part three. part two. part one.
ꪆৎ fangirl!reader. musician! reader. from bad era! michael to mature era. 10 years age gap or less? story line doesn’t follow that much accuracy ( altered asf 🙈) long chapter. sorry for the long wait. recommend listening to the adventures in paradise album by minnie riperton !
ever since that first kiss on the ferris wheel, the two of you had become nearly inseparable. any free moment michael could find was spent with you. long phone calls and having the chance to chat quickly became one of the favorite parts of your day. he never stopped being sweet and making you laugh. little by little, michael was letting you further into his world. even with the tour approaching closer by the day, michael found ways to make time for you. quiet visits squeezed between rehearsals and stolen afternoons or evenings hidden away from curious eyes.
rare days off had become a luxury lately. the tour’s departure date crept closer and closer, his schedule had been packed from sunrise to sunset. which made today all the more special.
seated in the backseat, michael absentmindedly adjusted the bouquet resting on his lap while a small collection of gifts occupied the space beside him. from behind the wheel, bill spared him an amused glance through the rearview mirror.
“ you’re really spoiling that girl, this must be something serious this time ‘round.” michael immediately dropped his smile or tried to. “ I’m not.” bill laughed at his rather quick response. “ you ain’t fooling me, joker. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you buy this many gifts for somebody.”
“ I buy gifts for people.” bill let out a dramatic hum. “ right.. right.. sure.”the silence that followed only seemed to prove his point. bill had known michael long enough to notice things others missed. especially that lighter mood. for the first time in a while michael looked happy in a that had nothing to do with his own success.
“ you really like her don’t you, joker?” michael absentmindedly adjusted one of the gift bags. “ it’s hard not to, i mean she is bright… one of a kind. i put phonecalls with her over rehearsals any time. no, im joking.” a faint grin tugged at michael’s lips and bill caught the hint that he wanted to keep it on the surface level for now. “ yeah, i bet you are. just be careful though.” the older man’s expression grew more thoughtful. his sudden mention of cation caught michael’s attention. “ what do you mean?” he remained silent, waiting for elaboration. “ what i mean is that she’s a rising artist, you’re michael jackson and people gon talk. all it takes is one photographer. one person recognizing a car…just one slip up…you know better yourself.” michael glanced down at the bouquet in his lap. “nobody knows.” he heaves out a sigh. “ not yet. but secrets have a way of getting out.” the man pauses, “ all I’m saying is for you to think ahead. I’d advise you both to keep it under wraps for now. so be careful.” michael sat with the thought for a moment before nodding. “ you’re right. that’s definitely in the back of my mind.” the conversation eased after that and drifted to lighter subjects.
“well I’ll be damned.” the moving car slowly came to a stop, bill parking it. michael’s eyes wandered across the property, and by surprise there wasn’t a single thing that screamed wealth. “ you sure we got the right address ? you sure she living here?” bill was in disbelief, he was expecting a mansion but the house looked normal not even close to reflecting her paycheck. if anything it blended into its surroundings. the only exception was the garden. lush greenery framing the property making it appear much larger than it is.
“ i seriously expected something more grandiose. something up the hill with six gates and other extravaganza just like her peers.” that made michael laugh, “ yeah i did too. but she did mention that she gets that a lot whenever she gets visitors. but it’s best to not associate her public image to her home. I’m not even sure the neighborhood is aware of the person living here.” the contrast was striking, so far apart from the luxury and elegance that she presented in the media. bill glanced at michael with a smile. “ i think i like her already. by the look of this alone makes it clear that she got a good head on her shoulders.” bill joked which made michael laugh. “ yeah? you don’t even know her on personal level yet.” bill proceeded to wave him off. “ I don’t need to, man. you go on ahead. alright joker.” michael said his goodbyes and quickly found himself standing in front of your door.
a pair of sunglasses rested on his face doing little to hide the smile he’d been wearing for most of the drive. he let out a deep breath as he adjusted the gifts tucked beneath his arm. then the door swung open.
“ welcome to my humble abode!—sir.” your eyes immediately land on the gifts in his hands since they were hard to miss. your features formed a deadpanned expression. and he simply stared in awe that was short lived the moment he heard the disbelief in your tone. “ before you say anything, yes i brought more stuff.“ and all you could do is sigh. “but michael.. soon enough i won’t have any space left to put all of these gifts.” you respond resigned, a tinge of humor. “sorry about that but i think I’ve officially lost the ability to show up empty handed.“ all you could do is blink and shake your head, “ you’re too sweet sometimes but thanks to you i got a built an extra room to put everything, but do come in.”
once inside michael set the gift bags aside before glancing around and taking the warmth of your home for the first time. it felt just like you. he watched you fill a vase with water in the kitchen, carefully arranging the flowers in their new place. it wasn’t hard to not notice his gaze that stayed on you throughout the whole process, afterwards you couldn’t help but ask. “ why do you keep looking at me like that?” he shook his head lightly after you pulled him out of a trance. “ I was just thinking of how nice that color looks on you.” that made you look down at your sundress before meeting his eyes again. “ thank you, actually i was planning on a white dress but you know how difficult it is to not catch a stain.” you groan, “ but im glad i choose this one.” you smile. “ not that my opinion matters but me too, we can agree that any color looks great on you. you do so without trying.” he quickly said, lowering his head slightly before meeting your eyes again. missing the flustered face you wore. before either of you could linger on the moment, a faint flutter of wings caught his attention.
“ wait a minute.” he instantly perked up, his feet moving towards the living room and finding a large bird cage in the corner. two white birds shuffling along the perch and chirping. “ these are beautiful..” Michael crouched down slightly, resting his hands on his knees as he admired them. “ they know it too,” that comment earned a quiet laugh from him. “ oh yeah, i bet they do.” before she could answer, his gaze caught something else in the room. his eyes grew wider. more so surprised at how he less perceptive he’d been. “ ma’am you have an aquarium too? ” michael laughed. you kept on adding more to the lists of surprises. one could’ve never guessed you were an animal person. he at least didn’t. “ it’s nothing strange unlike the zoo you have at home. but we won’t get into that,” now he stood in front of the glass entirely captivated as fishes lazily drifted through the water. “ oh but we can…” he challenged and you accepted. “ it’s a bit vague but from what I’ve known is that you have giraffes, you’ve had snakes growing up and a llama.” you reached for a small container beside the aquarium. “and of course we can’t forget bubbles.”
his laugh came instantly. “oh please. leave bubbles out of this.” you hand him the container with a head shake while making the motion for him to try feeding the fishes and he did as requested. “ look. all I’m saying is that neither of us mind having animals around.” the fish gathered near the surface the moment he sprinkled a pinch of food into the water. “ mhm. i confide in them easier than with people. I’ve always had those kinds of friends growing up.”
“ I’ll never get people who try to paint you all types of crazy just because you have a chimp too.” you couldn’t help but roll your eyes, thinking about how much controversy surrounded that area of his life too. “ but i like your relationship with bubbles. he’s basically like your child, right? .. how are you gonna handle it when he gets older though?” michael glanced over, her smile softening. “ i try not to think about that part. oh i don’t even want to picture it. him out of the picture would be.. it certainly would be something. but I hope to keep him around, I will.” he said concluded so self assured. and to hear him be so expressive made something soften within you.
“ i know you’re not planning to stay here the whole day, so there’s something I just can’t wait to show you.” you took his hand and led him down the hallway and opened a door. the sight before him made him look around in disbelief. shelves packed with vinyl records stretched across the room. thousands of them were neatly lined and arranged. a record player sat in the corner clearly well used but expensive and beside it a soft sofa. you almost cackled at the reaction of him slowly stepping inside, “ welcome to the universal maze. you fancy it?” you tease and he could only nod, incredibly intrigued and already scanning the rows. “ this is incredible.. it’s a lot actually.”
“ don’t you like record stores? come here instead. now that I think about it, it’s so absurd that you have to get in some disguise just to get an album. you can just come straight to me. so do take that into consideration.” you dare to blurt that out, almost hating how that came out of you so easily. “ is this your way of getting me to come back? because i promise you i will..” he peered over his shades with a sly grin while pulling out a rare title. he had to ask, “ is this an original pressing? Wait a minute… how did you get all of these? this is a whole record store worth millions..” thats all he’d been viewing, it was such a wide variety of music and different genres all together. you practically owned a treasure chest.
“ well, my father’s a dj or at least he was.” you start to explain. “ I’ve always been exposed and always had access to records. every time he visits he ends up in here for hours, just.. stacking and propping the shelves in. it became kind of a hobby for him over the years because he’s collected so much. “
“ your father is an amazing man. this is history right here, you better keep this protected.” he chuckled. his respect for you doubled the amount he already has for you.
after a bit of browsing, they settled on adventures in paradise by minnie riperton. “ excellent choice.” michael declared as you placed the record carefully on the turntable. the first notes filled the room turning the atmosphere dreamy and warm. “ this is where i mostly spent most of my time. i contemplated on turning part of it into a home studio at some point. the urge was strong when i first moved in. but.. I don’t know..” you glanced around the room deeply pondering once more. “this isn’t a place to work. it’s where I come to breathe.” the conversation started as soon as you both settled on the sofa. your legs casually stretched across his lap and his hands absentmindedly tracing patterns on your bare skin. you had grown so comfortable together. he hummed in response and then remained quiet for a moment. it safe to say that he’s completely enamored by all of the albums. all it did was made him think. “ I get that. but I’m not sure if I’d call music work.” you raise a brow at him, and he met your gaze. “ I’m serious, (name).” with a nod of his head towards the shelves, he continued. “ I think if your heart’s really in it, it shouldn’t feel like a burden.”
you couldn’t help the scoff back. it was soft but very telling. “ ok now hold on, we won’t sit up here and pretend as if you and i both don’t know the pressure that comes in the studio room. it far more demanding than what i thought. see, writing works perfectly fine. I’ve always loved writing. but recording? that’s basically hell–“ all he did was shake his head at your complaint. “ oh so you disagree with me?” your facial reaction had your feelings depicted all across. “ no,(name). i think you’re letting the pressure get louder than the reason you started.” the room fell completely quiet for a moment except for the music playing in the background. “ you don’t spend your free time surrounded by thousands of records because you hate it. the proof is visibly right here itself. every artist, all the greats in this room probably had days where they had the same complex feeling. but they showed up anyway. let it be an inspiration for you .. to have the ability to create music is magic. and you have that.”
the words floated in the air between you. you’d heard this message before. countless times even. the only difference present being that it wasn’t simply just advice. it was more impactful coming from him and it was laced with a lot of understanding. like he meant exactly what it meant to struggle and still show up any way. to have that strong passion that keeps you driven.
and so, you shifted closer without a single uttered word until you were sitting on his lap. michael instinctively held you affectionately with arms wrapped around you, providing so much comfort that came naturally and unexplained. finally you let out a quiet sigh. “ someone can never win in an argument with you, can they?” he rested back into the sofa, not saying anything yet only listening. “but you’re right.. in this moment i realized that i have the capabilities to just be myself in music. and that i had lost that purpose, or abandoned it even. but you kind of reminded me that i still have the chance.. and a wake up call was due so im grateful for that.. i really am.” one hand caressed your back with care that made you relax and his gentle voice filled your ears with ease. “ you didn’t lose it. it was always there, you just got in your own head for a bit and that’s alright. it happens to everyone. you’re exposed to it for the first time in your life, but don’t let it stop you.”
every time it surprised you how easily he offered reassurance. and that alone wasn’t enough to summarize up the beauty of his soul. it made you feel seen and heard and the consistency of it made you more certain of that he wasn’t performing, you’ve learned to accept that it was simply who he is. without thinking much about it, you snuggle further into his providen comfort.
before you could keep your intrusive thoughts to yourself, you murmured“ fuck that tour.” michael blinked and stifled a laugh. “ woah… well at least we know where you stand. im not gonna disappear on you (name), we’ll get back to this as soon as it’s done with.” he pressed a kiss on the crown of your head. it should’ve been another moment of tenderness but your irritation spiked causing you to lean back. “awww, that’s just so lovely isn’t ? I’m sure I’ve have loads of time for the both of us!” your voice was high pitched for that short while, dripping with sarcasm until the end of that last line. “ wrong. my schedules already decided for next year. it’s packed. barely any gaps. I mean I’m happy for you with the whole tour but you’ll be soooo exhausted.” a breath left you, calmer now but still frustrated.
“ then we don’t force it. we’ll just make space where we can. and stop being pessimistic, angel.. we’ll figure it out.” his big hands hold either side of your face, pressing a long kiss on your forehead. you stayed close but your brows were still drawn together. “ when are you gonna take those sunglasses off? we’re indoors, michael.” you muttered. suddenly more annoyed than before. the fact that he had to leave just right at the moment you grew more attached to him. life’s so cruel.
he reached up and slid them off, placing them aside. “ there, better?” his eyes being finally freed from any shield was just a simple act that wasn’t supposed to mean a singular thing.
that was until the opening of inside my love slipped into the background. the music that played so softly during all the previous tracks had apparently increased its volume without your knowledge and it took this moment for you to realize. not just you alone, michael felt it too. the moment the chorus chimed in, words were left unspoken there was no time for lips to communicate but for lips to connect. both just naturally moving together. ever so fresh and fulfilling.
this opportunity might never come again. for all you know this could be a kiss goodbye. those were the thoughts that infiltrated your mind with speed. and the moment you felt his hardened evidence beneath you, the kiss grew more steamy and almost rushed tempo. one hand hold the back of your neck so suddenly, getting a better angle to deepen the kiss just so he can get a better taste of you. and the other dangerously tracing up your exposed leg, skimping all the way up to your thigh. this was more than enough confirmation of the risk he was also willing to take.
