A story about Mike, chapter 5
Billie Joe took the head of his rabbit's costume and pulled it on.
"Why do you need it now?" Mike asked.
"I don't want to mess things up. I cant see myself, if that makes sense."
"Oh right, so you're here?"
"Yup. Unfortunately."
"This is going to be so weird. I've never seen you near a library for years!"
Billie Joe didn't answer as he pushed open the doors. A hushed silence met their ears. The library was huge. Their were tables and chairs to read at in the centre, and the bookshelves were surrounding them. The librarians desk was next to the reading area. Billie started walking straight past the desk and the reading area, and into the masses of book shelves. Mike followed. Billie wove between bookshelf after bookshelf, and then he stopped. He seemed to have found what he was looking for. A member of the staff had their back to them, and he was stacking the shelves with new books.
"Who's that?" Mike asked.
Billie Joe shuffled his feet. Even though his face was concealed, Mike could tell that he was embarrassed.
"He'll turn round in a second. I mean, I'll turn-"
"YOU!" Mike exclaimed. He was going to continue until the librarian turned to face them.
Mike nearly shit in his bunny suit.
"Oh my god." Mike whispered. "This is unreal."
The Billie Joe that Mike saw wasn't the Billie Joe he knew. Instead of messy spiky black hair, there was a mousy brown gelled back look. He hadn't died his hair, Mike realised with a jolt. He wasn't dressed in punky, ragged clothes, but he was dressed in purple corduroy trousers and a tank top that was mustard yellow. The Billie Joe that stood in front of him didn't have any confidence either. The Billie Joe Mike knew could walk into any room or any situation and just seem to belong there. He stood tall and proud wherever he went. This one just wasn't the same. He seemed ill at ease and nervous, and the way he stood suggested he wasn't very confident at all. He stopped stacking books and wheeled his trolley past them. They followed. As he made his way to the librarians desk, he stopped at one of the reading tables. Billie Joe and Mike stood behind him.
"Um... Can I help you?" The different Billie Joe asked. He fiddled with a copy of "The Wind in the Willows". They looked down to see who he was talking to. There, sitting right there, was Adrienne. She looked punkier than normal, and her faded jeans and "Porn Star" top made her look out of place. She had a scar on her left cheek, and her hair was greasy and matted. Her legs were resting on top of the table, and she slouched in her seat.
"No. I don't want any help." She answered curtly. This was very unlike Adrienne.
"Are you sure? You look a little lost-"
"Just fuck off you freak!" She spat, and got out of her seat and left. The normal Billie Joe would have started to argue and spit insults right back, but the librarian Billie Joe looked very hurt, and Mike could see tears well up in his eyes. He wheeled his trolley away with his head bowed..
"What was up with Adrienne?" Mike asked.
"I'll tell you in a minute." Billie Joe said. "Lets get out of here first. I'm starting to get a little freaked out, and this bunny costume is really fucking hot."
They stepped outside into the open air, and Billie Joe pulled his bunny head off. He ran his fingers through his hair and sat down on the library steps. Mike sat down too.
"So, what was up with Adrienne?" He asked. "I've never seen her like that."
"Because their was no Green Day and stuff, she never met me. She travelled to Brazil, but all her cash was stolen and she couldn't get back to America, so she started working as a prostitute."
"No way, Adrienne would never-"
"She was into all sorts of drugs by then. She wasn't the same." Billie Joe swallowed hard. It was obviously tough for him to see his wife like that.
"She um, so she was working as a prostitute, and she got all mixed up. You know, up here." He tapped his head.
"Oh. I see." Mike said. "So Joey and Jakob don't exist?"
"Nope."
There was a silence.
"And what happened to YOU!" Mike exclaimed. "You looked like a fucking dweeb!"
"I know!" Billie groaned. "You know how we met when we were ten in the canteen?"
"Yeah? So?"
"Well, because I didn't have you as a friend, I didn't really have anyone else that was the same as me. I started to get picked on, and my confidence was totally shocked to shit. I never started to learn the guitar because I didn't think I would be good enough, so there was never a band. Without you, I'm a fucking librarian Mike." Billie Joe said. "Without you, I'm nothing."
There was an awkward pause.
"I forgot to ask about Tré." Mike said. "What was his story?"
"Well, you know how there was Tré's first band, The Lookouts?"
"Yeah?"
"Well they split a couple of months after Tré SHOULD HAVE joined Green Day. Tré got bored and moved to New York for a more exciting life. He got addicted to heroin, and eventually ended up on the streets. He lived there for years. And then we saw how he died, of course." Billie said.
"That's awful." Mike said.
"But do you see why your needed here now? Without you, me, Tré and Adrienne's lives would be much worse. You cant kill yourself Mike, you just cant. I cant believe you were going to... " Billie trailed off, and he turned away.
"But, it's my fault that your in a coma! If I hadn't-"
"It was never your fault!" Billie spun round, tears running down his face. "The man driving that car, it was his fault! You didn't do anything to contribute to the crash, do you understand me?" He looked straight in Mike's eyes. Mike nodded.
"But, Billie, why are you showing me this? What if you hadn't showed up? What if I had killed myself? I would have still met you and Green Day would exist, but you could easily just replace me and everything would be-"
"No, it wouldn't be that easy." He grabbed Mike's hand again.
"Lets go."
Before he could ask where they were going, they were plunged into darkness.
"Why do you need it now?" Mike asked.
"I don't want to mess things up. I cant see myself, if that makes sense."
"Oh right, so you're here?"
"Yup. Unfortunately."
"This is going to be so weird. I've never seen you near a library for years!"
Billie Joe didn't answer as he pushed open the doors. A hushed silence met their ears. The library was huge. Their were tables and chairs to read at in the centre, and the bookshelves were surrounding them. The librarians desk was next to the reading area. Billie started walking straight past the desk and the reading area, and into the masses of book shelves. Mike followed. Billie wove between bookshelf after bookshelf, and then he stopped. He seemed to have found what he was looking for. A member of the staff had their back to them, and he was stacking the shelves with new books.
"Who's that?" Mike asked.
Billie Joe shuffled his feet. Even though his face was concealed, Mike could tell that he was embarrassed.
"He'll turn round in a second. I mean, I'll turn-"
"YOU!" Mike exclaimed. He was going to continue until the librarian turned to face them.
Mike nearly shit in his bunny suit.
"Oh my god." Mike whispered. "This is unreal."
The Billie Joe that Mike saw wasn't the Billie Joe he knew. Instead of messy spiky black hair, there was a mousy brown gelled back look. He hadn't died his hair, Mike realised with a jolt. He wasn't dressed in punky, ragged clothes, but he was dressed in purple corduroy trousers and a tank top that was mustard yellow. The Billie Joe that stood in front of him didn't have any confidence either. The Billie Joe Mike knew could walk into any room or any situation and just seem to belong there. He stood tall and proud wherever he went. This one just wasn't the same. He seemed ill at ease and nervous, and the way he stood suggested he wasn't very confident at all. He stopped stacking books and wheeled his trolley past them. They followed. As he made his way to the librarians desk, he stopped at one of the reading tables. Billie Joe and Mike stood behind him.
"Um... Can I help you?" The different Billie Joe asked. He fiddled with a copy of "The Wind in the Willows". They looked down to see who he was talking to. There, sitting right there, was Adrienne. She looked punkier than normal, and her faded jeans and "Porn Star" top made her look out of place. She had a scar on her left cheek, and her hair was greasy and matted. Her legs were resting on top of the table, and she slouched in her seat.
"No. I don't want any help." She answered curtly. This was very unlike Adrienne.
"Are you sure? You look a little lost-"
"Just fuck off you freak!" She spat, and got out of her seat and left. The normal Billie Joe would have started to argue and spit insults right back, but the librarian Billie Joe looked very hurt, and Mike could see tears well up in his eyes. He wheeled his trolley away with his head bowed..
"What was up with Adrienne?" Mike asked.
"I'll tell you in a minute." Billie Joe said. "Lets get out of here first. I'm starting to get a little freaked out, and this bunny costume is really fucking hot."
They stepped outside into the open air, and Billie Joe pulled his bunny head off. He ran his fingers through his hair and sat down on the library steps. Mike sat down too.
"So, what was up with Adrienne?" He asked. "I've never seen her like that."
"Because their was no Green Day and stuff, she never met me. She travelled to Brazil, but all her cash was stolen and she couldn't get back to America, so she started working as a prostitute."
"No way, Adrienne would never-"
"She was into all sorts of drugs by then. She wasn't the same." Billie Joe swallowed hard. It was obviously tough for him to see his wife like that.
"She um, so she was working as a prostitute, and she got all mixed up. You know, up here." He tapped his head.
"Oh. I see." Mike said. "So Joey and Jakob don't exist?"
"Nope."
There was a silence.
"And what happened to YOU!" Mike exclaimed. "You looked like a fucking dweeb!"
"I know!" Billie groaned. "You know how we met when we were ten in the canteen?"
"Yeah? So?"
"Well, because I didn't have you as a friend, I didn't really have anyone else that was the same as me. I started to get picked on, and my confidence was totally shocked to shit. I never started to learn the guitar because I didn't think I would be good enough, so there was never a band. Without you, I'm a fucking librarian Mike." Billie Joe said. "Without you, I'm nothing."
There was an awkward pause.
"I forgot to ask about Tré." Mike said. "What was his story?"
"Well, you know how there was Tré's first band, The Lookouts?"
"Yeah?"
"Well they split a couple of months after Tré SHOULD HAVE joined Green Day. Tré got bored and moved to New York for a more exciting life. He got addicted to heroin, and eventually ended up on the streets. He lived there for years. And then we saw how he died, of course." Billie said.
"That's awful." Mike said.
"But do you see why your needed here now? Without you, me, Tré and Adrienne's lives would be much worse. You cant kill yourself Mike, you just cant. I cant believe you were going to... " Billie trailed off, and he turned away.
"But, it's my fault that your in a coma! If I hadn't-"
"It was never your fault!" Billie spun round, tears running down his face. "The man driving that car, it was his fault! You didn't do anything to contribute to the crash, do you understand me?" He looked straight in Mike's eyes. Mike nodded.
"But, Billie, why are you showing me this? What if you hadn't showed up? What if I had killed myself? I would have still met you and Green Day would exist, but you could easily just replace me and everything would be-"
"No, it wouldn't be that easy." He grabbed Mike's hand again.
"Lets go."
Before he could ask where they were going, they were plunged into darkness.
