Hey, guys! I know you're probably thinking, "What? You Just Don't Know It is over? Huh?" I know. I originally planned to make this another chapter, but it felt weird with the time jump. Therefore, I just decided to make this a sequel. You don't have to read the first story to be able to understand this one, there will only be very slight references to the original story. In fact, this story is barely a sequel, except for the fact that it's the same characters two years later. This first chapter will be a little strange, since this story takes a COMPLETELY different direction than the first one.
The last story was focused on Joe and his efforts to win Miley's heart. This story is focused on Miley and the strict "schedule" she has come to live by. Read the story to find out more. :D
One last thing, Miley STEWART is 18 and fresh out of high school. Joe GRAY is about/almost 21. I know Miley Cyrus would be 17 in June 2010, but this is Miley Stewart, so yeah. Read on!
This chapter is VERY rushed. Consider yourself warned.
"Ladies and gentlemen, your class of 2010!" Principal Fisher announced proudly, following with a roar of applause from the audience. Caps were thrown about, diplomas were shown off, and pictures were taken. Miley Stewart beamed with satisfaction, she finally did it. She graduated from high school. Sacrificing precious homework and study hours to perform concerts was always tough, but she always managed to make the best of it. She'd found time to do her homework, and surprisingly enough, take a few AP classes in her junior and senior year. Her eyes scanned the crowd of which was undoubtedly hundreds, before spotting the pair of chocolate brown eyes she was looking for. She darted across the grass and flew into his arms, burying her face in his neck.
"Congratulations, babe." Joe said, brushing a few strands of hair out of her face when she turned to look up at him. "To everyone's surprise, you've graduated high school."
Miley feigned hurt and slapped him. "It's always nice to have a supportive brood behind you," she said sarcastically. "…and a boyfriend to believe in you."
Joe smirked. "So what's next, Miley?" he asked, referring to the plan Miley had made shortly after their reconciliation two years ago. "Get married? Have a baby?" he joked.
"Whoa there, Joseph." Miley said as her eyes widened. "Let's take things one step at a time. I don't plan on doing either of those things until I'm at least twenty-five." she stated matter-of-factly.
Joe rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Alright, alright. But really, what's next on your list?" he asked with genuine curiosity.
Miley shrugged, "Well, my dad and I already agreed that college is going to be put on hold and that I'll be focusing on Hannah for a while."
"Sounds good," Joe said with approval. "And?"
Miley blinked. "And? There is no 'and' Joe.
He raised an eyebrow. "And?"
Miley quickly caught on and teasingly rolled her eyes. "I'll be focusing on Hannah and you for a while."
"That's what I want to hear." Joe grinned as he pulled Miley in for a hug.
"Oh, Miss Graduate?" Joe called from the front door of the Stewart house. "Are you ready yet?!" A shuffling of footsteps was heard coming from Miley's room, followed by a loud thump and a groan. Joe knitted his eyebrows in confusion, "What was that?"
"I've never been too coordinated in heels," Miley shouted from upstairs. "I think I'm going to wear my ballet flats."
Joe sighed in annoyance. "Come on, Mi. Our reservation is in twenty minutes! We don't have all night!" he hollered.
"Alright, alright, I'm coming." Miley retorted as she skipped down the stairs. "Excuse me for trying to make myself look beautiful enough for you." she said as she smoothed out her grey cardigan. "Since you've rushed me, you're going to have to settle for this." She paused to give him time to take in her black v neck that hugged her curves perfectly and enhanced her bust line, grey cardigan, and dark wash skinny jeans that tugged at her hips.
"I don't mind," Joe said hungrily, eyeing her up and down. He quickly shook it off and grabbed Miley's hand. "You look great. Now can we please go? I'm starving."
"Okay, okay." Miley said as if she were giving in to a pleading little boy. "Let's go."
While waiting for their check at the restaurant, Miley had brought out a hard copy of her plans after high school. Ever since her junior year of high school, she had made a schedule of things she had to do so she could balance the life of Miley and Hannah as stress-free as possible. This included Hannah's concert rehearsals, little breaks in between rehearsals when she could work on homework, time for concerts, time to study for tests, and time to go out with Joe. The "schedule" quickly became a habit for Miley, and if she couldn't follow it, she went crazy. She began to live by the book, or "by the schedule," as she would say. Her life had been so centered around her schedule that she even made "the plan," a schedule of major life events such as when she would get married, when she would have her first child, and so on.
"Hannah is going to be starting her North American tour in two months," Miley stated. "It'll run for about ten weeks, and that way, I'll be back in town for our anniversary." she said happily.
Joe chuckled nervously. "Miley," he began. "My brothers and I are going to be in Europe for our anniversary. We found out this morning, I'm sorry." he explained as smoothly as possible.
Miley stared at him. "What? But I scheduled the entire tour just so we could be together for our three year anniversary."
"There's no problem with celebrating our anniversary a week later," Joe suggested.
Miley sighed and folded her arms across her chest. "Fine," she huffed.
Joe frowned. "You could always fly out to Europe…"
Miley shook her head vigorously, "I can't. I have a press conference for Hannah's new album the next day. There's no way I could fly all the way to Europe and make it back early the next morning."
Joe shrugged, "Okay, then. I guess we'll just have to celebrate when I get back."
"How can you be so calm about this?" Miley asked frantically. "We won't be able to celebrate our anniversary together!"
"Yes we will," Joe told her. "I'll call you, we'll talk, and we'll celebrate properly when I fly back two days later. It's no big deal, Miley. I know it interferes with your schedule and whatever, but we'll just have to deal with it."
Miley sighed in disappointment. "Yeah, you're right. No big deal."
"I don't see what the problem is, Miley." Lilly explained as she lay sprawled out on Miley's bed. "You guys are both busy, it's understandable."
"I know," Miley said as she spun around in her swivel chair. "It just doesn't fit with the--"
"Schedule, I know." Lilly interrupted. "Miley, you can't live your life around a schedule. Things happen, and you've just got to live with them. I didn't expect my mom to get remarried, but she did, and I've learned to deal with it. Having a stepdad and a stepsister isn't so bad."
Miley nodded, "I guess. But it's just so much easier to have everything planned out."
Lilly bit her lip, "Well, I don't think so. If you plan every single little detail of your life, you'll spend way too much time trying to follow your schedule rather than living your life. Just go with the flow, Miles. Take it easy. Your life is stressful enough."
"That's just how I am, Lilly." Miley explained. "I've been living this way for the past two years; it's just what I do."
"You're going to regret it sooner or later, Miley." Lilly said as she stood up and smoothed out her tank top. "In a few years, you're going to look back and wish you'd appreciated life as it came. Trust me, you will. Look, we've both graduated high school. We're starting a new chapter of our lives. Why don't you use this as an opportunity to start over? Throw away the schedule and just live life."
Miley shrugged, "I don't know, Lilly. It seems--"
"Impossible, I know. Just promise me you'll at least try?" Lilly pleaded. "Please?"
"Fine," Miley sighed. "I'll try. There's no guarantee, though."
Lilly smiled, "Thank you. Look, I've got to go. I promised Mitchie we'd see a movie together. You want to come with us?"
Miley shook her head, "Nah. You guys have fun." she smiled. "You love having a stepsister don't you?"
"Yeah. It's just so much fun having another girl in the house 24/7." Lilly stated. "See Miles, good things come when you least expect them."
Miley chuckled. "Just go, Lils. Tell Mitchie I say hi."
Lilly grabbed her belongings and headed towards the door before turning abruptly to face Miley. "One last thing before I go," she began. "Let me see you throw that schedule away."
Miley clutched her schedule and held it against her chest, as if trying to protect it from harm. "Lilly! No!" she said defensively.
"Come on, Miley." Lilly urged. "The first step is the hardest, but it will only get easier from here. Just do it."
"No," Miley said sternly.
"Miley," Lilly scolded.
Miley heaved before reluctantly crumpling up the schedule and tossing it into a nearby wastebasket. "You happy?"
Lilly just smiled before walking out the door. "You'll thank me for this later!" she hollered as she trotted down the stairs.
"Yeah, right." Miley snapped as she retrieved her schedule from the trash can. "Don't worry," she said as she attempted to smooth out the list. "I'm not giving up on you that easily." She continued to smooth out the paper as she walked to the opposite end of her bedroom, looking at her calendar. She grabbed a red marker from her bedside table and began scanning each date, ready to cross out what was over and done with. Cap and gown pick up? Check. Textbook turn in? Check. Graduation dress pick up? Check. Graduation? Check. Graduation dinner with Joe? Check. Everything for the month of June seemed to be going as planned, though she seemingly ignored the big red circle on the 1st of June that reminded her that her monthly friend should have come to visit her around that time. She had been so preoccupied with graduation that she had failed to notice that her monthly friend was seventeen days late. Miley set the marker down and headed over to her bathroom to take a shower. She opened the door of the cupboard that was located under the sink, blindly reaching for her face wash. As she continued to feel around for the face wash, she noticed that the box of tampons she had bought last month remained unopened.
"Hm. That's weird," she said to herself before continuing to look for the face wash. "Aha, here you are." she said as she reached for the Neutrogena oil free acne wash. She set it down near the shower and was about to turn on the faucet before panic flashed through her eyes. "Shit," she mumbled before scrambling out of the bathroom and back into her room. Her heart was pounding as she darted for her calendar, her eyes glaring at the red ink circling the first of the month. Since the tender age of twelve, Miley's period had been on the dot, every month. It seemed her body worked along with her schedule as well, since the latest she had ever had her period was two days after it was expected. "The first?" Miley said, her voice shaking. "That wasn't that long ago, was it? I mean, it's only the…eighteenth." Miley stood frozen in her tracks as her mind took in what could possibly be happening.
"This is so not part of the plan."
I know is a shaky start to the story, but I promise it will get better. Like it? Hate it? Let me know in a review. :)
Kayslee
