Bound By Contract

Chapter Fourteen

Michael's P.O.V.

Perfect. That is the only word I can think of to describe this day; the culmination of so much planning and hard work, and I must say, a deserved celebration. Sleeping Beauty's castle at the very heart of Disneyland in Anaheim, California is where the wedding ceremony was chosen to take place. There is no large space inside of the actual castle for large amounts of people to gather, since the inside floorplan only consists of narrow paths and winding stairwells, used as a walkthrough depicting the whole of the princess story. The actual ceremony then is behind the castle in the area between the carousel and the castle itself. There are thousands of fans gathered behind the roped off areas in front of the castle, and with the drawbridge drawn, it looks to them like the wedding is taking place on the inside.

What a fitting place to get married, what a genius idea those wedding planners of mine had. What a better place than this place that I have loved my entire life to get married in, and it's a perfect play on the King of Pop as they call me. Where else does a king of anything or anywhere get married but in a castle?

There are two big screens where the ceremony will be broadcast to the fans who were lucky enough to get tickets. Fans were given the chance to participate and be with me on a day which I know is just as special to them as it is to me, so all of my fans were invited to enter a raffle for the chance to be one of the two thousand people to attend.

The actual set up for the wedding, in my opinion is spectacular. There are over three hundred chairs for guests, like my family, which in and of itself is extensive, Christina's family, friends and collegues. The crowds start to cheer as the first guests, from the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minelli, Mariah Carey and Beyonce Knowles are seen on the big screen arriving and taking their seats. I feel as nervous as I do before any concert or show, time seems like it just won't move fast enough. Each minute that passes seem like days that drag on into infinity. I know every minute has been carefully planned, but jeez, can't these people hurry up?

The side of the ceremony set up next to the carousel is like an elegant white wall, hung with white silk drapery with large bouquets of red roses adorning each graceful swoop of the silk. The walk up to the altar is a white carpet covered in red rose petals. The guests are under a canopy that lets in the light but shields them from the hot October sun. The wedding altar itself is a large lone oak tree decorated simply with red and white trinkets. It's representative of my love for nature, and reminds me of my Giving Tree at Neverland. At the back everything are the large TV cameras that are broadcasting to the fans in the front of the castle. This whole thing amazes me. I wanted big and I got bigger. The wedding couldn't have been more extravagant; it's everything that I asked for and more.

Here I am, anxiously waiting in my provisional dressing room for the last guests to take their seats. I can't help but pace back and forth in the dressing room nervously, while Karen Faye, my hair and make up artist follows me around the room trying to put the finishing touches on my hair, which I decided to wear shoulder length and smooth.

"Hold still, would you?"

"I can't, I can't" I say restlessly.

After she manages somehow to get a few shakes into my hair and a couple pats of makeup on my face she announces, "you're all set, Michael."

My wedding planner, William Miller pops his head in. "It's time, Mr. Jackson. Will you come with me, please?"

I nod, sighing while I straighten out my white tuxedo jacket and red vest in the large full length mirror. "Here goes nothing," I mutter.

I follow John outside of the dressing room door to my spot right behind the cameras. "When you hear the music start, that's your cue to make your way down the aisle to your place on the right side of the altar."