Remember the Time

Chapter 56

“Nicole!”

His oldest daughter turned her head with a grin, putting her hand down.

Michael shook his head disapprovingly. “No hitting Nicki.”

Nicole made a face, then shouted at him with her baby talk.

“No back talk young lady.” He said firmly, though he had a grin on his face.

Mariah came out back into the living room and grabbed her coat off the rack. “Morgan says he needs to see me.”

Michael got up and pulled her back, shaking his head. “Wait, wait, wait. What's going on?”

“Mike...” Mariah sighed.

Michael kept his grip on her arm. “Baby, I don't want anything-”

“I'll be okay.” She promised, slipping her arm out of his grip. “I'll call you when I get there.”

Mariah offered him a smile, then gave him a peck on the lips.

He cupped her cheek tenderly. “Be safe for me, please.”

“I will.”

She turned and walked out of the door, locking it behind her.

The sound of whining caught his attention. Noelle was fussy so he picked her up, bouncing her on his hip. She started pulling at her mouth, seeming frustrated.

Michael raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong baby?”

Noelle started crying and Michael bounced her up and down, trying to soothe her. “What is it Noni?”

She only cried louder, still pulling at her gums.

Wait a minute…

Michael grabbed Noelle's cheeks and gently opened her mouth. Sure enough, the baby's gums were red and swollen in the middle.

“Are you teething?” He inquired mostly to himself. He glanced over to the clock and it was seven in the evening, too late for him to call Dr. Powell to ask.

Guess I'll have to manage on my own.

March 30th, 1998

Mariah trudged into the bedroom where Michael he lay in bed with the twins watching Sesame Street. Nicole looked close to falling asleep while Noelle was wide awake, chewing on the blanket her father put over them.

Michael grinned at Mariah. “Hey baby.”

“Hey.” She kicked off her shoes, then nodded at the TV. “So what's the letter of the day?”

Michael chuckled. “N.”

She smirked and got in the bed with Michael and the girls.

“Why is she chewing on that like that?” Mariah asked, gesturing to Noelle.

Michael glanced over at Noelle then back to Mariah. “I think she's teething.”

“Really?” Mariah furrowed her brows. “I thought that didn't happen until they were a little older.”

Michael shrugged. “I don't know what else it could be. I'm gonna call Dr. Powell in the morning.”

Mariah nodded.

Michael continued. “So what's going on?”

Mariah rolled her eyes. “He won't tell me. He's like ‘just get me a good lawyer’ and I'm like ‘I'm not gonna get you anything if you don't tell me what you did’. He still hasn't told me.”