Where Will We All Go When It's Too Late, chapter 2
Wake up... Better thank your lucky stars...
I was lost in another world, but I heard smooth voices around... they were talking to me...
"Hey, it's okay... wake up now, mate", said one voice, and I felt a warm hand on my forehead, followed of "Oh holy shit, she's freezing cold!"
I slowly, slowly, opened my eyes.
The very first I remember was two kind, warm, green eyes meeting mine. I shut my eyes and opened them again.
Three men sat around me. The one with green eyes had black, untidy hair, white t-shirt and a jeans jacket. One was really short, had reddish brown hair and a sick worried glance.
"How are you?" said the last one, with darkbrown hair and calm expression.
I gleered at them and backed up closer to the wall by instinct. Then I remembered what I was doing there and why. I started with checking the three guys properly.
Green-Eye and Calm-Guy both had tatoos. I saw a star and a heart at Green-Eye's hands, and Calm-Guy had tattoos all over his arms. But they all looked really kind and nice, and I knew they weren't going to hurt me.
"Are you... are you from the social welfare committee?" I asked, and Green-Eye smiled. He was cute to be adult.
"Nope. We're just here to check you're fine", he explained. "What happened to your arms?"
I moaned and looked at my arms. They looked terrible, with dried blood that had ran down my hands, and there was no small scratches, these were cuts. Pretty deep and long cuts.
"I... I smashed a window", I said, rapidly adding:"And who are you anyway?"
"Sorry", said Calm-Guy, stretching out his hand to me. "I'm Mike."
I shook it carefully.
"Billie", said Green-Eye and Shorty presented himself as Tré.
Tré? Weird, I thought and answered:
"I'm Lindsay."
"Okay, miss Lindsay", said Tré. "We must get you to the doctor. These are no grazes."
"No!" I shouted, immediately hysteric. "No way! They'll bring me back to dad! You can't, please! Don't--"
"Lindsay", said Billie composed, not really wanting to cut off. "What's wrong with your dad?"
Somehow, I told these strangers my whole life story. I felt I could trust them and it felt alright to tell somebody who seemed to understand it all.
I cried while I did it and pressed the story to them through sobs.
I started with telling when I was born. How mom died when I was three and how I lived with a drunk for eleven years. How I school was a struggle and fight for me. How I felt in the way for everybody. How I was only a problem and just trouble.
How kids ganged up at me. How they stole my stuff. How I fell to pieces more and more. And how I escaped.
I was finished after a quarter. It's amazing that you can explain fourteen years in fifteen minutes.
Tré, Mike and Billie looked at me. Billie's eyes glistened with tears.
"I don't know what to say", mumbled Tré, moving closer to me. "How can we help you?"
I did my best to wipe my tears.
"You don't n-need to h-help me", I replied and shivered.
"Well, we can't leave you, huh?" said Billie. He took off his jacket. "You'll freeze to death, take this." He laid it on my shoulders and rubbed my back for a while.
I had nothing to say.
"We're gonna stay here", decided Mike, standing up. "Wait, I'll get you food."
"But I have money!" I claimed complaining, putting my hand in my pocket, groping after the wallet. And shivering under Billie's jacket. It sounds ridiculous, but that jacket smelled good and it was still warm from his body.
"No way, forget that!" Mike shook his head. He smiled, waved a couple of his own bucks and went into the shop right behind us. Pling.
It was embarrassingly quiet until Tré finally broke the nasty silent.
"Soo, Lindsay, you're still going to school?"
"Yes. Or no, I guess I must jump out now."
"What do you wanna do when you're older then?"
"I have no future", I said bitterly. "Dad destroyed it. But I'd like to go to university and study biology."
Billie and Tré nodded.
"Cool", said Billie. "We have a university back home in Berkeley.
I coughed. Damn, I had probably got a cold.
"You study there?" I asked between my coughs.
Both of the two guys laughed. They had sweet laughs.
"No way, mate", beamed Tré. "We're way too old."
"33, to be honest", Billie laughed.
I gleered at them. No way! These guys looked like 25, less than 25!
"Sorry", I said and grinned. "I'm fourteen."
"It's okay, a laugh is always okay."
"But what's your occupation then?" I asked, because I was really curious.
"We're a band, quite famous actually", explained Billie. "Green Day, ever heard about them?"
I shook my head, feeling stupid.
"We had no radio at home, and I have no friends telling me either." I almost grinned, that sounded pathetic! "Any hits then?"
Tré and Billie looked at each other.
"Yeah, pretty many. When I Come Around, Longview..." Billie counted on his fingers.
"... Basket Case, Stuck With Me..."
"... Jaded, Good Riddance - you know, Time of Your Life - and..."
"... our latest single is Jesus of Suburbia, from the American Idiot album."
"Oh shit, and I never heard about you?!" I shouted with eyes as big as UFOs.
Tré shrugged his shoulders.
"Seems like. We just made a world tour for two years but we're back again, and--"
"Tré, no brags for fuck's sake", complained Billie.
"Well, sing me one", I suggested.
"What?!"
"Sing me a song. One of yours."
Pling.
The door to the shop opened and Mike came back, with two string bags stuffed with food.
"Hey guys, hungry?" he asked andd settled down between me and Tré.
Give me something that I need...
I was lost in another world, but I heard smooth voices around... they were talking to me...
"Hey, it's okay... wake up now, mate", said one voice, and I felt a warm hand on my forehead, followed of "Oh holy shit, she's freezing cold!"
I slowly, slowly, opened my eyes.
The very first I remember was two kind, warm, green eyes meeting mine. I shut my eyes and opened them again.
Three men sat around me. The one with green eyes had black, untidy hair, white t-shirt and a jeans jacket. One was really short, had reddish brown hair and a sick worried glance.
"How are you?" said the last one, with darkbrown hair and calm expression.
I gleered at them and backed up closer to the wall by instinct. Then I remembered what I was doing there and why. I started with checking the three guys properly.
Green-Eye and Calm-Guy both had tatoos. I saw a star and a heart at Green-Eye's hands, and Calm-Guy had tattoos all over his arms. But they all looked really kind and nice, and I knew they weren't going to hurt me.
"Are you... are you from the social welfare committee?" I asked, and Green-Eye smiled. He was cute to be adult.
"Nope. We're just here to check you're fine", he explained. "What happened to your arms?"
I moaned and looked at my arms. They looked terrible, with dried blood that had ran down my hands, and there was no small scratches, these were cuts. Pretty deep and long cuts.
"I... I smashed a window", I said, rapidly adding:"And who are you anyway?"
"Sorry", said Calm-Guy, stretching out his hand to me. "I'm Mike."
I shook it carefully.
"Billie", said Green-Eye and Shorty presented himself as Tré.
Tré? Weird, I thought and answered:
"I'm Lindsay."
"Okay, miss Lindsay", said Tré. "We must get you to the doctor. These are no grazes."
"No!" I shouted, immediately hysteric. "No way! They'll bring me back to dad! You can't, please! Don't--"
"Lindsay", said Billie composed, not really wanting to cut off. "What's wrong with your dad?"
Somehow, I told these strangers my whole life story. I felt I could trust them and it felt alright to tell somebody who seemed to understand it all.
I cried while I did it and pressed the story to them through sobs.
I started with telling when I was born. How mom died when I was three and how I lived with a drunk for eleven years. How I school was a struggle and fight for me. How I felt in the way for everybody. How I was only a problem and just trouble.
How kids ganged up at me. How they stole my stuff. How I fell to pieces more and more. And how I escaped.
I was finished after a quarter. It's amazing that you can explain fourteen years in fifteen minutes.
Tré, Mike and Billie looked at me. Billie's eyes glistened with tears.
"I don't know what to say", mumbled Tré, moving closer to me. "How can we help you?"
I did my best to wipe my tears.
"You don't n-need to h-help me", I replied and shivered.
"Well, we can't leave you, huh?" said Billie. He took off his jacket. "You'll freeze to death, take this." He laid it on my shoulders and rubbed my back for a while.
I had nothing to say.
"We're gonna stay here", decided Mike, standing up. "Wait, I'll get you food."
"But I have money!" I claimed complaining, putting my hand in my pocket, groping after the wallet. And shivering under Billie's jacket. It sounds ridiculous, but that jacket smelled good and it was still warm from his body.
"No way, forget that!" Mike shook his head. He smiled, waved a couple of his own bucks and went into the shop right behind us. Pling.
It was embarrassingly quiet until Tré finally broke the nasty silent.
"Soo, Lindsay, you're still going to school?"
"Yes. Or no, I guess I must jump out now."
"What do you wanna do when you're older then?"
"I have no future", I said bitterly. "Dad destroyed it. But I'd like to go to university and study biology."
Billie and Tré nodded.
"Cool", said Billie. "We have a university back home in Berkeley.
I coughed. Damn, I had probably got a cold.
"You study there?" I asked between my coughs.
Both of the two guys laughed. They had sweet laughs.
"No way, mate", beamed Tré. "We're way too old."
"33, to be honest", Billie laughed.
I gleered at them. No way! These guys looked like 25, less than 25!
"Sorry", I said and grinned. "I'm fourteen."
"It's okay, a laugh is always okay."
"But what's your occupation then?" I asked, because I was really curious.
"We're a band, quite famous actually", explained Billie. "Green Day, ever heard about them?"
I shook my head, feeling stupid.
"We had no radio at home, and I have no friends telling me either." I almost grinned, that sounded pathetic! "Any hits then?"
Tré and Billie looked at each other.
"Yeah, pretty many. When I Come Around, Longview..." Billie counted on his fingers.
"... Basket Case, Stuck With Me..."
"... Jaded, Good Riddance - you know, Time of Your Life - and..."
"... our latest single is Jesus of Suburbia, from the American Idiot album."
"Oh shit, and I never heard about you?!" I shouted with eyes as big as UFOs.
Tré shrugged his shoulders.
"Seems like. We just made a world tour for two years but we're back again, and--"
"Tré, no brags for fuck's sake", complained Billie.
"Well, sing me one", I suggested.
"What?!"
"Sing me a song. One of yours."
Pling.
The door to the shop opened and Mike came back, with two string bags stuffed with food.
"Hey guys, hungry?" he asked andd settled down between me and Tré.
Give me something that I need...
