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Chapter Twenty-Five: Reunion
“Um…Rob it’s me, it’s Haley…again.” Haley talks through the hospital payphone to Rob’s voicemail. “This is the fifth message I’ve left you. Nathan’s awake and we’re um…we’re really worried about what’s going on with James. So please call me back at the hospital as soon as you get this please. Thanks.”
Haley hangs up the phone and starts walking back towards Nathan’s room, but stops and turns when she hears Cooper’s voice.
“Mom!” He says loudly, running to her. Deb follows close behind with Katie on her hip. Haley smiles at them and hugs her son and says, “Hi, sweetie.”
Cooper pulls out of the hug quickly and asks, “Is dad okay?”
Haley takes her daughter from Deb, looks down at her son and with a smile replies, “Yeah…”
She looks at Deb and finishes, “He’s awake.”
Deb’s jaw drops and her eyes fill with tears and she covers her nose but is smiling as Cooper repeats. “He’s awake? He’s really awake?”
Haley nods and still looking at Deb she says, “The doctor says he’ll have to go through physical therapy and learn to walk again, but he’s going to be okay.”
Deb nods and hugs her daughter-in-law.
“Can we see him, mom? Please?”
“Of course. He’s waiting for you with Lucas, Brooke and Peyton. Come on.”
Haley leads them down the hall to Nathan’s room. Cooper stops at the door.
“What’s wrong, baby?” Haley asks. “Go ahead.”
Cooper looks up at Haley and says, “What if he doesn’t remember me?”
“Oh he does Coop. He can’t wait to see you. Go ahead…open the door.”
Cooper pushes down on the handle and all eyes from inside are on them. He steps inside and stops and stares at Nathan, finally believing his father is awake. Haley and Deb watch from the doorway.
Nathan looks at his son from the bed. Boy has he gotten tall. He thinks. He smiles and says, “Hey Coop…long time no see.”
Cooper stares as his eyes water and he runs over and hugs Nathan tight. Nathan smiles and kisses his son’s dark head and says, “I missed you bud.”
“I missed you too, Dad.” Cooper says before pulling out of the hug. “I was worried you weren’t ever going to wake up.”
“Well I did, buddy. You don’t have to worry anymore.”
Cooper smiles and Nathan ruffles his hair.
“Nathan…” Deb says softly as she approaches her son’s bed. Nathan looks at her and smiles as he says, “Hi, Mom.”
Deb leans down and squeezes her son tight.
“I’m so glad you’re okay.” She cries.
“I am too, Mom. Believe me…I am too.”
As they finish their hug, Haley walks up next to Cooper with Katie in her arms.
“Someone else missed her daddy very, very much.” She says and Nathan looks up at them.
“Oh Katie…” He says taking his daughter from Haley and sitting her on his lap. “God, I missed you so much. Look at all this hair you’ve gotten. Man…. you’ve gotten so big.”
“Yeah, she has.” Haley says smiling and touching her daughter’s soft light brown head with the tiny ponytail. “She’s tall like her daddy.”
Nathan smiles and looks into the toddler’s eyes and says, “Did you miss me, Katie May?”
Katie’s lips pout and she touches Nathan’s nose and says, “Dada buh bye.”
“Yeah, I did go bye bye for awhile huh? But not anymore. I’m never leaving like that again. I love you Katie May.”
“Wove you.” Katie says, bouncing on Nathan’s lap.
Everyone chuckles and Haley says, “Katelynn…why don’t you give daddy a big kiss?”
Yeah, Kate.” Cooper says to his baby sister. “Show dad how much you missed him.”
Nathan looks back at his daughter and says, “Yeah, can you give daddy a big kiss?”
The toddler leans forward with pursed lips and kisses Nathan’s lips.
“Awe…” Brooke and Peyton say as they all watch.
“Thank you.” Nathan says when Katie sits up.
“It’s so good to see you all together again.” Lucas says as he wraps his arms around Brooke’s round waist.
“Yeah, this is nice.” Nathan says. “But we won’t be all together until James is home with us.”
The phone at Nathan’s side rings and Haley picks it up.
“Hello?”
“Haley, it’s Rob.” The voice on the other end answers.
“Rob, finally.” Haley says and everyone in the room stops talking and listens and watches Haley as she talks.
“Yeah, I’m sorry I haven’t gotten back to you, but things have been a little hectic down here.”
“What? Why? What’s going on?”
“What?” Nathan says worriedly. “What’s wrong?”
“Well, there was an accident involving Dan and James, but—“
“What? Is James okay?”
“Yes, yes he’s alright. His face was cut in a few places by broken glass, but they stitched him up. And he has a fractured wrist, but he’s okay. He’s safe now. I’m sitting right next to him and he’s asleep.”
“Oh, thank God…” Haley says before covering the phone with her hand and speaking to Nathan and everyone else. “There was an accident, but James is okay. He’s sitting right next to him.”
Everyone breathes sighs of relief and Haley speaks into the phone again, “When can you bring him home?”
“Tomorrow. The doctor’s want to keep him overnight and let him get a goodnight’s rest and make sure he checks out all right. They want him to talk to a child psychologist too, but they said that could wait until he is home. I’m going to stay with him and I’ll be here when he wakes up. And after the doctor’s release him, we’ll be on a non-stop flight to New Brunswick by noon and we should be in Tree Hill by 3:00. You don’t have to worry anymore. Haley. Your little boy is coming home.”
On the other end, Haley is crying tears of joy as she says, “T-Thank you.”
She nags up the phone while everyone still watches her. She sniffles, smiles and says, “James is coming home…tomorrow… Jamie will be home tomorrow.”
“He is?” Cooper says smiling. “For real?”
Haley chuckles, “For real?”
Then she leans down to hug Nathan while everyone else celebrate with each other too.
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James wakes to a wet face and warm air brushing across his face every three seconds. He opens his eye to a familiar, furry face in front of him.
“Rocket!” He says excitedly smiling and sitting up in his bed to pet his dog. “How did you get here boy?”
He looks over and sees Rob asleep in the chair next to his hospital bed.
“Granddad!” He says and Rob wake up and sits up closer to the bed.
“Hey, buddy.” Rob says as James hugs him.
“I missed you, Granddad.” James says as he sits back on his pillow.
“I missed you too. How are you feeling?”
“I’m feeling okay. But my hand kind of hurts and itches and my face itches too.”
“Well, your face itches from the stitches the doctors sewed your cuts with. And your wrist hurts because it’s fractured and it itches probably from the cast.”
“Oh, okay.” James looks back at his dog and says, “So you found Rocket and me?”
“Yep. I promised your mom and dad I wouldn’t quit until I found you.”
James smiles and asks, “Where are they? Are they here too?”
“No, but you’ll see them later on today when we go home to Tree Hill.”
“Home? I’m really gonna get to go home?”
“Oh, most definitely. Your family misses you so much and they can’t wait to see you.”
Once again, James hugs his grandfather and this time more tightly and he says, “Thank you Granddad…thank you for finding me. You’re my hero.”
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“Take it easy, Nathan.” The physical therapist says as he helps hold Nathan up, who is trying to learn to walk by holding on to two bars and walk in between them. “You’re doing just fine.”
“Not fine enough.” Nathan replies stubbornly, holding tightly to the bars. “I should be doing better than barely standing.”
“Well we don’t want to push it.” His therapist says. “You’re already doing much better than we anticipated. Here, why don’t you rest for a few minutes and we’ll try again when you’re ready.”
Nathan sighs but allows his therapist and Haley to help him into his wheelchair.
“Just let me know when you’re ready to start again.” The therapist says before walking away.
“Here’s some water.” Haley says, handing him bottled water before sitting on a bench next to him.
“Thanks.” Nathan accepts the water and drinks it.
“I think you’re pushing yourself a little too hard.” Haley says. “You don’t have to be able to walk today and you probably won’t.”
“I know, but…”
“What?” Haley rubs her husband’s back. “What’s on your mind?”
Nathan looks at her, sighs and explains, “I want to be able to give James a real hug when he comes home. I want to be able to hold you and our kids in my arms and not be in a hospital bed when I do like I was last night, And when we are all home, I want to be able to toss Katie in the air like I used to and play basketball and baseball with the boys. I just…”
“I know, baby. I understand. You will get back to being able to do all the things you love to do again, but you have to let your body do the healing. So please do yourself, your family and me a favor and don’t push yourself to the breaking point. Be patient and just feel good about being alive and awake and able to get well. Please?”
Nathan nods and smiles. He says, “You’re incredible, you know that?”
“Well, only when it comes to you. I was going crazy and being so not incredible while you were in that coma. I was so worried.”
“Well you don’t have to worry anymore.” Nathan holds Haley’s hand and rubs her cheek with his free hand. “I’m never going to leave you like that again. I was lost, but I found my way back to you. And I’m never getting lost again…I promise.”
Haley smiled and they kiss again…and it’s the longest, most passionate and romantic kiss they’ve had in many, many months.
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“Is daddy okay?” James asks from the backseat of Rob’s car after Rob told him about the accident.
“Oh yeah.” Rob replies. “He’s just fine. He’s awake now and he has to go through some therapy to help him walk again, but he’s going to be okay.”
James remains silent as he thinks about the accident he was just in. He looks up at the front seat again and says, “Granddad…you said that Dan got hurt badly in the accident and die. It wasn’t because of me was it?”
Rob looks at James through the mirror above him. He remembers James telling about the baseball he threw at Dan. But he is also sure of the damage Dan caused psychologically to James. That is far worse than James throwing a baseball at Dan.
“No, son…” He replies. “It’s not your fault. He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt…you were.”
“I always wear my seatbelt like mommy and daddy always tell me too. I guess that man never listened to his mommy.”
“No, I guess not.”
James sighs, “I really can’t wait to see mom and dad, Granddad. I can’t wait anymore.”
“Well, in about ten minutes, you won’t have to wait anymore.” Rob smiles at him through the mirror and James smiles back as he pets Rocket at his side.
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“Can this elevator go any slower?” Haley says sarcastically and impatiently as she stands behind Nathan in his wheelchair.
Nathan smiles and says, “Calm down, Hales, we just got in here.”
“I know, but they’re going to be here any minute and I want to be there when he comes in.”
“Me too and we will be. With all his family and friends here to greet him, Jamie will feel really loved, missed and welcomed.”
Finally, the bell chimes on the elevator and the doors open on the ground floor. When Haley pushes Nathan’s chair out and around the corner, they see all their family and friends waiting near the front doors with welcoming signs for James. Haley’s parents and siblings are included among the group, along with Nathan’s…
“Uncle Cooper?” Nathan says smiling as big Cooper walks up with Nathan’s new aunt Rachel and cousin Emily, and also with little Cooper.
“Man look at you.” Cooper says smiling back. “Just woke up from a four month coma and you still look as handsome as ever.”
Nathan laughs and his uncle says, “It’s great to see you awake finally, nephew.”
“Thanks. It’s good to be awake finally.”
Deb runs over to them and says, “Um, sorry to cut this little reunion short, but that was Robert on the phone. They just left the car and they’re on their way inside.”
Haley and Nathan both smile and Haley hurries Nathan’s chair to the rest of the very large group only a few feet away from the sliding doors.
“Is this really happening, Nathan?” Haley asks, taking his hand when he offers it. “Are we really getting our son back?”
“It doesn’t seem real yet, does it?” Nathan responds.
“It will when you see him.” Lucas says, tapping Nathan’s shoulder as he walks behind him with Jessilin in his arms, on his way to stand closer to Brooke.
For the next few minutes, all everyone can do is just stand and stare quietly waiting, especially Nathan and Haley.
“Haley…you’re shaking.” Nathan notices.
“I can’t help it, I’m— But she stops when she sees the doors begin to slide open and finally…Rob and James appear on the other side.
“Oh my god…” Haley says with tears as she stares at her beautiful little boy, still only seeing his clean face and blond hair, not his cuts or brown hair. “Nathan…he’s so—“
“Big.” Nathan finishes. He is also overjoyed to be looking at his little boy.” He’s so big.”
“There they are.” Rob says outside the doors as they stare at the people inside. “There’s your family waiting for you.”
James smiles at them all. Finally…he is home. His eyes meet Haley’s at the same time hers meet his. He lets go of Rob’s hand and begins running for Haley just as she runs for him.
“Mommy!” He yells as they come closer to reaching each other.
Haley’s tears pour from her eyes as her knees buckle and meet the hard floor and her son wraps his little arms around her neck. They squeeze each other tight while everyone watch with tears and smiles.
“Oh my God…James, Jamie…. I missed you so much, baby.” She cries, running a hand over the back of his head and kissing his cheek one kiss after another. “I love you so much. Oh how I missed you.”
“I missed you so much too, Mommy.” James says standing up in front of her crying. “I didn’t want to go with him. I wanted to come home so bad, Mom, but he wouldn’t let me, and he wouldn’t bring me. He said you didn’t want me anymore.”
“Oh, we do want you, Jamie.” Haley still cries as she hugs him again. “We want you so much…forever.”
“I sang the Sunshine song everyday Mom. I never stopped believing.”
“Neither did I, baby, neither did I.”
“Where’s daddy?”
Haley moves so her son can see Nathan behind her. James smiles again and runs to Nathan. Nathan leans forward in his chair to hug his son.
“Oh…I missed you so much buddy.” Nathan cries.
“I missed you too, Dad.”
Haley returns to Nathan and watches them hold each other with a smile on her face as Rob walks up to hug Deb and his own son. Finally, Nathan and James release each other.
“I love you too, Dad.” James responds to Nathan’s “I love you.”
“Hey Jamie.” Cooper says walking up to his brother.
James looks at him, smiles and hugs his brother, Cooper smiles and hugs him back.
“I missed you Coop.”
“I missed you too, James.” Cooper says as they pull away. “We all missed you…Katie too.”
“Where is Katie? I missed her lots too.”
“Come on…she’s with nana and grandpa Jimmy.” Cooper leads his brother to the big group of people waiting to greet him while Nathan and Haley watch. Haley looks down at Nathan and takes his hand again as they both smile.
“Come here.” Nathan says, patting his thigh. Haley sits down in his lap and they kiss. Peyton, Jake, their kids, Brooke, Lucas, Jess, Karen, Keith and Kelcee walk over to Nathan and Haley.
“Straight out of a Lifetime movie, that reunion was.” Peyton says smiling. “But it was beautiful.”
Nathan and Haley chuckle and Brooke says, “Yeah, this is a very happy reunion. And it was a long time coming.”
“Well, it’s all thanks to Rob.” Haley says just as Rob, Deb and Tyler walk over, Tyler with his arm draped over Jenny’s shoulder. Haley stands up to hug her father-in-law. “Thank you so much for finding him and bringing him home.”
“Of course.” Rob replies, as he stands straight up again. “James is my grandson and I am happy to have him home finally. And I hate to ruin the celebration by mentioning him, but I think you all should know what happened to Dan.”
“What?” Nathan asks, caring only to hear that Dan was on his way to prison.
“The doctor who took care of James informed me that Dan died shortly upon arrival to the hospital from major head injuries and severe internal bleeding and damage.”
Everyone is surprised by this news, but no one is devastated.
“I know this is probably news of no matter to any of you, as I understand how you all feel about him. But I thought you all should know anyway.”
Everyone remains quiet as they search deep down inside themselves for any feelings…nope, nothing…nothing at all.
“Well…” Nathan speaks.” At least he won’t be able to screw up our lives anymore, right?”
“Here, here.” Lucas cheers.
“Well, I really don’t want to waste anymore time thinking about him.” Haley says. “James is home with us now and no longer in any danger. That’s all that matters today.”
“I agree.” Nathan says. “So let’s all go tell him again how much we missed him and how much we love him.”
Nathan begins to wheel himself toward James as James runs back to him and Haley. Haley is right…nothing else in the world matters today…nothing other than James.