Following The Green, chapter 2
My days at home and at school were over. When I wasn’t visiting St. Jimmy, I was walking alone in the streets. If I needed a place to sleep, I went to one of St. Jimmy’s client’s houses. One day, I was walking down a random street (I didn’t know where the hell I was, or where I was going.). The rain was falling steadily, but for some reason or another, I couldn’t feel it. I’d been depressed before, but this was, by far, probably one of the worst moments. I felt like I had nobody. Green Eyes—as I called him now—had disappeared. I hadn’t seen him in ages.
I stopped walking for a moment to light a cigarette. The faint orange glow was the only light I could see for miles. No one was outside, seeing as it was 2:20 AM. After a while I stopped again, leaning against a run-down apartment building. Then I heard footsteps. Or, at least, I thought I heard footsteps. My head was throbbing, my vision a little blurry. I hadn’t been to St. Jimmy in a few days. He was always moving around, but we managed to find him again.
I was right about the footsteps. I could barely see the silhouette of a person approaching me. My first thought was it might be a cop. They’d have to take me back home—my worst fear. But as the figure drew closer, I could see it was just another kid like me. No—wait—it wasn’t just a kid. It was Green Eyes. I felt mesmerized by those eyes that shimmered in the darkness.
“Where have you been?� I asked, as if I’d known him forever.
“Looking for you,� He replied. My head was aching so bad, I could’ve sworn there were a billion jackhammers going off inside it. I swayed, but he helped balance me.
“You’ve been seeing St. Jimmy,� He said, not as a question. I nodded. For a second, there were two of him—but it was just my vision acting up again. We began to walk together. I took a good look at him. It was obvious he hadn’t been using for years. Even the last time I saw him, I figured out that he wasn’t a frequent visitor of St. Jimmy.
“You don’t know who I am, do you?� He asked. I was taken aback. Why should I know who he was? I thought. I just shook my head. He laughed. “Figures. How long’ve you been using?�
“I…umm…I don’t know,� I said. “What about you?�
His smile dropped, his green eyes glowing with a sort of anger. “I stopped, a long time ago. Do you like the band Green Day?� He asked suddenly.
Green Day, I thought. The band. Of course I liked them. They’d been around since the ‘90’s. I owned practically all of their CD’s. I struggled to recall the band member’s names. Mike something…Tre Cool (I always remembered his name)…and…and…what was the other one? Oh yeah, Billie Joe. Billie Joe had always been my “idol�. Apparently Green Day had a new CD out, one that I’d never heard.
“Yeah. At home….I had all of their CD’s. They’ve got a new one, I’ve never heard. Mike, Tre Cool, and Billie Joe.� I said. Then I looked up at him. He was smiling. And it hit me. He was from Green Day. Green Eyes, as I’d grown to call him, was…no, it couldn’t be….
“Oh. My. God. You’re not…you can’t be…� I looked around. There weren’t any paparazzi. “You’re…Billie Joe?� I whispered.
He was still smiling. “That’s my name, don’t wear it out.�
I stopped walking for a moment to light a cigarette. The faint orange glow was the only light I could see for miles. No one was outside, seeing as it was 2:20 AM. After a while I stopped again, leaning against a run-down apartment building. Then I heard footsteps. Or, at least, I thought I heard footsteps. My head was throbbing, my vision a little blurry. I hadn’t been to St. Jimmy in a few days. He was always moving around, but we managed to find him again.
I was right about the footsteps. I could barely see the silhouette of a person approaching me. My first thought was it might be a cop. They’d have to take me back home—my worst fear. But as the figure drew closer, I could see it was just another kid like me. No—wait—it wasn’t just a kid. It was Green Eyes. I felt mesmerized by those eyes that shimmered in the darkness.
“Where have you been?� I asked, as if I’d known him forever.
“Looking for you,� He replied. My head was aching so bad, I could’ve sworn there were a billion jackhammers going off inside it. I swayed, but he helped balance me.
“You’ve been seeing St. Jimmy,� He said, not as a question. I nodded. For a second, there were two of him—but it was just my vision acting up again. We began to walk together. I took a good look at him. It was obvious he hadn’t been using for years. Even the last time I saw him, I figured out that he wasn’t a frequent visitor of St. Jimmy.
“You don’t know who I am, do you?� He asked. I was taken aback. Why should I know who he was? I thought. I just shook my head. He laughed. “Figures. How long’ve you been using?�
“I…umm…I don’t know,� I said. “What about you?�
His smile dropped, his green eyes glowing with a sort of anger. “I stopped, a long time ago. Do you like the band Green Day?� He asked suddenly.
Green Day, I thought. The band. Of course I liked them. They’d been around since the ‘90’s. I owned practically all of their CD’s. I struggled to recall the band member’s names. Mike something…Tre Cool (I always remembered his name)…and…and…what was the other one? Oh yeah, Billie Joe. Billie Joe had always been my “idol�. Apparently Green Day had a new CD out, one that I’d never heard.
“Yeah. At home….I had all of their CD’s. They’ve got a new one, I’ve never heard. Mike, Tre Cool, and Billie Joe.� I said. Then I looked up at him. He was smiling. And it hit me. He was from Green Day. Green Eyes, as I’d grown to call him, was…no, it couldn’t be….
“Oh. My. God. You’re not…you can’t be…� I looked around. There weren’t any paparazzi. “You’re…Billie Joe?� I whispered.
He was still smiling. “That’s my name, don’t wear it out.�
