Spotlight || MJ/Prince

Spotlight || Chapter 13

1994

Angela "Angie" Powell

"Daddy's on TV!" Jamie squealed out loud while watching a television station in our living room. While I sat on this carpet and still braided her hair, I almost dropped my large comb. Jamie had then picked up my own mistake within the palm of her left hand. An official broadcast of the Video Music Awards aired on MTV this year.

"I see him, Baby Girl, but please stay still. Don't worry, I'm almost done." It wasn't long before I smiled, answering my daughter. She nodded, mumbling to apologize as she focused on the screen instead. Silence as I now finished two more braids.

"Mommy, can I ask you something?" Jamie's tiny voice still prompted butterflies to fill my stomach. My angel was this adorable, but the sound nearly failed to make me smile, even on the worst days. Quite a few times I regretted working, but it was all to keep my two-year-old secure. She wasn't supposed to worry about the future.

"Yeah. Close your eyes, though. I gotta spray the braids, okay?" I answered her question, but still kept my hands moving as we finished another round of our routine. Summertime had long ended, but I still wanted to keep her hair in line.

"Okay, Mommy, but does Daddy love this lady?" Jamie then giggled now. Any spritz noise always made her laugh, even as an infant. I didn't know what to think, but as long as little things kept her happy, I'd smile. She made this cruel world better.

Yet, the next question threw me off as I put down my spray bottle, watching this screen again. On television Michael had the nerve to kiss Lisa Marie Presely without another thought. Of course, Michael and I weren't were never in a serious relationship when Jamie was born, but this moment had floored the mess of me.

"Yes. Grownups can marry each other when they're in love, too. That's why Ms. Lisa is wearing a ring from Daddy." I answered my daughter by giving some forms of the truth. There was no other choice, but I still refused to lie, even if she was too young at that point. My life was quite complicated now, but she still deserved facts.

"What about you, Mommy?" Jamie asked. I'd waited for this question, but still felt anxious in one way or another. It wasn't as if she was old enough to understand her own mother hadn't found love in quite some time.

Of course, I planned to answer, but the phone rang soon afterwards, as if on cue. It wasn't long before Jamie then turned her braids to watch me leave the room. Yet, I picked her up and she sat at the kitchen table, not far away from me.

"Hold on, Sweetie." I lifted one finger to my lips and Jamie matched this same gesture, giggles with this happy smile on her face. She had looked like me and Michael, especially with his eyes. On the other hand, Jamie and I earned this dark complexion, twinning just like my mother. If it wasn't for the damn cancer, Momma would've loved to see her own granddaughter grow up before our eyes these days.

"Okay." Jamie looked tiny waiting in the kitchen table chair, but her toothy smile had returned to keep my spirits up as usual. I didn't even know what to think with some random phone call, but still wanted to answered this certain landline anyway.

"Hello?" I then answered the cordless phone and waited for someone else to respond, but I could walk over to make lunch for Jamie, another voice had tickled my eardrums, offering one low tone that I seemed to recognize instantly here.

"Angel?" It was "The Artist." This man now talked to me as I cradled this phone between my shoulder and left ear. If Jamie knew who was on the line right now, she would've cheered. She honestly loved him almost as much as her own father.

"Hey, You're up early." I joked with him, glancing between Jamie and different ingredients on this kitchen counter. I'd have lunch with my daughter, relaxing a bit longer before I needed to visit the studio. A nanny would come by to help out soon.

"You've probably stayed up since midnight. Now, where's my princess?" Skip joked right back, but already asked to hear from my daughter. She was his goddaughter after all, but I always felt humored when he changed subjects to hear from her.

"About to eat lunch with me. Why? Do you wanna talk to her before I head over to the studio?" I finished making quick sandwiches while still talking on the phone. Jamie needed to wait before we could enjoy this so-called meal together. She knew.

"I'd love to, but I'm really short on time. Maybe later?" Skip seemed mop about this situation on the other line. I understood, especially since we hadn't seen each other in quite a while. I still worked on my next album and raised Jamie, of course.

"No problem. Hopefully she's not asleep by the time you call again." I answered, knowing that he understood exactly what I meant. Unlike adults, toddlers weren't strong enough to withstand the life of us night owls, even if we were famous.

"I know, right? Talk to you later, then." Skip laughed to himself, easing my nerves. Out of nowhere, my own mind had shifted back to Jamie's question about love and me. My heart shattered, but I would let anyone know, not even the new man on this phone.

Michael went on to marry someone else and Skip still knew women who could start his own relationships, even after all these years.

Only time would tell what could happen for me.