"You invited her?"
Demi sighed at Selena. "Sel, she's been my best friend since I was a kid. I can't not invite her. Anyway, she's one of the bridesmaids. She needs to get her dress for the wedding," she said softly.
"You seem to forget that she's the reason my marriage fell apart," Selena hissed. She buried her face in her hands. "I thought I made it clear that I never want to see either of them again. If she's coming then I'm not, Demi."
"Don't make me choose between you two. You know that it will always be Miley."
Selena stood up. "I guess I won't be coming with you to get your dress then, will I?" She went to walk out of Demi's apartment, but turned around. "I thought you were on my side? Days ago you were telling me that you thought that they had been so stupid and that Nick didn't know what he lost. You told me that you agreed that Miley didn't deserve him."
Demi sighed. "Don't twist my words, Selena. I told you that I was angry at them too. I told you that I thought that they had been stupid to let it get this far. I never said Miley didn't deserve him," she said. She hesitated, then continued. "You weren't around in high school, so I understand how you don't see what Nick and Miley have. But when we were growing up, everyone saw it. He was her first everything. Her first friend, her first kiss, her first -" Demi stopped herself and looked away.
Selena's eyes widened in horror. "No. They didn't. He told me he didn't sleep with anybody before we got married," she whispered.
Demi shrugged. "Neither of them wanted to remember it. It was at the start of senior year. They both got drunk at a house party and I guess it just happened." She sighed again. "Sel, Nick and Miley have spent their whole lives together. Nothing major has happened to one of them without the other being by their side. Personally, I don't think you should be so shocked that it happened. Everyone saw it coming for years. When he married you ... I guess even his parents were shocked that it wasn't Miley he was marrying. His mom, the one person who knows him better than anyone, was surprised that he proposed to you when he had always had so much chemistry with Miley." Demi shook her head. "I'm sorry that things happened the way they did, Selena, but what were they supposed to do? Everyone except Nick and Miley themselves has known for years that Nick's been in love with Miley. Maybe the way they got together wasn't exactly the best way for it to happen, but think about it this way. Would you rather your husband be with a woman he loves or spend the rest of his life with a woman who he thinks he love?"
Selena narrowed her eyes. "I can't believe I'm hearing this."
"Answer the question."
"Frankly, if it meant I still had my husband, I'd rather he spend his life with a woman who he thinks he loves, if that woman is me." Selena shook her head. "Demi, Nick and Miley had their chance. He would never have married me in the first place if he didn't love you."
"Would you rather spend the rest of your life with him, always coming second best to Miley?" Demi asked.
"That isn't fair," Selena whispered.
"Really? I think it's perfectly fair to ask such a question. You want him to spend the rest of his life with you. Fair enough, you married him. But would you rather be married to a man who's unhappy all the time because he never married the woman he was truly in love with, or would you rather wait and find someone who loves you and only you?" Demi said.
"Nick loved me. He only loved me."
"You can tell yourself that all you want, sweetie, but you know more than anybody that it isn't true. You know he's always felt something for Miley." Demi hesitated. "Sel, I'm not saying any of this to hurt your feelings. I'm trying to tell you that how ever upset you are, there's little reason to be. Sure, you should be upset that they went behind your back. I'd be surprised if you weren't. But really, Selena, you shouldn't be shocked that they ended up together." She stood up and walked over to the shelves against the far wall.
"What are you doing?" Selena asked.
"I need to show you something," Demi said softly. She pulled a box off the shelf and carried it over. She set it down on the coffee table and took the lid off the box.
Inside the box were everything from disks to pictures to old movie tickets and receipts.
"What is this?" Selena asked.
Demi smiled slightly as she ran her finger across a picture. "This," she whispered. "is Joe's and mine. It's our memory box from when were growing up." Demi lifted a picture and handed it to Selena. "See that picture?" Selena nodded. "Do you know where that was taken?"
Selena looked up. "Sure I do. That's Nick's parents' back yard."
Demi nodded. "And do you see who's in that picture?"
Selena stayed silent for a moment. When she spoke, her voice was soft and fragile. "Nick and Miley."
Demi nodded again. "That was Nick's ninth birthday party." She smiled to herself. "That was the day Joe fell out of their treehouse and broke his arm." She sighed. "What I'm trying to say, Selena, is that, even at nine years old, Miley was the centre of Nick's entire existence. Even then, she was his whole life." She pointed at the picture. "See how he's looking at her? Even at nine years old, he was in love with her."
Selena threw the picture down of the coffee table. "They were nine then. They didn't know what love was." She laughed humourlessly. "He never loved her. He married me. He loved me."
Demi smiled at her friend sympathetically. "Honey, you can tell yourself that all you want, but telling yourself he loved you more than he loved her will drive you insane. If you keep talking like that, you'll wonder what you did wrong and what you could have done to save your marriage. The truth is, Sel, your marriage was breaking before Miley even came into the picture." She took another picture. "See this one? This was our high school prom. Miley went with Jake, Nick went with Macy." She smiled slightly. "Even though they both had dates, they spent most of the night together. She told me that she wasn't going to spend one of the most memorable nights of her life away from her best friend." Demi looked up at Selena and smiled. "I know you're angry about everything that's happened over the last few days, but look at the two of them in that picture. He loved her from the very first day he saw her. Maybe he didn't realise it until now, but everyone else did."
"He doesn't love her," Selena said through gritted teeth.
Demi took a disk from the box and walked over to the television. She put the disk in the DVD player and waited. She then turned and took her seat beside Selena again. "Once you watch this, I'm pretty sure that you'll believe me," she said softly, touching Selena's hand supportively.
Selena stood up angrily. "I'm not going to sit here and listen to you trying to prove that he loves her when he doesn't. This is just a phase he's going through, okay? Once he realises that he doesn't love her, he'll come back to me." Tears welled in her eyes. "He will come back to me. I know he will."
Demi reached out and held Selena's hand. "Sweetie, please listen to me. You'll drive yourself crazy if you keep saying he'll come back. Honey, you know that Nick isn't coming back." She pulled Selena back into the seat and smiled. "I think you need to watch this video. I think it will make you see. Maybe it will make you understand." Demi reached over and pressed the play button on the remote and the DVD began to play.
Miley's loud laugh filled the room. "Nick, stop it!"
Nick grinned cheekily at the brunette on the grass beside him. "Never!" He kept on tickling her, making her kick and scream, causing people from across the park to stare at them disapprovingly.
Joe poked his brother in the back. "Dude, pass me a drink."
"Get your own drink," Nick replied.
"I'm lying down."
"I don't care." Nick turned to Miley. "How was your week?"
Miley sighed. "It was okay, I guess. Jake and I broke up ... again." She closed her eyes and lay back on the grass. "I think he cheated on me again. Probably with one of the cheerleaders ... again." She inhaled deeply. Jake cheating on her with cheerleaders had become somewhat of a regular occurrence.
Nick's eyes softened as he looked at her. "He doesn't deserve you, Mi," he whispered softly.
Demi paused the DVD and looked at the screen. "See how he's looking at her?"
"So what? Any good best friend will tell someone that if somebody just cheated on them. It's, like, best friend code," Selena said. She sighed. "Dem, I get it. He wants her, not me. But I just ... I want to feel like he loved me. Like he ever loved me. Is it so bad to tell myself he'll come back? Is it so bad to want to feel loved by my own husband?"
Demi hugged her supportively. "I'm sorry, Selena. I just ... I don't want you to feel angry at them. I mean, it's easy to understand why you are. It's just that, to me, I know that they would have changed the way all of this happened if they could. I know you're upset and angry and you just don't want to see them, but please just try and put this behind you. You can't change what's happened. Being angry isn't good for you. Just try and be civil. Try and move past all of this," she said.
"It isn't that easy. I can't just move past the fact that my husband cheated on me," Selena whispered.
Demi squeezed Selena's hand. "But you can be elegant. You can be nice to both Nick and Miley and just not get into arguments with them." She paused. "Please, Sel. At least for when we go dress shopping. I really want you there. You've become one of my best friends since college. I really want you to be a part of this."
Selena hesitated then sighed. "Fine, I'll come. But I refuse to speak to her unless I'm spoken to."
Demi smiled. "As long as you come, I'm happy."
"If she says anything to you, just call me and I'll be there."
Miley giggled and squeezed Nick's hand. "Sweetie, I'll be fine. I'm a big girl now. I can look after myself." She planted a gentle kiss on his cheek. "I love you."
Nick smiled and kissed her forehead. "I love you too." He sighed. "Seriously though. She needs to move past all of this. If she says anything just call me or something." He hugged her tightly. "I just want all of this to end."
Miley pulled away and smiled. She picked up her keys and started walking towards the door out of her office. "I know, I do too." She opened the door and waved at him. "I'll be back around eight tonight, okay? Demi and I are going out for dinner after we get her dress," she said.
Nick nodded. "I'm going over to watch the game at Joe and Demi's place anyway." He walked over to her and kissed her gently on the lips. "I'll see you at your place tonight then?" he checked.
Miley smiled and nodded. "See you then." She kissed him one more time before grabbing her coat and bag off the hanger beside the door and walking quickly out of the office to meet Demi and the girls.
She got into her car in the staff parking lot and quickly drove across town to the mall where Demi was going to look for her dress. Miley pulled into a parking spot across the street and walked as quickly as she could in her heels over to the mall.
Luckily, the bridal store was quite close to the door so Miley was in the store soon after she parked. She saw Demi and her sister, Dallas, sitting on a couch in the corner. There were about three other girls with their backs to Miley.
Miley walked over and smiled. "Hey, guys," she said.
Demi stood and hugged Miley tightly. "Hey, Miles." She pulled back. "You remember my sister Dallas, right?" Dallas waved up at Miley, smiling. Miley waved back. Demi then turned to face the girls that had their backs to Miley. "These are my friends from work, Kelly and Charlotte. And obviously you know Selena."
Kelly and Charlotte smiled and waved at Miley. Miley looked at Selena. Selena glared at Miley, her eyes filled with loathing and coldness. Miley quickly looked away from Selena, not in the mood for a big blow-out with her.
One of the store workers walked over with a tray of six glasses of champagne. "Hello, ladies. My name is Jenny. I'm going to be helping you today." She smiled and held out the tray. "Champagne anyone?" Each woman took a glass of champagne. Jenny put down the tray. "So, what sort of dress are you looking for?" she asked Demi.
"Well, I was kind of going for a kind of fairytale wedding, so maybe something like that?" Demi replied.
Jenny nodded and walked into the back room, letting the door swing shut behind her. Demi stood up and walked over to a dress on one of the mannequins. It was a less traditional wedding dress. It reached the knee and was sleeveless. It was more like a normal summer dress than a wedding dress.
"This would be kind of nice if it was longer and was strapless," she said to nobody in particular.
Dallas giggled. "Basically you'd like it if it was a completely different dress then?" she asked.
Demi grinned and shrugged.
Jenny returned minutes later, carrying three dresses. She hung them up on a metal rail and handed the first one to Demi. "Try this on," she said.
Demi went into the changing room and returned moments later, wearing the dress. As beautiful as it was, it wasn't really Demi's style. It had a scoop neckline and had a satin sash tied in a bow around the waist. The dress was made of satin and lace and had a long train behind it.
"It's nice," Selena said. She put on a smile, even though she clearly didn't like the dress. The real reason she didn't like the dress, however, was that it was similar to her own wedding dress. At that particular time, she really didn't want to be reminded of her own wedding dress.
Dallas looked her sister up and down. "I don't think it's really your style, Dem," she said. She stood up and walked around Demi. "No, it just doesn't seem like something you would wear. It's too ... I don't know. Too modest, maybe."
Demi nodded, agreeing with her sister. "I don't think it's very me either, to be honest." She looked at herself in the mirror and turned. She then shook her head. "No, I don't think this is the one." She turned around and walked back into the changing room, returning moments later wearing another dress.
The strapless dress was white. It went out at the waist. It was quite like the dress Danielle, Joe and Nick's brother Kevin's wife, had worn on her wedding day. Demi looked at herself in the mirror and frowned slightly.
"I love this dress, don't get me wrong. It's just ... it doesn't feel right. Like, you know how people say you can just tell when a dress is right for you? This one just doesn't feel like the one I should be wearing on my wedding day, you know?"
Miley nodded. "You look amazing in it, but if you don't feel comfortable in it then you shouldn't choose it."
Selena scoffed, unable to hold it in. "What the hell would you know about wedding dresses? It's not like you've ever worn one. All you do is work in that crappy little hotel of yours," she said.
Miley closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I never said that I did know anything about wedding dresses. And as for your comment on my hotel, it's more of an accomplishment than you've ever achieved. I believe your big career was spending all of Nick's money, wasn't it?" she replied.
Selena rolled her eyes. "Yes, Miley, that's mature. Why don't you bring my husband into this?"
Miley opened her mouth to speak but Demi raised her hand to stop her. "Stop fighting now. We're looking for my wedding dress today. Whatever problems you two have to talk about, you can do it later. Today we're focusing on finding the perfect dress for my wedding." Demi then turned on her heel and walked back into the changing room.
Moments later, she reappeared wearing another dress. The strapless Grecian style dress was beautiful on Demi. It had an empire waistline with an embroidered trim wrapped around the waist. The dress was draped with soft silk chiffon. Her dark skin brightened the white dress.
Demi looked in the mirror and smiled.
"Demi, you look beautiful," Charlotte said.
Kelly nodded. "Sweetie, you look absolutely amazing. Joe would die if he saw you in that dress," she said.
Demi smiled and hugged them. "Thank you," she said softly. She turned to Miley, Dallas and Selena. "What do you guys think? Do you like it?" she asked.
Miley smiled softly and hugged Demi tightly. "Dem, you look gorgeous in that dress," she whispered.
Selena smiled. "You look stunning," she said.
Demi looked at Dallas expectantly, waiting for her big sister's approval. Dallas wiped away a tear and grinned. "You look enchanting, kiddo. Joe won't know what hit him," she whispered, hugging Demi tightly.
Dallas and Demi had always been close. Dallas had practically raised Demi. Their mother had died of cancer when Demi was seven and their dad was always out working, so Dallas had always been like a mother figure to Demi.
Demi looked into the mirror and smiled, nodding to herself. "This is the one," she whispered. Demi then turned and walked back into the changing room. When she returned in her own clothes, she handed Jenny the dress and grinned at her. "I'll take it," she said.
Jenny walked into the back room and returned moments later with the dress in a carrier. She smiled at Demi. "Would you like to take it now or would you like to come back at another time?" she asked.
"Could I come back for it in a couple of hours? We're going to do some more shopping around the mall first," Demi said.
Jenny nodded. She wrote Demi's name on a PostIt note and stuck it onto the dress carrier. "Just tell whoever's working whenever you come back that you reserved a dress with Jenny. They'll help you pay for it and everything," she said.
Demi nodded and smiled. "Thank you so much," she said. She then led Miley, Selena, Dallas, Kelly and Charlotte out of the shop and out into the mall. "I was thinking maybe we could go for a drink and then go look for the bridesmaids dresses," Demi said.
Kelly looked at her watch. "Actually, Dem, Charlotte and I have to go. We're meeting some friends for an early dinner and then we're going out to a club opening later on." She hugged Demi tightly. "I'm so glad you found your dress. You look amazing in it."
Charlotte hugged Demi as well and smiled. "I'll talk to you at work tomorrow. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day," she said.
Charlotte and Kelly then turned around and walked away in the opposite direction to Dallas, Demi, Miley and Selena. The girls watched as Charlotte and Kelly walked out the main door of the mall.
"You girls up for a drink?" Demi asked.
The other three nodded and followed Demi into Demi's favourite bar at the mall. Demi walked up to the bar and said, "Hi. Can I have one Piña Colada, one Margarita, one Cosmo and a Sex on the Beach, please?"
She paid the bartender and walked over to a booth in the corner (her favourite booth, of course). She slipped in and pulled Miley in with her. Dallas and Selena slipped in on the other side.
"I'm so excited for the wedding now," Demi said excitedly.
"It's going to be amazing, Dem. I'm so happy for you," Miley said, smiling at Demi.
"Oh, you're happy for somebody else getting married? Hopefully you don't steal Demi's husband," Selena muttered.
Demi glared at Selena. "Selena, stop it now. Remember what we talked about?"
Selena rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I remember it. That doesn't mean I have to agree though, does it?"
"Moving on!" Dallas said quickly. "Miley and I have something awesome planned for your hen night, Demi." Dallas grinned over at Miley. "You're going to love it."
"Three weeks to go," Miley teased, nudging Demi.
"Four weeks until the wedding," Demi said, grinning.
"Why did you leave it so late getting your dress?" Selena asked.
Demi shrugged. "I guess I didn't want to risk Joe finding it. Dallas is going to keep it at her place until the night before the wedding, then we're all staying at her place that night and getting ready there for the wedding," she explained.
"Are Kelly and Charlotte not bridesmaids?" Miley asked.
Demi shook her head. "They're going away next week to work in France. They're there for like a month so they'll miss the wedding," she said.
"Oh, they're going to France. Why don't you go over there, Miley? Maybe over there it might actually be considered okay to steal somebody else's husband," Selena said, smirking at Miley.
Miley gritted her teeth and glared at Selena. "That's it. Stop it now, Selena. I get it, Nick's with me now. But you being a bitch isn't going to change that. It isn't going to make him come back to you. So why don't you just acting like a twelve year old and be a mature adult about this."
"You have no idea what it's like to have a husband who leaves you for somebody like you," Selena snarled.
Miley chuckled. "I see. Someone like me. And what sort of person would that be?"
Selena looked Miley up and down and smirked. "A cheap little slut who only wants Nick for his money."
Miley laughed loudly. "Sorry, what? I want Nick for his money, do I? Sweetie, I don't need Nick's money. I've got my own, thanks very much. I think it's you that wants him for his money. After all, what are you going to do now that he isn't feeding your little shopping addiction?"
Selena slipped out of the booth and stood at the end of the table, glaring down at Miley. "I can get a job for myself. I can make my own money. I don't need his money either. I think you'll need it more than me."
Miley leaned back into the soft seat of the booth, amused, a grin playing on her lips. "And why exactly would I need it more than you?"
"That little hotel of yours is going to be a complete failure. Everyone knows it except for you. How many guests do you have right now? Two, maybe three, I'm guessing. Besides, you don't have the brains to run a business. You're just a stupid little California girl," Selena snapped.
"Right, okay, if that's what you think. First off, I was born in Tennessee. I moved here with my family when I was like six months old. Secondly, I'd rather be a California girl than somebody who feels the need to insult others just because their husband has left them. I don't know how things worked back in Texas before you left for college, but around here, we don't get by insulting people. Around her, we suck it up and move on. Maybe you should learn to do that," Miley said.
"At least Nick and I were actually born in the same place."
"Maybe you were both born in Texas, but I fail to see how that makes a good marriage. Sure, you were both born there, but Nick and I both grew up together here in California. Face it, Selena. Your marriage was falling apart before Nick and I ever got together. You pushed him away with your clinging and your nagging and your stupid little demands for a baby. Didn't you see that he wasn't ready for a kid? I didn't break up your marriage, Selena. You did."
Selena's eyes narrowed as she tried to hold in the tears. She gulped back the sobs that she desperately wanted to let out. "Shut up. Shut up now. That's not true. You broke us up. Not me. You seduced him. You distracted him. You brainwashed him."
Miley shook her head sympathetically. "Sweetie, I never did anything of the sort. The truth is that he just wasn't ready for marriage at such a young age. He never was and he wouldn't be for a long, long time. I'm sorry things ended between you and Nick the way they did, but being angry and bitter won't change the last few days."
Selena's legs felt weak beneath her, as though they were about to give way on her. She grasped the table for support. "Nick loved me."
"I know he did, Selena. Of course he did. He married you for a reason. But sweetie, wishing and wanting him to come back to you won't fix anything. It won't bring him back." Miley reached out to touch Selena's hand but decided better and pulled back. "It's over, Selena."
Selena took a shaky breath. "No it isn't. Nick and I aren't over. We love each other."
Demi reached out to Selena. "Selena, sweetie, come and sit down. Please." She glanced at Dallas, worried for her friend. "Honey, please just come and sit down. Take a glass of water and calm down."
Miley reached out and touched Selena. "Sel, sit down. Please. You're worrying me."
"Don't touch me!" Selena screamed. The whole bar turned to look at them. "Don't even pretend to care about me. If you cared about me, you would never have done what you did. Nick loves me. You and him are just a phase. He'll be back to me before you know it." Selena was shaking, crying hysterically. "He'll be back to me."
The bartender came over with their drinks. "Is everything okay here?" he asked, glancing at Selena's shaking figure.
Dallas helped the shaking Selena sit down in the booth and wrapped a supportive arm around her. "Don't worry, everything's fine," she said. She smiled up at the bartender. "Thanks for bringing the drinks over. We're all fine here, right, guys?"
Miley and Demi nodded. The bartender glanced at Selena one more time before walking away to serve his other customers.
Demi reached over and squeezed Selena's hand. "Sweetie, calm down."
Selena tried to get up again, but Dallas held her back. "Selena, honey, you need to stay here and calm down," she said softly, stroking her hair in an attempt to calm the woman down.
Miley opened her mouth to say something, but she never got the chance to say it.
Suddenly, everything began to shake. Tables and chairs started moving across the room. Glasses fell off the bar and tables and smashed on the floor. Pictures flew off the walls. Bottles came flying off the shelves behind the bar. The glass windows at the front of the bar shattered as objects and people were thrown against them. Everyone started screaming and getting up off their seats. Many stood in doorways or crawled under the tables.
Within seconds, the shaking stopped. Some decided to get out from their hiding places. Many, however, stayed where they were. That was when the ceiling caved in.
Then the bar went silent.
CLIFFHANGER! Sorry, haha :) It was just too good to not leave a cliffhanger. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Why don't you all leave me a review and tell me what you thought? ;) That would mean a lot to me. I think I'll give you all the option for this. For the next update, would you like Chapter 12 of You Won't Feel A Thing or Chapter 2 of That Little Blue Door? Tell me in your review ;) The one with the most votes will be updated next. Anyway. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Chapter 12 should be pretty exciting :D So don't forget to review and tell me a) what you thought of the chapter and b) whether you'd like YWFAT or TLBD updated next. Thanks for reading :)
Thank you xNileyxBubblesx (Thank you x), TheMsBrandy1 (Yeah, it definitely gets more intense as the story continues. Wait and see, m'dear ;]), thousandreasons (Haha. Thank you x), LaLaLax6 (Thank you so much. That is definitely coming soon ;]), lovetowrite07 (Aw, thank you so much) and RhondaAnn1 (Possibly later on the story, possibly not ;]) for your reviews on Chapter 10. Was kind of hoping for more reviews on the whole lunch drama but whatever. Hopefully the reviews on this chapter will make up for my disappointment ;) Don't get me wrong though! I definitely appreciate the reviews I do get on my story.