Title: California, Here We Come

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: Nothings changed……oh except for my name. It's now Meg Cabot. Ha. Riiiiight…..(Don't be mad lol I just love doing disclaimers……..I know it's driving some of you nuts thought, but I'm quirky and I just gotta do it)

A/N: Omgosh. It's the long awaited update! LOL

Michael's POV

I've done a pretty good job of avoiding Mia recently. She finally quit coming up and trying to talk to me. I know I should have talked to her. I should have seen what she had to say. But I wanted to ignore her. I wanted her to feel hurt and ignored like I felt. Plus, I didn't want to hurt myself more. She was killing me slowly. First, she was with Kenny, then they were over, then she kissed me, then she pretended like it never happened, and now she's with Ryan. It's like she's stabbed a knife in my heart, pulled it out, and stabbed me again and again. Does she even care? I don't get it. She's too nice not to care, yet I don't see how she could be so oblivious to my feelings.

I've been avoiding her pretty well, nonetheless, but I haven't had such luck with Krissy.

"Hey Mikey, Baby" Krissy said, walking up to me and kissing me on the cheek.

Seriously, where did she ever get the idea that we were dating? I never even acted as if I liked her. Well, besides the other night, but she's been acting this way long before that.

"Hi," I said flatly.

"So, when are you getting me for the dance on Friday?" she asked, chomping her gum and twirling her hair in her finger.

"Excuse Me?"

"I said when are you……." she started but was cut off by Michael.

"No, I heard what you said. But I'm not going to the dance with you," I said

"Of course you are, silly," she said giggling and slapping my shoulder.

"No, really. I'm not going," I said looking her in the eye.

"Oh, come on, Michael. Everyone's going. Don't you want to show me off? Mia and Ryan are going……." she said, crossing her arms, as if daring me to go because Mia was going with Ryan.

"Why would I care if Mia and Ryan were going?" I said, even though I really did care.

"I don't know. Never mind. I guess I'll find someone else to show me off……"

"Fine, I'll go" I said, slamming my locker and walking away without looking at her.

If Mia did know how I felt, but she didn't care, I wasn't going to let her know that I cared. I was going to go to the dance with a date too. If she did feel even a little of what I felt, she'd be jealous. If not, well at least she'd know that I didn't care if she didn't want me. Even though I really do, but she doesn't need to know that.

I was going to make sure I looked really good too. Maybe I'll walk around the dorm with no shirt on while I'm getting ready. That always seems to make her blush, for good reasons I hope.

Mia's POV

I'm so excited about the dance. Tina, Lilly, and I are going dress shopping tonight (with our dads' money, of course). I guess it's a nice formal dance. So the guys have to wear tuxes and the girls have to wear nice dresses. I know I shouldn't be THAT excited, considering Genovian balls and stuff, but this is different. This is a dance with people MY AGE and MY FRIENDS WILL BE THERE. Not to mention my boyfriend. And the love of my life…….Ugh. I wish I could get that out of my mind.

I don't love Michael.

I don't.

No, really, I don't.

The only problem is that……..well I do.

All day was boring. I went to classes, sat with Ryan at lunch, while casually glimpsing at Michael, even though it was nearly impossible, you know, the usual. But now, it's time to shop. Tina says she's going to make me look glam. I don't really think she can, but still. It's a nice gesture on her part. She said we're going to go all out: hair, makeup, accessories, nails. It's nice to relax sometimes. I think I deserve it.

Michael's still avoiding me. If I spot him, he's gone by the time I blink. If he sees me, it looks like he dashes the other way. If we do happen to be in the same room, he won't make eye contact or say a word to me. I feel like my heart is being ripped out and stomped to the ground. It's bad enough to not have Michael to hold but to not have him to talk to either is pure torture. I don't know how long I can take this.

I'm trying so hard not to let this bother me. I'm trying so hard just to focus on the dance. But it's hard when what you're trying NOT to think about is the thing you're used to thinking about ALL the time. I pretend it doesn't bother me. I pretend I don't care, but it's not true. I would give anything to have Michael talk to me again. I don't know what I did to upset him this much, but I wish I could take it back. I wish I could take it all back. How much longer do I have to live with this?

I tried even harder to keep my mind off of it during dress shopping. I didn't want it to mess up my first REAL dance experience.

Since it was the day before the dance, we obviously didn't get our hair done yet, but we chose dresses, got manicures and pedicures, massages, and facials (Princesses need their pampering).

After hours of shopping, I found the perfect dress. I didn't know I could actually look this amazing. The dress was pink and had straps about an inch thick. It was tight and long, flowing all the way to the floor. It had a scoop neck that cinched at the chest, the material making it look as if I was much more well endowed that I actually am. It split all the way up to my thigh, and underneath the split was a layer of see-through glittery material. I felt like I was walking the red carpet. It was absolutely gorgeous. The clothes here in California perform miracles.

If only it could bring Michael to me. That would be a miracle indeed. But I wasn't expecting that to happen. That was much too big of a miracle considering the fact that he wasn't even talking to me.

Michael's POV

The dance was tomorrow, and I had no idea what to wear. I heard it was formal, so that meant that we were supposed to dress up, I guess. I get to walk around all night in an uncomfortable penguin suit and the worst date anyone could have. Dances just weren't my thing. I had only gone before because Mia had been there. I was only going to this one to show Mia that I didn't care if she didn't want me. If she knew I loved her, and she didn't love me back, I wouldn't let her have the advantage. I wouldn't let her know that she had hurt me. Even though I would have rather gone with pretty much anyone but Krissy. That girl was absolutely annoying. I have no idea what guys see in girls like her. I mean, yeah, she's good looking, even though she probably just bought most of her good looks anyway. You'd have to be deaf to be able to put up with her. You just can't block that much talking out. It's just physically impossible.

So hear I am, stuck going to a formal at a school that is not my own and with someone who not only looks like a Barbie but has the intelligence span and conversational skills of one too. Really, could I dig myself a deeper hole than this?

I'm such an idiot. I never should have agreed to come to California. I should have known that coming here wouldn't get me any closer to Mia. I tricked myself into believing a lie, and now I'm stuck with all the effects of it.

Mia's POV

"So, Mia, have you had the chance to talk to Michael?" Tina asked later that night when we were alone.

"Nope," I said, looking down at my hands. "Every time he sees me, he turns the corner. He won't talk to me. He won't even be in the same room with me. I haven't had a chance to say one word to him, let alone have a whole conversation. I think he knows. I think he knows that I love him, and he's just ignoring me because he's too nice to break my heart. What other explanation is there? Why would he just ignore me? I thought that maybe he had felt the same, but now I'm just not sure. Why won't he talk to me, Tina! Why is he doing this to me? It's killing me," I said as I started to cry.

The tears fell a lot recently. I had to go and fall in love with Michael. I couldn't just be his sister's best friend or his friend. I couldn't be normal and settle for that. I had to have more. I had to fall in love with him, and now I've lost one of my best friends in the process. All I did was mess things up. I'm not fit to be a princess. I can't even handle my own life, how am I supposed to handle a whole country?

"Mia, don't cry. Everything's going to be o.k. Everything's going to work out," she said, hugging me.

"How?"

"I don't know, but it will because it has to," she said smiling. Somehow I felt a little better. I wanted to believe Tina, and I didn't really have any other choice. Believing Tina seemed much easier than believing that everything would stay this messed up forever.

Michael's POV

"So, did you know that Michael's my date for the formal?"

I was heading back towards my locker before study hall because I had forgotten something, when I heard Krissy start up a conversation with Ryan.

"That's nice," Ryan said, dully.

"Yeah, he's taking me even though I can tell that your precious girlfriend, Princess Mia, is madly in love with him. You're just lucky that he wants to take me instead of her, because she would drop you in an instant if he asked her."

I couldn't help but snort around the corner. Luckily they hadn't heard me.

"If you're trying to make me jealous, it won't work. I'm the one who dumped you, remember?" Ryan said, looking awfully sure of himself.

"Only because MTV offered you money to cause drama in Princess Mia's perfect little life!" Krissy snapped, bitterly. "What would you do if I told her?"

"You wouldn't, because you know she'd run off to Michael, and then you'd be left without a boyfriend AGAIN," Ryan said, staring her down.

"Michael won't go back to Mia. I've already made sure of that."

"You're pathetic. You can't even keep a guy on your own, can you?" he spat at her bitterly.

"Well I bet you couldn't keep your girlfriend much longer if she knew that her boyfriend was just using her to get his 15 minutes of fame and some extra cash from MTV."

"If you tell, I'll make sure everyone knows that you're not good enough to keep a boyfriend. How would it make you look? Some guy leaving you just for some extra cash. No guy would do that if he really loved you."

"Like you're one to talk about love," Krissy said, laughing bitterly.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I love Mia, and I'm going to tell her at the dance tomorrow, whether you like it or not." Ryan finished and turned to walk away.

"Hmph. You're probably just doing that so MTV will give you a raise," she said walking in the opposite direction.

I just stood there in shock. I couldn't believe what I had just heard. How could someone be so cold hearted? How could he do that to Mia, when she was so sweet? He was going to get her to fall in love with him, and then when MTV had enough of them as a couple, he would be gone. I couldn't let that happen. Mia deserved way better than that. She deserved the best. Whether I was the best choice for her or not, she still deserved to know the truth about Ryan. I just hoped she would listen to me after I had ignored her all week.

A/N: REVIEW! I know it's short……but at least it's posted. I also know its not the best but read the following stuff I put and maybe you'll understand. Now please read this and then REVIEW! I'm sure you don't want a long explanation so I'll try to shorten it. I take dual credit classes (high school classes with some college as well), plus I also have a job. It's very hectic. Then I have a family and friends. We just found out that my cousin probably has leukemia, and my grandfather had a heart attack, and it's just been obstacle after obstacle. So now I'm supposed to go to class tomorrow but I'm sick and exhausted so I can't even go. So I'm writing since I can do that. I hope that it's ok, because I've tried to write this chapter 6 times. The first time I got 2 paragraphs done, the 3, 4, and 5 times, I got a few sentences written. Now on the 6th time, I'm finally finishing this chapter, and somehow it's not even that good even though it took me so long. I hope that you liked it though. Please review, for me? How about for Michael? For Mia? For Rooney? For Meg Cabot? For your I heart Michael Moscovitz shirt (from For……well just for anyone or anything that would make you review! I really want that Michael shirt lol