Athena Tyler is an Italian-American musician who rose to fame as the lead singer of a girl band with her sisters, called 'Sorelle'. She has amassed millions of dollars and now lives alone in a luxurious mansion. Although she no longer sings, she has...
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JUNE 14, 1995
As Michael and Athena settled into their seats for the interview with Diane Sawyer, Diane turned to the camera.
"I have Michael Jackson and Athena Tyler here with me this morning," she said as she turned back to the couple, "Now I just want to make one thing clear; both of you have said that nothing is off limits today. Any questions or topics you are open to discussing. Is that still the case?"
Michael smiled reassuringly at Athena, who nodded, "Yes, we are completely open to discussing anything with you, Diane," he said.
Diane nodded, her eyes never leaving the couple, "Glad you're here. It occurs to me, looking at the two of you, I have got to start by asking how this marriage took place, how it began. Let me guess; it wasn't over miniature golf and a.....a hot dog or something. When did it start? What was the dating?"
"Well, we first met, she was nineteen....or eighteen? Eighteen or nineteen?"
"Eighteen at the time," Athena confirmed.
"Right, and I was twenty-six. This was in Los Angeles for the We Are The World project," Michael said.
"Had you stayed in touch with her after that?" Diane asked, leaning forward in her seat.
"Well, no. We didn't keep in touch," Athena shook her head, "He...he...go ahead, you wanna say it. Go ahead."
"No, you can. You can," Michael said as he smiled at his wife, "You have a good memory."
"Well you said you were going to say it," Athena smiled shyly.
"Our first argument and we have it live," Diane chuckled.
"It wasn't until years later that we reconnected at a Los Angeles hospital; when were were both coincidentally visiting sick children," Michael smiled.
"And that's when the sparks began to fly?" Diane probed, her gaze shifting between the two.
"Yes," Michael nodded, his fingers brushing gently over Athena's, "It was like fate had finally caught up with us. The connection we had felt all those years ago came flooding back, and we couldn't deny it any longer."
"But you didn't act on it right away, did you?"
"No, we didn't. We didn't meet again at that hospital until I was twenty and he was twenty-seven in 1987," Athena interjected, her voice soft, "I think I was more hesitant at first because I was so young and I was thinking that Michael would never be interested in me of all people. I mean he had friends like Diana Ross, Liz Taylor—bless them—but, I was just the girl from Sorelle who had recently left the band."
Diane nodded, understanding the weight of their decisions. But she wasn't done delving into their relationship just yet, "So, when did you finally decide to take the plunge and start dating?"
