Jackson Stewart had always craved attention. But because of his sister, Miley, who doubled as Hannah Montana, teen pop sensation, he often felt overlooked. If he wanted to go somewhere, it was always, 'No, Jackson, we have to go to Miley's concert' or 'Not right now, Jackson. There's someplace Miley has to go.'
Jackson was, quite frankly, sick of it. Don't get me wrong; he loved his sister deeply. She was one of his favorite people in the world, though he would never tell her that. And he usually didn't mind bringing her around places. He was proud of his baby sister.
But then, there came a time when something incredibly important to Jackson came up. He had graduated from high school with honours; his final grades were all A's. There was to be a special awards ceremony for the people who had made it to the honour roll. When he heard, however, the date of the ceremony, his blood ran cold. It happened to coincide with one of Miley's concerts.
When Jackson got home from school that day, he ran to his father and looked him straight in the eyes. "Dad, I've got somethin' to tell you."
"What is it?" asked Robby Ray, glancing up from the paper he was scribbling on. He was no doubt scrawling down lyrics for new songs for him to sing. Him and Miley together, thought Jackson bitterly.
"Well, Dad, we just found out our final grades. I - I got all A's."
"Jackson that's great! Congratulations! I'm proud of you, son!" Robby Ray jumped up and hugged Jackson.
"Thanks, Dad," Jackson said, smiling slightly. "There's a ceremony for it. It's on ... it's on June 22nd."
Robby Ray grinned. "Well I will most definitely be - uh oh. That's the same date as Miley's Hannah concert. Oh, man. I already promised Miles that I would go to her concert. But, I know how much this means to you. I'm sure Miley will understand."
Miley entered the room as her father said this last sentence. "What will I understand, Daddy?" she inquired, glancing from her father to her brother.
"Something has come up, honey," her father said gently, taking her hand and leading her to sit next to him on the couch. "Jackson graduated with honours, and there's a special ceremony for all the people on the honour roll. It's on the same day as your concert, though. Sweetie, I know I promised you that I would go to your concert, but this means so much to him. I promise I'll come to the next one."
Miley jumped up, outraged. "Daddy!" she yelled. "You promised! You can't go back on your word! It's not fair!" She glared at Jackson. "Oh big deal. You got good grades. Daddy already promised ME!"
Robby Ray looked pained. "Miles ... I think that I should go to this ceremony. Please, darlin'. Be reasonable, now. You have tons of Hannah concerts. Jackson will only graduate from high school once. It's only fair."
Jackson opened his mouth to speak, but Miley cut him off. "Daddy, if you don't go, I'll never speak to either of you again!"
Robby Ray glanced at Jackson. His expression was a mixture of sorrow and helplessness. He looked pleadingly at him.
Jackson sighed and rolled his eyes. He waved his hand as if it didn't matter. "Sure, Dad. Go on, go to Miley's concert. I don't mind."
Miley grinned in triumph and hugged her father tightly. "You will, won't you, Daddy? Please say you will!"
Robby Ray sighed. "Of course, honey." He shot a small smile at Jackson and mouthed the words 'thank you' to him.
Jackson shrugged and said, "I'm going up to my room."
His father and sister barely noticed him leaving. They were busy practicing Robby Ray's new song.
Jackson went upstairs and sat on his bed. He felt like crap. It just wasn't fair! Robby Ray definitely cared more about Miley than him. He was a nobody. In fact, if he died, they probably wouldn't even notice ... The thought caught him by surprise. He had never had suicidal thoughts before, but now that he thought of it, it made sense. They could go off and do whatever it was that musician fathers did with their musician daughters. They would never have to think about him anymore. He would never be in their way anymore. Nobody would really miss him - he was just a nuisance.
Tears formed in Jackson's eyes. Didn't anyone care, or even notice, how much this meant to him? Well, who cared about what he wanted, as long as Miley got her way, right? He just couldn't take it anymore. Miley was always first in his Dad's eyes. Jackson just couldn't take being second place anymore.
Trembling, Jackson stood. If he was going to do this, he had to do it right. His eyes searched the room for a suitable item. What could he use?
Then, he thought of a person who he had seen on the internet who had cut herself. She had ended up dying. He wondered ... could he do that?
With legs shaking like jello, he quietly stepped over to his desk. He grabbed his pocket knife, sitting on top of the desk. He flicked it open and took a deep, shaky breath. He held the blade against his wrist.
Then he paused. What was he doing? He couldn't actually go through with this ... could he?
He heard from downstairs a whoop and a shout of, "Daddy! I am so, SO glad that you are going to my concert!"
With that, he pressed the blade to his wrist.