Slow Love

Chapter 2

After more than a decade of working in the industry as a reporter/journalist, I decided I needed a change in my life and left to pursue a different carer.Having worked on special projects with Prince he continued to call me for time to time just to chat. He knew I was basically a vampire like him so he knew I would be available for any and all late night phone calls. He would mainly call me when he was depressed or lonely and I was always a "Willing and Able" ear to listen. So, like 3 or 4 in the morning the phone would ring. If I was awake which was most of the time, I'd answer. If I did not answer on the first ring, he'd wait a few minuets and call back so, if the first call did not wake me up, he was damn sure the second one would.

He always would say in that kid like squeaky voice "whatcha doin'?", and I always answered back "talking to you asshole, what do you think I'm doing?" He would laugh wholeheartedly and so would I. He would usually ask about my husband and how he was doing and ask about what I was doing and what I was currently working on. You know, trying to be normal. After the formalities were over, then he would spill whatever was on his mind.

Most of the time my husband traveled with his job so he was not home and we would sit up for hours talking about whatever you can imagine. His love life and mine, his current protege', current or future recordings/projects,world news and affairs, you name it. He always would say that if he was ever on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" I would be his lifeline. I sometimes felt I literally was as he would be so depressed, I really do think talking to me saved him somehow. We would share a lot of hopes, dreams and just normal everyday stuff like all the rest of us think and talk about. I know he always managed to call me in just the right time when I likewise needed someone to talk to. I used to tease him that he was my Best Girlfriend. Then he would sing into wanting to dress me and pick out my clothes, you know the rest. I would just laugh and say you know Hubby might have a problem with that. He would then tell me that I was the funkiest white woman he ever knew.

Most of the time, the calls were just here and there and mostly when I least expected it.Sometimes we'd go a year or two and then BAM! he'd call and we'd pickup just where we left off just like best friends do. I would tell him he was my best friend, but I did not think I was his. He'd go awww, you know I love you. You were the only journalist that treated me right and now you know more about me than anyone, and you know my life probably better than I do! He'd then say, you could turn our late night calls into millions if you ever wanted to rat me out, but I never would or did. I would just laugh and say no one would ever believe me anyway. I did keep a journal just in case I ever did decide to do a book but mainly just to remember all the things we talked about endlessly.

Basically it was so I could remember. That way, at anytime in the future if I forgot and needed to look back, the memories were there, more like a personal diary than a journal. I was more like him in that I did not live in the past and I think that is something he saw in me and what attracted him to call me as we had like minds, very much so.

One topic that repeated over and over in most all our conversations was he nor I wanted to die alone. When he was with someone, I rarely heard from him. So I knew when I would see he was "dating" someone that I would not likely hear from him. But, I damn well knew for sure if it went awry I'd be first on the call list. LOL!

My new job was reading papers for information pertaining to my job. So he knew if it was in print, I'd see it. He was really good at keeping his relationships out of the press but there were leaks here and there with the tabloids if there was any dirt they could dig up. He knew I was on top of all world and social affairs so he would call to discuss that as well.

When 9/11 happened, he called me that night. He was in a major panic. I think he truly feared for his life but in the end, he did calm down. Somehow, I knew he would call me that night. I was ready for it. He just jabbered for hours on end till I finally said look, we live in the Midwest and no way are we a target. He got it and that subsided some of his fears. I jokingly said, just stay away from the Sears Tower in Chicago or any other tall buildings. He finally laughed that deep down belly laugh and proceeded to tell me he knew I was just the right person to put his head on straight.