Don't Walk Away (A Michael Jackson Love Story)

Chapter 8: Family Reunion

(I keep forgetting to name the chapters before I publish them. Sorry!)

1 Week Later:

I sat up in bed, awakened by the sound of a ringing phone. The sun hadn't risen yet, and Michael was still sleeping. Before he woke up, I answered the phone.

"Hello?" I tried to keep my voice down.

"Is this Lily Davis?" the stranger requested.

I knew what this call was for. "Yes."

"You're being requested for Prince's next tour. Rehearsals start in four days in New York. I believe you know where," the voice explained.

I bit my lip. "Thank you." I hung up and sat there, thinking everything over. Michael wouldn't like this.

As if reading my mind, Mike rubbed my shoulders from behind. "You okay?" he asked.

"Great," I said, a little too enthusiastically.

"Who was on the phone?"

"My mom," I lied. "I called her yesterday but she didn't answer. I guess she forgot time differences."

"Aw, I haven't talked to your mom in a while. How is she?" He smiled.

"Great. She and my dad are living in the wilderness now," I told him.

"Awesome. You come back to bed though," Michael whispered. He kissed behind my ear. Goosebumps formed on my skin. I patted his leg. "I'm not tired anymore. You go back to sleep. I'll sit here."

Mike lay back down. He sighed. "Are you sure?" he murmured. I smiled. "Yes. I'll be right here. I'm not leaving." My voice broke in the middle of my sentence. I WAS leaving him, in four days. I would be gone all day and come back every night without explanation.

I stroked Michael's hair until his breathing slowed, letting me know he was sleeping.

I fell back into my thoughts. Soon, I'd be on tour with Michael's rival. I chewed on my nails. What if Prince tried to get me in bed again? Last time, we were having sex on the regular. But now I had Mike again. I didn't need the release from any random guy.

If I betrayed Michael, he'd never trust me again. You can only give someone so many chances. I glanced back at his innocent sleeping face. Now that I had him back, I didn't want to leave him again.

I sat there for hours, over-analyzing everything until the sun started to rise. Light shined through the big window. It looked like a spotlight. I walked over and started stretching. If I was going back to dancing, I was going to need to gain my flexibility back.

Mike stirred. I hurried back to the bed to sit there again. He blinked his eyes open.

I smiled at him. He smirked back. "I dreamed about you," he said sleepily.

"Oh yeah? What was the dream about?" I kissed his cheek when he slid up to a sitting position.

"We were married and had kids, and we lived in this big house with lots of land," Michael explained.

I hugged him. "You love me, right?" I asked into his shoulder. "Of course. Why would you even ask that?" he replied, a little confused.

"I just wanted to hear it," I admitted. "I love you. Don't forget it."

"I love you no matter what." Mike let me go. He got out of bed. "I need you for something. There's this song on the album. It's called P.Y.T. It stands for Pretty Young Thing."

"I wonder who that song's for," I joked. "So what am I needed for?"

"I need the 'pretty young things' to sing one part." He changed out of his pajamas. "You, Janet, and Toya are coming into the studio today."

"So I have to get dressed?" I groaned. He elbowed me playfully. "Yes. Stop being lazy." He passed me some clothes. "We're leaving when you're ready, so hurry up. Don't forget your pills."

I frowned. He didn't need to mention that. Taking my pills was not something I enjoyed doing. It made me feel stupid. I'd had antidepressants since high school. And on top of that, I was taking birth control. It was a hassle.

I shuffled into the bathroom and assessed my appearance. I pulled a brush through my knotted mess of hair a couple times before giving up and tying it back into a messy bun. I then swallowed my pills, spraying perfume on myself as I walked back into the main room.

Michael was waiting for me. He pushed me out the door, closing the door behind us. We practically ran to the studio. I immediately looked at the receptionist. She was different, but she didn't look like anyone trying to cause trouble. I sighed in relief.

Janet and Latoya stepped out of the breezy April air behind us. Latoya embraced her brother while Janet went straight for me. "I missed you!" she exclaimed.

I grinned. "Whoa, you've grown, Janet. When did you get so beautiful...and tall?" She blushed. "Don't say that. I'm not as pretty as you."

"I heard you want me to be your choreographer," I said. "Joseph finally got you into singing?"

"Yeah. He said acting wasn't good enough. I wanna go study business law. But Joseph wants me to follow everyone else." She rolled her eyes. "How's your career going?"

"Good. I've been on tour lately. I finally got a break after Prince's tour." I winced. I was going to be continuing very soon.

Janet gasped. "Prince? I love him! I want to see him in concert so bad!"

"He's a little, uh, graphic for Jehovah's Witnesses, isn't he?" I pointed out. She shrugged. "Music is music." I took her point and stopped the conversation.

Mike escorted us into the recording booth. He had the woman from the front desk put on the track.

After about 2 minutes of listening to the song, he signaled to us. Suddenly he belted into the mic, "Pretty young things, repeat after me! Say na na na!"

In unison, Janet, Latoya and I echoed him.

"Naa na na na!"

Again we repeated, a few times just so there were takes to choose from. We stepped out of the booth together to watch him finish the song.

I looked at the soundboard. My hands hovered over the switches and buttons. Slowly, I slid the volume up for the drum beat. Michael noticed right away. His eyes snapped open, but he kept going. He stared at me warily, as if deciding whether or not to trust me.

I turned the track off when he finished. He rushed over. "What'd you do?" he demanded. I was startled. I pointed to the volume for the beat. "I turned that up. I felt it wasn't loud enough," I explained.

Michael narrowed his eyes, thinking. "That's a good idea," he said. "Just don't do it in the middle of my recording."

I nodded. Janet tapped my shoulder. "Lily, Toya and I are going back now. You wanna come with us or wait for him?"

"I'll come with you guys. You're at the same hotel?" I started to walk out. Mike grabbed my arm and yanked me to him. "Wait for me in the bedroom," he hissed in my ear. He kissed my cheek and sent me on my way.

Janet pulled me along with her into the limo. At the hotel, we parted ways as they got off the elevator a floor below me.

I opened my suite door. The anticipation was making my heart race. I went into the bedroom and lay on our bed. Finally, the door opened again. I smirked.