Michael just stood there in shock, now knowing that Janelle felt the same way. She looked at him and saw his eyes go wide a little.
"Um...Michael? You okay?" She asked.
He nodded a little. "I...I'm fine. I'm...I'm just shocked." He said.
"Shocked about what?"
"About...about what you just told me."
She blushed a little and so did he. "Oh..."
He looked away a little and looked back at her. "How long have you felt that way?"
"What?"
"How long have you liked me like that?"
She blushed more. "Oh w-well...I, uh...I've liked you since I first heard your voice...on Off The Wall."
"Really?"
She nodded and turned away and started to walk off. 'I did it. I told him...I just don't know if he...' She started thinking.
Michael stood there, thinking about what to tell her. 'Now Michael! You gotta tell her now!' His conscious told him. He looked up and started running up to her, calling her name.
"Janelle! Wait!"
She turned around and saw Michael running up to her. "What is it?"
"I have something to tell you, too."
"W-What is it?"
"Janelle...I like you, too. I really really like you, too. I've liked you since Elizabeth kept mentioning you when we talked."
She blushed even more. "A-Are you serious?"
He nodded, blushing a little. "Yeah. I'm serious."
They stood still, an awkward silence taking over them. Janelle didn't like the silence because that was when she'd remember her mother's death.
"So...does this mean...we're a..."
"A what?"
"A...a couple now?" She blushed, looking away.
"Well...it can mean that...or we could wait a while until we are comfortable with calling each other boyfriend and girlfriend."
"So it'll be like we aren't when we are?"
"Exactly."
"Well...that does sound good. A good idea, Michael. So we are a couple. But..."
"Nobody can know about us. It's gotta be a secret until we're completely comfortable."
"Okay. Makes sense."
They giggled and headed out, hand in hand. When they saw Martin, they released each others hands and headed over to him and started talking about the starter rehearsal.
"Well, you two did great on it!" Martin said.
Michael giggled. "Thanks, Martin. Should I get to working on the dance soon?"
"Start working on it tomorrow. You must be tired."
"Right now, I'm full of energy to work!" Michael started jumping and it made Janelle giggle. She had the silliest secret boyfriend ever.
Martin laughed a little and gave in. "Okay, okay Michael. You can start on the dance tonight. There are no rehearsals tomorrow, so you guys can take a break for a day and rest up and look around New York. See you all later!"
With that, everyone left. Martin left first, then the cast and crew. Michael and Janelle were the last ones there, looking around before Bill got there with the limo...or so they thought. Michael and Janelle sat down on the loveseat and he held her hand. They got to talking and didn't realize that Wesley was coming out of the bathroom. He saw them and hid behind one of the doors.
"Michael, how are we gonna tell people that we're..."
"Janelle, listen. We don't have to tell them if we're not comfortable with telling. Us dating is gonna be a secret, okay? Until we're comfortable with showing that we're boyfriend and girlfriend...let's just keep this our little secret."
Wesley couldn't believe what he was hearing. 'Michael...and Janelle...are dating???' He thought.
He saw them get up and he quickly left the studio and headed home in his car. They started heading toward the limo and got in and Bill started driving them to Sally's house to pick up Coraline. Or really to see if she could spend the night.
At Sally's House
Bill stopped the car and Janelle got out.
"I'm gonna go see if Coraline wants to spend the night here, that way we can start working on the dance." She said.
Michael nodded. "Okay." He replied.
Janelle went up to the door and knocked. Sally soon opened up and saw Janelle.
"Oh hey Janelle! How was rehearsal today?" She asked.
"It was good today. Has Coraline been behaving herself today?"
"Yes she has. She's been such a doll. She was wondering if she could spend the night tonight."
Janelle didn't show it, but she was shocked. She actually was there to ask about that! "I was actually here to ask about that. She can as long as I know she's okay."
"She's fine, Jan. Don't worry. She's in good hands. Wanna come in with Michael?"
"Oh. Sure." She turned to the limo and motioned for him to come in with her.
Michael got out of the limo and went up to her and they all walked inside. Coraline and Pumpkin heard the door close and they ran out of the room to see Janelle and Michael.
"Michael!! Mommy!!" Coraline shouted and ran up to them and hugged them both.
"She's been hyper though and she can't sleep. Is there a way she can sleep?" Sally asked.
Janelle smiled a little and nodded. "There is one way she can. It'll put them both to sleep. Lead us to the bedroom, you two."
Pumpkin and Coraline took their hands and led them to her room and they both got in her bed. Janelle sat down on the end of the bed and turned to them as soon as they got under a blanket.
"Ready you two?"
They nodded and Janelle started singing to them.
"Deep in the meadow, under the willow
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow
Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes
And when again they open, the sun will rise.

Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.

Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes and let your troubles lay
And when again it's morning, they'll wash away.

Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.

Badadadada...

Here is the place where I love you.

Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes and let your troubles lay
And when again it's morning, they'll wash away.

Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you."
When she finished singing, they were both asleep. She quietly and carefully got up and kissed their heads. "Goodnight Pumpkin and Coraline. Sweet dreams."
She turned to Michael and Sally and they were standing there in shock.
"I did not know you could sing like that, Jan!" Sally whispered, still shocked.
She shrugged her shoulders. "Eh, it's not much, but it's something that always put Coraline to sleep."
They walked out of the room and turned off the light and headed outside. Janelle turned to Sally.
"Thanks again for letting her spend the night. Michael and I gotta work on the dance for Bad."
"No problem. You two have fun now. Don't overwork yourselves."
Michael giggled a little. "We'll try not to. See you tomorrow to pick Coraline up."
They waved as they got into the limo and Sally waved back as they drove off to the hotel. She had a better feeling about them.
"He told her and she told him...something tells me that they are a couple now."
She quietly went back inside her house and checked on the girls before going into the living room to watch some TV.
At The Hotel
Bill arrived at the hotel and they got out.
"Thanks, Bill. See you tomorrow." Michael said.
"No problem, Mr. Jackson and Ms. Taylor. See you two tomorrow then." He said and drove off.
Michael and Janelle took each others hands and headed inside. "Where are we gonna rehearse, Michael? Should we use my suite or yours?" Janelle asked.
"Well...hm..." He got to thinking about it. "We could use mine tonight and use yours tomorrow afternoon, if you'd like."
Janelle smiled a little, liking that idea better than using just one of their rooms. "That sounds like a plan, Michael. You are so smart."
He giggled and rubbed the back of his head with his other hand. They got into the elevator and headed up to their floor. They talked all the way up there about what dances to use for the song when they get to it. Once they got onto their floor and exited the elevator, they headed to the back suites and Michael got out his key.
"Don't be shocked about what you're gonna see, Janelle."
"How can I not be shocked? This is technically the first time I've seen your suite."
"Oh right." He giggled.
He unlocked the door and opened it and let Janelle in first. She was shocked a little. There was actually a dance floor for him to work! The bed was moved to a better spot, everything that was breakable was moved to a safer spot in the suite.
"Oh wow..." She stepped onto the dance floor and Michael soon followed, making sure she wouldn't slip and fall.
"Like it?"
She turned to him and smiled. "I do like it. Did you request this?"
He shrugged his shoulders and giggled. "Maybe I did."
"Well, let's get to working on the dance, shall we?"
Michael nodded. He showed her what he had in mind. She had taken dance lessons and saw what he could do with different dances.
"What was that one you did before? Like this..." She demonstrated the hopping movement and the moving of the other foot to catch up.
"Oh that one!" Michael exclaimed. "Yeah."
"Why not do that in a group? Let's try it as a duet first."
He nodded and got into position with her and they both moved with the same amount of ease. They worked on the dance almost the whole night. When they stopped, Michael looked at the clock to see that it was almost 3 in the morning.
"Hey Janelle, it's almost 3am. Why don't we stop now? You must be tired."
She nodded a little and yawned a bit. "I am rather tired. What about you?"
"Same here. Let's get to bed."
Janelle was just about to walk out of the room when Michael stopped her, grabbing her hand.
She turned to him. "What is it?"
"Well...why don't you stay here tonight? It does get rather lonely when I stay in a room alone."
She blushed a little and thought about it. "Can I at least get my phone charger?"
He nodded and let her hand go. "You're coming back, right?"
She giggled and nodded. "Yes, I am coming back, silly."
With that, she left the room and Michael went to change into his pajamas.
In Janelle's Suite
Janelle just got inside her room and changed into her pajamas and grabbed her charger and started to head back, taking her key with her.
"Okay, I got everything. Charger, toothbrush, toothpaste, brush and key. It seems like I'm going to a sleepover instead of staying in Michael's suite." She said giggling a little.
She got out of the suite and headed back over to Michael's. She knocked on his door.
"I'm coming!" Michael said.
She waited a little and saw the door open and saw Michael in his pajamas. He smiled and moved out of the way and she walked in and he closed the door behind her.
"Okay, bathroom is over there if you wanna set your stuff in there." Michael pointed to the bathroom.
She nodded. "Thank you, Michael." She headed over to the bathroom and went to brush her teeth first.
While she was brushing her teeth, Michael got to thinking. 'Okay...when am I gonna make my move? Should I do it today? Or should I do it now?' He thought.
He saw her come out of the bathroom and she walked up to him. "Okay, my stuff is set."
"Okay, um...do you wanna sleep on the bed or on the couch?"
"I think, since this is your suite, you should take the bed. I'll take the couch."
"Are you sure about that? I mean, I've slept on the couch before and it's not as comfortable as the bed is."
"When did you sleep on it?"
"A few nights ago. Basically the first night we got here."
"Oh...well...I'm not sure then. You can choose."
'Oh crud!' "Um...well...I, uh...I think that...since I wouldn't try anything on you, and it's big enough for basically four people...why don't we sleep on the bed?" He blushed.
She blushed a little. "L-Like...t-t-together??"
"I can put something between us so we don't get into the whole cuddling thing in bed."
"W-Well...o-okay then."
She helped Michael move the bed back into place and helped him roll up a blanket to put between their bodies. She got into the bed first and then Michael did. She hummed the song she sang earlier and once Michael heard it, he fell asleep. After a few minutes, she did, too. A couple of hours later, Michael woke up, not being able to sleep anymore with one particular thought going through his mind.
'Oh this is so confusing!! I wanna kiss her, but...I'm too shy to kiss her! What am I gonna do??' He thought.
He carefully got up and went to the couch and turned on the TV and turned the volume down to where Janelle couldn't hear. He had to think really hard about what to do. He knew he wanted to kiss her...but since he was really shy, he didn't know what to do. He couldn't ask her what he could do because she's the one he wanted to kiss. He was not only shy...he was nervous on whether she'd kiss him back or reject the kiss all together.