Let's Wait Awhile

Prologue.

1990

Lori pushes open the metal door of the hotel roof open with her gloved hands and is welcomed with the cold New York wind. She lets in a sharp inhale as she wraps the beige trench coat around her body and walks out onto the hotel roof. She was looking for him.

"Michael?" Lori's soft voice called out to no response, she huddled closer in her jacket as she continued walking outward. She knew he was out here, just in his own thoughts probably. Anytime he needed time to think by himself he always went to a place of silence. A place where he can look down on everyone and everything instead of them looking down on him himself. A place of the unknown, a place with no name.

Lori ran her tongue across her cold and numb bottom lip as she spotted a figure at the front of the roof, slumped over the edge without moving a single inch. She slowly and cautiously walked over to him and stood as close as possible next to him yet as far away not to disturb him. He looked so peaceful.

Michael acknowledges Lori's presence with a quick glance and his beautiful smile, leaning over to give her a kiss on the cheek before returning to his original position of him leaning his arms on the brick ledge. Lori smiles at this gesture and mimicked his action too. They didn't say anything to each other, there was nothing to be said as the two enjoyed each other's company and the comfortable silence. Lori let out a sigh as she relaxed her body and looked down at the people rushing up and down the crowded sidewalks, Michael's eyes wandered to look at her and he couldn't help but to stare at Lori in all of her beauty as she looked down at the busy streets below them. He noticed how she nipped at her bottom lip with her teeth, a habit Lori did when she was nervous or worried about something.

"What's on your mind?" He asked, breaking Lori out of her trance.

"Hm?" Lori looked up at Michael with her pretty brown eyes and her eyebrows raised in surprise.

"You look worried about something. Is everything okay?" Michael asked in concern, turning his entire body to face Lori.

"I just..." Lori trailed off unsure what to say, she looks down at her clasped hands as her head filled up with hundreds of things she wanted to tell him. There was a lot of words but no words at the same time, it was overwhelming. She lets out a another breath as her heart begins racing. This had to be said Lori thought to herself but how?

"Lori? Delores?" Michael's soft voice called out in concern, "Is there something wrong?"

"Yes." She sighs, "Please try and understand." Was all she could muster out with a shaky tone.

Michael's body perked up in fear and his full attention was drawn to Lori the moment he heard her unsteady voice. Worry washed over his face as he looked at someone who he considered the happiest person he ever met, standing next to him in tears.

"Understand what, Lori? What's wrong....What's wrong???" Michael asked in a concerned and somewhat demanding tone. He cupped Lori's cheeks, bringing her face up to face his as he wiped the tears that fell from her eyes. The moment Lori looked up to Michael's big brown eyes, her heart broke into a million pieces. Repeatedly. What needed to be said HAD to be said despite the voice in her head telling her she's about to make the biggest mistake in her life.

"Michael, I'm so sorry..." Lori quietly sobbed out as she wrapped her hands around Michael's wrists. "I think we should end this."

With those six words, Michael felt like he had been hit with a bus. Everything in his body ached, with his heart feeling the most. "W-What do you mean, Lori... End what? End us? But why? Did I do something wrong?"

"You didn't do anything wrong, Michael." Lori pushed his hands off her face and turned around as she began to walk away. Guilt already started to settle in and she couldn't take it looking at his heartbroken face at this point.

"Then why are you doing this, Lori. We're doing so good!" Michael's voice broke at the end as he raised his voice. He was already following behind her with his heart breaking even more every step she took away from him.

"I just think we're moving too fast, both of us are at different point in our lives where we want different goals and it'll just interfere with each other. It won't be far for neither of us." Lori stopped and finally turned around to face Michael who looked back at her with desperation and tears stains present on his cheeks. "You want to get married and have kids which is normal for someone at your age, it's your right to want this. For me? I'm not ready for all of that at all. I'm literally just finding out who I am as an independent women in this world at the age of twenty! It wouldn't be fair for you to wait on me to be ready when you've been ready for years. I wouldn't be able to live comfortably with this."

"And you can continue to live your life, Lori!" Michael lets out a small and nervous laugh. "It's okay. We can wait until you're ready, I don't mind Lolo. My feelings for you won't change because of your choices. I won't pressure you into doing something until you're ready, I just want you to know this okay? Let's go back inside and discus-"

"I agreed to go on Janet's Rhythm Nation world tour as one of her back up dancers." Lori suddenly blurred out to Michael's surprise whose jaw hung open in shock.

"That's great! Oh my God, Lori." Michael said happily pulling her into a tight hug in which she returned for a couple seconds before breaking away. "When were you going to tell me this?"

"Eventually..." She muttered , looking away from his intense gaze.

"Girl, you should've told me the moment you got in! I'm about to get on Janet's ass for keeping it a secret too. Is there going to be a celebration party for you and the dancers? I can help throw-"

"Michael," Lori sighed interrupting his sudden burst of energy. She grabbed Michael's hand and held it with both of her hands. "It was a dream to be able to dance on a world tour with Janet, and I'm forever grateful that she picked me. It'll be awkward for us to see each other after this because of how close our families are. It's best if we just did our own thing as separately as we can."

Michael felt his heart breaking all over again but this time hurt more than the first. They're over, Lori was breaking up with him for real this time and he didn't know how he'll take it. Tears came pouring like waterfalls which only fueled Lori's tears. "Lori, please..."Michael cried out in a plea. Both of his hands came to hold Lori's only for her to push them away.

"If it's meant to be then it'll be... But for now, I can't do this." Lori began walking towards the door that led back to inside the hotel. She had to leave, she couldn't stand here any longer watching Michael break down in front of her. She felt on the verge of a breakdown herself as her chest felt like there was an elephant sitting on it. Her breaths came out quick and erratic with so many tears falling from her eyes that it was beginning to be hard to see. "You are the best man I ever met in my life and I say this with my whole chest. The special lady that catches your heart will be the luckiest woman ever."

"I don't want anyone else, Lori! What do I have to do to get you to believe me?"

"I'm not the one you want, Michael." Lori once said candidly already holding open the door She turned her back to Michael and walked inside.

"But I love yo-"

Michael yelled out in his last hope but was too late as the loud slam of the door cut him off. He stood there, it was uncomfortably silent with his shaky breaths being heard as he cried alone on the roof. Just waiting to see the beautiful face of the person who he just realized he loved to come back. The little amount of hope he had told him to wait. 3 minutes turned into 6 then to 10 then to 15. He awaited in the same spot.

"Please..." Michael pleaded out as he dropped to his hands and knees in defeat. With that came the loudest sobs that was to ever come out from Michael. "Baby, please!" He managed to choke out one last time.

🤍 The story before the story y'all! Hope y'all enjoyed it and excuse any errors and whatnot. Vote, comment, etc. You know the drill.