Sweet Child of Mine, chapter 10
A week or so after I found out that Amy and Markey were going out; I find me and Adie sitting in the living room, finishing up some crappy movie as my cell phone rings.
"Who's calling at this hour?" Adie mumbles. I pull my phone out of my pocket and see that it's Amy's cell number.
"Amy."
"Dad, can you come pick me up?" she says nervously.
"Amy - what - happened?" I say slowly.
"Can you pick me up?" she pleads.
"Where are you?"
"Crescent Street."
"What are you doing there?!" I demand.
"Please come and get me." she pleads before the phone goes dead.
"What's going on?" Adie asks looking up at me.
"Amy needs me to pick her up on Crescent street." I say as I get up.
"Isn't that an underground punk neighborhood?"
"Yeah." I say pulling on my shoes.
"But that's..."
"Yeah." I say as I run out of the house to my car.
I drove quickly to the street full of squatter buildings and bars up to a sad excuse for a park where I find Amy and Markey sitting on a bench. Markey with his hand over his face.
"What happened?" I demand as I get out of my car.
"We were at an underground concert and a fight broke out." Amy says as she glances nervously at Markey, who removes his hand from his face to reveal a bloody cheek.
"Alright get in the car." I say as we sit back in the driver's seat.
"So where does your mom think you are?"
"What?"
"I know she'd never allow you to go to an underground punk concert."
"I'm supposed to be at Markey's watching movies with his brother and his girlfriend." Amy mumbles.
"How come you didn't call her or Keith to pick you up?"
"I didn't want to stress her out anymore, the cancer is stress enough already."
"Cancer?" I ask worriedly.
"Oh fuck, you didn't know." She says as she goes silent.
"Tell me."
"I can't tell you."
"What do you mean you can't tell me?!"
"I just can't." she says quietly.
"You do know I'll have to ground you for going to an underground concert."
"Yeah." She mumbles.
"I'm taking away the guitar I gave you till further notice." I say for lack of a more effective punishment.
"I guess that's fair." She mumbles.
"Markey are you okay back there, do you need to go to a hospital?" I ask as I turn the corner back into my neighborhood.
"No, just a band aid." He says quietly. I pull up into my driveway and the three of us get out of the car.
"Holy crap, what happened to your face?!" Adie asks hysterically as she sees Markey.
"I sort of got in a fight." Markey mumbles. Adie pulls Markey towards the washroom to clean out and bandage the cut on his face.
"Dad, can Markey sleep over?" Amy asks nervously.
"Yeah, but he stays in a guest room and you stay in your room or so help me you'll never see him again." I say fairly stressed out at this point.
"Dad, it was as much my idea to go to the concert as it was his, so don't judge him as being a bad influence." She says standing in front of me.
"Okay." I say as she turns to go up to her room.
The next morning I walk down to the kitchen where Markey and my daughter are playing footsie. I ignore there laughs and head straight for the coffee maker sitting on the counter.
"Dad, are you going to tell my mom what happened?" she asks nervously.
"Yup."
"Is there any way you won't tell her?"
"Nope."
"Please!"
"I'm sorry Amy, but I have to." I say as I walk out of the kitchen with my coffee mug.
Half an hour later I find myself in the car with Amy and Markey yet again. I first drop off Markey and quickly tell his mother what happened.
"Please don't tell her." Amy pleads as I drive down the street to her mother's house.
"Amy, you have to understand you went against your mother's wishes."
"But still."
"Still, it's not like you went to the best of places either. You went to an underground concert, those things are dangerous, fights break out, chemical drugs and...and."
"You and mom went to those shows, hell you probably even played at them!"
"Exactly, so believe us when we say they're not safe!" I say angrily.
"The two of you seemed to turn out okay."
"Oh really, I met your mother at that show and I knocked her up! Secondly, I have a huge ass scar on the top of my head from a fight I got into, my friend Roadie Shawn got arrested several times and he even got put in a hospital and god knows how many people got put in the hospital because of him!" Amy's eyes started to water.
"So that's all I am to you, the result of a girl you knocked up?"
"Amy, you know I love you." I say as I start to calm down, "You know that I wanted your mother to keep you when she talked about an abortion."
I pull into the driveway of her mother's house and get out of the car, Amy follows behind silently. She unlocks the door and walks in, I follow behind to find Erin sitting at the kitchen table. Amanda runs upstairs to her room.
"Erin, I need to talk to you."
"Sure Billie, sit down." She says smiling even though I can tell she was crying, "Do you want some coffee?"
"No thanks." I say as I sit across the table from her, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." She mumbles as she wipes her eyes, "So what did you have to tell me?"
"Last night Amy called me asking me to pick her up from Crescent Street, she went to an underground punk concert with Markey."
"Jesus Christ!" she says as she stands up from the table abruptly.
"I already lectured her and put a punishment in place." I say as I motion for her to sit down. "Erin, there was something else, Amy mentioned something about cancer."
"Oh." Erin says sitting down quietly. "So what did she tell you?"
"Nothing." I say looking her in the eye, "What's going on?"
"A month before you found us, I was diagnosed with breast cancer." She says slowly not looking up, "I-it's terminal, I'm going to . . . . I only have one more month to live." I sit in shock for a few moments.
"A-Amanda is taking it awfully well." I manage to choke up.
"She only knows that I have cancer, she doesn't know its terminal." Erin says as she starts crying again. "I was so happy when you found us, I'm glad she met you when I could still explain to her what happened."
"Is that why the lawyer was here last week? For your will?" I ask after a few more moments of awkward silence, I had tears in my eyes at this point.
"Yeah, I left Amanda in your care."
"And Keith? He's her step-father."
"He understands why I chose you and he only wishes that he can still visit her some times."
"Definitely." I say as I take her hand.
"Thank you Billie Joe." She says as she smiles through her tears.
The sound of Amanda trudging down the stairs is heard and I quickly wipe my eyes.
"Here's Bluey two." She mumbles as she hands me the Blue replica.
"That's what you named it?"
"Yeah, you know like the boat Q.E. 2, I thought it would be an interesting name to give it."
"Ahh." I say nodding as I take the guitar from her.
"Mom, were you crying again?" she asks her mother gently.
"No, no, I'm fine, it's just the meds." Erin mumbles. "Well Billie, you should be off."
"Yeah." I say getting up and leaving the house.
"Who's calling at this hour?" Adie mumbles. I pull my phone out of my pocket and see that it's Amy's cell number.
"Amy."
"Dad, can you come pick me up?" she says nervously.
"Amy - what - happened?" I say slowly.
"Can you pick me up?" she pleads.
"Where are you?"
"Crescent Street."
"What are you doing there?!" I demand.
"Please come and get me." she pleads before the phone goes dead.
"What's going on?" Adie asks looking up at me.
"Amy needs me to pick her up on Crescent street." I say as I get up.
"Isn't that an underground punk neighborhood?"
"Yeah." I say pulling on my shoes.
"But that's..."
"Yeah." I say as I run out of the house to my car.
I drove quickly to the street full of squatter buildings and bars up to a sad excuse for a park where I find Amy and Markey sitting on a bench. Markey with his hand over his face.
"What happened?" I demand as I get out of my car.
"We were at an underground concert and a fight broke out." Amy says as she glances nervously at Markey, who removes his hand from his face to reveal a bloody cheek.
"Alright get in the car." I say as we sit back in the driver's seat.
"So where does your mom think you are?"
"What?"
"I know she'd never allow you to go to an underground punk concert."
"I'm supposed to be at Markey's watching movies with his brother and his girlfriend." Amy mumbles.
"How come you didn't call her or Keith to pick you up?"
"I didn't want to stress her out anymore, the cancer is stress enough already."
"Cancer?" I ask worriedly.
"Oh fuck, you didn't know." She says as she goes silent.
"Tell me."
"I can't tell you."
"What do you mean you can't tell me?!"
"I just can't." she says quietly.
"You do know I'll have to ground you for going to an underground concert."
"Yeah." She mumbles.
"I'm taking away the guitar I gave you till further notice." I say for lack of a more effective punishment.
"I guess that's fair." She mumbles.
"Markey are you okay back there, do you need to go to a hospital?" I ask as I turn the corner back into my neighborhood.
"No, just a band aid." He says quietly. I pull up into my driveway and the three of us get out of the car.
"Holy crap, what happened to your face?!" Adie asks hysterically as she sees Markey.
"I sort of got in a fight." Markey mumbles. Adie pulls Markey towards the washroom to clean out and bandage the cut on his face.
"Dad, can Markey sleep over?" Amy asks nervously.
"Yeah, but he stays in a guest room and you stay in your room or so help me you'll never see him again." I say fairly stressed out at this point.
"Dad, it was as much my idea to go to the concert as it was his, so don't judge him as being a bad influence." She says standing in front of me.
"Okay." I say as she turns to go up to her room.
The next morning I walk down to the kitchen where Markey and my daughter are playing footsie. I ignore there laughs and head straight for the coffee maker sitting on the counter.
"Dad, are you going to tell my mom what happened?" she asks nervously.
"Yup."
"Is there any way you won't tell her?"
"Nope."
"Please!"
"I'm sorry Amy, but I have to." I say as I walk out of the kitchen with my coffee mug.
Half an hour later I find myself in the car with Amy and Markey yet again. I first drop off Markey and quickly tell his mother what happened.
"Please don't tell her." Amy pleads as I drive down the street to her mother's house.
"Amy, you have to understand you went against your mother's wishes."
"But still."
"Still, it's not like you went to the best of places either. You went to an underground concert, those things are dangerous, fights break out, chemical drugs and...and."
"You and mom went to those shows, hell you probably even played at them!"
"Exactly, so believe us when we say they're not safe!" I say angrily.
"The two of you seemed to turn out okay."
"Oh really, I met your mother at that show and I knocked her up! Secondly, I have a huge ass scar on the top of my head from a fight I got into, my friend Roadie Shawn got arrested several times and he even got put in a hospital and god knows how many people got put in the hospital because of him!" Amy's eyes started to water.
"So that's all I am to you, the result of a girl you knocked up?"
"Amy, you know I love you." I say as I start to calm down, "You know that I wanted your mother to keep you when she talked about an abortion."
I pull into the driveway of her mother's house and get out of the car, Amy follows behind silently. She unlocks the door and walks in, I follow behind to find Erin sitting at the kitchen table. Amanda runs upstairs to her room.
"Erin, I need to talk to you."
"Sure Billie, sit down." She says smiling even though I can tell she was crying, "Do you want some coffee?"
"No thanks." I say as I sit across the table from her, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." She mumbles as she wipes her eyes, "So what did you have to tell me?"
"Last night Amy called me asking me to pick her up from Crescent Street, she went to an underground punk concert with Markey."
"Jesus Christ!" she says as she stands up from the table abruptly.
"I already lectured her and put a punishment in place." I say as I motion for her to sit down. "Erin, there was something else, Amy mentioned something about cancer."
"Oh." Erin says sitting down quietly. "So what did she tell you?"
"Nothing." I say looking her in the eye, "What's going on?"
"A month before you found us, I was diagnosed with breast cancer." She says slowly not looking up, "I-it's terminal, I'm going to . . . . I only have one more month to live." I sit in shock for a few moments.
"A-Amanda is taking it awfully well." I manage to choke up.
"She only knows that I have cancer, she doesn't know its terminal." Erin says as she starts crying again. "I was so happy when you found us, I'm glad she met you when I could still explain to her what happened."
"Is that why the lawyer was here last week? For your will?" I ask after a few more moments of awkward silence, I had tears in my eyes at this point.
"Yeah, I left Amanda in your care."
"And Keith? He's her step-father."
"He understands why I chose you and he only wishes that he can still visit her some times."
"Definitely." I say as I take her hand.
"Thank you Billie Joe." She says as she smiles through her tears.
The sound of Amanda trudging down the stairs is heard and I quickly wipe my eyes.
"Here's Bluey two." She mumbles as she hands me the Blue replica.
"That's what you named it?"
"Yeah, you know like the boat Q.E. 2, I thought it would be an interesting name to give it."
"Ahh." I say nodding as I take the guitar from her.
"Mom, were you crying again?" she asks her mother gently.
"No, no, I'm fine, it's just the meds." Erin mumbles. "Well Billie, you should be off."
"Yeah." I say getting up and leaving the house.
