My producer finally called me back and asked for a meeting between the two of us and his son at the studio. I agree. I'm almost done getting ready when Michael comes into the room. "Where are you going?" He asks. "I have a meeting with my producer and his son, so I'll be back in a couple of hours." "Ok, just don't be late. The kids will be here at three." "I'll be here. Alright, Mike. I'll see you when I get back. I love you." "I love you more." I kiss him and left. I decided to drive myself cause I knew the traffic would be horrible at this time of day. I knew a few short cuts. 20 minutes later, I pull into a spot up front. "Hey, Corey. How are you?" "I'm fine. You remember my son, Daniel." "Yeah, of course." "Hi." He said. He's 16. Bright eyed and tall. We find an empty room to talk in. "Alright before we start I have to be back home no later than 2:30." I say. "It won't take long." "Alright, Daniel. Whatchu' got?" "I was thinking we could start off in a church and we end in the cemetery. We have a tight a shot on me singing in an empty street." "Ok." "Yeah, something like a crossover between Beat it and Thriller." "Just to let you know, I didn't direct those. Michael and I weren't even together." "Yes, but you are married to him. He would've told something about it." "I can ask him, but he's making one too at the moment." "Thank you." For the next hour and a half, we continue to talk about what else should be included. For that, we go out separate ways. I hurry home back to Michael. I found him in the back yard; filling up water balloons and water guns. "Hey, Michael." I say. "Hey, Dani. How did the meeting go?" "It went well. The kid wanted me to ask you if you still have any of your notes from Thriller and Beat it." "...I honestly don't remember. It was so long ago. I'll have to check. I'm almost done out here. Let's get ready." He says; taking me hand and leading me to our room. We begin to change our clothes. "Has your skin been bothering you since the other day?" "No, but depending on what I do outside, it might come back." I sit on the edge of the bed; looking into my hands. "I didn't like how it made you bleed and feel weak." "I hate it." "Baby, it'll get better, I promise." I look up at him and smile. "Thank you, Michael. I don't know if I could keep going if it weren't for you. I love you." "I love you more." We kiss. "Now, lets go before we're late." Michael finishes getting dressed. He wore his trademark style; red dress shirt and black slacks with his fedora. I wore an off the shoulder shirt with matching shorts. We go together down to the front door. By that time, the kitchen was already preparing food.
*10 minutes later*
Several busses pull in the driveway. The kids are screaming of excitement; ready to get off. One by one, each kid climbed down the small steps. A couple of the busses had to lower the platform in the back to unload the wheelchairs. Some looked healthy as others weren't so much. A few of them had tubes in their noses. That didn't seem to slow them down though. Theirs eyes; big and bright. Smiles all round. We had a few other helpers with us as well. "Hello, everybody and welcome to Neverland. I hope you all ready because we're going have a lot of fun. You can get on any rides you like for as long as you like. If you're hungry, we have some things inside. Are you all ready?!" Michael explained. The kids cheered in response. "Dani, if you want you can come with us to the back. We're going to be playing with water balloons, but if you think your skin is going to act up again, you can go do something else. I don't want to put you in any pain." He whispers to me. "Thank you. I'll see what I can do." I reply. I watch Michael take the hands of two little kids and walk through the gate. I stay to watch the rest of the kids get off. Most of them run past me; giving me a little wave. I turn back to see the last two. A nurse holding a baby. She could have been no more than 3 months old. Her hair was missing. She had on a little white dress and band around her head. I felt my heart twing as I tried to stop the tears. "This one just woke up." The nurse said. "What's her name?" I ask. "Her name is Gracie, but we call her Minnie." "May I hold her?" She carefully hands over Minnie to me. She's extremely light, even for her age. Her dark eyes lighten up when she look up to me. A toothless smile followed. I blink back the tears again. The nurse and I take her to the back where everyone else is. Michael and some of the other kids were running around; splashing water on each other. All the rides in the background we're going. I found a nice spot in the shade and ask for a blanket. I sit with Minnie in my lap. "How old is she?" "She'll be 4 months in two weeks. Doctors says she won't live to see her first birthday." "And the parents?" "They abandoned her. We have no information on them. We try not to talk much about the children's parents. It hurts them. It hurts all of us, but we don't dwell much on it. We like to have fun and play and Mr. Jackson is exactly what we needed. You too, of course." The nurse said, reaching in the bag and pulling out a rattle. Minnie Mouse was on the front of it. Minnie laughs as she shakes it around. "She loves the noise it makes and anything that has Disney on it." "Do you mind holding her? I'll be right back." I quickly hand over Minnie and rushed inside. In my bedroom, I pick up a stuffed Minnie and rush back outside. "Minnie, look!" I show her the doll and another toothless smile forms. "Mrs. Jackson, thank you. She doesn't have one." "It's my pleasure. I can always get another one." I say; taking her back into my arms. She starts to chew on her ear. The nurse and I continue our conversation until Minnie starts to cry. "Oh no. What's the matter, sweetheart?" "It's her lunch time." The nurse answers; taking out a bottle for her. "Would you like to feed her?" "Absolutely." I began to feed her. Her tiny fingers trying to hold the bottle. After a short while, she was done and needed to be burped. "She's absolutely precious. This makes me wanna have a kid. Michael would be a great father." I say as Minnie fall asleep. "I'm sure you two will make great parents."
After a few more hours, some long goodbyes, and a promise from Michael for another visit; the kids return to the bus. "Mr. and Mrs. Jackson, the hospital and me personally would like to thank you. For your time and giving these kids another reason to smile." The nurse said. "No, thank you. I had a lot of fun with them and I hope to see them again real soon." Michael said. I continue to hold Minnie. She smiles at Michael and I. "Thank you. If you're ready now, Mrs. Jackson, I can take her." "Oh...uh..." I hesitate to give her back. The tears return but I don't try to hold them back. "Dani, baby. It'll be okay." Michael says; taking my hand. "But I'll give that information you asked for by this week." "*sniff* Yes, please and for the others too." I say. We watch the two board the bus and drive off. Michael takes me inside and up to our room. He quickly takes a shower and I wash up. I get in bed. My arms feel so empty even though I only held her for a couple hours. "...um...so, Dani, did you enjoy today?" "I really did." I answer; climbing in his lap. His hand on my waist. "Minnie is just...I can't stop thinking about her. I asked her nurse if I could adopt her and possibly some of the other kids." "Mhmm." "Michael?" "Yes, baby?" "I think...I think I wanna start a family." "A family? I would love to start one. I think the timing could be better though. How about this? We'll finish the video then I'll take a break from the studios and we can start making one." "How long will the video take to shoot?" "No more than three weeks, I promise. By then, those adoption papers should be cleared and we can turn one of the guest rooms into the baby's room." "Aww thank you, Michael. I love you so much." I kiss him. "I love you more. I'll see you in the morning. Sweet dreams, sweetheart." He turns off the light.
