NOTES: This chapter just kind of deals with Mikayla and Rosie getting to Louisiana and how they both react (or don't react) to the situation. The next chapter is already in the works and will be dealing more with Mikayla and Carter's ~issues. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Mikayla's flight landed right on time and she was one of the first ones off the plane, thanks to her first-class seat. She may not have been a pop star or a movie star anymore, but she was still recognizable and had a small fortune to her name. She could afford a few perks.

Mikayla hadn't been in the Monroe Regional Airport for a little over two years but she still knew her way around. Shifting her small duffel bag to rest comfortably on her shoulder, she walked through the familiar terminals, down the escalator to baggage claim. She found the luggage carousel carrying the two bags she'd brought with her and waited for it to appear.

"Carter?" she heard a voice calling, and she immediately turned around when she heard her sister's name being called. A brunette girl in a floral skirt and pink cardigan flew into her arms. She didn't say a word as the girl held her and whispered, "I missed you," into her ear, though she was certain this girl was mistaking her for her twin.

"Er…yeah," she muttered, gently pushing the girl off her. The girl looked a little hurt, and Mikayla felt bad, but really? She was hugging a total stranger. She'd had fans that would hug her in L.A., too, and it was always kind of awkward, but she learned to put up with it. "I think you've got the wrong girl," Mikayla explained. "You may be looking for my sister…"

"Mikayla!" a man's voice called out.

"Rosie?!"

The girl turned and Mikayla followed her gaze to see her father and sister hurrying toward them. She grinned widely and ran into her father's arms. Joe held his daughter tightly in his arms, two years of nearly nonexistent contact all but forgotten in that moment.

"I'm so glad to have you home, Princess," he murmured. He cradled the older twin in his arms and glanced over at Carter and Rosie. It looked to him like Carter's worries from the night before were about to spring into being. "Honey, let's go get your bags, okay?"

"Okay," Mikayla agreed. She looked over at Carter for a moment and smiled sadly as she followed her father over to the luggage carousel to wait.

"Rosie," Carter whispered, once her father and sister had walked away. "I missed you, baby." She smiled and gently wrapped her arms around Rosie's waist. The young Princess glowered at her and she sighed. She knew what was coming already. Lecture time.

"Do not sigh at me, Carter Mason," Rosie said sternly. "Who is that girl? And why does she look exactly like you?"

"Well, that's Mikayla," Carter said slowly. "And she's my identical twin, which would explain why we look so much alike. Can I have a real hug now?"

"No!" Rosie stepped out of Carter's arms, crossed her arms over her chest and glared at her best friend. "You have never told me that you had a sibling. I would think that would be a thing you would tell your best friend, do you not agree?"

Carter sighed and hung her head. She felt terrible for neglecting to tell Rosie about Mikayla. But her father had told her last night that when Rosie had first arrived in Lake Monroe, he hadn't wanted her stay to be any more complicated than it already was. She was hiding from a dictator who was trying to take over her home country. The Mason family was hardly something that would have concerned her at that time.

"You lied to me," Rosie stated.

"I didn't lie!" Carter snapped. "Dad and I didn't tell you 'cause it didn't matter, okay? Mikayla's been away from us for two years. We barely heard from her in that time. But apparently, whatever career she had is over, so she came home. As far as I'm concerned, she's not even my family anymore, okay? She left us, she left me and I hate her for that!"

"Carter…"

"I loved her, Rosie. God, I loved her! She was my best friend. And she just left. After all the horrible stuff we'd been through, she left." She shook her head and swiped at her eyes. When she looked up, Rosie could see the tears glittering in her eyes.

"Oh, my darling," Rosie murmured, stepping forward and wrapping her arms around Carter's neck. "I love you so. You know that, yes?"

"I know," Carter whispered into her neck.

Joe waited patiently for Mikayla's two bags to appear on the belt, while Mikayla watched her sister and this girl – Rosie, apparently – interact. Carter held Rosie like she was the most precious thing on earth. Briefly, the memory of one Miley Stewart entered her mind. She'd held onto this unrequited crush on Miley since the moment she met the brunette backstage with Jake. She wished she'd been more forward and said something to her, tried to get to know her. Maybe then, it would've been worth staying in L.A. a bit longer.

She shook her head and turned back to look at her smiling father. Behind all that smiling and happiness, Mikayla was sure her father was more than a little hurt that she had been so out of contact with them the past two years. Of course, she had called on holidays and on Joe's birthday. She'd tried calling on her birthday for Carter the first year, but her twin had refused to speak to her. Every time she'd called that first year – and she had tried to call at least weekly – she would ask to speak with Carter and would be turned down yet again. Eventually, she gave up. She texted her dad occasionally but ended up just trying to lose herself in whatever work she could find in Hollywood.

Now, looking at her father and her sister and even her sister's friend, Mikayla wished she had put in the effort to fix things. She did not regret going to L.A. It had been amazing while it lasted. But she did regret not calling more and insisting Carter talk to her. She regretted not coming home a few times, at least for Thanksgiving and Christmas…

"Time to go!" Joe announced, holding up Mikayla's two green suitcases. Carter and Rosie walked toward them, and Mikayla noticed the arm Carter kept around Rosie's waist. This girl was clearly very special to Carter.

"Welcome home, Mikayla," Carter said. Her tone was not welcoming; it was forcibly polite. Mikayla hated hearing that tone in her sister's voice. She wished for the billionth time she had fixed things sooner. Maybe then Carter would be happy to have her home – as happy as Mikayla was to be home.

"I am very sorry I jumped on you," Rosie apologized, cheeks pink. "I mistook you for your lovely sister here." She turned her gaze adoringly on Carter, and then Carter smiled and blushed.

"It's cool. It happ—Well, it used to happen a lot. When I still lived here…" Mikayla stopped uncomfortably and just offered Rosie a weak smile.

Joe decided to try to break the tension and turned to the young Queen. "Rosie, do you have your bags?" he asked.

"Yes," Rosie said. She gestured to a man standing by, holding two pink suitcases in his hands. Carter and Joe laughed at the amount of luggage Rosie had brought with her for a two-week stay.

Joe chuckled. "Okay then." He walked up to the good man, spoke in his ear and clapped him on the back. The man nodded and smiled politely. "Let's go girls!" Joe called out, as he and Rosie's man started walking away. Carter squeezed Rosie's waist and the two followed after her father, leaving Mikayla trailing behind them, feeling lost where she'd once felt so at home.

****

When they got home, Carter and Joe went out to the bait shop to close up for vacation. There wouldn't be too many people coming around anymore. It was winter time and they wouldn't be seeing as much fish. This left Rosie and Mikayla alone in the house together, trying to settle in.

Mikayla got into her old bedroom first and immediately crashed on her old bed. No matter how long she'd been away, this was still her bed. Looking up at the ceiling, she smiled and for a second, it felt just like old times, when her mother was still alive and she and Carter were still everything to each other. Then, reality hit her. She slid out of bed and began to unpack her bags.

Rosie watched Mikayla from the doorway. She didn't know what to do. She was still getting used to the fact that Carter had a twin sister. Now, she was fairly certain she had nowhere to sleep. That bed Mikayla was unpacking her stuff onto had been her bed, and she'd expected she'd be able to use it. Unfortunately, the Mason's family secret was making use of it now.

Soft footsteps made Rosie turn around just as Carter stepped out and slid her arms around Rosie's middle. Rosie relaxed a little and placed her hands over Carter's.

"I'm really happy you're here," Carter whispered, nuzzling Rosie's cheek with her nose. "Really happy." Rosie smiled and leaned back into Carter's gentle touches.

"I am so happy to be here," Rosie murmured. "I have missed you, Carter, very, very much."

"I missed you, too." She looked up, past Rosie into her bedroom. Mikayla had stopped unpacking and was watching them. When her eyes met Carter's she quickly turned back to her suitcases and seemed to start working even faster.

Carter sighed and slipped away from Rosie and into the bedroom. When Rosie didn't follow her, she retraced her steps and grabbed Rosie's hands. Grinning, she pulled the young Queen swiftly into her arms and carried her to her bed. She dropped Rosie on the bed and climbed on top of her, pinning the giggling girl beneath her stronger body.

"Guess we'll be sharing a bed tonight," Carter breathed, cupping Rosie's face in her hands and planting kisses on each of her eyelids, cheeks and a longer one on her forehead. "I'll get to hold you all night." Both smiled at the thought, no longer taking any notice of Mikayla, who had again paused in her task to watch her sister interact with this girl.

Mikayla hadn't seen Carter act so affectionately toward another person since their mother died. Carter had been a shy kid, a sharp contrast to her outgoing sister, and she had become even shyer and more withdrawn when their mother passed away. She was still a people-pleaser and would do nearly anything asked of her without a fight, but she didn't speak as much or touch anyone, even for just a friendly hug. Carter's best friend since kindergarten, Ed, had been surprised to find he couldn't get anymore hugs from the normally at least grudgingly affectionate girl. Rosie, however, seemed to have somehow pulled Carter out of her shell. Mikayla couldn't understand it.

Feeling like she was intruding on something, Mikayla decided she'd have the rest of the day and to unpack before the rest of her things arrived. She wandered out of the room, wondering if she'd made the right choice in coming home.