‘So, how long have you been working for Mr. Jackson sir?’ Dani asked the chauffer politely. It was already 8:45 pm and she was getting a little impatient and more than a little bored. Then a thought came to her. What if the chauffer didn’t really take her to Michael’s house? What if he was kidnapping her? The thought gave chills down her spine. But she trusted Michael and more or less, the people who worked for him and she knew that he wouldn’t do anything to hurt her. ‘Please call me Bert, Ms. LaPray. Forgive me but Mr. Jackson forbids me to speak to his guests’ he spoke, still with that British accent that made her laugh. Her eyes widened. She didn’t know Michael was that strict with the people who worked for him! But she only smiled. ‘Don’t worry Bert. I won’t tell Mr. Jackson. It’ll be just between you and me’ she giggled. Bert smiled from the front. Dani reminded him of his granddaughter. She was the last person he had walked down the aisle in a London church last summer. Her father had died in a car accident when she was only a very young girl and he was touched when she told him that he would be the one to hand her to her husband. After the wedding, she and her husband moved into a house in California that her husband had bought for her. And Bert was more than thrilled when she told him that she was expecting a baby. ‘I’ve been working for Mr. Jackson for almost 15 years now, Ms. LaPray’ he replied to her. ‘Please, I’d prefer if you’d just call me Dani’ she said. In truth, Bert liked her. She was sweet and polite and full of spirit and bloom. Not like Tatiana who screamed at him for driving too slow when they first met. He was relieved when he found out that Michael had broken up with her. It was time he finally got rid of the brat. And if Dani was the person Michael had laid eyes on, Bert thought that they were perfect for each other. He suspected that his boss had deep feelings about her. His face always lit up when he was talking to her on the phone or whenever he was with her. He had never seen that glow in his eyes when he was with Tatiana. Only Dani made him light up like that. And Bert knew that Dani was special and she was the “right one” for Michael. A few minutes passed until Dani saw huge golden gates at the end of the long and winding road. Her eyes widened. Could this be his home? This huge and palatial place? Above the huge gates, “NEVERLAND” was engraved in gold. Wasn’t that the name where Peter Pan was living? What did this huge and amusement park-like place got to do with Peter Pan? As they moved closer, Dani got a peek of what it looked like inside. She saw lots of amusement park rides like the Zipper, a huge Ferris Wheel that viewed the whole ranch at the top, and a Spider version of the ride Octopus. There was a long and winding walkway that led to a huge Carousel. Everywhere were statues of children playing. They were scattered around in the whole ranch. What particularly interested her was a huge lake with shady trees all around. It was a perfect place to just sit and enjoy the beauty of nature. She also had a glimpse of a huge tree in the middle of the ranch. Michael had talked to her about it once. He called it his “Giving Tree”. He would sometimes climb it and sit at the top, just listening to the birds there and sometimes, rehearse and study his lines there. He talked about his tree but he didn’t tell her how huge his home was! It was about 1,200 acres of land! But she wondered where his house was. She couldn’t see it anywhere. She saw all of the amusements but didn’t see his house. Surely there must be someplace where he slept right? Suddenly, she saw Michael standing in front of the huge gates. Smiling and looking handsome as ever. They stopped at the front gats as Michael opened the door for her and helped her out. It was chilly in the night with the winter breeze blowing against them. She tucked her coat closer to her. ‘You look… amazing’ Michael complimented and smiled at her in fascination. ‘Thanks. You look great yourself’. He was wearing a thick black leather jacket and some blue jeans. He was wearing a black fedora and a pair of penny loafers. ‘Welcome to Neverland’ he smiled down at her as the huge golden gates opened automatically. ‘Wow’ she whispered and stared at all of the amusements in amazement. It was dark but all of that lit up the night. It was even more exciting with snow starting to fall. Michael smiled at her and took her arm as they went for a stroll. ‘You hungry?’ he asked and stared at her. Her face glowed in the moonlight beam and her blue eyes shimmered. Dani looked down and nodded at him. ‘A bit’ she smiled at him, looking so much like a little girl. They walked to the back of all the amusement and rides and she had finally seen what she had been looking for. She was amazed to see a palatial 2 story Tudor mansion. There was a huge water fountain in front of the house. As they walked inside, Dani gasped in amazement at what she saw. There were huge portraits of antique paintings. There were also portraits of himself and of his family and some close friends. She wondered why there was no portrait of Tatiana. It must be in his room, she thought. She was a little disappointed when she didn’t saw a portrait of her anywhere. After all, they were friends right? The living room smelled of roses and vanilla and the floor was made of marble. There were also huge statues made of marble and she realized how fascinated Michael was with art. Coincidentally, she loved art too. Especially the work of Michaelangelo which always interested her. In the middle of the room was a huge portrait of Michael with his family. She smiled, thinking what a wonderful family they were. Michael had told her about them and wished that one day she could meet all of them. He had 5 brothers and 3 sisters. He was the 7th of 9 children in the Jackson family. He also told her about him and his brothers once forming a band called ‘THE JACKSONS’ but didn’t work out well, so they disbanded. ‘Like it?’ Michael said from behind her and she almost jumped out of her skin. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you’ he giggled. The staircase in the other side of the room. It was long and winding and she wondered where it led. ‘Come on, you must be starving’. He invited her to his backyard. There was the lake she had seen earlier. And under his “GIVING TREE” was a table for both of them with candle lights and a vase filled with flowers. Michael excused himself and went back to the house. He reappeared a minute later holding a bouquet of roses. ‘This is for you’ he smiled and handed her the roses. ‘Thank you! How thoughtful of you! They’re very lovely’ she beamed as they both took their seats. Michael ordered them KFC for dinner and a bottle of wine. Michael didn’t drink but the taste always interested him. Dani was getting used to the idea that Michael removed the skin of his chicken and called it “organic” but most of the time left her laughing. After eating, they went on to try some of Michael’s rides in his ranch. They went on the carousel and screamed their hearts out on the Spider. But Dani refused to ride the Zipper. ‘Come on Dani. It’ll be fun! I have the longest record on that thing! 35 minutes!’ Michael told her in hope that she would ride the Zipper with him. ‘I don’t care how long you rode that thing! I’m scared Michael. I’ll get sick!’ Dani laughed. Since she was the guest, he only obliged to her. What excited Dani the most was the huge Ferris wheel. She wanted to sit atop and view the whole ranch up there. But when she told Michael a moment later, he only shook his head. ‘I’m sorry Dani but the ride is currently out of order. It’s going to be under maintenance for a while’ he explained. He saw the look of disappointment in her eyes and was almost sorry he had lied. In truth, it wasn’t out of order at all. In fact, it worked just fine. He didn’t want to ride it with her because he was afraid he wouldn’t control himself and do something he would very much regret. They walked back to the house an hour later and shared a cup of coffee in his huge dining room. ‘Why’d you call your ranch “Neverland” Michael? It reminds me of Peter Pan but I have no idea what Peter Pan has to do with this place!’ she said and took a sip of her coffee. ‘Peter Pan reminds me of my childhood. Peter Pan never grew up. And I want the same too. That’s why I have these rides. They keep me young. I want to be a child forever. I wish to never grow up’ he explained to her and she saw in his eyes that he was serious. ‘But we have to face it Michael. Someday, somehow, there will come a time when we have to grow up’ she replied and stood up. She finished her coffee and walked to the door to leave. 10 pm and she knew her parents were going to get furious at her for being out too late. ‘I think I better leave. Thank you for dinner Michael. I had a wonderful time’ she said shyly and started towards the door when Michael reached out and touched her hand. ‘Where are you going? Don’t you think it’s a little late for you to be getting home? Why don’t you stay for the rest of the night and leave tomorrow?’ he smiled at her. ‘But what about my parents? They’re probably worried sick about me by now’ she said worriedly. ‘I’ll call them and tell them about it. Don’t worry’ he smiled. ‘But you don’t mind me staying here?’ she asked, a little surprised. ‘Why would I mind? You’re my friend and I like having you around’ he smiled gently at her and she was touched. She followed him upstairs to his 2nd floor landing. The floor was covered with red carpets and the room was filled with the scent of lemons and lilac. All around were more marble statues. There were different doors that each had a name carved on them which she guessed were the names of her siblings and parents. If you walked forward in a straight direction, the hallway would lead you to Michael’s room. In front of his room were 2 other statues of children playing. ‘But-but I didn’t bring anything else. I didn’t know I would stay this long’ Dani said a little worried. ‘Not a problem’ Michael smiled at her. He led her to a room with the name ‘Janet’ carved on the door. He opened a huge closet there and tossed her a pair of slippers, a nightgown, and a robe. ‘But what if she finds out these are hers?’ she asked. ‘I’m sure she wouldn’t mind’ he said blankly as they walked out the room and Michael locked the door. They walked further down the hallway as he pointed to where she was going to sleep. ‘You can stay there’ he pointed to a room closest to his. She nodded and walked inside. She locked her doors to change and a minute later reappearing in the clothes he had given her. Michael’s jaw almost dropped. The nightgown showed her perfectly long and slim legs and showed off her curvaceous body. Her hair cascaded past her shoulders and her blue eyes glistened in the light. She looked like a princess. Michael tried to control himself from pulling her into his arms. ‘Wow… You’re beautiful’ he said to her. She smiled then blushed. They walked back to her room and sat on the edge of the canopied bed. It was beautifully carved with very intricate designs. Dani walked to the window and smiled at the sight. The whole ranch lit up during the night and the snow had continued to fall. And in 3 days, they would be celebrating their Christmas party in the studio. She could hardly wait. Michael and Dani talked about art and Michael was fascinated when she told him that she loved Michaelangelo’s work which he also particularly loved too. They almost had the same interests which made Michael fall for her the more. They also talked about what their future would be like and it interested her that he wanted to become a performer. ‘I want to relive the Jacksons days. I knew it didn’t work out well but who knows. But seriously I can sing! And dance a little too!’ he giggled. Their eyes met and held as he looked at her squarely. Without knowing why, he leaned closer and she closed her eyes slowly. Their lips were about to touch when the doorbell rang. ‘Michael! Where are you? Yoo-hoo! Michael!’ a shrill voice of a woman was heard downstairs. Dani’s eyes flew open and Michael backed away. ‘Oh-I um… I better get that’ he said and let out a nervous laugh. ‘I-I guess you should’ she giggled. Her heart was beating really fast that it felt as though it was going to jump out of her chest. As Michael walked downstairs, she thought of what just happened. What if no one ever interrupted? What would happen next? Would they even be able to control themselves? The thought scared her. What if…Tatiana found out? She was scared she might hurt her…again…