Michael or Mac Ep. 01

A couple of times, both Donna and Mia catch her glance. Luckily there is a large window just to the left of me. I think they see the general direction of her glance and then dismiss it from their minds. I made a note to let her know that if she continues, it could cause problems. Time was going at a good pace, and I was settling into life back at school. I could swim three times a week, which gives me more time at home after school and on weekends. Before I know it, I climb out of the pool at four on Friday afternoon and make my way home with the weekend spread out in front of me. As I walk out into the senior's car park, Emma passes me in Donna's car. As she passes me, our eyes make contact, and a smile spreads across her face.

I get home and head upstairs to start my Friday concert. I am still a little pissed that Donna enjoys my music, but it balances it out knowing Emma is listening as well.

At this moment, knowing that Emma is listening, I decide to text her first. "Any Requests?"

It takes a couple of minutes to get a reply. "Yeah, can you play Brown-eyed girl, just for me? xx"

"I can do better than that. I will sign it to you;)" So I started with Brown-eyed Girl.

"You are such a romantic. xx" came the reply.

Was she flirting with me? Do I want her flirting with me? Shit, she's putting kisses on a regular text. A smile spreads across my face, and I start to play, needing to personalize it for Em, so I changed the line 'down in the hollow' to 'down at the beach house.' It didn't fit perfectly, but it certainly had the desired effect. The reason for doing this was that Em and I spent the entire summer holiday together. That entailed three weeks at Pap's beach house with her Mum and Susan, followed by a couple of weeks at the family ranch that just Susan came along. It was the best summer I can remember.

As soon as I finished, I glanced at my phone, and the light is flashing, indicating a message.

I touch the screen, "wait, you're playing these?"

"Yes, Em, what did you think I was doing?" I quickly messaged back. The thing is, once I start playing, it's hard to stop. When we were at the beach house, there was an old record player, and one of a handful of singles, there was a song called Echo beach, so I started singing that one. I blended that into best of you, Foo Fighters. Each song I chose is one that we had listened to together. I had also been playing around with Despacito in Spanish, so I gave that a go knowing it was one I had heard them listening to. I finished with a song that Emma drove me crazy playing. It's cheesy as hell, but I couldn't resist. I started playing the opening cords of 'I kissed a girl, and I heard a scream from next door. I laughed at that which accidentally came over the mic, but I carried on. I wasn't sure if it was a happy scream of a frightened one. Once I finished, I closed the window and sat on the couch, just fiddling with my acoustic guitar. I started with the first couple of notes to Tender. A smile spreads across my face, and I begin to sing.

About five minutes later, another text came through. "Thanks, that was incredible. I didn't know you played."

"Yeah, I used to hang out in the music room at school to avoid the crowds of lunch and picked up the basics. Then, I caught the bug and taught myself the rest at home."

The phone was silent for about thirty minutes. Then, "Sorry, I just got home. It was a bit difficult messaging so much in Donna's house."

"Oh, I didn't think of that. Did you get caught?"

"Nah, she was busy on Facebook and Instagram. She's been trying to get me to do Tik Tok with her, but I've managed to avoid it so far."

"Yeah, I can sympathize with you there. But Donna can be too much."

"So, are we still on for tomorrow? xx."

"What chopping wood together?"

"Well, you chop, and I watch. Oh, and I found my notebook with loads of questions as well. ;) xx"

"Great, can't wait." I had to stick the rolling eyes emoji to that.

"Ooo, I can feel the sarcasm from here xx."

Kisses again? I wonder the meaning, but I can't help looking at those xs. We messaged back and forth for a while as I watched TV. I eventually had to admit I am losing my battle to stay awake, so I send my apologies, get a shower, and headed for bed.

As I settled down between the covers, I noticed Emma had sent one last message,

"night xx."

******

Saturday morning is bright and sunny. I am up and sat in the kitchen with Paps.

"Did you say you're over chopping logs for Kimberly Johnson today, Mac?

"Yes, Paps. She asked me last Friday to come over."

"Is Emma going to be there?"

I look at him with a suspicious look. "Yes, Paps, Emma will be there. Why?"

"Oh, no reason." He says, trying and failing to suppress a smile.

All I can do is shake my head in disbelief. I've been doing a lot of that lately. "There seems to be a lot of people with that very same expression Paps."

"I don't know what you mean." He says, pulling his paper up enough to cover his face from view.

"Paps, please, give us a chance to get to know each other on our own. The last thing we need is outside pressure."

"Yeah yeah, suit yourself." I get up from the breakfast bar and make my way upstairs to change into my work clothes. I pack some clean clothes into my backpack so I don't have to come home to change. "See you later, Paps," I say as I walk out the back door. I don't wait for his answer and make my way to the tool shed. I pick up my ax and cover the head. I can't walk around with a sharpened ax uncovered now, can I?

As I make my way down the road towards Emma's place, I hear a horn sound. Turning my head, I see Terri Samford on her way to the gym, I suspect. I wave as she passes. I wonder if she knows where I'm going today, but of course, she does. Both Sarah and Kim would have been straight on the phone with an update.

It's still before ten when I walk through the side gate of the Johnson household.

As I knock on the back door, I see Kim, and her husband, Ron. "Good morning Kim, morning Ron. How are you doing? Not seen you for a while, Ron."

Ron smiles, "Hello, Mac. Yeah, long time no see. Kim said you were coming around today, and I'm good. Just glad to be home for the weekend."

Mr. Johnson travels for work quite a bit, so finding him home all weekend is a rare treat. "Mac, would you like a drink?" Kim asks with the coffee pot ready.

"Please, Kim, a coffee would be great." I sit down opposite Ron." His full name is Ronald, but he hates his given name. "So, got any plans for your day?" I say, making small talk.

"Yes, we have; we are going shopping first, and then I hope to get a round of golf in. I also think it will be a good idea to give Emma space. She's been a bit short with Kim. She doesn't like the fact you've been around, and Kim didn't tell her."

"Would you like me to have a word?"

"Not sure it would do any good, Mac. If it comes up, you can try." I look over at Kim and see the worried look in her eyes.

"Anyway, it sounds like you have a full day planned," I say as Kim hands me my mug. "Thanks, Kim. Will you be going with Ron for a round of golf Kim?"

Ron cuts in, "it's the only way she'll let me go." We both laugh at the face Kim pulls.

"Hey Mac," Emma says as she enters the kitchen. "I see you're ready to chop the logs." She's looking at my work clothes. I feel the tension as she moves across the kitchen.

"Uhh, yeah. Can't chop wood in my Sunday best now, can I?"

"I guess not." She puts an old exercise book on the table and makes her way to the fridge.

"What's this?" Kim asks, picking the book up.

"Oh, that's an old notebook I found from years ago, Mum. It has a load of questions I wanted to ask Mac when he finally turned up." I noticed the look Emma gave Kim as she said it.

I went to take the book, but Kim pulled it towards herself and opened it to the first page. "Mum, that's personal." with that, she shuts it and puts it on the side out of my reach.

I give her a look but then went back to drinking my coffee. Emma has grabbed some milk, a bowl, and cereal. She then sits down next to her dad and opposite me. "Morning," I say. She just smiles and starts pouring the cereal into her bowl. As she eats, I see her eyes scan me. I have never been looked at in this way before, and I can't help but smile awkwardly. I go through what sizes of logs Kim wants me to chop to try and deflect my thoughts. Finally, Emma finishes her cereal. We rise together, and she rinses her bowl, putting it in the dishwasher. I make my way out into the backyard to get myself sorted.

Emma walks out shortly after me, "Mac, before you start, can you give me a hand with this hammock?"

I look up, and Emma is standing there with a giant hammock. It hadn't been put away correctly and needed a little TLC to untangle the different strands. "Where does it go?"

"Do you see the hook on my old treehouse tree? The other goes right here." She hooks her end onto a hook right next to her."

I hook up the other end, "so you're going just to relax; why I chop wood and ask me questions, are you?"

Emma looks me in the eyes. "Yep, that's about it."

"Great. At least there are no photos."

"Oh, they come later when you're sweatier," Emma says with newfound confidence.

We get ourselves sorted, and I finally start to get some work done. It takes a little time to sort the logs into sizes and ones that need the ax through them. Unfortunately for me, some larger logs need cutting in quarters or more.

So as I work, Emma starts going through her book. "Em, what are you doing?"

"Oh, some of these questions are from when you first went. I don't think you need questions from an eleven-year-old. Some I might alter to become more relevant."

"Okay, fire when ready." So I start chopping the logs up. Their wood burner is a little smaller than the Samford's, so the logs need to be smaller.

Her early questions are pretty simple ones. Most of them, I thought, were covered by what we had talked about on Friday. Her first question was, 'Is it my fault you stayed away?'

I explain with total honesty, "Em, let me make one thing completely clear. Me staying away had nothing to do with you or anything you did. It wasn't in any way your fault." I take a breath and move closer to her, "my actions were because of me and the way I wasn't handling life after Grammy passed." Emma nods as I look into her eyes to check she understands. "Em, the only person to blame is me and nobody else."

It takes her a moment to think, then goes to speak, "but......."

"Em, but nothing. We both can go over every little if and but. If I could go back with what I know now, I would change what I did. But, the reality is that I left you for what I thought was a good reason, so I am to blame." She seems to accept that and makes a note in her book. I'm not sure what she is writing, but I know she will tell me if she wants me to know.

"Has mum said anything to you about me being upset with her?"

"No, your dad mentioned it. But why we are on the subject Em, please lay off of your mum. If you had found out, I was back and tried to see me. I don't think we would be friends today." I can see Emma is getting upset. "Em, I thought I was protecting you by staying away. I would have done anything to keep you safe, and that meant keeping my distance."

"But mum could have told me."

"No, Em, she was asked not to by my doctors. Your mum has been an incredible support to me, and if it wasn't for that support......." My words petered off, and I saw the shocked look on Emma's face when she saw the darkness in my eyes. Tears started to pool in her eyes which in turn set me off. I had to turn my back to compose myself.

I felt a tug on the back of my shirt, and Emma's hand brushed my arm. I turned and gave her a smile and nod of appreciation. I can see in her eyes. This is the moment she truly understood what I had gone through.

I chopped some more the logs in relative silence, but the silence was killing me. So, finally, I turned around, "Hey Em, do you have any more questions?" A smile appeared at the corners of her mouth.

Emma put the book down, and we talked about what I did for the year I was away and MIT. Then, in between questions, we talked about the things we remembered doing together, like her treehouse that got blown down in one of the storms a couple of years back.

Then I asked a question. "So what's with the hammock?"

She laughs. "You remember our time at the beach. We shared that hammock all the time. It was the only way we could get away with sleeping together. We were always cuddling, and Mum wouldn't let us share a bed."

"Not sure what she thought we would get up to at that age. Didn't I have my tenth birthday around then?"

"Anyway, I got dad to buy me this. It was always a fond memory for me."

The more we talk, the more I can see what staying away has done to Emma. I hadn't considered the effect on Emma, and I certainly didn't think she would be affected to the extent she has been.

I looked at her with shame in my eyes. "Hey, Mac, what was that look for?"

I put the ax down and walk over. It gives me a moment to think about how to put this. "Em, if I had known for one second how much I hurt you, I would have been banging on your door a lot sooner." There are a lot more emotions than I thought there might be. I manage to get out, "I'm sorry." Before, I have to turn away. Christ, we were only young. I didn't imagine the impact on her life I had made.

"Mac, I understand why you went. I get it; I truly do. Mum was fantastic; she explained to me in a way that I understood. However, the one thing that hurts is how long it took for you to come back to me."

"I am surprised you still want to be my friend. I was half expecting you to be too pissed with me or something." I still have my back to her as I say this.

"I won't lie to you, Mac. I've had my moments when I was angry with you. Then Mum would ask me something like how I would feel if she and Dad got killed. I had to admit that wasn't even something I wanted to contemplate. You lost your gran on top of all that. So I have waited for you to come back, and here you are."

We talked for over three hours in the garden, but it seemed to be much shorter. I was stacking the logs in the shed when Kim and Ron came in carrying a hundred and one bags. Emma jumps up and goes in to help. I can see through the kitchen widow Emma giving Kim a hug to say sorry. Kim sees me watching and smiled a knowing smile,

As I am putting the ax away, Kim comes out with ice tea, followed by Emma. She gets straight back in the hammock. "So, have you two been bonding?"

I laugh, "you could say that, Kim. Is it okay if I get a quick shower and change out of these dirty clothes?"

"Of course it is Mac. I must admit it's nice having you around. I know we bumped into each other now and then, but it's good to have you back with Emma finally."

"Mum, do you have to embarrass me like that? Mac, if you want, you can use my on-suit."

"Is that okay, Kim?"

"Yes, Mac, as long as she stays down here."

I can only burst out laughing as I make my way in, listening to Emma's protests. As I walk into Emma's room, I see it is much like when I last was there. The décor has changed, and there were more pillows. I have many memories in this room, and I am looking at a big bay window bench seat we used to sit on when reading with each other. The bed was in the same place. Back then, she had a princess bed. That has gone, no surprise there, and a double is in its place. There are many things that a young woman would have as well, like perfumes and makeup. However, I couldn't ever recall seeing Emma wearing much. I quickly grabbed a towel, not wanting to take too long. I had my own body wash and shampoo in my bag, so I took everything into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.

Ten minutes later, I walk out of her bathroom, drying my hair, and in just my pants. I look at the photos on the wall spread around her room. I notice quite a lot of Emma and me doing different things. I have to smile; there are photos from the beach house and the ranch as I'm looking carefully at the one on the ranch. It's a picture of Emma and me on a horse. Emma is in front of me, and I am holding the reins with her leaning back into me.

"We look so happy there." I turn to see Emma at the door. She comes up behind me. "Do you know where that is? I can't remember, and Mum doesn't know."

"Yeah, it's at my family's ranch in West Virginia. Remember we called it Sky Walker Ranch? Your mum came to the beach but had to return to work. So we went to the ranch for two weeks with Susan because Pap's was looking after Grammy there."

"Now you've said that I remember calling it Sky Walker Ranch." Emma laughs at the memory. "Wow, I've often looked at that picture and wondered. Do you go there often?"

"I get up there when I can. Mostly on the school breaks."

"Your family must be quite rich if they own a ranch."

"Yes, Emma, they have got some money."

"Shame it hasn't trickled in your direction a little."

"What makes you think that?" At this point, I realize that Emma doesn't know much about my wealth.

"Well, although it doesn't matter to me, you drive round in that old black car, and you know."

I had presumed that Emma knew my family history. I am a little unsure how to approach this. I want to be open with her but think I need to have this conversation with Paps first. "Well, I might have my run around, but my other car is a Lamborghini." Emma laughs, thinking I am joking.

"So who looks after the Ranch?"

"The Ranch, like all the businesses my family own, have managers." But, then I add, "Paps tends to look after most of the managers that run each business."

"Managers?"

"Yeah, we have managers or CEOs running all the family businesses," I answer, wondering how much I should tell her at this early stage. I don't want to say the wrong thing and scare her off.

Emma seems to take that answer at face value. She takes the towel from my hand and proceeds to dry my back. Her movements are slow and deliberate. Once done, she walks around to the front. She repeats the action, and I watch her as her eyes follow where the towel has been. It's like she is studying my body, and I start to get goosebumps appearing everywhere. It strikes me again just how relaxed I am with her, even after such a short time being back together. She lets out a groan when the towel travels over my chest down to my abs. Yes, I am pretty proud of my six-pack.

Once she has finished, she slaps my skin. "Come on, let's go downstairs, and continue our conversation. I still have questions to ask."

I grab my t-shirt from the bed and follow her. I think it's a good idea not to say anything.

"Mac, is there any chance we can share the hammock? You know, like we used to."

"Umm, okay." I hadn't anticipated being this close to Emma. I was breaking out in a bit of sweat now. "Will it hold the both of us?" I ask, looking for excuses.

"It should hold up to four hundred pounds. I don't think we come close to that. Anyway, my Mum and Dad use it together when they can." I shrug and help Emma with some drinks to take outside.

As we settle into the hammock, our heads are at opposite ends, and her legs over mine. The feeling of the smooth skin on the back of her legs feels incredible against my skin. Kim shouts out of the door that they were off for their round of golf. We say our goodbyes, and Emma reaches for her book. I can't help roll my eyes, not that it went unnoticed. Receiving a light whack from the book, but she couldn't hide the fact that she was enjoying every minute of her day.

Emma then puts the book down, "so what is the deal with you and Donna?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I told you before that she has a huge crush on you. So what do you think?"