Michael or Mac Ep. 08

The Principal had only agreed to a couple of songs to prove the point. He didn't want this to take up to much lesson time. When I finish the second song, the lights come up. There are some boos, but most people have enjoyed the moment and make their way out, talking excitedly that Mac is one of their classmates. The ones who tried to hang it out got ushered out by the nearest teacher.

Emma walks up to me, beaming. I open my arms, and she runs in for a kiss.

"Come on, you two, get a room," Donna shouts.

I look towards her only to see Cassy and Steff walking up behind her. My change of expression makes Donna turn. Cassy holds her hands up, "Are you telling me that you have been Mac all along, and hid it?" She looks at Emma. "You had to keep it a secret?" Emma nods as Cassy shakes her head in disbelief as she walks away.

"So, are you just Mac now?" Mia asks.

"Yes, Mia. It would be pointless putting the hat and glasses back on." Mia nods, realizing it is a bit of a dumb question.

I get a tap on the shoulder. As I turn, I am greeted by a grinning Susan. "About time," she says. I open my arms for the second time, and she walks straight into my arms. "You know that I expect these now?" Emma laughs and puts her arms around us, followed by Mia and Donna.

It's just me and Mrs. Ellis left to put the equipment back in my truck. "You are still coming to class later, aren't you?"

"Sure, I've still got to attend class."

"Wow, I'm going to be teaching a big rock star who's played in front of thousands."

"You heard about that?"

"I was there," she says with a sly grin. "So, what is Miley Cyrus really like?"

"She's great and a good friend."

"Do you know Billy Ray?"

"Yeah, I stayed at his ranch the first time I met up with Miley. He was at the concert as well. Not met her Ma yet."

"Mmmm, interesting family."

We finish packing away my stuff, and I head off for a swim before I have my Music class. This is the first time I have walked down through the school without my hat and glasses, and it feels weird.

I'm sitting at the back in my usual seat in music. Emma has come to sit next to me and openly shows affection by holding my hand and leaning toward me.

I notice many of my classmates are turning to look in my direction while Mrs. Ellis is talking. She suddenly stops mid-sentence and takes a deep breath. "Okay, class, I see this morning's mini-concert has got you a little distracted." She looks back at Emma and me. "Mac, is it possible for you to come down and get any questions out the way so I can get on with my class?"

I take a deep breath, look at Emma, and reluctantly get up. I walk down to the front and stand next to Mrs. Ellis.

"Okay, this is your one chance to get whatever questions you have for Mac out of your system."

I look at her and then look around at the sudden discomfort of the class. There's silence for a moment, then someone finally speaks. "So why did you hide who you was?"

"If anyone remembers me from Junior High, they would remember I came here after my Ma and Pa passed." I take a huge breath to clear my nerves. "That's when Emma and I became good friends. When my Grammy passed, it sent me to a very dark place, and I pushed everyone I cared about away."

There's another moment of silence, and then, "So why don't you want to be a famous star?"

"Because my destiny lies with the family company. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy what I do, but I will only ever do it for a life experience and not money."

"I saw you at the weekend, and you were incredible." One of the girls who I couldn't see said. "So why are you in this class?"

"I have passed all my main exams last year, I should have been at MIT. Unfortunately, the powers at be were concerned that I should wait a year with my fragile mental state. The law states that I need to be in school, so here I am."

"You look fine to me," said the girl I can now see is Grace.

"Mighty fine," Emma says, which causes people to laugh.

"Thank you, baby," I say. "Anyway, please try and treat me just like everyone else. Are there any more?" I ask to a silent room. "In that case, I will sit down and let Mrs. Ellis teach her class." I quickly make my way to sit next to Emma. After that, the class seems to settle down. I see a very subtle change in that I am included more, but people seem to have relaxed more around me.

As I walk around the school, most people look at me but don't say anything. I walk into the canteen at my usual time and sit at my regular table. I notice the staff watching me walk in. Normally, they would ignore me.

As people come in, I get smiles and the odd nod, which I return. Emma walks in with Mia and Donna. They have all made it known that they have been in on the secret. Emma sits next to me, and Donna and Mia say "Hi!" and touch my shoulder before making their way to their usual table.

Emma leans in and kisses me, "You know how long I've been waiting to do this?" She asks.

"Nearly four months," I reply.

"Feels like forever," she counters.

"Has all the bitchin' stopped?"

"Yes, thank you. Most people have been extra nice as well."

"Well, I can't help you with that."

"Truly though, baby, thank you." She leans in and kisses me just because she can.

"I think seeing you hurt and upset was the kick. I needed to do something I should have done years ago."

"I'm not sure about that. I think it happened the best way it could. You were ready when the time was right."

"Maybe so, but remember, I love you."

"No need to remember that, baby. You show me by how you look at me and kiss me every day." We smile and eat our lunch, finally enjoying the freedom to be together.

******

School is different for a couple of weeks but settles down, and time moves faster. January gives way to February, and I get a text from Miley to see if we can arrange the recording. The film is two-thirds done, and the editor would like the music so he can work out where everything fits.

She has a week off from her tour, so we arranged to meet in L.A. for the second weekend in February. Unfortunately, Emma can't come because of a school's Athletics meet; go figure. I had to promise to take her another time, which would happen even if I hadn't promised.

The nearly five-hour flight was tedious, but nothing much happened. I got to L.A. around nine in the evening on Friday. Miley was busy Friday night, so I booked myself into a hotel near the recording studio and spend the time relaxing before chatting with Emma on skype.

I am up bright and early and order room service. Nothing starts the day like a good old fry-up. I grab my guitar and beat machine before heading to the studio for ten thirty. Miley wasn't there yet, and the guy was a bit pissed that Miley was wasting his time.

I offer to record the guitar solo first, which makes him happier. I arrange the room how I need it, and we do a sound check. I forewarn him that this piece goes on for a while and to record what I play. He doesn't look comfortable with that, but it's digitally stored, so we can chop and change it later. Once he is happy, I close my eyes and begin to play. It doesn't take long before I get lost in the music of the tune I have played for years. About ten minutes in, I notice Miley has turned up and is smiling at me through the window. I return her smile and again sink into the world I used to inhabit. As I loop around, I start introducing a beat, upping the tempo, changing the tone, and adding a second sound. As soon as I do this, the technician stands up to see what I am doing. It's like there are two guitar players. I use fingers on both hands to pluck the strings while simultaneously making each note a full key apart. The track I played was twenty-eight minutes long by the time I played the last chords.

"I'm sorry, Mac, I forgot to press record on the desk," the guy says, who is now happy we have something down.

"If it were funny, I would laugh!" I retorted. Just then, Miley walks in and gives me a hug and kiss.

"Hey, Mac. How ya been?"

"It's been all good. How're the folks?"

"Pa's good and Ma will be down to meet you sometime today. She wants to meet my celebrity crush in person."

"Celebrity crush?" Miley beams at me as I go a little red. I'm not sure if she's joking or not.

"Yeah," she laughs. "She thinks I always talk about you, so she says I have a crush on you."

"But you don't, right?"

"Ahhh, ain't that cute." She turns to the window. "Mac's gone a weird shade of red." She laughs and adds, "Don't worry, Emma's got nothing to worry about." She turns back towards the window, "Right, Mick, do you want me to do some vocals?"

He nods in answer, and I go to leave. "Hang on, Mac. Can we try something together?"

I sit back and pick my guitar, and Miley explains what she wants to do. We go through the part of the song with her lyrics, and then re-record with me playing the guitar rhythmically with Miley's voice. We end up with a more forceful vocal without crushing the feeling in the lyrics.

We spend the day recording it many different ways, and even reversing the vocal where Miley uses her voice like an instrument, and I sing over her. The harmony is incredible, and we re-record that as a separate single.

It's eight o'clock in the evening by the time we are done, and we are both shattered. We both get handed a hard drive with what we have recorded.

As we walk out, we bump into Tish Cyrus, Miley's Ma. "Hey, have yo'all finished already?"

"Ye Ma," Miley says, a little annoyed.

"I'm sorry sweet, but ya know I had business on the other side o town."

"Yeah, I know, but I woned ya tu meet Mac." Miley's accent gets exaggerated as she speaks.

Tish then looks at me. "So yo'll the young man that's got my baby all hot and bothered" She glances back at Miley, "he's a looker, baby. Shall we go for dinner?"

We walk down the main street. Some people honk their horns or shout, but the one that got me was some girl hanging out her window and shouts, "I love you, Mac." I look at Miley with raised eyebrows, and she bursts out laughing.

We get to a restaurant with a lot of people waiting outside. Tish ignores the queue and walks straight up to the guy at the front. He recognizes her as she approaches, unhooks the barrier, and we walk straight in without breaking stride.

The concierge smiles and walks straight over to us. "My two favorite customers," he says in a French accent.

"Hello, Pierre. Have you got a table for three?"

He looks puzzled and then spots me standing a little way back. "If you can wait in the bar, I'm sure we can work something out." He guides us into a more private area that looks as though it has been set up for the more famous people. The ladies take a seat as my eyes scan the room. A bar is set up over one side that looks like it backs onto another larger bar.

I start to walk over. "Mac," Miley shouts. I turn back, "they serve us at the table," she explains. I do a quick U-turn and go to take a seat opposite Tish.

"Did you finish everything today, or do I need to book another session?" I hear Tish ask Miley.

"No, Ma, I think we are done. Today was to give us some variation in mood." Tish nods and then looks at me with a frown. She spots the waitress and orders some wine and I get my usual fruit juice.

"Miley......so what happens now?" I ask.

"A copy of our hard drives are, as we speak, with a courier. Once at the studio it will be edited into the film score. Their music editor will use samples and apply them where needed in the movie, Mac, they are planning on doing the sample release in the next week or so. We have some great tracks down. We could almost make an album out of what we got down."

Trish is listening to the conversation as well as still frowning. Once Miley and I have stopped talking, she asks, "So Mac, why are you not interested in becoming famous?"

"Because my destiny is elsewhere. I play music for enjoyment."

"Oh, com on, honey. I saw the video of you in Charlotte, and if you play your cards right, I could make you rich."

"I already have plenty of money, Mam," I say, feeling a little awkward.

"Ma, Mac is set to running the family business," Miley says, trying to get her mother to stop.

"But that ain't......I bet your parents would like you to spread your wings."

"If they were alive, I expect they would encourage it." Tish puts her hand up to her mouth when she realizes she's put her foot in it. "Don't worry about it, Mrs. Cyrus."

"Oh baby, you can call me Tish. None of this Mam tripe or Mrs. Cyrus nonsense." She then tries to change the subject. "Mac, have you ever been to L.A. before?" The waitress returns with our drinks.

"Yeah, several times. We have a couple of factories and some restaurants out this way. Although I've not been here for a couple of years, but plan to do a tour one summer soon."

"You don't own any football teams out here, do you?" Miley asks.

"No, just the one in Nashville," I say, smiling.

Trish wasn't fully listening. "Your family owns a factory?"

"Ma," Miley says. "Mac's family owns the C&W group.

"The C&W group that owns half of Nashville?" I nod. "And you are stuck managing some part of it?"

"No, Mrs.....Tish," I say, correcting myself. "I own whole group. I will be CEO of the C&W group when I reach my 25th birthday."

"Christ, you must be worth millions," she exclaims.

"No, billions," Miley says.

"Oh......," is all that Tish can come out with. Then Tish sits up and grabs my hand with a gasp of recollection. "I knew your mother before she died. She hired Miley to do a charity event up in Charlestown. She was a lovely lady, and we often corresponded, even after the event. I was saddened to hear about the crash."

"Yes, I know, I was there. I even met Miley," I smile at Miley as the concierge comes in.

"Your table is ready, if you would like to follow me."

The rest of the night is taken up with the odd person wanting a photo, and eating. Luckily only one person wanted a picture with me, and she quickly sat on my lap, had a photo taken of her kissing my cheek, and was gone again.

"Shoulda kept my cap on," I said when she had left.

"Best get used to it. You're gorgeous and talented," Miley says without thinking and then blushes.

"Well, looky here, I made Miley Cyrus blush," I say in my best deep southern accent. This made Tish laugh and Miley go even redder.

"I can see why my family like you so much, Mac," Tish says. I smile back, thanking her for her compliment.

After dinner, I walk back to the hotel. Miley is under strict instruction not to overdo it, and Tish, well, from what I gather, just doesn't stop. I got a farewell kiss from both ladies and promised to meet sometime in the future.

******

Here I am, sitting in the traffic. It's been two weeks since my return from la.

I slept most of the flight back to Charlotte and had my usual reception party waiting in the arrival hall.

It's always been good for my soul to get back to normal. Yeah, it's a little different from what it was, but it's still where I feel most comfortable.

Emma still travels to school with Donna. She's being very careful not to shut her friend out and make her feel neglected. She goes next door every other night after school, before coming to mine. Emma is still focused on keeping her grades up.

The silence in the cab of my four-by-four is too much, so I switch the radio on. For some reason, Emma has tuned it into 96.1, Charlotte's local station. The traffic moves, so I leave it for now.

"Gooood morning. This is Charlotte's very own 96.1 Miguel & Holly, getting you started on this beautiful day." Miguel says.

"Now, we've got something a little different. On my desk, this morning was a disk with a message from my friend Alec Brent. On the disk is a new release from the Denver film company promoting their new film. I apologize, but I do not know who the singers are or what the record is called, but wow......enjoy!"

Then I hear the familiar sound of the beginning of Emma. I turn the radio up and sit there amazed.

I press a button on my dash. "Call Emma." The phone rings twice.

"Hey baby, couldn't you wait until you got to school?"

"Baby, turn 96.1 on quick." I hear her tell Donna and then a loud scream.

"Oh, baby. Shit, it's my song." I hear her getting emotional.

"See you at school, baby," I say, then hang up.

As soon as the phone line dies, the radio comes back up, and I am surprised to hear my voice. The radio plays the one where Miley and I harmonize with an acoustic guitar and light drum, and later it moves to electric guitar and keyboard.

I park next to Donna's car, and we sit in our cars listening to the end of the record, waiting to see what they say.

As the music fades and Holly O'Connor comes back on. "That is such a beautiful record. Let me know who you think it, on 223344."

As soon as the next item comes on, we exit our cars. A pair of arms loop around my neck, and I get a soft, good morning kiss.

"Mac, that was so incredible," Donna says.

"Donna?" Mia says, giving her a shut-up look. Donna gets the heavy hint and dials it down.

"Wait until it's announced who's on track, Donna," I say. She nods. We all head in and go our separate ways.

I get a text from Miley at two. "Christ, Mac, this has gone crazy. Haven't heard anyone guess you or me yet, though."

"Yeah, got to take your hat off to the marketing guys."

Over the next week, we hear the song everywhere. Three different versions are being played, and it seems the public is lapping it up.

I get a call from Tish, "Hey Mac, we are planning the big reveal. Will you be available?"

"I guess you best just let me know when and where. Can you get three extra tickets as well?"

"Okay, most likely on Saturday Night Live."

"Oh, that's not so bad in New York, and Miley is up for this?"

"Yeah, it's just before she starts the next leg of her tour."

"Great, just let me know, and I will be there."

"There is also talk about the Caen Film Festival in France."

"When is that?"

"Not until late May, so I'll let you know if that gets confirmed."

The girls are excited. Weekend-in-New York is greeted with screams of excitement. I didn't tell them about Caen. I needed to let my ears recover.

We are on a private plane for the short hop to New York. We are traveling up Friday and returning Sunday. We hope to get Saturday and Sunday morning free to look around.

Since Saturday Night Live was confirmed, the world has gone into overdrive to guess who has produced the record. Miley is being helicoptered in on the night. I am sneaking into the city, but I am free to go around shopping.

The press has been the best, and produced a top ten of what people think. Surprisingly we don't feature. Don't get me wrong, Donna has been asked by several people, but nobody seems certain.

My equipment was boxed and taken to the studio ahead of me. On the stage it will be just Miley and me. I will set it up in the afternoon when the girls are shopping. A man can only take so much shopping.

We are staying at The langham on Fifth Avenue. In my mind, I will be hiding in plain sight. We think that if we look like we are there to shop and have a good time, it will throw people off.

We book in with little problem. I have my beanie on, but to be safe, we eat dinner in our rooms.

Saturday, we are up early and go out shopping. The day for me is just following the girls around while they try clothes on in different stores. It's a nonstop fashion show, and I have seen some beautiful sights. All three girls have their own attributes, and sometimes I see things I should not be seeing. I am with two beautiful, and one stunning, ladies.

We have lunch at a small restaurant, where the girls are buzzing. I have treated them to several outfits. It took a little persuading from me, but in the end, they accepted with the usual enthusiasm.