Lilly woke the next morning and saw it was a little after eight in the morning. She stretched and smiled as she thought of the previous night and the pleasure she had with Amber. She was thinking of how well satisfied she was when her smile turned into a frown. She was so involved in her own feeling of satisfaction she almost forgot about Amber and her crying on the couch. Lilly got out of bed, slipped on her panties and tee shirt, and walked into the living room to make her way to the kitchen She was hungry and decided to make them all breakfast. Lilly knew she was not as good as a cook as Amber, but growing up with a working single mother she learned her way around the kitchen. She was going to let Amber and Natalie sleep in a little more. They had a few hours before they had to be at the beach and while Amber had to be at work earlier, Lilly would tell Rico to fuck off if he gave her a problem. Lilly walked into the living room and stopped. Amber was still on the couch but sleeping now and Natalie was curled up next to her crying. Lilly quietly approached the girls and pried the young girl off Amber. At first Natalie did not want to let go of her "sister" but with Lilly's whispered words she finally gave up and let Lilly walk her into the kitchen where they sat at the dinette table. Lilly took the girl's small hands in hers.

"What's the matter, sweetie? Why the tears. She's just sleeping." Lilly said.

Natalie wiped her eyes and nose with her hands, "No…she…she's sick again and…why, Lilly? She was doing so good for a long time. And…and yesterday and last night was wonderful and…and…ohhhh…why did she get sick again and today of all days?"

Lilly frowned, "I don't know, baby, I wish I did but I don't. Hey, let's go cook some breakfast and we'll wake Amber up and go to the beach. We don't have to be there until later but we can watch some rad surfing while we wait."

Natalie nodded, stood up, walked to Lilly, and hugged the girl, "I love you, Lilly."

Lilly hugged Natalie back and felt her eyes get watery due to her affection for the girl, "I love you to, baby. Now let me show you how to cook some wonderful scrambled eggs."

They woke Amber up and the Goth girl was right about what she told Lilly earlier that morning. She was in her dark mood and lost in her own world. She would smile at Lilly and Natalie and even answer their questions with one or two words but for the most part she seemed as if in a daze. Lilly knew Amber would function while in this mood but she would talk very little and when she did it was only to respond to questions or comments directed to her and show would show no emotions and avoid any physical contact with her and Natalie. Lilly drove them to the beach and as Amber went to work she took Natalie down to the beach to watch the surfers and to loosen up before they had to compete. Natalie would be surfing first and when the time came for her age group Lilly went to Rico's and led Amber to the ocean to watch the girl. Natalie did very well and ended up in second place. Natalie excitedly showed Amber her trophy and the Goth girl just smiled and told her it was nice and she had better get back to work. Natalie threw her trophy in the sand and ran away crying. Lilly felt like her heart was going to break as she picked up the trophy and ran after the girl down the beach. She caught up with Natalie and gently grabbed her and turned her around. Natalie had tears running down her cheeks.

"I hate her! I hate her so much! She…she did not even care! I…I wish she would leave and never come back!" Natalie cried as Lilly dropped to her knees and hugged her.

"Shhh…don't say that, Natalie, please don't say that. I know she…she hurt your feelings…but never say you hate her. She as done so much for you and she loves you very much…she loves you more than anyone."

Natalie sniffled, "I…I really don't hate her, but I hate when she gets sick like this. I wanted her to be proud of me…and…and she did not care."

Lilly pushed her back a little and smiled, "She is always proud of you, baby. When she gets better she will tell you she is proud of what you did today. Now let's go find Miley and show her your trophy and get something to eat. I am surfing in a couple of hours and you can sit with Miley and watch me."

Natalie stopped crying and wiped her eyes, "Ok…but I don't want to eat at Rico's…can we get a hot dog from that ma on the beach? I haven't had a hot dog in a long time since Amber doesn't like me to eat them."

Lilly laughed, "Sure, baby, we will get you a hot dog and whatever other junk food you like. Now let's go find Miley."

Natalie giggled, "I saw her with those boys…I think she was flirting with them." Natalie said in a whisper as if Miley was doing something wrong and she was telling on her. Lilly laughed again.

"Yeah, she always likes the get all the attention. Come on let's go and see if we can do something to embarrass her in front of them."

Natalie laughed and took Lilly's hand and they walked to a group of boys surrounding Miley. Lilly smiled when she saw her friend. Miley was wearing a very skimpy bikini and even at the distance she could tell the girl was flirting hard. She did not recognize any of the boys and assumed they were out of towners here to surf or watch or pick up girls. Lilly whispered something to Natalie and the little girl nodded as she giggled. Natalie then let go of Lilly's hand and ran to Miley shouting.

"Mommy, Mommy!" When Natalie got to Miley she hugged the girl tightly, "Mommy, daddy said for you to stop talking to these boys and take me to get something to eat. He said he has to go to work and he is mad."

Miley looked at the girl in shock as the boys muttered excuses why they had to leave and left the pretty brown haired girl being hugged by her "daughter". Miley pushed Natalie back and was about to say something when she heard Lilly laughing. Miley looked up and saw her friend bent over laughing.

"Lilly Truscott, I am going to get you for this!" Miley screamed at Lilly and Natalie tried to run back to the blonde but Miley held her tight, "And you, little girl, I am going to get you!" Miley started tickling Natalie. The girl fell to the sand laughing and begging for Lilly to help her. The blonde ran over and tackled Miley and started tickling her. Natalie soon joined in and Miley was laughing and begging the two girls to stop.

Amber stood on the edge of a sandy hill and watched the scene of the three girls playing and laughing with tears in her eyes. "You were right. She is going to leave me for her just like you did with Carly. And…and they are going to try and take her away too aren't they?" Amber listened to the answer in her head, "I…I am not going to let that happen. They will not take Natalie from me!" Again she paused and listened, "No! I…I won't allow it! Stop saying that! She…she does love me and they…they won't get her!" Amber started to rub her temples with her fingers, "No! Stop saying that! Leave me alone! Please leave me alone!" The girl ignored the stares from people walking by and when the voices left her after their cruel words she walked back to the surf shack and started working again.

Miley and Natalie watched Lilly surf and cheered when she came in third. Lilly was disappointed with her results and cursed that the two people who beat her were professionals and should not have been allowed to surf. Amber did not come down to watch her but she really did not mind. Lilly knew Amber's mood and knew she was not herself so she did not let it bother her. After the competition Lilly told Miley she would see her at the party later that night, hugged her friend, and her and Natalie walked to get Amber and go home for dinner and to get cleaned up and changed for the party; Lilly would not get there until about ten since that was when the party really picked up. On the drive back to the house, Lilly noticed Amber was much more withdrawn than she normally was in her dark periods and she even acted mean with some of her short comments. The blonde just shrugged it off and focused her conversation to Natalie. When they got home Lilly and Natalie agreed on ordering a pizza for dinner and Amber did not protest.

The three girls were in the kitchen; Amber sitting at the table massaging her temples as if she had a headache, Natalie sitting across from her staring at the older girl with a look of concern on her face, and Lilly just hung up the phone after ordering the pizza.

"Should be here in about thirty minutes or so…God I am so hungry."

"Me too!" Natalie shouted and Amber looked up at her.

"Good, that will give you plenty of time to take a bath. You have sand all in your hair and dirt under your nails."

Natalie frowned, "I will…after we eat. Can I have a snack before the pizza gets here…I am so hungry."

"Sure, what would you…" Lilly started to say but was interrupted by Amber.

"No you may not have a snack. It will ruin your dinner. And you will take a bath before we eat!" Amber said harshly.

Lilly blinked hard in surprise as Natalie's eyes started to tear up. Lilly walked to the girl and took her hand, "Come on, honey, let's go take a quick bath and then I will get you a little snack." Natalie smiled at Lilly.

"I said no! She will ruin her dinner! And she is very capable of taking her own bath without you holding her hand. Hell, she surfs and swims in the ocean so I doubt she will drown in a bathtub! Stop spoiling her! And…and take out those silly braids…your mother will be furious with me if she sees them!" Amber said as she looked at Lilly defiantly.

Natalie looked at Amber and then Lilly and there was fear on her face. Lilly gently squeezed her shoulder, "I have no idea what has gotten into you this evening, but you need to just chill! I am going to give her a bath and then a damn snack!" Lilly walked Natalie out of the room. She expected Amber to scream or yell at her but the Goth girl did not say a word and started rubbing her temples again.

"Lilly, what is wrong with her? She…she had never been this sick before or acted so…so mean?" Natalie asked as Lilly ran her bath water.

"I don't know, honey, I…I have no idea. We just have to be patient with her, ok?"

Natalie nodded as she started washing her body in the tub, "Lilly, will you stay with me tonight? Sleep in my bed with me? I…she is scaring me a little."

Lilly took the wash cloth away from Natalie and helped the girl wash, "I…I have to leave later. I am going to a party and promised Miley I would be there. I am coming back to spend the night and I will sleep with you then. But…don't be scared of her. Amber would never hurt you, you know that. She loves you too much."

"Can I come to the party?"

Lilly smiled and started unbraiding the girl's hair, "No, baby, it is a party for older teenagers and grownups. I'm sorry, but I promise I'll come back after the party and sleep with you…ok?"

Natalie nodded, "Do we have to take out the braids, Lilly? I love them."

"Yeah, Amber's right; your mom may be mad."

After she bathed and Lilly brushed her hair the two girls went downstairs to find Amber still sitting at the table and it looked like she had not moved at all. Lilly got the girl a small snack and took her to the living room and they played with her Hannah Montana doll while they waited for the pizza. They did not have to wait long and Lilly placed the slices of pizza on plates and gave a plate to both Amber and Natalie. Amber just pushed hers away on the table while both Lilly and Natalie ate quickly since they were hungry. Amber watched the two as they laughed and talked and jealousy built up in her.

"That was good. I have not had pizza in a long time. Thanks, Lilly." Natalie said as she pushed her plate away from her.

Amber looked up, "Yeah…mean cruel Amber won't let you have good stuff, huh? Well I am soooo sorry I don't spoil you like your dear sweet Lilly does!" Lilly looked at Amber in shock.

"I…I…I did not mean that, Ams…I just thought it was good and…I…I'm sorry." Natalie said as her bottom lip trembled.

"What the hell, Amber? Why are you being so mean to her?"

Amber looked at Lilly coldly, "Don't you have a party to go to or something? I would hate for you to be late and have Miley upset with you." Amber then looked at Natalie, "You see, baby, your wonderful Lilly is leaving us tonight to go party with someone she loves more than us. Isn't that right, Lilly?"

Lilly stood up, "Don't say another word, Amber! I have been very patient and calm all day and all night with you but you are pushing it. I promised Miley I would show up and we do this every year. I told you I would be back later tonight."

Natalie looked at the two and became afraid, "I…I am tired and want to go to bed." She said as she got up.

"I'll come tuck you in, baby, and tell you a story." Amber said as she stood.

"No…I want Lilly to tuck me in and read me a story. I…I don't want to listen to a story tonight."

"Fine…then go to bed!" Amber said and got up and walked out of the kitchen to the living room.

Lilly took Natalie to her room, read her a story, and lay down with her until she drifted to sleep. She looked at her watch ad saw it was nine thirty and about time for her to leave for the party but she was going to have words with Amber regardless if the girl was in her dark period or not. The way she had been acting all day and evening to Natalie was unforgivable. Lilly could take it, but Amber really upset and scared the small girl. Lilly walked into the living room and saw Amber sitting on the couch with her head down and rubbing her temples.

"What the fuck, Amber? The way you treated Natalie all afternoon and this evening was terrible! What is your deal tonight? I know you are…well…you are in your own little world and spacing out but that is no excuse to jump all over that poor girl!"

Amber looked up and Lilly saw tears running down her cheeks and causing her makeup to run down with the tears. "You can't have her! I won't let you take her with you!" Amber screamed and Lilly took a step back.

"What are you fucking talking about? Take who where?"

"Natalie! You can't have her! She is mine…she belongs to me! I saw you and that whore Miley with her today! You are going to try and take her from me but you can't! I won't let you! She is mine and she…she…she belongs to me! You can't steal her love from me!"

Lilly was shocked at the words Amber was screaming at her, "Amber…I…I have no idea what you mean. I…I would never take Natalie from you. Hell, she would never leave you anyway if I wanted to. She loves you, baby, she loves you so much. I…I…and Miley is not a whore…please don't call her that. She is my best friend and I don't like it when people call her names."

Amber laughed but Lilly knew it was a forced one, "Yeah…how fucking convenient, huh? Your best friend may ass! You are running out of the house to meet your precious whore Miley…well go to her! I don't care…but…but you can't have Natalie! I will not allow you to take her! I would kill you before I let you take her from me! And…and if you leave don't come back! I don't want you lying next to me with that slut's stink of sex all over you!"

Lilly stared at Amber in disbelief. She never heard the girl scream or yell like she was doing now; she sounded hysterical. Lilly grew more concerned than angry at the words coming from Amber's mouth. She took a step close to Amber, but the girl looked at her, "No! Don't fucking touch me! Just…just leave! Go fuck your whore!" Amber screamed and Lilly turned to the door. She had tears in her eyes as she walked to the door. She knew what ever was happening to Amber it was beyond anyway she could help. She felt a little guilty about leaving Natalie there, but she knew Amber would never do anything to hurt the girl. As she walked through the kitchen to the back door she heard Amber crying and then the girl shouted something that made her freeze.

"I fucked her, you know! I fucked your precious Miley…more than once! See…she is a whore to fuck her best friend's girlfriend!"

Lilly turned and walked back into the living room and saw Amber was now standing up with her hands folded across her chest. "That got you back, huh?"

Lilly looked at her, "Stop, Amber! Stop it right now! I have no idea what has gotten into you and why you are being so paranoid, but I know you and Miley never did anything. She…she would never do that to me. Stop lying to me!"

Amber smiled cruelly, "Oh I'm not lying, dear Lillian. She fucked me and I fucked her. She made me cum four times and I made her cum over and over. She loved it when I stuck my fingers in her ass. You never did that to her did you? Well you should…she loved it and begged me to do it again and again!"

Lilly put her hands over her ears, "No! Stop it! Why are you telling me these things?" Lilly prayed to herself it was not true but for some reason she believed Amber.

"Because I want you to know she is a whore! I…I did not want to at first. It was the night we got into that fight and I went to her for comfort and…and she kissed me and then…then she seduced me and at first I tried to stop her…but it felt good when she kissed my nipples and fingered me and…and you would not have sex with me…and it happened!" Amber lied, "It felt so good, Lilly, to have someone make love to me and hold me in a way you wouldn't…but I hated myself for it and told her never again, but one day in the locker room during gym class she made me…she had me go down on her. I…she made me but it felt good!" Amber started crying again and Lilly turned and started walking from the room. She was crying and her heart was breaking. She felt Amber grab her legs and she turned to see the girl on the floor hugging her legs so she could not walk.

"Please, Lilly! I am so sorry! Please don't leave me! I love you…please don't go! I…I am sorry and I didn't want to but she…she seduced me! I love you! Please I am sooo sorry! Please don't leave me!"

Lilly reached out and wanted to caress the girl's hair but stopped herself and gently kicked Amber away. "Just…just leave me alone! I…we are done, Amber! I…I would have done anything for you because I love you so much…but…I…I cannot forgive this!" Lilly cried as she spoke the words and walked from the house as she heard Amber begging forgiveness and telling her she loved her.

Lilly drove around for about an hour crying and trying to sort out what had happened. She felt a pit in her stomach and a pain in her heart as she drove around crying. Lilly did not drive with a purpose but when she stopped she noticed she was at the beach. She walked to the party and looked around for Miley and soon she saw her friend dancing with Oliver. Lilly walked to Miley and grabbed her arm and roughly dragged the girl away from the loud music. When they got to a clear area, Miley smiled at her friend.

"Lils, about time you showed up! I was beginning to worry…but damn you hurt my arm." Miley went to hug her friend and the look on Lilly's face stopped her.

"Have you been drinking?" Lilly asked. Miley shook her head.

"No…not yet but I may later. Is that why you are mad? I promised you I would not get drunk tonight…and I haven't been drinking." Miley turned to Oliver who had followed his two friends, "Tell her, Oliver."

"No, she hasn't been, Lilly…calm down, babe."

Lilly ignored Oliver and stared at Miley, "I don't give a fuck if you get drunk tonight! I just wanted to make sure you could feel this!" Lilly shouted and then slapped Miley in the face as hard as she could. Miley stumbled back and held her cheek as Oliver stepped between the two.

"What the fuck, Lilly, why…"

"Stay the fuck out of this, Oliver; it is none of your damn business!" Lilly screamed at the boy and he turned to Miley and the brown haired girl nodded to him and looked at Lilly.

"How…how long have you known?" She asked in a scared voice.

"For about a fucking hour! How…how could you, Miley! How could you!" Lilly started to cry again, "You of all people to…to do this…I…ohhh fuck you, Miley…why…please tell me why!" Lilly shouted.

Miley took a step to her friend and Lilly stepped back. "I…I don't know. It just happened…I…oh God I am so sorry, Lilly…please I am so sorry!" Miley began to cry and Oliver kept looking at the two girls with a look of confusion.

"Just happened? Fucking my girlfriend does not just happen! What was it Miley? Did it make you that jealous I was happy? I loved her, Miley…hell I still love her…and did it just kill you to see me in love? Don't you have enough, Miley? Did it brother you so much I had something you didn't and you had to steal that from me? I…why…you were my best friend! I trusted you with everything in my life! I…I loved you, Miley…with all my heart and…" Lilly broke down and put her head in her hands and started sobbing. Miley was crying as well and once again reached out for Lilly but the blonde slapped her hand away.

"Tell me, Miley…tell me why? I want to understand!" Lilly screamed.

"I…I don't know…she…she came on to me and it just happened?"

"Liar! She said you came on to her! Stop lying, Miley! Stop lying to me and tell me why! Why do you have to be so selfish you could not let me have this! You have everything! Why her too! This is the last time I am ever going to talk to you so make it good!" Lilly screamed again.

Miley just stood there crying and after a while Lilly looked back up at her, "You broke my heart, Miley!" Lilly said and turned and walked back to her car. She heard Miley screaming behind her saying how sorry she was and Lilly turned.

"Go to hell, Miley Stewart! We are no longer friends!" Lilly turned and walked away.

Miley turned to Oliver for comfort but the boy turned his back on her.

"Oliver, please!" Miley begged. Oliver turned around, "Miles, I love you and you are one of my best friends and I am not going to take sides, but what you did was so wrong." He walked away.

Miley fell to the sand on her butt and started crying and a few minutes later she felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Jake standing over her with two margaritas in his hands. He offered one to her and she took it and gulped it down. Jake smiled and sat down next to her.

"Rough night, huh?"

Miley looked at him, "What the fuck do you want, Jake?"

He shrugged, "To be friends again. I know we won't date anymore but we can be friends…I missed you, baby. And…I wished you wouldn't have believed what that whore freak told Lilly. It was not true…yeah she gave me a blow job, but she did it willingly."

Miley looked at him and after her experience with Amber she felt she could believe Jake. She took his drink from his hand and took a big swallow. "Ok…but friends only…and get me another drink. I need to get blitzed tonight." Miley said and Jake smiled as he reached in his pocket and pulled out a white pill.

"Here, try this…it's just X and it will help you get blitzed and feel good." Miley looked at the pill and shrugged her shoulders.

"What the fuck, right!" She said and took the pill and a large swallow of the margarita. Jake smiled at her and got up to get her another drink.