Get You the Moon Δ One Tree Hill [ON HOLD]

chapter fourteen

Megan is sitting on her parents' bed and playing with her toys while Haley sits next to her, watching the news with her injured leg resting on a pillow. Nathan walks in, holding a paper bag.

"Chicken noodle, extra noodle." Nathan says. He smiles at Megan who grins and cheers when she realizes he's home. "Hi." He smiles at her and kisses her cheek, letting her cling to his neck so he holds her.

Nathan turns the news off, taking the container of soup out of the bag.

"How you feeling?" He asks his wife.

"I've been thinking about reaching out to Daunte's family." Haley reveals. "That's the name of the man that hit me."

"Who told you that?" Nathan asks.

"It's been on the news all day. Apparently he was some kind of bookie or gambler, but he was somebody's child and now that I'm gonna be a mother to two children. Who are we without forgiveness, you know? And-and now these people not only lost the person that they loved but they have to live with the fact that he almost killed a person."

Haley rubs her hand over her stomach, "Well, two people." She corrects. "And I just thought that maybe if I could let them know that I'm not angry it would ease their pain."

Nathan puts Megan back on the bed and she holds her stuffed animal, not liking the heavy atmosphere of the room, so she hugs both the stuffed animal and her dad's hand.

"It was my fault." Nathan says.

"What was your fault?" Haley asks.

"The accident, my father being sent to prison, everything that happened that night was my fault."

"What are you talking about?"

"I knew Daunte. I borrowed some money from him. Look, we couldn't pay our bills, and my dad turned me away. My mom was on drugs and all I had to do was just shave a few points off the spread, just win by less. And I swear to God, Haley, I thought that it would be over after that, but... Daunte wasn't finished."

"He wanted me to lose the state championship."

"Which you didn't do."

Nathan sits on the bed, moving Megan so she doesn't fall off.

"Haley, listen, I'm so sorry, okay? But I was scared and he threatened me. I was trying to lose the game, but then... you told me that we were gonna have a boy and I just stopped being scared. All that mattered to me was you, Megan, and our unborn son."

"So my accidents was just Daunte's revenge?" Haley questions.

"Haley, I wish to God it was me." Nathan tells her.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this."

"There's something else. It wasn't my dad who beat Daunte. It was me."

"Nathan--"

"Haley, I saw you on lying in the street and I just, I lost my mind, okay? Please, you have to forgive me. You have no idea how hard it is for me to see you like this."