Hey everyone... Yes, I am still around. These past few months have been really crazy. It was a really busy semester of school work and I ran into personal problems; which this story will sort of explain.
This story is based on what has happened to me recently. The first chapter is basically true to my life (except come minor details). I will be updating Here Without You, Miley as soon as I can, too. I've been working on that as well. I just needed to vent and this story came out, and I really like it. Hopefully all of you will, too.
- One -
Dark clouds rolled in through the Tennessee sky as Miley Stewart slowly trotted down the old, familiar trail she's ridden through many times before with her horse, Bluejeans. Rain was near but she didn't mind. Not right now at least. In fact, she wanted it to rain. Rain would hide the tears that she's been fighting back. Rain would give her something else to think about. Anything would be better than what was going through her mind right now. Pure agony…
Thunder sounded and Bluejeans jerked, causing Miley to feel cautious. "It's okay, buddy," she soothed, slowly running her right hand over his mane. "We'll be okay…"
But could she really believe that? Would everything be okay? She wasn't so sure.
With a sigh, she lightly tapped the heel of her boots against Bluejeans' sides, getting him to keep moving forward. They were almost at her secluded spot and she was anxious to get there. It was a beautiful area, really; up on a hilltop, lots of grass for Bluejeans to graze, and a large Oak tree where Miley absolutely loved to lean against. Not too long ago she nailed boards to the tree as a source to climb it easily. Most of the time, she sat up high in the branches and just sat there for hours thinking. It was the most peaceful place she could ever dream of.
Bluejeans trudged up the hill effortlessly after they turned into a clearing. A ghost of a smile shone on Miley's face when she saw her tree at the top. "Come on, boy, hurry up. We're almost there," she spoke to Bluejeans.
In no time at all, they made it up the hill and Miley was quick to descend from her beloved horse. Taking the reigns, she led him over to the tree and carefully tied him up to one of the branches. This was a perfect spot for Bluejeans, for there was plenty of grass around him to graze. Satisfied that he was happy, Miley began climbing her tree.
Miley's view was magnificent from where she stopped. Although, she has seen better… Normally, by now, the sun was low and cast a beautiful glow across the fields of her family farm. Today was dark, gloomy, and a tad chilly. With a sigh, Miley leaned back against the tree to look at her surroundings; trying to get her mind off of her heartache.
Nothing seemed to help ease her mind from the events that occurred to her somewhat recently. Tears brimmed her grey-blue eyes as she thought of her now ex-girlfriend, Mikayla, whom she met this past semester at school. The one girl she thought she could finally be happy with. Unfortunately, the feeling was not mutual. Mikayla wanted…an open relationship… Miley's heart broke when Mikayla first brought it up but she kept her head up. Miley hoped with everything in her that Mikayla would change her mind. But that never happened… Mikayla lead her on, slept with her even, before ending it a little more than a month into the relationship. Thinking about it now even brought tears to Miley's eyes, and it had been nearly two months since the breakup. When you really like someone, though, it's hard to move on so quickly… Unlike Mikayla, who moved on too quickly.
Miley's best friends Travis, Jake and Oliver told her Mikayla was bad news from the beginning, but she was too awe-struck to care then. Now she wished more than anything that she had listened to them. You live and learn…
Thunder caught Miley's attention as she wiped away a stray tear. She took in a deep breath to calm her nerves. Mikayla wasn't worth her tears…. At least that's what her friends constantly told her. She didn't know why, but Miley still felt something for Mikayla. She was her first girlfriend, the first girl she kissed, the first girl she….well…slept with. It was hard to deal with, especially when Mikayla acted like she didn't give a damn about anything that happened between them.
Love? Miley thought of this often. Was it love she felt for Mikayla? She didn't necessarily think so… Miley had definitely been in love before and those feelings were never that intense with Mikayla. Miley had fallen in love with her long time best friend, Chelsea, in high school. That seemed like a lifetime ago, but the feelings for her still stood strong. Her love for Chelsea nearly destroyed their friendship and lately they only talked every once in a while. Miley grew used to this, but it still stung that she never got to see her anymore. Perhaps it was for the best, though. Seeing Chelsea with her long-term boyfriend now might kill her. She's met him a few times… He was nice. I guess that's all Miley could really ask for.
For so long Miley thought she would never be able to move on and date. But when she met Mikayla all that changed. Mikayla made her happy, made her feel special, made her feel alive. So much for that…
Bluejeans suddenly snapped his head up in alarm as thunder grew louder. Miley glanced down at his movements. "It's okay, boy. It's just the thunder," she said reassuringly. Just as she said that, lightning flickered in the distance. Without any other reason, Miley started climbing down from her tree. The last thing she needed right now was to be struck by lightning. "All right, boy. Guess we'd better start heading home," she said as she approached Bluejeans. "Wouldn't want to get rained on now, would we?" She smiled as he nuzzled her shoulder with his mouth. After wiping off her tears once again with the sleeve of her sweatshirt, Miley hopped onto Bluejeans to head home. Glancing at her watch, she realized she was only up there for about forty-five minutes. It seemed way less than that, but time always flew by when she gave thought to Mikayla.
Light drizzle of rain started coming down and Miley lightly tapped on Bluejeans' sides once again. "Hurry up, boy!" she encouraged. With no further instructions, he started galloping faster as the rain started coming down harder.
…..
Robbie Ray Stewart glanced out the window of their gorgeous two story white house right as his daughter came racing towards the barn with Bluejeans. Shaking his head, he turned to his wife, who was sitting comfortably on the couch reading a magazine. "Miles is going to be soaking wet by the time she gets in here."
"Well, she wanted to take a shower tonight anyways," Susan joked, smirking.
"She still shouldn't go out so far when she knows a storm is comin'."
"Oh, Robbie Ray, stop worrying so much." Standing up, Susan walked over to her husband, wrapping her arms around his waist. "She does what she sets her mind to. A little rain never hurt anybody."
"I know… It just seems like her mind's been so…. I don't know… Pre-occupied lately, but she won't tell us what's going on."
"She will when she's ready. She's twenty-one now, Robbie. Let her have her own space. If something really is troubling her, she'll come to us when she's ready. Just like she always does."
"I suppose you're right… Well, here she comes. Must have gotten Bluejeans in all right."
"He's a very cooperative horse." Kissing Robbie Ray on the cheek, Susan returned to her place onto the sofa, followed by Robbie.
Seconds later Miley came rushing in through the door, soaked with rain. "Sorry, I didn't know it was going to rain so suddenly," she started explaining to her parents while taking her boots off.
"No worries, baby girl," her mother answered with a warm smile. "Why don't you go on up and take a nice hot shower before you get chilled. We don't need you to get sick."
"I will, Mamma." Miley walked over to give her mom a quick hug and a kiss and then moved over to her father to do the same.
"Supper should be ready when you're done," Robbie added as he hugged Miley.
"Sounds good… I won't be long." With a half-hearted smile, Miley then descended up the stairs towards her bedroom.
Robbie sighed once Miley was out of sight. "….Do you think she's ever going to tell us what's been bothering her?"
"Like I said before, dear… She will when she's ready." Susan stood up, knowing she had to finish preparing supper. "Give the girl some space and she'll come through."
Nodding, Robbie followed his wife into the kitchen. She seemed so sure of this, but he wasn't convinced. Then again, he didn't want to pry into his daughter's life. It was hard for him to figure out what to do. Times like this he felt so…helpless.
Shaking his head, Robbie turned his focus over towards the food. He was hungry after all…
Upstairs, Miley had shed her wet clothing and promptly made her way into her bathroom. With her brother, Jackson, off at college she had the whole thing to herself now. Even though they used to bicker all the time, she did miss having him around. Especially since the whole Mikayla fiasco. Jackson could be a dork, but he was an amazing listener when she really needed one.
Once the water was at the perfect temperature, Miley hopped in and sighed contently at the feeling of warmth spreading throughout her body. Mikayla was constantly on her mind and, sure enough, she was sick of it. But what could she do? It wasn't her fault she started gaining feelings for the gorgeous brunette. If only she had listened to her friends…
Tears slipped from her eyes and Miley pinched the bridge of her nose, eyes tightly shut, trying to stop them. Hadn't she been suffering long enough? When would this end? Would it ever end? Her mind constantly ran through these questions on a daily basis until it became so unbearable that she nearly suffocated from the anxiety of it all. Luckily it was summer vacation and she wouldn't have to start classes again until August. This gave her some time away from Mikayla, and Miley knew she needed that desperately.
One thing that Miley feared was that once the new semester began, and she saw Mikayla, that all of her feelings would come rushing back.
"God, please…. Please let this get easier…." she silently prayed with a broken voice. "Please…"
Feeling overwhelmed, Miley slowly sank down until she sat on the floor of the tub; water rushing over her. She brought her knees up to her bare chest with tear-rimmed eyes and kept hoping that something or someone would come along and take all of this agony away from her. She knew she deserved better but at the same time…she didn't think better would ever come along in her life.
And there it is... Hopefully you all will enjoy this story. Like I said, the first chapter explains it all (what I've been through recently). The rest of the chapter is just wishful thinking, but it has been really fun writing. The second chapter is nearly complete and I wll post once I'm done or really far into the third chapter. And yes, I will update Here Without You, Miley very very soon as well. For those of you wondering...
Anyways, please leave your thoughts. I know a lot of people aren't into Liley anymore, but for those of you who are, I would love to hear your feedback. Thanks for reading.
