2028, chapter 3
Back in Oakland, Katie sat at the window of her home, wishing school would start so she could make some friends and get away from her parents complete melodramatic ideas about unpacking. It had been about a week since she had arrived and everything totally sucked so far. She suddenly had a brilliant idea, to take a walk!
"Mom I'll be back later!" she cried and walked out the door, barely waiting for the "Sure honey" that her mother shouted back.
Once outside, Katie observed the view of San Francisco. It was slightly foggy, so not much could be seen, just the orange tops of the Golden Gate Bridge, which, due to new technology, wasn't in use much any more. It was still used as a landmark though, a huge tourist attraction and Katie remembered being very little and walking across it, but being to scared of the water down below to pay attention to much other than her father's shoulder, in which her head was buried.
Setting off down the hill, she watched someone's car pass, hovering mere inches above the ground while the buzzing of the energy it was using made the bottom vibrate slightly as a few kids chatted lightly in the backseat, windows open. Seeing this, she wished more than ever that she was home, back in New York City, with all her friends. Secretly, though she had not said much she was angrier at her parents then she ever had been. As she walked she stared at the ground, and suddenly she bumped into someone.
"Sorry," she muttered before she looked up. It was a man, green eyed and black haired, only a few inches taller than her. He looked a lot like her, and she knew exactly who it was.
As he opened his mouth to say something, she interrupted, "You're Billie Joe Armstrong!"
He looked taken aback and blinked, looking at her funny, "Um... yeah." He paused a second then chuckled, "It's been a while since I've heard that one. How do you know?"
"Well it's a long story, but I love your band... or your old band... whatever you wanna call it."
"Yeah, what's your name?"
"Katie."
"Oh, well Katie, walk with me, will you? I'm gonna go insane if I don't get company."
"Oh... " Katie considered her choices, go home and watch her parents go insane about the location of a poster, or walk with Billie Joe Armstrong. Her choice was obvious. "Okay."
"So Katie, tell me something interesting," Billie Joe smiled, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black jeans as the two began to walk down the hill again.
"Well... I just moved here."
"Oh? From where?"
"New York... City."
Billie Joe raised an eyebrow, "That's a long way. You like it here?"
"Yeah I guess it's okay," Katie lied, "It's very-"
"Liar!" Billie declared, pointing a finger at her.
She looked at him, eyes big an innocent, "How did you know? I didn't think I was that sucky of a liar... "
"Oh you are. It doesn't help that I lie exactly the same way! Please," Billie reprimanded good-naturedly, "Putting your head down, playing with something! You're not gonna get that shit around me. Oh, did I just curse?"
"Yeah, it's fine. I'm fourteen. People think that kids my age have never heard the word 'damn' but really, we're not stupid."
"Oh, 'cause when my kids were at home, I wasn't allowed to curse around them."
"You have kids?"
"Yeah... Jakob and Joseph, but I haven't... well never mind," Billie murmured. It was odd, for some reason he felt that he could trust this girl and she would listen, not laugh but just listen. This girl relaxed him, made him comfortable and he felt as if he knew her from something or somewhere. Her looks reminded her of someone who he couldn't put his finger on, someone he hadn't seen in years.
Katie wondered what Billie was not saying, but she didn't care for the time being. Not many Green Day fans, she knew, would get this chance. To go for a walk with Billie Joe, singer-guitarist for Green Day, and she was going to enjoy it to the max.
For a bit there was a silence. Not a cold, awkward silence, but a relaxed, no-need-for-words silence. A silence that is in essence, not a silence at all, because the surrounding background noises seem to elevate in volume and take the place of any talking that would usually intrude. In time, Billie said something.
"What's your favorite CD, I mean album?"
"I dunno. I only have Dookie and American Idiot. My mom says that those are both good, but not the best. It's called like... Kerplunk I think."
Billie was impressed, "Your mom likes Green Day?"
"Yeah."
"Kerplunk," Billie Joe shook his head, nostalgically, "That was a long time ago... god that was thirty seven years ago... I was nineteen or twenty. Your mother knows her Green Day, it's not even on a major record label. We sold copies out of our cars. She must of bought the redone edition or used."
"Wow. Is it a good album?"
"Yeah it's okay I guess. I'm a terrible judge of that kind of thing, I mean hearing your own voice recorded is really weird. I got used to it though."
"Whaddaya mean?" Katie asked, cocking her head to the side, a characteristic she had inherited from her mother.
"Oh, well if Mommy talked about old CDs, she probably mentioned that the majority of the world thought that American Idiot was hugely overplayed?"
"No, that must of slipped her mind," Katie laughed.
"Oh, well we had... let me think... American Idiot's singles were: 'American Idiot,' 'Jesus of Suburbia,' 'Holiday,' 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams,' 'Wake Me Up When September Ends,' with a live version of 'Saint Jimmy' we did for a concert that we filmed, and a radio edit of 'Give Me Novacaine.' If you ask me, I agree. But it gave me excuses to be a smartass to the entire celebrity population."
This sent Katie into giggles until she gasped, "How many songs were there? 'Cause I got bonus tracks and stuff... but they don't say which are which."
"Thirteen. That was seven singles, the majority of the tracks, and then there was all the other stuff people did."
"Like?" Katie pried. She had a feeling Billie Joe enjoyed talking about this, and oh boy did he.
"Well there was a local DJ who made this thing called American Edit by Dean Gray. It had mash-ups of all the American Idiot songs on it, really hysterical. Then of course there was the unplanned BIAB."
"BIAB?" Katie asked, as the two rounded a corner.
"Bullet in a Bible, a concert movie and album. Greatest thing we've ever done."
"Wow," Katie nodded her head, impressed.
Billie Joe's eyes had a faraway look in them, as though he was reliving the events of 2004-2006 in his mind, from the nerve-wracking date of release, to the day the songs stopped playing during the 'New Music' segment on the radio. He remembered how much that CD had done for him and his family, causing him to be away, but when he was home, so much happier and healthier than he had been, on the brink of destruction.
But those days were gone, and Green Day was a phenomenon of yesterday, shoved in the backs of closets, and cardboard boxes with bands and artists like Rancid, Garbage, and all the other pop-punk or emo bands of the 2000s and 1990s. And, Billie Joe had to admit he had fucked up seriously, with his both his personal and professional lives.
"Mom I'll be back later!" she cried and walked out the door, barely waiting for the "Sure honey" that her mother shouted back.
Once outside, Katie observed the view of San Francisco. It was slightly foggy, so not much could be seen, just the orange tops of the Golden Gate Bridge, which, due to new technology, wasn't in use much any more. It was still used as a landmark though, a huge tourist attraction and Katie remembered being very little and walking across it, but being to scared of the water down below to pay attention to much other than her father's shoulder, in which her head was buried.
Setting off down the hill, she watched someone's car pass, hovering mere inches above the ground while the buzzing of the energy it was using made the bottom vibrate slightly as a few kids chatted lightly in the backseat, windows open. Seeing this, she wished more than ever that she was home, back in New York City, with all her friends. Secretly, though she had not said much she was angrier at her parents then she ever had been. As she walked she stared at the ground, and suddenly she bumped into someone.
"Sorry," she muttered before she looked up. It was a man, green eyed and black haired, only a few inches taller than her. He looked a lot like her, and she knew exactly who it was.
As he opened his mouth to say something, she interrupted, "You're Billie Joe Armstrong!"
He looked taken aback and blinked, looking at her funny, "Um... yeah." He paused a second then chuckled, "It's been a while since I've heard that one. How do you know?"
"Well it's a long story, but I love your band... or your old band... whatever you wanna call it."
"Yeah, what's your name?"
"Katie."
"Oh, well Katie, walk with me, will you? I'm gonna go insane if I don't get company."
"Oh... " Katie considered her choices, go home and watch her parents go insane about the location of a poster, or walk with Billie Joe Armstrong. Her choice was obvious. "Okay."
"So Katie, tell me something interesting," Billie Joe smiled, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black jeans as the two began to walk down the hill again.
"Well... I just moved here."
"Oh? From where?"
"New York... City."
Billie Joe raised an eyebrow, "That's a long way. You like it here?"
"Yeah I guess it's okay," Katie lied, "It's very-"
"Liar!" Billie declared, pointing a finger at her.
She looked at him, eyes big an innocent, "How did you know? I didn't think I was that sucky of a liar... "
"Oh you are. It doesn't help that I lie exactly the same way! Please," Billie reprimanded good-naturedly, "Putting your head down, playing with something! You're not gonna get that shit around me. Oh, did I just curse?"
"Yeah, it's fine. I'm fourteen. People think that kids my age have never heard the word 'damn' but really, we're not stupid."
"Oh, 'cause when my kids were at home, I wasn't allowed to curse around them."
"You have kids?"
"Yeah... Jakob and Joseph, but I haven't... well never mind," Billie murmured. It was odd, for some reason he felt that he could trust this girl and she would listen, not laugh but just listen. This girl relaxed him, made him comfortable and he felt as if he knew her from something or somewhere. Her looks reminded her of someone who he couldn't put his finger on, someone he hadn't seen in years.
Katie wondered what Billie was not saying, but she didn't care for the time being. Not many Green Day fans, she knew, would get this chance. To go for a walk with Billie Joe, singer-guitarist for Green Day, and she was going to enjoy it to the max.
For a bit there was a silence. Not a cold, awkward silence, but a relaxed, no-need-for-words silence. A silence that is in essence, not a silence at all, because the surrounding background noises seem to elevate in volume and take the place of any talking that would usually intrude. In time, Billie said something.
"What's your favorite CD, I mean album?"
"I dunno. I only have Dookie and American Idiot. My mom says that those are both good, but not the best. It's called like... Kerplunk I think."
Billie was impressed, "Your mom likes Green Day?"
"Yeah."
"Kerplunk," Billie Joe shook his head, nostalgically, "That was a long time ago... god that was thirty seven years ago... I was nineteen or twenty. Your mother knows her Green Day, it's not even on a major record label. We sold copies out of our cars. She must of bought the redone edition or used."
"Wow. Is it a good album?"
"Yeah it's okay I guess. I'm a terrible judge of that kind of thing, I mean hearing your own voice recorded is really weird. I got used to it though."
"Whaddaya mean?" Katie asked, cocking her head to the side, a characteristic she had inherited from her mother.
"Oh, well if Mommy talked about old CDs, she probably mentioned that the majority of the world thought that American Idiot was hugely overplayed?"
"No, that must of slipped her mind," Katie laughed.
"Oh, well we had... let me think... American Idiot's singles were: 'American Idiot,' 'Jesus of Suburbia,' 'Holiday,' 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams,' 'Wake Me Up When September Ends,' with a live version of 'Saint Jimmy' we did for a concert that we filmed, and a radio edit of 'Give Me Novacaine.' If you ask me, I agree. But it gave me excuses to be a smartass to the entire celebrity population."
This sent Katie into giggles until she gasped, "How many songs were there? 'Cause I got bonus tracks and stuff... but they don't say which are which."
"Thirteen. That was seven singles, the majority of the tracks, and then there was all the other stuff people did."
"Like?" Katie pried. She had a feeling Billie Joe enjoyed talking about this, and oh boy did he.
"Well there was a local DJ who made this thing called American Edit by Dean Gray. It had mash-ups of all the American Idiot songs on it, really hysterical. Then of course there was the unplanned BIAB."
"BIAB?" Katie asked, as the two rounded a corner.
"Bullet in a Bible, a concert movie and album. Greatest thing we've ever done."
"Wow," Katie nodded her head, impressed.
Billie Joe's eyes had a faraway look in them, as though he was reliving the events of 2004-2006 in his mind, from the nerve-wracking date of release, to the day the songs stopped playing during the 'New Music' segment on the radio. He remembered how much that CD had done for him and his family, causing him to be away, but when he was home, so much happier and healthier than he had been, on the brink of destruction.
But those days were gone, and Green Day was a phenomenon of yesterday, shoved in the backs of closets, and cardboard boxes with bands and artists like Rancid, Garbage, and all the other pop-punk or emo bands of the 2000s and 1990s. And, Billie Joe had to admit he had fucked up seriously, with his both his personal and professional lives.
