Two Guys, A Girl, And A Vanilla Lipgloss
by Summer



Chapter 1:

Saturday, September 17th, 2001, Haley Joel Osment woke up from his 12 hour sleep and yawned. He needed that long rest after a hard week of school. It had only been 3 weeks into the school year and he still couldn't get used to it. He went into the bathroom to splash some cold water on his face.

He stepped out of his bathroom door after brushing his teeth and headed downstairs to pour a bowl of cereal. It was already almost lunchtime but he didn't mind. He ate him corn flakes and then went to call his friends to see if they were doing anything that day. They had probably made some plans for a movie or something while he was sleeping.

On his way to the phone, he stepped into something that made a crinkle below his foot. He moved his foot back and saw a peice of yellow notebook paper with a note scribbled on it:

"Haley -
I'll be back soon."

It was sighed "Mom." 'She probably ran out to get some groceries.' Haley thought as he picked up the paper, folded it and stuck it into his back pocket. He headed into the study and got the phone.



Chater 2:

About 1 Year Later

* ~ * ~ *

Madison Fields looked out her plane window with a sigh. It was great that she got to move to California. She had always wanted to live in California. But why L.A.? It was so...not her type of city. 'Must be daddy's type of city.' she thought to herself. Mr. Feilds was the kind of typical buisness man you would see walking down the street, cell phone in hand, yelling at some employee for one reason or another. Madison was convinced he was a work-a-holic. But he wouldn't listen.

As for Maddy's mom...she was the best mom in the world. She had tried to talk Mr. Fields into staying in Kentucky. A country girl can't just drop her life and move to loud, crazy L.A. and Madion's mother understood that. Mrs. Fields didn't work. She stayed home with Madison. While Madison was at school she would work at the farm. 'But now there is no farm.' Madison told herself. 'There are probably no trees! Just the noisy streets of L.A.'

* ~ * ~ *

The Feilds pulled their rented SUV into the driveway of their new home in L.A. Madison got out of the car and glaced around. "This really, really sucks." she muttered.

"Maddy, give it some time. Maybe it won't be so horrible." her Mom pleaded.

"Trust me Maddy - after a little while you'll get used to it. You may even love it here!"

Madion rolled her eyes. "Ok so there's no farm but do we even have a LAWN!?" She popped open the trunk and pulled one of her suitcases out. "I'm taking this up to my room."

Madison walked inside and saw a stairway spiraling up. She walked up and saw 3 doors branching off of a hallway. The first one closest to the stairs was a closet. The next one down was a bedroom. It was a very large bedroom so Madison figured it was the master and moved on. But the next bedroom was even BIGGER. She dropped her suitcase on the floor and walked back to the stairway. She leaned pver the edge and called out "Daddy, which room is mine?"

"Second one down. Go ahead and set up your stuff." She walked into the large but smaller bedroom and saw her funiture already in there. But it was arranged horribly. Madison went down the stairs, pulled her CD player out of the trunk of the car and headed back up to her room. She pluged in her CD player, unpacked her CDs and blasted REM from the speakers.

She yelled out the door "I'll come down when my room is decent!" and shut her bedroom door. For the next hour as REM played on repete, she moved her bed to the opposite side of the room and pushed her dresser further down the wall. She took down her computer desk and re-assembled it since the movers had put the mousepad space on the LEFT side.

She stood back and admired the new look. Then she pulled out her orange rug and layed it on the wooden floor at the foot of her bed. She brought up her red bead spread and put it on over white sheets. The room looked great with yellow walls, an orange rug, and a red bed. It brought a firey look to her room. She hung up orange curtains and a poster of a Red VW Beetle and her room was complete.

She started to unpack her bags and sort things into drawers. All her dresses, nicer clothes, and jackets she hung up in her walk in closet and put her shoes in there as well. She put all her pants, shorts, and skirts in her bottom dresser drawer. Her shirts, sweaters, and sweatshirts went in the middle drawer. On the left drawer on the top she put in all her underwear and in the top drawer on the right, all her socks. She closed her suitcase and put it on top of the shelves in her closet.

She pulled out her second suitcase and she cleared some dirt off the top of her dresser. She put all her hair-ties and make up on her dresser along with most of her photos. She saved one photo and put it on her nightstand. The photo of her best friend, back in Kentucky. She put out her alarm clock next to the photo and connected her phone there as well.

All her tioletries went into the bathroom conected to her bedroom. L.A. definatley sucked but at least she had her own bathroom! After emptying her second suitcase and connecting her computer, she plugged in the modem and got online. No one was on but she sent some e-mails out to her clostest friends in her address book.

To: CloverGirl86, Gas893647, Oo BubbleBabe oO
From: MaddyHatter44
Subject: Dear Lord, save me!

Message: Hey guys. L.A. sucks. I wish I never had to leave Kentucky. I don't even think that the word "nature" is published in dictionaries here. It'll take some time to explain to them what a tree is like. This is horrible! I don't understand what's in L.A. that we need anyway? Who says we weren't fine in Kentucky? Promise me we'll keep in touch! I miss you guys already, just knowing that I won't see you anytime soon. Maybe you guys can come over for Thanksgiving or something! Haha. Well, e-mail me back as soon as you get this. Tell everyone I'll miss them. Wait...tell everyone BUT Caitlyn! Lol. Bye guys.
Love Always,
Maddy

When Madison got off the computer, it was 10:30 PM and she was tired from all she had done. She went downstairs to see her parents watching the television in an otherwise empty room. "I'm going to bed, guys." she told them with a yawn. "See ya tomorrow." She poured herself a glass of milk and brought it with her upstairs.

She sipped it and set it on her nightstand. She pulled out her diary from her backpack full of papers and binders. And wrote...

Dear Diary --
L.A. is as horrible as I thought it would be, if not worse. When I felt stressed out or cramped in Kentucky, there was always some quiet place to go to until my nerves untied themselves. But it seems like this city is nothing but a big ball of stress itself. I don't understand how anyone could want to live here. Espcially anyone from the Fields family. We've always been country-ers.
And the worst part of this whole thing is school starts for me again tomorrow.
Goodnight.
-Maddy

She finished her glass of milk and layed down in her bed. She layed down in her bed and said her prayers. She switched off her light and turned on her No Doubt CD and fell alseep to the music playing quietly.



Chapter 3:

Haley walked into school wearing his baggy black cargos and an old torn up tan shirt. He stopped as soon as he entered. He looked around at all the people buzzing around him. Talking. Exchanging gossip. Even a few making out in corners where teachers couldn't see. Haley continued to scan the many busy faces until he found the one that he was looking for.

He walked up to Misty. "Hey Mist." he said in a low voice, hanging his head, examining his shoes.

"First of all..." she began in her upbeat, chipper morning voice. "Don't call me Mist. You know I hate being called Mist." Haley continued to look down. "Second of all, there's a world beyong the floor." Haley looked up and fixed his eyes on the brick in front of him. Misty shrugged. "And beyond the wall as well." He turned his gaze to her finally. She smiled satisfied and continued. "Third of all...don't you think it's kind of pathetic that last year you were the most popular kid in school and now the only person you communicate with is some crazy girl you have nothing in common with? Your high school year is going to be miserable if you don't at least FAKE a smile every once in a while." Haley gulped and returned his eyes to the floor. Misty let out an an exaggurated sigh. "You're hopeless. You dont see me moping around, acting like a depressed mime, do you?"

Haley snapped his head up and looked at Misty with a cold expression. "You're mom didn't ditch you a year ago and never come back leaving you nothing but a note. You go through what I went through then we'll see who's attempting to cheer up who every morning."

Misty just stared back at him. "You know, there's not much of a differance between your acting self and your real self." she said, someone in shock from Haley's outlash. But she quickly recovered and turned back to her bright voice. "And that's another thing! What's happened to your acting. Crap happens, Haley! You can't let a thing like your mom's disappearance eat away at you for this long and destroy your career. Your acting used to be everthing to you and now it's just down the drain along with everything else you had."

The bell rang and Haley adjusted the backpack straps on his shoulders. "See you at lunch." he said flatly and coldy, just as he had always spoken for the last year.

Misty watched him turn and walk down the hall. She sighed. She was Haley's only friend and not even SHE could turn him into a normal person. She understood that he missed his mom. But you can't just give up on everyhing for this long. His gardes had dropped. His popularity had dropped. His paycheck had dropped. He just wasn't the same Haley Joel Osment anymore. And Misty was determined to find something to do to change that.

* ~ * ~ *

Madison walked quietly and shyly into her first homeroom class and chose a seat toward the back. She sat alone and doodled in her notebook while everyone else in the class jumped over desks and around chairs. They were all in some group or clique. Playing a card game, giggling together, or somehow socializing. She glanced around at the crowd and focused her attention on her drawing of her farm back in Kentucky. She really did miss it. Her thoughts were distracted until the bell rung.

Everyone took their seats and quieted down. As soon as everything was calm, a girl came rushing into the room with papers spilling out of her binder. She had dark mocha skin and thick curly black hair. She looked almost Indian. She had colorful clothes on. Faded flared jeans, a collage of colors on her tight t-shirt and a white sweater tied around her waiste. Her hair was thrown up in a big clip with curls springing out. She gave the teacher a nervous smile. "Sorry I'm later Mrs. Kellman. A senior tripped me and my papers fell out of my binder all over the-"

But the teacher cut her off. "There's no need for an excuse, Misty. You haven't been late before this year and I know its rough the first few weeks in high school. You're tardiness is excused."

Madison watched the girl as her smiled gained confidence. She had a big smile that showed her perfectly lined white teeth. "Thank you, Mrs. Kellman!" she said in her raspy but cheerful voice.

The girl walked toward the back of the class and took the last remaining seat next to Madison. She put down her bag and smiled her large grin at Madison.

She scribbled something on a peice of paper, ripped it out, folded it up, and tapped Madison. Madison turned and took the paper. When she unfolded the paper she saw a note written:

"Are you new at this school?"

Madison pulled out a pen and wrote below it:

"Yeah. How'd you guess?"

The girl replied:

"I'm Misty. Not to be called Mist, please. What your name and where'd you transfer from?"

Madion wrote on another peice of paper:

"I'm Madison. Most people call me Maddy. I just came from Kentucky. I'm not an L.A. girl and I'm having some trouble getting used to it."

After a few minutes she got a note back:

"Nice to meet you, Maddy. Mrs. Kellman's touchy about passing notes so meet me after class and maybe I can help you out. I'll show you around and stuff. Bye till then."

She passed to note to Madison. When Madison got it she mouthed to Misty "Thanks!" and Misty smiled at her again.

* ~ * ~ *

After class Misty lead Madion down the hall to her locker. Misty pulled a walkie talkie out of her locker and spoke into it. "Haley - can you hear me?" she asked.

"You guys talk with walkie talkies in school?" Madison asked in school.

"Naw, only me and my best friend." she explained.

The walkie talked fuzzed a bit and then a voice came through. "Yeah I'm here."

Misty held the walkie talkie to her mouth. "I won't be at your table at lunch today. I'm showing a new girl around. You'll be chill without me, right?"

The voice fuzzed in again. "But Misty...who else am I supposed to eat with?"

Madison jumped in. "It's fine. You don't have to show me around. I'm sure I'll be alright on my own."

But Misty shook her head. "No, trust me. Haley doesn't need me." She spoked into the walkie talkie again. "Haley, you'll be fine for one day. You don't need me to eat frech fries with and mope anyway. I'll catch ya later." And she put the walkie talkie back in her locker.

* ~ * ~ *

Misty brought Madison to a table of a bunch of girls and a few boys. "Hey guys, this is Madison. She just came from Kentucky!"

"Woah!" one the girls exclaimed. "That's a big crossover."

"Hey Madison. You can take a seat here if you want." one of the guys said with a smile.

"Oh please, call me Maddy." as she took a seat next to the boy. 'At least people in L.A. are friendly!' she thought to herself.

As Madison talked to the people she had met at the table, Misty walked a few tables down to where Haley was sitting...alone. She took the seat accross from him. To her surprise, Haley wasn't looking down as he usually was. He was looking in Madison's direction with narrowed eyes and a slight smile. Something Misty hadn't seen in months. It almost looked as if...naw it couldn't be.

"Ahem!" Misty cleared her throat and Billy looked in her direction. "What were you loking at." Haley just shook his head. "Madison?" she asked.

"Is that the new girl?" he asked. There was a hint of interest in his voice.

"Yeah..." Misty started suspiciously. "You got a thing for her?" he asked shocked at Haley's uplifting behavior.

"Naw. Just curious." he said in his normal blank tone as he got up and thew his leftover lunch away.

Misty let out a sigh. "Just when I think the light shines onto that boy..." she muttered. "He covers himself with a cloud."



Chapter 4:

When Madison walked into class the next day, Misty ran right toward her. "Maddy! We gatta talk." she told her, throwing one arm around her shoulder and huddling in close to say something in her ear. "Tonight. Party at Carmen's house. You've got to come! I won't even give you a choice!"

Madison giggled. "Alright. Count me in!" she said with a smile. "But what's the big bang?"

Misty's face brightened up. "Carmen's like the richest girl in the school! She never throws parties but her folks said she could for her b-day. Last time she threw a party, it was the talk of the school for the whole year! You really don't know what you'll me missing, Maddy!"

"Hey, I said I'd be there! Sounds fun." she replied and Misty giggled frantcily. She really was excited about this. "But uh...who's Carmen?" she asked.

"She's the redhead at the table you sat at yesterday. She's the sweetest girl ever! I'm so glad you're coming, Maddy. I know everyone wanted you to. They all think you're great!"

Maddy smiled. "Really?" and Misty nodded. "Wow! I'm fitting in at L.A. pretty well then!"

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

* ~ * ~ *

"Haley, I have a REALLY, REALLY, REALLY big favor to ask of you."

"No Misty." he began. "I'm not going to that stupid party Carmen's throwing and nothing you can say is going to change my mind."

Misty shrugged. "Are you EVER gonna crawl out of that hole you're in? Everyone misses the old Haley Osment! Come on, man!" she pleaded.

"Misty. You know that -"

"Maddy'll be there." she said hintingly, cutting him off.

Haley's glare focused tighter and she could tell that he had almost changed his mind. "You know that parties aren't my thing." he finished. "Sorry Misty but I'm not going."

Misty hung her head. "Please Haley! Just reconsider. Think about it a little more this time. I really think you should come."

Haley rolled his eyes and walked away.

* ~ * ~ *

"So then..." Misty continued on their way to Carmen's door as she told Madison about Carmen's party the year before. "Brian yells out 'FIRE!' And Megan dropped her coke. It spilled all over Carmen's like, thousand dollar rug and that was the end of Carmen's parties! Carmen got so mad, she almost -"

"Hey Misty." Misty and Madison both turned to look behind them where the voice came from. A boy with messy dirty blonde hair stood there staring at Misty with a somewhat Angry face. Madison recognized him immediatley. It was the famous actor, Haley Joel Osment!

"Haley!" Misty exclaimed as she threw her arms around him. His face remained straight and Madison stood staring. "You came!" Misty squeeled. "Wait...YOU CAME!?" Her happiness turned to shock.

"Oh, Haley! You've heard of my friend, Madison?" she said, introducing them. "You can call her Maddy."

Haley's eyes turned to Madison and he cleared his through. "Hey." he said...flatly.

Madison smiled a bit. "Hey."

Haley almost smiled back.

* ~ * ~ *

Misty walked with the two inside Carmen's house. The three sat down in chairs along the side of the room and started to talk about...anything. After about 5 minutes, some girls called Misty over.

"Hey, you two keep talking. I'm gonna hang with Megan." she smiled and got up.

Madison turned to Haley. "Hey! Misty told me about you but she didn't tell me that you were Haley Joel Osment!" she said, loudly to get her vocie over the music.

"You've heard of me?" he asked, in the same volume.

Madion laughed. "Hasn't everybody?" A smile poked at his mouth. "I'm a pretty big fan." she added,

Haley's eyes widened. "Really? Wow!"

"Yeah! Really, really." Madison replied. "You used to be my celebrity crush!"

Haley let out a sligh laugh. He saw Misty turn and look at him from a few feet away. He returned to a straight face. "That's cool."

Madison was about to start up a new conversation when she felt someone clasp her arm. "One sec. Need to talk to you." Misty said, dragging Madison off the chair. She pulled her into a corner. "You are a MIRICLE WORKER!!" she exclaimed into Madison's ear.

"Why do you say that?" she asked. And Misty lead her out the front door of Carmen's house. They sat down on the front step and Misty explained everything.

"Last year Haley woke up and found a note from his mom that didn't say anything except for that she'd be back later. That night, she still wasn't home. A week had gone by and there was no word from her. They called the police and they couldn't find her ANYWHERE. They eventually figured she was dead and just gave up. But Haley doesn't believe she's dead. He believes that she just left them to rot. And ever since then, he just hasn't been the same. He hasn't even been acting. And the last thing he ever does is smile."

Madison looked confused. "But I was just talking to him and he was smiling." She looked at the expression on Misty's face.

"That's why your a miricle worker." she said. "You got through to Haley when no one else could! You can bring back his OLD self!"

Madison sat in shock. "I can't do anything like that." she told her.

"You've already started." she said. "Think about it, Maddy. The guys likes you." Misty got up and walked back inside.

Madison sat outside to think.

* ~ * ~ *

When Maddy came back inside, she saw Haley sitting alone in the same chair. She sat down next to him.

"Hey there!" she exclaimed.

Haley looked up at her. "Hi." he replied.

She sparked up a conversation. "So what was your favorite movie you ever acted in?"

The conversation spilled deep very quickly and ten minutes later Haley was telling her things he had never told anyone. "I don't really have any friends." he said. "Misty's my only friend."

"Well..." Madison started. "I'm your friend."

Haley narrowed his eyes with a confused expression. "You are?"

"I'd like to be."

Haley sighed. "Alright then. Friends." he stuck out his hand.

Madison shook it, "Friends."

Just then, a slow song came onto the speakers. "Hey...do you wanna dance?" she asked.

"Oh, naw. But thanks." he replied.

"Oh come on! Just as...friends!" she begged.

Haley fidgeted. "Really, dancing isn't my thing."

Madison pulled him up by the hand. "Well, you're an actor! You can pretend it is!" She skipped into the middle of the room with Haley drudging behind her.

She put her hands around his neck and he put his hands on her waist. "Alright. You win." he said with a laugh.

'He laughed!' Madison thought to herself. Her face lit up.

"How can you always be so happy?" Haley asked her.

She replied, "How can you always be so sad?"

"Because." he explained. "My mom's never coming back."

Madison's eyebrows shot up. "How do you know that, Haley! You have no reason to believe that she's not coming back."

"I have no reason to believe she is." he shot back quickly.

"Oh. I get it. So your glass is half empty."

Haley got a thoughful expression on his face. He smiled and shook his head. "I just met you and you already amaze me." he said with a sigh.

"Just trying to cheer you up." she said resting her head on his shoulder. "You could use it."

Haley pulled her closer and whispered "Thanks." For the rest of the song, he smiled.



Chapter 5:

Three Months Later



* ~ * ~ *

"God, Haley! It can't take you that long to put on a jacket!" Madison yelled up Haley's stairway as she and Misty stood at the bottom, waiting impatiently.

Haley came running down. "I'm coming! I'm coming!" he hollared as he slid down the stairway throwing a sweatshirt over his head. "Man, girls have no patience!" he said rolling his eyes when he got to them.

Misty rolled her eyes back mockingly and Madison punched him playfully. "You doofus." Misty muttered.

"Stop talking to yourself Misty! You'll embarrass me!" Haley joked. The three of them laughed and ran out the door.

"Dad, I'm going out with Mist and Mad! Be back in a few hours!" he called on his way out the door.

As soon as he shut the door Misty turned to him. "Must you call me Mist?" she asked.

Madison shot her eyebrows up. "And must you call me MAD?" she added.

"You guys need a life!" he told them, shaking his head while hopping onto his bike.

Misty leaned over to Madison. "Well the only reason HE has a life is because of you!" she told her with a smile. "He's actually a normal kid again!"

They got on their bikes and sped down the street, struggling to catch up with Haley.

* ~ * ~ *

Madison carried a bucket up to the dock over the lake where she, Misty, and Haley spent most of their time.

"What's with the pale?" Misty asked as Madison sat next to Haley with Misty on the other side.

"It's full of flat rocks. Back in Kentucky all I did was skip rocks on the water to pass the time." she pulled a rock out of the bucket, threw it out and it did a triple skip.

"I swear, all we ever hear come out of this girl's mouth is 'Back in Kentucky...'" Misty laughed.

"I think it's pretty cool!" Haley jumped in. "I mean a country girl in L.A." He laughed. "How much more interesting can you get?"

"Well..." Madison continued. "Back in Kentucky..." Misty sighed and Haley laughed. "I didn't have two best friends to keep my company and mock me while I skipped rocks."

"Hold it right there!" Misty yelled standing up. "What do you mean TWO best friends?"

Madison looked up at her. "Well, you and Hale, duh!"

Msty shook her finger. "Nuh-uh. Sorry hun!" She said with a chuckle. "Haley's MY best friend! Not yours!"

Madison stood up and put her hands on her hips while Haley fell over laughing. "You wanna make something of this?" she asked jokingly.

"There's only one way to settle this!" Misty said with narrowed eyes. They pulled Haley up by the hood on his sweatshirt. "Hale..."

"Who do you like more?" Madison asked with a cute smile, trying to win his vote.

Haley stepped back. "You guys are losers." he shrugged.

"Spit it out, Osment!" Misty bugged. "Me or Mad?" she said. Madison gave her a face for calling her 'Mad.'

Haley brushed his hair back. "You know I like you guys the same. I'm not gonna choose."

Misty and Madison looked at each other with a thoughtful look. "Well then..." Madison begun. "That must mean we're a group of 3 best friends."

Misty smiled back. "Works for me." She put her hand out. "Let's make a pact."

Madison put her hand out on top of Misty's. But Haley started walking away. "Sorry, but I'm not calling two crazy girls my best friends!" he joked.

"HALEY!" they yelled together. "Who else do you spend as much time with?" Misty asked.

Haley walked toward them again with a smile. "I was just playin'." He said with a smile. And he put his hand on top.

"Best friends." Madison smiled.

* ~ * ~ *

After Misty had left for a flute lesson, Haley and Madison stayed on the doc and talked. They talked about any subject that came up. Once the sky was turning orange, Haley stood up and brushed his pants. "It's gonna get dark and my folks were probably expecting me home 2 hours ago! So we should be on our way home." He stuck out his hand and Madison grabbed onto it. He pulled her up and they walked back to their bikes.

"Wanna hang out tomorrow?" she asked as they started on their way. They rode slowly side by side so they could still talk.

"Sure. I'll call you when I wake up." he agreed.

"Hale, set an alarm this time or else you'll wake up while I'm eating dinner!!"

Haley just laughed. "I'll race you back!" he called, flipping his gears up and pedaling harder, speeding ahead of Madison.

"Hey! No fair!" she called after him and she sped up and followed him back to his house.

They pulled into his driveway and Madison stopped her bike. "See ya tomorrow. Be awake by 11 am!" she called.

Haley sighed. "11:30!"

"Fine!" she hollared back. "Talk to ya then!" and she pedaled 12 houses down until she reached her house.

* ~ * ~ *

Dear Diary,
So I've got 2 best friends. This is great, considering I didn't think I'd make any friends in L.A. at all! But here's what's bothering me: Misty's the coolest girl I've ever met. And Haley...well he's the coolest guy I ever met! It's hard to imagine that he used to be a complete flat faced depressed kid. All I ever see on that boy's face is a smile and he's always laughing to!
Speaking of Haley...I have to admit it sucks being friends with him.
I know I'm not the only girl out there who makes up the PERFECT somebody in their imagination. All girls do that, right? Even though we know they don't exist. But Haley's so close to that somebody in my imagination. Almost like he was made for me. I'm not saying I have a crush on Haley. I'm not even allowed to.
I guess being best friends with Haley is just rubbing it into my face that we can't be more than friends.

Until Tomorrow,
Maddy



Chapter 6:

Thump...thump...thump...Haley's eyes flickered open. 'What is that?' he thought to himself. He got out of his bed and walked to the window to see rocks flying up one after another, hitting the side of his house. He leaned out and a rock flew to inches to the left of his head. "Watch where you throw those things!" he shouted down as he saw Madison.

She laughed. "Guess what time it is!?" she laughed.

Haley looked at his wrist, but there was no watch. "Dinner time?" he asked nervously, afraid he had slept in too late.

"Not quite." Madison laughed. "Lunch. But come on! Misty wants to get together. Says it's important. I told her we'd meet her at 1. You've got 45 minutes so hurry!"

* ~ * ~ *

Misty sat at the table in Chili's and tapped her foot nervously. Madison and Haley sat on the other side of the table trying to calm her down. "I don't know why this singing gig is such a big thing! I've heard you sing and you've got a good voice, so why are you wiggin' out?"

"Wiggin' out?" Madison asked looking over to Haley. "Please don't tell me you use the phrase 'wiggin' out.'" Haley put his shoulders up and shurgged. "That is so not like you."

"Back to me!" Misty hollared, focusing the attention to herself once again. "I'm pinched! I just got over a cold! I can't sing in front of 50 people with a pinched voice!"

Madison laughed. "Then all we have to do is work on some warm-ups and cool-downs. De-pinching your voice isn't a hard thing to do."

Haley and Misty exchanged confused looked.

"Just imagine..." Madison told her, "that you're swallowing a burning hot mini potato. And you don't want it to touch the sides of your throat."

"What are you talking about?" Misty asked her narrowing her eyes.

"Extend your throat. Make it wider. And pushing from your stomach won't work. Grip your diaphram for a deeper vibrato and more powerful sound."

Haley gulped. Misty blinked and shook her head. "How do you know all this stuff?" she asked.

"Well..." Madison began. "I used to be a singer."

Haley choked on his water. Misty's eyes grew as big as grapefruits. "You WHAT!?" she excaliemed.

Haley let out a laugh. "You're anything BUT a singer, Maddy."

* ~ * ~ *

"Well..." Misty exclaimed, breaking the silence as the three friends walked home. "If Mad says she can sing, I want proof."

Haley nodded in agreement. "WHAT?" Madison exclaimed. "You wan't be to SING?"

Haley punched her playfully. "Belt it out, girl!"

"I haven't sung anything in years!" she protested.

"Well, you must remember how!" Misty bugged. "You gave me some pretty good tips. So go ahead. Give it your best shot."

Madison looked at them wearily. They were both stubborn. She knew they wouldn't let her move until she sang. She cleared her throat and reviewed in her mind the song she had last sung at a fundraiser. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine the music in her head.

"We were strangers starting out on a journey. Never dreaming how our dreams would come true. Now here we are and I'm suddenly standing at the beginning with you."

Haley's mouth dropped and Misty's formed a smile. They traded a shocked expression. Madison was amazing!

"No one told me I was going to find you. Unexpected what you did to my heart. When I lost hope you were there to remind me this the start."

Haley and Misty were both casting their full attention on Madison by now. They never had any idea how good she was. They never knew she sang at all!

"Life is a road, I wanna keep going. Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing. Life is a road. Now and forver. Wonderful journey. I'll be there when the world stops turning. I'll be there when the storm is through. In the end I wanna be standing at the beginning..." She took a breath and delayed the last line. She looked straight into Haley's eyes. "With you."

* ~ * ~ *

Madison lay on her bed in her room, staring at the celing. She wanted so badly for Haley to know how much she liked him. 'Should I tell him?' she wondered. 'What of he doesn't like me? Would it ruin our friendship?' She couldn't get her mind of of it. A rock flew into her room through her window. It must have been him. She jumped up from her bed, anxious to see Haley, and walked over to her window.

"The window's open, smart one!" she hollared down to him.

"Yeah!" he replied. "I noticed that when it went into your room instead of bouncing back to the ground!"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Anyway, what is it you want?"

"Get down here quick, ok? Misty is at her house getting ready. We're all going out. Don't ask questions. Just come fast."

Madison raised one eyebrow suspciously. What was going on? She closed her window and hurried to get ready.

Five minutes later she came outside and found Haley sitting on her front step. She was wearing faded jeans, a wide strap grey tanktop and a spagetti strap white tank top over it. She slipped her red flip flops on quickly and ran up to Haley.

"What is it with girls?" he asked her. "You take forever to get ready!"

"Well at least we make our hair look decent!" she bugged him. She brushed the messy hair on his head back out of his face. His eyes were the bluest blue she had ever seen. She hated seeing them covered by his hair.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked her.

Madison realized she had locked eyes with him. She broke the glance and grabbed his hand. "Let's go get Misty." she bugged as she led him down the street.

* ~ * ~ *

The music blasted in Madison's ears as she walked into a room full of people and decorations. "Could someone please tell me why I'm here?" she asked, plugging her ears.

"You'll see!" Haley told her with a smile.

They walked through the party. A few people from their school were there and a few were from the public schools. They reached the DJ booth. "Is Misty Gathers on yuor list for tonight?" Misty asked the DJ. He pulled out a clipboard and scanned the names.

"Yeah. Slot 6 at 10:45." he told her.

"Could you change that to Madison Fields instead?" Madison shot her a shocked look.

The DJ made the change and they walked away. "Did you just give your gig to me?" Madison asked Misty.

"Yep! Better start warming up!" she told her with a smile.

"I'm not singing Mist."

"Don't call me M-"

"I'M NOT SINGING!" she hollared.

"And now..." the DJ said over the microphone. "Madison Fields, singing It Is You I Have Loved."

Madison's stomach clenched up. She had no choice. She had to sing.

"Go on!" Haley encouraged her. "Blow them away like you did for me and Misty earlier today."

She turned to Haley to tell him she couldn't do it, but she knew at one cursory glace that he really wanted to. She took a deep breath and walked onto the stage. She had to do it. For Haley.

"There is something that I see in the way you look at me. There's a smile there's a truth in your eyes.

What an unexpected way on this unexpected day. Could it be this is where I belong?

It is you I have loved all along.

There's no more mystery. Is it finally clear to me. You're the one my heart searched for s long. It is you I have loved all along.

There were times I ran to hide. Afraid to show the other side, alone in the night without you.

But now I know just who you are. And I know you hold my heart. Finally, this is where I belong.

It is you I have loved all along.

There's no more mystery. It is finally clear to me. You're the one my heart searched for so long. And it is you I ahve loved, it is you I have loved, it is you I have loved....all along."

Madison took a deep breath. She had done it. 'That one was for you Haley.' she said to him in her mind.

As she stepped off the stage, the crowd cheered her. She walked toward Misty and Haley but a man stepped in front of her. "Madison Fields?" he asked her. She nodded. I'm Brian McCarter. I own the restaurant, McCarter's on 6th street."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. McCarter." she told him, politely. They shook hands.

"I loved what you just sang! You have an amazing voice! Would you like to sing at my restaurant next weekend on Saturday night?"

Madison lost her breath. "You want me to sing at your restaurant?" She could hardlt believe her ears. "I'd love to!"

They set the deal and she thanked him. After he left, Misty ran up to her and Haley followed. "What was all that about?" Misty asked excitedly.

"I'm singing at McCarter's next Saturday! I got a gig! And I'm getting 75 bucks outta it!"

"Wo-hoah!!" Misty shouted. She congratulated her but Madison turned to Haley.

He was staring down at the floor. He looked up at Madison and turned away. For some reason he was avoiding eye contact. "Isn't that great, Hale?" Misty asked him.

"Awesome." he said, somewhat blankly, and he turned and walked away.

* ~ * ~ *

Madison had the most beautiful voice Haley had ever heard. When she was singing, there was always a smile on his face. And tonight, when Maddy was singing, it gave him the strangest feeling that she was singing for him, and only him.

It was crazy. 'Quit dreaming.' he told himself. 'Maddy doesn't think of you as anything but a friend.

Whenever Haley liked a girl, she never liked him back. 'Why would maddy be any different from the rest?' Still...it was nice to think that maybe she WAS singing for him. If only she really was.



Chapter 7:

Madison walked into McCarter's with trembling knees. She whisped her hands against her jeans to clear the sweat lingering on her palms. 'You can do it, Maddy.' she told herself.

"Madison!" Mr. McCarter exclaimed as he walked toward her. "Good to see you."

"Please, call me Maddy." she requested with a smile.

"Alright Maddy. Are you ready for your performance? We'll need you on in about 10 minutes. Help yourself to a drink first if you like. It's on me."

"Thank you, Mr. McCarter!" she said as she walked to the back of the resaurant.

She sat down on the stage and began to calm herself down. She was overwhelmed by her nervousness. She stood up and turned to the front of the restaurant. Just then she saw Misty and Haley walking in. Haley! Haley was here! They came back to her.

"Hey Maddy!" Misty greeted with her wide smile, showing off her perfectly lined pearly teeth. "We came to check out your gig!"

Haley just smiled at her but never said anything. Madison smiled back and looked away. "Do you guys want anything to drink? Mr. McCarter offered them at no price."

"I'm there!" Misty yelled, heading for the bar area. "Want me to get you anything?"

"Naw, thanks though," she replied. "Can't drink anything before I sing." Misty gave her a confused glance. "It coats my throat with flem," she explained. Misty gave her a disguised look and laughed as she went to the bar.

Haley stayed behind with Madison and they sat down together on the stage. There was a moment of silence before either of them spoke. "So..." Haley started, breaking the silence. "What song are you going to sing?"

"I don't suppose you know who Jamie O'Neal is," she stated turnng her head to Haley.

"I don't suppose I do!" he replied. "Care to share?"

"Country singer."

"Oh." Haley said. "That explains why I didn't know." He laughed and so did Madison until Misty walked back holding 2 glasses.

"This is for you," she said to Madison as she handed her a lemon water. "Lemon helps clear your throat. Take my word for it."

Madison took the drink and sipped it. Her face squeezed to a tight bunch. "That's a lot of lemon!" she exlaimed. But Misty just laughed. Madison took another sip and put it on the table next to the stage.

"Well, we're gonna let you get started." Haley told her. "Good luck!"

Madison thanked him and they walked away. She stood up on the stage and plugged in her microphone. She put in her karaoke CD in the stereo already hooked up. She stepped up to the microphone and turned it on.

"Good evening everyone! My name is Madison Fields and for your entertainment tonight I'm going to sing some songs. I hope you all enjoy it. This first song is by Jamie O'Neal and it's called There Is No Arizona about a girl who was lead to believe that there was a better life coming for her until she finds that none of it is going to happen."

She turned on on the CD and the music started. She closed her eyes and cleared her mind. "He promised her a new and better life out in Arizona. Underneath the blue never ending sky, swore that he was gonna get things in order, he'd send for her. When he left her behind it never crossd her mind..." she pulled the mic off the stand and walked to the end where she looked down and saw Haley smiling up at her, his eyes twinkling. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach. He was so hypnotizing. "There is no Arizona. No painted desert, no Sadonna. If there was a Grand Canyon she could fill it up with the lies he told her. But they don't exist, those dreams he sold her. She'll wake up and find there is no Arizona."

* ~ * ~ *

"Thank you all for listening," Madison said to the crowd about a half an hour later. "Before I leave, I'd like to sing one more song with my best friend, Misty."

Misty looked up at Madison with a shocked expression and Madiosn motioned for her to come up on stage. Misty stumbled on her way and finally was up there next to Madion. Haley was laughing in his seat.

The music started and Madison sang the first line. "There is something that I see in the way you look at me. There's a smile there's a truth in your eyes."

Misty stepped forward. "What an unexpected way on this unexpected day. Could it be this is where I belong?"

The two sang the next line together. "It is you I have loved all along." And the only thing that Madison had on her mind was Haley.

* ~ * ~ *

The crowd applauded them and they stepped off the stage. Mr. McCarter approached Madison and handed her 75 dollars. He then turned to Misty, handed her 50 dollars and said "You are amazingly talented as well! Would you like to come back next week?" Misty gladly excepted and was smiling from ear to ear.

"Congradulations!" Madison said as she hugged her. "You really did great!"

Haley hugged Misty and then hugged Madison. As he pulled away, his soft cheek rubbed against hers and she felt a shudder run down her spine.

'This is too much,' Madison said in her mind. 'I can't stand being around him anymore and feeling like this!' Her stomach felt as if it were about to flip and all she wanted to do, more than anything in the world was to tell him how she felt. But she knew she could never do that.

She turned to walk out the door. When she cam to the exit, she spun her head around to see Misty still smiling and talking to Haley was smiling back at her but he turned for an instant and locked eyes with Madison.

"Good night," he mouthed to her as he saw her leaving.

Madison smiled shyly. "Good night," she mouthed back.

And as the butterflies fluttered again, she turned to walk out the door.



Chapter 8:

"NO!" Misty yelled with wide eyes and a worried expression. "You guys aren't coming to the restaurant, are you?" she asked nervously.

"Umm...we were planning to," Haley said cluelessly.

"Is that a problem, Misty?" Madison asked raising one eyebrow.

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "It is!"

"And why is that?"

"Because," Misty struggled. "It'll make me nervous. It will be a lot easier for me to perform if I don't have to worry about making a fool of myself in front of my two best friends."

"But Misty," Madison started throwing her hands in the air. "Why -"

But Haley cut her off. "It's ok, Maddy," he said and he put his hand on hers to calm her down. "We'll just hang out at the dock. Misty, come by when your performance is over." Haley snuck Madison a smile.

'What's that smile supposed to mean?' she wondered and she felt another chill down her spine. It was either from the smile or his hand on her's. She didn't know which. But whichever it was, it was driving her crazy.

She pulled away and looked at Misty. "Ok. Have fun and good luck!"

Misty smiled at her and she was on her way.

"Let's get outta here," Haley said as he grabbed her hand and pulled her down the driveway to the dock.

* ~ * ~ *

"What's it like in Kentucky?" Haley asked as he skipped a stone accross the lake, just as Madison had taught him.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because you're so different from everyone else in L.A."

Madison shot him a glare. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Haley laughed. "Different in a good way," he explained. "You're more...I don't know." Haley looked down at the ocean and ignored the subject.

"If you must know, Kentucky is much more quiet than it is here. Not only is the atmosphere quieter but the people are also. It's got a real tranquil feeling to it."

"Oh come on." Haley said cutting her off. "I know all that stuff. Tell me about your life." He fiddled with his fingers a little.

Madison gave him a suspicious look. Was Haley trying to dig around for information? "Well," she started, "I lived on a farm. I spent the morning doing chores and after school I walked around town with..." she paused. "My friends."

There was a silence. "What about you?" she asked.

"What about me?"

"Well... what about you? What's your life like? You never talk about acting or anything and it's you're life!"

Haley laughed. "It's part of my life. I usually try to separate the acting part for the regular part."

"Tell me about the acting part!"

"Ok, what do you want to know?"

Madison thought. "Have you ever kissed a girl on screen?" she said jokingly.

Haley laughed back. "No. I've never kissed a girl at all."

Madison's eyes widened. "Are you serious?" she said surprised.

"Is that a bad thing?"

"No...I'm just...shocked."

Haley stopped skipping stones. "Why, have you ever kissed a boy before?"

Madison smiled shyly. "A few times..."

Haley looked at her suspiciously. "Well, in that case you must know all about it!" Madison laughed and nodded. "Then tell me, does it really taste like chicken?" he joked with a laugh.

Madison fell over laughing along with Haley. "Of course not!"

"Then what does it taste like?"

"That depends," Madison told him.

"On what?"

"What flavor lip gloss the girl is wearing."

Haley chuckled. The sat in silence for a few moments until Haley turned to her, a bit nervously. "What flavor lip gloss are you wearing?" he asked, barely making eye contact with her.

Madison froze. "Umm.." she hesitated as she turned to answer his question. "Vanilla." There was a pause. "Why? Do you like vanilla?"

Haley laughed casually. "As a matter of fact, I do."

Madison laughed back. Then before she could even think about what was happening, he leaned in to put his hand gently on her face, and he kissed her.

His lips brushed up against hers and for some reason, Madison wasn't able to pull away. She knew she had to but it felt so perfect. They kissed for what seemed like an eternity and neither one of them had any intention to stop.

Finally, Madison knew she had to. She pulled away, got up and ran home as fast as she could, leaving Haley sitting on the dock, wondering what he had done wrong.

* ~ * ~ *

Madison flew home and raced to the top of the spiral staircase. She pounced on the phone with her fingers shaking as she dialed her old best friend's number. The number that used to come naturally to her was hard to remember.

The phone rang three times until a firmiliar voice answered. "Hello?"

Madison choked as she spoke. "Emma?"

There was a pause. "Um, yes. Can I ask who is calling?"

"Emma, it's me! Maddy!"

There was a gasp on the other end. "Maddy Fields!?" A tear rolled down Madison's cheek. They used to talk for hours on the phone every day. Now she baerly recognized Madison' voice. "Why have you called after all this time?"

"I'm sorry I didn't call sooner. I guess I should have."

"Is L.A. still a living hell?" she asked sympathetically.

Madson laughed. "No, I'm actually warming up to it. I met some really cool people. Actually, I kind of needed to talk to you about -"

But she was cut off. "Oh my God! Do you remember about a year before you left how Dylan told you that his dad had cancer?"

Dylan. How long had it been since someone had reminded Madison of Dylan? "Yeah. Why?"

"Well, he's not doing so good. Everyone thinks he's going to die before the end of this year."

"Oh my God. That's horrible." Madison's heart sank. She couldn't be there for Dylan anymore. "How is his mom doing?"

"She's fine. I think she's going to take care of Dylan after his father dies. Do you want me to tell Dylan you said hey?"

Tell Dylan that she said hey!? God she wished she could. But after today..."No, don't do that. It's been so long."

"I understand," Emma told her.

'No, you don't,' Maddy thought to herself. "Emma, I really need to talk to you about something. It's important."

"Ok, shoot."

"You remember how I told you Haley and I were like best friends?"

Emma laughed. "Haley Joel Osment. Yeah, how could I forget!?"

Madison forced a laugh. "Well...I kind of have been getting a little bit of a crush on him lately." There was a pause. "Actually, a BIG crush. Like to the point where I can't think of anything else."

"Maddy! Are you crazy? You know that you -"

"YES! I KNOW!" she yelled, a bit too loudly. "But, Emma it gets worse." Madison took a deep breath. She had to tell Emma. "He kissed me today."

Emma gasped again. "Maddy! You let him kiss you? Did you pull away?"

"Of course I did!"

"Good."

"After about a minute."

"WHAT?" Emma was hystarical. "Maddy, I can't believe yuo let this happen."

"I know, I know. And I don't know what to do. Please, Emma! Help!" Madison was desperate. She needed Emma to tell her something, anything to make things better.

"Look, Maddy all I can say is don't do it again."

"Ok," Madison replied. But it was too late. Emma had already hung up.

Madison flung herself onto her bed and burried her face into a pillow. 'God, Maddy,' she told herslef. 'Snap out of it!'



Chapter 9 Coming Soon.