She Is My Baby, I Love Her So, But It's Too Late Now, I've Let Her Go, chapter 9
Two Weeks Later...
Billie Joe punched in his home number on his phone as he walked back to his dressing room with Tre and Mike. As it rang, he pushed back his sweaty hair from his eyes.
"Hello?" Jakob.
"Hey, little dude!" Billie greeted his son. "How are ya, buddy?"
"Fine, daddy. Bailey stayed up nearly all night helping me revise for a test today."
"And? How did you do?"
"Um, I got eighty nine percent. That"s a twenty percent improvement, Daddy!"
"Jakey, that's great! I know one lucky little guy whose getting something cool!"
"Yay! Do you wanna talk to Mom?"
"Yeah please."
"Billie?"
"Hey Adie. I got your message, what happened with Bailey?"
"She's refusing to go to school."
"What? Why?"
"Well, you know she split with Liam?"
"Yeah? "
"Well, he's refusing to accept it, and he's been calling almost every ten minutes."
"Jeez."
"Yeah. And he just won't leave Bailey alone, so she won't leave the house."
"Oh, man. Is she in?"
"She's at Rob's, with Naomi. She'll be back in about an hour. I'll get her to call you."
"Cheers. Can I talk to Joey?"
"Sure."
At Rob Cavallo's, Bailey and Naomi were in Naomi's room, and Beanpole was snoozing under her bed. Naomi was finishing dying Bailey's hair deep purple again. Bailey was flicking through the TV channels, which really bugged Naomi.
"Oh, for crying out loud, Bailey, just keep it on one bloody channel. "
Bailey obediently stopped flicking. Unfortunately, she had flicked onto a gay porn channel by accident. The two girls looked at each other, and burst into disgusted laughter. Naomi leapt up and turned off the TV. Bailey reached into her bag.
"I meant to show you earlier. Last of my paperwork came through. All my psychiatrist and therapist reports."
Naomi looked at the label on the first folder full.
"Bailey Jade Maria Regis, Therapy reports June 1996 to September 1996. Aww, bless. " Naomi flicked through the files. Bailey pointed out some entries to her.
"Oh, July 1996. I absolutely refused to say anything other than "cabbage" to those stupid doctors. And December 1999. I still hold that record for making the most shrinks quit in a month. Four."
"How did you manage that, again?" Naomi reached for her drink.
"Um, I think I had just watched Hannibal, or Silence Of The Lambs, and I told everyone the doctors were cannibals. Tee hee. Fourteen seven year olds, screaming their heads off every time the guys came near. And look, those police things from New Year's. Me, Nibs Chalky and PeeWee and Michael Thompson got "cautioned" for running around outside the retirement home and screaming something about the world ending on the new millennium. Ha, we caused a massive pensioner panic on that! "
Naomi looked at them. "Where was I? I like causing big panics. Oh right- I was in another placement. "
Bailey began to answer her, but was interrupted by her phone bleeping.
"If thats Liam again... " Bailey checked her messages. "Oh."
"Who is it? "
"Tre." Bailey read the message, a small smile on her face.
"What did he say? Can you tell me, or is it..."
"No. Just stupidly sweet." Bailey put her phone back into her pocket. Naomi rubbed her mate's shoulder.
"Is Liam still calling you? "
Bailey nodded. "Yeah. Adie's getting pissed, too. She went down the police station day before yesterday. The cops can't do anything, apparently. Liam is fully allowed to call on the phone, cause he is just asking me to take him back. He's not being threatening or anything, so all the cops can do is tell him to stay away from the house."
"Well that sucks." Naomi checked the clock, and pulled Bailey into the bathroom, where she rinsed the dye from Bailey's hair.
"Tell me about it." Bailey's voice was muffled by the towel pressed over her face.
That night, Bailey and Adie were on the sofa in the red room, watching TV together. Jakob and Joey had gone to stay round a friend's.
"Wanna watch the Ring 2?" Adie asked.
"Yeah, sure." Bailey reached over to the popcorn bowl, and took a handful. "Is Dad getting back next week or the week after?"
"Monday. Three days time. " Adie poked Bailey playfully with her foot. "Tre too. "
"Pee off!" Bailey flicked some popcorn at her stepmother. Adie flicked it back. The film was forgotten as the two began a big popcorn battle.
Billie Joe flopped down onto a barstool next to Mike. Taking a swig of their beers, the two men watched Tre move around a group of hot, dancing girls with his head down as he walked into the toilets. Both Billie Joe and Mike choked on their drinks.
"Christ, Tre did NOT just ignore those girls, did he?" Mike sounded shocked.
"I know. Mike, is it just me, or has Tre been acting kinda weird this tour?"
"Bill, Tre IS weird!"
Billie Joe smirked. "Fine. Does it seem like Tre's been acting, well, DIFFERENT? Like, just then, he pretty much ignored those girls, and he's just been, almost... " Billie couldn't describe his friend. Mike could.
"Almost sane. "
"EXACTLY. " Billie Joe was beginning to slur.
"Well then, let's try the Tre Cool sanity test. " Mike waved to Tre. "Hey Tre. We're bored. D'you wanna find a strip club or something?"
Tre only shrugged. "Not really. Actually, I don't feel so good. I'm gonna head back to the hotel. See yas laters. " He waved to his stunned bandmates, as he left the bar.
"Tre didn't want to go to a strip club." Billie Joe began.
"And he went back to the hotel at half eleven. After two beers." Mike continued. He turned to Billie Joe.
"Holy shit. Tre"s in love!"
Billie Joe punched in his home number on his phone as he walked back to his dressing room with Tre and Mike. As it rang, he pushed back his sweaty hair from his eyes.
"Hello?" Jakob.
"Hey, little dude!" Billie greeted his son. "How are ya, buddy?"
"Fine, daddy. Bailey stayed up nearly all night helping me revise for a test today."
"And? How did you do?"
"Um, I got eighty nine percent. That"s a twenty percent improvement, Daddy!"
"Jakey, that's great! I know one lucky little guy whose getting something cool!"
"Yay! Do you wanna talk to Mom?"
"Yeah please."
"Billie?"
"Hey Adie. I got your message, what happened with Bailey?"
"She's refusing to go to school."
"What? Why?"
"Well, you know she split with Liam?"
"Yeah? "
"Well, he's refusing to accept it, and he's been calling almost every ten minutes."
"Jeez."
"Yeah. And he just won't leave Bailey alone, so she won't leave the house."
"Oh, man. Is she in?"
"She's at Rob's, with Naomi. She'll be back in about an hour. I'll get her to call you."
"Cheers. Can I talk to Joey?"
"Sure."
At Rob Cavallo's, Bailey and Naomi were in Naomi's room, and Beanpole was snoozing under her bed. Naomi was finishing dying Bailey's hair deep purple again. Bailey was flicking through the TV channels, which really bugged Naomi.
"Oh, for crying out loud, Bailey, just keep it on one bloody channel. "
Bailey obediently stopped flicking. Unfortunately, she had flicked onto a gay porn channel by accident. The two girls looked at each other, and burst into disgusted laughter. Naomi leapt up and turned off the TV. Bailey reached into her bag.
"I meant to show you earlier. Last of my paperwork came through. All my psychiatrist and therapist reports."
Naomi looked at the label on the first folder full.
"Bailey Jade Maria Regis, Therapy reports June 1996 to September 1996. Aww, bless. " Naomi flicked through the files. Bailey pointed out some entries to her.
"Oh, July 1996. I absolutely refused to say anything other than "cabbage" to those stupid doctors. And December 1999. I still hold that record for making the most shrinks quit in a month. Four."
"How did you manage that, again?" Naomi reached for her drink.
"Um, I think I had just watched Hannibal, or Silence Of The Lambs, and I told everyone the doctors were cannibals. Tee hee. Fourteen seven year olds, screaming their heads off every time the guys came near. And look, those police things from New Year's. Me, Nibs Chalky and PeeWee and Michael Thompson got "cautioned" for running around outside the retirement home and screaming something about the world ending on the new millennium. Ha, we caused a massive pensioner panic on that! "
Naomi looked at them. "Where was I? I like causing big panics. Oh right- I was in another placement. "
Bailey began to answer her, but was interrupted by her phone bleeping.
"If thats Liam again... " Bailey checked her messages. "Oh."
"Who is it? "
"Tre." Bailey read the message, a small smile on her face.
"What did he say? Can you tell me, or is it..."
"No. Just stupidly sweet." Bailey put her phone back into her pocket. Naomi rubbed her mate's shoulder.
"Is Liam still calling you? "
Bailey nodded. "Yeah. Adie's getting pissed, too. She went down the police station day before yesterday. The cops can't do anything, apparently. Liam is fully allowed to call on the phone, cause he is just asking me to take him back. He's not being threatening or anything, so all the cops can do is tell him to stay away from the house."
"Well that sucks." Naomi checked the clock, and pulled Bailey into the bathroom, where she rinsed the dye from Bailey's hair.
"Tell me about it." Bailey's voice was muffled by the towel pressed over her face.
That night, Bailey and Adie were on the sofa in the red room, watching TV together. Jakob and Joey had gone to stay round a friend's.
"Wanna watch the Ring 2?" Adie asked.
"Yeah, sure." Bailey reached over to the popcorn bowl, and took a handful. "Is Dad getting back next week or the week after?"
"Monday. Three days time. " Adie poked Bailey playfully with her foot. "Tre too. "
"Pee off!" Bailey flicked some popcorn at her stepmother. Adie flicked it back. The film was forgotten as the two began a big popcorn battle.
Billie Joe flopped down onto a barstool next to Mike. Taking a swig of their beers, the two men watched Tre move around a group of hot, dancing girls with his head down as he walked into the toilets. Both Billie Joe and Mike choked on their drinks.
"Christ, Tre did NOT just ignore those girls, did he?" Mike sounded shocked.
"I know. Mike, is it just me, or has Tre been acting kinda weird this tour?"
"Bill, Tre IS weird!"
Billie Joe smirked. "Fine. Does it seem like Tre's been acting, well, DIFFERENT? Like, just then, he pretty much ignored those girls, and he's just been, almost... " Billie couldn't describe his friend. Mike could.
"Almost sane. "
"EXACTLY. " Billie Joe was beginning to slur.
"Well then, let's try the Tre Cool sanity test. " Mike waved to Tre. "Hey Tre. We're bored. D'you wanna find a strip club or something?"
Tre only shrugged. "Not really. Actually, I don't feel so good. I'm gonna head back to the hotel. See yas laters. " He waved to his stunned bandmates, as he left the bar.
"Tre didn't want to go to a strip club." Billie Joe began.
"And he went back to the hotel at half eleven. After two beers." Mike continued. He turned to Billie Joe.
"Holy shit. Tre"s in love!"
