When He Came Around, chapter 8
"Surprise daddy!"
"Estelle!"
Mike bent down and scooped up his beloved daughter into his tattooed arms. His little Estelle wrapped her arms around his neck and Mike smiled at the sight of his little green party hat. Not wanting to be too sentimental, Mike shut his eyes and stopped the tears in his eyes from falling. All he had wanted for his birthday was his little hero and here she was, safe and in his arms.
"Happy birthday daddy!" Estelle whispered again.
That being said, this was one of the best birthdays that he's ever had. When Mike finally opened his eyes, he saw Mercedes walking out of her bedroom, with a subtle grin on her lips and sparkling green eyes. She stood alone at the back of everyone else that had crowded in the opening, all ready to offer Mike a hug and wish him happy birthday. As he set down Estelle, Mike kissed his daughter and then looked up at everyone else in the room. Joey and Liam, the dynamic duo, as Mike had labeled them, had taken refuge beside their biological aunt and as Mike looked at them, just standing there, he couldn't help but wish that they could be the exact people who he wanted to come home to every night, with Estelle included obviously. But with Mercedes and her two great boys, he blinked at the idea of being able to be the father and protector of that family. He felt as if he and Estelle belonged with them.
"Happy birthday man," Billie Joe said as he pulled Mike into a hug.
Estelle had run off and to Mercedes' side. When Mercedes looked down at the girl who reminded her of Mike so much, she smiled. "Thank you for letting me be here," Estelle said politely.
Mercedes, overcome with delight, placed her hand on Estelle's shoulder. "It's my pleasure to have you here Estelle. And you just made your daddy very happy."
Estelle skipped back to her father's side and it wasn't long before everyone was seated down for dinner. Mike had taken his spot at the head of the table and Estelle looked at him. "Daddy, can I sit beside you?" she asked.
"Of course," he said. "Take whichever side you want and Mercedes is gonna take the other."
Although Mercedes was in the kitchen, she had heard Mike clearly. She peeked back into the dinning room and saw that there was only one seat left and that was beside the birthday boy. Mercedes entered the living room with the dinner, which was Billie Joe's recommendation, vegetarian lasagna. There was enough for everyone to eat their full and to have leftovers, and wine and garlic bread had also been set down on the table.
When Mercedes had finished serving everyone with their first helping, she put some lasagna on her own plate and then pulled out the chair beside Mike and sat down. She looked at Mike for the first time that evening and smiled. "Happy birthday Mike."
Mike, who had been watching her long enough for his food to start to cool off, didn't smile. Instead, he leaned in a bit and spoke to her. "Thank you Mercedes. This is wonderful."
"Good. I'm glad."
Dinner was an easy success, filled with laughter and entertainment provided by Tre and Billie and sometimes, her own little comedians, Joey and Liam. As Mercedes started to clear everything away, her and Claudia were in the kitchen and Claudia started to light the candles on Mike's chocolate birthday cake.
The singing of 'Happy birthday' was led by none other than Billie Joe who had stood on his chair and belted out a pretty punk-rock version of the song that had Tre using empty cups as his drums. Mike had asked Estelle to help him blow out the candles and they had done so in one shot.
Mercedes served everyone with cake, ice creams, milk and coffee and finally took her seat. Enjoying the company, everyone was more relaxed than they had ever been in such a long time. The telephone rang once and Mercedes lazily rose from her seat and darted off to the other room. While she was gone, Adrienne looked over at Mike. The children were in the living room and it was just the adults around the table. "So... surprised are you?"
Mike chuckled and nodded. "To say the least. Hey, how did you guys manage to get Estelle down here?"
Adrienne cleared her throat and spoke. "Is was Mercedes. She had gotten in touch with Anastacia, which was whom I was speaking to the other night. Anastacia agreed to let Estelle stay with you for the rest of your time here while recording. It didn't take much convincing, but Mercedes is quite a good negotiator," she finished with a laugh.
"Mercedes left to go pick her up at the airport last night and then Estelle spent the night here," Billie Joe added. "I only found out this morning."
Mike shook his head in disbelief. He looked into the living room and saw Mercedes on the telephone and his little girl watching Mercedes with a curious look. He just couldn't believe that Mercedes would go through all of that trouble to bring Estelle to him. It just... made him so fucking happy.
A little later on in the night when the younger kids started to show signs of sleep, Mercedes had started to pick up the little bit of mess on the table. Carrying the dishes into the kitchen, she stood alone and hummed a tune to herself that was recognizable as a Green Day song. Mike had quietly followed Mercedes and leaned against the doorway.
"This was just wonderful Mercedes," he spoke to her.
Mercedes turned and looked at the bassist who was now walking closer to her. She couldn't help but get a little weak in the knees at the scent of his cologne and just smiled. "Well, it's your birthday. Besides, it gave me something to do other than your album, paperwork and running after the two musketeers in the other room."
"I found out what you did... and I can't thank you enough. I was just so depressed at first when I found out I had to come here for so long without Estelle, but the fact that you brought her down here was more than I could ask for. I don't know how to thank you. I really don't."
Mercedes looked at the talented musician in front of her. "It was my pleasure. She's a great kid... .really. She's just so polite and cute... she reminds me so much of you."
Mike smirked. "So you think I'm cute?"
Mercedes laughed and sighed. "Yes Mike. You're handsome."
"That's just another way to say I'm dead fucking sexy isn't it?"
Shaking her head in laughter, Mercedes muttered a simple 'fine' and turned back to what she originally came back in there to do. As Mike watched her profile, he noticed just how tired she did look.
With a sudden thought, Mike quickly picked her up in one swift motion. She laughed softly and Mike thought that someone had played music to his ears. "Just because it's your birthday, doesn't mean that you can do anything that you want you know!" Mercedes called.
Mike, however, disagreed. "That's where you're wrong. It's my birthday for another half an hour and in that sense, I'm allowed to do things that I normally can't do on other days."
"Which is what?" Mercedes egged.
"Letting you stop working and maybe getting some rest for yourself. Ever thought of that?"
Carrying her off quietly to her bedroom, the two remained silent, as if some sort of mutual understanding had come across them. As Mike gently pushed the door open with his foot, he set Mercedes down onto the bed and pulled the clean sheets out and tucked Mercedes in like he always did with Estelle. "Mike... " Mercedes began.
Mike just laughed and finally took a seat at the edge of her bed. "Look... you've done more than enough work tonight and throughout the week and I hate to be the one to tell you this, but it shows," he teased.
"Hey!"
"Point being, I don't want you collapsing on us while we're recording. So please, as my birthday present, just get some sleep. We'll all help clean up the mess that we made and can show ourselves out later on. Okay?"
Mercedes listened as Mike spoke with an open mouth. Closing it, she looked at her comfortable pillow and smirked. "I wouldn't be much of a hostess now would I?"
"No one asked you to be the hostess did we?"
Mercedes frowned, but her eyes remained smiling. "That's besides the point."
Standing up, Mike placed one hand in the air, to finalize the conversation. "The point is that it's my birthday and you my dear, are getting some rest. That's what I want from you."
Mercedes, quiet and tamed, didn't argue. She leaned back against her pillow and smiled at Mike as he walked out the bedroom door, closing it quietly. 'That's not the only thing that I would want,' Mike thought to himself as he reached the rest of the people at the party.
* * *
As Mike re-entered the room, Billie Joe caught him first. "So do you wanna do anything now or shall we all head back, take the kids with us?"
After a collective decision, everyone was ready to head back to their respected 'homes' and just relax. At that idea, Mike turned to Estelle. "Hey Hero, did you bring anything with you from home?"
Estelle looked up at her tall father and nodded. "There's some clothes and toys of mine in Joey and Liam's room. Are we gonna stay here tonight daddy?"
As the bassist looked down at his beloved daughter, even if this was the dwelling of his worst enemy, upon the look of his Estelle, he just nodded. "Yeah sure. Go change in your pajamas then and wash up."
Billie Joe and Tre looked at Mike. "You sure?"
Mike nodded as if it were no big deal. "I promised Mercedes that the place would be clean anyways and seeing as she's in bed now... "
"She's in bed?" Tre asked.
"Yeah," Mike stated. "She's been looking a little tired lately and I told her to get some rest."
Tre merely nodded at the response and looked at Claudia who was just fetching Frankito, who truly wasn't ready to go. Adrienne and her boys were already standing at Billie Joe's side and looking at their rock star father. "Alright, give us a call then if you need anything. Is Mercedes still awake?" Billie Joe asked.
"Probably," Mike answered.
Billie Joe made a rather quick exit to Mercedes' bedroom and opened the door quietly. There was only a faint lamp lit and he approached her as quiet as a mouse. Mercedes was lying peacefully in her bed, wearing only a simple nightgown that she must have changed into. However, just because the pajamas were simple, didn't mean that they weren't revealing. Letting his mind wander for only a moment, Billie Joe shook his head and remembered that his wife was just in the other room. Leaning down, Billie Joe kissed Mercedes softly on her cheek and received a muffled groan in response. Smiling at the mere cuteness that she managed to possess, Billie Joe whispered a little 'thank you' in her ear before parting and closing the door behind him.
"Is she awake?"
Billie Joe averted his attention to Tre, who was standing only inches away from him. "Not really, she's pretty much out of it. Why?"
Tre looked at his friend and smiled. "Just wanted to say goodbye I guess."
Billie Joe Armstrong smiled and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Don't worry about it man."
Nodding silently, Tre followed Billie Joe's lead and was soon out of Mercedes' apartment and in his own car on his was 'home' with Claudia and a sleeping Frankito.
* * *
Estelle had fallen asleep in her pajamas on the living room couch while the two boys had reluctantly went to sleep in their own beds. Mike was still awake and in the kitchen, just putting the dishes away to their rightful spots. Everything else was rather clean and he was tired himself and ready to get some sleep. Although he frowned at not being able to sleep in a proper bed, he yawned and told him that sleep was sleep and anywhere he could get it counted. Closing the cupboard, Mike leaned back against the kitchen table and peered into the living room. His little Hero was sleeping like and angel and he still couldn't believe that Mercedes had been able to bring her to him.
'Why is she so good to me?' he asked himself. Mercedes had always gotten along with Mike, but yet they didn't have the kind of relationship that Billie Joe and her shared. He smiled wondering if anyone in the world had their kind of relationship. Shaking the thought temporarily away, Mike stretched and walked into the living room and was just about to take a seat on the ground when he heard faint footsteps. "Mike?"
The bassist turned and saw Mercedes standing in the doorway. Thankfully it was relatively dark and she couldn't see his face turn into many shades of red. He wasn't sure if Mercedes was aware of what she looked like, but to him, he had never seen someone so perfect. And it was in that moment, with Mercedes just standing there, that Mike Dirnt had fallen in love with the woman. From everything she valued to everything she did to her beautiful hair and lips, something that night had definitely changed. "I didn't want to wake you," Mike whispered back.
Mercedes stood with just her nightgown on which the sexist thing that Mike's ever seen in woman's attire. Although it was a simple pearl colored nightgown, the lace trimming and the woman inside the little gown was enough to make Mike subtly cover a certain are of his body so that no one would notice.
"You didn't. I was just going to get something to drink... are you sleeping there?" she asked.
Mike looked down at the living room floor and nodded. "There was nowhere else. It's fine though. Don't worry about it."
Mercedes shook her head. "My bed's big enough for both of us and I'm sure as hell not letting you sleep on the floor. Go ahead."
Mike bit his lip and stood carefully and walked over to Mercedes' bedroom. Although it had the feminine elements like the lilies and candles, he smiled at the sight of a Clash poster that contrasted with the 'softer' elements of the room. She was definitely a beautiful punk girl, but with the girly side to her that shone every so often. Mike removed his shirt and pants, and in his wife beater and boxers, he crawled into the bed that truly was the most comfortable thing he's ever slept in.
Mercedes entered the room a few seconds later and was holding a glass of cold milk in her hands. She instantly smiled at Mike and set the glass on her nightstand and crawled into bed as well. Mike watched her from the corner of his eye and was amazed at how short her nightgown became as she crawled under the covers.
Mercedes sighed and let her head fall against the pillow. "Thanks for cleaning up after... and letting me get some sleep," she laughed.
Mike smiled at the beautiful woman lying beside him. "Don't worry about it. I guess my fatherly instincts just had to come out."
Grinning, Mercedes turned her body and faced Mike. "So how was your birthday... on a scale from one to ten?"
"Fifteen," he answered.
"You were never one to follow regulations were you?" Mercedes teased.
"Never. But seriously, it was better than I could have imagined. The last thing I expected was Estelle to be here and it means so much to me that she is here. Mercedes, I can't thank you enough."
"Hey, if I were you, I'd hope that there would be someone to bring my child to me on my birthday. Besides, it's hard to get something good for people who have everything."
"I don't have everything," he argued.
"Oh no?" Mercedes egged. "Tell me Mr. Mike Pritchard, what don't you possibly have?"
Mike looked down at Mercedes seriously. "Someone to come home to and share every single thing with. Someone to rely on no matter what the circumstance. I have an empty house and there's nothing I can do to make it a home because that's something that I have yet to find... if I ever do. Although there's only one thing in my life that I don't have, it makes me feel as if I have nothing sometimes."
Mercedes, now fully awake, looked at Mike with large, curious green eyes. He had just said everything that she had thought of not too long ago. She never expected Mike to say something like that... something that was so true and sad. Mike had never been vocal about his relationships to her, at least the romantic ones, or lack of. Looking upon the man, she wondered how someone so just plain good could be lonely.
When she didn't say anything, Mike looked at her with an arched eyebrow. "Mercedes?"
"... yeah?"
"You okay?"
"... yeah."
"You sure?"
"No."
Mike laughed and gently pushed the wavy brown hair behind her ear. Both of them unconsciously shivering at the touch, and what happened next was completely unexpected. Mercedes moved up, straddled Mike and leaned down, planting her lips against his. Mike's arms snaked up at her sides and he grinned at how thin the nightgown she was wearing really was. Felling the warmth of the woman's body and the sensual movements she made as she touched him, Mike softly moaned and started to kiss her neck.
Mercedes body turned a little rigid and Mike congratulated himself for finding her weak spot. Eliciting a purring sound from the bottom of her throat, Mercedes was pushed down gently by Mike and he removed his shirt. Kissing each other like it was their last time, passionately Mike let his hands explore Mercedes' delicate body. When Mercedes' hands were already in Mike's boxers, he moaned and pushed her nightgown a little higher. Mike suddenly looked down at Mercedes who was already looking up at him, quite lustfully. Upon re-thinking the situation, Mike raised his hands to Mercedes' face and kissed her softly. "We can stop now... I don't want to force... "
Mercedes shook her head and looked up at him. Knowing that he was right, she let her hands finish the job and watched Mike's eyes shut as he sighed and just let his body fall forward. With his two arms holding him up on either side of Mercedes, Mike smiled and looked at her. "I'm sorry."
Mercedes smiled. "Me too."
"Is it alright if I take a shower?" Mike asked.
"It's fine. There are some clean towel in the cupboard by the sink."
Nodding, Mike lifted himself from off of her body and walked towards the washroom that was adjacent to the bedroom. As he pushed the door half closed, Mercedes sat up in her bed and looked around her. 'What had just happened?' she thought to herself.
Mike had let the water run cold over his body. 'What had just happened?' he wondered. And worse off, 'what would have happened if we hadn't stopped?'
When Mike had finally stepped out of the shower, he saw that it was two in morning and Mercedes was asleep (or so he thought). Wrapping the towel around him, he slipped on some of his clean clothes and sat on the bed once more. He looked over and watched Mercedes for god knows how long. He just sat there, watching her chest rise up and down from her steady breathing. As he thought about it, he liked every inch of her and every part of her. Even her voice and the fact that she had all these random qualities about her that he would learn as time let itself pass. Finally letting sleep take him, Mike closed his eyes.
It was poor Mercedes however that had stayed up for a good amount of time before she had fallen asleep. For a while, she just enjoyed the fact that a man as good as Mike was sleeping next her and wondered what she would say to him the next morning. Surely he didn't want someone like her and she didn't want to let herself fall for someone again to only be dumped quickly. Blinking her tired eyes, she vowed to herself that she wouldn't let herself fall for the bassist.
"Estelle!"
Mike bent down and scooped up his beloved daughter into his tattooed arms. His little Estelle wrapped her arms around his neck and Mike smiled at the sight of his little green party hat. Not wanting to be too sentimental, Mike shut his eyes and stopped the tears in his eyes from falling. All he had wanted for his birthday was his little hero and here she was, safe and in his arms.
"Happy birthday daddy!" Estelle whispered again.
That being said, this was one of the best birthdays that he's ever had. When Mike finally opened his eyes, he saw Mercedes walking out of her bedroom, with a subtle grin on her lips and sparkling green eyes. She stood alone at the back of everyone else that had crowded in the opening, all ready to offer Mike a hug and wish him happy birthday. As he set down Estelle, Mike kissed his daughter and then looked up at everyone else in the room. Joey and Liam, the dynamic duo, as Mike had labeled them, had taken refuge beside their biological aunt and as Mike looked at them, just standing there, he couldn't help but wish that they could be the exact people who he wanted to come home to every night, with Estelle included obviously. But with Mercedes and her two great boys, he blinked at the idea of being able to be the father and protector of that family. He felt as if he and Estelle belonged with them.
"Happy birthday man," Billie Joe said as he pulled Mike into a hug.
Estelle had run off and to Mercedes' side. When Mercedes looked down at the girl who reminded her of Mike so much, she smiled. "Thank you for letting me be here," Estelle said politely.
Mercedes, overcome with delight, placed her hand on Estelle's shoulder. "It's my pleasure to have you here Estelle. And you just made your daddy very happy."
Estelle skipped back to her father's side and it wasn't long before everyone was seated down for dinner. Mike had taken his spot at the head of the table and Estelle looked at him. "Daddy, can I sit beside you?" she asked.
"Of course," he said. "Take whichever side you want and Mercedes is gonna take the other."
Although Mercedes was in the kitchen, she had heard Mike clearly. She peeked back into the dinning room and saw that there was only one seat left and that was beside the birthday boy. Mercedes entered the living room with the dinner, which was Billie Joe's recommendation, vegetarian lasagna. There was enough for everyone to eat their full and to have leftovers, and wine and garlic bread had also been set down on the table.
When Mercedes had finished serving everyone with their first helping, she put some lasagna on her own plate and then pulled out the chair beside Mike and sat down. She looked at Mike for the first time that evening and smiled. "Happy birthday Mike."
Mike, who had been watching her long enough for his food to start to cool off, didn't smile. Instead, he leaned in a bit and spoke to her. "Thank you Mercedes. This is wonderful."
"Good. I'm glad."
Dinner was an easy success, filled with laughter and entertainment provided by Tre and Billie and sometimes, her own little comedians, Joey and Liam. As Mercedes started to clear everything away, her and Claudia were in the kitchen and Claudia started to light the candles on Mike's chocolate birthday cake.
The singing of 'Happy birthday' was led by none other than Billie Joe who had stood on his chair and belted out a pretty punk-rock version of the song that had Tre using empty cups as his drums. Mike had asked Estelle to help him blow out the candles and they had done so in one shot.
Mercedes served everyone with cake, ice creams, milk and coffee and finally took her seat. Enjoying the company, everyone was more relaxed than they had ever been in such a long time. The telephone rang once and Mercedes lazily rose from her seat and darted off to the other room. While she was gone, Adrienne looked over at Mike. The children were in the living room and it was just the adults around the table. "So... surprised are you?"
Mike chuckled and nodded. "To say the least. Hey, how did you guys manage to get Estelle down here?"
Adrienne cleared her throat and spoke. "Is was Mercedes. She had gotten in touch with Anastacia, which was whom I was speaking to the other night. Anastacia agreed to let Estelle stay with you for the rest of your time here while recording. It didn't take much convincing, but Mercedes is quite a good negotiator," she finished with a laugh.
"Mercedes left to go pick her up at the airport last night and then Estelle spent the night here," Billie Joe added. "I only found out this morning."
Mike shook his head in disbelief. He looked into the living room and saw Mercedes on the telephone and his little girl watching Mercedes with a curious look. He just couldn't believe that Mercedes would go through all of that trouble to bring Estelle to him. It just... made him so fucking happy.
A little later on in the night when the younger kids started to show signs of sleep, Mercedes had started to pick up the little bit of mess on the table. Carrying the dishes into the kitchen, she stood alone and hummed a tune to herself that was recognizable as a Green Day song. Mike had quietly followed Mercedes and leaned against the doorway.
"This was just wonderful Mercedes," he spoke to her.
Mercedes turned and looked at the bassist who was now walking closer to her. She couldn't help but get a little weak in the knees at the scent of his cologne and just smiled. "Well, it's your birthday. Besides, it gave me something to do other than your album, paperwork and running after the two musketeers in the other room."
"I found out what you did... and I can't thank you enough. I was just so depressed at first when I found out I had to come here for so long without Estelle, but the fact that you brought her down here was more than I could ask for. I don't know how to thank you. I really don't."
Mercedes looked at the talented musician in front of her. "It was my pleasure. She's a great kid... .really. She's just so polite and cute... she reminds me so much of you."
Mike smirked. "So you think I'm cute?"
Mercedes laughed and sighed. "Yes Mike. You're handsome."
"That's just another way to say I'm dead fucking sexy isn't it?"
Shaking her head in laughter, Mercedes muttered a simple 'fine' and turned back to what she originally came back in there to do. As Mike watched her profile, he noticed just how tired she did look.
With a sudden thought, Mike quickly picked her up in one swift motion. She laughed softly and Mike thought that someone had played music to his ears. "Just because it's your birthday, doesn't mean that you can do anything that you want you know!" Mercedes called.
Mike, however, disagreed. "That's where you're wrong. It's my birthday for another half an hour and in that sense, I'm allowed to do things that I normally can't do on other days."
"Which is what?" Mercedes egged.
"Letting you stop working and maybe getting some rest for yourself. Ever thought of that?"
Carrying her off quietly to her bedroom, the two remained silent, as if some sort of mutual understanding had come across them. As Mike gently pushed the door open with his foot, he set Mercedes down onto the bed and pulled the clean sheets out and tucked Mercedes in like he always did with Estelle. "Mike... " Mercedes began.
Mike just laughed and finally took a seat at the edge of her bed. "Look... you've done more than enough work tonight and throughout the week and I hate to be the one to tell you this, but it shows," he teased.
"Hey!"
"Point being, I don't want you collapsing on us while we're recording. So please, as my birthday present, just get some sleep. We'll all help clean up the mess that we made and can show ourselves out later on. Okay?"
Mercedes listened as Mike spoke with an open mouth. Closing it, she looked at her comfortable pillow and smirked. "I wouldn't be much of a hostess now would I?"
"No one asked you to be the hostess did we?"
Mercedes frowned, but her eyes remained smiling. "That's besides the point."
Standing up, Mike placed one hand in the air, to finalize the conversation. "The point is that it's my birthday and you my dear, are getting some rest. That's what I want from you."
Mercedes, quiet and tamed, didn't argue. She leaned back against her pillow and smiled at Mike as he walked out the bedroom door, closing it quietly. 'That's not the only thing that I would want,' Mike thought to himself as he reached the rest of the people at the party.
* * *
As Mike re-entered the room, Billie Joe caught him first. "So do you wanna do anything now or shall we all head back, take the kids with us?"
After a collective decision, everyone was ready to head back to their respected 'homes' and just relax. At that idea, Mike turned to Estelle. "Hey Hero, did you bring anything with you from home?"
Estelle looked up at her tall father and nodded. "There's some clothes and toys of mine in Joey and Liam's room. Are we gonna stay here tonight daddy?"
As the bassist looked down at his beloved daughter, even if this was the dwelling of his worst enemy, upon the look of his Estelle, he just nodded. "Yeah sure. Go change in your pajamas then and wash up."
Billie Joe and Tre looked at Mike. "You sure?"
Mike nodded as if it were no big deal. "I promised Mercedes that the place would be clean anyways and seeing as she's in bed now... "
"She's in bed?" Tre asked.
"Yeah," Mike stated. "She's been looking a little tired lately and I told her to get some rest."
Tre merely nodded at the response and looked at Claudia who was just fetching Frankito, who truly wasn't ready to go. Adrienne and her boys were already standing at Billie Joe's side and looking at their rock star father. "Alright, give us a call then if you need anything. Is Mercedes still awake?" Billie Joe asked.
"Probably," Mike answered.
Billie Joe made a rather quick exit to Mercedes' bedroom and opened the door quietly. There was only a faint lamp lit and he approached her as quiet as a mouse. Mercedes was lying peacefully in her bed, wearing only a simple nightgown that she must have changed into. However, just because the pajamas were simple, didn't mean that they weren't revealing. Letting his mind wander for only a moment, Billie Joe shook his head and remembered that his wife was just in the other room. Leaning down, Billie Joe kissed Mercedes softly on her cheek and received a muffled groan in response. Smiling at the mere cuteness that she managed to possess, Billie Joe whispered a little 'thank you' in her ear before parting and closing the door behind him.
"Is she awake?"
Billie Joe averted his attention to Tre, who was standing only inches away from him. "Not really, she's pretty much out of it. Why?"
Tre looked at his friend and smiled. "Just wanted to say goodbye I guess."
Billie Joe Armstrong smiled and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Don't worry about it man."
Nodding silently, Tre followed Billie Joe's lead and was soon out of Mercedes' apartment and in his own car on his was 'home' with Claudia and a sleeping Frankito.
* * *
Estelle had fallen asleep in her pajamas on the living room couch while the two boys had reluctantly went to sleep in their own beds. Mike was still awake and in the kitchen, just putting the dishes away to their rightful spots. Everything else was rather clean and he was tired himself and ready to get some sleep. Although he frowned at not being able to sleep in a proper bed, he yawned and told him that sleep was sleep and anywhere he could get it counted. Closing the cupboard, Mike leaned back against the kitchen table and peered into the living room. His little Hero was sleeping like and angel and he still couldn't believe that Mercedes had been able to bring her to him.
'Why is she so good to me?' he asked himself. Mercedes had always gotten along with Mike, but yet they didn't have the kind of relationship that Billie Joe and her shared. He smiled wondering if anyone in the world had their kind of relationship. Shaking the thought temporarily away, Mike stretched and walked into the living room and was just about to take a seat on the ground when he heard faint footsteps. "Mike?"
The bassist turned and saw Mercedes standing in the doorway. Thankfully it was relatively dark and she couldn't see his face turn into many shades of red. He wasn't sure if Mercedes was aware of what she looked like, but to him, he had never seen someone so perfect. And it was in that moment, with Mercedes just standing there, that Mike Dirnt had fallen in love with the woman. From everything she valued to everything she did to her beautiful hair and lips, something that night had definitely changed. "I didn't want to wake you," Mike whispered back.
Mercedes stood with just her nightgown on which the sexist thing that Mike's ever seen in woman's attire. Although it was a simple pearl colored nightgown, the lace trimming and the woman inside the little gown was enough to make Mike subtly cover a certain are of his body so that no one would notice.
"You didn't. I was just going to get something to drink... are you sleeping there?" she asked.
Mike looked down at the living room floor and nodded. "There was nowhere else. It's fine though. Don't worry about it."
Mercedes shook her head. "My bed's big enough for both of us and I'm sure as hell not letting you sleep on the floor. Go ahead."
Mike bit his lip and stood carefully and walked over to Mercedes' bedroom. Although it had the feminine elements like the lilies and candles, he smiled at the sight of a Clash poster that contrasted with the 'softer' elements of the room. She was definitely a beautiful punk girl, but with the girly side to her that shone every so often. Mike removed his shirt and pants, and in his wife beater and boxers, he crawled into the bed that truly was the most comfortable thing he's ever slept in.
Mercedes entered the room a few seconds later and was holding a glass of cold milk in her hands. She instantly smiled at Mike and set the glass on her nightstand and crawled into bed as well. Mike watched her from the corner of his eye and was amazed at how short her nightgown became as she crawled under the covers.
Mercedes sighed and let her head fall against the pillow. "Thanks for cleaning up after... and letting me get some sleep," she laughed.
Mike smiled at the beautiful woman lying beside him. "Don't worry about it. I guess my fatherly instincts just had to come out."
Grinning, Mercedes turned her body and faced Mike. "So how was your birthday... on a scale from one to ten?"
"Fifteen," he answered.
"You were never one to follow regulations were you?" Mercedes teased.
"Never. But seriously, it was better than I could have imagined. The last thing I expected was Estelle to be here and it means so much to me that she is here. Mercedes, I can't thank you enough."
"Hey, if I were you, I'd hope that there would be someone to bring my child to me on my birthday. Besides, it's hard to get something good for people who have everything."
"I don't have everything," he argued.
"Oh no?" Mercedes egged. "Tell me Mr. Mike Pritchard, what don't you possibly have?"
Mike looked down at Mercedes seriously. "Someone to come home to and share every single thing with. Someone to rely on no matter what the circumstance. I have an empty house and there's nothing I can do to make it a home because that's something that I have yet to find... if I ever do. Although there's only one thing in my life that I don't have, it makes me feel as if I have nothing sometimes."
Mercedes, now fully awake, looked at Mike with large, curious green eyes. He had just said everything that she had thought of not too long ago. She never expected Mike to say something like that... something that was so true and sad. Mike had never been vocal about his relationships to her, at least the romantic ones, or lack of. Looking upon the man, she wondered how someone so just plain good could be lonely.
When she didn't say anything, Mike looked at her with an arched eyebrow. "Mercedes?"
"... yeah?"
"You okay?"
"... yeah."
"You sure?"
"No."
Mike laughed and gently pushed the wavy brown hair behind her ear. Both of them unconsciously shivering at the touch, and what happened next was completely unexpected. Mercedes moved up, straddled Mike and leaned down, planting her lips against his. Mike's arms snaked up at her sides and he grinned at how thin the nightgown she was wearing really was. Felling the warmth of the woman's body and the sensual movements she made as she touched him, Mike softly moaned and started to kiss her neck.
Mercedes body turned a little rigid and Mike congratulated himself for finding her weak spot. Eliciting a purring sound from the bottom of her throat, Mercedes was pushed down gently by Mike and he removed his shirt. Kissing each other like it was their last time, passionately Mike let his hands explore Mercedes' delicate body. When Mercedes' hands were already in Mike's boxers, he moaned and pushed her nightgown a little higher. Mike suddenly looked down at Mercedes who was already looking up at him, quite lustfully. Upon re-thinking the situation, Mike raised his hands to Mercedes' face and kissed her softly. "We can stop now... I don't want to force... "
Mercedes shook her head and looked up at him. Knowing that he was right, she let her hands finish the job and watched Mike's eyes shut as he sighed and just let his body fall forward. With his two arms holding him up on either side of Mercedes, Mike smiled and looked at her. "I'm sorry."
Mercedes smiled. "Me too."
"Is it alright if I take a shower?" Mike asked.
"It's fine. There are some clean towel in the cupboard by the sink."
Nodding, Mike lifted himself from off of her body and walked towards the washroom that was adjacent to the bedroom. As he pushed the door half closed, Mercedes sat up in her bed and looked around her. 'What had just happened?' she thought to herself.
Mike had let the water run cold over his body. 'What had just happened?' he wondered. And worse off, 'what would have happened if we hadn't stopped?'
When Mike had finally stepped out of the shower, he saw that it was two in morning and Mercedes was asleep (or so he thought). Wrapping the towel around him, he slipped on some of his clean clothes and sat on the bed once more. He looked over and watched Mercedes for god knows how long. He just sat there, watching her chest rise up and down from her steady breathing. As he thought about it, he liked every inch of her and every part of her. Even her voice and the fact that she had all these random qualities about her that he would learn as time let itself pass. Finally letting sleep take him, Mike closed his eyes.
It was poor Mercedes however that had stayed up for a good amount of time before she had fallen asleep. For a while, she just enjoyed the fact that a man as good as Mike was sleeping next her and wondered what she would say to him the next morning. Surely he didn't want someone like her and she didn't want to let herself fall for someone again to only be dumped quickly. Blinking her tired eyes, she vowed to herself that she wouldn't let herself fall for the bassist.
