Hello everyone, I'm diving into my first Simpson's fanfic and while I'm a big fan of NelsonxLisa as a couple, I did really like Michael's character from the episode The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and her Homer. I always thought that Lisa and Michael had decent chemistry so why not make a short fanfic about them being together! I was also inspired by the fanfic Gathering of the Flowers by love_fluttershy on Archive of Our Own and on , this story will take place after Lisa's failed wedding to Hugh Parkfield while still having some elements from the other Simpsons' 'future' episodes.

Summary: All Lisa wanted to do was forget about this awful day, forget that just a few hours ago she could have been married to Hugh. She just wanted to convince herself that this wasn't really the end of the world, that one day she'd meet someone who was both compatible with her and understood that no matter what she loved and was loyal to her family. All Michael wanted to do was get through this awful day, the day he had been dreading since his father died of a heart attack. He has already prolonged it as long as he could but now it was time to give up his childhood dreams of becoming a legitimate 'real' chef, his cousin Fit-Fat Tony wasn't getting any younger and it was now time to prove his loyalty to the 'family' by taking over. Who would have thought that trying to get about one awful day would lead to many good ones.

Or the one where Lisa and Michael hook up the same night Lisa would have married Hugh after meeting up again at a bar!

I own nothing but the plot

Meeting up again part one

Lisa pov

I can't believe it's come to this…no wait I can believe it. Lisa Simpson almost Lisa Simpson-Parkfield groans quietly to herself as she downs another cocktail. She couldn't help but feel depressed as she signaled the bartender for another one. Truly I was only ever meant to be a Simpson, drowning my sorrows with the aid of alcohol, and hiding away from my family. Lisa thinks to herself as she sat alone in a bar a few miles away from Springfield, because that's where she needed to be right now away from Springfield. Away from her parent's worried guilty stares, away from Bart and Maggie's sympathetic ears, away from the wedding guest's looks of pity. Away from her traitorous thoughts that nagged that she almost had it all.

Many might call her a fool for giving up someone as wonderful as Hugh, even she feels a little foolish as she sits alone in this bar so far away from anyone that might recognize her. But at the end of the day, she knew deep down that she didn't regret the decision to call off what might have possibly been her only chance to marry someone as wonderful as Hugh Parkfield. Hugh was the kind of person that Lisa dreamt of settling down with since she was a young girl. He was well-educated, a vegetarian, cultured, and they had so many common interests. In just a few short months the two had a wonderful whirl-wind romance that led to Hugh proposing to her before the end of summer. Everything she learned about Hugh was so enchanting, and his family were so accepting of her presence in their lives. Lisa had been sure that the two were a match made in heaven only there was one hurdle that the two couldn't overcome together, her family.

Growing up the gifted child in the Simpson household (maybe even in the entire city of Springfield) Lisa knew that she was different and would always be different from the rest of her family and even from those outside of her family as well. And sure, maybe sometimes (a lot of the times) Lisa wished that her family…especially her father would behave with more restraint (especially in public spaces) and maybe she wished that growing up her family shared in her interests and understood her intelligence. But that didn't mean that she didn't love them for who they were deep down, because beneath all their collective negative traits the Simpsons were a very loving and supportive family to each other. If only Hugh could have understood that then maybe…maybe things could have been different. At least I found out how he felt before…before I went through with it.

That would have truly been awful if she had married Hugh only to find out after that he planned for them to never see her family again. What would she have done if they were married for five years before she figured this out or if they had children that would be lucky enough to meet her mother let alone the rest of her family? Lisa couldn't imagine that she would have stayed married to Hugh no matter how much she loved him if it meant cutting her family out of her life. The only saving grace was that she found out before she had taken those vows before she had committed herself to Hugh, if it meant that one day the right person would come along. A person who would share in her interests, be well-educated and cultured and like her family and-

"Bartender, another cocktail." Lisa orders again with a sigh from her seat, this would be her third one so far and she knew it was far from her last one of the night. As irresponsible as she knew doing this was, Lisa just wanted a few hours to herself to forget. Forget that she had gotten so close to her version of a fairy tale wedding, forget that her family was probably worried sick about her, she just wanted to forget everything and be alone in a bar a few miles away from home where no one would know that she was Lisa-

"Lisa Simpson?" A deep male voice in a slight Italian accent very nearly whispers from behind her.

I can't believe this! Lisa thinks to herself in dismay, after all the entire reason behind why she had bothered to have a taxi drive her a few miles away from Springfield was so that she wouldn't be recognized by anyone.

"Lisa?" The voice questions again much closer than before and Lisa tilts her head to find a handsome man about her age with chestnut haired and piercing brown eyes. "Wow it really is you!" The man said clearly shocked to find Lisa at this bar.

"I'm sorry do I know you?" Lisa could only ask with narrowed eyes as she stared at the man she didn't recognize; she may have had a few drinks already but that didn't mean her impairment was yet so serve that she wouldn't be able to recognize people she knew. The man was also far to dressed up in his tailored suit for this bar which made her a bit cautious. Maybe he was a guest at the wedding? Although I can't pinpoint who he might be?

"It's me Lisa, Michael." Michael answers hers, though Lisa must still be looking at him in confusion because he then clarifies. "Michael D'Amico?"

"Michael D'Amico?" Lisa repeats back as she tries to rack her brain for an answer, throughout Lisa's life she has had many people come in and out of it. Especially during childhood where it seemed that she made a new friend once a week only to never speak to them again the following week.

"Fat Tony's son." Michael clarifies with a sigh as he takes a seat next to her and signals the bartender for a drink.

"Oh, yeah Michael." Lisa nods as the memory of the quiet boy with a natural talent for cooking during their Springfield Elementary School years came to mind. The two had also had a short-lived friendship, ended after Michael had 'accidently' taken care of the Calebresis family. After that day the two only saw each other around school and special occasions when members of her family were working for (or in her Aunt Selma's case involved with) either of the two Fat Tonys (people tended to forget that the original Fat Tony from Springfield was dead and the one in charge of the mafia now was his cousin from San Francisco) and after High School well Lisa wasn't sure where Michael went to school, she only had time to make short home visits when she started studying at Yale. So, she couldn't keep track of where many of her childhood friends went beyond High School. "It's been a while."

"Yeah, I guess we haven't really talked much huh?" Michael states as he took a sip of scotch from his glass. "How have you been? I think I heard you went to Brown or Harvard or something?"

"Yale." Lisa answered evenly as she took a sip from her cocktail. "You?"

"Went to Springfield U to study in Culinary Arts for four years." Michael proclaims while looking down at his scotch. "Was in Italy for two learning how to cook Italian Cuisine, I just came back a few hours ago actually…was supposed to talk to Uncle Tony about opening my own restaurant."

"That's great Michael." Lisa said sincerely. "You were a really good cook when we were kids. It's nice to know that you were able to follow your dreams after all." At least someone is having a good day.

"Yeah, follow my dreams." Michael says with a dry laugh much to Lisa's confusion. "Aren't I lucky?"

"Don't you want to open up your own restaurant?" Lisa questioned in confusion, though it had been many years since the two had spoken with one another. The young Michael that Lisa remembered would have been jumping for joy at the chance of becoming a chef and opening his own restaurant.

"Maybe I would be happy about it if…if it wasn't a front to help with the other 'family' businesses." Michael said coolly.

"Oh right." Lisa sighs in an understanding tone. "The 'family' businesses."

"I was actually supposed to meet Uncle Tony at some wedding reception in Springfield to discuss it." Michael admits as he continues to drink his scotch. "But the wedding was called off or something…I don't remember who it was supposed to be for, but Uncle Tony just said we could talk about it later."

"Bartender, another cocktail." Lisa orders again this time though her words were starting to slur a bit, as she tried to get the attention of the bartender who was serving another customer on the other side of the bar.

"Maybe…Maybe you should slow down a bit Lisa." Michael suggests in a careful tone as he eyes the three empty glasses in front of her. "I mean I know that we haven't like seen or talked to each other since we were kids, but it's not like you to-"

"Michael, a few hours ago I had to call off my wedding to the person I thought would be the love of my life." Lisa interrupts in a forceful tone, glaring slightly at Michael. "In front of half the town no less."

"Bartender, another cocktail for the lady!" Michael calls out so that he could get their attention.

Michael pov

I never thought my night would turn out this way. Michael thinks to himself as he leans back against his seat. Who would have thought a quick trip to a random bar would lead to me running into Lisa Simpson again. The reason why he had chosen to come to this bar in the first place was to prolong his time away from his Uncle Tony. The bar itself being a few miles away from Springfield, Michael had been so sure that he wouldn't have run into his uncle at this bar let alone anyone else from Springfield.

Isn't it funny though that Michael D'Amico would not only manage to still run into someone from his hometown? But for that person he ran into ended up being Lisa Simpson of all people, the first person to ever try to befriend him despite knowing who his father was. They both bonded over how different they were from their respective families and Lisa was the first person he shared his secret love of cooking with. He had never been able to freely cook for someone before meeting Lisa; after all the son of a mafia boss was expected to be a tough cold, calculating, no nonsense future killer, not a soft spoken introverted aspiring chef. But she had encouraged him to tell his father the truth…who would have thought that it would lead to him committing his first crime though. I really became my father's son that day, didn't I? A true 'D'Amico' he said after he had recovered from his injuries.

Maybe that's how his life was always meant to be because no matter what new events came up as he went about his life it only seemed to push him towards taking over the family business. After all his father's death didn't change anything really, not when his father's cousin (his Uncle Fit-Fat Tony) just took over the family business as well as the responsibility of raising him to also someday take over. But time and technology still changed the world around them, tearing the fabrics of his family's empire apart. Leaving a new world where corrupted politicians and police were harder to come by, where people could place bets both legal or otherwise from home, where legitimate banks and debt collectors were the big bad loan sharks, and where active recycling from at least seventy percent of the country's population has made almost all 'waste management' companies obsolete. Because the more advanced the world became the harder it was for people like his Uncle Tony to hide what their businesses were actually doing.

When Michael was a junior at Springfield High, he believed that everything was finally falling apart for the family business. Time and tech had changed the landscape of things very quickly and so many other families had already fallen because of it. It would have made sense for his uncle Tony to bow out from the business closing it down for good, instead though he did the opposite…he doubled down. The family needed a business that would help them look more legit, a business that didn't need to make a lot of money itself just a place that would allow enough privacy to collect it. Maybe if I had just stopped cooking, I could have avoided this from happening. But cooking was just something he couldn't give up though, it was one of the few mediums he had that allowed him to express himself creatively. It was how he made his first and only true friend Lisa Simpson…even if that friendship ended up being short-lived, it meant something to him back when they were kids even when he distanced himself from her. It must still mean something to me now, because why else would I be here?

"I'm sorry." Michael said after the two of them had moved from the bar stools to their own private booth.

"For what?" Lisa asked as she took another sip from her cocktail.

"I don't know." Michael says with a shrug as he glanced in her direction, what was he sorry for exactly? Maybe it was for not speaking to her for years, even when certain events continued to bring their families together. Maybe it was for slowly turning into the person she had tried to help him not become. "Wedding, I guess."

"Thanks." Lisa said in an even tone as she finished up her drink.

"They must have been really smart." Michael states evenly from his seat. "I can't image you'd marry any person who wasn't."

"Hugh was smart, well-educated really." Lisa explained with a sad sigh. "He was cultured too, handsome so very handsome he could have been with anyone he wanted, and we had so many things in common…but I found out at the wedding that it wouldn't have worked out."

"Because?" Michael asked, he was prying he knew, and he might have lost the right to pry years ago. But if anyone could understand the importance of grieving someone you just lost it was him.

"Because it wouldn't." Lisa just said evenly, not saying another word.

Michael was no stranger to having to deal with relationships not working out. After all he's dealt with people too afraid to pursue anything with him because of his mafia connections. And people much too eager to get involved with him for that very same reason. Yes, Michael was hyper aware of why things didn't normally work out for him, what he couldn't understand was why things didn't work out for Lisa? From the way Lisa described this Hugh person he seemed perfect for her, so what went wrong?

"How did you end up here, Lisa Simpson?" Michael asked from his seat as he took another sip from his second glass of scotch.

"I already told you Michael." Lisa said in a dry tone as she stared off into nowhere. "I just called off my wedding."

"I still don't understand." Michael says as he stared at her.

"What's there to understand?" Lisa replies in a biting tone as tears start to swell up in her eyes. "I-It wasn't going to work out, so I ended it."

"You still haven't answered my question, Lisa?" Michael said in a serious tone, he reached over and wiped the small tear off her cheek. "How did you end up here, Lisa Simpson?"

"I-I needed to get away for a while." Lisa finally admits with a bit of a stutter. "I just needed time by myself away from everyone's pity and away from my…I just needed to get away." Silence falls between them after that, not uncomfortable silence but silence none the less. "What about you? How did you end up here, Michael D'Amico?"

"Same as you I guess." Michael admits with a dry laugh and a shrug. "I needed to get away for a while, although I guess in my case, I needed to be away for a little bit longer. You'd think that spending two years in Italy would have been enough time away."

"You could have just stayed?" Lisa states though to him it sounded like a question. "Started a new life or something?"

"We both know I couldn't stay away from…my family." Michael says with a sad smirk.

"Yeah…me either that's why I had to call off my wedding." Lisa admits before signaling to the bartender for another drink. "Italy was fun at least, right? While it lasted you at least got to pretend that you were going to live out your dreams, right?"

"Sì, è stato un sogno incantevole finché è durato, mia bella signora." Michael decides to say in Italian, though considering the company he was with Michael wasn't that surprise when Lisa without missing a beat raised her glass and said.

"Ai sogni incantevoli, possano tenerci al caldo mentre viviamo le nostre fredde realtà, mio bel amico." Lisa says sarcastically.

"Saluti!" Michael replies, the two click their glasses before taking a drink.

Michael and Lisa spent two hours together in that bar before they were cut off by the bartender, and though the bartender was reluctant to allow Lisa to leave with him a more than generous tip after paying for both of their tabs was enough to make the bartender look the other way. Even with the family business falling on hard times some things never change.

"Michael, h-how close do y-you think the next b-bar is?" Lisa asked her words a bit slurred as the two sluggishly walked down the sidewalk arm and arm. "I h-hope the next one has f-food, c-cause I-I haven't eaten s-since like the day before t-today."

"What?! Lisa why haven't you eaten since yesterday?" Michael asked in a concerned tone.

"I-I was so n-nervous about today that I-I couldn't eat." Lisa answered with a giggle. "I-I was supposed to be m-married today, Michael."

"I know Lisa." Michael says evenly with a sigh. "Maybe I should call us a cab so we can get back to-"

"No!" Lisa protested before he could finish his sentence. "L-Let's just find another b-bar!"

"We can't avoid going home forever Lisa." Michael said in a serious tone.

"We're n-not avoiding h-home forever!" Lisa countered back in an almost desperate tone. "J-Just one night! W-Why can't we just live our lives for o-one night! I-I mean tomorrow we can p-pretend that our f-families didn't ruin o-our happiness just a little even though w-we know they didn't mean too, b-but tonight we should have for ourselves!"

Though Michael has had a lot to drink, he knew he wasn't nearly as drunk as Lisa. Added on to the realization that she had apparently been drinking on an empty stomach meant that she wasn't going to be making any logical decisions anytime soon. The right thing to do right now would be to get her back to her family so that she could rest up. But Lisa though drunk was clearly not ready to see her family, and he certainly wasn't ready to deal with his either. Maybe we can get some food first, after that we can go home.

And that is the end of part one, I hope the people who have found this story enjoyed what I have written so far! The second half of this first part will be posted up soon! Anyway please read and review!

Translations: Sì, è stato un sogno incantevole finché è durato, mia bella signora (Yes it was an enchanting dream while it lasted, my pretty lady)

Ai sogni incantevoli, possano tenerci al caldo mentre viviamo le nostre fredde realtà, mio bel amico (To enchanting dreams, may they keep us warm while we're living our cold realities, my handsome friend)