Part Two, chapter 5
I'm not getting any younger as long as you don't get any older
"Hey I thought Vi was coming!" Mike looked at the door to see if Violet had stayed somewhere behind.
"She is coming later. She's graduating college in five months and she's working so much I think her head is going to explode for taking in too much information." Billie told his friend and tried finding Tre.
"But I don't get it... " Mike continued. "It's her birthday!"
"Yeah but you know Vi... " Billie sighed. "If she has one thing stuck in her mind... "
Mike laughed and patted Billie friendly on the back. "I know Vi." He said, smiling. "I just don't see the fucking point of a birthday party if the birthday girl is missing."
"You don't? Well look over there." Billie pointed at Tre's direction. He was making out with a girl and had a bottle of wine, almost empty, in his hands. "Right." Mike nodded and both he and Billie started laughing again. "So what did you get Violet?" Mike asked.
"A new camera because she likes to embarrass me and take photos of me when I look like shit and the Pink Panther DVD set. We were watching 'The Pink Panther Strikes Again' last week and I was afraid she might get a heart attack from laughing so much."
"She'll love those presents."
"Did you get her something?"
"Paul McCartney tickets. Will you let me take her?"
"Fuck she's gonna be thrilled about that! Clever move man." Billie complemented his band mate. "And yeah sure you can take her there."
Just then Tre walked over to them, his mouth entirely covered by lipstick.
"Hey. SO when is your girlfriend going to be there? I'm getting bored." He told Billie.
"You were eating that poor girl's face just a few seconds ago and now you're getting bored?"
"Dah! It's not like I've never made out with anyone. Now I want to say nasty jokes to your girl to annoy her. I think that's my favorite thing to do."
"She'll be here. She's just doing her homework."
"Jesus. Homework." A disgusted expression appeared on Tre's face.
"I know. She actually likes it. I think she's gonna be bumped when college is done." Billie predicted.
"Is it normal that all we can talk about is Violet?" Mike wondered. "What did we use to say when Billie hadn't hooked up with her?"
They all stayed silent for a moment, trying to remember. "I guess things we used to talk about then weren't really important." Billie came to conclusion and finished his drink just when the doorbell rung and Mike went to answer. Violet was looking beautiful as always.
She gave Mike a tight hug and he guided her to the living room when she ran to Billie's arms and kissed him. "Birthdays are always so much fun." She shouted happily and everyone cheered. "Wait 'till you see the presents, baby." Billie warned her not to get ultra excited yet. She moved and talked to everyone, laughing all the time, walking with grace and confidence like she always did.
"I'm sorry I'm late." She apologized once she had the chance to be with Green Day alone. "But I was in a middle of a really important paper and I knew that if I stopped I wouldn't be able to finish."
"It's okay baby." Billie kissed her forehead. "Actually it was better this way because the guys and I planned out a little last minute surprise for you."
"Really?" she clapped her hands and jumped enthusiastically for a second.
"What is it? I want to see my surprise!"
"Okay! Stay right here."
And with that, Billie, Tre and Mike got away from her and disappeared into Mike's room. The lights went down two minutes after that and everyone started murmuring and asking what was going on.
"Hello people... " Billie's voice was heard from a microphone. "Thanks for coming tonight. Since I'm the birthday girl's boyfriend you'd think I'd sit quietly and talk about stuff with you all but as it seems I always want attention." The lights went back on and there was Billie, holding his guitar, having Mike next to him and Tre behind him, also ready to play.
"So I told the band that was supposed to play tonight to take the day off and... here I am with my buddies!!" the small crowd went wild. "Before we start there is something I want to say though... " he said looking at Violet.
"Do you know who is considered to be the fifth member of the Beatles?" The whole party laughed. "No seriously does anyone know? No? Not one? Okay I do. It's George Martin; their producer. Yeah they wouldn't be the same without him." Everybody clapped their hands, amused.
"Okay how about this: Which was the first film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, Direction, Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress? You don't know that either? Well surprise! I do! It was 'It Happened One Night'. It was released in 1933." Billie accepted applause again.
"Alright I know I sound like a fucking preppy but the truth is that lately I've been learning so many things I want to share some with you. I tell you being in love with Vi is like going to school!" They all cheered for Violet this time. "Except without teenies and boring teachers." Billie added.
"Anyway we should start the program. I love you little lady over there. Happy birthday." He winked at Violet and after everyone had stopped cheering he started playing Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On", one of his girlfriend's favorite songs.
There's no return from 86 don't even try
Billie heard Violet's name being called and he felt his heart beating faster. He was amazed by how quickly the tears were welling up on his eyes as he saw her walking towards the stand, her gown too long to reveal her growing belly.
Her lips approached the microphone and words started flying from her mouth...
"When I found out that I had been accepted in this college I was sure it was the happiest day of my life... " she said. "I made a promise that I was going to give myself entirely to this cause, never get distracted by anything else because that is the way to succeed. Three years have passed since then and what I have been taught is that you can not possibly avoid getting distracted."
Billie thought she shot him a glance.
"I know now that college is not only for learning new things in order to get the job you always wanted. College is the perfect place to collect experiences. All kinds of experiences; from having to find something negative in the work of Alfred Hitchcock to spilling your coffee right at your teacher's shirt. I am aware of the fact that there are more important things than college ahead of me. Spending three years of my life here however is my guarantee that I will be able to appreciate all those things... " and her lips kept on moving.
"Congratulations." Billie took her in his arms and wondered how many times he was going to say that word to her in their future. A lot, he was sure. "Thanks baby. Did you like me up there?"
"You were amazing." He kissed her cheek. "Now... where is our next stop?"
"Doctor's appointment. Baby growing inside of me."
"Right. Are you feeling ok today by the way?"
"Yeah I was nervous about having to make a speech in front of all those people though." Billie grinned and kissed her again. "You did great. I loved it."
"Thank you Mr. Armstrong."
The doctor's face was unreadable. Billie couldn't tell whether his child was okay or not and not having the control of a situation was what made him go crazy. Violet on the other hand was completely calm, smiling even while the doctor's machine was going up and down her stomach.
"Oh my God." She whispered looking at the screen.
"WHAT?" Billie asked panicked, holding her hand tightly.
"Billie, look!"
"What? What's going on I can't see anything!"
"Mr. Armstrong calm down. There is an unexpected surprise here... "
"You're going to kill me! Tell me what's going on!"
"Billie there's two of them!"
"Two heads????"
"No two babies! We're having twins!"
Billie stayed silent and approached the screen to try and figure out where his babies were. The doctor pointed two tiny little things, unbelievably close to each other and that was it. He covered his mouth with his one hand while the other kept holding Violet.
"Next month we will be able to know the sex of both of your children. Congratulations yet again." Violet let her blouse cover her stomach and the doctor went to open the lights.
Billie kept watching the blank screen, trying to realize that he was actually going to take care of those two little creatures inside of Violet in some months. Their life was getting serious. They would have to behave like grown ups. Violet could pull it off with no problem.
He just wasn't so sure about his punk self.
She got up and smiled at him, kissing him sweetly on his nose. She was ready to be a mother even though she was still so young. The look on her face showed that. "Two babies. Now we have one for each." She told him, laughing and put on her jacket. "Yeah... wow." Billie managed to say and hugged her.
She slept all the way home and he couldn't help but steal glances at her resting her head on the car's window, holding her belly and breathing in and out. She seemed so pure and innocent like that.
He made a promise to himself never to be the one to spoil this perfect image of her nor to let anyone else do so.
She was just a young girl, his young girl, who needed protection.
"Hey I thought Vi was coming!" Mike looked at the door to see if Violet had stayed somewhere behind.
"She is coming later. She's graduating college in five months and she's working so much I think her head is going to explode for taking in too much information." Billie told his friend and tried finding Tre.
"But I don't get it... " Mike continued. "It's her birthday!"
"Yeah but you know Vi... " Billie sighed. "If she has one thing stuck in her mind... "
Mike laughed and patted Billie friendly on the back. "I know Vi." He said, smiling. "I just don't see the fucking point of a birthday party if the birthday girl is missing."
"You don't? Well look over there." Billie pointed at Tre's direction. He was making out with a girl and had a bottle of wine, almost empty, in his hands. "Right." Mike nodded and both he and Billie started laughing again. "So what did you get Violet?" Mike asked.
"A new camera because she likes to embarrass me and take photos of me when I look like shit and the Pink Panther DVD set. We were watching 'The Pink Panther Strikes Again' last week and I was afraid she might get a heart attack from laughing so much."
"She'll love those presents."
"Did you get her something?"
"Paul McCartney tickets. Will you let me take her?"
"Fuck she's gonna be thrilled about that! Clever move man." Billie complemented his band mate. "And yeah sure you can take her there."
Just then Tre walked over to them, his mouth entirely covered by lipstick.
"Hey. SO when is your girlfriend going to be there? I'm getting bored." He told Billie.
"You were eating that poor girl's face just a few seconds ago and now you're getting bored?"
"Dah! It's not like I've never made out with anyone. Now I want to say nasty jokes to your girl to annoy her. I think that's my favorite thing to do."
"She'll be here. She's just doing her homework."
"Jesus. Homework." A disgusted expression appeared on Tre's face.
"I know. She actually likes it. I think she's gonna be bumped when college is done." Billie predicted.
"Is it normal that all we can talk about is Violet?" Mike wondered. "What did we use to say when Billie hadn't hooked up with her?"
They all stayed silent for a moment, trying to remember. "I guess things we used to talk about then weren't really important." Billie came to conclusion and finished his drink just when the doorbell rung and Mike went to answer. Violet was looking beautiful as always.
She gave Mike a tight hug and he guided her to the living room when she ran to Billie's arms and kissed him. "Birthdays are always so much fun." She shouted happily and everyone cheered. "Wait 'till you see the presents, baby." Billie warned her not to get ultra excited yet. She moved and talked to everyone, laughing all the time, walking with grace and confidence like she always did.
"I'm sorry I'm late." She apologized once she had the chance to be with Green Day alone. "But I was in a middle of a really important paper and I knew that if I stopped I wouldn't be able to finish."
"It's okay baby." Billie kissed her forehead. "Actually it was better this way because the guys and I planned out a little last minute surprise for you."
"Really?" she clapped her hands and jumped enthusiastically for a second.
"What is it? I want to see my surprise!"
"Okay! Stay right here."
And with that, Billie, Tre and Mike got away from her and disappeared into Mike's room. The lights went down two minutes after that and everyone started murmuring and asking what was going on.
"Hello people... " Billie's voice was heard from a microphone. "Thanks for coming tonight. Since I'm the birthday girl's boyfriend you'd think I'd sit quietly and talk about stuff with you all but as it seems I always want attention." The lights went back on and there was Billie, holding his guitar, having Mike next to him and Tre behind him, also ready to play.
"So I told the band that was supposed to play tonight to take the day off and... here I am with my buddies!!" the small crowd went wild. "Before we start there is something I want to say though... " he said looking at Violet.
"Do you know who is considered to be the fifth member of the Beatles?" The whole party laughed. "No seriously does anyone know? No? Not one? Okay I do. It's George Martin; their producer. Yeah they wouldn't be the same without him." Everybody clapped their hands, amused.
"Okay how about this: Which was the first film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, Direction, Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress? You don't know that either? Well surprise! I do! It was 'It Happened One Night'. It was released in 1933." Billie accepted applause again.
"Alright I know I sound like a fucking preppy but the truth is that lately I've been learning so many things I want to share some with you. I tell you being in love with Vi is like going to school!" They all cheered for Violet this time. "Except without teenies and boring teachers." Billie added.
"Anyway we should start the program. I love you little lady over there. Happy birthday." He winked at Violet and after everyone had stopped cheering he started playing Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On", one of his girlfriend's favorite songs.
There's no return from 86 don't even try
Billie heard Violet's name being called and he felt his heart beating faster. He was amazed by how quickly the tears were welling up on his eyes as he saw her walking towards the stand, her gown too long to reveal her growing belly.
Her lips approached the microphone and words started flying from her mouth...
"When I found out that I had been accepted in this college I was sure it was the happiest day of my life... " she said. "I made a promise that I was going to give myself entirely to this cause, never get distracted by anything else because that is the way to succeed. Three years have passed since then and what I have been taught is that you can not possibly avoid getting distracted."
Billie thought she shot him a glance.
"I know now that college is not only for learning new things in order to get the job you always wanted. College is the perfect place to collect experiences. All kinds of experiences; from having to find something negative in the work of Alfred Hitchcock to spilling your coffee right at your teacher's shirt. I am aware of the fact that there are more important things than college ahead of me. Spending three years of my life here however is my guarantee that I will be able to appreciate all those things... " and her lips kept on moving.
"Congratulations." Billie took her in his arms and wondered how many times he was going to say that word to her in their future. A lot, he was sure. "Thanks baby. Did you like me up there?"
"You were amazing." He kissed her cheek. "Now... where is our next stop?"
"Doctor's appointment. Baby growing inside of me."
"Right. Are you feeling ok today by the way?"
"Yeah I was nervous about having to make a speech in front of all those people though." Billie grinned and kissed her again. "You did great. I loved it."
"Thank you Mr. Armstrong."
The doctor's face was unreadable. Billie couldn't tell whether his child was okay or not and not having the control of a situation was what made him go crazy. Violet on the other hand was completely calm, smiling even while the doctor's machine was going up and down her stomach.
"Oh my God." She whispered looking at the screen.
"WHAT?" Billie asked panicked, holding her hand tightly.
"Billie, look!"
"What? What's going on I can't see anything!"
"Mr. Armstrong calm down. There is an unexpected surprise here... "
"You're going to kill me! Tell me what's going on!"
"Billie there's two of them!"
"Two heads????"
"No two babies! We're having twins!"
Billie stayed silent and approached the screen to try and figure out where his babies were. The doctor pointed two tiny little things, unbelievably close to each other and that was it. He covered his mouth with his one hand while the other kept holding Violet.
"Next month we will be able to know the sex of both of your children. Congratulations yet again." Violet let her blouse cover her stomach and the doctor went to open the lights.
Billie kept watching the blank screen, trying to realize that he was actually going to take care of those two little creatures inside of Violet in some months. Their life was getting serious. They would have to behave like grown ups. Violet could pull it off with no problem.
He just wasn't so sure about his punk self.
She got up and smiled at him, kissing him sweetly on his nose. She was ready to be a mother even though she was still so young. The look on her face showed that. "Two babies. Now we have one for each." She told him, laughing and put on her jacket. "Yeah... wow." Billie managed to say and hugged her.
She slept all the way home and he couldn't help but steal glances at her resting her head on the car's window, holding her belly and breathing in and out. She seemed so pure and innocent like that.
He made a promise to himself never to be the one to spoil this perfect image of her nor to let anyone else do so.
She was just a young girl, his young girl, who needed protection.
