The essay is done. Thanx for the pity reviews. I've already started the next chapter, so hopefully it'll be up soon. Enjoy the chapter and review :D
"Is it them?"
Miley and Scott had ducked behind the counter at Rico's, hiding from an unavoidable menace. That menace was Oliver and Kendall.
"You guys can't hide forever. Now buy something!" Rico said from his post behind the counter.
"Two waters", Scott said, throwing a five on the counter. Rico put the two bottles on the counter but didn't offer any change.
"Dude, where's my change? I gave you a five."
"I consider it a generous tip."
"Why you little…"
"Come on Scott, he's not worth it."
She pulled him over to a nearby table where they sat down and started talking. Suddenly, Oliver and Kendall appeared and sat down.
Miley and Scott shared a look of despair before acknowledging their presence.
"Hey Oliver, what have you guys been up to?" Miley said, trying to keep a smile on her face.
"We went skateboarding…"
"I hate skateboarding", Kendall said, obviously bored.
"Then we went to a Metro Station concert…"
"I hate Metro Station"
"Then we went surfing…"
"I hate surfing"
"Then we went to Pinkberry…"
"I hate Pinkberry"
"Then we came here."
"I hate…" Kendall looked around for a moment "…here."
Miley and Scott looked back and forth and tried to keep from laughing, as if it was a comedy skit.
But it wasn't. Oliver was absolutely delusional. There was no other explanation for the way he was acting. Lilly leaving had driven the boy abso-freakin-lutely nuts.
They looked at Kendall, who still had the bad habit of absentmindedly wrapping her hair around her finger. She looked bored out her mind. It was quite obvious that the only similarity between her and their best friend was their similarity in looks.
But Oliver's face told a different story. He was looking past all the things were wrong with Kendall, only seeing that she was almost a mirror image of their best friend.
Conversation died quickly and soon Oliver and Kendall left so Oliver could take her home for dance classes.
And she reminded him of Lilly how?
Miley and Scott waited until they were out of hearing difference before talking again.
"We have got to stop this. He is out of his mind", Scott said. Miley nodded her head and started to devise a plan.
"I've got it!" she said jumping up from her seat. Everyone near Rico's looked at her and she sat down nervously, pretending nothing had happened. Scott was smiling like a fool.
"What is this fabulous idea of yours, hon?"
She blushed at the use of a nickname. Those bubbly feelings in her stomach returned. She smiled and answered him.
"You'll have to carry it out. We have to corner him when he least expects it. That means tonight, when he can't possibly be spending time with Kendall."
"So, what am I supposed to do?"
"Make him realize his feelings, make him admit that he's not over her."
"That I can do."
"And put it on webcam so I can see it."
"Anything for you", he smiled again and she could feel a blush creep up her cheeks again.
"It's getting late. Do you think you can you drop me off at home?"
"As you wish", he said, quoting her favorite movie. She wondered if there was a hidden meaning behind his words. (A/N: Princess Bride: "When he said 'As You Wish' he was really saying 'I Love You'")
Scott had just finished setting up Oliver's webcam when he walked in.
"Scott, why are you in my room?"
"I needed to use your laptop for something. What took you so long? I thought you were just dropping off Kendall?"
"I ended up going to her dance lesson. It didn't take too long."
"Dude, you've been gone for three hours."
"Huh. Why do you care anyway?"
"Because Oliver", he said as he walked over to the door and locked it. "We need to talk."
"Man, you're scaring me. What's up?"
"You're what's up. What's wrong with you lately?"
"What do you mean?"
"This girl! You've been hanging out with her for two weeks now!"
"Your point being?" Scott glanced over to make sure the webcam was still on so Miley could watch. It was, so he continued to harass his brother.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Hanging out with Kendall, we have a lot in common."
"No you don't! Even Miley and I can see that!"
"Psh! Why would I hang out with her if we have nothing in common?"
Scott sat down and grunted in frustration.
"Do you really need me to tell you?"
"Yes Scott, I really do!"
"Oliver, can't you see it?! She looks exactly like Lilly!"
They were both so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice an extra window pop up on the screen of the laptop. Lilly stayed silent as she watched the scene play out.
"Lilly? Where do I recognize that name from?"
"Come on Oliver, admit it! You're not over her!"
They stared at each other for a long moment before Oliver broke the connection.
"No I'm not…" he answered quietly.
Lilly took a sharp breath, but the boys didn't notice the minute sound.
"Why was that so hard for you to admit?" Scott said almost as quietly. He stood up and sat Oliver in his previously occupied seat. He tried to put a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder, but Oliver shook it off.
"Because it was easy to tell her to leave, too easy. And it's so much harder to tell her I love her. To tell her that I think she may be the one."
This was the moment that Scott chose to look at the computer screen to see Lilly's shocked face. He couldn't do anything but point to the screen. Oliver followed his finger to see the same image.
In an instant he knew that she had found him out, that she knew his secret.
She knew he was in love with her.
Lilly quickly shut off her laptop as soon as they noticed her.
Could it really be true? Did Oliver really love her? Or was it just an elaborate set up to get her back to the states?
She knew it wasn't. The look on Oliver's face when he had been discovered was not one of deep seeded planning. It was one of shock that now she knew what he really thought about her.
Honestly, it scared her. It never occurred to her that he may like her as more than a friend. But now, so many things made sense.
Why he liked watching movies like 'The Lizzie McGuire Movie' and 'Just Friends'.
Why he had an odd addiction to new episodes of Kim Possible.
Why he had never complained once about the song 'Just Friends' by the Jonas Brothers, even though he wasn't a fan.
And sometimes, even the way he looked at her should have been obvious.
And suddenly she was picturing him. His face, his chocolate brown eyes, his shaggy hair in his eyes, his perfect white teeth curved in a boyish smile.
Then, out of nowhere, she was picturing a hand, her hand, brushing his hair out of his eyes, his grin becoming wider, then moving her hand along his cheek before slowly running her thumb along his bottom lip.
Then, the image disappeared as she realized what she was thinking.
Did she like Oliver? Even more important, did she love him?
Her mind flew back to the thoughts she had had at his house before she left. The thoughts of his lean body in the shower, the ones she had been so ashamed of that day.
But suddenly, deeper thoughts were reappearing. Now she was picturing her body along with his, the showerhead bubbling above them.
Once again she pushed the image from her mind. They were making her so confused.
She heard the door bell ring and looked at the clock on her bedside table. Yes, it was 6:30. Niko was downstairs waiting for her.
(A/N: I kind of shoved a week in. Sue me.)
Quickly, she grabbed her purse and went downstairs, calling to her mom that she was leaving. She opened the door.
Niko still looked as hot as he had the day before, she was sure of it. But his presence didn't give her the same bubbly feeling in the pit of her stomach.
He handed her a single white rose and took her hand before leading her to his car and opening her door for her, helping her into the car before getting in on his side.
Any other day, this would have put her on a cloud. But today, she was too confused to do any more than recognize his actions with a warm smile.
He drove them somewhere, nowhere she knew. She looked out the window, hoping to recognize something, anything, here. It became hopeless and she looked at the dashboard.
There was a CD playing that Niko had made. It had all of the bands she had mentioned in conversation in them. He was trying to adapt to her lifestyle to be friendly, and it was a truly sweet gesture.
Soon, they arrived at their destination, a small movie theater. She looked up at the movie title and was puzzled. It was French. It wasn't Finnish or English. He seemed to recognize her puzzlement on the subject and nodded.
"I couldn't find a theater playing movies in English, so I thought that it would only be fair if we both had to read the subtitles."
He was being so sweet. She felt terrible that she just wasn't into it tonight. She couldn't stop thinking about a certain someone that was thousands of miles away.
But she tried her best to forget about him for the moment and enjoy the night. The boy who held her hand and took her to see a French movie so she wouldn't be the only one suffering from a language barrier was the one she should be thinking about, not the one who put her here in the first place.
She held onto Niko's hand tighter after they sat in their seats to watch the movie. She tried her best to pay attention to the subtitles, but most of her concentration was on shoving Oliver out of her mind, at least for tonight.
When the movie was over, he drove them to a restaurant with snooty waiters and expensive food; way too expensive for the bet they had made. As soon as they sat down at the table, she couldn't help herself from drumming her fingers on the tabletop.
There was a conversation floating in the air, but Lilly wasn't being very attentive. By the time their food came, neither was very into what the other was saying.
They ate their food in silence, not even looking at each other. When they were both done, they got up and went to the car.
She went to get in the car, but it was still locked. She turned around to see Niko staring at her.
"Something is wrong with you tonight. Your mind has been on something else all night."
"You must be imagining things. I'm fine."
"Lilly, I have only known you two weeks and even I can tell that something is wrong."
He put his hand on her shoulder and tried to look her in the eyes, but she refused to look up.
"Please tell me"
Finally, she looked up.
"It's just someone back in the states, an old friend. I found out something I didn't know before I left."
"Tell me about this friend of yours. What did you find out?"
She turned so she didn't have to look him in the eyes.
"I've known this guy for almost my entire life. I never thought we would have more than friendly feelings for each other. But…"
"But what?"
She turned around to look at him again.
"He's in love with me."
He met her eyes.
"Are you in love with him?"
She didn't know how to answer. She really didn't know.
"I don't know. I've never really thought about it before."
That's when he did the last thing she expected. He kissed her.
When he finally pulled away, he was smiling.
"You love him."
"What?"
"You didn't kiss me back. You're in love with him."
"No, you just caught me off guard…" he was giving her a disapproving look.
"I love him?"
He nodded.
"What should I do?"
"You should tell him."
"What good would that do? We live half a world away now."
He thought for a moment.
"There was this song from six or so years ago. It was by a Swedish ABBA tribute group that actually did well in the states, that is why I've heard of them, but you've probably heard of them too." He climbed into the car and turned on the stereo. "Don't ask me why I have it on CD."
So remember in your heart
Baby when we are apart
There's no need for crying
'cause even if I am
Halfway around the world
That won't stop me from loving you
Halfway around the world
Still be feeling the way I do
Now I wanna hold you baby
'cause I'm gonna miss you like crazy
Even if I'm halfway around the world
"Maybe you need to tell him in person."
"But…"
"Now, I'm a sucker for romance, and I'm not about to let you kill this for me. So you are going to get in my car, I'm going to take you home, you are going to pack whatever you can fit into your carry on, you are going to say goodbye to your mother, and I am personally going to put you on the first connecting flight to Malibu."
They both smiled before Lilly answered quietly, "Thanks Niko."
He helped her into her seat before getting in the car and driving her home. She ran in and took the first duffel bag she found and threw in random clothes, a toothbrush, and Mr. Wugglebear.
She quickly explained to her mother what was going on. She simply smiled and kissed her, telling her to call her when she got to her dad's. She hugged Adam and gave Meghan a quick kiss on the forehead. Adam handed her $500 and wished her the best of luck.
When she looked at the money in her hands, he answered, "The only place they take US dollars here is at the airport. (A/N: Don't know if this is true) Good luck kiddo."
She gave him another hug before running out the front door to jump in Niko's car. It was still running in her driveway, and as soon as she closed her door he started driving. He was driving really fast, probably faster than the speed limit, but she didn't care.
He parked at the airport and they ran toward the ticket counter. They saw that the next flight left in fifteen minutes. She went to go pull the money out of her pocket, but Niko already had his credit card on the counter. She looked at him in shock, but he just smiled.
He handed her her boarding pass. She tried to think of something to tell him, but she was speechless.
"You're welcome, now just go!" he said, kissing her on the cheek.
She got her bag X-rayed and ran toward the gate. (A/N: Remember, this isn't the U.S., they can keep their shoes on) She was the last person to board, but she made it on.
She sat in her seat, and for the first time tonight, she allowed herself to think about him.
She was going back home. She was going back to Oliver.
