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He performed in soccer stadiums around the world, he sold hundreds of millions of records, he dined with prime ministers and presidents. Girls fell in love with him, boys fell in love with him, everyone wanted to dance like him. He seemed otherworldly--but he was also a human being.
他在世界各地的足球场做过演出，他有着数亿张的全球专辑销量，他接受过许多国家首相和总统的宴请。女孩儿们爱上了他，男孩儿们迷上了他，每个人都想和他一样跳舞，他是那么的超凡脱俗——但同时他也是个凡人。
Like most performers he was shy and plagued with insecurities. I can't say we were great friends, but in 1991 I decided I wanted to try to get to know him better. I asked him out to dinner, I said "My treat, I'll drive--just you and me."
正如大部分歌手一样，他很腼腆，又深深为自身的不安全感而困扰。我不敢说我们是很要好的朋友，但是在1991年我决定更为深入地了解他。于是我邀请他共进晚餐，我说：“我请客，我来开车——就你和我。”
He agreed and showed up to my house without any bodyguards. We drove to the restaurant in my car. It was dark out, but he was still wearing sunglasses. I said, "Michael, I feel like I'm talking to a limousine. Do you think you can take off your glasses so I can see your eyes?"
他答应了，并只身一人不带任何保镖出现在我家。我开车和他去饭店，天已经黑了，可他仍然戴着墨镜。我说：“迈克尔，我觉得我是在跟这辆车说话。你能把眼镜摘下来让我看见你的眼睛吗？”
He paused for a moment then he tossed the glasses out the window, looked at me with a wink and a smile and said, "Can you see me now? Is that better?"
他犹豫了一会儿然后把眼镜扔出窗外，用闪烁的眼睛直视着我，笑着说：“现在你能看见我了吗？这样是不是更好？”
In that moment, I could see both his vulnerability and his charm. The rest of the dinner, I was hell-bent on getting him to eat French fries, drink wine, have dessert and say bad words. Things he never seemed to allow himself to do. Later we went back to my house to watch a movie and we sat on the couch like two kids, and somewhere in the middle of the film, his hand snuck over and held mine.
这时我终于感受到他的脆弱和他的魅力。在接下来的晚餐时间里，我尽我所能地让他和我一起吃炸薯条，一起喝红酒吃甜点，甚至爆粗口，让他做一些他似乎从来不允许自己做的事。后来，我们又开车回到我的家，一起像小孩儿一样坐在长沙发上看电影。看着看着，他悄悄地把手搭过来握住了我的手。
It felt like he was looking for a friend more than a romance, and I was happy to oblige him. In that moment, he didn't feel like a superstar. He felt like a human being.
那种感觉，就像他正试图拥抱他的朋友而非恋人，而我非常高兴地接受了他。就是这样的时刻，让我觉得他不再是一个超级巨星，他只是一个平凡的人。
We went out a few more times together, and then for one reason or another we fell out of touch. Then the witch hunt began, and it seembed like one negative story after another was coming out about Michael. I felt his pain, I know what it's like to walk down the street and feel like the whole world is turned against you. I know what it's like to feel helpless and unable to defend yourself because the roar of the lynch mob is so loud that you are convinced your voice can never be heard.
在那之后，我们又一起出去过几次，但后来因为某些原因我们失去了联系。紧接着，巫婆的诅咒似乎就开始了，关于迈克尔的坏消息一个接着一个不断地传出。我可以体会他的痛苦。我很清楚当一个人走在街上而全世界似乎都与你为敌的感觉，我也很清楚那种无助和无法为自己辩护的痛苦，因为那些嘶吼着要将你处死的声音实在太大，以至于无论你如何大声否认也没人听见。
