Book 5- 1969 (Michael Jackson)

Chapter 11- The Phone Call

                Chapter 11- The Phone Call

                Date: Friday, June 27, 1969

                Time: 10:36PM

                KAYLA'S POV

I stared proudly at my miniature accomplishment. In front of me lay a little bag that resembled a hobo sack, filled with little knickknacks and novelties that I had collected over the years. It had marked the beginning of my Los Angeles packing, and while it wasn't much to begin with, I was capable of packing quite a bit into one minuscule sack.

Charles was standing next to me, with a toothy grin plastered to his face. "Hey, Kaywuh," he started, "Can I sweep with you tonight?"

I sighed slowly. "Charles, this is the third night in a row you've asked to sleep with me. What's up, buddy? I thought you loved your crib."

"It's too small," he whined. "I can't fit that well."

"What?"

"I don't fit in it, Kaywuh. Your bed is much bigger... You could sweep in my cwib if you want," he suggested mischievously.

I chuckled heartily. "I'll pass, Ash. If it's too small for you, you can sleep in my bed on one stipulation."

"Stip-stippy-pul- what?"

"On one condition, I guess I could say." Tapping my chin thoughtfully, I continued. "Try not to toss and turn so much, alright?"

Charles nodded fervently, his cheesy grin reappearing. "Yeah, Kaywuh. Imma get Gramma right now!" He joyfully zipped out of the room with his arms flailing around, having the time of his life.

I grinned out of satisfaction. I really thought that Charles would have been fazed by or even growing traits of Grandma and Elijah's stubbornness, but he has not displayed any terrible attitudes or behavior. As a matter of fact, he was a really well-behaved baby, despite the family lifestyle. Sometimes, he was even more sensitive than I was at first, and that was saying something.

Now that there was nothing to do, I took a step back and sat on my bed. Things with Motown seemed to be going rather smoothly. In fact, by the looks of it, we would be out in Los Angeles by August, with Mr. Gordy paying for a hotel room until we could find a suitable place for everyone to live in. In the meanwhile, everyone in my family, as well as Kate, the girls, and Randy from Michael's place were all going to reside in Gary until an adequate place was found. Gordy would also locate Grandma and Elijah to a house close to the Jacksons, so that if spending the night while practicing was necessary, I could do so.

The only flaw I found in Gordy's plan was Ash's situation. Without my constant aid, I wasn't entirely sure how he would fare between the two old babies. Heck, if it wasn't for me, they'd barely know what to feed him, what shows he enjoys watching, all of the toys he likes, and the only thing that gets him to sleep at night.

An evil thought temporarily entered my mind. Should I really tell them about that? Maybe they should learn on their own. I giggled under my breath. Yeah, I may just do that.

While I was still debating on whether or not I would tell Grandma and Elijah about Ash's secret sleep item, I ambled out of my bedroom. No one had made any dinner yet, and it was getting to the point where I chose to bake something on my own. The bright side to this deal was, I had no restrictions.

A sly expression played upon my face. Nestle Toll House cookies for dinner. Sounds like a pretty good plan for me... 

After washing my hands and drying them off, I got to work. I took a brief moment to make sure that no one was really watching me make junk food for dinner before actually getting to work. After all, as much as Grandma didn't care, Elijah may have had other opinions in mind.

That brought up another question that I began to ponder about. Does Grandma not care simply because she wants me to favor her over Elijah? Is that why she's been playing all of these kiss-up games?... Ah, I doubt it. As much as she wants to be favored, she wouldn't make Elijah look worse. That is, unless they were fighting. One of their good verbal wars surely have her-

"UH-HUH? I CAN'T HEAR YOU." I head Elijah bang something against the living room wall a couple times. "YOU STILL THERE?"

Naturally, I thought it was me who he was speaking to. Raising one eyebrow, I said, "Umm... I've been here? What do you need, Elijah? Is something wrong?"

"Oh, alright. I was just trying to see, you know, if you could hear me. Bad reception, huh?"

I pursed my lips, now confused. "Reception?"

"Yeah, it's been bad. Listen, I need to speak with you about something... Privately, if you can. We gotta make this quick, too. I think the others are up." His footsteps indicated that he was moving farther away from me.

"Uh, sure thing?" I cautiously stepped away from my work area and followed Elijah's footsteps. Once I was in the living room, I spotted him leaning against the wall, facing away from me. The rotary phone was in his hand. He tapped the outer edge of the phone impatiently, breathing in and out slowly.

Oh, I thought, my spirits dropping. He wasn't talking to me.

"Okay," he continued. "I think everyone's out of the room... I know, I know, you don't want to hear it. It's just that, gosh darn it, I need to tell you how I feel."

It was wrong to eavesdrop, especially on a conversation like this. The good half of me urged my body to look in the other direction, yet my bad conscience kept me glued to my spot. I would feel terrible later, I knew that, but something about his secrecy had me intrigued and concerned. I needed to know what was going on and who he was giving his spiel to. I rested my weight against the wall, ready to listen in on what he had to say.

"... Please, just hear me out. I need your attention this time. It's not like what I've said before."

"Oh, you sound so cheesy, Elijah," the phone blurted. I grimaced, actually disappointed by the phone. I suppose I as expecting another response, sort of like in the romantic films that Rebbie used to watch.

Unfortunately for me, the biggest surprise was yet to come.

"But, please, I'll do anything... Rita."

                        ***A/N: I'm sorry for this chapter being so short. I've had a ton of things on my mind this week and barely any time to focus on a chapter. Hopefully, I will be able to get everything back on track so that the chapters will become more regular. By the way, if this chapter seems crummy, please tell me. I'll try making it better. Thank you all for understanding.

                        -GotToBeThereMJ