Currently, a teenage girl was lounging on her bed, contemplating her recent life. Her name was Miley Ray Stewart, though most people knew her as the Teen Pop Sensation: Hannah Montana. Right now, however, she was going through a major crisis.
"How am I supposed to go to my concert with my best friend while I'm performing?! Sweet niblets, if I'd known Lily would try to bring me, I would've only snuck her one ticket!" Miley exclaimed in exasperation. This situation felt beyond salvaging. If she declined, it could disappoint Lily. If she went, she risked exposing her secret. Both outcomes seemed terrible, but she felt the latter was significantly worse.
Fortunately, her father, the voice of reason in this situation, had more than one word to say about her predicament.
"Listen, Mile, you're going to have to tell her eventually. The longer you wait, the more disappointed she'll be. You can't hide it forever. Who else would she bring to enjoy the concert if not her best friend?" Miley's father, Robbie Ray Stewart, said gently.
"I know, Daddy, but it's my secret. No one can be mad at me for not wanting to tell it, right? Besides, what if she doesn't treat me the same? Right now, she sees me as her best friend, but what if she treats me distantly in the future? Or, even worse, what if she takes advantage of me?" Miley looked distressed as she faced her father. Normally, in a situation like this, he'd have all the answers. But this time, as he listened to his daughter, he simply stared at her seriously. He understood that if he didn't set her straight, she might ruin her friendship.
"You want to know what I think, Mile? I think I'm very disappointed. Those kids, Lily and Oliver, have been your only friends and have been nothing but kind to you since you came here. You've known Lily for a third of your life, far longer than me, and yet I seem to believe in her more than you do. I also think she'd be on the brink of tears if she knew what you just said." Not giving his daughter a chance to argue, he left the room, leaving a stunned Miley on the bed. She thought about what her father said and realized how inconsiderate she had been toward Lily throughout this whole ordeal.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that Lily and Oliver were two of the best things that ever happened to her, and here she was acting so cruelly. She hadn't even given Lily an ounce of trust after all Lily had done for her. It was disgusting how one-sided she was being. As these thoughts swirled in her mind, she started to cry uncontrollably.
Outside the door, her father smiled after listening. Not because his daughter was crying, but because it seemed those last 13 years of teaching were not in vain.
...
"I just don't get it. Why won't you go to the concert with me?" asked Lily, Miley's best friend.
"I-I just wanted to-to uh, enjoy some family time with Jackson when I got home," Miley stammered, which caused Lily to squint at her. However, upon hearing Miley's answer, Lily simply stared at her seriously before turning away halfheartedly and saying, "Okay, if you don't want to tell me, I guess there's nothing I can do except wonder what I did to hurt you so badly, as your own best friend." This dramatic answer, delivered with a sarcastic tone, didn't even register with Miley. All she registered was what Lily said, causing her to spit out the juice she had just taken a sip of onto the school cafeteria floor. She instantly started shuddering, looking anywhere but at Lily's face, trying to respond naturally.
"Just stop. I'm just not going to be able to go, okay?" she replied in a choked voice, trying to sound convincing. However, Lily ignored her act and sat on her side of the table, hugging her without saying a word. Finally, Miley couldn't take it anymore and started to cry.
"Miley, whatever you did, it's okay if you just tell me. Holding it in like this clearly isn't helping you," Lily said, concerned. Miley just nodded, slowly calming herself down.
At that moment, Oliver, the boy who had been mentioned previously, walked into the cafeteria. He sashayed across the floor with self-assumed swagger, while the girls rolled their eyes at him. As he approached Miley's table, a girl walked past him, and he said, "What's up, babe? May I say you look absolutely be-au-tiful." The girl simply walked past, flicking her hair.
"Oh, you can tell she wants me," he smirked, heading toward Miley and Lily's table.
The girl heard this and sharply turned around, replying viciously, "In your dreams!"
"How'd you know? Were you there?" Oliver casually responded, prompting an "Oooo" from the crowd watching the exchange, causing the girl to scoff and leave the area.
Finally, Oliver arrived at their table, and Miley and Lily looked at him.
"Oliver, so glad you could join us! Miley here doesn't want to go to the concert with me because she says she doesn't like Hannah Montana. Can you believe it?" Lily quickly changed the subject, avoiding confrontation with Miley, for which she was extremely grateful. Wiping her tears, Miley regained her composure as Oliver sat down.
Oliver looked at Miley with the ferocity of a tiger. In fact, he looked so offended that one would assume she had said something about his mother.
"Hannah Montana is a goddess! I love her to the heavens and back! In fact, one day, I'm gonna be Mr. Montana. Every night, I'm gonna shampoo and condition that beautiful blonde hair," Oliver declared, staring off into nowhere, imagining the scene with intense emotion.
Miley chuckled, while Lily looked at him in disgust. However, Oliver quickly came to his senses, glanced around, and then asked Lily, "You two were gonna go to the concert? How'd you guys get tickets? Since Miley doesn't wanna go, can I have her ticket?" He stared at her with puppy dog eyes. Miley chuckled again; this scene was especially cute.
"Sure, if Lily gives it to you. I'm sure you guys will enjoy it more than I would," she said.
"Alright, if you really don't want to go, I won't force you," Lily replied in resignation.
...
"Your mom would be so proud of you, Miles," her father said before turning to leave. She had just finished the concert and was tidying up before getting ready to head home. Moments like these... with her family, friends, and even fans were what she would hold closest.
"Thanks, Dad," she answered softly.
"And don't forget what we talked about," he reminded her.
"I know, Dad, I know," she responded. However, just as the door closed behind him, she heard a thump.
"HANNAH MONTANA!!" Suddenly, as Miley processed that someone was behind her, she heard Lily scream her name. Miley screamed in response. But deep down, she recognized she couldn't keep her secret any longer.