CHANGES | Nathan Scott

43

We're walking up the pathway and the front door opens, Dan appearing and Deb tucked to his side. Both smiling very hard and I'm trying my best to match their expression. 

"Uh, hi," Nathan says, removing his tucked hands from his pants and gives them both a brief and awkward hug. He steps through and I'm next. Dan gives me an unexpected tight hug, Deb on the other side. their heads tucking to either side of my shoulders and close to my face.

"Let's try to play nice for our son," Deb says.

"Agreed, I'd like that," Dan adds.

Both give me a nod of approval and I'm moving through the door in absolute awe by the space. Their beach house was amazing, but this, this is beautiful. Fully decorated exactly how I'd imagine a good home feels like. One you're not given up for adoption. Photos of Nathan were scattered around the walls, going through his baby to teen years.

"Wow, look at you here, dork!" I tease him. He's wearing a backwards cap, baggy jean pants and a graphic tee with some surfer brand on it.

"What? It was a phase, everyone else wore that stuff too..." he wraps his arm around me to haul me away from looking at anymore of his embarrassing photos.

"Your mother and me have been busy baking," Dan announces when we enter their kitchen. He grabs a cloth and continues to dry up some of their cleaned dishes.

"Oh, Nathan, I even made your favourite treats, brownies," Deb says, looking so pleased with herself, and so different to the other night. She seemed so alive and together.

Bringing over a plate we both take one and enjoy the sweet treat.

"I'm glad you came son," Dan says and he forces an awkward smile. "And you too," he motions to me.

"This is my girlfriend," Nathan says and I don't hold back an immediate smile. "Rebecca, Dan and Deb..." he reintroduces us.

"I'd like to start over, if you would like to as well..." Deb offers and opens her arms to engulf me into a tight hug. She was a whole other person and this, this is someone I could see myself getting along with, very well.

"We were just talking about how Nathan was the star player in high school," Dan announces proudly, gesturing to the photo on the fridge of what appears to be Nathan and other players from the state. "He was what kept the team together, and won."

I notice Lucas tucked away in the corner, the two team opposing teams at a big game event. I remember that game. Me and Nathan, we've crossed paths and never even realised.

I knew Lucas always loved basketball, but I'd never noticed Nathan before. Haley and I went to his games, practice or versing. Maybe that particular one, I was busy on my phone to Sam, more than likely bickering and not watching the game.

"Oh I bet he was the best," I coo, Dan and Deb staring admiringly at their son. "What other secrets or embarrassing photos do you have lying around?"

Before they can reveal what I'd asked for, there's a set of footsteps coming along the hallway. I turn to face their direction.

"What'd I miss?" Tim asks, entering the kitchen.

"What're you doing here?" Nathan asks, asking and saying exactly what I'm thinking. Though we joked about him being around, we didn't think it'd actually be the case.

"Me?" Tim questions and presses his hand against his chest, "I uh, I live here."

"You, what?" Nathan's eyes widen and switch between his parents and Tim again. "Guess this is why we never hung at your place," He takes off and I try to follow after him.

Knowingly for him, he barges into a nearby room, remaining at the doorway. He slams a balled fist into the door. Thankfully no hole appeared after the impact.

"What's wrong?" I peer into what appears to be Tim's room. I see a poster on the wall, which I recall seeing in Nathan's room back home. "Oh, was... was this-"

He interrupts, knowing exactly where I was going with this next. "Yes, this was my room."

Deb and Dan come up the hallway and stop with enough distance, Tim isn't far behind them.

"What did you expect me to do? Leave a perfectly good room unused?" Dan asks defensively, "Your mother needed her son and you wanted to live by yourself... this was the next best option for her..."

Debs fighting back the urge to cry, Dan is trying to remain calm but he's cracking and showing the side we're all too familiar with, and Tim is speechless.

"Why not Lucas? You know, my step brother? the one you guys forgot to mention to me!" He barks at them and they shudder at his raised voice. "This is just too weird... come on, we're going." Nathan grabs my hand and I don't object.
If I'm leaving here on anyone's side, I'd rather be taking Nathan's, than theirs.

"I had no where else to go, I was evicted from my own place," Tim calls out, in his defence, "I needed a place to go, and you got yourself a roommate..." he refers to me and Nathan doesn't take the bait, he keeps on going for the door.

We're buckled into the car, the three of them waiting by the front door, knowing it's useless to come for Nathan at this point.

I guess we stayed longer than I expected us too.

Nathan drives us home, safely; Despite his brewing anger. He's taken off out of the car the second he switches off the ignition and inside the apartment before I'm even up the stairs.

"Hey, hey! Calm down," I call out when I'm able to make it to the front door and hear a crash. He's knocked over a stool in the kitchen.

"Why should I? You saw it too, they've replaced me! Probably treating him like the son they always wished they had. Dopey and submissive to their every demand."

"You don't know that," I try to get closer but he senses this and takes off in another direction. "Tim said he was evicted, maybe he's only just been there a few days till he sorts himself out."

"Looked pretty cosy in there." He grabs his phone from the kitchen bench and I'm able to creep up behind him.

"Don't message that!" I see a few curse words and explicit words in his text to Tim, "He's your best friend, shouldn't you be okay with this?"

Nathan's thumb hovers over the send button but he resists and drops it on the bench.
"It's weird, staying in my parents place, in my room and with my parents!"

"I know, I know! it's a weird, but if he's helped your mum, who needs all the help she can get, maybe it isn't so bad...." I wrap an arm around his waist, tucking myself against his side, "You've been busy with your life, I think... you wouldn't have been able to help her like she needs..."

"If she wanted me to be there, maybe she should have chosen me and not the booze." He snaps, but doesn't pry me from his body, instead he instinctively wraps his arms around me and squeezes me close. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" I mumble into his front where he's pulled me too, "It's upsetting, I get it. But you have nothing to be sorry for... I'd rather you tell me what's wrong then not to speak to me like an angsts teen..." I try to tease him to lighten the mood. "Maybe you guys should meet up and talk about it... I kinda want to take a day to myself to think about school and maybe see Brooke, or Haley..." I nuzzle into him, "probably not today because I can't be bothered but soon."

"Yeah... maybe," he sighs and lets out a groan before he says, "give him a chance to explain himself. After all, he can't be me...."

"Well no, otherwise he'd have me, wouldn't he?" again I try to tease him, without pushing his buttons the wrong way.

Staring me dead in the eyes, he shakes his head. "Definitely not going to happen..." he leans down and kisses me. It's passionate enough that is leaves me breathless when he pulls away. "He can have everything else, but you."

When we break from our hug, he grabs his phone, clearing the message and organises to meet him this afternoon, somewhere in town.

I'm thankful he's calmed down, because I hated seeing him so upset, or angry, out of my control to calm him down.