Title: Life Goes On

Pairing: Clay/Haley (friendship)

Numb. It's like she's frozen; like she can't feel anything. Watching her husband's lifeless body being buried several feet beneath the ground was the hardest thing she's ever had to do. She doesn't know how she can go on; how she can live her life without Nathan in it. Her heart simply feels empty right now; like there's no purpose in her life any longer. And she hates it. Because, it shouldn't be this way, it just shouldn't. It's not right.

She reaches up to wipe a tear from her eye as she clutches the photo closer to her chest, as if hanging on for dear life, and trying to salvage every last memory they have together. Because in the blink of an eye, her world had been shattered, her long awaited happiness ripped away from her.

She hears a knock on the door and looks up to see Clay Evans leaning against the doorframe, a weak smile etched across his lips. "Hey…"

She doesn't say anything; she just continues to cry, clutching the photo closer to her chest. She's sick of trying to be strong and hold everything together. She just wants to let all the pain out.

"It's gonna be okay," he whispers as he sits beside her on the bed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"I'm so sick of everyone telling me that!" she snaps, throwing her head back in desperation. "It's not gonna be okay! Nothing will ever be the same again."

"You're hurting Haley, I get that, but don't shut everyone out okay? Don't make the same mistakes that I did."

"You don't understand Clay! Nobody understands," she whispers, bitterness tainting her words. "The pain that I am feeling right now is a kind of pain that nobody understands!"

"I don't understand?" Clay asks, his eyes widening with shock. "Are you kidding me Haley? I watched my wife die in front of me. I watched as they drug her lifeless body away from me. I forgot my entire life Haley! I chose to block everything out and ignore the reality of what happened. I left my son behind Haley! I just left him there on his own and it took me five years and a lot of therapy to even remember I had a son! So don't tell me that I don't understand because I do. I understand better than anyone."

"There's just no point anymore. No point in life; no direction. Nathan gave my life meaning and purpose and direction and now that he's gone, I have nothing to live for," she states solitarily, her dull brown eyes staring at the blonde sports agent emptily.

"Nothing left to live for?" Clay retorts, shaking his head ruefully. "What about your family Haley? Your son and your beautiful daughter; your sister and me; Brooke and Julian. Aren't we worth living your life for?"

"It's just so hard!" she elicits a weighted sigh. "To look at my son and my daughter and not be reminded of the man that held our family together. He's gone now, and everything is going to fall apart and it's beyond my control."

"No it's not," Clay offers Haley a weak smile. "You can hold your family together. You have a right to grieve Haley, you've been through a lot. But your family needs you. Don't shut them out like I did. Don't block that day out Haley. If you do, you will end up regretting it for the rest of your life. Trust me…"

"Does it get any better Clay?" Haley asks after a moment of silence, her eyes trained to the floor.

"It does," Clay nods, as he thinks of his life now as opposed to a few years ago. "It just takes time. And you can't dwell on the past."

"I just miss him…" Haley replies sadly as she sets the photo down beside the bed. "It's like there is this emptiness inside of my heart."

"I know what you mean," Clay nods as he stares at the floor. Because, he still feels an empty spot in his heart that desperately longs for Sara. He has Quinn now and he loves her but there will always be a spot in his heart that nobody can touch because it belongs to his late wife. "Stay strong Haley, there will a be light at the end of the tunnel. I promise."

She nods, although she's not quite convinced. "Thank you Clay," she whispers as he stands up and lets go of her. "I don't think I could have gotten through any of this without you or Quinn."

He nods and shoots her a small smile. "I'll see you downstairs."

As he disappears out the door, Haley picks up the phone, her hands shaking uncontrollably as she dials the familiar number.

"Hello?"

"Hey Lucas…"

"Yeah Haley what is it?" he asks with genuine concern.

"I want Jamie and Lydia to come home now…"

"Are you sure Haley? I mean, they still don't fully understand what has happened…"

"They need me. And I need them," she whispers quietly. "I don't want to hide my children from this. I want us to all get through this together… as a family."

"Peyton and I will be on the next flight to Tree Hill."

She smiles as she hangs up the phone. Because of Clay Evans, she believes that things will get better, that she will get through this. It's going to be hard but Clay has proved to her that it is possible.

AN: After watching last week's episode, I totally want to do a Clay/Logan one. Would anyone be interested in that?