Destiny || Prince/MJ

Destiny || Chapter 3

1984

Nicole "Nikki" Foster

I didn't know whether to leave Prince alone with Susannah or wait out the total silence that now engulfed this hallway. My mind jumbled with questions until Susanah addressed one blatant detail here. Prince just glanced toward me, worried.

"Who are you?" It wasn't long before Susannah asked me the question without grinning. Of course, I stood my ground to answer. Her own heels clicked back as she stepped for a moment and crossed her arms. Prince still looked confused.

"Nikki." Trying to perk up her mood right now, I grained and reached out to shake hands with Susannah, but she refused my gesture out of nowhere. Even Prince scrunched up his face. I could only imagine how others could view this situation.

"Why are you doing this?" Prince finally confronted this woman. I remained silent, watching as these duked out their arguments with words, of course. I quickly shook my head, already starting to leave the hallway. We'd see each other another time.

"I'm sorry. Call me." Glancing over his shoulder, Prince apologized through mouthed words, then showing this phone gesture with his hand. I nodded, pushing the doors to leave. Tonight, our conversation ended when Susannah interrupted us.

______

Not long after we dealt with Susannah after that concert, Prince sent roses to my hotel suite as an apology. I'd traveled once again for work and we had already traded contact details by phone. I'd still record tracks for next year's album, but still needed to promote myself in one way or another. I knew better than to stop.

Even his attached note prompted me to smile, but it was still late at night. Given the hour in this country, I could barely stay awake. At least one of my peers cared enough to help me keep moving, whether or not it was some genius like Prince.

Nik,

I'm sorry about what happened the other night. Susannah assumed the worst and thought you were another pointless groupie. Of course, you know that I'm not tied down, but she does like me and still feels jealous of you. Again, I'm deeply sorry.

I've told her many times that we're friends. If I could change what she did, you wouldn't have to leave. This vase of roses and the letter still aren't enough to explain how bad I feel, but I just hope that you're not upset about my mistake.

Susannah never likes it when different women show up, but I still can't control how others feel. Show business can change anyone's sanity. Please forgive me for this nonsense. You deserve so much more than the drama that I've just kicked off.

Call me whenever,

-P

I wouldn't rush to call back Prince that night, but he even slipped this old snapshot of us into that envelope. I thought back, quickly drifting my mind back to just three years earlier. We'd snapped photos together right before "Controversy" hit shelves.

Around that particular time, I finally released my debut album and Prince invited me back to Minnesota. As spotlights bathed us in neon colors, we posed together on that main stage of First Avenue. In that wide shot picture, Prince held my hand, but only our backs faced the camera. I'd finally reached my dream and he knew.

If it wasn't for my management team back then, we could've used that one photo for promotion, but apparently I would've sparked too many rumors about my relationship Prince. For once, we actually wanted folks to talk, especially since I was still a fairly new artist at the time. Any publicity was good in some circles.