Til The End — The Back Story

The Call….

“Oh, wow I can’t believe it’s you? You do know how much I love your music, right? I have all your pictures on my wall and…” “Well you know my brothers and they said you were pretty cool. That you don’t make a fuss over them or anything” Michael said, cutting me off. “Yes that’s true” I said, “I guess I am a little over the moon that you called….. I mean, Randy said you would call but I’m so flabbergasted. Sorry for being crazy fan girl and rambling on” “oh it’s ok, it happens all the time when I speak to someone new. Its ok, just breathe, that’s what I do.”

I like your brothers Michael and they have been really good friends to me. They always ask me about school and what I’m doing.” “Yeah, I understand you go to an arts high school and that you sing” “yeah, I do go to Duke Ellington and I sing but mostly classical music nothing like what you do” “Girl, I love classical music… Debussy, Stravinsky and Mozart, I love it all! That’s all I listen to when I’m not working!” I could hear the smile in his voice. “Really? Wow, I didn’t know that. Hey, aren’t you still on tour right now?” “Yeah” Michael stated “but I’m on a bit of a break right now…I have a few weeks off. I really hate being on the road so long… it gets kinda boring and lonely. And trying to sleep at night is the worst”

“Dag, that sounds bad Mike, is it ok if I call you Mike?” I asked timidly. “Sure, why not” Mike giggled. “So what are you doing now that you’re off?” I asked. Michael inhaled and exhaled slowly and said “Well, different things, but I really want to know about you… so you are still in high school? What are your plans after high school, college?” Slowly thinking, I’m…not…sure. I have a few auditions coming up for Julliard, Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon, but I’m still not sure if I want to pursue classical. I really want to write and perform…Oh, but that’s not why I’m friends with you guys” I interjected. “Oh, I know that you’ve known the brothers since you were, what? 17? You were just a kid then….I realize that” Mike mumbled that last part.

“So what made you want to call me? Did you see the pictures I sent to Hayvenhurst?” “No, you sent pictures to Hayvenhurst? I hope you had your close on, my mom checks the mail, you know.” He said with a smile in his voice and a nervous giggle. “Of course I did! I sent the pictures to Randy so the guys could see how I changed” “Changed, from what to what?” Michael said slyly. I blushed.

“Nothing, silly” I laughed…
“So when do you have a break from school?” Michael questioned
“In the spring, why” I asked
“Just wondering…I want to meet you.”
“Really, Michael? I’m so young” I bluntly stated.
“Well, when do you turn 21?”
“Oh, in the summer.”
“Wow, my birthday is in the summer too!”
(I know) “So you’ll be like what, 30?”
“Yeah, but age is just a number, ya know? I have many friends younger than you.”
“Oh you do, do you?” I responded smartly
“Yeah I do, it’s not what you think… Say I’ll be there in the fall, think we could meet then?”
“Sure” I stated obviously, nervous
Michael laughed, but then seriously said “Girl, I’m not trying to get in your drawls…you don’t have to be 18 to meet me.”
“Oh, ok” I sighed
“Unless you have other plans…” he stated slyly
“Um, no Mike, I have no other plans” I couldn’t tell him that every night I dreamt of him… or how I kiss his pictures good night.
“Good, well, can I call you again sometime?” stated cheerily
“Yeah, sure”
“Ok, I will. It may be late at night, so ask your parents, ok?”
“Well, there’s only my mom, but she’s pretty laid back. I’ll ask her, anyway.”
“Ok, bye. Talk to you soon.” Then he released the line as I screamed inside my head (Oh my G-D, Michael Jackson just called, ME!)

SEVERAL MONTHS LATER…

Even though sometimes she’d answer the phone after coming in late from work, she just assumed it was some girlfriend calling me so late until one night she overheard me saying “MICHAEL, you are a trip!” it was 3:30 in the morning, so to say she was alarmed was an understatement…

The next day, she wanted to know Michael who? Did he live in the neighborhood? How old was he? Was he in college? Had we been intimate yet? Did I need to see a gynecologist? Etc. Man the questions just kept coming and I had to think of some answers for her!

“Michael is a boy from the school choir. No, he lives up in N.W.” I told her he was 20 almost 21, I wasn’t sure if he was going to college or not, but thought he was going up to N.Y. to audition for shows, no we have not had sex. He’s just a friend and no I did NOT need birth control!
Then she asked me if he’s been the “girl” calling me at midnight. I told her “yes but, you only thought he was a girl.”

“So, is this boy gay or what?” she said curiously

“Momma, I don’t know! We don’t talk about that kind of stuff, geez…”

“Don’t, geez me! I’m just now finding out you’ve been talking to a boy secretly for months! I ought to take your phone out of your room!”

“Momma, it’s not like that… we aren’t romantic or anything! I’m like…his…best friend! Maybe you should get to know him a little…”

“Ok. Well ask him to come over”

(Oh boy, why did I say that?) “Um, I can’t mom… um he’s in Italy with his family right now.” (Kinda true, good save)

Well, when he gets back then, ok?…..calling here all hours of the night” she mumbled ”AND I want to speak to him when he calls next time ok? O.K.?
“Ok, mom” I sadly responded.

Momma didn’t really say much to me regarding the phone calls after that. I don’t think she heard the phone ring at night as much both partly because she came in dog tired and because Mike started calling around 1 am.