Author's note: I am putting a TW here for self-harm. Haley is an avid cutter and no one knows. Lucas and Brooke are her best friends and I'm team Brucas so that's what's happening in my story. Don't at me Leyton fans. Nathan is the popular jock of the school and Haley is his tutor. Haley is also dating Damien West and there is another TW: for violence. There's going to be some dark elements in here because I write mature themes but if I haven't scared you off yet, I'd love for you to read and let me know your thoughts. This is not going to be uploaded to AO3 because OTH isn't as popular there as it is on fanfic. Okay, I'll fuck off now and that's all I have. *Whine*. Hope you like this dumpster fire, cluster fuck.

Haley James layered on another coat of foundation as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. She had spent the night with her boyfriend, Damien West, and it did not bode well. Bode well for her at least. Damien West had a problem with his temper, something Haley was all too accustomed with experiencing. If she smiled at another guy or didn't laugh at one of Damien's jokes, even if it wasn't funny, Haley would feel the repercussion in the form of his fist. She had learned a long time ago to not complain; that complaining only made the bruises worst. Her two best friends Lucas Scott and Brooke Davis had encouraged her to end it with him; that they thought he was possessive, but she didn't know how to walk away with her life still intact.

She was beyond grateful to know that neither one of them knew about the bruises he gave her. If they did, Haley would be six feet under, this she was certain of. A soft sigh fell past parted lips. She had agreed to tutor Lucas's half-brother, Nathan Scott. While the two brothers didn't always see eye-to-eye, the rivalry from the years prior were a thing of the past. Haley felt comfortable tutoring Nathan now, especially after Lucas had said his dismal grades were enough to get him benched for the rest of the season. She just hadn't told Damien she was tutoring someone new, let alone a guy. He'd go up in arms and rant and rave about how he didn't want her doing that and the truth of the matter was, Haley not only needed the money the tutoring provided her with but she needed the freedom. It was one of the few decisions left that she could make herself.

Pausing from putting her sweater on over her t-shirt, Haley looked down at all the cuts that crisscrossed against her pearl flesh. She wasn't sure when she had gotten addicted to cutting but she knew it was a bad habit of hers'. No one knew about it, not even her two best friends, and they never would, if she could help it. Besides, Brooke and Lucas had their own lives to worry about. They had started dating not too long ago and Haley, while happy for them, knew they were making the transition from friends to something more and it was tricky to navigate through. Haley also knew that Lucas Scott didn't love anyone else the way he loved Brooke Davis. She was happy for them, but often opted out of playing third wheel on their dates. She never did like the feeling it left her with.

Staring down at her cuts, she walked into her bathroom, picking up her razor out of her medicine cabinet and added a few fresh cuts, blinking back tears as she did so. She didn't know why she did this – to feel in control of something, she supposed. If Damien could hurt her, why couldn't she hurt herself? She wasn't going to be the one out of control. Sighing, she pressed down on the cuts until the bleeding stopped and all that was left was raw, irritated skin. Pulling on her sweater the next moment, Haley walked out of her bathroom and down the stairs where her three older sisters were, along with her three older brothers. Her family had come in for a visit and while Taylor wasn't someone she wanted to see on a regular basis, Haley was happy to see Quinn. She grabbed herself a slice of toast, nodding at her siblings as she poured herself a cup of orange juice and ate her breakfast quickly.

Lydia James walked into the kitchen just then, smiling at her youngest. "Hey, my sweet girl."

Haley smiled at her mom, accepting the hug she folded her daughter into, and Haley tried not to wince when her mother pressed against a bruise on her shoulder. She remembered getting it from the night before.

"Haley, if you just shut the fuck up and listen to me, do what I say, I wouldn't have to teach you a lesson!" Damien yelled as Haley's head spun.

She hadn't brought him the right drink he wanted – forgetting what it was he had asked for in the first place – and he had flung her to the ground, kicking her in the shoulder once she was down. Haley knew better than to cry out, knew that it would only make Damien more livid so she kept her mouth shut, determined not to make him more angry than he already was. Tears swam in her vision as she curled her body in on itself, listening to Damien shout at her about how she was useless and she was lucky he was with her; who else would want to be with her?

Haley hugged her mother back, pulling out of the embrace so she could finish her breakfast. "I got to go in a minute – have someone I'm tutoring this morning at the request of Lucas. I'll be home in time for dinner tonight, after my shift at Karen's Café."

"Okay," Lydia agreed. "Have a good day."

Haley kissed her father on the cheek, waved to her siblings, and made her way out of the house and down to the docks where she agreed to meet Nathan Scott. It was the only place that Damien didn't run by on his morning runs and she knew he wouldn't see her there with Nathan. Once at the docks, she placed out her books and notes on the table, starting with her English notes since Luke had said that was one of the subjects Nathan had most of the trouble in. She sat there for about ten minutes before he showed up. "Haley James?"

She looked up at him, taking in his tall structure and dark hair. She nodded her head. "I'm her. I mean, that's me. You're Nathan, right?"

Nathan nodded his head, sitting down in the seat across from her as he offered her a charming smile. "Most people know me."

"I know you're on the basketball team with my best friend but I don't really go to games," Haley said offhandedly and Nathan furrowed his brow at her.

"Why?" Nathan asked.

"I watch my boyfriend play but that's about it," she commented, flipping through the pages of her English notes.

"Who's your boyfriend?" Nathan asked, trying to make conversation it seemed.

"Damien West," she commented, still not looking up. It was a momentary pause that finally had her looking up and she found a troubled frown on the other guy's face. "What?"

"Nothing," Nathan said with a shrug. "I just know Damien. He's kind've a dick."

I know. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't antagonize my boyfriend when he's not even here to defend himself. Now, do you want to study?"

"Yeah," Nathan said after a moment, dropping his eyes to his notes. "Let's get started."

Haley knew she was coming off as a bitch but the least amount of guy friends she had in her life, the better. She was able to still be friends with Lucas because he had a girlfriend; Damien didn't feel threatened by him. And Mouth and Skills were safe too. But Haley knew Damien knew Nathan. He never stopped complaining about him. If he ever found out she was tutoring him, she was as good as dead. Speaking of…"Damien can't know I'm tutoring you."

"Why not?" Nathan asked. "Ashamed to be seen with me?"

"No," she answered with a sigh. "My boyfriend just doesn't like when I talk to other basketball players that he's not friends with."

Nathan stared at her for a long moment. "Tell me to mind my own business if I'm overstepping but isn't that kind of controlling?"

"Mind your own business," Haley replied flatly, feeling a headache beginning to build behind her eyes. "Now come on, I read over your last essay and you had some really good points in there, I just need to help you learn how to structure it."

She spent the rest of the morning before school tutoring Nathan, unaware of the eyes on her.