Okay, what a way to start or end the week..depending how you look at it. Surprisingly, I had this chapter written before I saw the latest episode of HMF...But I think mine is better. (*cough* ego. *cough*) And as a side note...Miley hitting a bong...geez girl, where is your head? Go hang out with Emily. She doesn't do stupid shit like that...and if she does, she's not dumb enough to film it! Enough ranting...away we go.
Chapter 1 - This is Me
Set of the Mack & Mickey Show
Los Angeles, California; July 8, 2009
It was early in the morning when the Stewart-Truscott clan boarded their private jet and flew from Minneapolis Minnesota, the current stop on the Breakout Tour, to Los Angeles, California.
Since Miley had been outed as Hannah Montana, life had become absolutely insane for the entire family. While on tour, Miley and Lilly couldn't go out in public unless they were surrounded by a security team. The paparazzi and tabloid reports would not stop hounding them for a second. They couldn't go out to eat, or go shopping, or even just go sightseeing without people following them….begging for autographs, asking questions, and taking nonstop pictures. Apparently, everyone wanted a piece of the hottest underage lesbians in town.
Another change was that now there were different kinds of people following her. Miley was used to having fans and autograph hounds after her attention, but what she wasn't used to was the angry parents and the religious zealots. Outraged mothers and homophobes screaming obscenities and hurling insults at her about how she was corrupting the youth of America. Miley spent many nights crying herself to sleep in Lilly's arms after someone's particularly hateful comment had crushed her spirits for the day.
The absolute worst day came when Hannah was performing in Dallas last week. A mother and daughter had backstage passes. The little girl was probably about seven years old, she had a Hannah t-shirt on and everything. Hannah signed the girl's program and gave her a hug. When the daughter stepped away, the mother stepped forward and slapped Hannah across the cheek and said, "Your mother must have died from the embarrassment of having a daughter like you." Then she turned away, collected her daughter and headed for the exit. Hannah stood there stunned and completely mortified.
Security had a hell of a time holding back Lilly from going after the woman.
Miley was inconsolable for hours after that incident.
So after several weeks, Miley decided that it was time she faced the press in an effort to appease their curiosity about her life and the decisions she's made. Mack and Mickey had always been very kind to the singer, so Hannah agreed to do the interview on their morning show.
Hannah was currently pacing the floor of the green room, while her family looked on. Robbie and Heather sat on the couch, concern for their daughter written clearly on their faces. Jackson and Jordan sat on another couch huddled together, both silently praying that this interview would help take some of the stress off Miley. She hadn't been the fun loving little sister ever since her secret was reveled and Jackson missed her terribly.
Roxy was standing guard at the door to make sure nobody bothered the family other than the production staff on duty.
Lilly was leaning against the wall, watching her girlfriend pace back and forth.
Finally, the surfer couldn't take the silence in the room any more and pushed away from the wall to approach the singer. The surfer stepped in front of the singer's path and put her hands on the faux blonde's hips. "Are you okay baby?" she asked, dipping her head to look into Hannah's eyes.
Hannah gave a half hearted smile in an attempt to placate her girlfriend. "More or less." she answered with a shrug of her shoulder.
Lilly frowned at the singer's unenthusiastic response. While Miley had been having a hard time dealing with her sudden overwhelming amount of notoriety, if possible, Lilly was even more frustrated. There was no simple solution to their problem. There was no one she could threaten. There was no ingenious plan that would fix everything. Their situation just was. And that drove Lilly nuts.
The surfer raised her right hand up and gently stroked the singer's cheek, encouraging her to look the blonde in the eye. "You don't have to do this." she gently reminded the singer.
Hannah groaned in frustration. "Yes I do Lils." she declared. "I've been avoiding the press and deflecting questions about us for too long now." she said, closing her eyes. "Ignoring them isn't making them go away. It's just making it worse. It'll be easier if I just come out and finally answer everything."
Lilly wished she could say that she had a better idea, but in truth, she didn't. The surfer leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on the singer's lips. "Well, I'll be here for you no matter what." she said while gently stroking the cheek under her thumb.
Hannah smiled at how easy it was for Lilly to just make things better by simply being there. "I know you will. And I love you for it." she said, then leaned forward for another kiss.
The couple was interrupted by a sudden knock at the door. A staff member wearing a headset stuck his head in the door and surveyed the room quickly to locate today's guest. "Miss Montana, they need you on stage." he said in a rush, then pulled his head back out into the hallway.
"Be right there." The singer called over her shoulder.
Lilly lifted the singer's hand to her mouth and kissed the knuckles. "If you need anything, I'm only a thought away." the surfer promised and gave the singer's hand a gentle squeeze. "Always."
Hannah nodded her head. "I know." she said, then pulled her girlfriend towards the door.
The set really hadn't changed much from the last time Hannah had been here. Two stools sat on the right side of the stage, where Mack and Mickey sat, and one opposite them for their guest. Behind them was a set of balcony doors which opened to a lovely view of Los Angeles. It wasn't real of course, but it still looked nice.
Hannah took her seat and waited while the grip counted down from the commercial intro. Hannah took a deep breath as the red light came on, signaling that they were now on live television.
Mack flashed a huge cheesy smile at the camera. "Good morning Los Angeles. Boy, do we have something special for you this morning." he said while pointing at the camera with both hands.
Mickey smiled and nodded her head in agreement. "We sure do Mack." she said, then turned back to the camera. "Taking time out from her Breakout Tour to speak with us today is the one and only, Hannah Montana." she said in an overly perky tone and gestured to the seat directly across from her where Hannah was seated.
Hannah smiled and politely waved in acknowledgement of Mickey's introduction.
"Good morning Hannah." Mickey said with a bright toothy grin.
"Or should we call you Miley?" Mack added.
Hannah hesitantly smiled. "Hannah's fine." The singer drew on years of performing experience to try and hide the nervousness she was feeling. "And It's good to see you both again."
Mack put his hands on his knees and leaned forward on his stool. "Well, I guess we should get right to it. Things have certainly changed since you were last on our show. And I don't just mean your wardrobe!"
Hannah chuckled slightly at the massive understatement. "Yeah, they sure have." she agreed.
Mickey wasted no time with friendly amenities or pointless chit chat. "I think everyone wants to hear what its been like for you since being outed?"
Offstage, Lilly rolled her eyes at Mickey's first question. 'So much for starting off easy.' she thought.
"Its been a little rough." Hannah answered honestly.
"Why is that?" Mickey replied instantly.
Hannah took a deep breath and began explaining her position. "Well, the whole reason that I came up with the Hannah Montana alias was so that I could maintain a normal life. I wasn't trying to deceive my fans or anything like that. All I ever wanted was to be able to walk away from the publicity and the fame and the stardom and just enjoy my life with my family." Hannah explained, which really was the whole truth of the matter.
Mickey looked shocked by Hannah's answer. "Wait, so what you're saying is that this was a conscious decision from the very start?"
Hannah nodded. "Oh definitely. Before I even signed a contract I wanted to make sure that my personal life was protected."
Now it was Mack's turn to jump in. "So, did you feel like you had something to hide even then?" he said, doing a poor imitation of a police detective, raising his eyebrows to his hairline.
Hannah shook her head in disagreement. "It was never about hiding. It's really hard for any celebrity to have their actions be put under a microscope and have every single detail of their lives examined. Add to that the pressures of adolescence, and it makes it even more difficult. Bless her heart, I saw what Britney went through and I knew I didn't want that to be me."
Mack nodded his head. "So, why are you still maintaining the Hannah Montana persona now that everyone knows?" he asked, gesturing the way she was dressed.
Hannah sighed. Technically, that was the record labels decision...not hers, but no point in bringing that up. "At this point, its what I've always done. Its what people are used to seeing." she replied. "It's kind of like an athlete putting on their jersey before a game."
Mickey made a sour face at the singer's explanation. "Are you afraid Miley might not be as popular?" she shot back condescendingly.
Lilly's eyes went wide at the insensitive comment. "That bitch." the blonde quietly hissed, as she tightly clenched her fists in anger.
Robbie Ray released his hold on Heather's waist and stepped up next to Lilly and put his arm around the smaller blonde. "Easy there kiddo." he said gently.
Much to Lilly's surprise, Hannah just laughed at the comment. "No, it just might confuse a lot of people."
Mickey looked a little annoyed that Hannah hadn't taken offense to her comment. "Tell us about Jake Ryan." she quickly asked.
This time Hannah was visibly shaken at the sudden conversation turn. "What exactly would you like me to tell you?" she asked hesitantly.
Now it was Mack's turn. "You dated a while back, didn't you?" he said with his elbows on his knees and his hands underneath his chin. He looked like a little kid waiting for story time.
Hannah quickly decided that if she tried to hide anything about her relationship with Jake, it would come off as being dishonest or misleading. "Yeah, Jake and I did date a few years ago. And after a while I told him the truth about who I was. He understood why I had made the decision to maintain an alter ego, and respected me enough to keep my secret." she explained, hoping that would be the last she would have to talk about the actor.
Lilly scoffed offstage at Hannah's answer. 'Respected you? Ha. More like he was scared shitless of me.' she thought, but understanding why Hannah couldn't reveal the truth about that aspect of their relationship.
Mack looked confused. "So then Jake knew his girlfriend Miley Stewart was Hannah Montana?" Mack leaned over and elbowed Mickey. "Sounds like a threesome!" he said out of the corner of his mouth.
Hannah nodded and smiled at the slightly clueless host. "He did."
"Sounds like you and Jake had a pretty good relationship." Mack replied.
Hannah shrugged her shoulders. "Well, not really. While he respected what I wanted, it wasn't what he wanted for himself. He was all about the press, the publicity, and the noterity that came with it. It didn't bother him. He enjoyed all the attention. We were total opposites. In the end, that's what broke us up."
Mickey narrowed her eyes at the singer. "So, you weren't seeing anyone else at the time?" she asked, glancing over at the singer's girlfriend standing offstage.
Hannah just shook her head. "Nope." she said simply.
Mickey pushed forward, trying to get some dirt out of Hannah. "Not even your girlfriend?"
Hannah just smiled and again shook her head. "No. We didn't start dating until months later." It was easy telling the truth.
"What about the rumors that Hannah Montana was seeing Jake Ryan a few weeks back?" the hostess asked.
Hannah had expected this question to come up eventually once they brought Jake into the conversation. "He happened to be in Vegas while I was performing there and decided to hang out with me. We are still friends after all. And my girlfriend was right there with us every second."
Mack frowned. "So then what everyone is saying about you breaking Jake's heart and pushing him over the edge…" he said, leaving the sentence hanging for Hannah to finish.
"Is totally false." she said immediately. "Jake knew how devoted I was to my girlfriend and never once made any advances to me. He totally respected me."
Lilly rolled her eyes. 'Respected you, my ass.' she thought.
Mack went back into star struck teenager mode. "Awww. So tell us all about your girlfriend." he said, almost giddy with excitement.
Finally, something Hannah enjoyed talking about. And this didn't require half truths or lies of any kind. "Well, Lilly has been my rock through this entire situation. You could say she has a much thicker skin when faced with adversity than I do." she said, glancing at her girlfriend and giving her a quick wink.
Mickey nodded her head. "Now it has been said that your girlfriend was actually always with you all these years and was actually your brightly hair colored, insanely dressed best friend Lola Luftnagle."
Hannah chuckled a little bit at Mickey's description of Lilly's alter ego. "Yeah, she was. We decided that if we didn't hide her identity as well, it would have been pretty easy to figure out who I was in real life." the singer explained.
Mack looked saddened by something. "Was she mad at you? Is that why she dressed like a freak?" he asked.
Hannah glanced over and noticed her father's arm tighten around her girlfriend's shoulder. The singer couldn't help but giggle. "No, that's just what happens when you let two 13 year olds to come up with a disguise." she replied jovially.
Mickey laughed for a second then went right back to grilling her guest. "And how did Lilly feel about hiding who she was?"
Hannah smiled thinking back to how annoyed Lilly was originally with the disguise the singer had picked. Towards the end, the surfer loved the look and totally rocked it. "It never bothered her. She knew how much my secret meant to me." the singer responded with a shy smile. "Even back then…she would do anything for me."
Mickey seemed to be getting frustrated that there didn't seem to be any dirt to find on these two young celebrities. "Was she upset that your relationship became public knowledge?"
Hannah shifted in the chair slightly. "Well, pretty much our relationship always was public knowledge. The kids at our school knew. Our neighbors. A lot of people in our community. And heck…our families knew since the day we got together."
Mack had a far away look on his face when he asked, "Your family never had a problem with you being gay?"
Hannah noticed the look on Mack's face and wondered briefly if he had someone gay in his own family. 'Problem? My brother practically threw me at Lilly.' the singer thought, then chuckled at herself. "No. Never. They've been supportive of every aspect of my life."
Once again, Mickey hijacked the discussion. "So were you worried about the backlash the negative aspects of your relationship could bring to your career?"
Hannah glared a little at the talk show hostess. The singer wasn't sure what the older woman meant by 'negative aspects', but certainly wasn't going to ask for clarification. "This might sound hard to believe, but my career has always been second to my family and friends. They're what matter most."
Mickey seemed to get an evil glint in her eye. "So it doesn't bother you that your name and picture appear almost constantly on the television and in the tabloids with headlines like 'Best of Both Lies' or 'Lesbian Man-eater'?" she asked with an nasty smirk on her face.
Hannah stared at Mickey for a few seconds. The interview had been going well, until right about now. The singer tried to form a coherent sentence, but it just wasn't working. Her throat tightened up and her palms began to sweat. Hannah had tried to ignore everything people wrote and said to her, but it hurt. "It...I mean…you just…" Hannah could feel the tears forming and for the first time in her performing career, she had no idea what to do. She turned her head to the blonde standing offstage and screamed one word in her mind. HELP!
Lilly started to walk towards the set after hearing Hannah's call for help.
Robbie Ray grabbed her shoulder before she could get too far away. "Lilly? Where are you going?" he asked softly.
Lilly turned to Robbie with a look of resolve on her face. "She needs me." The surfer declared.
Lilly's response brought a smile to the southerner's face. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" he asked
Lilly shook her head. "I don't really care." she said and headed for the set. Doing what was best for Miley was the only thing that ever mattered to the blonde surfer.
Heather rushed over to Robbie Ray. "What's she going to do?" the older blonde hissed quietly.
Robbie turned to his fiancé and smiled. "If I had to guess, I would say save the day like she always does." he said wrapping his arm around Heather's shoulder, then turned back to watch Lilly put those people in their place.
In a few quick strides, the blonde surfer made her way to the stage and stood next to Hannah who was currently staring at her lap, trying not to fall apart. The surfer wrapped a comforting arm around the singer's waist. After a quick squeeze to assure Hannah that she was there and wasn't going anywhere, the blonde looked up at the two hosts with angry eyes. "If you can't tell, yes it does bother her." she growled at the hosts. "A lot."
Mack looked at Mickey and shrugged his shoulders, then he turned towards the camera. "Ladies and Gentleman, for any of you out there may not be familiar, this is Hannah's girlfriend, amateur surfing champion, Lilly Truscott." he said, waving his hand toward the newcomer.
Mickey decided that a minute to regroup was in order. "We're going to take a commercial break, but when we come back, we'll speak more with the one and only Hannah Montana."
As the red light went out, Mickey stood up from her seat and approached the smaller blonde. "Who do you think you are young lady? Crashing our interview like that?" she demanded.
Lilly whipped her head away from the singer to glare at the hostess. "Look, we only agreed to this in the hopes that if she finally DID do an interview, the press and tabloids would back the hell off. But I'll be damned if I am going to stand on the sidelines and watch you people turn the love of my life into a ratings stunt." she yelled at the hostess.
Mickey blinked several times, doing a fine impression of an owl. Then she turned and looked back at Mack.
Mack smiled showing all his pearly whites. "I like her." he beamed.
Mickey nodded her head in agreement. "Me too." The hostess turned back to the surfer. "Would you join the interview?" she asked politely.
Now it was Lilly's turn to be caught off guard. "W-w-what?" she stuttered.
This time when Mickey smiled, it seemed genuine. "I think it would help Hannah's cause for her fans to see what a wonderful relationship she has with her girlfriend."
Lilly reached down and picked up Hannah's hand. Is that okay with you baby?
Hannah lifted her head to look at the surfer. Its more than okay. She replied mentally while nodding her head.
"Would you like us to get you a chair?" Mack offered.
Lilly just shook her head. "No. I'm right where I need to be...thank you." She had no intentions of moving an inch away from Hannah until this interview was officially over.
"Ten seconds!" Called one of the technicians running a camera.
Everyone took there places and as the red light came on, Mack began speaking to the camera. "Welcome back. This morning we are talking with the one and only Hannah Montana. And joining us now is Hannah's girlfriend, Lilly Truscott." he said, then pointed towards the newest addition to the set. "Thanks for joining us Lilly." he added.
Lilly nodded at the two hosts. "My pleasure."
"So, can you tell us what it's been like for you since Hannah has been outed?" Mickey asked in a somewhat kinder tone than she had been addressing Hannah with earlier.
Lilly sighed. 'No point in sugar coating it.' she thought to herself. "Well, to be completely honest, it totally sucks." she replied, then turned her head to look at Hannah. "We used to be able to do normal things like go to the beach or go shopping at the mall and just enjoy being together. " This brought a smile to the singer's face as she remembered happier times. "Now, we can't do anything unless we're accompanied by bodyguards."
Hannah rolled her eyes at the surfer. Yeah cause either one of us really need bodyguards.
Shush. Don't make me laugh. The blonde mentally chastised the singer.
Mack frowned at the surfer's response. "Has it been a strain on your personal relationship?" he asked.
Lilly briefly glanced at Hannah and smiled, then looked back at Mack. "Between us? No. I've been in love with this wonderful woman for many years. Nothing anyone says or does will change that." she declared proudly.
Mickey tipped her head to the side as she regarded the surfer curiously. "You said many years. I thought that you hadn't even been together for two yet?"
Lilly nodded her head in agreement, then proceeded to explain herself. "We met when we were eleven years old. This sweet southern girl came into my world and wormed her way into my heart. Overtime, feelings of friendship transformed into something more. I finally got the nerve to tell her how I was feeling and I was lucky enough to find out she felt the same. We've been together ever since. So, I have complete faith that our love is a lot stronger than some peoples' harsh words and narrow minded opinions."
Mickey nodded her head in understanding. "So, I take it from your statement, that you have had some unfavorable reactions to your lesbianism?" she pressed on.
Lilly sighed softly and again nodded her head. "Oh yeah, there are a lot of people out there that apparently have nothing better to do with their time than to criticize how we are living our lives." Lilly paused to squeeze Hannah's hand, knowing what she was going to say next would make her girlfriend sad once more. "They say that we are corrupting the youth of America, living in sin, and a bunch of other negativity that has no place being mentioned on television."
"So a lot of people are judging you?" Mack asked with a pouty look on his face.
"Well, I don't understand that kind of narrow minded thinking because I was taught to respect other people and their beliefs. I was taught that everyone on this Earth is different from each other. Do those differences make one better than the other? No. But regardless, some people feel that they do. Sexual orientation, race, religion, gender, ethnicity…the list goes on and on." The surfer turned away from the hosts and focused solely only Hannah as she continued to speak. "I'm in love with my best friend. There is only one person who is entitled to judge me and that's the good lord. And when the time comes, if he tells me I was wrong for being happy, then I'll accept whatever punishment he gives me. However, I honestly don't believe that the God thinks that love in any capacity is wrong. So I don't think I have anything to worry about."
Lilly's speech earned her a huge smile from Hannah.
Heather beamed from offstage. "That's my girl." she whispered.
Mack was likewise taken with the surfer's upbeat attitude. "You seem like you have a very positive attitude Lilly."
Lilly shrugged and turned back to look at Mack. "I don't spend my time concerned with what other people think of me. There's a motto I learned a long time ago…it goes, 'As long as I am true to myself I will never apologize for the way I appear to others.' And that's pretty much how I live my life."
Mickey pumped her fist towards Lilly. "You go girl!" Then she looked over at Hannah, who had become rather quiet. "Well Hannah, I personally think you are one lucky young lady."
Hannah was shocked by the hostess' complete change in attitude. "Why is that Mickey?"
"Not everyone is lucky enough to find someone so special this early in their life." Mickey said with a smile.
Now it was Hannah's turn smile as she leaned into Lilly's torso, resting her head on the blonde's shoulder. "I know. And believe me, she is the love of my life." The singer vowed.
Mack perked up at that comment. "So, will we be hearing about wedding plans anytime soon?" Mack asked, waggling his eyebrows at the young couple.
Hannah threw her hands up in the air. "Crazy childlike host with pearly white teeth say what?"
Lilly laughed at her lover's response. "We're only 17. We haven't even graduated high school yet!" she added.
Mickey couldn't help but push Mack's question just a little bit further. "Have you talked about it?"
Hannah's mouth resembled a catfish for few seconds as she tried to decide what was the best answer to that question. "I…We…" The singer started, but before she decided how to answer, her girlfriend did it for her.
"Absolutely." The surfer responded confidently. "If I have my way. She will be my wife someday." the blonde said while staring adoringly at her girlfriend.
Hannah could only blush and smile.
"Well there you have it folks. Hannah Montana and her girlfriend Lilly Truscott." Mickey said, to round out their segment.
Offstage, Heather turned to Robbie. "Do you think this will make life easier for them?"
Robbie bit the side of his mouth as he contemplated Heather's question. "I guess we'll just have to wait and see." he replied, as the couple started walking back towards the green room to meet up with the rest of the family and get ready to head back to Minnesota to continue the Breakout Tour.
Well, that's where we start...will this make things better? Kind of...sort of...but not really...up next is the bittersweet homecoming...so what'd you think school is going to be like now? Hmmm...that's coming up...and well...I can't give it all away...now can I?
Being Christmas week, may not see the next chapter till after the joyous holiday...have to see how things go. But just in case I don't make it...Merry Christmas to all, may you and yours enjoy all the love the season has to offer. As always, love to read your thoughts and comments. Peace & Love. Jessan