Thank you so much for all the views and reviews everyone left. It seriously made my day to see people comment on the story and take the time to let me know what they thought about it. I appreciate it so much and it's been key to helping me figure out the next course to take with the story. I can't believe I'm close to 300 reviews...that would be awesome if I could reach that many. When I read stories that have close to 500 reviews I'm just in awe...
Hopefully you like the next chapter as well and it will at least answer one of the big questions from the last chapter...
Keep the reviews coming strong and I'll try to update quicker.
~~~ "I'm Never Alone, I'm Alone All the Time" ~~~
* Chapter Thirty- Three*
Nathan sat in silence looking down at the same coffee cup he hadn't touched in the last 40 minutes or so. Not that anyone was counting. He managed to tear his eyes away from the cup on the table and looked across from him. Surprisingly, when Clay had offered to take a walk with him it really meant having coffee together as well. Even though he made an effort to hide his response, Clay was completely shocked when Quinn asked Nathan to take a walk. In all other sense, Nathan was asked to leave.
"You're serious?" Nathan asked in utter disbelief. He looked from Peyton back to Quinn desperately trying to make sense of what was being discussed.
Quinn let out a loud sigh before she replied, "I think you and Peyton need a little time apart. Everyone needs to cool off so why don't you go for a while or something. This fighting isn't good for Hales."
"We're all a bit over emotional right now Quinn but I don't think he needs to.." Chris tried to suggest but was quickly interrupted.
"It won't be for long besides we do have some band business to discuss in regards to a press release and he doesn't need to be present for that. I'm sure one of us can text you Nathan when we're finished with all this band stuff." Peyton offered suddenly appearing cooperative and easy going.
Nathan recalled stories Haley had shared about the manner in which Peyton Sawyer conducted business deals and one way or another she always seemed to get exactly what she wanted. Sure enough she'd done it again right under his nose before he knew what had hit him.
"Looks like I'm out of here as well. Nate, how about I buy you some coffee?" Clay asked trying to ease the evident tension in the room.
Peyton looked on with a smirk as Nathan took a step away from where his feet had been planted. He shot her a stern glare knowing she'd won the first round but their fight was far from over if he had anything to say about it.
"Whatever." Nathan muttered on his way out of the door. Clay exchanged a look with Chris before he followed close not wanting to lose Nathan.
"Trust me I know the position you're in right now. It may seem.." Clay started but was cut off by Nathan.
"Look man, I'm sorry but you can't possible understand the position I'm in right now." Nathan snapped back in disgust.
Clay raised his eyebrows to signal his surprise to Nathan's statement. "You think you're the first boyfriend Peyton has challenged to a power trip? If anything, I've never seen her look so rattled before."
"That doesn't change the fact Quinn pretty much sided with Peyton in there. At this rate, Peyton will have me banned from the hospital before the day is done."
"I don't think it's really like that. My guess is Quinn's trying to diffuse the situation and protect you from Peyton. Trust me, Quinn will not forbid you from visiting Haley. Chris wouldn't let her and to top it off, Hales will give her hell when she wakes up anyways pregnant or not." Clay replied hoping his last comment helped lift the mood a bit.
Nathan found a small smile form on his lips when he thought about Haley when she's angry and the poor person on the receiving end.
"She can be a little spitfire can't she?" Nathan chuckled for the first time in a while and it felt good.
Quinn and Chris sat on one side of Haley's bed with Peyton directly across from them. They'd spent the last few minutes discussing what facts Peyton had obtained about the accident as well as the statement she planned to release in a few hours.
"How long has he been here anyways?" Peyton asked.
Quinn and Chris exchanged a look with one another before answering.
"He literally ran off the court from his game last night after he found out about the accident. He flew out as soon as he could and hasn't left the hospital since." Quinn confessed.
Peyton nodded as she pressed her thin lips together no doubt processing the information. She glanced back at Haley's motionless body half expecting her to sit up in bed and offer her input to the subject at hand.
"I'm sure Nathan's agent isn't happy about him walking off the court last night or the press he's received since arriving at the hospital. They were camped out at all entrances when I arrived today." Peyton added. She hadn't heard from Dan Scott in a while but figured she'd hear something after news broke about the accident. What little she knew about Dan Scott, he had to be less than thrilled about the recent developments.
Nathan glanced down at his iPhone that he'd set on top of the table once he'd sat down with Clay just to make sure he didn't miss anything. He saw the screen light up and quickly dismissed the call again. Clay watched Nathan's face grow tense again and decided it was time to say something.
"That's the third time you've dismissed a call in the last 10 minutes…what's going on?" Clay asked showing concern.
He looked back at Clay and couldn't help but feel a kinship with him. He couldn't explain exactly what the emotion was between them but he did know Clay knew what it was like to date someone in a successful band. However, Clay's career path wasn't in the public eye like his.
"Just screening calls is all."
"I imagine the press is pursuing you to get a comment regarding Haley." Clay thought out loud.
"That was my agent calling again."
Clay nodded and then replied, "I imagine your agent is concerned about how you're doing but also about Haley. You can totally take calls if you need to. I really don't mind."
An unsettling cough escaped Nathan's mouth after Clay's comment insinuating Dan Scott had any concern what so ever for Haley James.
"You couldn't be farther from the truth….look who it is yet again." Nathan said and then held up his phone that was ringing once more. He looked at Clay's hopeful expression on his face and found a sense of courage fill him. Maybe Clay was right after all. He slid his finger over the screen of his iPhone.
"Hello?"
"About time you answer my calls Nathan. Where the hell are you?" Dan asked.
"Forgive me but I wasn't in the mood to talk and I've been a little busy." He answered.
"Explain this to me Nate, I get a call this morning informing me that the Clippers are issuing you a fine for leaving the court last night without conducting any post-game interviews and for walking out of the locker room completely. What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Dan I don't care about whatever fines they gave me. It doesn't even matter right now…" Nathan started but was cut off by Dan once more.
"Since when do you change your travel plans without informing me? I had to find out online that you'd flown back to LA. That's bull shit!"
Clay had contemplated getting up and going for a walk to give Nathan some privacy but stayed put when Nathan shook his head no.
"Call me crazy but I figured you'd assume I'd be flying back after hearing about the accident." Nathan snapped back.
"Nathan, you can't just drop everything and run away. Especially right now in the season..you need to get back out.."
"Dad, I'm right where I need to be and there's nothing you can do about it. As my manager, you need to inform the GM that I'm on a personal leave as of right now." Nathan said. He could feel Clay's eyes look over him after his last comment.
"Son, think about your career and all the hard work you've done before you go and start a leave. You just got back from your injury and this won't look good."
"Fuck it! Call me when it's done Dan." Nathan said and then ended the call abruptly before Dan could refuse.
Nathan and Clay sat for a few moments in silence before Clay finally broke the ice.
"So that must be interesting…"
"What is?"
Clay raised one eyebrow before he answered, "Having your Dad as your agent too. That has to be hard on you."
Nathan shifted uncomfortable in his seat and then replied, "Things have gotten more challenging lately. The times when I just want him to be my Dad like now for example, he just can't do that. I don't think he ever really could to begin with anyhow."
Chris and Quinn waited in the family lounge half listening to Peyton's conversation she'd been having for the last 15 minutes or so. Haley had been taken for another CT scan to evaluate the swelling in her brain and Peyton jumped at the chance to do some business. She'd been talking with the tour company discussing the current situation with the Fire Pistols lead singer and the possibility of the tour even happening.
"I knew once she got here all hell would break loose." Chris stated quietly to Quinn.
She glanced at him and then back at Peyton across the room.
"It hasn't been all that bad."
Chris looked at her like she'd just told him pigs could really fly.
"Not that bad! You walked in on the same fight I did. Lord, only knows what happened before we got there. If she gets her way and bans him from the hospital, Haley will never forgive us." Chris added with a serious tone.
"I think she's bluffing anyhow but it won't come to that. Haley's gonna wake up soon so we won't need to worry about that."
"She better because Chris Keller can't take all this drama. And Peyton is bad shit crazy when she's mad!" Chris added with his traditional smirk making Quinn giggle.
Peyton ended her call and announced she was going back to check on Haley. Chris and Quinn waited in the lounge in case she wasn't back yet after Peyton agreed to text them when Haley was in her room. She walked into Haley's hospital room as the nurse was getting Haley settled back into her room.
"How did it go?" Peyton asked the nurse who looked up at her once she walked in.
"Things are looking really good. Dr. Bennett is reviewing the scans right now and will be back to discuss the results. Haley's color and vital signs are excellent. Her oxygen levels have stabilized so we're trying out the nasal cannula. She'll be more comfortable without that thing in her mouth. Her O2 levels haven't dipped that low so that means her lung has stabilized." The nurse replied as she finished hooking Haley back up to the monitor for her blood pressure.
"That's great news!" Peyton exclaimed feeling a sense of relief about Haley's condition improving. Just then her phone beeped to alert her of a new text message. She glanced down and pulled up the message.
'This is doesn't not make me happy. Ban Nathan from visiting her or you know what could be revealed! I'll be in touch. Fix this!'
Peyton feared it was only a matter of time before she heard from Dan Scott. She knew he'd be less than pleased about his client dropping everything to run to his girlfriend's side. Hell, it didn't make her happy either.
'I understand.' Peyton responded and then put her phone away again.
"How do I go about implementing visitor restrictions? I want to make sure Haley's privacy is protected." Peyton said in a sweet voice to the nurse.
The nurse smiled and answered, "There's a form at the nurses station you'd need to fill out and.."
She suddenly stopped talking once she saw Haley's head turn to the side out of nowhere.
"Oh my gosh."
Peyton looked on closely as Haley's nurse pushed the call button to alert the rest of the staff.
"Haley….can you hear me?" The nurse said softly to Haley while studying her body for a response.
A moan escaped from Haley as her body slowly started to move. Her eyes fluttered open only to squint in response to the bright light above her. Soon her eyes started to focus more as she glanced around in panic not even registering Peyton's presence yet.
"Relax Haley. You're in the hospital and I'm one of the nurses. Please try to stay calm as you get your bearings. It's completely natural for everything to be a bit hazy right now so don't try to rush it. You were in a car accident." Haley's nurse responded in a calm steady voice.
Peyton quickly composed a message quickly and hit send while the nurse looked in Haley's eyes with a bright light. Within a matter of minutes, the door to her room opened again to reveal Quinn and Chris. Quinn couldn't hold back her tears of relief once she saw Haley was awake from escaping her eyes.
"She just starting coming to." Peyton stated after looking at them once they settled in next to her.
"Haley, it's going to be difficult for you to speak at first so just blink once for yes and twice for no for right now. Do you understand?" The nurse asked. Haley responded by closing her eyes and slowly opening them.
"Is your name Haley James?"
One blink.
"Great, is your birthday August 1st?"
One blink.
"Do you recognize anyone in the room?"
Haley's eyes moved to study the faces next to her bed and a small smile formed on her mouth. She let her eyes close as they still felt very heavy.
"It's normal for you to feel very groggy still. I'm going to step out to deliver the good news. I will be right back Haley. If you come with me, I can get you that form you asked for." The nurse said and looked at Peyton who quickly followed her out of the room. Now that Haley was awake she needed to come up with a game plan.
"I should call my parents!" Quinn exclaimed out of the blue. She pulled out her phone and quickly went about her call praying they'd answer this time. Her actions prompted Chris to move as well. He pulled out his phone and pulled up Nathan's number.
Just as he heard Nathan pick up Haley's eyes slowly opened again.
"She's awake." Chris exclaimed.
Nathan stood with his iPhone up to his ear in shock. Haley was awake.
"What is it?" Clay asked pulling Nathan back to reality. Nathan quickly ended his call and looked to Clay.
"Hales is awake." He answered with a sigh of relief. The two men took off towards her hospital room Clay soon was trailing behind. Nathan raced towards her room wanting nothing more than to see the whites of her eyes and see her smile. He felt his stomach rise up into his chest as he got closer to her room. He opened the door and walked in to see Quinn sitting in the corner of the room on her phone. Chris looked up and saw Nathan and Clay burst in.
"Well well, look who's here Hales? You've got another visitor." Chris said.
Nathan stepped closer to her bed and slowly saw her eyes open. She studied her new visitor closely taking him in as her brain processed the information. Her eyebrows wrinkled something she'd yet to do since she had woken.
"Are you in pain Haley?" Chris asked suddenly concerned by the change in her demeanor.
Panic started to set in for Nathan as he held her gaze with his eyes. He watched her closely while she slowly licked her lips.
"Wwwhhatt…..what are you doing here?" Haley asked in a hoarse raspy voice looking directly at Nathan.
Nathan felt the wind get completely knocked out of him once she'd spoken.
"What Hales?" Nathan called out hopeful he'd heard her wrong.
The only sound in the room was Quinn talking to their parents. Chris looked at Nathan who had yet to take his eyes off of Haley.
"Of course he's here. He's your boyfriend Hales." Chris added not thinking before he spoke.
Nathan felt his heart beat and swore it was about to pound right out of his chest. His knees felt weak as he stood there in utter shock. He was scared to move any closer towards the bed in fear he'd upset her further if she indeed didn't recognize him. He watched her closely as she moved her feet underneath the blanket and was silently thanking God she could still move her legs. Haley made another attempt to move her body in an effort to sit up but suddenly cried out in pain. Her left hand clutched her side no doubt in pain.
"Jesus Hales, you broke your ribs be careful." Nathan called out as he rushed right to her bedside without hesitation. He reached out and touched her shoulder tenderly.
It slowly registered to her that the pain she was feeling in her chest and side was from broken ribs. She surrendered and let her head fall back on her pillow once more.
"What are you doing here?" Haley whispered once more her voice still scratchy.
Nathan's mouth opened to respond but he couldn't bring himself to speak. Words escaped him and all he could do was stand dumbfounded. He wanted to stop time in that exact moment not wanting confirmation if his girlfriend indeed didn't recognize him anymore. Haley watched his face fall once more as she swallowed hard before she tried to speak again.
"Basketball." She whispered without taking her eyes off of his. It took every ounce of her energy to speak to him this time with a strong voice.
"Thank God baby." Nathan exclaimed as he leaned down to embrace his love. He carefully hugged her body and then placed a kiss the side of her head. He blinked rapidly trying to stop himself for actually letting tears escape.
"I'm so glad you're ok. You gave me quite the scare." He whispered softly just for her ears to hear. She responded by reaching her arm around his back to hug him back as best as she could. "I got here as fast as I could once I found out." He continued after he finally pulled away to look at her.
She responded with a confused look and then asked, "I'm so sorry. You're on the road….how can you.."
"Shhh we don't need to talk about this right now." Nathan interjected once he saw she was still struggling to speak.
Peyton walked into Haley's room followed by Dr. Bennett who had a large smile on his face.
"Well Miss. Haley James you had quite the nap Sleeping Beauty! How are you feeling?" Dr. Bennett asked as he approached her bedside.
"Headache! My chest hurts…it's hard to breathe at times." Haley answered.
"It's no wonder you've got a headache. You hit your head on the steering wheel during your accident. There is a detective from the LAPD on the way down to take your statement regarding the accident and see what you might remember." Dr. Bennett stated.
Haley nodded as she watched Dr. Bennett check her over. She remained calm as he explained her injuries and her current condition. Her head was becoming clearer and she finally felt like she was truly waking up once he went into the gruesome details of her injuries. She looked back at him with wide eyes partly in disbelief. She caught her older sister's glance and now understood why she looked so concerned. Haley looked over at Peyton and then at Nathan on the opposite side of the room no doubt with his game face on. She could tell he was tense by studying the corners of his lips that were pulled tight and the look in his eyes. It was then Haley finally registered Peyton and Nathan were in the same room meaning they'd finally met. And it happened without her present or having any control over how it developed. Haley was brought back from her thoughts when she heard Dr. Bennett discuss her moving out of ICU.
"Thank you Dr. Bennett for everything." Quinn added as she shook his hand. He nodded and exchanged pleasantries with the remainder of the group.
Once the healthcare team left the room, the tension surrounding the remaining visitors could've been cut with a knife. Haley looked over all of them trying to get a grip on what was going on. Quinn looked completely exhausted and the puffy eyes told Haley many tears were shed by her sister. Guilt was setting in for worrying her pregnant sister so much. Clay stood behind Quinn and gently rubbed her back. He too looked like he'd been up for hours no doubt worrying about her, his fiancée and their baby too. Chris normally had a slap stick comedy type of smirk on his face at all times mostly due to his care free laid back persona however that was far from the truth now. His face looked drained and stressed from the previous events that had unfolded over the last 24 hours.
Peyton however looked the most put together of the bunch. Her face adorned fresh make up and her signature curls looked intact. Haley noticed Peyton was wearing a different outfit from the previous one she'd worn to the club appearance the night of the accident. Then Haley looked back over to Nathan who stood in the corner of the room with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He seemed to be struggling as he shifted his harsh eyes directed at Peyton back to Haley who to his surprise was looking directly at him. An instant calm came over him that only intensified when she smiled at him.
"So, catch me up on what I missed please…"Haley stated once she decided she'd break the awkward silence.
"Walker should be here soon. He flew out of San Francisco sometime during the night. He's gonna give me a shout when he lands." Chris explained not really know what else to say at the moment. He just wanted to smooth things over until Haley got stronger to take in the drama that had played out.
Haley shook her head signaling she understood the reason for his absence in the room.
"Our parents won't be coming to visit but send their "get well wishes" to you." Quinn added with sarcasm only Haley would truly understand and appreciate.
"I'm surprised you even got a hold of them in the first place." Haley stated bluntly not feeling much emotion about her lack of parental concern with her current condition.
"It wasn't easy believe me but eventually I think I wore them down and they finally called back." Clay added with a satisfied grin.
Haley caught her sister try to hide the yawn about to escape her lips forcing her to speak up.
"Clay, will you please take my sister home so she can rest now? This can't have been easy for her and isn't good for the baby." Haley instructed.
"Hales I'm fine right here." Quinn stated trying to refuse her sister's request.
"And I'm fine right here so there's no need for you to hover anymore. Clearly I'm not going anywhere anytime soon so come back in a couple hours." Haley said as she peered at Clay trying to wear him down.
"Come on Quinn, the nurse said you needed to rest and watch your bloo…." Clay started but stopped once she thrust her elbow back and caught his side.
"Fine I'll go but I will be back!" Quinn agreed and quickly went over to give her sister a kiss on the cheek. She grabbed Clay's hand and dragged him out of the room before Haley had a chance to inquire about the information Clay almost confessed. She knew she'd tell her sister about the elevated blood pressure but now was certainly not the time.
Not even a minute later two police detective showed up in Haley's room ready to take her statement regarding the accident. Chris had taken that opportunity to head out to meet up with Walker feeling safe leaving Nathan and Peyton alone now that Haley was awake.
"I'm Detective Allen and this is my partner Detective Yates. I realize this may seem overwhelming right now but it really is the best time to get your statement of what you recall from the accident. Detective Yates is going to record your statement and I'm going to take a few notes if that's alright with you." Detective Allen started only pausing as Haley nodded in agreement.
"Could you start from what you remember about the day in general?" Detective Allen continued.
Haley took a deep breath and began, "It was a normal day really. Nothing out of the ordinary…I got ready for the appearance at the club and did some press while I was there. I sipped on some club soda, danced a little and mainly just listened to the DJ. Peyton was there until she left in a rush to catch her flight to New York. I didn't stick around much longer and then I made my rounds saying good bye to my friends at the club. I stopped at the bar on my way out the door to…"
"How much had you had to drink before you drove?" Detective Yates asked out of nowhere.
"I had two club sodas" Haley answered quickly.
"What else?" Detective Yates shot back again.
Haley shifted in her bed feeling somewhat under attack, "I just had those two drinks and that was it. I stopped at the bar to say goodbye to my friend Max who was working."
"Did this Max give you any shots before you left the bar?"
"Look man! Lay off already, if she said she didn't drink she didn't drink." Nathan said out of nowhere, his loud voice somewhat startling Peyton. He'd remained quiet long enough but didn't take lightly to someone badgering Haley.
"Nathan!" Haley said in surprise. Peyton hadn't anticipated his immediate jump to Haley's defense.
"Take it easy now and just let us do our jobs." Detective Allen replied.
"Tell that to your partner then…" Nathan muttered but stopped once he saw Haley's worried expression.
The two detectives exchanged a look no doubt ensuring they were on the same page before Detective Allen asked Haley to continue.
"I stood at the bar waiting for Max to finish serving on the other side of the bar but it was too busy for him to come over. So I gave him a wave and then I went to leave and…." Haley said and then found herself silenced with sudden fear. She felt what little color she'd had in her face drain right out.
"Haley?" Peyton asked as she looked Haley up and down.
"What happened next Miss. James?" Detective Allen pressed.
"Oh my God!" Haley managed to say while her hand flew up to her mouth in shock.
Nathan stepped closer to her bedside and took a seat in the open chair. He reached out and grabbed her free hand hoping to offer her comfort. She looked back at him no able to hide the fear resonating behind her eyes.
"What is it Hales?" Nathan questioned trying to hide his growing concern about what might have happened to her.
Haley's eyes darted around the room as she looked from Peyton to the detectives quickly.
"He was there at the club when I was trying to leave." Haley finally said in a soft whisper.
"Who was?" Peyton questioned.
Haley looked at the detectives, then at Peyton and last but not least Nathan. She closed her eyes as she took a deep breath.
"Damien."
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