A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews. And thanks to my beta: Leeese!

Disclaimer: Don't own OTH


Chapter Twenty One

Haley opened her eyes and saw the sunshine pouring in through the blinds. As she pushed back the covers, she could smell the freshly made brew of coffee. She groaned and wished that she could have a cup. But she would have to settle for milk or water until the baby was born.

She opened the door and walked out into the hallway. She went downstairs into the kitchen and was surprised to see Nathan working away over the stove. They exchanged greetings as she walked over to the cupboard and pulled out a glass. "Where are Lucas and Brooke?" she asked as she went over to the fridge and brought out the milk.

"The two lovebirds went for a walk on the beach," Nathan replied as Haley poured the milk into her glass. "I'm pretty sure that they won't be back for awhile. You know how those two are. Especially now that they are back together. And Rachel is out running errands or something."

Haley sighed. "Why am I not surprised that she forgot about my doctor's appointment today?"

Nathan immediately jumped at the chance to spend some time with his estranged wife. "Well, I can take you," he offered. "After all, I am still your husband, not to mention the father of your baby." Haley knew that he had a point. Yet, she didn't want to admit it. Still, Nathan decided to keep trying. "Do you want me to make you anything for breakfast?"

Haley shook her head. "No, I'm fine." There was a short pause before she said, "I hope you weren't too uncomfortable on the couch last night." Since they were having problems, Nathan had decided to sleep on the pull-out couch downstairs. However, he didn't really sleep. Instead, he was on watch duty for awhile before Rachel eventually took over.

"I'm used to it by now," Nathan replied. "Besides, I wasn't going to let you sleep on the pull-out couch. It wouldn't be right. Especially since you are pregnant. And even if you weren't, I still wouldn't let you sleep on the pull-out couch."

Haley didn't say anything. Instead, she made her own breakfast. "If Rachel's not back in an hour, then you can take me to my doctor's appointment," she told him before she went to sit down at the kitchen table.

Nathan soon joined her. Neither of them said anything as they ate their breakfasts. However, Nathan couldn't stand the silence. "So the doctor's appointment is just a regular check-up, right?" Haley nodded and he let out a relieved sigh.

"You shouldn't be so worried. I'm the one who is taking it easy. It's Brooke who I'm worried about. She is really stressing out about this stalker," Haley replied. "I know that she's trying not to for her baby, but it's really getting to her."

"Because of them eloping?" Nathan asked her. Haley nodded. He gave her a look. "Come on, Hales. We would probably do the same thing in their position. At least, I would." Haley didn't have a chance to say anything as they heard the backdoor open. Brooke and Lucas walked into the kitchen, hand-in-hand. They exchanged greetings with Haley as Nathan spoke. "We weren't expecting you two for hours."

"Well, we thought we should get ready for tonight," Lucas replied. "After all, we can't get married without a tuxedo and a wedding dress. I tried to tell Brooke that we don't need them for this wedding."

"Why not?" Haley asked. "It doesn't have to be a fancy wedding dress. It can be just a simple one. But you're going to have to wait until Nathan and I get back from my doctor's appointment." Lucas was surprised, but nodded in agreement. Haley then looked at the time. "I'm going to go take a shower."

Lucas waited until Haley left before speaking. "So are you two getting along better now?" he asked his brother. He had asked that earlier, but Nathan hadn't know how to answer it. "Because I would hate for our best man and matron of honor ruin our wedding day," he teased him.

Nathan wasn't amused and rolled his eyes as he said, "Guess what? So would I."

A couple of hours later, Haley and Nathan were at the doctor's office. Haley was lying on the examination table and Nathan sat in a chair beside her. Dr. Copeland gave them a wide smile as he showed them the monitor. "It looks like everything is going well. Do you want to know the sex?" he asked them.

Nathan and Haley looked at him surprised. "We can find out? But I'm only twelve weeks. I thought that we still had another month before we are able to see the picture clearly," Haley replied in a stunned tone.

Dr. Copeland nodded. "Normally, it would. But your baby is in the perfect position for me to see whether it's a boy or a girl. So do you two want to know? Or do you two want to wait?"

Nathan and Haley looked at each other before turning back to the doctor. "Well, I don't know about Nathan, but it doesn't really matter to me as long as the baby is healthy. However, I suppose it would help me in choosing the colors for the nursery."

Nathan nodded in agreement. "In any other circumstance, I would want to know about the sex of our child. But today, I just want to make sure that our baby is healthy."

"You have nothing to worry about, Nathan," Dr. Copeland assured him. "Your child is doing just fine."

Nathan was about to respond when Haley spoke up. "Maybe we should wait until tomorrow. After all, we don't want to make Brooke and Lucas's special day all about us," she suggested.

"They are going to have two of them," he reminded her. "Besides, I think Brooke would kill us if she found out that we knew and didn't tell her right away." Haley gave him a look and he realized what he had said. He quickly added, "You know what I mean."

Haley knew that he was right. She turned back to Dr. Copeland. "So what are we having?" she asked eagerly.

Dr. Copeland gave them a smile. "If I'm not mistaken, you and Nathan are going to have a son. Congratulations." Nathan and Haley exchanged smiles. "Do you want copies of the pictures?"

Haley nodded. "Yes, I know Brooke would want proof."

"Speaking of Brooke, how is she doing these days? Is she staying off her feet like I've asked?" Dr. Copeland asked.

"No offense, but she hates being on bed rest as much as I do," Haley replied. "However, I've made sure that she is relaxing more than getting stressed out. I'm just not sure that it's working."

Dr. Copeland gave her a comforting smile. "I'm sure you're doing a fine job in taking care of her, Haley. Just make sure that you are also taking care of yourself and your son." Haley nodded while Nathan didn't say anything.

After the appointment was over, they headed back to their car. There was silence between them as Nathan drove them back to the beach house. Eventually, Nathan spoke up first. "I promise that I won't turn out like Dan. I'm going to be a good father to our son. And I'm not going to turn my back on my family. Or ever betray you or our son like that ever again."

Haley turned to him and gave him a smile. "I know you won't. After all, you were only trying to protect me. Just like you always did and just like you always will." Nathan looked at her for a quick second in surprise. "I've done a lot of thinking and realized that I wasn't ready to cut you out of my life. Or our son's life." Nathan was still waiting for an explanation. "I love you, always and forever."

He finally returned the smile. "I love you too, always and forever."

That evening, Lucas and Brooke were married in a church with only Nathan and Haley in attendance. Both Lucas and Brooke had the proper wedding attire on. Lucas wore a black tuxedo and Brooke was wearing a white dress. To her delight; she had found a simple white wedding dress that managed to fit her. She was relieved that she wasn't showing yet. She knew that it would be harder to find one then.

After the quick wedding, they headed back to the beach house where Nathan and Haley told them their great news. Lucas and Brooke were thrilled to discover that they were having a nephew. Nathan and Haley then told them that they were picked to be the godparents. They eagerly accepted before Nathan and Haley gave them their wedding present.

Before Nathan or Haley could give them anything, Lucas immediately spoke up. "You guys didn't have to give us anything. Giving us a nephew and naming us godparents are great presents."

Brooke nodded in agreement. "It's such an honor to be the godmother to your child."

"Well, we still want to give you your real wedding present." There was a short pause before Haley spoke again. "You are getting the beach house for the night." Lucas and Brooke looked at her confused. "As you know, Nathan and I are back together. And we want to celebrate alone. So we think that it's the perfect opportunity to get a hotel for the night and let you two have the beach house."

"Absolutely not," a familiar voice protested. Everyone turned to see Rachel coming into the living room. "I'm supposed to look after you and Brooke. How the hell am I supposed to do that if you two are in separate buildings?" she demanded.

"It's just for one night," Haley replied. "We want to give Brooke and Lucas a little alone time since it is their wedding night."

"I can look after Haley," Nathan assured her. "And you can stay with Brooke and Lucas. After all, she is the one you really should be looking after."

Rachel let out a sigh before she finally agreed. "Alright, but it's only for one night."

Everyone exchanged smiles. "Let's get packing then," Nathan told Haley and they hurried up the stairs.


Miles away in Charlotte, Deb looked at the clock and saw that it was nearly closing time. She wiped down the tables and the counter before turning off the lights. She walked through the entrance and took out her keys. She quickly locked up the restaurant before heading to her car.

She looked around her and noticed how quiet the street was. Ever since Brooke and Haley had been kidnapped, she had made sure that she didn't go out after dark alone. However, tonight had been super busy and Deb wanted to make sure all of the mess had been cleaned up before she left. The restaurant had hosted two birthday parties and an engagement party; one right after another. Deb and the staff barely had time to clean up one party before the next one came in. Despite meltdowns, screaming children and a missing ring, everything managed to work out including finding the missing ring. And all of the guests left happy.

Deb suddenly jumped as she heard her cell-phone ringing. She dug into her purse and was pleased to see that it was Nathan. She answered it on the second ring. "Nathan, is everything ok?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to call and check on you to make sure you got home ok," he said.

"Actually, I'm headed to my car now. You wouldn't believe how busy the restaurant was today. I could have used your brother's help," she teased him. "Speaking of your brother, how is your weekend going with Haley and Brooke?" she asked him. She hoped that it was going well. However, Nathan was silent for a moment. Deb grew worried. "I'm sorry that Haley is giving you such a hard time. Maybe you should come home and give Haley some more time. I'm sure she'll come around."

"No, it's not that," Nathan replied. Deb became confused as her son spoke again. "I was just trying to think of names for your grandson."

Deb couldn't believe her ears. "I'm having a grandson?" she exclaimed happily. "Congratulations to you and Haley. At least, I assume you and Haley are back together."

"Yes, we've worked out our differences," Nathan told her. She could tell by the tone of his voice that he was smiling. "And there's another piece of news. But I'll let Lucas and Brooke tell you once we all get back to Tree Hill."

Deb was again confused, but decided to let it go. "Alright, you and Lucas take good care of your girls and my grandson. And I'll see you all when you get back. Tell the girls and your brother that I love them."

"I will, Mom," Nathan promised her.

They then exchanged good-byes before Deb hung up. She then unlocked the door before opening it. She climbed in and put her purse into the passenger's seat. She then locked the doors before she started the engine and pulled away from the curb.

As she drove towards her home, she couldn't stop thinking about Nathan's news. She couldn't believe that she was having a grandson. She then realized that she was going to be a grandma. She wasn't sure if she was ready to be one.

Once she arrived home, she took her sweet time getting to the door. She was exhausted and didn't feel like rushing. As she unlocked the front door, she let out a tired sigh. She barely opened the front door when she felt someone grab her from behind. She struggled to get away, but she soon felt the intruder put a cloth over her nose and mouth, covered in a sweet smelling liquid. She tried not to breathe it in, but the smell was too powerful for her and she soon passed out.