A/N: Thanks for the reviews, everyone! You have no idea how much they mean to me!

After their magical vacation, it didn't take long for reality to set back in for Miley. A week exactly. A cruel reminder in the form of a text message. She had been hesitant to even open it when his name had popped up on her phone. But she did anyway.

Hey, baby. Look, I'm sorry about everything. Please come home. I miss you like crazy. I promise things will be different this time. I love you. -Jake

That was what he said every time. That was what she fell for every time. But not this one. This time, she didn't reply back. Though it still got to her on some level. She had gotten away, and yet, she wasn't sure if she would ever really be free.

And then, there was Nick. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about the kiss they had shared. How alive it had made her feel. She really did like him. There wasn't any other conclusion that she could possibly come to. She just wasn't sure what to do about it. And Lilly was determined to help her, even though she had plenty on her own plate. It turns out that she was further along than she had suspected. It would be around seven months instead of eight before the new baby was here.

"You have to tell him how you feel", Lilly insisted as she poured a glass of water for herself.

Miley sat on a barstool with a hopeless expression on her face. "Lilly, I don't know how I feel. I know I like him. That's pretty much all."

"So, tell him that. We've already established that he's crazy about you. It's not like you're going to get rejected."

"Maybe I'm scared of what will happen next", she admitted. "I mean, do we start dating? Ugh, I don't know what I'm doing!"

"Nick knows all about your situation, Miley", Lilly reminded her. "He's not going to try to rush things. You can set the pace at whatever you're comfortable with."

Maybe that was what scared her. The amount of control that she had in this situation. She didn't know what to do with it. She had never had any control when she was with Jake. She did what he wanted, or he made her live to regret it. Nick wanted her to dictate what happened next. If she didn't make the move, it probably wouldn't be made. And she wanted it to be made.

"Why don't we do something to take your mind off of Nick for a few hours?", Lilly suggested. "We can go shopping. I'm going to need some...maternity clothes."

Miley giggled at the look on Lilly's face as she forced out the last two words. She just couldn't imagine her best friend being pregnant. The next few months would certainly be interesting.

"You didn't save them from when you were pregnant with Myles?"

Lilly shook her head. "I didn't think I'd need them. At least not for a long, long time. Oh, and I'm just going to warn you right now. The last time I was pregnant, I had insane cravings. And I was really moody. So, I apologize in advance."

"Hey, I've been there. I craved pizza like crazy when I was pregnant with Belle", Miley informed her.

"That's not weird", Lilly remarked.

"I put syrup on it."

The blonde laughed. "Well, lets hope that mine don't get that gross."

Joe was getting tired of watching Nick pick at his food for the past ten minutes. He was so clearly distracted. And Joe was sure that a certain brunette was the cause.

"Dude, you've got to get your mind off of Miley", he stated.

Nick gave his brother an are-you-serious look. "How am I supposed to get my mind off of her? I told her how I felt. We kissed. I have to know what she's thinking."

"And I'm sure she'll tell you what she's thinking when she figures it out for herself. She's probably really confused."

"I know. I just really like her", he sighed. "I want her to be the one."

"Maybe she is", Joe said in an optimistic tone. "But you've been patient up to this point. You just got to stick with it, you know? Don't try to rush anything."

"Yeah, I'm not", Nick assured him. He decided to change the topic. "So, are you excited about being a daddy again?"

A wide grin spread across his brother's face. "Absolutely. Look bro, I didn't even realize that I wanted another kid before Lilly told me that she was pregnant. Now, I can't wait for him to get here."

He rolled his eyes. "I love how you automatically assume it's a boy."

Joe laughed. "Well, yeah. If it's a girl, I'm going to be scared to death. Especially if she's as pretty as her mom. I'll have to get a shotgun to chase all the boys away. But if you end up with Miley, you'll get to go through that first. I'll just observe."

Nick's facial expression changed a bit. Of course he had known that Miley and Belle were a package deal, but he hadn't really considered that he would have to learn how to be a dad. Sure, kids seemed to like him. But he didn't know how to do all of the things that parents do. And if he did win Miley over, he would have to be prepared to take on those responsibilities.

"Nick? You okay?"

He looked up at his brother's concerned face. "Yeah. Joe, can I ask you something? How do you think Belle would feel about me and Miley? She likes me, doesn't she?"

"Are you kidding me? That kid is crazy about you. She's been scheming right along with Myles to try to get you and Miley together." It took Joe a second to figure out the source of Nick's anxiety. "You're worried about the possibility of becoming an instant dad, huh?"

He slowly nodded. Joe sighed. "Okay, first of all, you need to see where things are going between you and Miley before you even worry about this. Second, you would be an awesome dad, man. Anyone can see that. You need a little practice, but it's not rocket science. If it was, I would never be able to pull it off."

Nick smiled. His brother certainly had a point there. But even if the idea of being a dad did make him nervous, he liked it at the same time. Especially if Miley was the mom. He just prayed that she would give him a chance.

After walking all over the mall, Lilly and Miley took a much needed break at the food court. Miley had forgotten how much fun it was to go shopping with her best friend. They used to spend whole days just browsing through stores. Not even buying anything the majority of the time. Of course, that was harder to do with two kids trying to run off every five minutes.

Lilly shuffled through her bags, looking at her purchases. She held one of the things that she had bought for Myles up for Miley to see. A shirt that said "World's Best Big Brother."

"Isn't it adorable?", she remarked. Miley nodded, smiling.

"I can't wait for my baby brother to get here!", Myles said excitedly. "He's gonna be awesome!"

"No, what's really going to be awesome is when you and your daddy both find out that this baby is a girl", Lilly said, putting the shirt back into the bag.

"Girls are the best", Belle commented, taking a bite of her giant cookie.

"Nuh-uh", Myles retorted.

"Uh-huh!"

Miley shook her head, unable to resist the urge to laugh. Lilly couldn't either. "Okay, guys. There is no need to argue over which gender is better. We'll be happy with either one", she said.

"Well, I hope I get a baby brother. Girls are weird", Myles remarked.

"Are not!"

"Are too!"

"Guys!", Lilly snapped. "People are staring."

Belle turned to Miley. "Mommy, since Myles is getting a baby brother or sister, can I get one too?"

Miley almost choked on her drink. "Belle, I can't just get you a brother or sister. It's a little more complicated than that.", she tried to explain.

"How? I want a baby brother or sister too!", the little girl whined, not realizing why Myles could have one and she couldn't. "I'll be a good big sister, mommy. I promise! I'll even share Hannah with her!"

"But Aunt Miley can't have a baby without a daddy", Myles pointed out.

"Hey, ladies. What's going on?" They all looked up to see Joe and Nick standing behind them, each carrying a single bag. The two women breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, just shopping", Lilly answered, motioning to what looked like seven or eight shopping bags scattered on the tile floor.

"Uncle Nick, if mommy has a baby, will you be the daddy?", Belle asked bluntly.

"Arabella!", Miley practically yelled, feeling her cheeks heat up from embarrassment.

Nick's eyes widened. "Miley...are you..."

"No! No, I'm definitely not", she said quickly. "Belle just wants a little sibling now because Myles is getting one."

"Hey, I was an only child", Lilly informed the little girl. "I liked it. You get all of your parents' attention, and you don't have to share your toys with anyone."

"Good point. And you wouldn't have to guard your toys all the time because you were worried about your brother breaking them", Joe commented.

Nick rolled his eyes. "You break one fire truck, and you never hear the end of it."

Lilly and Joe ended up taking the kids home with them, so Miley and Nick would have a chance to talk. They ended up at Nick's house. Miley was surprised to realize that this was the first time that she had seen it. A cute little two-story bungalow. The more she looked around, the more she loved it.

"This house is beautiful", she breathed as he handed her a glass of lemonade.

"Thanks. It's kind of small, but it works for me", he stated.

She nodded, trying to give herself a moment to figure out what to say. "I uh...I think we should probably talk", she finally said.

He took a deep breath, preparing himself for whatever she had to say. It was impossible to tell by the expression on her face. She looked nervous. God, he didn't want to make her nervous! He just wanted to know what was going on in her head.

"I think we should", Nick agreed. "Miley, I like you. I like you a lot. And I care about you a lot. But I don't want you to feel obligated to rush things with me, because I can wait. If you need time or even if you've changed your mind about us..."

"I haven't. I like you too", Miley said softly. "I know that there's something between us, and I want to see where it could go. I'm just not really sure how to go about doing that."

He gave her a faint smile. "Well, we could start with a date. You know, if you want. We could go to the movies or a concert...it's up to you."

She couldn't help but smile back. She never thought that she would find a decent guy, much less one as amazing as Nick. He truly was one in a million. As the chorus of Hannah's old song played in her head for the first time in years, she wondered if Nick knew that she used to be Hannah. Had Lilly told them? He had never mentioned it to her if she had. Should she tell him? It wasn't a relevant part of her life anymore, but she couldn't stand the idea of keeping secrets from him. Especially when their relationship was just beginning.

"It really doesn't matter to me", she said honestly.

He smiled. "Okay. It doesn't matter to me either. As long as I get to be with you."

Miley let out a sigh. She had to tell him. "Nick, I don't want to go into...whatever this is between us...with any secrets. There's something about my past that I feel like you should know."

"Okay...", Nick said slowly, looking at her attentively. She initially couldn't bring herself to say the words. Why did it have to be so hard? Hannah was practically dead and buried. Divulging this shouldn't be difficult. She trusted Nick.

"Do you remember Hannah Montana?", she finally asked. "She used to be a popular singer?"

He nodded, though he was a bit confused. "Yeah. She's the one who kind of disappeared into thin air, right? No one could figure out what happened to her."

"Yeah. The thing is...you're looking at her."

His eyes widened in shock. She really hoped that he believed her, and he didn't just think that she had lost her mind or something. She watched him as he tried to process what he had just heard.

"You're...Hannah Montana?", Nick uttered, unable to disguise the doubt in his voice. How could Miley have been a pop star? There was a definite resemblance that he noticed now that he looked, but this just couldn't be real.

Miley nodded slowly. "I know it's probably really hard to believe. But it's true." He didn't respond, so she continued. "I lost pretty much everything when I decided to be with Jake. Hannah included. I had no idea how big of a mistake it would turn out to be. So, she's not a part of my life anymore, but I still wanted you to know."

He still found himself unable to respond. "Miley...I...how...you...you're her", he finally managed to stammer.

"I was. Here, let me show you", she said as she opened her mouth to sing.

They say that good things take time

But really great things happen in a blink of an eye

Thought the chances to meet somebody like you were a million to one

I cannot believe it, oh woah, you're one in a million

"You really are her", he breathed. "Miley, your voice is amazing."

"Thanks", she said, allowing herself to smile a bit. "So, this doesn't change the way you feel about me or anything?"

"What, no! Are you kidding me? It just seems like every time I think that you can't get any more amazing, I find out that you can."

"I told you I'm a complicated person", Miley stated. "I just want you to realize that your life will be a thousand times more complicated if you get involved with me."

Nick gently took her hand into his own. "Well, that's a risk that I'm willing to take."