Sunday, June 5, 1988 – Malibu, California
JESUS H… What the hell is this crap?
Cursing under her breath she threw the early edition of the LA Times onto her kitchen table. Instantly the headache that had gotten her out of bed this morning flared in her temples. She didn’t think anything could make her feel worse, but reading the paper this morning she was quickly proven wrong. It made her feel ten times as bad and twice as mad. When she woke she was hung over and hung over big time. Her head hurt and her body felt heavy and lethargic. Wanting to forget she was getting too old for her Saturday night escapades, a promise of coffee and her morning paper awaited. But she was soon let down.
Valerie stood up and pushed the chair she had been sitting on halfway across her kitchen floor. Entering her living room she immediately began searching for the tour schedule and the location of where she could find Allison in Europe.
Shit… where did I put it.
Not thinking it would be a necessity until she joined them later in July, she had no idea where it was or if she had even kept it.
Val groaned as she searched through the pile of paper on the coffee table.
“God dammit! Where the fuck is it,” she huffed as she searched frantically.
SHIT!! Her headache throbbed the more she fretted. This was crazy… what in the world was going on.
Val’s heart was racing frantically with worry…. dammit, dammit dammit…. what if she couldn’t find it?
She stopped for a quick moment to try and calm herself. She took in a deep breath and palmed her brow for a moment, trying to think, trying to remember where she had put it.
“Where are you,” she said aloud, scanning the room for a possible hiding place.
She needed to find it now… and she needed to talk to Allison as soon as she did. She had to know what in the world was going on and why Allison’s picture was smack dab in the middle of the morning newspapers front page. They had left a day earlier than scheduled, but Allison still managed to get a tour schedule to Val. Faxing over a rudimentary list of countries and hotel details a couple of days after they had left. Of course, Allison being Allison, she wanted to make sure that someone had their daily calendar in the case anyone back home needed to contact her. Not that anyone would need to… up until now!
Aha… YES that’s it! A fax! Val smiled triumphantly… she faxed me. That could only mean that it was with her items from work and most likely in her day-timer. Looking at the side of the couch Val reached for her Gucci briefcase and pulled out the matching leather case of her daily schedule.
Please, please be in here….pulllease, I don’t know where else to look…
She flipped urgently through to the back pages until finally she found exact what she was looking
for… there hiding between the thick white pages was the thin filmy sheet of paper with all the details of the tour’s schedule. Scrolling down the faded print she saw that they were currently in the Netherlands and staying at the Pincoffs Hotel in Rotterdam. Looking further across she found the phone number and the name she should use to get in contact with her. Now she could get to the bottom of this…. and get to it now.
Rotterdam, Picoffs Hotel – Love Suite
Allison curled her hands around her cup of tea as she sank further down into the leather chair near the fire place in their suite. It was only just after noon and she was already wishing she had a glass of wine with the bottle nearby. She listened as they continued to discuss her, Michael and the situation as if she wasn’t even in the room. Everyone was talking so loudly all at once and over top of each other it was giving her a headache and she was sure it could be heard down on the entire floor. Of course, there was no need to worry that any unsuspecting ears would be hearing the quarrelling and demanding voices coming from within. Once again Michael’s team had arranged for the entire hotel to be booked for their use only. They were currently staying at the Pincoffs Hotel. A small luxury hotel located near the trendy left bank of Rotterdam and near the city centre.
The hotel boasted four superior suites on the upper floor that they could choose to spend their stay; the Pincoffs Suite; the Art Suite; the Romantic Suite and the one they were currently in the “Love Suite.” Although at this moment it as was anything but that. She took another sip of her tea trying swallow the sounds of their voices.
“This is not good Michael!”
“Why did you need to take her out publicly without anyone knowing?”
“What are the plans for her now?”
“This should have been discussed.”
“Why was Elizabeth there, we should have known.”
“The press are having a field day with this.”
“You should have said something.”
It went on and on from there… and it just made her head throb and her stomach churn. But it didn’t matter what they said now or how they thought it should have been handled. There were no way to fix this… there was no going back to before that night and there really was no good way to look at it.
She took a deep breath as she tried to block out the myriad of conversations going on. She set her tea down and stood to walk towards the large window. She stared out across the waterfront that lined the length of their hotel. She felt sick. This was so not good and not what she or anyone had been expecting. In the last 72 hours, she went from anonymous and unknown to the mystery girl with Michael Jackson on the cover of every major newspaper in Europe and god knows where else. And the things that had been written and said… about her, about Michael about them. God…
The only person not saying anything at all was Michael. Michael was trying to process all the information going on. He was obviously upset at the situation, but he didn’t see it the same way as his team did. Nor did he think that it was something that he had to put in the hands of someone else to decide how he was going to introduce Allison to the public. He didn’t think he would ever understand why his staff always thought every detail of his life had to be handled as an event. Couldn’t he just do something’s on his own? Was it too much to ask to make his own decisions without first running it by 10 different people? He looked over towards Allison. She had been sitting in the chair, looking as if she was trying to sink into the leather until she disappeared. But when his eyes searched her out again she now stood by the window, not saying a word and looking out dejectedly. This hadn’t gone as planned, but it happened, so now they would have to handle it as best they could.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Michael said firmly, finally addressing all the questions being thrown him. His voice was deep and serious. Nothing like the soft voice he used in public.
“Everyone needs to calm down. We are not going to handle this as a part of my show business life.”
The voices all rose up again to contest.
“No, we are going to sit down and discuss this calmly and figure out how we can make the best of it the way it is.”
Michael called over to her, “Allison, come and join us you are part of this too.”
But she didn’t hear him, she was lost in her thoughts when there was still some semblance of normalcy left…
The first day after the after party at the palace it was pretty much business as usual. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary as they went about their day. Once they were finally up and out of bed they had to get ready to leave for Holland, where Michael was scheduled to perform 3 sold out nights in Rotterdam. As soon as they were packed and organized they would take Michael’s private tour bus to the train station and they would take the train into Rotterdam. The trucks and the crew had already left the night before. Right after their usual stage dismantling/ pack down routine they hit the roads as it was almost a 24 hour drive and they need to set up for the next show. Their train ride would take just over twelve hours and she wondered why they weren’t flying instead. He had told her he liked taking the train. He had done it several times in Japan and he loved it and it inspired him.
“It is so peaceful and quiet and you get to see the countryside in a whole new way,” he said. “Besides, I want to show you something.”
Allison certainly wasn’t complaining, she relished any extra time alone she would have with him. She had no problem spending the better part of the day in his company. Especially since the next few days were going to be full and hectic. Michael would be preforming 3 nights in a row, June 5th, 6th and 7th. That wasn’t normally the case. Michael always liked to have a day or two between shows. The most he would normally perform would be two days in a row and then have a break. He told her that it wore him out to perform too many shows back to back and it made it almost impossible for him to sleep.
But he didn’t need to tell her that. She had already notice a change in his sleeping patterns. When they had been in Florida or when he stayed at her apartment he was always in bed when she woke up. But she not long after they arrived in Europe she began to notice he was not really sleeping as much. He had only performed four shows so far but he was already going to bed much later than she was and usually not waking her up. Or if he did go to bed with her, she would wake up later to find him not there. And it was not only the shows, but there had been 3 private parties held in his honour and of course the interviews and everything that demanded his time. You would think he would be the one that was thoroughly exhausted, but he seemed to be sleeping less.
Last night she was exhausted from the activities and more likely from her nerves. It had been a long night and she was tired. But she was never too tired for him. She figured he would be tired too, but when she asked him if he was coming to bed he said not yet.
Tonight had been good. It had gone better than he could have hoped for. He wanted to unwind before bed and he knew she was tired and she would need to sleep. The days would get busier as thing went on and he wanted to make sure she was up for it.
He moved to meet her at the bed and kissed her forehead before hugging her close, “you get some sleep, I have some paperwork to go through.”
“Okay… wake me when you come to bed.”
But he never did.
At the station they were ushered onto their own private car so there would be no need to worry about fans or press during their journey. Once inside their car they both got comfortable with Michael taking off his shoes and resting his feet up on the opposite seat and Allison parking herself in beside him.
As he started to read the USA Today newspaper he had gotten from the hotel she pulled out the book she had picked up at the LA Airport before they had left. Bill sat a few seats away, talking with Miko and Frank sat behind them, chewing on his unlit cigar and talking with Mary and Jolie. Except for the 7 of them the car was empty.
The train departed not too long after once the rest of the passengers boarded the other cars. As the train began to move it swayed gently from side to side. It was relaxing and she closed her eyes as Michael began to hum quietly beside her. About an hour or so into the trip a female attendant came to bring them drinks of their choice and to offer the meal selections that could be brought to their seats. Allison order some fruit and yogurt with melba toast and Michael had a salad with orange juice.
Waiting for their meal, she remembered he had said he wanted to show her something.
“Michael, what did you want to show me?”
“Hmm?” He turned from looking out the window.
“Back at the hotel you said you wanted to show me something, remember?”
“Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.” He sounded excited and reached down to open the small little leather brief case he had brought with him and pulled out what she recognized as his sketchbook. “Girl I want you to see something I’ve been working on.”
She smiled, he was always creating or thinking of some new project or song. It was like he couldn’t help it, it was part of him.
“Michael… is there ever a time you are not making some type of art? Goodness, I feel like a lazy sloth compared to you!”
“A what,” he laughed. “A sloth? Ally don’t be silly, what you see is art, what you create as a photographer is some of the most exquisite art I have ever seen.”
She rolled her eyes, “well I wouldn’t go that far. And haven’t done anything in ages, but I think I might have to get back on that. Anyways… lemme see what you got there Michelangelo.”
He leaned in towards her as he flipped through the pages, “it came to me one night and I had to draw it. Here, here it is.” he passed the book over to her.
There were several little drawings and doodles on the thick white page he had opened to, but in the middle there was a much larger sketch in pencil of a young boy sitting on the edge of a semi-circle. The boy looked to be wearing a jumper and his face was cast down towards the left as if he was looking down at something. Just below the semi-circle it read, ‘boy in the crescent moon.’
She looked up, “boy in the crescent moon,” she smiled. “I like it.”
He smiled happily, “you do? I mean I am glad you do, I want to use it for the ranch.”
She shook her head, “use it, what do you mean?”
His lips broke out in a wide grin and she could see his eyes light up with his internal thoughts as if he would burst with excitement.
“I want the ranch to have some kind of symbol. Something to call its own, something that says this is a place of joy and happiness, of eternal childhood… a place where no one ever has to grow up. A place that says Neverland….Just like Peter Pan’s Neverland.”
His voice was childlike and fully of merry wonderment. Excited at the very thought of creating such a place. She didn’t’ know if it was possible, but she wanted to believe it too.
“Oh Michael, that sounds wonderful. I love it. That is such a great idea.”
“You think so? I have been thinking a lot about it.”
“Well tell me you big dork… geez what are you waiting for??”
For the next few hours Michael shared all his dreams, plans and ideas he wanted for his Neverland. He explained how he wanted each part of the ranch to be symbolic of childhood innocence and for people to feel free of their responsibilities when there. That every necessity would be considered and taken care of when people came to visit. There would be rides like a carnival, a zoo, bumper cars, super slides and a train that could take people around the property to all the areas. He wanted bronze and iron statures throughout and he said he was going to have a special second gate made that said ‘Neverland’ that would be the entrance into the ultimate fantasy world.
"I want it to be that once you come in the gates, the outside world does not exist."
Then he talked about the movie theatre he wanted to build that would have special seating to accommodate the special needs of wheelchairs and areas for viewing if you were ill and bedridden. He wanted a special place that children could come and not have to worry about being sick or different. A place where they could just be children.
He spoke tirelessly and the longer he talked the more animated and detailed he became with his plans. He had obviously given this quite a bit of thought, way before he had purchased the place and probably way before he had met her. His soul purpose was to make a place that children could come and feel at home and welcomed. A place that adults could relive and return to their childhood innocence.
It warmed her heart to hear him talk so unselfishly and generously about others. It sounded like a huge undertaking and a heck of a lot of money to her. She wasn’t sure how it would all work or if it was even feasible, but Michael made it sound like magic and he made her believe too. He showed her some more drawings he had completed as well as some paintings from the artist, Robert Florczak.
“I really love his work Ally, let me show you one he did for me.” He pulled out an old worn magazine and flipped to the page he had marked.
“Here, look at this,” he passed her the magazine. “My old merchandising company did this for me when
Thriller became the number one selling album of all time.”
The full page ad was done in a fun caricature style. There was Michael wearing his famous Billie Jean outfit he wore in the video. He was leaning against a tree that was beside a clear lake as he looked up towards a scroll of accolades and congratulation’s. Behind him there was a full moon in as starry sky. It was very dreamy and it reminded her of Peter Pan. No wonder he liked it.
She smiled, “I betcha I can guess why you like it so much.”
Michael chuckled, “it is that obvious?”
“Umm, yeah…. Neverland… a place for children… Peter Pan!” She nodded triumphantly.
“Yeah, I love it.”
“Okay, so wait a minute… what’s that got to do with your drawing? Ohhh I get it now,” she exclaimed excitedly. “You’re going to have the same guy paint that for you… paint your drawing?”
Michael smiled wide, and leaned in to kiss her cheek. “Girl you are quick today. That’s exactly it, but I wanted to show you first.” He brought the drawing back out, placing beside the magazine. “Can you see that Ally, can you see the drawing like that?”
“Yeah… I sure can,” she grinned totally caught up in his excitement. He made it so easy when he was so enthusiastic about the entire project.
For the remainder of their trip, they continued to talk on and off about Neverland. Mostly with Michael sharing his ideas and thoughts and Allison completely agreeing, but she would interject with her own insights too. And Michael listened, he made her feel a part of the process of building this fantasy land. It wasn’t something he was going to do, it was something they would do together. It really was exciting and she couldn’t wait to be a part of it.
They arrived at the Picoffs Hotel late Friday evening. At that time of night there was no hint of trouble. There were only a few diehards milling about. Fans and reporters having a hunch they would be staying at this hotel or tipped off by the hotel staff of their arrival. With so little fanfare they made it into the hotel without any real problems at all. However, the morning papers, the next day were a completely different story. National and local newspapers reported on Michael’s arrival in Rotterdam. That was to be expected. Michael and his tour was the biggest news in Europe at the moment. The papers reported daily of his whereabouts and activities. However today there was an extra story. It was also reported that Michael appeared to have arrived with the same lady friend that had been seen with him several times in Austria. This same woman attended the private party with him and Elizabeth Taylor in Vienna. It went on to say that it was noticed that Michael held her hand all evening and couldn’t keep his eyes off her all night. Accompanying the article was a half-page picture of Allison taken near the end of the evening when they were leaving.
The headline screamed out, “Who is she?”
Oh my god… she was completely stunned by the article and the sudden interest in who she was. She hadn’t known what to expect when they had decided she would go out with Michael, but she wasn’t expecting this. She was mortified that her picture was in the newspaper and that they reported on her whereabouts over the last few days. They didn’t know much about her but it seemed like too much to her. Michael laughed it off knowing there was nothing they could do. He told her not to worry and tried to make her feel better, saying that she looked beautiful and that at least she was smiling.
But the next day these was no joking about it because nothing could prepare Michael or Allison for the headlines or the picture in the papers. It was worse than either one of them could have thought possible. It was a whole new ballgame now. There would be no pretending she was just a friend or an casual acquaintance and no downplaying who she was. It was there on the front page of the Algemeen Dagblad, Rotterdam’s biggest newspaper. There for the whole world to see was a picture of Michael kissing Allison at the party in Vienna.
Oh my god no…
It was somewhat dark and shadowy, but there was no mistaking Michael and there was no missing or mistaking Allison in her polka dot dress.
The headline read, Caught in the Act!
When the paper arrived that morning with all concerned parties in tow, Allison searched her mind desperately trying to remember the exact moment they had let their guard down… they had always been and always were so careful… so how, when, when had Michael kissed her?? She drew a complete blank, but then finally it dawned on her when… dammit! It had been at the end of the evening when Michael came to meet her at the ladies room. He had surprised her and pulled her aside to talk to her. He wanted to tell her how proud he was of her and how great the evening had been having her there. They didn’t speak for very long… no longer than a couple of minutes before he had kissed her sweetly on her forehead before they returned to the party. How did this happen? They couldn’t had been alone for more the a few moments. Michael had thought it safe and that no one was watching them, but the picture proved otherwise. Someone was always watching were Michael was concerned. Even at an invitation only private party he wasn’t safe from paparazzi.
But that wasn’t even the half of it. To make matters worse they soon found out that Jolie had brought other newspapers too. The Sun and the Telegraph from London, England had them on the front cover as well, their bold headlines shouting out their own thoughts on the kiss captured on film. Jacko’s Has A Girlfriend one of them stated while the other called her Wacko’s Woman!
Jesus almighty… this can’t be happening… Allison couldn’t even think… and why were they calling him those awful, awful names??
Allison felt her stomach lurch and she covered her mouth in fear she might really be sick. This was too much. This was dreadful, what were they going to do. She tried to remain calm but she couldn’t stop her voice from trembling or her hand from shaking as reached out to run her fingertips over the papers on the table. It was as if she needed to touch them to see if they really were real.
“Allison you don’t want to ready those,” she heard Michael say quietly.
She swallowed and shook her head, “noooo, you’re right, I don’t, I don’t even want to see them,” her voice broke as she stepped back from the table bumping straight into Bill.
Startled she looked up to see everyone staring at her and her eyes filled up with tears, “Michael… what are we going to do? I mean why… why this” she asked not fully understanding but hopeful for answers.
Michael didn’t know what to say. He felt terrible. This was exactly what he didn’t want to happen…. and to make it worse, it was his fault. He never should have went to find her when she left the ballroom, let alone kiss her. He knew better than to let his guard down like that. But he was so proud of her that night. The way she handle herself with Elizabeth and the attention. She had done good and he wanted to her. To let her know how great the evening had been. But he should have known better. The press were always looking for something to print. Well they hit the jackpot with this. His heart ached to see her so upset. To see her exposed to the same cruel treatment he had received for years from the press and knowing there was nothing he could do. He looked at the papers scattered on the table. He saw the headlines too but he didn’t have to. He knew exactly what they had to say… and he knew none of it would be true.
He watched her as she walked slowly, in a complete daze, to the room service table. Retrieving her cup of tea she had been drinking before everyone showed up. It would be cold now, but she didn’t seem to notice as she moved to sit in the leather chair near the fireplace. Sinking down in the deep seat she looked so small and she looked completely miserable. She didn’t look at anyone or say another word while everyone else was talking around him, but Michael was only paying attention to her. He needed to figure this out… no… they needed to figure this out themselves not with everyone else here.
Michael pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes to try to stop the headache that was forming in the back of his skull. But everyone was still talking looking to him for answers. He opened his eyes to see she had moved from the chair to the window. He had enough and he told everyone to calm down, they needed to talk rationally to figure this out. He called to Allison, but she didn’t hear him the first time.
Michael took the few long strides to reach her at the window. He spoke quietly as he reached for her hand that rested on the upper windowsill, “Ally, come over with me so we can talk about this, okay.”
Allison was feeling as if her whole world had caved in on her and she couldn’t breathe. But there was something in the soft touch of his hand that made her feel calmer. Something in the steadiness of his voice that that told her that it was going to be alright… that somehow it would work out. That somehow Michael was going to make it better… and she needed to believe that everything was going to be okay, she needed that more than anything right now.
“Okay,” she nodded as she met his concerned gaze, “okay.”
“Okay,” he smiled.
He lead her back to the table, pulling out a chair for her to sit and tossing the newspapers onto the floor.
Michael took a moment to clear his head before speaking, “okay everyone, please to calm down. Trust me I know how bad this is, but we cannot handle this like we handle everything else in my professional life.” As he spoke he moved behind Allison and placed his hands on her shoulders, “Ally is a part of this and we have to consider that. I will not have her name dragged through the mud like mine. We will have to make the best of it.”
“How are we going to do that,” Jolie piped in sardonically. She looked over towards Allison with disdain. “This is going to be difficult. How are we going to protect her while protecting you and your image?”
Allison turned to look at Jolie…Oh my god.. there she goes again with the her… could she sound any more repulsed… what is her problem with me?
“Well I guess that is for my security team to figure out and for you to work out with the rest of the management team.” Michael responded. He certainly wasn’t impressed by her attitude nor her comments. Frank had hired her before the second leg of the tour. He knew he would need more than one assistant with bringing Allison along and Frank had said she was one of the best personal assistants in the business with a back ground PR. But right now she was being more of a hindrance than any help.
“Sorry Mr. Jackson, I am not trying to be difficult. It just makes the job harder.”
“Well then I guess your job is harder.”
“Mike, why don’t we issue a statement with her name and let it be known that that Allison is accompanying you for the tour,” Frank interrupted giving a Jolie a stern look as he chewed on his cigar.
“It is better than the alternative. No sense in leaving them hanging and salivating to make up their own stories as I am sure they already are. Let’s nip it in the bud and give them the details they want before they go construct their own.”
“Well that could work,” Michael nodded looking towards Frank. “Let them know who she is and that she is here for the tour… so they won’t go snooping around for more.”
“Exactly! We can’t let those fuckers run with this,” Frank bellowed out with a rough laugh.
Michael chuckled too breaking the tension, “Tookie, language please.”
Suddenly the phone rang in the hotel suite, startling Allison and a couple of the others gathered there. As the group continued to discuss their idea Jolie attended to the phone.
“Hello?”
“No I am sorry.”
“Oh no… yes she is here, but she is not available at the moment.”
“I understand Ms.. I’m sorry what did you say your name was?”
“Right, I am sorry Ms. Whitworth, she is in a meeting.”
Allison’s ears pricked up as soon as she heard Val’s last name. She jumped up from her seat, “no wait, wait I’ll take that Jolie.”
Rolling her eyes Jolie held out the receiver to her.
“No I’ll take it in the bedroom, thank you.”
“Fine, suit yourself.”
Ugh…
Allison hurried to the bedroom to retrieve the call. This was perfect timing. Talking to Val would get her mind off of the current situation.
“Hey Val… it’s me, Ally. Sorry bout that. We’re having a bit of a problem here and-”
“Holy crap Ally, I think there is a bit of a problem going on here,” Val interrupted her.
“What? What are you talking about? What problems are going on over there?”
“You! Your picture is on the front of the LA Times and I wouldn’t be surprise to see you on the news either. What the bloody hell is going on over there?”
“WHAT!??” oh my god no…they are in the papers in the USA as well… oh shit
Allison heart leapt into her throat and she swallowed audible, “Val… what do you mean my picture? What picture?”
“Jesus H Ally… I mean you, Y O U,” she spelled out. “A picture of you at some event, you’re wearing that pretty polka dot dress you bought at Macy’s last spring.”
“Oh shit.”
“Oh shit is right,” Val agreed.
Allison plunked down on the floor against the bed, “what does it say Val?”
“Nothing really, well nothing worth repeating.”
“Dammit,” Allison’s eyes stung as she blinked back the tears threatening to fall. “That’s what’s happening here too Val. But it’s way worse, they have picture of Michael kissing me that same night.”
“Oh mother, shit no… really?”
“Yeah… it’s not good.”
“Oh honey I’m sorry, are you okay?”
“No, not really. And the headlines here are awful!”
“What did Michael say?”
“Well that is what we were talking about before you called.”
“Oh… so that’s why the woman said you were unavailable. Did you want me to let you go?”
Allison sniffed, “no. It is nice to hear a friendly voice. God Val, I had no idea this was going to happen. I mean I’m not stupid… I mean something eventually was going to be in the papers… but not this and not what they say. You should see what they are calling him.”
“I’m so sorry honey, is there anything I can do? Is Michael okay?”
“I think so, I dunno, he seems more worried about me, I can’t tell… everything is such a mess.”
“Ally do you want me to come earlier? I can be there next week.”
“Awe Valerie, I love you, but it’s okay. There’s nothing you can do anyway. It’s done now.”
“Yee have little faith what I can do Ms. Wolf. I could cheer you up in no time.”
Allison released a heavy sign, “I appreciate it Val, but I think we need to deal with it now and hopefully what we do will work.”
“Well if you’re sure.”
“I’m sure, thank you.”
“Anytime Ally-cat.”
“Okay Val, I better go. Thank you for calling and I will call you soon.”
“Okay. Say hi to Michael. Love you.”
“Love you too Val, bye.”
“Bye.”
While Allison had been on the phone with Val, Michael and Frank discussed what information they would give out to the press. By the time she had returned to the front area an initial press release had already been drafted up. There were a few minor changes, but for the most part it was done. Michael insisted that Allison read it. It seemed clear and simple enough, but Allison had a sinking feeling that it wouldn’t make much difference. But really what other choice did they have and she tried to remain optimistic. Once the final release was complete, Jolie took the hand written notes and prepared the release for the evening editions.
It appeared in the papers as below:
With the press release out of the way, everyone went back to their jobs. First and foremost Michael needed to attend to other more pressing business at hand. He was on tour and he was performing tonight and he needed to prepare. Frank had a tour to promote and a client to manage. Bill Bray had security to organize and a team to supervise. Right down to the lowest man on the totem pole… someone had something or someone that needed their attention. Everyone had a job to do… everyone except for Allison. For her it wasn’t quite that simple. There was no going back to business as usual for her. That was impossible. There was no business as usual, because everything in her world had just been turned upside down. Everything had changed and she was now in uncharted territory.
Although she had agreed to the press release and thought it was the best idea at the time she was now having second thoughts. Maybe it wasn’t such a great idea to introduce her to the world at large. Because now she felt as if she was public property and that was not a feeling she particularly liked. She had come on tour with Michael to be with him and for them to be together. But now it seemed like it had somehow become a job that she needed to attend to. Now that her name was out there would there be some kind of expectation of her? Would she be in the paper all the time? What else would they write? The more she thought about it the worse it seemed.
The next couple of days proved to be rather brutal for Allison as she tried to find a balance between herself and the her in the newspapers. How to fit in but still be her. Michael being Michael didn’t think it was such a big deal and told her she was being silly, “just be yourself” he quipped as if everything was okay. But she worried constantly. Worried about how she looked, worried if her hair looked okay and she worried about what to wear. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t relax and it was totally nerve racking and she didn’t want to go anywhere.
Fortunately she did have a small amount of peace those first couple nights. At night she found some solace during Michael’s shows. A two hour window of complete utter joy and total relief. Sitting backstage watching him perform she never had a problem thinking of anything else but watching him. Everything and every worry she had seemed to just melt away, forgotten. But when he wasn’t performing she found herself withdrawing from activities afraid to show her face to the outside world or even backstage.
On the first night, just before going on stage Ruud Röben from CBS Records presented Michael with an award for the Bad album. Of course there was press everywhere so Allison opted to hide in Michael’s dressing room until the show started. Michael was disappointed that she wasn’t there to see him receive the award, but he understood and didn’t push her. The following evening the press were in attendance again. A member of the Dutch Royal Family, Prince Constantijn, was attending the show and he met with Michael before he went on stage. This time Allison managed to make a brief appearance. Keeping herself hidden in the shadows and only for Michael’s sake.
Allison knew she couldn’t hide forever, but at the moment it seemed like the best thing to do. On the third and final night in Rotterdam she got up the nerve to join the usual preshow pep talk and cheer. Since she had been making herself scarce it was the first time she had seen many of the band member since the story broke about her and Michael. By this time they were used to seeing her and around and of course most of them already knew that they were a couple, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone. But she was still apprehensive facing them. She felt embarrassed as if she had been hiding some dark secret that was now wide open for everyone to see. But there was no need for her to feel nervous or worried about it. Everyone seemed genuinely happy see her and made a point of saying hi or letting her know her presence had been missed. One of Michael’s back up dancers joked that he thought she had up and left them now that she was so super famous and in the “news”. That made everyone laugh, immediately breaking the tension she had felt. It felt good to be around them and it felt even better to laugh. They even added her name to the cheer at the end. She was glad she had come to join them.
After the cheer, Michael took the time to walk her to her seat.
“Girl, I’m glad you came, I told you there is nothing for you to worry about with us. Here we are a family’.”
“I know, Michael I know. Sorry I’ve been so reclusive these past few days. I just didn’t know how to react you know…” she shrugged giving him a slight smile “…but I think I just have to go and be with you, with everyone and adjust as we go along… I don’t know what else to do.”
Michaels smiled wide making his eyes light up, “Ally that is all we are all doing. I know we can’t stop what happens in the news or in the papers. I can’t worry about what they say is untrue or the names they use, but I can be in control of what happens with me… with us… and so can you.”
“You’re right,” she nodded her smile matching his. “Now you better get in control of your feet and get on stage before you are late!”
As Michael rushed off to get underneath the stage Allison took her seat and got comfortable. As the lights went down and the music started she leaned forward to take a long look at the excited crowd and the press in the runner below. It was thunderously loud and everyone was standing on their feet waiting for the greatest show on earth to begin. It was insane. She didn’t think she would ever get used to all the craziness surrounding him, but she knew she had no choice. She didn’t want to be anywhere else but here.
Later on that night she woke up around 3 in the morning and once again found that Michael wasn’t in bed with her. At first she wondered if he hadn’t returned from the venue, but the dim sliver of light at the bottom of the bedroom door told her he had returned at some point after she went to sleep. Getting out of bed she pulled on a robe and wrapped her arms around her waist holding it closed and walked out to see if he was still in their suite.
As she came out of the bedroom she heard the soft clinking tones of a piano. She followed the sounds out into the main area. There she found him sitting at the leather bench softly humming and playing a slow melodic tune.
She shook her head…how was it she didn’t know he could play the piano? I wonder what else he can play? She stood quietly at the entrance way, listening to him play the vaguely familiar tune before she finally spoke.
“Michael?” She walked in behind him, placing her hand on his shoulder. “it’s so late. What are you doing up?”
He didn’t say anything, but he had stopped playing and his head dropped slightly and his shoulders slumped down.
“Michael… is everything okay… you should come to -”
“Girl, I’ve been so worried about you these last few days.”
“Michael… what? You didn’t have to worry.”
He reached up and took her hand from his shoulder as he shifted around slightly to look at her. His eyes were wide and his voice cracked as he spoke “I can’t lose you Allison, I can’t. I need you here with me.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” she smiled trying to get him to smile in return.
“No, but these last few days have been hard on you I know. It hurts me to see you hurt. I never wanted this to happen to you. I want to protect you all the time… but I don’t know how to from this… and then you pull away from me.”
This was the first time in 3 days that she actually realized that Michael was hurting too. She had been so wrapped up in her own worry that she didn’t notice that Michael was just as upset as her.
“Michael, I’m sorry… I didn’t think of it that way. I just thought everything was back to normal with you.”
He gave a low chuckle, “Ally, it's my job to make it seem like everything is okay. I would never let them see they have gotten to me… never. But with you… I don’t want to lose you to this.”
She rolled her eyes at him, “Michael, don’t’ be silly, you won’t lose me… especially not to this. I told you.. I am not going anywhere.”
But he kept on speaking as if he hadn’t heard a word she said, “you know I think of you every night Ally. Every night when I’m up on stage, singing, I am thinking of you.”
Allison felt her heart flip, “really?”
“Every night girl, for as long as I can remember…. even before the night I kissed you.”
Oh my god…
She swallowed the lump forming in her throat, “I, I, I didn’t know that,” she stuttered out. “Don’t you think of your dancing and the crowd or the next song.”
“No, the dancing comes with the music, yes it is choreographed, but mostly it is what I feel from the music. I do think of other things in the show, but certain songs or times in the show I am singing just to you.”
She giggled slightly trying to control the wave of emotion she felt, “oh no… Michael, am I your Dirty Diana?”
“Girl, c’mere,” he scooted over so she could sit beside him.
As she slid in beside him on the cushioned bench he started to play the piano again. It was a such a beautiful whimsical tune and then he surprised her when he began to sing to her… a song she knew so well, as song she heard every night, but it never sounded the way he sang it to her now.
JESUS H… What the hell is this crap?
Cursing under her breath she threw the early edition of the LA Times onto her kitchen table. Instantly the headache that had gotten her out of bed this morning flared in her temples. She didn’t think anything could make her feel worse, but reading the paper this morning she was quickly proven wrong. It made her feel ten times as bad and twice as mad. When she woke she was hung over and hung over big time. Her head hurt and her body felt heavy and lethargic. Wanting to forget she was getting too old for her Saturday night escapades, a promise of coffee and her morning paper awaited. But she was soon let down.
Valerie stood up and pushed the chair she had been sitting on halfway across her kitchen floor. Entering her living room she immediately began searching for the tour schedule and the location of where she could find Allison in Europe.
Shit… where did I put it.
Not thinking it would be a necessity until she joined them later in July, she had no idea where it was or if she had even kept it.
Val groaned as she searched through the pile of paper on the coffee table.
“God dammit! Where the fuck is it,” she huffed as she searched frantically.
SHIT!! Her headache throbbed the more she fretted. This was crazy… what in the world was going on.
Val’s heart was racing frantically with worry…. dammit, dammit dammit…. what if she couldn’t find it?
She stopped for a quick moment to try and calm herself. She took in a deep breath and palmed her brow for a moment, trying to think, trying to remember where she had put it.
“Where are you,” she said aloud, scanning the room for a possible hiding place.
She needed to find it now… and she needed to talk to Allison as soon as she did. She had to know what in the world was going on and why Allison’s picture was smack dab in the middle of the morning newspapers front page. They had left a day earlier than scheduled, but Allison still managed to get a tour schedule to Val. Faxing over a rudimentary list of countries and hotel details a couple of days after they had left. Of course, Allison being Allison, she wanted to make sure that someone had their daily calendar in the case anyone back home needed to contact her. Not that anyone would need to… up until now!
Aha… YES that’s it! A fax! Val smiled triumphantly… she faxed me. That could only mean that it was with her items from work and most likely in her day-timer. Looking at the side of the couch Val reached for her Gucci briefcase and pulled out the matching leather case of her daily schedule.Please, please be in here….pulllease, I don’t know where else to look…
She flipped urgently through to the back pages until finally she found exact what she was looking
for… there hiding between the thick white pages was the thin filmy sheet of paper with all the details of the tour’s schedule. Scrolling down the faded print she saw that they were currently in the Netherlands and staying at the Pincoffs Hotel in Rotterdam. Looking further across she found the phone number and the name she should use to get in contact with her. Now she could get to the bottom of this…. and get to it now.
Rotterdam, Picoffs Hotel – Love Suite
Allison curled her hands around her cup of tea as she sank further down into the leather chair near the fire place in their suite. It was only just after noon and she was already wishing she had a glass of wine with the bottle nearby. She listened as they continued to discuss her, Michael and the situation as if she wasn’t even in the room. Everyone was talking so loudly all at once and over top of each other it was giving her a headache and she was sure it could be heard down on the entire floor. Of course, there was no need to worry that any unsuspecting ears would be hearing the quarrelling and demanding voices coming from within. Once again Michael’s team had arranged for the entire hotel to be booked for their use only. They were currently staying at the Pincoffs Hotel. A small luxury hotel located near the trendy left bank of Rotterdam and near the city centre.
The hotel boasted four superior suites on the upper floor that they could choose to spend their stay; the Pincoffs Suite; the Art Suite; the Romantic Suite and the one they were currently in the “Love Suite.” Although at this moment it as was anything but that. She took another sip of her tea trying swallow the sounds of their voices.
“This is not good Michael!”
“Why did you need to take her out publicly without anyone knowing?”
“What are the plans for her now?”
“This should have been discussed.”
“Why was Elizabeth there, we should have known.”
“The press are having a field day with this.”
“You should have said something.”
It went on and on from there… and it just made her head throb and her stomach churn. But it didn’t matter what they said now or how they thought it should have been handled. There were no way to fix this… there was no going back to before that night and there really was no good way to look at it.
She took a deep breath as she tried to block out the myriad of conversations going on. She set her tea down and stood to walk towards the large window. She stared out across the waterfront that lined the length of their hotel. She felt sick. This was so not good and not what she or anyone had been expecting. In the last 72 hours, she went from anonymous and unknown to the mystery girl with Michael Jackson on the cover of every major newspaper in Europe and god knows where else. And the things that had been written and said… about her, about Michael about them. God…
The only person not saying anything at all was Michael. Michael was trying to process all the information going on. He was obviously upset at the situation, but he didn’t see it the same way as his team did. Nor did he think that it was something that he had to put in the hands of someone else to decide how he was going to introduce Allison to the public. He didn’t think he would ever understand why his staff always thought every detail of his life had to be handled as an event. Couldn’t he just do something’s on his own? Was it too much to ask to make his own decisions without first running it by 10 different people? He looked over towards Allison. She had been sitting in the chair, looking as if she was trying to sink into the leather until she disappeared. But when his eyes searched her out again she now stood by the window, not saying a word and looking out dejectedly. This hadn’t gone as planned, but it happened, so now they would have to handle it as best they could.
“Okay, that’s enough,” Michael said firmly, finally addressing all the questions being thrown him. His voice was deep and serious. Nothing like the soft voice he used in public.
“Everyone needs to calm down. We are not going to handle this as a part of my show business life.”
The voices all rose up again to contest.
“No, we are going to sit down and discuss this calmly and figure out how we can make the best of it the way it is.”
Michael called over to her, “Allison, come and join us you are part of this too.”
But she didn’t hear him, she was lost in her thoughts when there was still some semblance of normalcy left…
The first day after the after party at the palace it was pretty much business as usual. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary as they went about their day. Once they were finally up and out of bed they had to get ready to leave for Holland, where Michael was scheduled to perform 3 sold out nights in Rotterdam. As soon as they were packed and organized they would take Michael’s private tour bus to the train station and they would take the train into Rotterdam. The trucks and the crew had already left the night before. Right after their usual stage dismantling/ pack down routine they hit the roads as it was almost a 24 hour drive and they need to set up for the next show. Their train ride would take just over twelve hours and she wondered why they weren’t flying instead. He had told her he liked taking the train. He had done it several times in Japan and he loved it and it inspired him.
“It is so peaceful and quiet and you get to see the countryside in a whole new way,” he said. “Besides, I want to show you something.”
Allison certainly wasn’t complaining, she relished any extra time alone she would have with him. She had no problem spending the better part of the day in his company. Especially since the next few days were going to be full and hectic. Michael would be preforming 3 nights in a row, June 5th, 6th and 7th. That wasn’t normally the case. Michael always liked to have a day or two between shows. The most he would normally perform would be two days in a row and then have a break. He told her that it wore him out to perform too many shows back to back and it made it almost impossible for him to sleep.
But he didn’t need to tell her that. She had already notice a change in his sleeping patterns. When they had been in Florida or when he stayed at her apartment he was always in bed when she woke up. But she not long after they arrived in Europe she began to notice he was not really sleeping as much. He had only performed four shows so far but he was already going to bed much later than she was and usually not waking her up. Or if he did go to bed with her, she would wake up later to find him not there. And it was not only the shows, but there had been 3 private parties held in his honour and of course the interviews and everything that demanded his time. You would think he would be the one that was thoroughly exhausted, but he seemed to be sleeping less.
Last night she was exhausted from the activities and more likely from her nerves. It had been a long night and she was tired. But she was never too tired for him. She figured he would be tired too, but when she asked him if he was coming to bed he said not yet.
Tonight had been good. It had gone better than he could have hoped for. He wanted to unwind before bed and he knew she was tired and she would need to sleep. The days would get busier as thing went on and he wanted to make sure she was up for it.
He moved to meet her at the bed and kissed her forehead before hugging her close, “you get some sleep, I have some paperwork to go through.”
“Okay… wake me when you come to bed.”
But he never did.
At the station they were ushered onto their own private car so there would be no need to worry about fans or press during their journey. Once inside their car they both got comfortable with Michael taking off his shoes and resting his feet up on the opposite seat and Allison parking herself in beside him.
The train departed not too long after once the rest of the passengers boarded the other cars. As the train began to move it swayed gently from side to side. It was relaxing and she closed her eyes as Michael began to hum quietly beside her. About an hour or so into the trip a female attendant came to bring them drinks of their choice and to offer the meal selections that could be brought to their seats. Allison order some fruit and yogurt with melba toast and Michael had a salad with orange juice.
Waiting for their meal, she remembered he had said he wanted to show her something.
“Michael, what did you want to show me?”
“Hmm?” He turned from looking out the window.
“Back at the hotel you said you wanted to show me something, remember?”
“Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.” He sounded excited and reached down to open the small little leather brief case he had brought with him and pulled out what she recognized as his sketchbook. “Girl I want you to see something I’ve been working on.”
She smiled, he was always creating or thinking of some new project or song. It was like he couldn’t help it, it was part of him.
“Michael… is there ever a time you are not making some type of art? Goodness, I feel like a lazy sloth compared to you!”
“A what,” he laughed. “A sloth? Ally don’t be silly, what you see is art, what you create as a photographer is some of the most exquisite art I have ever seen.”
She rolled her eyes, “well I wouldn’t go that far. And haven’t done anything in ages, but I think I might have to get back on that. Anyways… lemme see what you got there Michelangelo.”
He leaned in towards her as he flipped through the pages, “it came to me one night and I had to draw it. Here, here it is.” he passed the book over to her.
There were several little drawings and doodles on the thick white page he had opened to, but in the middle there was a much larger sketch in pencil of a young boy sitting on the edge of a semi-circle. The boy looked to be wearing a jumper and his face was cast down towards the left as if he was looking down at something. Just below the semi-circle it read, ‘boy in the crescent moon.’
She looked up, “boy in the crescent moon,” she smiled. “I like it.”
He smiled happily, “you do? I mean I am glad you do, I want to use it for the ranch.”
She shook her head, “use it, what do you mean?”
His lips broke out in a wide grin and she could see his eyes light up with his internal thoughts as if he would burst with excitement.
“I want the ranch to have some kind of symbol. Something to call its own, something that says this is a place of joy and happiness, of eternal childhood… a place where no one ever has to grow up. A place that says Neverland….Just like Peter Pan’s Neverland.”
His voice was childlike and fully of merry wonderment. Excited at the very thought of creating such a place. She didn’t’ know if it was possible, but she wanted to believe it too.
“Oh Michael, that sounds wonderful. I love it. That is such a great idea.”
“You think so? I have been thinking a lot about it.”
“Well tell me you big dork… geez what are you waiting for??”
For the next few hours Michael shared all his dreams, plans and ideas he wanted for his Neverland. He explained how he wanted each part of the ranch to be symbolic of childhood innocence and for people to feel free of their responsibilities when there. That every necessity would be considered and taken care of when people came to visit. There would be rides like a carnival, a zoo, bumper cars, super slides and a train that could take people around the property to all the areas. He wanted bronze and iron statures throughout and he said he was going to have a special second gate made that said ‘Neverland’ that would be the entrance into the ultimate fantasy world.
"I want it to be that once you come in the gates, the outside world does not exist."
Then he talked about the movie theatre he wanted to build that would have special seating to accommodate the special needs of wheelchairs and areas for viewing if you were ill and bedridden. He wanted a special place that children could come and not have to worry about being sick or different. A place where they could just be children.
He spoke tirelessly and the longer he talked the more animated and detailed he became with his plans. He had obviously given this quite a bit of thought, way before he had purchased the place and probably way before he had met her. His soul purpose was to make a place that children could come and feel at home and welcomed. A place that adults could relive and return to their childhood innocence.
It warmed her heart to hear him talk so unselfishly and generously about others. It sounded like a huge undertaking and a heck of a lot of money to her. She wasn’t sure how it would all work or if it was even feasible, but Michael made it sound like magic and he made her believe too. He showed her some more drawings he had completed as well as some paintings from the artist, Robert Florczak.
“I really love his work Ally, let me show you one he did for me.” He pulled out an old worn magazine and flipped to the page he had marked.
“Here, look at this,” he passed her the magazine. “My old merchandising company did this for me when
Thriller became the number one selling album of all time.”
She smiled, “I betcha I can guess why you like it so much.”
Michael chuckled, “it is that obvious?”
“Umm, yeah…. Neverland… a place for children… Peter Pan!” She nodded triumphantly.
“Yeah, I love it.”
“Okay, so wait a minute… what’s that got to do with your drawing? Ohhh I get it now,” she exclaimed excitedly. “You’re going to have the same guy paint that for you… paint your drawing?”
Michael smiled wide, and leaned in to kiss her cheek. “Girl you are quick today. That’s exactly it, but I wanted to show you first.” He brought the drawing back out, placing beside the magazine. “Can you see that Ally, can you see the drawing like that?”
“Yeah… I sure can,” she grinned totally caught up in his excitement. He made it so easy when he was so enthusiastic about the entire project.
For the remainder of their trip, they continued to talk on and off about Neverland. Mostly with Michael sharing his ideas and thoughts and Allison completely agreeing, but she would interject with her own insights too. And Michael listened, he made her feel a part of the process of building this fantasy land. It wasn’t something he was going to do, it was something they would do together. It really was exciting and she couldn’t wait to be a part of it.
They arrived at the Picoffs Hotel late Friday evening. At that time of night there was no hint of trouble. There were only a few diehards milling about. Fans and reporters having a hunch they would be staying at this hotel or tipped off by the hotel staff of their arrival. With so little fanfare they made it into the hotel without any real problems at all. However, the morning papers, the next day were a completely different story. National and local newspapers reported on Michael’s arrival in Rotterdam. That was to be expected. Michael and his tour was the biggest news in Europe at the moment. The papers reported daily of his whereabouts and activities. However today there was an extra story. It was also reported that Michael appeared to have arrived with the same lady friend that had been seen with him several times in Austria. This same woman attended the private party with him and Elizabeth Taylor in Vienna. It went on to say that it was noticed that Michael held her hand all evening and couldn’t keep his eyes off her all night. Accompanying the article was a half-page picture of Allison taken near the end of the evening when they were leaving.
The headline screamed out, “Who is she?”
Oh my god… she was completely stunned by the article and the sudden interest in who she was. She hadn’t known what to expect when they had decided she would go out with Michael, but she wasn’t expecting this. She was mortified that her picture was in the newspaper and that they reported on her whereabouts over the last few days. They didn’t know much about her but it seemed like too much to her. Michael laughed it off knowing there was nothing they could do. He told her not to worry and tried to make her feel better, saying that she looked beautiful and that at least she was smiling.
But the next day these was no joking about it because nothing could prepare Michael or Allison for the headlines or the picture in the papers. It was worse than either one of them could have thought possible. It was a whole new ballgame now. There would be no pretending she was just a friend or an casual acquaintance and no downplaying who she was. It was there on the front page of the Algemeen Dagblad, Rotterdam’s biggest newspaper. There for the whole world to see was a picture of Michael kissing Allison at the party in Vienna.
Oh my god no…
It was somewhat dark and shadowy, but there was no mistaking Michael and there was no missing or mistaking Allison in her polka dot dress.
The headline read, Caught in the Act!
When the paper arrived that morning with all concerned parties in tow, Allison searched her mind desperately trying to remember the exact moment they had let their guard down… they had always been and always were so careful… so how, when, when had Michael kissed her?? She drew a complete blank, but then finally it dawned on her when… dammit! It had been at the end of the evening when Michael came to meet her at the ladies room. He had surprised her and pulled her aside to talk to her. He wanted to tell her how proud he was of her and how great the evening had been having her there. They didn’t speak for very long… no longer than a couple of minutes before he had kissed her sweetly on her forehead before they returned to the party. How did this happen? They couldn’t had been alone for more the a few moments. Michael had thought it safe and that no one was watching them, but the picture proved otherwise. Someone was always watching were Michael was concerned. Even at an invitation only private party he wasn’t safe from paparazzi.
But that wasn’t even the half of it. To make matters worse they soon found out that Jolie had brought other newspapers too. The Sun and the Telegraph from London, England had them on the front cover as well, their bold headlines shouting out their own thoughts on the kiss captured on film. Jacko’s Has A Girlfriend one of them stated while the other called her Wacko’s Woman!
Jesus almighty… this can’t be happening… Allison couldn’t even think… and why were they calling him those awful, awful names??
Allison felt her stomach lurch and she covered her mouth in fear she might really be sick. This was too much. This was dreadful, what were they going to do. She tried to remain calm but she couldn’t stop her voice from trembling or her hand from shaking as reached out to run her fingertips over the papers on the table. It was as if she needed to touch them to see if they really were real.
“Allison you don’t want to ready those,” she heard Michael say quietly.
She swallowed and shook her head, “noooo, you’re right, I don’t, I don’t even want to see them,” her voice broke as she stepped back from the table bumping straight into Bill.
Startled she looked up to see everyone staring at her and her eyes filled up with tears, “Michael… what are we going to do? I mean why… why this” she asked not fully understanding but hopeful for answers.
Michael didn’t know what to say. He felt terrible. This was exactly what he didn’t want to happen…. and to make it worse, it was his fault. He never should have went to find her when she left the ballroom, let alone kiss her. He knew better than to let his guard down like that. But he was so proud of her that night. The way she handle herself with Elizabeth and the attention. She had done good and he wanted to her. To let her know how great the evening had been. But he should have known better. The press were always looking for something to print. Well they hit the jackpot with this. His heart ached to see her so upset. To see her exposed to the same cruel treatment he had received for years from the press and knowing there was nothing he could do. He looked at the papers scattered on the table. He saw the headlines too but he didn’t have to. He knew exactly what they had to say… and he knew none of it would be true.
He watched her as she walked slowly, in a complete daze, to the room service table. Retrieving her cup of tea she had been drinking before everyone showed up. It would be cold now, but she didn’t seem to notice as she moved to sit in the leather chair near the fireplace. Sinking down in the deep seat she looked so small and she looked completely miserable. She didn’t look at anyone or say another word while everyone else was talking around him, but Michael was only paying attention to her. He needed to figure this out… no… they needed to figure this out themselves not with everyone else here.
Michael pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes to try to stop the headache that was forming in the back of his skull. But everyone was still talking looking to him for answers. He opened his eyes to see she had moved from the chair to the window. He had enough and he told everyone to calm down, they needed to talk rationally to figure this out. He called to Allison, but she didn’t hear him the first time.
Michael took the few long strides to reach her at the window. He spoke quietly as he reached for her hand that rested on the upper windowsill, “Ally, come over with me so we can talk about this, okay.”
Allison was feeling as if her whole world had caved in on her and she couldn’t breathe. But there was something in the soft touch of his hand that made her feel calmer. Something in the steadiness of his voice that that told her that it was going to be alright… that somehow it would work out. That somehow Michael was going to make it better… and she needed to believe that everything was going to be okay, she needed that more than anything right now.
“Okay,” she nodded as she met his concerned gaze, “okay.”
“Okay,” he smiled.
He lead her back to the table, pulling out a chair for her to sit and tossing the newspapers onto the floor.
Michael took a moment to clear his head before speaking, “okay everyone, please to calm down. Trust me I know how bad this is, but we cannot handle this like we handle everything else in my professional life.” As he spoke he moved behind Allison and placed his hands on her shoulders, “Ally is a part of this and we have to consider that. I will not have her name dragged through the mud like mine. We will have to make the best of it.”
“How are we going to do that,” Jolie piped in sardonically. She looked over towards Allison with disdain. “This is going to be difficult. How are we going to protect her while protecting you and your image?”
Allison turned to look at Jolie…Oh my god.. there she goes again with the her… could she sound any more repulsed… what is her problem with me?
“Well I guess that is for my security team to figure out and for you to work out with the rest of the management team.” Michael responded. He certainly wasn’t impressed by her attitude nor her comments. Frank had hired her before the second leg of the tour. He knew he would need more than one assistant with bringing Allison along and Frank had said she was one of the best personal assistants in the business with a back ground PR. But right now she was being more of a hindrance than any help.
“Sorry Mr. Jackson, I am not trying to be difficult. It just makes the job harder.”
“Well then I guess your job is harder.”
“Mike, why don’t we issue a statement with her name and let it be known that that Allison is accompanying you for the tour,” Frank interrupted giving a Jolie a stern look as he chewed on his cigar.
“It is better than the alternative. No sense in leaving them hanging and salivating to make up their own stories as I am sure they already are. Let’s nip it in the bud and give them the details they want before they go construct their own.”
“Well that could work,” Michael nodded looking towards Frank. “Let them know who she is and that she is here for the tour… so they won’t go snooping around for more.”
“Exactly! We can’t let those fuckers run with this,” Frank bellowed out with a rough laugh.
Michael chuckled too breaking the tension, “Tookie, language please.”
Suddenly the phone rang in the hotel suite, startling Allison and a couple of the others gathered there. As the group continued to discuss their idea Jolie attended to the phone.
“Hello?”
“No I am sorry.”
“Oh no… yes she is here, but she is not available at the moment.”
“I understand Ms.. I’m sorry what did you say your name was?”
“Right, I am sorry Ms. Whitworth, she is in a meeting.”
Allison’s ears pricked up as soon as she heard Val’s last name. She jumped up from her seat, “no wait, wait I’ll take that Jolie.”
Rolling her eyes Jolie held out the receiver to her.
“No I’ll take it in the bedroom, thank you.”
“Fine, suit yourself.”
Ugh…
Allison hurried to the bedroom to retrieve the call. This was perfect timing. Talking to Val would get her mind off of the current situation.
“Hey Val… it’s me, Ally. Sorry bout that. We’re having a bit of a problem here and-”
“Holy crap Ally, I think there is a bit of a problem going on here,” Val interrupted her.
“What? What are you talking about? What problems are going on over there?”
“You! Your picture is on the front of the LA Times and I wouldn’t be surprise to see you on the news either. What the bloody hell is going on over there?”
“WHAT!??” oh my god no…they are in the papers in the USA as well… oh shit
Allison heart leapt into her throat and she swallowed audible, “Val… what do you mean my picture? What picture?”
“Jesus H Ally… I mean you, Y O U,” she spelled out. “A picture of you at some event, you’re wearing that pretty polka dot dress you bought at Macy’s last spring.”
“Oh shit.”
“Oh shit is right,” Val agreed.
Allison plunked down on the floor against the bed, “what does it say Val?”
“Nothing really, well nothing worth repeating.”
“Dammit,” Allison’s eyes stung as she blinked back the tears threatening to fall. “That’s what’s happening here too Val. But it’s way worse, they have picture of Michael kissing me that same night.”
“Oh mother, shit no… really?”
“Yeah… it’s not good.”
“Oh honey I’m sorry, are you okay?”
“No, not really. And the headlines here are awful!”
“What did Michael say?”
“Well that is what we were talking about before you called.”
“Oh… so that’s why the woman said you were unavailable. Did you want me to let you go?”
Allison sniffed, “no. It is nice to hear a friendly voice. God Val, I had no idea this was going to happen. I mean I’m not stupid… I mean something eventually was going to be in the papers… but not this and not what they say. You should see what they are calling him.”
“I’m so sorry honey, is there anything I can do? Is Michael okay?”
“I think so, I dunno, he seems more worried about me, I can’t tell… everything is such a mess.”
“Ally do you want me to come earlier? I can be there next week.”
“Awe Valerie, I love you, but it’s okay. There’s nothing you can do anyway. It’s done now.”
“Yee have little faith what I can do Ms. Wolf. I could cheer you up in no time.”
Allison released a heavy sign, “I appreciate it Val, but I think we need to deal with it now and hopefully what we do will work.”
“Well if you’re sure.”
“I’m sure, thank you.”
“Anytime Ally-cat.”
“Okay Val, I better go. Thank you for calling and I will call you soon.”
“Okay. Say hi to Michael. Love you.”
“Love you too Val, bye.”
“Bye.”
While Allison had been on the phone with Val, Michael and Frank discussed what information they would give out to the press. By the time she had returned to the front area an initial press release had already been drafted up. There were a few minor changes, but for the most part it was done. Michael insisted that Allison read it. It seemed clear and simple enough, but Allison had a sinking feeling that it wouldn’t make much difference. But really what other choice did they have and she tried to remain optimistic. Once the final release was complete, Jolie took the hand written notes and prepared the release for the evening editions.
It appeared in the papers as below:
Press Release: Allison Wolf
For immediate release:
Many of you are wondering just who the young woman is seen out with Mr. Jackson. Mr. Jackson has requested that we take the guess work out of it for you before the wrong information is printed and published.
Therefore we are pleased to introduce Ms. Allison Wolf. Ms. Wolf, a professional photographer, is a close personal friend of Mr. Jackson. She will be travelling with the tour for the entirety of the European Leg.
Ms. Wolf is not a celebrity and is not accustomed to being in the public eye. We ask that you respect her privacy and her liberty as a private citizen.
Kind regards,
Frank DiLeo
With the press release out of the way, everyone went back to their jobs. First and foremost Michael needed to attend to other more pressing business at hand. He was on tour and he was performing tonight and he needed to prepare. Frank had a tour to promote and a client to manage. Bill Bray had security to organize and a team to supervise. Right down to the lowest man on the totem pole… someone had something or someone that needed their attention. Everyone had a job to do… everyone except for Allison. For her it wasn’t quite that simple. There was no going back to business as usual for her. That was impossible. There was no business as usual, because everything in her world had just been turned upside down. Everything had changed and she was now in uncharted territory.
Although she had agreed to the press release and thought it was the best idea at the time she was now having second thoughts. Maybe it wasn’t such a great idea to introduce her to the world at large. Because now she felt as if she was public property and that was not a feeling she particularly liked. She had come on tour with Michael to be with him and for them to be together. But now it seemed like it had somehow become a job that she needed to attend to. Now that her name was out there would there be some kind of expectation of her? Would she be in the paper all the time? What else would they write? The more she thought about it the worse it seemed.
The next couple of days proved to be rather brutal for Allison as she tried to find a balance between herself and the her in the newspapers. How to fit in but still be her. Michael being Michael didn’t think it was such a big deal and told her she was being silly, “just be yourself” he quipped as if everything was okay. But she worried constantly. Worried about how she looked, worried if her hair looked okay and she worried about what to wear. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t relax and it was totally nerve racking and she didn’t want to go anywhere.
Fortunately she did have a small amount of peace those first couple nights. At night she found some solace during Michael’s shows. A two hour window of complete utter joy and total relief. Sitting backstage watching him perform she never had a problem thinking of anything else but watching him. Everything and every worry she had seemed to just melt away, forgotten. But when he wasn’t performing she found herself withdrawing from activities afraid to show her face to the outside world or even backstage.
On the first night, just before going on stage Ruud Röben from CBS Records presented Michael with an award for the Bad album. Of course there was press everywhere so Allison opted to hide in Michael’s dressing room until the show started. Michael was disappointed that she wasn’t there to see him receive the award, but he understood and didn’t push her. The following evening the press were in attendance again. A member of the Dutch Royal Family, Prince Constantijn, was attending the show and he met with Michael before he went on stage. This time Allison managed to make a brief appearance. Keeping herself hidden in the shadows and only for Michael’s sake.
Allison knew she couldn’t hide forever, but at the moment it seemed like the best thing to do. On the third and final night in Rotterdam she got up the nerve to join the usual preshow pep talk and cheer. Since she had been making herself scarce it was the first time she had seen many of the band member since the story broke about her and Michael. By this time they were used to seeing her and around and of course most of them already knew that they were a couple, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone. But she was still apprehensive facing them. She felt embarrassed as if she had been hiding some dark secret that was now wide open for everyone to see. But there was no need for her to feel nervous or worried about it. Everyone seemed genuinely happy see her and made a point of saying hi or letting her know her presence had been missed. One of Michael’s back up dancers joked that he thought she had up and left them now that she was so super famous and in the “news”. That made everyone laugh, immediately breaking the tension she had felt. It felt good to be around them and it felt even better to laugh. They even added her name to the cheer at the end. She was glad she had come to join them.
After the cheer, Michael took the time to walk her to her seat.
“Girl, I’m glad you came, I told you there is nothing for you to worry about with us. Here we are a family’.”
“I know, Michael I know. Sorry I’ve been so reclusive these past few days. I just didn’t know how to react you know…” she shrugged giving him a slight smile “…but I think I just have to go and be with you, with everyone and adjust as we go along… I don’t know what else to do.”
Michaels smiled wide making his eyes light up, “Ally that is all we are all doing. I know we can’t stop what happens in the news or in the papers. I can’t worry about what they say is untrue or the names they use, but I can be in control of what happens with me… with us… and so can you.”
“You’re right,” she nodded her smile matching his. “Now you better get in control of your feet and get on stage before you are late!”
As Michael rushed off to get underneath the stage Allison took her seat and got comfortable. As the lights went down and the music started she leaned forward to take a long look at the excited crowd and the press in the runner below. It was thunderously loud and everyone was standing on their feet waiting for the greatest show on earth to begin. It was insane. She didn’t think she would ever get used to all the craziness surrounding him, but she knew she had no choice. She didn’t want to be anywhere else but here.
Later on that night she woke up around 3 in the morning and once again found that Michael wasn’t in bed with her. At first she wondered if he hadn’t returned from the venue, but the dim sliver of light at the bottom of the bedroom door told her he had returned at some point after she went to sleep. Getting out of bed she pulled on a robe and wrapped her arms around her waist holding it closed and walked out to see if he was still in their suite.
As she came out of the bedroom she heard the soft clinking tones of a piano. She followed the sounds out into the main area. There she found him sitting at the leather bench softly humming and playing a slow melodic tune.
She shook her head…how was it she didn’t know he could play the piano? I wonder what else he can play? She stood quietly at the entrance way, listening to him play the vaguely familiar tune before she finally spoke.
“Michael?” She walked in behind him, placing her hand on his shoulder. “it’s so late. What are you doing up?”
He didn’t say anything, but he had stopped playing and his head dropped slightly and his shoulders slumped down.
“Michael… is everything okay… you should come to -”
“Girl, I’ve been so worried about you these last few days.”
“Michael… what? You didn’t have to worry.”
He reached up and took her hand from his shoulder as he shifted around slightly to look at her. His eyes were wide and his voice cracked as he spoke “I can’t lose you Allison, I can’t. I need you here with me.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” she smiled trying to get him to smile in return.
“No, but these last few days have been hard on you I know. It hurts me to see you hurt. I never wanted this to happen to you. I want to protect you all the time… but I don’t know how to from this… and then you pull away from me.”
This was the first time in 3 days that she actually realized that Michael was hurting too. She had been so wrapped up in her own worry that she didn’t notice that Michael was just as upset as her.
“Michael, I’m sorry… I didn’t think of it that way. I just thought everything was back to normal with you.”
He gave a low chuckle, “Ally, it's my job to make it seem like everything is okay. I would never let them see they have gotten to me… never. But with you… I don’t want to lose you to this.”
She rolled her eyes at him, “Michael, don’t’ be silly, you won’t lose me… especially not to this. I told you.. I am not going anywhere.”
But he kept on speaking as if he hadn’t heard a word she said, “you know I think of you every night Ally. Every night when I’m up on stage, singing, I am thinking of you.”
Allison felt her heart flip, “really?”
“Every night girl, for as long as I can remember…. even before the night I kissed you.”
Oh my god…
She swallowed the lump forming in her throat, “I, I, I didn’t know that,” she stuttered out. “Don’t you think of your dancing and the crowd or the next song.”
“No, the dancing comes with the music, yes it is choreographed, but mostly it is what I feel from the music. I do think of other things in the show, but certain songs or times in the show I am singing just to you.”
She giggled slightly trying to control the wave of emotion she felt, “oh no… Michael, am I your Dirty Diana?”
“Girl, c’mere,” he scooted over so she could sit beside him.
As she slid in beside him on the cushioned bench he started to play the piano again. It was a such a beautiful whimsical tune and then he surprised her when he began to sing to her… a song she knew so well, as song she heard every night, but it never sounded the way he sang it to her now.
Girl… close your eyes, let that rhythm get innnnnn to you…
Don’t try to fight it, there ain’t nothing that you can do…
Relax your mind, lay back and groove with mine..
You got to feel that beat…and we can ride the boogie… share that beat of love…
I wanna rock with you… dance you into day…
I wanna rock with you… were gonna rock the night away
(to hear the song Michael played for Ally, press play)
Allison could barely breath and she leaned her head against his shoulder, her eyes closed listening to him. The way he was singing to her, it was as if Rock with You was written just for her. It sounded similar to the original song she heard every night, yet it was so different… it was a bit slower and not as polished as the record. But she loved it… she felt as if he was singing directly from his heart to her own. It was tender and sensual and full of the love she knew he felt for her. She smiled through the tears filling her closed eyes. He was making it her song. No.. it was more than that… he was making it their song.
When the music stopped she open her eyes gazing at his hands trying to catch her breath.
“Michael, that was beautiful… thank you,” she said as she finally looked up at him.
“I love you so much Ally,” he placed a chaste kiss on her forehead. “I hope you can see that through all this.”
“I don’t see it Michael, I feel it,” she tiled her head up to him and place a warm open-mouthed kiss on his lips. “I feel it with all my heart,” she whispered against his lips before sliding her tongue into his mouth.
Michael groaned as he opened his mouth immediately to her, sucking her tongue in further to dance with his own. He moved to grasp her gently at the base of her neck pulling her into the kiss. Allison sighed, turning her body to him when his other hand slipped from the piano to the caress her upper thigh. Her body tingled from the warm touch of his hand as it slipped between the opening of the robe.
Her heart was overflowing with the love and desire she felt for him.
She pulled away laying her hand on his, “come to bed.”
Not waiting for him to reply she stood wrapping her hand around his to lead him to the bedroom.
As they stepped through the doorway Michael immediately shut the door and reached to pull her back to him. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her backside into his growing erection. He moved his hand beneath the folds of her robe, splaying his hands across her stomach. He nuzzled her ear murmuring softly, “girl I missed you these last few days.”
His breath was so warm on her skin and she could feel the tip of his tongue graze her ear as he whispered to her. She missed him too... It seemed strange to think she missed him after only 3 days… but after spending her time with him 24/7, 3 days seemed like too much. Then to hear him sing to her the way he did tonight… to hear that he thought of her every night when he was on stage… and to make the words of a simple song turn into their story… yes… 3 days was much too long to spend away from this man.
She wanted Michael to know how much she missed him. How much she loved him. She wanted to show him that she loved him just as much if not more than he loved her. She couldn’t sing a verse of a song or play a note on an instrument, but she was determined to show him the only way she knew how.
She turned in his arms, shedding the hotel robe and locked her arms around his neck as she went up on her tiptoes to kiss him.
“Hmmm girl, I love you in my night shirt,” he groaned as he wrapped his arms around her, cupping her butt to pull her flush against him.
Allison stretched up further to deepen the kiss wriggling herself seductively against his warm hard body.
Stepping back from their kiss she let her hands drop to his chest for a moment before she started to unbutton his shirt. slowly. Michael didn’t make a move, only watched her intently as she opened one button at time, biting her lip in deep concentration. When she reached his belt she pulled his shirt from out of his pants and slid it off his arms. She ran her hands down his chest. She could feel the heat of his body through his thin cotton tee shirt. She reached to pull that hem of the t-shirt out and Michael assisted her by yanking it over his head.
Pulling her back to him he covered her mouth in hot wet kiss as his hands slipped beneath the silky night shirt she wore. His warm hands followed her soft contours as he pushed the thin material up to her chest. She moaned her approval as he stroked the outer sides of her breasts then stroked his thumbs over her hardening nipples. He pulled away from her abruptly to pull the shirt over her head, tossing it somewhere she didn’t see and frankly somewhere she didn’t care. Because he was kissing her again making her tremble as he maneuvered her back towards the bed. Allison didn’t even know they were moving until the back of her legs collided with the bed.
Michael tried to push her back to lie on the bed, but instead she sat down and held him back from moving on top to cover her.
“Girl what are you doing,” he protested when she held him back.
“You… Mr. Jackson, have too many clothes on,” she raised her eyebrows seductively as she scooted herself back slightly to give herself some room to work.
Michael chuckled deep in his throat as she placed her hands on his waist and began to undress his lower half. Keeping his gaze she pushed the leather through his belt buckle, cinching it in to unhook it before she pulled it open. She twisted the buttons of his trousers open and he groaned when her fingertips brushed his skin making his stomach muscles tense. She could feel his arousal flexing against the confines of his black dress trousers and she leaned into him and kissed his belly button before she unzipped his pants.
By now Michael was hard as stone and his breathing was heavy. Allison could feel the heat radiating from him. She bent forward and kissed the tip of his erection that was exposed at the top of his briefs as she ran her hand firmly over him.
Michael groaned inwardly, drawing in a long deep breath he closed his eyes. Her mouth and breath were warm against his skin and his hand fell to cup that back of her head, “girl you make me so hard.”
She drew back and smiled biting her lip, “hmmm, good.”
He rubbed the pad of his thumb across her bottom lip, “you like that, do you?”
A pretty pink blush covered her and she nodded. Her eyes twinkled with the excitement she felt as she continued her slow massage, “yeah…. very much.”
Out of necessity she released him momentarily. She didn’t want to, but she wanted his clothes off now. She moved her hands to his waist pushing his pants over his slim hips until they fell around his ankles. Michael toed off his boots and divested himself of his trousers and socks in lightning speed and then came back to her. He tried again to push her back onto the bed, but she held her place, moving up to rest on her knees. She stretched herself up to kiss the base of his neck dragging her fingertips down his body to reach for him again. Michael hissed loudly then groaned as her hand slipped inside his briefs to find the hard length of him. She moved to kiss his mouth as she wrapped her hand around his girth, squeezing him gentle.
“Ally,” he gasped as he grew harder and longer in her grasp.
She continued to work her hand over him feeling the strength of his erection in her hand.
She felt heady with the sense of power as she worked over him. She wanted him to feel the way she felt when he made love to her. As if the whole world had disappeared and it was only the two of them together riding a wave of ecstasy. She pulled his briefs down his legs and he obliged by stepping out of them. He was no longer trying to lead their love making, he was letting her control the tempo.
“C’mere you,” she pulled his hand to bring him down on to the bed rolling on top to him.
Michael opened his legs to allow her to slide in-between them. His rigid length trapped beneath her. Starting with his mouth, she placed a soft kiss on his lips then moved to kiss his chin and neck as she made her way down his torso. Taking her time she kissed her way down his body, pressing and rubbing herself against him. She smiled against his skin when he gasped a low guttural groan as she moved slowly over him. Michael sighed as she nipped at him, softly biting him along his stomach as she drifted lower. His hips lifted off the bed as she trailed her tongue over his hipbone. Sliding lower he could feel her hot breath on his ridged erection as she continued to kiss down to his thighs.
She moved back up to kneel between his legs and took him in her hands. Working his natural lubrication up and down him, she ran her thumb over the mushroomed top. Michael licked his lips in anticipation and arched upward as she stroked him. Lowering down she licked him before taking the head into her warm mouth. Michael groaned sliding his hand into her hair, gently guiding her as she moved her mouth up and down the length of him. Each time she moved over him she took him a little deeper until he hit the back of her throat. Michael moaned low in his throat. My god… her mouth felt divine. He arched up hard as she slid her mouth back up his length, intending to take him deep again.
Jesus he was going to burst if she did that again….
He tightened his hand in her hair, stopping her.
She sat back on her knees to look at him, her face flush and her eyes dark with desire.
“Girl… you’ve got to stop,” he said hoarsely. “I wanna be inside you when I come.”
Without a word she moved removed her panties, the last barrier of clothing to straddle him. Then she rose over him and eased him inside her. She was so wet that she took his length easily and she released long sexy sigh when he filled her.
Michael groaned too sucking in his breath, the feel of her tight walls was overwhelming.
“Jesus Christmas. Ally… stop…. don’t move.”
Obeying his request, she looked down at him through hooded eyelids smiling at him. She could feel him throbbing inside her. He clenched his hands into fists breathing in gulps of air as he tried not to climax. She could feel he legs tense as he tried to relax. She closed her eyes lost in the feeling of her desire to please him. When she felt his muscles relax she rocked her pelvis back and forth testing him. He groaned his approval and caressed her thighs. She rose up slowly then lowered down taking him all in. She groaned at the feel of him in her and her walls clenched him tightly.
Michael watched the connection between them, fascinated as his length appeared than disappeared inside her each time she sank down on him. She found her rhythm and he had never seen her look more beautiful than she did right then.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said softly.
She opened her eyes and met his gaze, “so are you.”
She leaned forward, bracing her hands on his shoulders, covering his mouth in a sensual kiss. Michael swallowed the moans that she made, lifting his hands to cup her breasts. She pulled away from the kiss gasping, resting her forehead against his. She picked up the pace between them staring into his eyes as she rode him. The intimacy of their lovemaking evident in the soft whimpers they made.
She closed her eyes, her breath catching as they moved together. Michael could feel the first vibrations of her orgasm. He sat up and wrapped his arms around her and she wrapped her arms around his neck as she continued to ride him.
“Girl, you feel so good,” he growled in her ear. His breath was hot and his low growl pulsed through her. He brushed his lips along her skin, tracing the base of her neck with his tongue. She moaned, clutching him tighter, moving faster.
“Oh god…Michael... uh… I’m so close.”
He tightened his grip on her, holding her in place while he began to rock his hips in rhythm with her movement.
Ally clenched on him, rolling her hips sinuously over him.
“Come for me Ally,” he whispered, kissing her neck.
He caressed her body, brushing his hand softly along her side and across her belly. He moved his hand down between them to stroke her where they were connected. She shuddered, crying out as he stroked her.
Her hips rose and fell. She felt dizzy with desire. Every touch, every movement sending her higher. A light dew of sweat covered them both. He grabbed her ass, holding her tight as they moved as one striving for release, until finally, she couldn’t stop it, even if she wanted to. He pushed up into hard and deep and her back curved pushing her further into him. Crying out his name, her whole body tightened. Her body riding him on instinct as the waves of desire crashed over her to consume her. Breathless she collapsed against him, burying her face in his neck trembling.
Michael groaned loudly, all but hurling himself into her. He grasped her hips, pulling her into his long hard thrusts, stroking deep into her orgasm until he followed with his own. Allison held him close, savouring the intense closeness between them as he filled her with his hot release. She kissed him as he groaned and dropped his forehead to her shoulder.
“Oh God, girl, that was incredible.”
She chuckled against his neck exhausted. That was the understatement of a lifetime.
She dragged her head from his shoulders to look at his face, ”meh yeah, it was okay.”
He opened his eyes slowly and smiled and she melted.
sjeesh , am I the first to comment ? guess I am .
ReplyDeleteOK , here it goes , overall I thought it was a great chapter , nice and long with sweet luvin , that always does the trick :) .
So * coughs * consulting notes hehehehe
So Ally in the newspaper , I have to say I am a little surprised that she was so stunned by the interest in her, maybe she is still a bit naive when it comes to the depth of Michael's fame , having said that, I can completely understand that she was shocked by all the derogatory names that Michael was called in the newspaper . Why did they do that ?? did that not come later in his life , the Jacko comments ??? I guess not .
I love that Ally felt she was in "some sort of job " and constantly worried about how she would look and what she would wear and happy that Michael laughed at her and told her "just be yourself" . you can't be nobody else (oh that is from The Way You Make Me Feel )
Well and then the scene at the piano and that rendition of " Rock with you " I love it so and can well imagine Michael singing to Ally right there in the suite , how romantic , Michael singing into her ear like that !
The luvin ...well , that speaks for itself , wonderful and the end , I love the end :
"He opened his eyes slowly and smiled and she melted "
oh .my .....
Thx C , great chapter
I was so preoccupied and 'melting' by the time I finished this chapter, I guess I sort of forgot to leave a comment.
ReplyDeleteThe chapter was wonderful. I hated for it to end (since it might be a while until we see another)!
Tell Ally not to worry about all that press crap, as long as she has Michael, that's all that matters.
I loved that rendition of Rock With You ... more melting involved ;)
Yup K you are my first commentor... ;)
ReplyDeleteYes I have to agree with you I think Ally is a little naive still... not knowing what to expect. She will need to do a bit of growing up... and growing up fast to learn to deal with the nasty press. She might have to take a page out of the Valerie attitude book!
HAHA... thanks for the just be yourself... that is true, she needs to figure out what she needs to do... perhaps get back to her job so she will stop fretting so much.
Yeah that version of RWY makes me melt... i love it, i love that it is the same song.. but sounds so different - I think I would melt too!
Thanks so much for commneting!
haha... I can forgive you for the preoccupation of melting... it is kinda easy to do when Michael is singing to you... I melted too many times in writing the chapter, that is why it took me so long. I will try to do better in the future :)
ReplyDeleteI agree... as long as you have Michael, who cares about what the hell else is going on!
Thansk for commenting.
Geez I need yo go on tumblir more often! I missed the sneak peek and the update! As I was scrolling I was so surprised to see an update! A wonderful one at that.
ReplyDeleteI agree Ally is a bit naive in thinking that this would not make media frenzy... Everything in Michael's life was..poor guy...now she is a part of it!
Michael hid his feelings well. Ally never realized how bad he was hurting..and I could only imagine that he probably reacted this way most of his life being strong like it didn't phase him putting when deep inside it hurt!
Lovely touch Cheryl .. The piano, the singing , the love making...now which one of would adore to be in Ally's shoes being able to love Michael like that. A girl can dream! LOL!
Great update looking forward to more.
Hi Nancy!
ReplyDeleteHahaha... sorry you almost missed it. I have been terrible in updating, so I can understand. I will try to get better in the next couple of months!
Yes... I think Allison has a bit of growing up to do and see what is going on in the real world... I think there might be someone out there to straighten her out a bit.
I agree with you too... I think Michael put on a strong front for everyone... of course it those things hurt, but he didn't want to let those who did the finger pointing to know they were hurting him.
I am glad you liked the ending... I think I put myself in Ally's shoes every single time she spends any time with Michael.. :)
Thanks for commenting.
It took me forever to find you since my computer died but E led me here thank goodness! Excellent chapter as always. Ally has definitely got a wake up call to Michael's world but I feel she will make it with Michael's love and support. Absolutely love it when you update such great long chapters as you always do. Thanks so much can't wait for more!
ReplyDeleteHi Susan... so sorry you keep losing me. And so happy that E was able to getyou back here. Sorry it took me so long to comment on your comment - my real life world has been a little bit crazy. Kinda like Ally's - but I don't have a super shiny gorgeous Michael to lead me through... but I think you are right, Michael is going to help her along the way.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting.. :)