A/N: For anybody [still] reading Lose My Mind, I apologise a thousand times and it would still never be enough, but I'm sorry updates are so sparse as of late, but writers block refuses to let me write anything :| In other news if you're a Doctor Who fan I can apparently still write that so look out for a new Amy/Rory one shot coming soon! This is the first time I've written OTH since the finale, so I apologise for any, idk, crapness.
It's the little things
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Plot: Just an AU version of the little Naley moment at the beginning of 4x03, as if Haley had told Nathan she was pregnant when she came home after being at the doctor's with Brooke. It's total fluff.
Pairing: Nathan/Haley
Rating: I wouldn't say there's anything more than a K+ in here.
"I need to be tutored. I think I'm failing marriage." The distinctive voice of her husband came from behind her, and she smiled instinctively when she heard him.
Tonight was their first basketball game of the season, hence the shirt and tie for the guys on the team and the cheerleader uniforms for the girls on the team. Haley was just doing her part in Team Raven spirit and hanging up a banner above one entrance to the school building, she did things like this every season now that she was a cheerleader.
She hadn't wanted to be a cheerleader at first, but when her marriage to Nathan was on the rocks at the beginning of the school year, she needn't be asked twice to spend more time with him. Eventually they found their way back, and became a stronger couple than they once were. So much so, they'd decided to renew their vows just a short week ago. However, tragedy struck when the fatal accident that nearly killed Nathan's Uncle Cooper happened. Rachel Gatina, also a cheerleader, got drunk at the reception, stole the limo and in the midst of arguing with Cooper on the Molina Bridge, he swerved into the river. Nathan did all he could to save them both, diving straight into the water, despite Haley begging him not too. He'd been kind of distant lately, but she felt they were getting back on track.
"Did you try sleeping with the teacher?" She smirked as she turned to face him. They stared at each other for a moment before he placed his hands on her hips and she placed hers on his shoulders.
"Anyway, what are you doing up there? You shouldn't be doing that, Hales. We don't want you getting hurt." He reprimanded as he lifted her from the stool she was stood on and placed her on solid ground, winding his arms around her waist as he did so. He kept one hand on her stomach, stroking it gently through her uniform.
In the days leading up to the wedding, she'd felt herself getting sick in the mornings. She figured at first it was just a bug, but when it continued to happen only in the morning, she'd started to worry. Pregnant? She couldn't be. She and Nathan had been so careful, specifically after the huge fight they'd had over Haley not being on the pill. Could she have gotten pregnant before that fight, though? She had to admit to herself, it was starting to look more and more likely.
On the day of the wedding, as soon as she'd woken up after staying with Brooke for the night, she'd expressed her concerns that she may be pregnant. The two of them had thrown on a pair of sweat pants and an old top each and ran to the store to get her a test. The store was yet to open, so they'd waited, and by the time they got back, they had to start getting ready and had no time for the test. When they arrived at the church gardens, and everyone but the two of them had left the room they were in, Haley took the test.
She had kind of expected the positive result she came out with, but even expecting it, it didn't take away the shock. She wasn't expecting a negative result, but seeing those two blue lines on the stick took her breath away. When she came out of the bathroom with the stick in hand, she broke down into tears. Brooke didn't even need confirmation from Haley or the test to know what the result said. She held her close and stroked her hair lightly, trying in vain to calm her down.
"Hales…" She sighed. "Haley…come on tutor girl, you're stronger than this. Please stop crying…you'll ruin your make up, and you don't wanna do that. You're getting married in 10 minutes!" Brooke did her best to calm down her best friend, but how do you calm down an 18 year old, about to renew her wedding vows, after finding out she's pregnant?
"He's going to hate me." She whispered, wiping her tears.
"Haley." Brooke sighs in defeat, holding her closer to her. "He is not going to hate you. You got married when you were 16! Now you're 18 you're about to get married again, more in love than ever. He is not going to hate you, kids are the next step in a relationship and since you took yours to the next level at the age of 16…well, this was always going to happen at some point." She sighed again and closed her eyes in anticipation of her friend's reaction. She didn't want to upset her further, but she couldn't lie to her and tell her nobody expected it. They all knew it was bound to happen; it was just a question of when.
"Thanks, Brooke." Haley sniffed, rolling her eyes.
"Haley you know I didn't mean it like that. Just…Nathan is not going to hate you. You forget I knew him before you did, and trust me, before you came along, Nathan was the biggest ass going. He slept with every girl who was willing, even when he was dating Peyton he flirted with other girls. He was the biggest playboy in Tree Hill since his dad. But then you came along, and I've never seen him look at another girl since you two started hanging out. He's a shadow of his former self, and it's for the better, trust me. He's not going to hate you, you're his wife." She reassured, rubbing her arm gently. "But you have to tell him, no matter the risk."
"You're right. I've got to tell him." She realised she couldn't keep something as big as a pregnancy from her soon to be husband again, it just wasn't fair.
And so she did eventually tell him, after the whole accident on the bridge, after Nathan was discharged from hospital, after they eventually returned home to their newly redecorated home, she told him. To say he was shocked was an understatement. He'd told Haley he'd needed time to think, before walking out into the warm summer air and not returning for a few hours.
She'd crumbled the moment he walked out the door. She'd cried before at least half an hour, before calling Brooke asking her to come over. Brooke was the only one, besides Nathan, oh and Lucas, who knew about her pregnancy. She considered calling Lucas, but figured Nathan would know she told him first and that's where he would be, so she called Brooke.
Brooke knew from Haley's scratchy voice that she'd been crying, and she instantly knew what happened. She was at her apartment with ice cream and chick flicks in less than ten minutes.
They stayed that way for the rest of the night, until Nathan eventually returned home several hours later, looking very apologetic the minute he stepped through the door. Haley promised to call Brooke later, and hugged her tightly before smiling slightly as she left. She remained in her position on the couch and waited for Nathan to come over to her.
"Are you mad at me?" are the first words said between the pair. "Is that why you walked out? Because you're mad?"
"Mad at you? No. Haley, how could I ever be mad at you?" He asks as he sits by her side and takes her hands in his and lifts her chin so she looks him in the eyes. "You're my wife, and I love you, and I'm sorry that I walked out. It was just…a shock, that's all. Why would I be mad at you? You're carrying my baby." He smiled, stroking her cheek with his thumb.
"I thought…" She sighed. "Doesn't matter. I just thought you'd be mad because you said this would happen, and it did. That night, when we…you know…" She trailed off, still embarrassed to say it out loud despite being eighteen and pregnant. "When I wasn't on birth control and you didn't have a condom…I worked out that as our conception date."
"Hales, I'm not mad at you. We're going to get through this, and we'll do it together. We might only be 18, but Hales, we got married when we were 16. We're not a normal couple." He laughed slightly, moving so his back was resting against the arm rest of the couch and brought Haley with him so she was lying in between his legs with her head resting on his chest, listening to the sound of his heart. "I promise you, I won't walk out again. I love you, and I love our baby, and we're going to face this together, ok?"
"That's all I needed to hear." She smiled and lent up for a kiss, which he gladly obliged to give.
Ever since then, he'd been more than wonderful about the whole pregnancy. They told the people that mattered, their friends and family, but as for anybody else, well, it wasn't their business to know. Eventually they'd find out, when she started showing and couldn't fit into her cheerleader's uniform anymore, but until then, they'd keep it between themselves. They wouldn't deny it if anyone asked, but they weren't going to make it known news.
They were so happy together, and even despite the little (for the moment) bump in the road, they were in love and happy together, so maybe it wasn't such a bad thing.
Nathan was very protective of Haley and their baby, and he would worry every time she did the slightest thing he thought could hurt them. That's why he lifted her off the stool she was standing on when hanging the banner above the school entrance, he worried for her safety and didn't want her to fall.
"Remind me to have words with Brooke later." He says to his wife. "I keep telling her not to let you do these sorts of things."
"Nathan, its fine, I'm pregnant, not elderly. I can handle myself. I won't fall." She smiled, kissing his cheek for reassurance.
"I know, I just worry about you and the baby, you know that. Look, since I know you need to get this done, how about you get back up there and hang the sign, and I'll spot you, to make sure you don't fall." He bargained with her, more for his peace at mind than anything else. At least this way if she fell, he'd be able to catch her.
"Alright." She agreed, standing back on the stool and picking up the banner from where it was hanging, and tying it up on one side of the entrance. Once that side was done, she picked up the banner while Nathan picked up the stool and took it to the other side of the entrance, where she hung the other side of the banner. "There, all done." She smiled once she finished hanging the banner and came down from the stool she was standing on. "Wasn't so hard now was it?" she laughed.
"Mm. But you're done now, so come here." He smirked as he pulled her into his arms and pressed his lips to hers.
"Don't make me give you detention." Coach Whitey Durham said as he walked past the pair, too absorbed in their embrace to notice him before he spoke. "No PDA still applies to married couples."
"Sure thing, Coach." Nathan said as he pulled away, taking Haley's hand in his own. "Are you coming to class?" He asked, offering her his hand to take.
"Yeah, I just need to take this back to the supply closet." She gestured to the stool she was previously stood on.
"I'll take that." He picked it up effortlessly with his free hand and carried it through the school hallway for her, pulling her inside the closet with him as he put the stool down. "Now come here, so I can kiss you properly."