Author's Note: I wrote this for a fiction exchange with my buddy, Hilary. She wrote me an awesome Brathan in return, entitled 'Always, Not Forever'. You should check it out. Anyway, um, this is the first Laley I've ever written, and I'm not sure if it was good or not. I guess that's up to you. Even if you don't like Laley, I hope you read it anyway, because I mean, I don't know! You can mock me or something, Haha.

Notes: Uh, Lucas and Brooke stayed together. Nathan and Haley stayed together. Pretty much nothing changed, except a couple minor factors that'll be pointed out in the story.

Dedication: Obviously, to Hilary. Sorry this came late, BOB. I hope you like it.

Summary: She snapped her head up, quickly. Pain evident in her eyes, she shrugged. "I don't know why I'm here." LucasHaley, one-shot.

Somewhere Only We Know

"I can't believe it." Haley spoke softly as she eyed her husband's wound. Biting her lip, she touched it, wincing when hedid.

"Well, you should," Nathan spoke gruffly, "From now on, all of our ties with Lucas Scott have been cut."

"You've gotten into fights before," She argued.

"Not like this one. I hate that bastard. He can rot in hell for all I care."

She searched his eyes. There was no regret in his words. He was serious. They'd gotten into a fight over money of all things. And now, their ties would be broken? Didn't he see that this was what his father had wishedwhen he left the damn will?

"He's your brother." Her voice was stern, and - she hoped - strong.

"No. We share a sperm donor. That doesn't make him my brother." Nathan said coldly, standing and walking away.

Haley looked down at her hands. She was twenty-seven years old in a couple days. And thinking it over, she'd spent the first twenty years of her life as a good person. She did what she was told, she married a great guy, started a great life. Granted, there was the whole 'Chris' issue, but that had been it. Her entire life, she'd worn an invisible halo around her light brown waves.

And suddenly, things had gone wrong. Lucas had happened. They'd been best friends for years, and suddenly, after an argument with Nathan, after Lucas had comforted her for hours, she'd seen him in a new light.

At the time, Haley could have easily blamed it on "the heat of the moment". She'd been sad, he'd been there, and they'd kissed. But she knew it wasn't that simple. She knew that deep inside, she'd imagined what those lips had tasted like for years; she'd envisioned running her hand through his hair slowly.

Guiltily, the two had avoided each other for weeks. It had been so wrong. He was married to Brooke, and she Nathan. But as soon as they'd been forced to meet up once more, their passion ignited. They'd found the first room they could, and the rest sort of fell into place.

Or, apart, really. They made it a regular thing. For six years, they'd slept together regularly, becoming experts at keeping it a secret. It'd become so easy to say: "Honey, I'm going grocery shopping." or "Oh, Babe! I've got to get this part for the car.."

The lies had been unbearable. But they'd managed to deal with it. Not being together was never an option.

And yet still, she'd never know how things had managed to get so tangled.

-

"Hey Buddy."

She snapped her head up, quickly. Pain evident in her eyes, she shrugged. "I don't know why I'm here."

Looking around at the rooftop that they'd played on for years as children, she really didn't.

"I didn't ask."

"This was a mistake." Standing to leave, Haley pushed past him. Not before he grabbed her arm, though, swirling her around to face him.

"No," He said firmly, "It wasn't."

"Lucas, please. This is not the way things were supposed to be. I married Nathan! I promised to stay faithful to him. You two aren't on speaking terms anymore, and I think I owe it to him to let you go as well."

"You think what you've been doing with me for the past six years has been anything relatively near faithful?"

"I've made some mistakes.." Haley explained lamely, tears running freely down her cheeks.

"We've all made mistakes, Hales."

"Lucas, we're horrible people! This is not how we should handle our dysfunction with the people we married-"

"There's no dysfunction. Brooke's great." Lucas shrugged. He knew that Brooke was a wonderful person. And he loved her very deeply - but he wasn't in love with her. Not anymore.

"I know she is! Nathan's amazing!"

He snorted. "All that man is, is selfish and cruel."

"You two used to be so close. I don't understand what happened."

"What happened is, Dan died. He left us both equal amounts of money, with different stocks and shares for us in different places, and Nathan didn't like the ones he got." Lucas rolled his eyes bitterly.

"There's more to the story-"

"And I'd love to hear it, but Nathan isn't what matters to me right now."

"Luke-"

"I love you, Haley." His voice filled with emotion. He reached blindly for her hands. Tugged her frigid body the slightest bit closer.

"Then why are you married to Brooke?" She asked slowly.

"Why are you married to Nathan?"

"I love him."

Hurt clouded his vision, and he dropped her hands. He hated when she acted like this.

"You don't love him."

"Yes, I do."

Lucas pulled her closer, closing the distance between them, and pressing his lips to hers. After a moment, she pulled back, slapping him hard across the face.

"Don't do that."

"You love me, and you know it."

She shrugged. "Does it really matter? We'll never be together, either way."

-

She hadn't seen him for months since that night.

Months.

It'd felt like years.

Every day since she'd last seen him, all she had wanted to was pick up the phone and call him. She wanted to hear his voice. She wanted to say, more than anything, "You're the one I want. I love you.", but it was easier said than done.

Nathan and her were okay, she knew, but it had been years since she'd loved him. Years since he'd made her heart skip a little faster at the sight of him and her skin tingle whenever he touched it.

He kissed her briefly as he walked past her, into the living room. She sighed, flipping a pancake. How horrible was it that while he'd kissed her, she'd closed her eyes, imagining his brother?

Rolling her eyes, she grabbed the mail, flipping through it. Seeing an unfamiliar looking envelope, with neat, nice handwriting on the front addressing her and Nathan, Haley cocked her head to the side, pulling out the letter inside.

As her eyes scanned over the content of the letter, she brought a hand to her mouth, tears instantly filling her chocolate brown eyes.

"Oh my God."

-

Marvin McFadden's funeral was one of the saddest ones Haley had ever been to. Truthfully, it was only just short of Keith's.

As her eyes traveled along the lines of people there, she recognized some. Karen was there, having known the boy since he was little. Also, the 'Rivercourt Gang' of course. This included Skills, Junk, and Fergie. Haley found herself wondering that if Jimmy had been alive, he would have attended, despite all that had happened over their junior year.

When her eyes landed on Lucas, her breath caught in her throat. He wore a suit, and his hands were shoved deep in his pockets. His eyes were dark and sad, staring down at the coffin in which Mouth, as they'd so affectionately nick-named him laid. He'd grown some facial hair, she noticed. It looked good on him; scruffy but cute. Brooke stood beside him, arms crossed uncomfortably over her chest. Her dark hair lay down and straight, and the dress she wore wasn't the slightest bit inappropriate.

Haley held Nathan's hand, but found herself staring at Lucas during most of the service. As they left to Mouth's wake, at his parents' house, she found herself following him towards Mouth's bedroom.

She pulled open the door, instantly seeing Lucas. He sat on Mouth's bed, awkwardly. His eyes looked up painfully to meet hers, and in a strained voice, he croaked, "Haley."

"How are you?" It was a stupid question, but she wasn't sure what else to ask.

"Suicide," Lucas chuckled bitterly, "I should have known. How could I not have known?"

"I never knew that Mouth was unhappy." Haley said silently, taking a seat beside him on the bed.

"Of course he was. He had nothing. Rachel left him again a couple years ago, and he was never the same. He started drinking more, and no one took him seriously. And him and I lost contact. It's my fault."

"Lucas, stop. Don't do this to yourself. Not again."

"Sorry. I guess I just always feel like I have to take responsibility for things when I don't understand them."

"Of course you do. You're the tragic hero of Tree Hill, Lucas Scott."

And he looked at her. And he kissed her. And she kissed back. And they made love on Mouth McFadden's bed, feeling slightly as if he'd willed them to.

-

"You should leave him." Lucas said one afternoon as they lay a tangled mess in his sheets.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. I just can't."

He rested his head on her chest, soothed by the sound of her beating heart.

"I'll think of a plan."

"A plan?" She smiled softly, running her hands through his soft locks. She wondered what shampoo he used, and then, saddened that she had absolutely no idea, she blocked the thought from her mind.

"Yeah. A plan that'll let us be together. I want to hold your hand in public, Haley. I want you to be my girl."

"I am your girl," She said, "You know that."

He grinned, leaning up to kiss her.

"Run away with me."

"What? Lucas, no."

"Haley, come on. What have you got to lose?"

And she opened her mouth to speak, but found that she couldn't. There was absolutely nothing that she had to lose. There was not one thing. She had no kids, no real job, and she was positive she wouldn't miss Nathan all that much.

"That's what I thought. Run away with me." He sat up, excitedly.

"Lucas, we can't just run away! We're married." Somehow, this reminded her of Nathan's first proposal. And look how well that had gone.

"So? If we're gone, what'll that matter?"

"Where are we going to go?"

Lucas kissed her hand. "Anywhere. It doesn't even matter, as long as we're together."

"No," She shook her head, "No. No. No."

"Haley, I love you. And I know you love me. We have a chance to be happy together. Just, run away with me."

And she melted, just looking in his eyes, and felt as if she might give in.

But reason came to her, and shook her head fiercely.

"No."

-

Haley remembered when dinner with Nathan had been so exciting; when they'd first started dating, when they'd first gotten married, etcetera. Now, she couldn't have been more bored. Their conversations were all almost completely small talk, and honestly, it felt like instead of having a normal dinner, they were on an awkward, bad first date.

The phone rang, and she jumped, thinking it might be Lucas. But suddenly, she remembered that it had been years since she'd last seen him, and she now had a daughter, and was dangerously close to her Thirty-Second birthday.

Nathan went to answer it, and when he returned minutes later, his face was pallid, and his eyes were filled with regret.

"What is it?"

"It's Lucas.."

Her eyes opened wide in fear. Had he told Nathan what had happened between them? Had they become brothers once more?

".. he's dead."

"No, he isn't."

Nathan nodded numbly. "Car accident. Brooke said he told her he was going on some sort of business trip, and crashed on the way to the airport."

On the exterior, she nodded and looked like a woman would upon hearing that an old friend had passed away, but inside, her world had ended.

Her world had literally ended.

-

A six year old Lucas Scott looked around at the various types of children running around his party. He knew none of them. His mother, Karen, had invited children from school, and some from a playground he sometimes visited. What she didn't know was that he didn't often socialize with many of these children. He didn't really know any of their names. He didn't care to, either.

Sighing, he wished to be at the Rivercourt, throwing around a basketball. This was much less interesting. Much less fun.

"Lucas?" He heard his mother's voice from behind him.

"Yeah?" He turned towards her.

"I want you to meet someone, Sweetie. This is Haley. She's new at your school." He looked the young girl over. Her hair was long and straight, and held back by a headband. She wore a floral colored dress over a white t-shirt, and nice shoes. She was pretty.

Shyly, Haley waved.

"Hi." Lucas said quietly. She was quite different from anyone he'd ever met before. Just in meeting her now, he realized that.

Karen smiled. "I'll leave you two alone. I have to go get the cake."

Slowly, Haley walked towards Lucas. Soon, they were standing right besides each other. He was considerably taller then her.

Reaching a hand out, she grasped his. He smiled shyly, and he squeezed her hand back.

Giggling, she quickly leaned over, pecking his cheek. He blushed. She smiled.

Right at that moment, even as a seven year old boy, he knew that she would be his life. That she would be everything to him.