"Ramona?" a light voice said. "I brought you something to eat in case you were hungry," Kai said as she brought a tray of breakfast into the guest house. This little house had it all. A bathroom, a game room, and even a small living room with some space to dance. Ramona never used it though. She had been in the guest house for almost a week and she hadn't left it yet.
Michael came to check on her every now and then when he got the chance. Every time he came in, he found her sitting in the same spot, by the window, looking outside with the saddest expression on her face. He began to worry she would never smile again and seeing her so hurt and sad made his heart hurt.
Kai set the tray of food on the table in the small dining room and walked up to Ramona. Every morning, she greeted her and checked on her bruises. She brushed Ramona's hair from her face and noticed tears sliding down Ramona's cheeks. It pained her to see it and she knew there was nothing she could do.
"Are you in any pain?" she asked. Ramona simply shook her head and kept staring out the window. Kai nodded and left. Ramona waited for a few moments before she stood and shuffled her feet to the table. She took a few bites of her food and then went back to her place by the window. It was interesting to her to be able to watch the sky change colors. When it rained, she felt as if she could count the raindrops.
Finally Michael was too edgy and he decided to spend the day locked up with Ramona. He was determined to get her to talk to him. He knew more than anyone what it could do to someone who bottles up their feelings for so long.
He walked in around noon and closed the door behind him. He kissed the top of Ramona's head and sat down next to her and stared out the window with her. "Beautiful day, isn't it?" he asked. She nodded but said nothing. "Would you like to go for a walk?" he asked and she shook her head. He sighed. "Babygirl, I know you're confused and hurting. I am hurting too just seeing you like this. I can help you, if you would open up to me."
He paused and gave her some time to chew on his words and then he reached down and grabbed her hand. He squeezed it tightly and held it and looked back out the window. If time is all she needed, he would be glad to give it to her. They sat there for about 10 minutes before she sighed. Tears began to fall down her pale cheeks and she lay her head on his shoulder. Michael instantly put his arm around her and held her against him.
"I…I wish I knew the words to express the way I feel right now, but I don't even know. It's so much easier to write it than to speak it," she said softly.
"I understand. That's why I'm here. I will help you every step of the way," he said. "What do you feel physically right now?"
Ramona assessed her body and cringed. "My ankle still hurts, my nerves are shot and I feel sick to my stomach," she paused. "I…don't think I even want to dance anymore. I just don't have it in me."
"What are you saying?" he asked, pulling away from her. He turned her to face him and he got on his knees in front of her and held her hands tightly in his. "Of course you have it in you! Babygirl, please listen to me. I know you've been through a lot and I know you're hurting, but that doesn't mean you should give up dancing. That's something you love to do. It's your passion! You cannot give up something you were meant to do. It just doesn't happen. Dancing is in your blood, so please don't give that up!" he begged her.
Ramona looked unsure. "I don't know, Mike. Maybe Luke was right when he told me dancing would get me into trouble. Just look at me now, hiding away in your guest house like a coward," she looked down and another tear slipped.
Michael wiped it away. "That has nothing to do with dancing and you shouldn't even waist your time thinking about him. He's the cause of all of this. Don't listen to anything that sorry excuse for a man may have said to you in the past. It's all over now."
She sighed. "It's kind of hard not to think about him when the bruises on my body seem to throb his name every second," she paused as he frowned. She squeezed his hands. "I'm sorry, Mike. I guess I just need some time to process all of this drama. I'm not used to so much going on all at once."
"I know you aren't," he replied and tilted her chin to look into his eyes. "You need time to heal. I wish I could change all of this, babygirl. I knew I shouldn't have trusted him. You were far too good for him and that is an understatement, believe me."
Ramona sighed again. "Thanks, Michael. And thank you for allowing me to stay here. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Michael smiled weakly. "You're welcome, Ramona. I honestly don't know what I'd do without you either. I thank God every single day for allowing me to have you as my best friend. Such an amazing best friend who is strong, kind, funny, loving, and so many other wonderful things. I don't think I have enough words to describe how wonderful you are. I love you, Ramona. Never forget that," he smiled.
Her face lit up and she finally smiled a little and hugged him tightly. "I love you too, Michael."
"You will get through this, babygirl. I have faith in you, and I will be there when you need me," he smiled and added "pun intended."
She finally cracked a smile and he snickered at her. 'Point for Michael,' he thought.
Some time after Michael finally left, she paced the room in thought. Michael made quite a few good points about Luke and about dancing. Her ankle wasn't hurting as badly as it had the day she twisted it. She thought about going back home, and then fear began to set in. What if he came back for her? What if he raped her or kidnapped her and she never saw Michael again?
"Hm…Michael…" she whispered to herself. She sat down at the table and pulled out a notebook and a pencil and she began to write. She found it much easier to type about this girl with these emotions she couldn't figure out, and then someone came along and showed her how to use them. Then she bit her pencil in thought and she slowly developed an idea for her own life story. She was going to write about this girl who risked her life for a man she didn't know and how she met him. He didn't know who she was and they became friends. Basically it was her story and how she met Michael.
Ramona worked on this story constantly. She stopped when she got a call from her boss demanding new stories. She would stop her story, write a random one and turned it in just so she could get back to her story. Michael soon began working on a new album and he had quite a few places to visit to promote it so he was gone quite often.
One morning, Ramona decided to venture out of the guest house for the first time. She stepped out into the sunlight and breathed in deeply. She missed the sunlight. She carried her notebook and walked around the ranch for a while before sitting near a fountain and writing a new chapter.
"She lives!" Derek yelled from the distance and made Ramona jump. "Sorry! Didn't mean to scare you!"
"It's fine. How are you?" she asked.
"Oh you know me, I never complain. You look a little paler than normal, but better than limping around. How's the ankle?"
"Almost 100% healed now," she smiled. "Could you do me a favor?" she asked hesitantly.
"Sure, you don't even have to ask," he winked.
"Do you think you could accompany me to the park for a while?" she bit her lip shyly and he smiled.
"Perfect day for a stroll around the park! I'll get my shades and meet you out front," he said and walked away happily.
Ramona grinned and shook her head. She ran inside to grab her sunglasses and changed clothes. She scribbled on a note for Michael that she was out with Derek in case he came home while she was gone. Writing notes for Michael, she thought. Almost feels like they were some married couple. Her cheeks lit up at the very thought and she made a mental note of that.
When they got to the park, Derek took on his guard duties seriously and scanned the area. He was very protective over her even if it wasn't his job to do so. He wanted to break Luke's neck for ever laying a hand on her. It infuriated him to no end and he was determined to make Ramona feel safe and free again. Ramona walked around in the park and watched some kids play and smiled. She wrote more of her story and stayed for about an hour and a half before deciding to leave.
"So, where to next?" he asked.
"I don't know. Do you think Mike made it back home yet?" she asked.
"I doubt it. He's supposed to be preparing for rehearsals on his new video," he said.
Ramona chewed on her lip and then sighed. "Can we call the girls? I'd like to go to my house."
Derek almost choked on his water. "Really? You're ready for that?" he asked.
"I…I think so," she said quietly.
"Hey, don't sweat it. I went and had your locks changed the day after he left. Besides, he wont be able to come near the place without one of us seeing him. We put up cameras on every corner of the house and the feed comes back to our security office. You are untouchable, my dear."
Ramona nodded. "Thanks, Derek." She picked up her phone and dialed Tasha. "Hey. Yeah, I'm okay. I know it's been a while. Can you get the girls together and meet me at my place? Uh huh…yeah I'm heading there now. I don't want to do this alone. Okay, thank you. Bye," she hung up. "They will meet us there."
Ramona clinged to her notebook as they finally pulled up in front of her house. She knew she was headed into a disaster area. Derek handed her the new key and she stood frozen in place on her front porch. The girls pulled up in Tasha's SUV and jumped out and hugged her tightly.
"How are you?" Tasha asked.
"Are you okay?" Saph asked.
"We've been so worried!" Jaz added.
"I'm okay. Thanks for coming," she said quietly and turned back to the door. She reached for the knob with shaky hands and her friends surrounded her, placing a hand on her for support. She pushed the door open and gasped at the place. Derek stepped in front of the girls and went in first out of instinct. They had to step over broken chairs and the table. Ramona's eyes welled up when she noticed the statue shattered on the ground. Michael designed this house for her, and it was destroyed.
Anger welled up and then suddenly, she felt fear. She bolted forward to her room and found it still locked. She had locked it to keep Luke out after he moved in. She pulled her key out of her pocket and unlocked it. She sighed in relief to see her portrait of Michael hadn't been touched. Why was she so worried about his picture? She made another mental note before rejoining the group.
"Looks like we have our work cut out for us," Saph grinned.
Ramona's eyes lit up and she hugged them all. They all worked together to clean up the mess and did what they could. The walls still had holes in them and quite a few things were hard to replace. She sighed when they finished and thanked them again.
"Do you want to stay here tonight?" Derek asked her.
Ramona's face turned white and she shook her head. "I don't think I can."
"Okay then," he nodded and locked her house up for her and took her home.
After a few days went by, Ramona gained her color back and Tasha was in the guest house with her. "Okay, get your things together. We are going out, just you and me."
"I thought you had to work?" she asked.
"I do. Now come on, you will love it!" she said. She pushed Ramona out the door and into her SUV. Derek jumped in his car and followed close behind just in case. Michael told him to keep a close eye on her at all times when he couldn't be there to protect her. As they drove toward an unknown destination, Ramona sat back and wrote more on her story. "What are you writing?" Tasha asked.
"My story. Michael suggested I write more since I couldn't exactly express my feelings with my words, so as I started to write, it turned more into a story. I haven't titled it yet, but this story is giving me a new outlook on myself and I am starting to feel things I never felt before." Ramona blushed a little.
"Oh? Like what?" Tasha asked.
"Everyone around me makes me feel a certain way. Good things, you know. But when I write about my times with Michael, I feel jittery. Does that make sense?" she asked.
"Like butterflies in your tummy?" Tasha asked.
"No I just feel nervous. I don't know what flying insects have to do with anything…" Ramona said strangely.
Tasha burst out laughing. "Oh dear, you have so much to learn."
Soon, Tasha pulled up to a studio and Ramona glanced at her. "Tasha…"
Tasha jumped out and tossed Ramona a duffle bag. "Come on, let's get in there. I have a job to do," she said.
Ramona followed her in this huge building and they walked into a dressing room of some kind. She changed into her dancing clothes and gave Ramona a look. "What?"
"Aren't you going to change?" she asked, pointing at the bag.
Ramona unzipped it to find her dancing clothes. She argued with Tasha back and forth before giving in and changing into her dance clothes. She pulled her hair up and had slipped on a sports bra with thick straps to hide her scar.
"Alright, let's go!" Tasha grabbed her by the hand and pulled her out of the room and toward what looked like a stage. This was no studio, Ramona realized. She stopped and watched Tasha run out in front of a bunch of other people. "Let's go!"
Soon, the guitar began to play a familiar song and Tasha began to dance. She went through it a few times and Ramona watched her work in fascination. It looked like fun. What was she thinking? She told herself she would dance no more after Luke…just as she thought about that, she heard Michael's voice in her head. "Dancing is in your blood. Don't give that up!"
Ramona nodded to the beat and the second she memorized the steps, she ran out next to Tasha and danced right next to her. "That's my girl!" Tasha cheered. She looked over Ramona's head and then smiled widely. "You think you have this dance down?" she asked Ramona.
"Yeah, I think so," she said.
Tasha nodded. "Let's take it from the top. Go!"
The drummer counted in and the guitar began. Ramona began to dance when she noticed Tasha move out of the way. Right afterwards, she heard Michael's voice scream out and he appeared next to her and began to sing Black or White.
Ramona hesitated when she felt that jittery feeling. He was dressed in his black pants and white shirt. His hair was down and flowing and he looked so beautiful with the stage lights hitting him like that. Ramona lost focus and stumbled a bit and Michael cut the music.
"Are you alright?" he asked her.
"Yeah, I guess I'm a bit rusty," she blushed.
"Hm," he thought. "Johnny, let's have a little fun. Play Scream for me," he said. The man behind the headphones nodded and the song began to play. Michael winked at her. He knew she knew this dance by heart. She stood next to him and danced all the way through it and she had never felt more alive.
When they got home, Michael led her to the studio and told her he had something special for her. He wrote a song and recorded it just for her. He called it her theme song and he hit play. After thanking him several times, she found herself a new favorite song. Slave to the Rhythm.
That night in the guest room, she paced in front of her table and wrote more on her story. As she wrote about her running to Michael when she ran from Luke, she dropped her pencil. A series of flashbacks began to strike her mind like a movie. Every moment Michael was there, every bit of love he gave her, all of the comfort, every smile, every time he played with her like a child, all playing back to back. She blinked a few times and then gasped. Realization struck! And for once in her life, she had the right words to use. She bent over her notebook and flipped to a blank page and wrote in big bold letters: I'm in love with Michael Jackson
Now that she knew what she felt, she had to decide if she should tell him or not. Then she thought about Lisa. She didn't want to ruin what he had with Lisa. No one deserved that. Ramona plopped down in her chair and sighed. At least now she wasn't so scared of Luke anymore. The next day, she decided to move back home. If she wanted to keep the peace between her and Lisa, she needed to try and make things normal again.
After about a week, Michael invited Ramona to the set of Black or white. She was a little confused when she saw Macaulay Culkin sitting nearby looking innocent. Ramona stuck her tongue out at him when they made eye contact and he giggled and made a face at her. They went back and forth making faces until Michael caught them.
"Am I going to have to separate the two of you?" he asked sarcastically.
"No," Mac said.
"Maybe," Ramona snickered and Mac laughed. "So why did you invite me here?" she asked as she followed him around the set.
"Well, see…I have this plot going on with John Landis, my producer," Michael stopped when they entered a room with a huge table set with a large number of pies and whipped cream.
Ramona put a hand over her mouth and giggled. "Oh, you're bad."
"You know it," he winked and Ramona felt that jittery feeling again.
She followed Michael as the rest of the people joined in and sat down. She listened intently to Mac explain the plan and he even rehearsed it with Michael to make sure they understood each other. Ramona giggled and sat down at the end of the table. Michael left the room and came back with John.
"Come on John," he said reassuringly. "Come join us."
"I don't know, this looks pretty suspicious," he said with a smirk as Michael led him to his seat.
"So, John, I wanted to thank you and celebrate with you on this wonderful video," Michael started.
Mac snuck up behind him with a pie in his hand and Ramona bit back a giggle. "And John?" he said, tapping his shoulder.
John winced and took off his glasses and turned around. "What Mac?"
Mac creamed him in the face and then the war was on. Pies flew through the air and Ramona ran and dodged the cream flying everywhere. Michael threw a pie at her and hit her in the butt and she nailed him in the side of the head. Michael laughed the loudest out of everyone in there. They chased each other around and Michael jumped to dodge Mac's mad throwing skills. Ramona found an opening and tackled Michael with a pie in her hand. Michael had a pie in his hand and they nailed each other and fell on the floor. Michael had cream all over his face and Ramona only had it in her hair.
"I love your makeup," she giggled as he lay over the top of her.
"Are you jealous? Allow me to help you with that," he said as he smeared his face against hers. She kicked and screamed and giggled and he laughed along with her until they heard a voice clear nearby.
"Michael! What in the world are you doing?" Lisa shrieked. Michael cleared his throat and jumped up and then helped Ramona up.
"Hi Lisa," Ramona giggled. "Want some pie?" she asked and Michael laughed again.
"No I don't! Michael I cant believe you ruined the new shirt I got you! We have to do that interview in less than an hour and you look like…you look like…" she was so mad she couldn't think of the words.
"Like a marshmallow blew up on his face?" Ramona added.
Michael laughed again and Lisa glared daggers at Ramona and stomped off. "I guess Cruella is back," he said. "I'll see you later," he said and gave Ramona a quick kiss on the lips and took off after Lisa.
Ramona shook off the jitters and rubbed her lips together. Oh boy, she was in trouble. A few weeks later, Ramona had gotten to a point in her story where she revealed her love to Michael. She stopped it there and placed 3 periods at the end. She couldn't take it anymore, she had to tell him how she felt. She promised him she would always be honest with him and she intended to be, but how to tell him? She paced and paced in thought.
"I wonder what he's going to say…" she said to herself.
Meanwhile…
Lisa and Michael were on his bed and Lisa was trying desperately to seduce him, but he had other things on his mind. Ramona was acting different around him. She had been ever since Tasha got her to dance with him during rehearsals. She was glowing.
"Come on, Mike, get into it," Lisa mumbled against his neck.
Michael pushed her away. "There's nothing to get into, Lisa. Cut it out," he said.
"I don't want to cut it out," she said in a sexy voice. Michael continued to tune her out. Why couldn't he get his mind off of Ramona?
Back at Ramona's, she finally decided she was going to take her unfinished story to Michael and let him read it. He was smart enough to understand what she was trying to tell him, wasn't he? She was tired of sitting around and doing nothing. She threw on her shoes and headed for Neverland. Derek let her in the gates and she made her way to Michael's room. The door was cracked open so she pushed it open a bit to look inside. She froze when she saw Lisa half naked on top of him, kissing his neck. Michael was looking away. Ramona hiccupped accidentally and Lisa and Michael both jumped and looked to see Ramona's retreating form.
"What was I thinking? Oh my God!" she said to herself as she ran out of the house. She dropped her notebook on the porch and ran home without looking back. "Oh man, am I a fool or what? How could I do that to him!" she yelled at herself.
Meanwhile, Michael was trying to calm Lisa down. "She was snooping! What the hell kind of friend is that, anyway? I knew I should never have trusted her!" she yelled and threw on some clothes.
"She is a great friend, don't talk like that. Where are you going?" he asked as he followed her to the front door.
"To give her a piece of my mind!" she stomped out the door and stepped on the notebook on her way out.
"Lisa!" Michael yelled and then looked down at the notebook. It had Ramona's name on it. He opened it and began to read it.
Back at Ramona's, she had been pacing in the living room for a while and she slapped herself. "I'm calling him to apologize." She picked up her kitchen phone and dialed his number and got his answering machine. "Figures," she snorted and waited for the beep. "Listen, Mike, I'm sorry I intruded on you guys like that, I should never have…" she was interrupted when her door was kicked in.
"After all this time…why didn't I realize…" Lisa growled.
Ramona had dropped the phone when her door flew open. "Lisa, what are you doing here?"
"Don't think you can play dumb with me! Why didn't I see it before? You just wanted to take him away from me, didn't you?"
"N…no you got it all wrong," she tried to reason with her.
"Is that why you came to his bedroom late at night? I had that wrong? Ha! Luke was right for what he did to you," she snarled.
"W…what?" she stuttered. "He wanted to rape me…to kill me!" she yelled.
"He should have finished the job!" she yelled as she picked up a piece of wood from the broken door and threw it at Ramona. It hit her in the arm and the winced. Lisa kept yelling at her and throwing things at her. She picked up a large chunk of wood and hit her on the side of the head, knocking her down.
Ramona could see stars. Then she heard another voice. "May I cut in?"
Luke came through the door and Ramona saw his face when a flash of lightning suddenly lit up the sky. He kicked her hard in the side and picked her up by the throat. She barely had the energy to fight back and he threw her down and hit her several times. Her shirt was torn off of her with her scar showing.
"Never did heal pretty, did it?" Lisa sneered.
"No but if she would have stayed away I would have hit my target," Luke growled. Ramona's eyes grew wide and she coughed up some blood.
"Y…you? You were the one?" she asked weakly.
Lisa kicked her in the head and stomped hard on her scar. "Yep, he is the one who pulled that trigger," she said evilly.
"Why?" she gasped. "Why would you allow someone you love to get hurt?"
"You can't get hurt if you're the one behind the gun," she winked at Luke and Ramona felt sick to her stomach. She coughed up more blood and gagged when she saw Lisa kiss Luke very passionately in front of her.
"You disgust me," Ramona forced out. "You don't deserve Michael!"
Luke kicked her in the side and stomped on her scar once more and knocked her unconscious. Lisa and Luke finally left the house and Lisa stopped him right outside and kissed him again. "Next time you use the gun, don't hesitate. And if you come across her again…kill her."
Luke and Lisa disappeared into the stormy night.
Meanwhile, Michael had just finished reading the last line. "She loves me?" he whispered. Just then, he heard a beep and he went to the answering machine. It had a new message and he hit the play button. He heard Ramona apologize followed by a large bang and her scream. Everything Lisa had said along with Luke was recorded. Michael could barely make out the words, but he knew now what he had sensed all along. Lisa had been unfaithful and she was unfaithful with Luke of all people.
She waltzed in the door and froze when she saw the look on his face. "How long have you been there?"
"Long enough. You cheated on me…with him?" he shook his head. "Tisk tisk, I thought you knew better than that."
"It's not what you think…" she started.
"What have you done to Ramona?" he asked.
"We had a minor disagreement and we settled it. It's over now. Let's go to bed, shall we?" she asked innocently.
Her voice played loud and clear over the machine. Michael glanced over his shoulder at the machine and raised a brow at her. "Really, Lisa? Really?"
"I know what it sounds like, but I set him straight. I promise I changed, Michael. Let me prove it to you!" she begged.
Michael thought for a moment and then sighed and opened his arms for her. She hesitated and then smiled and walked over to him. She held her arms out to hug him and he slapped her hard across the face. She stumbled back a few feet and grabbed her face.
"You…you didn't just…how is that possible? I thought you were raised better than that!" she yelled.
"True. I was raised to never strike a lady…" he stepped closer to her with rage in his eyes. "But I have no problems putting a bitch in her place. Get your shit and get out of my house. If you come near me or Ramona again, your ass is going to jail along with that boyfriend of yours."
Lisa looked shocked but she did as she was told. As soon as she left, Michael sprinted toward Ramona's. He ran through her door and found her fighting to stand up. She had no shirt on and her back was to him.
"Ramona!"
"I'm okay. It's fine. Go back home to Lisa. I won't ruin things anymore," she winced. Michael shook his head and ran over to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. She flinched away from him. "Please don't!"
"I won't leave you, Ramona. Let me help you," he said.
"Go back to Lisa," she said again.
"Lisa is gone for good and I won't leave you."
"Why?" she said angrily. "You were happy with her before I came along. What happened to that?"
"Aren't you listening to me? Damnit, Ramona!" he hit his fist against the wall and Ramona covered her ears and grabbed what was left of her top and threw it on, running outside into the rain. Michael chased her down. "Why can't you use your emotions like you did in your story? Why won't you let anyone in? Damnit why can't you see how much I love you!" he yelled.
Ramona's eyes widened and she turned around. "I…do. I love you, Michael."
"Do you?" he asked and she nodded. "I don't believe you."
"What?" she asked in shock.
"Do you even know the difference between loving and being in love, Ramona?" he asked. He wasn't trying to be as cold as he sounded. He realized while reading her story that he too was in love with her, but he wanted to make sure she was really in love with him.
Ramona's face changed from shock to anger. She trembled and then ripped the rest of her shirt off, revealing her scar to Michael for the first time. "I was the one in Bucharest, Michael! If what I did there wasn't an act of love, I don't know what is!" she yelled.
Michael remained unmoving, staring at her scar. "It was you?" he asked breathlessly.
Ramona moved forward and let him get a closer look. He studied the scar and then placed his hand on it and looked into her eyes. She smiled with tears in her eyes. "I love you. I'm in love with you, Michael."
Michael didn't bother to say anything more. He pulled her to him and kissed her with as much passion as he could give. He slid his tongue across her lips and she opened for him. Their tongues battled each other and both moaned in delight, tasting each other for the first time. Michael pulled away and lifted her up and spun her around, both laughing. Derek snapped a picture from nearby, but they barely noticed the flash of the camera.
They kissed again and moved into Ramona's room, bumping into walls and doors, never breaking the kiss. Ramona fell back on her bed and Michael climbed on top of her, letting her peel off his shirt. He paused when he looked up and noticed himself looking at…well…himself.
"What?" Ramona panted.
"Okay…that's…odd," he said and then shrugged and continued kissing her. They fought to get their clothes off and finally they were joined together as one. Ramona had never felt anything like it before. She was in pure bliss the entire time. They made love all night long and both had never been happier.