Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews and for reading, you guys rock.
I just want to clear something up. I wasn't very clear on the time period that this is in. I'm unsure about the time period of PLL, but I know Miley's age and the time period of HM, but I won't be following it, because of the timing I need for this.
IMPORTANT: So please note that it is early in March of 2008, and Miley, Aria, Hanna, Spencer, and Emily (and Lily, Oliver, and Jake) are all 16. Mike would be 14, Jackson almost 18, Jason 19. Ali went missing in late August/early September of 2006, and her body was found early September of 2007. So, it's been six months since Ali's body was found and buried. Miley is about 3.5 months pregnant by the end of this chapter. Sorry if it's confusing, changing it, but I gotta!
Now, on with this chapter. Enjoy, and let me know what you think!
-Jen
The Montgomery's left California a few days later, because Aria and Mike had to get back to school, and Ella wanted time to get the guest room ready. She'd had Miley pick a color, and she was going to have it painted that color. They were giving Miley two weeks in California to say goodbye to her friends and tie up things at school, to pack and to take care of Hannah.
Since she was going to go through with the pregnancy, Miley had to take a break from Hannah. She was still unsure as to whether or not she wanted to keep the baby or give it up for adoption, but everyone told her that she had time to decide. Miley decided she wanted a break anyways. Hannah was created by her and Ali, and now that she knew Ali was gone, she didn't want to do it for a while.
A week before she was due to leave to Pennsylvania, Hannah held a press conference where she announced that she decided to take some personal time off and go to an undisclosed location to get some much needed rest and relaxation, but that she would do one more show before she left in New York City, the weekend following her arrival in Pennsylvania. Also a week before she left, the person they hired to drive her car from Malibu to Rosewood left with it.
As soon as the Montgomery's had gotten home, they had started shipping Miley's stuff out, so it would be waiting for her while she arrived, and all she'd bring on the plane was a carry on.
It felt strange to her, to pack up so much of her stuff. It didn't feel right to leave this house. She ventured into the Hannah closet many times before deciding on bringing one small suitcase of Hannah clothes, and one of her wigs - just in case.
Dolly decided to move out to California to stay with Jackson, and Ruby and Ruthie were planning to visit a lot. They all promised they'd come see Miley a lot, and Miley knew they would, so thinking about leaving them wasn't as hard as leaving Lily, Jake, and Oliver.
She'd already lost Ali, and now she had to leave behind the two best friends she had left, and her boyfriend? It just didn't seem fair.
The week following her departure, she spent as much time with them and her family as possible.
Three days before she was supposed to leave, Jake finally decided they should tell his parents, and so she went over to his house. His parents were his managers, and took his career and image very seriously. Anna and Grant Ryan were not very caring people. They loved their son, but he was more of an investment to them.
Miley felt out of place, sitting with Jake on a stiff, formal sofa across from his parents. His dad was in a suit, his mom in a skirt suit with her hair in a severe French twist. "Jake, darling, can you get on with it?" Anna said, after Jake tried to figure out what to say for a long time, "We have a busy day."
Jake still said nothing, and so Miley finally said, squeezing Jake's hand gently, "I'm pregnant."
Mr and Mrs Ryan both looked shocked, looking from their son, to her, back to their son.
"Son, I thought we talked about this." Mr Ryan said after a long moment. "I thought we raised you better than to knock your girlfriend up! Do you know what this means?"
"I'm sorry." Jake said miserably. "It was an accident, but it's going to be fine."
"Miley, I think it'd be best if you left." Mrs. Ryan said.
"Her car's out in Pennsylvania, I'm her ride." Jake interjected.
"Well then it's time that you brought her home and said goodbye, things have come up in your schedule so this is the last time you'll be able to see her." His mother said. "So take her home, and then come right back, Jacob, understood?"
"Yes." He muttered.
"Good bye, dear, have a wonderful time in Pennsylvania." Anna said, before her and her husband stood and walked out. Jake stood, and held his hand out to Miley's and she stood, kind of shocked at what just happened. They went out to Jake's car, and drove nearly all the way to her house in silence.
"Jake, do you want to keep the baby?" Miley finally said.
"I thought we decided this already." Jake said.
"No, I said that I'm definitely going through with the pregnancy, because I won't get an abortion. But from there, we either keep the baby or put it up for adoption." She said. "What do you want to do?"
"Well, what do you want?" He countered.
"I don't know." She said softly. "I just really don't know."
"Well, we have time to decide, right?" Jake reasoned. "We'll figure it out."
"What if we both want different things?" Miley said.
"We'll figure that out if the time comes." He said, as they pulled up to her house. He got out, and went around to open her door, helping her out. Hand in hand, they headed out to the beach. It was surprisingly empty, and they liked that, they weren't mobbed by Jake's fans. They stopped right by the water, turning to each other at the same time, her sliding into his arms, him holding her, tightly wrapping his arms around her.
"I'm scared, Jake." Miley whispered as the waves rolled to shore.
"I know. But it's going to be ok." He said softly, "Everything will be alright."
"With us, too?" She asked, "You promise?"
"I promise." He said. "We've gotten through so much, Miley. We'll make it through this. I love you, baby, remember that."
"I love you too." She said. "I'm going to miss you so much."
"I'll miss you too, every second of every day. We'll talk as much as we can, I promise. I will drop everything for you."
"Don't forget about me for other girls." She tried to joke.
"Never." He promised. The two stood there in each other's arms for a long time, until Jake's phone rang and his mother yelled at him to get home. Even after, he stayed for another fifteen minutes until they finally headed for the house, where he walked her up to the door. "I'll call you tonight," He said, "And I'll still try to make it to the airport. I love you, Miley." He said, holding her tightly, kissing her forehead.
"I love you too, Jake." She said firmly, kissing his lips. "I love you so much."
They hugged and kissed one last time before he pulled away, and walked back out to his car. Miley stood on the porch, waving until his car was gone. She knew he'd try to make it to the airport, but that his mother would do everything to stop it.
She wouldn't see him for who knows how long.
Eventually, she turned around to go inside, wondering how many more goodbyes she could take.
xXxXx
Three days later, on Wednesday, March 16th, 2008, Miley was driven to the airport by her brother, accompanied by her godmother, grandmothers, and best friends, who were given permission from their parents to miss school to say goodbye.
Her flight left LAX at eleven in the morning, with an expected arrival of four (California time, making it one Pennsylvania time) at Philadelphia International Airport. Everyone was pretty quiet on the ride there, Miley sitting in the back of the SUV with Lily and Oliver.
It was when they got to the airport, and they reached where Miley had to leave at security that they all started talking. "Now Miley," Ruthie said, taking her granddaughter's hands, "You call us as soon as you land, and you call us as often as you can afterwards. I promise you that nothings going to change. We're still a family, I'm still your grandma, and I still will speak to you at least once a week."
Miley nodded, sliding into her grandmother's embrace. Ruthie held her tightly for a moment, before kissing her forehead. "And try to have fun, sweetie."
"I'll try. I love you."
"I love you too," Ruthie said, before letting Miley go to Dolly.
"I know it's gunna be hard, darlin', and that you wanted to stay here, but if you give it a chance, you never know, this could be the best thing that happened to you. Just keep an open mind, ok?" Dolly said.
"I'll try, Aunt Dolly." Miley nodded.
"And you keep us updated on how you and that baby are, and what you decide to do."
"I will. I love you," Miley said, hugging her.
"Love you too, darlin'," Dolly said softly.
Miley then found herself in front of Ruby, who took her hands. "I'm sorry for not telling you, Miley." Ruby said quietly. "But I really was doing what your parents wanted, what they thought was best. And that's what Ella and Byron did too, when they gave you to your momma and daddy. They're good people, Miley. I know my Ella's good, and she married a good man. Promise me, Miley, that you'll be good to them?" She said, "Promise me you'll try to open up."
Miley looked at her for a moment, before nodding. "I promise, grandma."
"Good girl," she said, before pulling Miley into her arms.
After a long hug and an I love you, Miley turned to her friends, who both hugged her at the same time. "I'm gunna miss you guys," Miley murmured.
"I'll miss you too, so much." Lily said, sounding teary eyed. "Don't forget about us, Miley."
"I could never," Miley promised.
"Be happy, Miley." Oliver said, "It is ok to be happy."
She said nothing, just held on to her friends for a little bit longer before softly sighing. "Love you guys."
"We love you, too," They said back, before standing back and walking over to join their family, leaving Miley and Jackson to say goodbye.
They walked a few more feet away, before Miley turned to face him. "It's not gunna be the same without you." Jackson said quietly. "First mom, then dad, and now you're leaving too."
"We're still family, Jackson. I'm still your sister. Right?" She whispered. "I don't care what anyone says, you're still my annoying, weird older brother."
"Always." He nodded, smiling softly, holding his arms out. She slid in to them, hugging her brother tightly.
"I'll miss you, Jackson," She said softly. "Have a good rest of senior year. I'll be back for your graduation, I promise. Just two months."
"I'll try. For you, and for mom and dad. And you have a good rest of sophomore year. They're all right, Miley. You need to be happy. We need to, because it's what they'd want."
Miley nodded against his shoulder. "I know. I love you, Jackson."
"I love you too, Miley." He said quietly. They stood there together hugging for a while, until Ruby softly spoke.
"Miley, you need to get going."
Reluctantly, Miley pulled away from her brother, and gave everyone one last hug, before looking around hopefully for Jake. Only when her grandma said again that she had to get going did she give up, and put her Vera Bradley bag over her shoulder, and picked up her purse. She turned and waved at everyone, hugged her brother one last time, and walked over to the security line. Once she was through, she turned and waved at everyone, blowing a kiss, before she turned and headed for her gate.
She waited only thirty minutes to board the plane and she took her window seat in first class, and settled in to listen to her music from her iphone.
After the captain announced that conditions looked good, and they should make it to Philadelphia by one in the afternoon eastern time, she sent a quick text to Ella.
To: Ella
hey, i've boarded the plane and the capt said it looks like a clear flight, be there by 1 your time.
After texting Ella, she then sent one to Aria. After Miley got her phone back, they started texting often, and had talked on the phone a few times.
To: Aria
boarded the plane and leaving soon, i'll be there by 1 your time so when you get home i should be there!
Minutes before take off, she got responses from both of them.
From: Ella
Ok, sounds great! Have a safe flight, we can't wait to see you.
From: Aria
awesome! can't wait, and the girls can't wait to meet you!
Miley sent them messages saying the plane was about to take off, and then settled back into her seat, staring out the window. She always loved watching the world disappear from under her as the plane took off, and she loved looking down.
She fell asleep for most of the flight, which was good because she'd be tired tonight due to jet lag. She woke minutes before they put the seat belt sign on and the speaker came on. "Hello fliers, this is your captain speaking. Please buckle up and put all tray tables into the upright, locked position, as we're about to begin our descent into Philadelphia International Airport!"
Miley sat up and got buckled, and then waited out the thirty minutes until they were on the ground, and in twenty more, she was walking off of the plane into the airport. She didn't have any checked luggage, but was in serious need of a pick me up, and so she headed for the Starbucks sign that she saw. She was in the middle of ordering her usual caramel latte with two espresso shots when she remembered she wasn't supposed to have caffeine, and changed to a decaf caramel latte, with no espresso.
Once she got her coffee, she headed towards the baggage claim area, her bag slung over her shoulder, her purse resting in her elbow. She didn't have any checked luggage, but that was where Ella and Byron would be waiting. She didn't know how she felt, there was a lot of mixed emotions. She was nervous, upset, a little excited, and incredibly nauseous, thanks to the pregnancy.
As she headed for baggage claim, with one hand she typed a text to Jackson on her iPhone.
To: Jackson
i landed in PA fine, looking for them now. i'll call you later, once im at their house. love you!
She slid her phone into the pocket of her North Face fleece just as she looked up and saw them, Ella and Byron, standing together talking. She paused for a moment, and that was when Ella looked up, and saw her. She smiled, and waved, and together they headed for her. She met them half way, swallowing back the lump in her throat.
"It's so good to have you here, Miley," Ella said, hugging her tightly. Miley hugged her back, actually feeling comforted. Ella's hugs reminded her of her mother.
Byron hugged her afterwards, and Miley hugged him back, but it felt weirder to her, than hugging Ella did. She figured she'd get over it, or she hoped anyways.
"How was your flight?" He asked, slipping the carry on bag from her shoulder.
"Fine," Miley shrugged. "I slept for most of it."
"Do you have any checked luggage?" Ella asked, and when Miley shook her head she smiled, "Ok, then let's get going!"
Ella put an arm around her shoulder as they walked behind Byron, out to the car. Miley was taken aback by the chilly air, being so used to the California sun, and she shivered slightly as they walked out to the car. Within minutes, they were on to highway headed towards Rosewood.
About 55 minutes of the hour long ride had elapsed, and Ella was asking how her last few days in California had gone when her phone rang. Looking at the call, she saw it was Jake. "Sorry, I have to take this...Hey Jake," She answered. She hadn't heard from her boyfriend since that night a few days ago.
"Hey, Miles," Jake said, sounding weird. "You're uh, in Pennsylvania now, right?"
"Yea. I just landed a while ago, we're headed for their house now."
"Oh, ok. The flight went well?"
"Yea, it was fine, I'm just a little nauseous from the pregnancy."
"Oh. Yea, I uh wanted to talk to you about that." Jake said. "My parents and I had a long talk about that."
"Yea, I kind of figured. I had long talks with my grandmothers, and godmother, and my...and Ella and Byron." Miley said. "How did they take it once I left?"
"Miley, we talked a lot, and we all wound up agreeing that it would just be best for everyone involved if you just...took care of the problem." Jake said quietly.
It took Miley a moment to realize what he meant. "Took care of the...problem?" She repeated. "You want me to get an abortion." It wasn't a question, she knew that was what he meant. She saw Ella look around at her from the front seat.
"Yea."
"Well unfortunately, that's not an option. I'm almost four months pregnant Jake, that's the second trimester."
"They'll still do it." Jake said.
"I don't care if they'll still do it, I won't!" Miley shouted at him, as Byron turned into a driveway. She saw Aria sitting on the porch, waiting, three girls with her. Ella and Bryon got out, and Byron went to get her bag from the back and Ella opened the door for her. She got out as Jake went on.
"Well that's what I want, Miley! I don't want to have a kid, and I don't want someone else taking it!"
"Well unfortunately for you, you're not the one that's pregnant, so it's not really up to you, is it?" Miley snapped into the phone. "What happened 'oh don't worry baby, I love you, I'll take care of you,' huh? Find out where that guy is, and then call me back because until then, I don't wanna talk to you!" She snapped, hanging up the phone.
"Are you ok?" Ella asked quietly, as Miley hadn't moved from the side of the car, as she stood there, wanting to throw her phone across the street. She looked around at the picturesque, soap opera like town. "I can ask the girls to leave if you're not ready to meet them yet."
"No, no it's fine." Miley said. "I'm fine. He's just...confused, that's all. He'll come around." She said, trying to reassure herself more than Ella.
Ella gave her a small, reassuring smile and nodded, then put an arm around her shoulders. Together, they headed for the house. As they did, they walked past Miley's car, a 2008 red Ford Focus. It was her sixteenth birthday present from her dad. She leaned over, making sure everything looked ok, that thing was her baby, and when everything looked good, moved forward more.
"Hey," Aria said excitedly as they got closer, coming down to meet her. Miley hugged her, again feeling like they had some weird connection, but, she supposed, they probably did. Creepy twin things. "Welcome to Rosewood," She said, and Miley smiled, laughing a little.
"It's so...soap opera-like." Miley laughed, looking around. "It's so different from California."
"Yea, it's very...tiny." Aria said. "But you'll get used to it. These are my friends, they aren't gunna stay long, mom wants just a family night tonight to help you get settled, but I thought it'd be good to have some somewhat familiar faces when you start school on Friday, so maybe you could hang out with us tomorrow after we get out of school." Aria said.
They were giving Miley a day to get at least somewhat settled before she started school on Friday, so she'd have the weekend to recover.
"Yea, that sounds cool," Miley said, suddenly nervous.
They stepped up the stairs, and the girls all smiled, and waved.
"This is Spencer Hastings, Hanna Marin, and Emily Fields. Guys, this is my sister, Miley Stewart." Aria said.
Miley smiled and waved, shaking all their hands. Spencer was tall and skinny, and looked more sporty then the rest of them. Emily seemed shy but sweet, and had to be a swimmer, as she was wearing a 'Rosewood Swimming' sweatshirt. Hanna, the only blonde, was impeccably done up, and was wearing clothes Miley herself would wear. They all seemed nice, and welcoming...but they weren't her friends. They weren't Ali. But she had to give them a chance.
"Aria told us about what happened to your dad," Emily said, "We're all very sorry for your loss."
Miley looked down, but smiled at her. "Thank you." She said. "Aria told me a lot about you guys."
"Did...did Ali ever say anything about us?" Spencer asked gently.
"You know, ever since I found out about this little small world coincidence, I've racked my brain trying to think of if she ever did...and I really can't think of any time that she did." Miley said.
"Yea, she never mentioned you, either..." Hanna said.
Miley shrugged, thinking nothing of it, "Ali had her strange little quirks. She liked her secrets a lot. But...we know each other now." She smiled. "It's great to meet you guys, and I'd love to hang out tomorrow like Aria said, but I really need to use the bathroom, so excuse me!" Miley said, turning to go in, just as Ella stuck her head out.
"Aria, come on, it's time to say goodbye," She said, "But you can all hang out tomorrow!
Aria said goodbye, hugging them all, and then followed Miley inside.
Miley looked around as she entered, and Ella said, "Aria, why don't you show Miley around, give her a tour, and show her where her room is. We put all your stuff in the boxes up in your room, so you can unpack and set up how you want. If you want the furniture moved around, then let us know and we can help you, and if you don't like the color-"
"Ella!" Miley said, laughing slightly, "Calm down, ok? I'm sure the color will be fine, I picked it out. And I'll let you know." She smiled.
Ella let out a breath, and smiled, nodding. "Ok."
"Come on, I'll show you the downstairs bathroom first," Aria said, and Miley laughed, and agreed. After she was done in the bathroom, she walked with Aria throughout the downstairs area, being the living room, dining room, kitchen, and laundry room. She followed her upstairs, where she saw Ella and Byron's bedroom, Mike's room, Aria's room, and finally, her room. Her room had previously been a guest room, attached to Aria's by a bathroom that they would now share. The room was perfect, Miley loved it when she walked in. The walls were bright green like she'd asked, and everything else was black and white, besides a few green or pink or yellow accessories. It was an open, good sized room, and had a nice closet, which was of course important to her.
Ella knocked on the door as she stepped in. "Aria helped me pick everything out," She said.
Miley smiled, turning to both of them, and said, "Thank you. It's great."
Ella smiled, letting out a sigh of relief. She had been nervous that Miley would hate being here, and would be less then agreeable, but she was being surprisingly ok about this, and for that Ella was grateful.
They'd decided that Miley would simply call them Ella and Byron. She knew that they'd be ok with her calling them mom and dad if she ever felt comfortable doing so, but she wasn't sure if she would.
"You're welcome." Ella said. "Is there anything that you're allergic too, or don't like, Miley?"
"Cranberries," Miley said, "And shellfish."
"Ok," Ella nodded, "Aria is too. Are you tired, we can let you nap or something?"
"No, I'm just gunna unpack. Doing tours all the time made me hate living out of bags and boxes when I don't have to." Miley laughed.
"Ok," Ella nodded. "Uh, your grandmother, my mom, she mentioned that you hadn't seen a doctor yet."
"No, not for the pregnancy. The doctor said after the crash that I was twelve weeks, so about fourteen now. I'd just found out two days before the crash." Miley explained.
"Ok, well I'll call and make an appointment for you with my doctor. She's very good, she delivered Mike." Ella said.
"Ok," Miley nodded. "Oh, my brother said something about making sure I get my license transferred, and to get the plates on my car changed."
"Right...I'll talk to Byron about that." Ella said, "Because I know nothing about that."
Miley laughed, and nodded.
"Ok," Ella said, "Well good luck unpacking, and if you need anything, let us know."
"Ok, thank you." Miley smiled. Ella smiled at her, then Aria, before leaving the room.
"Uh, do you want help or anything?" Aria asked, "Or do you just want me to leave?"
"If you want to help, I'd appreciate that." Miley said, and Aria nodded.
They got started unpacking in silence, and eventually, Miley said, "You know, you and your friends don't have to hang out with me. I can tell Ella I was with you and just chill by myself. I don't want to intrude. They're your friends."
"And they can be your friends, too." Aria said, coming over to sit by her on the bed. "I don't just want you to hang out with us cause of mom. And you aren't intruding. They all want to get to know you, too. We want you to hang out with us. I promise."
Miley smiled, and hugged her. "Thanks." She said softly.
Aria hugged her back for a moment, before they both got up, back to moving clothes from boxes, to drawers and the closet.
As they worked, Miley's phone vibrated in her pocket, and she took a break to pull it out. Unlocking her phone, she found a text.
Aria watched as her brow furrowed, and a strange look fell on her face. "Everything ok?" She called. Miley looked over and forced a smile, shrugging it off.
"Yea...just Jake being stupid." She said, lying. She looked back at her phone, swallowed back a lump in her throat, and put it back in her pocket.
From: Unknown
Ali liked her secrets, you say? You're right, she did, and she had a lot of them. Just like you, Ms. Montana, and just like your twin and her friends do. Welcome to Rosewood, Miley...just remember, be careful who you trust. You never know what they might be hiding from you.
-A