A/N: Thank you for all the kind words and for sticking with this story! I'm so happy the backstory is finally unfolding. This chapter is very Nathan-centric on his experience. But good things come to those who wait... enjoy!

Chapter 26: A Tree Hill Raven always knows if the coffee is free, the two-cents will charge by the hour.

Nathan walked the final blocks into town doing his damnedest to process, but truth be told, he didn't even know where to start. He knew Haley's past had haunted her, she'd been pretty tightlipped about family and growing up, but so had he. As someone with his own dysfunctional family dynamic, it never really phased him. Was he curious? Hell yes, he wanted to know every aspect that made up Haley, but he also wanted to see her happy. And the cloud that loomed when he brought up the past was enough for him to accept the topic was off-limits. And now, he kind-of, sort-of, at least was trying to understand why.

Nathan walks up the front steps to Karen's Café and opens the door, the comfort hitting him as soon as he hears the bells on the doorknob chime. There was nothing a little time at the counters here couldn't fix. It had served him well throughout his time at Tree Hill Prep.

He walks to the counter and takes a seat, instantly greeted by a young waitress. Her eyes light up in recognition.

"Nathan Scott," she says, her excitement palpable.

"Hey," he says, quiet but polite. "Can I get two coffees? One with a dash of cinnamon, a splash of cream, and as much sugar as humanly possible. The other just black."

"Anything Mr. Scott! Anything at all," she beams, not moving.

"Just the coffee," he says with a laugh. She nods a few more times, staring at him, before awkwardly shuffling over to the coffee pots. He puts his elbows on the counter and leans his head into his palms, breathing deeply. Long freaking day.

"Well I'll be damned."

Nathan lifts his head to find his old teacher, Ms. Roe, behind the counter. Her parents owned the café, naming it in her honor.

"Ms. Roe!" Nathan says, happily surprised. "I thought your parents sold this place?"

"They did," she smiles. "To me. I left my teaching job a few years ago. And it's Mrs. Hargrove now."

"You and the dean? I hadn't heard, congratulations! He's putting on a great reunion."

"So great you're missing it, huh?" Karen responds.

"It's complicated," Nathan notes, his energy falling.

"I know that look," Karen observes, watching as Nathan rolls his eyes. The waitress approaches with his coffee and an obscenely big pastry box. Karen eye's her waitress and the box.

"Here are your coffees, Mr. Scott. And some pastries. One of everything. I don't know what you like so…"

"Oh Charity…" Karen says, holding back a giggle. Nathan looks at her, amusement in his eyes.

"Thank you, Charity."

"You know my name? Oh my god, Karen, he knows my name," she whispers.

"How could I not? You're feeding me for the next three years with this box," Nathan jokes.

"Was it too much?" Charity cringes.

"I'd say not enough," Karen jokes.

Nathan moves to pull out his wallet, but Karen stops him.

"Do not insult me Nathan. This is obviously on the house," Karen notes. "So is my two cents. Charity, I'll be back in a bit."

"Ms. Roe, you know him?" Charity says, dumbfounded.

"Much to her dismay," Nathan jokes. "I was a pain in the ass back in high school."

Nathan gets up, lifting his coffee carrier and pastry box in acknowledgement. "You're the best, Charity."

She smiles widely, completely flustered, watching as Nathan and Karen walk outside the store. Out on the sidewalk, Karen takes one last look at the café.

"Well you just made her year," Karen chides. "But she's a little gossip, let's take a walk."

"Oh, you don't have to do that Ms. Roe… Hargrove," Nathan corrects. "I'm heading back towards campus anyway."

"You're not getting away that easy," Karen reminds.

"I had a feeling," Nathan says with a small smile.

…

10 Years Ago – June

He'd looked everywhere. Every conceivable place she could be – the dorms, the boats, under the bleachers, the library, the tutoring center, and now finally, her swing—it's like she disappeared. Haley was nowhere to be found since graduation. After the ceremony ended, Nathan was pulled into his father's photo ops, and she was going to find her mom. That was hours ago.

Nathan stares at the swing, pulling at the thick ropes to give it a shake as if an invisible Haley would just appear. She didn't.

"Nathan," Lucas calls across the basketball court. He walks down from the boy's dormitory. "Any luck?"

Nathan turns, shaking his head slightly.

"I'm sure she and her mom are just having an early dinner in town. She's coming back," Lucas assures.

"It's been hours, Luke. Who's wife goes missing for hours?"

"I don't know," Lucas concedes. "But she wouldn't just leave without saying goodbye. She wasn't even supposed to say goodbye. I thought she was staying with us at the beach house before you guys started at Duke?"

"She is," Nathan says. "Something's not fucking right."

"Do you think she's in trouble?" Lucas asks.

"No," Nathan states. "But something is up. Where is she?"

"I don't know…" Lucas contemplates. "And you've checked everywhere?"

"Yes," Nathan answers, frustrated. He takes a seat on the swing, attempting to calm himself. But every minute without her, feels like she's another light year away. He was exhausted and in desperate need of a coffee. "Wait. I never checked Karen's."

"Karen's! Yes," Lucas agrees enthusiastically. "That's got to be it. She's there. I know it."

"I've got to go," Nathan says, getting up and starting to jog.

"We'll meet you there! Brooke and Peyton are on their way back from the restaurant with their parents."

Nathan doesn't acknowledge his brother, on autopilot with all the hope he can muster. A last ditch effort before acknowledging the knot forming in his stomach.

He opens the door to the café, having sweat through his dress shirt, his tie now loose and disheveled as he looks around the space. He prays to catch those big doe-eyes, but the café was nearly empty save for a few locals in the booths.

"Nathan, what are you doing here?" Karen asks with a smile, coming out from behind the counter. "Tree Hill becomes a ghost town by sundown on graduation."

"Have you seen Haley?" He asks, his eyes wild.

"Not since the ceremony. I met her mother, really lovely person," Karen notes.

"She is, thanks," Nathan says, about to turn.

"Nathan, what's wrong?" Karen asks with concern.

"I… I don't know," he responds, his voice cracking. Karen watches his Adam's apple bob and notices the shake to his hands, the jitteriness of his knees.

"Come. Sit down," Karen says, gesturing to a secluded booth in the corner. "Please."

Nathan agrees, sliding into the booth. Karen pulls up a chair, sitting at the end of the table. She looks at him with concern until he finally glances up, his eyes swimming with emotion.

"I can't find Haley, Ms. Roe."

Karen shakes her head – that's impossible. "What do you mean you can't find her?"

"I mean she's not here. Her stuff is gone and she's not answering her phone. She said she was going to find her Mom right as the ceremony ended, and then she never met up with me. I've been looking for her for hours."

"There must be some sort of explanation," Karen points out. "Haley has a good head on her shoulders and she loves you. Don't jump to any conclusions."

"I'm not. I can't even think of any conclusions. I am just stating the facts. Haley is gone and I have no idea why," Nathan says his voice breaking.

"Nathan, hey," Karen sighs, resting a comforting hand over his clenched fist on the table. "It's going to be OK."

"She'll come back, right Ms. Roe? I don't know what I'll do if she doesn't come back," he says, completely in denial.

"We don't even know that she's gone," Karen reminds.

"You're right," Nathan agrees, his voice unconvincing.

"Nathan?" Karen asks. He glances at her, but doesn't say anything. "Has she ever given you a reason to doubt her?"

"Never," he whispers, barely able to speak.

"Well, don't start now," Karen states.

…

"You were in pretty bad shape the last time I saw you," Karen states, walking the blocks out of town and towards the path back to campus.

"No kidding," Nathan remembers.

"But you found your way through it," Karen observes.

"Not really," he states with a self-deprecating shrug of his shoulders.

…

10 Years Ago – June

The bells of the café door chime as Lucas, Brooke, and Peyton walk in to meet Nathan. He looks up, a face full of hope, only to completely crumple in frustration at the sight of his friends, laying his head into the crook of his arm on the table.

Brooke runs to Nathan at the sight, emotional, and wraps her arms around his shoulders.

"You're going to be OK Nate," Brooke assures. He shakes his head, finally conceding to what he knew in his gut – Haley was gone.

"She's gone," Nathan says, looking up at his friends. Something about them hovering over he and Ms. Roe at the table made him feel that much more pathetic.

"You don't know that," Peyton states. "Her phone could have died. Maybe she's dropping her mom off at the airport. She wouldn't up and leave. I know that for a fact."

"Well she did," Brooke quips.

"Brooke," Lucas cuts, his voice exhausted. "Don't say that."

"Look at the facts – her stuff is gone. The last I checked, you don't get abducted and the abductor steals garbage bags full of random shit. So, kidnapping is off the list. This town is the about the size of my size 7 Louboutins, so she's not lost. She –"

"All right Brooke," Karen sighs, looking at Nathan with concern. "I think we get the gist of the list."

"Sorry," Brooke replies, finding her way to Lucas' side.

"Ah shit," Peyton sighs, looking down at her flip-phone. The group turns to her, she looks up guiltily. "I just got a text from Jake. He's still waiting for his flight home."

"OK…" Lucas prompts.

Peyton turns the phone to show a grainy picture of Haley at the airport. Nathan grabs it, staring at the photo. She was waiting at a gate.

"Shit," Nathan says, scooting out of the booth. "I gotta go."

He pushes past his friends, making a beeline for the door.

"My car's outside Nathan," Peyton calls. "Let me drive you."

He nods, accepting the offer.

"We'll come too," Lucas says holding his hand out to Brooke. She takes it, and they all run out of the café. Sure enough, Peyton's car is waiting. The crew quickly piles in before tearing down the road like a bat out of hell.

Karen stands in the doorway of the café, watching as they drive off. For the first time, she realizes that their lives were out of her hands. There were no more classes, no more lessons, or the occasional meddling. It's not like she could give Haley detention and keep her in Tree Hill. She just prayed, for all their sakes, that she'd given them the tools to get through whatever came their way.

…

"But you made it to the NBA?" Karen states.

"I threw myself into basketball. At least a basketball comes back. If you dribble down, it bounces up. If you shoot it, it bounces back. You can't lose a basketball," Nathan notes.

"What happened that night? At the airport? I'd always hoped…"

"That I found Haley?" Nathan finishes for her. "Me too."

…

Peyton pulls up to the curb of the airport as Nathan jumps out before the car can even stop, sprinting into the airport. He approaches the security line, stopped by a TSA agent who notices his manic state.

"Sir, do you have a ticket?"

"No, but I have to meet someone at a gate," he explains.

"You need a ticket to enter. I suggest you wait at arrivals and they'll meet you at baggage claim," the TSA agent explains.

"No, you don't get it. I have to meet someone to stop them from boarding a plane," Nathan notes.

"Is there something wrong with the plane I should know about?" The agent asks suspiciously.

"What? No… my wife is leaving and I have to stop her! What is your problem man," he pleads, his anger flaring.

"My problem is that I have a suspicious person with no ticket, frenzied trying to stop a woman from boarding a plane. How do I know you're not a threat," the TSA agent pushes back.

"Look man, I'm stressing out. My name's Nathan Scott. My dad is Senator Dan Scott. I just graduated high school and for god knows what reason, my wife is getting on a plane back to San Diego instead of staying here with me. I have to see her. Please, help me out here," Nathan pleads.

"You're married in high school?" The TSA agent asks.

"That's what you got from all that? Really?" Nathan grumbles.

"Nathan!" Lucas calls, jogging over with a ticket. "Here! Leave it to Brooke to know how to smooth talk her way into a free ticket."

Nathan waves the ticket in the TSA agents face before weaving his way to the front of the line – a feat only made possible by the charm and smile of a Scott boy. They check his ticket and ID and it's off to the races. Nathan looks at the monitors to find the flight to San Diego is on its final boarding call.

He runs down the terminal, finally arriving at the gate with time to spare as a few passengers still wait to board. He waits in line, nerves growing by the second, until finally the gate agent takes the ticket, a loud beep interrupting his thoughts.

"Sir, you're boarding the wrong flight," the gate agent observes.

"This is for San Diego, right?" Nathan asks, totally fried.

"Yes, this is San Diego. Your ticket is for Seattle and we're completely full."

"Look – I, this ticket was to get through security. To be totally honest, I'm trying to find my wife. She's on your flight."

The gate agent appraises Nathan, noticing his grave concern. "Why don't you just call her?"

"Do you think I'd be here if she was answering her phone?"

"Probably not," the gate agent resigns.

"Her name is Haley James Scott."

"Sir, I can't give away information from the flight itinerary and we're already on final boarding call. Even if I could do anything, the door's about to close," the gate agent says sympathetically.

"Can't you make a call to the flight attendants?" Nathan pleads. "I know this is crazy, OK? And I know you probably think I'm just some stupid kid, and maybe I am. But the best person I've ever met is disappearing before my eyes. I have to see her. Please."

The gate agent looks at him, the desperation palpable. She walks to the wall behind her and picks up the gate phone, speaking to the flight attendant on board. Eventually, she holds the phone out to Nathan.

"You have 30 seconds."

Nathan grabs the phone, bringing it up to his ear.

"Haley?"

"Hi Nathan, it's Lydia."

Nathan's shoulders drop at her voice. "Mrs. James… where's Haley?"

"She's resting. I'm sorry but I have to make this quick. You are a nice boy, Nathan. And you've made my daughter so happy. But there's things you don't understand, that neither of you can understand, and as much as I appreciate young love, your marriage was premature."

"With all do respect Mrs. James, I couldn't disagree more," Nathan says, his hand clenching the phone tighter.

"Nathan, please don't make this harder than it has to be. You will do great things, and so will Haley, but you won't be doing them together. And I apologize this has come as such a shock, but it had to happen this way. You're both fighters."

"Then why isn't she fighting for me?" Nathan says, rejection overtaking him.

"Because it's over," Lydia states. "Please know you made her high school experience, and I couldn't be more thankful. But you're eighteen. Your marriage was reckless. Haley's not ready and she realizes that now. Outside of Tree Hill, it would never work."

"I don't believe you," Nathan says, his voice cracking.

"If you love Haley, don't contact her again. This is for both your sakes. Focus on your future. Focus on yourself."

Nathan hears the click on the other end of the line as it goes dead. He hands the receiver back to the flight attendant. His knees buckle and he grabs onto the counter before collapsing onto the ground.

"Sir, are you OK?" The gate agent asks, but Nathan doesn't hear her. He leans his head back against the counter and lets the tears fall. The action so foreign and overwhelming, he succumbs to it. Not just tears, but sobs. Not just sobbing, but gulping for air. Before he knew it, he was in a full-blown panic.

"No," he whispers. Then louder, "No, no, no, no, NO!"

"Sir, just sit there. I've called you an escort."

He pulls at his loose-hanging tie, suffocating at of the thought of it, and yanks it around his head.

"I have to go," Nathan whimpers, but doesn't move. "Please, get me out of here…"

…

"I was wrong that night," Nathan observes as they continue to walk down the street. "You asked if Haley had ever given me a reason to doubt her. I said no. But there were signs. She had secrets. And I was OK with that but maybe I shouldn't have been. Maybe I'm not."

"We all have our secrets, Nathan," Karen counters.

"Not like this," Nathan states. "And not so destructive. I've never been the same since graduation. I've never felt like myself, not even once, the last ten years."

"You've grown Nathan," Karen laughs. "You've become someone we're all really proud of. You're not meant to stay the person you were at eighteen. That's just the beginning."

"And I get that," Nathan sighs. "But…"

"But?" Karen questions.

"I can't feel proud… because I don't feel worthy," Nathan admits.

"Oh Nathan," Karen sighs.

"It's true. I've never been good enough for my dad. My brother dotes on me like I'm two. Haley left me as soon as she possibly could, and probably didn't even want to get married in the first place. Oh and everyone in the NBA pretty much thinks I'm a dick."

"Are you?" Karen asks.

"Am I a dick?" Nathan responds with amusement.

"Yes," Karen confirms.

"I guess kind of," Nathan says. "I'm not really friendly. I clock in, do my work, and then get the hell out."

Karen stops in her tracks, forcing Nathan to do the same.

"Put everything on the ground," she demands, watching as Nathan places the pastry box and coffee tray on concrete.

When he stands back up, Karen grabs both his arms and shakes them softly, as if to lighten him up.

"On the count of three, scream," Karen commands. "1… 2… 3!"

And Nathan obliges, lifting his head to the sky and screaming his head off. It feels amazing. When he finishes, he looks down at Karen who smiles in satisfaction. She wraps Nathan in her arms, maternal and proud, hugging him tightly before finally stepping back to look at a bewildered Nathan.

"Get out of your damn head," Karen states. "You're not my student anymore so I can give you some tough love. Stop blaming your actions on other people. If your dad's an ass? Fuck him. If your brother drives you crazy? Ignore him. If Haley will make you happy? Go get her. But feeling worthy is on you. You are so bright but you're letting the world dull you. Just, stop. You are Nathan Scott!"

Nathan's cheeks burn, he's speechless.

"Now, I'm going back to the café," Karen states. "But it was so good to see you Nathan. Andy and I think of you often and we really are so proud of you. Just, be good to yourself, OK?"

"I'll try," Nathan agrees, picking the pastries and coffee back up off the ground.

"And be good to Haley," Karen requests.

"We're not… I'm not…"

"Coffee with a dash of cinnamon and enough sugar to kill us all? Come on," Karen laughs.

"We're just catching up," Nathan admits.

Karen looks at Nathan, thinking for a second.

"What?"

"Nothing," she states, turning to walk away.

"Oh come on. What are you thinking?"

Karen turns, her eyes warm with delight. "You told me you didn't know what you'd do if she never came back."

"Yeah…"

"Well, she's back."

"OK," Nathan agrees.

"What are you going to do about it?"

If only he knew.