Haley walked up the steps as Nathan was pulling shutting the dresser drawer.
"I was wondering if you were gonna come back downstairs with me," she said, walking over and wrapping her arms around his waist.
Nathan smiled at her, returning the embrace. "Yeah, I was just changing clothes. I hope you had a nice evening...."
Haley smiled, "I did, thank you-- I hope you did as well...."
"Of course," Nathan said, lightly unwrapping his arms and walking over to the other side of the room.
Haley looked after him, dejected.
"Nathan, please...what's going on?" she asked.
Nathan turned to look at her. "What are you talking about?"
Haley just looked at him, "C'mon- I know you better than that...you've been acting strange since the pier...what happened?? We were talking about Brooke and then all of the sudden, you started acting jittery and strange."
Nathan shrugged, "...I'm sorry for the confusion because it certainly has nothing to do with Brooke --"
"It -- so there is something-- see, I know you better than you think," Haley said, folding her arms.
Nathan grinned, knowing he'd have to find a way to talk himself out of this one.
"No...you know, I guess, we were just talking about that marriage stuff --"
"So just the mention of marriage has you running for the hills?" Haley asked.
She couldn't be further from the truth
"Actually, that's what I was thinking about you," Nathan replied.
"Me? I have no fear of marriage," Haley stated in matter-of-fact tone. "...but I do think its a huge decision not to be entered into lightly...so many people think they can just run off and get married and oh well, if it doesn't work out, get a divorce....I want to get married one time and know that it will last....or at least do everything in my power to increase the odds that it will last."
Nathan stood there silently. She had a very valid point --
"What do you think about marriage?" Haley asked, looking him square in the eye.
It was Nathan's turn to really fidget -- he could play this two ways: he could spill what he thought and give her the ring, risking putting pressure on her that he wasn't sure she was ready for or he could give a safer answer in the form of one similar to her's.
"I agree with you," Nathan chickened out, opting for choice two. "I think that when the time is right and people really love each other, they can make it work...."
Haley smiled, "so you're not as much of a commitment-phobe as we all thought..."
"Who is 'we all' and why would you even think that considering I asked you to move in here with me?" Nathan asked, starting to get a little defensive now.
"No, its not like there's a 'we' conspiracy or anything -- Lucas just mentioned that in the past, you weren't really known for your ability to handle long-term relationships..."
"That's great, remind me to kick his ass the next time I see him – the guy gets back with Peyton and suddenly he's a relationship expert," Nathan said wryly, clearly not enjoying the humor of it all.
Haley smile faded, "...he was just teasing...no harm intended."
"See, that's the thing though -- its thinly veiled 'teasing' that's really not teasing at all...its Luke's little way of getting digs in at my expense...making me seem like the joke of the family for not having gotten married or had kids or whatever."
"Lucas isn't married either and I think you're really jumping to conclusions on all of this--" Haley said.
"My family didn't approve of the way I lived my life until I met you -- it was a lot of partying, drinking and a lot of women...and the truth is, I think Luke was jealous --"
Haley just looked at him, not sure what to say.
Nathan just felt like he needed to recover some ground even if only in his own mind -- "you only saw a part of it -- I mean, the attention from females was never-ending-- even when I wanted it to end, it just never did."
"Why are you telling me this?" Haley asked, her arms folded across her chest, looking defensive now.
"I'm just shedding some light into my life, the life I was living when I met you -- so you can see that Lucas isn't always making jokes at my expense because he wanted what was best for me -- he was envious, plain and simple."
Haley stood there, feeling angry now. "How can you stand there and say those things about your brother? He's always been there for you…and if you're trying to make me feel more secure in our relationship by telling me about all of the women you could have at your disposal, you're not doing a very good job."
Nathan knew he needed to cool it and quickly -- this was his way of lashing out because the end result of the evening wasn't turning out to be what he'd hoped for, not by a long shot....
Get a grip and just do it, he thought to himself.
He truly felt as if he were in an exhausting inner battle over what to do here and it was quickly draining him --
Nathan shut his eyes, "...I know, I get on a roll, saying things that I shouldn't -- its just...before you, no woman has ever made me feel this good and this conflicted at the same time."
Haley looked at him, completely confused, "What did I do? How am I making you feel conflicted?"
"...because there are things I want to say to you and its a huge risk for me -- and I'm not used to big risks--- looking at you and honestly not knowing what the hell you may say in return...because as much as you seem to know about how I act, I have to admit, you are a complete mystery to me...there are some times I know exactly what you are feeling and other times, I don't have the slightest clue...and I'm not used to it and it scares me and intrigues me at the same time..."
"We always talk about how we feel about things - what is the mystery? I don't understand," Haley said.
"Well until tonight, I didn't know your thoughts on a particular subject and I was about to act on impulse--"
Haley shook her head. "Please, just tell me -- you're starting to scare me a little...wait a minute, are you breaking up with me?"
Nathan sighed, "...no, that's the last thing I am thinking about right now."
He walked over to the drawer, now or never he thought to himself...and apparently you can't live with wondering, you need to know.
He pulled open the drawer, reached inside and pulled out the box.
"Everything tonight, the reason I've been acting so weird, has all been because of this...."
Haley's mouth dropped open as he handed her the velvet box. She opened it and felt tears stinging at her eyes.
"I didn't know what you would say or if it would scare you -- but I know that I couldn't wait...I need to tell you now that I want to marry you...when you're ready. If you're not ready now, then I'll wait. I'll wait as long as I have to…because, Haley, there was something missing from my life before -- you. I love you and can't imagine what my life would be like if you weren't with me...the way you make me feel -- how I could feel so conflicted and so good at the same time...I know you are the one for me...so now or later -- Haley, will you marry me?" Nathan said, watching her closely.
Haley looked up at him, tears flowing freely from her eyes. "I love you too Nathan...and yes, I will marry you."
Nathan grinned and wrapped her in a tight embrace, kissing her.
After a moment, he pulled away, "we need to do this the right way." He pulled the ring from the box and placed it on her left ring finger.
THE END