So, where was Billie Joe Armstrong's amazing place of infinite happiness and rainbows that was expected to make me soar with eternal gratefulness and appreciation for life? A dodgy old burrito shop on the corner of a street that was on what many people called, metaphorically and literally, "the wrong side of the train tracks". But I had to admit, after I had stuffed my face with food that wasn't going to give me salmonella or some weird disease like that and wasn't was served by a hair-netted lady who probably spat in it, I was feeling oddly better.
"Still pouring out there." My companion informed me with the latest weather-update as we sat drinking cherry-cola in a booth by a window.
"Yeah." I noted.
Then he pulled out that tattered, discarded notebook and scribbled down a few words in a messy hand, before sighing, closing it and looking back out to the dull, empty street.
"Writer?" I asked.
"Of sorts. I write songs."
"You never told me that."
"It's expected; we've only known each other for less than 24 hours."
I shrugged, too tired to feel bested by the comment.
"I'm in a band." He explained, running a hand through his unruly dark hair.
"Everyone seems to be." I scoffed.
"Who?" He asked, as if surprised.
"Just these two guys I was talking to last night said they were in bands." I mumbled, not really paying attention to the conversation but instead watching two raindrops race each other down the glass.
"What were their names?"
"Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool. Weird names now that I've come to..."
"YOU'RE the girl?!"
My head snapped up at his exclamation. His emerald eyes were wide with shock.
"Huh?" I asked dumbly.
"They're my best friends. And today they were fighting over some chick they met at the party last night. You must be... Shit." He brought a hand to his face.
I surprised us both by laughing.
"I'm sorry but... fighting over ME? Yeah you have the wrong lady dude..." I chuckled, sipping on my drink. He rolled his eyes.
"Come on, you're like the hottest girl we've had around for... pretty much ever. And now all the fuckwads have got their dicks in a knot."
I didn't know how to exactly reply to that comment, so after turning bright red I just sort of shrugged and looked out the window again. The rain had lightened to just a mere drizzle now and a few rays of sunshine could be seen peeping through the hazy clouds.
"Look, maybe your gig will be on after all."
He turned his head to outside and grinned, his emerald eyes lighting up with excitement.
"Awesome! Well let's go!"
He left some money on the table and grabbed his notebook, waiting for me expectantly.
"What?"
"You're coming aren't you?"
"To where?"
"The gig dumbass!"
"Oh! Well I don't know if I can I mean my parents..."
"It won't run really late and I can get you home by 8, I'm sure they can live without your stimulating conversation for a few hours."
I decided to ignore his smug sarcasm on the last part.
"But-"
"Hey, look..." He leaned over me, our faces inches away from each other. I could smell cola on his breath and those eyes were piercing into me and I don't know, maybe my heart skipped a beat.
"...look. I know you don't really know me and hell I don't really know you but goddamnit I've got a good feeling about this and I really just want you to come along and I think maybe we could get to sorta like each other. Y'know, you're a pretty cool girl and you like music and I think you might have fun. So what do you say?"
It came out fast and rambling but yet he sounded so sure, and jesus if he kept looking at me the way he was I didn't really know what was going to happen, so I did the only thing I could.
"Alright. Lead on Billie In The Sky With Diamonds."
His whole face lit up as we ran out of the burrito shop, just as sun burst from behind the thick layer of grey. And god, for some reason as our feet slapped on the wet pavement and we were both laughing like lunatics, I felt amazing. It was just one of those moments that seize you, that remind you that we are all living, with air in our lungs and stardust in our blood and universes in our minds. We barely even slowed when we got a few streets over, past the train tracks at Christie Road and past the little suburban homes full of little suburban people.
I barely heard him laugh under his breath.
"I can't wait to see the look on those motherfuckers' faces..."
A/N Sorry for not updating for ages, my computer was being a bitch. I'm sorry this chapter was really shit but I'm on break now so the next one's going to be better I swear.
