A/N: Just got a little bored of my stories and wrote a oneshot.. so enjoy (:

And in this Joe and Lilly are a little older and Joe is not famous. Just so you know.

I'll Be There For You Forever

"We've got the number one hit, Best of Both Worlds, by Hannah Montana, right now. You're listening to DJ Mike at 5:30 on Thursday evening. Call in for Hannah Montana tickets now," the radio announced. The pop song began to play, ringing through Lilly's room.

"Ughh!" Lilly yelled, throwing her pillow at the radio. It fell off the dresser, landing on the carpeted floor with a thud.

Lilly shut her eyes closed, hot tears cascading down her cheeks and seeping onto Joe's shirt she was wearing that he'd left a few nights ago when they got in a water fight. She pulled the comforter up to her chin, then tilted her body so she was facing the window. Her body began shaking from the uncontrollable tears that continueously kept pouring.

Her cries were interrupted when she felt a vibration in the pocket of her Victorias Secret sweats she was wearing. She looked at the caller-id, wanting to ignore it, but knew she couldn't. There was no way to avoid him.

"Um, hello?" she said once she opened the phone and pressed it up against her ear. She tried wiping her tears with the back of her hand, but soon gave up.

"Lilly! I've been texting you. Whats going on? You're not mad at me, right? Because I really hope you're not. If it's about me taking the last brownie the other night, I'm sorry. I'll bake you a whole batch. I just couldn't resist. It was cooked to perfection, the chocolate chips were even melted. You know I'm a sucker for baked goods," he rambled.

After not hearing one giggle, he asked, "Lilly, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered, trying to not let her voice crack.

"Lilly."

"Joe, I'm fine. Don't worry about the brownie. I didn't really even want it, anyways."

"I'm coming over," he stated.

"Joe…"

"No, Lilly. There's something wrong, and I can tell. What kind of best friend would I be if I believed you saying that you didn't actually want the last brownie?"

"Joe, please don't. I want to be alone right now."

"I'll be there in 5."

Lilly sighed, hanging up the phone. A slight breeze blew through her window, causing a piece of paper to float on to her bed. She picked it up, seeing that it was actually a picture.

Seeing the two smiling faces made Lilly burst into tears once again. She crumpled up the picture and threw it across the room. "Why'd you have to go?" she wailed. "Why?"

--

"Listen, Joe, now isn't the best time. Lilly wont even talk to me. She's locked herself up in her room and wont come out."

"Listen, Heather, please. I will understand if she kicks me out or never talks to me again, but I need to try. She's hurt, and I don't know why, but I need to be with her."

"Joe-" Heather started impatiently, leaning against the door frame.

"Heather, I'm in love with your daughter. And not just because she's my best friend. It breaks my heart more than anything when she's not okay."

"You're in love with her?" she asked him curiously.

"Yes, I am. I've been in love with her since the moment I met her on that playground when we were younger. Please. I need to be there for her."

Heather sighed. "Go ahead, but don't say that I didn't warn you."

Joe nodded, walking into the house. He slipped of his red sneakers, then made his way up the stairs. He got to the top, then walked down the hallway to his left. He stopped at the first door to the right, then knocked twice slowly, then clapped his hands once. It had been their "signal" ever since they met.

When he didn't hear a response, he grabbed the door handle, turning it and pushing the door open. He walked in, expecting to see Lilly watching reruns of Americas Next Top Model, like she usually was on weekday evenings, but instead saw her laying on her bed, her back to him, tissues sprawled across the comforter and pillows thrown across the room.

"Lilly?" he asked quietly, closing the door behind him. Lilly turned over to face Joe. Her face softened, but was still wet from her tears and her eyes were bloodshot. Even though she had no makeup on and her blonde hair was in a messy bun, Joe thought that Lilly never looked more beautiful.

"Hey," he greeted, sitting on the bed across from her. He placed the CVS grocery bag he'd brought on the bed in between them.

"What is that?" Lilly asked.

"Well, I brought you a few things. First, we have some Ben & Jerry's ice cream, your favorite flavors," he said, placing a container of chocolate fudge brownie in her lap, then putting a container of chocolate marshmallow ice cream in his own lap. "Also, I brought along some candy," he said, pulling out two large bags of tootsie rolls and two bars of Godiva chocolate. "And some movies," he added, pulling out Anchorman, Dumb and Dumber, and The Notebook.

"Wow, Joe, thanks," Lilly said, leaning over the pile to give him a hug. He hugged her back tightly, then pushed her aside so that he could lay down next to her.

"So what's wrong? You don't look too good," he commented with a frown.

"Thanks, Joe," Lilly smirked. "I don't know…" she said, her voice trailing off and her eyes welling up in tears once again.

"Lilly, you know that you can tell me anything. I'm your best friend. I'll be there for you no matter what. But you're not going to die tomorrow or something, right?"

Lilly stifled a laugh. "No, I'm not going to die. But my dad did."

"What?" Joe asked, alarmed. As soon as he saw the tears spilling on her cheeks, he knew that she was telling the truth.

"My mom told me that they were getting a divorce because he'd cheated on her with his secretary," Lilly explained once she calmed down. "So I called him and asked him why he'd done that to me, why he'd betrayed us like that. I was yelling and screaming, ignoring everything he was saying. I stopped yelling for a second to realize that the line was dead. I thought, great, what a jerk. He hangs up on me. We got a call a few minutes later," she gulped. "And he got in a car crash. Died at the scene."

Fresh tears welled up in her eyes. "It was all my fault," she cried into her pillow, breathing hard. "If I hadn't called him… if I hadn't been yelling at him, maybe he wouldn't have gotten in the accident."

Joe rubbed her back comfortingly. "Lilly, it wasn't your fault. You can't blame yourself. He could've dodged the other car or something. It's not your fault."

Joe felt her back moving up and down from her breathing under his hand. He wrapped his arm around her, holding her close. "I'll never let you go. Never," he whispered in her ear.

--

45 minutes and a carton of ice cream later, Lilly stopped crying. She wiped her cheeks with the palms of her hands and groaned. "I feel so shitty right now," she said, then rose and got up from the bed. She walked into the bathroom that was adjacent to her room and groaned again when she saw the reflection in the mirror. She turned on the sink and splashed cold water on her face. She turned off the faucet and dried her face with a towel, then walked back in the room. She saw Joe standing next to the bed, pulling his navy blue sweatshirt over his head and grabbing his phone off the bed.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" she asked him.

"I'm not going somewhere, we are. You may think that sitting around will make you feel better, but it will only make you reflect on the last moments you had with your dad. So get your lazy ass over here and let's go," he said firmly.

"What?" she protested.

"Yes. We're going to go have some fun."

"But Joe…"

"No buts. You're going. No questions asked," he stated, then picked her up bridal style and carried her out of the room. She grinned as Joe carried her past her mother's bedroom, where she was sitting there, eyeing them wearily.

"Wow, Lilly smiles! And leaves the cave! Great job, Joe. Just be back by 1," she called.

Joe carried her down the stairs and through the front door. He pulled his car keys out from the pocket of his sweatshirt and unlocked the car, then opened the door and carefully placed Lilly in the front seat. He shut the door, then hurried over to his side and got in the car, putting the keys in the ignition and starting the car.

"I still don't trust being in the same car as you. After all, you failed your drivers test 4 times," she joked while fastening her seat belt.

"Well, the fifth time's a charm."

"No, Joe, you've got it all wrong," she said, shaking her head. She giggled when she saw the look of confusion on his face. "Never mind."

Joe rolled down his and Lilly's windows, then turned up the radio and sang along until the commercials came on. Lilly turned the radio down.

"So where are we going?" she asked him, looking out the window.

"Well… there is a carnival thing at the beach tonight. I thought we'd go check it out," he said, looking at her.

"Joe, look at me! I'm in sweats, your shirt, my hair is a bird's nest, and my face is all red and blotchy."

"Lilly, you look fine. Perfect. Besides, you're not the only one. I'm wearing sweats, a sweatshirt, my hair isn't straightened and shiny, and I have my glasses on."

"Kay, fine. We'll both be nerds together," she smirked.

"Good," he said, pulling into a parking spot in front of the Malibu beach. They both got out of the car and walked to the pier, seeing a crowd of people.

Joe took Lilly's hand, and she looked up at him. He just grinned in response and squeezed her hand. They walked like this until Joe spotted a funnel cake stand. He rushed over and immediately ordered. "Do you want anything, Lillian?" he asked her.

"Nah, I'm good. I'll just eat off of yours." Joe glared at her and she rolled her eyes. "Whatever, I'll just starve to death, then," she added. He smirked at her, then picked up his funnel cake. They walked to a nearby table and talked for a while, then decided to go and walk on the beach.

"Are you allowed to go swimming at night time?" he asked her, interrupting the silence that hung in the air seconds before.

"Uh, yeah, but it's kinda dangerous," she answered.

"I am DJ danger after all," he said, grinning evily. He picked up Lilly up and swung her over his shoulder, running towards the ocean.

"Joe! Joe! Joe! These are my favorite sweats!" she exclaimed, shouting complaints at her best friend, but he ignored them and continued his quest to the ocean.

He ran out until the water was up to his knee, then dropped Lilly in the ocean. She looked up at him, grinning, then splashed water at him. "Jerk!" she yelled playfully.

He splashed her more, then she jumped on his back and tried to push him underwater. He shook her off and she fell into the cold water. She came up for air, then looked up at Joe. His dark hair and glasses were wet, but she could still see his brown eyes glistening. He looked down at her, grinning, and for both it felt like the world had stopped. Lilly felt her heart leap as he leaned in and kissed her softly on her lips.

He pulled away and looked at her to see her reaction. She smiled. "I thought that nothing and no one would be able to heal me after what happened with my father, with his death and all. I also thought that nobody was ever going to make me fall in love. I was wrong about both."

Joe grinned, then kissed her again. "I've loved you for, like, ever, Lilly."

"Me too," she smiled.

Joe wrapped his arms around her, protecting her from the world and keeping her close. He ignored the fact that they had now attracted a crowd that were watching them from the pier, or the fact that they were both soaking wet and his car seats were leather. His attention was only on Lilly. "I'll be there for you forever, Lilly. Forever."

A/N: Alrighty. Review, darlings. I guess this could be made into a longer story, but i dont know. i'll have to think about it.

xox