With her head buried in her readings, Haley almost didn't hear the door close as her husband and her best friend came into the house as quiet as possible. She looked up and smiled at the both of them, closing her book for the night.
She was exhausted, but she found it nearly impossible to sleep without Nathan by her side. "Hey boys," She smiled up at them. "How was practice?"
Lucas shrugged. "We still have a lot of work ahead of us if we want to make it to post season this year. It's like watching a train wreck… Even when Nathan's not playing." He joked, elbowing his brother in the ribs.
Nathan rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Pucas." He muttered, kissing his wife's head. "How was the boy?"
"Went down like a charm, eight o clock sharp. You guys hungry? I made pasta for supper and I left you some leftovers in the fridge." Before she even finished her sentence, they had both bolted, shoving each other out of the way. "Men." Haley muttered to herself.
As they were both shoving food into their mouths, Nathan perked his head up and paused. "Did I just hear…?" He asked before the sound of Jamie wailing filled the air. "Yeah, thought so."
Haley looked at the clock and saw it was a little after eleven. "He's probably hungry, he was fussy before dinner and didn't finish his bottle. Can one of you heat it up for me? I'm going to grab him." She came back bouncing him in her arms. "Hi Mr. James Lucas Scott," she cooed. "Are you a hungry baby?"
"Here Hales," Nathan handed her over a bottle. "Hi Jamie, Daddy missed you today, yes he did."
Haley cradled him in the crook of her arm and tried to feed him, until he started fussing and turning his mouth away, his left hand stretched out to the side, closing and unclosing into a fist. She sighed and rolled her eyes. "He won't eat for me. He never does when you're in the room."
Nathan couldn't help but smirk as she passed Jamie over to him, and he immediately started sucking on his bottle. "Who's your favorite Jamie, huh? Yeah, Daddy is isn't he?" He chuckled.
"Yeah whatever don't rub it in." She muttered, rolling her eyes. "I'm going to take a shower."
Nathan looked at her with his eyebrows raised. "I'll just give Jamie to Luke and I'll be right in."
Both Haley and Lucas muttered "In your dreams," at the same time.
Still smiling, Nathan sat next to his brother on the couch, who was watching a recap of yesterday night's football game. "You doing okay, Luke?" He asked.
Lucas gave him a funny look. "I'm fine, why?"
"No reason I guess. It's just that you haven't really talked about Peyton in a while so I was just making sure everything was still good between the two of you."
Luke looked down at the floor. "She's just been busy, I guess. You know how she got that job at the record label. I'm sure once we both get settled in, everything will go back to normal."
"You miss her?" Nathan asked.
"Every damn day." Lucas sighed, looking over at his nephew and godson. "Especially when I see the three of you. I want that. I've always wanted that."
Nathan smiled at his brother. "You'll get there, man. It just takes time."
"Yeah, sure, because it took you guys what, two years to be married and have a kid?" Lucas joked.
"Okay well maybe we're not the best example." Nathan said, unashamed, as he burped his son.
A few minutes later, Haley came out in her fluffy white robe, wet hair cascading down her back. She held out her arms for her son. "Come on Jame, time for bed." She said in a soothing tone.
"Um, Hales?" Lucas asked. "Do you mind if I put him down? I wouldn't mind spending some time with my nephew."
Haley paused. "Are you sure, Luke? You just had a long practice and a full day of classes, aren't you tired?"
He shrugged. "It's not a big deal Hales, you have a full day of class and tutoring and Nate has a full day of class and basketball and both of you manage to find the energy to put up with this little munchkin. Besides, you're acting like I haven't taken care of him before. You pawn him off on me all the time." He joked.
Haley gasped. "Hey, that is not true! Okay well, maybe it is but it doesn't happen all the time!" Lucas gave her the "I'm joking" face that he always does and she scoffed. "Fine, but if he gives you a hard time just come and get me okay?"
Nathan passed his son over to Lucas and said, "Yeah, but make sure it's at least thirty minutes from now!"
"Nathan!" Haley exclaimed, laughing as he swept her into his arms and started walking towards the bedroom. She peered over his shoulder. "Night Luke! Night Jamie, I love you!"
Lucas cradled his nephew and kissed the top of his head as he headed for his room. "You tired yet buddy?" He asked and his response was a big gurgle and the wiggling of his little feet. "Yeah, that's okay. How about you hang out with Uncle Lucas for a little while?" He sat down in the rocking chair. "You know Jamie, I have a girlfriend named Peyton. Do you remember her?"
The little boy looked up at his uncle with wide eyes and reached for his finger to grasp. "I'm just going to take that as a yes. I'm not surprised I mean she's beautiful and pretty hard to forget. I guess you're probably wondering why you haven't seen her in a while, because I'm wondering the same thing. You see, she got this job at the record label she was dong an internship for in marketing and distribution. Yeah, I'm not really sure what that means either, because she never told me."
"She was supposed to be gone for the summer and then she was supposed to come back, and we were supposed to be together. But then she got a job there, and how was I supposed to tell her that she couldn't take it? Music and producing is her dream and I don't think I could live with being the guy who held her back from all that. But I'll tell you a little secret James Lucas Scott, I miss her more than anything in the world and I would give anything for her to be here with me."
Lucas sighed to himself, unable to shake how he was feeling. "I mean, I love your mom and dad and I love being able to be here with you and watch you grow up but every time I see the three of you together I get this knot in my stomach. I don't think that will ever go away buddy, at least not until she comes back." He glanced down at his nephew and noticed that he was fast asleep, his mouth poised in a perfectly shaped O. Gently, he laid him down in the crib and just looked at him for a minute. "I love you kiddo, and one day, I promise you, Peyton and I are going to be a family just like you and your parents. And you can quote me on that."
He quietly closed the door behind him and went to head to his room, when Haley came out of hers, looking at him sadly. "Luke…" She muttered, throwing her arms around his waist.
He touched his hand to her hair. "You heard all that didn't you?"
She shrugged in his arms. "Baby monitor." She mumbled, pulling away from him. "Don't worry, Nathan fell asleep the minute he hit the sheets, so he won't be able to tease you." She tried to joke, and then she paused. "Are you going to be okay Luke?"
"Hales, don't worry about me." He chuckled. "I love you for it, but you have enough on your plate. Now go, get some sleep okay? Jamie is out like a light and you should take advantage of that."
"Oh, okay." She said, kissing him on the cheek. "Love you Luke."
He watched her go with a sad smile. "Love you too Hales."
It was about seven in the morning that Jamie woke up with his hungry cry. Haley rolled over and kicked her husband. "You get him." She moaned.
Nathan grunted. "I'm sleeping."
Haley lay there for a moment, trying to open her eyes. "Nathan." She whined. Jamie's cries got louder and Nathan rolled onto his other side. "Come on Nathan, I watched him all evening yesterday plus I got up with him at four. I'm tired." When he didn't answer, she sighed. "Fine, I'll go. But you have to change all of his diapers today. All of them!"
"Mm." He groaned, throwing a pillow over his head.
Haley huffed, walking out of the room and into Jamie's nursery, and lifted him into her arms. "Good morning baby," She cooed as she went to change him out of his wet diaper and his pajamas. "You're hungry aren't you? Well after I change you, I'm going to get you a nice warm bottle, want to know why?" She buttoned up his onesie and put a little pair of track pants over it. "Because Daddy is mean and he doesn't love you enough to get up with you like Mommy does. But that's okay because we're going to get back at him aren't we? I know you've got a talent for making big, messy poops so how about we put that to good work today okay? High five." She grabbed his little hand and pressed it against his.
As she was watching TV and feeding Jamie, Lucas came out looking disheveled. "Hey Luke, you're up early. Did we wake you?"
He shook his head and walked groggily into the kitchen to make coffee. "No, I just couldn't sleep that's all."
"How about we kill Nathan and then you can be my husband instead?" She said and then quickly scrunched up her nose. "Ew, never mind that's gross."
"Couldn't get him out of bed?" Luke asked as he started making something to eat. "Want breakfast?"
Haley sighed. "No, but what else is new? And yes, eggs. But the scrambled kind." She looked down at her son, who was watching her as she fed him and she scrunched her nose up at him. "Gotta be honest kid, I can't wait until you can feed yourself." A couple minutes later after she had burped him and he had spit up down the back of her shirt, she scrunched her nose again. "And burp yourself." She went to put Jamie on his blanket while she got changed, but he started to whimper and he reached his arms towards her in distress. Haley laughed at her son and scooped him up again. "Needy, just like your father." She joked, taking him into her bedroom to get changed.
She stared at her husband who was lying on his stomach, shirtless and snoring, and narrowed her eyes. She put Jamie beside his head on his stomach and stripped off her pajamas, rummaging through her drawers to find something to wear. As she was pulling a clean shirt over her head, she heard Nathan's startled yelp.
She looked back and couldn't help but laugh when she realized that Jamie had spit up in her husband's hair. He sat up in disgust and glared at her. "Not funny Haley."
She shrugged innocently. "Payback for you not getting up with him. Come here baby, lets get you cleaned up while Daddy has a shower." After Nathan had left the room, she smiled down at Jamie. "Nice work kid. A solid start."
Sometime later, after Jamie had woken up from his late afternoon nap, Nathan knocked on the bedroom door, where Haley was taking her late afternoon nap. "Oh Hales," Nathan called, Jamie in his arms. "Time to wake up, Mommy."
She sat up groggily. "What time is it?"
"Almost five. Luke made an early dinner. I figured you'd want to eat before we went out. Or did you forget what day it was?" He grinned. "You've only been obsessing over this day for weeks."
Fully awake, she clapped her hands together. "It's Jamie's first Halloween!" She exclaimed, jumping out of bed and kissing her son. "Have you fed him yet? Okay, well he needs to eat and so do I so how about you feed him and I'll eat really quick okay?"
"Whatever you want baby." Nathan said, amused. He looked down at Jamie while he prepared the bottle and laughed. "You know, I think she's a little bit too excited considering you probably won't even remember this day."
"Shut up." Haley mumbled through a mouthful of food. She swallowed and gave her husband a nasty look. "The costume that Brooke made him is adorable okay? Besides, you know you're excited too because you're the one who gets to eat the candy afterwards."
Nathan kissed his wife on the lips. "I'm joking Hales. Except that whole candy thing is totally true."
"Better be." She muttered. Nathan fed Jamie while Haley ate and then after he was burped and ready, she took him to get changed. "You are going to look so cute."
When she brought him out dressed up in a long white sleeve shirt, black and blue track suit, a blue Nike headband and a Raven's jersey with the number 23 on it, Nathan couldn't help but see his son's future. "I can't wait to see you play for the Ravens for real, bud." He said to Jamie as he took him from his wife to strap him into his stroller. "I'm going to be on the sidelines cheering for you every game okay buddy? And I promise I won't pressure you like my dad did." Jamie responded with a toothless grin and Nathan kissed his nose. "All ready, Hales?"
She grabbed the little pumpkin shaped basket from off the table and threw on her jacket. "I'm ready!" She raced over with her camera and snapped a picture of Jaime in his stroller, and then one of Nathan and Jamie together. Nathan rolled his eyes and she slapped him on the shoulder. "Did you really think I wasn't going to take pictures?"
"I should have known better." He laughed, kissing her on the head.
"Bye Luke!" She called to her brother-in-law who was studying in his room. "We'll be back in a bit!" And the door closed behind them.
Less than forty minutes later, the door opened as they came back, Nathan holding a screaming Jamie. Luke popped his head out of his room in concern. "Is he okay?"
Nathan was smiling, so he knew he wasn't hurt. "He saw a clown and got freaked out. We couldn't calm him down so we just decided to call it quits."
"Where's Haley?"
"Putting the stroller away. And to be honest, she's probably barricading the house. She hates clowns probably more than Jamie does." Nathan laughed as he rubbed Jamie's back and bounced him around the room. "It's okay Jamie, it's okay. Daddy's here and you're safe okay? I promise."
Haley came in soon after, shutting the door behind her and dead bolting it. She looked at her husband and shuddered. "God, I hate clowns."
Nathan, unabashedly amused, wrapped her in his arms tight. "I'm not going to let the big old scary clown hurt you or Jamie." He kissed her head and squeezed her tighter.
"I love you, Nathan Scott." She mumbled.
"Bah!" Jamie chimed in from the floor, where he was laying on his back, dangling Lucas's car keys above his face.
The new parents smiled as they joined their four-month-old son on the floor. "What is that Jamie?" Haley gasped, jangling. "What have you got?"
Lucas stood and watched from his doorway for a moment, and then he quietly shut the door.
OTH Quote of the Day: "Do you see this book? Because this book is me, I am math. It means you can work your whole "I'm Nathan Scott, Mr. Big Shot, scoring my touchdowns" on somebody else, because at the end of the day all your bluster and B.S don't mean anything to math, because math don't care and neither do I." – Haley James (soon to be Scott) 1x03