Madferit

And I Wanna be There When You Hit the Ground

            The Be Here Now sessions were a fucking mess. There was so much coke blowing around in the recording studio, you'd have thought you were in the Arctic tundra. I don't even know why I was there to be honest. Liam and Noel invited me. Good enough reason to be there I guess.

The songs were good of course even though Noel didn't agree. I think a lot of it had to do with drug induced paranoia. It seemed to be getting the better of him at that point. His arrogance was still there though and it was just as strong as the others'. Or other, really. Liam was the only one to match him in cockiness. Bonehead and Guigsy acted like they couldn't really be arsed.

They kept quiet (which I suppose was the norm for Guigs) and just did their parts. Noel gave them orders and they followed.

The tracks that were about to be put on there were so fucking long. They were good, don't get me wrong, but most of them averaged nearly seven minutes in length. But the lyrics were catchy so I suppose that made it worth the while.

Then there was another issue which my heart broke for – Peggy was sick. Some sort of blood infection. The doctors were keeping her in the hospital for observation and testing.

The boys went to visit her as often as they could but she told them not to fret.

"Don't worry, Loves." She assured them in her sweet voice that had been weakened a bit by exhaustion. "I'll be alright."

They took her words to heart as best they could and then got on with their work.

"Right." Noel said to Liam as they got in position to record a track. "You remember how it goes?"

"Yeah." Liam replied with a nod.

Noel told me he'd written the song a long time ago. Before Oasis had signed a record deal. It was kind of hard to believe considering its lyrical content and the situation their mother was in.

But he was adamant the song was older than it seemed. Just as Liam was adamant he knew the words. They'd practiced it together a few times, just the two of them. They were actually getting along.

It made my heart melt just a little.

The opening riff began and when it was time, Liam's angelic voice came into play. He got through about half of the first verse before he stopped, shaking his head.

The others stopped their instruments as well.

"What the fuck's up with you?" Noel asked getting irritated. "Why'd ya stop?"

"Fuck that!" Liam replied still shaking his head. "I can't be singing this song."

"What d'ya mean ya can't?!"

"I just can't! I've gotta go off for a bit. I'll be back later."

And with that, he left the studio.

"Liam!" Noel called after him. "Liam!"

But it was no use.

"Well I'm not chasin' after him. Fuck that!"

"Fine." I said. "I'll go."

I left the studio and headed down the hallway. It was quiet until I heard something. It sounded like someone sniffing and snorting.

'More coke.' I thought as I pushed open the door and went inside.

But it wasn't. In fact, there were no drugs to be seen.

The only thing in the room was Liam – sitting on the floor with his back against the bottom front of the couch. Tears were streaming down his face and a lit cigarette sat smoldering in the ash tray on the floor beside him.

"Liam?" I asked curiously as I sat down next to him. "What's wrong?"

"Sh-, sh-, she's gonna die." He replied as he sobbed. "That song and those fuckin' words to it. She's gonna-"

He dropped his face onto my shoulder and started to bawl hysterically.

"Shh!" I said as I rubbed his back. "It's okay. Everything's gonna be alright."

"No it won't!" He looked up at me. "The doctors think it's cancer. What am I gonna do? I can't lose me mam! I can't! I-"

"Relax!" I tried soothing him. "You've gotta stay positive. For her sake and yours."

He sniffed at his tears but I think his crying had finally subsided. "Think she's gonna be alright?" He asked his eyes filled with so much worry and seriousness.

"I hope so." I replied. It probably wasn't the answer he wanted to hear but it was the only one I could give him.

He threw himself at me in a hug and squeezed me tight. Our Liam was always one for needing coddled.

"I love you, Addie." He said quietly. "I know I don't say that enough but-"

"It's okay." I assured him. "I love you too."

He squeezed me again and I made sure to do the same to him.

"C'mon." He said as he let go and got up. "I'm better now. Let's get back in there so we don't piss off our Noel."

I was glad to see his spirits rise. I hoped it would continue.

To get him through is mother's illness and finish recording what would probably be another blinding album.

Author's Note:

Another "trial run"/peek into what could come. I really want to go ahead and turn this into a full story. It might take a while though due to other things in my life outside of writing as well as updating my other stories. Hopefully I can get it started soon. Thanks again for reading!