Rock With You: A Love Story

wanna be startin' somethin'

Belle's POV

At the top of the stairs, we are faced with a corridor stretched out for what seems like miles. There are people rushing around everywhere you look. Make up artists, costume designers, set designers, back up dancers, venue workers. The blurred sound of voices churned into a continuous sound.
"Michael!" A stressed, blonde lady shouts, as she pulls the hair from out of her face.
She's wearing all white, with a metal name tag, stating 'Make Up Artist'. "You're here!" She holds his upper arm and quickly drags him away, leaving me stranded in a sea of people.
My eyes anxiously dart side to side, when I notice a black door with a sign saying 'Back-Up Dancers' on it.
I make my way towards the door, swimming through the rushes of people.
Many 'excuse-me's' and 'sorry's' later, I reach the door. I open it to see a small room illuminated with stage mirrors all around the walls, each with a little wooden vanity table. All my fellow dancers are sat getting ready, as I take a seat at my designated table.
I glance down at the table top to see a little piece of cream paper, with some familiar chicken-scratch handwriting written on it.
It read,

Good luck Bel!
I love you, beautiful x

A soft smile appears on my lips, as I carefully fold up the note and place it safely under the make up bag on the table.
Michael's so sweet to me, I'm so lucky.
About an hour later, my make up and hair were complete. Thankfully a couple of professional workers had come and done it for me, amongst the other dancers, and it looked much better than I could ever do.
I glance in the mirror at my new appearance, my eyelids sparkling with beautiful silver glitter. My lips were a bright red colour, making my teeth shine whiter than before. I had heavily matte skin make up, as the stage lights wash you out like a ghost. I fluff the ends of my huge, crimped hair slightly in my hands, before turning around to find to go and find Michael.
"Belle!" I hear a familiar voice shout from beside me. I slowly turn, to see none other than Hannah.
I dramatically roll my eyes and keep walking towards the door, I have absolutely nothing to say to her.
"Belle! Don't ignore me." She shouted, sarcastically.
"Don't speak to me." I state bluntly, instantly slamming the door hard behind me, not leaving her chance to respond. I deeply exhale, my anger escaping my body, as I walk down the corridor. I examine each door, searching for Michael's dressing room.
We have three shows in this arena in Tokyo, Korakuen Stadium. Then after this, we move on to Nishinomiya, Japan.
As I walk, I gently stroke down the black mini dress that was now tightly wrapped around my slim body. A pair of dark tights encase my legs, as my black stilettos click as I step. The further I pace down the corridor, the louder Michael's sweet hums become. I soon see him perched on a black seat, surrounded with people. Someone doing his make up, someone doing his hair, someone touching up his outfit.
"Michael." I say softly, leaning on the door frame, one leg over the other as I cross my arms.
"Belle!" He says excitedly as he notices my presence. He slaps his thighs with his palms, gesturing me to go over.
I stroll over to Michael and sit gently on his lap, his hands around my body.
"You look beautiful!" He smiles, looking at me in the reflection of the mirror in front of us.
"Thank you, as do you." I stroke his cheek, much to the make up artists dismay as he quickly smacks my hand away.
"Are you excited? How log 'til show time?" He rambles happily.
"Uhh...1 hour. And yes I am, nervous though. You?" I shrug.
"I'm so excited." He smiles. His smile is different. He is filling with excitement and energy already. I can already see his stage persona seeping through, as he gets nearer to performance time. His eyes glisten as his hands begin to shake with energy.
"I can tell!" I giggle, holding his trembling hand in mine. He laughs.
"I'm so proud of you, Mike. You will be amazing, I love you so much." I whisper to create some level of intimacy from the make up artists around us.
"I love you more, baby." Michael shouts with excitement, as he beams at me. My heart soars at his happiness as I gaze upon his state.
Just under an hour later, everyone is in the wings of the stage. The roar of the colossal crowd echoes throughout the air, as we all wait for our cues.
I glance at Michael, fiddling with his earpiece.
His black gelled curls fall perfectly around his face, one single curl between his defined eyebrows. His jawline is carved beautifully into a sharper shape, making him look as sexy as ever. The iconic, metallic black shirt sticks tightly to his slim upper body, bedazzled in black buckled and zips. His statement, silver belt lay perfectly around his waist, lining his black skinny trousers.
He catches my glance, as he winks at me with a charming smile of excitement. I give him a thumbs up, as the roar of the crowd is suddenly silenced by a sound.
The show is beginning.
The stretched screen above the stage illuminates brightly with a golden orange image. An electronic picture of Michael's feet click loudly as they step across the screen, wearing his iconic socks, loafers and stripe trousers. As the feet reach the end of the screen, they begin to moonwalk back towards the other end. Michael's recorded voice makes a 'sh' sound at each backwards step. The crowd was now deadly silent, each individual focused on this screen. As the feet spin into a toe stand, an electric guitar strums loudly, making the audience scream.
The electric guitar plays for a seconds, then stops altogether. The entire arena drops into deadly silence, the torturous awaiting of Michael's presence is clearly killing people in the crowd, as they begin to faint and scream.
The row of white lights now shoot down into the crowd, as Michael and four other dancers appear on stage. As if by magic. They stand frozen in a line, soon to be smashed with dance moves.
The silence is suddenly ripped with the sharp beginning notes of 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin''. The crowd breaks into complete and utter mania, as my jaw drops, along with everyone's around me.
This is it. And it is absolutely breathtaking.