Saturday, June 9th, 1990

Los Olivos, California

The Ranch

9:24 AM

"It's Saturday! It's Saturday! Hip - Hip Hooray!" Paisley ran down the stairs, yelling in jubilation that it was officially Saturday: the weekend. Her stuffed rabbit with long ears was held tightly under her arm as she all but flew downstairs in her haste. Excited was an understatement with her, truly. Both her parents lay in bed, still mostly asleep - although in reality they simply didn't want to get up. Nonetheless, Astoria and Michael heard their daughter stomping down the stairs with her nimble feet and decided it was time to get up anyway.

The five-year-old in question was rushing downstairs for one thing only. The T.V., because Saturday morning meant cartoons. And what could be better to start your weekend off then cartoons? Nothing. Quickly, her and Rabbie found the T.V. and turned it on.

Paisley had become quite the smarty pants as she's grown, and even though she's only five, she's bound to tell you how she already knows two languages fluently and how she's working on number three, German. This has absolutely nothing to do with cartoons, she simply thought you all should know how cool she is. Paisley yanked a nicely folded blanket off the cream colored sofa, bringing it to where she wished to sit in front of the television as she watched her favorite things play colorfully across the glass screen. Rabbie sat next to her in his patchwork, overall skirt, content to watch Duck Tales with his best friend on another Saturday morning.

"YES!" She fist-pumped the air right as the channel stated they'd be playing another episode of Duck Tales. "I wonder was Huey, Dewey, and Louie are up to this time, Rabbie." Her eyes were glued to the screen, "Do you think that evil lady duck will finally get Uncle Scrooge's fortune?" Her arms gripped the blanket, her own imagination getting the best of the little girl. "I hope not! That'd be so bad!"

Michael and Astoria both were around the corner and had just heard the exchange between Paisley and her stuffed animal take place. Michael gave his wife a concerned expression with his arms crossed, both of them were still in their pajamas just like their daughter.

"Ash, I'm worried about PJ." She yawned in response, suddenly remembering she wasn't wearing a bra. Astoria crossed her arms over her chest, still self-conscious after all these years.

"Why are you worried? She's extremely intelligent, she's got a wonderful imagination, and," Her voice lowered to a whisper for the last part of her sentence, "...she's not killing animals. Which means she's not going to be a serial killer." Her voice rose back to it's normal volume, "I think we've done a fantastic job with her so far, what with our lives being the way they are. The tours, the exposure and paparazzi. Oh! And let's not forget Oprah bugging the crud outta us for a stupid home interview! Gosh, that woman is incessant, I swear." The King of Pop chuckled at his wife, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Don't worry about Oprah, she'll leave us alone after what I sent to her." He smirked deviously at her, giving himself away.

"What'd you do? It wasn't that rattlesnake eggs joke again, was it? Everyone knows that one, Michael, even when they don't act like they do in front of you." He rolled his eyes playfully at her.

"No, that's not what I did." Recalling what he'd done, his smile turned Grinch-like. Reminiscent of the part in the story where the Grinch gets a wonderfully terrible, awful idea. "I hired a man to hide in a large box, he's contractually obligated not to pop out until it's opened by Oprah herself. And guess what he's holding to throw at her." He looked so proud of himself.

"A pie?" 

"A PIE!" Michael's voice boomed triumphantly. "He's going to throw a pie in her face! But not till after she reads the eloquent card signed by the both of us."

"But I didn't sign any card?" His hands slipped down her arms, releasing her from his grasp. He shook his head, closing his eyes briefly at his wife.

"Oh, Astoria. So naive, so pure -" He stopped himself, giving Astoria a knowing look. He knew all too well that she was indeed, not as innocent as the world at large knew her to be. Granted, the same thing could just as easily be said for him as well. "Well, maybe not pure." She hit his shoulder in protest. "Hey! Anyway, I copied your signature. Also, the delivery guy is in on it too. He'll be filming it so I can enjoy it later."

"I can't believe you. I hope to god she doesn't press charges."

"She won't."

"You're so confident... But why are you concerned about Paisley?" Finally, they got to the point. And little PJ was listening to her parents the entire time. She had turned down the T.V. just enough to eavesdrop on the two of them.

"I think she needs a friend, Ash. Another child to play with -"

"We've already been down this road, Michael. We've tried. I just haven't gotten pregnant again. If I had any control over the matter - more than I already do - I would have already had another baby. It might not be in the cards for us." He cut her off.

"No. I'm not talking about that, baby. I'm meaning maybe we could have that benefit for abused children. You know, the barbecue we talked about. Paisley might find a friend, you never know." Astoria smiled at her husband, slightly in awe of his humanitarianism he showed increasingly often to her.

"I think that would be more than fine." The two of them hugged and shared a kiss. The only reason they pulled away was the sudden and loud objection coming from in front of the television.

"EWW." Paisley narrowed her eyes at her parents. Watching them kiss was gross to her, she'd finally gotten to that stage in her young life. The only thing she thought was cute when they kissed were Disney characters. Her parents chuckled at her, coming and joining her on the floor for some much needed Saturday morning cartoons.

Friday, July 6th, 1990

The Ranch

10 AM

"Welcome to The Ranch!" The golden gates opened to the Jackson family ranch with the announcement coming from the man of the house himself, me! 82 children came bursting in, heading straight for the amusement park rides as well as the animal enclosures.

Today is a good day. She's gonna find a friend, she just has too...

I'd gotten in touch with the organization, Childhelp USA to have a selected group of children come to the Ranch for a day or fun and an excuse to barbecue some good food as well. I'll admit, it felt nice to have a bunch of children running about the property laughing and giggling at each other. Our home finally felt whole. Astoria and Paisley are my entire world, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't want a bigger family.

Astoria and I... We've tried. Talked to doctors about it even, and everything tests out completely alright. My swimmers are Olympic medalists, and Astoria's eggs are golden. It doesn't make any sense. I'm beginning to think she's right: It's just not in the cards for us. Maybe we'll adopt? Hey! Now that's an idea, why didn't it cross my mind before? I'll bring it up with milady, later...

Meanwhile

"Hmm, whatcha doin'?"

Paisley looked up to find a boy gazing down at her. He was older than her, that much she could tell. But why was he suddenly talking to her? Didn't he have an imaginary friend to play with instead? It didn't make sense to her. He didn't make sense to her, so she just gave him a shrug and went back to examining the basketball in her hands. She'd been sitting on the court, wishing her Dad was here to shoot some hoops with her - or at least that Rabbie would finally awaken and play a mean game of two-on-two with her.

The boy then sat down next to her on the steel blue court, further surprising her. Paisley's hazel eyes met his brown ones, more curious about another person than she'd ever been before. Her life was typically quite, filled with wonderful moments of laughter and joy with her parents and reliable sidekick, Rabbie the rabbit. Sure, her cousins, uncles, and aunts came over a few times a month and she'd see them outside of the house as well, but that was it.  She's spent a bunch of time with her Grandma K and Joseph too... But the more she examined this tan boy the more the word grew in her head: friend. 

"What's your name?" She asked him, giving him her full attention for the first time since he sat down next to her.

"Jordie. What's yours?" He held out a seemingly friendly hand for her to shake. Paisley blinked at it for a moment, surprised at how much like a movie this moment was for her.

"I'm PJ." They shook hands, her's was tiny compared to his and she found this fascinating. "Your hand is huge!" He chuckled at her.

"No. My hand isn't that big..." She left his hand go, and then an idea came to her.

"Jordie?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you wanna go on an adventure?" Paisley was excited now, practically beaming with it as she waited for his answer.

"Yeah, that sounds fun!" She hopped up on her feet, the basketball rolling out onto the court for whoever was to find it later. Holding out her hand to him, he looked up at her with slight surprise in his own eyes. Having a decent friend for Jordan was new to him too. He took her hand as he stood up, "Where are we going, PJ?"

"You'll see!" Just like her father, she loves giving people surprises. Together they took off running across the bright green grass. It wasn't tough for Jordan to keep up with the little girl, but he knew wherever she was taking him it was going to be an amazing day.

Later

"Shh. We can't make a single sound, Jordie."

"Why not?" He asked. Quickly, Paisley covered his mouth with both her tiny hands.

"You'll wake up the gorilla!" She quietly exclaimed, then released him. The two of them crouched behind a large, plush couch where a man by the name of Frank DeLio slept with a quiet snore. Without a sound, the two of them looked over the backside of the couch at the unaware, sleeping man. 

Jordie snickered at Paisley. "That's not a gorilla -"

"I know! We're pretending." She bent back down to grab a water gun. "You got your ammunition, Admiral Potato Chip?" Jordie picked up his own water blaster and pumped the handle.

"Ready for action, Captain Peanut Butter!"

"OK. Ready. Aim." She paused. "FIRE!" Together they squirted Frank with their water guns. The poor man woke up in a fright, quickly realizing what was actually happening to him. He shook his fist at them after they'd began running off in fits of laughter. Frank knew who'd gotten him, and it made his smile.

"Like father, like daughter." He wiped his face off with his hand, "Wonder who the boy is..."

They'd ran past the pool, ignoring the children asking them if they wanted to join them. Together they laughed and giggled as they tried at catch their breath from behind a large tree. Jordie slapped his knee.

"That. Was. Awesome!" He exclaimed with his hands up in the air.

Paisley smiled and they high-fived. 

"Frank is gonna tell Daddy about what we did to him..." She chuckled, leaning against the tree.

"Daddy?" Jordan hadn't yet realized who Paisley was, he thought she was just another neglected child who'd been invited to the BBQ at the Jackson Family's Ranch. "Who's your dad, PJ? Why would that guy tell on you? Do you know him?" Paisley rolled her eyes, remembering the world at large didn't know her as well as they know her parents, yet. Luckily they were in a perfect place to spill the beans, The Giving Tree.

"I'll tell you my secret, but only if you climb up the tree with me, Jordie." He blinked at her, it's a reasonable enough request.

"Ok." He shrugged and up the tree they went. Once the two of them were sitting on the platform that had been built in the tree, Jordan looked out at the property taking it all in. You could see just about everything from atop the tree, the rides, the games, the animals... Everything. To Jordan it was like looking at a dream, something he could have only imagined. Truthfully, he didn't want to leave. He wished the day would continue and never end, he wished this with all of his being - though no one realized the real truth of his home life. He'd never tell a soul what went on at home, would he?

Sure, he was here for a reason. He's a neglected child like the rest of them, abused, forgotten, taken advantage of by his father in ways he can't begin to express. A tear fell down Jordan's face. He sniffed, trying to hide his pain from his younger friend. Paisley noticed this while sitting next to him, it was crystal clear to her that her new friend had been hurt, and it broke her little heart. She wrapped her arms around Jordan, not being able to relate to his anguish but wanting to make it better - somehow, someway. He hugged her back without delay, realizing he'd just made a forever friend. That warmed him from the inside and brought a small smile to his face.

They didn't need to talk about what just transpired between them, they both knew. They both suddenly understood each other; Paisley a lonely child without friends, and Jordan, an abused boy who just wanted to be loved without any ulterior motive. The two of them now had something they both needed, and they found it in each other. It had turned out to be a wonderful day, indeed. 

Soon, the tears subsided from both of them and their eyes went back to to gazing at the glorious view before them. A slight summer breeze blew through the tree and their surroundings, ruffling both children's hair. They shared a giggle as they moved their hair from their faces.

"So. My Momma and Daddy..." Suddenly Paisley felt a little embarrassed, she'd never had to tell anyone who her parents were before. It was a new feeling, her cheeks becoming a healthy shade of pink as she continued speaking. "They're... Um, well. They live here." She shrugged her little shoulders with her palms upwards. "I live here with them." Jordan's eyes became wide.

"Wait. You're sayin'..." he looked so shocked as he figured out what she was saying. "Michael Jackson is your Daddy?" She nodded. "And Astoria Briggs is your Momma?" She nodded more vigorously, beginning to laugh at his disbelief. "That means you live here!"

"Yes! I do."

"Wow... That's... You get to see and do fun things all the time then!" He stated.

"Well, not exactly. It's not all fun." Paisley adjusted how she was sitting. "I don't know many kids." He knew immediately what she meant.

"You don't have many friends?" She looked up at him.

"I don't have any."

But Jordan had an answer for her problem. "You have me, PJ."

She lit up when he said that.

"I do?" He nodded at her, putting an arm around her shoulders as they sat in the tree together. Paisley rested her head on Jordan's shoulder. Her new friend. She has a friend. "That makes me really happy, Jordie."

"Good." He wished so badly to finally tell someone what he was going through, but Paisley was so young. She probably won't understand. He resolved that his problems weren't important just then, he'll tell someone when the opportunity presents itself, but not now. Instead, he savored the nice moment he was having, filing it away to remember at a later time when things weren't quite as good. 

After having ran everywhere across the property—even riding some bikes PJ had shown him—the two of them were tuckered out beyond help. Together, the two unlikely friends fell asleep in the Giving Tree...

4:30 PM

One of the ladies from Childhelp USA was running a pencil up and down her clipboard as she stood next to one of the buses. She looked up, getting Michael's attention.

"Mr. Jackson?" She looked concerned. Michael turned around, facing her.

"Please, call me Michael." She gave him a polite smile.

"Of course, Michael. There's just one problem."

"Hmm? What is it?" Just then Astoria came walking up to the two of them, looking frazzled, and cutting off the conversation they'd just began having.

"Michael -. Michael have you seen Paisley? The nanny and I can't find her." She looked scared as she grabbed one of his hands. Nonetheless, Astoria stayed calm as best she could.

"What'd you mean? You guys haven't seen her?" His wife shook her head.

"No. Frank said she got him with a water gun at about two PM, but after that he hasn't seen her." She took in a deep breath as Michael grabbed her gently by the shoulders. He could tell she was beginning to break down internally over this and wanted to comfort her.

"Ash, it's gonna be ok. All the children are still here, we'll find her." Then he turned back to the woman, "What was it you were saying? I'm sorry, it's my daughter."

"Oh, think nothing of it. But I seem to be having a similar problem." Michael's eyes widened at her words.

"You're missing a child too?" She nodded at Michael.

"Yes. A ten-year-old boy, by the name Jordan Chandler. He goes by Jordie though. He's wearing an oversized lime green shirt, a pair of Nikes, and shorts."

"Well, we'll find them both then!" He grabbed the walkie that had been clipped to his back trouser pocket, pushing in the side button to directly contact his security team. Quickly, Michael gave his security team Jordan's description and told them to look for Paisley too. She'd been wearing a pair of jean overall shorts and a yellow t-shirt.

Once again, the Jackson Family home was in a state of rush. Everyone was scrambling about the property to try and find these two kiddos, including Frank DeLio, and both of the Jackson's.  And after a good ten minutes of searching, the pair of children were found and woken up. Astoria took her daughter in her arms, filled to the brim with relief as she held PJ to her. Her father was right there with them, wrapping his two girls in his arms. "Paisley you scared us both, baby girl."

Then came her husbands voice, calm and collected but clearly at ease. "Tell someone if you're gonna go somewhere, PJ, ok? Momma and Daddy are just glad you're safe." Paisley rubbed her eyes as her Momma kissed her forehead.

"But I was just in the tree! With Jordie." Her little voice saying the boy's name made their attention turn to him as he stood somewhat near the Childhelp USA lady. Michael looked at the little boy, sensing something had transpired between him and his daughter - nothing inappropriate, just something new. He walked over to Jordan, giving him a warm smile. Astoria followed the couple steps her husband took, still holding her little girl in her arms. The performer bent his knees to be at the boy's level before he spoke. With a yawn, little Paisley spoke before her father could. 

"See? I told you I live here." She still looked sleepy as she snuggled against her mother, putting her small arms around Astoria's neck. Jordie chuckled at his friend, his face breaking out into a small smile.

"It's nice to meet you, Jordan." Michael held out a hand to him, which Jordie took hesitantly.

"You're Michael Jackson..." He stated skeptically. Michael nodded. "And you're PJ's dad?" Michael's grin broadened, nodding at the boy.

"Yes, I am." Michael let out a good natured chuckle.

"Oh." The boy looked down at the grass beneath his feet, suddenly bashful at the superstar's attention.

"Daddy, Jordie's my new friend." 

"Oh, really?" He