After Michael Comes Back

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at

http://archiveofourown.org/works/28412946.

Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning:
No Archive Warnings Apply

Category:
F/M

Fandom:
The Princess Diaries - All Media Types

Relationship:
Michael Moscovitz/Mia Thermopolis, Michael Moscovitz/Other(s), Tina
Hakim Baba/Boris Pelkowski

Character:
Michael Moscovitz, Mia Thermopolis, Lilly Moscovitz, JP Reynolds-
Abernathy IV, Kenny Showalter, Tina Hakim Baba, Boris Pelkowski

Additional Tags:
Falling In Love, Exes, Friendship, Love, Fluff and Humor, Angst with a
Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst

Language:
English

Series:
Part 3 of Michael: From Breakup to Makeup

Stats:
Published: 2020-12-29 Completed: 2021-01-12 Chapters: 11/11 Words:
40956
 After Michael Comes Back
by sofiyathealmostwriter

Summary

A multi-part series about Michael moving back to New York after

almost 2 years living abroad in Japan. Read as he transitions from
being "completely over" Mia to knowing that he wants Mia back.
Disclaimer: All the characters and general storyline belong to Meg
Cabot, as well as some direct quotes from Book 10.

Notes

Honestly, I'm not sure why I can't stop writing this story. I'm about 10
years too late, but I recently read the entire Princess Diaries series for
the first time (thank you, quarantine) and I've just fallen in love with
Michael and Mia.

Anyway, if someone does end up reading this, enjoy! If not, I enjoyed

writing it regardless.
 A New Man
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes

White. Stark white. All around him. Glancing out the window, the only
things Michael could see were clouds. He already felt like he was stuck in a
never-ending dream and watching the clouds zip past him didn’t help. He
glanced over to his longtime coworker and good friend, Kenji, who was
sleeping peacefully in the seat next to him. Almost immediately after they
had boarded, Kenji downed a few glasses of champagne and plopped on the
cushy facemask provided. He was asleep within minutes, an occasional
snore escaping his mouth. Even though Michael was well-aware of how
much money they were making from his robotic arms, he couldn’t fathom
the thought that he was sitting in a $10,000 first-class seat being treated like
royalty.

Well, figuratively. He knew how real royalty was treated, and they hardly
flew commercial.

He took a deep breath and glanced up at the fan above his head. It had been
almost 2 years since their project began and when asked about how it felt,
all Michael could muster up was ‘Surreal’. Because that’s what it was. The
work had been grueling and there was a long time where it just seemed like
there wasn’t any light at the end of the tunnel. There had been so much
pressure from investors and doctors and everyone else and it had seemed
like they were never going to get it to work.

But then, only around 3 months ago, everything just seemed to click for
them. They started making progress every day- And in a blink of an eye,
they realized that there was no more work to be done. The CardioArm was
ready to go.

And in a flash, he was finally going home.

Michael hadn't been to the States since the project began. Between the time
traveling would have taken, and the time spent actually visiting, and the
unforgiving jetlag that would follow, he was never able to make it happen.
The work was too much to lose that sort of time. But he had been fortunate
enough to have his family come to visit him a few times over Lilly’s school
breaks (she got punkier every time he saw her, to the mild distress of their
parents). He had even been visited by a few friends when possible.

But this was so different. Michael was going to be back in the city he was
raised in, the city he loved, and the only real place that truly felt like home
to him. And he was coming back more accomplished and successful than he
could have ever dreamed. He had always expected to graduate Columbia,
maybe go to grad school, and land a nice job at some tech firm, but he
never expected to be the owner of a tech company and a self-made
multimillionaire at the age of twenty-one. It all just seemed so… Surreal.

“Would you like a hot towel?” Michael twitched slightly as he looked to the
source of the soft voice, having been startled out of his thoughts.

The pretty flight attendant looked at him with a slightly apologetic smile,
holding a tray of towels and some tongs. Michael politely shook his head,
grimacing to himself as she moved on to the next row. He suppressed the
urge to groan and cracked open the book he had brought with him. Maybe
some reading would help him handle his nerves a little better.

After re-reading the same page about 5 times, Michael shut his book and
glanced over to see what the person a few rows ahead was watching. He
almost choked on his own saliva when he realized that they were watching
one of the movies about her life. From what he could tell, it was the sequel
he had never watched because he had been written out of it. He forced his
gaze back towards the window.

It almost made him laugh to think about a large reason why he went to
Japan in the first place. Yeah, it was an amazing opportunity that he really
couldn’t have passed up. But it was also amazing because back then he had
every intention of one day becoming a Prince Consort and wanted to prove
his worth. Oh God, had he really been a 19-year-old kid planning his entire
life around his first serious girlfriend? Sure, they had been in love, but
really? She was still in high school at the time and he had barely even
begun college. Come to think of it, she was still in high school. I guess
that’s what love and teenage hormones do.

Michael hadn’t dated very much while he was in Japan. He was way too
busy and in all honestly, hadn’t found anyone who was really worth the
distraction. But that didn’t mean that he was still hung up over his ex-
girlfriend. The days of him pining were long over and she only crept into
his mind on occasions such as now, when he had nothing to do except think
about New York. Thinking of, did he ever get the chance to tell her that he
was coming back? Hmm. Actually, had he ever even told her that the
project was doing so well? He thought back and realized that his last
message to her must have been months ago and that she never replied. He
had a slightly sinking feeling, they had been friendly…

Oh well, he probably wouldn’t even run into her anytime soon. The only
potential place would be her and Lilly’s graduation, but he doubted they
would have any reason to talk then either. It had been made clear to Michael
that she and Lilly still weren’t on speaking terms. It hadn’t felt good to
know that he had a part in ruining a 10-year long friendship, but it was
evident that there was nothing that could be done. And Michael did feel a
lot better once Lilly actually explained to him the real reason that (asshat)
guy dumped her. And the fact that her best friend had immediately started
dating him after all the signs were there? Oof.

In the dozens of emails exchanged back and forth, neither she nor Michael
ever brought up anything relating to their romantic lives. They kept their
messages strictly friendly and generally impersonal. But that didn’t mean
that Michael wasn’t aware of her long-term relationship.

Although he never asked directly, Boris would sometimes mention that guy
in passing. Michael wasn’t sure if it was for his benefit or not, but Boris
typically spoke of the guy in a negative sense (“he spent the entire lunch
period talking about his stupid play”, “he interrupted Tina AGAIN today
and no one else noticed!!”, “he laughed when I said I was thinking about
getting an electric guitar”). As much as Michael was over his ex-girlfriend,
he did crack a grin whenever Boris bad-mouthed the dude.
He honestly couldn’t believe that she was still dating him. Although
Michael was sure that she didn’t have a clue about what he did to Lilly, he
privately agreed with Lil that it was ridiculous she didn’t see the signs. It
seemed pretty obvious from an outsider’s perspective that he was using her
for something, fame, prestige, whatever. And although he had initially tried
to convince Lilly to tell her everything, Michael now understood her
reasons for not doing so. She was a princess and had been a celebrity for
years now. She was definitely old enough and more than intelligent enough
to be able to figure out the friends from the phonies. And honestly, who
really knew? Maybe she did know and didn’t care, or maybe that guy really
did love her, and she just knew better than everyone.

And anyway, who cares? At this point, she and Michael were nothing more
than friendly acquaintances (if that). He would probably just end up a
footnote in the biography of her life, labeled as one of her “high school
boyfriends”.

However, he half-smiled, there was much more to his life now than just
being a princess’ ex-boyfriend. So much that one day he might have his
own biography filled with pages about his important work. Hell, maybe she
would end up just being a fun fact (“first girlfriend, current Princess of
Genovia”). That idea alone was enough to calm Michael of his nerves and
he felt some confidence working its way out. He maintained his grin as he
grabbed his headphones and shut the window blind, intending to enjoy
some of the impressive entertainment options offered in first class.

After getting picked up from the airport by his parents, sister, and grandma,
the first thing Michael wanted to do was stop and get a hotdog from the
greasiest stand he could find. The second was to get a long-awaited hug
from his dog as soon as he got to his parents’ apartment.

Despite being older, Pavlov ran towards Michael with all of his might and
the boy threw his backpack on the ground right in time to fully embrace the
sheltie. Although he had gotten to see his family while he was living in
Japan, they had never been able to bring along Pavlov. While his face got
soaked in dog licks, Michael realized that he had probably missed his dog
more than anyone else. It took about 20 minutes before Lilly was able to
convince him to finally go take a much-needed shower.

“Seriously, you reek. You smell like a mixture of old sushi and some God-
awful BO,” she complained, wafting the air around her nose. With an eye
roll, Michael gently pushed the extremely happy dog off of him and got up.
Before making his way towards the hallway, he not-so-subtlety stretched his
arms directly in front of his sister, giving her a small smirk. She responded
in an equally mature manner by roughly shoving him towards the bathroom
and fake gagging. Michael let out a laugh as she forcibly shut the bathroom
door once he was in it.

It was so good to be home.

Basically, most things in the apartment were exactly as they had been when
Michael left. His parents, noticeably much happier now than they had been
a couple of years ago, had done a small amount of remodeling, but it was
hardly noticeable. Lilly's room was a little more grown-up and lined up with
her new look. She had a few more posters scattered around, primarily filled
with heavily tattooed men in eyeliner, and Michael noticed a picture frame
that had previously featured Lilly with her former best friend was now
replaced with her and Kenny, who was equally, if not more, punk than her.

Michael’s own room was exactly as he had left it. His shelves were lined
with old books, sheet music, and Star Wars trinkets. His guitar still stood on
its stand, woefully out of tune due to its lack of use over the years. His
ceiling was still covered with his glow-in-the-dark constellation. And with a
quick peek under the bed, there was still a medium-sized box tucked away,
now covered in a layer of dust. When he had been packing for his big move,
Michael left the box there for safekeeping so he could retrieve it when he
finally moved back. But now as it lay hidden, it was more of a bittersweet
reminder.

His initial thought was to toss it and its contents down the trash chute, but
he immediately squashed that. Sure, maybe they weren’t meant to be. But
they had been happy together for quite a long time, and she would always
be his first love.
So, the box was going to stay in his childhood bedroom at his parents’
apartment collecting dust indefinitely. Maybe one day he would be able to
look back into it with fondness (or indifference), but for now, he was just
going to leave it alone.

Yes, Michael was definitely and completely over Mia Thermopolis.

Chapter End Notes

Hello! This story is finished (but may be added onto in the future if
inspiration strikes) so feel free to end with the comfort of knowing that
it has an ending! Thank you for any and all Kudos, and especially for
any comments because they're always appreciated. Happy reading! xx
Sofiya
 The Ceremony
Although he almost couldn’t believe it, Michael was somehow even busier
during his first days back in New York than he had been back in Japan. His
first night was amazing and relaxing, consisting of a special family-only
dinner carefully constructed by Maya, who greeted the boy with a large hug
and all of his favorite foods. He was honestly so happy and exhilarated that
he barely registered the toll that jetlag had put on him until he put his head
on his pillow and was instantly dead to the world.

The next day was much more stressful for the young tech guru. For starters,
he woke up around 4 in the morning to the city lights and sirens that New
York was so famous for. He had never noticed how loud the city was
growing up, always so used to it. He ended up restlessly lying in bed for
around an hour until he realized that he was never going to fall back asleep.
During that time, he went over his schedule and to-dos for the next few
days in his head. He was meeting with his realtor later that morning, and
then had a bunch of business stuff to do… And he had to write his speech
for the ceremony honoring him (!) at Columbia the next day. Once his
schedule was carefully laid out in his mind, it ended up wandering over to
the box that was situated immediately below him. This was only for a split
second though, because he jumped out of bed before he could even finish
that thought.

It was still extremely early, but Michael was wide awake, so he went for a
quick jog around the neighborhood. This was somewhat of a new habit he
had developed during his time in Japan, because it was one of the rare times
where he didn’t have to think about anything.

He was able to rest his mind a bit while taking in the neighbor changes that
had been made while he was away. Some stores and restaurants were
different, but his favorite bookstore and bodega were still holding on. The
sun was peeking out now, and although the streets were mostly empty, the
sounds of honking and sirens were still definitely prevalent. It was a bit
odd, but the sound was now making him feel more nostalgic than annoyed.
He went back up to the apartment when he was done and was relieved to
see that no one was out in the kitchen yet. He took a quick shower and
changed into a button-down and some nice pants. Casual enough for the
apartment-hunting, but formal enough for his meetings later. He glanced in
the mirror and was pleased enough; it may not have been the jeans and a T-
shirt look he would have preferred, but it was still mostly him.

Leaving a note on the kitchen counter, Michael left the apartment just as the
morning work crowd began moving around. He walked to a coffee shop he
had passed on his jog and waited in the line filled with working adults
dressed in suits and blazers. At least he didn’t have to wear something like
that all the time, he thought, glancing down at his own shirt.

He ordered his usual (large dark roast with 1 packet of sugar and no
creamer… boring but effective) and decided to sit down at the bar by the
window. It was still too early to go meet his realtor, so he spent some time
staring out into the streets. He was a bit annoyed at himself for not thinking
to bring his laptop, but he tried to enjoy the people-watching.

When that activity had worn itself thin, Michael paid for a newspaper and
began skimming through it. He thought he saw a suspicious head of blonde
in the society pages, but he quickly flipped over it. He did, however, stop
and almost spit out his sip of coffee when he reached the Science and
Technology section.

Sure, Michael knew that his project was a big deal in the medical
community and that there would be articles coming out sometime. He could
be as modest as he wanted, but there was no denying that people were
talking about his project. And he had been prepared for the interviews,
ceremonies, and general butt-kissing he would be enduring for the next few
months (perhaps years), but seeing it in a national news source, printed in
black-and-white, made it feel all too real. There was a huge article smack-
dab in the middle of the paper written all about the CardioArm- and him. He
blinked rapidly as he read through. It said it all: the project, the money, the
first in its class. He counted his own name 5, no 6, times. And there was no
mention of a famous ex-girlfriend, nothing about his personal life at all. It
was all just praise for him and Pavlov Surgical.
After re-reading the article 1 or 2 times (maybe more like 3 or 4), Michael
finally took the rest of the paper and threw it into the trash along with his
finished coffee. As he folded up the article and carefully tucked it into his
pocket, Michael couldn’t help but feel a certain swagger wash all over him.
Surreal really was the only way to describe how he felt.

He still felt like he was floating on air as he flagged down a taxi to go meet
his realtor. That confidence made him even more excited to be looking at
places for himself. It wasn’t so much that Michael couldn’t stand the idea of
staying with his parents, but he had spent almost 2 years living on his own
and didn’t think it would be possible to go back. He needed to keep moving
forward, or else risk regressing back into the nerdy computer geek he once
was.

The first apartment was a dud, as was the second. Michael wasn’t overtly
picky with where he wanted to live, but there were a few important things
that his new home needed to have that were simply non-negotiable. Firstly,
it had to be near Pavlov Surgical’s new office. Secondly, it had to have the
best WiFi capabilities possible. And thirdly, it needed to be walking
distance from a good bodega, coffee shop, and video store.

They struck gold with the third option. It was a fashionable loft, perfect for
any young tech millionaire. It had lots of natural light and interesting arches
and blah blah, everything realtors love to talk about. More importantly for
Michael, he could walk to his office in under 10 minutes and he liked the
general vibe of the place. The space was much bigger than he had ever
imagined for his first apartment, but he couldn’t deny that he had the means
for it.

Because he wanted to move in as soon as possible, they promised to draw

up the contracts quickly and that he would be able to move in as early as
next week. Feeling like his shoulders were already lighter, Michael rushed
out for his next task.

It was barely noon yet, but he had a business lunch followed by several
meetings with hospital chairmen to discuss buying a CardioArm. After that,
Michael was set to interview several business managers in the hopes that he
wouldn’t have to plan his days around these types of meetings anymore.
And even though the day was filled with so much laborious talking and
planning, that swagger Michael had gotten in the morning never faded. He
was confident and dealt with everything that came his way with an almost
ease (he still felt the nerves, but no one else noticed).

By the time he got home for dinner, Michael was extremely exhausted, and
his jet lag was overpowering him. He felt like a zombie, just getting himself
through the motions. Still, he forced a smile and sat down with his family to
eat dinner.

Kenny joined them this time, which would have probably been a bit weird
for Michael if he wasn’t too tired to care. It sometimes hit him that his
sister’s boyfriend was his ex’s ex and that Michael had basically been trying
to steal his girlfriend throughout their half their relationship (all of two
months of it). After Michael’s own breakup, he felt a little big guilty over
the whole thing once he realized how much it sucked to know that your ex
was immediately dating someone new. And Michael had started going out
with her the same day Kenny had broken up with her

But all of that was ancient history now. Kenny was now cool, with his new
look and even newer attitude. He no longer resembled the geeky freshman
he once was and was now a grown-ass punk dude who was going to MIT in
the fall to study rocket science or something. He also now liked to be called
Kenneth, which Michael almost laughed in response to, but stifled once his
sister gave him a swift kick under the table. Overall, things were fine
between them and Michael was just glad to see how happy Lilly was with
him.

“I do need to ask that you take out your piercings for tomorrow, Lilly, for
the ceremony…” his mom looked uneasy as she spoke, giving a nervous
glance towards her daughter. It was extremely clear that she wasn’t overly
fond of Lilly’s look. She had mentioned previously to Michael that they, the
psychoanalysts they were, thought Lilly’s look new was simply an act of
rebellion on account of her leaving for college soon. He wasn’t convinced,
however, considering Lilly was going to Columbia, which could hardly be
counted as “moving away”.
Lilly rolled her eyes and Nana looked like she was about to start, but
Michael cut in, wanting to avoid an argument, “no, Mom, it’s totally fine.
No one will even-“

“Nah, I don’t mind,” Lilly interrupted, which surprised Michael. “I just

want to be there and support you.” He gave her a small, grateful smile; his
time in Japan had seemed to bring them closer than ever.

“Fantastic,” Dad started. “Will you also be joining us tomorrow, Kenneth?”

The younger boy nodded earnestly and gave a grin, “I would definitely like
to, assuming that’s alright.” Michael almost snorted. I guess no matter how
cool you may look, it’s still important to be polite to your girlfriend’s
parents.

The jet lag caused Michael to realize that they were all looking at him for
confirmation a few awkward moments too late, but finally, he realized and
nodded a bit too eagerly. “Oh, yeah, of course. Wouldn’t have it any other
way.” He gave them a wide smile as he pushed a pea around his plate.

After a few more minutes of drifting in and out of conversation, Michael’s

mother insisted that he go to bed. Unfortunately for him, his final thought
before passing out was the speech he had forgotten to write for the
ceremony the next day.

Michael’s second night at home was not nearly as restful as the one before
had been. He kept having swirling images, one of which featured Pavlov
doing surgery on some patient with the CardioArm, only the patient wasn’t
really a person and was instead-what even is that?

And then there he was performing a sold-out show in Madison Square

Garden with Skinner Box. Only when he finally got on stage to perform, the
only people in the audience were bald men in suits who wouldn’t stop
showing him spreadsheets. And then they were replaced by a bunch of
robots.

Finally, he was at some sort of party- there were basketball hoops and rice
and snowflakes everywhere. He could make out some figure walking
towards him, but the hazy image finally came into view.

Michael woke up with a start while it was still dark outside. He had a bit of
a headache and massaged his temple with one hand. Why did she keep
popping up? He had rarely thought of her while he was in Japan, but almost
as soon as he left, it was like everything reminded him of her. Did she have
to deal with this too, being in the city? Did he ever pop into her mind when
she passed the Rockefeller Center? Or whenever she caught Star Wars on
TV?

Probably not. She had made plenty of new memories while he was gone.

Groaning to himself, he covered his face with a pillow, the sounds of sirens
outside his window pounding against his headache. He could really use a
few more hours of sleep before the big ceremony, and he would have to be
ready to write his speech as soon as he woke up.

After some tossing in his bed, Michael was able to fall back asleep. Luckily
for him, he had no more dreams and woke up a few hours after the sun had
risen. This time, he could hear some movement out in the hallway.

He stared up at the stars on his ceiling, really appreciating them for the first
time in years. When he was in high school, he used to do this quite often,
whenever he needed to think or get out of his head. They were a source of
comfort for him, particularly on a day like this.

After some time, he (almost reluctantly) got out of bed and immediately sat
down at his desk. He got out a sheet of paper and pen and racked his brain
for what he was going to say. He wasn’t much of a writer and generally
preferred to type rather than handwrite, but this speech needed to be good.
This was his first real press event for the finished project, and he was
expected to show it off well.

He tapped his pen on the paper for a few moments and considered what he
needed to say… He would start by thanking everyone, of course, and then
explaining the inspiration for Pavlov Surgical. He smiled slightly when he
imagined the chuckles from the audience when he told them that he named
the company after his dog and not the famous psychologist. And then he’d
introduce the rest of the team, including the other engineers and big-time
investors.

What else, what else… Oh right, actually presenting the CardioArm. That
was the big one. He mapped out a rough explanation and presentation for
the project, but that was honestly the part he was least worried about. He
had shown off the arm so many times by now, that it actually sometimes felt
like a part of him. Guess that’s it. Then he’d hand over the speech to
whoever was presenting him and get to invite his family up on stage.

After a quick run-through in his head, Michael thought his writeup was
pretty good. He wasn’t much for public speaking, but he knew this project
better than anyone and he was proud of it, which helped calm him down.
And really, how many people would actually be coming to this thing? He
was probably most nervous about his family being there and trying not to
just watch them while he was talking. He had been reminded, multiple
times now, to make sure to look through the audience as a whole during a
speech.

Just as he was finishing up, Michael heard a knock on the door. He opened
his mouth to let the person come in, but it had sprung open before he could
get any words out.

“Mom wants to make sure you’re up.”

“Geez, you know the point of knocking is to wait for the other person to
answer?”

Lilly simply shrugged, “I knocked, that’s what’s important. I guess this

means that you’re up.”

Michael rolled his eyes in response and nodded. “Ye-huh.”

His sister stuck her tongue out and went to close the door, but purposely left
it just slightly open before stalking away to the kitchen.

I guess sisters never change. More amused than irritated, Michael went to
shower and get ready for one of the biggest and most important events of
his life.

After grabbing the garment bag holding his suit, Michael headed to the
kitchen and gave his mom a quick peck on the cheek. He wasn’t normally
one for showing much affection, but he was so happy to be back that it was
almost automatic. “I’ve got to head out, but I’ll meet you guys there around
2 pm?”

Dr. Moscovitz gave her son a large smile, “We’ll all be there looking our
best.” She gave a quick glance at Lilly who was sitting at the table eating
breakfast. She was not supporting any face jewelry this morning. Michael
caught her roll her eyes into her cereal at their mother’s comment, but his
mom looked back at him with a glint of tears in her eyes. “We’re so proud
of you, Michael.”

He gave her an awkward smile and looked down at his feet, feeling his face
getting hot. He really appreciated it, but it was also just so embarrassing for
some reason. Giving a quick wave, Michael rushed out the door, taking a
few deep breaths as he stepped into the elevator. Pressure, that’s what he
was feeling. Lots and lots of pressure.

He had an appointment to get his hair cut that morning and was then going
to head straight for the event. The ceremony wasn’t set to start until two,
but he and the team were being treated to lunch beforehand with a few of
the department’s faculty.

The hair appointment had been made by the company’s publicist and was at
a much fancier place than Michael would have ever set foot in 2 years ago.
Most of the hairdressers were French or Italian and gushed over Michael’s
natural curls. He knew that they had been told that he had some big
ceremony to attend so they were buttering him up, but he could see his
cheeks getting redder by the minute.

After an incredibly long hour, Michael’s hair was cut and styled to
perfection. He actually couldn’t believe how he looked when they turned
him towards the mirror. He was definitely not a dorky, gangly teenager
anymore. The haircut made him realize how broad his shoulders had gotten,
and his jaw was more pronounced than he had ever seen. He looked…
Good, he thought.

Surreal.

The next thing he knew, Michael was being ushered into a fancy conference
room at Columbia University’s Medical Center. Most of his coworkers were
already there, conversing with themselves or people from the university.
Before he could even sit down, there were multiple people coming up to
him, shaking his hand and asking him questions about the project. Although
he just smiled and gave them answers with as much confidence as he could
muster, Michael’s head was spinning. He was again reminded of just how
important he was now.

After a few minutes of nonstop questioning, the head department chair

invited everyone to sit down and eat. “Mr. Moscovitz will be answering
more questions at the ceremony, let him relax a little before then!”

Luckily for him, the conversation moved away to other subjects as they ate.
Michael barely had to speak at all as he gulped down his lunch. His nerves
were really starting to build the closer they got to the actual ceremony. It’s
not like he had to speak in front of a large group of people every day. Sure,
he ran the team meetings and spoke to investors and whatnot, but he had
never had to make a speech at an actual event before.

What was that quote that he used to know? The one about Eleanor
Roosevelt? Something about fear or inferiority or whatever?

But before Michael could think of the quote, lunch was over, and the event
was about to start. He was taken over to the back of the stage along with his
colleagues. As he recounted the bullet points of his speech, he peeked
around the stage and saw dozens- no, hundreds- of people. People that were
waiting for the ceremony. Hundreds of people that were waiting for his
ceremony.

For a split second, he wanted to barf. Or run in the complete other direction.
Or maybe ask Midori or Kenji or someone to make the speech instead.
But then he saw his family in the front row. Well, his family and Kenny
(Kenneth, whatever). His mom and dad were speaking quietly to each other,
grinning and giggling. And there was his Nana next to his mom, dressed to
the nines and looking extremely proud herself. To her right was Lilly and
then Kenny, done up in a dress and suit, respectively. Not a face piercing to
be seen between the two of them. They all looked so… Excited.

Seeing their faces made him feel suddenly lighter and by the time the
announcer called Michael up to the stage, he didn’t feel any of the nerves
that had been plaguing him that day. He had that swagger he felt the day
before and spoke with ease and confidence. His joke about Pavlov landed
and before he knew it, he was holding the CardioArm and being received
with Oohs and Ahhs.

And then, to his complete surprise, Dr. Ward presented him with an
honorary master’s degree! He could feel the heat rising to his face again as
the crowd clapped for him, and his cheeks were beginning to ache from all
the grinning when his family came up to the stage with him. He felt a bit
embarrassed when Lilly made a show about Kenneth coming up to meet
them, but the crowd was laughing, and Michael felt elated anyway.

And although he wouldn’t admit it to anyone if they asked, he almost teared

up when his family engulfed him in a large hug on the stage in front of the
hundreds of people watching.

And then, thank God because he was incredibly overwhelmed at that point,
the ceremony was over, and they could move into the “cocktail” portion of
the event. After spending a few minutes speaking to his family (although he
hadn’t realized until she was gone that Lilly had run off), Michael was
handed some champagne and his coworkers began proposing a toast. After
the fifth toast and second bottle, everyone was feeling giddy and Michael
was telling a story in Japanese, fully at ease now.

That is, until he heard Lilly yelling his name across the stage. It had taken a
few times for him to hear her, but once he realized that she was calling for
him, he turned and stopped his story midsentence.
It took a moment before the image before him fully registered. Next to Lilly
was another figure, taller, slender, and… Blonder. It was like his brain had
stopped working and he was beginning to worry that he had been staring at
her for ages. Their eyes met and he just couldn’t force himself to look
away.

She just looked so good.

Michael had always found her pretty (and at times, extremely beautiful) and
it was safe to say that she could drive him absolutely wild when they were
dating. But that was almost nothing in comparison to how he felt in that
moment. She was now an adult (well, technically her 18th birthday was in a
few days) and she certainly looked it. She still looked like herself, but also
somehow way better than he had remembered. She had grown up. And was
looking… Embarrassed? Nervous? He could never read her face very well.

He forced himself to tear his gaze away and back to the group of people he
had been speaking to, excusing himself. He couldn’t help it. He just had to
speak to her before she disappeared again.

No, perhaps Michael was not really completely over Mia Thermopolis.
 A Reunion
As he walked towards the girls, Michael couldn’t help the smile as he said
“Mia.” He had never expected to see her here, and especially not with Lilly.
He glanced down and noticed that they were holding hands, but they
quickly let go of each other and Lilly took a small step to the side.

His first instinct was to hug her, but he was able to restrain himself before
he reached out. That definitely didn’t seem appropriate, at least for their
first time seeing each other in person since he watched her kiss that guy in
the hallway.

“Um, hi,” was all she said (or more so, whispered) to him and the sound of
her voice made his stomach lurch. The last time he had heard her voice was
after he broke up with her on the phone. She smiled back at him, but it was
timid and wasn’t even close to matching the brightness of his. He still
couldn’t believe that she had come.

“Mia’s here representing the Atom. She’s doing a story on you, Michael.
Aren’t you, Mia?” Lilly explained while giving the girl a pointed look as if
she had read the confusion on his face. He initially felt some
disappointment, but his eyes were still stuck on Mia and he noticed that she
seemed a bit perplexed. No way, that was not why she had shown up.

“How are you doing?” he asked, desperately hoping that she would meet his
gaze again. If he could really look into her eyes, maybe then he’d be able to
figure something out.

Unfortunately, Mia had seemed to go mute and Lilly ended up poking her
quite roughly in the shoulder. When it was clear that the taller girl wasn’t
going to be saying anything other than “Ow”, Michael laughed and asked,
“Where’s Lars? You better watch out, Lil. She generally travels with an
armed escort.”

He was almost smirking when he said it and felt triumphant when she
actually opened her mouth and replied, “He’s around here somewhere.” She
was now looking at him again and he could tell that she was also relieved to
finally be speaking. This was not at all how he imagined their first reunion
going. “And I’m fine, thanks for asking before. How are you doing,
Michael?”

He was elated to hear her speaking in fully formed sentences again and
even happier that she actually seemed to be sincerely asking him.

“I’m great,” he answered ever so intelligently. He wanted to say something

more, but before he could, his mother came over to tell him about some guy
with The New York Times. Who had time to speak to reporters at a time like
this?

Oh, right, he was at his own event. He was supposed to be networking and
doing interviews, like the one his mother had come over to remind him of.

His mother stopped as soon as she saw who Michael had been speaking to
and he saw her eyes widen. “Oh, Mia.” Glancing over at Mia, she looked…
Terrified? I guess it must be awkward to run into your ex-boyfriend and ex-
best friend’s parent. But Michael knew that their parents didn’t harbor any
ill-will towards her. She had basically grown up like a second daughter to
them, and they were more sad than anything when Mia had stopped coming
around.

Mia squeaked out a quick hello, but his mom just smiled and gave her a kiss
on the cheek. She seemed genuinely happy that Mia had come.

He almost laughed when Mia started stammering an explanation for coming

to the event- the article for the school paper- but then he felt his heart sink
when she looked at him and forcefully said, “Michael, go talk to the
Times-“

He quickly interrupted her, “No. That’s okay. There’s plenty of time for
that.” Times be damned; he wanted to keep talking to his extremely good-
looking ex-girlfriend.

Unfortunately for him, Mia was insisting, and he would have looked like an
idiot if he kept trying to keep the conversation going. Luckily for him, his
sister intervened.

Lilly suggested that the two of them get together for coffee the next day.
And okay, it was supposedly for a “private interview” and not a “hey maybe
we should talk about getting back together” coffee date, but it still seemed
like a great idea to Michael.

Without even bothering to hide his eagerness, he agreed, “Hey, that’s a good
idea. What do you say, Mia? Are you around tomorrow? Want to meet a
Caffe Dante, say, around one?” He was a bit annoyed with himself for how
excited he sounded, but he knew that Mia hadn’t come to his event just for
some silly article. Whether or not she was willing to admit it, Mia still cared
for him and wanted to see him.

He suppressed the large grin that was teasing his face when she nodded and
answered, “Yes, one tomorrow is fine. Okay, great, see you then.” She
looked a bit flustered as she spoke, and it filled him with some satisfaction
to know that he could still make her nervous.

Michael felt good enough to tear himself away with the guarantee of seeing
her tomorrow, and left to go give that interview. But as he was walking
away, he suddenly remembered something.

“Oh, and bring that senior project of yours. I still can’t wait to read it!”

The last thing Michael heard from that side of the stage was Lilly asking if
Mia was all right. And he let out a bit of a smirk imagining her face.

Yeah, no. Michael was definitely not over Mia Thermopolis. In fact, he now
had every intention of winning her back.

The rest of the event went completely as expected. Michael did about a
dozen interviews and posed for an infinite number of photos with his
colleagues and his robotic arm. His face was sore after smiling so much, but
his grin was completely genuine. Not only was his project a major success
and he had been named one of New York City’s youngest technology
trailblazers, but he also had a strong suspicion that his ex-girlfriend did not
feel indifferent to him. He didn’t run into her again, but that didn’t bother
him one bit. He knew that he would get his chance tomorrow.

He went out for a celebratory dinner with his family and colleagues, which
he happily paid for himself (hey, being a self-made multimillionaire had its
perks). He noticed Lilly and Kenneth speaking to each other in low voices
as stories and toasts were being tossed about, but it was their own business.
He could tell, however, that whatever they were discussing they didn’t
exactly agree on. However, when Lilly glanced at him, she smiled and lifted
her glass.

Michael was buzzing by the time he got home, the happiest he had felt in…
Years. Maybe ever. Everything just seemed to be going so well for him.

Surreal.

He was brushing his teeth when Lilly came into the bathroom. She had now
changed into pajamas and it was remarkable how young she looked when
she wasn’t covered in piercings and eyeliner.

For a few moments, she didn’t say anything as she put some toothpaste on
her own brush. It was only when Michael was rinsing that she asked in a
quiet voice, “Are you really going tomorrow?”

He spit and turned to her with a confused expression, but she was looking
down at her brush. “I mean, yeah…? Why? Should I not be going?” Lilly
didn’t reply and continued to stare down at her toothbrush. “You know that
it was your idea, right?”

Finally, she looked at him through the mirror. “Yeah, I know. I’m glad
you’re going. I guess.” She looked conflicted as she spoke, and Michael
was starting to get annoyed. She was ruining the high he had been feeling.

He didn’t say anything but just continued to look at her through the mirror.
She was going to need to spit out whatever it was she wanted to tell him.

After a few moments of staring at each other, Lilly sighed and put down her
brush. She turned to look at him and spoke slowly, looking kind of…
Sheepish?

“I never told you the whole story about what happened between me and her
after you left. I mean, I told you that I was mad about how she handled
things with you, and J.P., who by the way, she’s still dating.” Michael had
thought as much, but it still sucked to hear. He tried not to let anything
show on his face though because Lilly was watching his reaction carefully.

“Anyway, what I left out is that… Ugh, I’m embarrassed to admit this. But I
was just so angry with her. I mean she broke your heart- nuh, uh, don’t try
to deny it. You were a wreck, Michael. And then she started dating my ex-
boyfriend who had dumped me like a week before. And then she started
hanging out with Lana Weinberger of all people and it was as if I had never
existed. So, I ended up…” She trailed off before finishing, but Michael just
kept staring down at her, frowning. She really needed to get to the point.

Lilly took a deep breath and with the smallest voice he had ever heard her
use, admitted, “I ended up making a hate page about her. And then I yelled
at her in front of the whole school about it.”

All he could do was blink at her, mouth slightly hanging agape. It took him
a few long seconds to process what he had just heard, and he considered
just what he wanted to say. Honestly? It sounded pretty awful. Sure, he
could admit that Mia hadn’t handled their breakup especially well and there
was a time when he was pretty angry with her about it. But he never would
have felt that she deserved a hate site about her, especially one written by
her childhood best friend. The thought made him cringe. He considered
telling Lilly off, but the notion was gone as soon as he saw her expression.

It was an expression that was so rare to come from Lilly, her eyes darting
around and her teeth gnawing on her bottom lip. He could tell that she
really felt remorseful and ashamed about it. “Lil…” She grimaced as she
looked up at him, waiting for him to do his worst. “That really wasn’t cool
of you. You should apologize, or at least start being nicer to her.” He spoke
with the calmest voice he could muster, but it didn’t seem to really help.

Lilly’s expression quickly turned sour. “I am not apologizing as long as

she’s still going out with that jerk.” But Michael’s eyebrows raised, and she
rolled her eyes. “But yeah, I’ll try being nicer to her. Such as how I
practically dragged her onto the stage to talk to you today.”

His heart fell a bit when he heard the word “dragged”, but Lilly seemed to
catch it and backed her statement up with, “I could tell she wanted to see
you. She was just hiding in the bathroom scribbling in her journal or
whatever. I think she was just kind of scared to see you.”

He snorted slightly. “Why would she be scared to see me?”

She shrugged but gave a knowing look at him. “Who really knows.
Anyway, Mr. Bigshot, go get your beauty sleep so you can look nice for
Princess Charming tomorrow.” Michael gave her a small cheeky grin and
squeezed her shoulder before saying goodnight and heading towards his
room.

Just as he was about to get into bed, he glanced at the laptop on his desk.
Before tomorrow, he just needed to know one thing…

His last message to her was in March. He had asked to see her senior
project for the umpteenth time (she kept giving weird excuses for not
sending it) and then she just never replied. He had already suspected that
there was something about her project that she was withholding, but this
confirmed it. He would definitely make sure that she gave it to him
tomorrow. He shut the laptop and crawled into bed.

He looked up at stars on his ceiling yet again. He was going to need to get
some new ones for his loft.

He wasn’t sure what would come of his meeting with Mia the next day.
Maybe nothing, maybe everything. Although he hoped that Mia felt the
same way he had when they locked eyes earlier that day, there was no way
to be certain. Lilly was right, she was still with that guy, but who knows?
Maybe that’ll have changed by tomorrow.
 Caffe Dante
Michael woke up mid-morning, a significant improvement from the two
days prior. As he woke up, it took him some time to realize that his life was
actually real and that everything, and he meant everything that had
happened the day before had actually happened. He really did give
interviews with every major New York publication. He really had been
given an honorary master’s degree. He really had made plans to meet his
former love for coffee that afternoon.

Stretching, Michael grinned to himself. Life was pretty sweet. He sprang

out of bed and spent about half an hour doing some exercise on the floor
because, hey, his newfound muscles hadn’t built themselves. He then took a
quick shower and brushed out his hair. It wasn’t anywhere near as neat and
styled as it had been the day prior, but his new haircut looked good.

He riffled through the suitcase he still hadn’t cleaned out and considered a
few options for what to wear. What did one wear to meet one’s ex-
girlfriend? And for, technically, an interview? A button-up seemed too
formal, but a T-shirt seemed too casual.

He ended up going with a black Polo shirt (his newfound muscles were
quite visible in the short sleeves), a simple pair of jeans, and his favorite
pair of red Converses. He hoped they would give him the extra confidence
he needed. He looked very ‘tech-chic’ and decided it was good enough.

After a final glance in the mirror, he headed into the kitchen and helped
himself to some cereal, scarfing it down.

“You look nice,” his dad commented, looking up from his laptop. “Do you
have more meetings today?”

Lilly snorted, “you could say that.” After their dad looked over to her in
confusion, she supplemented, “he’s meeting Mia.”
“Oh,” was all their dad said, looking over at Michael, who was now staring
directly into his bowl. At that moment, the other Dr. Moscotivz and Nana
walked in through the front door carrying some groceries.

“Good Morning,” their mom said, giving both of her children pecks on the
head. “You’re looking quite handsome today, Michael.”

“He’s meeting Mia,” his father said without being asked. Michael could
now feel his face burning up.

This time, Nana spoke, “Isn’t she the tall, bony one-“

“That’s a princess of a small European country, yeah,” Lilly continued.

Michael shot her a glare before returning to his cereal.

There was an excruciating moment of silence before his mom said, “Well I
think that’s just lovely. It was nice of her to come yesterday.” She smiled
and gave Michael another kiss (this time on the cheek) before beginning to
unload the groceries.

“Oh! Speaking of Mia, your invitation arrived this morning.” Michael gave
her a blank look before she continued, “for her birthday party. Ours arrived
last night and we’re all going to go after we drop Nana off at the airport.”

Michael turned to Lilly with a questioning look, “you’re all going?”

She rolled her eyes, “Yeah.” She paused for a moment before adding,
“Kenneth’s going too.”

He studied her for a moment, but Lilly just shrugged. I guess she’s finally
letting it all go.

Michael turned back to his mom, who gave him a pointed look. Without
needing to hear her question, he lifted his hands towards his shoulders, “I
don’t know. I guess I’ll see how today goes and then decide.” There was
more silence as Michael’s entire family eyed him, but he dropped his gaze
back to his cereal. God, why did they all have to be so nosy?
Luckily, Michael’s dad began talking about the articles he had read about
the event yesterday. “You and the CardioArm were a huge hit. You’re the
talk of the town today!”

“Please, Dad, the only people who really care are in the tech or medical
community.”

His father shook his head, “You’d be surprised with how many people care
when someone from their own neighborhood makes something as
impressive as your arm.”

Michael simply shrugged modestly in response and his dad went on to read
out a few article titles. He wasn’t sure if he was ever going to get used to
this kind of praise.

When he finished his cereal, Michael was more than happy to make a quick
getaway. He had decided to take the subway to the café, because even
though he could now afford taxis (or drivers) whenever he wanted, it just
didn’t feel like New York City to him unless he was underground, holding a
dirty pole in 90-degree heat.

He got to the café about 15 minutes early and considered whether he should
go around the block and try to look fashionably late. Technically, he was all
important now so it would make sense for him to be late. But, whatever, he
really just wanted to see her as soon as possible. Who cares about looking
cool?

He stood around, glancing at the newspaper stand as he waited. He wasn’t

front-page news, obvious, but he could make out his company’s name on
the side of 1 or 2 papers and that blew his mind. It was about 5 minutes till
one when he glanced up and noticed Lars towering over everyone else
around them. He then saw Mia, who also stood out from the crowd in more
ways than one.

Michael watched her for a moment, and it gave him a strange joy to see her
erratically writing in a journal. Almost as if feeling his gaze on her, Mia
looked up suddenly and her eyes widened. Comically, she faced back down
to write one more thing in her journal. He suppressed a smirk as he waved
and started walking towards the pair.

“Hey, guys,” Michael grinned as he approached. “Nice to see you, man,” he

said to Lars as they shook hands. He was always really fond of Lars, who
was probably the first person to take notice of Michael’s feelings for Mia.
Other than the fact that the bodyguard was the main reason the couple
rarely got to be alone, Michael always felt like Lars backed him up.

“Same goes for you. Congratulations on your project,” Lars answered,

giving him a large smile back.

Michael then turned his attention towards Mia, who was looking extremely
nervous. She was fidgeting when he said, “Thanks for agreeing to meet
here… You look nice.” And she did. She wasn’t nearly as done up as she
had been the day before, but he was now able to really take in her image.
The shock had worn off, and Michael could suddenly explain why she had
looked so grown up when he saw her yesterday. She had a fuller figure and
longer hair, an almost drastic difference from the incredibly lean Mia with
hair shorter than his when he left. But the smile, and the eyes, were just the
same.

She tried to hide it with her hair, but Michael could tell that she was
blushing. “Thanks. And thanks for agreeing to do an interview. It’s probably
going to be the headline story for the Atom.”

He almost laughed, “Yeah, right. The interview.” He suddenly couldn’t get

his mouth to work because he kept peeking down at hers.

His intense gaze was starting to make her nervous again so Mia quickly
suggested, “Yeah, let’s go grab some drinks, and then we can start. I wrote
up a bunch of questions last night.” She laughed slightly as the two of them
headed to the line. Lars went over to sit at the bar, stealthily watching the
pair with interest.

The two of them stood in silence as they waited in line. Michael couldn’t
help but just keep staring at the girl. He knew it was kind of wrong and that
she probably still had a boyfriend, but he just couldn’t help it. She really did
look good.

“You do look really good,” he blurted out. But at the same moment, Mia
asked, “So how was the rest of your night?”

Michael cleared his throat and quickly said, “Uh, you go.”

Mia let out a polite smile, pretending like she hadn’t heard what he said. “I
asked how the rest of your night went. I’m imagining tons of interviews.”

He chuckled, “Yeah, that was definitely a big part. We stayed around and
did interviews and photo ops and all that for a few more hours, and then we
all went out to dinner. I can honestly say I’ve never seen Nana drink that
much champagne in my life.”

“Oh, I’m sure it was a wild night then,” she giggled, and Michael wasn’t
ashamed to admit that the sound made his heart do a flip.

He nodded, grinning, “How’s Fat Louie?”

Mia beamed at him, but then her vision seemed to go out of focus. Damn,
she really did love that cat more than anyone. “Great. Just as fat and cuddly
as the last time you saw him.” Getting out of her daydream, she looked
back at him. “And Pavlov? I’m assuming good based on your speech
yesterday.”

“Fit as a whistle. I missed him so much while I was in Japan, and I think it’s
fair to say that the sentiment is reciprocated.” Mia smiled and gave him a
knowing nod, wondering if she could ever leave Fat Louie for such a long
time.

They had now reached the front of the line and he made a show to extend
his arm and bow slightly, “Ladies first.” She snorted a bit but accepted the
offer and went ahead to order. She ordered a hot chocolate for herself and a
black coffee for Lars. Michael considered offering to pay, but he felt like
that may be pushing it. However, Mia then turned to him and asked, “What
do you want?”
He gave her an uncertain look, but she gave him one back that said ‘don’t
argue with me’. He still wasn’t sure, but the barista was looking impatient,
so he conceded. “Oh, uhm, I’ll get a hot chocolate too.” Mia squinted a bit
at him, amused, but shrugged and paid for it without another word.

“What was that for? You know I can afford my own drinks now,” Michael
asked sarcastically once they were out of the line.

Mia rolled her eyes and waved a hand at him, “Yeah, yeah, I’ve read the
articles.” Oh, have you? “But this is an interview, right? And usually, the
interviewer pays for the interviewee’s drink.”

Michael laughed, “Yeah, okay, Thermopolis, whatever you say.” He

smirked at her, “And you know, you’re almost a legal adult who’s still
ordering hot chocolate.”

“Hey, I drink coffee sometimes! I just don’t need any today. And, whatever,
you do realize that you also ordered a hot chocolate?”

“Well, I only ordered it because it sounded so good coming from you.” And
he was not-so-subtlety flirting with her again. But of course, this was Mia,
and she was prone to being oblivious to this sort of thing, so he wasn’t sure
if she was picking up on it or not. Either way, he did notice some rosiness to
her cheeks as they went to grab their drinks. Mia took Lars’ coffee and
Michael took both of the hot chocolates.

“I’ll go get that table by the window,” he said as she nodded and headed in
the other direction.

Michael sat down and watched as she spoke to Lars for a few seconds. He
could tell that the bodyguard was smirking at her, but he couldn’t see her
face, so her reaction was unknown. Just as he had watched for too long,
Lars spotted him and winked. Michael quickly turned to look outside as
Mia was turning back towards him.

Once she sat down, she gave him a shy smile, which he eagerly returned.
Neither of them spoke for a moment, really taking each other in for the first
time in almost two years. The last time they had been alone like this… Was
their enormous fight. The one where she threw his necklace to the ground
and ran off.

After what felt like an eternity, Mia cleared her throat. “Uhm, is it alright if
I record this?” Michael looked at her in confusion as she brought her phone
out of her bag and motioned to it. “For the Atom.”

He laughed, “Oh. Right. Yeah, of course, you can.”

She let out a relieved sigh and pressed the button to record. She asked if
again if she could record the conversation and he laughed again, amused by
her attempt to be so serious.

The beginning of the interview felt so foreign to him that he couldn’t help
but comment on it. He was never the one important enough to be
interviewed, she was, but her look of agitation was evident when he pointed
this out.

Even when he seriously answered her questions, he couldn’t help but steer
the conversation back to her. Before he even knew what he was doing,
Michael said outright that she was partially his inspiration for the
CardioArm. She looked absolutely clueless when he looked her right in the
eyes and said, “And, of course, you.” The expression she held while he was
explaining it to her made his heart leap. It almost felt like how she used to
look at him when they were dating. He didn’t even care if that would be in
the interview or not, he just wanted her to know it.

And that’s when he dropped the bomb, as in, the J.P. bomb. Prior to that
moment, neither of them had ever referenced the fact that Mia had a
boyfriend. Michael honestly didn’t know why he had said it, but it just
came bursting out of him. She looked like a deer in headlights and began
stammering as soon as he uttered the word “boyfriend”. It was both
satisfying and upsetting to see her like this, mostly because he wasn’t sure
what about it had made her feel so nervous.

He then asked whether J.P. knew that she was meeting with him. Her high-
pitched “Of course!” immediately gave him the answer, which was a firm
‘No’. Flustered, she instantly turned the conversation to Japan. He gave her
a very concise, “Great! Japan’s great. Highly recommend it.” Michael
wasn’t sure why, but he really didn’t want to talk about Japan or the project
or himself anymore. He wanted to turn the spotlight back on her. That was
the only way he was going to be able to answer his own questions.

Mia then accidentally made a comment about her grandmother waking her
up early that morning, which Michael used as an excuse to turn the
conversation back on her. He brought up her birthday party and was a little
disheartened to see her reaction to it; She obviously had not been the one to
send him and his family invitations. But then he remembered what Lilly had
told him the night before about the hate site and let any hurt go. He gave her
a soft smile and praised her for inviting his sister.

Again, she quickly diverted the conversation right back to him. This was
starting to feel like an annoying game of tennis. Okay, okay, he was
technically doing an ‘interview’, but really? He had only agreed to it so that
he could spend some time with her again.

That’s why he didn’t even care when she asked what he missed most about
America and he answered a very cheeky “Uh… you?” He knew he was
flirting a bit too hard at this point, and that it was kind of inappropriate
considering he had earlier made it clear that he knew about her boyfriend.
But honestly? He couldn’t have cared less.

Mia went bright red when he gave her a smug, sideways grin, but tried to
play it off like a joke. At that point, she looked like she was starting to panic
so he gave her a quick apology and said Pavlov instead (which truthfully,
was a very close second).

He studied her reaction as he told her that he was moving back to

Manhattan and wasn’t sure whether to be happy or not when she looked a
bit flustered. Was she it because she was pleasantly surprised, or was it the
opposite?

At that point, h couldn’t take it anymore. He needed the conversation to

turn back to her, to finally put her on the spot. And he needed to know why
she had randomly stopped responding to him those months ago.
“When am I going to get to read your senior project?” She grimaced as he
said it and he watched her with interest. Bashfully, she explained that the
project was not, in fact, on the history of Genovian olive oil presses, circa
1254-1650. She then explained that it was, in fact, a medieval historical
romance novel.

Mia looked absolutely mortified as she told him and was staring directly
into her hot chocolate, refusing to meet his eye. Without any hesitation,
Michael responded with, “Sweet. Hand it over.” Who cares if he didn’t
generally- or ever- read romance novels? She had written it, and he knew
that he was going to love anything she wrote.

Her head whipped up so fast that Michael was worried she was going to
knock over her drink. He just smiled at her, not quite understanding why
she looked so surprised. A novel made way more sense for her than a
history book. And it didn’t matter what kind of book she had written; the
fact that she had written anything that was 400 pages long was a huge
accomplishment. He was honestly a little shocked that she didn’t seem to
see it that way.

“Seriously. Michael- you’re just being nice. You don’t have to read it.”

He looked at her incredulously, why would he ever have to read it?

Technically speaking, he was her ex-boyfriend. If he didn’t want to read it,
there would be no way he would ever have to. He wasn’t her boyfriend
anymore; he didn’t have to pretend anything. So, naturally, he accused her
of being high.

After that comment, she finally agreed to email him a copy and he swore to
not start reading until she left. That thought pained him a bit, that the
interview would be coming to an end soon. He didn’t know the next time he
would get a chance to speak to her alone.

He immediately opened his phone to check the email after she sent it.
Without quite meaning to, he skimmed over the cover and jokingly
questioned out loud who Daphne Delacroix was. He didn’t really need to
ask, because she had obviously just decided to use a fake name (maybe
because she didn’t want her already famous name attached?).

He glanced up from his phone, grinning, but Mia looked beet-red. He

couldn’t help but comment about the similarity in color of her face with his
sneakers, suppressing a laugh. She was now glaring at him, in the incredibly
cute way she used to do when she would get annoyed with him. Damn, he
missed seeing that pout.

But then she threatened to delete the email and reached over for his phone
while he was protesting. He pulled it back out of her reach, mockingly
wiggling it at her. She reached farther over the table trying to grab it as he
laughed wildly. They were now full-on play wrestling in the middle of the
café. Michael could feel his skin tingle from where her fingers grazed him.
He could also feel the lukewarm hot chocolate that had fallen over into his
lap, but he couldn’t have cared less about it at that moment.

He called for Lars jokingly, but the bodyguard was already in tow, along
with a waiter. They both took their hands back like schoolchildren getting
into trouble with the teacher and Michael secured the phone back into his
pocket. Taking a quick glance at Mia, he could almost imagine what it
would feel like if she tried to reach for his phone again…

Lars apologized on their behalf and Michael could feel his cheeks getting a
bit warm. Mia looked absolutely flushed and apologetic as she looked
between the waiter and Michael’s clothes.

After offering to pay for his dry cleaning- seriously, why? - Michael noticed
her phone on the table and realized, with a laugh, that she was still
recording. He immediately called her out on it, and she yelped, grabbing the
phone and ending the recording. He almost could have kicked himself
because he realized that that probably meant the interview, and their reunion
was over.

Michael tried to think of an excuse to keep their meeting going, but he also
knew that it was nearing an hour and a half now and that he really had no
reason. He felt his chest squeeze a bit when she stood up after taking a few
seconds to calm herself and pat down the table with a few napkins. She still
looked redder than a cherry, but she had turned on her princess persona. It
almost amazed him how easily she transitioned.

He stood up along with her, straightening his back out to reach his full
height. He tried to give her a smile that oozed confidence but was a bit
taken aback when she stuck her hand out to him. Is she seriously trying to
shake my hand? I used to stick my tongue down her throat.

Staring down at her hand, he let out a soft laugh. “I think we can do a little
better than that, can’t we?” Ignoring the slight surprise in her face, he held
his arms out to her. She gave a nervous laugh but agreed. And as soon as his
arms reached the small of her back, it was like no time had passed for
Michael. She fit into him perfectly- just as she had years before. He could
smell the familiar scent of her hair and the way her breath tickled the side of
his neck.

Their hug lasted a few beats longer than it should have for friendly exes, but
Michael noticed that Mia didn’t seem to be pulling away. He could almost
feel her reciprocated reluctance as they moved away from each other and
when he looked back down at her, he had the momentary urge to kiss her.
He glanced at her lips, and then at her eyes, but she was looking at him
squarely in the forehand as if deliberately avoiding eye contact. She then
began rifling with her bag and the impulse passed. He realized that they
were standing in a café surrounded by dozens of people. This was not the
moment.

But when she finally looked up and he could clearly see her beautiful grey
eyes again, he was certain that the moment would come. He just needed to
figure out how and when. Sure, there were some obstacles in the way. But
Michael’s time in Japan had just proven to him that there wasn’t any
problem that he couldn’t handle.

As soon as they parted ways and Michael hailed a cab, he opened his email
and began reading.
 A Novel and a Party
Michael used all of his free time that Sunday afternoon to read Mia’s book.
He read it in the cab on the way to his new loft, which he was happy to say
he was now the legal owner of. He read it as he made his way down the
street to his new office space. He read it while he 3D-printed a Princess
Leia action figure USB flash drive (an idea for her birthday gift he had
come up with on his way home from the ceremony). He read it as he ate
dinner, and between answering emails. He even read it on the commode.

He was honestly really impressed with the book. It was well-written and
still sounded like Mia, even though it was in old-timey English. It was also
quite hot, and Michael kept getting odd twinges course through his body as
he read. A few times, he accidentally let himself wonder if what she wrote
was from experience… And even though he knew he had no right, the
thought of that skill kind of pissed him off.

A few times, he also ended up envisioning him and Mia in some of the
more… Saucy scenes. But every time one of those thoughts crossed his
mind, he shut them down immediately (as much as he could).

Even then, he couldn’t help but put himself into the story. It centered
around a dashing knight who came back home after a long time away, and a
woman with a strong desire to care for her people. Although he definitely
knew that Mia would not have purposely written a love story about him,
there was a part of him that thought, or rather hoped, that he had
subconsciously been her inspiration. It certainly seemed like the main
characters were going to get back together in the end, and he couldn’t help
but read into it. Although, of course, there was no mention of a handsome
prince the woman was already betrothed to.

He stayed up finishing her book and read the last line just a bit past
midnight. He couldn’t help his smile; he felt a surge of pride for her as he
looked at the cover again. It wasn’t just good because it was from her, it
was just good. No, he probably wouldn’t be picking up a romance novel
subscription anytime soon, but he would definitely be reading anything Mia
Thermopolis wrote.

He sat down at his desk sleepily and took out a formal envelope with the
letterhead for Pavlov Surgical, feeling like it was a nice touch. Carefully, he
took out a pen and considered what to write. He needed it to come across as
sincere, but still let his praise shine through.

He ended up relating her to the Stephen King of romance novels and being
honest in that her book was hot. It wasn’t a particularly long note, but it was
the truth mixed in with flattery. He also explained the UBS with a reminder
to back up her hard drive. And at the last moment, he decided to commit
himself to attending her party. He pretty much knew he was going to go
after seeing her in the café, but he hadn’t actually confirmed it with her.

And then, there was the closing. He knew what he wanted to say, but was
that too much too soon? All of their emails over the years had ended with
extremely neutral partings, so was this the right time?

He glanced at the clock on his wall; it had already taken him an

embarrassingly long time to write such a short letter. Before he could
overthink it, he wrote down “Love, Michael” and sealed the envelope with
the letter and USB inside. Whatever, he did love her. Who knew exactly
how he loved her (he had an idea), but he definitely knew that he at least
had love for her.

He flickered off the lights and it occurred to him that it was now officially
May 1st, Mia’s birthday. He wondered if she was awake, staring into the
darkness just as he was, or perhaps staying up to scrounge up whatever she
could from their somewhat disastrous interview. Either way, he wondered if
she was thinking about him, just as he was her.

He considered sending her a quick text wishing her a happy birthday but
didn’t allow himself to even reach for the phone. He wanted her to read the
letter first, and he also wanted to avoid the risk of looking too desperate,
messaging her in the middle of the night. Instead, he lulled himself to sleep
with one of the exceptionally impressive illustrative scenes from Mia’s
book.
Before leaving for the office, Michael handed Lilly the bulky envelope.

“What’s this?” she asked, mouth full of some toast as she gingerly took the
letter from him.

“It’s for Mia. Can you give it to her sometime today?”

“Why don’t you just give it to her tonight?”

He rolled his eyes before grabbing a banana, “Can you please just do it?”
Truth be told, he knew it made more sense to just give it to her in person.
But he wanted her to know how much he liked her book as soon as
possible. And he also liked the idea of Mia having a reason to think about
him that day.

She mumbled a quick ‘whatever’ and went back to her breakfast. He was
about to head to the door but paused for a moment. “Hey, Lil?” She turned
to look at him, “Remember to be nice to her. She’s made some mistakes, but
so have you, some really crappy ones.”

Lilly looked like she was going to argue, but instead just nodded slightly
and mumbled, “Already working on it.”

He gave her a small smile and headed out the door.

Michael had a long list of things to do that day before he could even worry
about Mia’s party (although prior to coming into the office, he had already
scheduled a limo and dropped off his tux to get pressed). He still had more
meetings than desirable, and they were still working on getting the lab set
up. His own office was filled with unopened boxes that needed sorting
through. He was probably going to have to hire an organizational team at
this rate- but he could only do that after he finally got a new full-time
assistant (unfortunately for him, his former one had chosen to stay in
Japan). And he had to call back the business manager he had chosen from
the interviews the week prior.
His task list just seemed to grow longer as the day went on. It also didn’t
help that although he was trying not to think about it, he felt nervous about
the party. He was pulling out all the stops because he wanted to impress
Mia, to finally get her to see who he was now. Even though he knew he had
nothing to prove, especially not to Mia herself, he still wanted to show
Mia’s family, particularly her grandmother (bleh), and everyone else who
had doubted his worth, what he had made of himself.

And there was a part of him that was hoping that she had broken up with
her boyfriend after their meeting in the café. His mind kept wandering to
the hug that seemed to go on for ages, and the familiar feeling of her breath
on his neck (she had never told him, but he knew there was something
about his neck that just did it for her), and how her two main characters did
end up getting together at the end. He hoped that it had all meant just as
much to her as it had for him.

He went through the motions of the day, trying to keep her grey eyes and
tempting lips out of his thoughts. Just a few more hours, and then he could
go get ready at his new loft.

It was about just a bit after six when he pulled up to his parents’ building,
almost feeling ridiculous in the long, black limo. It reminded him so much
of the mornings when he would wait to see Mia’s limo come around the
corner to pick him and Lilly up for school. He wondered if that’s what Lilly
would think when she came out.

People kept looking at the car as they passed, as if waiting to see some
celebrity emerge. It made him wonder how embarrassed Mia felt riding
around in limos constantly. Michael stayed seated and texted his family
group chat that he was outside waiting.

He waited for them for about five minutes, and during that time, Michael
couldn’t stop squirming in his seat. He was pretty much used to suits now,
but he still never enjoyed wearing tuxes. The only times he had really worn
them were for Bar Mitzvahs and the occasional school dance, which he had
only forced himself to attend when he was courting (what a word, guess
Mia’s book had some sort of influence on him) Mia. At this moment, his
bowtie felt too tight and he kept pulling on it.
His family finally came down and he forced his leg to stop shaking. His
parents looked like a million bucks, his dad also in a tuxedo and his mom in
a long red dress. She looked like she had spent hours on her hair alone.
Michael also noted the loving look his father gave to his mother and how he
whispered something in her ear as he held the door open for her. It was nice
to see both so happy together.

As they slid in, Michael caught sight of Lilly and Kenny (er, Kenneth). She
also looked very pretty and wasn’t wearing anything remotely close to her
general grunge. She was also holding a camcorder bag that matched her
dress. Why she had a camera, Michael had no idea. But just as he was about
to ask her, she snorted,

“Trying to lay-low, Michael?”

He could feel his cheeks get a bit hot, but it was too dark for anyone to
notice. “Ha-ha. I just wanted to make the night a bit more special. It’s not
every day we go to parties on royal yachts.”

Lilly didn’t answer, but he could tell that she was eyeing him. His parents,
however, cheered in agreement and each grabbed a glass of champagne.
Michael grabbed one as well, mostly just to have something to keep him
from fidgeting under the watchful eye of his sister. That confidence he had
held the day of the ceremony was now fully depleted.

They got to the yacht right around 7pm, and Michael ended up being last
out of the limo. This was good, because it gave him a few moments to
collect himself before stepping out. He could see the paparazzi lining the
entranceway and honestly wasn’t sure what to expect.

Somewhat unsurprisingly (although he was always still somehow shocked

whenever he got recognized), there were a few photographers that called
out to him. He could hear “ex-boyfriend”, “tech genius”, and “millionaire”
being thrown around, which made him both self-conscious and smug at the
same time. He didn’t pose for any photos alone or stop to speak to anyone
but smiled politely when he joined his family for a photo. Luckily for him,
Mia’s grandmother arrived with the captain almost immediately after him,
which quickly made him invisible to the flashing cameras.
As he moved further inside the yacht, he almost couldn’t believe what he
was seeing. Not only was the ship grand in itself, but it seemed like all of
Hollywood’s elite was attending this party. Not only them, but Michael kept
recognizing his old teachers everywhere he looked. It was kind of funny,
seeing Brad Pitt with a hoard of children about 5 feet from his 10th grade
trig teacher. It was nice to know that Mia had gone out of her way to invite
the AES faculty.

He was still following his parents (Lilly and Kenneth had disappeared into
the crowd almost instantly) when they randomly stopped. Michael had been
so distracted by Nicolas Cage eating a cocktail weenie that he ran straight
into his dad’s back, muttering an apology. It took him a second to realize
why his parents had stopped and that he was face-to-face with Helen
Thermopolis.

She looked the same (obviously, it had only been two years), but was
looking at him with an expression he had never seen before. He realized
that it was a one of pleasant surprise, similarly to how his mom had reacted
to seeing Mia at the ceremony.

“You look very handsome, Michael,” she smiled at him, nodding at his tux
in approval. God, it felt good that she always seemed to be on his side. He
gave a somewhat bashful smile and said thanks as she gave him a quick
hug. Mr. G, who had been watching the exchange, grinned when Michael
turned to him, giving his hand a friendly shake.

“You both look great as well,” he said politely and looked around them.
“I’m guessing Rocky couldn’t make it?”

They both laughed and shared a knowing look. Mr. G replied, “Well, you
know, as much as he likes his whiskey sours, we felt it might be better if he
stayed home.” The entire group shared a chuckle and then his parents began
speaking, which allowed Michael to excuse himself.

He began wandering around the deck, not really wanted to get stuck
speaking to anyone just yet. He kept glancing up at the staircase that
towered them, clearly where Mia would be making her entrance. It seemed
to be a tad delayed because guests were starting to get antsy, but then
everyone was then informed that the boat would be staying docked in order
to accommodate all of the guests.

Better for me, Michael thought, because then he would be able to make a
quick exit if necessary after he talked to her. Without meaning to, he had
been thinking about it all day and resolved that tonight would be the perfect
occasion to tell her what he wanted to tell her. He wasn’t sure what that was
exactly, but he was certain it would come to him the moment he looked into
her eyes.

Finally, the idle chatter had stopped, and Madonna began singing.
Everyone’s attention was brought to the top of the staircase. After a few
moments of waiting, time for Michael seemed to cease because he was
looking at the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.
 An Engagement (?)
Okay, it was the same girl Michael had seen thousands of times before. But
this was the first time he had seen her fully princess-upped as a grown
woman (Girl? Whatever). See her in her striking tiara and equally striking
ballgown, his mind flashed back to their first date, the first time he had seen
in her princess wear. She looked like a beautiful snowdrop at the time,
tonight… She looked different but also the same. He could feel his chest
tighten in a way that it hadn’t in many years. He only wished that she was
close enough for him to really see her face.

After her grand entrance, Prince Philippe himself surprised her, and
Michael could tell she was trying not to cry based on the way she kept
wringing her hands. He made a speech and presented her with another tiara
(although this one had some significance for Mia) and she full-on started
bawling. They ended up switching her tiaras, and somehow the new one just
seemed right for her. She already looked beautiful, but her new tiara made
her shine in a way she hadn’t before.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see that Lilly was near the front of the
crowd, filming the whole ordeal. The idea worried him a bit about where
that footage was going to go. Was it to dissect (and criticize) the lucrative
spending of royalty, or the immense financial value of Mia’s headpiece? He
had asked her about the camera on the ride over, but Lilly just said not to
worry and that she was keeping her promise to be nice. Although Michael
was still a bit concerned as to what Lilly considered to be nice.

After the speech, he lost sight of the birthday girl and made his way around
(a bit reluctantly) socializing with other guests. He ran into a small group of
his old teachers, who asked him about the CardioArm and how Japan was.
Michael forced out a smile as he answered the same questions he had heard
dozens of times over the last few weeks. He then moved away and ran into
Bill Gates, who luckily for Michael, was not aware of the anti-Microsoft
stint he had been on a few years ago. They chatted for a few minutes
because Mr. Gates had recognized him from the Times article. Michael
refrained from mentioning that all of the computers in his new office were
Apple.

The first person Michael was really happy to run into was Boris, who had
been watching the dance floor. Michael followed his gaze and realized that
he was watching Tina dance wildly to one of Madonna’s more popular
songs. His eyes quickly fell on Mia herself, and he sucked in a breath. This
was the first time he had gotten a chance to see her up close tonight. She
looked even better nearby, her beauty radiating as she danced with her
friends and mother. She was somehow managing to look both like a regal
princess and the Mia he had known for a dozen years.

Michael forced himself to look away when Boris started speaking to him. It
hadn’t been very long since they last spoke, maybe a week or two.

“I signed the papers for a loft today,” Michael said, speaking up over the
music.

Boris gave him a big grin and an expecting look. “So…” He reached his
arms out slightly.

“So, you’re free to move in whenever you want!” Michael grinned back at
him, clapping a hand on his shoulder. Boris had been an exceptionally good
friend to him over the years, and when he told Michael about being nervous
about getting a roommate for Julliard (and then later that he had actually
missed registration), Michael offered up his place.

Boris was incredibly grateful, but honestly, Michael wouldn’t mind the
company. He certainly had the room, and he was happy to be able to help a
friend out.

Before they could say anymore, the music had been replaced with a slow
song. Boris looked behind Michael at the dance floor in alarm, but before
Michael could turn around, Tina showed up by her boyfriend’s side.

“Hi, Michael, it’s so nice to see you!” the girl smiled widely at him,
pointedly keeping his gaze away from the dance floor. The two of them
were trying to keep his attention, but Michael had already turned a bit and
saw J.P. walking out onto the dance floor.

He kept a completely neutral expression as he turned back to the couple and

smiled back politely. “You too, Tina. You look great.” Her smile had
weakened, but she nodded at him, holding Boris’ arm. “I’m gonna go get
myself something to drink, you two go dance.”

Before they could reply, Michael slid back into the crowd, making his way
towards the bar. He wasn’t much of a drinker, but he needed something to
get him through this night. Sure, seeing J.P. step out wasn’t exactly a thrill
for him, but whatever. He knew the chances that she had broken up with
him were minimal. But what did make it worse was that it seemed like there
wasn’t going to be any chance for him to speak to Mia alone tonight.

After getting his drink, he glanced around the crowded boat. There were so
many people he could speak to, but there was really only one he cared
about. And he was tired of having to answer questions about his project or
about how he knew Mia (“we’re really old friends” is how he was putting
it).

Sighing to himself, he resolved to just spending a few minutes by himself

looking out into the waters. Unfortunately, someone side-stepped right into
him, a heel landing firmly on his foot.

“Fuck,” Michael groaned quietly, grimacing from the sharp pain in his big
toe.

“I beg your pardon?”

Fuck. Not from the pain this time. That voice inflicted more pain on
Michael than a heel ever could have.

He made no attempt to smile as he looked up, “Sorry.”

Princess Clarisse looked quite disgruntled, as if it was his fault that she had
run into him. He noted the sidecar in her hand and wondered how many of
them she had already had tonight.
Mia’s grandmother had never liked him and refused to pretend to, no matter
where they were. He was well-aware that she only ever referred to him as
“that boy” while he and Mia had been dating. Mia never told him, but Lilly
let it spill one day. Not that he cared. Much.

And today, it was still evident that she harbored the same disdain for him,
no matter what medical marvel he made. But as she eyed him, he decided to
just let it go. It didn't matter if she never liked him, all that mattered was
that Mia did.

"Excuse me," was all he said, giving her a (fake) polite smile and walking
away.

At that point, he didn’t want to risk being alone anymore and found Lilly
and Kenneth lurking around the dance floor filming. Almost as soon as she
saw that Michael had joined them, she lowered the camera and headed
straight towards Mia, who had just finished dancing. He almost considered
walking in the other direction, but what was he scared of? Mia? J.P.? People
watching them?

He followed, deciding it was better now than never.

Michael was pleased to hear Lilly compliment Mia’s party. Mia, on the
other hand, was obviously quite astonished and almost choked on the
shrimp cocktail she had been eating. He was also pleased to see that she
was looking directly at him, even when speaking to Lilly. He gave her a
warm smile, but she didn’t reciprocate it. She just kept staring at him.

Under her gaze, Michael ended up blurting out the first thing that came to
mind. “Nice party hat you’ve got there, Thermopolis.” He kept glancing up
at her tiara, which suited her so perfectly.

She thanked him, looking a tad embarrassed, and quickly switched the topic
to her dad’s campaign. She expressed the worry she felt about her father
losing out on even one day, which Michael found ridiculous. He had met
her father’s opponent, René, a few times while visiting Genovia, and that
guy was the most self-absorbed idiot Michael had ever met.
As if anyone would vote for that tool when perfectly good Price Phillip was
right there. Which is what Michael expressed to the group, and he caught
Mia’s grateful smile before Boris somehow switched the conversation to
bloomin’ onions. There seemed to be some discussion going on that
Michael didn’t quite understand, but then Kenneth pointed out that Mia’s
dad seemed happy to be at the party, currently dancing with Ms. Martinez.

Michael watched as Mia’s face switched quickly to hide her horror, and
then they went back to discussing why her father was running for prime
minister.

He had been absentmindedly watching the people on the dance floor,

mostly removed from the conversation until he heard Boris say something
about Mia going to the University of Genovia. And then Michael couldn’t
help it, his head whipped around so fast and he was staring at Mia with
wide eyes.

“University of Genovia? Why are you going there?” Their reputation was…
Well, lacking, for lack of a better word. And Michael knew that Mia could
do so much better than there. He felt kind of bad about his reaction when he
saw Mia turn red, looking extremely embarrassed. Except that this wasn’t a
cute embarrassed, it was a can-we-not-talk-about-this-at-my-birthday-party
kind of embarrassed.

Boris answered before she could, quite bluntly stating that she hadn’t gotten
into anywhere else for a reason as stupid enough as her math SAT. That
makes no sense. Michael was studying Mia, watching her expression
carefully. There were tons of schools that didn’t care about SAT scores,
especially when she probably applied to do something in English. And other
than math, her grades were really good. And, for crying out loud, she was a
princess. There was no way that Michael believed even for a second that
she had been rejected from every other school.

Which is what he was beginning to explain until he was interrupted by Mia

herself, bringing J.P. into the circle as he handed her a drink. Although
Michael wasn’t happy to see the newcomer, his mind was still stuck on the
college thing. There was no way, no way, that she had gotten rejected from
everywhere. But why lie? Unless…
“Mike.” Ugh, he only liked it when his friends called him that. J.P. was now
looking directly at him with a dumbstruck stare, obviously wondering what
the hell Mia’s ex-boyfriend, who was meant to be living in Japan, was
doing at her birthday party. Michael noticed his hand tighten around her
waist, like he was subconsciously claiming his territory. “Hey. So. You’re
back.” He felt some kind of private victory in having clearly shaken J.P. up,
but then his stupid expression quickly snapped to a polite smile. In
response, Michael just nodded. He had no interest in speaking to the guy.

Luckily for him, loyal Boris jumped in to explain. He went a little

overboard, bragging about how big of a success the CardioArm was, but
Tina elbowed him before he could continue. Michael wasn’t sure if he was
relieved or disappointed, particularly when J.P. just replied with, “Wow,
that’s great.”

He then felt some irritation when Tina randomly informed him about J.P.
wrote a play. Everyone looked at her, because their conversation had
evidently turned into a pissing contest. But Michael just said, “Wow, that’s
great,” with the same enthusiasm J.P. had shown him. It was kind of petty to
mock him, but he knew that it was subtle enough not to get called out on it.

There was a bit of an uncomfortable silence, but Mia tried to excuse herself,
citing princess duties. She was interrupted, although, by J.P. pulling her
back into the circle and saying that he needed to make an announcement.
He was suggesting that they go up the microphone and it was easy to see
that the idea was stressing Mia out. He knew better than anyone that she
hated surprises, and this seemed like it was going to be one hell of a
surprise.

He watched with distaste as J.P. dragged Mia up the stage and practically
grabbing the microphone out of Madonna’s hands. Even though he realized
that he was biased against the guy, he really couldn’t believe that anyone
could think he was genuine. He was polite, sure, but he seemed so…
Arrogant? Maybe it was the old money thing about him, or maybe it was
how excited he seemed to have everyone looking at him.

Michael almost threw up when he heard J.P. claim, “Princess Mia means
more to me, perhaps, than she does to any of you-“. That statement alone
infuriated him considering they were surrounded by Mia’s family and oldest
friends.

And then the asshole took out a small black box.

The whole crowd had erupted into cheers. Michael couldn’t stand it
anymore. He had no interest in hearing whatever the rest of that speech was
going to consist of, and he needed to get out of there as quick as humanly
possible. Before turning to leave, he looked over at Mia. Her face was
going to decide what he would do.

And she looked… Horrified. There was no other word for it. She looked
absolutely, positively horrified. She scanned the crowd and found his face.
They looked at each other for a moment, but he couldn’t find it in himself to
do anything. He didn’t smile, he didn’t frown, he just stood there, looking
back at her until she tore her gaze away.

He then turned and walked to the exit swiftly, before the crowd got a chance
to stop clapping. He didn’t want to hear whatever the hell J.P. was going to
ask her (not marriage surely, she literally just turned 18) nor what her
answer would be. Whatever it was, she was being asked in front of
hundreds of people including her family, friends, teachers, and a bunch of
celebrities. There were paparazzi and reporters below listening intently,
ready to report on everything the next morning. It didn’t matter what she
wanted, because she was going to have to say yes regardless. Michael
almost wondered if that was why J.P. had planned it like that. Or maybe it
was because J.P. obviously liked the attention. Whatever it was, it didn’t
seem like Mia would have any choice in the matter.

As he walked down the gangplank, cameras flashed in his face and he heard
questions being thrown at him. Unfortunately for him, there were
significantly more people throwing around the term “ex-boyfriend” now
and he knew that he looked like a scorned ex-lover (seriously, what? Mia’s
book had certainly had an effect on his inner dialogue) who was walking
out as the princess’ current boyfriend makes some kind of proclamation.
But, whatever, he had gotten used to Mia’s press years ago; he just needed
to get used to his own now.
He didn’t answer any questions and hastily flagged down one of the nearby
cabs who were waiting to take party-goers home. He would leave the limo
for his family to take home.

He couldn’t hear whatever J.P. had asked due to the loud cheering.
However, as he was closing the car door, he heard a squeak from the
speakers. Mia’s answer had been “Well, we’ll see!”

Michael couldn’t help the smirk as he sat down in the backseat. Well, we’ll
see, indeed.

“Where to?” the cabbie looked at him through the rearview mirror with
some mild interest, quite aware of all of the cameras being pointed towards
them.

“Pavlov Surgical, please.” When it was clear he had no intention of

elaborating, the driver set off, leaving the flashing lights behind him.

Michael knew exactly what he was going to do.

He now knew that he was undoubtedly, completely, and ferociously in love

with Mia Thermopolis. And he was also quite sure that she felt the same
way for him.
 Progress
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes

Michael left the office way past midnight; it had taken him hours to make
all of the proper arrangements. He had to schedule security and expedited
packaging, as well as book a private jet to take the CardioArm and Midori,
one of his more prized programmers, to Genovia the next afternoon. He was
incredibly grateful that she had been so agreeable despite him calling her
well past office hours. She said that she had always wanted to see Europe
anyway and in an annoyingly knowing voice said, “there’s no way she can
say no now,” before hanging up the phone. Michael wasn’t even the
slightest bit embarrassed to hear that.

Surreal. He still couldn’t believe that this was his life now.

It was after 2 in the morning when he finally got back to his parents’
apartment. It would have been more convenient to just walk back to his new
loft, but it wasn’t furnished yet and most of his clothes were still sitting in
his childhood bedroom. He tried to be as quiet as possible as he opened the
front door but was startled to see Lilly sitting there in the dark, working on
her laptop.

“Jeez, Lil, you scared the hell out of me,” he complained, reaching down to
pick up the tuxedo jacket he had dropped in surprise.

“Working late?” she simply asked, fully ignoring the mini heart attack she
had inflicted upon him. He just shrugged in response.

“She practically ran off the stage after he asked her. But then like 20
minutes later I saw her wearing the stupid ring. As if anyone wears promise
rings anymore? It has this absurd, gargantuan diamond that everyone was
going completely ga-ga over,” Lilly informed him without being prompted.
There was a familiar edge to her voice.
Michael didn’t look back at her as she told him, simply staring off and
nodding along to her words. Despite what he had just spent hours doing,
feeling confident that Mia did in fact love him back, it still felt like being
punched in the gut. There was no way he had read the signs wrong, but…
The thought of her wearing another guy’s ring made him feel even worse
than when he saw them kissing in the hallway years ago. It somehow
seemed like an even bigger betrayal.

His face had obviously given him away, so Lilly’s voice softened. “He just
asked her to the prom… And” she paused for a moment, but he still
wouldn’t look at her. “I could tell she wanted to ask about you.”

When it was clear she had finished talking, Michael gave her a curt nod and
went to the bathroom without another word. The stupid fucking prom. Of
course, they were back to that. He could clearly recall Mia’s obsession with
his own prom, which he had firmly refused to go to until she got his band to
play.

He stared at himself in the mirror, noticing some purple coloring under his
eyes from his poor sleep patterns over the past few days. He had been in
New York for less than a week and had already gone through every emotion
possible. Unfortunately, that’s what love can do. He splashed some cold
water on his face. It all didn’t matter. The promise ring, the prom, whatever.
He wasn’t giving up so easy this time.

The next day wasn’t nearly as eventful as the night before. Michael woke
up early for work and headed in without having to speak to anyone. He
stopped and got a coffee from a stand outside, noticing a large photo of the
princess herself on a teen magazine. The title read, in big gold letters,
“America’s Very Own Princess: Engaged to Her Prince Charming!”

Michael felt the sudden urge to rip the magazine up, but he just grabbed his
coffee and left. Whatever, it wasn’t his problem right now.

Work was busy as always. The first thing he had to do was assistant
interviews, which luckily went extremely well. He was happy to find a
great match early on and ended up offering him the position on the spot. It
was a bit funny because Michael’s new assistant was a college graduate and
a few years older than him. But then again, so were most of the people who
worked for him.

He then approved of the images his interior designer (hired by his publicist
who insisted that his loft be furnished professionally- “you might need to
get interviewed there!”) sent over to him. Everything looked cool, and he
was impressed by how well the designer seemed to get him and what he
would like. She described his style as “industrial-tech-modern-chic”, which
Michael interpreted as “really-rich-computer-geek”. He forwarded some
images of the loft to Boris’s email.

This was followed by a conference with his managerial team, who

explained that the CardioArm waiting list was getting longer by the day.

Michael realized about halfway through the meeting that he’d cleared his
gift last night with the business team. He cleared his throat, “Oh, right. I’ve
arranged for an arm and a programmer to be taken to the Royal Genovian
Hospital later today. It’s completely complimentary for them, but I’ll be
paying for it personally.” He spoke with an air of authority and then
finished with a look that said, ‘just try and argue with me.’ The team all
gave him a perplexed look, some having never even heard of Genovia
before, and others wondering why Michael would ever choose to take such
a loss

But no one argued or followed up with any questions, and Michael felt a
wave of relief fall over him. He didn’t really know how he would have
explained his donation. He hadn’t been asked by anyone, including Mia or
her family, about getting Genovia a CardioArm. But the idea came to him at
Mia’s party last night, as he watched her nervously discuss her father’s
election. She was so concerned about the fact that he had taken a single day
off to attend his daughter’s own birthday party. It didn’t seem right to him
that she felt so bad about it. So, he thought, why not? Send a CardioArm
personally from him, practically endorsing Prince Phillipe’s campaign. He
already thought that Phillipe would be a good Prime Minister, and he really
just wanted to make Mia happy. And it also didn’t hurt that he knew it
would blow J.P.’s stupid ring out of the water.
For lunch, Michael met up with some of his old friends from Columbia,
including his freshman year roommate, Doo Pak. They'd stayed in touch
through emails and the occasional visit to Japan, and he was especially
thankful for that considering the amount of "friends" he'd made now that he
made money.

He was a bit embarrassed when they all toasted to his success, but it was
still a good feeling. The end of the meal was happy, but also a bit
bittersweet. They all talked about their classes, and internships, and
roommates, and although Michael was excited to hear all about it, he
couldn’t help but feel… A little left out. Which is what he was feeling when
they all headed back for class while he made his way back to his office. It
was great to be so successful at such a young age, but it also made him
realize that he had skipped a majority of his college experience and would
probably never get anything like that back again. As he walked back to
Pavlov Surgical, it hit him how much of an adult he was now, walking back
to his full-time job at the ripe age of twenty-one.

For an odd reason, that thought made him think of Mia. She had always
been younger than him, and seemingly in different places in life. But she
too had her whole life planned out for her. She had had her life decided
when she was just 14 years old. Perhaps that’s why he had been so ready to
plan his own around hers when he was just a teenager.

He wondered how many times she had felt the same way he was feeling
now, that bittersweetness about everything being decided so early on. Well,
hopefully not everything. She was still wearing that guy’s ring.

Passing a video game store, Michael paused and glanced into the window.
Just because he was an adult now, didn’t mean that he still couldn’t enjoy
his free time. With a smile, he opened the door and walked in without a
second thought.

He came home late again that night, though nowhere near as late as the day
before. His parents were sitting in the den watching TV, while Lilly was
sitting and working on her laptop again. Michael heated up some leftovers
and sat down next to her.
“You do realize that you’re a senior who’s about to graduate, right? There’s
no way you have that much work to do,” he teased, digging into the meal.
Maya was still making his favorites in celebration of his homecoming.

His sister stuck her tongue out at him in a mocking way. “Please, I have
more important stuff to do than school.”

He nodded knowingly. “Your show? At lunch today, Doo Pak told me that
it’s still a huge hit amongst his friends in Korea.”

“It is doing really well,” she cracked him a smug grin. “But no, I’m not
working on that either. It’s actually Mia’s birthday present.”

He choked on the chicken he was eating, coughing a bit, “Huh? Wasn’t her
birthday yesterday?”

Lilly rolled her eyes but looked satisfied by his shock all the same. “Well,
you did tell me to be nicer to her.”

He shrugged, still looking unconvinced. “Yeah, I know, but… What even is

it?”

“Happy you finally asked,” she said, looking excited and turning her laptop
around so he could see. “I’m almost finished, I just haven’t found the right
music to use ‘cause of stupid copyright laws.”

She pressed play in the editing software and presented Michael with what
looked like a commercial… In support of Prince Phillip for Prime Minister.
It was still a rough cut, but there were a bunch of interviews from
celebrities at Mia’s party the night before, praising her dad. There were also
some really nice shots of Genovia that Lilly must have taken during their
trips there.

“Woah…” was all he said as he watched in complete shock. There was no

music yet, which made the whole thing feel a bit awkward, but it was still
really impressive. And then he laughed, which made Lilly gave him an
irritated look.
“I told you it’s not finished yet. And I’m not even sure if I even want to
release it,” she said defensively, turning the laptop away from him. But
Michael wasn’t laughing because of the commercial.

He shook his head, still chuckling to himself. “No, Lil, it’s actually really
good. You should definitely send it. Really, no sarcasm whatsoever. It’s
funny because I think two Jewish kids from Manhattan are going to win
Prince Phillipe’s election for him.”

She frowned at him, obviously not following, so he continued. “I donated a

CardioArm to them, it’ll be arriving tomorrow.”

“And why would you do that?”

He shrugged, looking back down at his noodles. “I thought it would make

Mia happy, and everyone needs one anyway.” Glancing up at her, he saw
her uncertain face. “What?”

“Uhm, it’s just something I heard from Mia today…” She didn’t elaborate,
so Michael kept looking at her.

“And that was?”

She looked down to inspect her fingernail, “it’s nothing, really. It was just
pretty clear that she was pissed about you leaving her party yesterday.”

“Mia told you that? Are you guys finally friends again?” He didn’t really
care that Mia was angry about him leaving. Obviously, he left when her
boyfriend was practically proposing to her. But it was nice to know that she
noticed and cared. What he did find strange, is why Mia would tell anything
like that to Lilly.

She glared at him, “No, we’re not. And she didn’t tell me. I was in the
bathroom and overheard her.” Lilly paused for a moment, as if considering
whether to tell him more or not. “She also said some more stuff… About
prom.” She was back to inspecting her nails, ignoring his frown at her.
“Okay. So?” Prom again, of course. This conversation was starting to get
really annoying.

Lilly opened her mouth to speak, then closed it, and then opened it again.
“Never mind, it’s not even important. You wouldn’t even go to prom if she
wanted you there, would you?” She was now looked at him with a raised
eyebrow.

He gave her a wary look, basically answering the question. He wasn’t sure
if even his love for Mia could convince him to go to a high school prom as
a graduated twenty-something.

He didn’t care to continue the topic, and then had an idea. “Hey,” she
looked back up at him expectantly. “How about you use some Skinner Box
music for the commercial? I have a song that I think will be perfect for the
end.”

She considered his suggestion but looked a bit skeptical. Sure, they hadn’t
been the greatest band in the world, but Michael knew that this melody was
perfect. He had written it when he was visiting Mia in Genovia over the
summer. It was totally cheesy at the time, strumming his guitar as he sat on
a beach, looking out onto the ocean. But the song was pretty good, and he
knew that Mia had loved it when he played it for her. It was perfect for this,
and there would be no copyright to go through. “Come on, I swear it’s
actually good. Let me send you the recording and you can decide for
yourself.”

Finally, she agreed. “Knock yourself out. If I send it, it’ll be sometime
tomorrow so they can start playing it midnight their time.”

He grinned at her, putting his plate in the sink. “When you send it. This is
really decent of you, Lil. It’ll make her happy.”

Lilly nodded neutrally and he started heading back to his room, but she
called him back again. “Hey, Michael?”

He came back into the room and just kind of looked at her like “What
now?”
“You should be there. At prom… By the elevators, around midnight. Mia
might need some assistance.” ”

He stared at her, just blinking, but she just went back to her laptop like she
hadn’t said anything at all. He was too confused to answer, so he just spun
around and went back to his room. What the fuck did that even mean? He
literally had just told her that he wouldn’t be caught dead at a high-school
prom (in so many words), and even though midnight hardly qualified as
being at the prom, what? What kind of help would Mia need?

Oh, whatever. He didn’t have the time or energy to try and comprehend
Lilly’s cryptic messages. He had to fish out his backup hard drive and find
the song to send to her.

A call around lunch the next day confirmed that the CardioArm and Midori
had landed in Genovia and been taken to the hospital. They also confirmed
that Prince Phillipe had been sent the card stating that the donation was
done personally by Michael Moscovitz, President and CEO of Pavlov
Surgical Industries. Yeah, maybe Michael had laid it on a little thick, but he
wanted to make a point. He knew that Mia’s father had always liked him
well enough, but he still really wanted to show off to him. And this way,
there would be no question about the donation.

Throughout the rest of the day, he (somewhat) anxiously kept glancing at

his phone, waiting for… Something to happen. The best-case scenario was
that Mia called him directly, or came to see him, and thank him. The worst-
case was if he got a fruit basket with Genovian olive oil delivered to the
office.

So far, it was already almost the end of the workday, and he hadn’t heard
anything. He was sitting at his desk, going over his new assistant’s contract,
when he finally heard his phone ping.

He hesitated for a moment, trying not to get his hopes too high up. The
message could be about anything, and from anyone. It could be his designer
confirming their meeting later today, it could be his mom telling him that
she was buying him new underwear (God, he hoped not), or… It could be
Mia proclaiming her gratitude and love for him.

His willpower barely lasted a minute, and he was thrilled to see that the
message was actually from Mia. It was a really formal thank you message
on behalf of Genovia and Mia’s father, which made Michael snort a little.
He could imagine her most princess voice as he read it. But then his heart
jumped out of his chest when he read that she wanted to meet in person, to
say thank you. She signed off the message with “Sincerely, Mia” which he
tried not to let bother him. The whole thing was weird to see, especially
considering that they had been wrestling over hot chocolate just a few days
before.

But, honestly, he didn’t care that much. He just wanted to see her, alone,
and as soon as possible. Without even bothering to try and conceal his
eagerness, he replied immediately.

Would love to see you “in person.” How about tonight? he wrote back. But
before he sent it, he thought he might add something a bit cheekier, to really
make his feelings known. Who gave a damn if he was being obvious? He
was in love with the girl, and he wanted to make it clear. He didn’t care if
the whole world knew at that point, he just wanted her to know. So, he
finished with P.S. No need to thank me on behalf of your father or Genovia.
I only sent it because I thought it might help out your dad in the elections,
and that, in turn, would make you happy. So you see my motives were
completely selfish.

He almost added a wink but vetoed that idea in his mind. He was definitely
being quite clear with his intentions, there was no way even someone as
oblivious as Mia could misconstrue that statement. He clicked SEND,
feeling quite pleased with himself.

He imagined Mia’s reaction as she opened the message. Would she be

happy or freaked out? It really didn’t matter, though he did hope it was
leaning towards the first one.

He spent the rest of the day even more frequently checking his phone, but
no messages from Mia came. She had obviously seen it since he replied
right after her. But she was ignoring it. That thought made him feel just the
slightest bit crushed, but whatever. He just needed to keep telling himself
whatever. Maybe tonight was too soon, but at least it was honest. Maybe he
came on too strong, but… At least he was honest.

He continued to discretely check his phone every few minutes as his

interior designer showed him around the newly furnished loft. It was
amazing how different it looked and how quickly the company had
managed to do it. After just a few days, it was practically move-in ready. It
was shocking how quickly things could be done with the right amount of
money.

He especially loved the whole TV set-up, which featured every current

gaming platform available on the market. There was also a perfect place to
display his CDs. He complimented the designer, who looked quite pleased
to have done so well.

The whole place was just so perfectly him; it was as if she had gone into his
mind and extracted everything he would have liked.

There were still some things that needed to be finished, but his loft was
totally livable now. He would just have to get the rest of the things from his
parents’ home, and then he would be free to move in.

He thanked the designer as she left, and then took a few photos to show his
parents and Boris. It was really happening now. He was officially back
living in New York City.

He headed back to his parents’ place and the four of them had dinner. Lilly
told them about how her commercial was now airing over in Genovia, and
begrudgingly thanked him for the song, which she did end up using. She
showed them all the finished product and it was really impressive actually.
It looked totally professional and praised Prince Phillipe to high heavens.
Their parents looked incredibly proud of her and gave their nods of
approval.

Michael told them about the loft and showed off the photos he had taken,
which made them all realized that it was their last family dinner with him
living there. That bittersweet feeling Michael had felt the day before
returned for a moment, that reminder that he had grown up. They were all
still really happy for him, and he invited them to dinner at his place later in
the week. It was a bit strange, knowing that they were all still going to be
living in the city, but separated at the same time. It was nice, though, to
know that they would always be around when he needed them.

By the time Mia finally answered him, Michael was well-aware that they
would not be meeting up that night. This message was much relaxed and
actually sounded like Mia his friend, not Princess Mia Renaldi.

She asked him to lunch on Friday (Senior Skip Day), citing Boris’s senior
project the next night. Michael already knew about the concert and had
been planning on going, but it was nice to know that she would be there as
well. He wasn’t overly thrilled about the idea of lunch, rather than dinner,
but he could make it work. Grinning to himself, he knew exactly what he
wanted to do immediately. He sent a quick text to his new assistant, asking
to get him a reservation for one o’clock on Friday. And then he had a
confirmation within five minutes. God, he was so glad he hired that guy on
the spot.

He messaged her back, suggesting the Central Park Boathouse, lakeside. He

remembered how they used to walk around the park together and how Mia
would sometimes sneak longing looks to the restaurant. He had always
planned on taking her there one day.

He deliberately ended the message with “Love, Michael” this time, because
he meant it. He didn’t care one bit about how obvious he was being or even
if he sounded desperate. The time for games and subtlety was over. He
loved her and he was ready to let her know.

He had been packing up his things in some boxes when he got another
message. This time, it was from Boris.

Boris “Metalhead” Pelkowski: Mike, the loft looks so COOL. Are you sure
you’re okay with me staying there? And not paying rent?
M: Dude, I’m happy to have you there. And don’t worry about rent. We’re
gonna have some sick video game nights.

B: !!! Heck yeah.

Michael got another message about 30 seconds later.

B: I’m on my way home from J.P.’s play. You should have seen it, it was so
stupid. It wasn’t even original- he literally just wrote it about himself and
Mia. And guess what?

M: What?

B: He made YOU the villain. You seemed like a total jerk in the story.

Michael almost snorted when he read that. He, who had spent two years
working tirelessly on a project designed to make heart surgery safer, was
the villain to J.P., the guy who wrote a play about his girlfriend’s life.

M: Ha-ha, of course he did. How did Mia feel about the play?

B: She said she was happy, but Tee was worried about it. He made her look
her look totally dumb.

M: What a shock. I’m the villain, she’s the zany princess, and he’s the hero.
Sound about right?

B: Yeah, you’ve got it down. Sean Penn’s going to option it and dude
almost shit bricks. Tina and I left right after that because the paparazzi was
starting to freak out outside.

Michael cringed at the thought of yet another movie about Mia’s life. And
of course there were paparazzi at his stupid play.

M: Alright, well thanks for letting me know, man. And good luck
tomorrow! I’ll be there right after work.

Boris texted him a quick bye as Michael went back to packing his things
away. He definitely didn’t feel any bit guilty about his Friday date with
Mia. This guy was no freshman Kenny Showalter; he didn’t deserve any of
Michael’s pity.

He glanced over at his bed and again remembered the box sitting below it.
This time, he confidently went over and pulled it out.

The last time the box had been opened was after his family’s first trip to
visit him in Japan. It was around Christmas and at that point, Michael was
mostly over his breakup with Mia. He was deep into his work and was no
longer plagued with random thoughts of her (a drastic difference to now).
The night before his family left to go back home, Michael was riffling
through his top desk drawer looking for an adapter. It was then that he saw
a small box, hidden under the random things he had thrown into the drawer
over the previous 4 months. He didn’t even bother opening it, knowing that
it might set him back more than anything. He knew it held that damn
snowflake necklace he had fished out of the carpet at the Ritz. The thought
of it just brought him back to their last fight, and he had made so much
progress with her since then that he didn’t want to bring all that back up.

So, the morning they were leaving, he walked over to his mom. Quietly, he
requested that she take the necklace back with her and leave it in the box
under his bed. He didn’t want to throw it away, but he also didn’t want to be
weighed down by the tiny piece of metal in Japan. She agreed without the
need for any convincing, understanding quite well.

The last time the box had been opened was by his mother, hiding away the
only remaining piece of Mia that Michael had taken with him. But now, he
felt like he had so much more of her back and wasn’t scared of what was
inside anymore.

He opened it and right on top was the small box. He looked at the necklace
sitting inside, shining just as it had years ago. He shut the box carefully and
put it on top of the pile he was bringing back to his loft.

After a long time, that little snowflake suddenly didn’t seem so intimidating
anymore.

Chapter End Notes

Happy New Year!
 A Concert and a Crush
Michael spent Thursday morning making some finishing touches to his new
loft. He hung up his clothes, put a few knickknacks on the shelf, and even
got his groceries delivered and put away. He wasn’t much of a cook, but he
now had all the essentials. Milk, eggs, Hot Pockets, microwave popcorn,
Coke. Again, all the essentials for a 21-year-old man. He even had a bag of
lettuce thrown in just for kicks.

It still wasn’t completely done, but the place already felt like home to
Michael. The thought of coming back to his own apartment after work filled
him with a giddiness.

He headed back to the office around lunchtime and worked practically non-
stop until he needed to leave for Boris’s concert. The only breaks he had
taken were a few moments to read up on the Genovian political race, and he
was happy to see that Lilly’s commercial had been incredibly well-received.
Along with Michael’s own contribution, Prince Phillipe’s campaign was
now doing better than ever. He wondered how Mia was feeling about the
news.

He took a cab to Carnegie Hall and met Lilly and Kenneth, who were both
back in their fully punked-out attire. Although he was totally cool with his
sister’s look, he did feel a bit out of place next to them in his muted button-
up shirt and dress pants.

The hall was filled with energized conversation before the concert started,
and the energy was just amplified when Boris came out.

The music was good, an elevated version of what Michael used to hear in
G&T class. He hadn’t heard Boris play in-person since their band went on
an indefinite hiatus, so it was nice to see how much Boris had improved
over the years. About 15 minutes into the show, however, the thought did
occur to him that because Boris would be living with him and going to
music school, Michael might want to consider sound-proofing a closet for
him.
Just kidding, he’d sound-proof a whole bedroom.

He could see Mia from his seat if he turned his head around. He noticed her
as soon as she walked in, Lars trailing right behind her. She also had J.P. on
her arm looking just as smug as Michael remembered him. It seemed like
he disliked the guy more every time he saw him now.

Looking over at them, he could see J.P. whispering something in her ear as
she nodded along, looking uninterested. Michael felt a twinge of jealously
and wondered if Mia knew that he was there.

He tore his eyes off the couple and started back at the stage. Out of his
peripheral vision, he saw her head turn in his direction. Yeah, she definitely
knew he was there.

And then it was intermission, and Michael almost couldn’t believe that they
still had an hour and a half left. People were chattering animatedly around
him, clutching Boris CDs in their hands. The concert was certainly a big hit.

Lilly had already stepped out to go to the bathroom and Michael was
speaking to Kenneth about work. But a few seconds later, he watched as
Mia and Lars got up and left the hall while J.P. stayed seated. He saw her
grab her journal from Lars.

He knew exactly where she was going. Michael quickly excused himself
from his conversation with Kenneth, interrupting him as he was saying
something about a summer internship or whatever.

Michael headed straight towards the ladies’ room and stood far enough
away to not seem like a creep waiting outside the bathroom, but close
enough to catch her when she came out. He ended up making eye contact
with Lars, who smirked at him. Michael shrugged back, giving him a
sheepish grin. He knew damn well that Lars knew about their date- er,
plans- the next day.

Michael wasn’t even sure what he wanted to say to Mia, but he just really
wanted to talk to her. He hadn’t seen her since they locked eyes before he
left her party, which, thanks to Lilly, he knew she had taken to heart. Maybe
he would apologize to her? Explain himself?

Except, he didn’t really have anything to apologize for, technically

speaking. And so much had happened since then (a whopping 3 days), that
it seemed like a moot point. While he was still deliberating, the lights
started flickering, a sign that intermission was coming to an end.

Come on, Mia.

He kept his eyes on the door as people moved back into the hall and he saw
Lilly come out with a dark look on her face. He saw Mia exit not too long
after her, but she now looked nervous and was chewing on a fingernail.

Lars looked at her and then back at Michael, doing a subtle head shake.
Yeah, he had to agree. This was not the right time.

He went back to his seat as quickly and discretely as possible.

The rest of the concert was more of the same, but the crowd was practically
screaming with cheers when Boris finished. The entire hall was giving him
a standing ovation and his name was booming across the room.

After the standing ovations finally ended, the three of them went up to the
stage to congratulate the musical genius. Mia, Tina, and J.P. were already up
there speaking with him and Michael considered staying back, but Boris
spotted him and waved them over before he could turn around.

He shook his friend’s hand heartily and told him how great he thought the
performance was. After Boris’s attention had been shifted, Michael tried to
look completely neutral, greeting everyone in the circle and giving them a
polite smile. It was then painfully obvious that he was somehow the 7th
wheel to a bunch of high schoolers. The three couples were all holding onto
each other in some way, and Michael almost regretted not bringing a date.
Why hadn’t he?

Oh right. His only option currently had a guy’s hand on her waist.
He decided that it was safest to look at Tina, who had begun speaking to
everyone in a rather high-pitched voice (something about the senior project
committee going out last night). Other than the simple hello he gave
everyone, he wasn’t going to give Mia any special attention. There was a
part of him that was seething at the sight of Mia and J.P. together, but there
was also a part that enjoyed having their meeting just a little secret between
them. By the worried glances Mia kept giving him, Michael could tell that
she had failed to mention their lunch to her boyfriend.

Just as the girl was babbling, Mia grabbed Tina’s arm and pulled her away
from the stage, using a soothing voice in her ear. Michael saw Tina turn
back and look directly at him, but he pretended to be listening to J.P. talk
about his fabulous night with Sean Penn.

He and Boris shared a discrete knowing look, and Michael had to cough to
cover up his laugh. They continued making polite conversation with each
other, except for Lilly, who was flat-out ignoring J.P. and occasionally
whispered in Kenneth’s ear while her ex-boyfriend was talking.

When J.P. finally had to take a breath, Michael took the opportunity to ask
Boris what his plans were for the rest of the night. The younger boy pointed
over to a large group in the front row. Michael was pretty sure he
recognized Boris’s mom, who was holding a large bouquet of flowers.

“We’re having a big family dinner at home; my grandmother made a bunch

of Russian food. Oh! My parents really want to meet you, since I’m going
to be living with you next year.”

Michael agreed with a nod and an unsure smile. He didn’t much enjoy
meeting other people’s parents, but he was happy to have an excuse to not
listen to J.P. anymore. Boris waved his parents up and introduced them.

They began asking Michael about the loft and about making sure that Boris
stayed out of trouble. As he was speaking to them, he saw Mia hurrying
towards them and telling the group a quick good-bye. Michael didn’t even
get the chance to respond because she was already dragging J.P. off of the
stage and heading out the door.
Whatever. They had tomorrow planned, and that’s all that really mattered.

Michael woke up to his alarm that morning and saw a blank ceiling up
above him. He was lying in a brand-new bed, listening to the same-old
traffic outside. This was his new life. It felt a bit weird.

But today was finally the day. The day he would (hopefully) tell Mia that he
loved her. Again. Damn. At least it all felt easier now than it had 4 years
ago. At least now he knew that he had a chance.

He somehow felt both anxious and calm. His heart was beating harder and
faster than normal, but he also felt serene just lying there. At least he might
finally get his answers today.

He sprang out of bed, stretching as he got up. He would be going into the
office for the morning but dipping out before lunch. His entire afternoon
had been cleared so there was no worry about hurrying back.

Although he attended his meetings and checked in with the lab, all Michael
could think about was the lunch. He was trying not to get his hopes up too
high, but he also didn’t care that he was. He was going to make his feelings
known to her, and hopefully get her to admit the same to him.

The morning was a blur, and Michael was thrilled when he arrived back at
his loft around noon. He was really enjoying having it so close to work. He
took a quick shower and gave his hair a shake. This haircut was really
working for him.

The restaurant was on the formal side, so a sport coat or suit was required.
He ended up going with a sport coat because he couldn’t be bothered with
wearing a tie for like the 5th time that week. He also had an inkling that he
might have some advantage to having his neck out in the open…

He glanced at himself in the hall mirror and took a small breath. He looked
good, he thought. Hopefully, Mia would think so too.
He arrived to the restaurant about 15 minutes early and waited outside the
Boathouse without any care about looking over-eager. He caught sight of a
stand selling flowers nearby but thought better of it. He wanted his hands
free when he saw Mia.
 A Lunch-Date-Or-Whatever
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes

Mia and Lars arrived to the restaurant right at 1 o’clock and Michael smiled
warmly at them. Without even thinking twice, he leaned down to kiss her
cheek the moment she was close enough. She just looked so very pretty in
her sundress and with her hair softly framing her face.

She almost backed away when he did so and yelped something about a
cold. He didn’t believe her for a second, laughing as he said, “I like your
germs.” She didn’t back away anymore so he gingerly kissed her cheek. It
was just as soft and warm as he remembered. He felt her breath on his neck
again.

Not quite the romantic start he had been hoping for, but it was very Mia.

However, as he pulled away, her eyes were fluttering, and she almost fell
over. Literally. Lars ended up holding onto her elbow and asking if she was
alright.

Michael was suppressing a grin as she tried to play it off with a laugh.
Thank God he didn’t wear the tie.

She looked a bit panicked when they were shown to their table. Michael’s
assistant had really gotten them the best seats in the place because there was
a perfect patch of sun overlapping it and a beautiful view of the lake. Lars
took a spot at the bar, giving Michael a small wink as he walked away.

Mia kept looking back at the lake, a bit scatter-brained. It didn’t seem like
she was listening to a word he was saying but kept nodding along anyway.

“And so, a velociraptor came crashing into the office, demanding that we
give him Pop-Tarts or else he’d steal every robot arm we’ve ever made,”
Michael went on, and her nodding confirmed that she indeed wasn’t
listening to him. She just kept nervously glancing between him, Lars, and
the lake. Despite her frenzy, she looked incredibly beautiful in the sunlight.

“Mia, are you all right?” he finally asked, watching her with some
amusement. It was nice to know that he was still able to frazzle her like this.

Looking startled as he called her out, she tried to play it off again, but then
her eyes lit up as she remembered something. Now focused only on him,
she told him that an editor wanted to publish her book.

He felt a wave of happiness wash over him as he beamed at her. She looked
back at him with one of the first genuine smiles he had gotten from her
since returning, and he proclaimed that they needed to celebrate. He waved
down the waiter and ordered some sparkling waters to toast with. He kept
on praising her while waiting for the drinks, and she was trying to bashfully
underplay it.

“No, Mia, this is amazing news. You should be thrilled! You’re going to be
a published author!”

“Oh, stop, Michael,” she was motioning for him to calm down. “.. But do
you wanna know what the best part is?”

“What?”

Mia paused for a second, giving him a small smile, “she didn’t even know
that I’d written it. I sent it under the fake name.”

He nodded, “Of course you did. And she loved it, because, as I told you, it’s
really good. And I mean that. I couldn’t put it down that whole day”

She didn’t speak for a moment, watching him with a fond look. The waiter
brought over the waters and Michael proposed a toast to Mia and her book.
She looked a bit overwhelmed and toasted him right back.

“And to you and your CardioArm, which is actually going to be saving

people’s lives.”
He shook his head, “Mia, while my CardioArm is saving their life, their
family members might be reading your book in the waiting room. It’ll give
them the comfort they need.” She rolled her eyes, but he could tell that she
was pleased.

They ordered their food and kept smiling at each other back and forth. It
was all going extremely well. Mia had calmed down, and they were
speaking to each other warmly.

That is, everything was going well until Michael was momentarily blinded,
a rainbow being cast over his face. His attention was brought to the culprit,
the (enormous) diamond on her ring finger, which Michael silently agreed
with Lilly about being absurd. Mia looked utterly mortified as she hastily
pulled the ring off and hid it away in her bag.

He didn’t let it phase him; he already knew about the stupid ring, so who
cares that she was wearing it? Instead, he teased, “That’s some rock. So are
you guys, like, engaged now?” He was well aware that they weren’t, but
also knew that it would rile Mia up a little. She then lamely told him that it
a friendship ring, which somehow made him feel worse. Why lie to him at
this point?

She looked a bit depleted when he commented back with something about
friendships having gotten more expensive than he remembered. He hadn’t
meant to sound quite that snarky. Their conversation had taken a quick turn
from the fond smiles they’d been sharing.

And for some reason, the next thing out of his mouth was asking about
J.P.’s college plans. Now that the ring had been brought up, Michael
suddenly couldn’t stop remembering that she still had a boyfriend.

Mia spoke carefully as she explained that J.P. was considering putting off
college to go to Hollywood and work on his movie. The thought perked
Michael right back up, and he could hear the enthusiasm in his voice as he
asked if they were thinking about doing long-distance. Considering that Mia
and Michael had tried and were basically broken up as soon as he sat on the
plane, he didn’t really see it working out for them either. Oops, was that too
bitter?
But then she said something that made his stomach drop. She was thinking
about going with him?

He didn’t even try to conceal his astonishment when he blurted out, “To
Hollywood?” quite harshly. It was the same shock he had felt as when he
heard that she might be going to college in Genovia. I mean, going to
California? To follow around her snobby boyfriend? What would she even
do there, make him his coffee as he left for set?

But he regretted the harshness in his voice after seeing Mia’s startled face
and apologized. Stumbling over his words, he explained that he just didn’t
see her as the Hollywood type (because she wasn’t). But then he was
worried that would come across poorly, so he explained that it wasn’t
because she wasn’t glamorous enough (because she totally was).

She looked embarrassed, which seemed to be a recurring trend with them

now, and thanked him. Before Michael could say anything else, the waiter
brought over their salads and he forced himself to look polite.

When the waiter finally walked away (God, how long did it take to offer
some pepper?), Mia continued.

Luckily for him, she seemed to understand where he was coming from and
hadn’t taken much offense. She wasn’t sure what she would do in
Hollywood, but J.P. so graciously suggested that she could write. Man, he
was really starting to hate that guy now. And then she admitted that she had
always wanted to talk a year off to do Greenpeace, which he already knew.
He also knew that her parents (or more so, her dad and grandmother) had
vetoed that idea years ago.

He expressed that they probably weren’t thrilled about the idea of her going
to Hollywood either, to which she agreed. Michael was relieved to see that
Mia didn’t look all that excited about the plan, and relaxed when he realized
he probably wouldn’t need to worry about it very much.

She explained that she needed to figure some things out and that her parents
expected a decision by the election, which was coming up in just a few
days.
He reassured her that she’d do the right thing because she always did. It was
this statement that rattled the conversation once again. She was now arguing
with him, asserting that she screws everything up.

She then carefully put her fork down and claimed that he should know more
than anyone because she ruined their relationship. That took him by
complete surprise. He blinked at her, completely stunned.

“No, you didn’t. I did.” And he meant that. It was his choice to move to
Japan, his choice to insensitively tell her about Judith, and ultimately, his
choice to break up. How in the world was their breakup her fault?

She didn’t seem to see it that way, because she was still arguing with him.
She said that she shouldn’t have made such a big deal about Judith. He
interrupted her and said that he should've told her sooner. She then replied
by saying that she’d acted like a psycho. He interrupted her again saying
that no she didn’t. And he really did mean it. Honestly, they both had made
a lot of mistakes.

But then she interrupted him, holding up her hand and laughing
humorlessly. “Can we please not try to rewrite history? I did. You were
right to break up with me. Things were getting too intense. We both needed
a breather.”

Michael almost snorted at her statement. Yeah, a breather. As in a break.

Not as in go and get engaged to someone else, which is exactly what he
ended up saying out loud. He hadn’t meant to sound quite so bitter, but he
didn’t care enough to hide it. He stuffed the remaining forkfuls of salad into
his mouth as she just stared at him.

She obviously looked fazed and he was starting to feel guilty again. Not
because she had a boyfriend or whatever, but because he was obviously
upsetting her. He wanted this lunch to go well, and so far, they had spent a
majority of their time fighting.

So, as the waiter grabbed their plates, he laughed and claimed that he was
just kidding. He hadn’t been, of course, but he really wanted to get back to
some happier topics.
She was still staring at him, stuck processing what he had said. It really
wasn’t how he had planned to express his feelings for her, but he couldn’t
really take it back now.

“Just kidding. Look, I knew it was a risk. I couldn’t have expected that you
were going to wait around for me forever,” that was true, but he had still
been hoping. “You can get engaged-or, what is it? Right, friendship-ringed-
to whomever you want. I’m just glad you’re happy.” He did want her happy,
that part was also true. But she really didn’t seem happy, no matter how big
of a diamond she had in her bag.

She was still watching him wordlessly when their main courses were put
down, and Michael took it as a chance to reset the conversation. He just
wanted her to smile at him again.

“So,” he cracked a grin as he said, “When do you think Joss Whedon is

finally gonna get around to doing that Buffy reunion movie? He’s way
overdue.”

She still looked a bit taken aback, picking up some mashed potatoes on her
fork. “Uh… Hopefully soon, I guess.”

He nodded, trying to keep the conversation moving along, “I know he’s

been talking about it for like, 10 years, but still, it could totally happen.”

Mia finally laughed, though she still didn’t seem fully comfortable. “I’d kill
to see the Scooby gang back together again… Oh, but I did see that they
released a comic book earlier this year.”

Michael nodded, “yeah, I saw that. Apparently, it’s what season 8 would
have been. You totally reminded me though, I might even stop by a comic
book store and pick up a copy.”

She was now smiling again, easing back into the conversation. And then
they were off, and it was like two years had never gone by.

“Ooh, definitely tell me what you think of it. Maybe I'll get it myself if you
think it’s good.”
“Ha. Yeah, right, as if you would read a comic book.”

“Hey! If it has Willow Rosenberg in it, I’m reading it.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure. I’ll lend it to you and we’ll see if that really happens.

“Oh, that would be ever so kind, Michael. Thank you, I am so incredibly

indebted to you for lending me the book you don’t have yet.”

They were both grinning widely, and it was as if their earlier conversations
hadn’t happened.

“And oh my God, did you see that Karen Allen’s coming back for the new
Indiana Jones movie?”

“Seriously? No way! She might be 30 years older, but she still looks so
hot.”

Mia rolled her eyes, but she was amused. “Not only is she ‘hot’; she’s
totally awesome! I hope she gets a bunch of screen time.”

“You’re totally right, she absolutely rocks. You know, I always thought you
looked a bit like her.”

“Uh uh, no you didn’t. Stop lying!”

“Mia, seriously. I could totally see you running next to Harrison Ford,
fighting Nazis and kicking butt. All you’d need to do is dye your hair
brown.”

“Oh, quit it. You look like Harrison Ford just as much as I look like Karen
Allen.”

“Well, I’m going to take that a compliment then. Harrison Ford is quite a
good-looking man.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. What did you think about Boris’s concert?”
“I think he sounds really good when he’s not being trapped in a supply
closet.”

“Ha-ha, you’re definitely right. I can’t believe how many people were
holding onto their CDs like prized possessions though.

“Yeah, that was insane. I think I might need to sound-proof a room for him
or something.”

“Oh, right. He mentioned that he’s going to be staying with you. That’s
awfully nice of you, Michael. He told us that you’re not making him pay a
cent.”

“It’s fine, Boris has been a good friend to me, and he needed my help.”

“And the apartment’s so huge, right? Boris mentioned that part too.”

“It’s not that big, it’s just…”

“The size of a Manhattan palace.”

“I’m not sure it measures up to your palace. But I guess you’ll just need to
see it and decide for yourself.”

“Whatever… Oh my God! I’ve completely forgotten why I asked you to

this lunch. I really do want to thank you for sending over a Cardioarm to
Genovia.”

“It’s no big, and anyway, I told you why I really sent it.”

“Yeah, I know. But still, you could have at least let us pay for it!”

“Old friends don’t make each other pay for that kind of stuff. It was a gift,
let’s just leave it at that. I humbly accept your gratitude though.”

“Okay, okay. How’s the company doing anyway? I can say that your
letterhead is quite impressive.”
“Thank you! I helped design the logo. It just didn’t feel right if Pavlov
wasn’t featured on every envelope. It’s going well. I know you’ve read the
articles, so let’s just leave it at that.”

“You don’t have to be so humble all the time, Michael. You’re twenty-one
and the president of a huge company! Enjoy it!”

“Yeah, yeah, thanks and all that. Did my donation end up helping the
campaign?”

She nodded enthusiastically, “it really did. And the commercial really
brought it over.”

And that’s when they got to Lilly. Mia said the commercial was wonderful,
and then suspected that Michael had something to do with it. He
remembered how he had told Lilly to start being nicer the week prior and
wondered if that had somehow come up between the girls. She was looking
at him with searching eyes now, but he turned the conversation to how he
couldn’t believe that they still weren’t friends.

She admitted that they weren’t exactly not friends but admitted that she still
didn’t know exactly what happened years ago. Michael told her that he
didn’t know either, which wasn’t entirely true. Lilly had told him some stuff
(but never in detail), but he knew that it wasn’t his place to tell Mia.

Luckily, they were then distracted by dessert. Mia kept reading through the
options and said that she couldn’t seem to decide what to order because it
all looked so good. That’s when Michael went a little overboard and
requested that they get everything on the menu.

“What? Michael, you can’t-“

“Mia, we’re still celebrating your success,” he interrupted, turning back to

the waiter with a bright smile. “We’ll have everything, please.” She looked
stunned, still basking in the afternoon sunlight. She looked even more
beautiful now that there was a smile permanently attached to her lips.
Mia then asked him about Japan, and unlike during his interview, he
happily obliged. He kept having stories spill out of him, about the cultural
difference, the unavoidable karaoke, and his friends. He noticed Mia perk
up when he mentioned Midori’s boyfriend, so he brought him up a few
more times for good measure. She sure did seem happy to know about that.

As they were devouring a cream tart, Mia looked out on the lake and began
giggling furiously. Michael followed her view and noticed two girls
screaming at each other on a small boat. It took him a second to realize that
he definitely recognized one of those girls.

“Is that Lana Weinberger?” he asked, laughing along with Mia. “On a
rowboat?”

Mia, still giggling, nodded. “Yeah, uh, she mentioned that she and Trish
might go boating today. I didn’t realize she meant row boating.”

Michael could tell that was a lie because Mia’s nostrils flared. But she
seemed too caught up in watching them to notice though.

“You two are friends now, right?” She gave him a sheepish look and
nodded, finally calming herself down. “I almost can’t believe that. You once
threw an ice-cream cone at that girl.” His teasing tone helped her relax
again.

Mia shrugged, “Hey, she doesn’t make fun of Tina anymore. And she’s
really not that bad once you get to know her. At least I finally have someone
to do girly stuff with, hence my better haircut.” She winked as she flipped
her hair dramatically.

“Hey, I always liked your haircuts. I thought you looked like a pixie when it
was short.” She gave him a look. “You know, in a cute way.”

Her cheeks flared pink and she looked down at her plate. “Yeah, well,
whatever. I think I like it better longer.”

“I’ll admit it, it does really suit you, Mia.”

She smiled up at him, the blush becoming more pronounced across her face.
The check came before she needed to reply, and Michael whipped out his
credit card faster than you could say ‘Genovia’. The waiter was off with the
card before Mia could open her mouth to argue.

“You do realize that we’re here because I wanted to thank for you donating
a million-dollar robotic arm to Genovia, right? Meaning that I’m meant to
pay.”

He flashed her a grin, “you already paid for our drinks at the café, so we’ll
call it even.”

“Yes, because a lukewarm hot chocolate I spilled all over your pants and a
3-course meal is the same thing.”

“Yeah, well.” The waiter brought back the check and Michael happily
signed it. “I want to celebrate your book getting published, so who cares
why we planned this? That’s way more important.”

He stood up assuredly and offered his hand to her. He felt her hesitation
while she stared at it for a moment, looking as if she thought it would shock
her. But then she took it and he helped her up, letting it linger for a beat
longer before he let go. They walked out of the restaurant side-by-side with
Lars trailing them. It was mid-afternoon now, but Michael knew that he
wanted to keep it going. He still hadn’t told her yet. He asked if she
anything else to do that day, really hoping that she would say no.

Again, she hesitated and looked at him thoughtfully, but admitted that she
was free until four. He grinned, looping his arm under hers, proclaiming
that they could keep celebrating.

She froze up after he took her arm. By the time she managed to ask him
what they would do, he was already walking her over to a horse carriage.
He definitely had a plan.

Michael saw her expression go from puzzlement to complete shock as he

asked if she had ever ridden in one. He had certainly never taken her on
one; there was no way he would have ever been caught dead riding in a
horse-drawn carriage when he was a teenager. Even Adult Michael had to
admit that it was super cheesy, but he also knew that Mia would secretly
love it. And the thought of them sitting alone in the carriage was sounding
really appealing.

He was thrilled to hear that she never had and felt no embarrassment when
one of her arguments against going was that “they’re for people who are on
dates” and he replied with a simple “perfect.” He could tell that even with
her arguing, she did really want to go. And he was eager to please.

Michael handed the driver some money and instructed Lars to sit in the
front with her, adding to not turn around. Lars’s lips turned up slightly at his
gumption before he did as he was told.

If Michael and Mia would ever get their moment, it was then and there.

Mia was still protesting, but also laughing just the same. She then
insinuated that the carriages were cruel to horses, and the driver looked
insulted, snarking something back to Mia.

Michael was trying not to laugh now because Mia had a guilty look cross
her face. He gave her a fake disappointed look and tutted quietly at her. She
just had to get in the carriage now. He stood in front of the step and held his
hand out for hers, just like he had in the restaurant. And just like she had
then, she looked hesitant to take it.

Come on, Mia. If you really have no feelings for me, what’s the worst a
dorky carriage ride can do?

He saw her glance around for a moment, perhaps to see if there was
anybody watching her. She seemed satisfied enough though because she
finally rolled her eyes and let her help her in the carriage. She laughed as
she climbed in and he followed right behind her. And soon enough, their
knees were bumping into each other’s as they rode along Central Park.

Michael was playing his luck now. He had just-so-casually put his arm
around Mia when the carriage first started moving. In the moment, he
pretended to be examining the scenery but really, he was just studying her
reaction. And she leaned back into his arm as if it was the most natural
thing in the world. So, he kept pushing it a little further, scootching ever so
slightly closer to her.

She looked pointedly at him after a few minutes and it looked like she had a
speech prepared. But no words ever came out. Michael was just sitting
there, looking into her eyes. And then he was looking at her lips and it felt
like they were just calling out to him. That urge he had felt in the café was
back and much stronger than before. But he was willing himself not to do
anything without her permission first. She would have to be the one to
make the next move.

He tore his gaze away from her mouth and back into her eyes, desperately
seeking the answer he so craved. She stared back at him, and it was like
they were two souls lost in time. And then it happened. She glanced down
at his lips and then back up. Her own were slightly parted. She had a look in
her eyes he had never seen before. She was screaming for him to go for it.

And so, he did. He tried to be gentle about it, as gentle as a man who had
been waiting for this kiss for two years could be, but it heated up almost
immediately He wouldn’t be proud to admit it, but his mind went blank and
his animal instincts emerged as they deepened the kiss. He was suddenly
that teenage boy making out with his girlfriend in his college dorm room.

It was like he was a starved animal. He was so hungry for her that it was
like all his sense and self-control were lost. And it seemed to be the same
for her. She was kissing him back with just as much ferocity. Her body was
pressed up against him, so much so that she was practically in his lap.

He couldn’t control his hands as they re-inspected the territory they had
once known so well. They were running through her hair, and then holding
her neck, and then moving a bit lower, all on their own. He didn’t care
about anything else, couldn’t care about anything else. All he knew in that
moment were Mia’s lips, firmly planted on his as they rode down twenty or
so blocks.

He didn’t even notice how much time had passed until the carriage came to
a sudden stop (well, it seemed sudden for him) and it was like the rest of the
world came flooding back. He was panting and couldn’t focus his vision.

She came back to reality much faster than him. “Oh my God!” She looked
at him with utter horror, but he didn’t couldn’t find it in himself to care. His
chest kept rising and falling with his heavy breaths and he was still softly
holding her face in his hands. This was definitely the moment.

“Mia, you have to know. You have to know I lo-“

But her hand collided with his mouth, not allowing him to finish. He was so
startled that his own hands dropped to her arms.

“DO NOT SAY IT.”

She then whipped her head around and told Lars that they were leaving. He
hopped out and helped her down without another word. And then they were
gone, with Michael staring blankly as she hurried away. He had finally
caught his breath and his mind was clearing up as his sense returned.

He had just let her get away, again. He had no chance of stopping her now
and instead pulled out his phone. A text was the only thing he could do.

Mia,

I’m not sorry.

And I’ll wait.

Love,

Michael

Chapter End Notes

God, I kept getting anxious/overwhelmed while writing this chapter.

I'm not sure if it was all the dialogue from the actual book (which I
tried to get through without just copying) or if it was because I knew
just how ~ steamy ~ some of it would be coming from Michael. Also,
"Tis the Damn Season" kept playing over again in my mind.
 The Knight Rides at Midnight
Chapter Notes

The longest chapter by far and there's still a bit more to come! The
theme song of this chapter is most definitely "Long Story Short" from
Taylor Swift's Evermore album. Enjoy as always! xx

Sitting inside the carriage alone, Michael felt more emotions coursing
through his body than ever before. He felt humiliated because the driver
was staring dead at him, open-mouthed. He felt distraught because his mind
kept replaying Mia’s voice screaming “Oh my God!” He felt euphoric as he
remembered the warmth of her lips against his. He felt cold because she had
just leapt out of his arms. He felt angry because she hadn’t let him say what
he’s wanted to say for years. He felt hope as he pictured the look she gave
him before they kissed. And he felt mournful because he wasn’t sure if she
would ever admit it out loud.

Without making any eye-contact, Michael handed the driver a generous tip
and muttered a thanks before heading off to the street. He couldn’t stand to
look at the pleasant greenery and joyful visitors in the park. Walking the
long way home from Central Park to his SoHo apartment, Michael couldn’t
quite get his bearings. This was partly due to his imbalanced physical state
that their passionate kissing had left him with, but more so to do with the
unruly feeling left in the pit of his stomach.

His brain was desperately trying to process through his scrambled thoughts.
He had hoped that their lunch would really become a date and that perhaps,
if he played his cards right, he would admit his feelings and she would do
the same. But that’s not what happened exactly.

What happened was that he treated it as a romantic event from the start,
feigning blissful ignorance of her practical engagement and tentative plans
to follow her boyfriend across the country.
It didn’t matter what she told him, Michael just continued on with his
flirting and wooing. He ignored her uncomfortable looks or fidgeting,
throwing out compliments no matter how much she pretended to not notice
them. And then he went even further, and essentially forced her onto that
ridiculous (amazing) carriage ride. And then he kissed her.

And sure, she zealously kissed him back. And he certainly had waited
(using all of his willpower) until he was sure that It was what she wanted.
And yet, he felt a bit… nauseated?

Not to be confused, he felt elation to know that there was unquestionably

something still between them. But he also worried that he had taken things
too far too quickly. He had kept pushing his limits throughout the entire
afternoon. He hadn’t cared that she seemed awkward, or that she heartily
refused the carriage ride. He hadn’t cared that she looked at him with
horrified eyes after they broke apart from their kiss. And he especially
hadn’t cared that she rejected his attempted admission and ran away. He had
continued to toss her compliments, had tried to admit his feelings, and had
sent her that text.

He hadn’t cared in those moments, taken over by a mixture of lust and love.
But as he carried on through the streets and his hazy mind cleared, he
replayed their time together. And now, he definitely cared.

In fact, he felt downright sleazy.

He had made Mia into a cheater. Even if she was ultimately the one making
her own decisions, Michael had undoubtedly been the one pushing her into
it. He knew for certain that he had come on too strong. No matter how
confident he was that she loved him just as much as he loved her, was that a
good enough reason to act so recklessly? They had spent a long time very
passionately kissing in the carriage out in plain sight. He knew better than
that. There could be leaks and a story out before he even arrived at his loft.

“Princess Seeya Later and the Tech Homewrecker”, “The Princess and the
Chea(t)?”, “Princess Mia: Romantic Day in the Park… But NOT with her
Fiancé!”
And those were the nicer versions of what would actually be written.

And it would all come down on her because she was the princess and the
one that was engaged to be engaged or whatever. It was her name that
would get dragged through the mud. Michael’s name would appear as a
sideline, quickly forgotten, and at worst, he would face some
embarrassment. Mia, on the other hand, would be pounced on by a media
and public constantly looking for reasons to break down young celebrities.
The thought of himself being the cause of that made him feel ill.

He had no regrets about showing Mia his true intentions, but he wished he
had gone about it another way. Maybe he should have written her a letter
and let her come to him instead? She definitely would have left J.P. then…
Right? He felt a pain in his gut when he considered that she might not even
dump J.P. now, despite everything that had just happened. That thought
made him feel sicker.

There was really nothing he could do now. He had put it all out there, and it
was up to her to move forward.

But that didn’t mean he didn’t compulsively check his phone throughout his
whole walk home. He kept feeling phantom vibrations, but his messages
were clear every time he opened them. At one point, his phone really did
ping, but it was just his dad confirming dinner at Michael’s loft later that
evening.

Oh, great. Michael had forgotten all about his promise to host them. He
didn’t have anything he could serve them, or enough plates to serve
anything on. But he couldn’t cancel now, it was too late. And it wasn’t his
family’s fault that he had made an absolute ass of himself that day and was
now facing somewhat of a personal crisis.

So, as any mature adult would do, Michael ordered Chinese food once he
arrived at his loft. His shirt was sticking to his back with sweat caused by
the summer humidity and ridiculous sports coat he was wearing. Why had
he chosen that restaurant again?
Oh, right. It’s because he knew how much Mia would love it. And how
pretty she would look next to the lake. With the sun beaming down on her-

Whatever, he needed to push those thoughts out of his mind. He needed to

get his (cold) shower out of the way and get ready in time for his family
(plus Kenneth)’s arrival.

He hopped out of the shower and checked his phone again unnecessarily
before tossing it onto the bed and changing. God, was this what his life
would be like now? Obsessing over that damn phone, waiting for the love
of his life to finally answer him?

The food arrived just before everyone was meant to get there. Michael tried
his best to make it look nice, laying out all the food on his new dining table
(that he hadn’t used yet). He even tried to spruce up the living room in the
same way the designer had when she first showed everything off to him.
Michael even fluffed a few pillows. He wasn’t exactly sure why, but he
really wanted his parents to approve of his new place. He was a big adult
man and stuff now, sure, but he still hoped that they would like it

He took another futile peek at his phone while waiting for his family to ride
up the elevator to the loft. The screen flashed a message and he
unconsciously sucked in a sharp breath.

It was from Boris. He wanted to know if he could come over the next day to
check out the apartment and maybe play a few video games.

Michael felt himself deflate before texting back a quick “Sure, any time
after twelve.” It wasn’t that he didn’t want to hang out with Boris, but he
would have definitely preferred to make plans with someone else. As in
Mia. That someone else was Mia. There was really no need to be coy
anymore.

Michael put on a big smile as he opened the door and let everyone in. His
dad made a low-whistling sound as he entered the apartment, and his mom’s
eyes bugged out momentarily.

“Wow, Michael. This place is…”

“Big,” Lilly ever-so-kindly finished for her. “Really freaking huge.”

Michael shrugged back, trying not to feel self-conscious. He was well-

aware of how big it seemed, especially in the front room. But it wasn’t
really that big. Really.

“It’s really not that big, it just seems that way now,” he said awkwardly.
“Uhm, anyways, food? I think I got everyone’s favorites.”

His parents managed to get over their initial shock quite quickly and smiled
as he led them over to the table.

Once they were all settled and eating, Michael’s father asked, “so, what
were you up to today, Michael?”

The question caught him off guard and Michael started choking on the piece
of broccoli he had been chewing. Was it over the news? Were there pictures
of them circulating? He imagined a picture of him with his hands over Mia
in a comprising position with a title reading out “A Royal Scandal: The
Princess and the No-Longer-A-Pauper!” His parents looked concerned and
Lilly was staring at him oddly. Kenneth was forcefully patting Michael on
the back.

Michael chugged down some water and cleared his throat, waving Kenneth
off, “Sorry, I’m fine… Uhm, not that much really. Just kinda hung around.”

His dad nodded, frowning at him. Oh God, did they all know he was lying?
“Well, I hope not at the office. We’re worried about you being stuck there
day in day out.” Michael glanced at his mom who was giving him a
sympathetic look. Maybe he needed to stop panicking about his afternoon
activities.

“Oh… Uhm, no. Honestly, these first few weeks are going to be crazy, but
it’ll settle down once all the teams are hired. I got my assistant this week, so
that’s already some things off my plate.”

“Okay, just make sure not to work too hard, Michael. You’re still young, let
yourself have a little fun,” his mom gave him a smile, which he tried to
return. If they were just worried about him working, he didn’t have any
problems.

“So, how was your last week of high school?” Michael turned to Lilly and
Kenneth, eager to move the conversation away from himself.

Kenneth shrugged while Lilly rolled her eyes and declared that she was way
too ready for it to be over. “All we have now is prom…” she gave Michael
a pointed look that he missed because he was looking down at his
chopsticks. His years in Japan made him pretty skillful with them. “And
graduation on Sunday.”

He looked up and absentmindedly nodded at her. “Right, I’m sure you guys
must be excited. You’re valedictorian right, Kenneth?” The younger boy
nodded back happily and Dr. Moscovitz asked him about his speech, which
he began explaining. Michael smiled politely and tried to listen intently, but
honestly? It sounded like Kenneth’s speech was going to be a real snooze
fest. He was apparently trying so hard that he kept missing Lilly looking at
him.

As much as he tried to avoid it, Mia stayed in the back of his mind like a
painful reminder. He kept discretely checking his phone under the table, but
it didn’t seem like anyone had taken notice. ‘Seem’ being the operative
word.

After putting away the leftovers, Michael was showing his parents the rest
of the loft while Lilly and Kenneth stayed back to examine his TV setup.
He was standing out in the hallway while his parents inspected his
bedroom. It was while his mom was stubbornly fixing his bedsheets and his
dad was testing the window’s strength that Michael felt a harsh tug on his
arm. He turned and was met with his sister’s glare. She knows. How does
she always freaking know?

He checked to confirm that his parents were still occupied and grabbed
Lilly’s arm, dragging her down the hallway to avoid being overheard. He
dropped her arm and leaned in, hissing, “What?”
“You know what.” She kept her glare while crossing her arms over her
chest.

Michael signed, pushing back some of the hair in his face. “Look, Lil, it
was a mistake. Kind of, I don’t know.” But she also didn’t seem to know
because her eyes were narrowing as he spoke.

“What are you talking about?”

What? Does she not know? “What are you talking about?”

“Do you not remember what I told you?” Her eyes were so now narrow
they were snake-like.

“About what?” He racked his brain, but it was coming up blank. It seemed
that lunch had messed with his brain in more ways than one.

Rather than answering like any normal person would have, Lilly rolled her
eyes and grunted, “Whatever,” before going back to the front room.
Michael didn’t have time to question her further because his parents were
already calling him back.

Okay, so maybe he should stop feeling so paranoid about their afternoon.

But what had Lilly told him that was so important?

He never got a chance to ask her because once they were all set to leave,
Lilly was the first one out the door.

“So, you’ll pick up Nana in the morning?”

Michael hadn’t gotten to spend much time with her during her visit last
week, so he had offered to be the one to pick her up this time. He’d have to
get up early on a Sunday, but he was happy to do so. “Yeah, I’ll drop her off
around 10.”

His mom gave him one last kiss on the cheek before leaving and Michael
shut the door behind him. As he stood in his living room, all he could hear
was the familiar traffic outside. For the first time since returning home,
Michael suddenly felt… Lonely. He wasn’t sure if it was watching his
family leave or the day’s events that had left him feeling like an empty
shell, but he wasn’t a fan of the sudden awareness he had.

He hadn’t felt like this since his first few weeks in Japan. At the time, he
had desperately wanted to speak to Mia, who had been his reminder of
home for so long. Now… He felt exactly the same way. Love really did bite
sometimes. He would have also been happy with Pavlov, but he and his
parents had already agreed to wait until next week to try moving him.

He crashed down onto the couch and flipped on the TV. He settled on a
show about people selling stuff to a pawn shop on the history channel. It
wasn’t great, but Michael was too drained to search for anything else. He
watched for a bit, only now realizing how comfortable his new couch
was…

Who cares if he’s alone? Who cares about the empty feeling in his chest?
All Michael cared about at that moment was how nice his new couch felt
and how much the guy selling his antique set of mermaid figurines was
going to get for them. They were arguing. The guy said $1800, the
pawnshop guy said $750… He was outraged… They were negotiating…
And sold.

Michael drifted off to sleep with one last fleeting thought. Oh, did she
mean…

He woke up early the next day with a crook in his neck. Oh God, he had not
meant to fall asleep on the couch. It didn’t matter how young he was, no
neck could survive that angle without causalities. He groaned as he got up,
squinting at his phone. It was around 6 in the morning.

Oh, great. Not only did he have the work schedule of a middle-aged man,
he also now had the sleep schedule of one too. He rubbed his eyes,
yawning. He still had a few hours before he had to head to the airport.

He walked into the bathroom attached to his bedroom, glancing at the bed
as he passed. It looked appealing, but… He couldn’t bring himself to lie
down. He was tired, but more so by life than a lack of sleep. Without
intention, he checked his phone for messages once more. Disappointed but
unsurprised, he left the damn thing to charge and tried to push it out of his
mind. He knew that it was stupid to keep expecting to see something so
soon, but he couldn’t help the bundle of anticipation that stubbornly get
building itself up.

He considering popping into the office and going through any paperwork
that had arrived during his afternoon off. But then he recalled his parents’
concerned looks during dinner and silently promised himself that he
wouldn’t go into the office on weekends unless absolutely necessary. He
could still send emails from home; he didn’t need to be there in person
today.

He was finally fine until he was suddenly struck by the memory of what
he’d done the afternoon before and the fear of any potential news crept back
into his gut. Perhaps he’d go for a run and stop at a coffee shop on the way
back. Just to see if there was any talk.

He was out in the streets a few minutes later, jogging through SoHo and
glancing at newsstands as he passed. He couldn’t really read anything at his
pace but didn’t notice any too-familiar faces. Not that their little rendezvous
would ever be front-page news. But he still had some irrational uneasiness
about the possibility.

He walked into the coffee shop sometime later a bit sweatier than
appropriate, but no one paid him much mind. He grabbed a coffee with an
egg sandwich and lingered as he put in his sugar, ears open for any gossip
that potentially stood out to him.

There was absolutely nothing of interest. He overheard one lady describing

her daughter’s prom dress, another gentleman telling his friend about a date
he’d been on, and a couple discussing a television show. No, there was
nothing Michael needed to be worried about.

He returned home feeling better about things. He would probably still check
the news on his laptop later that day, but it definitely didn’t seem like there
was any story he needed to worry about.
After a shower and (another) quick peek at his phone, Michael replied to
some emails. He also did a short search of Mia’s name and was somewhat
pleased (and somewhat irritated) to see that everything seemed to center
around her “engagement” and her father’s campaign. The Genovian polls
were closing soon, but no results had been published as of yet.

He grabbed his things and hailed a cab to take him to the airport. There
were a few messages on his phone, but none of them contained the message
he was hoping to see. His heart took a bit of a dive.

It was almost incredible to recall how he had felt barely a week ago on the
plane from Japan. He had been so confident, so sure of himself, and so
completely unaware of the hope he had pushed far into the back of his
mind. Everything had changed so much in just a few short days.

His grandma was pleasantly surprised to see Michael waiting for her as she
came down the runway. He greeted her with a smile as she enveloped him
in a tight hug.

“Oh, Mikey! I feel like I haven’t gotten to see enough of you since you’ve
come back.” She gave him a kiss on the cheek and beamed up at him.

He grabbed her suitcase from her as they walked out of the terminal. “I feel
the same way. How was your flight?”

“Oh, it was alright. I don’t much like flying back-and-forth, but I needed to
come back for Lilly’s graduation. Oh, I pray that she doesn’t wear all that
makeup. It’ll ruin the pictures.”

He didn’t answer her as he flagged down another cab. He was starting to

wonder if Lilly put so much effort into her look just to piss off the adults in
her life. Otherwise, it didn’t seem worth it.

They chatted in the car as they drove back to Manhattan. She told him that
she was considering moving from Florida to be closer to them, which his
parents had been speaking about since his grandfather’s passing. She asked
about work and he told her that work was going well, but that it still felt like
they were getting used to their new surroundings.
“And you’ve been spending time with friends, yes?”

“When I’ve got the time, yeah.” He gave her a smile that he hoped didn’t
look nervous.

“And are you see anyone special?”

He gave her a careful look. “No… not exactly.” He didn’t much like lying
to his grandmother, but it wasn’t technically a lie.

“Mmm…” she looked back at him with a sad smile. “If you really want it,
Michael, it’ll all work out. That is what you want, current?” She stared at
him in a way that made him feel like she was somehow reading his mind
and he glanced out at the window behind her. After a moment, he nodded
slowly.

She gave him a pat on the hand. “Then like I said, it’ll all work out.”

The rest of the trip was left in a comfortable silence. Nana went back to
look out the window and Michael stared up front, trying not to think about
it anymore. He kept having to remind himself that it was all up to Mia now
and that there was nothing left for him to do.

He took his grandmother’s bag up to the apartment for her and greeted his
parents. They invited him to stay for lunch, but he declined, happy to have
Boris as an excuse. He really didn’t want them to ask him any more
questions. And he really didn’t want to have to deal with Lilly, who was
thankfully still sleeping when they arrived.

He waved goodbye to everyone before taking the subway back to his loft.
This time, he was relieved to live alone. He took a spot on the couch and
turned on a video game for the first time since he’d been home. It was
sometimes good to be an adult.

Boris buzzed the loft around 12:30 pm.

“Nice one.” He was grinning and pointed to Michael’s old Skinner Box
shirt he had put on that morning
Michael grinned back, “Oh, yeah. We’ve gotta try to get the band back
together while you’re here.”

Boris nodded as Michael led him inside to the main space. He gave a very
Boris-like impressed face and a thumbs up, “Dude, this place looks even
better in person. I almost expect you to tell me some mafia boss really owns
it or something.”

Michael shushed him and made a slashing motion over his neck. “Shh, we
don’t say these things out loud.” They shared a fake-serious nod and
Michael showed him around the loft. The younger boy was most excited to
see the gaming set-up and what was going to be his own room.

“Ooh, I can’t wait for Tee to see this place. She’s going to be so jealous
about having to live in a tiny dorm.” And then he paused, looking a bit
embarrassed. “Assuming it’s alright if Tina comes over sometimes?”

Michael snorted back, “Yeah, it’ll be no problem. I’ve already hired

someone to sound-proof your room.” Boris went bright red. “… For your
violin, of course,” he added with a sly grin, and they both laughed.

“Right… I would’ve brought her today, but it’s prom tonight and she’s
spending the day getting ready.” Michael nodded back but was then
suddenly struck with something. The prom. That’s what Lilly was talking
about.

“I’m gonna go use the bathroom,” Boris said as he walked back to the
hallway.

“Yeah, sure… I’ll get some cokes,” Michael answered distractedly, moving
towards the kitchen. What had Lilly said again? Prom, midnight… The
elevators? Something about Mia needing help.

He heard Boris yell something from another room and vaguely answered
with a “yeah.” Why would he ever need to go to prom?

Before he could finish that thought, Boris came into the kitchen with a
smug expression on his face. “I think I can make this work.”
Michael replied with a friendly grunt and handed him his drink. “Yeah,
yeah. Though I’m sure you’ll miss whatever roommate you were supposed
to have.”

“Oh, definitely. But how do you feel about hosting a few parties?” They
shared a grin and clinked their glasses together. “Seriously, though, thank
you, Mike. This is really cool of you.”

Michael suddenly realized just how happy he was to have Boris around.
Even though he had taken the fast-track through college, this might give
him a chance to take back some of his youth.

Oh, God. He really was starting to sound like a middle-aged man now.

They spent a few hours playing video games and chatting about nothing too
important. They talked about Boris’s last week at AES, Michael’s new
office, what games were coming out soon. They exchanged stories, made
plans, and yelled out fake insults about each other’s playing. They ordered
some pizza and stuffed themselves with it. The hang-out was so refreshing
that Michael had completely forgotten about his phone and the message he
was waiting on. He just felt light, happy, and full.

They agreed upon Boris moving in sometime in July. He was going to visit
some family in Russian over June and then wanted to give his parents some
time to adjust to his moving out. It all sounded like a great plan.

It was almost 4 hours later when Boris finally stretched and said that he
should probably go home and get ready for the dance.

“I’ve still got to pick up my tux and Tee’s corsage.”

Michael snickered a bit, “Yeah, have fun with that.”

But Boris gave him a confused look back, “What do you mean?”

“Well, prom isn’t exactly the most fun thing ever.”

He shrugged back, “I’m excited. I get to spend the whole night dancing
with my beautiful girlfriend… And Wahim, but he promised to leave us
alone afterwards.”

Michael scrunched up his nose and nodded, unconvinced. Obviously, Boris

was a different person to him, but he still found the idea of prom just so
unappealing. “Yeah, sure, I guess. Well, I hope it’s as good as you think.
See you at graduation tomorrow.”

Boris gave him a funny look but nodded, turning towards the elevator.

Before he closed the door, Michael remembered Lilly’s words again. “Hey,
Boris. Where’s your prom going to be?”

He gave Michael a bit of a victorious smile, “Waldorf-Astoria. 8 o’clock.”

They said a quick goodbye and Michael shut the door, feeling a bit stupid
after seeing Boris’s face. Am I really that obvious?

The thought of prom was like an alarm in his head and he instantly checked
his phone for the first time in hours. He let out an unwitting sigh when he
saw that there was still no word from her. Not that he expected one,
considering she was probably at home getting ready for her long-awaited
prom.

Hmm… Why would Mia need his help by the elevators? He definitely had
an idea, but the thought made him grimace and he would have preferred to
pretend that it wasn’t a possibility. And, surely, Lilly wouldn’t send him for
that? What would he even be able to do, fight for Mia’s honor like the
knight from her book? She wasn’t some damsel in distress; everything was
her decision. Not to mention the fact that she has a giant bodyguard
strapped to her at all times.

Shaking his head, Michael forced himself to stop obsessing about it. It was
still so early and all his plans for the day were already over. He needed to
do something else… Avoid wasting the whole day sleeping on his couch or
thinking about-

He signed heavily and resorted to asking some of his work friends to dinner.
He couldn’t handle another night of sitting alone in his loft again, especially
not tonight.

He was grateful to get some yeses and they planned for dinner around
seven. He had to kill some time until then. Since he was video-gamed out
and his emails were answered, Michael resorted to the hobby that had
helped him through some trying times in Japan: exercise. Even though he
had already taken a jog that morning, a more strenuous work-out was just
what he needed. And anyway, he had to work on maintaining his newfound
broad shoulders.

He went down the street to the gym that was a pay-as-you-go place. He was
glad to have the distraction as he pumped loud music into his ears and lifted
some weights. As long as he didn’t have to keep thinking about the stupid
prom.

Following his work-out, Michael cleaned himself up and headed out to

dinner at a restaurant uptown. He took the subway since he could spare the
time and was annoyed to see a bunch of teenagers dressed in formal wear.
He almost rolled his eyes as he heard the group giggle and chat across the
car. Why would anyone ever be that excited to go to a dance? Unless it was
to save the girl you liked from an awful date. Or admit your feelings to her
or something. Then, fine, they weren’t that bad.

But otherwise? Nothing redeemable about them really.

Whatever. He was an adult man now, going to dinner with his other adult
friends. He was not a teenager going to prom.

Dinner was a good time. It reminded Michael so much of being back in

Japan, how self-assured he had felt when he was there. There, he was just
Michael the team lead. The guy who had all the answers. Here, he
sometimes felt like he didn’t know anything at all. Life had been so much
easier without the distraction of love, so much clearer without his desperate
pining.

He let himself forget about Mia again as he drank beers and laughed with
his friends. They were switching between English and Japanese, talking
animatedly with each other. This was exactly what he needed after such a
week. A different type of familiarity.

They finished a bit past ten and Michael was now reasonably tipsy and very
stuffed. Someone in the group suggested a club, but he declined firmly. He
wasn’t even close to drunk enough to be convinced to go out dancing.

He got to his apartment around eleven and plopped down on the couch,
once again reminded of how cushy it was. He turned on the TV and felt his
phone buzz in his pocket. His heart made a leap as he pulled it out. Was this
the message? Was it finally happening?

He was smacked in the face with disappointment when he saw that it was
Lilly who had texted him. All the message said was “!!!” Great, Lilly. Real
descriptive.

He was about to reply when he noticed the time on his phone. It was almost
half-past eleven. He had completely forgotten about midnight.

Staring down at the time, he paused. Was this the right thing for him to do?
He had said that he’d wait for her, and coming to her rescue or whatever
was definitely not that. She was meant to be coming to him, not the other
way around.

Mind racing, his pride almost got in the way. Almost.

But then he remembered the fond smiles she had given him the day before.
And how dazzling she had looked in the afternoon sunlight. And the
familiar tickle of her breathing against his neck.

And he threw all sense of pride out the window. He grabbed his wallet,
phone, and keys as he ran out the door. He didn’t care that he didn’t have a
guarantee of what would happen between them. All he cared about was that
she knew that he wasn’t planning on leaving again this time.

Michael was thrilled when he was able to flag down a cab quickly.
Unfortunately, it was still Saturday, and traffic wasn’t doing him any favors.
He kept checking his watch. 30 minutes till, 25, 15… The minutes kept
counting down as the sound of honking surrounded them. They were less
than a mile away now.

“Hey, can you just let me out here? Thanks, man.” He handed the driver
some cash and stumbled out of the car. He was completely sober now, but
the nerves that were building up in his stomach made him unsteady.

And then he was running down 50th street in his jeans and T-shirt. It felt so
ridiculous and cliché that Michael couldn’t believe that this was real life.
He passed Rockefeller Center and could suddenly picture Mia’s tongue
bleeding violently against the ice. But he could also picture the 16th
birthday he had planned for her almost exactly 2 years ago. There was no
ice-skating rink open tonight like there had been then.

He felt like the knight in Mia’s book, the one he had secretly been hoping
was based on him. Maybe this was just how it was meant to be.

He arrived at the hotel a few minutes before midnight and headed straight
for the lobby. He stopped right in his tracks when he saw two familiar
figures talking directly in front of the elevators. He carefully moved closer,
almost hidden behind a large plant. He made eye-contact with Lars who
gave him a simple nod. Michael could now hear most of what the couple
was saying.

He saw J.P., wearing a stupid plastic crown on his head, spread his palms
out to Mia, who was looking at him furiously. He noticed that she was
holding her own crown as she crossed her arms. He then heard her say
something about a hotel room.

The elevators, midnight, a hotel room. The idea that Michael had tried to
bury was definitely confirmed now.

She was now shaking her head at J.P., and Michael heard the words
“hooking up” come out of her mouth. He almost stormed J.P. when the guy
dropped his hands and looked at her with an utterly unbashful face. He was
speaking much louder than Mia and asking her what was wrong with
whatever she had been talking about. He said something about wanting to
make it special for her. Michael really wished that he wasn’t hearing this
conversation now, but he also couldn’t seem to move away. Lars was
watching the twosome very intently.

Mia spoke with a much softer voice, but Michael could see her narrowed
eyes and stiff posture. He could have sworn that he heard her say something
about Lilly. That’s when J.P. started vigorously shaking his head and
evidently began implying that Lilly was lying because Mia interrupted him
and told him to stop. She had now raised her voice and was speaking hotly.

So much so that Michael clearly heard, “She told me you slept with her!”
there was more, but Michael was now seeing red and couldn’t hear anything
else. That fucking asshole. Not only had he stolen Michael’s girlfriend, J.P.
had also used Lilly while knowing he wanted Mia.

Michael hadn’t even realized that he was walking towards them until the
elevator door opened directly in front of them. He was so shocked that he
froze in place. Before he even could look at him, Lars was already checking
the elevator and asking Mia something. He gave J.P. a cold look when he
tried to answer, but Mia did a doubletake between him and the elevator.
Before he could finish, she had interrupted him with the chilliest “no”
Michael had ever heard.

He no longer felt the need to go punch J.P. in the face. His terrified
expression gave him the satisfaction he needed at that moment.

He noticed the switch as Mia changed into princess mode. She straightened
her back and put on a distinguished look. She then pulled the stupid
diamond ring off of her finger and tactfully into his palm, which saying
some crap about being friends. J.P. looked absolutely miserable and it filled
Michael with such a rush of joy he couldn’t even begin to explain.

The idiot tried to plead with her, but she stopped him and gave him the most
pathetic pat on the shoulder in history. Michael almost laughed out loud as
he watched J.P. look at her with sad puppy-dog eyes.

She then said the funniest thing about Stacey Cheeseman having a crush on
him and Michael had to literally cover his mouth to not laugh. This whole
night was feeling a bit too Seventh Heaven for him. He shared a look with
Lars who also looked like he was suppressing the urge to laugh.

J.P. kept trying to argue with her, looking totally dejected. But then she held
up a hand for him to stop and gave him a short kiss.

Michael took a few steps back from them, giving her some privacy. The
kiss didn’t bother him in the slightest. It gave off an air of finality, as J.P.
stared back at her with a crestfallen face. Michael also wasn’t bothered
because he caught sight of Mia’s own expression, and it seemed like she
was trying against all will to be as gracious as possible. It certainly seemed
more gracious than their breakup had been.

As a final act of hilarity, Mia then hurried away from him and flipped out
her cell phone. She was walking towards Michael now, too involved with
her phone call to notice him. She said something about a cease and desist on
J.P.’s play, which Michael thought was pretty badass.

He was taking slow steps toward her, about to call out to her when she
smacked right into him. He was struck with such a sharp pain that his vision
went momentarily fuzzy. Unfortunately for him, she had been putting her
phone away in the moment and the end of her crown had been pointed
directly at his shoulder.

“Oh my God.” Oh, not that again. “What are you doing here?”

He rubbed his shoulder as he grumbled, “What do you think I’m doing

here?” I’m obviously here rescuing you. Or more like getting attacked by
you.

She suddenly looked very panicky and started asking him how long he’d
been there and how much he’d heard. He was looking back at her clearly
now, the pain having dulled. He didn’t really want to admit how much
eavesdropping he had done, but admitted, “Enough to make me feel
nauseous.” She was looking at him with wide, worried eyes and he wanted
to lighten the mood, deciding to mock her about her Stacey Cheeseman
line. He was just saying how Seventh Heaven she sounded with a smirk as
she grabbed his arm and dragged him around the corner. He would have
been embarrassed to admit the thrill that came over his stomach as she
pulled him

He was dismayed when she dropped his arm as soon as they were
noticeably out of J.P.’s range. Of course. She demanded to know what he
was doing there. And even though she was trying to look stern, Michael
noticed her glancing him up and down. That gave him all of the confidence
he needed, and he grinned back at her.

He explained about Lilly’s message to him a few days ago, but that it didn’t
seem like she needed his help anyway. He was deeply happy with the shade
of scarlet she was turning as he spoke and smugly wrapped an arm around
her waist. That waist that was finally free for him. Even though he was
quite sure of the answer, he asked Mia why she thought Lilly had wanted
him there.

Mia noticeably didn’t move his arm but began speaking with a quick, high-
pitched voice. “I think it’s because she knew I always wanted to spend my
senior prom with you.” Sure, that’s definitely it. He laughed with a sarcastic
air and called Lars over. He was now remembering the rage he had felt just
minutes ago.

He asked Lars whether he thought that he should go turn J.P. Reynolds-

Abernathy the Fourth into cream of wheat. Neither of them was grinning
when the bodyguard nodded and agreed. Michael dropped his arm from
Mia’s waist and was feeling murderous all over again.

Mia had regained her panicked expression and yelped, “Lars! No. No!
Michael, it’s over. J.P. and I just broke up. You don’t have to hit anybody.”

“Well, I think maybe I do.” Not even the reminder that Mia was now single
was enough to distract Michael from what he had heard about Lilly or the
smug look J.P. had given when the elevators opened. “I think maybe the
earth would be a better place if somebody had turned J.P. Reynolds-
Abernathy the Fourth into cream of wheat a long time ago. Lars? Do you
agree with me?” There was no joking air as he spoke.
The bodyguard said something about it being after midnight and union
regulations. Michael suggested that Lars could hold him while he hit him.
And he was completely serious until Mia grabbed his arm again and pulled
him towards her.

She proposed that Lars take the night off and then turned back to Michael.
She had the strangest look on her face as she said,” And Michael, why don’t
we go back to your place?”

It was like Michael’s brain had fallen out of his head and splattered to the
ground. He just gawked down at her, unable to think or speak. Did she
really-

“That sounds like a completely excellent idea.” He didn’t even care that his
voice had cracked as he complied. He turned to look at Lars in
bewilderment, who just shrugged and agreed. Is this real life?

He was still staring at her shell-shocked as Mia led him outside and into the
limo. All Michael had been able to croak out was his address to Hans, her
driver.

He was now watching her as she wrote furiously into her journal.

She glanced up at him, smiling and pushing a hair out of her face. That was
what finally pulled him out of his trance.

“Hey,” he smirked at her, “Why don’t you drop the journal and pay
attention to me for a bit?” She giggled a bit, writing down a few last lines
before putting the book into her purse and sliding towards him.

Surreal was all Michael could think.

 Their Moment
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes

She was anxiously biting her fingernails as they stood in the elevator
together. He had a firm grip on her other hand and was swaying it a bit
absentmindedly as they rode up to his floor. Neither of them spoke, but the
tiny room was filled with an air of anticipation and nerves.

He only let go of her when he needed to unlock the door, holding it open as
she walked in. He flicked on the light switch and there she was, standing in
his living room, staring at him with wide eyes.

It was then that he really took in her appearance for the first time tonight.
His eyes involuntarily panned up from her feet to her face, taking just a
moment longer than appropriate to appreciate her bare legs. She was
wearing a black lace dress that was short and tight and nothing like he had
ever seen her in before. She didn’t look like Princess Mia and she didn’t
look like his old-girlfriend Mia. She looked like the new adult Mia he was
getting to know.

“Erm, you look amazing. Not very prom-like though, is it?” he teased,
finally meeting her face. Her cheeks flushed a bit. He could feel his own
face heating up.

“Ha, no, it’s not.” She was restlessly twirling the plastic crown in her hands.
“Honestly? It felt like the right thing considering what we did yesterday.”

He opened his mouth to apologize, worried that she was saying it with
regret, but Mia just giggled and put the crown down on a nearby table. He
gave her a smirk.

“Well, it looks really good on you.” His eyes did another scan without him
meaning to and he cleared his throat. “Are you hungry? I’ve got some
Chinese leftovers”
Mia smiled at him and nodded. “Starving.”

He took her hand again and led her into the kitchen. He pulled out the food
he had from yesterday, including a full box of cold sesame noodles. He had
ordered them more out of habit than anything else because no one in his
family was really a fan. It was somehow too perfect that fate had led them
here.

They sat on opposite counters to each other, eating from the leftover food
boxes. They fell into easy conversation. He teased Mia about the bruise that
her tiara would leave him with, and she teased him right back about
eavesdropping on her. They quipped back in forth, laughing and giggling
with an air of content.

“So, have you decided what college you’re going to?”

Mia grinned at him, putting down her empty container. “Sarah Lawrence.
It’s got a great writing program and they don’t care about SAT scores.”

He beamed, picking up the trash and putting it into the bin. “I knew that
there was no way you didn’t get in anywhere. I can’t believe people actually
believed that.”

Mia looked at him with mock offense, “Hey! I am a very accomplished

liar.”

“Yeah, I’m well aware of that,” he winked at her as they made their way
back into the living room.

Wordlessly, they both sat down next to each other on the couch. It was only
then that Michael allowed himself to take in the fact that they were alone.
They were really truly alone for the first time basically ever. There was no
risk of them being interrupted this time. There were no bodyguards, parents,
friends, roommates, or anyone who could possibly disturb then. It was
painfully aware that Mia had come to the same realization as him as they
both sat in utter silence.

The elephant in the room had certainly made itself known.

They looked at each other meaningfully. This was their moment. Michael
needed to seize their moment.

But instead, he blurted out, “You don’t mind that you’re missing any after-
prom parties, right?” He mentally cursed himself. His nerves had gotten the
better of him.

She looked at him a bit startled, but also amused. “Oh, no, ha-ha. No one’s
really doing afterparties, they’re all probably in their hotel rooms doing…”
she trailed off, looking embarrassed. She was fiddling with a finger. The
elevators. With that guy. Midnight.

He took her hand gently and spoke with the softest voice he could muster,
“hey… I don’t care about any of that. It’s not my place to wonder about
what you’ve been doing these past two years. I’m just happy that we’re
finally here, you and me.” And he meant it.

She was bright red and whispered, “I never… We never…” she trailed off
again. Huh? …Oh. OH. Even though he knew he didn’t have a right to,
Michael felt a wave of relief wash over him. He tried to hide the delight
from his face as she glanced back at him. His expression seemed to give
Mia some type of confidence though, because in a much stronger voice she
teased, “I’m surprised you don’t know that though. Considering you’ve had
Boris spying on me all this time.”

Busted. Her smirk was widening while his face flushed. “Hey, no, it wasn’t
spying! I just implied for him to keep an eye on you.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure.” She grinned as she stuck her tongue out at him.

He playfully rolled his eyes. “I was worried! We broke up and you didn’t
answer me for weeks. I didn’t know what else to do.”

Her smile faltered and her face became solemn all of a sudden, “Yeah, I was
in a bit of a bad place after our breakup…” She looked away from him
again and didn’t elaborate. He wouldn’t push it; that was a conversation for
another day.
He gently pulled her chin to meet his face. “Trust me, I was too.” She
looked up at him and gave a small smile. “But then I saw the photos of you
and J.P. and felt like I needed to let you go. At least, just for a little while. I
kept hoping that we might be able to get back… But then Boris kept telling
me about how madly in love you were with J.P. and I… I convinced myself
that I was okay with that.” She was looking at him thoughtfully now and he
was surprised by his own candor.

“I guess I might have looked like I was in love… But I can definitely tell
you now that I wasn’t.” He felt the corners of his lips curl up.

She squeezed his hand as he nodded. “But then I saw you at Columbia,
looking so beautiful and so… shy.” Michael let out a laugh while Mia
blushed. “You were so awkward and couldn’t speak. And that is what made
me realize that maybe Boris was wrong. Maybe you weren’t as over us as
he thought.” She was smiling again, listening dreamily to his words.

“But then J.P. gave you that stupid ring for your birthday,” she frowned. It
was almost funny to see how quickly her facial expressions kept changing.
“And I knew that drastic measures were called for. I needed to do
something to blow him out of the water and show you what I really wanted.
So, I left your party.” He gave Mia a mocking look and she grimaced in
embarrassment, “not because I didn’t care. But because I had to go make
the arrangements to send the CardioArm to your dad.”

“Yeah, I’ve figured that out now…” she muttered sheepishly.

“And because I knew I had to leave before I wiped the floor with that guy’s
face.” They shared a look before laughing together.

After they settled down, Mia sighed. “My dad sent me an article about you
coming back a few days before your ceremony and I- I freaked out. And I
didn’t know why. Well, I guess did know why, but I couldn’t admit it…”

He gave her a cheeky smile, “and then…” She scrunched up her nose in the
most adorable way.
“And then Lana convinced me to go see you at Columbia and I freaked out
even more. You just looked… You look so grown up and then I saw your
family and… And I went to hide out in the bathroom so I could leave
without seeing you and ruining the whole thing. But, lo and behold, Lilly
catches me in the bathroom and drags me off to see you. I guess she must
have seen my feelings before anyone else did.”

He grinned, “thank God for Lil.”

“She really has always been the one helping us out, hasn’t she? …I can’t
believe that I spent the last two years fighting with her… I was so
incredibly stupid.”

“Can’t argue with that logic.” She wiped the smirk off his face with a
pillow.

“Shut up, you could have just told me how you felt. Like at Caffe Dante.”

He gave her an incredulous look. “Are you kidding? I flirted with you the
whole time! And you kept brushing it off. And if you recall, I did try to tell
you yesterday…”

The mention of their lunch caused an air of seriousness to pass over them.
They were looking intently at each other.

Mia spoke with a delicate voice, “Michael, I’m so sorry about that… I was
overwhelmed because I still didn’t really think that ‘we’ were a
possibility… I mean, why would you want me when you’re you?”

She was looking down at her feet in a way that Michael had only seen a few
times before. She looked… Ashamed, embarrassed… And sad. This was
their true moment.

He moved closer to her on the couch and grabbed both her hands, pulling
her to look back at him. “Mia, I want to say something that I never want to
have to repeat. A few years ago, I was an insecure kid who was constantly
worrying about never living up to his princess girlfriend.” She started to
speak, but he squeezed her hand to signal her to stop. “I went away for a
long time to prove my worth and succeeded in accomplishing something
that I’m proud of. And that’s great, and I’m thankful, but I also realize that
you never thought I had something to prove. You didn’t care then, just like I
don’t care now. What you’ve done is just as important as what I’ve done.
You’re amazing, Mia, and not just because you were born a princess. I
thought you were perfect before, just like I think you’re perfect now.”

He had removed one hand from hers and was now gently cupping her
cheek. She beamed as her eyes sparkled with tears.

“Mia, I never stopped thinking about you while I was in Japan, and even
though I wouldn’t have admitted it two weeks ago, I never stopped loving
you either. I always had a small hope that everything would fit back into
place when I came back.” She was now holding the hand on her cheek.

Mia opened her mouth to speak, but Michael remembered something

suddenly. “Wait, hold that thought.” She shut her mouth with a confused
frown as he jumped off the couch and into the hallway. He emerged a few
seconds later holding something behind his back.

As he sat back down, his voice had a melodic quality, “Now, I don’t have
some big fancy diamond ring or anything. But I hope that this will be even
better…” Mia’s eyes became massive as he presented the small box to her.

“Uhm, Michael…” He laughed when he realized why she looked so

terrified.

“Oh no, definitely not. There’s no way I’m ready to give up my last name
just yet.”

He pushed the small box into her hand and she slowly opened it, glancing at
him with cautious eyes.

Mia sucked in a large breath when she saw it, two tears flowing down her
cheeks. He felt tears of his own forming as he automatically wiped hers
away with his thumb. “Oh, Michael…” she gushed, delicately picking up
the necklace. “Where did you get this?”
He softly took the chain from her and clasped it around her neck. “I found it
after you left the hotel that night. And I’ve kept it ever since… I guess I
always hoped that I’d see you wearing it again.” Michael gave her a small,
embarrassed smile. The only person he could ever imagine being this sappy
for was the beautiful girl in front of him. This was really their moment now.

“Mia, I love-“

“I love you, Michael,” she interrupted before he could finish. He looked a

bit taken aback and let out a bit of a snort. She grinned. “Sorry, I just
wanted to be first for once… I love you, Michael Moscovitz. I’ve loved you
for as long as I can remember. And I’ve never been happier than I am right
now.”

This time, there were no longing stares or gazing eyes. They didn’t pause to
look at each other or ask for permission. Without a second’s hesitation, they
both leaned in and kissed each other deeply. Mia’s arms went seamlessly
around Michael’s neck, and his arms slipped around her waist. They only
pulled apart just long enough for Michael to say, “I love you too, Mia
Thermopolis. Always have, always will.”

They stayed on the couch for a while, lips interlocked and hands re-
discovering each other. It was Michael who leaned back first, gasping for
air. Both of their chests were rising and falling viciously. “Do you want
to…” he nodded towards the hallway.

“Yes,” Mia breathed. There was a blazing look in her eyes that was causing
every muscle in his body to burn. He was trying incredibly hard to keep a
clear mind.

He grinned as she stood up immediately, holding a hand out to him. But he

had more control than he had two years ago. He was an adult now, and he
could be patient. “Are you sure? Because if you’re not-“ She grabbed his
hand and yanked it, roughly pulling him up.

“Michael, just shut up and take me to your room.”

Well, he wasn’t that patient. Without another word, he scooped her up in his
arms bridal-style and practically sprinted towards the hallway.

Their moment was finally here. Really and truly here.

There’s something incredibly strange about waking up and realizing that

you have everything you’ve ever wanted. Surreal is the only way to
describe it.

That’s exactly how Michael felt when he woke up and felt something warm
leaning against his chest. He stared up at the ceiling for a moment, trying to
figure out if he was stuck in some cruel dream or not. But he could feel her
breath tickling him. And her fingers gently grazing his stomach. This was
real life.

He peeked down at the figure and saw a mess of blonde hair in the morning
light. He moved his arm over her back, stroking a bit of bare skin softly. He
could see just a hint of her cheek right over his heart. Was it even possible
to be this happy?

“Michael,” he felt her voice vibrate against his chest that caused a fluttering
throughout his body, “I can feel your heart beating and it’s so freaking
loud.”

He laughed, “I bet that’s not the only thing you can feel. Now turn around
and come smell my neck or whatever.”

Mia moved her head so that she could now look at him clearly, eyes still
squinting with sleep. He almost let out a gasp at how beautiful she looked,
even with the smudgy makeup and messy hair. She somehow looked better
than ever to him. “How do you know about the neck thing?”

He shrugged, wrapping both arms around her. There was a small smirk
teasing his lips. “It’s just kind of noticeable when you dig your nose into it
at every opportunity.”
Mia sighed, relaxing into his arms. “Well, if the secret’s out.” She took a
large whiff, and the air gave him a familiar excitement.

“Alright, stop! Stop, you creatin.” He pulled her face up to kiss her lips.
“You’re so beautiful in the morning you know,” he mumbled, plastering her
face with soft kisses. “So, incredibly beautiful…” His kisses were moving
down her jawline and onto her neck.

“Mmhmm,” was all she could manage to reply.

Mia was writing wildly in her journal while Michael prepared some kind of
breakfast for them.

“You’re not going to include everything in there, right?” he asked as he

cracked some eggs in a pan. He was half-joking, half-serious. The thought
of Mia writing out details made his face burn.

She giggled, “no way. That’s our secret…” He swore he heard her mumble,
“for now,” before going back to her journal. They continued with their tasks
in a comfortable silence.

“Oh my God!” Mia exclaimed so abruptly that Michael almost dropped the
toast he had been holding. He looked at her expectantly, trying to catch his
breath. “The election!”

The two of them scrambled over to his laptop and looked up the results.

“Dad won!” Mia squealed, jumping and giving Michael a big hug.
“Wait…” she gave him a suspicious look, “You didn’t rig the Genovian
voting machines, right? In an effort to win back my affections?”

He rolled his eyes, “How desperate do you think I am? Mia, I would never
go that far.” She gave him a look. “Okay, fine, whatever. But just because
I’m a computer genius does not mean that I’m capable of rigging voting
machines in a small European country many thousands of miles away from
here… And they use Scantron anyway.” He gave her a wink and shrugged.
She pointed to her eyes and then to his to indicate ‘I’m watching you’
before whipping out her phone to call her dad. Right before he picked up,
Mia panicked, “what if he asks where I am?” Michael heard Prince
Phillipe’s voice before he could answer with more than another shrug.

“You won by a landslide?” she repeated for Michael, and he grinned and
gave her a sloppy kiss on the cheek. She rolled her eyes and wiped off the
spit, gently pushing him away. She turned the phone out a bit so that he
could hear.

“Yes, a significant majority voted for me. The reason everything was so
delayed is because voter turnout was so much higher than expected. It took
them a long time to count everything.” He sounded thrilled.

“Yes, yes… So, what I’m hearing is that the people of Genovia like being
given the chance to vote?” She had a gloating tone.

“Yes, I suppose you were right in giving them the choice,” Michael almost
laughed at the smugness in Mia’s face. “But there was also a delay because
René demanded a recount and that took some time as well.” She rolled her
eyes.

Michael whispered, “tool,” and Mia had to cover her mouth to avoid
giggling into the phone.

“It’s alright though. I offered him a seat in cabinet as the Vice-Chairman of

tourism. I thought he’d like that.”

“That’s very kind of you, Dad.” She mouthed too kind. “Are you going out
celebrating tonight?”

“I am, actually. I’ll be attending my daughter’s graduation in a few hours.”

Mia’s mouth dropped open and Michael kissed her to put her out of her
shock. She stuck her tongue out at him. “Dad! I can’t believe you flew out
here!”
“I wasn’t going to miss out on today for anything in the world. I’m at the
Plaza with your grandmother, and we’ll be meeting you all at Central Park.”

With a large grin, Mia said goodbye to her dad and hung up the phone. She
looked up at Michael speechlessly.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and gave her a kiss on the head.
“Come on, our eggs are burning.”

Over breakfast, Michael commented, “you know, I can’t believe how much
of a cliché you are.”

Mia looked over at him with a small frown. “What do you mean?”

He raised his voice about an octave higher than her own, “I’ll be ready on
my senior prom. I’ll be the prettiest prom queen and my knight-in-shining-
armor will come save me from the evil pompous prince.”

Mia scoffed and threw a piece of toast at him, “I never said any of that
stuff! Okay, maybe about prom… But the rest was purely coincidence!”

He grinned cheekily, “so you’re saying that the knight in your story wasn’t
based on me?”

“… I knew I shouldn’t have let you read it,” Mia grumbled, pushing around
her eggs with a plastic fork. He still needed to go shopping for real utensils.

Michael laughed and pulled her out of her chair and onto his lap. “I’m glad
you did, it even inspired me a bit… But I have one more serious question
for you.” He put on a solemn face and she looked at him with worried eyes.

“Do you love-love me, or do you love me like a friend?” He smirked as her
eyes widened with recollection and she lightly hit his shoulder.

“Michael, shut up or I swear to God that you’ll never get past second base
with me again.”

He stuffed a forkful of eggs into his mouth.

They spent another hour milling around the loft until Mia declared that she
needed to go home and get dressed.

“Alright, let me go change and we’ll head over.” She gave him a stunned
stare and he frowned. “What?”

“You want to come with me to my house… After I’ve been out all night…
Even though my family watched me leave the house with another guy last
night?”

Shrugging, he considered, “better they find out sooner than later. Not their
fault you’re loose with your men,” he gave her a wink and slipped away
before the pillow she had thrown hit him.

Mia looked nervous as they took the limo over to her apartment, tapping her
fingers against her thigh. She was still wearing her prom-attire from the
night before, but at least her face was now clean. Her fidgeting was starting
to make Michael nervous, but he knew that this had been his idea and he
needed to look sure of his decision. He flashed her a confident smile and
kissed her knuckles. “It’ll be fine. Great even.” She gave him an uncertain
smile. Yeah, she definitely believed that.

Although Helen and Mr. G definitely looked surprised to see that it was
Michael attached to Mia’s hand when she walked into the apartment,
neither of them said anything. In fact, they both gave him warm greetings
and Mia’s mom even hugged him. He wasn’t sure if she was happier to see
him or relieved to see Mia’s bare ring finger.

Luckily, there was no time for awkward questions because Rocky ran over
to hug Mia. And even though he didn’t seem to remember Michael, the little
dude was already showing his drum set off when Mia left to go take a
shower. There was no chance of interrogation as the toddler kept running
back and forth to Michael, who was sitting obediently on the floor, showing
him toy after toy.

While Mia got ready, the only thing the adults spoke about was the election.
There was definitely something awkward in the air, but it pretty much went
as well as it could have. There seemed to be some sort of unspoken
acknowledgment that Michael and Mia were back together.

When Mia came out and the five of them headed downstairs, Michael
discretely whispered, “you look beautiful,” in her ear.

She flushed pink and gave him a kiss on the cheek, mumbling, “shut up.”
He could almost see the memory of them earlier that morning flashing
across her eyes.

They all got into the limo and Michael sat next to Mia. The rest of them
chatted as she wrote in her journal, and Michael almost snorted when he
peeked over her shoulder and noticed his name written out without any
effort.

God, he was so happy. And her permanent smile told him that she was too.

When they arrived at Central Park, Michael gave Mia a kiss on the cheek
and left to go sit with his own family. His mom saw him and waved him
over to their seats. “Hey, sorry I couldn’t meet you guys this morning. I
hitched a ride with Mia,” he threw in casually as he sat down next to his
father. He figured that he might as well tell them now, and honestly? He
was too excited to not mention it.

He was met with confused looks from his parents and a smile from his
grandmother. “But… Didn’t we watch her get engaged to that boy at her
birthday party?” His mother had a concerned expression on her face as if he
was one of her delirious patients.

Michael bit back a laugh. “Yeah, kind of. But all you have to know is that
I’m happy and she’s happy. We’re back together.”

Neither of them replied, but his grandmother leaned over to give him a pat
on the knee, nodding approvingly.

The ceremony was long and incredibly boring. Kenneth gave the dullest
speech imaginable and it was clear across the entire audience. Dozens of
people were dozing off, and Michael could clearly see a majority of the
graduates texting on their phones. Even Lilly was texting, and it was her
boyfriend who was droning on!

The only good part was watching everyone walk across the stage. He
cheered extra hard for Lilly, Mia, and Boris, and even clapped politely
when Lana Weinberger went across. He had a certain fondness of her now
that he knew that she was the one who pushed Mia to see him. He also
remembered how utterly stupid she looked on that rowboat a few days
before.

When the ceremony finally ended, Michael gave Lilly an uncharacteristic

hug, which she unusually returned. “Congrats, graduate,” he flicked the
tassel on her cap.

“And congrats to you too,” she smirked at him before their parents engulfed
her in a hug. He was able to play off the redness in his cheeks because
Kenneth and his family joined them.

The entire graduating class and their guests walked across the park to the
restaurant for the official post-graduation reception. There was excited and
happy conversation all around. There was a lightness in the air until an
earth-shattering scream pierced through the crowd. There was a great rush
towards the parking lot.

It was a freaking pony. Lana Weinberger was being given a pony. Michael
caught Mia’s eye across the way, and they shared a knowing grin. She had
mentioned something about a pony over breakfast.

He spent a few polite minutes with his and Kenneth’s families after being
seated until finally, Lilly rolled her eyes, “Oh, just go already. I can’t watch
you and your puppy-dog eyes any longer.” She tried to look annoyed, but
there was some satisfaction evident in her face.

Giving her a bashful shrug and a toothy grin, Michael assuredly made his
way over to Mia’s table. She smiled when she noticed him approaching but
then gave a warning nod in the direction of her grandmother.
Although he wasn’t thrilled to see the old bat, he didn’t care in the slightest.
He approached them without a second’s hesitation and planted a short kiss
on her lips, taking the open seat next to her. Everyone was now staring at
him, but he gave Mia’s father and grandmother a large smile. “Hi, it’s nice
to see you guys. And congrats on the election.”

There was a long moment where nobody spoke. Mia, Helen, and Mr. G
were looking between the two sides of the table, a mixture of anxiety and
amusement radiating from them. The only source of relief was Rocky
playing with some toy cars.

Immediately, Clarisse pulled a familiar expression of disgust, but it was

quickly replaced with something else. A begrudging respect it seemed. She
was definitely remembering his generous donation.

Phillip’s reaction was quicker. He seemed to accept the situation right away
and extended a hand to shake Michael’s. And that was that, no questions
necessary.

They all chatted politely as speeches were told around the room and toasts
were made. Mia was absolutely beaming, and whenever she smiled his way,
Michael’s heart danced in a way that only she could spark.

They both shared a funny look when there was some shrieking coming from
his own family’s table. It sounded like Kenneth was going to Columbia, his
first choice, after all. “Oh God, so I’m going to have to deal with my sister
and her boyfriend in the city?” he mumbled jokingly, and Mia covered her
giggle with her hand. At least he knew that she’d be around too.

At one point, while Mr. G was deep in a story about his college days, Mia
turned to Michael and quietly declared, “I’m going to go over and say hi to
your parents.”

She had this incredibly comical determined expression and he realized that
she must have been deliberating about her decision for some time. He gave
her an equally determined nod, suppressing the laugh that was coming up.
He didn’t bother telling her that they already knew as she strode over to
them. She gave Lilly a warm but hesitant hug as she came over, and then he
saw her leaning in to speak to his parents and grandma.

She returned a few minutes later looking incredibly relieved and Michael
laughed as he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. He gently held it on her
lap.

His grip only tightened when he saw J.P. with his family approaching the
table.

Mia gave Michael a nervous glance, but he just returned a composed smile.
J.P. honestly didn’t bother him that much now. Sure, he hated his guts and
would still happily wipe that permanent smug look off his face. But it was
now Michael who was holding onto Mia while the other guy stood
awkwardly and watched.

He kept that same smile as J.P. looked at him while his dad spoke. J.P.
Reynolds-Abernathy the Third mentioned something about Hollywood and
Michael relished the alarmed looks that spread across Phillipe and
Clarisse’s faces. Mia had definitely never mentioned the possibility of going
to California with him.

Michael almost laughed when Mia sat up and quickly intercepted the
conversation by mentioning Sarah Lawrence. He felt a surge of pride as she
credited the point he had made about SAT scores and Mia’s father gave him
a quick glance of gratitude. “And it’s so close to here, so I’ll be able to pop
in and visit Fat Louie and Rocky.” He also noticed her glance in his
direction with a tiny smile.

Her entire family was thrilled, but surprisingly, it was Clarisse who was the
most delighted. She started going on about how she was meant to go there
or something, and then started saying something about having “buttercup
yellow walls” with a far-off look in her eyes. Michael’s eyes were starting
to glaze over when he quietly interrupted the monologue to ask Mia to
dance. She looked more than happy to have an excuse to leave the table and
accepted.
They were one of the first couples on the dance floor, giggling as he twirled
her. “Did I mention how beautiful you look today?” He wiggled his
eyebrows suggestively.

Mia rolled her eyes but couldn’t hide the rising corners of her lips. “Yeah,
yeah, I know. Now shut up before I make you shut up.” She gave him a
playful scowl.

“And how do you plan on doing that?” he teased. She pretended to

contemplate for a moment before pulling his collar so their lips could meet.
It was quite a successful method in shutting him up.

They were soon joined by more people, including Helen, Mr. G, and Rocky,
Lilly and Kenneth, and Tina and Boris. Lilly and Kenneth were doing quite
an eccentric interpretive-styled dance, and Michael had to avoid looking at
Mia to stop himself from laughing. Tina and Boris were looking at each
other so gaga-eyed that Michael would have gagged if he wasn’t feeling so
sappy himself.

He was absentmindedly watching Rocky jump around in circles when Mia

abruptly stopped dancing and he almost stepped on her foot. “No. Just…
no,” he heard her mumble. He looked down to ask what the matter was, but
she was frozen. Following her stare, he saw Mia’s dad with Ms. Martinez
and almost laughed. This again? Shouldn’t she be used to this by now?

He tried to get her to start swaying again, but Ms. Martinez slapped Mia’s
father out of nowhere and it seemed like everyone was now watching them.
Philippe looked as bewildered as Mia looked horrified, urgently calling him
over. Michael kept a reassuring hand on her back, but he was stifling a
laugh.

It seemed that the prince had told his daughter’s former English teacher
something that was apparently only appropriate for a lingerie model, as Mia
so elegantly put it. Her father said something about her being intoxicating
and Mia immediately buried her burning face into Michael’s neck. Her
breath tickled him in that all too familiar way.
Phillipe was calling after Ms. Martinez, yelling stuff like, “Karen, come
back! We can talk about this!” Michael was chuckling as he narrated it all
back to Mia. The prince had managed to catch up to her in the parking lot,
and she was now holding his hand. Michael couldn’t help but tease Mia
about whether she would be able to call this stepparent by her first name.

She kept breathing in his neck, not even attempting to hide her odd
compulsion now. It was entirely endearing to him now.

“Hey, quit sniffing me a minute and lift your head up.”

She removed her face and looked up at him with a pout. “Why?”

He grinned, pulling her closer to him. “So I can do this.” He firmly kissed
her. He used to hate PDA, but he honestly didn’t give two flying shits about
who saw them now.

He was disappointed as Mia pulled away with a small smirk. “So… Are you
going to ask me to be your girlfriend yet, or what?”

He rolled his eyes before dramatically taking a deep breath. “My lady, my
light, my Mia,” one of her eyebrows quirked up, “Will you do me the
greatest honor in agreeing to be my girlfriend, nigh, my life-partner?” He
gave her his most gallant of smiles.

“Hmm…” she pretended to consider for a moment. “I suppose I could

manage it. But you may owe my father a goat or two.”

They laughed and Michael spotted Mia’s dad frantically kissing Karen in
the parking lot. “I think that can be arranged.”

He bent down and leaned his forehead against hers as they swayed to the
music. This was no longer their moment. This was their forever. Or, at least,
what Michael hoped would be forever.

Surreal.

Chapter End Notes

And, finally, the End! Probably, maybe... There's always the potential
for more with me. If you have any Mia/Michael storyline you'd like
written (and you liked my writing style), let me know! And please drop
a Kudos/comment if you got through this entire story and enjoyed it!

But for now, that's it. Special thanks go out to Meg Cabot and Miss
Taylor Swift for the magic that is Evermore, and of course, to you for
reading this. xx Sofiya
Please drop by the archive and comment to let the author know if you
enjoyed their work!