He Saved Me

Chp 13

Mia's POV
The day went by pretty quick. After breakfast I was sent back to my room to clean everything up. It took me quite a while but I finally finished. Daddy came in to my room to check on me and was proud of my progress. Although there was still faded paint left on the wall, the room almost looked brand new.
     Around 6pm, everyone started running around to pack. Everyone left it for the last minute except for Paris. She was already done. On the other hand, Daddy was probably the messiest person I've ever seen. Not dirty. Messy. I went into his room to see what he's up to, and I felt like I walked into every OCD person's worst nightmare.
     There were piles and piles of clothes everywhere. A plethora of red shirts and fedoras. They all looked identical. He had random books lying around. And then stacks of posters he received from fans while in New York. Daddy looked super overwhelmed, so I decided to back away and leave him to his packing.
     Prince and Blanket were both busy packing as well. I didn't really have anything to pack. Just a few pajamas and my new toys that Daddy gave me at the hospital. I was bored and pacing around the hotel suite. I make my way into the living room, thinking of watching some tv. But I find Paris there, sprawled out on the couch.
     There was an awkward stare down between us before I decided to go back to my room. But then a voice behind me stopped me in my tracks. "You can sit and watch tv with me if you want," offered Paris. I was kind of shocked. I thought she hated me. I looked in her direction contemplating what to do.
"Umm I-I," I stuttered. I hate when I do that. When I feel nervous or shy, I stutter a lot. It's like my tongue gets stuck in my mouth. I must look like an idiot when I do that. Ughh.
"Don't be shy, come," Paris said as she motioned me over.
"What are you watching?" I whispered as I walked over to her.
"I was just watching random Youtube videos," she responded.
"Like what?" I questioned.
"Here," she said handing me the remote. "Look through my playlist. You can pick something from there or we can search something you wanna see."
"Thanks," I replied shyly. It was kind of strange to see Paris being so nice to me. She's been sort of cold towards me ever since I got here. I was lost in my thoughts when I noticed something on her playlist. It was titled, Michael Jackson- Another Part of Me (Wembley Stadium). "Is that Daddy?" I asked curiously.
Now don't get me wrong, obviously I knew who Michael Jackson was before my adoption. But I was so restricted from tv and internet with my old parents, that I never really got to google or watch any celebrity. I was always forced to stay in my room, out of sight out of mind.
"Yes that's Daddy," Paris giggled.
"Can we watch it?" I asked. Paris nodded yes and turned it on. Instantly I was mesmerized. His dancing and singing was out of this world. One video lead to another, and soon Paris and I were having a "Michael Jackson binge watch".

Michael's POV
I finally finished packing. This has to be the worst part of traveling. I checked in on Prince and Blanket to see if they were done. But as usual, they were too busy playing around and fighting with each other to finish a simple task. God knows what they were wrestling over this time. "HEY!" I yelled to get their attention.
Both of them instantly untangled their arms putting a halt to their "wrestling match", and got off the floor. "Are you guys done packing?" I asked knowing the answer already. They both nodded no. I looked at my watch and took a deep breath. We have to leave in about 20 mins. "Well you better finish up quick if you know whats good for you," I said warningly. "And Prince, I expect more from you. You're the oldest," I lectured. "You can't influence the younger ones to disregard my instructions.
"Sorry Dad," he apologized.
"It's okay now please finish packing! I'm ready to go home," I repeated. They both nodded and Blanket went back to his room obediently. I decided to go check on my girls. I haven't a heard a peep from either one of them in a while.
I walk towards the living room and hear Liberian Girl playing. I was confused. I walk in and see both my girls watching my short film. They were both talking and giggling. Looks like Paris stuck to her promise. I was proud of her. Mia too. Even though there were some bumps along the way, she managed to adapt pretty well so far. And the fact that they're bonding over my creative work, I mean it doesn't get better than that 😎.
I walked back into my room, leaving the girls in the living room. I didn't want to ruin their little moment. I felt happy that Mia was enjoying my work. I was gonna wait to show her my stuff. I didn't want her to be exposed to the "King of Pop" as much. I just wanted her to bond with her Daddy. But I guess it was bound to happen eventually.
While I was lost in my thoughts, a realization hit me. My older 3 are used to the media by now. They didn't have much of a choice. This is something they were born into. They're used to the ridiculous rumors and the made up lies. But I don't want Mia to have a bad impression of me because of one google search.
But how in the world was I gonna shield her from that? I can't be with her 24/7. She's not even old enough, in my opinion, for me to walk her through all the allegations and rumors. I don't want her to be exposed to the cruelty and ugliness of the world. It's gonna taint her innocence.
My phone rang and snapped be back into reality. "Hello," I answered.
"Sir, the plane is ready. The security team will be up in 5 mins to receive you and the kids," he informed me.
"Thank you Bill. Goodbye," I answered and hung up. I walked towards the boys' rooms and prepared myself to get into angry Dad mode. I knew my boys way too well. I'm sure they're not done packing yet. As I entered each of their rooms, I saw they're belongings scattered around. I fumed and lectured. After several empty threats and yelling, I managed to push their butts to rush and get the packing done. And as usual; DAD 1, KIDS 0.