NOTES: At minute 31:11 of the show we can see Michael sit on stage and lean towards the audience to pick up something, probably a letter, that a fan was trying to give to him. After taking the letter, he puts it in his pants and continues with the show. That's basically how the idea for this story came about lol
Also I thought it would be cool to show this to those who didn't know yet and how it made me wonder what could have happened after that. Michael was the kind of person who liked to have contact with fans, he didn't deny them. So I thought it would be plausible that if he had received a fan letter with a phone number he would call depending on the situation, such as a young fan asking him to call on her birthday.
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"Did you get everything you need?" Matthew's voice echoed as he watched his younger sister, Julie, run around the house getting ready to leave.
"Almost." She replied, rushing to her room to get the bus ticket she'd bought in advance.
"It's been a while since I've seen you so excited." He said from the living room, loud enough for her to hear. A smile plastered across his face.
"I'm going to see the Jacksons concert on my 16th birthday, Matt. Of course I'm excited." She chuckled a little, walking back into the living room with the ticket in hand. "Do you know how long I've waited for this opportunity? This is the kind of thing that only happens once in a lifetime."
"And the fact that I worked extra shifts to pay for the ticket contributed to that." He joked.
"And that's why you're my favorite brother." She kissed his cheek as she passed him.
"I'm your only brother."
"Exactly." She smiled, taking a quick look around. "I forgot my bag."
"You left it on the kitchen counter." Matthew replied, Julie following shortly thereafter. "I'm just saying I don't understand all this commotion. Yes their songs are good, but..."
"Good?" Julie interrupted, turning to look at her brother indignantly.
"What?" He shrugged, chuckling. He already knew where this was going.
"I swear, it should be a crime to say the Jacksons are 'good'. They're amazing, Matt. And you're the only person who currently barely knows who they are."
Okay he'll play along, Matt decided. "I know who they are." He replied and seeing his sister's unimpressed look he continued. "The lead singer, that kid Michael..."
"He's an adult now, Matt. He's 21. You are the same age." She crossed her arms over her chest as she raised an eyebrow, fighting a smile.
Matthew continued talking as if he hadn't heard her. "As I was saying. Michael, Tito, Marlon..." He paused for a moment as if trying to remember before he said it. "Jermaine...?"
"He hasn't been in the band since 1975!" Julie finally laughed, unable to hold back any longer. "You would know this if you followed the current artists more."
"You know I'm too busy with my job to keep up with the career of millionaire artists. Some of us have to put food on the table." He responded with mock exasperation, causing Julie to laugh again and went back to getting ready to leave.
***
With everything ready, Julie finally made her way to the front door. If she took longer, she might end up missing the bus that would take her from Sherman Oaks to Inglewood, a journey of just over two hours. The Jacksons would be performing at The Forum, a performance that would last about an hour.
Ever since Matthew said he'd bought her the ticket as a birthday present, that was the only thing she'd been able to talk about these past few weeks with her best friend Ana. But unfortunately for the two friends, Ana couldn't make it to the show this time because her grandmother would be visiting her and her family. However, Ana had promised Julie that next time they would go together, and asked Julie to tell her everything that happened on the show when she got back.
"I don't feel good knowing you'll be there alone." Matthew said, looking at his sister standing by the door about to leave.
"I know, Matt, but I'm going to be fine. I just turned sixteen, not ten." She replied in an amused tone. But seeing the look of concern still on her brother's face, she smiled comfortingly at him as she approached him. "I'll take care of myself, I promise. I'll be back before you know it."
"I hope so, otherwise I'll have to make Michael and his brothers pay for a search group." He smiled back, hugging her one last time before she finally left.
***
It wasn't until she was inside the bus that Julie allowed herself to relax and enjoy the moment. She was finally getting to meet her idols and couldn't be happier. Things had been so hectic lately with Matt working more than usual just so she could go to the show. She was truly grateful to him and swore to herself that she would repay him for it. She hated that Matt had to work so hard for her and not be able to do anything to help him.
Since their parents died two years ago, Matthew has taken custody of Julie and dropped out of college so he could work and take care of her. Countless times she offered to start working too so she could help him, but he always refused. She should focus on studying and enjoying her adolescence while she could, he told her. Julie couldn't be more grateful for the brother she had.
Leaning back against the seat of the bus, Julie opened her bag just to make sure she hadn't forgotten her ticket and her documents, smiling relieved to see that everything was there. It's everything all right, she thought to herself with relief about to close her bag. She stopped, however, for a moment when she saw her notebook at the bottom of her bag.
A brief thought crossed her mind and she bit her lip lightly as she considered it. It wouldn't hurt to try, right? As she'd told Matt before, this was a once-in-a-lifetime thing and while she'd exaggerated a little, she had no idea when she'd have the opportunity to see the Jackson brothers again.
With that in mind, she grabbed her notebook and a pen and started writing what she decided would be her letter to her favorite member of the group, Michael.
***
Two hours by bus and then a few more minutes of long walk, Julie found herself finally making her way inside The Forum, where a huge fan base was already starting to accumulate. Struggling to make her way through the crowd, Julie felt the bliss consume her as she found herself right in front of the security fence, facing the stage. The pushes she received — and gave — were worth it.
She didn't have much time to catch her breath, however, because before she knew it, the stage lights came on and the loud music started playing, driving her and the fans crazy.
***
When "I'll Be There" started to play Julie was almost voiceless from singing and screaming, but seeing Michael walk and sing alone across the stage the first verses of his song, the thought of the letter she had written to him in the bus came back to her mind. That's my chance, she thought as she gathered her strength to call out to him as loudly as she could. She pushed herself closer to the security fence, stretching her arm as far as she could in an attempt to make him see the paper in her hand. The crowd of fans was very loud and Julie saw her efforts to call out to him fall on deaf ears, causing her to be on the verge of giving up hope.
Julie doesn't know how or why, but something in her direction caught Michael's eye and when she turned to look at him she realized that Michael had finally made eye contact with her and started to approach the edge of the stage. Julie really didn't know how she was still alive with her heart beating so fast in her chest. Michael leaned toward the audience without falling out of tune once as he reached for Julie's hand, and when he finally grabbed the paper from her hand he lifted his arm up in victory, walking back to his brothers again.
She looked at him in shock, not believing what had just happened.
***
Hours later, Matthew found himself sitting at the little table in his room finishing one of the many commissions he had accepted in order to buy his sister's ticket. This was a relatively simpler painting, the couple who hired him wanted a reproduction of a photograph of their youngest son so they could put it on their wall. Matt was putting the finishing touches on the paint when he heard the front door open and his very excited sister called out to him.
"Matt!"
"I am here!" He replied back without taking his eyes off the painting, he needed to finish it today to deliver to the couple tomorrow afternoon.
Julie ran through the house to her brother's room, not bothering to knock on the door and running straight for him with open arms about to hug him, but at the sight of the painting she stopped before she could crash into him.
"Matt, you won't believe how amazing the show was!" She exclaimed excitedly.
He stopped painting briefly so he could look at her, a smile on his lips. He wished he could match his sister's excitement now, but he was feeling tired and needed to do his job. Still he asked, allowing her to vent her happiness.
"Well, tell me how it went while I work." He nodded for her to continue and turned his eyes to the painting. Julie was used to this so she didn't care that Matthew wasn't looking directly at her, and started to tell him how her day was.
At some point in the explanation, something between "A woman kept pushing me to pass in front of me" and "Michael is even more handsome in person", Matthew stopped listening. Not because he didn't care, quite the opposite. But because his mind was already very tired.
Seeing his finished painting, Matt let out a weary sigh and lowered his brush. He turned his attention to Julie who continued to talk excitedly about the show without even realizing that he had stopped listening a few minutes ago.
"... and he took my letter, Matt! I still can't believe this happened. He took my letter and put it in his pants!"
Matthew didn't quite understand that part, but he thought he might ask later. For now it was enough for him to know that his sister had enjoyed the show and was back safe and sound. Her smile widened a little as he opened his arms for her to come closer. Julie didn't hesitate a moment before rushing into her brother's arms.
"This all sounds pretty amazing Julie and I'm really glad you had fun." He said stroking the top of her head. "We can talk more about that tomorrow after class if you want. I know you well enough to know you could talk about the Jacksons for hours on end."
Julie laughed as she walked away. "Okay. I'm tired too... and dirty. I'm going to shower and eat something before bed."
He nodded at her in agreement. "I left the food in the fridge. I'll just finish putting the painting away so I can join you at the table."
She smiled at him one last time. "Thanks for doing this for me, Matt." Julie finally left the room, leaving her brother to store his things.
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FINAL NOTES: The show I mentioned at the beginning of the chapter took place in October 1979 and I decided to use that date as the beginning of this story, but I changed the venue to another place on the same tour. Instead of the show taking place in New Orleans, in this story it takes place in Inglewood at The Forum. Just out of curiosity, this real-life Inglewood show took place in December 1979.
I would also like to advertise my other fic called "You've Got a Friend" which is being posted in both English and Portuguese just like this one. "You've Got a Friend" is a Michael x male OC fic too, but it starts in Michael's childhood and deals with slightly heavier subjects like racism and xenophobia. Still, I find it a relatively light and fun read as the chapters progress and Ravi (the main character) gets to know Michael and his brothers and sisters. If you could take a look at it you would be helping me a lot.
Votes and comments are appreciated and help more people see this story. Thank you for reading this far, see you in the next chapter!