Thanks for the awesome reviews guys! I couldn't wait to get this chapter up so I wrote it during a homework break. It's a little longer than the last one but hopefully you enjoy it! XOXO

Chapter 2: I Ain't Missing You At All

Truth was, Nathan didn't sleep the rest of the night. He knew that he could easily fall asleep with Haley next to him but his mind kept racing over the fact that he had just told her he loved her. Honestly, Nathan couldn't believe the words fell right out of his mouth. There was no question that he loved her, he did, but the word love itself was enough to scare the shit out of him. I mean, who could blame him? His whole life he had Dan telling him, "I love you son." But then pushing him further and further with basketball, never letting him quit no matter what. If he was sick, or in pain, that didn't matter; he played. And all those rare times that Dan told his older brother Keith that he loved him, that was a lie. Dan killed his own brother, Nathan's uncle, in cold blood. Sure, he knew his mother loved him but she was gone half the time doing who knows that, probably trying out some new drug. Nathan had his parents to blame for his fear of love and the fact that he knew he was feeling something strong towards Haley was terrifying. He prayed that she really was passed out and didn't hear him say I love you, especially since he knew Haley felt something towards him but wasn't sure what that was.

He tried to close his eyes and let the world take over, but when he wasn't freaking out about telling her that he loved her, he was busy staring at her sleeping. She looked so peaceful, so warm. She had not changed her sleeping position since she had fallen asleep and that made Nathan smile. It was obvious that she felt safe around him, and he already knew that she felt comfortable around him. He didn't want it to end.

-One Tree Hill -

Haley woke up abruptly, trying not to stir Nathan when she tensed as she woke. She looked over at the clock and saw that it was 9:00 and she had slept in way past her mother. Her mother would be at the door waiting for her to return so that they could fix things up and ask her daughter why she was gallivanting all night. Haley slipped out of Nathan's grasp and quickly threw on her shoes. She didn't bother changing out of Deb's clothes she would just wash them and return them later. She quietly left the room, went to grab her wet clothes and hauled out the door. She raced home, praying that it was just her mother who was awake and not Brooke. She wasn't sure if she was ready to deal with that mess and have to explain to both of them where she was. Brooke wouldn't believe her, there was no way.

She raced through the door and felt her heart sink when she saw just Brooke standing there waiting.

"Hi Brooke…where's my mom?" Haley asked as she closed the door behind her and embraced herself for what was to come. She couldn't even bring herself to look in Brooke's eyes.

"She got called into work. I told her I would keep an eye out for you, tutor girl. She was worried sick about you last night and so was I." Brooke took a sip of her coffee and never let her gaze leave Haley. Haley could feel her staring her down.

"Why do you care where I was? Last time I checked you were pretty mean to me back there Brooke Davis." Haley glanced at her once and then looked away, looking at the television that was faintly playing the news in the background.

"Chris Keller called looking for you.." Brooke immediately changed the subject and Haley shuddered at his name. She wanted to block out that memory she had with him last month and pretend that it never happened. She also definitely didn't want Nathan to find out, not that it mattered. They weren't together and Nathan was gallivanting with Rachel so Haley turned to Chris for comfort. Besides, it was just a kiss… or two.

"I could care less." Haley started to walk away, Brooke feeling defeated.

"Tutor girl, wait!"

"Don't you mean Virgin Mary? Or I don't know… poncho girl?" Brooke cringed as Haley threw her words back at her. She knew she had drawn the line, she had let her pride get the best of her. She realized she was beginning to turn into her mother and that's the last thing that she wanted.

"I'm sorry Haley. What I said was really uncalled for and just plain mean and you don't deserve that. You're my best friend tutor girl, and you've helped me through so much. I just got super jealous of all your accomplishments and I let my pride get the best of me. I realized I was beginning to act like Victoria and that's not who I want to be. I'm really sorry, and I didn't mean any of it… Nathan would be lucky to have someone like you." Brooke's voice sounded sincere and by the way Brooke's face looked, Haley could tell that she was being sincere. After all, they were best friends and best friends were supposed to fight. That was normal, even if they did say things they didn't mean. Haley sighed.

"Now there's the Brooke Davis that I know. Come here!" Haley opened her arms towards Brooke who hesitated for a second before returning Haley's hug. At least something was starting to go right.

-One Tree Hill-

Nathan patted the bed next to him to wish Haley a good morning and realized that she was gone. He woke up confused as to where she could have gone and what time it was. He looked over at the clock, which read 12:30.

"SHIT!" Nathan yelled as he jumped out of bed and grabbed the first pair of jeans and shirt that he saw, hoping to God that they were clean and didn't smell. He was late to his basketball practice with Lucas down at the River Court. It was the weekend, and Lucas and Nathan often spent their weekends shooting hoops and practicing their game. They both wanted to impress the rest of the scouts who might come by, even though basketball season had just ended and Tree Hill took home the trophy. They both were patiently waiting for college offers, even though Lucas was advised not to play due to his heart condition. Nathan had gotten some offers but he was still waiting on Duke.

When Nathan finally arrived at the River Court (beating his record time) Lucas was already shooting and Mouth was announcing his every play. Nathan chuckled to himself, some things never changed.

"You're late little bro!" Lucas called as he shot another basket, never taking his eye away from the ball.

"I may be the little brother man but I can kick your ass in basketball any day." Nathan hopped out of his car and walked over to the court. He waited for the right opportunity to swoop in and steal the ball from Lucas. He ran, took a shot and smiled as he watched it swish through the basket.

"What the hell was that Nathan?!"

"Just playing the game Luke and reminding you of your place." Nathan playfully punched Lucas's arm and they began to play a "friendly" game. They got halfway through when Lucas stopped short and grabbed his chest.

"Dude, are you okay? Is it your heart?"

"Yeah, just need to rest."

"Luke, you should sit out and drink some water. Here." Mouth threw water over at Lucas who grabbed it on the first throw. They made their way over to the picnic bench where Mouth was sitting to take a breather. The brothers and Mouth engaged in regular conversation, discussing things like sports, graduation and what they were planning on doing once college started in the fall. Nathan was pretty pumped when the subject of Haley hadn't been brought up.

"Nate…there's something I gotta ask you." Fuck, Nathan thought. This is where Haley's name was sure to be brought up.

"Sure man, what's up?" Nathan swallowed hard and clasped his hands together. When he got nervous he tended to sweat a lot, especially in his hands. He didn't want Lucas to see that he was feeling intimidated or nervous, like he had something to hide.

"What's the deal with you and Rachel?"

This was not what Nathan was expecting.

"Nothing man, she's hot. That's it."

"But I see the way you look at Haley, Nate. Are you trying to hurt her?" Lucas's voice got very serious. Nathan knew that he was on thin ice right now since he shared the same extreme need to protect Haley James.

"No man, I would never hurt her."

"Then why are you hanging all over Rachel?"

"Because… I don't want to talk about it. It's stupid." Nathan shrugged and began to stand up when Lucas stopped him.

"Listen little brother, we are friends now, you can tell me what's up."

"How can I be so sure Haley feels the same way? I don't even know what I'm feeling man. Last night she stayed over.."

"WHAT? DID YOU HAVE SEX WITH HER?!" Mouth jumped backwards startled by Lucas's change in tone.

"NO! She got in a fight with Brooke and didn't wanna go home so she stayed at my house. She had her own room but she insisted on staying with me because she needed the company."

"I was about to kill you.."

"Yeah, no kidding. Let me finish. Anyways, I told her I loved her last night. She was knocked out and didn't hear me but I did and I regret it. I'm confused man. I never was shown love my entire life…I mean look at who our father is." Nathan couldn't believe that he was letting this all come out of his mouth to the last person he ever expected to talk to: his half-brother.

"No kidding. Dan has no heart."

"I just am scared. Haley deserves the world and I don't know if I'm good enough. I don't even know how she feels about me. I know she likes me but I just don't know how far it goes."

"Nate, listen to me. Haley loves you. She's told me. She would do anything for you. You need to tell her how you feel."

-One Tree Hill-

After talking to Lucas and beating him in their game, Nathan felt much better about himself and decided it was time to tell Haley James how he felt. He rushed over to her house and parked on the street in front of her driveway. He had gone over the speech in his head over and over again, hoping to get every word right. As he was walking to the door he noticed an unusual car in the driveway. He had been around the neighborhood enough to know who drove what and he did not recognize this car at all. He quickened his pace to the door and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her. You could see her through the bay window in their living room and Nathan's heart sank. There she was, making out with none other than Chris Keller.

"DAMNIT NATHAN!" He yelled, as he threw the flowers to the ground and walked over to his car.

"NATHAN! Where are you going?!" Haley called out as she opened the front door and pushed Chris away.

"Why does it matter Hales? I see you're busy with your boyfriend Chris."

"He's not my boyfriend! He started kissing me and I was trying to fight him off, I want nothing to do with him Nathan! You know that!"

"Yeah, well I guess I was wrong. See ya Hales." He jumped in his car and closed the door. As he began to drive into the street he saw Haley running towards his car. He stepped on the gas and flew down the street looking back only once to see Haley standing there looking heartbroken.