You Are Not Alone

Michael's POV

Michael was lying in bed, his head propped up by his hand. He stared down at Lily's sleeping form. She was lying on her stomach, facing him. Her blonde curls were spread out on the pillow behind her, with a few strands coming forward to cover half of her face. The sheet on his bed covered the bottom half of her naked body, just barely hiding her backside.

The morning sun was shining through Michael's bedroom window. The way the rays were hitting Lily's body, he swore she looked just like an angel. Although, he already thought she was to begin with. Unable to resist the urge any longer, he reached his hand towards her. Gently, he touched her bare back, skimming it softly with his fingertips. He smiled at the trail of goosebumps that followed after his touch.

Michael's smile widened when Lily whimpered softly when he pulled his hand away. Bringing his hand back, he softly ran it through her hair, then trailing it down her back again. When he went back to caressing her back, Lily sighed softly. Michael's hand went lower, causing the sheet to fall away. He couldn't help but massage her ass as it came into view. He smirked when she shivered. Suddenly, his alarm clock beeped, signaling the beginning of the hour. He looked over and his eyes widened at the time.

"Oh, shit", Michael exclaimed loudly. This was enough to wake Lily. He smiled apologetically when her blue eyes fluttered open.

"What's the matter?" Lily muttered in confusion. He thought to himself how adorable she sounded first thing in the morning. She cleared the sleep away from her voice. "Are you alright, Michael?"

"Yes, but I just realized what time it was. We need to be getting ready", Michael said, pecking her lips and sitting up.

"Where are we going?" Lily asked curiously, sitting up as well.

"I, uh...well, I guess I should have asked if you would even want to go first. But, um, I was hoping that maybe you would want to, uh, go with me to the hospital to visit some of the kids there. I'm sorry I didn't ask. If you don't want to come, I underst-" Lily cut him off.

"Really?!" Lily asked excitedly. Michael was surprised at the brilliant smile that had formed on her face.

Michael had wanted to share this part of his life with other women he had dated in the past. One person, in particular, was Brooke Shields. She would often complain about the amount of time he spent visiting sick children, when he could be with her instead. So, in an effort to placate her, he had invited her along. She had rolled her eyes but agreed. When she had slid into the limo, she looked like she was headed to a photoshoot. Tight, short dress and heels, along with full makeup. The whole time they were there, all she did was ask "how much longer". She would complain about being bored. Not to mention, he had always suspected that Brooke didn't care for kids. That was actually the reason they ended up breaking up.

Michael shook the memory away. For him, never wanting kids was a deal breaker. It bothered him that he was forty years old now and had never been married or had kids yet. It wasn't easy though, being a worldwide superstar and all.

Michael knew it was far too soon to be thinking about marriage and babies with Lily, but he would be lying if he said he couldn't see himself having that with her. When they were just friends, talking on the phone, they had talked about kids and future plans. He had learned that she absolutely adored kids and hoped to have "loads of them". He smiled at the memory of that conversation.

"Yeah, I haven't gone in a while, because of the tour. I love visiting the children. I wasn't sure if you'd want to come though." Michael finally answered. He blushed, realizing he'd been lost in his thoughts and she had been looking at him with concern.

"Of course I want to come! Who wouldn't want the chance to make those kids happy for just a little while?" Lily asked, genuinely confused. Michael grinned at her.

"God, you're perfect. Do you know that?" Michael said, wrapping his arms around her. Lily scoffed.

"No, I'm not. I'm just human", Lily replied, shaking her head. Michael cupped her face and kissed her.

"Not everyone has a heart like you do, babygirl", Michael whispered. Lily blushed and smiled shyly. He leaned down, placing a lingering kiss on her lips.

"I'm gonna go get ready, okay?" Lily said after they pulled apart. Michael nodded, watching her leave the room.

Once Lily had shut the door behind her, Michael started getting ready himself. Keeping it quick and simple, he wore his customary black slacks and red button-up shirt. Putting on a pair of white socks and his loafers, he tied his curly hair back. On his way out of the bedroom, he grabbed his black fedora, placing it on his head. When he reached the living room, he sat on the couch, waiting patiently for Lily to walk her beautiful self down the stairs.

Twenty minutes later, Michael heard Lily's footsteps approaching. He was surprised she was able to get ready that quick. Although, he was glad, because he hadn't meant for them to wait this late to leave for the hospital. When she appeared in the doorway, Michael smiled. Standing, he walked over to her and kissed her.

"You look cute", Michael said with a smile. Lily blushed.

"Is this alright? I wasn't sure if I should dress up a bit, or-" Lily started, as she held her arms out to the side. Michael cut her off.

"No, babygirl. You look perfect", he replied. He couldn't help but smile at how different she was from Brooke's high maintanence personality.

Lily was wearing a gray t-shirt, which said "I believe in fairies", with a blue sillouhette of Tinker Bell. She also had on a pair of white, cropped denim jeans. On her feet, she had on a pair of blue Chuck Taylor low tops. Her hair was down and left in its natural curls. She wasn't wearing any makup and the only jewelry she wore was a silver necklace with the word "Believe" and a Tinker Bell figure hanging from it.

The entire ride to the hospital was spent with Michael and Lily talking happily. He would steal the occassional kiss, of course. He was grinning at how excited she was to be spending the next few hours visiting the children. After almost an hour, Archie came to a stop. An SUV pulled up behind them, which was carrying four of Michael's bodyguards. Thankfully, they hadn't been followed by paparazzi, so going through a back entrance, they were able to get to their destination fairly quickly.

As soon as Michael and Lily reached the children's ward, her face lit up. Michael found himself amazed by her once again. Her beauty was so effortless and her kindness radiated off of her. He could see the sadness and compassion in her eyes when they visited the terminally ill children. They couldn't leave their beds, so Michael and Lily took the time to sit and visit with them. After a couple hours, they had made their rounds to those patients.

Michael and Lily were then brought to a fairly large room, which seemed like an activity room for the more active children. There were bins full of toys, which were being played with by a few little boys and girls. There was a game station set up, with a television and Nintendo. A few kids were sitting on the floor, putting puzzles together. There were small tables and chairs, where several kids currently sat, coloring and drawing pictures.

Once again, Lily had a brilliant smile plastered on her face. She looked over at Michael, who returned her smile. Suddenly, she giggled and walked over to the table. She sat next to a little girl and introduced herself. Michael was sitting on the floor a couple of feet away, entertaining a few children with a hand puppet. However, he was watching and listening carefully as Lily interacted with the little girl.

"Hi there, sweetie. I'm Lily, what's your name?" Lily said, smiling softly. She stooped down so she was at the girl's level. The little girl looked up at her, revealing a pair of large, bright blue eyes.

"Hi! I'm Ava", the girl replied with a toothy grin. Lily's smile widened.

"Mind if I color with you?" Lily asked as she took the seat next to Ava. Michael giggled to himself. She looked so cute sitting in the tiny orange chair.

"Sure! Here you go", Ava said excitedly. She slid a coloring page and box of crayons in front of Lily.

"Thanks, sweetie", Lily smiled. With that, she set to coloring her picture.

The entire time, Lily carried on a conversation with Ava. They were chatting and laughing as if they were the best of friends. In listening to their conversation, Michael learned that Ava had leukemia. She was diagnosed two years ago, when she was five years old. His heart broke for her, but he was amazed at the fact that she didn't let it get her down.

"You're really pretty!" Ava stated, out of the blue, making Lily blush.

"Why, thank you. I think you're really pretty, too!" Lily complimented her, turning to face her full on. Eva's eyes lit up suddenly.

"Ooh, I love Tinker Bell!" Ava suddenly exclaimed. She must have noticed Lily's outfit.

"You do?!" Lily asked, sounding just as excited. She hung on every word little Ava said. She was so good with kids! "I love her, too!" This made Ava giggle.

"I like your necklace", Ava said, touching it with her little hand. Michael smiled to himself. His heart swelled at what Lily did next.

Without a second thought, Lily reached behind her neck, unfastening the necklace. With a smile she placed it around Ava's neck, fastening it.

"It's yours now, sweetheart", Lily said softly. Ava smiled, looking at the necklace as if she had just been given the greatest gift in the world.

"Really?!" Ava asked, looking at Lily with her big, blue eyes.

"Absolutely! Besides, it looks so much better on you anyway", Lily smiled, scrunching her nose up and touching it to Ava's. The girl giggled, throwing her arms around Lily's neck.

This took Lily by surprise, but she instantly wrapped her arms around Ava's frail body. Gently, she held the girl in her arms, rubbing her back. She giggled as Ava continued to thank her.

"You're very welcome, sweetheart", Lily replied. "I want you to promise me something, okay?" She continued, holding the girl's pale hands in hers and looking her in the eye.

"Anything!" Ava replied, nodding her head profusely. Lily giggled.

"Promise me that anytime you're having a bad day and you feel like giving up, you'll look at this necklace. I want you to remember me, and know that no matter where I am, I'm thinking about you. I want you to believe with all your heart that you're gonna get better. Can you do that for me?" Lily said, tears gathering in her eyes.

"Okay, Lily. I promise", Ava nodded, smiling. Returning the smile, Lily hugged her once more. Looking at Michael over the girl's shoulder, she blushed seeing that he had been watching her.

Michael was floored by what he had just witnessed. The generosity and love that was overflowing from the woman he loved was astounding to him. He had begun to tear up at what Lily made Ava promise her. God, he loved her!

"I'm gonna give you my number. I want you to call me anytime. Whether you just wanna talk or need cheering up, you call me. Okay?" Lily said, writing her number down on a piece of paper.

"Wow, thanks, Lily!" Ava said, smiling down at the piece of paper. She flung her arms around Lily's neck one more time. Standing up, she spoke excitedly. "I'm gonna go tell my mommy. I'll be right back!" Nodding, Lily giggled as she watched the little girl go in search of her mother.

In that moment, Michael knew. He didn't care that he had only met Lily a year ago. He didn't care that they had only been dating for a few days. There were just some things in life, where you could see it in an instant. He didn't want anyone else. Lily was the one and he saw forever when he looked at her.