Title: Who You Were

Author: sera_rocks / Sera

Rating: M

Summary: After his father's death, James Lucas Scott is forced to go back to Tree Hill and the house he abandoned years ago to search for the will. What he finds goes beyond mere bequeathed possessions as he uncovers the secret past of the father he never knew, and the unforgettable love of two people who were destined to be together.

A/N: Hi y'all. Thank you for all the amazing reviews! They seriously helped me in getting over my writer's block. I've been pretty uninspired lately. Much thanks to Lillie for going over this crap (FINALLY. Lol. Kidding!) and enjoy this chapter! Reviews are loved and constructive criticism is much appreciated. :)

Chapter 6:

When James looked up from his spot on the floor and to the window, it was already getting dark. The horizon was becoming a hazy dark blue and there was a gentle pitter-patter of rain on the glass, just enough to lull anyone to sleep on a lazy day. He stood up and peered out the window. The streets were empty and were already lit by streetlamps, some of them already out of order. He watched one streetlight flicker, lost in his thoughts.

When its light eventually died, he glanced back at the chest and all the things he had brought out. Today, he had learned about his father's secret past that he was in the army during World War II, and so was his uncle Lucas. But neither of them had ever spoken about it. He found a few of his mother's things, as well as some photographs of his father when he was young. But that was it. There was so much he still didn't know. Perhaps, earlier in the day, before he discovered all of this, if he were ever given the chance to know the truth about his father, James would have immediately said no. Today changed everything.

Perhaps it was a way of retribution for Nathan, for neglecting to be there for his son. And perhaps, it was also for James, for eventually doing the same to his father … in many ways, it was for them both. But what was its significance now? What could it possibly do? His father was dead. He died before James could say he was sorry, before he could mend things. It was far too late for any sort of retribution. Even if he knew the whole truth, even if he knew everything he possibly wanted to know, it wouldn't make much of a difference now.

Slowly, James walked back to the chest and with a heaving heart and trembling hands, he closed the chest. For good.

Noumea, New Caledonia, 1942

"Haley James? D-did you just say Haley James?" Nathan repeated.

Jake frowned. "Uh – yeah. Do you know her?"

"I – I think I do," replied Nathan. For some odd reason he couldn't explain, he felt a little lightheaded. As far as Nathan could remember, Haley James had disappeared off the planet the day after the graduation party. He had tried looking for her all over town, and it was like she just vanished without a trace. No one knew where she was, or where her family was. Sure, they hadn't promised that they would meet each other again tomorrow or someday, but it was disheartening for Nathan. He really wanted to get to know her more and truth be told, she didn't tell him much that night – just the basics, like how old she was, how many brothers and sisters she had and what she wanted to be when she grew up.

He distinctly remembered her saying that she wanted to be a teacher. So what was she doing being a famous singer? Nathan had never heard of her again, even during college. If she was so famous, he would've heard about her. It was impossible – she couldn't be a singer. She didn't even give him an inclination that she was a good singer, much less want to be one. There must be dozens of girls named Haley James in the world.

But they sure as hell were not as beautiful as the woman who stepped onstage at that moment. He was sure of it. Nathan was mesmerized. He couldn't take his eyes off her. She had long dark curls that fell slightly below her shoulders and was in a pale white dress that clung to her curves modestly, but was still enough to show off her figure. When she lifted her head to look at all of them and the spotlight fell on her tiny frame, there was a quite audible gasp all across the field and everyone immediately fell silent.

She had such a commanding presence that made every person in the field want to look at her and keep looking at her, but at the same time, there was still a sense of innocence about her, as if she had no idea just how beautiful she really was, how all the men stared at her like she was the first girl they had ever seen. Nathan searched her eyes for any sort of emotion and he saw nothing but sincere pity for the men around her … she wanted to be here. She wasn't forced to, nor was she paid to. He felt his heart surge for her and he desperately wished she would look at his direction.

Come on Haley, damn it – look here.

Haley raised her hand and waved at them, smiling as she did. Finally, her gaze fell to Nathan's and the second brown met blue, her smile suddenly widened. She was looking straight at him as she announced into the microphone, "My name is Haley James, and I'm so glad to be here with you tonight."

Her voice was beautiful, almost haunting in a way that left Nathan wanting to hear more, wanting to watch her longer. He knew that he would never forget today – that he would never forget the fact that she kept her gaze on him most of the night. How could she not have told him that she could sing? How could she have let that big detail about her pass like it was nothing? Did he make her uncomfortable then, did he not tell her to talk about herself? Wasn't he friendly enough? A million questions flooded Nathan's mind as he watched her wave her good-byes to the crowd.

He was transfixed. He didn't want her to leave, and apparently, no one else did, so when she announced that she would be staying with them for a few days, everyone was thrilled. She gave them hope amidst all the despair that surrounded them. She represented everything they didn't have and wanted. She reminded them of home, of their wives, girlfriends, sisters, friends and loved ones that they sorely missed, that they wanted nothing but to see.

When the spotlight faded, almost everyone breathed a sigh. Tonight was one of the better nights. For one night, she made them forget about the war, about the terrible things that had happened and that will probably happen, and made them feel at home again. She made them feel like they still mattered, that despite all the horrible things they have done condoning this war, they mattered.

"You okay?"

Jake's voice broke into Nathan's thoughts and he turned to him. "She's amazing."

"She is," he agreed, carefully surveying Nathan's expression. He obviously hadn't forgotten what they were talking about before Haley had begun singing. "How do you know her again?"

"She went to my high school." Nathan replied, his gaze still on the spot where she had stood a few minutes ago.

"Does every attractive girl go that school?" Jake exclaimed as he raised his hands in the air exasperatedly. "What kind of small town is that?"

Nathan laughed and he ran his fingers through his dark hair, wondering if she still remembered him. He was quite sure he looked different now. He had bulked up over the years and he hadn't shaven in awhile. His eyes used to be full of hope and dreams, arrogance he regretted having. Now, they were empty.

She, on the other hand, had not changed as much as he thought she would. She was still incredibly beautiful but she looked well-kept now, like she lived the perfect and comfortable life of any famous celebrity. There was no way he would forget those sincerely kind brown eyes. No one had ever looked at him that way – like she really wanted to get to know him.

He glanced back at the empty stage and then to Jake. "What time do you think she'll come out again?"

"I don't know, but you better hurry up. It looks like everyone else wants to talk to her, too," replied Jake as he pointed his thumb to the crowd behind him that seemed to be eagerly awaiting Haley's return.

Nathan couldn't help but feel pangs of jealousy in the pit of his stomach. She could have any of these men and any of men had as much chance as he did. Just the thought of any one of them even laying one finger on her had Nathan's blood boiling so he turned to Jake and asked, "Do you know where the exit of the stage is?"

"No, but we could go look for it." Jake offered and so the two of them slipped out of the crowd and went to the side of the stage, looking for some sort of door or pathway where Haley could pass.

Sure enough, in a few minutes, they did find the door but much to Nathan's annoyance, more than a dozen other men were already crowding the doorway so even if Nathan would stand there all night and craning his neck to take one look at her, there was no way she could see him now. Nathan saw the expectant look on Jake's face as he waited for some sort of answer. "I'll stay here all night if I have to."

For a few seconds, Jake looked rather surprised but it quickly turned to an impressed

look. "She must have been some girl."

"She was,"

Suddenly, the door swung open and almost immediately, everyone started asking questions, pushing and shoving their way towards Haley. Nathan instinctively worried about her, wondering if she could handle it. She was so small and even with two soldiers guarding her, they were no match for dozens of other men.

Quickly, Nathan shoved several people away and tried to get through the crowd. He saw her almost hunched up against the soldier guarding her as they tried to make their way through. Somehow, he had managed to get right in front of her amidst the chaos and he almost laughed at the surprised look on her face.

"Nathan?" She asked loudly.

Nathan could barely hear her over the commotion behind him so he had to read her lips to understand her. "Do you want to get out of here?"

"What?"

"Do you want to get out of here?" He repeated loudly.

"Can you?"

He smiled at her as he held out his hand. "You're just going to have to trust me."

Nathan could've sworn that his heart leaped with joy when she answered with a small smile as she took his hand. "I do."

"Oh, thank God!" Haley practically shouted the moment Nathan led her away from the crowd and to a small, shady cove that lead to the shoreline of the beach.

Nathan laughed as he watched her run down the hill and to the shore. She immediately kicked off her shoes and ran to the edge of the shore so her feet would get wet. The cool breeze whipped her long brown hair and dress as she spun around and around the shore as drops of seawater dotted the hem of her skirt. Her smile was radiant and Nathan was quite sure that he had never seen anything or anyone more beautiful. She turned to her him, her eyes sparkling. "You're going to get in so much trouble." She teased him.

"For saving the damsel in distress? I don't think so."

Haley crossed her arms over her chest, narrowing her eyes at him. "I was not a damsel in distress. I could have done fine without you."

"Yeah, I suppose so," he grinned at her. "Admit it though, you're glad I did save you from them."

Her face broke into a grateful smile. "I am," she surveyed him for a few moments and then remarked, "I saw you in the crowd right away."

Nathan couldn't help but smirk at her words, and his smirk widened even more when he saw how she suddenly reddened. Some things never did change. He was suddenly really glad and rather thankful they didn't. "I don't blame you."

She playfully stuck her tongue out at him as she spun around in circles. "You were right in front. There's no way I couldn't have seen you," she paused, hesitating a bit. Then she quietly admitted, "I'm really glad I did, though."

"Yeah, if you didn't see me, you'd be stuck with them." Nathan teased, but all the while smiling gently at her so she would know that he appreciated what she said. He loved how comfortable and at ease they were with each other right away, like it did not take much effort for them – like they had known each other forever.

She walked towards him and sat on the sand, burying her toes beneath it. She played with the sand and watched the seagulls flying above them for awhile before softly saying, "How could something so horrible happen in such a beautiful place?"

"I wonder that same thing every day."

Haley tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear as her fingers played with the sand, apparently still deep in thought. "I go to so many beautiful places … so many beautiful countries and I wonder how war could happen in such a place that doesn't deserve something as terrible as it. These are the places you'd like to visit on vacation you know … and you're here because of a war. And all the people who live here … they don't deserve the constant scare of being attacked, the fear of suddenly losing everything. It's not right."

"I'm sorry you have to be here for us." Nathan answered quietly.

Haley shook her head. "I want to be here. I was the one who suggested to my manager that I do this," she paused, taking a deep breath. When she first spoke, her voice was trembling slightly so she cleared her throat before continuing, "My brother Matt is stationed in the war, too. I do this for him … in the hope that I see him again. Letters don't arrive anymore."

Nathan nodded in understanding. He didn't like how vulnerable she suddenly was, and how hurt and scared she sounded. He wished he could find the right words to comfort her but anything he came up with in his sounded stupider than the last one, so all he could say was, "I'm so sorry, Haley. Lucas is in the war, too. He hasn't written for some time, either."

"It's scary, isn't it? It's like, every day you don't receive a letter is a day closer to never receiving one again. I don't condone this war, but I feel like, if I do this – sing for all the men here – it's going to help somehow. Maybe I'll give them hope."

"You do give us hope. You helped us realize that someone still cared."

Haley looked up and straight into his dark blue eyes. Nathan saw himself in her eyes – literally and figuratively. "You must have been surprised – seeing me here."

He smiled crookedly at her. "You never told me you could sing."

"I wanted to get to know you." She said defensively.

"Did you ever think that I wanted to get to know you, too?"

She laughed. "I wasn't that interesting."

"Trust me – you always have been." Nathan promised. "You could make it up to me, though."

"How?"

"Tell me about yourself." He encouraged her.

"It could take all night," she warned him, smiling.

Nathan dismissed it with a wave of his hand. "If I'm already in trouble because I stole you from everyone, what's a few more hours?"

Call him selfish or anything to that sort, he didn't care. He didn't want her to leave his side. Not now, not ever. He never wanted this night to end.