Hi guys. I know I've been MIA in lately. I've been busy with schoolwork and and as much as I want to put up my latest chapters, I need to get my schoolwork done first. Believe me, Naley stories are a lot more fun than writing a 14,000 word paper lol. So here's the next one. I hope you guys will enjoy it. Cheers! ;)

Chapter 20

"Dan, we can't get rid of that vase. It's an antique. Plus my mom gave it to us as a wedding present," Deb complained as she watched her husband scrutinize the vase.

"Exactly why we need to get rid of it," Dan retorted easily.

She could already feel annoyance bubbling up within her. "Fine, if you want to get rid of that, why don't we get rid of your first Ravens jersey," she said smugly referring to the basketball team that both Dan and Nathan were part of in high school.

Dan's eyes bulged at that. "You're kidding right?"

"Nope, if that vase goes, the jersey goes," she said triumphantly.

"Okay fine. We'll keep the damned vase," Dan said in defeat. That was how Nathan and Haley found them, bickering over 'junks' that they wanted to get rid off in an attempt to declutter the house.

"Mom? Dad?" Nathan called them. Both of them spun around at the sound of his voice.

"Hey Nathan. Hi Haley," Deb greeted them. "This is a picture I haven't seen in a long time. You and Nathan together in one room," Deb said and smiled fondly at Haley. When they were growing up, Deb was constantly worried of how Nathan was going to turn out. Being a popular basketball player in high school, she was afraid that the popularity and the adoration would get to his head, but being friends with Haley and with Lucas always looking out for his half-brother made sure that Deb's fears never realised, and for that she would always be grateful to both Lucas and Haley.

Haley shuffled her feet nervously. After much persuasion she had finally agreed to come with Nathan to his parents' home and tell them about their engagement. She knew that Deb and Dan had always like her, but she didn't know whether they would approve of their engagement, especially with the circumstances surrounding it. She felt Nathan's arm encircling her waist in an effort to calm her nerves.

"Yeah, son. What's up?" Dan asked curiously. He always knew when Nathan was about to do something. He would always have the telltale glint in his eyes.

"Haley and I have something to tell you," Nathan said.

"Oh we already know about the pregnancy," Deb said casually. "I still can't believe I'm gonna be a grandma," she said. "How are you doing honey? Are you and the baby alright?" she asked Haley.

"I'm fine, Deb. The baby's fine," Haley said nervously.

Nathan noticed how pale she looked and decided to end her misery. "I've asked Haley to marry me," he blurted out. What followed was a momentary silence before huge smiles broke out on Deb and Dan's faces.

"You did? That's wonderful news!" Deb exclaimed. She quickly went to Haley and enveloped her in a huge hug. "Oh I knew this day would come," she gushed.

"You're okay with this?" Haley asked disbelievingly.

"Okay with it? Of course with okay with it. This is the best news every!" It was Dan's turn to hug Haley. "I've always wondered when Nathan was going to make an honest woman out of you. So when is the big day?"

Nathan's face turned thoughtful as he thought about it. "We haven't really talked about it. Haley said that everything has been happening so fast and I agree with her. But it will definitely be before the baby comes."

Deb appeared not to hear him. "How does next month sound? I'm sure I can call the caterer and the florist and they'll be happy to do it. Oh God there's so much to do!" she said flustered.

"Mom! Mom! Calm down will you? Geez, I thought you'd take the news well, but not this well," Nathan said and laughed at his mom's reaction.

"Nathan, your mom has been planning this for a long time," Dan said with a twinkle in his eyes.

Nathan nudged Haley conspiratorially. "See I told you," he said.

"So, Haley what do you say? Next month?" Deb asked excitedly.

Haley looked at Nathan with uncertainty, but he simply nodded encouragingly. "It's really up to you Hales."

"Okay, next month then. I'm gonna have to call my parents and let them know."

"Oh does Lydia knows about you being pregnant?" Dan asked.

"Yeah, she does. She and Dad will be coming back to Tree Hill when the baby's due," Haley said smiling.

"Okay, that settles it. Ooooooh I'm so excited," Deb said. "Are you guys staying for dinner?"

"Sorry Mom, we gotta break the news to Lucas and the rest. I'll see you guys later," Nathan said and kissed his mom on the cheek. After saying their goodbyes, they left, leaving Deb and Dan planning the wedding.

"I can't believe your parents are cool about this," Haley said as they walked hand in hand towards Karen's Cafe where they had agreed to meet the rest of the gang.

Nathan simply grinned with amusement. "Yeah, I told you they'd be cool with it. You had nothing to worry about," he said and squeezed her hand affectionately. She leaned on his arm for comfort. "Hey, are you sure you're okay with walking to the cafe? I can bring the car if you want," he said worriedly.

Haley laughed at his incessant worrying. She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him. "Nathan, you're sweet but I'm fine. It's good exercise so stop fussing already," she said and kissed him gently on the lips.

"I can't help it. Somebody has to take care of my girl," he breathed as he kissed her back. Instinctively they wrapped their arms around each other to deepen their kiss. A few minutes later he forced himself to pull away. "I think we should stop. You know what's gonna happen if we continue doing that."

"Nathan! We're in the middle of the street! What could possibly happen?"

He looked at her mischievously. "Well, I could always sweep you up and take you to my parents house. I still have a room there, you know," he said with twinkling eyes.

She closed her eyes dreamily. "Hmmmm...as tempting as that sounds, I think I'll take a raincheque. We're gonna be late to meet the guys."

He made a face and reluctantly agreed. "Okay fine. I guess I could wait till tonight." He linked his arm with hers and started walking again. To be honest he couldn't wait to break the news to his friends about their engagement. He could just imagine what Brooke and Peyton's reactions were gonna be like.

"You said yes?" Brooke squealed. She then turned to Peyton and started hugging her and jumping at the same time. "She said yes!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Oh my God Haley that is awesome!" Peyton exclaimed. "Let me see it," she said, referring to the ring. Haley proudly showed them her diamond ring and while the girls gushed over how big the diamond was, Lucas slapped Nathan on his back.

"Congratulations Nate. Can I just ask you something?" he asked. "What the hell took you so long, you idiot?"

Nathan grinned at Lucas's jibe. "Better late than never." He caught Haley's eyes and gave her a wink.

"So when's the big day?" Jake asked.

"My parents want us to get married next month. Seriously I've never seen my mom that excited over anything in my whole life."

Jake smiled in amusement. "Hey you're lucky your parents love Haley. Makes things so much easier."

"Yeah, it's pretty difficult not to love her," Nathan said smilingly. The excitement of his parents were beginning to catch on him and he would be lying if he said he wasn't ecstatic to hear Haley agree to a wedding next month. If he was completely honest with himself, he would want to get married to her tomorrow, but Haley deserved a nice wedding and he was going to give it to her.

"Can I please please make your wedding dress?" Brooke begged. She had already formed an idea in her head of what Haley's wedding dress was going to look like.

Haley thought hard at the request. She didn't want to disappoint Brooke who looked very eager, but at the same time she was afraid that if she didn't like what Brooke had designed for her, it might upset Brooke and put a strain in their friendship.

"Brooke honey, I'm gonna let you design my dress-"

"Oh my God! You won't regret this. I promise," Brooke exclaimed enthusiastically.

Haley cringed at Brooke's squealing voice and put a hand on her arm to calm her down. "But on some conditions," she conditions.

Brooke's smile never left her face. "Just say what the conditions are. I'll be happy to do it."

"Good," Haley said. "First, whatever you have designed must go through me. The same goes for the fabric. No frilly stuff, no feathers. Especially no feathers," Haley emphasized. She recognized that Brooke was a really good designer, but she could let her excitement go to her head at times, which was what Haley wanted to avoid.

"You got it. Oh this is gonna be so exciting!"

Peyton laughed. "Haley, I think you've made her happy to last a lifetime."

"Is it possible to make you even happier?" Haley asked smiling. "I would love it if you two could be my bridesmaids."

"Geez Brooke. Any louder and you're gonna scare all Karen's customers away," Jake said while covering his ears as he tried to block out the sound of Brooke's shrill scream of excitement.

Peyton hugged Haley again and whispered in her ear. "I'm so happy for you Haley. You both deserve this."

"Guys, I hate to be the party pooper but Haley and I have to go now," Nathan's voice was heard above all the noise.

Haley looked at him questioningly. "We do?"

"Yeah, we have a date tonight, remember?" Nathan smiled at her and gave her a wink.

"A date?" Brooke asked quizzically.

Haley blushed as she tried to explain. "Yeah, well we thought, well actually I thought that it would be a good idea if we dated first before we got married." She bit her lips as she waited for her friends' reactions.

"That's awesome!" Peyton exclaimed. "It's exactly what you guys should do!" She looked at both Haley and Nathan. "Well, what are you two crazy kids waiting for? Go already!" She said and shooed both of them out of the cafe. The two walked hand in hand towards the exit whilst giggling like teenagers.

"So how about I take you home and you can get ready. I'll pick you up in a couple of hours. How does that sound?" Nathan asked when they reached his car. Haley leaned back against it while he leaned over, placing his forehead against hers.

"That sound great," she said, her voice coming out in a mere whisper as he bent down to kiss her gently. "Nathan, you'd better stop this if we're ever going on that date."

"Well, I can't help it. You look hot," he said against her lips. She pushed him away playfully and he groaned in mock frustration.

"If you stop now, I promise I'll make it up to you later," she said suggestively.

Nathan pulled away abruptly and grinned. "Why didn't you say so earlier? Let's go!" He opened the door for her and made sure that she was settled in before he got in and sped away.

A couple of hours later, Nathan knocked nervously on Haley's door with a bunch of purple flowers in his hands. He had no idea what the flowers were called but they had been Haley's favourites. He knew that Haley was unlike other girls who were into red roses and the romanticized version of love, which was one of the things that made him fall in love with her in the first place.

He was fixing his tie when the door opened and what he saw almost made him drop the flowers he was holding. "Haley, you look beautiful," he said, his voice was barely heard.

She smiled at him shyly and felt a blush creeping up her cheeks. It took her a while to find the perfect dress for their date and since her stomach was already showing, as much as she loathed to do it, she gave in and bought a maternity dress.

"Do I look fat in this?" she asked.

"What? No!" Nathan was quick to answer. "You look kinda sexy in that," he answered cheekily. She laughed giddily in response. "Here, I brought you flowers."

"Nathan, you didn't have to do that."

"It's a date right. Isn't this what guys supposed to do on dates?" he asked mockingly.

She smacked him on the arm and took the flowers from him. "I'll put this in water and then we can go."

He parked the car near the docks so they could walk and enjoy the scene at night. The air was crisp and Haley was glad she brought her jacket with her. He slung an arm lazily around her shoulders and pulled her close. He felt utter contentment. Something he thought he would never feel. Haley sighed as she rested her head against his arm. Suddenly she stopped in the middle of her tracks.

"Are you okay?" Nathan asked worriedly.

It took her a while to answer him. "Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" She blinked her eyes a few times to make sure that she wasn't seeing things. Nathan followed her gaze and laughed out loud at what he saw.

"Rachel? And Michael?" he guffawed. He saw Michael holding hands with Rachel and had to do a double take. He tugged Haley's hand and dragged her over to them.

"Hi guys," Nathan said and laughed inwardly as Michael let go of Rachel's hand. She on the other hand had a stunned look on her face. Next to him, Haley was trying to catch Michael's eyes, which he carefully avoided.

Rachel did a tiny wave and smiled hesitantly. "Hi, Micheal and I...I bumped into him...we were just," Rachel stuttered while Michael looked at Nathan and Haley sheepishly.

Nathan laughed at her reaction. "Rachel, calm down. It's cool."

Haley eyed her carefully. "What is it with you and the men in my life?" she suddenly asked.

"Haley, I can explain," Rachel said, her cheeks had now turned crimson red. A second later Haley laughed, surprising them all.

"I'm kidding! You guys look great together. You should see your face Rachel," she said grinning. She then turned to Michael and hooked a finger at him. "You, come with me," she said and dragged him to a corner where no one could hear them.

"Oh oh. He's in trouble now," Nathan grinned and turned to Rachel. "So, you and Michael huh? When did that happen?"

Rachel pulled her hair back to hide her embarrassment. "Well we spent a lot of time in Chicago and he's a really nice guy," she said. "And she sees me for what I really am," she added quietly.

"I'm glad to hear that," Nathan said. "You deserve to be with someone like him. Are you happy?" he asked.

Rachel smiled for the first time. "Yeah, I am. He's a great guy and he makes me happy. Are you okay with this?" she asked him.

"Hell, yeah," he replied. "I don't know about Haley though," he said and gestured at Haley and Michael who were talking quietly.

"You sneaky little thing you," Haley started as soon as she got Michael to a quiet place. "When were you planning to tell me, if ever?" she asked, poking a finger at his chest.

"I'm so sorry Hales. It's very new even to us and I was planning to tell you. I swear!" He searched her face for any telltale sign. "Are you mad?"

"No, I'm not mad. I'm happy for you, you idiot. I don't know Rachel that well but from what I saw justnow, she really likes you."

"You really think so?"

"I know so, you goofball." She linked her arm around his and walked back towards Nathan and Rachel. "Make sure she treats you right or I'll have her head," she joked. Michael stopped her in her tracks and looked at her. "Thanks Haley. And you, make sure Nathan treats you right." He kissed her cheek and smiled. "Speaking of Nathan, I'd better return you to him before he starts thinking about clobbering me."

"Everything cool?" Nathan asked and pulled Haley to him as soon as they returned.

"Yup. Everything's perfect. We'd better get going. I'm hungry. It was nice seeing you guys," she said smiling. "Oh before I forget, we're getting married next month and we would love it for you two to be there," she declared.

"Oh my God! That's so great! Congratulations you two!" Rachel squealed, looking genuinely pleased. "Of course we'll be there."

Michael pulled her in a big hug. "Congratulations Hales. Now don't go screwing this one up okay," he teased before letting her go. "Congrats Nathan," he said and punched knuckles with him.

"Thanks," Nathan replied. "Come on, we'd better get you some food," he said to Haley, who nodded in agreement. After saying their goodbyes, they started walking towards a restaurant.

Nathan led her in and smirked. "Who would have thought? Michael and Rachel." He shook his head disbelievingly.

"I think it's great," Haley said as she sat down. "Funny how life turns out huh?" she lamented.

Nathan took her hand from across the table. "Yeah, but I'm glad my life turns out the way it does. Did I tell you tonight that I love you?"

"I'm sure you did but you can tell me again," she said playfully.

He took her hand and kissed it. "I love you Hales. I'll never get tired of saying it."

Her eyes misted as she replied, "And I'll never get tired of hearing it."