My Michelle.- Complete Story!

Chapter 8 - History.

Later that same day, Paul found Michelle sat in the living room, quietly reading.

"Busy?" he asked.

"No not really." She smiled, putting her book down, "Why?"

"Well," he said sitting down next to her, "I thought that since we decided to get to know each other slowly, I should come and share something about me. This is the McCartney family album."

Michelle grinned. "Ooh - embarrassing photo time - that sounds fun!"

Paul looked back at her with mock hurt on his face. "I'll have you know I was a very handsome child!"

Michelle laughed. "Prove it then!"

He opened the book. "Well. Here I am - me as a baby with my mum and dad. I arrived on June 18th 1942 - James Paul McCartney."

"James?"

"Yes - after my dad. That's dad. My mum was called Mary. She died when I was 14. That's me and my brother Mike."

Michelle looked at the photos from his childhood. "You always look happy. It looks like you had a lovely childhood - lucky you!"

Paul told her different stories from his childhood in Liverpool and then how he went on to meet the other band members at Grammar school. He had her in stitches with his tales.

"I love hearing you laugh." he said smiling at her, "it makes the sadness go from your eyes."

"Sadness?"

"You always have sadness in your eyes - even when you smile. Sorry - I don't mean to overstep the mark."

Michelle looked at him thoughtfully, "its OK - you haven't! Come on then," she said with a forced brightness, "more photos!"

"You've seen them all now," said Paul closing the book. He turned to face her. "What about you. What about your family? You never mention them."

Michelle was silent.

"Sorry - I don't mean to pry...."

"No - no your not. It's just that I never talk about my family because I haven't got one." Michelle was very matter of fact.

He looked confused. "Are they dead?"

"No....." She hesitated. "Look Paul, you might as well know. I was born and brought up in Manchester .....in a children's home." She looked at him, watching his reaction to her statement. "I'm illegitimate. My mother was 17 when I was born - unmarried. From the information I was told, she tried to look after me. Her parents threw her out. As a baby I kept being ill. She thought my illnesses were because she wasn't caring for me properly. Finally, not able to cope anymore, she put me in to care when I was three months old."

She stopped. Paul was shaking his head. "That's terrible," he said softly, "your poor mother having to give you up. What happened after that?"

"I was adopted by three different families when I was small. None of them lasted though. I was a sickly child, it wasn't anything to do with my mother's care after all. I was returned to care  because nobody wanted a defective child -I wasn't perfect enough! Eventually I was put in a home where the people who ran it fostered me so that I could at least stay put with them instead of being moved around continuously. I lived with them from being 4 until I moved to London aged fifteen."

Paul absorbed the news silently. He paused. "How did you end up in London?"

"As a kid I couldn't do sports or play with other children much. My health stopped me. I was always lonely and often teased because of it." She shrugged, remembering, "Then when I was about six one of my teachers felt sorry for me and started teaching me to play the piano at break times - and I loved it! Apparently I picked it up really fast. My teacher told my foster parents that I was talented so they saw music as a way for me to make friends. They paid for music lessons. I was able to join a band because by then I played the clarinet and it was discovered that that actually helped my health improve. Then when I was 15 I entered a competition for a music scholarship for the Guildhall School of Music in London. Anyway, after a variety of rounds, I won. That's how I met George Martin- he was one of the people on the board deciding. At first, because I was still underage by a few months it was thought I wouldn't be able to take up the place. George thought this was a waste so he offered to act as a guardian - that's how I ended up in London. You've probably noticed he's very protective of me - that's why."