"Miley I-"

"Don't talk. Just drive."

It had been 2 days. Two days since he slapped me and it still stung. Not my cheek, but me, I stung, emotionally. How could he have done that? I mean, I know I'm probably not his favorite person, but that doesn't mean he has to go and hit me like he did. This guy had issues.

"Miley listen-"

"I don't wanna hear your empty apology."

"I was just gonna say that my grandparents live around here and I was hoping we could stop and see them."

"Oh so now you don't wanna apologize for something you did that was clearly wrong?" he sighed loudly and I rolled my eyes.

"We're stopping there. We can both have our own clean rooms, and nice home cooked food alright?" I shrugged.

"Whatever." I heard him sigh again. Hey, you can't just hit me and then make me forgive you so quickly. I turned up the Sirius, which was now set on the 20 on 20s channel.

We drove for about 3 more hours before turning onto a dirt road. We drove up to a large white farmhouse. Nick shut off the car and turned to me.

"Please don't mention anything about-"

"Don't worry. I won't, Don't want your grandparents thinking your some kind of monster now would we?" still really cold.

"Miley I'm really-"

"Sorry. I've heard those words before and they mean less to you than I do. Lets just go." he sighed and got out. I went to open my door but he opened it first. He shut it once I got out and went to the trunk and grabbed the bags. I went to get mine from him but he softly pulled away and started walking up to the front. I followed in step with my fuzzy blanket wrapped around me. He knocked on the door and a few seconds later an older woman, probably in her mid-70s, answered the door. She was wearing a blue sweater with a horse on it and gray sweatpants. Her shoulder length gray hair stuck to her hear and her dark blue glasses sat on a chain around her neck.

"Nicholas dear!" she kissed his cheek and he smiled, first time I'd seen him smile since we met.

"Hey Nana." he kissed her cheek and put the bags down to hug her. When she put her head on his shoulder, she looked at me and pulled away.

"Oh I see you finally got yourself a girlfriend!" Nick chuckled and looked back at me quickly.

"Shes not my girlfriend. Just a client." his grandmothers face fell a little, but then brightened back up.

"Hello, I'm Genie." she sent me a warm smile and stuck her hand out for me to shake. I gladly accepted it and smiled back.

"I'm Miley." she smiled approvingly.

"Such a beautiful name for a beautiful girl." I blushed.

"Nana, we haven't slept in real beds for almost a week, can we crash here tonight?" You could hear the exhaustion in his voice. Hey, motel beds and car seats aren't that comfy. Genie smiled.

"Nickypoo your always welcome here! Come in, come in!" I snickered quietly as she opened the door wider and waver her hand for us to enter. Nick looked back at me a glared at me. I just gave him that "you know what you did so you can't yell at me" look. He sighed, defeated, and turned back around, grabbed the bags, and walked in, me following.

"I've got to go feed Richard, but you know where the rooms are." Nick nodded. Who's Richard?

He led me upstairs and showed me my room, which was down a narrow hallway. He opened the door showing me a pale pink, pale yellow, and white room. It was decently sized with old style furniture. It was extremely elegant and classy, like something you would see in an older persons home, but it had a little bit of a modern twist with the flat screen and the art on the wall. I smiled.

"Thanks." I said sort of harshly…I tried to take my bag from him, but he walked up to the bed and set it down, just to walk back to me.

"Bathrooms through there," he muttered, pointing to a door on our right, "and my rooms across the hall." I nodded. Nick looked hopefully at me, like a lost puppy who finally thought he found his owner, and I just brushed right past him to my bag. Nick sighed and walked out of the room. As soon as he was gone, I laid down on my bed and cried. I hadn't been alone since the trip begun and now I could finally cry my guts out alone and as loud as I wanted.

I don't know how long I had been crying but I guess I had fallen asleep because next thing I know, someone is shaking my shoulder.

"Miley, wake up…" Nick whispered. I opened my eyes and quickly jerked away from him to the other side of the bed. He sighed.

"Dinners ready…" I nodded but he didn't get up.

"Please, can we talk? I hate the fact that your scared of me, you shouldn't be." I scoffed and shook my head as tears threatened to fall again.

"You've been crying and your about to start crying again. Please let me make it better Miley." he reached out to touch my hand but I pulled it back quickly. He looked down, sad, and sighed.

"Let me know when you want to listen, because I have a lot to say." he said desperately as I got up from my bed and turned to go into my bathroom.

"Please Miley, you don't know what I'm going to say and I'd really like to say it to you." I slammed the bathroom door and stayed in until I heard the bedroom door close. I sighed and wiped away potential tears, then looked in the mirror and sighed.

I went back into my room and put on a little make up to hide my puffy face. I took of my day old clothes and threw on a loose, red boyfriend hoodie and a pair of black skinny sweats with gray argyle socks. I ran a brush through my hair and went downstairs. I saw Genie and Nick sitting at the table waiting. I smiled politely.

"You didn't have to wait for me." I sat down at the small table made for four.

"Oh but Nick insisted. He always was a charmer." I held back a laugh. Yeah he's a charmer, if charmer meant abusive bastard.

"Yeah what a…charmer." Genie smiled.

"So he said you made us a home cooked meal…" Genie nodded, got up, and walked into the kitchen. She brought out a huge glass tub of homemade chicken noodle casserole. I gasped.

"Yes!" Genie laughed and nodded at Nick, who was smiling like an idiot.

"He said it was your fav, and called ahead to tell me to make it." I raised my eyebrows and looked at Nick.

"How did you-"

"File." I shaped my mouth into an "o" and nodded, looking down.

Genie gave me and Nick both huge servings and gave herself a normal sized serving. I dug in while Nick just sort of picked at his and Genie watched with a proud smile. I looked up at her.

"Fwat?" I said smiling with my mouth full of casserole.

"Nick has told me so much about you, I'm so shocked your even-"

"Nana…" Nick had a warning tone, pleading her not to say whatever it is she was going to say.

"I'm sorry Nicholas, it's just-"

"Nothing. It's just nothing." Genie sighed and looked at her grandson then back at me, then at both of us.

"I'm gonna go watch ER with Richard. Feel free to have as much as you'd like." I smiled and kept eating. She made a mean casserole. I looked at Nick whose brown orbs were burning a hole in me. I raised my eyebrows, questioning him.

"You look cute when you stuff your face." That was surprising. I swallowed my casserole.

"Thanks." he smiled at me, a small smile but it was still a smile. About 15 minutes, and two servings later, I turned to Nick.

"Nick?" his head snapped up. That was the first time I had talked to him and not responded to him.

"Yea?" he looked eager to know what I was going to say.

"I'm ready to listen."