019: Patterns of Fairytales
Title: Patterns of Fairytales: The Nick and Miley Story
Word Count: 3,586.
Characters: Miley/Nick. With mentions of Joe, because I can never help myself.
Rating: PG
Summary: Um mozarts_fic's ridiculously fantastic Niley picspam gave me feelings that apparently needed to be expressed by writing this. Also, I stole her fanmix title because 1) I'm lazy and 2)This was inspired by looking back at the pictures/listening to the fanmix multiple times. Nick and Miley's relationship, condensed into one story. Yeah, I don't even know.
The funny thing about Miley and him, Nick thinks back, is how the media played it. From the beginning, it was always Miley obsessing over him, Miley rebelling against the breakup, Miley refusing to let go. It was never like that though, really.
+++
They met on a sunny day and Nick remembers seeing her wear this flowery top and having this sudden urge to write a song. He recalls Joe's advice to stop writing and start making moves ("Nick, believe it or not, you can't date song lyrics") and he asks her to ice cream that afternoon. He's only been in LA for a few months, so when he asks her, he hasn't exactly planned out the where-and-when of the date. She giggles, and says to not worry because she's practically a native.
+++
She's not though. Because even though they both wear designer clothes (well, she's trying to wean him off the Ed Hardy), they haven't really figured out how to master the bubble of Hollywood yet. He loves that about her; the fact that it's about a week after they've made it official and she's dancing around his kitchen with brownie mix on her nose, pretending that her tv show didn't just come on in the living room. She gets really close to his face and smudges her nose on his cheek and he kind of wants to kiss her. Then he remembers that he's only kissed one girl before this and maybe he should wait a while. He doesn't want to be bad at it and scare her off, because he really likes her.
+++
Nick and his brothers go off on tour with Aly and AJ just a little while later. The thrill of being back on stage is just, such a rush and Nick can't get enough of it. He misses Miley though, but feels like a total wuss since it’s only been a month or so of them. Joe's been sneaking off with AJ for the last few weeks and Nick's getting tired of making excuses for why he's constantly missing from the bus. Kevin's got Zoe, and while they're cute, it sucks not having his girlfriend on tour like his brothers do.
"They're getting so annoying with AJ and Zoe, Miles," he explains to her on the phone one night, "I mean, there's only so many times Mom'll believe that Joe's not on the bus because he 'lost his toothbrush' somewhere.'"
She giggles into the receiver and Nick relaxes a little. "Nick, chill. You're on stage every night and I'm soo jealous. Whatever, we should tour together and rub it in their faces!"
He knows she was just kidding but he thinks, maybe they should.
+++
Their first album finally comes out, and after all the waiting and anticipation, it kind of bombs. At first, it's this incredible feeling to be holding a copy of it in his hands, and then seeing a few gorgeous girls buy it, but that's the extent of it. Kevin keeps waiting with this hopeful look on his face every morning, expecting Dad to maybe tell them that people have finally discovered the album and that they're the next Beatles, but it never does. It gets so bad that Sony decides to stop promoting and take the album off shelves, and Nick's never felt more down in his life. Joe's moody now, and he keeps refusing to practice, saying things like he doesn't want to set up for another failure, and it scares Nick.
Miley comes over for dinner more often, and even though he really likes her, it's hard to see her be so successful while things are going so badly for them. He usually tries to put it in the back of his mind, but when Columbia drops them around the time Hannah Montana really takes off, he's feels kind of sick.
He's ready to break it off, because no matter how much he likes how soft her hair is or the way she is really set on learning guitar, it sucks to be jealous of your girlfriend. But then, Kevin comes running into his room screaming at him to come downstairs, that Dad has news.
Nick takes the steps two at a time and Dad tells him that the producers at Disney found their record on their desk and thought they'd be perfect for a few soundtracks. In the midst of the boys jumping and screaming, Nick has a funny feeling about how this happened. When Miles comes over later that night for celebratory ice cream sundaes, she swears that she has no idea how they got the CD, but the mischeivious grin that she can't wipe off her face kind of spoils her cover. God, he loves her.
+++
It's been close to a year together and Nick doesn't understand how it's flown so quickly. Tickets for their tour together went on sale today and they sell out like lightning, and Nick just can't believe it. He and Joe have been dancing around their room for about half an hour now because Kevin's refreshing his ticketmaster account whose numbers keep going up, which clearly requires vast amounts of 'the lawnmower' and 'the sprinkler' and other hardcore dance moves.
The doorbell rings and Nick practically flies down the stairs. At the door is Miley, looking flushed and happy and she's grinning so big that she's glowing. He jumps out the door and on to the porch steps and without even thinking about it, he takes her face in his hands and kisses her. Her lips feel smooth and familiar on his and he tries to lean her up against the porch railings, but instead trips a little on the stairs, causing her to laugh into his mouth. They let go minutes later and proceed to sing and dance into the kitchen and Nick feels like it’s the best day of his life.
+++
It's late September and they're out riding bikes. She has braids in her hair and sometimes he looks too long at her and he loses his balance a bit. She got him the bike for his birthday last week and it's become a part of their regular schedule to bike before tour rehearsals. It's nice having this time to unwind together, because Nick knows how Miley hates the way he gets during practice. The way he closes off to everything but his band and the instruments in unnerving for people he hasn't played with before, he knows. Joe and Kevin are used to this side of Nick, the one who gets so tightly wound up on work, refusing water breaks and stopping only to check sugar levels. He could see that Miley wasn't however, the way she looks at him worried and slightly hurt when he told her he couldn't get dinner that night, that he needed to practice. With the first night of tour in a few weeks, Nick needs everything to be perfect and he won't let himself to be the reason things go wrong. That's why he's glad they have their bike rides: to remind Miles that he could be her Nick.
The next day pictures come out in US Weekly of the pair riding bikes, with the headline stating "Puppy love!" Joe and Kevin bark and ruffle his hair endlessly and Nick's laughing as he comes down the stairs, when he sees Miley, her rep, and Dad on the couch. They ask him to sit down, explaining to him in this horrible condescending voice, that however close him and Miley may be, for the sake of the Disney image, they need to remain only friends to the public. Nick feels the laughter from earlier leaving his body and wonders if Miley feels as sad as he does.
+++
The tour is...complicated. There are some days that he's just in awe of everything around him. He's playing for crowds that he has never ever seen before and when there's 10,000 people singing the lyrics to a song you wrote, life really can't get much better. There's these nights where him and Joe are in perfect harmony, when Miley and him connect so well on stage that he almost feels this electric shock when she runs her fingers through his hair as they cover the catwalk. He looks over the arena and sees these people, and watches his girl doing stupid mic tricks with Joe, and Nick wishes that this doesn't ever, ever end.
Other nights aren't like that though. There's something about tour that gets to everyone eventually; Nick and Joe are wrestling more out of frustration than play, Kevin spends more time on the band's bus, saying he's sick of playing babysitter, and Miley and him are fighting about, just, the stupidest things. He feels claustrophobic on tour sometimes, the way that he is always surrounded by people, and as much as he loves Miles, he just needs space sometimes. They "take breaks" at least once a week, and even he can't keep track if they are on or off by the end of November.
They have a two-day break from tour, a godsend to everyone. They're parked near the California coast and most of the band has gone off to sightsee on the cliffs. Nick sleeps in until one and watches cartoons with Joe for two straight hours, being thoroughly unproductive. Mom makes him to school for a good few hours and before he knows it the day is almost over. The weird thing about him and Miles though, is that even if they're fighting, it's feels wrong to Nick if he goes a day without seeing her. So he grabs a blanket and two Diet Cokes and texts her to meet him outside.
She's in front of his bus within a few minutes, and she's wearing a stupid shirt some fan made her and jeans and Nick wants to hold her hand, but he doesn't really know if they're dating anymore. They walk for about twenty minutes, without much direction; he's simply trying to go as far away from the tour as possible. They end up at an overhang about a mile away from the buses, and Nick spreads the blanket out for them to sit down on. They watch the sunset for a while, watching Santa Barbara disappear underneath its rays. Nick thinks during the silence; about the tour, about his life at the moment, but mostly about him and Miley. It wasn't a question of whether or not he loved her, because he was sure about that. It was just the fact of how they were fourteen year olds trying to have an adult relationship, and it was hard.
"Nick," Miley says quietly, "What are we right now?"
Nick probably should give her a straight answer, about how they're fighting so much that he can't concentrate, that the paparazzi attention is overwhelming, that he wants to stop this so the fans will stop sending Miley death threats.
But then he looks at around him with the California coast drowning in the ocean, Miley looking small against the rocks and thinks this is exactly what they are: just two kids in a big world that they both weren't ready for.
So he wraps one arm around her and kisses her hair and says "It's just you and me, Miles. That's what this is."
+++
Nick's not good with history, with all the names and dates that have to be memorized. But they break up December 19th, 2007 and Nick's pretty sure he won't forget that date any time soon.
The morning starts out crappy anyways; his blood sugar's out of whack, he just can't find a pick (and seriously, it's a tour bus, why is this so difficult?) and he kind of wants to go back to bed and skip this day.
Then Miley comes skipping into his bus at a rest stop, expecting him to entertain her, or as she perkily says it, "actually spend time with me for once, Nick." And even though she's said it like that plenty of times and he usually snarks back a reply like "Sorry Miles, didn't you know I'm a rockstar?" today he can't take it.
"Miley, I'm busy. I can't, okay?"
There's something in his tone that's more than a temporary annoyance and both Miley and Nick can feel it.
She goes quiet for a moment then says back in a calm voice that he wasn't expecting: "That's the way it always is, isn't it? I'm a little sick of waiting around for a good time for you, Nick."
She walks out of the tour bus and despite this horrible squirming feeling that just exploded in his stomach and the way his throats closing up, he doesn't chase after her.
The actual breakup is pretty anticlimactic, considering how long they lasted and all that they've been through. It's after warm-ups and the campfire and prayer that Nick meets Miley at the entrance of the stage.
They look at each other and all the pre-show chaos melts away and there's just Miley. She has the usual look of complete concert focus on her face, but Nick knows her better than that, and underneath he sees exhaustion and just, a girl who's tired of it all. He knows how she feels.
"Miley..." Nick doesn't know how he's supposed to end this. Or if he even wants to.
She smiles sadly. "It's too much right now for us, huh. It's better for both of us if we're just friends." She says it shakily though, as if she's trying to convince herself.
Nick nods, unable to say much else, and that's it.
She kisses his cheek and tries to grin.
"Let's rock this show, huh Nicky?"
She tugs her blonde wig on and steps onto her entrance platform, not looking back.
Nick smiles at this, as he listens to the crowd scream and Miley begin her opening number. Despite the fact that about two years of his life just ended, Nick laughs a little at how much practice Miles has had at pretending to be someone else, and remembers some stupid interview question about Aly & AJ versus Miley. Yeah, he thinks, he'll stick with Hannah Montana.
+++
She kind of blows him off the entire whole show, but he understands and doesn't take it personally. It's when he crawls into his bunk at night that it finally hits him.
Miley's no longer his girl, Nick realizes. He can't walk over to her house in the mornings, he can't race her around Toluca on bikes, he can't do any of these things and all of a sudden, he's screaming into his pillow.
Five minutes later, the screaming's turned into crying, and he's at the point where his breath is coming out in gasps and his chest hurts, so bad.
He doesn't realize that anyone is on the bus, until Joe silently climbs into his bunk and begins rubbing his back. It's kind of claustrophobic and Nick considers pushing Joe out, but he can't find the energy.
"It'll be alright, Nicky, it'll be alright." Joe whispers softly, drawing circles on his back, pressing harder, as if maybe he can absorb some of Nick's hurt.
And the logical, reasonable Mr. President side of Nick knows that it will be. Knows that he'll wake up tomorrow or the next day, and things will be okay.
But right now, they aren't, and there's nothing he can do about it. And it's the worst feeling in the world.
+++
It's Christmas Eve and they haven't talked in a week, because it's just, it's just too soon. He still needs to get her a present though; he's not really sure why, but for some reason he feels like he needs to do this. He secretly shops with Joe for two hours around New York, since no one else in the family is a big fan of him talking to Miley yet. Joe gets it though, and doesn't say a thing as they go from store to store searching for the perfect gift. Nick finds nothing though, nothing that says what he wants to say, and they eventually head back to the hotel.
He gets on his laptop and puts on the mix he made about her and tries to think. With him and Miles though, it always came down to the music. It was what brought them together, it was their shared passion, it was what tore them apart. And so, Nick begins to make Miley her Christmas present.
+++
Miley gets her gift two days after Christmas. She's in her room at the time, trying to write a new song, while internally freaking out about the fact that she has just sent Nick Jonas a Christmas present a week after they broke up. That's practically rule number one in the book of Breakup No-No's and Miley really, really needs to start playing by the rules. But the Elvis Costello shirt was too vintage and too perfect for Nick for her not to buy it, and making him smile is one of her favorite things to do, still.
Her dad brings the package up to her room, and by the gruff look on his face, she can tell that he's not a fan of the return address.
"Now, Miles. You don't have to open this if you don't want to. I can head right down and give that lil' rooster the old right 'n left. Did Meemaw ever tell you that your daddy was a regular boxer back in the day?"
Miley is pretty sure that Meemaw mentioned her Dad being a failure at all sports that required coordination, but she decides not to mention it at this point.
"Yeah okay Daddy. Maybe later," she rolls her eyes and pushes Billy Ray out the door after grabbing the package from him.
She takes the package and shakily opens it. Inside under layers of bubble wrap ("He would," she thinks) is a CD case, with no cover art and a simple disc inside.
She turns the casing over, hoping for some clue to what this is about, and is greeted by the familiar chicken scratch that is Nick Jonas' handwriting. Ignoring the immediate blow to the stomach that she feels at this reminder of him, she begins to read:
1. Games
2. Inseparable
3. Still in Love With You
4. Goodnight and Goodbye
5. Kung Fu Grip
6. Sorry
Because let's be honest, Miles. I'm yet to write a song that's not about you. The last one's new and it's what I've been trying to say for a while now. You'll always be my girl, okay?
Merry Christmas.
-Nick
+++
It's been almost two years and, well, it's awkward. Nick's had other girlfriends and Miley hasjust started dating Justin, but everything is still slightly unresolved. It's January 19th, the day before the inauguration and Miley's emotions are all over the place. She's performing tonight for the mother-freakin' First Lady, and just everywhere she turns, there's change happening.
She premieres 'The Climb' that night, and when she about loses it on stage, she thinks about how happy she is. The country's bonding over this election, she's in the capital the night before a moment in history, and despite her parents' grumblings over Obama, Miley thinks that that may just be the biggest show of her life.
After the performances, they bow and confetti's everywhere and Miley's jumping and celebrating with Demi and Jordin and everyone around her. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees the Jonas Brothers working their way down the line shaking hands and hugging, like professionals, and even though she falters for a moment, Miley resumes her jumping, pretending like they're just another band, that he's just another boy. For a split second, Miley thinks that Nick may skip over or ignore her or something, but when he gets in front of her, she remembers what he is like.
He wraps his arms around her, and really it's only a short hug, but its warm and strong and she's pretty sure it feels just as familiar to him as it does to her. Change is everywhere tonight, Miley thinks.
She catches up with him backstage, both of them still at their performance highs. They laugh and babble for a few minutes about the concert, jumpy and hyper from the now normal adrenaline rush. They begin to calm down a little, catching their breath and Nick turns to casual conversation.
"Are you staying in town? Because you know, a few things are happening in D.C tomorrow...nothing major, but still..." He grins, and she almost wants to kiss him for being the same Nick that she remembered, but she doesn't.
"What? Something in D.C?" She teases back, "Haha, but no. I have to get back to L.A. Mom and Justin are--"
Miley freezes in the middle of her sentence. The first conversation in a year with Nick and she brings up Justin? Way to go, Miles. Way to go.
Nick freezes for a second also, but then relaxes back into a smile.
"How is Justin? Because really, I'll have to beat him up if he tries anything. My strength knows no limits, Miles."
And when he says that, Miley feels this giant anvil that she didn't even know she had being lifted off her heart. It's like she can breathe again and she feels her face relax into a smile. They were going to be okay.
+++
(from mozarts_fic's picspam. really. I should just credit her for the whole thing.)
??♥
Oh, and I've decided to lock everything that isn't writing in this community, i.e fanmixes and picspams. If you want to see them, feel free to join :).
Word Count: 3,586.
Characters: Miley/Nick. With mentions of Joe, because I can never help myself.
Rating: PG
Summary: Um mozarts_fic's ridiculously fantastic Niley picspam gave me feelings that apparently needed to be expressed by writing this. Also, I stole her fanmix title because 1) I'm lazy and 2)This was inspired by looking back at the pictures/listening to the fanmix multiple times. Nick and Miley's relationship, condensed into one story. Yeah, I don't even know.
The funny thing about Miley and him, Nick thinks back, is how the media played it. From the beginning, it was always Miley obsessing over him, Miley rebelling against the breakup, Miley refusing to let go. It was never like that though, really.
+++
They met on a sunny day and Nick remembers seeing her wear this flowery top and having this sudden urge to write a song. He recalls Joe's advice to stop writing and start making moves ("Nick, believe it or not, you can't date song lyrics") and he asks her to ice cream that afternoon. He's only been in LA for a few months, so when he asks her, he hasn't exactly planned out the where-and-when of the date. She giggles, and says to not worry because she's practically a native.
+++
She's not though. Because even though they both wear designer clothes (well, she's trying to wean him off the Ed Hardy), they haven't really figured out how to master the bubble of Hollywood yet. He loves that about her; the fact that it's about a week after they've made it official and she's dancing around his kitchen with brownie mix on her nose, pretending that her tv show didn't just come on in the living room. She gets really close to his face and smudges her nose on his cheek and he kind of wants to kiss her. Then he remembers that he's only kissed one girl before this and maybe he should wait a while. He doesn't want to be bad at it and scare her off, because he really likes her.
+++
Nick and his brothers go off on tour with Aly and AJ just a little while later. The thrill of being back on stage is just, such a rush and Nick can't get enough of it. He misses Miley though, but feels like a total wuss since it’s only been a month or so of them. Joe's been sneaking off with AJ for the last few weeks and Nick's getting tired of making excuses for why he's constantly missing from the bus. Kevin's got Zoe, and while they're cute, it sucks not having his girlfriend on tour like his brothers do.
"They're getting so annoying with AJ and Zoe, Miles," he explains to her on the phone one night, "I mean, there's only so many times Mom'll believe that Joe's not on the bus because he 'lost his toothbrush' somewhere.'"
She giggles into the receiver and Nick relaxes a little. "Nick, chill. You're on stage every night and I'm soo jealous. Whatever, we should tour together and rub it in their faces!"
He knows she was just kidding but he thinks, maybe they should.
+++
Their first album finally comes out, and after all the waiting and anticipation, it kind of bombs. At first, it's this incredible feeling to be holding a copy of it in his hands, and then seeing a few gorgeous girls buy it, but that's the extent of it. Kevin keeps waiting with this hopeful look on his face every morning, expecting Dad to maybe tell them that people have finally discovered the album and that they're the next Beatles, but it never does. It gets so bad that Sony decides to stop promoting and take the album off shelves, and Nick's never felt more down in his life. Joe's moody now, and he keeps refusing to practice, saying things like he doesn't want to set up for another failure, and it scares Nick.
Miley comes over for dinner more often, and even though he really likes her, it's hard to see her be so successful while things are going so badly for them. He usually tries to put it in the back of his mind, but when Columbia drops them around the time Hannah Montana really takes off, he's feels kind of sick.
He's ready to break it off, because no matter how much he likes how soft her hair is or the way she is really set on learning guitar, it sucks to be jealous of your girlfriend. But then, Kevin comes running into his room screaming at him to come downstairs, that Dad has news.
Nick takes the steps two at a time and Dad tells him that the producers at Disney found their record on their desk and thought they'd be perfect for a few soundtracks. In the midst of the boys jumping and screaming, Nick has a funny feeling about how this happened. When Miles comes over later that night for celebratory ice cream sundaes, she swears that she has no idea how they got the CD, but the mischeivious grin that she can't wipe off her face kind of spoils her cover. God, he loves her.
+++
It's been close to a year together and Nick doesn't understand how it's flown so quickly. Tickets for their tour together went on sale today and they sell out like lightning, and Nick just can't believe it. He and Joe have been dancing around their room for about half an hour now because Kevin's refreshing his ticketmaster account whose numbers keep going up, which clearly requires vast amounts of 'the lawnmower' and 'the sprinkler' and other hardcore dance moves.
The doorbell rings and Nick practically flies down the stairs. At the door is Miley, looking flushed and happy and she's grinning so big that she's glowing. He jumps out the door and on to the porch steps and without even thinking about it, he takes her face in his hands and kisses her. Her lips feel smooth and familiar on his and he tries to lean her up against the porch railings, but instead trips a little on the stairs, causing her to laugh into his mouth. They let go minutes later and proceed to sing and dance into the kitchen and Nick feels like it’s the best day of his life.
+++
It's late September and they're out riding bikes. She has braids in her hair and sometimes he looks too long at her and he loses his balance a bit. She got him the bike for his birthday last week and it's become a part of their regular schedule to bike before tour rehearsals. It's nice having this time to unwind together, because Nick knows how Miley hates the way he gets during practice. The way he closes off to everything but his band and the instruments in unnerving for people he hasn't played with before, he knows. Joe and Kevin are used to this side of Nick, the one who gets so tightly wound up on work, refusing water breaks and stopping only to check sugar levels. He could see that Miley wasn't however, the way she looks at him worried and slightly hurt when he told her he couldn't get dinner that night, that he needed to practice. With the first night of tour in a few weeks, Nick needs everything to be perfect and he won't let himself to be the reason things go wrong. That's why he's glad they have their bike rides: to remind Miles that he could be her Nick.
The next day pictures come out in US Weekly of the pair riding bikes, with the headline stating "Puppy love!" Joe and Kevin bark and ruffle his hair endlessly and Nick's laughing as he comes down the stairs, when he sees Miley, her rep, and Dad on the couch. They ask him to sit down, explaining to him in this horrible condescending voice, that however close him and Miley may be, for the sake of the Disney image, they need to remain only friends to the public. Nick feels the laughter from earlier leaving his body and wonders if Miley feels as sad as he does.
+++
The tour is...complicated. There are some days that he's just in awe of everything around him. He's playing for crowds that he has never ever seen before and when there's 10,000 people singing the lyrics to a song you wrote, life really can't get much better. There's these nights where him and Joe are in perfect harmony, when Miley and him connect so well on stage that he almost feels this electric shock when she runs her fingers through his hair as they cover the catwalk. He looks over the arena and sees these people, and watches his girl doing stupid mic tricks with Joe, and Nick wishes that this doesn't ever, ever end.
Other nights aren't like that though. There's something about tour that gets to everyone eventually; Nick and Joe are wrestling more out of frustration than play, Kevin spends more time on the band's bus, saying he's sick of playing babysitter, and Miley and him are fighting about, just, the stupidest things. He feels claustrophobic on tour sometimes, the way that he is always surrounded by people, and as much as he loves Miles, he just needs space sometimes. They "take breaks" at least once a week, and even he can't keep track if they are on or off by the end of November.
They have a two-day break from tour, a godsend to everyone. They're parked near the California coast and most of the band has gone off to sightsee on the cliffs. Nick sleeps in until one and watches cartoons with Joe for two straight hours, being thoroughly unproductive. Mom makes him to school for a good few hours and before he knows it the day is almost over. The weird thing about him and Miles though, is that even if they're fighting, it's feels wrong to Nick if he goes a day without seeing her. So he grabs a blanket and two Diet Cokes and texts her to meet him outside.
She's in front of his bus within a few minutes, and she's wearing a stupid shirt some fan made her and jeans and Nick wants to hold her hand, but he doesn't really know if they're dating anymore. They walk for about twenty minutes, without much direction; he's simply trying to go as far away from the tour as possible. They end up at an overhang about a mile away from the buses, and Nick spreads the blanket out for them to sit down on. They watch the sunset for a while, watching Santa Barbara disappear underneath its rays. Nick thinks during the silence; about the tour, about his life at the moment, but mostly about him and Miley. It wasn't a question of whether or not he loved her, because he was sure about that. It was just the fact of how they were fourteen year olds trying to have an adult relationship, and it was hard.
"Nick," Miley says quietly, "What are we right now?"
Nick probably should give her a straight answer, about how they're fighting so much that he can't concentrate, that the paparazzi attention is overwhelming, that he wants to stop this so the fans will stop sending Miley death threats.
But then he looks at around him with the California coast drowning in the ocean, Miley looking small against the rocks and thinks this is exactly what they are: just two kids in a big world that they both weren't ready for.
So he wraps one arm around her and kisses her hair and says "It's just you and me, Miles. That's what this is."
+++
Nick's not good with history, with all the names and dates that have to be memorized. But they break up December 19th, 2007 and Nick's pretty sure he won't forget that date any time soon.
The morning starts out crappy anyways; his blood sugar's out of whack, he just can't find a pick (and seriously, it's a tour bus, why is this so difficult?) and he kind of wants to go back to bed and skip this day.
Then Miley comes skipping into his bus at a rest stop, expecting him to entertain her, or as she perkily says it, "actually spend time with me for once, Nick." And even though she's said it like that plenty of times and he usually snarks back a reply like "Sorry Miles, didn't you know I'm a rockstar?" today he can't take it.
"Miley, I'm busy. I can't, okay?"
There's something in his tone that's more than a temporary annoyance and both Miley and Nick can feel it.
She goes quiet for a moment then says back in a calm voice that he wasn't expecting: "That's the way it always is, isn't it? I'm a little sick of waiting around for a good time for you, Nick."
She walks out of the tour bus and despite this horrible squirming feeling that just exploded in his stomach and the way his throats closing up, he doesn't chase after her.
The actual breakup is pretty anticlimactic, considering how long they lasted and all that they've been through. It's after warm-ups and the campfire and prayer that Nick meets Miley at the entrance of the stage.
They look at each other and all the pre-show chaos melts away and there's just Miley. She has the usual look of complete concert focus on her face, but Nick knows her better than that, and underneath he sees exhaustion and just, a girl who's tired of it all. He knows how she feels.
"Miley..." Nick doesn't know how he's supposed to end this. Or if he even wants to.
She smiles sadly. "It's too much right now for us, huh. It's better for both of us if we're just friends." She says it shakily though, as if she's trying to convince herself.
Nick nods, unable to say much else, and that's it.
She kisses his cheek and tries to grin.
"Let's rock this show, huh Nicky?"
She tugs her blonde wig on and steps onto her entrance platform, not looking back.
Nick smiles at this, as he listens to the crowd scream and Miley begin her opening number. Despite the fact that about two years of his life just ended, Nick laughs a little at how much practice Miles has had at pretending to be someone else, and remembers some stupid interview question about Aly & AJ versus Miley. Yeah, he thinks, he'll stick with Hannah Montana.
+++
She kind of blows him off the entire whole show, but he understands and doesn't take it personally. It's when he crawls into his bunk at night that it finally hits him.
Miley's no longer his girl, Nick realizes. He can't walk over to her house in the mornings, he can't race her around Toluca on bikes, he can't do any of these things and all of a sudden, he's screaming into his pillow.
Five minutes later, the screaming's turned into crying, and he's at the point where his breath is coming out in gasps and his chest hurts, so bad.
He doesn't realize that anyone is on the bus, until Joe silently climbs into his bunk and begins rubbing his back. It's kind of claustrophobic and Nick considers pushing Joe out, but he can't find the energy.
"It'll be alright, Nicky, it'll be alright." Joe whispers softly, drawing circles on his back, pressing harder, as if maybe he can absorb some of Nick's hurt.
And the logical, reasonable Mr. President side of Nick knows that it will be. Knows that he'll wake up tomorrow or the next day, and things will be okay.
But right now, they aren't, and there's nothing he can do about it. And it's the worst feeling in the world.
+++
It's Christmas Eve and they haven't talked in a week, because it's just, it's just too soon. He still needs to get her a present though; he's not really sure why, but for some reason he feels like he needs to do this. He secretly shops with Joe for two hours around New York, since no one else in the family is a big fan of him talking to Miley yet. Joe gets it though, and doesn't say a thing as they go from store to store searching for the perfect gift. Nick finds nothing though, nothing that says what he wants to say, and they eventually head back to the hotel.
He gets on his laptop and puts on the mix he made about her and tries to think. With him and Miles though, it always came down to the music. It was what brought them together, it was their shared passion, it was what tore them apart. And so, Nick begins to make Miley her Christmas present.
+++
Miley gets her gift two days after Christmas. She's in her room at the time, trying to write a new song, while internally freaking out about the fact that she has just sent Nick Jonas a Christmas present a week after they broke up. That's practically rule number one in the book of Breakup No-No's and Miley really, really needs to start playing by the rules. But the Elvis Costello shirt was too vintage and too perfect for Nick for her not to buy it, and making him smile is one of her favorite things to do, still.
Her dad brings the package up to her room, and by the gruff look on his face, she can tell that he's not a fan of the return address.
"Now, Miles. You don't have to open this if you don't want to. I can head right down and give that lil' rooster the old right 'n left. Did Meemaw ever tell you that your daddy was a regular boxer back in the day?"
Miley is pretty sure that Meemaw mentioned her Dad being a failure at all sports that required coordination, but she decides not to mention it at this point.
"Yeah okay Daddy. Maybe later," she rolls her eyes and pushes Billy Ray out the door after grabbing the package from him.
She takes the package and shakily opens it. Inside under layers of bubble wrap ("He would," she thinks) is a CD case, with no cover art and a simple disc inside.
She turns the casing over, hoping for some clue to what this is about, and is greeted by the familiar chicken scratch that is Nick Jonas' handwriting. Ignoring the immediate blow to the stomach that she feels at this reminder of him, she begins to read:
1. Games
2. Inseparable
3. Still in Love With You
4. Goodnight and Goodbye
5. Kung Fu Grip
6. Sorry
Because let's be honest, Miles. I'm yet to write a song that's not about you. The last one's new and it's what I've been trying to say for a while now. You'll always be my girl, okay?
Merry Christmas.
-Nick
+++
It's been almost two years and, well, it's awkward. Nick's had other girlfriends and Miley hasjust started dating Justin, but everything is still slightly unresolved. It's January 19th, the day before the inauguration and Miley's emotions are all over the place. She's performing tonight for the mother-freakin' First Lady, and just everywhere she turns, there's change happening.
She premieres 'The Climb' that night, and when she about loses it on stage, she thinks about how happy she is. The country's bonding over this election, she's in the capital the night before a moment in history, and despite her parents' grumblings over Obama, Miley thinks that that may just be the biggest show of her life.
After the performances, they bow and confetti's everywhere and Miley's jumping and celebrating with Demi and Jordin and everyone around her. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees the Jonas Brothers working their way down the line shaking hands and hugging, like professionals, and even though she falters for a moment, Miley resumes her jumping, pretending like they're just another band, that he's just another boy. For a split second, Miley thinks that Nick may skip over or ignore her or something, but when he gets in front of her, she remembers what he is like.
He wraps his arms around her, and really it's only a short hug, but its warm and strong and she's pretty sure it feels just as familiar to him as it does to her. Change is everywhere tonight, Miley thinks.
She catches up with him backstage, both of them still at their performance highs. They laugh and babble for a few minutes about the concert, jumpy and hyper from the now normal adrenaline rush. They begin to calm down a little, catching their breath and Nick turns to casual conversation.
"Are you staying in town? Because you know, a few things are happening in D.C tomorrow...nothing major, but still..." He grins, and she almost wants to kiss him for being the same Nick that she remembered, but she doesn't.
"What? Something in D.C?" She teases back, "Haha, but no. I have to get back to L.A. Mom and Justin are--"
Miley freezes in the middle of her sentence. The first conversation in a year with Nick and she brings up Justin? Way to go, Miles. Way to go.
Nick freezes for a second also, but then relaxes back into a smile.
"How is Justin? Because really, I'll have to beat him up if he tries anything. My strength knows no limits, Miles."
And when he says that, Miley feels this giant anvil that she didn't even know she had being lifted off her heart. It's like she can breathe again and she feels her face relax into a smile. They were going to be okay.
+++
(from mozarts_fic's picspam. really. I should just credit her for the whole thing.)
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Oh, and I've decided to lock everything that isn't writing in this community, i.e fanmixes and picspams. If you want to see them, feel free to join :).