A Walk Down Memory Lane, chapter 6
"I can't!!" squealed Tre.
"Seriously, dude are you okay?" he asked with a 'you need help' look on his face.
"No... ..Lindsey?!"
"Wha?" I said still a little sleepy
"Are you sure I took aspirin?"
"I dunno gimme the bottle you took the meds out of"
"k" he said as he went to go get the bottle
"Uh... ... Tre?
"Yeh, wha?"
"Do you have ADD or ADHD?"
"Well... .some people think I do, but I really don't, I'm just insane" he said proud of his total weirdness.
"Okie well you just took Ritalin... ." Mike and Billie's jaws dropped open at the same time.
"What the hell?" said Tre."When did I get that?"
"Uh... Tre remember the time you had to much coffee and we took you to the doctor and they thought you had ADHD?" asked Billie
"Vaguely" he replied.
"Well they gave you Ritalin... .but we never thought you'd take it"
"Well... ..i didn't mean to I was still sleepy and I couldn't read correctly."
"Uh... .Billie, Mike do you think we should take him to a doctor?" I asked a little worried.
"Maybe" so within a few minutes we were at the ER with a doctor telling us we could go home.
" There's absolutely nothing we can do, but he'll be fine, we don't need to do anything."
"Are you sure 'cause we gotta gig we have to be at in a couple of days we can't have Tre sick." Said a worried Mike.
"Yeah doc," begged Tre getting down on his knees grabbing his white coat, "Tell me, give it to me straight, how long?"
"Um... .what?" said a confused doctor.
"How long do I have ta live?" he said faking tears.
"Well... .hopefully about 50 or 60 more years unless you do something ... ."
"Stupid" I finished looking at Tre. He looked back at me like just ruined his 'moment'..which I guess I did.
We got home and immediately Mike and Tre started arguing about what was better bass or drums and frankly, I was getting tired of it so...
We left Tre and Mike alone hoping they wouldn't burn down the house or kill each other while Billie and I went off to be alone.
"So" he said looking at me, "If I remember correctly we were talking about your ass of a stepfather... .so?"
"So what there's nothing to tell"
"No I mean I think we need to put him away an-"
"NO" I said trying to fight back tears, "If we put him away mom would come after me and then when Jerry would get outta jail he'd be after me-" Billie cut me off
"will ya lemme finish?" I nodded reluctantly, I knew what he was going to say... . He wont come after me if he doesn't know where I am
"First of all he can't come after you if he doesn't know where you are... .see? second, he'll be in jail a long time"
"And think about it he'll be locked up along time" again see? I knew where this was going and I didn't want to talk about it anymore so I simply walked away... .I thought I could do that but I forgot I was with Billie... .caring Billie Joe Armstrong that wanted to help me even if I didn't want it... he grabbed my arm
"Oh no you can't just walk away from this, I'm sorry but we have to do something, you may not be the only one he's done this to"
"It's me against him and you're forgetting something."
"Oh really what?"
"He's a lawyer."
"Oh... .. this complicates things, but yes, it is you against him and who are the going to believe? A lawyer or an innocent girl that's been beaten, raped, and probably more than that right?"
"... Right"
"Ok then and we have proof don't we?"
"No"
"You have bruises don't you?"... many actually...and yes all from dear ol' mom an Jerry
"Yes, but that's it no tapes nothing"
"Ok so we can get that stuff"
"What?! Are you insane? I can't do that Billie I can't! I won't go back and I won't confront him, it's too hard!"
"If you don't that's one more rapist running around doing God knows what to innocent people like you!"
"I can't go back"I started crying hysterically
"I understand that, I really do, but we need to hit this guy where it hurts"
silence... I couldn't go near that guy... he was disgusting and Billie wanted me to get him to try and beat and/or rape me... ..I'm sorry but that's too much to ask after what I've been through.
"Why can't you just let it go Billie?" uh oh... wrong thing to say, he got pissed.
"Lindsey!! I can't just let this go ok?! He's hurt you and I can't stand seeing the person I love in pain!! Ok!?... .ok?" I just nodded as he embraced me and held me close... he loved me... he said it, those words I had wanted to hear ever since I met him 'I love you' and finally he said them... .but for some reason I couldn't say them back, and it hurt.
"Seriously, dude are you okay?" he asked with a 'you need help' look on his face.
"No... ..Lindsey?!"
"Wha?" I said still a little sleepy
"Are you sure I took aspirin?"
"I dunno gimme the bottle you took the meds out of"
"k" he said as he went to go get the bottle
"Uh... ... Tre?
"Yeh, wha?"
"Do you have ADD or ADHD?"
"Well... .some people think I do, but I really don't, I'm just insane" he said proud of his total weirdness.
"Okie well you just took Ritalin... ." Mike and Billie's jaws dropped open at the same time.
"What the hell?" said Tre."When did I get that?"
"Uh... Tre remember the time you had to much coffee and we took you to the doctor and they thought you had ADHD?" asked Billie
"Vaguely" he replied.
"Well they gave you Ritalin... .but we never thought you'd take it"
"Well... ..i didn't mean to I was still sleepy and I couldn't read correctly."
"Uh... .Billie, Mike do you think we should take him to a doctor?" I asked a little worried.
"Maybe" so within a few minutes we were at the ER with a doctor telling us we could go home.
" There's absolutely nothing we can do, but he'll be fine, we don't need to do anything."
"Are you sure 'cause we gotta gig we have to be at in a couple of days we can't have Tre sick." Said a worried Mike.
"Yeah doc," begged Tre getting down on his knees grabbing his white coat, "Tell me, give it to me straight, how long?"
"Um... .what?" said a confused doctor.
"How long do I have ta live?" he said faking tears.
"Well... .hopefully about 50 or 60 more years unless you do something ... ."
"Stupid" I finished looking at Tre. He looked back at me like just ruined his 'moment'..which I guess I did.
We got home and immediately Mike and Tre started arguing about what was better bass or drums and frankly, I was getting tired of it so...
We left Tre and Mike alone hoping they wouldn't burn down the house or kill each other while Billie and I went off to be alone.
"So" he said looking at me, "If I remember correctly we were talking about your ass of a stepfather... .so?"
"So what there's nothing to tell"
"No I mean I think we need to put him away an-"
"NO" I said trying to fight back tears, "If we put him away mom would come after me and then when Jerry would get outta jail he'd be after me-" Billie cut me off
"will ya lemme finish?" I nodded reluctantly, I knew what he was going to say... . He wont come after me if he doesn't know where I am
"First of all he can't come after you if he doesn't know where you are... .see? second, he'll be in jail a long time"
"And think about it he'll be locked up along time" again see? I knew where this was going and I didn't want to talk about it anymore so I simply walked away... .I thought I could do that but I forgot I was with Billie... .caring Billie Joe Armstrong that wanted to help me even if I didn't want it... he grabbed my arm
"Oh no you can't just walk away from this, I'm sorry but we have to do something, you may not be the only one he's done this to"
"It's me against him and you're forgetting something."
"Oh really what?"
"He's a lawyer."
"Oh... .. this complicates things, but yes, it is you against him and who are the going to believe? A lawyer or an innocent girl that's been beaten, raped, and probably more than that right?"
"... Right"
"Ok then and we have proof don't we?"
"No"
"You have bruises don't you?"... many actually...and yes all from dear ol' mom an Jerry
"Yes, but that's it no tapes nothing"
"Ok so we can get that stuff"
"What?! Are you insane? I can't do that Billie I can't! I won't go back and I won't confront him, it's too hard!"
"If you don't that's one more rapist running around doing God knows what to innocent people like you!"
"I can't go back"I started crying hysterically
"I understand that, I really do, but we need to hit this guy where it hurts"
silence... I couldn't go near that guy... he was disgusting and Billie wanted me to get him to try and beat and/or rape me... ..I'm sorry but that's too much to ask after what I've been through.
"Why can't you just let it go Billie?" uh oh... wrong thing to say, he got pissed.
"Lindsey!! I can't just let this go ok?! He's hurt you and I can't stand seeing the person I love in pain!! Ok!?... .ok?" I just nodded as he embraced me and held me close... he loved me... he said it, those words I had wanted to hear ever since I met him 'I love you' and finally he said them... .but for some reason I couldn't say them back, and it hurt.
