Chapter Six
Thanks for the reviews, you guys make my day and I'm really glad you are enjoying the story :) So I've decided on the Lucas pairing although you won't find out this chapter. I've tried to please as many people as possible, but anyway you'll find out in Chapter Seven. Anyway, on with the Naley. This isn't a very long chapter but I think you'll like it...
Haley heard footsteps coming from down the hall and panicked, quickly rushing to the door next to her. She couldn't hear anything from inside so she banged on the door praying somebody would let her in. Haley heard the footsteps getting closer. The door of Room 319 swung opened and Haley rushed inside, slamming it shut before she even had the chance to look at who had opened it for her.
"I'm sorry, I got caught and needed a room and – " Haley started to explain, then stopped as she looked up and saw all too familiar electric blue eyes staring down at her.
This isn't happening.
Five minutes earlier...
Nathan walked into Room 319 expecting Gigi to pounce on him. To his surprise, waiting was an empty room. He looked around, behind the curtains, in the bathroom, just in case she was playing some stupid game but she wasn't. Nathan frowned. He had expected her to have rushed here all too eager and excited. Oh well, he thought. Just means I get a break before she arrives.
Nathan lay down on the large queen size bed occupying the centre of the room, picking up the remote for the television and beginning to flick through the channels. When he finally found a channel replaying an NBA game, he heard a banging coming from the other side of the wall closely followed by some girl's extremely loud moans. Great. Obviously the others didn't waste any time.
Nathan tried to ignore the noises and focus back on the TV. Maybe Gigi's sick and not coming. Yeah that's probably it, she's been struck by some disgusting illness and can't get out of bed meaning I get the room to myself for at least the rest of the night. Nathan knew this wasn't the truth, but he was trying to convince himself of it anyway. Please, please, please let her be sick.
Just as he thought so, Nathan heard a heavy pounding on the door. Damn it.
Nathan sighed deeply, then picked himself off the bed and dragged his feet towards the door. The banging on the other side was incessant and it was making him aggravated. God, she's about two minutes late and acting like it's the end of the world or something. Nathan took a final deep breath before swinging the door open. Before he even got the chance to see who it was on the other side, Nathan saw a flash of blonde hair fly into his room and slam the door. Nathan blinked, trying to get a hold of what was happening. The instant his eyes focused on the girl he felt himself stiffen. She wasn't facing him, but he knew exactly who she was.
"I'm sorry, I got caught and needed a room and –" The blonde's voice cut off as she turned and locked eyes with him. Her expression quickly went from flustered and apologetic to shocked and mortified. He saw her eyes grow wide as she stared up at him, not knowing what to say. They both stared at each other for what felt like hours but in actuality was only about ten seconds, neither knowing what was happening or what to do.
"Um," Haley fumbled, trying to formulate an explanation. "Sorry, I didn't realise this was your room. I just –"
"Why are you here?" Nathan asked, trying to remain calm.
"I just told you, I didn't know this was your room. If you hadn't cut me off I –" Haley began.
"I heard you. I want to know why you are here, instead of in your room with your little boyfriend making use of time." Nathan cut her off again, his blood boiling.
"Like I was about to explain," Haley responded harshly, letting him know she didn't appreciate being cut off. "I was sent to the wrong room and when I went to find out what happened, Coach K caught me and sent me back to this floor. I panicked when I heard footsteps and the noises from my original room didn't sound like anybody would have rushed to open the door for me so I knocked on this one instead."
"More like bashed on this one." Nathan replied, Haley just giving him a glare in response. "What do you mean you were sent to the wrong room?"
"Jake was in my room. I think the boys and girls were given two different lists because his one and my one said different things." Haley explained, and then suddenly remembered the fact that there was presumably somebody else in the room with him. "Who is in here with you?"
"Nobody." Nathan replied. "I came in and it was empty."
Haley frowned and walked further into the room, looking around.
"That wasn't an invitation to come further in." Nathan grunted, Haley ignoring his comment as she put her bags down.
"You must have gotten what was supposed to be Peyton's room." Haley observed. "She was supposed to have a room to herself."
"Great." Nathan said. "So you can leave now we've got that sorted out and I can go back to having a room to myself."
Haley threw him a look of disgust. "And where do you suppose I go?"
"I don't care." Nathan answered. "But you are not staying here."
"I don't want to be stuck in here with you just as much as you don't want to be stuck in here with me." Haley replied angrily. "Actually, I probably don't want to do this a lot more than you do."
Nathan snorted. "Are you fucking kidding me? This is worse than my worst nightmare. You are not staying in here. Go knock on somebody else's door. Sleep in the corridor for all I care."
"If you don't want me in here so badly, you go knock on somebody else's door or sleep in the corridor." Haley shot back, not taking any of his bullshit. "I am not going back out there to be yelled at again. I'm the girl, I get to sleep in the bed and you can make your own arrangements!"
Nathan felt like he was on fire. "No fucking way! I was in here first, you have to leave now. This is just like you Haley, not wanting any of the blame to be placed on you. Not wanting to get in trouble. Well tough because you are going to. I don't care if you're a girl, I don't care about you at all. Don't make the mistake of thinking I do." He gritted out.
Haley stared at him for a moment, trying not to show him the impact that his words had on her.
"I am not leaving." She huffed out, determined. Haley dragged her bags next to the bed and sat down on it, angrier than she'd ever been. "You don't care about me? Well I can't even put the words 'you' and 'care' in the same sentence that's how little I feel for you. So you are the one that can leave, but if you won't then I don't even care if you stay in here. I won't notice, it wouldn't be hard to not see you with your lifeless personality and cold body. You'd just be empty space I'd have to avoid. You'd be nothing. You mean nothing to me."
Haley felt her heart throbbing and her tears drying at the back of her eyes. This wasn't the time to cry or get upset. She hated him. She felt the hatred and built up anger inside of her pour out as she spoke.
Nathan's expression remained unchanged as he stared at her. Speaking wasn't an option right now, because he knew the second he tried to he would start yelling and spilling out all the emotions he spent all his time trying to hide from her. The girl sitting in front of him with the honey gold hair and the dark aura surrounding her that never used to be there. He hated it, her hated her. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. She wasn't this person, but somehow he had made her like this.
Not being able to stand it any longer, Nathan whipped around and stormed out of the room leaving his bags behind. He just needed to get out of there; he didn't care if he was caught. Nathan stormed down the hallway and got into the lift, riding it to the rooftop terrace.
As the doors opened, Nathan felt the icy air hit his cheeks and he took a deep breath as he stepped out into it. All he had on was a white cotton t-shirt and a pair of dark tracksuit pants. Nathan shivered as he looked out over the lights of Washington, thinking back to the last time Haley and him had had a fight like this.
"You're going to Duke!" Nathan boomed as he came storming into her apartment. "After everything you have put me through this year, after all your speeches about how I'm destroying you, you decide to follow me to the place I've been dreaming of going all my life. A place where I'd always thought I'd get to and be happy. Really, Haley?"
Haley's eyes bugged out as she stood in her kitchen holding a box of Mac and Cheese. She knew this was coming. It was just strange that he was talking to her, even if he was yelling. He had just spoken more words to her than he had in the last six months combined.
"My decision had nothing to do with you." She replied calmly but firmly.
"Oh, really?" Nathan yelled. "So it just slipped your mind that that's where I was heading, did it?"
Haley stared back at him, unsure of what to say. He watched her expression, waiting for some sort of indication as to what she was going to reply with. He took in her presence. Her dark brown eyes contrasting with her long straight golden hair that flowed over her shoulders. Her cheerleading tracksuit, that showed the white singlet she was wearing underneath at the top and exposed an inch of her skin between her pants and her jacket. Skin that was completely bare, with no number markings on the back. Nothing he saw resembled Haley and it only made him angrier."Are you going to answer me?"
"It's a great school and I wanted to go there." Haley replied defiantly, telling the truth in that statement but going on to lie through the skin of her teeth. "Don't make the mistake of thinking it has anything to do with you. Of course I knew you were going to go there, it almost made me reject the schools acceptance letter. But I was looking over all the acceptance letters I'd gotten in the mail and realised the school I wanted to go to was Duke, and I wasn't going to let the fact that you were going there ruin my education. Trust me, I wish you weren't going there. You've taken enough from me already and all I've wanted for this entire school year is to be away from you. College is a big place Nathan, if I don't want to see you, I won't. You can walk right by me and I won't notice because I won't be looking for you. By the time this summer is over, I won't care about you at all. I promise you that."
Nathan shut his eyes out of frustration, trying to suppress the memory. At least she had kept her promise. A mixture of anger, jealousy and betrayal were swirling around in his stomach. He was so mad and he didn't know how to control it. He knew exactly why he was so angry, but he didn't want to confront it. He wanted to believe that he had made progress, that he was over it and that nothing could touch him. He was Nathan Scott. He was a god. He did not care.
Nathan punched the terrace wall beside him as he let out a groan. He placed both his hands against the wall, hanging his head to the ground as he breathed heavily. He felt raindrops stars to fall on the back of his neck but didn't care to move. Nathan just stayed in the same position, wallowing in anger and forced hatred of the girl downstairs. The rain started pouring down, soaking Nathan to the bone but he still didn't move. I hate her, I hate her. Nathan thought over and over again, forcing out all the real emotions that were trying to enter his mind. He continued to breathe heavily in the same position, repeating the words over and over again trying to convince himself that he was strong enough to keep all his feelings out like he always did. But they had been building up for way too long and he had been pushing them out for such a long time that they defeated him.
I hate that I don't hate her at all.
Nathan's head snapped up and he marched towards the lift doors, knowing exactly where he was going and that it was exactly what he should not be doing.
As soon as Nathan left the room, Haley felt tears immediately fall from her eyes. She couldn't remember the last time she had spoken to him where she hadn't lied. Actually, even that was a lie. She could remember the very last time she had been completely honest with him and it was almost a year ago.
"Why are you here?" He gritted out at her with his back turned, not wanting to look her in the eye.
"Because I wanted to explain..." Haley began, reaching up to place her hand on his shoulder but he moved before she could touch him.
"Explain what, Haley?" Nathan asked, turning around to face her, pain etched into his face. "Because I'm pretty sure what you want to explain, I definitely don't want to hear."
"Nathan, please...I –" Haley felt the tears welling up in her eyes. Were they ever going to stop fighting? Was he ever going to look at her again without looking like he'd seen death?
"Please, what Haley?" Nathan asked. "What could you possibly have to ask of me now?"
Haley locked eyes with Nathan as she stood a few paces back from him.
"Please...I love you."
Haley gulped at the memory, letting even more tears slide down her cheeks then quickly wiping them away. No, she thought to herself. No, there is no more crying over this. I have been over that for a long time now. It's for the best.
Haley reassured herself. It was okay, she didn't need to feel bad. He hated her and she hated him right back, she had to stop forgetting that.
As Haley wiped the final tears from her eyes, it was her turn to hear a pounding at the door. She frowned, puzzled as to who it could be. For a moment she was frightened it was Coach K coming to check up on her. She walked towards the door and turned the handle. On the other side was a dripping Nathan. His hands were placed either side of the door, holding himself up as he leant inwards. His raven black hair was shining with water droplets dripping down onto the ground from it, as well as many sliding down the sides of his shimmering face. He was breathing hard. She could see his muscles contracting through his almost see-through soaked white t-shirt. She looked up at him with bewilderment and confusion in her eyes to see him looking at her with the same anger that had been surrounding him for the past year, but something was different. He still looked like he wanted to kill her, but the disgust was gone from his eyes.
Before Haley even had the chance to register what that meant, Nathan lifted his hands away from either side of the door and took a giant step towards her. Without pausing for a moment, Nathan cupped her face in his hands and brought her lips crashing into his. He kicked the door closed behind him, removing her hands from her face to lift her off the ground and he felt her wrap her legs around his waist instantly. The second he started kissing her, Haley stopped thinking. Screw pretending. At least for tonight.
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