Nathan and Luke went one way the girls the other. Two hours later they met back up at the café with no Haley. "Any luck," Lucas asked the girls.
"No, we checked the school, her old house, the old apartment," Brooke replied. "I'm gonna assume you didn't have any luck either?"
"Nope," Lucas said, "we checked the river court, my mom's house, my apartment, and Nate's house."
"You might have had better luck alone Lucas, no offense Nathan," Brooke said.
"None taken," he said back. "If she saw us coming she probably took off again. I wasn't thinking I should have just stayed here. I hate that it hurts her to look at me."
"I don't think that was it," Brooke said slyly.
"What," Nathan asked her. "We haven't seen each other since Keith was born and she couldn't look at me then. Lucas told me it was because she said it hurt too much to look at me because all she could see was what I almost cost her."
"Um, yeah that was true for the longest time but you didn't see her face tonight Nate," Brooke said. He gave her a questioning look and mouthed what. At that moment Brooke turned to leave and said, "I know where she is, the one place none of us checked," when she reached the door she turned to the three of them, "you guys stay here I'll make sure she's ok."
Brooke walked slowly along the docks next to the empty stone tables. There Haley sat at the last one with her feet up on the bench and her knees to her chest. "Hey Tutorgirl," Brooke said quietly as she approached. Haley didn't move. More tears fell from her eyes. "Wanna tell me what that was all about?"
"How did you find me," Haley asked back.
"Um, I actually listen to you when you talk to me," Brooke said, "unlike you who must not have heard my question."
"I don't know Brooke. I don't know," she said wiping her eyes on her sleeve.
"I think you do honey, that's why you're here, instead of somewhere that doesn't remind you of him."
"Brooke," Haley said angrily.
"Come on Hale's be honest with yourself, I've seen it in you, heard it in your voice when we've talked about him Haley I was just waiting for you to see it too."
Haley looked over at Brooke with even more tears in her eyes. She barely got out the words, "When I looked at him tonight, I mean really looked at him I didn't see what I had seen every time I looked at him in my dreams, or every time I replayed him telling me it was his fault Daunte hit me with the car. I didn't see what I almost lost Brooke; I didn't feel all that hurt and betrayal or the disgust." She paused and Brooke waited for her to continue. "I always thought I would feel that way when I saw him again. I did feel that way when I dreamed about seeing him, or when I would relive that moment. I always thought I would feel that but I didn't."
"Well what did you feel, honey," Brooke asked her while playing with one of her rings awkwardly.
"I felt lost, Brooke," she said. "I felt like I had lost something, not that I had almost lost something. I felt his love for me. I felt everything, Brooke, everything accept for the one thing I've been using as an excuse to keep him away," she finished and started sobbing.
Brooke walked closer to her and she swung her legs and put her feet on the ground with her elbows on her knees hunched over to cry. Brooke sat next to her and put her arms around her.
"What are we going to do with you Tutorgirl," Brooke sighed as Haley continued to cry, "What are we gonna do."