CHAPTER 9

((Thank you for all the death threats…lol…it was quite humorous reading the reviews I received on the last chapter…yes I hadn't planned it that way…but during the last chapter my brain was like…forget the whole new kid thing…make it a plane crash…tragedy indeed…oh always know that Jake and Miley were together and Lily and Oliver may get together…I keep making mistakes and thank you for all who tell me…I'm known for it…if you read my High School Musical story…Promises…there's a scene in one of the chapters that has Troy and Taylor walking around town holding hands when its really Chad and Taylor…or maybe it was Troy and Gabriella…I don't remember which lol…I know…I know…get on with it…some of you are a little anxious…FYI: I OWN NONE OF THE SONGS I USE AND NO HANNAH MONTANA…now that that is settled…TO THE NEXT CHAPTER…read and review…XOXO, CHRISTINE))

12345678

I cant live
If living is without you
I cant live
I cant give anymore
I cant live
If living is without you
I cant give
I cant give anymore

Well I cant forget this evening
Or your face as you were leaving
But I guess thats just the way
The story goes
You always smile but in your eyes
Your sorrow shows
Yes it shows

12345678

All morning Miley watched live coverage of the crash scene, hoping, praying that they would find him, alive. They weren't giving names, yet, of the uncovered bodies, and they weren't notifying families, yet, either, so Miley had no way of knowing. Jake wasn't traveling alone. His father was with him, making it twice as worse for his mother and sister. Both Lily and Oliver joined her at about ten. Oliver's mom had told him about it, and he rushed over to Miley's without even calling, knowing she'd be glued to the T.V.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, throwing his arms around her.

"I'm fine," she said. "He's not dead."

"They found him?!" Jake demanded hopefully.

"Well, no," Miley answered, "but I know he isn't dead. He can't be."

Robbie Ray Stewart looked troubled upon hearing this. "This is what I was afraid of," he whispered to Jackson, "denial. This was how Miley dealt with it after your mom died. It's one of the worst ways to cope."

"What are you going to do about it?" Jackson asked him.

"When Lily and Oliver leave, we'll have a talk about it. I'd rather she mourn uncontrollably, than deny it. Mourning is the first step to healing."

Lily joined Miley and Oliver not long after Oliver's arrival. All day long, the five of them watched T.V. It was continuous coverage of the crash site. Late in the day, they began releasing the names of the identified bodies.

"This is Jennifer Channing," the reporter said, filling up the screen. "We have now been granted permission to announce the names of those we have found, so far. The airport shows that two hundred nine passengers were aboard upon takeoff, plus two pilots and six flight attendants, meaning the total is two hundred seventeen people. We have recovered and identified two hundred and five bodies so far, but more are being recovered as we speak." Ms. Channing began a long speech of names of the confirmed dead in alphabetical order. She came to the R's and Miley's stomach fluttered. "Marjorie Rant, Kiley Renalds, Jacob…" Miley burst into tears. "Renalds," the reporter finished.

"Wha…?" Miley asked. "Not Jake Ryan?"

"Marcus Ribowski," the reporter was now finished with the R's. "Two of the unconfirmed dead are Jacob Ryan and his father Paul Ryan. Their bodies are yet to be found."

"See!" Miley pointed excitedly, "Jake's not dead! He's alive!"

Robbie Ray sighed. Jake was dead. There was no way he survived, and not hearing his name gave Miley false hope. He permitted her to keep watching even though he thought that the news wasn't the best way to hear of his death. "Miles…" he began.

"No, dad," Jackson intervened. "She'll just get angry." Robbie Ray sighed. He hated this, but his daughter was getting false hope, and it would just hurt worse. He listened to Jackson, and held his tongue.

341423643654654785648765765987675674563542375356465476597658764653543437

Robbie Ray pushed to send Miley to school. He wanted it to be as normal as possible for her. And, surprisingly, she agreed.

"There's no reason to watch the news, anymore," she told him, "Jake's not dead." The crash had been sp big that all other news had been forgotten, especially since Jake Ryan was on the plane. He and his dad became even more famous because they were now the only people unaccounted for. The investigators tried figure out why they couldn't find them. They claimed that they may have been burned by the fire, but still, they should have found the bodies. They had filed no survivors even though two people were still missing, reasoning that there was no way anyone could have survived such a horrible deadly thing. Miley was the only person who seemed to think he was alive. She didn't just think so, she was positive.

At school, girls and even some teachers were walking around crying. The teachers were instructed to keep classes strictly on their normal schedules, to act as if nothing was wrong. Amber and Ashley decorated his locker with flowers and love notes saying how much they love him and miss him. Everybody was sullen and depressed, except for Miley, which puzzled many people. She was constantly trying to persuade people that he was alive. They hadn't even found his body. If he was dead, they would have found him.

One day at lunch while Miley was eating, Amber came up to her and stole her sandwich. "How can you eat when your boyfriend is dead?!" she hysterically sobbed. "Have you no heart at all?! You don't seem too sad about it!" Amber and Ashley had willing fully taken a vow of starvation. Both looked forlorn and emaciated.

Miley had been dealing with this for a while now. "I will not believe he is dead until they find and can be one hundred percent sure him dead," Miley calmly replied, grabbing her sandwich back. Amber fled, bursting into tears. Miley rolled her eyes. "He was my boyfriend, not hers." She listened to the "was" she just said in horror. She said it as if he was really dead. She too fled into tears and fled to the bathroom.

Later in the day, Miley was called into the counselor's office for a talk. "Now, Miley, I hear you are trying to convince everyone he is still alive," the counselor said. "I know that you are having a hard time accepting it, but acceptance is the first step on the road to recovery. The longer you deny it, the harder time you'll have healing your heart."

"Why does everyone believe he is dead?" Miley asked annoyed. "He's not dead! If he was dead, they would have found his body! If he was dead, his name would have been on the list of confirmed dead! If he was dead, there would be a funeral! If he was dead, it would be all over the news! If he was dead, there would no longer be an investigation! If he was dead, there wouldn't be search parties searching for him twenty-four hours a day! If he was dead, my heart would feel it!" She stormed out of the office.

((I hope you liked it…and I hope it doesn't make you cry…I should update again hopefully tonight…but I probably won't be able to tomorrow…but possibly again the next day…reviews please…XOXO, CHRISTINE))