A/N: Hi everyone! I'm back! And as you can see, I am indeed continuing this story! WOOOT! So I'm really sorry about the lack of update - I've had writers block and no time to get through it. You see, I've just Graduated last week! DOUBLE WOOOT! And I've been working for the past two weeks, so my time has been limited. But no fear! Chapter 5 is already half way finished, so it won't be too long before I update again! TRIPLE WOOOT!
AAAAAAAND I have some AMAZING news! I GOT 23 REVIEWS FOR CHAPTER 3!! 23!! Can anyone say QUADRUPLE WOOOT! Holy crap, you have no idea how awesome it felt to get all those reviews in my mailbox :) Now, two last things before I let you read the actual story.
One: many people commented on Jake's "violence" in the last chapter. I didn't mean to freak you guys out or anything - Jake's just a bit aggressive in this story. He doesn't beat people or anything, he just doesn't know how to control himself. You guys will get what I mean later on in this chapter. Also, someone said something about him breaking the mirror in the last chapter? He never broke the mirror - the mirrors in dance studios are really strong (I'm talking freakin' ridiculously strong) and act pretty much the same as walls. Just thought I should clear that up.
Two: There's a rumor going around that Hannah Montana Fanfiction awards are going to be set up, like the ones they have for Harry Potter Fanfiction. Supposedly it goes for any Hannah Montana pairing and there'll be a lot of different categories for entries. So, spread the word around (either on your stories or profiles or whatever the hell you want) and start thinking of stories you want to nominate! That is all. Enjoy!
A few days had passed since Miley had last seen Jake Ryan in the Birchmont Dance Studio and she was glad for the break. Things were sure to be awkward between them after that night and she wasn't sure how she'd act around him during their next rehearsal. Luckily, it would be another few days before that happened due to Jake's latest Zombie High episode, which was filming in Boston.
Sighing, Miley flipped through the channels on her television, sinking deeper into the couch to get more comfortable. Landing on one of Jake's old movies, she couldn't help but remember the lust in his eyes when he looked at her during their last encounter, causing a red flush to grace her cheeks. She smiled slightly at the memory of his very pretty sea-green eyes, the flecks of gray glinting brightly as they stared hard into her own. Her smile faded, however, when she remembered the rest of that night; how she walked out of the studio with tears in her eyes – the one time she allowed anyone to see her vulnerable.
Not wanting to look at his face anymore, Miley quickly flipped the channel, landing on the Discovery Channel. Laughing at the silly antics of Mike Rowe, she quickly forgot about Jake Ryan and lost herself in the television before heading upstairs to take an afternoon snooze.
After a few hours, Miley clambered down the stairs and into the kitchen for a snack. Grabbing an apple off the counter and taking a bite, she began heading back to her room when she glanced out the window. Noticing the nice weather, she decided to take a walk on the beach and headed toward the front door. Slipping on her shoes, she opened the door and cursed when she nearly tripped over something. Grasping onto the door frame to keep steady, she looked down to see a bouquet of white daisies lying innocently on the ground. Glancing around, she picked up the flowers and inhaled the sweet scent, wrinkling her nose when it came in contact with rough cardboard. Plucking out the thick card, her eyes softened slightly at the elegant black writing.
'Miley,
I'm sorry for what I said to you about your mom. It was rude and immature to bring your family into a fight and I hope you'll accept these flowers as an apology; they match the ones on your mom's grave which, by the way, is very pretty. I know what you're thinking and no, this is not a prank. I just want to get things back to normal and not have things be too weird between us. I fully expect an insult when I get back.
I really am sorry.
Jake Ryan
P.S: Don't throw this card away – my autograph is worth millions.'
Miley rolled her eyes and chuckled lightly at his ego. Would he ever realize that the world actually didn't revolve around him? She snorted as she realized he probably wouldn't. Shaking her head, she re-entered the house and went into the kitchen, pulling a vase from the cabinet and filling it with water. Carefully placing the flowers inside, she turned off the sink and put the vase on the counter before leaving the house to finish her walk. As she reached the door, she glanced back at the daisies one last time and smiled softly, turned off the lights, and closed the door.
Maybe Jake Ryan wasn't so horrible after all.
--
Checking his watch as he pulled into the Birchmont Studio's parking lot, Jake sighed heavily and turned off his car. He was early for rehearsal, and seeing as how it was currently eight thirty in the morning, he was seriously pissed off. Resting his head against the back of his seat, he closed his eyes and attempted to catch a few extra minutes of much needed sleep.
For the past week he hadn't been able to stop thinking about Miley and the wounded look on her face the night he had royally screwed up. He was tired of looking at her large, glassy blue eyes in his dreams and his guilt was giving him a continuous headache. He really hadn't meant to go so far that night, it was just…something about Miley always made him lose his cool and he, for the life of him, couldn't figure out why. She got under his skin like no one else and he hated her for making him feel so inferior and powerless. Did she know just how hurtful her sharp tongue could be? Sure, he'd grown a protective armor against her insults now, but when their rivalry first started, his self esteem had been stabbed so many times that it looked like swiss cheese.
Although he knew what he did was wrong, he couldn't help but feel even the tiniest bit of justification. It was only fair that she finally felt like he did, right? Jake shook his head angrily and looked into the rearview mirror.
"No. Bringing her mom into our fight cannot, in any way, be justified. It was totally and completely wrong and I hate that there's still a part of me that doesn't feel remorse for what I did."
Disgusted with himself, he looked away from the mirror and, deciding that he needed a distraction from his thoughts, he flung open the car door and stalked into the building. As he opened the door, his ears were assaulted with the sound of a slow melody and, curious, followed the music. He recognized the song to be 'Breathe' by Paramore, a band he'd heard a few times on the radio, and looked inside the dance studio to see Miley dancing gracefully to it.
He watched, mesmerized, as her body moved elegantly across the floor, her arms stretched out wide as she reached toward the heavens. She twirled and glided on light feet, the music flowing through her soul and exiting through her beautiful dancing. Jake stared at her as she moved, unable to believe that this was the same girl that he referred to as 'The Biggest Bitch in the World'. For some reason, the only word that came to mind as he watched her was 'stunning', an ethereal glow emanating from her slim form causing him to suddenly forget everything else.
As she spun once more, Miley caught sight of him in the mirror and, startled, stumbled slightly. Catching herself, she quickly turned off the music and turned to him, wide-eyed and embarrassed. She cleared her voice nervously.
"What are you doing here?" Still unable to hold her gaze from shame, he looked down at the cracks of the wooden floor.
"I'm early for rehearsal. I didn't mean to intrude – I heard music playing and I was curious, that's all." A bit unnerved at his shyness, she elegantly raised an eyebrow.
"You? Early? As if, Ratface." Smiling slightly at the feeling of normalcy that washed over him, he chanced looking at her and was relieved to see some of the old Miley back.
"It's true, believe it or not. It's alright though – I'm handsome enough to allow a few hours of beauty sleep to escape." Miley barked out a laugh at his arrogance, glad that things were slowly going back to normal between them.
"Please, you need all the beauty sleep you can get." Jake smirked, but it soon disappeared as he approached her.
"Miley, about that night–" Miley shook her head and cut him off before he could continue.
"Jake, don't. I've already gotten over it – you should too. I got your flowers," Miley's cheeks turned pink, "which were beautiful, by the way," Jake's eyes sparkled in glee, "and I read the card that came with it. It was very nice of you. And, and I want to thank you for the one's on my mom's gr–"
"Hey, you don't have to thank me. It was on the way home and I owed it to you and your mom." She searched his eyes for sincerity, once again noticing the flecks of gray within the sea-green orbs, and smiled softly at him when she found honesty staring back at her. He smiled at her as well.
"So, are we ok now?" She looked up at him, still smiling softly.
"No, but I'm sure we will be soon."
His lip curled up slightly in the form of a small smile and just as he was about to say something, Ms. Jovanovich entered the studio with two costumes in hand. She grinned upon seeing them and quickly put down her dance bag. Approaching the teens, she handed each of them an outfit.
"Alright. Your video is next week, so today we will be rehearsing in something other than dance clothes to prepare you."
Jake glanced down at the slacks and dress shirt in his hands, hoping that dancing in them wouldn't be too different than dancing in sweatpants. He looked over to see Miley observing her own outfit – a pretty, blue dress that hung elegantly on the hanger. Ms. Jovanovich also pulled out a pair of matching heels and handed them to Miley, telling her to go change. As she left, Ms. Jovanovich handed Jake a pair of black leather shoes and he too left to change.
--
Lacing up his shoes, Jake heard the soft 'click' of the door opening and he looked up to see Miley enter the studio. He stared at her, unable to take his eyes off of the alluring dress she was wearing. He swallowed as his eyes roamed her body, taking in the graceful curve of her shoulders and the gentle sway of her hips. Her dress clung to her perfectly, the straps slightly off shoulder and the bodice outlining every curve of her torso before flowing naturally at the waist. The neckline dipped down, showing just a hint of her well-defined cleavage, and her heels made her legs seem miles long.
When she caught him staring, he quickly looked away and finished tying his shoes before standing up. Taking the opportunity, Miley looked over Jake, her mouth running dry. The shirt fit him perfectly, tracing every contour of his body without revealing too much. She breathed deeply when he stretched, the muscles in his back flexing unknowingly, and she quickly looked away before she made a fool of herself.
Clapping her hands, Ms. Jovanovich pulled them into position and a simple melody began playing through the studio's speakers. The two began to dance; the tension slipping away slowly until there was none left. It was just him and her, dancing gracefully to the music around them. Wanting to say something, Jake swallowed the lump in his throat and looked down at Miley.
"That dress is really beautiful." Surprised, she looked up at him.
"Do you think so?" Jake nodded in approval, stuttering slightly.
"Yes. I mean, it was nice on the hanger, but, it looks even better on you," He spun her gently, unaware of what was flowing from his lips. "You should… you should wear it." Miley raised an eyebrow, looking pointedly at him.
"I am wearing it." Shaking his head at his stupidity, he tried to explain himself.
"Oh, ha, right…of course, of course you are…I'm- I'm just trying to give you a…" He trailed off, unsure how to explain. Miley looked up at him through her lashes, trying to figure out what he was feeling.
"Compliment?" As Jake looked down into the eyes of his beautiful partner, he lost all coherent thought and didn't bother trying to regain it.
"Of course…yes…"
Eyes locked, the two danced and danced, gliding around the room unaware of anything but each other. He twirled and spun her, letting his feet guide him instead of his mind for once. She forgot about their past and their hostility; right now it was just Jake and Miley dancing and she was perfectly alright with that. Neither noticed Ms. Jovanovich watching on with pride, still unable to believe that they had finally achieved what she'd been teaching them for the past few weeks. She knew there was something between them that couldn't be explained; chemistry that even they didn't know of.
The world was spinning as they danced, their gazes still locked on each other. Miley felt like she was floating on air – her heart light and her mind soaring. Everything was twisting and turning, yet Jake looked perfectly clear. She didn't dare look away from the intense gaze she shared with him as she spoke.
"I'm feeling a little…dizzy." Although concerned, Jake continued their dance as he looked deeply into her eyes, his feet still moving on their own accord.
"Kind of light headed?" She nodded, eyes still unable to look away.
"Yeah…" Jake smiled slightly, glad that he wasn't the only one feeling that way.
"Me too…probably from spinning." They slowed to a stop, hands still intertwined and gazes still locked. "…Maybe we should stop," he whispered softly.
"We have stopped," she whispered back, trying to understand why her stomach was suddenly fluttering.
Jake's eyes widened as he realized that they had indeed stopped, yet the world was still spinning. They widened even more as he realized that she was the reason why the world was spinning. This beautiful girl was evoking feelings within him that he'd never even thought existed and good lord, she was making his world spin. Looking down into her ocean-coloured eyes, he breathed huskily, his warm breath caressing her face.
"Miley, I…" his voice escaped him, unable to finish the words he wanted to say.
"Yes?" she whispered breathlessly, hoping for something she couldn't explain.
She watched as he slowly leaned down, his striking sea-green eyes leaving her even more breathless than she already was. His golden hair framed his handsome face like a halo, causing her knees to go weak. Her eyes fluttered close as he leaned closer, his warm breath brushing against her cheeks. She tilted her head up slightly, preparing for something she couldn't understand. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest, threatening to break free any second.
Jake's watched her close her eyes, waiting for him to make the final stretch. Closing his own eyes, he leaned closer to her, noses almost touching. He couldn't believe that he was going to kiss this girl, who was his worst rival. He stopped himself just as his lips were about to connect with hers, wondering whether this was a good idea or not. Hovering above her, he realized that this kiss would be a terrible mistake and would make things even more weird and awkward between them than they already were. They'd just recently gotten back to normalcy – why was he going to ruin that just to get a few moments of pleasure?
Stepping back from her, he opened his eyes and looked at the floor, unable to look at her without feeling guilty.
"I have to go."
Miley's eyes blinked open slowly in confusion, looking at him with wide eyes as he sprinted from the studio. Mortified at leaving herself vulnerable again, she avoided Ms. Jovanovich's sympathetic stare, packed up her things, and ran out of the studio.
