Slipping Away

Chapter 29

July 12th, 1995

Michael was in his trailer, getting his makeup done by Karen Faye for his new short film You Are Not Alone,  when there was a knock at his door. He nodded for Bill to open the door and Debbie walked over, hugging him.

"You look great." Debbie said.

Michael chuckled. "Thanks, how's everything?"

"Great, but I have to ask you something."

Michael raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"I have a friend outside, her name's Tonya." Debbie said. "She wants to meet you."

Michael nodded. "Alright, bring her in."

Michael watched Debbie go back out of the trailer while Karen clicked her tongue. "You're going to get in trouble."

"Like you care." Michael rolled his eyes. "You don't like Lisa anyway."

"No, Lisa doesn't like me or any other woman who's been within twenty feet of you. She's so jealous." Karen shook her head as she rubbed some more foundation onto his skin.

Michael nodded. "That she is. She's my wife though."

Debbie came back in with another woman. "Michael this is Tonya, Tonya this is Michael."

Michael shook her hand and Tonya looked like she was really nervous.

"Should I faint now or later?" She giggled.

Michael grinned and looked back to Karen. "You hear her laugh?"

Tonya sat on a chair near the wall while Debbie sat next to Michael. "So where's Lisa?"

"She'll be calling me when she leaves the house and then you guys will have to go." Michael said as Karen continued to work with his face.

Debbie frowned. "So, how are things with you two?"

Michael sighed. "It's not going to work out if we don't stop fighting. We're always fighting now."

"She still won't have your baby?" Debbie guessed.

Michael nodded. "Then she went on vacation with her ex husband and the kids. It's like she's doing things to mess with me."

"That's what it sounds like." Karen said. "I miss Mariah."

"Don't bring her up." Michael warned.

Debbie shrugged. "At least she was willing to get pregnant."

Michael groaned. "Please, just don't bring her up okay? She went off and got married, that was her choice."

"It still doesn't make sense to me. I went to Neverland the week before and she was just taking care of everything. She was saying how she couldn't wait for you to get out." Debbie shook her head. "Then I hear on the TV that she's married and I'm wondering if you had gotten out."

"No, you should've known it wasn't Michael because they would've said Michael was married instead of her." Karen said. 

"Stop it." Michael said again. He hated thinking about Mariah being married, that she belonged to another man when he was the one she belonged with. She had made him whole, filling the void in his heart, only to walk away. 

Karen rubbed his shoulder. "It's okay Mike, now you have Lisa."

"Why'd you make it sound like a bad thing?" Debbie asked, laughing.

Karen rolled her eyes. "Because he can do so much better than either one of them."

Michael opened his mouth to respond, but his phone started ringing so he shushed Karen and Debbie while picking up the phone.