Whatever Happens (M.J)

Fifteen

They were in bed when the phone rang; they'd barely left since the morning before. It was no wonder so many babies were conceived during New Year; there was something about starting the year that way... Of course, Michael and Ruby weren't going to be having children any time soon, but they definitely understood it all now.

Michael was lying partially on top of her; Ruby was on her stomach, unable to stop herself from smiling as Michael kissed up her back.

"Damn... I'll let it ring." Michael muttered, kissing across her shoulder blades.

"It might be important. Isn't the single coming out today?" Ruby rolled over, narrowly missing Michael's nose with her elbow. "Answer the phone, Michael; it might be Frank and it might be important."

Michael stared at her and almost started whimpering; Frank was the last person he wanted to talk to when someone who looked this good was lying with absolutely nothing on so near to him. Couldn't it wait just a few more hours?"

"Michael..." Ruby warned, pulling the bed sheets over herself.

Michael sighed; reaching over, he picked the phone up before it stopped ringing.

"Yes?" He said.

"Mr Jackson: a collect call from Los Angeles from a Mr Frank DeLio; shall I put him through?" The hotel clerk asked.

"Yes please. Thank you."

There was a click and then the unmistakable sound of chaos; chaos ala the DeLio family. "Michael?"

"Hi Frank; what's so important that you had to call me so early in the day?"

"Mike, it's after noon."

"That's a minor detail; what do you want?"

"The single dropped this morning... Mike, it's already in the top 5 in basically every chart that matters. I've got people telling me that it's going to go to number one here and in the UK; no one does that. This is gonna be a big one, Mike."

"What about the short film?" Michael asked, trying to keep his tone even.

"That's why I called you; it's airing tonight on MTV at around 7PM. Make sure you watch; this is gonna be historic."

Michael nodded. "Okay, thanks Frank. I'll call you afterwards, okay?"

"Don't if it's interrupting anything." Frank replied, chuckling.

"Frank..." Michael whined. Ruby chuckled quietly behind him; she'd heard.

"Just have a nice start to the year, Michael; you deserve it. If Billie Jean takes off how I think and how people are saying, you deserve some down time with the lady before you're on the road doing promo. So enjoy this; enjoy her."

Michael heard the bed creak; looking up, he saw Ruby wandering across the room, bare and bold. She looked over her shoulder at him; she smiled softly.

"I will," Michael replied. "Bye Frank."

Frank chuckled again. "Bye Michael; don't do anything I wouldn't do."

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"Rubes, hurry! It's time!"

Michael was a nervous wreck when Ruby walked into the room; so nervous he'd apparently forgotten how to get dressed. She'd been up since the phone call from Frank and had been dressed since then too; Michael was still in bed, without so much as a pair of underpants on. Not that she was complaining, obviously...