Chapter 4

"Are you okay?" Demi asked Miley when they were alone at their room.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Miley replied.

"He seemed pretty angry."

"Nothing up-normal." Miley gave a nervous chuckle.

"Alright, then." She said sensing that her cousin didn't want to talk about it.

"Denise talked to me." Miley said as Demi frowned looking at her, "She was saying my father should know this isn't my fault, and I kinda blew at her." Miley said as Demi looked at her waiting for a further explanation which Miley gave her by telling her what she said.

"Well, you're right, I don't like her or her boys; they seem evil to me." Demi said annoyed.

"Why?" Miley asked her with a confused smile.

"I don't know, when you just look at them, they seem deep and um… just evil." Demi shrugged making Miley laugh.

"Come on, Joe's funny; and the other day when I called dad and was crying, he heard me and came to see what was wrong."

"Joe did that? Good to see he has some feelings." She said with a sarcastic eye roll.

"He actually did. Maybe you just misunderstand him."

"I doubt. Anyway, you never told me the reason you cried though."

"Well, it was just everything, dad being his normal self, grandpa, and well this new situation, and the fact that my best friend and me are drifting away."

"Seems like your life is so messed up." She said with sympathy.

"You have no idea, but I'm over it all now and well, I'm thinking that fate is giving me this chance to be away from everything for a while."

"You're right, and if it make you feel any better, my life isn't that perfect too." She said as Miley waited for her to continue and open up like she did, but Demi never did.

The two girls looked at each other confused as they heard a knock on the door, who'd come to their room?

"Come in?" Miley called.

The door cracked open and a tall figure entered from the shadows of the hell as they soon recognized it in the room light as Danielle who was smiling widely at them.

"Um, I thought that since you left right after dinner that I should come and get you some of the dessert. You missed it." She said handing them two pieces of chocolate cake.

"Oh, thank you." Demi smiled widely at her.

"Oh, and your parents are leaving now, in case you wanted to say goodbye." She informed as Demi nodded and put her plate aside to go say goodbye to her mother while Miley sighed and took the plat from Danielle.

"Thanks, you're too nice."

"We're basically family." She gave her a smile as Miley nodded and mimicked Demi's action and went downstairs with Danielle.

"Bye, dad." She kissed her dad's cheek as he looked at her and just nodded.

"Um, take care of yourself." He told her which probably was the only fatherly thing he ever told her.

"I'll." She said and he nodded again turning around to be the first of his siblings to leave.

Miley looked around to see everyone was involved in a conversation with their parents, she saw Denise whispering with her sons as Joe occasionally looked at her; by now she realized they were close enough to keep each other fed up with what's happening, she was almost sure that Joe was the one who gave her the idea of her dad ignoring them.

Richard and his kids weren't having this kind of relationship though, by the look of it, Selena was pretty much a daddy's girl, while Taylor seemed to be the total opposite, still the two sisters were close. And Liam, well, Liam was more like Selena, you can hardly find something they like, they were hard to impress. They were so full of themselves and didn't like the idea of being compared to someone.

Justin, Jack's son, he was quiet, and maybe shy more like his father. He hardly spoke since they arrived. It's a miracle that he survived the night with Liam in the same room as him, seeing that their personalities are way too different, he probably was driving him insane during the night.

Finally, Demi, well, Demi was sweet, kind and outgoing, the few hours she spent with Miley made them both realize they have some things in common, but she was mysterious, Miley knew she was hiding something, it's not like she expected her to tell her everything about her, but she seemed to be not telling anything at all. Demi and her mother also seemed close, after all, Demi's mother was young, and she could sure understand her daughter. And to Miley, they seemed like they're best friends.

As for Miley, well, we already got a glimpse of her relationship with her father, and in reality, he was the reason of it all, and he knew it, he knew he was hiding from his problems, he knew he was too afraid to be like what his own family turned to. And that's why he never got close to them.

"I'm going shopping tomorrow, are you coming?" Selena looked at her sister after all the parents were gone and they were all heading upstairs.

"Tomorrow? Sel, you just went two days ago and you got heaps of things." Taylor frowned.

"So? I want to buy a few more things."

"Like what? You have everything." Liam smirked at her.

"Shut it. It's not your business."

"She's going all daddy's princess again." He rolled his eyes playfully as she stuck her tongue out at him.

"So, you're coming or not?" she turned to her sister again.

"No,"

"Thought so." Selena shrugged and walked away.

"Dad is spoiling her." Taylor said to her brother.

"Yes, he is." He nodded as Taylor looked at him and gave a laugh, "What?"

"Nothing, but sometimes you're like her."

"Huh?"

"Never mind." She told him shaking her head and following her sister.

"Acting like Ms. Perfect." He rolled his eyes at her.

"She's nicer than you at least." Justin mumbled but Liam didn't hear him.

XxXx

"Come in." Albert called out when he heard a knock on the door.

"Hey, what are you doing?" he looked up to see Taylor with her blond locks smiling at him as she closed the door behind her.

"Looking over old photos."

"Can I join?" she asked walking over to him as she sat down next him.

"Sure." He said and moved the photo album in between them so she has a better look.

"Wait is that me?" she asked looking at a younger version of herself along with her sister, Miley and Demi all hugging each other and looking at the camera while laughing.

"Yes, dear, look how innocent the four of you looked." He smiled tracing his finger on the photo.

"Yeah, we were." She sighed.

"Don't you miss those days?"

"Of course I do." She looked at him, "But, it's not like I can't live without them, grandpa, I moved on."

"Tell me truthfully, have you ever had friends as close as your cousins when you were young?"

"Actually, no. I mean, I do have friends, but never had I played freely like I played with them. And now, I can't tell you about talking to them because back then we only cared about playing." She told him.

"Then, why don't you try and refresh your friendship?"

"It's kinda too late. It's hard to catch up with them after fifteen years of no talking at all." She shook her head.

"Why not pretend for a while that you don't know each other? Why don't you do like Miley and Demi? They started talking instantly when they arrived, and look at them, they actually sound like friends."

"But, I'm sure they're not telling each other everything."

"You don't have to tell everyone everything, Tay."

"But…"

"Is there's something keeping you away from them? Are you like afraid of your father?"

"Father? Ha, of course not."

"What is it then?"

"It's… nothing."

"Then promise me to try?" he asked her as she looked at him then down at the photo before nodding.

"I'll try." She told him and he smiled kissing her forehead as they looked back at the photos. "Is that Nick?" she exclaimed trying not to laugh at the photo of him having a big piece of a cake on his hand gazing at it wondering how he could put it all in one mouth.

"Yeah, it was his third birthday." He chuckled.

And like that, they stayed there looking at the pictures for a while laughing at the memories, and her grandfather stopped flipping the pages occasionally to tell her the story of the picture. It seemed like he never runs out of stories as he kept telling her things she didn't remember of her own childhood.

"Haven't you had any touch with any of them during those fifteen years?" he asked her as her head snapped towards him and shook her head.

"No, why would you ask that?"

"Just asking. Taylor, if you ever needed to talk, I'm here. And when I'm gone, I know your cousins will be there, just choose the kindest and talk to."

"I'll remember that, grandpa." She promised and hugged him tightly feeling slightly guilty about lying. But, it's not like she wants to ever remember that again, but maybe if she told her grandpa he could help her? It's not like she has someone else to tell anyway, "Well, I want to tell you something." She sighed pulling away with tears forming in her blue orbs.

"Go ahead, dear." He held her hand comfortingly as she nodded and took a deep breath before starting her story.

XxXx

"Ugh, why do I keep doing this?" Joe exclaimed walking in his and Nick's room.

"What did you do this time? Did any of them talked to you?"

"No, it's another one this time." He said and Nick looked at him from his spot on his bed with a confused expression. "Miley, sh-"

"What? You talked to Miley too?"

"No, but she hates me-"

"Do you think they told her?"

"Stop interrupting me and hear me out."

"Sorry."

"Just her looks at me, Nick, she's smart enough to know I'm the one that caused her more trouble with her dad."

"So, you're just amusing she hates you?"

"Her looks are almost killing me." He exclaimed, "I guess she figured I told mom yesterday when we were talking to her."

"Yeah, it was kinda obvious." Nick shrugged.

"You're not helping."

"I don't get why you care so much… it's not like you're going to be stuck around them forever. Just bear with it for now and it'll be over when we leave."

"I don't want them hating me, Nick. You know they were good friends and I don't wanna lose them."

"You were only friends with the other two, forget Miley." He shrugged.

"I talked to her too."

"Huh?" he looked at him surprised.

"You know, I talked with her a couple of times or so. But it was years back."

"God, Joe, do I have to find everything by chance?"

"Sorry, dude, but it wasn't that big of a deal to remember it… not like as it was with-"

"GRANDPA." A scream was loudly heard echoing through the walls of the huge house making all the inhabitants of the house freeze in their places fearing to move so they'd find something bad.

"Oh, God." Nick said after a while of just staring at the door as he stood up and rushed out the door to his grandfather's room crossing his fingers it wasn't what it seemed.