A/N: Hey everyone! Thank you for all the wonderful replies. I was starting to lose inspiration for a while but luckily I decided to write down what I was going to do for the future chapters just so I wouldn't forget. Well here's the next chapter. A few family characters will be introduced into the chapter! Enjoy! READ AND REVIEW PLEASE! :)

Chapter 3 //Hang Me Up To Dry

"Isn't this cute Hales?" my grandmother asked, pulling out a coral colored dress from the rack.

I nodded, pleased by the dress and looked around me at the rest of the clothes in the boutique. It had been a week since I came to town. I was slowly getting used to this place. The streets weren't always busy and the night sky wasn't so bad to look at before I went to sleep. The people were kind, at least those that I have been acquainted with. Jonathan, the assistant baker of MO's bakery, was a jolly man. He kind of reminded me of Santa Clause but around his thirties. He showed me a few tips on how to pipe icing on a cake without getting messy. I even chatted with the ever-so pale, ghost hunting Eliza a few times. She wasn't exactly normal but she wasn't exactly weird either. Eliza had the tendency to ramble on about some of the ghosts around town. Although the stories were interesting, I tried to block them out. I'm a bit of a scaredy-cat. I'll admit that. I'm not too fond of ghosts.

It became routine to visit the bakery every day. Olivia, my grandmother, had the duty to walk in and take care of the place every morning, afternoon and sometimes evening. She owned it, so of course she had to be there every day. But I also noticed that she was never working, she was only checking in and giving orders. Merriam was always there though. She was always baking up a storm in her very own personal area in the kitchen. It was quite amusing to see her focusing so passionately on a piece of apple pie. She just had to have the right amount of cinnamon sprinkled on top.

I even saw Nathan a few times, but we never had the time to talk. He was always out delivering cakes or hanging out with some of his friends. I wasn't surprised though. It was summer after all and guys like him wouldn't want to spend most of his days in a bakery.

But through the week, Olivia's been showing me the popular dress shops and fancy restaurants around town. We stopped by this place called William's Steak House. She told me that she and my grandfather had their first date there. It wasn't all that romantic since it was a place full of meat and beer. There was no caviar or squid, just a good joint with amazing food. The interior was like the inside of a wooden cottage. From the entrance there was a bar with a man named Williams III with a long red beard serving beer, whiskey, and etc. to everyone of legal age. Red booths were aligned along the walls that were decorated with old western movie posters. There was even a jukebox blaring old tunes at the corner of the restaurant. The place was very old fashioned. I liked it. Not only was the interior amazing, but the food was mouth watering. I think I had the best prime ribs in the whole country. I was satisfied when I exited the place.

"Sweetie, this blouse would look fabulous on you!" my grandmother stated as she put a gorgeous white shirt in front of me. "I think this would look good against your peach skin, don't you think?"

I looked at the mirror across from us and smiled. She was right. This shirt would look good against my skin. Who knew my grandmother still had style?

"I think I might get it," I stated.

She grinned and returned to the racks. "So do you like this place?"

"I think I'm in love," I replied.

We were in a store called Gemini which contained a bunch of bohemian chic outfits. I took a quick interest in it because I had this infatuation with the bohemian lifestyle. I loved the whole unconventional and spirituality of it. It was an artistic lifestyle where people didn't give a shit about status, wealth and ect. They lived a carefree life and that's what I really loved. They had the ability to express themselves through their art without having the approval of others.

That's something my grandmother also had in her. She was very spiritual and faith driven. When I had a few hardships in my life, she would write me letters about how life can sometimes run off course, but eventually it'll come back. We might not be able to go back to the past and fix our mistakes, but we'll be able to learn from them and continue on. This life we live is only filled with lessons and obstacles that we must face to fully understand the meaning of life itself.

"I'll write that down somewhere," Olivia stated as she grabbed a pen and a little notepad from her purse. I noticed that she's been carrying that around a notepad a lot lately and jotting things down as we visit stores and restaurants. She started writing something on it and looked up at me. "I just want to write it down for future reference," she winked.

I couldn't help but be amused. I just nodded my head and she put it back into her purse. Afterwards, we gathered a few more pieces of clothing, jewelry, and hats before we checked out. I bought the white blouse she showed me, a couple brown and turquoise beaded bracelets, a fedora, some scarves and some jeans and shirts; whereas, my grandmother bought a lot of skirts and scarves.

As we were walking down the sidewalks of downtown, I grew interested in her notepad that she's been writing in lately. It's as if she's making notes, so I asked. "Gram, why are you always carrying that around?"

She obviously had it in her hand already, reading down the supposed list that she had written. At least that's what it looked like when I took a quick glimpse of it.

"Oh, I'm just making notes of all your favorite spots here," she replied.

"Why?"

She was hesitant as she looked at me. "You know, just in case you come back to visit again. To make sure I know where to bring you."

I liked her answer. I gave her a side hug and said, "I'll definitely make more visits."

We continued to walk down the streets and she would point out her favorite boutiques. She even pointed out the Bingo Club House, where she obviously plays bingo on the weekends. I figured it was just an old person thing to do, but she told me that she's seen a few youngsters playing there and winning a bunch of money.

"I'll take you there one day," she stated. I giggled at the thought but I quickly stopped when I heard her coughing. It sounded really bad. It was very low and raspy as she coughed more and more.

"Are you okay, Gram?" I asked, stopping in front of a store.

She held her hand against her mouth and started nodding her hand. "Yeah, I'm fine. I think I'm catching a sore throat. The weather's been up and down lately. I guess my poor body can't take it," she smiled.

"Well, we'll grab some water and juice when we get home," I suggested.

When we were about to continue walking again, I heard a few muffled voices from the store beside us. The voices were quickly getting louder as two people walked out laughing about something. One of them was Peyton Sawyer and the other one was a brunette with a bunch of bags hanging off her arm.

"Oh hey Haley," Peyton greeted looking at me and then looking at Olivia. "Olivia."

"Hey," I replied.

"What are you two up to?" Peyton asked, as she looked down at our shopping bags.

"Shopping, apparently," I replied lifting up the bags. I really hated random encounters like this. It was awkward and never planned out. You make small talk – I hate small talk – then you leave. That's it. Moments like these are to never ever be remembered in the future.

"Gemini's?" the brunette questioned. She looked disgusted as she read the label from my gray bags. "Nobody ever shops there except maybe that Eliza girl," she stated.

I looked down at her black bags and noticed that she ad a Victoria Secret bag. From the looks of it, she was obviously shopping for slut-wear. I could tell that she was a whore especially since she was wearing a tight red halter top and really low jeans that almost seemed like her thong could be seen. This will now be remembered and added into my 'First Impressions' list.

"I shop there sometimes, Brooke," Peyton snapped.

"But you're different, Peyton. You're at least normal," the girl, who I believe was named Brooke, stated.

I turned to my grandmother and she just smiled, being polite like always. I am guessing Brooke didn't like Eliza. Of course, I shouldn't e surprised to hear people talk about Eliza like that, she wasn't exactly Miss Girl Next Door, but we've become friends. I felt offended for her.

"Don't mind her. She's a little shallow," Peyton apologized. Brooke slapped her on the arm and pouted. "By the way, this is my best friend Brooke Davis."

"Nice to meet you," she greeted as she held out her hand as I shook it. She gave me a quick smile before it disappeared.

Then it was silent. No one said a word to the other. We just kept on glancing at each other as if we were waiting for someone to speak up. Olivia didn't say one word because, of course, she was being a cool adult and decided to let me talk to my peers. After a long moment of silence, Brooke finally broke it.

"Peyton, I think we should start heading out. We have to get ready for tonight," Brooke stated obviously feeling the uncomfortable silence.

"Oh yeah, well I guess I'll see you around, Haley," Peyton stated. Then she walked up to Olivia and asked if she was doing fine, she nodded, and then they both walked off. Brooke didn't even look back. Bitch.

"Aren't they nice?" Gram asked as continued to walk.

"Peyton's nice, the other one not so much," I stated.

"Oh, don't pass judgment, Hales. You might be surprised."

"I feel like everything in this place is filled with surprises," I stated. I heard a chuckle, with another cough, and she smiled up at me.

"This is what Tree Hill is like, sweetie. The people here aren't always what they seem to be," Gram stated.

--------

After we finished shopping, we headed to the bakery. Nathan was working at the register when we entered. The place wasn't really busy so he was just sitting there in his chair with his legs propped on top of the counter with a sports magazine in his hands. Olivia and I headed to the back and Nathan didn't take one look at us.

The minute we stepped into the kitchen we heard a bowl fall on the ground. We could still hear it spinning on the tile floor.

"Look what you did!" Jonathan yelled as he bent down to grab the tin bowl. Eliza was just standing there, trying to clean up the flower that was spread all over the counter with a wet rag.

"I'm sorry, Jon."

"All you do is apologize for everything," Jonathan complained as he placed the bowl on the counter and quickly walked over to the corner of the kitchen to grab the broom.

"What in the world is going on here?" my grandmother asked as we both rounded the corner of the counter and looked at the mess on the floor.

"We were trying to create a new cake mix, but miss clumsy here keeps messing up everything," he answered as he swept the mixed ingredients scattered all over Olivia's tile floors. I looked over at a hurt Eliza at the end of the counter. She was just standing there watching as Jon swept all the mess that she made and didn't say a word. She looked up and gave me an apologetic smile and stepped away.

Olivia walked over to Jonathan and quickly grabbed the broom because he wasn't doing it right. "You have to be patient with her Jon. If you keep pushing her and pressuring her, things will never go right," she advised without looking at him.

"But Olivia –"

"Don't. I'm tired of hearing your complaining, Jon."

I heard him mumble something to her and they continued on a conversation about patience and kindness. He almost seemed like a child in a play pen who's been picking on an innocent baby and he was getting scolded for it.

I glanced to my side and found Eliza sitting at her station and I walked over to her to see if she was fine.

"Hey," I greeted.

She was drawing what appeared to be a cake on a note pad on her table. There was a word above the picture that looked like she just scratched it on. It started with the letter D and ended with a T. I think it said draft.

"Look, if you're here to give me some sympathy, I'm not in the mood," she said, darkening the outline of the cake.

"I know, but I just wanted to make sure you were fine. Jonathan was a little harsh," I stated, looking back and noticing that my grandmother and Jon were still talking amongst themselves.

"He's always been a big lard ass," she replied. "I just take it to the next level. It's not my fault that I have a habit of bumping my elbow against flower bags or the sugar boxes."

"I'm pretty clumsy too, so I know where you're coming from," I responded. "You're a good baker, don't let him tell you other wise." She stopped sketching on her notebook and looked up.

"Thanks, Haley," she smiled. Then she returned to her drawing, observed it for a moment, and then started drawing little decorations on the cake. "Do you bake?" she asked without taking her eyes off the paper.

I laughed a bit and shook my head, "not that well. My mom's taught me a few things, but she's not that great of a cook either."

"Maybe you could work here with me for the summer," she suggested. "I'd actually have someone who won't complain when I work."

"I – I don't know."

She stopped drawing and glanced at me. "What are you going to do all summer? Sit at your grandmother's house and wait for something to happen?"

"No, I'm sure there are more things to do around here."

"Just work here, please. I can teach you how to bake a few cakes and you already know how to pipe icing. Jon taught you. Please," she begged.

I took a moment to think about this. I was staying here for the whole summer, and she was right about the whole sitting at home thing. I didn't want to do that. I guess having a summer job wasn't so bad. I looked over at my grandmother who was now finished scolding Jonathan and was now picking up a few extra egg shells off the counter.

"I guess I could. That's only if my grandmother approves."

She gave me a look. "Of course she's going to say yes. She's a co-owner and your grandmother," Eliza stated.

"What are you two talking about?" she asked us as she dropped the egg shells into the trash beside us.

Eliza nodded her head, signaling me to ask her about the job and I sighed. Olivia stood there waiting for an answer as I turned on my heel towards her. "Eliza suggested that I work here, and so I thought about it and wondered if it was okay if I did?"

"Eliza put you up to this, huh?"

We both nodded in unison and she slowly put a smile on her face. "Two teenage girls – who are both clumsy by the way- working in the same kitchen? I don't know about that," she joked.

"Please, Olivia. I think I'd work ten times better if Haley was here with me. I need someone my age working around me," Eliza pleaded.

"We have Nathan," Olivia stated.

"Nathan's a guy and he doesn't even work in the kitchen."

Olivia sighed deeply and nodded. "I guess you can work here."

"When can I start?" I asked.

"How 'bout you practice for a week before you start baking things for customers. I heard that you weren't much of a baker, "she joked, referring to the letters I sent her about my disastrous bake sale in middle school.

"I'm sure I'll be better this time," I replied. She patted my shoulder and returned to the other workers at their stations and checked on them.

For about an hour, Eliza was teaching me how to make a few mini goods like chocolate lollipops, and yogurt covered pretzels dipped in sprinkles. It was actually fun and tasty at the same time. Nathan popped in a few times, stealing a few and eating them. I would slap him every time and he'd laugh and leave.

Once we were done, I decided to hang out with Nathan at the front for a bit since Eliza was assigned to bake a mocha cake. I walked towards the register and noticed that he had earphones on and his Ipod in his hands. I propped myself on to the stool chair next to him and hit him on the leg that was on top of the counter.

"What are you listening to?" I asked.

He kept nodding his head to the beat of the song that was playing and didn't even glance at me.

"Hello, is anybody in there?" I asked again, waving my hand across his face. He stopped nodding his hand and looked over at me as he removed his earphones.

"Hey, sorry. I was really getting into the song," he apologized. "That's what Lil Wayne does to ya."

"Right," I replied.

"By the way, you're doing a really good job back there. The yogurt covered pretzels are amazing," he complimented.

"Eliza made the mixture, I just dipped the pretzels in the bowl," I laughed.

"Well so far so good," he replied. He placed his Ipod on the counter and pulled his stool closer to me. "So you're going to be working here with me, I hear."

"I'm actually going to be working with Eliza in the kitchen," I answered. "She begged me to."

In this view, I noticed the little freckle underneath Nathan's right eye. I thought it was adorable. And the blue in his eyes looked more like a mixture of green and blue rather than just blue.

"Sounds good to me. That means I get to see you more often," he replied with a smirk on his face.

I smiled at him and shyly looked away to avoid eye contact. I could still feel him looking at me and I started growing more and more uncomfortable. The last time I let a guy make me feel this way was Aaron. Of course because he was actually nice to me in the beginning and then soon enough he started becoming the guy that crushed me back in elementary school. Aaron was only putting a front for me. I just hope whoever Nathan Scott was; he wasn't putting a front for me either.

The entrance opened, making a jingle sound, and we both looked up at the figure. It was a blonde haired guy wearing a grey hoodie that said "Tree Hill Fire Department". He had his hands in his pockets when he slowly approached us. He first looked at Nathan, then at me, then back at Nathan.

"I knew I smelled ass from blocks away," Nathan called out. The guy chuckled and stood in front of the counter.

"Very funny, little brother," the guy stated. "I just wanted to come by and ask if you were coming tonight."

"Damn straight, I am," Nathan replied. I just sat there, trying to hide myself under an invisible cloak while I played with the wrapper on one of the chocolate candies I grabbed from the basket.

"Good because everyone's expecting you to go. It wouldn't be a party without both the Scotts," the guy said. I figured that they were brothers but they didn't look anything a like. Nathan had very dark hair with greenish blue eyes and the other guy had bright blonde hair, almost a dirty blonde, with brighter blue eyes. But they did have something in common; they were both good looking.

They started mumbling about something about beer and beach balls when I felt them both turn to me.

"Oh this is Haley," Nathan stated. "She's Olivia's granddaughter."

The blondie nodded at me with a smile and leaned over to shake my hand. "Oh yeah, I heard about you. I'm Lucas, his brother."

"Half." Nathan corrected. I looked over at him with a curious face. "It's a long story." I nodded. Their outer appearance made sense now.

"Long story short, we have the same father and different mothers," Lucas explained.

I nodded. I finally unwrapped the chocolate and popped into my mouth to keep my mouth useful.

"So I heard you're from California, which part?" Lucas asked.

"San Francisco," I answered.

"They probably have crazier parties there, huh?" I nodded. I wasn't much of a partier or a drinker, because my mother told me as I was growing up that drunken girls and sluts aren't attractive. That's exactly what came out of her mouth. I'm not kidding. But San Francisco did have some pretty hard core parties, at least some of the ones I've been to and heard of. I know Aarons been to every one that was held in high school. It was part of the lies he told me. When he would say he was going to watch football at his friend's house, he was actually getting wasted at some girl's house.

"Speaking of parties, there's a bonfire going on tonight. You should come," Lucas suggested.

"I don't know," I replied.

"Come on. It's summer. I'm sure you don't want to be hanging around here all day," Lucas stated looking around the bakery. I looked over at Nathan who just shrugged his shoulders. "It'll be fun."

"Yeah, you should come," Nathan stated. "There will be beach balls," he added.

I laughed and thought for a second. This was the second time today that someone's pressured me into doing something that I wasn't exactly sure about. First Eliza was telling me to grab a summer job here and now these two boys are convincing me to go to a party tonight. I feel like the people here don't take no for an answer. "I guess I'll go," I replied.

"Great, I'll see you there," Lucas stated winking. "Don't forget the booze, Nate." He nodded and then Lucas left, tucking his hands in his pocket again.

"I really need to work on not giving in to peer-pressure," I sighed, placing my face into my hands. I heard him chuckle and grab a chocolate candy from the basket beside me.

"Start working on it for tonight. Everyone's going to be shoving beer bottles in your face every where you go," he laughed.

"Oh god," I moaned.

"Don't worry I'll take care of you if you start having too much fun. I'll drive us," he suggested. I lifted my face from my hands and glance at me.

"I'm not going to get wasted," I stated.

"We'll see," he smirked.

R&R