Thank You

Ch.49 The Static Age

The next day Anna was the first one to wake up,so she got ready and grabbed her board and went out to go get coffee,and when she walked out the door she found a passed out Billie on the porch,so she stepped over him and rode to Starbucks and got coffee for everyone and rode back and Billie was still passed out on the porch,so she set her board down and knelt down besides him and spoke
"Hey Billie,Billie wake up"and he just kinda moved slightly
'Billie wake up,you passed out on the porch"and so he woke up and Anna handed him a cup of coffee and he spoke
"Crap I passed out on the fucking porch,ughh"he said taking a drink of his coffee
"Yeah,and how did you even end up out here"she said sitting down next to him
"I couldn't sleep and I wanted to be alone,so I came out here and I guess I passed out"
"Oh,well it's like 8:30 so you have time to wake up"
"Thank god"he said smiling
"Are you guys gonna like speak for me or something'
"You mean testify,and of course we are,I talked about it with the guys and Adrienne and they said they would totally do it because we love you"he said ruffling Anna's hair smiling,and when you are sleep deprived like he is,you're kinda slap happy,so she didn't care
"Yeah I love you too and thanks,I just want my dad to have custody"
"Me too,you don't need to deal with her or her shit anymore,you should be happy"
"Yeah well you make me happy"
"Right back at you"Billie said giving her a hug
"Yeah,wanna head inside"
"Sure"so they got up and Billie almost fell over and Anna just laughed,so they headed inside where the guys and Adrienne were awake
"Morning guys" and they all said good morning and Mike spoke
"Billie,dude did you pass out on the porch"
'Yeah"he said laughing,then Anna spoke
"Well its like 9:00,so we still have two hours before we have to be there,so what should we do"
"We could show Mike and Tre Recordhead"
"What's that"Mike asked
"Its a music store that is not far from here"
"Oh cool"
"Thank lets go"so Billie,Mike,and Anna skated,and Tre rode Anna's Bmx bike,so they rode there and went in and Mike and Tre had the same reaction that Billie had when he was there for the first time and Mike spoke
"This place is really cool"
"Yeah I mostly come here and check stuff out'
"Cool"so Mike looked at the guitars and Tre looked at the drums,and Billie looked at the vinyls for a little bit then went over where Anna was looking at Cds and spoke
"So what ya looking for"
"Sum 41"
"Cool"
"But I can't fucking find it"
'Want help"
"Sure"so Billie found it for Anna and she found the three Cds that she wanted and then she showed Billie where the Ramone Cds were and Anna swears to fucking god his eyes sparkled or some shit when he saw it and spoke
"Y'know there was one Ramones Cd that I could never find"and then his face was priceless
"Holy fuck I just fucking found it,okay this is my favorite music store"and Anna was just laughing at how happy Billie was and spoke
"You legit look like a kid in a candy store"
"What I'm happy"he said smiling
"Awesome,so wanna check out"
'Sure" so they walked up to the counter and it was a different dude then last time and his face was priceless
"Holy fucking shit,are all the members of Green Day really standing in my store"
"Yep"
"Um can I get a picture with all of you guys"
"Of course"so the dude handed Anna his phone and Mike and Tre came over there and she took the picture and handed his phone back to him
"Thanks whatever you guys picked out is free"
'Okay thanks man"
"Yep"so they left Billie was happy with his Ramones Cd and Anna was happy with her three Sum 41 Cds,so they headed over to Starbucks and got more coffee of course and Anna saw girls from her old school there,so Anna spoke
"Nope"and walked out and waited outside so the guys just got coffee,and went out by her and Billie spoke
"That was actually probaly the best move,so they didn't do any shit to you"
"Yeah,I'm not dealing with their petty shit today"
"I wanted to go punch them but I would like to not get arrested"
"Yeah,and I wouldn't blame you if you did",and they looked at the time and it was already 10:00,so they headed home,with Cds and coffee in hand,and when they got there Scott was there
'Hey dad"
"Hi kiddo"so everyone went and got ready,and when everyone was done and it was around 10:30 so they left and when they got there is was ten to 11:00 so they headed in and waited,then when 11:00 hit they went in the little sort of court room you could call it,because it was family court not like criminal court,so Billie,Mike,Tre,and Adrienne sat in the back of the room and Anna sat next to her dad and she looked across the room and saw her mom,in fucking tears and the judge spoke
"We are here to descuss the matter of Anna's father being given full custody and why her mother is not fit for custody,Anna"
"Yes"
"Would you like to come up here and explain why you want to be with your dad and not your mom"
"Sure" and legally in the state of Wisconsin when you are 12 you can go before a judge and say you want one of your parents to have full custody so she can legally speak for herself because she's 14,so she stood up and walked over to a chair next to where that judge sat and spoke
"I am allowed to swear"
"Uh keep it to a minimum"
"Okay,well I think my dad should have custody because my mom has put me through hell my entire life,I always felt like I was unwanted by her and that I never really had a mom,well in my mind I don't anymore"
"Can you elaborate"
"Sure,well my entire life I have endured verbal,emotional,and a few times physical abuse from her"
"Really,is this true Mrs.Kushner"the judge said turning to Tiffany
"Um no your honor"
"She's lying,she hurt me so bad when I was three she almost broke my arm,when I was five she slapped me so hard my cheek was red for two days,and when I was ten she was yelled at me and my dad so much I stormed out into the stair well and she put my hands behind my back like she was arresting me and left bruises on my wrists and then ran me through the house and threw me on her bed and yelled at me"
"Mrs.Kushner that is child abuse,you know that"
"Yes"
"So Anna when did things start really getting bad"
"When I was ten she brought some random dude home and guilt tripped me into going out to eat with them and put me in a situation I should not have been in and I would go to school and punch myself in the jaw because of how bad she made me fee,she blamed me for everything one time I almost broke my jaw and i had bruises and no teachers noticed"
"There was no reason to hurt yourself,you did nothing wrong"
"I know that now"
"Can you continue"
"Sure,um after I turned 13 I got really depressed and everything that happened in the past with my mom kinda cought up with me and so my mom was the main reason for my depression and then I realized my sexuality and I was so fucked up I had to stay home from school and one day I took a pair of scissors and gave myself five little cuts on my left wrist but I stopped the same day"
"Oh,is that why you are wearing a wristband"
"Yeah and Billie has the other one and wears it too,for me"and she looked at Billie and smiled
"That is sweet"
"Yeah,um if I may I feel that those four people over there are more of a family to me then my own biologic family is well except for my dad,I cut everyone off because of how dysfunctional my family is and how much pain they caused"
"Oh I didn't notice that you were family friends with Green Day"
"Yeah,me and my dad went to California and my dad was hit by a car and Billie heard the crash and called the ambulance and I stay with him and his wife Adrienne and we just became really close I guess"and Anna was smiling at what she said
"Do you have anything else to add"
"Yeah that my mom picked her racist,sexist,inconsiderate,jerk now husband over me and that's why I don't have a relationship with her,along with all the other crap she has done"
'Okay you can step down"so she went and sat down next her dad
"Mr.Kushner will you come up here and speak"
"Yes your honor"so Scott got up and sat down in the chair and the judge spoke
"So can you elaborate on the times Anna said her mother hurt her"
"Yes,when Anna was three her mom was mad at Anna for some reason and Anna was sitting up on a bar stool and so her mom grabbed her arm and very forcefully pulled her off the stool so much that she almost broke Anna's arm,when she was five Anna was playing and messing around and payfully hitting her mom and she didn't know better and her mom was fed up with it and she slapped Anna across the face and her cheek was red for two days,and everything Anna said about when she was ten is accurate"
"Okay,so why do you think Tiffany is an unfit mother"
"She has put Anna through so much pain and she is never happy with her mom between the verbal and emotional abuse I am actually concerned when Anna was over there"
"I see,thank you,you may step down"
"Okay and if I may your honor I would like Billie,Mike,Tre,and Adrienne to speak on Anna's behalf"
'I don't see why not"so Scott went and sat back down next to Anna and the judge spoke
"Mr.Armstrong,would you come up here and speak'
"Yes your honor"so Billie got up and went and sat down in the chair
"So Mr.Armstrong why do you think Anna's dad should have custody of her'
"Well everything Anna explained to me about her life at her mom's house broke my heart and she has had multiple breakdowns because of her mom and what she put her through,I love Anna and I never want to see or hear anyone again put her through that much pain"
"Would you elaborate"
"Sure,well when we flew up here for the first time after Anna and Scott left California,when she went by her mom's not even an hour that she had been there she called me crying because her mom and her boyfriend now husband were yelling at her and she was hiding in the closet,and so I went and got her and she stayed with us at the hotel and then a day later her mom called her and started fighting with her and said that we weren't her family and I almost cried when I heard that come out of her mom's mouth because she doesn't know what we've been through together and all the good times and that we can actually promise that we will never hurt her and we love and care about Anna,and yeah"
"I see anything else"
"Yes and after we got back to the hotel,Anna explained her past to me and what her mom put her through and she said that blood means jack shit to her and that my wife Adrienne had acted more like a mom to her then her own mom had and we haven't known Anna her entire life unlike her mom,thats all"
"Okay,you may step down"so he stepped down and gave Anna a hug and went and sat back down
"Mr.Dirnt,will you come up here and speak"
"Yes your honor"so Mike got up and went and sat in the chair and the judge spoke
"Mr.Dirnt why do think Anna's dad should be given full custody of her"
"Well her mom from what she explained,her mom has never been there for her,physically sure but otherwise no,and that is why she says that she doesn't have a mom,and I remember back in Oakland we went up to this point that looked over the city and Anna passed out and Billie had a breakdown because one,he was gonna miss having her around in Oakland,and two because of how worried he was that she was coming back to bascially hell,because of her mom and what she puts herself through,like we got out of the car so we didn't wake Anna up and Billie would have fell to the ground if I didn't catch him and it killed me and Tre to see him like that and we were also worried about her having to go back to that,and just what her mom has put her through, Anna is an awesome kid,I love her and she grew up way too fast because of her mom"
"Is that all"
"Yes your honor'
"Okay you may step down"so he did and he gave Anna a hug and sat back down
"Mr.Armstrong,it seems you care about Anna a lot" and Billie spoke
"Yep,I love her like my own kid and never want to see her get hurt"he said smiling
"Okay then,Mr.Cool would you come up here and speak"
"Yes your honor"so Tre got up and went and sat in the chair
"Mr.Cool,first of all cool name and secondly why do think that Anna's dad should have full custody"
"Thanks,and he should have custody because he loves his daughter more then anything in the world and she deserves better the her mom because of what she has put Anna through,like there is no reason that she should have grown up so fast just because of her mom, anyway Scott is an amazing dad and he would never want Anna to be miserable,but she is by her mom's,like she couldn't even stay over there without Facetiming Billie crying because her mom was yelling at her or did something,she deserves way better then that and I know it kills me,the guys,and Adrienne to see Anna go through that and she is not even our kid,but she for sure is family to us and we love and we want her to be happy and not miserable and she is just an amazing kid"
"Is that all"
"Yes"
"Okay,you may step down"so Tre did and gave Anna a hug and sat back down and the judge spoke
"Mrs.Armstrong,will you come up here and speak"
"Gladly your honor"so Adrienne got up and sat down in the chair
"So Mrs.Armstrong why do you think Anna's dad should have full custody"
"Well,what Mike said what Anna puts herself through,she told me and Billie that she would at her mom's house force herself to stay up all night so she could have some peace and quiet and no one yelling at her,and it broke our hearts because she started crying when it was time to go to sleep,so Billie came up with the idea to sing her to sleep and I recorded it so she could have it back at her mom's house"
"Thats nice"
"And where was her mom when the father of her child was in a coma in another state,and when she was having breakdowns,when she played her first show of the tour,when she was in the hospital for six weeks,her 14th birthday,she hasn't been there for Anna and she picked her boyfriend over her own flesh and blood and she dosen't even care and yes it is true that Anna said that I was more like a mom to her then her own mom and that kinda just broke my heart that she even would think or say that,her mom is a bad mom,how much she has put Anna through I want to cry everytime I think about it because it is just not right,we love and care about her so much and we don't to see her be put through hell by her own mother,and her dad is an amazing dad,back when they were still in Oakland, the week they were leaving he left everyday just so Billie and Anna could spend time together because thats how much he cared,and he even cried because he was guilty about them leaving because I told him that Billie had a breakdown,mainly about them leaving,thats how much he cared and that is why I think that Scott should have full custody of Anna"
"Thank you Mrs.Armstrong you can step down now"so she did and gave Anna a hug and sat back down and that judge spoke
"I have come to the conclusion that it is in the best interest that full custody is awarded to Anna's dad" and everyone had tears of joy in their eyes and Billie immediately got up and hugged Anna and spoke
"Are you happy"
'Heck yeah",then Adrienne hugged her
"I'm so happy are you"
"Of course" and then they all gave her hugs,and after her mom came up to her and spoke
"Anna I just want you to know I love you and I will always love you"
"Yeah bullshit you don't love me you wouldn't have put me through hell I you did,and now you lost me so bye I'm officially done with your shit"and they all walked out and flipped her mom off and Billie spoke
"Oh yeah I forgot we have a show tonight"he said laughing as they walked out
"Oh where is it"and then Billie had a smirk on his face
"Miller Park"
"Wait you're telling me that we are playing fucking Miller Park"
"Yep"
"Wow" and Anna was just standing there in shock,so they headed back home and surprisingly it only took two hurs so it was only like 1:00,so they relaxed
"Hey Anna,wanna listen to what we got"
'Of course"so Anna loaded up her dad's five disc carousell stereo, and they just sat on the floor,they didn't care,so they listened to Billie's Ramone's Cd first,then Anna's three Sum 41 Cds and when the song Walking Disaster came on Anna laid down and just sighed and smiled and Billie noticed
"Hey whats up"
"Nothing its just that the first time I heard this song I felt a pit in my stomach and I felt true freedom,I actually knew what it was gonna feel like when I get the hell outta here,and leave the people and places behind,and just ditch my past" and Billie just gave her a hug and spoke
"I love how much you apperciate music and how much it effects you and you can relate to it and you're just real"he said smiling and Anna smiled
"Thanks,like since I've been ten I've thought that when I'm 18 I'm kicking it to somewhere,and y'know where that somewhere is"she said smiling
"Huh"
"Oakland"she said looking up at Billie and he just smiled
"Well y'know where to find me"
"Yeah,I just gotta leave this place behind and the people,like its holding me back"
"I get exactly what you mean,so do you wanna practice"
"Sure,um can we play Walking Disaster tonight"
"Of course"so they came up with the setlist
-16
-My Generation
-Longview
-Christie Rd
-Pulling Teeth
-St.Insomnia
-American Idiot
-Castaway
-Punk Rocker,13
-Knowledge
-Bang Bang
-Posers
-Frankie
-Holiday
-The World Starts
-No Locks
-Revoultion Raadio
-Still Breathing
-Scars
-Strung Out
-Walking Disaster
-Good Ridance
-Thank You
So they practiced and ran through the list until they had to leave and they had to leave at 8:00,so they packed up and headed over to Miller Park and set up and did a soundcheck and Billie just stood there in awe when Anna was playing her songs,so after they relaxed and Anna went up in the rafters of the stage and Billie found her and sat down by her
"Hey"
"Hi"and Billie noticed that Anna looked upset
"Hey whats wrong"
"Nothing I just I don't know,today kinda opened up some old wounds,and i just don't really know how to deal with them and I really thank you guys for saying what you said and stuff"
"Oh and you're welcome,we just told the truth,and I swear hearing that your mom actually hurt you,I was actually fighting tears"
"Yeah,I just kinda feel numb now and like when I was ten thats all I felt and I fucking hate it"and Billie just gave her a hug
"Its okay ,and I'll help you through the show"
"Thanks Billie"she said smiling
"Like I have to appluad Adrienne for what she said,man did she trash my mom"she said laughing
"Yeah I like almost started laughing'
"Yeah me too,but like that judge was really nice,and like he actually said that you care about me a lot and I almost cried tears of joy because of what you said"
"Yeah he was and I mean what I said,I look at you like a daughter to me in a way and its ture I never want to see you get hurt and I love you"he said giving Anna a hug and gave her a kiss on her forehead
"I love you too Billie"she said smiling
"We have to go on in a few minutes so we should get down"
"Yeah"so they climbed down and they relaxed for a few minutes,then it was time to go on and Adrienne gave Anna a hug,then she was walking across the stage with the guys,Billie grabbed Blue and Anna grabbed Frankie and stood in front of their mics and Billie spoke
"How you doin Milwaukee"and the crowd cheered
"Well lets make this the most kick ass show ever"and the crowd lost it as they jumped into 16,and Billie noticed that Anna looked upset so he went over by her while playing and gave her a hug,and she smiled,so they played through the list and when it hit Scars,Anna started crying and fell to the ground,so Billie stopped playing and Mike and Tre kept playing but were worried about Anna,but just kept playing so people didn't get too concerned, andwent over and knelt down next to her and hugged her and spoke
"Hey its okay"he said smiling and she looked up at him and he wiped her tears off and she smiled and Billie helped her up,and they kept singing and she felt better but Billie knew that something was still off,so they played and when Walking Disaster hit Anna spoke
"The first time I heard this song I was sitting at my mom's old house in my bed at three in the morning and I remember I got a pit in my stomach and I actually felt freedom,real freedom,i felt what it was gonna be like when I leave this town and the people in it behind and today my dad was awarded full custody of me and I couldn't be happier and this song kinda described the situation and this is my favorite Sum 41 song,this song is called Walking Disaster"so they played it and by the end of it Anna was in tears of joy,adn Billie just gave her a hug and before they played Thank You Anna spoke
"Change of plans,alright this song is called Rejected"
-We were yelled at,kick out,beat up,cussed out,out numbered,someone's entertainment,a practical joke,excluded,laughed at,unwanted,rejected,turned stray,unlike all those who did we're real,we're rejected guess that makes us real because we're the ones who feel,no gave us a fair warning everyone would be so boring,we acted fun and got rejected,became undectected,well guess what they all ended up getting injected-
And when she was done she looked up and Billie was smiling and then gave her a hug and he spoke
"Give it up for Anna"and the crowd cheered like hell
"This next song is also by Anna,and its called Thank You"so they played Thank you and when they were done they were both in tears of joy and Billie gave her a hug,and he knew something was off and had a bad feeling like something bad was gonna happen,but he didn't let it get to him right now because he just played a kick ass show and Anna spoke
"Give it up for Mr.Billie Joe Armstrong,Mr.Mike Dirnt,and last but not least Mr.Tre Cool we love you and goodnight"so the confette cannons went off and they walked off stage and Adrienne hugged Anna and spoke
"You did amazing"
'Thanks" so they cooled down for a little bit and Billie spoke
"Ice cream?" and they all agreed,so they packed up and headed over to Baskin Robbins and got ice cream and went adn sat up on the roof of the church,and ate there ice cream adn just talked and joked,but Billie got a really bad feeling,he knew something bad was gonna happen,so they hung out for  a bit then headed home,and Scott was gone at his girlfriend's house so it was just them and they were all tired so they went to bed,and it was around 11:00 andBillie tried to fall asleep but he couldn't with the terrible gut feeling he had, and about two hours he heard crying coming from Anna's room,so he got up and quietly opened her door and she was sitting against her bed with scissors in her hand and fresh small cuts on her left wrist,with tears streaming down her face,so he shut her door and knelt down next to her and took the scissors from her hand and immediately pulled her into his arms and he was fighting back tears
"Hey its okay,you're okay"
"No I-I'm not I-I relapsed,I-I was c-clean for a year and I-I just lost it"she said still crying
"Hey we'll get through this together and I love you okay"
"O-Okay"so Billie stood her up and they went in the bathroom and he cleaned up her cuts and it was only three,and she was still silently crying and so after he was done cleaning her cuts he put her wristband back on her wrist,to cover them up and he kissed it,and she looked up and stared at him and he just smiled, and he wiped her tears off and and just smiled and held her hand so she knew that it was okay
"Better" and she just nodded, and she practically refused to let go of his hand but he didn't care,so they went in the kitchen,and Billie made two cups of  hot cocoa,and grabbed a fluffy blanket off the couch and they headed back in her room and he kick the scissors under her bed and he turned on Ordinary World on the TV,and they sat on the bed,with the fluffy blanket around them drinking hot cocoa watching Ordinary World and Billie spoke
"Hey guess what"
"Hmh"
"I get to take you to see Blink-182,Sum 41,and Fall Out Boy all in the course of a week next month"and that resulted in a small smile from Anna,and by the time the movies was over she was passed out leaning against Billie,still holding his hand,and he smiled,and she was out cold,so he quietly got up and laid her down and covered her up with the fluffy blanket and gave her a kiss on her forehead and grabbed the empty cups and the scissors and walked in the kitchen and he cleaned off the scissors and put them in a different drawer so Anna wouldn't know where they were and just having to do that made him start to tear up,how much it broke his heart to see her like that so after he did that,he did what he thought had to be done,he went over to Tiffany's house and banged on the door and Tiffany opened it
"Billie what are you doing here,its 3:00 in the fucking morning"
"Anna fucking relapsed because she had to fucking relive the hell you put her through,she cut again,this is your fucking fault,she was clean for a year"and now he had tears rolling down his face
"It broke my fucking heart to see her like that,this is on you,god I fully 100% know why the fuck she hates you and I hate you 100x's more,because this is your fault,god I'm so fucking glad that she cut you the fuck out of her life,you put her through fucking hell since she has been three years old, we are all done with your shit,and don't try to call Anna or Scott ever again got it"and tears were still streaming down his face,and before Tiffany could say anything he stormed off and by the time he got back to Scott's he was cooled down and so he grabbed a pillow and a blanket and headed back into Anna's room and he just slept on the floor,so she would be okay when she woke up,and he thought,god what was he gonna explain to everyone tomorrow.