A/N: And here's another music-inspired Liley onshot :) This time, the song is "Tree of Hearts" by Bryan White. I'd like to dedicate it to my friend Gail, who convinced me to write this in the first place... thanks, friend :)
HANNAH MONTANA
"TREE OF HEARTS"
"…and they stood beneath the Tree of Hearts
And they watched their feelings grow
And they swore they'd never be apart
True love left its mark
On the Tree of Hearts…"
- "Tree of Hearts" by Bryan White
--
Ten year old Lillian Danielle Truscott – Lilly, to her friends – knelt near an old, gnarled oak tree, a dull Boy Scout knife clutched in her hand. She had borrowed it from her visiting cousin Luke (which in Lilly's case meant she had taken it without asking, but with every intention of returning it later) so she could make something special for her best friend Miley, but at the moment she was still trying to decide just what to do.
Miley was nine, just slightly younger than Lilly, with long brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. She and her family had moved to California from Tennessee a little over a year ago, but from the moment they met, she and Lilly had been inseparable. So strong was the bond between them, Lilly already knew she loved Miley, but she didn't know quite how to express it yet. So she had come to the big oak tree in her backyard, ready to create something special just for her best friend.
"Ah ha!" Lilly exclaimed suddenly, an idea springing to her young mind. Wielding the knife, she began to carve something into the trunk of the tree. She struggled with it a bit, and it was far from perfect, but eventually she had her very own work of art. Grinning, she stepped back to admire it.
Carved into the trunk of the tree was a small heart, with the words 'Lilly loves Miley' written inside it…
--
Seven years later…
"Okay, okay, I'm going!" sixteen year old Miley Ray Stewart laughed. "Just what kinda surprise is this, Lils?" Standing behind Miley, her hands covering her best friend's eyes, Lilly couldn't help giggling.
"I just want to show you something, all right?" she replied with a grin. "It's… something I made for you, okay? Something special."
"Aw, that's sweet, Lils!" Miley gushed. It had taken Lilly a long time to finally get up the nerve to show Miley what she had carved on the trunk of the old oak tree all those years ago, but at last she was about to do so; she only hoped Miley would like it. More, she hoped Miley liked her.
Lilly's feelings for her best friend had only grown stronger over the years, and it was becoming more and more difficult to hide them. Maybe that meant she wasn't supposed to? Lilly wasn't sure, but she was all too aware of what might happen if Miley didn't like what she was about to see. Still, it felt right… as things always did with her best friend.
"Okay, almost there," Lilly announced, guiding Miley out into her backyard and over to the tree. When they were finally standing just in front of it, Lilly leaned in close to Miley's ear.
"Ready?" she asked quietly. Miley nodded.
"Show me already!" she laughed. Lilly swallowed and slowly pulled her hands away from Miley's eyes.
"Okay, you can look," she said softly. Miley blinked and looked around. At first, she didn't see anything unusual. Then she noticed the old oak tree just in front of her… and something carved into its aging trunk.
"Lilly, what…?" she started to ask. The words abruptly died in her throat when she realized she was looking at a small heart… with her and Lilly's names carved inside it. She opened her mouth to say something, but then her eyes followed the heart downward… to six more identical hearts, all dedicated to Lilly's love for her.
"There's, um… seven of them," Lilly said in a small voice. "I carved one every year… for each year we've been best friends." Her mouth hanging open, Miley turned to look at her best friend, tears already beginning to sting her eyes.
"Oh, Lilly…"
"I love you, Miley. I always have." The words were far easier to say than Lilly had imagined they would be, and she felt a great sense of relief at finally being able to say them. She only hoped she hadn't ruined her friendship with Miley.
"Miley, please say something…" Lilly practically begged. The silence was killing her. Suddenly, Miley was in her arms, kissing her gently, the salty taste of her tears joining the fruity strawberry tang of her lip gloss and the indescribable taste of Miley herself. The soft, gentle kiss continued for several long moments, until finally air became a pressing need. Miley pulled back slightly and smiled at her best friend through her tears.
"I love you too, Lilly…"
--
Three years later…
"…I know pronounce you woman and wife," the minister said softly. "You may each kiss your bride." Miley and Lilly turned towards each other, their eyes shining with joyous tears, and met in a gentle kiss. They wrapped their arms around each other, fusing their bodies together as surely as their hearts and their souls. For several long moments the world around them faded away, leaving only the two young women and their deep, eternal love for one another. They parted a few moments later, and applause echoed through the small gathering.
"I love you," Lilly whispered to her new bride.
"I love you more," Miley replied, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. She looked over at the familiar oak tree they had chosen to be married under, and the ten little hearts decorating its trunk.
"I hope you don't run out of space," Miley said with a smile. "I plan to be with you for a long, long time, girlfriend."
"Don't worry," Lilly replied with a warm smile of her own. "There's plenty of room on our Tree of Hearts." Miley reached out and placed a gentle finger under Lilly's chin, carefully raising her bride's face towards her own.
"I like that," she said, her voice growing husky with emotion. "Our Tree of Hearts." Then she leaned forward to gently kiss Lilly again, a kiss Lilly eagerly responded to, a warm and open display of the deep and eternal love that had grown between them.
"Congratulations bud," Robbie Ray Stewart, Miley's dad, called out softly. Miley looked over at him and smiled.
"Thank you, daddy," she said softly. "I'm so happy right now I feel like I could burst!" Robbie Ray chuckled.
"I'm glad, darlin'… and I know your momma would be too." He walked over and hugged his only daughter tightly, whispering his love for her, then turned to the blonde-haired tomboy he had already long thought of as his third child.
"You take care of my little girl, Lilly," he said gently to her. Lilly smiled and nodded.
"I will, Mr. Stewart, I promise… I'm gonna spend the rest of my life loving and taking care of Miley." She winked at her new bride. "As much as she lets me, anyway!" Miley blushed and laughed.
"We'll love and take care of each other, Lilly Bear… forever and ever…"
--
Four years later…
Twenty four year old Lilly Truscott-Stewart stretched out beside her beloved wife Miley in the cool shelter of their special tree, a soft blanket beneath them. Cuddled protectively between them was their baby girl, only a few weeks old.
"She's so beautiful," Lilly breathed, gently stroking the tiny fingers wrapped around one of her own. "I can't believe she's really ours, Miles."
"I still can't believe I'm a momma," Miley replied gently, staring lovingly at the precious little bundle of joy lying between them. She looked over at her beloved wife, tears sparkling in her eyes.
"She's our little girl, Lils," she whispered, joyous emotions swelling in her voice. Lilly smiled back, feeling familiar tears already springing to her own eyes. Crying was just one of the many things they always did together. She leaned carefully forward and gently kissed her wife on the lips.
"I love you so much," she whispered to the brown haired young woman she had sworn her heart and soul to.
"I love you too, Lilly Bear," Miley whispered back through her tears. "Always and forever." Suddenly she winced.
"Dang, she's got your grip, Lils!" Miley exclaimed, looking down at the finger her daughter was clinging tightly to. "Sweet niblets!" Lilly grinned.
"Maybe," she said softly, "but those are your beautiful eyes she's got." The baby gurgled and cooed happily.
"You like that, Susan?" Lilly said to her, smiling warmly. "You like it when I tell momma she's beautiful?" Little Susan managed a tiny smile and gurgled again.
"I think that's a yes," Miley chuckled softly.
"Guess I better do it more often then," Lilly said with a mischievous smile. She spared a brief glance at their special tree, and the four newest hearts carved into it. The years were passing quickly now, but Lilly couldn't have asked for a happier, more blessed life. She had Miley, they had their daughter… and Lilly wouldn't have given them up for anything…
--
Twelve years later…
"Hey, hon," thirty five year old Miley Truscott-Stewart greeted her wife, smiling warmly as Lilly walked into the kitchen of their small house. "What are you doing home so early?"
"I felt like leaving the office early," Lilly explained with a small grin, putting her briefcase down and shrugging off her suit coat. "It's a beautiful spring day and I'd rather spend it here with my family!" She walked over to the kitchen table, where their two daughters were excitedly playing a game together.
"Watcha playing, girls?" Lilly asked them.
"Kerplunk," ten year old Heather replied, "and Susie's cheating!"
"I am not!" twelve year old Susan exclaimed. "I'm just better than you," she added with a wink. She reached forward and carefully pulled out one of the multi-colored plastic sticks, chewing thoughtfully on the top of her tongue… only to be rewarded with a resounding crash as more than half of the marbles suddenly fell into her side of the tray. Heather jumped and down excitedly.
"Finally!" she shouted. "Better than me, huh?!"
"All right girls, play nice," Miley called out gently, smiling as she finished washing the last of the dishes.
"I wanna rematch!" Susan demanded.
"Ok, you're on!" Heather replied, grinning widely.
"Can I play too?" Lilly asked, pulling up a chair so she could sit beside her beloved daughters.
"Sure!" both girls said at once.
"How about momma?" Heather asked. "Can she play too?" Lilly looked over at the woman she loved more than life itself.
"Come on, hon, come play with us," she said with a grin. "We haven't done anything as a family in a while." She adopted what Miley playfully called her 'pouting face', and it was all the brunette could do not to smile.
"All right," she said with a little smirk. "I get to sit next to mommy, though."
"Okay," Heather responded, "but no footsies under the table!" Lilly laughed out loud.
"I think they're onto us, hon," she managed. Miley pulled up another chair and sat beside Lilly, grinning widely. She leaned in and kissed her wife gently.
"I guess we'll just have to be more careful," she quipped.
"That's no fun," Lilly replied with a wink. Reaching under the table, Miley found Lilly's hand and took it in her own, squeezing it warmly. She looked across the table at her two daughters – their daughters – and smiled again. Nothing ever made her as happy as simply being with her family. They were her world… and they were all she would ever need.
--
Thirty four years later…
"What a party," seventy year-old Lilly Truscott-Stewart whispered as she got ready for bed. "It sure was great to see all the kids again."
"Sure was," her beloved wife responded. "Heck, we even got Ollie out of the nursing home."
"Well, it's not every day we celebrate being married for 50 years," Lilly said with a smile.
"I wish daddy could've been here," Miley said softly, and Lilly felt a pang of sympathy for her wife. Miley's father had passed away almost ten years ago, but Miley still missed him terribly. Lilly, too, still grieved for the only man she'd ever called her father.
"He was," she told Miley gently, and Miley smiled sadly.
"I know," she replied, her voice barely a whisper. "I just wish I could put my arms around him one more time."
"Someday you will," Lilly reminded her gently. Smiling, she carefully slipped into bed beside Miley. She leaned over and kissed her wife gently on the cheek. Miley looked over at her, a playful grin gracing her aging features.
"Is that all I get?" she asked teasingly. Even after all the years they had been together – sixty long, wonderful years – the sight of her beloved wife was still enough to make Lilly's heartbeat quicken. They were certainly not as young as they used to be, but the years had been kind. As far as Lilly was concerned, Miley was still as beautiful as they day they first met. She reached up to run gentle fingers through her wife's long gray hair.
"You know me better than that," she said with a grin, and she kissed Miley softly on the lips. As she held her beloved wife in her arms, Lilly noticed for the first time how frail she had seemingly become, despite appearances to the contrary.
"Are you feeling okay, hon?" she asked Miley carefully.
"I'm fine," Miley said quietly.
"You didn't eat very much at dinner," Lilly said softly, concern evident in her voice.
"I just wasn't very hungry," Miley said dismissively. Lilly frowned. After sixty years together – fifty of those as a married couple – she knew her wife better than she knew herself, and she could already tell Miley was lying.
"Miley…" she started to say.
"Lilly," Miley cut her off sternly. "We both know exactly why I didn't eat very much, all right? I just don't want to talk about it."
"I'm not going to lose you," Lilly said stubbornly, her voice cracking slightly. Miley managed a small smile.
"You won't," she said, resting her head on Lilly's warm and comforting shoulder. "I've always known, when my time comes… I won't die alone." She wrapped her arms around her wife and squeezed her in a gentle hug.
"We've always walked through life side by side, Lils," she said, using her old nickname for her wife. "Do you really think God would separate us in Heaven?"
"No," Lilly managed, feeling oddly comforted by Miley's words. She rested her cheek against Miley's forehead and held her close.
"I expect to spend eternity hand in hand with the woman I love," she told Miley gently. "That's what we promised, remember? We swore we'd always be together… and I intend to keep my part of the bargain."
"Me too, lover," Miley whispered, kissing Lilly gently on the cheek. "Me too… I love you, Lilly Bear."
"I love you too, my Smiley Miley," Lilly whispered back. She could feel the gentle rise and fall of Miley's chest as she relaxed into the gentle rhythms of sleep and took a deep breath. Before she let sleep take her as well, though, her last thoughts were of the very special tree that still stood in their backyard, now decorated with 60 lovingly carved little hearts. Soon there would be 61... But somehow, Lilly knew there wouldn't be a 62… and for once, the thought didn't bother her
--
Two years later…
A gentle breeze blew across the carefully maintained little garden that had once belonged to Miley and Lilly Truscott-Stewart. In a far corner of the garden, beneath the shade of a very special tree, a single headstone marked their final resting place. Here they had been lovingly laid to rest by their daughters and their families, in the one place everyone knew they would've wanted to spend eternity together: side by side, beside the special tree that would forever remain a symbol of their love...