Sarah
"Can't you even give me a clue where we're going?" I ask Michael after twenty minutes of driving.
"One, and only one hint. It's not just one place, it's a few." That's it? That's all the hints I get? I guess it's a good thing I love surprises! He turns on the radio and we sing along to the songs we know, most of which we both know, but there are those few that only one of us knows.
A few minutes later, we pull up in front of a small Italian restaurant.
"Im not dressed for this Mikey!" I tell him.
"You're not dressed for a rooftop dinner with me?" he asks. Oh! It's THAT restaurant!
"I didn't realize it was that restaurant! Let's go!" I say excitedly. The difference between this time and the last is that we're not hiding, so we go in the front door instead of the back. Mikey talks to the manager, who then smiles at us, taking us through the kitchen and up to the roof, where again there's a single candlelit table on the rooftop.
We sit eating in the candlelight, looking out at the lights of Sydney and it's a completely different aura than last time. There's no lingering dread. No conflicting emotions. It's strictly me and Mikey, in love, accepted by family and friends and pure happiness.
"What are you thinking about?" he asks me.
"Us, this, how much things have changed since the last time we were here." I tell him. "I love you so much Mikey. You make me happier than I've been since, I don't even know. Ever?"
"Do you remember what song you played for me that night?" I ask him.
"Of course!" he answers. "I remember every detail of every moment we've spent together." Holy shit, how did I get so lucky?
"That song doesn't really apply to us anymore, thankfully." I smile. He turns his music on, asking me to dance with him, which I happily accept. He still makes me feel giddy, he still sets off fireworks inside me with his touch, and I hope it never ends.
Truly Madly Deeply comes on and I can't help but smile. This song fits us so well with the mountain, the ocean, and of course we truly are madly and deeply in love with each other.
When the song ends, we stay standing in each others arms. I don't want to let him go. He slowly places his lips to mine, gently kissing me, softly at first, then growing in passion.
"I love you."
"I love you more."
"Impossible!"
Michael
Once we finish at the restaurant, I pay the bill, with a very generous tip for letting us do this again, and we walk out to the car, fingers intertwined and smiles on our faces. Lights flash in our eyes and it startles Sarah, but I'm used to it. She looks up at me and smiles, letting me know that she's okay. I open the door for her and she climbs in, then walk around to the driver's side. I drive off right away and it's not until we're out of sight of the restaurant that either of us speaks. She's texting on her phone, most likely to Ashton when I speak up.
"Are you okay?" She knows I mean more than just from the flashing lights of the cameras.
"So far," she says. "We knew it was going to happen. It's better that the kids aren't here. I'd rather deal with the hate aimed at me than at the kids." This is what I love. She is so selfless. Her kids are the number one thing in her life.
"You talking to Ash?" I ask, already knowing the answer.
"Yeah. He's going to keep an eye out. I don't want to spend my evening alone with you glued to twitter. I just want to enjoy my time with you!" I'm so far deep in love with this woman. How is it possible to get any deeper? I don't know, but I am.
When we get closer to the second place I'm taking her, her face starts to light up in recognition. We walked this area around Ness' apartment complex quite a bit.
The smile on her face when I park at the diner is priceless. The way her eyes squint, crinkles on her skin around them is the most beautiful sight!
"You up for a milkshake?" I ask her.
"Always!" We go inside and get our usual corner booth, order our milkshakes and I grab her hands across the table. I love being able to do this with her now!
Since she is in such a good mood, I decide to ask her about Tammy. It's nagged at my thoughts since Christmas when her uncle mentioned it. I don't want to bring her down, I hope that her good mood and the milkshakes will compensate for a possibly bleak topic.
I had it right, Tammy was her mom, and she died when Sarah and Matt were young, very young. She starts telling me stories about when they were little, and there's light in her eyes. There's a lot of fond memories.
"I get how weird the age thing can be. Mom and I are closer in age than Jamey and I. For a long time, people always thought she was my sister instead of my mom. But it never changed anything. It just made for good laughs." she shrugs. She's still smiling when our milkshakes come.
We drink our milkskakes and talk about other things. Whatever pops into our minds. We're trying not to talk about kids or the band, so the things we're talking about are really random, and it's funny how quickly they change without any apparent correlation between the two topics.
My phone starts buzzing in my pocket, but I'm ignoring it. Nothing is going to interfere with this night. Nothing and no one. I don't even look at it until I get up to use the bathroom and see it's Ashton texting. Shit shit shit this is not good.
To Mike
Shit just blew up w/pics of u 2. And they figured out who she is.
To Ash
Already?
To Mike
U know how they r. Same shit as w/Bryana
To Ash
Fuck. Don't tell her yet. I'll keep her away fm her phone. Want to finish our date.
Shit, she's probably on her phone now. I quickly go back out to the table and am really surprised at what I see. There are two girls standing there talking to Sarah, fans I'm sure, and she's holding a conversation with them, smiling. Okay, maybe this will turn out alright.
I don't want to interrupt and turn the attention away from her just yet. The better this goes, the easier it'll be.
After they each get a picture with her, I walk over to the table. She looks uncomfortable now, likely because of the pictures. She hates her picture being taken, unless it's with her kids or with me.
I say hello as I walk up to the table, asking them if they're "terrorizing her". They laugh and tell me they were just saying hi and that she's really nice.
"Yeah, she is, isn't she?" I say, looking at Sarah with a smile. I don't look away until she smiles back at me. The girls notice and start giggling.
"Can we ask you one question, and then we'll leave you alone I swear," the one girl asks.
"Sure."
"How did this come about? I mean, you two?" I know what she's asking. There's so much in that one question. How did did we meet, how did we get together? How long has it been going on? But she's asking in a way that allows me to only answer as much as I want to disclose.
"We met on a plane a while back and became really close friends. It's just gone from there." I look to Sarah to make sure she's okay with what I said, and she nods just a tiny bit, just barely noticeable. The girls smile as they look back and forth between Sarah and I then thank us for talking to them. Just as they're turning to walk away, Sarah asks if they want her to take a picture of them with me. Their faces light up.
"If you don't mind, that'd be terrific."
I stand between them and crouch down to their height as Sarah takes a picture. We make funny faces, and she takes a few more. When I stand back upright, Sarah hands their phone back. They thank us both and walk away with big smiles on their faces.
"That was really sweet, Sarah," I tell her as I sit down.
"I've been in their shoes," she says with a shrug. "They were nice and polite. I wish all the fans were that way with you guys. But also, the more positive encounters I have with them, the easier it'll make things. I hope."
