So what did you guys think of the season premiere. I personally loved it although I couldn't care less about Chase/Mia/Alex :P Anyway, here's the new chapter. Sorry it took me so long to update. Leave me some love. Constructive criticism would be most welcome too. XOXO

Chapter 32

Haley excused herself from breakfast after her 'talk' with Nathan outside Karen's Cafe. She felt like she couldn't bear to see Nathan without her heart breaking. She hadn't really called her lawyers last night but the words just flew out of her mouth. She meant to call them this morning but the thought of doing actually made her feel sick. She went to her car and locked the doors once she was inside. She was just about to turn on the ignition when she heard a tap on the window. Looking up she saw that it was Lucas. He gestured for her to let him in. She did and they sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Where are you running away to now?" Lucas finally asked with raised eyebrows.

She didn't have the energy to tell him off. "I'm not running away," she said quietly.

"You're not? Nathan's in there. You're out here. Looks like you're running away," he said pointedly.

She gave a loud exasperated sigh. Before she knew tears started forming in her eyes. "I'm hurting Luke. He hurt me so bad I don't know what to do," she said brokenly. "Just tell me what to do. Please," she begged as she looked at him.

It tore him apart to see his friend suffering like this. More so when it was caused by his own brother. He shook his head. "I can't tell you what to do Hales. You need to figure this out yourself. All I can say is, before you make any decision, give it a lot of thought because once you have decided there's no going back. I know that Nathan is my brother and I love him, but whatever your decision is at the end of the day, I have your back."

She nodded and said, "thanks Luke."

"Now come here and give me a hug," he said with an attempt of a smile. She leaned across and was enveloped in a bear hug. "Do you want to go for a drive?" he asked when they pulled away.

"I was going to go to the docks. You'd better get back inside," she said.

"It's okay. I already told Brooke I'd be with you. Come on. Let me drive," he said. "No argument," he said when he saw her hesitancy.

They didn't speak much on the way to the docks. Haley spent most of the time looking out of the window. Lucas spent most of the time glancing at her and making sure she was alright. Every once in a while he would catch her wiping the tears on her face. He wanted to give Nathan a good shake for what he was doing to Haley but at the back of his mind, he was sure that there must be more to what Nathan was telling him about Rachel. He didn't believe that Nathan would cheat on Haley. He loved her too much to do that. Whatever it was that Nathan was not telling him, it must be something too embarrassing for him to tell.

Neither of them got out of the car when they reached the docks. Lucas rolled down the windows and turned off the ignition.

"Are you okay?" he asked her.

"Not really," she said with a sad smile. After a short silence, she said, "do you think I was a bad wife Luke? Is that why Nathan went looking for Rachel?"

"Haley, no. You were the best thing that ever happened to Nathan. You still are although he may have forgotten it." He looked at the horizon and said, "have you asked him about Rachel?"

"Yeah, but he won't give me any answers. I'm just tired of all this Luke. I'm tired of being sad. Ever since I acknowledged my feelings towards Nathan, all I've ever felt was sadness. It's like I can't catch a break. Maybe it's a sign. Maybe we're not meant to be together."

"Do you really believe that?"

"Sometimes I do. We did have some good times though," she said wistfully as she remembered the first time they made love, the day they got married, the day Lily was born. She remembered the look on his face as he looked at her adoringly, like she was all he could see. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"It's not too late to start over Hales," Lucas said as he looked at her. "Nathan loves you, no matter what you might think."

She shook her head. "The way he's hurting me right now, he couldn't have loved me that much."

Lucas had no answer to that.

He stared at the television with glazed eyes. It was a live basketball game between the LA Lakers and the Charlotte Bobcats but for once he couldn't concentrate on the game. Not for the first time did he wonder if he should have told Haley was he was doing with Rachel. But he was afraid. He was afraid if he did tell her, she would look at him differently. Not that that would make any difference now. She was already looking at him as if he was a stranger to her. And he had been a stranger to her for the last couple of months since Lily died. He fingered his wedding ring and felt a lump in his throat. He remembered the day they got married. It had been the best day in his life, when he heard her promise to spend the rest of their lives together. He remembered seeing the love in her eyes. He remembered the way she looked as she said those words. He remembered the way she wore her hair. He remembered everything about that day.

His trip down memory lane was interrupted with a sharp knock on the door. He rubbed his eyes and got up. "Lucas did you forget your keys again," he said in frustration. He opened the door and was surprised to find Rachel.

"Rachel. What are you doing here?" he said.

"I came to check on you. I saw Lucas in town and he said that you were staying here. And he gave me the strangest, most hostile look. What happened?"

"Haley left. That's what happened," he said angrily.

Rachel looked at him in shock. "She left? Oh my God Nathan I'm so sorry."

"Not as sorry as I am." He looked at her warily. "Look Rachel, not that I'm not happy to see you but I think you should go."

She bit her lips and nodded. "Yeah I think I should. But before I go is there anything I can do?"

He gave her a small smile and shook his head. "You've helped me enough and I really appreciate it. Thanks Rachel."

"I hope everything will work out for you Nate."

"Yeah, me too," he said. He watched as she got into her car and sped away.

Haley stared at the envelope in her hands and fingered it nervously. "This is it huh?" she exhaled.

"It is what you want Mrs. Scott," the man sitting across her told her pointedly.

God, insensitive much? Haley fumed inside. She was in putting her groceries away when she got the call from her lawyer. Her divorce papers were ready. After a moment's hesitation she drove to the law firm of McKenzie & McKenzie where she was now, about to make the most difficult decision in her adult life.

"Where do I sign?" she said.

"Here and here," Lawrence McKenzie Jr. indicated the dotted lines.

She took a deep breath and looked at the younger McKenzie. "What happens after this?"

"Mr. Scott will have to sign all the copies and then we will file it at the divorce court," he said. He noticed her hesitation. "Do you need time to think about this Mrs. Scott?" he asked knowingly.

She gave him a small smile. "Yeah, can you give me a couple of days to wrap my head around this?"

He returned her smile. "Of course. Take all the time you need. Once you are done, if you want to you can return the papers to us and we will get Mr. Scott to sign for you."

"Thank you for your help. I'm glad Michael recommended you."

"Me and Michael have been friends a long time. Anything I can do for a friend of his."

"Thank you again Mr. McKenzie. I'll be in touch," she said before collecting her belongings and stood up to leave. Once again Michael had pulled through and recommended McKenzie & McKenzie to her. It all felt surreal to her as she walked into the law firm for the first time. She couldn't believe that her time as Mrs. Scott would be this short.

She stepped outside the law office and took a deep breath. She was just opening the door to her car when she heard someone call her name. She turned around and frowned when she saw that it was Rachel.

"What do you want Rachel?" she said angrily.

"I need to talk to you."

"About what? There is nothing to talk about. Now if you'll excuse me, I have divorce papers to sign," she said sarcastically.

Rachel reached out and touched her arm. "Please, just a few minutes of your time."

Haley looked at her. There was something about her tone that made her curious. "Fine, five minutes."

"Five minutes," Rachel said. "There's a cafe around the corner. Maybe we can talk there?" she suggested.

Haley nodded at the suggestion. It was not a cafe that any of her friends frequented and she didn't want any of them seeing her with Rachel.

They walked in silence until they reached the cafe. After placing their orders, they retreated to a quiet corner.

"What do you want?" Haley asked bluntly. "You've got what you want. Nathan and Michael at your beck and call. You should be proud of yourself," Haley said with malice.

"Haley, it's not like that," Rachel said.

"Not like what? I thought you were someone I could trust. And you went behind my back with Nathan? And Michael's my friend. How could you do that to him?" she asked incredulously.

"Before you start accusing me, will you please tell me what it is that you think I did," Rachel said calmly.

Haley looked at her and felt the urge to slap her right across her face. "Rachel, I understand that you went out with Nathan before I did and he broke up with you right after he found out I was pregnant. You went out with Michael just to make him jealous and now that you're seeing him at his most vulnerable you swoop in like a hawk. That's what you did," she said with malice.

Rachel kept quiet which Haley took as a sign of admission. But before she could say anything Rachel interrupted her. "You were right about me going out with him before you did and when we broke up. But the rest, you're getting it all wrong. I love Michael in a way that I could never love Nathan. And Nathan loves you. He's put you so high on a pedestal-"

"I don't need this," Haley said angrily and started to gather her things. "I don't need people, least of all you telling me how much Nathan loves me and how he doesn't mean to put me through hell the way he did. I'm done," she said and glared at Rachel. "And you. Michael may be my friend but you, you need to stay away from me."

She stood up somewhat shakily and left Rachel who sat looking at her with a gaping mouth. "Haley wait!" She wanted to stop her and explain but she knew how angry Haley was. She decided to let it go. For now.

"Hey girlfriend," Brooke said as she sauntered into Haley's house.

"I should really remember to lock the door," Haley muttered under her breath, her eyes never leaving the television.

"You should really lock the door Tutor Girl," Brooke said much to Haley's amusement. "Scoot," Brooke ordered as she slumped next to Haley on the sofa.

"Brooke!" Haley exclaimed in protest. "What are you doing here?"

"Can't a girl see her girlfriend anymore?" Brooke said chirpily. "Anyway I figured that since your bump in with Nathan this morning you could use some company."

Why does everybody seem to think that I need anything? I'm fine!" Haley said angrily as she switched off the telly. She stood up and started to walk away.

Brooke put a hand on Haley's arm and said gently, "Haley, I know you think that you are fine, but you're not."

"How the hell do you know?" Haley said, surprising herself. She was never harsh with Brooke. If she was surprised, Brooke didn't show it. When Brooke didn't answer, she continued. "I am fine. Doesn't matter that Lily died. That Nathan became a stranger to me. That I left him. And it doesn't matter that I have been looking at this divorce papers for the past two hours," she said and picked up the brown envelope on the coffee table. "I am fine so quit telling me that I'm not!"

"Oh honey," Brooke said and stood up before going to her and enveloped her in a hug.

"I'm fine," Haley muttered as she stood stock still in Brooke's arm, refusing to acknowledge her true feelings. "I'm fine," she said although there was now a slight quiver in her voice. Brooke held her closer. "I'm fine," she said as a sob rose in her throat. Before she knew it she was crying in Brooke's arms.

"Just let it out Hales," Brooke said soothingly. She let Haley cry for a few minutes before she felt her pulling away.

"I don't know what I'm doing anymore. I went to see my lawyer this morning," she said. Brooke looked at her in surprise.

"You did?"

Haley slumped back down on the sofa and rubbed her eyes. "Yeah I did. And he gave me this to sign," she said and handed the brown envelope over to Brooke.

Brooke felt almost afraid to see what was inside the envelope and slowly pulled the papers out. "Whoa! Hales," she said as she read the petition. "You haven't signed this."

"Yeah, I need time to think this through."

So there's still hope for you yet Nate, Brooke thought. To Haley she said, "take as much time as you need Haley. This is a big decision."

"Yeah I know. Brooke whatever you do please don't tell Nathan about this. Not until I've made up my mind."

"Sure but what's holding you back?" Brooke asked curiously.

"I don't know. I saw Rachel justnow."

"That bitch! What did she want?" Brooke fumed.

"She wanted to talk. To explain."

"And did she?"

"I didn't give her a chance to. I didn't think I could take listening to more lies."

"What did she say when you let her?"

Haley sighed. "She basically said that she's not having an affair with Nathan."

"And do you believe her?"

Haley ran her fingers through her hair. "I don't know. Part of me does, or wants to believe her. I mean, I don't really believe that Nathan would do that to me but he's hiding something. I can't figure him out Brooke. It's like I don't know him anymore. And the saddest part is he used to be my best friend."

"Do you still love him?" Brooke asked cautiously.

"Of course I do. I've always loved him. I probably always will and that makes this even harder," Haley said. All Brooke could do was nod in agreement.

Ten minutes later Brooke closed the door behind her and walked to her car. After making sure that Haley was not watching she took out her phone and dialed. Upon hearing the voice on the other line she said, "Nathan, she's seen her lawyer. You're running out of time buddy. Whatever it is that you're not telling her, I think now would be the perfect time to do just that if you want her back."

Nathan listened to Brooke's voice and his mind reeled. He didn't think that Haley would really go through with the divorce. At least he hoped not. He knew that he was going to have to tell Haley what he was doing with Rachel but he was afraid of Haley's reaction if he did. It looked like it was going to be another sleepless night for him.