Lola felt her stomach lurch and she forcefully swallowed the acidic tasting bile that she felt rising in her throat as she watched Hannah kiss her on-again/off-again boyfriend Jake Ryan under the stage's bright lights. Since it was for a Valentine's Day Special on the Disney Channel the kiss was little more than a chaste peck on the lips, but it still got Lola's blood boiling to the point where she wanted to storm the stage and punch the two-timing scumbag's lights out.

[Don't even think about it, Lola! This program is Live!]

"Like I care," she growled to herself in a whisper so soft it was almost inaudible.

[You'd better care! That's the love of your life that you'd be destroying in front of millions of innocent little kiddies and fans! Think about it. The publicity might actually help Jake, his career is on the downslope of that run anyway, but it could only hurt Hannah!]

"I know, I know," Lola griped again to herself as she watched the two on stage laughing and holding hands, their fingers entwined. She grabbed hold of the bangs of her short white wig and would have ripped it off in her fury if she hadn't felt a pair of soft, gentle hands holding her back. [Stop that wench!] At least with her hands in front of her eyes she didn't have to watch the girl she loved interact with that asshat. [So turn away. Don't look at them! Sheesh!]

"Shut up Truscott. Don't you think I know that!" she mumbled as she turned away from the stage and walked over to the pinrail where she wouldn't be in the way and where she also wouldn't be able to see what was happening on stage. She played with one of the belaying pins that was holding up some huge piece of scenery somewhere in the flyloft above her. "It's not as if you like it any better than I do," she whispered a bit louder now that there wasn't anyone around her to overhear.

[I know Lola, and I'm sorry. I love her just as much as you do, but destroying her career isn't the way to go about showing that love.]

"I know, I know. That's about the only thing we've got going for us Lily," Lola smiled sadly. "That and the fact that our personalities are at least a little bit similar, even if you aren't as flamboyant and spontaneous as 'moi'," she chuckled lowly.

[Oh, believe me,] the voice inside Lola's head laughed, [you don't know how grateful I am that we like each other, even if you are a bit of a show-off.]

"You just wish you were as famous and outgoing as I am you minx," Lola laughed.

[We'll have to agree to disagree on that one, wench,] Lilly laughed right back at her.

The two girls, Lola Luftnagle and Lilly Truscott, had no need for some quack with a dozen different medical diplomas hanging from their wall to genuflect and blessedly pronounce some grand diagnosis of Dissociative Identity Disorder; otherwise known as Multiple Personality Disorder. They were living the life so why did they need some shrink to tell them what they already knew?

Lilly couldn't pinpoint the exact moment when Lola had been "born," but it could have been as far back as the first time she'd put on a wig and followed Miley to one of her concerts. She did, however, remember vividly the first time Lola had spoken to her.

She'd been sitting on her father's bed, brooding about having overheard Miley complaining about her moving into the Stewart home after her mother had taken a new job and moved to Atlanta. In a world of pain she'd quickly gathered her few belongings and moved out of Miley's room and traveled the one hour by bus to her father's tiny, one room apartment. Her father had been on the phone with a client and had been bouncing back and forth playing the roles of himself and his own assistant when she heard a little voice in her head telling her that everything would be all right. That Miley still loved her.

"How can you say that?" Lilly had sniffled. "You heard her. She hate's me."

[That's not what she said and you know it. She just said that she wasn't real happy with the living arrangements.]

"Same difference," Lilly had mumbled to herself petulantly.

[No it's not,] the voice had sighed. [Let's face it. You're not the easiest person to live with. You can't keep a room clean if your life depended on it, you kick and wiggle around when you sleep until the covers end up on the floor, and don't get me started about that damned hamster.]

"You leave Mr. Piddles out of this!" Lilly had gasped in indignation and then gasped in shock at the realization that she'd been talking to herself…and getting answers in return!

The voice hadn't said anything else after that and she and Miley had eventually made up when Miley came to the apartment and apologized. But it wasn't the last she'd heard from the girl inside of her who had one day introduced herself as Lola. Lilly had gone through about three months of fearing that she was going insane. She'd done a bunch of internet research on schizophrenia which led her to MPD which led her to DID. The only reason she hadn't gone totally bonkers was because Lola didn't actually seem to be destructive or want to take over and push her out.

She'd finally broken down and gone to see a psychologist so that she could explain what "a friend of hers" was going through along with the various symptoms. The psychologist, a very nice older woman, had listened to her, asked a ton of questions that she could mostly answer and was then told her that her "friend" had partial or intrusive DID wherein the two distinct personalities were aware of and could interact with each other. She went on to ask even more questions to the point where Lola actually started helping to answer; sometimes even contradicting Lilly. The psychologist had laughed at some of "their" antics and had proclaimed that she didn't see any major problems with "her friend" so long as the two of them got along. (Okay, maybe she was a pop psychologist, but she was nice!)

And the two actually did get along pretty well despite a few arguments here and there. Lilly, while both outgoing and impulsive on her own account, couldn't touch Lola for her gregariousness and never-say-never attitude. Lola was everything Lilly was…to the third power. The one thing that they totally agreed on was their love for one Miley Stewart aka Hannah Montana although even here Lola was a bit more honest with herself regarding her feelings. Lilly was still trying to come to grips with the fact that she was in love not only with her best friend, but with another girl. While Lola had completely accepted herself as being lesbian, Lilly was still a touch afraid of her feelings for the brown haired songstress. She had eventually admitted that she was in love with her, but still wasn't quite willing to go so far as to say that any other girls interested her.

"I'm in love with one person and that person just happens to be a girl," Lilly had told Lola one evening when the two had been sitting on the beach talking. The moon had been nearly full and its reflection off the gentle swells had been calming as she sat there digging her toes in the still warm sand. "I don't think I've ever felt the same way about any other girl before. I don't drool over Mikayla or Traci or Siena or Joannie or…"

[All right, all right, you don't have to list all our female friends and acquaintances!] Lola said in an exasperated voice which told Lilly she was rolling her eyes.

"And don't forget Orlando," Lilly laughed.

[He doesn't count. He's an elf.] Lola had giggled. [Okay, it doesn't matter anyway. We love Miley. That's enough for us. Who cares about labels anyway?]

That was something else the two of them could agree on along with one last major point: Miley had no clue about how they really felt and never would. They had early on decided to keep that little bit of information to themselves and never to tell the love of their life the truth. Both girls realized that doing so would never bring anything but heartache. Miley was straight and that was all there was to it. Lilly/Lola might be able to keep her childhood friendship alive if she came out of the closet and announced that she was bi- or lesbian. She was sure that she'd lose that friendship if she ever told Miley that she was in love with her.

Lola glanced down the pinrail, being sure to keep her eyes off the stage, to where Mr. S was standing in the wings watching his daughter perform "He Could Be the One." He'd started letting his hair grow out a bit longer recently much to his girlfriend Lori's pleasure. Mr. S must have felt her eyes on him because he turned her way, a concerned look on his face. Lola tried to smile for him but it didn't seem to work very well. He got this look in his eyes that told her he knew very well what she was feeling at that moment and wished there was something he could do for her. That's one of the great and yet horrible things about some parents. They always know, and Robbie Ray had been just as much a father to her over the past few years as her own dad had ever been; if not more so. He hadn't said anything yet, but the looks he'd give her every so often told her more than any words he could ever say. He knew how she felt about his daughter and he hurt along with her every time she got back together with Jake "the Snake" Ryan. She got the impression that he'd much rather Lilly be the one in his daughter's life than that cheating slug.

"Lilly," Lola sighed.

[Got it,] Lilly replied softly and then allowed her own natural smile to grace Lola's ruby red painted lips. Robbie didn't know Lola quite as well as he did Lilly so it sometimes made sense for Lola to let Lilly take over. She didn't know if it worked all the time and wasn't sure this time either as Robbie shook his head sadly and then went back to watching Hannah. [Are you going to be able to handle the scene after the show or do you want me to handle it?] Lilly asked her alter ego.

"I'll handle it," Lola sighed again. "Even if it kills me! Just don't let me kill him!" she growled.

[I'll try,] Lilly grinned. [Maybe!]

-oo-

Lilly sat at her dressing table in Miley's old bedroom in the Stewart's Malibu home brushing her hair after taking off the white wig Lola had worn for the evening's performance. She'd had the room to herself for almost six months now while Miley continued to sleep in the suite her father had built for the two of them out in the barn. She'd originally moved into that room with Miley but had found sleeping with the girl she loved just too much of a temptation. It had taken almost two weeks of concerted effort - including purposely kicking and turning during the night as they slept, snoring loudly and even farting. Eventually she could see Miley was getting fed up with the situation so Lilly lightly suggested that it might be better for the both of them if she moved into Miley's old room in the house. The look of relief and gratitude on her friend's face was enough to tell her that her plan had worked to perfection.

"Have you calmed down yet?" she asked her reflection in the mirror.

[Yes,] Lola sighed. [And thank you for taking over there just before I decked the asshole. I can't believe he had the nerve to cop a feel of Miley's butt with her dad in the room!] her alter spat angrily.

"If it hadn't been for Jackson just happening to walk between them at the time I might have punched him myself," Lilly agreed with a nod and a smirk that she thought was hers. "Just you wait Lola. You know as well as I do that he'll get caught cheating on her again and she'll dump him…hopefully for good!"

[From your lips to Ellen's ears,] Lola giggled.

"Talking to yourself again, Lilly?" Robbie Ray asked with a slightly worried smile as he leaned against the open doorway to her bedroom. At her screech of surprise he laughed although it sounded a bit hollow. "I knocked but you obviously were too involved in your conversation to hear me," he told her indignant expression.

"H-how long…"

"A few months," he answered her, knocking on the drywall. "Thin walls…and my room is right next to yours."

"I know," Lilly sighed as she put her brush down and turned around in her chair to more fully face him, "that's why I wear earplugs whenever Lori spends the night. Who'd have thought that of the two of you you'd be the screamer," she tried to smirk. It failed miserably.

"Are you all right Lil?" he asked in a soft voice. "I mean, besides talking to yourself? I know you moved back in here for a reason. Was it really that bad?"

Lilly briefly thought about lying but decided it didn't make any sense. She'd never been able to pull the wool over Mr. S' eyes in the past. What made her think she could do so now?

"Let me ask you a question. What if you were totally in love with someone and had to spend every single night in bed with her, but she couldn't know that you loved her and you didn't dare touch her the way you really wanted to? Oh, and one of the things she really likes to do is to have you spoon her and hold her around the waist because she says it helps her sleep. Don't you think you'd find some way to change your living arrangements before something bad happened?" she asked him with a little tilt to her head.

"She always was a cuddle monster," he chuckled lowly, "but I guess I would at that," he replied with a shake of his head, his eyes never once leaving the green ones in front of him that he could see were filled with pain. "It must have been hard to watch those two tonight."

"Hmm, let me see," Lilly said with a finger under her chin as she gave the question some thought. "If I had to choose between watching him grope her rear end with her giggling and kissing him, or having every single one of my teeth slowly extracted without anesthesia, hmm, I don't know which one I'd choose. They're both so inviting!"

Robbie Ray winced.

"Yeah, it'd be about like that," Lilly said as she got up and grabbed a robe from her closet. She was currently wearing a pair of light blue gym shorts and a white t-shirt that read 'Two Are Better than One.' Lola had seen it in a store once and couldn't resist buying it with all the varied implications and double entendres that simple phrase engendered. "If you don't mind I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. Maybe the hot water will help relax me to the point where I can actually get some rest."

"I think Jackson left enough hot water for you," Mr. S said. "Just know that you can always come to me anytime you feel like talking," he told her gently.

She leaned up on tip toe and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks," she murmured before heading down the hall to the bathroom.

"I swear, Miley doesn't know what she's missing," he told himself with another shake of his head as he watched the young blonde close the bathroom door and heard the shower cut on.

"Is she going to be all right?" Lori asked, coming up behind him and putting her arms around his slowly expanding waistline. She nearly giggled when she felt him suck his tummy in (and guys think girls are vain!) but the topic was too serious.

"I hope so Lori," he paused. "She was talking to Lola again."

"And…"

"And it seemed like they were having a real conversation," he shrugged. "Of course I only heard one side of it, but I didn't hear anything negative. No plans to do anything more than punch Jake's lights out if he messes with my daughter again."

"So, basically, as long as she's watching over Miley it's fine?"

"Heck, I don't know," he grumbled, running a hand through his hair, "I mean, I hate to see her in so much pain, but I don't for the life of me know what I or anyone else can do about it. And as for her talking to 'Lola,' you're the medical professional."

"I'm only a nurse," she sighed, "not a psychologist or psychiatrist. But you're right, she doesn't seem to be a danger to herself or anyone else. It just worries me. She's such a sweet girl. She deserves better than this."

"She deserves to be happy with the one she loves if only that 'one' would wise up for once in her life. Sometimes I think Blue Jean's got more smarts than that girl."

"Still, we'll need to talk to her at some point about her and 'Lola'," Lori sighed, briefly hugging him tighter.

Robbie just nodded. It wasn't a discussion he was looking forward to, but he knew it would have to be done sooner rather than later.

-oo-

Re-entering her room drying her long blonde hair with a towel Lilly came to a dead stop at the sight of the gorgeous, wavy haired brunette lying on her bed clad only in a long red flannel shirt and a pair of white and gold panties.

"What's wrong Lils?" Miley asked her best friend with a worried look.

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Lilly nearly yelled in a combination of shock and frustration, throwing her hands in the air. "Nothing's wrong!"

"And I'm the queen of Siam," Miley told her getting angry herself and sitting up on the bed. "You've been moping around here for I don't know how long."

"Well excuse me your highness!" Lilly sneered while giving Miley a sarcastic curtsey. "I'll try not to impose my moodiness on you!"

Miley turned her head away to hide her blush. Lilly's little curtsey in her robe had more than proven that she hadn't bothered to put on any pajamas or even underwear after stepping out of the shower. "Put some damn clothes on girl," she mumbled.

Lilly wasn't up to playing nursemaid to a suddenly worried Miley that hadn't been paying much attention to the girl that was supposed to be her 'best friend' for months. "Yes ma'am," she spat as she walked over to her dresser to get out a clean set of PJs. Without bothering to turn around she undid the tie and shrugged out of the robe, allowing it to drop to the floor. She bent over to rummage through the dresser drawer hoping that Miley was getting a good eyeful. She slipped on a pair of panties and then grabbed a long t-shirt out of another drawer, turning around to see a gape mouthed Miley Stewart, her wide eyes bouncing from her thinly covered crotch to her bare breasts. She smirked as she stood there nearly naked. "What's the matter Miles? Like what you see?" she snorted before pulling the shirt over her head and settling it around her hips. "Too bad. I thought you and Jake would still be downstairs doing the horizontal mambo."

"He…he left about an hour ago," Miley stammered. She forced her eyes to finally look up to Lilly's face and saw the girl nearly laughing at her. All this did was add fuel to the fire smoldering inside her. "And why would I want to stare at your tiny tits?" she blurted without thought, just needing to defend herself because she had been staring and dammit she did like what she saw but didn't for the life of her know why.

"Yeah, why would you," Lilly said softly to herself as she turned and walked over to her dressing table to once again pick up her brush.

[Are you trying to blow this, Lilly!] Lola yelled at her. [Quit being stupid!]

"Shut up wench," Lilly mumbled angrily under her breath. Lola shut up but Lilly could almost feel her seething underneath her skin. "Look who's talking 'tiny tits'," she laughed for Miley's ears. "At least I'm not still being mistaken for a middle schooler when I go to the theatre."

Miley's jaw dropped open again at the mention of the one thing about her body that she was still worried about. She shut it quickly however when she realized that Lilly was just striking back at her for her own stupid remark. She turned on the bed so that she could better see her friend, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

Unfortunately that position gave Lilly an almost unobstructed view of Miley's own barely covered nether regions in the mirror and she quickly tried to focus on her hair, or her face, or anything other than that cotton covered…

"Sorry Miley," she said softly, "that was a low blow."

"Yeah, well…I wasn't exactly being very nice either," the blue-eyed girl admitted. "But I am worried about you," she said, raising her head so that she could see Lilly's face reflected in the mirror. "You're my best friend. If there's something I can do…"

"Yeah, there is. Go to bed Miley," Lilly told her dejectedly, looking at her reflection. "Just…go to bed."

"No! I'm not leaving here until you tell me what's going on with you."

"Your famed Stewart Stubbornness isn't going to help you tonight, Miley, so just get over it," Lilly told her in a cold voice, turning around so that she could look her in the eyes. "I'm allowed to have my moods, I'm allowed to have them whenever I feel like it, and I'm allowed to have them in private! Believe me, you do not want to go there right now."

"Is it Oliver?" Miley guessed in a voice not much louder than a mouse.

"ARRGGGHHH! Miley Ray Stewart, get out of my room!" she screamed, picking up the hairbrush and threatening bodily injury if one stubborn-as-a-jackass and just about as smart Tennessee farm rat didn't leave her alone immediately!

Believe it or not, jackasses, or donkeys as they are also called, are actually quite intelligent as Miley proved by fleeing the irate room owner, pulling the door closed just before it felt the stinging impact of the brush. The scream of frustration and anger that issued from that closed door could be heard throughout the house and brought Robbie, Lori and Jackson rushing out of their rooms to find a quivering Miley sitting on the floor outside Lilly's room.

"I think I screwed up," she whimpered.

Robbie gave Lori a look and the blonde pushed him in the back, propelling him softly toward his daughter while Jackson huffed and returned to his room, slamming the door in the process. As Robbie was passing Lilly's room he could hear soft crying. He also could have sworn he heard two weeping voices instead of one but decided it wasn't the time to be worrying about that just now.

"D-daddy?" Miley whimpered again as tears started forming at the corners of her blue eyes.

"Come on sugarplum," he told her, helping her to her feet. "Let's go get us some Rocky Road and have a little chat."

"Lilly hates me, doesn't she?"

"No, hun, she don't hate you," he assured her as he helped her down the stairs and into the kitchen where he sat her down at the table. "She's just got a lot on her mind right now," he explained as he went to the freezer and pulled out a half-gallon of ice cream.

"B-but…I mean…we've argued in the past," Miley cried, "and she's gotten mad at me before, but she's never yelled at me like that." Robbie handed her a spoon and took one for himself, opening the container and taking a taste before nodding at her to start eating. Miley reluctantly took a small bite.

"She's your best friend, buttercup. She'd never hate you." He took another small bite and looked at her until she took another for herself.

"But," Miley said softly, wiping her eyes as she took another bite, "she's been so distant lately. And she hardly ever really smiles at me. I mean, yeah, she smiles, but not like she really means it. And she moved out of the room…"

"And when was that?" he asked her gently. "Wasn't it about the time you and Jake started dating again?" It wasn't, and the two topics had nothing to do with each other, but Miley wouldn't know that. "You know she's never really liked him. Not since he cheated on you that time. Can't say he's very high on my hit parade neither. Anyone that hurts my little girl has a lot to make up for before I'm going to trust them again. Lilly's the same way." He thought that maybe if he threw the suspicion on Miley's and Jake's relationship it might keep his daughter's mind from traveling to places that he knew for sure Lilly didn't want it to go. However... "She loves you hun. She doesn't want to see you hurt again and it's driving her…well…let's just say she's not too keen on the idea." He took another small bite of the ice cream as he watched her eat. "And let's face it. Ever since you started dating Jake again you've had less and less time for her."

"I know she doesn't like Jake much…and I know I've been spending more time with him recently…"

"Uh huh."

"But if she just gave him a chance…" Miley didn't quite know how to finish that thought so she went with another. "And she's got Oliver."

"Miley, baby," Robbie sighed, "do you honestly think that Lilly'd pick 'Smoken' Oken over you? They've been friends for forever, and they've dated off and on, but she'd never choose him over you if it came down to a choice. She'd much rather be with you than him anytime. And she's proved it time and time again." That at least was the truth. Robbie figured that Oliver was Lilly's faux boyfriend just to keep her safe and out of trouble. He didn't know if Oliver knew that Lilly was in love with Miley, but he wouldn't be overly surprised if he did.

"I know Daddy," Miley sighed, "but I can't dump Jake just because Lilly or even you don't like him. I think I might love him."

"And Lilly'd never ask you to." He chose to ignore that last little bit. He really didn't like that boy and like Lilly, or Lola, was pretty sure that Jake would screw up again in the not too distant future.

"Jake's scheduled to go back on location in a couple of weeks and will be gone for two whole months. Maybe then I can try to mend my relationship with Lilly," Miley told her father, perking up a bit at the thought.

"So, you're going to leave her hangin' by herself for another couple of weeks until Jake leaves?" Robbie asked, giving her a look that told her she was being selfish and stupid…again. "And what about when he comes back. Are you going to put Lilly on the back burner again? Is she your friend only when Jake's not around?"

"Dad! It's not like that," Miley whined.

"Sure sounds that way to me, bud," he told her, pushing his chair back away from the table and going to the sink to wash his spoon. "Just think about it baby. Think about you, and Jake, and Lilly, and even Hannah and what kind of relationship you want with each of them. Who's more important to you?" He leaned over and gave her a soft kiss on the top of her head. "Sweet dreams, sweetie."

"Oh sure, like I'm going to get any sleep tonight," she groaned and put her head down on the table.

"Then my job here is done," Robbie Ray winked at her and grinned before heading back up to bed.

Miley sat there cradling her head on her arms as she felt the tears start up again.

"Why does love have to be so hard?"

-oo-

Lilly lay on her bed, the covers pulled up to her chin as the light of the moon painted the walls and ceiling of her room in a silvery glow.

"Why does love have to be so hard?" she asked no one in particular. It didn't overly surprise her when she got an answer.

[Because it's worth it. Anything that's truly important and precious should never be handed to you on a platter. If it were you wouldn't treasure it as near as much as you should.]

"How'd you get to be so wise," she asked, not wanting to wonder how she herself wasn't.

[Hey, just because I'm a flighty, flirty sex goddess that doesn't mean I don't have a brain.]

"Yeah, I'll bet it's just because you were paying more attention in class than I was when the teacher was talking about Plato and Aristotle."

[That might have something to do with it,] Lola agreed with a low chuckle. [Or it could be that I'm not quite as invested in being Miley's friend as you are. You've known her longer than I have. She's your best friend. I wouldn't mind being her friend like you are, but I also want more from her than just her friendship.]

"And I don't?" Lilly said a little more loudly than she probably should have. She'd raised herself up on her arms to start arguing but instead just groaned and lay back down. "Not like either of us is ever going to see that dream come true."

[Dreams remain dreams until they are fulfilled. Then they become reality. Like love, you have to work hard to make your dreams come true. It's not easy. In fact it can be pretty damned difficult, but it's worth it in the end.]

"There you go philosophizing again," Lilly chuckled. "I thought you were the preeminent party girl, not a Plato wannabe. Or wasn't it Freud that dealt so much with dreams?"

[Different kind of dreams baby,] Lola laughed. [And don't forget his take on sex!]

"Great! Talk about something else we're never going to get a lot of! You're not helping me sleep!"

[Sorry,] Lola said contritely. [I was hoping to take your mind somewhere else.]

"Thanks," Lilly smiled softly, "I appreciate your concern." She turned over so that she could look out the window at the moonlit darkness. "Maybe we should think about going somewhere else after we graduate high school. Maybe in college we'll meet new people; get a new start. I've heard that lesbians don't get anywhere near the hassles in college as they do in high school."

[Is that what you really want? To move out? Get away from here? Get away from her?]

"It can't be much more painful than staying here and watching her and 'The Snake' get it on. That's a slow, lingering pain. Leaving…that's more like ripping the bandage off in one quick swipe. It hurts like a mother for a little while, but then it's gone."

Lola didn't have any way to counter that argument. Nor did she know if she really wanted to counter it.

-oo-

"LILLAAYY!" Miley yelled as she bounced through Lilly's bedroom door around eight the next morning. She'd decided to try to pretend that their fight the previous night hadn't happened. She' been up most of the night thinking and not coming up with any acceptable solutions so she figured that ignoring it was probably the best course of action. She'd expected to pounce on the still sleeping blonde in order to wake her up with a cheery smile. She hadn't expected the bed to be neatly made and no sign of her best friend in the whole world.

"Lilly?" She anxiously looked in the closet first, not for Lilly but just to make sure the clothes and suitcase were still there. She looked in a few of the drawers as well just to be extra sure. Nothing appeared to be missing, but then again would she even really know if some of the clothes were gone? Miley then stepped back out in the hall and walked down to the closed door to the bathroom.

"Lilly?" she knocked, receiving no answer. She tentatively turned the handle and opened the door to a darkened bath. No Lilly.

"DAAAD!" she yelled as she went running down the stairs.

"Whoa, hold up there little filly!" Robbie Ray told his daughter as she came sliding into the kitchen where he was just finishing up making omelettes for himself and Lori. "Where's the fire?"

"Have…have you seen Lilly?" the brunette panted, gasping in her fear.

"No. Not since we got up," he looked to Lori who shook her head. "Have you checked her room or the bath?"

"Yes, both! She's not here!" Miley nearly yelled.

"Calm down there girl," he said as he turned the burner off and moved the eggs off the heat so that he could grab her shaking hands. "I don't think she's gone off anywhere if that's what you're thinking."

"But, but…"

"What's all the ruckus about?" Jackson called out as he came down the stairs rubbing his messy bedhead.

"Lilly's gone!" Miley wailed.

"Well after that fight the two of you had last night I'm not surprised," he yawned.

"Maybe she went to the beach," Lori offered the distraught teen. "You know how she likes to go there to think."

"Yeah. Yeah!" Miley grabbed onto the sliver of hope her father's girlfriend held out to her. "Maybe that's it. Maybe she went to the beach!"

"If she did then she probably wants to be alone," Robbie said. "So sit down and have some breakfast. I'm sure she'll be back soon."

"I'm not real hungry," Miley said, holding her stomach which was still roiling with the fear that she'd somehow chased her friend out of her life.

"At least have some eggs and toast," Robbie told her, turning back to the stove to finish the cooking.

Miley sat and ate a few bites of the food her father dished up and then played with it on her plate until Robbie got fed up and took it away to give to Jackson. She didn't even argue or pout as her brother dug into her breakfast, just sat staring at the table in front of her.

By the time Lilly came through the patio doors dressed in a pair of gym shorts and a sweat-soaked Radiohead t-shirt Miley had almost worn a path in the carpet from all her pacing. She'd gotten a call from Jake but told him she'd have to call him back. He wasn't overly happy about it but she couldn't bring herself to care. When Lilly came in she was immediately pounced on by an anxious but relieved brunette.

"Wh-where w-were you?" Miley asked her friend when she'd finally calmed down a bit.

"I went for a run," the confused blonde replied, not understanding why her friend was so upset.

"I thought…I thought…" Miley nearly started to cry but caught herself. "I didn't know where you were. I went to your room to see if you wanted to go out today," she prevaricated.

"I thought you had a date with Jake today," the green-eyed girl said with a bit of wariness. "If you want me to play third-wheel you can just forget it."

"No! No, I'm going to cancel. I just want the two of us to have a Liley day. No boyfriends, no work, no school, just us."

"What did you have in mind?" Lilly asked, still a bit unsure of Miley's sudden change in attitude.

"I don't know, maybe head down to the pier and then do lunch. Maybe some shopping?" Miley suggested, hoping that her friend would say yes.

"All right," Lilly nodded after a moment of quiet thought. "Let me just go up and shower and change and I'll be back down in a bit," Lilly smiled a bit too widely.

"Okay!" Miley nearly leapt for joy. She watched Lilly head upstairs to get ready and finally fell onto the couch and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Everything she'd been thinking about had flown out the window as soon as she'd thought Lilly might have left her. She thought back to what her dad had told her, that she needed to think about what kind of relationship she wanted with Lilly and who was more important to her life: Lilly or Jake. Even at his worst Jake had never made her feel so alone and upset when he left her; like her life was over without him in it. That morning, however, when she'd thought Lilly had gone she realized just how important her friend was to her and what her life would be like without Lilly Truscott in it. It wasn't a future she wanted to contemplate. So when Lilly had walked in that door it was like the sun had risen and the color had returned to the world. She realized that she might love Jake, but she did love Lilly! No boy was worth losing her best friend over.

Upstairs Lilly took her t-shirt off and used it to wipe the sweat from her chest. A flicker of gold caught her eye and she reached down to carefully pick up the heart-shaped locket that she'd worn around her neck ever since the day Miley had given it to her for her fifteenth birthday. She gently opened it to see the picture of the two of them hugging, both with huge smiles on their faces. They'd been so happy once it was hard to believe that things had gotten to where they were today.

Gently she reached up and unclasped the necklace that had not left her neck in nearly three years. She opened the small jewelry case on her dresser and tenderly set it in the box. She covered it with a small jewelry cloth and then slowly closed the lid.

[You're sure?] Lola asked softly.

"Yes, I'm sure," Lilly replied just as softly. "I have to do this. It hurts too damn much."

"LILLY? You ready to get going?" Miley called up to her.

"Give me a minute," she yelled back "Let me take a shower and get dressed," she called out, "and then I [we] can [let] go," she and Lola finished much more quietly.