Worlds Apart, chapter 10
I woke up on Sunday with a heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach. In a few hours time we’d be back on the train to Newcastle again. The weekend was almost over and I never wanted it to end. What made it all so much worse was that I was going to have to say goodbye to all the Green Day guys not knowing when, or if, I was going to see them again. I mean, its one thing to find some locals to hang out with when you’re in a strange country with a few days to kill, but managing to keep in touch beyond that was pretty unlikely. I have trouble keeping in touch with school friends I’ve known since I was eight. My mood worsened when I remembered I had to call Ben and break the news about the bands. I decided to get it over with and went and sat out on the balcony so I wouldn’t wake Ellen. It was a warm day and the streets below were already full of people. I love London in the summer.
Fortunately Ben wasn’t at home, so I spoke to Mum and passed the job of telling him onto her. She was a little confused as to why I was calling from a hotel balcony in the center of London, and not from a student house in Newcastle and I could see why she was surprised. We’re pretty close and I always tell her everything. Except about one-night stands with rock stars that I then go to visit in London. But I don’t like lying to her, mainly because I’m crap at it.
“I’m ummm, with Ellen� I said, “We’re staying with the guys from Green Day�
At the confused pause on the end of the line, I ended up spilling out the details of how we’d become friends. Well, not too many details, obviously, or it would have been a little disturbing for both of us. She took it pretty well, but I could tell she was worried about me. She’d worried about me enough since my break up with Tom (which was made worse by how much she loved him) and the moment I told her about Billie Joe, she said,
“You can’t get attached…you know that, don’t you darling?�
“Yes, I do know that� I said, irritably.
“But you are�
I sighed,
“A little bit� I said, in a small voice, “But honestly, Mum, its going to be fine. We’re all friends now and I’ve had such a cool weekend. That’s that. Nothing is going on with him, honestly, and it never could, so it doesn’t matter. Just…don’t tell Ben yet, ok? I’m going to need to sort it all out in my head first. And don’t ever let slip that I stayed over with Billie Joe after I met him in Newcastle�
“God, Soph, give me some credit. D’you think I want to disturb him for life?�
I smiled, then changed the subject back to the party,
“Look, I’m going to try my hardest to sort it out� I said, “But get Ben onto it as well. I’ll see you tomorrow�
“Ok� she said, “…and try not to let Billie Joe get too under your skin. I know what you’re like�
I didn’t tell her I thought it might already be a bit too late for that.
Once Ellen and I were dressed we went to call on the guys. My stomach was wrenching at the thought of leaving them, and Ellen was pretty quiet so I guessed hers was too. When we got to their room, they were sitting out on their balcony in the sun, drinking beer and chilling out.
“Pull up a chair� Billie Joe said to me, after Ellen went with Tre to get a drink.
I slid into the seat next to him.
“You look gloomy� he observed, “What’s up?�
“Nothing� I replied, putting my head in my hands.
He raised an eyebrow,
“Found a replacement band yet?�
I covered my face. I couldn’t even be bothered to talk about that.
“No� I said,
“I have an idea,� he said, taking a sip of his beer.
“What?� I mumbled through my hands.
“We’ll do it�
I looked at him through my fingers to see if he was serious. He looked serious. He had his serious face on,
“Huh?� I muttered, taking my hands away from my face and looking at him properly.
“We’ll come and play instead of the guys who pulled out. We’ll still be around, we’re free Thursday and Friday and…I don’t know... I feel like I owe you. You came all the way down here from Newcastle to see me and forgave me for being a complete asshole-“
“-I never thought you were an asshole-“
“Yeah, yeah. But seriously, Mike Tre and Jason are up for it. It’s like your birthday present. 21’s a big one, it needs a big present�
I couldn’t believe what he was offering to do for me. My head was racing as I tried to think of all the practicalities involved in pulling it off successfully but, to be perfectly honest, my thoughts were kind of taken over by picturing the looks on everyone’s faces when Green Day turned up to play at my birthday party.
“Oh my God� I said, in disbelief, “But…you’d have to come all the way to York…and its such a shitty little venue…my friends are going to mob you…I can’t pay you…�
“Pay us? I said it was a birthday present. And we kind of like the idea of playing in a shitty venue. It’ll be like going back to our roots. Arenas are so impersonal. And I’m sure you’re friends won’t do us any harm. We’ll sign some autographs for them and stuff to get them off our backs…�
I was literally speechless
“Billie… I don’t know what to say�
“It’s not that much of a big deal�
“You’ve saved my party, and made it about a million times better than it was going to be before!� I grinned, “Not only that, but this is the perfect way to get Tim back for being a dickhead. Replacing him with Green Day!�
I couldn’t remember when I had ever been this excited. I grabbed Billie Joe and pulled him into a tight hug. I felt him laugh as his arms wrapped round me and hugged me back.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you� I gushed, “You really don’t know what this means to me. This is probably the coolest thing anyone’s ever done for me�
He released me, smiling.
“It’s ok� he said, “You deserve a kick ass party. You’ve had a shit couple of months. And I know we haven’t known each other very long but…kinda feels like we have so…I wanted to do something to make you feel better�
“You really are sweet� I smiled,
“I know� he said, lowering his voice, conspiratorially, “But, don’t tell anyone that, ok? I have a rep to keep up. “
I laughed, as Mike came up behind me and mussed up my hair.
“Morning kiddo� he said.
I jumped up and hugged him too.
“Woah, woah…� he said, putting one arm around me, “Watch the fucking beer�
“Thank you so much, Mike� I said, kissing him on the cheek,
“Oh, right, the party� he said, “I was wondering what all the affection was about. Yeah, it’ll rock. Do you have any hot friends?�
“Loads� I said, grinning.
“Great� he smiled, teasingly. He looked at Billie Joe, “See BJ, we get something out of this too�
Leaving the guys wasn’t quite so hard once I knew it was only a few days till I’d be seeing them again. I decided to go and have a quick cigarette before I left, seeing as I was going to have to go five hours on the train without one, and I needed to calm myself down cause I was driving Ellen crazy. When I got outside I went round the back of the hotel, where we’d been to smoke before and saw Billie Joe, who had obviously had the same idea. He was leaning up against the wall by the bins, cigarette in mouth. I smiled as I thought he’d be the worst anti smoking advertisement in the world. I’d never seen anyone look so effortlessly cool.
“Hi Bill� I said, taking up position next to him against the wall.
“Hey� he smiled, “Thought you were packing up�
“I was,� I said “But I thought I’d top up the nicotine levels before getting on the train. Otherwise I won’t survive the journey.�
“We’re gonna fly� he said, “We didn’t think the train would be a good idea for us�
I giggled at the thought of the hysteria that would break out if Green Day got on a train in London that passed through most of England’s major cities. Then I took out a cigarette and, realizing I’d forgotten to bring anything to light it with, took Billie Joe’s out of his mouth and lit mine on the end of it.
“So when is your actual birthday?� he asked me, as I passed it back.
“Tuesday� I said, “And Ben’s is Thursday�
“That’s close�
“I know. My parents were worried he was going to be born on exactly the same day, but he managed to hold out just enough not to completely steal my thunder�
He smiled,
“Well, he’s gonna be pretty surprised when we show up, huh? It should be good fun. I’m looking forward to it�
“Me too,� I grinned, “I can’t wait. You guys have saved my life, you’re the best�
He smiled,
“And now I get to see you in your awesome dress� he said, “Which you never did show me�
“Oh yeah� I said, sheepishly, “I forgot about that�
“Right� he said, “Well…I bet you’ll look gorgeous anyway�
I smiled as he turned his green eyes on me and I went weak again.
“Thanks� I managed to say
“You’re blushing�
“I am not�
“You are even more now� he said, grinning. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.�
“You didn’t!� I said, defensively. �Change the subject!�
He laughed,
“So did you have a good weekend?�
“It was amazing� I said, “I’ve had the best time. So has Ellen�
“Great. We’ve had fun too. I’m glad you guys came. I’m really glad we got back in touch�
“So am I� I replied, which was the understatement of the century.
“So…d’you reckon we’ll stay in touch?� he asked, as he dropped his cigarette to the floor and stubbed it out with his shoe. I looked up, straight into his eyes. He squinted at me in the sun.
“I hope so,� I said, truthfully.
“Cool� he said, slinging an arm round my shoulders as he leaned back against the hot brick wall. I leaned against him. “I hope so too�
Fortunately Ben wasn’t at home, so I spoke to Mum and passed the job of telling him onto her. She was a little confused as to why I was calling from a hotel balcony in the center of London, and not from a student house in Newcastle and I could see why she was surprised. We’re pretty close and I always tell her everything. Except about one-night stands with rock stars that I then go to visit in London. But I don’t like lying to her, mainly because I’m crap at it.
“I’m ummm, with Ellen� I said, “We’re staying with the guys from Green Day�
At the confused pause on the end of the line, I ended up spilling out the details of how we’d become friends. Well, not too many details, obviously, or it would have been a little disturbing for both of us. She took it pretty well, but I could tell she was worried about me. She’d worried about me enough since my break up with Tom (which was made worse by how much she loved him) and the moment I told her about Billie Joe, she said,
“You can’t get attached…you know that, don’t you darling?�
“Yes, I do know that� I said, irritably.
“But you are�
I sighed,
“A little bit� I said, in a small voice, “But honestly, Mum, its going to be fine. We’re all friends now and I’ve had such a cool weekend. That’s that. Nothing is going on with him, honestly, and it never could, so it doesn’t matter. Just…don’t tell Ben yet, ok? I’m going to need to sort it all out in my head first. And don’t ever let slip that I stayed over with Billie Joe after I met him in Newcastle�
“God, Soph, give me some credit. D’you think I want to disturb him for life?�
I smiled, then changed the subject back to the party,
“Look, I’m going to try my hardest to sort it out� I said, “But get Ben onto it as well. I’ll see you tomorrow�
“Ok� she said, “…and try not to let Billie Joe get too under your skin. I know what you’re like�
I didn’t tell her I thought it might already be a bit too late for that.
Once Ellen and I were dressed we went to call on the guys. My stomach was wrenching at the thought of leaving them, and Ellen was pretty quiet so I guessed hers was too. When we got to their room, they were sitting out on their balcony in the sun, drinking beer and chilling out.
“Pull up a chair� Billie Joe said to me, after Ellen went with Tre to get a drink.
I slid into the seat next to him.
“You look gloomy� he observed, “What’s up?�
“Nothing� I replied, putting my head in my hands.
He raised an eyebrow,
“Found a replacement band yet?�
I covered my face. I couldn’t even be bothered to talk about that.
“No� I said,
“I have an idea,� he said, taking a sip of his beer.
“What?� I mumbled through my hands.
“We’ll do it�
I looked at him through my fingers to see if he was serious. He looked serious. He had his serious face on,
“Huh?� I muttered, taking my hands away from my face and looking at him properly.
“We’ll come and play instead of the guys who pulled out. We’ll still be around, we’re free Thursday and Friday and…I don’t know... I feel like I owe you. You came all the way down here from Newcastle to see me and forgave me for being a complete asshole-“
“-I never thought you were an asshole-“
“Yeah, yeah. But seriously, Mike Tre and Jason are up for it. It’s like your birthday present. 21’s a big one, it needs a big present�
I couldn’t believe what he was offering to do for me. My head was racing as I tried to think of all the practicalities involved in pulling it off successfully but, to be perfectly honest, my thoughts were kind of taken over by picturing the looks on everyone’s faces when Green Day turned up to play at my birthday party.
“Oh my God� I said, in disbelief, “But…you’d have to come all the way to York…and its such a shitty little venue…my friends are going to mob you…I can’t pay you…�
“Pay us? I said it was a birthday present. And we kind of like the idea of playing in a shitty venue. It’ll be like going back to our roots. Arenas are so impersonal. And I’m sure you’re friends won’t do us any harm. We’ll sign some autographs for them and stuff to get them off our backs…�
I was literally speechless
“Billie… I don’t know what to say�
“It’s not that much of a big deal�
“You’ve saved my party, and made it about a million times better than it was going to be before!� I grinned, “Not only that, but this is the perfect way to get Tim back for being a dickhead. Replacing him with Green Day!�
I couldn’t remember when I had ever been this excited. I grabbed Billie Joe and pulled him into a tight hug. I felt him laugh as his arms wrapped round me and hugged me back.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you� I gushed, “You really don’t know what this means to me. This is probably the coolest thing anyone’s ever done for me�
He released me, smiling.
“It’s ok� he said, “You deserve a kick ass party. You’ve had a shit couple of months. And I know we haven’t known each other very long but…kinda feels like we have so…I wanted to do something to make you feel better�
“You really are sweet� I smiled,
“I know� he said, lowering his voice, conspiratorially, “But, don’t tell anyone that, ok? I have a rep to keep up. “
I laughed, as Mike came up behind me and mussed up my hair.
“Morning kiddo� he said.
I jumped up and hugged him too.
“Woah, woah…� he said, putting one arm around me, “Watch the fucking beer�
“Thank you so much, Mike� I said, kissing him on the cheek,
“Oh, right, the party� he said, “I was wondering what all the affection was about. Yeah, it’ll rock. Do you have any hot friends?�
“Loads� I said, grinning.
“Great� he smiled, teasingly. He looked at Billie Joe, “See BJ, we get something out of this too�
Leaving the guys wasn’t quite so hard once I knew it was only a few days till I’d be seeing them again. I decided to go and have a quick cigarette before I left, seeing as I was going to have to go five hours on the train without one, and I needed to calm myself down cause I was driving Ellen crazy. When I got outside I went round the back of the hotel, where we’d been to smoke before and saw Billie Joe, who had obviously had the same idea. He was leaning up against the wall by the bins, cigarette in mouth. I smiled as I thought he’d be the worst anti smoking advertisement in the world. I’d never seen anyone look so effortlessly cool.
“Hi Bill� I said, taking up position next to him against the wall.
“Hey� he smiled, “Thought you were packing up�
“I was,� I said “But I thought I’d top up the nicotine levels before getting on the train. Otherwise I won’t survive the journey.�
“We’re gonna fly� he said, “We didn’t think the train would be a good idea for us�
I giggled at the thought of the hysteria that would break out if Green Day got on a train in London that passed through most of England’s major cities. Then I took out a cigarette and, realizing I’d forgotten to bring anything to light it with, took Billie Joe’s out of his mouth and lit mine on the end of it.
“So when is your actual birthday?� he asked me, as I passed it back.
“Tuesday� I said, “And Ben’s is Thursday�
“That’s close�
“I know. My parents were worried he was going to be born on exactly the same day, but he managed to hold out just enough not to completely steal my thunder�
He smiled,
“Well, he’s gonna be pretty surprised when we show up, huh? It should be good fun. I’m looking forward to it�
“Me too,� I grinned, “I can’t wait. You guys have saved my life, you’re the best�
He smiled,
“And now I get to see you in your awesome dress� he said, “Which you never did show me�
“Oh yeah� I said, sheepishly, “I forgot about that�
“Right� he said, “Well…I bet you’ll look gorgeous anyway�
I smiled as he turned his green eyes on me and I went weak again.
“Thanks� I managed to say
“You’re blushing�
“I am not�
“You are even more now� he said, grinning. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.�
“You didn’t!� I said, defensively. �Change the subject!�
He laughed,
“So did you have a good weekend?�
“It was amazing� I said, “I’ve had the best time. So has Ellen�
“Great. We’ve had fun too. I’m glad you guys came. I’m really glad we got back in touch�
“So am I� I replied, which was the understatement of the century.
“So…d’you reckon we’ll stay in touch?� he asked, as he dropped his cigarette to the floor and stubbed it out with his shoe. I looked up, straight into his eyes. He squinted at me in the sun.
“I hope so,� I said, truthfully.
“Cool� he said, slinging an arm round my shoulders as he leaned back against the hot brick wall. I leaned against him. “I hope so too�
