If, and I'm hoping this happens, I can stay focused for longer than three seconds at a time, the next few chapters will be done post-haste. I've been distracted lately playing Animal Crossing… Watching that marathon a short while ago planted a lovely seed in my head – I might just have to try writing a Mikayla/Hannah story. It's just too tempting.
For my own sake, I feel that I must sort out the timeline a little.
Sunday would be when Miley left and Luanne came. Wednesday was when Miley came back. This chapter takes place Thursday, then.
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Miley wrapped her hands tightly around Lilly's waist and beamed brilliantly. Lilly's birthday was a mere one day away and Miley couldn't wait to hand Lilly the plane ticket. The hotel she'd chosen was right on the coast; it was only a few minutes from one of the island's best surfing beaches.
Lilly leaned against her and sighed, completely content. Miley had been treating her so well and Lilly was glad to know that Miley cared. Just a few short days ago it seemed like all Miley wanted was kissing, kissing, and more kissing. Now it was all about small touches and the occasional kiss.
"Lils, do you want to go somewhere special for dinner?" Miley cooed as she nestled her mouth just above Lilly's ear. She inhaled softly, loving the scent of Lilly's hair.
"Well… you could treat me to a birthday meal early…" Lilly was excited for her birthday. Turning seventeen wasn't a big thing, but it made her feel more refined. Sixteen was kid stuff; it was great for like two seconds. Seventeen just sounded older. It was one step closer to eighteen, one step closer to being free of her parents.
Miley kissed Lilly softly, still having a hard time believing that Luanne actually seduced Lilly for her. It was almost a dream come true. She was dreading, though, actually telling Lilly that it was Luanne who had pursued the relationship. What if Lilly left her for Luanne? What if that was Luanne's plan all along?
"Wherever you want to go, Hannah can make reservations." Miley responded, voice just below a whisper.
"How about Chez Ruperto?" Lilly had been dying to eat there. It was a new restaurant that had attracted a lot of attention in the first few weeks it was open. Unfortunately it was also very exclusive so Lilly hadn't had the chance to try it.
"I'll call them and see if Hannah can't get us a table, love." Miley pulled her arms away reluctantly.
"Why do you call me that?" Lilly questioned before Miley could even touch the phone. "Why call me 'love'?"
Miley shrugged and flushed slightly, "Well, I guess it's 'cause I love you."
Lilly stared at Miley a moment, "This feels so different from just a few days ago… It's so weird. You've made, like, a three-sixty."
"I didn't love you three days ago?"
Lilly shook her head, "Three days ago you practically had your hands down my pants for fun."
Miley paled, wondering just how far Luanne had taken Lilly. "I'll explain everything tomorrow, okay?"
"No, I want you to explain now. I mean, it's too strange! First it seems like you're just in… in… lust, or something, and now it's suddenly love? I don't mind, 'cause it's a nice change, but I am just so confused."
Miley sighed, "Do you mind if we don't do dinner, then?"
"I'd rather hear your explanation." Lilly grumbled softly.
"Okay… First let me give you your birthday present, then." Miley sighed, "I can't explain until I give it."
Lilly had no complaints, though she tapped her foot impatiently while she waited. Miley handed her a long white envelope. Curious – and still confused – Lilly opened it and pulled out a tropical looking plane ticket.
"What is this?" Lilly questioned, not fully understanding. "You got me a… plane ticket?"
"Yes." Miley giggled nervously, "I already talked about this with your parents, and you're set to go with me this weekend to Hawaii. Well, my daddy'll be with us, but it's practically the same thing as just the two of us."
"Thank you!" Lilly cried, beaming. She'd always wanted to go to Hawaii. "But… what does this have to do with your changing personality?"
"Well, in order to set this up… I had to go to Hawaii for three days…" Miley trailed off, hoping Lilly would pick it up.
"But you've been home for…" Something clicked in Lilly's brain. "Wait… it wasn't you, was it? That's why you're so different! You brought Luanne! And she… she was… I can't believe this!"
Lilly threw the ticket to the floor and ran from Miley's bedroom. Miley leaned down and rescued the fallen pieces of paper and sighed softly. She had guessed this would happen, but she had no idea how to fix it. For all she knew, Lilly wouldn't even want to speak to her again. Depressed, Miley returned the ticket to the envelope and made her decision. She had to chase Lilly down and make this right.
Lilly paused in her running at Rico's. She was hungrier than she thought she was. Jackson was leaning on the counter, staring off into the distance – probably at some unsuspecting girl's butt, Lilly assumed.
"Jackson, can I have a hot dog please?" Her tone gave away the anger and frustration she was feeling.
He snapped out of his daze and hurried to the hotdog maker, "Sure thing, Lilly."
She slapped some money down as he brought her food back. Without another word she took the hotdog and stormed to a table. If it were possible, she'd have a small black rain cloud following her around. Jackson shook his head, not even going to bother trying to find out what was wrong. The only girls he was concerned about were the ones wearing tight bikinis.
Miley nearly flew out of the house. She didn't bother putting shoes on. For all she knew, Lilly was long gone, but she had to try. Running through the warm sand, she flung herself on the counter next to Jackson, getting his attention with her mad panting.
"Jack… son… where… is…. Lilly?" She spat out, wishing desperately that she was an athlete. That would have made her mad dash a little less intense.
"Right there, genius." He pointed to where Lilly was seated, only a few feet away.
"Thanks…" She slid off the counter and slithered over to where Lilly was.
"What… what are you doing here?" Lilly demanded. She wanted to be angrier than she was.
"Tell me what you're feeling." Miley begged. "I can explain."
Lilly paused – what was she feeling? She wasn't sure herself. It was hard to put into words, but she decided to give it a try, "I feel, I don't know, betrayed. You used your cousin to get me… I just… it's not right."
"Look, Lilly…" Miley fell into a chair, still tired, "Mind if I sit? Thanks… Look, Lilly, I've liked you for a while now. I was going to tell you how I felt with this trip. We had given Luanne strict orders not to leave the house or have prolonged exposure to you and Oliver. We didn't want her messing up my life, but I needed this to be a surprise for you. It just turns out that Luanne thought that the best way to mess up my life was to create a messy situation with my best friends."
"Don't tell me she was all over Oliver, too…" Lilly sighed.
"No, thankfully. But what she didn't know is that I did like you, so all she did was speed up what I was going to do in the first place. Well, maybe not how she got your attention, since I like using words…"
"Yeah, she was a little forward." Lilly agreed, "She had her tongue nearly down my throat."
Miley blushed slightly, "I'm sorry you were tricked. I really didn't know it was going to happen."
"But does this mean I'm dating Luanne?" Lilly questioned, "Do I like Luanne? Or do I like you, since she was you when she came onto me…"
Miley bit her lower lip thoughtfully, "Well, did you like being with her, or do you like how I am with you?"
"I don't know. It was just different, that's all. I like how you treat me, yes. But it was just different with her." Lilly rubbed her hand on her forehead, wishing she had a better word for it than different.
"Would you ever want to date her?"
"Well, no." Lilly admitted, "I mean, she's evil. You proved that before."
"So… you like how I treat you and you'd never date her."
"Sounds about right."
Miley looked down at the tabletop, unsure of where she was going with this. "What did she do that you liked?"
It was Lilly's turn to look away, "I don't know. I guess she was a lot more physical with me."
"You want me to kiss you more?"
Lilly flushed, shoving the rest of her hotdog into her mouth so she wouldn't have to keep talking. The hotdog only made Miley more impatient. Miley's leg started shaking, tapping the table's main support nervously.
"I…" Lilly muttered, "Yes? And I mean she had her hands… not just on my waist, y'know?"
Miley chuckled nervously, "I could try that for you, if you want?"
"Okay…"
A period of silence fell over them and Lilly used the time to finish eating her hotdog. She fiddled with one of the sesame seeds that had fallen free from the bun. Miley traced her finger down the table.
"Um, now that we're done having an extremely awkward and private conversation in public, would you still like to go on the trip?" Miley didn't look up to meet Lilly's gaze.
"Of course!" Lilly perked up. "Can we just pretend this didn't happen?"
"Yes!" Miley was only too glad to put this behind them. "So you should start thinking about what you want to bring. It's just a three day trip, but that's all I could manage with school and stuff. You'd have one day to surf it up and stuff. We leave tomorrow after school."
"Miles, you're the best." Lilly leaned across the table to steal a kiss. Miley met her half way.
"So, what happens if Luanne ever comes to visit?"
Lilly shrugged, "We pretend she didn't start this."
In truth, Lilly wasn't sure how she'd react to seeing Miley's identical cousin again. She was worried she'd confuse the two or get caught with Luanne. And there was the fear somewhere deep down that she preferred Luanne to Miley, though she logically knew it wasn't true. It would be best, Lilly figured, to never see Luanne again.
"She's going to try and sabotage us, I bet." Miley fell into her imagination. "I bet she comes back and sees that we're in love and it'll drive her up the wall! She'd probably try and screw with your mind, pretending to be me and breaking up with you or something."
"Um, Miles, I have to get home… I promised my mom I'd trim… the hedges…" Lilly was suddenly uncomfortable. What if that did happen? How would she deal with it? Would she be able to tell Miley apart from Luanne?
"Lil! I was joking!" Miley chuckled, "Look, we should have some sort of key word, so you'll always know if it's me."
"Like what? And wouldn't she catch on?"
"No, I don't think so. We could change it every week or so, if you want." Miley suggested, "Something that only the two of us would know?"
"Just a simple phrase would be fine, I think." Lilly supplied. "Something that she wouldn't expect."
"How about you ask me what your name is. If I respond with Lilly Truscott, it's not me. But if I say Lillian Truscott, it is me. I don't know if Luanne knows your full name, or if she'd think to use it."
"Let me get this straight." Lilly sighed. "Luanne would call me Lilly but you would call me Lillian."
"Right!" Miley got to her feet expectantly, "So?"
"I guess it works for me." Lilly followed suit. She walked around the table and let Miley wrap her up in a tight hug. Their lips met in a passionate kiss. It lasted for only a few seconds, however, because Jackson started whistling.
"Well, you should go and start packing." Miley nervously patted Lilly's bottom, shoving Lilly in the right direction. She wasn't sure if that was anything like the attention Lilly said Luanne was good at.
Lilly giggled and blushed, "Thanks, Miles. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
They parted ways, both blushing furiously. This weekend was going to be interesting, Miley thought as she headed back into the house, very interesting.