Chapter 15

That night was about a week ago.

Love took us through the hours, and it was nothing like I'd ever felt.

It turned my bad day into one of the greatest, for just a little while.

When he kissed me and left that night, I cried. For a few reasons.

I felt so lonely. It was like I needed him next to me just to breathe, from that moment on.

I felt so guilty. I tried to convince myself that we're young, we were passionate, and in the moment. And it just happened.

But deep in my heart, I know that's not the case.

I know full well that it was not a mistake. How could it have been?

The only way it can be explained is love. Neither of us are that spontaneous.

What would my parents think if they ever found out? They couldn't. They'd disown me. I know that.

So, Michael and I mutually decided not to tell anyone. We figured that Michael would most likely get skinned alive too. Plus, personal things like this should stay under wraps, between two lovers.

I finally set the record straight with Collin this past week, telling him that I would not accompany him to homecoming.

He should have known better than to ask me that.

What an ass.

Why you when I've got Michael Jackson?

It's Saturday morning. The dance is a week from today.

I haven't found my dress, my shoes, jewelry, nothing.

I'm under the impression that Michael isn't going to ask me, and maybe we'll just spend that evening together at his house or something.

When I told Cera this, she practically screamed.

"Oh, he's gonna ask you alright!"

I breathe in and open my eyes slowly, pushing myself off of Michael's chest.

I remember what happened. After school yesterday, I went home with him and his siblings and I had a water balloon war. Then Michael and I went to his room and watched Pinocchio.

We must've fallen asleep.

I breathe in again and feel Michael rustling next to me.

He opens his eyes slowly to look at me and I can't help but smile.

He smiles back. "Did we-"

"No." I assure him quickly, putting distance between us in the bed. "No."

We haven't been able to bring ourselves to the topic of what happened. It's kind of suspended in the air. Neither of us knew what to say. It was too meaningful for words to take care of. We both understood that, so we leave it alone for now.

He tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear. "Good morning Ani."

I grin and kiss his cheek before swinging my legs over the bed and getting to my feet.

I stretch my arms and legs out with a deep exhale.

"Is it cool if I shower here?"

He nods and I walk to the bathroom, shutting the door behind me.

I grab a spare toothbrush from the cabinet to clean and rinse my teeth.

Then as I shower, I hear the door open and then close again.

I step out after being freshly clean and realize that Michael had left a fresh towel and one of his T-shirts and boxers for me to wear. I smile and change into them when I'm fully dried and lotioned.

I come out of the bathroom and Michael is sitting at his desk, his back facing me. He's already dressed up. It looks like he's reading lyrics.

I come up behind him and wrap my arms around his neck.

I know he's smiling because I can feel his cheeks against my arm.

"You smell great." He says. I giggle and come around to sit next to him. He shifts to make room for me.

I realize that he wasn't reading lyrics as I had thought. Sitting in front of him were sheets of music.

"Ooh, what's this song?" I reach over him and hold up the music.

Maybe it's a new tune he's working on.

"Ani..." He sighs, trying to get it back.

"Wait, baby hold on." I put my arm out to block his attempts and try to read it, but he snatches it out of my hand, clutching the paper tightly.

"What the fuck? I'm confused. Why can't I see the song?" I furrow my eyebrows.

Instead of answering, Michael gets up and walks toward his bedroom door.

"Hey!" I scream, jumping on his back and ripping the paper out of his hands.

A smile spills across his face, he's holding in a laugh, so I decide to turn this into a game.

I always win games.

I hold the sheet over his head.

"No! Give it back!"

Knowing that he can't reach it, I read the title and then scrunch up my nose.

"The Itsy Bitsy Spider? What the hell..."

I hop off Michael's back, only for him to toss me over his shoulder, then onto the bed.

"Fuck you for that! I almost had a heart attack," I grumble as he lays next to me.

"Ani, do you have to curse so much?" Michael sighs.

"Don't turn this shit on me, now tell me why you have sheet music for that nursery rhyme." I say, knowing full well that he secretly loves when I curse.

"I was trying to teach myself how to read music." He says.

My eyes widen and I lay on my side to glance at him.

"You don't know how?"

All this time, I just assumed that he knew how, someone as musically inclined as he is. That Joseph taught him and his brothers earlier up the road.

He shakes his head. "I've always wanted to be able to play an instrument. Stevie Wonder plays piano and harmonica. Tito plays guitar. And all I've got is my voice."

I frown at his words. "Hey, don't downplay your incredible talent like that, Michael. You've got the vocals of an angel."

He rolls his eyes. "You mean Minnie Mouse?

I laugh and sit up on the bed. "All jokes aside, really. I mean that. You're unbelievably blessed. So what if you can't play an instrument? Can anybody sing like you can? Look at how internationally successful you already are. And you're only sixteen Michael, it's just insane. You shouldn't feel pressured to learn how. That decision is yours. It belongs to you."

He takes my hand and pulls me closer to him on the bed, the same way we were sleeping.

"Thank you."

I smile and shrug my shoulders. "Anytime."

Michael looks down at me and plays with a strand of wavy hair that had fallen in front of my forehead.

"You know, there's another decision I've been thinking about." He says.

"Yeah?"

"Going solo."

I gaze at him. "Solo? You've already released those solo albums. There's Got To Be There, Music & Me, what's the other one? Ben!"

He nods. "Well, yes, I have. But I'm talking about, no more Jacksons. Just Michael Jackson. No more Motown, more songwriting on my part. It may not happen in for a while, but... It's something that I've been thinking a lot about."

"I say go for it."

He glances at me to continue.

"I mean, no one's blind to the fact that you are the most talented in the band. That's just the truth. It's your gift from God. You possess it. And since you do, you decide how you want to share it with the world." I explain.

He rubs my lower back slowly in circles. "It'll be a new ballgame. You know, without my brothers there with me in the studio, on tour, interviews."

"The Michael Jackson I know loves a challenge."

He giggles. "Yeah, you know, you're right."

I kiss him tenderly. "You'll make the right choice. I'm not worried about it. You shouldn't be either."

We sit quietly together, my head on his shoulder, his hand across my back.

"Let's do something today." He says.

I think momentarily. "I've got an idea, come on."

I hurry out of Michael's room with him following close behind me.

--

Chapter 15

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