This might be self-explanatory, but I just wanted to point something out with this chapter, since it's something that I've never done before. The italics are flashbacks and the regular type is the present. Nathan is explaining to Haley events from his past, but I'm also showing you them in real time. Does that make sense? I don't really know how else to describe it and hopefully, I don't confuse y'all too much, haha.

This chapter was quite difficult to write if I'm being honest. There were so many emotions and so many pivotal moments. It didn't turn out exactly how I had pictured it in my head, and I'm okay with that, but that also makes me a little nervous. We're getting down to a lot of moments that I had pictured in my head prior to writing this story and kind of build a story around those pictures. That is definitely nerve-wracking for me, haha.

Trigger Warning: there are mentions of rape in this chapter. If that is something that is a trigger for you or makes you uncomfortable, I would suggest skipping over it!

Nathan and Haley were perched on Haley's bed. For the most part, Nathan appeared calm. He was trembling and a look of unease was on his face, but Haley expected him to be more…frantic. He was quiet for a long stretch of time, and she was starting to wonder if maybe he'd changed his mind.

Before she had time to entertain that thought, Nathan had reached for her hand. His calloused fingers brushed over the back of her hand, before encasing it completely. His skin felt clammy and heated against her own. It's then she noticed the serious glint in his eyes.

"I've never really said any of this out loud," Nathan stated softly. "I mean I have…just not like this."

"Take your time," Haley murmured quietly. She squeezed his hand, letting him know that she was there with him. The anxiety and fear was a raging storm on his face, and she could feel that same fear brewing in her chest. She'd be lying if she said wasn't afraid of the words that were about to come out of his mouth. She wholeheartedly believed that nothing he could say would change how she felt about him, but that did little to curve the panic.

Nathan breathed in deeply. In the back of his mind, he was always consciously aware of the fact that a day like this would come. He couldn't hide his past from Haley forever, albeit he wished that he could. He just hoped to God he didn't scare her off.

"I met Damien when I was freshman," Nathan started. His voice shook with every word and the pain burned wildly in his chest. Despite the horrible memories that flashed through his mind and despite the anguish, he found his words easily. He found that looking in Haley's eyes, which were wide and trusting, made it easier. She made everything easier.

"I heard the rumors about him—how he manipulated people, how he was involved with dangerous drugs, how people feared him. I think I feared him, too, that's why I could never distance myself from him."

Nathan paused to swallow down the lump that was forming in his throat. He could feel himself being transported back in time. The image of him shooting around on the River Court was crystal clear in his mind. He could almost feel the crisp night air brushing against his skin. If it wasn't for Haley's hand squeezing his, he would've believed he was transported back in time.

"I was shooting around at the River Court the first time I met him. He came out of nowhere, and I can still remember the chill that ran down my spine. He reeked of weed and he was higher than a kite. But there was this…this sharp look in his eyes and I wanted to run. I don't know why I didn't. I regret not running away when I had the chance."

Haley listened intently. The rhythm of her heartbeat increased with his every word.

"He asked to shoot around with me. It was like I physically couldn't say no," Nathan croaked. "So, we shot around for a while and I let myself get comfortable around him. He didn't seem like the guy that everyone made him out to be. He…it was so stupid of me…"

Haley involuntarily strengthened her grip on his hand. His voice was strained, cracking sinfully. She watched as he squeezed his eyes shut and took in a hiccupped breath. A small part of her hated that she was the one putting him through this. Did she really have the right to ask him to divulge his past to her, especially when it was the reason for so much of his heartache?

"Nathan," She interrupted hoarsely. "I'm sorry. You…you don't have to do this. I shouldn't have—"

She fell silent when he rigorously shook his head.

"You deserve the truth," He pressed confidently.

The fierce look in his eyes warned her not to question it further.

"He invited me to a party," Nathan started again after a couple second pause. "And I went. Everything after that is…hazy. He forced alcohol down my throat at any chance that he got. He made me experiment with all these drugs. He was manipulative and I was too…stupid, too afraid to even entertain the idea of walking away. After a while, he didn't have to force me, I just did anything he wanted without a second thought.

"I wish I could…I wish I could give you a clear reason why, but I can't. I let myself become…like him, because it was easier than fighting. If I wasn't high, I was hungover, and if I wasn't hungover, I was high."

Haley grimaced and Nathan didn't miss the way her mouth twisted sourly. His heart ached at the sight. It only scared him more when he realized that she hadn't even heard the worst of it yet. He was positive that she would never look at him the same after she knew the whole truth. That would surely kill him.

"My grades started to suffer and I was kicked off the team. The worst part was that I didn't care. I felt no remorse. When my dad started telling me that Damien was bad news and that I needed to distance myself from him, I didn't listen. I was too prideful, and because of it…"

He trailed off. His heart surged, the pain trickling through his body like an IV drip. His next words were spoken through gritted teeth.

"My wake-up call came way too late. It was a party…"

He was two-sheets to the wind…and he loved every minute of it. A nameless brunette, almost as drunk as he was, maybe even more, was curled on his lap. Her lips were fastened to his and her fingernails, tipped in blood red polish, were scratching down his bare chest. She had the first several buttons of his shirt popped open.

The girl pulled away and kissed her way to his ear. A smirk plastered his face when she began to whisper all the illicit things she wanted to do to him. God damn, he was a lucky bastard.

Lifting the bottle of Jack to his lips, he downed the last gulp of it without even a grimace. Patting the girl on the thigh, right below the tight black dress she was wearing, she slid off his lap. She stumbled a little on wobbly heels and giggled ridiculously. Biting her lip, which was stained with remnants of her bright red lipstick, she beckoned him to follow her with a couple of clicks of her finger.

Unabashedly, Nathan trailed his eyes over her body. She had a tight body, the fabric of her dress clinging to every curve. Her legs went on for miles and were toned in all the right places. She was a regular slut at Damien's parties, but Nathan didn't care. She had a glint in her eye that told him she was wild in bed, and there was no way he was going to miss that.

Just as he was about to round the corner, Damien stepped in his line of vision. Placing his hand on Nathan's chest, Damien shoved him backwards.

"Where do you think you're going, hot shot?"

Nathan rolled his eyes and jutted his chin out towards the girl he was following. "I got my girl for the night."

Damien glanced over his shoulder and snarled. "Who, Mandy? Man, she might act like a slut, but she ain't nothing in bed."

Nathan shrugged. "Or maybe she just didn't have anything to work with."

Damien laughed obnoxiously. He tossed an arm around Nathan's neck and squeezed him against his chest. "You're a laugh-riot. But, I got a better girl for you."

Nathan crinkled his nose as the smell of weed infiltrated his senses. "Who?"

Damien swiveled him around so that he was facing a large group of people standing by the pool. "Her."

He was pointing to a petite girl who was awkwardly lingering around the bar. Her hair was a reddish-brown color, pin-straight, and barely brushed her shoulders. Her black jeans were ripped at the knees and the red tank-top she was wearing barely covered her mid-drift, leaving a studded belly-button ring on display.

She was definitely hot, but she seemed a little on the shy side.

"Who is she?" Nathan asked.

"Sarah. Or maybe it was Stacy. Fuck, I don't know and it doesn't matter. She came here with her brother…Julian or something."

Haley's eyes widened as she struggled to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. A bad feeling had knotted itself in her stomach and a cold sweat had broken out on her skin. Her mind was racing. "Julian's sister….what he said at Brooke's Friendsgiving…"

Nathan fisted her bedsheet until his knuckles faded white. "It's not….please, just…"

Nathan quirked an eyebrow. "What's so special about her?"

There was a gleam in Damien's eye that made every hair on Nathan's body stand straight up. He lowered his voice and spoke in that devious manner that he was known for. "According to my calculations, you and Tim are tied in our little game. Rumor has it, she's a virgin. You know you'll get double points if you hit that."

Nathan chuckled dryly, wrenching his eyes away from her. "Yeah, but you know how virgins are. She ain't gonna give it up to a stranger at a party."

That gleam in Damien's eye only turned icier. Digging into his pocket, he pulled something out and placed it in Nathan's hand. "That's what that is for."

Nathan's stomach turned queasy when he saw what Damien had placed in his hand. It was a tiny pill wrapped in plastic and foil. He knew right away what it was – ketamine, or what Damien called his "date rape drug of choice."

Nathan wasn't sure he'd ever sobered up so quickly in his life.

"You're not suggesting that I put that in her drink, are you?" Nathan squeaked. He couldn't peel his eyes away from that pill.

"It's not a suggestion, Nate," Damien barked, his tone hard and edgy. "It's a command."

Nathan's heart missed a beat and his lungs convulsed as he struggled to take a breath. "I..I can't do that."

Damien's hand clasped down heavily on Nathan's shoulder like a brick. Damien's large fingers squeezed into the curve of Nathan's shoulder, and he struggled not to wince. "Don't be a pussy. It's not a big deal. It's not like she's going to remember in the morning anyway."

Nathan's stomach twisted. Bile slid up his throat and almost choked when he fought to keep it down. There was no way he could go through with this. Damien had asked him to do some pretty vile things over the last year and a half, but never anything like this.

"Either you do it, or I do and blame it on Lucas."

Haley inhaled sharply. She felt faint. She wasn't sure she could hear anymore. "Please tell me you didn't. God, please tell me you didn't."

Nathan felt nauseated at the fear and disgust in her voice. Stealing a glance at her, his stomach bottomed out. She was as white as a ghost and when he reached for her, she flinched. This is exactly what he was afraid of, not that he blamed her reaction.

"I didn't," He croaked. "I-I put the pill…in her drink. But she didn't drink it. I couldn't…I didn't. Just please, Haley. Let me explain."

He found out her name was Sarah in the first few moments that he'd talked to her. She was a senior and headed off to Winston-Salem the following year to study psychology. She seldom attended parties, mostly because social gatherings made her nervous.

There was no way he could do this, Nathan decided. He could be ruthless. He could cut diamonds with careless actions and slippery words. But he couldn't do this.

It was too late, though. He'd already slipped the pill in her drink, under the demanding and sinister gaze of Damien West. Sarah had yet to take a sip of her drink since he did so, and Nathan was sure he was going to throw up when she did.

As if on cue, Sarah lifted her cup up to her lips and Nathan's stomach lurched. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. He made a split-second decision that changed the entire course of his life. He tripped forward, bumping into Sarah so her drink tipped and spilled down the entire front of her shirt. Sarah jumped back, her mouth dropping open in shock.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Nathan quickly apologized. "Let me go get some napkins."

He didn't get very far before Damien came stomping over to him. Every line on his face was etched out of stone. Nathan knew that look. He also knew that if he made it out of that night alive, it would be a miracle.

Damien grabbed Nathan by the collar of his shirt and yanked him forward. Fire was burning in his gaze. His lip was curled in a vicious snarl. His short fuse had blown. "Are you fucking kidding me? You've got a lot of nerve disrespecting me like that, especially after everything that I've done for you. You just signed your own death sentence."

Haley's mouth was agape. She couldn't wrap her head around how someone could be that…vile and disturbed. Damien got off on bringing other people pain and she finally understood why Nathan was so fearful of him. He was a monster…the devil reincarnated.

"Damien was the one who…hurt Sarah," Nathan forced out. It amazed him that he was able to make it through that story without shattering into a million pieces. It felt good to get it off his chest, but it also made him feel like he was suffocating. "The last person she remembered being with was me. That's why Julian thinks I did it."

"Oh, my God, Nathan…"

He shook his head to signal that he wasn't finished. If he didn't get it all out while he was on a roll, he was afraid that he would shut down again.

"Damien wanted me to pay him for every drug that he ever gave me. I couldn't pay him the money. I could've asked my dad to help me, but I didn't. And because I was too…arrogant, they're dead. I could've prevented this, Haley."

He was panting. The ache in his chest was almost unbearable.

He was unraveling before her very eyes. He was always broken and bruised, with ripped edges. But now those edges were shredding. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she swallowed them back. All that pain he was carrying…it wasn't fair.

Haley gently grabbed his face, forcing his eyes on hers. "Nathan, none of what happened is your fault. Damien is the one to blame, not you. You did the right thing by not listening to him."

"Did I?" Nathan asked helplessly. Her eyes were softer than they were moments before. That felt like a breath of fresh air.

Haley nodded, a single tear sliding down. She quickly wiped it away and scooted closer to him. "Your mistakes shouldn't fall victim to the monster that Damien is."

"That doesn't change the fact that I'm a terrible person."

"You're not," Haley denied. Hearing him talk so sourly about himself felt like a bullet to the heart. "Nathan, look at me."

He slowly lifted his head to see look at her.

"It's not your fault," She reiterated.

He buried his hand in your hair. The tips of his fingers massaged the back of her neck, sliding down to nip at the soft structure of her chin and jaw. His nose rubbed against hers slowly, as his lips brushed over hers.

"I'm yours," He promised gruffly. "You have every fucked-up part of me, Hales. You have since the moment we met."

A whimper slipped past her lips. She gripped desperately at the collar of his shirt, effectively yanking him closer to her. Haley slanted her lips over his, trying her hardest to convey every emotion she was feeling into that kiss. Nathan was grasping at her urgently, like she was going to disappear at any given moment.

"I love you, so much," Nathan breathed out once they broke apart. "I can't…I can't lose you. I know being with me…it's a lot to ask. I have so much baggage and it haunts me every day. I'm permanently scarred, Haley."

To emphasize his point, he gently grabbed her hand and placed it over the scar on his clothed chest. Even through the fabric her fingers found the jagged skin. A shiver passed through him when her dainty fingers traced over the laceration. Her touch was feather light, but it still caused his skin to tingle.

"You deserve so much more than me. I—"

Haley cut him off with a kiss. When she pulled away, her eyes were shining with tears.

"I'm not going anywhere, Nathan," Haley swore as she brushed her fingers through his hair. "I love you—the good, and the bad."

The conviction in her voice was record-breaking.

Everything made sense to her now. The cage around his heart, his fragile and unpredictable emotions, his scattered brain, his undeniable insanity about keeping her safe...they were all battle wounds from a war that he wasn't prepared to fight. A war that had crept up on him with little regard to his sanity.

Nathan's past was a colossal, scary mess. He'd made so many mistakes and he'd got himself caught up in the wrong people. He paid for his mistakes in brutal and hellish ways. The only though she could focus on was how much she wanted to protect him—from Damien and from all the pain he'd endured. It just wasn't fair.

"I'm not going anywhere," She repeated with emphasis, placating the fearful uncertainty she found still swirling in his eyes.

In that moment, Nathan swore that he fell in love with her all over again. Awe glistened in his eyes and a heavy weight felt like it had been lifted off his heart. She saw the darkest parts of him and she still wanted him. She still loved him. He never thought he'd get so lucky.

He weaved his hand through the thick strands of her hair and slipped his lips over hers. Lips moved slowly, dripped in passion. Quiet and pleasure filled sighs expelled from both of their mouths. Something about this kiss felt different…fresher. Its intensity had them both seeing stars.

Nathan ran his hands over her shoulder, down her back, and stopped at her waist. Her fingers fisted his shirt, while his glided beneath the hem of her shirt. Her skin was warm, and her stomach fluttered under the pads of his fingers. Slowly, he lowered her backwards and cloaked her body with his own.

Their bodies were sandwiched together, hips aligned with hips and hands scavenging.

A few short moments had passed before Nathan's shirt was discarded. Haley's small hands brushed over his chest. Her trembling fingers traced every dip and every curve, causing a thick layer of goosebumps to form on his skin. Each swipe of her fingers felt like an electric current.

The need he felt for her in that moment outweighed everything else. He needed her to save him.

He pulled away from her mouth, gasping for air. His lips grazed the arc of her cheek, the edge of her jaw, and down the smooth column of her throat. Her sharp intakes of breath were slowly driving him mad. Tilting his head back, he swiped his thumb against her swollen bottom lip.

"Hales," He murmured huskily. The tone of his voice was coated in yearning, as was the dark hue of his eyes.

Haley knew what he was asking. She couldn't deny him, and more than that, she didn't want to. Through hooded eyes, she kept her gaze locked on his and trailed her hand down his panting chest. Reaching the buckle on his belt, she snapped it open.

Brushing his fingers under her chin, he tilted her head up. He searched her eyes with silent questions and she answered them with a soft smile.

Clothes were discarded in a leisurely manner, like they were savoring every inch of bared skin. Twin gasps could be heard as heated skin met for the first time, igniting a blissful inferno that passed through the both of them.

Nathan buried his head in the crook of her neck. His breath came out in short pants against the damp skin of her neck. He let himself get lost in her—in the warmth and means of escape that she brought him. He got lost in her quiet sighs and soft purrs of his name. Even her nails, which were raking down his back, left a blissful burning in their wake.

Haley James was his everything and in that moment, even though it was only for a small second, he believed that everything was going to be okay.

~x~

"Haley!"

She jumped awake at Nathan's plea of her name. She felt his body shaking beneath her, the arm wrapped around her waist holding her in a vice grip. His skin was slick with a thin layer of sweat and his face was scrunched up as if he were in pain.

Haley sat up with her sense on high alert. Adrenaline wiped away any trace of tiredness as she tried to wiggle herself out of his grasp. He was clearly having some kind of nightmare—one that prompted him to shout her name in a way that made every hair on her body stand up.

"Shh, baby, I'm right here. Wake up," Haley said. Softly, she trailed her hands over his face and down his chest. "Nathan, wake up."

He shot up, almost knocking Haley over. He was breathing heavily and his eyes were wild, darting around the room in confusion and fear. Several seconds passed before his gazed landed on hers. He immediately reached for her hand that was caressing his cheek, squeezing the life out of it.

Nathan struggled to catch his breath. His chest was heaving and his lungs felt like they were shrinking from lack of oxygen. His nightmare was replying in his head in high definition, making it hard for him to distinguish between what was real and what wasn't.

The dream had been the same one that it'd always been—the house fire, the screaming, and the crying. Images of his mom laying beneath that beam still pierce his heart, as does the image shifting from his mom to Haley. He has to consciously remind himself that, that part of the dream isn't real. Haley's still alive and she's touching him. She's breathing, not a charred figment of his imagination.

But he can't shake the dream. There was something different about this version of it. It wasn't Damien who had started the fire…it was him.

Haley sat up on her knees and cupped his face in the palm of her hands. He was starting to scare her. The blue hue of his eyes were clouded with something she'd never seen on him before. Every inch of his body was quivering. His skin pale and slick with sweat.

"Look at me," She commanded. "Good. Follow my lead, okay? Just breathe."

Nathan fought hard to keep his eyes locked on Haley's. He focused all of attention on her delicate hands rubbing at his face. The warmth of Haley's hands spread throughout his entire body, relaxing every ragged nerve. Slowly, his breathing began to even out. His eyes fluttered shut as he came back to the land of the living.

Leaning forward, Haley brushed her lips across his forehead and speared her fingers through his slick hair. "You're okay. It was just a dream."

Her dulcet voice had his eyes sliding open. Wrapping his fingers around her wrists, he titled his head to sweep a kiss across the palm of her hand. "It wasn't just a dream."

The tone of his voice was a melancholic mixture of rawness and hoarseness.

Haley's eyebrows bowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Nathan tried to clear the roughness out of his voice, but had no avail. Haley held up a finger as she slid out of her bed. Grabbing Nathan's discard shirt off her floor, she slipped it over her head and quietly trotted down to the kitchen. She grabbed a plastic cup and filled it with cold water. As she made her way back up to her room, she glanced at the clock.

3:30 am.

Sighing sadly, she headed back up to her room and handed Nathan the glass of water. "Here, drink this."

Muttering some thanks, Nathan took a healthy gulp of the water. The cool liquid felt good sliding down his parched throat. When his mouth no longer felt like a cotton field, he began to answer Haley's question. There was no hesitation in his explanation.

Haley James had cracked open the flood gates.

His narration dated back to when he first started having the dreams. He couldn't explain the dreams in grave detail—those words failed to come to him. His eyes dropped back to Haley's bedspread when he started to explain her involvement in his dreams. He wasn't sure he could handle seeing the look of sheer terror or disappointment on her face.

An eerie silence followed his confession and he still refused to look at her. Haley's sharp breathing was the only sound he heard clearly.

Haley failed to conjure up an appropriate response to what Nathan had just told her. He was so…damaged and all she wanted was to find a way to piece him back together.

"Have you ever considered seeing someone about everything you've been through?" Haley finally asked.

"What, like a shrink?" Nathan snorted, his jaw clicking into place.

Haley's shoulder's slumped and a small frown tugged at her lips. He said that word with such disdain and disgust. "Yeah," She sighed shakily.

Nathan shifted stiffly. His fingers flexed around the plastic cup and his gaze became fixated on the floral pattern of Haley's bedspread. His mind drifted back to the only time he'd ever stepped foot in a therapist's office. The familiar panic and unease raised inside of him, and he found it hard to breathe. He kept his expression stoic, though.

He hated therapists. Something about them made him nervous. They made him clam up and recoil even further into his shell. Maybe it was the fact that they were paid to listen to his problems that he didn't like. They didn't actually care about him, it was just their job. Or maybe it was the way their offices made him claustrophobic.

But it was probably because they made him face things that he didn't want to.

"Lucas and Jake tried that, once. It didn't go over all that well," Nathan muttered bitterly. He took brought the plastic cup up to his lips and took a healthy sip. The cool water felt good sliding down his parched throat.

"What happened?" Haley pondered. He voice was barely above a whisper.

Nathan chuckled humorlessly. The sound was dry and rough. "The guy started pushing my buttons and I flipped a table—that's the short version of it."

"Nathan…,"

He surprised himself when he began to elaborate.

"He wanted to me just dive right into my problems. He was asking me all of these questions and the way he was asking them...I just lost it."

Haley swiveled her body so that she was facing him more head-on. She spoke softly and cautiously. Her goal was to be persuasive, not demanding.

"That was only one therapist, Nathan. Every therapist has a different technique, and sometimes you have to meet with several of them before you find one that you like or connect with. It's a process, babe."

"Sounds like you're talking from experience," Nathan mumbled.

She offered him a comforting smile. "I saw one for a few months after my dad died. It was Vivian, my sister's, idea. I was against it at first, mostly because I thought it would make me seem weak. Vivian managed to convince me otherwise. I saw three different therapists before I found the one I was most comfortable with."

Nathan leaned over to place the now empty cup on Haley's night stand. "I don't know, Hales."

"You won't know unless you actually try," Haley continued to persuade. "We'll start with the therapist that I saw and go from there. I'll go with you to every appointment if you want."

Nathan glanced over at Haley. Everything about her posture told him that she was serious. When she squeezed his hand, his nerves flattened and he found himself agreeing. With Haley by his side, he felt like he could do anything.

"What am I going to do about Damien?" Nathan mumbled dejectedly. Apprehension cloaked his features. "He's not going away, Haley. He'll keep coming at me until he finds the perfect revenge. I can't stand the thought of him hurting you or—"

"First of all, I think you mean 'what are we going to do about Damien?'" Haley quickly jumped in. Sitting up, she ran her lips along the edge of his jaw. "You're not alone in this, baby."

The corners of his mouth twitched into the slightest hint of a smile. He leaned his head against hers and toyed the sleeve of his shirt that she was wearing. "I can't ask you to get involved in this."

Huffing in annoyance, she distanced herself just enough to see him clearly. "I wish you would stop trying to shield me from everything. I get that you're trying to protect me, and I love you for that. But I'm not going to let you go through this alone. Your problems are also my problems. We're going to figure this out…together."

His heart skipped a beat the alight vigor in her eyes and laced in her words.

Nathan lunged forward to capture her in an achingly passionate kiss. "God, I love you."

She raked her nails over the sensitive skin on the back of his neck. Her lips were pulled into a sure smile. Did Damien scare her? More than anything. But the thought of Nathan suffering scared her more.

"We're going to figure this out, I promise."

~x~

"I saw Nathan spent the night last night."

The spoon, full of cheerios, that was heading towards her mouth came to a screeching halt. She dropped it nosily back into the bowl, ignoring the splashes of milk that landed on the back of her hand. Cautiously, she lifted her gaze and braced for what she assumed would be a lecture.

Lydia's expression was blank as she poured her coffee. From where Haley was sitting, she couldn't tell if her mom was trying to suppress a scowl or a smile.

Haley squirmed uneasily in her seat. Embarrassment coated her cheeks in the shade of cherry red. "Mom, I'm sorry. It's just…I…ugh. We got caught in the moment and…and ended up falling asleep. It wasn't supposed to happen. It won't happen again."

"Haley, honey, I'm not mad," Lydia laughed quietly as she slid into the seat adjacent to Haley. "By now, I think you know that I'm not a conventional parent."

Haley swallowed as she angled her body towards Lydia. "I thought you were livid…with the way you…"

Lydia shook her head. "I'm not your father. He probably would have dragged Nathan out by his toenails."

Haley grimaced but nodded her head in agreement. "Didn't he do that to one of Taylor's boyfriends?"

Lydia laughed melodically. Unlike previously, her eyes seem to light up at the mention of her late husband. "Multiple times. I was always the more level-headed one out of the two of us. I take it that you two worked things out?

"Um, yeah. We talked things over and we're…working things out."

Lydia smiled brightly. "Good. I'm glad to hear that. I told you that talking to him would do you some good. However, please do not mistake my happiness as giving you permission to have sleep-overs with your boyfriend whenever you want."

Haley nodded her affirmation, shrinking slightly under Lydia's pointed look. "Of course. Like I said, it was just a one-time thing."

Lydia cleared her throat. "I think you mean a three-time thing."

Haley bowed her head. The blush returned to her cheeks. "I'm sorry, mom."

Lydia shook her head with a small laugh. "I was a teenager once, you know. So, I get it. Just as long as you're being safe…that's all I care about."

Something clicked in Haley head in that moment. She was catapulted back to the previous night. Her heart leapt to throat and she physically felt her face draining of color. No, no, she was just overreacting. But what if she wasn't? There wasn't any guarantee, but…

"Mom..."