Hey guys!!! I decided to update again today because I may not be able to for the rest of the week. I'm going to be out of town for a few days but I should be back by next Monday. Hope everyone's having a good day! Here's Chapter 16. It's pretty intense. I decided not to add any quotes in this chapter so that the focus was more on the story. Enjoy: )

Previously,

She extracted her arm from his hand. She felt his finger slowly brush down her hand as she made her way to the door. The loss of contact signaled the end of their marriage. They were done. His destiny lied in California, coaching a big college team. Hers lied here. In Tree Hill. With a man other than her current husband. The fate of the Scotts was finally unfolding.

But before she put both feet outside the door, she had to tell him the real truth. He deserved to know. He wasn't the only one at fault here.

"Oh, by the way, I'm in love with your brother. I have been for a while. I just didn't realize it. I thought you might want to know."

With a slight smile, Brooke Davis-Scott closed the door and made her way down a familiar path, to a place where she knew she was destined to be.

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Meanwhile, at Nathan's place, after Brooke left to talk to Lucas.

After Brooke left, Nathan Scott felt like one of the happiest men alive. Him and Brooke could finally be together. Never in a million years would he have imagined falling in love with her in such a short period of time. It was like he was dreaming and sometimes Nathan was afraid that he would wake up and realize that none of this was reality.

"God, I love her!" he said as he grinned like an idiot, leaning across the couch. Love could make a hard core guy like him turn into a sappy kind of guy.

When she came back they would finally be able to be with each other. They would finally be able to be a family. A true loving family. Growing up with parents who were control freaks and pill heads, a true family was a mere thought and definitely not a real thing to him. This calls for a celebration. When Brooke comes back we can finally be together and happy. I think I'm going to surprise her. And Nathan Scott did just that.

Ten minutes later he returned to the house, fifty roses in hand and about twenty-five candles. He laid them ornamentally around the living room, showering rose petals here and there for a romantic look. She is definitely not going to expect what she sees here. While he was lighting the candles the doorbell rang. Nathan looked at his watch. It hadn't been that long…Brooke said she was going to take a while. Weird. Maybe everything went better than I thought.

The person on the other side of the door was definitely not Brooke, though.

"Haley?" Nathan stood shocked and confused. What was she doing back in Tree Hill?

Haley James, formerly James-Scott, looked down at her hands and rocked back and forth on her feet. Obviously nervous and hesitant.

"Hey Nate…Do you think we could talk?" she questioned.

"Uh yeah sure. Come on in."

Opening the door further he revealed the enchanting display. "Wow…did you do all this for Brooke?"

"Yeah…I wanted to surprise her."

"Ohmygod, Nate I can come back later and we can talk then. I don't want to intrude on your surprise."

"No, no it's fine. She'll be a while."

"Ok. So…" She said as she sat on the couch.

"So…" Echoing his former wife's moves, he joined her on the couch. "What brings you back to Tree Hill?"

"I just wanted to clear things up between us." After looking at his confused face, she elaborated. "I wanted to apologize for how I reacted with the divorce, with Brooke, with our marriage. For a while, I truly wasn't happy with our marriage and I guess the only reason we were together was because of James. And when you told me about you and Brooke, I used it as my way out. And after the divorce, I'm embarrassed to say that I felt for the first time in a while, free. And I feel so guilty for blaming everything on you and making it seem like our marriage was a total disaster just because of you. I have faults too and I just wanted to say sorry for everything I put you through, for blaming you for everything."

"I did cheat on you though Haley. It was really wrong of me and I shouldn't have hid it from you for that long. And I shouldn't have even done that behind your back."

"I know. But just know that it wasn't just your fault. It was both of ours. It just wasn't meant to be. We weren't meant to be."

"Yeah."

"So, friends?" She stuck out her hand awaiting his response.

He broke out into a smile and enveloped her into a hug instead. "Friends."

She started laughing. "Ah I'm glad I got that out of the way."

"Haley James, I don't think I could ever not be friends with you."

She laughed again. "Geez, Scott. Took you long enough to realize that." He mockingly hit her. "So…tell me about you and Brooke. What's the deal with you two? How's Lucas dealing with all this?"

For the next hour, Nathan filled her in on the current drama between the three. They chatted like old friends and it felt good to have resolved everything between him and Haley. Every now and then, he would glance up at the clock. Where was Brooke? Is she okay? Did everything go alright? Since Brooke had not shown up yet, and Haley insisted on staying saying that she wanted to clear things up with Brooke, Nathan put in a movie for him and Haley to watch while they waited. Both sat side by side on the couch, enjoying their time as friends.

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After Brooke had left Lucas', she decided to take a detour to Peyton's. She knew her friend had played a secret part in getting her and Nathan together and she thought it was only best to go over and tell her that she had ended things with Lucas in person rather than over the phone. The girls had chatted away, and Peyton was more than rejoiced that her two best friends were finally together. She had always known they were meant to be. Looking at the clock, Brooke realized how late it was.

"Oh god! It's 11:30 already?! Peyt, I better get going. Nathan's probably worried sick." She scrambled up and made her way downstairs to leave.

"Okay. Tell loverboy I said congrats and I told you so," Peyton replied, smirking.

Brooke laughed. "Will do, my friend."

Gathering her belongings, she headed to Nathan's house, her future home. Ah! She was so excited! This was the moment she'd been waiting for. The future was beyond her hands. She knew there would be problems regarding the divorce, custody, living arrangements. But the only thing she cared about in that moment was how much she loved Nathan Lee Scott.

Turing off the engine of the car, she pranced towards the house. The living room light is on. Was he waiting up for me? Awe, he's going to be so happy when I tell him! This is the moment that will change everything! She peeked through the front window, curious to see what her current lover was up to. Looking around, she gasped. The living room was decorated elaborately with luminous candles, dark scarlet roses and scattered rose petals. It was a picture from any girl's dream. Her gaze inadvertently traveled the couch. She froze. The sight was one that she would never have expected.

There sleeping soundly on the couch was Nathan. Lying right beside him was no other than Haley James. Looking pretty damn cozy. As a pool of tears started forming in her glistening eyes, the brunette did the first thing that came to mind.

She fled.

End of Chapter 16! Sorry for the cliffhanger. Hope you guys liked the chapter! PLEASE R&R!!! Love your comments! Thanks!