Miley woke up lying in an unfamiliar bed. She opened her eyes fully and looked around. She smiled to her slightly when she realised where she was. She was in Nick's hotel room. He had his arm wrapped securely around her and he was fast asleep.
She gently slipped out of his grasp and crept over to where her phone was charging on the desk. She lifted it and saw that she had five new text messages and three missed calls. She sighed to herself. She always seemed to have texts and missed calls nowadays.
She looked at the texts. One from Demi, two from her employees, one from her mom and one from Joe.
Joe wants to meet you two for lunch today. Don't want to be there but have to for Joe. Be at Lila's at 1. We won't wait long. Don't be late.
Miley sighed. She got that Demi was mad at her for first of all breaking up Nick and Selena's marriage (which technically wasn't true, seeing as Selena tore the marriage apart by demanding a baby) and secondly not listening to Demi when she warned her to stay away from Nick. But why did she have to be such a bitch over it. It wasn't even like any of it was affecting Demi. She was just a bystander in it all.
No longer wanting to think about Demi's spiteful behaviour, Miley moved on to read the other texts. A maid and a waitress were staying off sick. Miley sighed to herself and closed her eyes. Things were already going badly and she had been awake for about five minutes. She then scrolled down to her mom's text message.
Miley, sweetheart, please call me soon. I haven't heard from you in a while and your father and I are worried about you. Even if you're too busy to call us, please just send us a text to let us know you're okay. I love you x
She quickly typed in a message to her mom, telling her she was just busy with some personal things and that she loved her, before sending it and moving on to Joe's message. She wasn't quite sure that she wanted to know what he wanted to say after Demi's reaction, but she decided to read on anyway.
I know everything. Don't worry, I'm not mad at you. I think we all need to sit down and talk about this before it gets out of hand any more than it already has. Meet Demi and I for lunch at Lila's at 1pm today. Hopefully we'll see you there.
She tossed her phone down onto the desk and sank into the chair, a hand over her mouth. She couldn't believe how scarily out of hand the whole situation had gotten. She had never intended anyone to get hurt. She just couldn't stop how she felt for Nick.
"Why now?" she whispered to herself.
"Why now what?"
Miley looked up and saw Nick sitting up in the bed, watching her. He had a worried expression on his face. His hair was messy from his sleep. Even if she was upset, Miley couldn't stop her eyes drifting to Nick's bare chest.
"Nothing," she mumbled.
"It's clearly something."
"It's nothing." Miley turned in her seat, facing away from Nick. "We're going to lunch at Lila's at one," she said softly. She didn't dare mention the fact that Demi would be there, and Selena probably would too if it were down to Joe.
Nick nodded. "With other people or just us?" he asked.
"Joe."
"Is that such a good idea?" he asked, wincing slightly. He really wasn't in the mood for somebody else to tell him that all the drama with Selena was his own fault and that he had dug himself a hole and that his relationship with Miley was destined to fail.
Miley shrugged. "He invited us. It would be rude not to hear him out."
Nick rose from the bed and slowly walked towards Miley. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her up from the chair. He looked into her eyes, searching for some sort of indication of what was wrong with her. He couldn't find any.
"What's the matter?" he whispered.
Miley faked a smile at him. "Nothing. I'm fine."
"Don't lie to me, Mi," he said, his voice still a soft, gentle whisper. He caressed the skin on her hip with his thumb and sighed. "I can't help you if you don't let me in," he said.
Miley paused. "Do you think ..." She sighed and looked down. When she looked up again, her eyes were filled with sadness and despair. "Do you think we've done the right thing in getting together?" she whispered.
Nick watched her, not sure what to say. He couldn't quite believe that she had asked him such a question. He had, after all, ended his marriage to be with her. He had broken his wife's heart to be with her. He had put his whole life on the line, just to be with her.
"Of course we have."
"But what about Selena? What about Demi?" Miley wiped away a stray tear and sighed. "I've lost two people who mean the world to me, and for what? For you? For a boyfriend?" She shook her head. "Not all relationships end well. If we end up being over, what do I do? I will have lost you, Demi, Joe, Selena, everybody."
He smiled down at her and planted a loving kiss on her forehead. "You'll never lose me." He paused. "As for Demi and Joe ... just give them some time to calm down and clear their heads. They'll understand in due course."
"And Selena?"
Nick's face fell slightly at the mention of his wife's name. "Selena has every right to be angry or upset or whatever emotion she may feel right now. Maybe in time she'll move past all this. But right now, I think that both you and me need to give Selena some space and stay far away from her. We shouldn't case any trouble with her," he said.
Miley bit her lip. "That could be a slight problem," she said quietly.
He furrowed his brow, confused. He had no idea what Miley was talking about. "What do you mean?" he asked. He knew Miley would never start something with anyone, never mind Selena after what had happened.
"Well, you know that lunch Joe has invited us to? I think he may have invited Selena," she said. She continued before he could tell her they weren't going. "I think he just wants to sort everything out. We're all supposed to be friends. He just ... I don't think he wants everything to end the way it has."
Nick frowned slightly and sat down in the chair Miley had previously occupied. "I really don't think we should go if Selena's going to be there, Miley. It's hard enough for her to lose her husband, but to have to watch him with the woman he left her for would tear her apart." He looked up at Miley and sighed. "I know you want to fix this all, but we can't. Not yet. We just need to give everybody space to think about everything that's happened lately, you know?"
Miley sighed and walked towards the bathroom. "I refuse to let this get any worse than it already has. We're going to that lunch, Nick. I don't care what you say about giving Demi, Selena and Joe time. I'm not letting them think that I don't want to fix this. I just want this all to be fixed and finished with." Miley reached the bathroom door but didn't turn the handle. She instead stood still at the door, her hand resting on the door knob.
"Mi?" Nick asked softly. He rose from his seat and slowly walked over to where Miley was standing. He placed a gentle hand on her arm and turned her around to face him. When he saw her crying, he immediately wrapped his arms around her tightly.
"I can't lose them, Nick. I just can't," she sobbed.
Nick closed his eyes and rubbed her back soothingly. "I know, Miles, I know," he whispered calmly. He pulled her in closer to his chest, letting her sob onto his bare skin. He opened his eyes and looked down at her. She was a broken wreck.
When she had calmed down, Nick led her over to the bed and sat down beside her. He wrapped an arm over her shoulder and rubbed her arm with his thumb, keeping her calm. She looked up at him desperately.
"We aren't leaving it like this, Nick. I'm not going to stand by and let my friends think that I'm some sort of home-wrecking whore. We're going to that lunch and that's final," she said, standing her ground.
Nick looked down at her and sighed. She really wasn't going to give up on it. "You really want this sorted out today, don't you?" he asked. She nodded. Nick took a deep breath and shrugged. "I guess if you really want to go and see them and talk about all of this, we'll go."
Miley smiled up at him and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Nick," she said quietly. She then rose to her feet and looked around. She pulled off Nick's white v-neck t-shirt and pulled on her jeans and tank top. She slipped on her flip flops and pulled her hair up into a ponytail. "I better get home and get ready."
Nick nodded and rose to his feet. He walked her over to his hotel room door and opened it for her. "I'll pick you up at your house at half twelve, okay?" he asked. She nodded. Nick leaned down and placed a soft, gentle kiss on her lips. "See you then, gorgeous," he whispered.
She smiled up at him and turned on her heel. She started to walk down the hallway to the elevator. She waved over her shoulder. She moved as if she knew he was watching her (which, Nick knew, she probably did), swaying her hips as she walked down the hall.
Nick smiled slightly to himself and closed the door after her. He then realised what he had to do at one o'clock. His smile immediately faded away.
"Do I look okay?"
Miley had asked the exact same question eleven times since she had gotten into Nick's car. She checked her make-up for the fifth time in the fold-down mirror.
Nick sighed. "They won't care how you look today, Mi," he said softly.
She glared at him. "You clearly don't know Demi like I do," she replied.
Nick shook his head, too tired to argue with her. He really didn't feel like sitting down at a table with three people who hated his guts and trying to fix something that, chances were, would never be fully fixed. Miley's nerves didn't help anything. If anything, it had made him even more nervous of facing Selena.
He pulled up outside Lila's and took the keys out of the ignition. Neither of them moved. They just sat in the car in silence, both of them staring straight ahead. The only sound heard was their slow, steady breathing and the birds singing outside.
"Should we go in?"
"I'm scared."
Nick reached over and took Miley's hand in his. He squeezed it and smiled softly at her. In that moment, as he looked at her, he realised. None of what happened in the restaurant would happen later on. All that mattered was that he had Miley. All that mattered was that he was no happy with a woman.
"We'll be fine," he whispered.
Miley took a deep breath and smiled slightly. "We'll be fine," she repeated. She undid her seatbelt and went to open the car door. She glanced at him over her shoulder. "You ready?" she asked, picking up her handbag and placing it on her lap.
Nick nodded and opened his own door. He walked around the car and helped Miley out of the car. He took her hand again and squeezed it. Together, they walked into Lila's. No matter what happened inside, they would be fine.
When they entered, they saw Joe standing by the front door, waiting for them. When he saw them, he stepped forward and put on a smile for them. He gave Miley a hug. He then looked at Nick, not quite sure what to do.
Nick stuck his hand out to shake his brother's hand. Joe smiled and pulled his brother into a hug. It was as though he had realised that being angry wasn't going to bring Nick and Selena back together. Like he had realised that nothing was going to change Nick's mind.
"Hey, little bro," he said.
"Where's Demi?" Nick asked.
Joe hesitated slightly. "At the table." He bit his lip. "With Selena." He sighed. "She's angry, man. Really, really angry. Good luck over there," he said.
Nick nodded stiffly. Joe held out an arm for Miley. Miley slipped her arm around his and let him walk her to the table. Nick walked behind them in silence, deep in thought. Once or twice, Miley glanced back, worried about him.
When they reached the table, there was silence. Nick looked up from the ground and saw Selena and Demi sitting beside each other, glaring up at Miley and Nick.
"Joe, sit down," Demi snapped.
Joe raised his eyebrows at her bossiness, but sat down across from her, too tired to argue over something as petty as sitting down. He looked up at Nick and Miley and smiled at them. He glanced over at Demi and Selena sitting across the table from them and then back at Miley and Nick.
"You guys can sit in here with me," he said.
Miley slipped in beside Joe, her eyes never leaving Demi. Her hand, which was holding Nick's, led him into the booth beside her. Nick got comfortable and sighed. He noticed Selena watching him and drifted his gaze down to the menu in front of him. He really wasn't in the mood for Joe's idea to move past everything that happened.
"So," Demi said coldly. "You two came."
"Mhm."
Selena raised her eyebrows slightly. "I'm surprised," she said to Nick. "I thought you would have been in that little shithole that your little whore calls a house." She leaned back in her seat, proud of her hurtful comment.
"That's enough, Sel," Joe said quietly, glaring at her.
"You know what else I'm surprised about? I'm surprised that this little slut actually had the nerve to come here and even try and explain the fucked up thing she did when there's no excuse for stabbing one of your best friends in the back and sleeping with her husband," Selena snapped.
Miley took a deep breath. "I'm sorry about what happened. And for the record? I never slept with Nick," she said calmly.
Selena scoffed. "Like hell you didn't." Selena leaned forward, smirking slightly. "Don't you find it just a little bit funny that you actually had the nerve to sit there with me in Vegas when in reality you were fucking my husband behind my back?"
Nick slammed his hand down on the table, his jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed at Selena. Everyone jumped in shock. Nick never got angry with anyone.
"Don't you dare talk to her like that," he hissed.
Miley squeezed his other hand under the table. "Nick, it's okay," she whispered.
"No, Miley, it isn't. She can't talk to you like that just because of what's happened." Nick turned to Selena and shook his head. "Do you know why I married you in the first place?" He took her silence as a 'no'. "I married you because of the way you treated others. I married you because you treated everyone the same, no matter what they had or hadn't done." He shook his head. "What happened to that Selena?"
Selena's eyes filled with tears. "Her husband cheated on her with his best friend. Two people who she trusted with her life stabbed her in the back," she whispered.
Nick raised his eyebrows. "Oh, stop the theatrics, Selena. I know you. I'm not falling for your tears." He shook his head. "If you want to start a load of drama with Miley and I, the door is over there," he said calmly.
Selena pursed her lips and sat back in her seat in silence.
Demi glared at Nick. "Don't talk to Selena like that. You're the one that cheated on her. You're the one that tore your marriage apart. You, Nick, are the one that changed everything." She shook her head, her fists clenched. "It's like you don't even regret what you've done to Selena."
"If I could change everything and make it happen differently, I would."
"You mean you never would have married Selena?"
"I never said that."
"But that's what you meant," Selena said quietly.
"I will never regret what happened between us, Selena. You were my life for years. I will never forget what you did for me. But if I could make all of this happen differently, I would change everything that happened," Nick said quietly.
Selena's eyes filled with tears, but this times, the tears were genuine. "Did you ever love me?" she whispered.
Nick reached across to touch Selena's hand but then decided that it would be best not to touch her and pulled back. "Of course I loved you. I would never have married you if I didn't," he said softly.
Selena wiped away her falling tears. "What changed, then? Was I not good enough?" Her eyes widened in horror. "It was the baby, wasn't it? I pushed you too hard with the baby thing and I pushed you away, didn't I?" she asked.
"It wasn't like that," Nick said quietly.
"What was it then?"
Nick tried to stop smiling but he couldn't keep it in. He took Miley's hand again and squeezed it tightly. "I guess I just fell in love with somebody else," he whispered. He looked at Selena again. "Sel, if I could make all of this happen differently, I would."
Demi glared at Miley. "What about you? At least I warned you this would happen. Thing is, you didn't listen to me, did you? You just went on and did it anyway." She shook her head. "I've never been so disappointed in you."
"I can't help how I feel, Demi," Miley whispered quietly.
Demi sighed. "None of us can, can we? But the rest of us manage to get through without screwing our best friend's husband, don't we? We all manage to get through life without screwing up relationships. We all manage to get through without breaking somebody's heart." Demi closes her eyes. "I warned you all of this would happen. I warned you that it would all fall back on you."
"I couldn't stop it. I'm sorry, Demi. I couldn't handle acting like I didn't like him when the truth was that it killed me to not be with him," Miley said.
"Cut the bullshit. There are people who have lived their whole lives without the one they love because the one they love is with somebody else. You just couldn't help yourself, could you?"
"Honestly, no, I couldn't. What was I supposed to do? I was hardly going to hide how I felt just to keep somebody else happy. Do you have any idea how happy he makes me? How much I love him? No, of course you don't. You never even gave me a chance to explain all of this, did you? You just thought it was automatically the wrong thing to do, all because Nick was married. Guess what, Demi? It's nothing to do with you. The only way it would do anything to harm you would be if it had been Joe and not Nick. But it wasn't Joe. It wasn't your boyfriend I fell in love with. I just ... I don't understand why you're so upset with me when you never even gave me a chance to explain all of this," Miley said.
Demi stayed silent. She watched Miley with tears in her eyes. For once in her life, Demi was speechless. It slightly surprised Miley that her words had been powerful enough to make Demi go speechless.
Demi nodded. "Fine. Explain."
"I love him."
"Not good enough."
"I couldn't control how I felt. Nick and I fell in love. I couldn't handle not telling him what was happening with me. We kissed. Neither of us could stop feeling the way we did. I'm sorry it worked out the way it did, but we couldn't control it."
Demi hesitated, then nodded. "We'll talk later," she whispered to Miley.
Miley nodded her head to led Demi know that it was okay with her before looking down at the Diet Coke Joe had ordered for her before had arrived.
Joe cleared his throat and sat up straight in his seat. "Selena? Anything to say to Miley?" he asked.
Selena's eyes narrowed as she watched Miley. Her eyes were filled with such hatred and loathing. Miley never knew that somebody could look at somebody who used to be their best friend with such distaste.
"I have a million and one things I would like to say," Selena said quietly. "None of which I can say, seeing as my husband sees her as God's gift to man." Her voice was so cold and hostile.
"Go ahead," Nick said stiffly. "Don't let me stop you being a bitch."
Demi rolled her eyes. "Oh, will both of you stop being so immature? Selena, say what you have to say and get it over with. It will help you." She glanced at Nick. "And as for you, why don't you try being pleasant for five minutes?"
Nick leaned back in his chair and watched Selena as though he hadn't heard Demi. He watched Selena, waiting for what she was going to say.
Selena was silent for a few moments, then she spoke. "I trusted you. I thought that whatever was going on between you and Nick was innocent." She hesitated. "The day I married him, you came into the back room with me to help me get ready. Do you remember that? I asked you if you had ever had any feelings for Nick. You told me you didn't." Selena narrowed her eyes slightly, examining Miley. "Was that true? Or did you just lie to me?"
"That was years ago, Selena."
"Was it true?" Selena asked through gritted teeth.
Miley closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "It was true at the time, yes," she whispered.
"And when did it become a lie?" Selena asked calmly, her voice cool and quiet as if she was no longer angry. Everyone knew, however, that no matter what way Selena's voice, she would be angry for a long, long time.
"A month or two ago, when you left Nick."
"So I leave and you see that as some sort of green light for fucking my husband, do you?" Selena asked sharply.
"Of course not! It wasn't like that in any way. I have never in my life slept with Nick, and I certainly didn't see you leaving as any indication to go after Nick. It just ... happened. No one planned it," Miley replied.
"Nobody stopped it either though, did they?"
The booth was silent as everyone thought about the point Selena had made. True, no one had planned on Nick and Miley getting together. No one had planned that Nick would cheat on Selena with his best friend. But no one had made that much effort to stop it either. Sure, Nick and Miley had tried to move past it, but they didn't try that hard. Sure, Demi had told Miley to let her feelings go, but she didn't check up or make sure that Miley had definitely given up on Nick. Sure, Joe knew about everything with Nick and Miley, but he didn't tell them to stay apart. No one had ever thought that maybe, just maybe, they could have tried a little bit harder to stop the revealing of the secret being so destructive.
Selena smiled slightly, knowing that she was right. "That's what I thought," she whispered. She got up, ready to leave, and began to walk towards the door.
"Selena, wait!" Demi called.
Selena turned around and face the four in the booth. "For what? For my husband to come back to me? That sure as hell isn't going to happen. He made that pretty clear. Didn't you, Nick? What exactly am I supposed to wait for Demi? My husband's in love with someone else. One of my best friends is with my husband. You and Joe are clearly going to side with them so obviously I'm going to lose you. So tell me, Demi. What am I waiting for exactly?"
Demi stayed silent. She looked down, afraid to meet Selena's gaze.
Selena shook her head. "None of this was ever going to work out. You're his friends, not mine. Nick and I weren't meant to be together. We never were. We just thought we were. I suppose in a way, all of this worked out for the best. But you know what? I'm done. Nick, you can come and get the rest of your stuff whenever you need it. Call first though. I don't want to be there when you do." She turned on her heel. "Goodbye." She then walked across the restaurant and out into the parking lot.
Demi buried her face in her hands. When she looked up, she looked at Nick. "I hope you know badly you've broken her," she whispered.
Nick nodded and sighed, watching as Selena's car pulled away and went down the street. "I know," he whispered back. He turned and looked at Miley. "You ready to go, Mi?" he asked.
"We haven't even eaten yet," said Joe.
Miley shrugged. "It's okay, Joe. I've kind of lost my appetite." She gave Joe a quick hug and smiled at him softly. "I'll call you." She slipped out of the booth with Nick. She glanced at Demi. "Bye, Demi," she said with a slight smile playing on her lips.
Joe and Demi rose from the booth as well. Joe tossed a twenty onto the table to cover their drinks. The four of them walked out into the parking lot. When they reached Nick's car, they all stopped walking, not quite sure how to end things.
"Um, Miley, do you mind if I talk to you for a sec?" Demi asked.
"Oh, eh, sure, Dem," Miley said, glancing at Nick.
He smiled at her, signalling to her that she should go. Miley followed Demi to the door of the restaurant where there was a bench for people waiting for a taxi. They sat in an awkward silence for a moment.
"Look, Miley, I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it."
"I can't not worry about it. I acted like a bitch. You were right, it was none of my business. It wasn't affecting me. I should have just stayed out of it. I just didn't want you to get hurt, you know? You've been my best friend for so long. You've looked after me. You've told me things guys were hiding from me. You looked after me when I was drunk and throwing up in my bathroom. You covered for me that whole summer after Joe and I started going out. I really appreciate all you've done for me. I just wanted to return the favour and look after you for once. I guess I didn't realise that in looking out for you, I was pushing you further and further away. For that, I'm so so sorry. I completely understand if you never forgive me for how I acted it. I just ... I don't even know why I was so angry. I guess I thought that it would all end in tears and I just wanted to protect you from that," Demi said.
Miley smiled and squeezed Demi's hand. "Thank you, but I'm a big girl, Dem. I can look after myself." Miley took a deep breath and smiled again. "I love him, Demi. Maybe it's hard to understand why Nick and I did what we did, but we did it out of love. His marriage was falling apart long before I came along. He and Selena had chemistry, yes, but we could all tell that it was fading by the end of it. I was there for him when he needed me and I guess that just turned into something more. I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. I really did try. I just couldn't not be with him when I felt the way I did." She sighed. "I know I've probably ruined Selena's life, but I hope that some day, she'll understand why all of this happened. If I could change how Nick and I got together, I would. I would make sure that nobody would get hurt. But I can't do that. In the end, somebody is always going to get hurt. I guess that in this case, it just happened to be Selena."
Demi bit her lip. "And you really love him, yeah?"
Miley nodded. "More than anything on this earth, Dem," she whispered.
Demi shrugged. "Then I guess I can't change that." She leaned over and hugged Miley tightly. "I'm so sorry for the way I acted. I never should have treated you the way I did over something as stupid as this. You're my best friend. I should have trusted you and I should have known that you would make the right decision for you," she said.
"It's fine. Seriously, don't worry about it. It's over now." Miley squeezed Demi's hand again. "You're my best friend, Dem. No matter what's happened over the last few weeks, you always have and always will be my best friend. Nothing will ever change that. Not Nick, not Selena, not Joe. Nothing and no one will ever change the fact that you are one of the most amazing people I have ever met."
Demi giggled. "You're not too bad yourself, madam," she teased.
The two girls stood up and walked back to Joe and Nick, arm in arm, skipping over to the cars. Joe and Nick were leaning against Nick's car, talking and laughing about something. When Nick saw Miley coming, his eyes lit up.
Demi noticed the way Nick's eyes and entire face lit up at the sight of Miley and smiled to herself. She stepped over to Nick and gave him a hug.
"Love her more than any man ever has or ever will," she whispered into his ear. She pulled back from the hug and smiled at him. She squeezed his hand to let him know that she was okay with everything and stepped back from him.
"I already do," he said to her.
Demi smiled at him and nodded. "Keep it that way." She turned to Joe. "You ready to go home, Joe?" she asked. She slipped her hand into his and smiled.
Joe smiled and nodded. "Let's get you home, Dem," he said.
As Demi and Joe were walking away, Demi turned around and grinned. "I almost forgot!" she called. "Miles, I'm going shopping next Friday for my wedding dress and for the bridesmaids dresses. Do you want to come?" she asked.
Miley grinned back at Demi. "Wouldn't miss it for the world!" she called back.
Demi smiled and turned around. She and Joe began to walk again towards their car with Joe's arm slung casually over Demi's shoulders and a bright, happy smile on Demi's face. The two got into their car and pulled out of the parking lot, beeping their horn goodbye just as they pulled out.
Nick smiled at Miley and slipped his hand around hers. "At least you have Demi back," he said optimistically.
Miley smiled and nodded. Her face then fell slightly. She sighed. "Now all I have to do is get Selena to understand everything," she said quietly.
Hello :) Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Right, so remember how I said the drama would start in like Chapter 12? It's starting a chapter early. NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE BIG. It shall be awesome ;) Ha, probably not, but it's like going to be the centre of the rest of the story. Tell me what you think will happen :D I'd like to hear what you all think. Don't forget to review this chapter. I was quite proud of it. I personally think it was good to see how much the split affected Selena. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I'd appreciate it if you all reviewed and told me what you all thought ;)
It would also mean a lot to me if you all went over to my new story, That Little Blue Door, and read and reviewed the first chapter. That would mean a lot to me ...
Thanks to nileyxtruexlove, JuuhByMiley, xNileyxBubblesx, xImASmilerx, LaLaLax6, xxIMAGINEPEACExx, skatergurl2789, xmileylovex (Don't worry, she doesn't end up pregnant, haha), RhondaAnn1, TheMsBrandy1, Team M and lovetowrite07 for your reviews on Chapter 9. Much appreciated x