Carpool Karaoke

Over the next days, Miley started working full time again. She had started a partnership with Converse, a brand that gave Hans a lifelong contract during the peak of his NBA career. This contract didn't guarantee him the money that Lebron James got from Nike (rumors said it was up to 1 billion dollars), but as long as he lived, they would pay him half a million every year. This was way less than he would have got if he had insisted on a one time payment, but he was happy to be sure that no matter what happened, he would always have a nice, regular income.

Since Miley was known for being very interested in fashion (and she loved, let's say, unusual outfits), Converse offered her to design her own shoe collection, that was supposed to be released in late summer. She was extremely excited about this, and after seeing the first drawings, Hans had to admit that she seemed to be pretty talented. It also wasn't even a question that he agreed to participate in a joined campaign, and after the first pictures were published, Miley's fans all over the world were anxiously waiting for the release date of this collection.

It was now the beginning of June, and their relationship lasted for 4 months, and Hans thought it was about time to talk about an important topic. 4 days from now, they would start shooting Suicide Squad, so that he would also be busier again, while Miley would fly for a couple of days to New York, to perform at the Video Music Awards, the so-called VMA's, where a couple of years ago, she was responsible for a pretty big scandal. Also, she would be a guest at the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, so all in all, it would be pretty stressful. Tomorrow evening, they would fly to Nashville, so Hans would finally meet Miley's mother and godmother. But it was mostly the fact that they would be separated again for a week, that made him want to ask her to officially move in with him.

During dinner, it was Miley who came up with some news first. She would meet with James Corden the next day, a british Late-night host and Comedian, who started in England and now had a huge success in the US, and a big part of this success came through Carpool Karaoke. This concept became so popular that artists in the US were crazy about appearing on this show, and they had to turn down a lot of requests. Which also meant that if you got invited to be a part of this, you were definitely one of the most popular stars in the country right now, which only showed Hans how much Miley, despite all the problems she already had to go through, had achieved in her career.

After dinner, he poured out a glass of wine and said:

"Shall we go outside for a moment? There's something I would like to talk to you about…" and when he saw the way she looked at him, he quickly added with a smile:

"Oh, nothing bad, don't worry. Or, at least I hope you'll take it well"

They went to their favorite place outside and Hans asked:

"I wanted to ask you what you think about this house. Since we're spending so much time here, I wanna make sure that you really like it"

Miley did feel guilty about staying in this house almost every day, which meant that her father was by himself most of the time. But this problem was solved by the fact that her sister Noah moved from Nashville to LA. And she simply loved this house, by now, she had made a lot of the rooms her own and redecorated them in her crazy but cozy style. Hans didn't object and let her change a lot of things, the only room she wasn't allowed to touch anything was his man cave. She also had so many hurtful memories about her father's house that she simply felt more at home here by now. She never spoke about these things, but that was the way she felt.

"You don't have to worry, I love it here. To be honest, the last place that felt so much like home like this place was my childhood house. Why are you asking?"

"Well, wouldn't it be about time then to make it official?"

"What do you mean?"

"Officially your home. If you agree, you could move in definitely?"

"Um…haven't I already?"

"Haha, somehow, yes. But I want you to move in officially. With all your crazy stuff, your dogs, and there should even be enough space for all your cars."

Contrary to Hans, who only had 2 personal cars in the US, Miley was, somewhat surprisingly to Hans, a fan of fast and/or luxurious cars. She had a Porsche Cayenne, a Mercedes SL AMG, Maserati Quattro Porto, a series 7 BMW and a Range Rover. He didn't have unlimited parking spaces at his home, but right now, there would even be space for 2 more cars.

"You mean…officially moving in here with you?"

"Well, for now. I suppose that we'll be looking for a new house somewhere in the near future, but this wouldn't be too bad for a start, don't you think? Only if you want of course."

"Are you kidding? Of course I want" she yelled and started to squeeze Hans, who couldn't help but laughing.

"So it's a yes?"

"Yes"

"You're moving in?"

"Yes"

"With all your clothes?"

"Yes"

"And your cars?"

"Yes"

"And your dogs?"

"Yes"

"Well, I suppose that means there will be some changes in my life"

"Oh, you have no idea what you got your self into" Miley laughed and gave him another hug.

The next morning, they were planning Miley's move and agreed that she would start bringing her stuff over after returning from New York, before that, she would be too busy anyway. After they had figured most of the details out, she was going back to her dressing room, to get ready for James Corden, who would pick her up. When she came back, Hans was pretty surprised at how subtle Miley's outfit was. Regular jeans, a white top, the only thing a bit more extravagant were the very red lips. Oh well, there always had to be that little tad of craziness.

A few minutes later, she got the call that the car was about to arrive. The recording was scheduled to last until 3 pm, the private jet for Nashville was booked for 8 pm. The thought of owning his own plane became more and more seductive, at least they wouldn't have to rely on some companies when it came to booking a jet. Moreover, it would just feel more like a home in the clouds, if you were responsible for the design and furnishing. Hans made a mental note to talk to Miley about that when she came back, especially when it came to national flights, they could save a lot of time.

Meanwhile, Miley and James had started their car ride. The song selection had been determined beforehand (of course), the interview on the other hand, would be completely spontaneous. Hans had met the British late night host on several events, and he really liked him. He was funny, always in a good mood, and he loved being able to work with all these celebrities.

After they made their way out of the gated community, they started with the interview:

"Miley, it's a pleasure having you. And thank you so much for driving to work with me today, navigating through LA on your own is hell"

"Well, thank you for the ride" she replied.

"So, Miley. According to yourself, you have signed a contract for the new season of The Voice. How did that come along, and why are you excited to be a part of this show?"

"It's true, we'll start shooting in a couple of weeks, and I couldn't be more excited. The producers actually planned on signing my godmother Dolly Parton, but she had the opinion that I would be a better fit, considering the concept and the targeted audience, so thank you for that Dolly. What I love about this show is the fact, that your first decision is only based on the voice of the candidate, the interaction with the other coaches, and very important, that as a coach, you are actively working with the candidates on their performances. I've seen a lot in this industry, and I'm happy to be able to share some of these experiences."

"Talking about the other coaches, what's your relationship with them?"

"I don't know them that well until now. I've attended the same events than Adam and Blake on a couple of occasions, but we never went further than a simple hello and maybe some small talk, although my father knows Blake a bit better. I've never encountered Alicia Keys, but I'm sure we'll get along just great. I mean, Adam and Blake are somewhat the elder statesmen in this round, so the women have to stick together and fight for our place."

"Haha, the way I know you, that shouldn't be too much of a problem. Would you mind listening to some music?"

„Sure, let's go"

And just like that, the first part of the interview was over. The first song that came was Don't Stop, and both of them just sang along. Miley was actually a bit surprised that James seemed to be pretty talented. A little bit later, they continued their interview:

"Miley, you have recently released your new album, which has been a huge hit. You could say that it's almost autobiographic, and the first single Younger Now, tells us that you finally got to a point where you accept your past, that you're even proud of the things you have achieved at such a young age. How did you get to this point?"

„Let's say, I needed a little hint from my boyfriend. Right in the beginning, before we even got together, we had a little discussion…or let's say, I explained to him what I had to change in order to be taken serious as an adult artist. I was sure that I had to get away as far as possible from Hannah, and the cute version of Miley that everybody was used to see. But he somehow convinced me that I don't have to. So now I'm in a place where I can finally be proud of everything that Hannah has achieved, that she reached and helped so many kids growing up. Today I can say that everything I've experienced in my life, be it Hannah Montana, all the scandals and bad relationships I had, have made me into who I am. I accept the fact that Hannah will always be a part of me, and even though she doesn't define the person that I became, she played a major part in my development."

„You have talked very openly and honest about these difficult times. Depressions, alcohol, drugs, scandals, you haven't left anything out. A lot of other childhood celebrities had to fight the same problems, Britney Spears, Demi Lovato, Amanda Bynes, and not to forget, Drew Barrymore. Do you think it's more of a curse than a blessing to become popular at such an early stage of your life? And what would you advise the young people today, whose dream it is to become famous?"

"Honestly, that's a very difficult question. On one hand, I had the opportunity to experience so many amazing things as a child that I wouldn't wanna miss. On the other hand, I never had a normal childhood. Every single mistake, every time you do something a bit crazy, it just gets blown out of proportion and presented to the whole world in the press, tv, or social media. Everybody tries to tell you what to do, how to behave, you basically get brainwashed and in the end, you have no idea who you really are. The advice I can give is, surround yourself with people you can trust. Family, close friends, people who love the real you and only want what's best for you and your career and not for their own gain."

"Ok, Miley, before we switch to the more fun part of the interview, there is one other serious question I want to ask you. As we know, the last couple of years haven't been easy for you. How was it possible to transition from this bright, light-hearted Hannah Montana into this swamp of Drugs, parties and depression? And most of all, how did you manage to pull yourself out of it again?"

"First of all, as soon as it became clear that Hannah Montana was coming to an end, it was obvious that I had to change. Which actually went pretty well in the beginning, my father was still heavily involved in managing and organizing my career. A little later I went into that phase, where most teenagers go at one point, and started to rebel against my parents, and that was the moment where everything started to go wrong. I changed my management, surrounded myself with new, fake friends and just did the opposite of everything my father advised me to do. All that my new management cared about was producing new scandals, get into the spotlight and undergo a radical image change. My new friends introduced me to drugs and alcohol, and I rushed into a lot of relationships that were only based on partying and my partner wanting to get as much presence in the headlines as possible. And although I knew that I changed into someone I didn't want to be, I just wasn't strong enough to stand up for myself. Instead, I tried to numb myself by attending every party, drinking too much alcohol, taking drugs and having affairs, which only made me more miserable and depressed. And by pushing my father away, I had banned the only person in Los Angeles who knew how miserable I was and who really wanted to help me from my life.

And I wouldn't say I have pulled myself out of it, but I got pulled out by my boyfriend. He wasn't interested in Hannah, or Miley Cyrus, the famous popstar. When I was with him, for the first time in years, I was just Miley. And knowing that there is someone who will stay by your side, no matter what happens, just gave me so much strength and helped me find my true self again. There are and always will be moments of uncertainty and doubt, but I am at a point where I can finally say that I'm happy again"

"I'm really glad to hear that. And I think we all know the perfect song to this story"

Of course he meant The Climb, and Miley realized once more how much this song still meant to her. The rest of the ride, they were talking about Miley's new album, her plans for the future, her relationship with Hans and how she was rebuilding the relationship with her father. After James dropped her off after the interview, he was certain that this was going to be one of the best episodes till now. Miley openly talked about her struggles, had a bright mood and seemed to be grounded and humbled. She also was just an incredibly talented singer, and the two of them just hit it off right from the start.

When Miley came back home around 3pm (she still couldn't believe that this was officially her home now), she found Hans sitting at the laptop, focusing so much on something that he didn't even hear her coming in. So she snuck up behind and yelled as hard she could:

"Ha, got you"

Even in her wildest dreams, she couldn't have predicted Hans reaction, and she almost regretted that she didn't record the scene. His face changed to a terrified mask, he jumped up from the chair and spilled the glass of water over half of the table. We won't even mention that weird, high noted screech he let out…

He started cursing as he was trying to clean the table:

"God dammit, what is it with you crazy women? You and Ellen, you're just out of your mind"

Miley couldn't stop laughing, got into his lap and put her head against his chest. It seemed to take her forever to calm down, and when Hans saw how proud she was that her little prank worked , he couldn't be mad any longer. The only thing he had to realize was that he seemed to be a huge coward.

As soon as Miley was able to breathe again, she gave him a kiss on the cheek and asked:

"But seriously, what were you watching so intensively that you didn't hear me come in? If it was porn, we could watch it together…"

"What? No…porn? Never…" Great, now he was also blushing…"But thanks for the offer, I might take you up on that later" Jesus, that still didn't sound right…

"But seriously, I just thought because we have to travel so much, I could check if it might be possible to find a simpler and more comfortable way to do that. I just didn't think there were so many different options"

"What do you mean, more simple? Most of the times, we book a private jet anyway, at least for the national flights"

"Right…book. Wouldn't it be way more comfortable if you could just take your own plane?"

"Haha, of course, but have you seen how expensive that is? You don't even have to start looking for less than 20 million"

"Well, I thought more about something like this". Hans showed her a model that was used by people like Bill Gates or his Google friends, Larry and Sergej. It could take up to 20 passengers, had 2 private cabins, 2 bathrooms and a lot of electronic gadgets. Besides that, there were a lot of possibilities to personalize the interior if you were willing to pay the right prize.

"137 million? How do you want to pay amount of money?"

"Oh, don't worry, I have the black American Express" Hans replied with a grin.

"Wait, are you seriously considering this? I mean, I never meant to ask you, but how much money do you have? I definitely couldn't afford a plane like that"

"Let me think…according to the mail of my bank advisor last week…all together…about 18.4 billion"

"What? Holy crap…compared to you, I suddenly feel like a poor teenage girl"

"Wait, I thought you knew about that?"

"Let's say, I knew you had more money than me, but I didn't expect that. I mean, I could tell you had money, but for a billionaire, you have a pretty humble lifestyle"

"Weird…Liam almost used the exact same words"

"How did he know how much money you have?"

"No idea…Forbes?"

"Oh…yeah…I could have thought about that myself"

"Um, I hope that doesn't change anything for you now?"

"Well, apart from the fact that I expect an overwhelming present at least once a week now…no, not really"

"Oh great" Hans was mumbling to himself

"Haha, come on, why should that change anything between us? I knew you were rich before, this doesn't make any difference at all to me. As long as you keep making me happy and taking care of me like you did over the last months, I don't care how much money you have or have not"

Hans smiled and said:

"Now that sounds better. But I really think this would make our life a lot more comfortable. Today, we could fly to Nashville, and afterwards you could go on to New York and then back to LA. No more bookings, no more unpleasant surprises, our own cabin, we can freely chose the equipment and the interior design…"

"It does sound great. Would I get a say in all these design decisions?"

"Of course. It would be our plane, not mine"

"Then let's have a serious discussion about it once I'm back from New York, ok?"

"I would love to. But I think we should get going now"

So they made their way to the airport and started their 4 hour flight to Nashville. It was a very quiet flight, and they arrived at their destination in Tennessee at 8 pm, and once more, Hans was a bit irritated about the fact how much people were interested in Miley. As they were heading to towards the exit, she got recorded by countless smartphones, and numerous pictures were taken, and Hans really had no idea what was so interesting about someone walking through an airport. Autographs or signatures he was able to understand, but this was a bit much. Slowly but sure, he began to understand how hard it must have been to grow up in the spotlight.