Season 1 Episode 7
Life In A Glass House

"Ugh, this is so stupid!" Nathan complained, "Why do we have to study history anyway? It's in the past, they should let it go already."

"Well, we could always go back to maths. I know how much you love algebra." Lizzie teased,

"No! No, we can do history." Nathan caved before he began closing the textbooks seeing as their free period was about to end.

"Well, don't worry, you've got a three day weekend to study seeing as tomorrow is a teachers work day." Lizzie informed,

"Well, let's not forget about my dad's annual kiss-his-ass jamboree." Nathan joked, "I'd invite you, but-"

"I'm a Davis, I have to be there by obligation. After all, rich families travel in the same packs." Lizzie chuckled before she pulled out a small metal container.

"Here. I made you a little study care package. Number two pencils, ballpoint pens, highlighters and I also added in a couple snacks for when you get stressed." Lizzie smiled,

"Thanks, but I'm sure my dad would kick my ass if he saw me having anything other than a protein shake." Nathan commented with a disappointed smile.

Lizzie gave him a cheeky smile, "Well, if you don't eat them, I will."

"I'll save them especially for you." Nathan said,

Lizzie laughed softly, "Thanks. I've gotta go but call me if you need anything, okay? I mean it."

Before the brunette could leave, Nathan spoke up, "I actually do need to talk to you about something."

"Oh okay. Is everything okay?" Lizzie inquired, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, I was just hoping that maybe we could talk about... us? Whatever we are." Nathan asked, with hope as he wore a slightly anxious expression,

Lizzie paused, she didn't know what she could say to him. She still wasn't fully sure about what they were or if there even was an 'us' to for them discuss at the moment.

"You know what, I'm actually super busy today. But we will have that talk, I promise. I'll see you tomorrow." Lizzie said before she quickly rushed out, not even realizing that Nathan's eyes followed her figure until she disappeared around the corner.

~~~~~~~~~~

Nathan, Lizzie and Brooke were all in the same chemistry class. Lizzie was sat in the front row with Nathan behind her and Brooke behind him. Nathan often caught himself staring at Lizzie and Brooke noticed every time. Ever since Brooke had heard about their kiss, she'd been trying to match them up.

"How are you, Nate?" Brooke whispered, slightly leaning forward.

"Bored."

"And lonely, right? Just a smidge. It's gotta be hard with Peyton dumping you and your brother joining the team. It also seems like Peyton and Lucas are getting pretty close. That must suck, right?" Brooke empathized.

"I guess...?" Nathan replied,

If Nathan was being honest, he didn't really care about Peyton and Lucas getting together. Sure, he wasn't rooting for them to be together but he wanted Peyton to be happy and he knew that he wasn't going to be the one who did that and to be fair, Lucas wasn't all that bad. Since Lizzie had come along, Nathan hadn't really thought of anything or anyone else. She was all he wanted.

"You know who else is lonely? Lizzie. It's honestly kind of sad, but ever since your beach house party, she hasn't been able to shut up about you." Brooke stated,

Nathan's eyebrows raised, "Really?"

Brooke nodded. It wasn't exactly a lie, she had heard Lizzie mention Nathan's name multiple times in the past few days. Yet, she wasn't entirely sure what Lizzie was saying when she talked about him, half the time she wasn't even paying attention.

"You know what I think? I think this party is definitely going to be a night for you and Lizzie to remember. You want her and I know she wants you."

Nathan turned around to fully face Brooke, his full attention focused on her previous words, "Did she tell you that?"

"I'm her big sister. She tells me everything." Brooke quipped,

Nathan turned around to look over at Lizzie but found that she was already looking at him, her cheeks flushed and she quickly turned back around facing the teacher.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh my god, this lipstick shade is to die for! Lizzie, you've got to try it on." Brooke insisted as the three girls got ready for the party at Peyton's house.

Lizzie looked at the lipstick that Brooke had handed her, it was a deep shade of red lipstick. It was exactly the type of lipstick that Brooke would wear whereas Lizzie preferred a natural look, she normally just put on some chapstick and that was it.

'What the hell?' Lizzie thought as she carefully applied the red lipstick across her plump lips,

"Tonight's gonna be killer." Brooke commented, "Lizzie and Nathan, me and Lucas, an open bar."

"What do you mean me and Nathan?" Lizzie questioned, furrowing her eyebrows.

Brooke wore a cheeky smile, "I might've put in a good word for you towards him."

"Brooke, I'm pretty sure that Lizzie is capable of handling her own boy drama." Peyton interjected, "Why don't you just focus on Lucas."

"Oh, believe me. I'm going to." Brooke smirked,

Lizzie walked out of the bathroom and stood beside Peyton, hooking her arm through the blondes, "Are you sure you're okay with me and Nathan?"

Peyton playfully rolled her eyes, "Yes! If he's really what you want, then go for it."

And that's exactly what Lizzie was going to do, she was going to go for it with Nathan.
Tonight.

~~~~~~~~~~

It was still light outside when everyone began arriving at the Scott household. Peyton, Brooke and Lizzie were standing beside Tim and Nathan as they listened to Dan who was making a speech about basketball.

"-whose financial support make this team great. Tonight's for you. Enjoy."

Everyone started to spread out and mingle with others, Brooke turned towards her two best friends, "I'm gonna head over to the bar and grab a drink before it fills up."

"Could you get me a cranberry vodka? Please" Lizzie requested,

"Sure. You should go talk to Nathan." Brooke advised, leaning closer towards her sister, "Have you seen how he's been looking at you?"

Lizzie looked towards Nathan who was, in fact, looking at her. Lizzie gave him a soft smile to which he returned with a grin and a wave.

"Brooke's right. He hasn't been able to take his eyes off of you since you arrived." Peyton stated,

"And Lucas has been checking you out for the past five minutes." Lizzie retorted, "Remember our deal? 'You talk to Lucas about your feelings when I talk to Nathan about mine.' I'll go over and talk to Nathan right now if you talk to Lucas."

"Alright, a deal's a deal." Peyton laughed, sharing a subtle high five with the brunette.

"Go get your man, P. Sawyer." Lizzie exclaimed,

"You too, E. Davis."

Lizzie walked over to Nathan who had just finished his conversation with Tim,

"Hey. Can we talk? Somewhere private?" Lizzie requested as she looked around at all the stuck up parents of basketball players, except for Karen and Keith.

"Yeah, of course." Nathan responded, "Come on, I know just the place."

Nathan lightly held onto Lizzie's hand and dragged her through the sea of adults and teenagers until they reached a water fountain which stood at the very end of the backyard. The two both sat down on the edge of the water fountain,

Nathan looked towards Lizzie, "You look beautiful."

It was true, Lizzie had fully glammed up for the party. She was wearing a mini black dress with lace details covered around it, she had wrapped her hair in a secure bun yet a few strands fell out, framing her face. Her makeup was neutral except for the red lipstick Brooke had given her.

Lizzie smiled shyly, "Thank you. You look handsome too."

Nathan grinned, people had told him all his life that he was attractive and he knew that he was. But something about Lizzie saying it made his heart begin to pump out of his chest.

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I was hoping to finish our conversation from yesterday. I want to talk about us." Lizzie replied nervously,

This was it. She was going to lay it all out onto the table, how she hadn't been able to stop thinking about him, how she wanted to be with him all day and how every time she saw him, she wanted to kiss him. Lizzie breathed in deeply, she needed to prepare herself, many things could happen. Nathan could reject her, he could laugh at her and completely humiliate her but maybe, just maybe she could get the 'happily ever after' she had always desired.

"I need to tell you something important." Lizzie started, "I really, really like-"

"Alright, it's time." A voice cut her off, "Time to play Truth or Dare, or maybe just dare considering no one ever tells the truth anymore."

Lizzie looked over and saw that a group of teenagers had formed a circle around Brooke about thirty feet away from the water fountain.

Brooke turned around and her eyes landed on Nathan and Lizzie, "Lizzie, Nathan. Come over and play."

Lizzie looked back at Nathan who was looking at her hopefully, his mind begging for her to finish her previous sentence.

"We should probably go over there. We'll finish this conversation another time?"

Nathan's shoulders sagged in disappointment over Lizzie's words, "Promise?"

Lizzie smiled and held her pinky out, "Pinky promise."

Nathan chuckled and wrapped his pinky around Lizzie's before the two headed over.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Theresa, I dare you... to go pinch Whitey's ass." Brooke giggled,

Once Theresa had walked away to complete the dare, Brooke turned the other way to face Lucas and Peyton who were standing very close together.

"Let's see, who's next. Peyton?"

"Brooke... come on." Peyton sighed,

Brooke ignored the blonde and continued talking, "I dare you to show us how you really feel. Kiss Lucas."

The whole group quieted down, waiting to see what would happen. Nathan and Lizzie both glanced over at the two blondes while Brooke continued to look at Peyton with a slightly exasperated expression.

Suddenly, Peyton turned towards Lucas and grabbed his face before she roughly kissed him making the group let out wolf whistles. Once they finished kissing, Peyton quickly ran off making Lucas run after her.

"Why do you have to be such a bitch, Brooke?" Lizzie demanded,

"Oh, I'm the bitch? Funny. Wasn't it you who made out with Nathan while him and Peyton were still together?" Brooke scoffed,

Nathan stood up from his seat and walked over to Brooke, "Whoa, you are completely out of line Brooke. That's-"

Lizzie stuck herself in between the two, lightly pushing Nathan back, "Nate, just leave it. She's not worth it."

"Yeah, Nathan. Listen to your girlfriend." Brooke teased, clearly drunk from whatever was in her cup,

"Screw you, Brooke." Lizzie stated before walking away, having had enough of her sister and her friends.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Haley!" Lizzie called out, seeing her friend walking around outside.

Haley turned around at the sound her name being called and automatically smiled once she saw the brunette, "Hey, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, these type of events are basically mandatory for people who are rich." Lizzie chuckled, "What about you? What's with the boxes?"

"Oh, Karen called me saying that she needed some cakes delivered here ASAP, so here I am." Haley smiled,

"Well in that case, let me help you." Lizzie said, holding her hands out.

"Oh no, I've got it." Haley denied,

"Haley, seriously. Let me help. I've been meaning to talk to Karen about something anyway." Lizzie informed as she lifted some of the white boxes from Haley's hands.

"Anything juicy?" Haley teased,

Lizzie chuckled, "No, nothing interesting. Although I was wondering... how would you feel if I applied for a job at the cafe?"

"Wait what? You wanna work at the cafe? Why? Aren't you and your family loaded?" Haley questioned, looking at Lizzie with confusion.

Most teenagers would hate to have a job and the lucky kids that were born with a silver spoon in their mouth wouldn't even think of getting a job.

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, Brooke loves having all this money to spend but if I'm being honest, I don't really care for it. I'd rather spend money that I've earned. Lizzie confessed, "Besides, I already spend half my time at Karen's cafe, I might as well get paid for it."

Haley wouldn't admit it but she really admired Lizzie, there were many things about Lizzie that Haley loved. Her loyalty, her humbleness, her compassion but most of all, her kindness. Lizzie's friendship was something that Haley cherished deeply and she never wanted to lose it.

"Are you alright?" Lizzie asked, "You haven't said anything for over a minute."

Haley shook her head before turning to the brunette, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just love you, that's all"

Lizzie's heart melted at the sincerity in her friends voice, "I love you too. Now come on, let's get these cakes to Karen."

They continued walking when they found Peyton and Lucas standing incredibly close together, with Lucas cupping Peyton's face gently, "Sorry, uh sorry. I just...your mom called with an SOS, so I just thought I'd sneak in the back and not bother anyone."

Peyton lightly chuckled while Lucas stood there awkwardly before clearing his throat and speaking up, "You need some help?"

Before Haley could say anything, Lizzie beat her to it, "Nope, we've got it thanks. You just go back to whatever it was you kids were doing."

Before the two girls walked away, Lizzie sent a sly wink towards Peyton making the latter laugh,

Once the two arrived inside, they quickly headed for the kitchen seeing Deb and Karen, "Everything you need for a first class sugar coma."

"Ooo..." Deb aahed as she opened one of the white boxes, "These cakes are gorgeous. Who makes them?"

Karen held up her two hands and responded, "These guys."

"Thank you, Haley. The caterers can take it from here." Deb stated, lifting the boxes out of Haley's hands.

Haley had a small dejected look on her face, she was hoping to stay for a little longer and catch up with Lizzie and see if maybe Kyle was around.

"Go join your friends." Deb continued, "Have some food."

"No, that's okay." Haley protested, not wanting to impose, "I have to get back anyway. I'm still on the clock."

"Did you lock up when you left? Turn off the coffee machine?" Karen interjected,

"Yeah."

"Well, then you're off the clock." Karen smiled,

"Great, it's settled. I'll go and get some waiters to serve these." Deb said before walking out of the kitchen.

"Uh, I'm gonna go and try to find Lucas." Haley added, knowing that Lizzie wanted to talk to Karen in private.

"Are you enjoying the party?" Lizzie asked,

"Well, I haven't had to 'caw!' yet."

"Okay, that's something... I guess?" Lizzie replied awkwardly, "I did actually want to talk to you about something."

"Hm? What's that?" Karen inquired as she helped Lizzie unbox the rest of the desserts,

"Um, I was wondering, it's totally okay if you don't want me to but I was hoping, that maybe there might be a job opening at your cafe?" Lizzie asked, nervous about Karen's response.

"Well, uh if you don't mind me asking, why would you wanna work at the cafe?" Karen questioned,

"I think it'd be nice to have some sense of normalcy such as having a teenage job. Everyone has always treated me differently because of my money, they always think that I'm a spoiled brat because of how many zeros are on my credit card." Lizzie admitted softly.

"Well, one of my waitresses did just quit so I might have a spot open if you're willing." Karen offered, making a bright smile appear on Lizzie's face.

"Yes! That's perfect, thank you so much." Lizzie gushed, wrapping her arms around Karen which made the older woman chuckle.

"I'll have Haley show you the ropes of the place. How does tomorrow sound?" Karen suggested,

"Tomorrow is perfect!" Lizzie exclaimed before she began to walk out of the kitchen, "Thank you, again!"

Karen chuckled at the girls excitement, she knew that she wouldn't regret hiring the brunette.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lizzie looked around trying to find her brunette friend, once she caught sight of her among the sea of people, she quickly walked up to her and gave her a massive hug.

Haley's posture became stiff until she realized who it was that had their arms wrapped her and she slowly relaxed and returned the hug, "What's this for?"

Lizzie let go of Haley and did a quick spin, "You are now looking at the newest waitress of Karen's Cafe."

"Oh my god, you got the job?" Haley squealed, grabbing onto the brunette's hands in excitement.

"I did!" Lizzie grinned, "You better watch out James, looks like you've got some competition."

"Bring it on, Davis."

The two continued talking when Nathan and Kyle approached them,

"Hey Hales, I didn't know you were coming. If I had, I would've looked for you." Kyle said, staring softly at the James girl.

Haley and Kyle had been hanging out quite a bit recently. After they met at the cafe, Lizzie gave Kyle Haley's number and it seemed like the two had grown quite close. Kyle wasn't nearly as nervous as he was when he first spoke to her although he did still stumble over his words every now and then.

"Since when do you two know each other?" Lizzie asked in confusion, having never seen the two brunette males talk to each other.

"Well, it turns out Anderson over here plays basketball. He's actually trying out for the Ravens since Miller got kicked off the team." Nathan informed the girls,

"Seriously? That'd be so cool! Now I'd have two people to cheer on. You and Lucas." Lizzie said, with a slight twinkle in her eyes as she saw the offended look on Nathan's face.

Nathan gasped dramatically, "I'm sorry, I could've sworn that I heard you cheering my last name these past few games."

"You seem to forget that Lucas has the same last name as you." Lizzie grinned, realizing that Haley and Kyle were completely absorbed in their own conversation.

"Could a drink change your mind?" Nathan asked,

"Maybe." Lizzie replied as Nathan began to guide her to the kitchen before a familiar voice called out making them pause in their steps.

"Holly!" Brooke exclaimed as she walked up to the four,

"It's Haley." Haley muttered, rolling her eyes at the brunette.

"Right... Nathan's own personal little care package. Everything's starting to make so much more sense now. You two are adorable." Brooke mocked,

Once Lizzie saw the confused looks on Kyle, Nathan and Haley's faces, she quickly interjected, "Brooke, you've got it wrong-"

"Shhhh" Brooke shushed her sister, "It's not nice to interrupt Lizzie. Now where was I? Oh, right. My favorite part, 'Believing you'll do well is half the battle...' you know, what's-her-face's little love note you passed around earlier. The one that said 'Call me if you need anything....at all.' Sound familiar? I guess Haley has a thing for Scott boys. First Lucas, now Nathan."

One look at Haley's confused face, Nathan's embarrassed face and Kyle's hurt face and Lizzie snapped,

"Brooke, stop lying." Lizzie hissed, "I've been with Nathan all night and you know damn well that he never passed around any type of note. And while we're on the subject, I'm the one that's been tutoring Nathan. I'm the one who wrote the note, not Haley. So if you want someone to make fun of, make fun of your sister. Don't target my friends."

Brooke just scoffed, "Wow. My own little sister is Tutor Girl, who would've thought?"

Lizzie's eyes looked over towards Nathan, hoping he would say something but instead he just stood there. Lizzie rolled her eyes as she took a step closer to her sister, "You know what, Brooke? You can just go to hell."

Lizzie began to walk away before Nathan reached out and held onto her wrist, "Wait, Lizzie."

Lizzie roughly yanked her arm away which made Nathan wince, "From now on, you can stay the hell away from me."

Haley and Kyle quickly tried to follow Lizzie as she ran away but there were too many people and they lost her in the crowd.

~~~~~~~~~~

It was now dark out as Lizzie sat on the tree swing, looking up at the multiple stars that filled the dark sky. She quickly wiped away the stray tears that ran down her face, she was not going to be the girl that cried over a boy especially a boy named Nathan Scott.

"Want some company?" A voice asked,

She looked to the left and saw Kyle standing beside her with a sympathetic look on his face.

"Not really, no." Lizzie sniffled,

Kyle ignored her response and instead sat down on the second tree swing next to her, "I'm sorry about what happened in there. You didn't deserve that."

"Well, I guess that's what I get for liking someone like Nathan. God, I can't believe how stupid I was." Lizzie scoffed, kicking the small rocks that were at her feet.

"Hey, you are not stupid. If anyone's stupid, it's Nathan for letting someone like you get away." Kyle consoled, placing a hand on the brunettes shoulder.

Lizzie shook her head and put on a fake smile, "Enough about me. You and Haley seem to be getting quite close."

Kyle sighed quietly, he knew that Lizzie was trying to change the subject but he couldn't help the smile that overtook his face when Lizzie mentioned Haley's name.

"There's not much to say, really. We've chosen to just hang out and see where things go, we haven't put a label on it or anything." Kyle confessed,

"Are you okay with that?"

"I don't know. I know that I don't want to see anyone else, all I can think about is her and whenever I think about her, my heart starts beating really fast and I can't stop smiling and every time I see her, I just want to touch her, I want to hug her and kiss her and tell her that everything will be okay because I'd never let anything bad happen to her." Kyle rambled thoughtfully,

"Oh my god." Lizzie breathed, "You're in love with her, aren't you?"

Kyle's eyes filled with realization as he released a breath he didn't know he had been holding in, "Yeah, I think I am."

Lizzie smiled at Kyle's heartfelt confession, she was so happy that two of her friends had found happiness in each other.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lizzie was laying down on her bed in silence, her parents were never home and it seemed like Brooke had either passed out at the Scott household or crashed at Peyton's which Lizzie was grateful for, seeing as she didn't want to deal with her sister right now. She was still incredibly embarrassed and angry but most of all, upset at her sister's antics.

The silence in the house was interrupted by a small clattering noise against the twins bedroom window. Lizzie just ignored it, blaming it on the wind but as the noise continued almost in a rhythmic pattern, she realized that someone must have been throwing something at the window to catch her attention.

Lizzie sighed as she pulled herself out of bed, having a feeling that she already knew who it was. She turned on the outside light as she opened her window and stepped onto the balcony, she looked down to see Nathan standing in the front yard of her house.

Nathan looked up to see Lizzie standing on the balcony with her arms crossed and an unimpressed look on her face, "What do you want?"

"I want to apologize. I had no idea Brooke would do something like that, you know how Brooke can be."

Lizzie gave him a saracastic smile, "Yeah, I know how Brooke can be. That's not what I'm upset about. You stood there and said nothing as she dragged Haley through the mud and then when I confronted her and told her it was me, you still didn't say anything."

"I'm sorry, I should've said something, I know that. I just didn't know what to say. I'm so sorry, please you gotta believe me." Nathan pleaded,

"I do." Lizzie said, "But it doesn't change anything. Go home, Nathan."

That was all Lizzie said before she climbed back inside her room and turned the light off before climbing back under her sheets with tears spilling down her cheeks.

She began to wonder if she would ever find the love and happiness she had always craved,

She didn't know it yet, but that love and happiness was standing less than forty feet away from her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, so yes, we're back to semi long chapters. I know, I prefer them too. Although, I am hoping to write longer chapters. I really hope everyone has been liking these chapters and if you guys have any hopes/ideas for future chapters, please let me know. Also just to be clear, the reason Lizzie is mad at Nathan is because he didn't say anything and let Brooke make fun of Haley and herself.
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-Amber <3