Allo everyone :) This chapter is making things more interesting i think. Hopefully it will just get better and better. Thanks to my friend Rebecca, i have the strength to keep this up. (btw Becca im gonna use ur idea in my next chapter) anyways...any more ideas for this story please let me know. Enjoy! :)
Two Hearts. One Dream Ch. 5
A few hours into my sleep, I found myself in dreamland. Or maybe it was nightmareland in my case. I was wandering down a dark path in a heavily wooded area. I didn't know exactly where I was going. I was beginning to see a pattern with that. I kept walking only because my voice of reason was repeating "keep going".
I followed the path until I heard my son's voice calling out for me. My eyes lit up and my body moved faster.
"Mommy? Mommy where are you?" his voice called.
"I'm coming, baby. Keep calling and I'll find you!"
"No daddy...stop!"
My heart dropped. 'Daddy? Oh God, what's that bastard doing to my baby now?'
I kept moving until the path lead me to the edge of a very high cliff. Below was a raging ocean pounding against sharp rocks. Brian was standing there with my son in his arms, and he was leaning over the edge. He looked back at me and smiled his cocky smile.
"Why won't you take me back?" he asked quietly.
I frowned and he winked and I saw my son reach for me with tears in his eyes. Brian smiled and slowly stepped off of the edge.
"No!" I jumped from my bed, panting and covered in sweat. "A dream?" I wiped the sweat off of my forehead and looked out the window.
There was a knock at my door a few seconds later. "Lola, are you okay? I heard you yell."
"Michael..." I breathed. "Yes, I'm sorry I woke you." I blushed. How loud was I?
"It's okay as long as you're fine. Why did you yell?"
"Oh...uh, just saw a spider." I felt bad lying to him, but I didn't want him to worry so much.
"A spider?" he didn't sound convinced. "Hm. Well, okay. Get some rest, Lola. Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Mike." I swear I heard him grin at me through the door.
I curled back into my bed and stared at the door. I wondered where this nightmare had come from. I knew my pain was far from over, but did this mean the nightmares would keep coming? I can't just keep lying to Michael. I groaned at myself and finally went back to sleep.
The next morning came by fast. "Rise and shine, Lola!" Janet spoke in a sing song voice. "Much to do, we have...no time to waist!" she pulled the blanket off of me.
"Ugh, Janet...do you have to be such a morning person?" I grumbled.
"Come on, this is day three of our shopping spree. We can get something for Mike this time."
Third day, yes. I met Janet the day after I arrived in Neverland. We went shopping that first day, and to Michael's displeasure, I came back with one pair of shoes. A few weeks later, Janet and I became great shopping buddies. We got along right away, and this week, sadly, is our third day of shopping. I was too exhausted with her. The first day was all about shoes, again. Michael's idea after I fell out of his car the first day I had arrived. The second day was for everything else. Shirts, pants, dresses, underwear, everything in the clothing department. I bitched to Janet about feeling too selfish and I made her promise we could get something for Michael instead of me.
"Three days, Tink, and you already know me so well."
"I learn fast, Wendy," she winked. Yea, we all had our nicknames. Michael was nicknamed Peter Pan, Janet was Tinkerbell, and I was Wendy. Go figure.
I rolled out of bed and got ready. We headed into the kitchen and was greeted by Michael and Kai, his personal chef. (thank you Rebecca)
"Good morning, ladies," he smiled. "Lola, you look rested. I assume you slept well?"
I nodded. Of course my nights have been rather rough since I got here. I kept having the same dream over and over. I was beginning to notice the pain in my heart came only when Michael wasn't near me.
"So, Lola and I are going to hit a few stores and we'll come back here for lunch," Janet said.
"Great. After lunch, we break out the super soakers. Max and the guys are coming out for the day." Michael smiled widely.
"Oh, good. I miss our family," Janet smiled.
"Family? Oh, I finally get to meet everyone?" I asked, excited.
Michael smiled at me. "Yes, family day. You will learn fast though, around here on the Jackson family day, you are bound to get wet."
I giggled. "I don't mind."
Janet watched Michael and I smile at each other for a minute and then clapped her hands together.
"Well, let's get going then."
I nodded and Michael kissed the back of my hand before we left. Janet dragged me all over the city. She was a master at shopping. Michael was right about her talent though. Not one person with a camera had noticed us at all. I was impressed.
"Hey, Janet...does Michael pray?"
Janet stopped digging through a nearby clothes wrack and stared at me. "Sometimes, why?"
I held up a shiny silver chain with a large hollowed out cross hanging at the end. Janet pranced over and grabbed it, studying it carefully.
"What is it?" she asked. "Besides just a cross, I mean."
I took it and opened the cross and Janet looked inside. It had a hollow inside, but the inside of the top part held a place for a small picture.
"It's called a prayer box. My mother got me one when I was a little girl," I sighed and closed my eyes, holding the cross to my chest. "She told me you are supposed to open it and whisper your prayers into it, and then keep it closed. The prayer is only heard by you and God, and it stays locked in this little box until the day you die. Then your prayers go with you to Heaven."
Janet watched me for a minute and then smiled. "Strong believer, huh?" I nodded. "Alright, let's get it for him." I smiled and nodded.
She took it to the front and asked for it to be gift wrapped. When she dug into her purse for her credit card, I told the jeweler I wanted a special message engraved into the back of the cross. She nodded and placed the order without Janet noticing. We did a little more shopping while we waited for the cross to be finished.
When we got back to the ranch, there were a few new cars parked outside that I didn't recognize.
"Ah, the guys are here," Janet smiled.
"Finally...I've been waiting for this moment," I mused, rubbing my hands together.
"Excited to meet the Jackson Five, huh?"
"Nah, actually excited to have my chance to cream the Jackson Five," I laughed.
"Oh snap! I'm definitely on your team then!" she laughed with me.
We high fived each other and got out slowly. She looked around cautiously and motioned for me to stay behind her. I held in a giggle. I swear I was playing the Mission Impossible theme song in my head.
Suddenly, a group of kids came out throwing water balloons and we both dove out of the way. I assumed these were Michael's cousins. I dropped my things and ran. Janet wrestled with two of them and the rest chased after me.
"Get her! Get Apple Head's girlfriend!" they yelled.
I skidded to a stop. "What?"
They closed in on me and cornered me against a big tree. 'Dam me and my easily distracted mind.' I climbed just high enough for them to miss me.
"Dang, she's fast! Come down cheater!"
"Freeze!" I heard Michael yell. "Come on, lay off guys. You can't ambush Lola like this. She doesn't know how we play...yet," he taunted.
"Yet..." I snorted from my branch. "Don't get too cocky Jackson, your arrogance is gonna catch up with you."
Michael laughed and the kids took off after Janet.
"Are you gonna come down, miss squirrel, or do I have to come up there after you?"
"Hmph, I can handle climbing a tree by myself, thank you," I huffed. My foot caught on a lower branch and I slipped. I landed in Michael's arms and he laughed at me.
"Yeah, I can see that."
I grumbled at him. I hated getting treated like I was helpless.
"Aw, don't be like that, Wendy," he teased, poking me in the side.
"Oh, shut up."
He laughed and kissed my forehead and set me back on my feet. I felt my face start to heat up and he quirked his eyebrow and smirked.
"You okay?"
"Yeah...thanks, Peter," I smiled and poked him back.
"Sure, sure," he chuckled and winked at me. "Let's get inside and have lunch. Then the war will be on."
"Alright."
He took my hand and lead me back inside the house, where his whole family sat, waiting for us to arrive. I blushed a little when I saw all eyes on me. I took in everyones' faces in the room, trying to remember names. Michael's parents were there, his brothers and sisters, his cousins, who ambushed me and Janet earlier, and to my suprise, Max was there too. He didn't look much different than he had in his Home Alone movies. I took a few steps back when I noticed Mr. Jackson. His face held anger towards me and it made me nervous. Michael squeezed my hand.
"Everyone, this is my friend Lola. Lola, meet everyone." Michael smiled sweetly and I smiled back.
Michael's mother walked up to me and hugged me. "Nice to finally meet you, baby. We saw you on the television talking about our Michael. I hope you know we consider you a part of the family."
"Mother tends to be overly friendly sometimes," Michael mumbled nervously.
"Nonsense," I smiled. "Nice to meet you too, Mrs. Jackson."
"Oh, baby call me Katie...or mother. Doesn't matter to me," she smiled. I blushed and Mr. Jackson grumbled.
"Don't get too friendly with the white folks, Kate. Can't never trust them."
I gulped and scooted behind Michael. Michael noticed and squeezed my hand.
"Lola, this is my father, Joseph. He has a minor rudeness problem." Mr. Jackson glared at Michael. "You get used to him after a while," he whispered.
"He just needs a nap," Jermaine laughed and came to shake my hand. "Name's Jermaine. Ever need advice on plotting against anyone in this family, other than me, come see me."
I laughed and nodded. The rest of the family introduced themselves. Latoya stayed sitting at the table and stared at herself through a compact mirror. I'd have to remember to stay away from her. Janet had told me her and Michael had never been the same since she told the media that she'd agreed with the children who accused him of molestation.
"It's best to stay out of her way in your case, Lola. If you piss her off, she might run to the media with some ridiculous lie," Janet had said in the car on the way home.
We sat and ate. I got a kick out of Michael and his siblings. Joseph kept glaring at me when I made any kind of sounds, so I did my best to remain silent.
"Alright everyone. Time for the war!" Michael announced. "Max, you're with me and Jermaine. Lola, you're with Janet and Tito. Randy and Jackie are together. Let's go!"
Everyone stood and ran outside. Latoya left early. Michael's parents watched from the porch. Janet stayed close to me.
"Try to watch each other's backs and take out everyone else first. Then, together we focus on Michael," she whispered to me and Tito.
"Got it." I said and Tito nodded. He already knew the routine.
The war began with the water balloons and super soakers. Michael took out Tito first with a water balloon to the butt. Janet and Max went after the little cousins. I took out Randy and Jackie ironically at the same time. They made it far too easy sticking close together like they did.
"Lola, watch it!" Janet called as she nailed Jermaine.
I dove behind a tree as I barely missed a bucket of water being slinged at me by Max. Janet and Max ended up taking each other out at the same time.
"Lola, it's all up to you now. Michael is undefeated. Go for it!" Janet called. The rest of the family cheered me on. 'Yeah...undefeated. No pressure!' I rolled my eyes. I looked around and caught a glimpse of Michael's bright red shirt in the tree.
"I see you, Peter! Don't you cheat now...no flying up trees!" I laughed. He giggled and jumped down and came after me. He flung a balloon at me and I darted out of the way. I shot at him with a super soaker and he dove behind another tree.
This went on for two full hours. We must have ran through the entire ranch before we lost each other. I hid behind a shed near the house and tried to catch my breath.
"I'm still dry, Lola...undefeated! I never lose!" he yelled. I rolled my eyes. 'Always so cocky.'
"Hey, wait a minute guys! Don't do that! I'm a nice person! No! Ah!" I heard him yell and then I heard a loud splash. I ran out and saw Michael in the pool, with all his clothes on, no less, and his cousins and Max were standing by the edge laughing.
Michael glared at them and then smiled. "This doesn't count guys! You cheated! I bet Lola was in on this!"
"I beg your pardon?" I tried to look offended and walked to the side of the pool with my hands on my hips. "I played fair. I was behind the shed when you...fell," I stifled a giggle. "You never lose, huh? I knew your arrogance would catch up to you," I started laughing and he glared at me.
He stared at me for a minute and then he grinned before he disappeared underneath the water. I looked behind me and noticed Max and the others backing up.
"What?" I asked. "Where are you going? Afraid of Michael, are you?"
"No, we just don't wanna get wet again." Max mused.
Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped tightly around me and we fell backwards into the pool. I surfaced and faced Michael. He had a huge grin on his face and I glared at him.
"Was that necessary?" I grumbled.
"Of course it was. I told you before, when you come to Neverland on a family day, you're bound to get wet," he winked at me and I rolled my eyes.
"Well that's obvious," I smiled at him. "You have a booger hanging out of your nose, by the way." He rubbed his nose blushing and I laughed. "Just kidding!" He laughed and I smiled at him and then shivered a little. The water was a little too cold for me.
"Are you cold?" he asked in a worried voice.
"Yeah, just a little. I think I'll live though."
He smiled and I smiled back. We stared into each other's eyes for a while. I was trying to read his feelings like I had when I first met him. He looked extremely calm.
"Uh, come on guys, I know where there's free cotton candy!" Max yelled suddenly.
It wasn't until they snuck away that I noticed how close Michael and I were getting. I didn't know what to do.
'Is he going to kiss me? Oh man, what do I do? Do I let him kiss me?' My mind was going crazy, but my heart was warm.
He brushed a hair behind my ear and touched my cheek. A jolt of electricity shot through me and I gasped. He must've felt it too, because he gasped the same time I did.
"You have really pretty eyes, Lola," he whispered.
"You have a very beautiful heart, Mike," I replied.
He smiled and our lips met very lightly. I shivered and he backed away, looking concerned. I smiled warmly at him and took a step closer to him. Then our lips met again with more force. His lips were as warm and electrifying as his touch. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he held me around my waist. We parted when we needed air.
"Wow," I breathed. "That was..."
"Amazing," he whispered.
We stared into each other's eyes for a minute and then we heard giggles nearby.
"Uh, we better get inside and dry off before we catch a cold," he whispered.
"Oh, right." I forgot we were still in the pool, fully clothed.
We both hesitated and then let go of each other. Michael climbed out first and grabbed my hand to help me out. He held my hand after I got to my feet for a few minutes. Electricity flew through me again and I didn't want to let go.
"Hey Lola, come inside. I want to talk to you!" I heard Janet call.
"Uh, coming!" I called back and looked back at Michael. I kissed his cheek lightly. "Thank you."
He smiled and blushed. "No, thank you."
"For what?" I asked.
"Lola!" Janet called again.
I frowned and Michael laughed. "Just...thank you. You better go before she has a panic attack and comes after us both." He kissed me again and I nodded before heading back into the house.
"Where have you been? And why are you dripping?" Janet laughed. "Michael got you, didn't he?"
"Not before Max got him," I giggled.
She looked at me in confusion until a soaked Michael walked by with a frustrated look on his face. Janet had to sit down, she was laughing so hard. "Oh shut up, Tink. They cheated," he grumbled and then winked at me. I smiled and he walked towards the hallway to his bedroom.
"Come on, Lola," Janet spoke after she caught her breath. "Let's get you changed."
I followed her back to my room and she threw me a towel. She sat on my bed and dug through the many bags of clothes we brought back from the store. While she dug through and pulled off tags, I jumped in the shower. When I got out, she had all the clothes tagless and hanging neatly in my closet. She was fast.
"So, Lola...when do you plan on giving my brother his gift?" she asked.
"Hm...I don't know. I want to time it just right and make sure we are alone, so I can explain how the gift works."
She gave me a funny look and then layed back on my bed as we continued to talk. I dried off and got dressed and sat in front of my mirror. Janet got behind me and started to brush my hair for me.
"Random thought...if you could have any car in the world, what would it be?"
"What?" I asked. "Where did that come from?"
"Nowhere, hence the word 'random.' Michael said you had a Mustang when he met you. I was just curious about your taste in cars."
"Yeah, I used to have one. He said he was going to buy me a new engine, but I don't think it could've been saved. It wasn't just the engine that needed to be replaced, I'm sure. I wouldn't ask Michael to spend that much money on me."
"As many problems as it did have, according to Jermaine, I really don't think there was too much that could have been done."
"Jermaine?" I asked. "What does he know about cars?"
"Tons actually. He owns the shop Michael had your car taken to. He's the one that's kept everyone's cars running in this family."
"I didn't realize." I waited for the point behind this entire conversation.
"So, tell me, what's your dream car?" she asked.
"Uh, I never thought about it. I guess I'd want an older style car. I've always liked the old muscle cars, like the Mustang. I love Mustangs."
"What color?" I was getting very curious as to why she wanted to know so much, but I ignored it.
"Hm...well, I think I'd like it black, with a saphire colored rose painted on the hood."
She thought for a minute. "A saphire rose? That's different."
"Yeah, that's what makes me unique I guess. I like having things that no one else has." I shrugged my shoulders and smirked at her through the mirror.
"Like my brother's heart?" I froze and she laughed. "Oh come on, you can't deny it. I know he has your heart too. I see the way you two look at each other. There's no fooling me."
"Uh, well I don't know about that. I mean, of course I like him. He's my best friend."
"Nope, there's alot more than that. I see something a whole lot more when you are around each other. I think it's sweet. Michael hasn't acted this happy in years. It's a good thing you came along, Lola."
I blushed. 'I have his heart? I mean, I know he kissed me, but...wow.'
"Just promise me you'll be careful with him. He's got a fragile heart."
"Yeah," I sighed, suddenly feeling guilty. "I know that feeling all too well."
She stopped brushing my hair and sat back on the bed. "You've been hurt too, huh? You want to talk about it?" She patted the spot on the bed next to her and I bit my lower lip. "You don't have to, Lola. I just want you to know I'm always around if you need someone to talk to."
"I think I'm in love with him..." I slapped my hand over my mouth and Janet paused and then smiled.
"I thought so. Don't worry, I won't tell him anything you don't want me to. I really do think the feeling is mutual though. All I can tell you is take it slow. But if you truly do love him, you should open up to him and tell him everything. He can help you mend while you help him." I nodded and sighed. We stayed quiet for a few minutes before she jumped up.
"Well, I'm going to go meet Peter in the studio. We're recording a duet for the first time," she smiled.
She assured me one more time that she'd stay quiet about my little secret and then she left. I layed back on the bed and the pain in my heart slowly started to come back. I curled into a ball and held my breath.
'I do love him, but how can I tell him that? How can I expect him to heal me? That's so unfair to expect so much from him.'
I reached across the bed and grabbed his gift wrapped box holding the special necklace inside and I hugged it to my chest. The pain slowed into a throbbing pain and I opened the box and twirled the necklace in my fingers. I ran my fingertips over the engraved message and smiled.
"To my Michael, my faith in you will never fade. I love you. Love, Lola."
I whispered the words to myself with my eyes shut. I raised up and looked at the calender on my bedside table.
'There's a full moon next week. I'll give him his present then, if I can get him alone long enough.'
The next few days went by too slowly. His parents stayed in the guest house and ate with us every day. I grew very close to Katie. I was even close to calling her 'mother' but Joseph had me nervous everytime he came into view. The nightmares had stopped haunting me until one night...
We sat at the dinner table and ate as we did every evening. Michael's parents, Janet, and his brothers joined us. Joseph kept a close eye on me and Michael, and he finally got too annoyed to remain silent.
"Who is this white girl you brought home, Michael? I don't like this. I don't like the way she looks at you, or the way you look at her. You're losing your focus."
I bit my lip and sank down in my chair. Everyone else simply glared at Joseph.
"My focus is fine, Joseph. Please don't be rude to my best friend. And her name is Lola," Michael said calmly.
"I don't care what her name is. You are going to lose everything if you continue to let this girl follow you around like some kind of lost puppy."
"Joseph!" Katie scorned.
"No! Don't shush me, Kate. What's gonna happen, Michael, hm? You gonna fall in love with a crazed fan now?"
"She's not like them. I care for her alot, Joseph. You need to be more polite." I was suprised at how calm Michael remained. I would have completely lost my temper and cussed him out if he were my father. Another reason why I looked up to Michael so much.
"Care for her means that you love her. If you had kids with this girl, you would regret it. She would be too careless. I bet she'd even end up killing your first child out of her own neglegence," he gritted through his teeth.
That did it for me. My heart felt like it was on fire and I grasped my chest and sucked in a deep breath. Everyone was too busy scolding Joseph to notice, and I was thankful for that. I took a few deep breaths and looked at Michael. He had anger in his eyes. The same anger he had when those gang members attacked me the first day we met.
"Michael, I'm sorry..." I breathed out. "Could I please be excused?"
Michael's eyes went from angry to sad when he looked at me. I couldn't blame him. I probably went pale after what Joseph said. His words felt like poison to me. Michael nodded his head and Joseph grumbled. I stood and apologized to his family. I walked slowly past the table and Michael grabbed my hand.
"Are you okay?" he whispered. "I'm so sorry."
Tears burned in my eyes and I kissed his cheek. I didn't have the strength to answer. I walked a little faster towards the back door, and once I was outisde, I broke into a sprint. I had to get as far away as I could so no one could see me in this much pain.
Michael watched me leave and then turned to glare at Joseph. "How could you be so cruel? I understand you acting this way to me or anyone else in our family, but not to her. She didn't do anything wrong."
"She's keeping you from your fans and your career."
"No she's not," Janet jumped in. "Michael and I have been working very hard on a new song. Michael has been working even harder. Lola hasn't changed that at all."
"She will when she falls in love with you."
"I love her," Michael growled, slamming his fist on the table. No one but Joseph looked suprised. "I brought her here by my own choice. I won't make her leave. I love her. You can either get used to her and be polite from now on, or you can leave and never come back. You decide."
Joseph thought for a minute and then got up and walked towards the guest house. "I'm going to bed."
Everyone watched him leave and Michael let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding in.
"So, does she know?" Katie asked.
"Not yet. I was waiting for the perfect time to tell her. I don't know how she feels about me yet. I don't want to make her uncomfortable incase she doesn't feel the same way," he said quietly.
"I doubt that's the case," Janet mumbled. Michael quirked a brow at her. "I can see it in her eyes, Mike. She loves you," she smiled at him and he smiled back. "I just hope she's okay. She looked like she was in alot of pain."
"She was. I'm gonna give her some time to herself before I go find her. I'm gonna go take a shower. Watch for her, okay? Let me know the second you see her."
Janet nodded and he got up and left. Soon, I found myself by the zoo. I stopped running and let the pain catch up to me. I leaned against the fence for support. I got startled when I felt a push against my back. I relaxed when I saw a giraffe nuzzling my shoulder. I turned and rubbed his nose and he nibbled on my shirt.
"What am I supposed to do?" I asked the giraffe. "How do you tell the King of Pop you're in love with him? How do you tell him why you're in so much pain when you don't want him hurting too? How many times has he even heard someone tell him they're in love with him? Won't be anything new to him, I'm sure."
The wind started to pick up and cooler air hit my skin and made me shiver. The giraffe jerked his head up and looked away for a minute before turning slowly and retreating for cover. I shrugged and spotted a nearby tree and climbed up into the fork of two large branches. I curled into a ball when the pain began to get worse. It seemed to get more and more painful by the minute. Atleast I was alone where I could cry out without having to worry about someone pitying me.
But this pain was getting worse...because I needed Michael with me. He was the one that made it disappear when I was around him. There's no mistaking it. I do love him, but I still don't think I'm ready to tell him about my past. Another wave of pain hit and I heard thunder. 'Great...a storm.' The pain got worse and I yelled out.
"Damnit! Michael where are you?" For the first time in years, I let myself cry out for help. I didn't care who heard me. I needed Michael now.
