to pretend it's not Nathan's. Pretend it's just some abandoned house at the beach where everyone is going to have a party and this Nathan guy may or may not be there. You probably won't even see him." Peyton looked up at them hopefully.

"You really think this is a good idea?" Haley asked.

"Don't tell me you two are going to let him get to you."

"He doesn't bother me," Lucas hissed.

"Yeah, me neither," Haley said as Lucas turned to look at her.

"Great! I'll pick you guys up at nine." And with those words, Peyton restarted her car and took off down the road.

------------

"Where is he? I'm going to kick his ass!"

Haley held onto Lucas' arm as he tried to escape her grasp. "Lucas, for starters, you're in no state of mind to fight right now. And secondly, the 'he' you're talking about hasn't even done anything to you tonight."

"Don't you defend him, Haley!"

Peyton started to giggle, as she took Lucas' cup out of his hands. "I think somebody's had enough for tonight."

The three of them had left the party house almost as soon as they had arrived in order to sit out on the beach under the stars. Peyton and Lucas had been steady drinking all night, but Haley had typically decided to be the responsible designated driver.

"What time is it?" Peyton asked, glancing at her watch. "Oh my God, it's like two-thirty. Did you know that, Haley?"

"Yeah," Haley said, plastering on a big ironic smile. "I knew that when I told you thirty minutes ago it was two."

"Oh." Peyton glanced back at the house, seeing the porch and deck had decidedly cleared out from earlier in the evening. "It looks like everyone's leaving. I guess we can get going now. Nathan will know I sat through his entire stinking party and I spent it with his least favorite person in the world. Ha!"

"You didn't spend much time at the actual party though," Haley pointed out.

"Whatever. I don't need him and now he knows that. I've got you guys."

"So that means we can go?" Haley asked, not only amazed that she had somehow made it through an entire day without seeing Nathan, but also more than ready to be away from all the memories held within the walls of his beach house.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Lucas said, going to stand up. As he started making his way towards the house, Peyton immediately stood up too.

"I better go with him. Better make sure he doesn't fight Nathan."

"Yeah," Haley agreed. "I'll just go get the car." She also stood up, brushing sand from her pants.

"Ok," Peyton said, dashing away to catch up with Lucas. "I'll meet you out front."

Haley started making her way around the beach house towards the front, taking the long way that did not lead inside the house. The night was cool and crisp and the sound of the waves calmed Haley in a way she hadn't felt in a long while. Even knowing she was so close to Nathan, she couldn't get herself as worked up as she normally would have been.

As she cleared the side of the house, she could tell by the number of cars left surrounding the house that the guests had cleared out significantly since they had arrived. Just as she reached Peyton's car, a boy suddenly came sprinting up to her.

"Hey…HEY!"

Haley turned around to face the boy and placed him immediately. She sighed at the familiar face; it was Tim Smith, the only person whose love for Nathan had ever rivaled her own.

"Can I help you?" Haley asked, unlocking the door to Peyton's car.

"Are you Haley James?"

Haley turned to look at him, stunned. "Yeah, I am."

Tim sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. I've been looking for you all over. I thought you might have left."

Haley put her hand on her hip. "Why have you been looking for me?"

"Nathan's passed out in the floor and he says-"

"Nathan?"

"Yeah, Nathan Scott. And he says he won't get up and go to his room until you come and get him."

He stared at Haley expectantly and she turned back to the car, forcing open the lock, stunned that someone could be so damn annoying. "Good. He can rot there."

"C'mon, Haley. He's really drunk."

"And how is that my problem?"

"Please," Tim pled. "He's going to hurt himself."

Haley sat, staring at the car door, knowing she should just get in. Sighing, she rolled her eyes, and looked up at him. "Fine."

"Excellent!"

She followed him back inside through the large front doors that led toward the family room. Haley instantly spotted Nathan sitting on the floor, laid back against the couch, laughing at whatever ridiculous thing he had turned on the tv. Several former Ravens surrounded him, looking similarly smashed.

His eyes met Haley's as he spotted her, staring hard for a moment as if trying to figure out exactly who she was.

"Guys, it's Haley James!" he suddenly announced to the room at large. "My soul mate, Haley James." Abruptly he turned around to look at all his former teammates accusingly. "Nobody kiss her!"

"All right," Haley said, walking to stand right in front of him. She put her hands on her hips again. "Stand up and quit making an ass out of yourself."

"My, my, aren't you looking striking today, Haley," Nathan said, his eyes moving up and down her.

"Can you guys help me with this?" she asked the boys, gesturing towards Nathan. "He's wasting enough of my time as it is." The two boys on either side of Nathan stood up obligingly and pulled him to his feet. He got his balance and pushed them away.

"I don't need help. I just want Haley to take me to my room," Nathan said, looking annoyed that anyone but Haley would dare try to assist him.

"Nathan, if you can walk-"

"I can't unless you take me," he protested.

"Fine, come on," she said, leading out of the room and towards Nathan's designated bedroom. "Tell the boys night, Nathan."

She heard him guffawing as she made her way around the corner, out of sight from the crowded room, and towards the hallway the led to the rest of the more secluded first floor. She glanced behind her to see if Nathan was following but turned just in time to see him trip and fall sideways into the wall. She straightened him and grabbed his arm, leading him towards the room.

"You were worried about me," he stated matter-of-factly. "Tim talked you into coming and getting me, didn't he?"

Ignoring him, she opened the door to his room and pointed inside. "Ok, I got you to your room. You can go to bed now."

"Come on, Haley." He stopped in the doorway, giving her a pleading look. "What if I fall on the floor on the way to my bed and break my leg? How will you feel if you left me that way here?"

"Fine," she said, walking into the room and waiting for him to follow. "Go get in bed so I can leave and know you're 'safe.'"

He smirked. "Ok, I will." He closed the door behind him as he followed her into the room.

"Nathan!"

"What?" he asked innocently, pausing at his side table to remove his watch. He faced away from her and removed his polo shirt, tossing it down on the floor carelessly and stretching his arms out over his head.

Haley immediately averted her eyes. Not the back muscles. To keep her eyes off his body, she looked everywhere else in the familiar room, taking in the complete lack of tidiness he had achieved.

"So, were you impressed with my party?"

She looked back up at him to see he had turned to face her, openly smirking at her expression. "Three nights, three parties. Congratulations."

Nathan laughed and fell back on his bed, closing his eyes. "That's supposed to be a compliment, right?"

She shrugged. "Whatever you want."

Nathan opened his eyes and turned to look up at Haley. "Why do we always end up together?"

"God hates me," Haley supplied.

Nathan returned a lazy smile. "That's a lie. If He hated you, you would be a lot less attractive."

"That's supposed to be a compliment, right?" Haley asked, echoing Nathan's earlier words.

"So," he said, sitting up and glancing around at the walls of his room. "You've been here before, right? You told me all about it on the phone."

Haley crossed her arms over her stomach and raised an eyebrow.

Her actions only made Nathan's stupid grin get bigger. "I bet we've even had sex on this bed, huh?" He bounced up and down. "Yeah, I bet like forty or fifty times."

Haley rolled her eyes and looked away from him.

"Oh, come on! I'm just messing with you, Haley," he said, reaching out for her.

"Don't!" she said immediately, pulling her arm out of his reach. Nathan overreached and immediately stumbled, almost falling out of the bed. Haley was instantly at his side, assisting him.

"I should do that more often," he said, looking at her small hand on his shoulder. She rolled her eyes and removed it.

"Lie down," Haley instructed.

"You can't make me," Nathan argued back.

"I'm sorry," Haley said, her temper rising. "I forgot only Dan can make you do whatever he wants."

His look changed instantly from one of playfulness to a cold expression. "Don't go there, Haley."

"Then, lie down," she said, secretly glad her comment had had the desired effect.

He shrugged and lied back down on his bed. "Fine."

Satisfied that he would be all right, Haley turned to leave but the sound of his voice stopped her again. "Are you leaving already?"

"Yes. You're going to be fine and I need to go."

"But you just got here."

She turned around. "Nathan, I've been here for hours. This is just the first time you've noticed me. You were too busy with your alcohol and girls. Your life."

He shook his head, still laughing. "My life? Why do you always think that?"

She stepped nearer to him again. "Everyone knows what you're like."

"No." He looked thoughtful for a moment, as if he was having a minor epiphany. "Youknow what I'm like. No one else has any idea."

Haley sniggered. "Ok, Nate. If that's what you think."

A goofy smile lit up his features. "I love it when you call me Nate. I think if I called you Hales, you would kill me."

"You're probably right."

Nathan fell silent and Haley made to leave his room again, hoping to get out without his protests.

Unfortunately something on the high shelf on the other side of his room caught her attention. She glanced back at him, seeing he had closed his eyes and was assumedly falling into an alcohol-induced slumber. She made her way over to the shelf and reached up to pull a Ravens teddy bear down from it. It was the exact same teddy bear she and Nathan had given to Jamie four years ago. She hugged the bear close to her, almost feeling like she had a part of her son with her. She remembered the day Jamie had decided not to sleep with it anymore because that was, in his words, 'baby stuff.' The bear had soon been replaced by a new animal, a bunny named Chester, who Jamie had deemed was much more 'grown up.'

She smiled, putting the bear back where she had found it and her hand brushed over another familiar object. It was a ratty old Duke baseball cap that Nathan had had since the ninth grade. She remembered in high school when he had donned it often, wearing it when he had woken up with what Haley deemed 'sex hair.' Closing her eyes, she could clearly see them all those years ago, the summer after their senior year, when Deb had watched Jamie for the night and they had sneaked away to be alone.

They had walked into his room at the beach house, side-by-side, but she had immediately noticed the hat sitting lonely at the top of the shelf. She had dashed out of his arms to pull it down. Holding it in her hands, she had turned to face him. "What's this doing here?" She ruffled his hair playfully. "What will you do when your hair looks like you've been doing something naughty?"

He shrugged, not quite matching her teasing mood. "I left it here last time I was here. I won't need it anymore." Nathan shook his head sadly. "And I can't stand to look at it anymore. Reminds me of how I managed to lose my dream school."

Haley had taken the hat down and put it on her own head. She glanced in the mirror, fixing her hair.

"I don't know. I kind of like it."

He had pulled her body flush with his, wrapping his arms around her tiny waist. "Suddenly, it looks so much better. But you tend to do that to things."

"What do you want to do now, Daddy Nathan?"

His grin lit the entire room. "I don't know. But I think we can lose the clothes." His lips just touched her ear and his voice had sent chills up and down her spine. "You can keep the cap. And hopefully, my hair will look like I've been doing something naughty."

"Twenty three."

Haley nearly jumped out of her skin as she felt the back of her shirt lift up. She was immediately torn from her memory and turned around quickly to see Nathan standing right behind her. She guessed she had been so consumed in own world, she hadn't noticed him stumbling over towards her.

"What are you doing?"

"Twenty-three," he repeated in a murmur.

"What?"

"You have my number on your back."

Haley immediately felt for the material on the back of her shirt, pulling it down even further over her back. "You must be drunker than I thought. You're seeing things."

He shook his head. "Oh no, Miss Proper Haley James." He pointed his finger in her face. "You have a tramp stamp and it is my number, which I think sends a pretty clear message to other guys." He considered this for a moment. "It's like an anti-tramp stamp."

"Don't you even go there with me, Nath—are you all right?"

For in that moment, Nathan had stumbled forward and almost fallen right on top of her. He braced his arms around Haley on the side of his shelf, his chest mere inches from Haley's face. She looked up into his eyes, waiting for him to back away, but he showed no signs of leaving her bubble. Haley felt her heart beat into overtime.

"Ok, Nate," she said, putting her arms on his chest to push him away. "Now, you've forgotten all about personal space."

His breath was grazing the top of her head and his mood instantly sobered. "How do you know I didn't fall on purpose?"

Haley's breath caught in her throat. She could scarcely remember the last time she'd been this close to Nathan. She'd been here in this alternate reality for almost a month, and before that, Nathan had been hurt for four months.

Five months, she thought. Five long, horrible months.

His face was moving towards her. Mere inches from her own. At the mere flutter of an eyelid, his lips brushed hers.

"Haley?" His voice caught as his lips backed off for a moment, his hand cradling her face. Haley kept her eyes closed until their lips touched again. "Is this ok?" His voice grew more ragged and she knew he was quickly losing control. He kept placing soft pecks on her lips and she sat completely still, giving no response or sign she even knew anything was going on between them.

Suddenly, something inside her snapped. She needed Nathan. She needed everything about him.

"No," she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him in for a passionate kiss. He returned, entering her mouth greedily, kissing her with no holds barred. She tried to pull him even closer, knowing she would never feel close enough. She braced her back against the shelf and he lifted her up in his arms, letting her wrap her tiny legs around his waist, pushing her harder into the shelf, but never losing contact at her mouth. He moved, making hard work at keeping her and himself steady, over to his bed, lying her down carefully so his drunkenness would not ruin the moment.

"Nathan," she mumbled, causing him to groan. "I missed you."

She knew he wanted her and her primal instinct towards him was quickly engaging. She could feel his possessiveness automatically taking over as his mouth claimed hers and he sheltered her body with his own, moving his hands to grip her waist and pull her body towards his. Her fingers crept up his back, scraping over the bare skin with her nails.

The familiarity of it all was driving her crazy. The way Nathan put all his weight on his sides so that he wouldn't completely crush her. How he always nipped at her bottom lip before drawing away. How amazing his mouth felt on hers for the first time in so long.

Without warning though, he rolled off of her and stuck his head off the far side of his bed, emitting a low moan. "Oh my God, I think I'm going to be sick."

Haley immediately rolled over, putting her hands to her head. What are you doing?

Nathan's head reappeared from the side of his bed and he looked over at her. "I'm ok. I just lost it for a minute."

"So did I," Haley mumbled, willing her heartbeat to climb down from its peak.

Nathan buried his face in his pillow, stretching his arm out over her. "I'm sorry. Don't leave," she heard his muffled voice say.

She laughed, shoving the arm away. "Yeah, that's going to happen."

"Haley-" He stayed lying stomach down but turned his head to look at her where she was still inexplicably lying on the other side of the bed, flushed, staring up at the ceiling. "I'm so confused."

She blew out a loud breath. "That makes two of us."

"Tell me what to do so I can have it."

She turned her face to meet his eyes. "Have what?"

"You. A family. A son. The life that makes you look so happy when you describe it."

Haley couldn't look into those serious blue eyes any long. She focused back on the ceiling. "You have no idea what you're saying. What twenty-one-year-old boy wants a son?"

"I would guess the boy that met you when he was sixteen. The guy I wish I was." His voice caught, and he laughed, not without irony in his tone. "Do you have any idea what you're doing to me?"

"A vague one," she muttered, looking down at his body and feeling glad she at least still had her sarcasm on her side. "I have to go," she continued, sitting up on the side of the bed. His voice held her in her place for another moment though.

"I've never had a family, Hales. Not like you."

She turned to look at him again, but quickly had to look away before he pulled her in completely with his words. "I want it all with you, Haley."

She felt his thumb graze the small, exposed part of her back, where she knew her tattoo was. She shuddered involuntarily but did not turn around.

"Stay with me tonight, Hales. Don't leave me."

Haley ran her fingers through her hair, a million thoughts swimming through her head. She knew that deep down there was nothing she wanted more than to stay with him, to feel his arms around her, holding her tight. She felt so safe there with him. There where he had whispered so many times to her how much he loved her.

But she couldn't.

And not just for the fact that he only said these things to her when he was drunk, not even in his right mind. Maybe just fishing for words to get what he wanted—whatever the hell that may be.

The truth was a small part of her knew that accepting this Nathan would be like leaving her old life behind. Instead of trying to return, she would be moving forward here. In a place she never wanted to be. And with a boy she never wanted to trust.

The same boy who had charmed his way into her heart all those years ago.

The same boy who was so different from the husband and father she remembered.

And in that moment, Haley had no idea who she was. Was she still Haley James Scott, the strong independent women who had started a family at the young age of seventeen, who had always forged ahead and did what was best for the people around her?

Or was she meek little Haley James, falling for Nathan Scott all over again?

And more importantly, who was he? Were his feelings even real or was this some twisted way for him to bed yet another girl? Or maybe he had been so blinded for his need for a family; he had decided she was the means to an end.

"Haley?"

She got up and walked out of the room without ever glancing back. She pulled the door to a quiet close and turned around, not allowing herself the tears she wanted to cry.

Someone was already waiting there for her though.

"Enough is enough, Haley. What's going on?"


A/N: I know I used drunk!Nathan last chapter, but this is CompletelyHammered!Nathan. I hope y'all can see the difference.